Part 7 (2/2)

At last she went to the King, her father, and said:

”As my love can no longer come back to me because I forgot my promise and betrayed him, I must go out into the world and hunt him. Unless I find him life will not be worth the living. So do not oppose me, father, but help me. Have three pairs of iron shoes made for me and three iron staffs. I will wander over the wide world until these are worn out and then, if by that time I have not found him, I will come home to you.”

So the King had three pairs of iron shoes made for the Princess and three iron staffs and she set forth on her quest. She traveled through towns and cities and many kingdoms, over rough mountains and desert places, looking everywhere for her enchanted love. But nowhere could she find any trace of him.

At the end of the first year she had worn out the first pair of iron shoes and the first iron staff. At the end of the second year she had worn out the second pair of iron shoes and the second iron staff. At the end of the third year, when she had worn out the third pair of iron shoes and the third staff, she returned to her father's palace looking thin and worn and sad.

”My poor child,” the King said, ”I hope now you realize that the Pigeon Prince is gone forever. Think no more about him. Go back to your embroidery and when the roses begin blooming in your cheeks again we'll find some young prince for you who isn't enchanted.”

But the Princess shook her head.

”Let me try one thing more, father,” she begged, ”and then if I don't find my love I'll do as you say.”

The King agreed to this.

”Well, then,” the Princess said, ”build a public bath-house and have the heralds proclaim that the King's daughter will sit at the entrance and will allow any one to bathe free of charge who will tell her the story of the strangest thing he has ever heard or seen.”

So the King built the bath-house and sent out his heralds far and wide.

Men and women from all over the world came and bathed and told the Princess stories of this marvel and that, but never, alas, a word of an enchanted pigeon.

The days went by and the Princess grew more and more discouraged.

”Isn't it sad,” the courtiers began whispering, ”how the Princess has lost her looks! Do you suppose she ever was really beautiful or did we just imagine it?”

And the neighboring kings when they heard this remarked softly among themselves:

”It's just as well we didn't hurry one of our sons into a marriage with this young woman!”

[Ill.u.s.tration: _The Princess Kissed Its Coral Beak_]

Now there was a poor widow who lived near the bath-house. She had a daughter, a pretty young girl, who used to sit at the window and watch the Princess as people came and told her their stories.

”Mother,” the girl said one day, ”every one in the world goes to the bath-house and I want to go, too!”

”Nonsense!” the mother said. ”What story could you tell the Princess?”

”But everybody else goes and I don't see why I can't!”

”Well, my dear,” the mother promised, ”you may just as soon as you see or hear something strange. Talk no more about it now but go, fetch me a pitcher of water from the town well.”

The girl obediently took an empty pitcher and went to the town well.

Just as she had filled the pitcher she heard some one say:

”Mercy me, I fear I'll be late!”

She turned around and what do you think she saw? A rooster in wooden shoes with a basket under his wing!

<script>