Welcome to another enchanting episode of Drift Off,
I'm your host Joanne,
And tonight we embark on a journey to a magical aving in our cozy castle.
As the stars twinkle above,
And the moonlight casts a gentle glow over the land,
It's time to settle in for a night of enchanting stories designed to help you drift off into a peaceful slumber.
Imagine yourself as sleepy princes and princesses,
Facing a nightly challenge,
An enchantment that keeps you from finding the deep,
Restful sleep you deserve.
Each night,
You find yourself tossing and turning,
Unable to break the spell that keeps you awake.
But tonight is different,
Tonight you've found your way to this cozy castle,
A sanctuary where the enchantment holds no power.
Here you are safe and sound,
Surrounded by the warmth and comfort of soft pillows and a crackling fireplace.
Take a deep breath in,
And let the worries of the day melt away.
Feel the tension in your body dissolve as you sink into the plush cushions wrapped in the gentle embrace of the castle's comforting presence.
As you close your eyes,
And imagine yourself as the sleepy royals,
Know that you are not alone.
Many princes and princesses have come before you,
Each finding solace in our cozy castle,
Listening to tales of bravery,
Kindness,
And adventure.
Tonight I'll share with you enchanting stories of other royals,
Each one designed to help you relax and drift off to sleep.
As you listen,
Let your mind wander through the castle's peaceful halls,
Knowing that you are safe,
Loved,
And ready to fall fast asleep.
So dear royals,
Close your eyes,
Take a deep breath,
And let the magic of the stories guide you to a restful night's sleep.
The enchantment will fade away,
And you'll find yourself embraced by the cozy comfort of our castle,
Ready to dream of wonderful adventures.
Sweet dreams,
Dear princes and princesses.
Let us begin this magical journey together.
Prince Hyacinth and the Dear Little Princess Once upon a time,
There lived a king who was deeply in love with a princess,
But she could not marry anyone because she was under an enchantment.
So the king set out to seek a fairy,
And asked what he could do to win the princess's love.
The fairy said to him,
You know that the princess has a great cat which she is very fond of.
Whoever is clever enough to tread on that cat's tail is the man she's destined to marry.
The king said to himself that this would not be very difficult,
And he left the fairy determined to grind the cat's tail to powder,
Rather than not tread on it at all.
You may imagine that it was not long before he went to see the princess,
And Puss,
As usual,
Marched in before him,
Arching his back.
The king took a long step,
And quite thought he had the tail under his foot,
But the cat turned round so sharply that he only trod on air.
And so it went on for eight days,
Till the king began to think that this fatal tail must be full of quicksilver.
It was never still for a moment.
At last,
However,
He was lucky enough to come upon Puss fast asleep,
And with his tail conveniently spread out,
So the king,
Without losing a moment,
Set his foot upon it heavily.
With one terrific yell,
The cat sprang up,
And instantly changed into a tall man,
Who,
Fixing his angry eyes upon the king,
Said,
You shall marry the princess,
Because you have been able to break the enchantment,
But I will have my revenge.
You shall have a son who will never be happy until he finds out that his nose is too long,
And if you ever tell anyone what I have just said to you,
You shall vanish away instantly,
And no one shall ever see you or hear of you again.
Though the king was horribly afraid of the enchanter,
He could not help laughing at his threat.
If my son has such a long nose as that,
He said to himself,
He must always see it or feel it,
At least if he is not blind or without hands.
But,
As the enchanter had vanished,
He did not waste any more time in thinking,
But went to seek the princess,
Who very soon consented to marry him.
But after all,
They had not been married very long when the king died,
And the queen had nothing left to care for but her little son,
Who was called Hyacinth.
The little prince had large blue eyes,
The prettiest eyes in the world,
And a sweet little mouth.
But alas,
His nose was so enormous that it covered half his face.
The queen was inconsolable when she saw this great nose,
But her ladies assured her that it was not really as large as it looked,
That it was a Roman nose,
And you had only to open any history to see that every hero has a large nose.
The queen,
Who was devoted to her baby,
Was pleased with what they told her,
And when she looked at Hyacinth again,
His nose certainly did not seem to be quite so large.
