Chapter II: The Fountain of Jewels

AFTER travelling for some days, Duldy at last arrived, footsore and weary, at the gate of Aurea. It was the entrance to a long stone bridge which crossed the river, encircling the city, and at the farther end was another gate which opened into the principal street. Duldy entered under the wonderfully carved archway, and looked open-mouthed at the smart soldiers on guard, whose red uniforms were all bedizened with gold lace, and who wore helmets of the same metal. To be sure, the good people of Aurea did not think much of gold, as they had such quantities of it, but Duldy, having been brought up very simply in his forest home, was quite amazed at the glare and glitter around him.

All the houses were built of white marble, with latticed windows of yellow gold, and in the centre of the principal square, which was at the end of the great street, a tall slender column of marble wreathed round with bands of gold soared aloft in the clear air. The floor of the square was also of white marble, with four fountains, one at each corner, which threw up jets of sparkling water in shining profusion. Indeed, there seemed to be a great deal of water about this marvellous city; it ran down the sides of every street, it rushed out of the mouths of lions heads of white marble fastened to the walls, and in the centre of some of the squares were great still pools, encircled by marble rims, flashing like mirrors in the sunlight. Flowers! flowers everywhere!—wreathed round the houses, growing by the fountains, and all the people who passed by Duldy wore chaplets on their heads. White pigeons were flashing through the still air, and the whole city was perfumed with the scent of myriad blossoms. Oh, really it was a wonderful city, and Duldy, looking shabby and dusty in his simple dress, seemed rather out of place among all this magnificence. His face and form, however, were so noble that an old white-haired man who was passing turned back to speak to him.

“Fair youth,” he said in a thin, piping voice, “why do you look so tired and dusty? have you not yet tasted of the hospitality of our city?”

“No,” replied Duldy quietly; “I have been too much astonished at the beauties of this place to ask yet for hospitality. I have come to cure the Princess.”

The old man shook his head sadly.

“Ah, many have come to cure the Princess, but none have yet succeeded; for not doing so they lost their heads; so do not try, my son, or maybe you will fail, and your comely golden head will be cut off.”

“Oh, I’m not afraid,” said Duldy, laughing. “I know all about this magic sleep, and will certainly succeed in awakening her, although the others have failed. But tell me, why does the King promise his throne to the person who cures Princess Elsa; has he no son?”

“None,” answered the old man, whose name was Onaro. “The Princess Elsa is his only child. You are a stranger here, I take it, so perhaps do not know how the King Arago came to the throne.”

“No, I do not.”

“Then I will tell you,” said Onaro; “it will show you how merit sometimes succeeds. The last King had the misfortune to be loved by the Water-witch Foamina, who dwells on the summit of the great mountain of Kel. He refused her love, and in revenge she drowned his queen and only son when sailing in a boat. The King was so overcome with grief at the loss of his wife and child that he died, and as there was no one of the blood royal to succeed him, the citizens elected the prime minister, Arago, to be king, and their choice was very wise; but as he is not of royal blood, none of the neighbouring princes will marry his daughter, so King Arago has promised her hand and his throne to the lucky youth who awakens her from this long sleep.”

“But are you sure the young prince was drowned?” asked Duldy, who remembered how he had been found on the banks of the river Foam.

“Some say he was, others that he was not,” said Onaro, shaking his head. “I do not know; but it is fabled that the enchantress Foamina carried him off with her to her mountain home, but I know not if this be true.”

“How long ago was the Prince lost?” asked the shepherd breathlessly.

“Just seventeen years ago,” replied Onaro; “and he was a year old then, so if he had lived he would now be eighteen years of age.”

“My age,” thought Duldy, with great exultation. “Perhaps, after all, I am the Prince stolen by Foamina;” but he was too wise to say this aloud, lest the King should hear of it, and hang him for high treason.

“As you look tired, you had better come to my house,” said Onaro in a kind voice.

“No, thank you,” replied Duldy, “I’m in too great a hurry; but please tell me how to reach the palace of the King.”

“Go straight on, and you will find it at the end of the street,” said Onaro; “but if you are wise you will not go.”

