Once upon a time there was a king and a queen whowere rich and had all they wanted except that theyhad no children. The queen bewailed this day andnight, saying: "I am like a field on which nothinggrows. "At last God granted her wish, but when thebaby was born it didn't look like a human child: it wasa little donkey foal. When its mother saw this shebegan to weep and wail all all the more, saying: "shewould rather have had no child at all than a donkey,"and telling the servants to throw it in the river forthe fish to eat. But the king said: "No, since God has given it to us it shall be my son and heir,and he shall sit on the royal throne after my death and wear the royal crown." So the babydonkey was reared and GREw up, and his ears grew up nice and straight too. But he was amerry little creature, jumping about and playing, and in particular he was very fond of music;so he went to a famous minstrel and said: "Teach me your skill and make me able to play thelute as well as you." "Oh, my dear little sir," answered the minstrel, "I think you would find thatdifficult; after all, sir, your fingers are not the right shape, they are much too big, and I'm afraidthey'd break the strings." But the donkey wouldn't take no for an answer-play the lute hewould and he must, he was patient and worked hard, and learnt in the end to play as well as hismaster. One day the young gentleman was pensively taking a walk and came to a spring, andlooking into its clear bright water he saw he was shaped like a donkey. This upset him so muchthat he set off into the world, taking only one faithful companion with him. They wanderedhither and thither: finally they reached a kingdom ruled by an old king who had only onedaughter, but she was of great beauty. "We'll stay here," said the donkey. So he knocked atthe gate and called out: "A guest has come, open up and let him in." But when they didn't openthe gate he sat down, took his lute and played enchanting music on it with his two forefeet. Atthis the gatekeeper opened his eyes very wide, and ran to the king and said: "There's a youngdonkey sitting outside the gate, playing the lute like a past master." "Well, bring the musicianin to see me," said the king. But when the minstrel donkey trotted in, they all burst outlaughing at him. They were going to put him downstairs to eat with the servants, but thisangered him and he said: "I'm no ordinary ass from any old stable, I'm of noble birth." So theysaid: "If that's so, then you can sit among the soldiers." "No," he said, "I want to sit beside theking." The king laughed and said good-humouredly: "Very well, it shall be as you wish, myyoung donkey; come and sit beside me." Then he asked: "My good young ass, how do you likemy daughter?" The donkey turned his head and looked at her, then nodded and said: "Very wellindeed, she is more beautiful than any girl I have seen." "Well, then you shall sit next to her,"said the king. "That suits me," said the donkey, and he sat by her side and ate and drank andshowed very good clean table-manners. When the noble little beast had spent some time at theking's court, he thought: What's the use, I must just ho home again. And he hung his headsadly, went to the king and asked to take his leave. But the king had become fond of him andsaid: "My dear donkey, what's the matter? You look as sour as a jar of vinegar. Stay with meand I'll give you whatever you want. Do you want gold?" "No," said the donkey and shook hishead. "Do you want jewellery and precious things?" "No." "Do you want half of my kingdom?" "Oh no." Then the king said: "if only knew what would content you! Would you like to marry mybeautiful daughter?" "Oh yes," said the good spirits, for this was exactly what he had beenlonging for. So a great wedding feast was held. That evening, when the bride and bridegroomwere in their bedchamber, the king wanted to find out whether the donkey would behave in agentle and well-bred manner and he ordered a servant to hide in the room. So when they hadboth entered the bride groom bolted the door, looked about him and thinking that they wereall by themselves, suddenly cast off his donkey skin, and there he stood in the form of ahandsome young prince. "Now you see who I am," he said to his bride, "and as you see, I wasnot unworthy of you." Then she was glad and kissed him and loved him with all her heart. Butwhen morning came he jumped out of bed, put on his animal skin again, and no one would everhave guessed what its real wearer looked like. And presently along came the old king. "My word,the donkey's up and about already!" He exclaimed, and said to his daughter: " I suppose you'revery sad not to have married a proper man?" "Oh no, father dea4r, I love him as if he were thehandsomest of men, and I want to live with him all my life." The king was astonished, but theservant who had hidden in the bedroom came and told him everything. The king said: "Thatcan't possibly be true." "Then keep watch tomorrow night yourself, sir, you will see it with yourown eyes. And, my lord, let me tell you something: take away his skin and throw it into the fire,and then I think he will have to show himself in his true shape." "Your advice is good," said theking. And that night when they were asleep, he crept into the room, went over to the bed, andthere in the moonlight lay a fine young man, with the cast-off skin on the floor beside him. Sohe took it away and had a blazing fire lit and the skin thrown into it, and stayed there himselfuntil it was completely burnt to ashes. But he wanted to see what the young man would do nowthat he had lost his skin, so he stayed awake for the rest of the night and listened at the door.At daybreak, when the young man had slept his fill, he got up and was going to put on hisdonkey skin, but it was nowhere to be found. at this he took fright and said in great sorrowand alarm. "Now I must make good my escape." But when he opened the door the king wasstanding there and said to him: "My son, what are you thinking of, where are you off to in sucha hurry? Stay here! You are such a fine-looking man that I won't let you leave me again. I'll giveyou half my kingdom now, and after my death you'll get the whole of it." "Then I wish," said theyoung prince, "that all may end as well as it has begun; I will stay with you, sir." So the old mangave him half the kingdom and when he died a year later the prince got the rest, and anotherone in addition after the death of his own father; and so he lived happy and glorious.