Page:The Folk-Lore Journal Volume 3 1885.djvu/303

 CHILIAN POPULAR TALES. 295

or old, ugly or comely. She told her that she did not know, for that she had never seen him. . *' How so ? " said the old woman ; " thou art wedded and dost not know thy husband ? This thing cannot be." '* Yes," said she ; "for so he wished it to be before we were wedded." " Child," said the old crone, " how knowest thou whether thy husband is a dog or Satan even ? It is needful thou shouldst see him. Take this match, and fear nothing whatever. When thy husband is asleep, rub the match against the wall, and thou wilt see who he is." The damsel did so. When midnight came she rubbed the match against the wall, and set herself to look at her husband, and saw that he was so handsome that she became wonderstruck beholding him. She forgot all about the match, and a spark fell upon her husband's face. So he woke up and gave a blow to the match and put it out, and said to her, " Ungrateful wretch, thou hast broken thy word ! Thou must know that I am a prince under a spell, and little was lacking for me to be freed from my enchantment ; and now thou wilt have to wear out shoes of iron before seeing thou shalt see Prince Jalma thy husband again, and my own pains are still greater." And so he dis- appeared. The damsel remained weeping and very sorrowful for having followed the advice of the old crone ; for she was the cause of all this trouble. When it was day this woman came to visit her. " Even so," she said, *' and better it were had I never seen him ; for he was a prince under a spell." And then she[ told her all that he had said to her.
 * How was it, little daughter ? " she said ; " hast seen thy husband ? "

So she went to the city, had iron shoes made, and set out in search of her husband. She went through many cities asking for Prince Jalma ; but no one knew him in any of them. When she had come to the end of the world she reached the abode of the winds. The first was the North wind. His mother was there, and she saluted her. she ; " what art thou doing here, when even the little birds come not to these regions ; for my son, so doughty is he, would devour every- thing that might reach here." '*Dame," quoth the damsel, " I have gone over all the world in search of Prince Jalma my husband, who had told me that shoes of iron had I to wear out so that seeing I
 * ' How do you do, good dame ? " " Very well, good damsel," quoth