He spoke these last words to the empty air, for Duldy, as soon as he heard where the palace was to be found, darted up the street like a swallow, so Onaro turned away sighing, thinking that Duldy would soon lose his head, like the rest who had come to cure the Princess.

But Duldy had no idea of losing his head, for it was a very wise head, and useful to him, seeing he could never get another; besides, feeling sure that Salamander would not deceive him, he determined to follow out his instructions about the fire of pine cones and the magic powder.

He soon reached the palace, which was built of dazzling white marble on an elevation at the end of a square, and was approached by a splendid staircase with statues of beautiful women on either side. Duldy looked at the glittering building, with its great towers and pinnacles of gold, its innumerable slender pillars, its golden lattices, and the great dome swelling against the blue sky like an enormous white soap bubble. All this matchless building blazed in the hot sunshine with such splendour that his foot faltered as he placed it on the lowest step, and thought what a poor unknown lad he was to dare such a quest. But the remembrance of the Princess, and the half belief he had in his own royal birth, gave him courage, and he raced lightly up the steps, never halting until he stood at the top, looking down on the wonderful city of white marble and gold spread out before him.

Then he turned and went into a large hall, through the mighty doors, which were of sandalwood, all curiously diapered with gold.

“What do you want?” asked a soldier who was on guard at the door.

“To see the King and cure the Princess,” said Duldy boldly.

The soldier burst out laughing, and, calling to his comrade, whispered in his ear, whereupon they both looked pityingly at Duldy.

“You’ll never succeed,” they said.

“I’ll try, anyhow,” replied Duldy, taking off his cap to a gorgeously-dressed officer who approached. The soldiers told the officer what Duldy wanted, the officer told the groom of the chambers, the groom of the chambers told the prime minister, and the prime minister told the King; whereupon Duldy was ordered before the monarch, who sat upon his throne in the great Hall of Audience.

A splendid hall it was, all of white marble, with a roof of fretted gold, and rich curtains of pale blue velvet hanging between the slender pillars. The throne of solid gold flashed like a jewel, and Duldy’s feet sank in the soft velvet carpets as he stood before the King, a royal-looking man with a crown of silver, for in Aurea silver was thought to be much more precious than gold. But Duldy did not look upon the King, as his attention was fixed upon a great golden fountain in the centre of the hall, out of which spouted the most beautiful coloured water, which first ascended and fell into the topmost basin like liquid silver, then fell from the first to the second basin a sheet of gold, from the second to the third a beautiful crimson tint, from the third to the fourth a bright blue, and from the fourth to the lowest and last a pale green colour. All these different coloured waters glittered like gems in the sunlight which came through the wide windows of the hall, so that the fountain was called the Fountain of Jewels, and Duldy guessed it to be the one which Foamina had sent to the King.

Meanwhile Arago was rather angry at Duldy staring at the fountain instead of himself, for no king likes to be neglected, so he called out to him in a loud voice,—

“Well, my lad, what do you want?”

“To cure the Princess, sire,” said Duldy, quickly turning to the throne.

“You know the penalty if you fail?” said Arago, looking at him steadily.

“Yes, I lose my head.”

“Are you not afraid?”

“No, not a bit; but if I succeed, of course I marry the Princess Elsa, and succeed your Majesty on the throne of Metella,” said Duldy frankly.

“We have passed our royal word that such will be the case,” replied the King, smiling. “Now, begin at once and awaken the Princess.”

“First of all, I must have the Princess brought into this hall,” declared the shepherd.

“Impossible!” said Arago, frowning; “my daughter is asleep on a couch in her bedroom.”

“Then she must be brought here, couch and all,” said Duldy boldly, determined to have his own way; “I can only break the spell here.”

“How so?” asked the King.

“Because the Princess Elsa’s sleep is caused by that fountain,” said Duldy.

“What! the Fountain of Jewels!” cried the King. “That’s nonsense; it was sent to me by the Queen of Faeryland, and she would not send me anything hurtful.”

“I daresay _she_ would not,” said Duldy, with emphasis; “but she did not send that fountain. It came from Foamina.”

“From Foamina!” cried every one, with a start of terror, for the water-faery was much dreaded in Aurea.

