SNOW-WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS

PART ONE

It was the middle of winter, and snowflakes were falling like feathers from the sky. A Queen sat at her window, working at her embroidery. As she worked, gazing at times out on the snow, she accidentally pricked her finger, and there fell from it three drops of blood on the snow. When she saw how bright and red it looked, she said to herself, “Oh I wish I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as the ebony wood of this embroidery frame!”

Not long after she had a daughter, with skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony, and she was named Snow-White. But there is a price for every wish, and when she was born her mother, the Queen, died.

Some years later, the King took another wife, a beautiful woman, but proud, vain, and demanding. She could not bear to be surpassed in beauty by anyone. The woman had a magic mirror and she used to stand before it, look in it, and say, “magic mirror upon the wall, who is the fairest one of all?" And the mirror would answer, “You are fairest of them all.” And she was contented, for she knew that the mirror could only speak the truth.

Now, Snow-white was growing prettier and prettier, and when she was sixteen years old she was as beautiful as day, far more so than the Queen herself. So, one day when the Queen went to her mirror and said, “magic mirror upon the wall, who is the fairest one of all?" It answered, “Queen, you are full fair, it’s true, But Snow-white is fairer than you." This shocked the Queen to her very core, she became yellow and green with envy, and from that hour her heart turned against Snow-white, and she hated her. Envy and pride like poison weeds grew in her heart, twisting up higher every day, until she had no peace. When her hatred became unbearable she sent for a huntsman, and said, “Take the girl out into the woods, so that I may set eyes on her no more. You must kill her and bring me her heart.” The huntsman did as he was told and led Snow-White away; but when he drew his dagger to pierce her innocent heart, she began to weep, and said, “dear huntsman, don’t kill me. I will go away into the wild wood, and never come home again.” The huntsman had pity on her, and said, “Away with you then, poor child.” He thought the wild animals would be sure to devour her, but he also felt as if a stone had been rolled away from his heart when he decided not to kill the innocent girl. As he walked back, wondering what to tell the wicked Queen, a young wild boar came running by, so he caught and killed it, and taking out its heart, he brought it to the Queen and told her it was Snow-White’s heart. The Queen had it salted and cooked, and the wicked woman ate it up, thinking that was the end of Snow-white.

Now, the poor girl found herself alone in the wild woods, she was terrified, even of the very leaves on the trees, she didn’t know what to do for fright. She ran over sharp stones and through thorn bushes and believed that the wild beasts of the forest were after her, but they did her no harm. She ran as long as her feet would carry her. When the evening drew near she had some luck and came upon a little house, she went inside to rest. Everything was small inside the house, but as pretty and clean as possible. There stood the little table ready laid, and covered with a white cloth, and seven little plates, and seven small knives and forks, and drinking cups. By the wall stood seven little beds, side by side, covered with clean white quilts. Snow-white, being very hungry and thirsty, ate from each plate a little porridge and bread, and drank out of each little cup a drop of wine, so as not to finish up one portion alone. After that she felt so tired that she lay down on one of the beds and fell asleep.