PRINCE CHERRY
LONG ago there lived a monarch, who was such a very, honest man that hissubjects entitled him the Good King. One day, when he was out hunting,a little white rabbit, which had been half-killed by his hounds,leaped right into his majesty's arms. Said he, caressing it: "This poorcreature has put itself under my protection, and I will allow no one toinjure it." So he carried it to his palace, had prepared for it a neatlittle rabbit-hutch, with abundance of the daintiest food, such asrabbits love, and there he left it.
The same night, when he was alone in his chamber, there appeared tohim a beautiful lady. She was dressed neither in gold, nor silver,nor brocade; but her flowing robes were white as snow, and she wore agarland of white roses on her head. The Good King was greatly astonishedat the sight; for his door was locked, and he wondered how so dazzling alady could possibly enter; but she soon removed his doubts.
"I am the fairy Candide," said she, with a smiling and gracious air."Passing through the wood where you were hunting, I took a desire toknow if you were as good as men say you are I therefore changed myselfinto a white rabbit and took refuge in your arms. You saved me and now Iknow that those who are merciful to dum beasts will be ten times more soto human beings. You merit the name your subjects give you: you are theGood King. I thank you for your protection, and shall be always oneof your best friends. You have but to say what you most desire, and Ipromise you your wish shall be granted."
"Madam," replied the king, "if you are a fairy, you must know, withoutmy telling you, the wish of my heart. I have one well-beloved son,Prince Cherry: whatever kindly feeling you have toward me, extend it tohim."
"Willingly," said Candide. "I will make him the handsomest, richest, ormost powerful prince in the world: choose whichever you desire for him."
"None of the three," returned the father. "I only wish him to begood--the best prince in the whole world. Of what use would riches,power, or beauty be to him if he were a bad man?"
"You are right," said the fairy; "but I can not make him good: hemust do that himself. I can only change his external fortunes; forhis personal character, the utmost I can promise is to give him goodcounsel, reprove him for his faults, and even punish him, if he will notpunish himself. You mortals can do the same with your children."
"Ah, yes!" said the king, sighing. Still, he felt that the kindness of afairy was something gained for his son, and died not long after, contentand at peace.
Prince Cherry mourned deeply, for he dearly loved his father, and wouldhave gladly given all his kingdoms and treasures to keep him in life alittle longer. Two days after the Good King was no more, Prince Cherrywas sleeping in his chamber, when he saw the same dazzling vision of thefairy Candide.
"I promised your father," said she, "to be your best friend, and inpledge of this take what I now give you;" and she placed a small goldring upon his finger. "Poor as it looks, it is more precious thandiamonds; for whenever you do ill it will prick your finger. If, afterthat warning, you still continue in evil, you will lose my friendship,and I shall become your direst enemy."'
So saying, she disappeared, leaving Cherry in such amazement that hewould have believed it all a dream, save for the ring on his finger.
He was for a long time so good that the ring never pricked him at all;and this made him so cheerful and pleasant in his humor that everybodycalled him "Happy Prince Cherry." But one unlucky day he was out huntingand found no sport, which vexed him so much that he showed his illtemper by his looks and ways. He fancied his ring felt very tight anduncomfortable, but as it did not prick him he took no heed of this:until, re-entering his palace, his little pet dog, Bibi, jumped upupon him and was sharply told to get away. The creature, accustomed tonothing but caresses, tried to attract his attention by pulling at hisgarments, when Prince Cherry turned and gave it a severe kick. At thismoment he felt in his finger a prick like a pin.
"What nonsense!" said he to himself. "The fairy must be making game ofme. Why, what great evil have I done! I, the master of a great empire,cannot I kick my own dog?"
A voice replied, or else Prince Cherry imagined it, "No, sire; themaster of a great empire has a right to do good, but not evil. I--afairy--am as much above you as you are above your dog. I might punishyou, kill you, if I chose; but I prefer leaving you to amend yourways. You have been guilty of three faults today--bad temper, passion,cruelty: do better to-morrow."
The prince promised, and kept his word a while; but he had been broughtup by a foolish nurse, who indulged him in every way and was alwaystelling him that he would be a king one day, when he might do as heliked in all things. He found out now that even a king cannot always dothat; it vexed him and made him angry. His ring began to prick him sooften that his little finger was continually bleeding. He dislikedthis, as was natural, and soon began to consider whether it would not beeasier to throw the ring away altogether than to be constantly annoyedby it. It was such a queer thing for a king to have a spot of blood onhis finger! At last, unable to put up with it any more, he took his ringoff and hid it where he would never see it; and believed himself thehappiest of men, for he could now do exactly what he liked. He did it,and became every day more and more miserable.
One day he saw a young girl, so beautiful that, being always accustomedto have his own way, he immediately determined to espouse her. He neverdoubted that she would be only too glad to be made a queen, for shewas very poor. But Zelia--that was her name--answered, to his greatastonishment, that she would rather not marry him.
"Do I displease you?" asked the prince, into whose mind it had neverentered that he could displease anybody.
