Do not forget a single word of my greeting , and bring me back a message from my beloved . ' So the bee spread his shining wings and flew away to do as he was bidden ; but before he was out of sight a greedy swallow made a snatch at him , and to the great grief of the princess her messenger was eaten up then and there . After that , by the power of the wonderful wand she summoned a cricket , and taught him this greeting : ` Hop , little cricket , to Ratibor , and chirp in his ear that I love him only , but that I am held captive by the gnome in his palace under the mountains . ' So the cricket hopped off gaily , determined to do his best to deliver his message ; but , alas ! a long-legged stork who was prancing along the same road caught him in her cruel beak , and before he could say a word he had disappeared down her throat . These two unlucky ventures did not prevent the princess from trying once more . This time she changed the turnip into a magpie . ` Flutter from tree to tree , chattering bird , ' said she , 'till you come to Ratibor , my love . Tell him that I am a captive , and bid him come with horses and men , the third day from this , to the hill that rises from the Thorny Valley . ' The magpie listened , hopped awhile from branch to branch , and then darted away , the princess watching him anxiously as far as she could see . Now Prince Ratibor was still spending his life in wandering about the woods , and not even the beauty of the spring could soothe his grief . One day , as he sat in the shade of an oak tree , dreaming of his lost princess , and sometimes crying her name aloud , he seemed to hear another voice reply to his , and , starting up , he gazed around him , but he could see no one , and he had just made up his mind that he must be mistaken , when the same voice called again , and , looking up sharply , he saw a magpie which hopped to and fro among the twigs . Then Ratibor heard with surprise that the bird was indeed calling him by name . ` Poor chatterpie , ' said he ; ` who taught you to say that name , which belongs to an unlucky mortal who wishes the earth would open and swallow up him and his memory for ever ? ' Thereupon he caught up a great stone , and would have hurled it at the magpie , if it had not at that moment uttered the name of the princess . This was so unexpected that the prince 's arm fell helplessly to his side at the sound , and he stood motionless . But the magpie in the tree , who , like all the rest of his family , was not happy unless he could be for ever chattering , began to repeat the message the princess had taught him ; and as soon as he understood it , Prince Ratibor 's heart was filed with joy . All his gloom and misery vanished in a moment , and he anxiously questioned the welcome messenger as to the fate of the princess . But the magpie knew no more than the lesson he had learnt , so he soon fluttered away ; while the prince hurried back to his castle to gather together a troop of horsemen , full of courage for whatever might befall . The princess meanwhile was craftily pursuing her plan of escape .
She left off treating the gnome with coldness and indifference ; indeed , there was a look in her eyes which encouraged him to hope that she might some XXXXX return his love , and the idea pleased him mightily .
Ratibor Valley beak chatterpie chirp day escape fro stork turnip