Read The Pink Fairy Book (Andrew Lang's Fairy Books) for Free Online

so beautiful that the young merchant had to kiss her. Then she woke up and was very much frightened, but he said he was a Turkish god who had come through the air to see her, and that pleased her very much.
    They sat close to each other, and he told her a story about her eyes. They were beautiful dark lakes in which her thoughts swam about like mermaids. And her forehead was a snowy mountain, grand and shining. These were lovely stories.
    Then he asked the princess to marry him, and she said yes at once.
    'But you must come here on Saturday,' she said, 'for then the sultan and the sultana are coming to tea with me. They will be indeed proud that I receive the god of the Turks. But mind you have a really good story ready, for my parents like them immensely. My mother likes something rather moral and high-flown, and my father likes something merry to make him laugh.'
    'Yes, I shall only bring a fairy story for my dowry,' said he, and so they parted. But the princess gave him a sabre set with gold pieces which he could use.
    Then he flew away, bought himself a new dressing-gown, and sat down in the wood and began to make up a story, for it had to be ready by Saturday, and that was no easy matter.
    When he had it ready it was Saturday.
    The sultan, the sultana, and the whole court were at tea with the princess.
    He was most graciously received.
    'Will you tell us a story?' said the sultana; 'one that is thoughtful and instructive?'
    'But something that we can laugh at,' said the sultan.
    'Oh, certainly,' he replied, and began: 'Now, listen attentively.
There was once a box of matches which lay between a tinder-box and an old iron pot, and they told the story of their youth.
    '"We used to be on the green fir-boughs. Every morning and evening we had diamond-tea, which was the dew, and the whole day long we had sunshine, and the little birds used to tell us stories. We were very rich, because the other trees only dressed in summer, but we had green dresses in summer and in winter.
Then the woodcutter came, and our family was split up. We have now the task of making light for the lowest people. That is why we grand people are in the kitchen."
    '"My fate was quite different," said the iron pot, near which the matches lay.
    '"Since I came into the world I have been many times scoured, and have cooked much. My only pleasure is to have a good chat with my companions when I am lying nice and clean in my place after dinner."
    '"Now you are talking too fast," spluttered the fire.
    '"Yes, let us decide who is the grandest!" said the matches.
    '"No, I don't like talking about myself," said the pot.
    '"Let us arrange an evening's entertainment. I will tell the story of my life.
    '"On the Baltic by the Danish shore-"
    'What a beautiful beginning!" said all the plates. "That's a story that will please us all."
    'And the end was just as good as the beginning. All the plates clattered for joy.
    '"Now I will dance," said the tongs, and she danced. Oh! how high she could kick!
    'The old chair-cover in the corner split when he saw her.
    'The urn would have sung but she said she had a cold; she could not sing unless she boiled.
    'In the window was an old quill pen. There was nothing remarkable about her except that she had been dipped too deeply into the ink. But she was very proud of that.
    '"If the urn will not sing," said she, "outside the door hangs a nightingale in a cage who will sing."
    '"I don't think it's proper," said the kettle, "that such a foreign bird should be heard."
    '"Oh, let us have some acting," said everyone. "Do let us!"
    'Suddenly the door opened and the maid came in. Everyone was quite quiet. There was not a sound. But each pot knew what he might have done, and how grand he was.
    'The maid took the matches and lit the fire with them. How they spluttered and flamed, to be sure! "Now everyone can see," they thought, "that we are the grandest! How we sparkle! What a light-"
    'But here they were burnt out.'
    'That was a delightful