m the usual titles
of the stories, "The Three Citrons," some of the versions of which
belong to "Forgotten Bride." We give here, however, a version belonging
to the class above-mentioned, and which we have taken, on account of its
rarity, from Ive, _Fiabe pop. rovignesi_, p. 3.

XXIV. THE LOVE OF THE THREE ORANGES.

Once upon a time there was a king and queen who had a half-witted son.
The queen was deeply grieved at this, and she thought to go to the Lord
and ask counsel of him what she was to do with this son. The Lord told
her to try and do something to make him laugh. She replied: "I have
nothing but a jar of oil, unfortunately for me!" The Lord said to her:
"Well, give this oil away in charity, for there will come many people;
some bent, some straight, some humpbacked, and it may happen that your
son will laugh." So the queen proclaimed that she had a jar of oil, and
that all could come and take some. And everybody, indeed, hurried there
and took the oil down to the last drop. Last of all came an old witch,
who begged the queen to give her a little, saying: "Give me a little
oil, too!" The queen replied: "Ah, it is all gone, there is no more!"
The queen was angry and full of spite because her son had not yet
laughed. The old witch said again to the queen: "Let me look in the
jar!" The queen opened the jar, and the old woman got inside of it and
was all covered with the dregs of the oil; and the queen's son laughed,
and laughed, and laughed. The old woman came out, saw the prince
laughing, and said to him: "May you never be happy until you go and find
the Love of the three Oranges." The son, all eager, said to his mother:
"Ah, mother, I shall have no more peace until I go and find the Love of
the three Oranges." She answered: "My dear son, how will you go and find
the Love of the three Oranges?" But he would go; so he mounted his horse
and rode and rode and rode until he came to a large gate. He knocked,
and some one within asked: "Who is there?" He replied: "A soul created
by God." The one within said: "In all the years that I have been here no
one has ever knocked at this gate." The prince repeated: "Open, for I am
a soul created by God!" Then an old man came down and opened the gate.
He had eyelids that reached to his feet, and he said: "My son, take down
those little forks, and lift up my eyelids." The prince did so, and the
old man asked: "Where are you going, my son, in this direction?" "I am
going to find