In Chimney Corners - McManus Seumas (книги онлайн бесплатно .txt) 📗

Then a robin redbreast came hopping up, picking the crumbs she let fall, and she threw a stick at the robin.

“Toowhit! Toowhit!” said the robin, “If you let me pick up what crumbs you let fall, I’ll tell how to take away one half the blood on your foot.”

“Get out!” said she, throwing another stick at the robin. “When I couldn’t wash it off myself how could you tell me?”

Next day the prince returned and asked for the keys. She gave them to him.

“I hope,” he said, “you did not disobey me, and open the room I forbade you?”

“No,” she said, “I did not.”

“Show me your feet,” said he.

She tried to hide the foot that was covered with blood, but it was no use, for the prince insisted on seeing it. And when he saw the blood upon it he had her killed and hung up in the secret room.

At the queen’s castle there was great grief and great trouble at the loss of the princess, and on a morning about a week after she had been carried off, the queen and her two daughters sat by the window talking of their loss, when once more the black bull appeared in the garden rooting up the beautiful flowers and destroying all before him. The elder of the two daughters said she would go out and drive him away. Her mother tried to persuade her not, but she insisted, and, catching up a rake on her way—in order to stand further from him than her sister did—she went into the garden and struck the bull with it. But the rake stuck to the bull and her hand stuck to the rake, and off the bull started over high hills, low hills, grey mountains, and green plains, running without once stopping for three days and three nights till she at length saw a great castle the colour of blood, and here she stopped, and the bull turned himself into a man, and there she beheld the very prince who had gone away from her mother’s castle in wrath not long before.

“Fair princess,” said he, “you may remember that when I quitted your mother’s castle my last words were that when I came again you would come with me without my asking you. Haven’t I kept my word?”

Then he led her into the castle and told her she would be mistress of it; and, if she so willed it, might be as happy as the day was long, for he would permit her the enjoyment of every pleasure, and put every pleasure in her way—only, let her beware not to disobey any of his orders else the fate of many others, whose blood now coloured the walls of his castle, would be hers.

Next morning he called her, and telling her he was going to be absent for two days, gave her the keys of all the rooms in the castle, telling her she might amuse herself looking through them, and beholding their magnificence, till he returned. But he pointed out one and warned her on her peril not to open the room of which that was the key.

The prince departed, and the young princess immediately set about going through the many magnificent rooms which the castle contained, and her amazement at their grandeur was great. She had opened and entered every room but the forbidden one, and coming to that door and examining it she began debating with herself why it was he had ordered her not to enter it, and came to the conclusion that it must contain some wonderful secret when he was so strict in excluding her from it. At length she resolved to just open it and peep in, saying that it would be impossible for the prince ever to find out her disobedience. So she turned the key in the door, and, opening it, she saw something red on the floor, to which she put her foot and found it was blood. Then, looking round the room, she saw the horrible sight of many bodies of beautiful ladies, and her own lost sister amongst them, hung by the walls. She quickly closed the door and locked it. But she found her foot was covered with blood, and when she went to the stream that flowed by the castle to wash it, though she rubbed and rubbed ever so hard, she could not get any of the blood off her foot. Then she gave it up, saying to herself that she would manage to conceal it from her lord.

That evening as she sat under the trees in the garden eating bread and drinking milk for supper, a cat crept up to lick some drops of milk that had fallen on the ground. She kicked away the cat.

“Miaow! Miaow!” said the cat, “if you let me take what milk drops from your bowl, I shall lick one-half the blood off your foot.”

“Get out!” said she, making another kick at the cat, “When I couldn’t wash it off myself, I’m very sure you couldn’t lick it off.”

Then a robin redbreast hopped up to pick the crumbs she let fall; but she threw a stick at the robin and hunted it away.

“Toowhit! toowhit!” said the robin from the tree where it alighted. “If you let me pick up what crumbs fall from you I’ll tell you how you may take one-half the blood off your foot.”

“Get out!” said she, throwing another stick at him. “When I couldn’t wash it off myself I’m very sure you couldn’t tell me how.”

At the end of the two days the prince returned and demanded the keys.

“I trust you haven’t gone into the room I forbade you of?” he said. “Show me your feet.”

She tried to hide the bloody foot from him, but it was of no use, for he insisted on seeing it; and, finding the blood upon it, he knew she had been in the secret room, and he immediately killed her, and hung up her body beside her sister’s.

About a week after the second sister’s disappearance, the queen and her only daughter, the youngest, sat in great grief by the window on a morning, trying to console each other for their great loss, when once more the black bull appeared in the garden, rooting up their flowers as before. The young princess said she would go out and drive him off. Her mother endeavoured to persuade her not to attempt it, but she insisted, and seizing a very long pole—in order to keep further from him than her elder sisters—as she went she rushed into the garden, and struck the bull with it. But the pole stuck to the bull, and her hand stuck to the pole; and the bull went off, and she went off, over high hills, low hills, grey mountains, and green plains, running on and on, without once stopping, for three days and three nights, till at length she saw a great red castle, painted all over with blood. Here the bull stopped, and changed his shape into that of a man—the very prince to whom she and her sisters had some time before refused their hands in marriage.

“Now, fair young princess,” said he, “when you refused me and I quitted your mother’s castle, I said that the next time I went for you, you might come without asking. Has not my word been kept?”

Then he told her that he would make her the mistress of that great castle, and that she would want for nothing to make her happiness perfect. Only, he told her, she would have to obey him in all things; otherwise, the fate of those whose blood had painted his castle, would also be hers.

On the next morning the prince told her he was going away, to remain for three days, and he gave her a great bunch of keys which opened every room in the castle, and told her whilst he would be absent to amuse herself as best she could going through them, seeing their richness and beauty. But he showed her one key, and told her on no account to dare enter or open the room of which that was the key.

The prince bade her good-bye and departed, and the princess, taking the great bunch of keys, went through the castle, gazing at the beauty of the many rooms in amazement and wonder, until she had seen them all but the one he had ordered her not to open. She stood a long time before the door of this room, wondering why it was he had forbidden her to enter it and what secret could it contain that he was so anxious to keep from her. At length she resolved to open it and peep in anyhow, for how should he know whether she had disobeyed him or not. So she opened the door, and seeing the floor covered with something red, she put her foot to it to find what it was, and discovered it was blood. Then she saw a very great number of bodies of beautiful ladies who had been murdered, and hung by their long hair from hooks round the walls. Horrified by this, she hastily closed the door, and locked it. But she found her foot was covered with blood, and she went at once to the stream that flowed by the castle for the purpose of washing it. Yet, though she washed and washed, and scrubbed and rubbed for hours together, she was unable to take a single trace of blood off the foot. Then she left, saying to herself that she would be able to conceal it from the prince anyhow.