The prince was brought up with great care,
And as soon as he could speak,
They told him all sorts of dreadful stories about people who had short noses.
No one was allowed to come near him whose nose did not more or less resemble his own,
And the courtiers,
To get into favor with the queen,
Took to pulling their baby's noses several times every day to make them grow long.
But,
Do what they do,
They were nothing by comparison with the prince's.
When he grew sensible,
He learned history,
And whenever any great prince or beautiful princess was spoken of,
His teachers took care to tell him that they have long noses.
His room was hung with pictures,
All of people with very large noses,
And the prince grew up so convinced that a long nose was a great beauty that he would not on any account have had his own a single inch shorter.
When his twentieth birthday was passed,
The queen thought it was time that he should be married,
So she commanded that the portraits of several princesses should be brought for him to see,
And among the others was a picture of the dear little princess.
Now she was the daughter of a great king,
And would someday possess several kingdoms herself,
But Prince Hyacinth had not a thought to spare for anything of that sort.
He was so much struck with her beauty.
The princess,
Whom he thought quite charming,
Had,
However,
A little saucy nose,
Which,
In her face,
Was the prettiest thing possible,
But it was a cause of great embarrassment to the courtiers,
Who had got into such a habit of laughing at little noses that they sometimes found themselves laughing at hers before they had time to think.
But this did not do at all before the prince,
Who quite failed to see the joke,
And actually banished two of his courtiers who had dared to mention disrespectfully the dear little princess's tiny nose.
The others,
Taking warning from this,
Learned to think twice before they spoke,
And one even went so far as to tell the prince that,
Though it was quite true that no man could be worth anything unless he had a long nose,
Still a woman's beauty was a different thing,
And he knew a learned man who understood Greek and had read in some old manuscripts that the beautiful Cleopatra herself had a tip-tilted nose.
The prince made him a splendid present as a reward for this good news,
And at once sent ambassadors to ask the dear little princess in marriage.
The king,
Her father,
Gave his consent,
And Prince Hyacinth,
Who,
In his anxiety to see the princess,
Had gone three leagues to meet her,
Was just advancing to kiss her hand when,
To the horror of all who stood by,
The enchanter appeared as suddenly as a flash of lightning,
And,
Snatching up the dear little princess,
Whirled her away out of their sight.
The prince was left quite unconsolable,
And declared that nothing should induce him to go back to his kingdom until he had found her again,
And refusing to allow any of his courtiers to follow him,
He mounted his horse and rode sadly away,
Letting the animal choose his own path.
So it happened that he came presently to a great plain,
A cross which he rode all day long without seeing a single house,
And horse and rider were terribly hungry,
When,
As the night fell,
The prince caught sight of a light which seemed to shine from a cavern.
He rode up to it,
And saw a little old woman who appeared to be at least a hundred years old.
She put on her spectacles to look at Prince Hyacinth,
But it was quite a long time before she could fix them securely,
Because her nose was so very short.
The prince and the fairy,
For that was who she was,
Had no sooner looked at one another than they went into fits of laughter,
And cried at the same moment,
Oh,
What a funny nose!
Not so funny as your own,
Said Prince Hyacinth to the fairy,
But,
Madam,
I beg you to leave the consideration of our noses,
Such as they are,
And to be good enough to give me something to eat,
For I am starving,
And so is my poor horse.
With all my heart,
Said the fairy,
Though your nose is so ridiculous,
You are,
Nevertheless,
The son of my best friend.
I loved your father as if he had been my brother.
Now he had a very handsome nose.
And pray,
What does mine lack?
Said the prince.
Oh,
It doesn't lack anything,
Replied the fairy.
On the contrary,
Quite,
There is only too much of it.
But never mind.
One may be a very worthy man,
Though his nose is too long.
I was telling you that I was your father's friend.
He often came to see me in the old times.
And you must know that I was very pretty in those days,
At least he used to say so.
I should like to tell you of a conversation we had the last time I ever saw him.
Indeed,
Said the prince,
When I have supped,
It will give me the greatest pleasure to hear it.
