[WARNING: There’s a scene in this story that may not be appropriate for young children, and could be disturbing to some. Please keep this in mind should you decide to press on.]
019. The Count Abel And The Princess (El Conde Abel Y La Princesa)
There was a young count named Abel who was in love with a princess and they became engaged to get married. One day, they were eating at the table when the count carelessly dropped a cherry on the floor. And the young count thought: “What must I do now? Do I pick up the cherry that I had dropped or not? For it is the case that if I pick it up, the princess would think that I am miserly, and filthy too; but if I don’t pick it up she would think that I am careless and wasteful.” He was thinking about it, and in the end, he decided to pick it up from the floor and ate it. Then the princess reproached him and told him that she no longer loved him, because she was not ready to marry a count who picked up food from the ground.
Count Abel was greatly saddened by this [turn of] event and every day he pondered about how to get the princess to love him again; and between one thought and the next, he made a decision, which was to disguise as a beggar and present himself in this guise to the palace where the princess lived. And he dressed up as a beggar so well that he truly looked like one and, before leaving, he put in his bag a gold cup, a ring, and a medallion, all of which he had in his house because they were his prized family jewels.
So he came to the gates of the princess’s palace to beg for alms, and the princess herself came out and gave him a few cents as she did to other poor people who were roaming around that area. But [then] he said to her:
Madam, do you have anything that I could do, perhaps some work [at the palace]?
She told him no, that she had all the servants that she needed to do the works in the palace. But he insisted and said that he would do anything [that is needed of him], so if she could look and see if they needed anyone working in the gardens. And he insisted so much that, in the end, the princess sent him to work [dig] in the gardens.
The beggar went to dig [in the garden] and was working diligently for a good part of the day and in the evening, taking advantage of the fact that no one was watching him, he took out the gold cup from his bag and threw it into a hole he had dug and began to shout loudly, saying:
Everyone, look what I have found! A gorgeous golden cup! Look how beautiful it is!
The princess came out to see what all the shouting were about and when she saw the cup, she liked it so much that she said to the beggar:
What a beautiful cup. Will you give it to me?
And the beggar replied:
I will not give this cup to anyone, for I have found it and it is mine.
Then the princess said to him:
Well, sell it to me [then]. What do you want for it?
And he insisted:
No, I won’t sell it, [for] I like it a lot and it is mine.
And so they went on for a while, she being insistent and he resistant, until the beggar [finally relented and] said to her:
Very well, I will give it to you if you’d show [me] your [bare] foot.
And the princess replied:
But what a scoundrel you are! What do you want me to show you my foot for?
And he replied:
Well, if you don’t want to do that, that’s all fine. I’ll keep the cup then.
The princess wanted the cup so much that she said to herself: “Well, what do I care if this beggar sees my feet?” And she told him that she agreed to do so, took off her shoe and showed him one of her feet. And the beggar handed the cup to her.
The next day, the princess had a great time with her [new] cup while the beggar went back to work the whole day in the garden. And it was the end of the day when, using a furrow that he had dug as a cover, he threw the ring in it and began to shout aloud once more, saying:
Now I’ve found a truly beautiful thing! You all take a look and see how beautiful this ring is!
and those who were close by crowded around him, commenting on the beautiful ring and how lucky the beggar was.
And at this moment the princess, for she had heard the commotions, came out and was alone with the beggar again; and when she saw the ring, she said to him:
Oh how pretty it is! How much do you want for it?
And the beggar replied:
This one I won’t sell, for I like it very much that it’ll remain with me.
And the princess insisted, and insisted so much and in such a manner that the beggar told her:
Very well, if you want to keep this ring, you’ll have to show me your legs.
And the princess replied angrily:
But what a true scoundrel you are! I had already shown you my foot and now you want me to show you my legs. This cannot be under any circumstances!
And he said to her:
That’s fine, then I’ll keep the ring.
The princess, who wanted to wear the ring no matter what, said to herself: “If no one knows this beggar, what do I care if he see my legs?” And she lifted her skirt and showed him her legs, and the beggar, unable to contain himself, said:
Aye, what beautiful, white legs you have!
and he handed the ring to her.
The princess was very happy to obtain the ring, but she also felt a little embarrassed.
The next day, the beggar went back to the garden and, as usual, he was working and digging in it when, at a moment in which no one was looking at him, he took out the medallion from the bag and threw it in the furrow where he was working. And he began to say:
Aye, aye, I have found a medallion more beautiful than anything else in the world! What a beautiful medallion [I have here]!
The princess rushed there when she heard his shouts and asked him to show her the medallion. The beggar did this, but he said to her:
Don’t ask me how much I want for this because I won’t give it to you, nor to anyone else.
The princess was amazed by the beauty of the medallion and insisted that he sell it to her, but he remained firm:
No, I won’t give this to anyone, not even for all the gold in the world.
And the princess begged and begged and insisted and persisted so much and so tenaciously that at last the beggar said to her:
Well, you see, I will only give it to you if you let me sleep with you tonight.
But aren’t you a rude scoundrel! -replied the princess- Is it because I had shown you my foot and my legs that you think you can sleep with me?
And the beggar answered her:
Ma’am, this is the only way that I’ll give you the medallion. But you can sew me inside a sheet, and let me lie at your feet and there I’ll sleep with you in your bed.
The princess told him that it could not be [done] and he put away the medallion. And so much was her desire [for the medallion] that at last she consented, thinking that, after all, the beggar would sleep sewn and well-sewn inside the sheet.
So night came and the beggar went to be sewn inside the sheet. And the princess then asked him:
And what is your name?
