Rapunzel

Once upon a time, there lived a man and his wife. They had everything that they wanted in the world, except for one thing. For many years, they had longed to have a child whom they could love. Yet no baby was born to them. At the back of their house was a window which looked out over a beautiful garden, full of lovely flowers and fine vegetables. The garden was surrounded by a high wall. No one ever to climb the wall, for the garden belonged to a witch, who was feared by everyone. One day, the wife stood at the window, looking down into the garden. In one of the vegetable beds, she saw some fresh, green salad. It looked so tempting that she longed to eat some. She grew pale and thin because she knew she could not have the salad. Her husband grew worried when he saw how thin she had become “What is the matter with you, dear wife'” he asked. His wife pointed to the fresh, green salad in the witch’s garden. “ Ah!” she sighed, “if I cannot eat some of that salad, I shall surely die.” “Rather than let you die,” replied the man, “I shall climb into the witch’s garden and bring you some salad.” The man waited until twilight, then climbed over the high wall into the witch’s garden. There he quickly gathered a handful of salad and scrambled back over the wall. His wife sat down at once and ate the salad. It tasted even better than she Had imagined. It tasted so good that, by the next day, she was longing for more salad. So, once more, her husband felt that he must climb over the wall to fetch it for her. Waiting until twilight again, the man clambered up the wall and lowered himself into the garden. As his feet touched the ground, he nearly fell down with fright, for there stood the witch, in front of him. “How dare you come into my garden! “It was for my wife,” replied the poor man.” She longed so much for the salad that if she could not have had it, she would have pined away and died.” When the witch heard the man’s tale, she lost anger and took pity on him. “ If what you say is true,” she said, “I will let you take as much salad as you wish, if you promise me one thing. When your wife has a child, you must give it to me. I shall treat it well and look after it like a mother.” The poor man was so frightened that he agreed then he quickly gathered an armful of salad and ran back to his wife. Some time later, a beautiful baby girl was born to the man and his wife. That very same day, the witch appeared. She reminded the man of the promise, and took the child away from her. The witch named the baby, Rapunzel. As the child grew, she became the most beautiful girl in the world. When Rapunzel was twelve years old, the witch shut her up in a tower in the forest. This tower had neither a door nor a staircase but, right at the top, there was one small window. Rapunzel, Rapunzel, “Let down your hair.” Rapunzel had wonderful, long, fine hair, the colour of gold. Whenever she heard the voice of the witch, she threw her long plait of hair out of the window. It was so long that it fell right to the ground. The witch would catch hold of the hair as if it were a rope. Then she would climb up the wall of the toer and in at the window. When