that none came near me without his consent.  When the fairies heard of what had been done, they sent first to demand me; and on my father’s refusal, they let loose a monstrous dragon, who devoured men, women and children, and the breath of whose nostrils destroyed every thing it came near, so that the trees and plants began to die in great abundance.  The grief of the king, at seeing this, could scarcely be equalled; and finding that his whole kingdom would in a short time be reduced to famine, he consented to give me into their hands.  I was accordingly laid in a cradle of mother-of-pearl, ornamented with gold and jewels, and carried to their palace, when the dragon immediately disappeared.  The fairies placed me in a tower of their palace, elegantly furnished, but to which there was no door, so that whoever approached was obliged to come by the windows, which were a great height from the ground:  from these I had the liberty of getting out into a delightful garden, in which were baths, and every sort of cooling fruit.  In this place was I educated by the fairies, who behaved to me with the greatest kindness; my clothes were splendid, and I was instructed in every kind of accomplishment.  In short, prince, if I had never seen any one but themselves, I should have remained very happy.  One of the windows of my tower overlooked a long avenue shaded with trees, so that I had never seen in it a human creature.  One day, however, as I was talking at this window with my parrot, I perceived a young gentleman who was listening to our conversation.  As I had never seen a man, but in pictures, I was not sorry for the opportunity of gratifying my curiosity.  I thought him a very pleasing object, and he at length bowed in the most respectful manner, without daring to speak, for he knew that I was in the palace of the fairies.  When it began to grow dark he went away, and I vainly endeavoured to see which road he took.  The next morning, as soon as it was light, I again placed myself at the window, and had the pleasure of seeing that the gentleman had returned to the same place.  He now spoke to me through a speaking-trumpet, and informed me he thought me a most charming lady, and that he should be very unhappy if he did not pass his life in my company.

“I resolved to find some means of escaping from my tower with the engaging prince I had seen.  I was not long in devising a means for the execution of my project.  I begged the fairies to bring me a netting-needle, a mesh and some cord, saying I wished to make some nets to amuse myself with catching birds at my window.  This they readily complied with, and in a short time I completed a ladder long enough to reach the ground.  I now sent my parrot to the prince, to beg he would come to his usual place, as I wished to speak with him.  He did not fail, and finding the ladder, mounted it, and quickly entered my tower.  This at first alarmed me; but the charms of his conversation had restored me to tranquillity,