g and Queen, who were the best
creatures in the world, and so kind-hearted that they could not bear to
see their subjects want for anything. The consequence was they gradually
gave away all their treasures, till they positively had nothing left to
live upon; and this coming to the ears of their neighbour, King Bruin,
he promptly raised a large army and marched into their country. The poor
King, having no means of defending his kingdom, was forced to disguise
himself with a false beard, and carrying his only son, the little Prince
Featherhead, in his arms, and accompanied only by the Queen, to make the
best of his way into the wild country. They were lucky enough to escape
the soldiers of King Bruin, and at last, after unheard-of fatigues and
adventures, they found themselves in a charming green valley, through
which flowed a stream clear as crystal and overshadowed by beautiful
trees. As they looked round them with delight, a voice said suddenly:
'Fish, and see what you will catch.' Now the King had always loved
fishing, and never went anywhere without a fish-hook or two in his
pocket, so he drew one out hastily, and the Queen lent him her girdle to
fasten it to, and it had hardly touched the water before it caught a big
fish, which made them an excellent meal--and not before they needed it,
for they had found nothing until then but a few wild berries and roots.
They thought that for the present they could not do better than stay in
this delightful place, and the King set to work, and soon built a bower
of branches to shelter them; and when it was finished the Queen was so
charmed with it that she declared nothing was lacking to complete her
happiness but a flock of sheep, which she and the little Prince might
tend while the King fished. They soon found that the fish were not only
abundant and easily caught, but also very beautiful, with glittering
scales of every imaginable hue; and before long the King discovered
that he could teach them to talk and whistle better than any parrot.
Then he determined to carry some to the nearest town and try to sell
them; and as no one had ever before seen any like them the people
flocked about him eagerly and bought all he had caught, so that
presently not a house in the city was considered complete without a
crystal bowl full of fish, and the King's customers were very particular
about having them to match the rest of the furniture, and gave him a
vast amount of trouble in choosing the