[Illustration:  Ye King Prince John]

“One does not give something for nothing,” said the old woman, so she began fumbling about in her pocket until she found an old rusty key.  And the best part of the key was, that whenever one looked through the ring of it, one saw everything just as it really was and not as it seemed to be.

Who would not give his dinner and the coat off his back for such a key?

After that the Prince stepped out again, right foot foremost, tramp! tramp! tramp! until evening had come, and he felt as hungry as one is like to do when one goes without one’s dinner.  At last he came to a dark forest, and to a gray castle that stood just in the middle of it.  This castle belonged to a great, ugly troll, though the Prince knew nothing of that.

“Now I shall have something to eat,” said he, and he opened the door of the castle and went in.

Only one person was within, and that was a maiden; but she was as black from head to foot as Fritz the charcoal burner.  The Prince had never seen the like of her in all of his life before, so he drew the rusty key out of his pocket and took a peep at her through the ring of it, to see what manner of body she really was.

Then he saw that she was no longer black and ugly, but as beautiful as a ripe apple; for her forehead was as white as milk, her cheeks were as red as blood, her eyes were as blue as the skies, and her hair was like spun gold.  Moreover, any one could see with half an eye that she was a real princess, for she wore a gold crown on her head, such as real princesses are never without.

“You are the one whom I seek,” said the Prince.

“Yes, I am the one you seek,” said she.

“And how can I free you from your enchantment?” said he.

“If you will abide here three nights, and will bear all that shall happen to you without a word, then I shall be free,” said she.

“Oh yes, I will do that,” said the Prince.

After that the black Princess set a good supper before him, and the Prince ate like three men.

By-and-by there was a huge noise, and the door opened and in came an ugly troll with a head as big as a bucket.  He rolled his great saucer eyes around till he saw the Prince where he sat beside the fire.

[Illustration:  The Prince aids the Old Woman]

“Black cats and spotted toads!” bellowed he, “what are you doing here?”

But to this the Prince answered never a word.

“We shall see whether or no there is sound in you!” roared the troll.  Thereupon he caught the Prince by the hair and dragged him out into the middle of the room.  Then he snatched up a great cudgel and began beating the Prince as though he were a sack of barley-flour; but the Prince said never a word.  At last the troll had to give over beating him, for the morning had come and the troll was afraid the sun would catch him; and if that were to happen, he would swell up and burst with a great noise.  “We shall see whether you will come again!” said he, and then he left the Prince lying on the floor more dead than alive; and if anybody was sore in all of the world, the Prince was that man.