Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (1)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters)(1)

Long long ago, there lived King Hugh Curucha who had three daughters.

Fair and Brown were his favorite daughters.
They were given new dresses and allowed to go to church every Sunday.

But Trembling, the most beautiful of the three, had to stay at home to do the cooking and housework.

The other two forced Trembling to do this because they were jealous of her beauty, and feared that she might attract a husband before them.

After Trembling had been kept at home for seven years, the Prince of Emania fell in love with Fair, the oldest of the sisters.

One Sunday, Fair and Brown went off to church as usual, leaving Trembling to cook dinner.

As she worked, she talked to the old Henwife, who kept the chickens on the royal farm.
" Why haven't you gone to church too, " asked the Henwife.

" I cannot go to church, " replied Trembling.
" All my clothes are in tatters. I dare not go to church, my sisters would beat me for leaving the house. "

(1/10)
飛びまして、誠に申し訳ありませんでした。

《お知らせ》
1日1分やさしい洋書は、年末年始の休止はありませんが、12月30日～1月2日までの4日間は、「特別版」にてお送りさせていただきます。
来春1月3日よりは、元の連載に戻り、通常どおり2本立てに戻ります。
勝手な申し出ながら、何卒、よろしくお願い申し上げます。

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters)(2)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters)(2)

" What dress would you like ? " asked the Henwife.

" I would like a dress as white as the snow, and a pair of bright green shoes, " replied Trembling.

The Henwife put on her cloak, snipped a tiny piece of cloth from Trembling's dress, and asked for a beautiful white dress, and a pair of green shoes.
They immediately appeared and Trembling put them on.

Then the Henwife gave the girl a bony-bird to put on her shoulder, and led her to the door.

There stood a fine white horse, with a saddle and bridle richly decorated with gold.

" Off you go to church, " said the Henwife.
" But be sure to stand just outside the church door.  As soon as the people start to leave, be ready to ride off as quickly as you can. "

(2/10)



《お知らせ》
1日1分やさしい洋書は、年末年始の休止はありませんが、12月30日～1月2日までの4日間は、「特別版」にてお送りさせていただきます。
来春1月3日よりは、元の連載に戻り、通常どおり2本立てに戻ります。
勝手な申し出ながら、何卒、よろしくお願い申し上げます。

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters)(3)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters)(3)

So Trembling rode to church, and did as the old woman had told her.
Even so, many people caught a glimpse of her, and wondered who she was.

At the end of Mass, several people ran put , but she turned her horse as quickly as she could and galloped away.

Trembling was worried that no one had finished cooking dinner for her sisters.
But the Henwife had cooked the meal, and Trembling put on her old dress as quickly as she could.

When Fair and Brown returned, they were full of talk about the mysterious lady in white.
They demanded that their father buy them fine white dress like the lady's, and next Sunday, they wore their new dresses to church.

Again, the Henwife appeared and asked Trembling if she wanted to go to church.

(3/10) 

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (4)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (4)

The old woman produced a black satin dress, with red shoes for Trembling's feet.

With the honey-bird on her shoulder, she rode on a black mare with a silver  saddle, and stayed quietly by the door of the church.

The people in the church were even more amazed.
Everyone wondered who she was, but Trembling rode away as soon as Mass was over.

Back home, Trembling removed her fine robe again, and put the finishing touches to the Henwife's meal. 

When Fair and Brown returned from church, they were full of talk about the fine lady and her black satin dress.
" No one even noticed our fine dress, " complained Fair.
" They were too busy admiring the lady by the church door and wondering who she might be.  Everyone was staring with their mouths open, and none of the men glanced at us ! "

(4/10)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (5)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (5)

Fair and Brown gave their father no peace until he bought them satin dresses and shoes, just like the one they had seen their sister wearing.
Of course, Fair and Brown's dresses were not as elegant nor as finely made as Trembling's gown.
They could not find one to match it anywhere in Ireland.

Off went Fair and Brown next Sunday in their new black dresses, and yet again the Henwife turned to Trembling and asked her what she wanted to wear to church.

" I would like a rose-red dress, a green cape, a hat and shoes of red, white , and green. "
The Henwife once more did her magic, and Trembling was dressed in her chosen clothes, and mounted on a mare with diamond-shaped spots of white, blue, and gold over her body.
The honey-bird began to sing as Treming rode off to church, to wait outside the door.

(5/10)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (6)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (6)

News had spread all over the Ireland about the lady who stood outside the church every Sunday.

Amongst the lords and princes waiting to see her was the Prince of Emania.

Once he had seen Trembling, he forgot all about her elder sister, and vowed to catch the lady before she could ride away.

At the end of the Mass, the prince sprinted out of church.
He was just able to grab hold of one of her shoes, before she galloped away into the distance.

The Prince of Emmnia vowed to search the length and breadth of Ireland until he found the woman whose foot would fit the shoe.

The other princes joined in, as they too were curious.

They searched in every town and village until they came to the house of Fair, Brown, and Trembling.

(6/10)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (7)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (7)

Both Fair and Brown tried the shoe, but it was too small for them.

The prince asked if there was any other woman in the house.

" Only a serving-girl we keep to clean the house, " said Fair.

But the prince insisted that every woman should try on the shoe.

The prince was thrilled when the shoe fitted exactly.

Trembling ran very quickly to the Henwife's house, who helped Trembling on with her white dress ; then she returned home to show everyone that she was truly the mysterious lady.

She did the same thing with the other dresses, amazing her sisters more and more each time.

The princes were just as surprised, and before she had put on the third dress, they were all challenging the Prince of Emmania to fight for her hand.

The Prince of Emmania fought bravely, defeating the Prince of Lochlin, who fought him for nine hours, and the Prince of Spain, who fought for eight hours, and the Prince of Greece, who fought for seven hours.

(7/10)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (8)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (8)

At the end of no one would fight the Prince of Emmania, for they knew he would be the winner.
So the Prince of Emmania married Trembling, and the celebration lasted for a year and a day.

Fair was still very jealous of her sister.
One day, she called on her sister, and the two walked by the coast.

When they came to the sea, Fair waited until there was no-one to see her, them pushed Trembling into the water.
It seemed as if Trembling would drown, but a great whale came and swallowed her.

Fair returned to the prince, put on her sister's clothes and pretended to be Trembling.
Although the two were as alike as could be, the Prince was not fooled by her trick.

(8/10)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (9)

Fair, Brown, and Trembling (Three daughters) (9)

Fair thought that no one had seen what she did, but a young cow-boy had watched the two sisters from nearby field.

The next day when he was in the field he saw the whale swim by and throw Trembling on the sand.

She told the cow-boy to tell her husband what had happened and that if he did not shoot the whale, she would stay under the whale's spell and never be able to go home. "

The cow-boy ran to tell the Prince what had happened, but Fair gave him a potion to drink which made him forgetful, and he said nothing about what had seen.

The same thing happened the next day.

(9/10)

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