Four and Twenty Fairy Tales: Selected from Those of Perrault, and Other Popular Writers
General
Four and Twenty Fairy Tales: Selected from Those of Perrault, and Other Popular Writers
Fairy tales
The butterflies placed the throne near Ravissante; she seated herself
on it, and they bore her away. Ariston, distracted at the loss of the
Princess, in a paroxysm of despair, flung himself into the sea. The
Fairy immediately abandoned the rock which this suicide had rendered
so fatal and melancholy; and to mark her fury, she shivered both it
and the tower into a thousand pieces by a clap of thunder, and the
fragments were carried by the wind and waves to different sea-coasts.
It is of this species of stone that they now make rings, which they
call turquoise. Those which are still called "de la Vieille Roche" are
made of the remains of this shattered rock, and the others are only
stones which resemble them. The remembrance of the misfortune predicted
to Prince Ariston by the change of colour in the walls of the tower has
descended to our time. They say still that these rings become green
when any misfortune is about to happen to the wearers, and that these
misfortunes are generally connected with love affairs.
Whilst the Fairy gave vent to her grief by the destruction of the
island, the Prince of the Butterflies, satisfied at having rendered to
the Prince of Leaves a similar service to that he had received from
him, conducted the beautiful Ravissante, flying before her, to a boat
of rushes, ornamented with garlands of flowers, in which the Prince
of Leaves awaited her with all the impatience which the violence of
his love inspired. It is impossible to convey an idea of the pleasure
he felt at the arrival of the Princess; never were joy and love so
apparent as in the heart and language of this Prince. He sailed
immediately to the Island of Day. The Prince of the Butterflies flew
off to rejoin the amiable Princess of Linnets as speedily as possible.
Ravissante sent two butterflies to the King, her father, to inform him
of her good fortune; the good King thanked the Fates, and set out as
soon as he could for the Island of Day, where the Prince of Leaves and
Ravissante reigned with all imaginable felicity, and were always happy,
because they never ceased to be fond and faithful.
The lot of Ravissante with envy view--
Born to be blest could she prove only true.
How many hapless lovers had succeeded,
Had constancy been all their idols needed!
THE FORTUNATE PUNISHMENT.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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