Andrew Lang_Fairy Book 06 (12 page)

The prince was satisfied, and he entered the old man's service,
and promised to see that there was always wood on the stove, so
that the fire should never die out. Now, though he did not know
it, his new master was a magician, and the flame of the stove was
a magic fire, and if it had gone out the magician would have lost
a great part of his power.

One day the prince forgot, and let the fire burn so low that it
very nearly burnt out. Just as the flame was flickering the old
man stormed into the room.

'What do you mean by letting the fire burn so low?' he growled.
'I have only arrived in the nick of time.' And while the prince
hastily threw a log on the stove and blew on the ashes to kindle
a glow, his master gave him a severe box on the ear, and warned
him that if ever it happened again it would fare badly with him.

One day the prince was sitting disconsolate in the stables when,
to his surprise, the black horse spoke to him.

'Come into my stall,' it said, 'I have something to say to you.
Fetch my bridle and saddle from that cupboard and put them on me.
Take the bottle that is beside them; it contains an ointment
which will make your hair shine like pure gold; then put all the
wood you can gather together on to the stove, till it is piled
quite high up.'

So the prince did what the horse told him; he saddled and bridled
the horse, he put the ointment on his hair till it shone like
gold, and he made such a big fire in the stove that the flames
sprang up and set fire to the roof, and in a few minutes the
palace was burning like a huge bonfire.

Then he hurried back to the stables, and the horse said to him:
'There is one thing more you must do. In the cupboard you will
find a looking-glass, a brush and a riding-whip. Bring them with
you, mount on my back, and ride as hard as you can, for now the
house is burning merrily.'

The prince did as the horse bade him. Scarcely had he got into
the saddle than the horse was off and away, galloping at such a
pace that, in a short time, the forest and all the country
belonging to the magician lay far behind them.

In the meantime the magician returned to his palace, which he
found in smouldering ruins. In vain he called for his servant. At
last he went to look for him in the stables, and when he
discovered that the black horse had disappeared too, he at once
suspected that they had gone together; so he mounted a roan horse
that was in the next stall, and set out in pursuit.

As the prince rode, the quick ears of his horse heard the sound
of pursuing feet.

'Look behind you,' he said, 'and see if the old man is
following.' And the prince turned in his saddle and saw a cloud
like smoke or dust in the distance.

'We must hurry,' said the horse.

After they had galloped for some time, the horse said again:
'Look behind, and see if he is still at some distance.'

'He is quite close,' answered the prince.

'Then throw the looking-glass on the ground,' said the horse. So
the prince threw it; and when the magician came up, the roan
horse stepped on the mirror, and crash! his foot went through the
glass, and he stumbled and fell, cutting his feet so badly that
there was nothing for the old man to do but to go slowly back
with him to the stables, and put new shoes on his feet. Then they
started once more in pursuit of the prince, for the magician set
great value on the horse, and was determined not to lose it.

In the meanwhile the prince had gone a great distance; but the
quick ears of the black horse detected the sound of following
feet from afar.

'Dismount,' he said to the prince; 'put your ear to the ground,
and tell me if you do not hear a sound.'

So the prince dismounted and listened. 'I seem to hear the earth
tremble,' he said; 'I think he cannot be very far off.'

'Mount me at once,' answered the horse, 'and I will gallop as
fast as I can.' And he set off so fast that the earth seemed to
fly from under his hoofs.

'Look back once more,' he said, after a short time, 'and see if
he is in sight.'

'I see a cloud and a flame,' answered the prince; 'but a long way
off.'

'We must make haste,' said the horse. And shortly after he said:
'Look back again; he can't be far off now.'

The prince turned in his saddle, and exclaimed: 'He is close
behind us, in a minute the flame from his horse's nostrils will
reach us.'

'Then throw the brush on the ground,' said the horse.

And the prince threw it, and in an instant the brush was changed
into such a thick wood that even a bird could not have got
through it, and when the old man got up to it the roan horse came
suddenly to a stand-still, not able to advance a step into the
thick tangle. So there was nothing for the magician to do but to
retrace his steps, to fetch an axe, with which he cut himself a
way through the wood. But it took him some time, during which the
prince and the black horse got on well ahead.

But once more they heard the sound of pursuing feet. 'Look back,'
said the black horse, 'and see if he is following.'

'Yes,' answered the prince, 'this time I hear him distinctly.

'Let us hurry on,' said the horse. And a little later he said:
'Look back now, and see if he is in sight.'

'Yes,' said the prince, turning round, 'I see the flame; he is
close behind us.'

'Then you must throw down the whip,' answered the horse.' And in
the twinkling of an eye the whip was changed into a broad river.
When the old man got up to it he urged the roan horse into the
water, but as the water mounted higher and higher, the magic
flame which gave the magician all his power grew smaller and
smaller, till, with a fizz, it went out, and the old man and the
roan horse sank in the river and disappeared. When the prince
looked round they were no longer to be seen.

'Now,' said the horse, 'you may dismount; there is nothing more
to fear, for the magician is dead. Beside that brook you will
find a willow wand. Gather it, and strike the earth with it, and
it will open and you will see a door at your feet.'

When the prince had struck the earth with the wand a door
appeared, and opened into a large vaulted stone hall.

'Lead me into that hall,' said the horse, 'I will stay there; but
you must go through the fields till you reach a garden, in the
midst of which is a king's palace. When you get there you must
ask to be taken into the king's service. Good-bye, and don't
forget me.'

So they parted; but first the horse made the prince promise not
to let anyone in the palace see his golden hair. So he bound a
scarf round it, like a turban, and the prince set out through the
fields, till he reached a beautiful garden, and beyond the garden
he saw the walls and towers of a stately palace. At the garden
gate he met the gardener, who asked him what he wanted.

