embroidery-frame was of ebony. And as she worked, gazing at times out on
the snow, she pricked her finger, and there fell from it three drops of
blood on the snow. And when she saw how bright and red it looked, she
said to herself, "Oh that I had a child as white as snow, as red as
blood, and as black as the wood of the embroidery frame!"

Not very long after she had a daughter, with a skin as white as snow,
lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony, and she was named
Snow-white. And when she was born the queen died.

After a year had gone by the king took another wife, a beautiful woman,
but proud and overbearing, and she could not bear to be surpassed in
beauty by any one. She had a magic looking-glass, and she used to stand
before it, and look in it, and say,

"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"

And the looking-glass would answer,

"You are fairest of them all."

And she was contented, for she knew that the looking-glass spoke the
truth.

Now, Snow-white was growing prettier and prettier, and when she was
seven years old she was as beautiful as day, far more so than the queen
herself. So one day when the queen went to her mirror and said,

"Looking-glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest of us all?"

It answered,

"Queen, you are full fair, 'tis true,
But Snow-white fairer is than you."

This gave the queen a great shock, and she became yellow and green with
envy, and from that hour her heart turned against Snow-white, and she
hated her. And envy and pride like ill weeds grew in her heart higher
every day, until she had no peace day or night. At last she sent for a
huntsman, and said,

"Take the child out into the woods, so that I may set eyes on her no
more. You must put her to death, and bring me her heart for a token."

The huntsman consented, and led her away; but when he drew his cutlass
to pierce Snow-white's innocent heart, she began to weep, and to say,

"Oh, dear huntsman, do not take my life; I will go away into the wild
wood, and never come home again."

And as she was so lovely the huntsman had pity on her, and said,

"Away with you then, poor child;" for he thought the wild animals would
be sure to devour her, and it was as if a stone had been rolled away
from his heart when he spared to put her to death. Just at that moment a
young wild boar came running by, so he caught and killed it, and taking
out its heart, he brought it to