le.

When breakfast was over, he took them into another room, where there was
nothing but heaps of gold, and silver, and diamonds, and silks, and
satins; and on a table there was lying three sets of crowns: a gold
crown was in a silver crown, and that was lying in a copper crown. He
took up one set of crowns, and gave it to the eldest princess; and
another set, and gave it to the second youngest princess; and another,
and gave it to the youngest of all; and says he, 'Now you may all go to
the bottom of the pit, and you have nothing to do but stir the basket,
and the people that are watching above will draw you up. But remember,
ladies, you are to keep your crowns safe, and be married in them, all
the same day. If you be married separately, or if you be married without
your crowns, a curse will follow--mind what I say.'

So they took leave of him with great respect, and walked arm-in-arm to
the bottom of the draw-well. There was a sky and a sun over them, and a
great high wall, covered with ivy, rose before them, and was so high
they could not see to the top of it; and there was an arch in this wall,
and the bottom of the draw-well was inside the arch. The youngest pair
went last; and says the princess to the prince, 'I'm sure the two
princes don't mean any good to you. Keep these crowns under your cloak,
and if you are obliged to stay last, don't get into the basket, but put
a big stone, or any heavy thing inside, and see what will happen.'

As soon as they were inside the dark cave, they put in the eldest
princess first, and stirred the basket, and up she went. Then the basket
was let down again, and up went the second princess, and then up went
the youngest; but first she put her arms round her prince's neck, and
kissed him, and cried a little. At last it came to the turn of the
youngest prince, and instead of going into the basket he put in a big
stone. He drew on one side and listened, and after the basket was drawn
up about twenty perches, down came it and the stone like thunder, and
the stone was broken into little bits.

Well, the poor prince had nothing for it but to walk back to the castle;
and through it and round it he walked, and the finest of eating and
drinking he got, and a bed of bog-down to sleep on, and long walks he
took through gardens and lawns, but not a sight could he get, high or
low, of _Seven Inches_. He, before a week, got tired of it, he was so
lonesome for his true love; and at the end of