"Not at all, my prince," said the honest peasant maiden. "You are veryhandsome, very charming; but you are not like your father the Good King.I will not be your queen, for you would make me miserable."
At these words the prince's love seemed all to turn to hatred: he gaveorders to his guards to convey Zelia to a prison near the palace,and then took counsel with his foster brother, the one of all his illcompanions who most incited him to do wrong.
"Sir," said this man, "if I were in your majesty's place, I would nevervex myself about a poor silly girl. Feed her on bread and water tillshe comes to her senses; and if she still refuses you, let her die intorment, as a warning to your other subjects should they venture todispute your will. You will be disgraced should you suffer yourself tobe conquered by a simple girl."
"But," said Prince Cherry, "shall I not be disgraced if I harm acreature so perfectly innocent?"
"No one is innocent who disputes your majesty's authority," said thecourtier, bowing; "and it is better to commit an injustice than allow itto be supposed you can ever be contradicted with impunity."
This touched Cherry on his weak point--his good impulses faded; heresolved once more to ask Zelia if she would marry him, and if she againrefused, to sell her as a slave. Arrived at the cell in which she wasconfined, what was his astonishment to find her gone! He knew not whomto accuse, for he had kept the key in his pocket the whole time. Atlast, the foster-brother suggested that the escape of Zelia might havebeen contrived by an old man, Suliman by name, the prince's formertutor, who was the only one who now ventured to blame him for anythingthat he did. Cherry sent immediately, and ordered his old friend to bebrought to him, loaded heavily with irons. Then, full of fury, he wentand shut himself up in his own chamber, where he went raging to and fro,till startled by a noise like a clap of thunder. The fairy Candide stoodbefore him.
"Prince," said she, in a severe voice, "I promised your father to giveyou good counsels and to punish you if you refused to follow them. Mycounsels were forgotten, my punishment despised. Under the figure of aman, you have been no better than the beasts you chase: like a lion infury, a wolf in gluttony, a serpent in revenge, and a bull in brutality.Take, therefore, in your new form the likeness of all these animals."
Scarcely had Prince Cherry heard these words than to his horror he foundhimself transformed into what the Fairy had named. He was a creatu
rewith the head of a lion, the horns of a bull, the feet of a wolf, andthe tail of a serpent. At the same time he felt himself transported toa distant forest, where, standing on the bank of a stream, he sawreflected in the water his own frightful shape, and heard a voicesaying:
"Look at thyself, and know thy soul has become a thousand times ugliereven than thy body."
Cherry recognized the voice of Candide, and in his rage would havesprung upon her and devoured her; but he saw nothing and the same voicesaid behind him:
"Cease thy feeble fury, and learn to conquer thy pride by being insubmission to thine own subjects."
Hearing no more, he soon quitted the stream, hoping at least to get ridof the sight of himself; but he had scarcely gone twenty paces when hetumbled into a pitfall that was laid to catch bears; the bear-hunters,descending from some trees hard by, caught him, chained him, and onlytoo delighted to get hold of such a curious-looking animal, led himalong with them to the capital of his own kingdom.
There great rejoicings were taking place, and the bear-hunters, askingwhat it was all about, were told that it was because Prince Cherry,the torment of his subjects, had just been struck dead by athunderbolt--just punishment of all his crimes. Four courtiers, hiswicked companions, had wished to divide his throne between them; but thepeople had risen up against them and offered the crown to Suliman, theold tutor whom Cherry had ordered to be arrested.
All this the poor monster heard. He even saw Suliman sitting upon hisown throne and trying to calm the populace by representing to them thatit was not certain Prince Cherry was dead; that he might return one dayto reassume with honor the crown which Suliman only consented to wear asa sort of viceroy.
"I know his heart," said the honest and faithful old man; "it istainted, but not corrupt. If alive, he may reform yet, and be all hisfather over again to you, his people, whom he has caused to suffer somuch."
These words touched the poor beast so deeply that he ceased to beathimself against the iron bars of the cage in which the hunters carriedhim about, became gentle as a lamb, and suffered himself to be takenquietly to a menagerie, where were kept all sorts of strange andferocious animals a place which he had himself often visited as a boy,but never thought he should be shut up there himself.
However, he owned he had deserved it all, and began to make amends byshowing himself very obedient to his keeper. This man was almost asgreat a brute as the animals he had charge of, and when he was in illhumor he used to beat them without rhyme or reason. One day, while hewas sleeping, a tiger broke loose and leaped upon him, eager to devourhim. Cherry at first felt a thrill of pleasure at the thought of beingrevenged; then, seeing how helpless the man was, he wished himself free,that he might defend him. Immediately the doors of his cage opened.The keeper, waking up, saw the strange beast leap out, and imagined, ofcourse, that he was going to be slain at once. Instead, he saw the tigerlying dead, and the strange beast creeping up and laying itself at hisfeet to be caressed. But as he lifted up his hand to stroke it, a voicewas heard saying, "Good actions never go unrewarded;" and instead ofthe frightful monster, there crouched on the ground nothing but a prettylittle dog.