'I want to take service with the king,' replied the prince.

'Well, you may stay and work under me in the garden,' said the
man; for as the prince was dressed like a poor man, he could not
tell that he was a king's son. 'I need someone to weed the ground
and to sweep the dead leaves from the paths. You shall have a
florin a day, a horse to help you to cart the leaves away, and
food and drink.'

So the prince consented, and set about his work. But when his
food was given to him he only ate half of it; the rest he carried
to the vaulted hall beside the brook, and gave to the black
horse. And this he did every day, and the horse thanked him for
his faithful friendship.

One evening, as they were together, after his work in the garden
was over, the horse said to him: 'To-morrow a large company of
princes and great lords are coming to your king's palace. They
are coming from far and near, as wooers for the three princesses.
They will all stand in a row in the courtyard of the palace, and
the three princesses will come out, and each will carry a diamond
apple in her hand, which she will throw into the air. At
whosesoever feet the apple falls he will be the bridegroom of
that princess. You must be close by in the garden at your work.
The apple of the youngest princess, who is much the most
beautiful of the sisters, will roll past the wooers and stop in
front of you. Pick it up at once and put it in your pocket.'

The next day, when the wooers were all assembled in the courtyard
of the castle, everything happened just as the horse had said.
The princesses threw the apples into the air, and the diamond
apple of the youngest princess rolled past all the wooers, out on
to the garden, and stopped at the feet of the young gardener, who
was busy sweeping the leaves away. In a moment he had stooped
down, picked up the apple and put it in his pocket. As he stooped
the scarf round his head slipped a little to one side, and the
princess caught sight of his golden hair, and loved him from that
moment.

But the king was very sad, for his youngest daughter was the one
he loved best. But there was no help for it; and the next day a
threefold wedding was celebrated at the palace, and after the
wedding the youngest princess returned with her husband to the
small hut in the garden where he lived.

Some time after this the people of a neighbouring country went to
war with the king, and he set out to battle, accompanied by the
husbands of his two eldest daughters mounted on stately steeds.
But the husband of the youngest daughter had nothing but the old
broken-down horse which helped him in his garden work; and the
king, who was ashamed of this son-in-law, refused to give him any
other.

So as he was determined not to be left behind, he went into the
garden, mounted the sorry nag, and set out. But scarcely had he
ridden a few yards before the horse stumbled and fell. So he
dismounted and went down to the brook, to where the black horse
lived in the vaulted hall. And the horse said to him: 'Saddle and
bridle me, and then go into the next room and you will find a
suit of armour and a sword. Put them on, and we will ride forth
together to battle.'

And the prince did as he was told; and when he had mounted the
horse his armour glittered in the sun, and he looked so brave and
handsome, that no one would have recognised him as the gardener
who swept away the dead leaves from the paths. The horse bore him
away at a great pace, and when they reached the battle-field they
saw that the king was losing the day, so many of his warriors had
been slain. But when the warrior on his black charger and in
glittering armour appeared on the scene, hewing right and left
with his sword, the enemy were dismayed and fled in all
directions, leaving the king master of the field. Then the king
and his two sons-in-law, when they saw their deliverer, shouted,
and all that was left of the army joined in the cry: 'A god has
come to our rescue!' And they would have surrounded him, but his
black horse rose in the air and bore him out of their sight.

Soon after this, part of the country rose in rebellion against
the king, and once more he and his two sons-in- law had to fare
forth to battle. And the son-in-law who was disguised as a
gardener wanted to fight too. So he came to the king and said:
'Dear father, let me ride with you to fight your enemies.'

'I don't want a blockhead like you to fight for me,' answered the
king. 'Besides, I haven't got a horse fit for you. But see, there
is a carter on the road carting hay; you may take his horse.'

So the prince took the carter's horse, but the poor beast was old
and tired, and after it had gone a few yards it stumbled and
fell. So the prince returned sadly to the garden and watched the
king ride forth at the head of the army accompanied by his two
sons-in-law. When they were out of sight the prince betook
himself to the vaulted chamber by the brook-side, and having
taken counsel of the faithful black horse, he put on the
glittering suit of armour, and was borne on the back of the horse
through the air, to where the battle was being fought. And once
more he routed the king's enemies, hacking to right and left with
his sword. And again they all cried: 'A god has come to our
rescue!' But when they tried to detain him the black horse rose
in the air and bore him out of their sight.

When the king and his sons-in-law returned home they could talk
of nothing but the hero who had fought for them, and all wondered
who he could be.

Shortly afterwards the king of a neighbouring country declared
war, and once more the king and his sons-in-law and his subjects
had to prepare themselves for battle, and once more the prince
begged to ride with them, but the king said he had no horse to
spare for him. 'But,' he added, 'you may take the horse of the
woodman who brings the wood from the forest, it is good enough
for you.'

So the prince took the woodman's horse, but it was so old and
useless that it could not carry him beyond the castle gates. So
he betook himself once more to the vaulted hall, where the black
horse had prepared a still more magnificent suit of armour for
him than the one he had worn on the previous occasions, and when
he had put it on, and mounted on the back of the horse, he bore
him straight to the battle-field, and once more he scattered the
king's enemies, fighting single-handed in their ranks, and they
fled in all directions. But it happened that one of the enemy
struck with his sword and wounded the prince in the leg. And the
king took his own pocket- handkerchief, with his name and crown
embroidered on it, and bound it round the wounded leg. And the
king would fain have compelled him to mount in a litter and be
carried straight to the palace, and two of his knights were to
lead the black charger to the royal stables. But the prince put
his hand on the mane of his faithful horse, and managed to pull
himself up into the saddle, and the horse mounted into the air
with him. Then they all shouted and cried: 'The warrior who has
fought for us is a god! He must be a god.'