SO the worst was averted, but the fate of the poor little Princess was
still terrible enough, and it was only to be expected that the King
should do his best to prevent the prophecy from coming to fulfilment.
The first thing he did was to summon all the magicians of his own and
neighbouring countries, promising a rich reward to the one who could
show him a way to defeat the old fairy's malice. The magicians came in
scores, some with long beards reaching to their feet, some without any
beards at all, some with bald heads, and some with matted hair that
looked as though it had not been combed for centuries. For days there
were so many magicians about the palace that they were commoner than
cats, and it was impossible to enter any room without surprising one or
the other of them, sitting in deep reflection and looking as wise as
only a magician can look. But nothing came of their thinking, and one
after the other they gave up the task and departed, having first asked
for their travelling expenses.
At last there came a wizard who was wiser and more venerable than all
the rest, and when he heard what was required of him he said he would go
home and consult his secret books which contained the magic lore of all
the ages, and which had been written by the greatest of all the
magicians, Merlin himself.
Home, then, he went, to his cell, which was in a rocky cliff on the side
of a mountain, and having uttered the word of power which unlocked the
massive door, he entered and prepared to begin his researches.
[Illustration]
Now the books of magic lore which Merlin had written were in many
volumes, and everything in them was set down in alphabetical order, so
that it could be found easily. The old wizard, therefore, turned first
of all to the word _Princess_. Five hundred pages were devoted to this
subject, and, truly, there was a great deal of very interesting
information. As thus:--
PRINCESS: How to transform Goosegirl into.
Spell for causing Princess to be surrounded
with high walls of bronze, which may by no
means be broken down except by the notes of a
certain trumpet (_q.v._).
(Now _q.v._ are the first letters of two magic words which are to be
found in all dictionaries and encyclopaedias to this day).
PRINCESS: Enchanted ring for.
A new and improved method by which she may be
changed into a fawn together with any members
of her family according to desire, and all of
them transformed back again into their proper
shape.
PRINCESS: An excellent device for causing a
Princess to grow tall or short by eating of a
mushroom, with directions how to find the place
where the mushroom grows, and precautions to be
taken lest by over-much nibbling she disappear
altogether.
And so on. But there was never a word about how to prevent a Princess
from falling into a charmed sleep through pricking her finger with the
spindle of a spinning-wheel.
So when he had read all through the five hundred pages, the venerable
wizard turned to the word _Sleep_, in the hope that he would meet with
better fortune.
And there was much reliable information under this heading also. There
were recipes for potent drugs which would cause sleep, and for still
more potent drugs which would prevent people from going to sleep, and
when the wizard came to this last he cried out eagerly, for he thought
that he had succeeded in his quest, until he read on and discovered that
the spell described was only for use on wicked Queens who had shamefully
ill-used their step-children. It is very easy to make a mistake in
magic, for it is a most complicated science.
By the time he had read through the two hundred pages devoted to the
word _Sleep_, the venerable wizard was very uneasy, but he was a
persevering person and he did not abandon his endeavours. Merlin's wise
books having failed him, he cast about for other means to learn what he
desired, and consulted his oracle.
Now his oracle was a stuffed crocodile hanging from the ceiling, and a
voice came from it which told him to repeat the magic formula.
The magic formula is a sentence made up of all the sounds that are left
out of ordinary speech, and it is a fearsome thing to listen to. It is
also very exhausting to say, and after the venerable wizard had repeated
it, he was obliged to rest for several hours. Then he rose again and
drew pentagons on the rocky floor of his cave, and crossed triangles and
circles bordered with all the signs of the Zodiac. And he stood in the
middle of the pentagons and the crossed triangles and the circles and
went through all sorts of strange and secret rites, but all to no
purpose.
[Illustration]
But still he would not give up trying; and he went to mysterious places
in the woods and gathered strange herbs in the dark of the moon. And,
returning home, he cast the herbs into a brazier and they burnt with
flames of many colours, giving out clouds of dense smoke and a most
horrible smell. Then, as these exercises did not bring him the result
he desired, he gazed into crystals and poured ink into the palm of his
hand, and did all the other things that he had learnt to do in all the
years since he was apprenticed to magic as a very small boy.
And just as he was going to give up the quest in despair, a thought came
into his head, and he cried aloud for joy, for he knew he had discovered
what he sought. This shows how even the most difficult things may be
attained by perseverance and patience.
At the top of his speed he hastened back to the palace and asked an
audience of the King. This was immediately granted, for, to tell the
truth, the King was awaiting his return with considerable anxiety.
"Well," said he, "have you succeeded in finding a way?"
"I have," answered the venerable wizard. "My arts have not failed me!"
And he handed the King a piece of parchment on which were written the
following words. They were written in Latin to make them look more
important, but very likely it was not good Latin, for the venerable
wizard had been apprenticed to his trade at an early age, and in
consequence his classical education had been somewhat neglected. But
this was the meaning of them:
Shall spindle prick?--then spindle burn,
No thread weave and no wheel turn;
If there's no spindle and there's no wheel,
Then no finger the spindle can feel.
The King slapped his thigh for joy. "Why, of course!" said he. "How is
it that I did not myself think of such a simple solution? It seems to
me, Wizard, that you have easily earned your thousand crowns!"
"Ah, Majesty," the wizard made answer, "all things are simple when once
you know them."
And in this he was quite right.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]