" Her daughter was also at
hand, and they carried the poor weak queen between them into the
bathroom, and laid her in the bath: then they shut the door and ran
away. But under the bath they had first lighted a great furnace-fire,
so that the beautiful young queen could not save herself from being
scorched alive.
When that was done the old witch took her own daughter, put a cap on
her, and laid her on the bed in the queen's room. She changed her also
into the shape of the young queen, all except her one eye, and she
could not give her another. But in order that the king might not
observe it, she was obliged to lie on that side where there was no
eye. In the evening, when he was come home, and heard that he had a
little son, he was very much delighted, and wished to visit his dear
wife and see how she was getting on; on which the old woman cried out
in a great hurry, "As you value your life, don't touch the curtain;
the queen must not see the light, and must be left quite quiet." So
the king went away, and never found out that it was a false queen in
the bed.
But when it was midnight, and all the world was asleep, the nurse who
was sitting beside the cradle, and who was the only person awake, saw
the door open and the true queen come in. She took the baby out of the
cradle, laid it in her arms, and nursed it tenderly. She then shook
up the pillows, laid it down again, and covered it with the
counterpane.
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