“This is very serious,” said the King gravely. “Young man, you must prove the truth of what you say, and if such is the case, I shall have the fountain removed.”

“Then bring in the Princess,” said Duldy, and, kneeling down, he opened his bundle, which was full of pine cones he had picked up in the forest. “I must have your Majesty’s permission to light a fire with these on the marble floor.”

“Very well,” said Arago, nodding his head; “only take care you don’t spoil the pavement.”

Duldy laughed, and while some of the courtiers went out to bring in the Princess, he removed a portion of the carpet, then piling up the pine cones in a little heap, he set them on fire. While he was doing this, the waters of the fountain kept changing to all sorts of colours, and at last every tint faded into a bright yellow, which looked like liquid gold, and breathed a strong perfume, nearly sending Duldy to sleep. However, he pinched himself to keep awake, and attended to his fire, which was now glowing red-hot, while the King and the courtiers all looked on with great curiosity, being much astonished at the change of the Fountain of Jewels.

The Princess was brought in, sleeping on her couch of purple, with a cloth of gold coverlet thrown over her, and she looked truly beautiful, with her black hair falling in disorder over the couch, and her rose-tinted cheek supported by one hand, while the other was pressed on her faintly beating heart. Duldy fell more in love with her than ever, but, suppressing all outward signs of his passion, he ordered her couch to be placed midway between the fire and the throne.

The pine cones were now a small heap of red-hot embers, so Duldy took out the golden box given to him by Salamander, and began to sing, while he sprinkled some of the powder from the box upon the fire,—

“O my lovely Princess sleeping,
By the spells of evil chained,
At thy side I’m vigil keeping,
Longing, hoping, smiling, weeping,
While the day hath slowly waned.

In thy sleep are visions gleaming,
Faery visions from above,
Yet tho’ lovely be thy dreaming,
All these visions are but seeming,
Wake once more to life and love.

Lovely Princess, I have found thee
Sleeping like a night-closed flower,
Of my heart I queen have crowned thee,
So tho’ evil spells have bound thee,
Laugh to scorn all magic power.”

Duldy now emptied all the powder on the fire, and a thick violet mist arose, which, trailing along the floor like a sinuous serpent, writhed across to the fountain and commenced to coil around it. Coil after coil it curled around, till it reached the topmost basin, so that the whole fountain could not be seen, but only the slender jet of water which shot out of the violet mist like the yellow horn of a trumpet lily. Duldy, waving his arms towards the fountain, began to sing again,—

“I have found her—long I’ve sought her,
To my heart this maid I take.
Cease thy spells, O river-daughter,
Vanish, fountain—vanish, water,
Let my Princess fair awake.”

At this the yellow jet shot up as high as the fretted ceiling of the hall, and then sank down till it vanished in the violet mist, which began to whirl round and round, growing smaller and smaller, sinking at every whirl till it vanished altogether, and with it the fountain, leaving nothing but the bare white gleaming marble floor. But the Princess still slept on, although Duldy could see a faint flutter of her eyelids, which showed she was awaking, so, bending forward, he kissed her red lips three times, and sang once more,—

“Now the end of all things this is,
Thou art free from magic snare.
Life for thee hath many blisses,
Words of love and endless kisses.
Ope thine eyes, O maiden fair.”

At this the beautiful Princess opened her eyes, and looked long and steadily at Duldy, then, rising to her feet, she smiled, and flung her white arms round his neck.

“It is the face of my dreams,” she sighed. “Oh, my love, I have waited for thee long years!”

So the spell was broken, for the Princess had awakened, to the delight of King Arago, who descended from his throne and joined her hand to that of Duldy.

“I will keep my word,” he said gaily. “You have released not only the Princess, but all of us, from the power of Foamina, so you will be married at once, and to-night I’ll give a great ball in honour of you both.”

Oh, how everybody cheered, and the courtiers ran hither and thither, telling the good news to one another. The city was in a great state of excitement, and all the poor people were given plenty of food to eat. Duldy led his Princess to her room, and then retired in order to dress himself in his wedding clothes, while the people cheered in the city, the joy bells rang out, and even Foamina in her mountain solitude heard the cry, “Long live Prince Duldy!”