When a hundred years were gone and past, the son of the King then reigning, and who was of another family from that of the sleeping Princess, being gone hunting on that side of the country, asked what were those towers which he saw in the middle of a great thick wood.

Everyone answered according as they had heard; some said that it was a ruinous old castle, haunted by spirits; others, that all the sorcerers and witches of the country kept there their sabbath. The common opinion was that an Ogre lived there, and that he carried thither all the little children he could catch, that he might eat them up at his leisure.

The Prince was at a stand, not knowing what to believe, when a very aged countryman spoke to him thus:

—"May it please your Royal Highness, it is now above fifty years since I heard my father, who had heard my grandfather, say that there then was in this castle, a Princess, the most beautiful that was ever seen; that she must sleep there a hundred years, and should be awaked by a king's son; for whom she was reserved."

The young Prince was all on fire at these words, believing, without a moment's doubt, that he could put an end to this rare adventure; and pushed on by love and honor, resolved that moment to look into it.

Scarce had he advanced towards the wood, when all the great trees, the bushes and brambles, gave way of themselves to let him pass through. He walked up to the castle which he saw at the end of a large avenue; and what a little surprised him was, that he saw none of his people could follow him, because the trees closed again, as soon as he had passed through them. However, he did not cease from continuing his way; a young and amorous Prince is always valiant.

He came into a spacious outward court, where everything he saw might have frozen up the most fearless person with horror. There reigned over all a most frightful silence; the image of death everywhere showed itself, and there was nothing to be seen but stretched out bodies of men and animals, all seeming to be dead. He, however, very well knew, by the ruby faces of the guards, that they were only asleep.

He then crossed a court paved with marble, went up the stairs, and came into the guard-chamber, where the guards were standing in their ranks, with their muskets upon their shoulders, and snoring as loud as they could. After that he went through several rooms full of gentlemen and ladies, all asleep, some standing, others sitting.

At last he came into a chamber all gilded with gold, where he saw, upon a bed, the curtains of which were all open, the finest sight that was ever beheld: a Princess, who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen years of age, and whose bright and resplendent beauty had somewhat in it divine. He approached with trembling and admiration, and fell down before her upon his knees.

And now, as the enchantment was at an end, the Princess awaked, and looking on him with eyes more tender than the first view might seem to admit of:

—"Is it you, my Prince," said she to him, "you have tarried long."

The Prince, charmed with these words, and much more with the manner in which they were spoken, knew not how to show his joy and gratitude; he assured her that he loved her better than he did himself. In short, when they talked four hours together, they said not half what they had to say.

In the meanwhile, all the palace awaked; everyone thought upon their particular business. The Prince helped the Princess to rise; she was entirely dressed, and very magnificently. They went into the great hall, where they supped, and were served by the Princess's officers. After supper, without losing any time, the lord almoner married them in the chapel of the castle.

The Prince left her next morning to return into the city, where his father must have been anxious on his account. The Prince told him that he lost his way in the forest. The King his father believed him; but his mother could not be persuaded this was true.

The Prince lived with the Princess above two whole years, and had by her two children. The eldest, who was a daughter, was named Aurora, and the youngest, who was a son, they called Day, because he was even handsomer and more beautiful than his sister.

The Queen said more than once to her son that a young man must take his pleasure; but he never dared to trust her with his secret; he feared her, though he loved her, for she was of the race of the Ogres, and the King would never have married her had it not been for her vast riches; it was even whispered about the Court, that she had Ogreish inclinations, and that, whenever she saw little children passing by, she had all the difficulty in the world to refrain from falling upon them. And therefore the Prince would never tell her one word.

But when the King was dead, which happened about two years afterwards, and he saw himself lord and master, he openly declared his marriage; and he went in great ceremony to fetch his Queen from the castle. They made a magnificent entry into the capital city, she riding between her two children.

Some time after, the King went to make war upon the Emperor. He left the government of the kingdom to the Queen his mother, and earnestly commended to her care his wife and children. He was obliged to continue his expedition all the summer, and as soon as he departed, the Queen-mother sent her daughter-in-law and her children to a country house among the woods, that she might with the more ease gratify her horrible longing.

Some days afterwards she went there herself, and said to her clerk of the kitchen:

—"I will eat little Aurora for my dinner tomorrow."

—"Ah! Madam," cried the clerk of the kitchen.

—"I will have it so," replied the Queen (and this she spoke in the tone of an Ogress, who had a strong desire to eat fresh meat), "and will eat her with a sharp sauce."

The poor man, knowing very well that he must not play tricks with Ogresses, took his great knife and went up into little Aurora's chamber. She was then four years old, and came up to him jumping and laughing, to throw her arms about his neck, and ask him for some sugar-candy. Upon which he began to weep, the great knife fell out of his hand, and he went into the back-yard, and killed a little lamb, and dressed it with such good sauce, that his mistress assured him she had never eaten anything so good in her life.

He had at the same time taken up little Aurora, and carried her to his wife, to conceal her in the lodging he had at the end of the court-yard.

About eight days afterwards, the wicked Queen said to the clerk of the kitchen: "I will sup upon little Day."

He answered not a word, being resolved to cheat her, as he had done before. He went to find out little Day, and saw him with a little foil in his hand, fencing with a great monkey; the child being then only three years of age. He took him up in his arms, and carried him to his wife, that she might conceal him along with his sister, and in the room of little Day cooked up a young kid very tender, which the Ogress found to be wonderfully good.

This was hitherto all mighty well: but one evening this wicked Queen said to her clerk of the kitchen:

—"I will eat the Queen with the same sauce I had with her children."

It was now that the poor clerk of the kitchen despaired of being able to deceive her. The young Queen was turned of twenty; he took then a resolution, that he might save his own life, to go tell the young Queen.

—"Do it, do it," said she stretching out her neck, "execute your orders, and then I shall go and see my children, my poor children, whom I so much and so tenderly loved," for she thought them dead.

—"No, no, Madam," cried the poor clerk of the kitchen, all in tears, "you shall not die, and yet you shall see your children again; but it must be in my lodgings, where I have concealed them, and I shall deceive the Queen once more, by giving her in your stead a young hind."

Upon this he forthwith conducted her to his chamber; where leaving her to embrace her children, and cry along with them, he went and dressed a hind, which the Queen had for her supper, and devoured it with the same appetite, as if it had been the young Queen.

One evening, as she was rambling round about the courts and yards of the palace, she heard, in a ground-room, little Day crying, and she heard, at the same time, little Aurora begging pardon for her brother.

The Ogress knew the voice of the Queen and her children, and being quite mad that she had been thus deceived, she commanded next morning, by break of day, that they should bring into the middle of the great court a large tub, which she caused to be filled with toads, vipers, snakes, and all sorts of serpents, in order to have thrown into it the Queen and her children, the clerk of the kitchen, his wife and maid.

They were brought out accordingly, and the executioners were just going to throw them into the tub, when the King (who was not so soon expected) entered the court on horseback and asked, with the utmost astonishment, what was the meaning of that horrible spectacle.

No one dared to tell him; when the Ogress, all enraged to see what had happened, threw herself head-foremost into the tub, and was instantly devoured by the ugly creatures she had ordered to be thrown into it for others. The King could not but be very sorry, for she was his mother; but he soon comforted himself with his beautiful wife and his pretty children.