Cherry, delighted to find himself thus metamorphosed, caressed thekeeper in every possible way, till at last the man took him up intohis arms and carried him to the king, to whom he related this wonderfulstory, from beginning to end. The queen wished to have the charminglittle dog; and Cherry would have been exceedingly happy could he haveforgotten that he was originally a man and a king. He was lodged mostelegantly, had the richest of collars to adorn his neck, and heardhimself praised continually. But his beauty rather brought him intotrouble, for the queen, afraid lest he might grow too large for a pet,took advice of dog-doctors, who ordered that he should be fed entirelyupon bread, and that very sparingly; so poor Cherry was sometimes nearlystarved.
One day, when they gave him his crust for breakfast, a fancy seized himto go and eat it in the palace garden; so he took the bread in his mouthand trotted away toward a stream which he knew, and where he sometimesstopped to drink. But instead of the stream he saw a splendid palace,glittering with gold and precious stones. Entering the doors was a crowdof men and women, magnificently dressed; and within there was singingand dancing and good cheer of all sorts. Yet, however grandly and gaylythe people went in, Cherry noticed that those who came out were pale,thin, ragged, half-naked, covered with wounds and sores. Some of themdropped dead at once; others dragged themselves on a little way andthen lay down, dying of hunger, and vainly begged a morsel of bread fromothers who were entering in--who never took the least notice of them.
Cherry perceived one woman, who was trying feebly to gather and eat somegreen herbs. "Poor thing!" said he to himself; "I know what it is to behungry, and I want my breakfast badly enough; but still it will kill meto wait till dinner time, and my crust may save the life of this poorwoman."
So the little dog ran up to her and dropped his bread at her feet; shepicked it up and ate it with avidity. Soon she looked quite recovered,and Cherry, delighted, was trotting back again to his kennel, when heheard loud cries, and saw a young girl dragged by four men to the doorof the palace, which they were trying to compel her to enter. Oh, howhe wished himself a monster again, as when he slew the tiger!--for theyoung girl was no other than his beloved Zelia. Alas! what could a poorlittle dog do to defend her? But he ran forward and barked at the men,and bit their heels, until at last they chased him away with heavyblows. And then he lay down outside the palace door, determined to watchand see what had become of Zelia.
Conscience pricked him now. "What!" thought he, "I am furious againstthese wicked men, who are carrying her away; and did I not do the samemyself? Did I not cast her into prison, and intend to sell her as aslave? Who knows how much more wickedness I might not have done to herand others, if Heaven's justice had not stopped me in time?"
While he lay thinking and repenting, he heard a window open and sawZelia throw out of it a bit of dainty meat. Cherry, who felt hungryenough by this time, was just about to eat it, when the woman to whom hehad given his crust snatched him up in her arms.
"Poor little beast!" cried she, patting him, "every bit of food in thatpalace is poisoned: you shall not touch a morsel."
And at the same time the voice in the air repeated again, "Good actionsnever go unrewarded;" and Cherry found himself changed into a beautifullittle white pigeon. He remembered with joy that white was the color ofthe fairy Candide, and began to hope that she was taking him into favoragain.
So he stretched his wings, delighted that he might now have a chanceof approaching his fair Zelia. He flew up to the palace windows, and,finding one of them open, entered and sought everywhere, but he couldnot find Zelia. Then, in despair, he flew out again, resolved to go overthe world until he beheld her once more.
He took flight at once and traversed many countries, swiftly as a birdcan, but found no trace of his beloved. At length in a desert, sittingbeside an old hermit in his cave and par-taking with him his frugalrepast, Cherry saw a poor peasant girl and recognized Zelia. Transportedwith joy, he flew in, perched on her shoulder, and expressed his delightand affection by a thousand caresses.
She, charmed with the pretty little pigeon, caressed it in her turn, andpromised it that if it would stay with her she would love it always.
"What have you done, Zelia?" said the hermit, smiling; and while hespoke the white pigeon vanished, and there stood Prince Cherry in hisown natural form. "Your enchantment ended, prince, when Zelia promisedto love you. Indeed, she has loved you always, but your many faultsconstrained her to hide her love. These are now amended, and you mayboth live happy if you will, because your union is founded upon mutualesteem."
Cherry and Zelia threw themselves at the feet of the hermit, whose formalso began to change. His soiled garments became of dazzling whiteness,and his long beard and withered face grew into the flowing hair andlovely countenance of the fairy Candide.
"Rise up, my children," said she; "I must
now transport you to yourpalace and restore to Prince Cherry his father's crown, of which he isnow worthy."
She had scarcely ceased speaking when they found themselves in thechamber of Suliman, who, delighted to find again his beloved pupil andmaster, willingly resigned the throne, and became the most faithful ofhis subjects.
King Cherry and Queen Zelia reigned together for many years, and it issaid that the former was so blameless and strict in all his duties thatthough he constantly wore the ring which Candide had restored to him, itnever once pricked his finger enough to make it bleed.