w near they were
to the kingdom of peacocks; and when at last he told her they would soon
reach its shores, the wicked creature said, that if he would help her to
throw the princess into the sea, as soon as she should be asleep that
night, she could then dress up her daughter in her fine clothes, and
present her to the king of the peacocks for his bride, and that she
would give him gold and diamonds so as to make his fortune. The pilot
thought it a pity to drown such a fair princess; but the nurse having
plied him with wine until he was quite tipsy, he gave his consent, and
when night came, he helped her and her daughter to take up Rosetta, when
she was fast asleep, mattress, feather-bed and all, and flung her into
the sea. Fortunately the bed was stuffed with phoenix's feathers, which
possess the virtue of not sinking, so that it kept floating like a
barge. Still, the waves wetted it by degrees, and Rosetta, feeling
uncomfortable, kept turning about in her sleep, till she woke her little
dog, who lay at the foot of her bed. Fretillon had a very fine scent,
and, as he smelt the soles and the cod, he barked aloud, which in turn
woke the fish, who began to swim about and run foul of the princess's
light craft, that kept twisting about like a whirlpool.

Meanwhile the wicked nurse had reached the shore, where she and her
daughter found a hundred carriages waiting for them, drawn by a variety
of animals, such as lions, stags, bears, wolves, horses, oxen, eagles,
and peacocks. The coach intended for Princess Rosetta was drawn by six
blue monkeys, caparisoned with crimson velvet. The nurse had drest up
her daughter in the finest gown she could find, and loaded her head with
diamonds; in spite of which, she appeared so frightful, with her
squinting eyes, oily black hair, crooked legs, and humped shoulder, that
the persons sent by the king of the peacocks to receive her, were
struck with amazement at the sight of her. Being as cross as she was
ill-favoured, she asked them tartly whether they were all asleep, and
why they did not bring her something to eat; and then, distributing her
blows pretty freely, she threatened to have them all hung if they did
not shew a little more alacrity in doing her bidding. As she passed
along in state, the peacocks perched on the trees cried out, "Fie! what
an ugly creature!" which enraged her so that she ordered her guards to
go and kill all the peacocks; but they flew away and only laughed at he