1812 GRIMM'S FAIRY TALES RAPUNZEL Jacob Ludwig Grimm and Wilhelm Carl Grimm (all credit goes to them and rest in peace)

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THERE ONCE lived a man and his wife who had long wished fora child, but in vain. Now there was at the back of their house alittle window which overlooked a beautiful garden full of the finestvegetables and flowers; but there was a high wall all round it, andno one ventured into it, for it belonged to a witch of great might,and of whom all the world was afraid. One day when the wife wasstanding at the window, and looking into the garden, she saw abed filled with the finest rampion; and it looked so fresh and greenthat she began to wish for some; and at length she longed for itgreatly. This went on for days, and as she knew she could not getthe rampion, she pined away, and grew pale and miserable.

Then the man was uneasy, and asked, "What is the matter, dearwife?" "Oh," answered she, "I shall die unless I can have some ofthat rampion to eat that grows in the garden at the back of ourhouse." The man, who loved her very much, thought to himself,"Rather than lose my wife I will get some rampion, cost what itwill." So in the twilight he climbed over the wall into the witch'sgarden, plucked hastily a handful of rampion and brought it to hiswife. She made a salad of it at once, and ate of it to her heart'scontent. But she liked it so much, and it tasted so good, that thenext day she longed for it thrice as much as she had done before; ifshe was to have any rest the man must climb over the wall once more

So he went in the twilight again; and as he was climbing back, hesaw, all at once, the witch standing before him, and was terriblyfrightened, as she cried, with angry eyes, "How dare you climbover into my garden like a thief, and steal my rampion! It shall bethe worse for you!" "Oh," answered he, "be merciful rather thanjust; I have only done it through necessity; for my wife saw yourrampion out of the window, and became possessed with so great alonging that she would have died if she could not have had someto eat." Then the witch said, "If it is all as you say, you may have asmuch rampion as you like, on one condition- the child that willcome into the world must be given to me. It shall go well with thechild, and I will care for it like a mother." In his distress of mindthe man promised everything; and when the time came when thechild was born the witch appeared, and, giving the child the nameof Rapunzel (which is the same as rampion), she took it away with her

Rapunzel was the most beautiful child in the world. When she wastwelve years old the witch shut her up in a tower in the midst of awood, and it had neither steps nor door, only a small windowabove. When the witch wished to be let in, she would stand belowand would cry, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Let down your hair!"Rapunzel had beautiful long hair that shone like gold. When sheheard the voice of the witch she would undo the fastening of theupper window, unbind the plaits of her hair, and let it downtwenty ells below, and the witch would climb up by it.

After they had lived thus a few years it happened that as the King'sson was riding through the wood, he came to the tower; and as hedrew near he heard a voice singing so sweetly that he stood stilland listened. It was Rapunzel in her loneliness trying to pass awaythe time with sweet songs. The King's son wished to go in to her,and sought to find a door in the tower, but there was none. So herode home, but the song had entered into his heart, and every dayhe went into the wood and listened to it.

Once, as he was standing there under a tree, he saw the witch comeup, and listened while she called out, "Oh Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Letdown your hair." Then he saw how Rapunzel let down her longtresses, and how the witch climbed up by them and went in to her,and he said to himself, "Since that is the ladder, I will climb it, andseek my fortune." And the next day, as soon as it began to growdusk, he went to the tower and cried, "Oh Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Letdown your hair." And she let down her hair, and the King's sonclimbed up by it.

Rapunzel was greatly terrified when she saw that a man had comein to her, for she had never seen one before; but the King's sonbegan speaking so kindly to her, and told how her singing hadentered into his heart, so that he could have no peace until he hadseen her herself. Then Rapunzel forgot her terror, and when heasked her to take him for her husband, and she saw that he wasyoung and beautiful, she thought to herself, "I certainly like himmuch better than old motherGothel,"  and she put her hand into his hand, saying, "I wouldwillingly go with you, but I do not know how I shall get out. Whenyou come, bring each time a silken rope, and I will make a ladder,and when it is quite ready I will get down by it out of the tower,and you shall take me away on your horse." They agreed that heshould come to her every evening, as the old woman came in theday-time. So the witch knew nothing of all this until once Rapunzelsaid to her unwittingly, "Mother Gothel, how is it that you climbup here so slowly, and the King's son is with me in a moment?" "Owicked child," cried the witch, "what is this I hear! I thought I hadhidden you from all the world, and you have betrayed me!" In heranger she seized Rapunzel by her beautiful hair, struck her severaltimes with her left hand, and then grasping a pair of shears in herright- snip, snapthe beautiful locks lay on the ground. And she wasso hard-hearted that she took Rapunzel and put her in a waste anddesert place, where she lived in great woe and misery.

The same day on which she took Rapunzel away she went back tothe tower in the evening and made fast the severed locks of hair tothe window-hasp, and the King's son came and cried, "Rapunzel,Rapunzel! Let down your hair." Then she let the hair down, andthe King's son climbed up, but instead of his dearest Rapunzel hefound the witch looking at him with wicked, glittering eyes.

"Aha!" cried she, mocking him, "you came for your darling, butthe sweet bird sits no longer in the nest, and sings no more; the cathas got her, and will scratch out your eyes as well! Rapunzel is lostto you; you will see her no more." The King's son was besidehimself with grief, and in his agony he sprang from the tower; heescaped with life, but the thorns on which he fell put out his eyes.Then he wandered blind through the wood, eating nothing butroots and berries, and doing nothing but lament and weep for theloss of his dearest wife

So he wandered several years in misery until at last he came to thedesert place where Rapunzel lived with her twin-children that shehad borne, a boy and a girl. At first he heard a voice that hethought he knew, and when he reached the place from which it seemed to come Rapunzel knew him, and fell on his neck andwept. And when her tears touched his eyes they became clearagain, and he could see with them as well as ever.

Then he took her to his kingdom, where he was received with greatjoy, and there they lived long and happily.

THE END