but he knew she did not love him, and, seeing the ring the old beggar had given Nardo on his hand one day, he remembered what the beggar had said when he gave his brother the ring.

“I must have the ring,” said Stephen. “Then I will have the love of the Princess; besides that, her father, the King, is old, and when he dies I shall be king in his place.”

But it was no easy matter to possess the ring, for Nardo was as big and strong as Stephen. There was no way to get the ring from off his finger unless he took it by force or could get some witch to weave a spell over him.

[Pg 52]

[Pg 52]

And all this time the beautiful Princess was in love with Nardo. Had he only known it, he needed no magic ring to win her love for him.

One night after trying in vain to get the ring Stephen went to an old witch who lived in a cave by the sea and asked her to get the ring for him, promising to make her rich if she would get it.

The witch was greedy for gold, so one night while Nardo slept she crept into the palace, aided by the wicked Stephen, and cast a spell over Nardo, which made him forget the ring and also his love for the beautiful Princess.

Stephen, with the ring on his finger, felt that all was easy now, and he promptly forgot all about the old witch and the gold he promised her.

The beautiful Princess looked with sad eyes upon the now cold and indifferent Nardo, and, while she did not love Stephen, she felt each day that she was being drawn to him, though she knew well enough she did not love any one but Nardo.

The old witch, however, helped the Princess out of part of her troubles, for when she found that Stephen did not intend to give her the gold, she waited for him one day in the[Pg 53] palace grounds, hidden behind a clump of bushes, and when he came out for a walk she pointed her lean fingers at him and placed him under a spell which made him follow her to her cave by the sea.

[Pg 53]

Here she chained him to a rock and put a dragon to watch that he did not escape; but while the Princess escaped marrying Stephen, he still possessed the ring which kept Nardo from remembering he had ever loved the Princess.

One night when the Princess was sitting in her window 

 Prev. P 27/97 next