But consider,
Madam,
I beg of you,
That I have had nothing to eat today.
The poor boy is right,
Said the fairy.
I was forgetting.
Come in then,
And I will give you some supper.
And while you are eating,
I can tell you my story in a very few words.
For I don't like endless tales myself.
Too long a tongue is worse than too long a nose.
And I remember when I was young,
That I was so much admired for not being a great chatterer.
They used to tell the queen,
My mother,
That it was so.
For though you see what I am now,
I was the daughter of a great king.
My father,
Your father,
I dare say,
Got something to eat when he was hungry,
Interrupted the prince.
Oh,
Certainly,
Answered the fairy,
And you also shall have supper directly.
I only just wanted to tell you,
But I really cannot listen to anything until I have had something to eat,
Cried the prince,
Who was getting quite angry.
But then,
Remembering that he had better be polite,
As he much needed the fairy's help,
He added,
I know that in the pleasure of listening to you,
I should quite forget my own hunger.
But my horse,
Who cannot hear you,
Must really be fed.
The fairy was very much flattered by this compliment,
And said,
Calling to her servants,
You shall not wait another minute,
You are so polite,
And in spite of the enormous size of your nose,
You are really very agreeable.
Plague,
Take the old lady,
How does she go on about my nose,
Said the prince to himself.
None would almost think that mine had taken all the extra length that hers lacks.
If I were not so hungry,
I would soon have done with this chatterpie,
Who thinks she talks very little.
How stupid people are not to see their own faults.
That comes with being a princess,
She has been spoiled by flatterers,
Who have made her believe that she is quite a moderate talker.
Meanwhile,
The servants were putting the supper on the table,
And the prince was much amused to hear the fairy,
Who asked them a thousand questions,
Simply for the pleasure of hearing herself speak.
Especially,
He noticed one maid who,
No matter what was being said,
Always contrived to praise her mistress's wisdom.
Well,
He thought,
As he ate his supper,
I'm very glad I came here.
This just shows me how sensible I have been in never listening to flatterers.
People of that sort praise us to our faces without shame,
And hide our faults,
Or change them into virtues.
For my part,
I will never be taken in by them.
I know my own defects,
I hope.
Poor Prince Hyacinth,
He really believed what he said,
And hadn't an idea that the people who had praised his nose were laughing at him,
Just as the fairy's maid was laughing at her.
For the prince had seen her laugh slyly,
When she could do so without the fairies noticing her.
However,
He said nothing,
And presently,
When his hunger began to be appeased,
The fairy said,
My dear Prince,
Might I beg you to move a little more that way,
For your nose casts such a shadow that I really cannot see what I have on my plate.
Now let us speak of your father.
When I went to his court,
He was only a little boy,
But that is forty years ago,
And I have been in this desolate place ever since.
Tell me,
What goes on nowadays?
Are the ladies as fond of amusement as ever?
In my time,
One saw them at parties,
Theaters,
Balls,
And promenades every day.
Dear me,
What a long nose you have!
I cannot get used to it.
Really,
Madam,
Said the prince,
I wish you would leave off mentioning my nose.
It cannot matter to you what it is like.
I am quite satisfied with it,
And have no wish to have it shorter.
One must take what is given one.
Now you are angry with me,
My poor Hyacinth,
Said the fairy,
And I assure you that I do not mean to vex you.
On the contrary,
I wish to do you a service.
However,
Though I really cannot help your nose being a shock to me,
I will try not to say anything about it.
I will even try to think that you have an ordinary nose.
To tell the truth,
It would make three reasonable ones.
The prince,
Who was no longer hungry,
Grew so impatient at the fairy's continual remarks about his nose that at last he threw himself upon his horse and rode hastily away.
But wherever he came in his journeyings,
He thought the people were mad,
For they all talked of his nose,
And yet he could not bring himself to admit that it was too long.
He had been so used all his life to hear it called handsome.
The old fairy,
Who wished to make him happy,
At last hit upon a plan.
She shut the dear little princess up in a palace of crystal,
And put this palace down where the prince would not fail to find it.
His joy at seeing the princess again was extreme,
And he set to work with all his might to try to break her prison,
But in spite of all his efforts,
He failed utterly.
