snow-white.txt

Once upon a time ... in a great castle,
a Prince's daughter grew up happy and contented,
in spite of a jealous stepmother.
She was very pretty, with blue eyes and long
black hair. Her skin was delicate and fair,
and so she was called Snow White. Everyone was
quite sure she would become very beautiful.
Though her stepmother was a wicked woman,
she too was very beautiful, and the magic mirror
told her this every day, whenever she asked it.

"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the
loveliest lady in the land?"

The reply was always; "You are, your Majesty,"
until the dreadful day when she heard it say,
"Snow White is the loveliest in the land."

The stepmother was furious and, wild with jealousy,
began plotting to get rid of her rival. Calling one
of her trusty servants, she bribed him with a rich
reward to take Snow White intc the forest, far away
from the Castle. Then, unseen, he was to put her to
death. The greedy servant, attracted to the reward,
agreed to do this deed, and he led the innocent little
girl away. However, when they came to the fatal spot,
the man's courage failed him and, leaving Snow White
sitting beside a tree, he mumbled an excuse and ran off.

Snow White was all alone in the forest.
Night came, but the servant did not return.
Snow White, alone in the dark forest, began to cry
bitterly. She thought she could feel terrible eyes
spying on her, and she heard strange sounds and
rustlings that made her heart thump. At last,
overcome by tiredness, she fell asleep curled under a tree.