And he told her that his name was Perico. So then, between three maids they put him in a sheet, sewed him up, left him at the foot of the bed and went away, leaving the two of them by themselves. And at midnight, the beggar began to stir about, saying:
Oye, it’s come unstitched! Oye, it’s come unstitched!
[Note: ‘perico’ could be a parakeet, an asparagus, a toupee, or a nickname for Pedro, e.g. Pete]
And he said and moved so much that he tore the sheet, got out of it, and laid down at the head of the bed with the rincess. Then he made love to her and did what he wanted with her. And the next morning, the princess said:
What am I going to do now? I’ll have to marry you, [but] I don’t know who you are!
And he told her:
That cannot be. I cannot marry you.
The beggar [then] got up and went to work in the garden.
A few months went by and every night Perico went to the princess’s bedroom and slept with her. Until one day when the princess could no longer hide the state that she was in to her parents, and she said to the beggar:
Aye, Perico, take me with you wherever you go, for if my parents see me like this, they’d kill me!
And he said to her:
No, I’m not taking you anywhere.
But, in desperation, she insisted and cried so much that Perico finally told her:
Very well, and where do you want me to take you? To an old and filthy house where my parents live?
And she did not stop crying:
Aye, Perico, take me wherever you want, I’ll go with you there!
Then the count thought: “She loves me and she will marry me.” So he put her on a donkey and they set out for the count’s palace.
They saw herds of goats as they got closer to the palace, and she said:
Look at those beautiful goats. Who do they belong to?
And he said to her:
Those goats all belong to count Abel.
And she then said, being very sentimental:
Poor me! Count Abel loved me very much and we were engaged, but I rejected him because he once dropped a cherry, [yet] picked it up and ate it.
Further on they came across large flocks of sheep. And she said:
Look at those beautiful sheep. Who do they belong to?
And he:
Those sheep all belong to count Abel.
And she again said, sighing:
Poor me! Count Abel loved me so much and what a fool I was, that I did not love him!
At last they arrived close to the palace. And the beggar asked her:
You say, princess, that count Abel loved you very much?
Aye, yes, very much -responded the princess-. And I loved him too, but because of the cherry I did not love him anymore, what a fool I was.
Then he hit the donkey with a stick and said:
Giddy up, he who loved you will take you away!
Just before arriving at the palace, the beggar placed the princess in an old and filthy house and kept her there until she gave birth. Then the count brought her clothes and food, and servants and everything that was necessary for a princess. And she said to him in the end:
Where did you get all of these things, Perico?
And he:
From the house and estate of count Abel.
And she asked:
Well, where is count Abel?
And he embraced her and said:
This is count Abel, he who loved you and he who loves you.
And he took off his beggar disguise, put on his clothes and then she [was able to] recognize him. And they got married and went to live in the count’s palace.
—– VOCABULARY —–
Acudir – to come, to go to
Acuerdo – agreement, understanding
Afanosamente – diligently, persistently
Al fin y al cabo – after all, in the end, at the end of the day
Alcoba – bedroom
Alzar – to lift, to raise; to erect
A medida que – as
Aprovechar – to take advantage of, to make good use of
Arre – giddyup, hurry up
Arremolinarse – to crowd around; arremolinar – to swirl, to eddy
A solas que – alone with
Avariento – greedy, avaricious, miserly
Avergonzado/a – ashamed, embarrassed
Belleza – beauty
Burro – donkey
Cabecera – (furniture) headboard
Cabra – goat
Cavar – (to excavate) to dig, to hoe
Céntimos – cents, pences
Conseguir – to get, to obtain
Copa – glass, cup
Descalzar – to take off somebody’s shoes
Descoser – to unstitch, to undo a stitch
Desesperar – to drive crazy, to exasperate
Despilfarrador – spendthrift, squander
Disfrazarse – to dress up, to disguise
Dispuesto/a – willing, prepared; ready
En torno a – around
Enagua – petticoat, underskirt; skirt
Enojado/a – angry
Entristecer – to make sad, to distress
Esconder – to conceal, to hide
Firme – firm, solid, sturdy
Fui la de – was to, was that of, was
Gritos – shouts
Grosero – (impolite) rude; (coarse) rough
Guardarse – (to retain) to keep
Guinda – cherry; icing on the cake, finishing touch
Hacienda – estate, ranch
Hoyo – hole, pit
Indecible – indescribable, unspeakable
Joya – piece of jewelry, gem
Lucir – to shine; to wear
Maravillar – to amaze, to astonish
Más adelante – later
Mendigo – beggar
Merodear – to prowl
Moverse – (to move forward) to move on; (to get out of the way) to move
Novios – (couple being married) bride and groom
Oveja – sheep
Palo – (piece of wood) stick
Parar – to stop
Pícaro – rogue, scoundrel
Piernas – legs
Porfiar – (to persist) to insist; (to dispute) to argue
Que el que – the one,
Quitarse – to take off (clothes)
Rebaño – flock, herd
Rechazar – to reject, to turn down
Resistir – to resist
Rogar – to implore, to beg
Sábana – (for a bed) sheet
Sinvergüenza – shameless, impudent
Sortija – ring, ringlet
Suceso – event, incident
Sucio – dirty, messy
Surco – furrow (agriculture); groove; wrinkle
Suspirar – to sigh, to give a sigh; to yearn for
Tenazmente – tenaciously
Tonto/a – stupid, silly, dumb
Vestirse – to dress oneself
Y a mi que me importa – what do I care
Ya – already, now
Zurrón – bag