In despair,
He thought,
At least,
That he would try to get near enough to speak to the dear little princess,
Who,
On her part,
Stretched out her hand that he might kiss it,
But turn which way he might,
He never could raise it to his lips,
For his long nose always prevented it.
For the first time,
He realized how long it really was,
And exclaimed,
Well,
It must be admitted that my nose is too long.
In an instant,
The crystal prison flew into a thousand splinters,
And the old fairy,
Taking the dear little princess by hand,
Said to the prince,
Now,
Say if you are not very much oblige to me,
Much good it was for me to talk to you about your nose.
You would never have found out how extraordinary it was if it hadn't hindered you from doing what you wanted to do.
You see how self-love keeps us from knowing our own defects of mind and body?
Our reason tries in vain to show them to us.
We refuse to see them till we find them in the way of our interests.
Prince Hyacinth,
Whose nose was now just like anyone's else,
Did not fail to profit by the lesson he had received.
He married the dear little princess,
And they lived happily ever after.
THE PRINCESS OF CANTERBURY There lived formerly in the county of Cumberland a nobleman who had three sons,
Two of whom were comely and clever youths,
But the other a natural fool named Jack,
Who was generally engaged with the sheep.
He was dressed in a party-colored coat and a steeple-crowned hat with a tassel.
Now the king of Canterbury had a beautiful daughter who was distinguished by her great ingenuity and wit,
And he issued a decree that whoever should answer three questions put to him by the princess should have her in marriage and be heir to the crown at his decease.
Shortly after this decree was published,
News of it reached the ears of the nobleman's sons,
And the two clever ones determined to have a trial,
But they were sadly at a loss to prevent their idiot brother from going with them.
They could not by any means get rid of him,
And were compelled at length to let Jack accompany them.
They had not gone far before Jack shrieked with laughter,
Saying,
I have found an egg.
Put it in your pocket,
Said the brothers.
A little while afterwards he burst out into another fit of laughter on finding a crooked hazel stick,
Which he also put in his pocket,
And a third time he again laughed extravagantly because he found a nut,
That also was put with his other treasures.
When they arrived at the palace,
They were immediately admitted on mentioning the nature of their business,
And were ushered into a room where the princess and her suite were sitting.
Jack,
Who never stood on ceremony,
Bawled out,
What a troupe of fair ladies we've got here.
Yes,
Said the princess,
We are fair ladies,
For we carry fire in our bosoms.
Do you,
Said Jack,
Then roast me an egg,
Pulling out the egg from his pocket.
How will you get it out again,
Said the princess.
With a crooked stick,
Replied Jack,
Producing the hazel.
Where did that come from,
Said the princess.
From a nut,
Answered Jack,
Pulling out the nut from his pocket.
I've answered the three questions,
And now I'll have the lady.
No,
No,
Said the king,
Not so fast,
You have still an ordeal to go through.
You must come here in a week's time,
And watch for one whole night with my princess,
My daughter.
If you can manage to keep awake the whole night long,
You shall marry her the next day.
But if I can't,
Said Jack,
Then off goes your head,
Said the king,
But you need not try unless you like.
Well,
Jack went back home for a week and thought over whether he should try and win the princess.
At last he made up his mind.
Well,
Said Jack,
I'll try my whorton,
Though now more the king's daughter,
Or a headless shepherd.
And taking his bottle and bag,
He trudged to the court.
In his way thither,
He was obliged to cross a river,
And pulling his shoes and stockings while he was passing over,
He observed several pretty fish bobbing against his feet.
So he caught some and put them into his pocket.
When he reached the palace,
He knocked at the gate loudly with his crook,
And having mentioned the object of his visit,
He was immediately conducted to the hall where the king's daughter sat ready prepared to see her lovers.
He was placed in a luxurious chair,
And rich wines and spices were set before him,
And all sorts of delicate meats.
Jack,
Unused to such fare,
Ate and drank plentifully so that he was nearly dozing before midnight.
Oh,
Shepherd,
Said the lady,
I have caught you napping.
No,
Sweet princess,
I was busy a-fishing.
