over her breast, and darted like a fish through the water, in between the hideous polyps, which stretched out their sensitive arms and tentacles towards her.  She could see that every one of them had something or other, which they had grasped with their hundred arms, and which they held as if in iron bands.  The bleached bones of men who had perished at sea and sunk below peeped forth from the arms of some, while others clutched rudders and sea-chests, or the skeleton of some land animal; and most horrible of all, a little mermaid whom they had caught and suffocated.  Then she came to a large opening in the wood where the ground was all slimy, and where some huge fat water snakes were gambolling about.  In the middle of this opening was a house built of the bones of the wrecked; there sat the witch, letting a toad eat out of her mouth, just as mortals let a little canary eat sugar.  She called the hideous water snakes her little chickens, and allowed them to crawl about on her unsightly bosom.

‘I know very well what you have come here for,’ said the witch.  ’It is very foolish of you! all the same you shall have your way, because it will lead you into misfortune, my fine princess.  You want to get rid of your fish’s tail, and instead to have two stumps to walk about upon like human beings, so that the young prince may fall in love with you, and that you may win him and an immortal soul.’  Saying this, she gave such a loud hideous laugh that the toad and the snakes fell to the ground and wriggled about there.

‘You are just in the nick of time,’ said the witch; ’after sunrise to-morrow I should not be able to help you until another year had run its course.  I will make you a potion, and before sunrise you must swim ashore with it, seat yourself on the beach and drink it; then your tail will divide and shrivel up to what men call beautiful legs.  But it hurts; it is as if a sharp sword were running through you.  All who see you will say that you are the most beautiful child of man they have ever seen.  You will keep your gliding gait, no dancer will rival you, but every step you take will be as if you were treading upon sharp knives, so sharp as to draw blood.  If you are willing to suffer all this I am ready to help you!’

‘Yes!’ said the little princess with a trembling voice, thinking of the prince and of winning an undying soul.

‘But remember,’ said the witch, ’when once you have received a human form, you can never be a mermaid again; you will never again be able to dive down through the water to your sisters and to your father’s palace.  And if you do not succeed in winning the prince’s love, so that for your sake he will forget father and mother, cleave to you with his whole heart, let the priest join your hands and make you man and wife, you will gain no immortal soul!  The first morning after his marriage with another your heart will break, and you will turn into foam of the sea.’

‘I will do it,’ said the little mermaid as pale as death.