Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Raja Katak atau Iron Henry
(The Frog King or Iron Henry), Selamat Membaca :
In olden times when wishing still helped one, there lived
a king whose daughters were all beautiful, but the youngest was so beautiful
that the sun itself, which has seen so much, was astonished whenever it shone
in her face. Close by the king's castle
lay a great dark forest, and under an old lime-tree in the forest was a well,
and when the day was very warm, the king's child went out into the forest and
sat down by the side of the cool fountain, and when she was bored she took a
golden ball, and threw it up on high and caught it, and this ball was her
favorite plaything.
Now it so happened that on one occasion the princess's
golden ball did not fall into the little hand which she was holding up for it,
but on to the ground beyond, and rolled straight into the water. The king's daughter followed it with her
eyes, but it vanished, and the well was deep, so deep that the bottom could not
be seen. At this she began to cry, and
cried louder and louder, and could not be comforted. And as she thus lamented someone said to her,
"What ails you, king's daughter?
You weep so that even a stone would show pity."
She looked round to the side from whence the voice came,
and saw a frog stretching forth its big, ugly head from the water. "Ah, old water-splasher, is it
you," she said, "I am weeping for my golden ball, which has fallen
into the well." "Be quiet, and
do not weep," answered the frog, "I can help you, but what will you
give me if I bring your plaything up again?" "Whatever you will have, dear
frog," said she, "My clothes, my pearls and jewels, and even the
golden crown which I am wearing."
The frog answered, "I do not care for your clothes, your pearls and
jewels, nor for your golden crown, but if you will love me and let me be your
companion and play-fellow, and sit by you at your little table, and eat off
your little golden plate, and drink out of your little cup, and sleep in our little bed - if you will promise me this
I will go down below, and bring you your golden ball up again."
"Oh yes," said she, "I promise you all you
wish, if you will but bring me my ball back again." But she thought, "How the silly frog
does talk. All he does is to sit in the
water with the other frogs, and croak.
He can be no companion to any human being." But the frog when he had received this
promise, put his head into the water and sank down; and in a short while came
swimmming up again with the ball in his mouth, and threw it on the grass. The king's daughter was delighted to see her
pretty plaything once more, and picked it up, and ran away with it. "Wait, wait," said the frog. "Take me with you. I can't run as you can." But what did it avail him to scream his
croak, croak, after her, as loudly as he could.
She did not listen to it, but ran home and soon forgot the poor frog,
who was forced to go back into his well again.
The next day when she had seated herself at table with
the king and all the courtiers, and was eating from her little golden plate,
something came creeping splish splash, splish splash, up the marble staircase,
and when it had got to the top, it knocked at the door and cried,
"Princess, youngest princess, open the door for me." She ran to see who was outside, but when she
opened the door, there sat the frog in front of it. Then she slammed the door to, in great haste,
sat down to dinner again, and was quite frightened. The king saw plainly that her heart was
beating violently, and said, "My child, what are you so afraid of? Is there perchance a giant outside who wants
to carry you away?" "Ah,
no," replied she. "It is no
giant but a disgusting frog."
"What does a frog want with you?" "Ah, dear father, yesterday as I was in
the forest sitting by the well, playing, my golden ball fell into the
water. And because I cried so, the frog
brought it out again for me, and because he so insisted, I promised him he
should be my companion, but I never thought he would be able to come out of his
water. And now he is outside there, and
wants to come in to me."
In the meantime it knocked a second time, and cried, "Princess, youngest princess, open the door for me, do you not know what you said to me yesterday
by the cool waters of the well.
Princess, youngest princess, open
the door for me."
Then said the king, "That which you have promised
must you perform. Go and let him in."
She went and opened the door, and the frog hopped in and followed her,
step by step, to her chair. There he sat and cried, "Lift me up beside
you." She delayed, until at last
the king commanded her to do it. Once
the frog was on the chair he wanted to be on the table, and when he was on the
table he said, "Now, push your little golden plate nearer to me that we
may eat together." She did this,
but it was easy to see that she did not do it willingly. The frog enjoyed what he ate, but almost
every mouthful she took choked her. At
length he said, "I have eaten and am satisfied, now I am tired, carry me
into your little room and make your little silken bed ready, and we will both
lie down and go to sleep."
The king's daughter began to cry, for she was afraid of the
cold frog which she did not like to touch, and which was now to sleep in her
pretty, clean little bed. But the king
grew angry and said, "He who helped you when you were in trouble ought not
afterwards to be despised by you."
So she took hold of the frog with two fingers, carried him upstairs, and
put him in a corner, but when she was in bed he crept to her and said, "I
am tired, I want to sleep as well as you, lift me up or I will tell your
father." At this she was terribly
angry, and took him up and threw him with all her might against the wall. "Now, will you be quiet, odious
frog," said she. But when he fell
down he was no frog but a king's son with kind and beautiful eyes. He by her father's will was now her dear
companion and husband. Then he told her
how he had been bewitched by a wicked witch, and how no one could have
delivered him from the well but herself, and that to-morrow they would go
together into his kingdom.
Then they went to sleep, and next morning when the sun
awoke them, a carriage came driving up with eight white horses, which had white
ostrich feathers on their heads, and were harnessed with golden chains, and
behind stood the young king's servant Faithful Henry. Faithful Henry had been
so unhappy when his master was changed into a frog, that he had caused three
iron bands to be laid round his heart, lest it should burst with grief and
sadness. The carriage was to conduct the
young king into his kingdom. Faithful
Henry helped them both in, and placed himself behind again, and was full of joy
because of this deliverance. And when
they had driven a part of the way the king's son heard a cracking behind him as
if something had broken. So he turned round and cried, "Henry, the carriage
is breaking."
"No, master, it is not the carriage. It is a band from my heart, which was put
there in my great pain when you were a frog and imprisoned in the
well." Again and once again while
they were on their way something cracked, and each time the king's son thought
the carriage was breaking, but it was only the bands which were springing from
the heart of Faithful Henry because his master was set free and was happy.
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