A-fishing,
Said the princess,
In the utmost astonishment.
Nay,
Shepherd,
There is no fishpond in the hall.
No matter for that,
I have been fishing in my pocket,
And have just caught one.
Oh me,
Said she,
Let me see it.
The shepherd slyly drew the fish out of his pocket,
And pretending to have caught it,
Showed it her,
And she declared it was the finest she ever saw.
About half an hour afterwards,
She said,
Shepherd,
Do you think you can get me one more?
He replied,
Mayhap I may,
When I have baited my hook.
And after a little while,
He brought out another which was finer than the first,
And the princess was so delighted that she gave him leave to go to sleep,
And promised to excuse him to her father.
In the morning,
The princess told the king that Jack must not be beheaded,
For he had been fishing in the hall all night,
But when he heard how Jack had caught such beautiful fish out of his pocket,
He asked him to catch one in his own.
Jack readily undertook the task,
And bidding the king lie down,
He pretended to fish in his pocket,
Having another fish concealed ready in his hand.
And giving him a sly prick with a needle,
He held up the fish and showed it to the king.
His majesty did not much relish the operation,
But he assented to the marvel of it,
And the princess and Jack reunited the same day,
And lived for many years in happiness and prosperity.
The Twelve Dancing Princesses There was a king who had twelve beautiful daughters.
They slept in twelve beds all in one room,
And when they went to bed,
The doors were shut and locked up,
But every morning,
Their shoes were found to be quite worn through as if they had been danced in all night,
And yet nobody could find out how it happened or where they had been.
Then the king made it known to all the land that if any person could discover the secret and find out where it was that the princesses danced in the night,
He should have the one he liked best for his wife,
And should be king after his death.
But whoever tried and did not succeed,
After three days and nights,
Should be put to death.
A king's son soon came.
He was well entertained,
And in the evening was taken to the chamber next to the one where the princesses lay in their twelve beds.
There he was to sit and watch where they went to dance,
And,
In order that nothing might pass without his hearing it,
The door of his chamber was left open,
But the king's son soon fell asleep,
And when he awoke in the morning,
He found that the princesses had all been dancing,
For the soles of their shoes were full of holes.
The same thing happened the second and third night,
So the king ordered his head to be cut off.
After him came several others,
But they had all the same luck,
And all lost their lives in the same manner.
Now it chanced that an old soldier,
Who had been wounded in battle and could fight no longer,
Passed through the country where his king reigned,
And as he was traveling through a wood,
He met an old woman,
Who asked him where he was going.
I hardly know where I'm going,
Or what I had better do,
Said the soldier,
But I think I should like very well to find out where it is that the princesses dance,
And then in time I might be a king.
Well,
Said the old dame,
That is no very hard task,
Only take care not to drink any of the wine which one of the princesses will bring you in the evening,
And as soon as she leaves,
You pretend to be fast asleep.
Then she gave him a cloak and said,
As soon as you put that on,
You will become invisible,
And you will then be able to follow the princesses wherever they go.
When the soldier heard all this good counsel,
He determined to try his luck.
So he went to the king and said he was willing to undertake the task.
He was well as received as the others had been,
And the king ordered fine royal robes to be given him.
And when the evening came,
He was well received as the others had been,
And the king ordered fine royal robes to be given him.
And when the evening came,
He was led to the outer chamber.
Just as he was going to lie down,
The eldest of the princesses brought him a cup of wine,
But the soldier threw it all away secretly,
Taking care not to drink a drop.
Then he laid himself down on his bed,
And in a little while began to snore very loud as if he was fast asleep.
When the twelve princesses heard this,
They laughed heartily,
And the eldest said,
This fellow too might have done a wiser thing than lose his head in this way.
Then they rose up and opened their drawers and boxes,
And took out all their fine clothes,
And dressed themselves at the glass,
And skipped about as if they were eager to begin dancing.
But the youngest said,
I don't know how it is,
While you are so happy,
I feel very uneasy.
I am sure some mischance will befall us.
You simpleton,
Said the eldest,
You are always afraid.
Have you forgotten how many king's sons have already watched in vain?
