The
king was quite sensible of the evil disposition of his son, but the
queen, in her excessive fondness, saw no fault whatever in her dear
Furibon, as he was named. The surest way to win her favour was to
praise Furibon for charms he did not possess. When he came of age to
have a governor, the king made choice of a prince who had an ancient
right to the crown, but was not able to support it. This prince had a
son, named Leander, handsome, accomplished, amiable--in every respect
the opposite of Prince Furibon. The two were frequently together,
which only made the deformed prince more repulsive.
One day, certain ambassadors having arrived from a far country, the
princes stood in a gallery to see them; when, taking Leander for the
king's son, they made their obeisance to him, treating Furibon as a
mere dwarf, at which the latter was so offended that he drew his
sword, and would have done them a mischief had not the king just then
appeared. As it was, the affair produced a quarrel, which ended in
Leander's being sent to a far-away castle belonging to his father.
There, however, he was quite happy, for he was a great lover of
hunting, fishing, and walking: he understood painting, read much, and
played upon several instruments; so that he was glad to be freed from
the fantastic humours of Furibon. One day as he was walking in the
garden, finding the heat increase, he retired into a shady grove, and
began to play upon the flute to amuse himself.
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