And as for this soldier,
Even if I had not given him his sleeping draught,
He would have slept soundly enough.
When they were all ready,
They went and looked at the soldier,
But he snored on,
And did not stir hand or foot,
So they thought they were quite safe.
And the eldest went up to her own bed and clapped her hands,
And the bed sank into the floor,
And a trapdoor flew open.
The soldier saw them going down through the trapdoor one after another,
The eldest leading the way,
And thinking he had no time to lose,
He jumped up,
Put on the cloak which the old woman had given him,
And followed them.
But in the middle of the stairs,
He trod on the gown of the youngest princess,
And she cried out to her sisters,
All is not right,
Someone took hold of my gown.
You silly creature,
Said the eldest,
It is nothing but a nail in the wall.
Then down they all went,
And at the bottom they found themselves in a most delightful grove of trees,
And the leaves were all of silver and glittered and sparkled beautifully.
The soldier wished to take away some token of the place,
So he broke off a little branch,
And there came a loud noise from the tree.
Then the youngest daughter said again,
I am sure all is not right.
Did not you hear that noise?
That never happened before.
But the eldest said,
It is only our princes who are shouting for joy at our approach.
Then they came to another grove of trees,
Where all the leaves were of gold,
And afterwards to a third,
Where the leaves were all glittering diamonds.
And the soldier broke a branch from each,
And every time there was a loud noise,
Which made the youngest sister tremble with fear.
But the eldest still said,
It was only the princes who were crying for joy.
So they went on,
Till they came to a great lake,
And at the side of the lake there lay twelve little boats,
With twelve handsome princes in them,
Who seemed to be waiting there for the princesses.
One of the princesses went into each boat,
And the soldier stepped into the same boat with the youngest.
As they were rowing over the lake,
The prince who was in the boat with the youngest princess and the soldier said,
I do not know why it is,
But though I am rowing with all my might,
We do not get on as fast as usual,
And I am quite tired.
The boat seems very heavy today.
It is only the heat of the weather,
Said the princess.
I feel it very warm too.
On the other side of the lake stood a fine illuminated castle,
From which came the merry music of horns and trumpets.
There they all landed and went into the castle,
And each prince danced with his princess,
And the soldier,
Who was all the time invisible,
Danced with them too.
And when any of the princesses had a cup of wine set by her,
He drank it all up,
So that when she put the cup to her mouth,
It was empty.
At this too,
The youngest sister was terribly frightened,
But the eldest always silenced her.
They danced on till three o'clock in the morning,
And then all their shoes were worn out,
So that they were obliged to leave off.
The princes rowed them back again over the lake,
But this time,
The soldier placed himself in the boat with the eldest princess,
And on the opposite shore,
They took leave of each other,
The princesses promising to come again the next night.
When they came to the stairs,
The soldier ran on before the princesses,
And laid himself down,
And as the twelve sisters slowly came up very much tired,
They heard him snoring in his bed,
So they said,
Now all is quite safe.
Then they undressed themselves,
Put away their fine clothes,
Pulled off their shoes,
And went to bed.
In the morning,
The soldier said nothing about what had happened,
But determined to see more of this strange adventure,
And went again the second and third night,
And everything happened just as before.
The princesses danced each time till their shoes were worn to pieces,
And then returned home.
However,
On the third night,
The soldier carried away one of the golden cups as a token of where he had been.
As soon as the time came when he was to declare his secret,
He was taken before the king with the three branches and the golden cup,
And the twelve princesses stood listening behind the door to hear what he would say,
And when the king asked him,
Where do my twelve daughters dance at night,
He answered,
With twelve princes in a castle underground,
And then he told the king all that had happened,
And showed him the three branches and the golden cup which he had brought with him.
Then the king called for the princesses,
And asked them whether what the soldier said was true,
And when they saw that they were discovered,
And that it was no use to deny what had happened,
They confessed it all,
And then the king asked the soldier which of them he would choose for his wife,
And he answered,
I'm not very young,
So I will have the eldest.
And they were married that very day,
And the soldier was chosen to be the king's heir.
Sweet dreams,
My friend.
