Collected French Translations: Prose

by Ashbery, John

  There was much murmuring over this dispute. The princes’ friends, and especially those of the elder, for his cloth was the more beautiful, argued that this was a piece of outright chicanery, into which much pettifoggery and hair-splitting had entered. The king’s supporters maintained that he was scarcely obliged to hold to conditions which he hadn’t proposed; finally, to settle all their bickering, a charming sound of trumpets, oboes, and kettledrums was heard; it was our prince arriving in pomp with all his retinue. The king and his two sons were all equally amazed by such splendor.

  After he had respectfully greeted his father and embraced his brothers, he withdrew the walnut from a ruby-encrusted casket and cracked it open; he supposed he would find the much vaunted piece of cloth within, but instead there was a hazelnut. He cracked again and was amazed to find a cherry stone. Everyone exchanged glances, the king was laughing quietly and thought his son a ninny for having the naivety to think that he could transport a piece of cloth in a walnut, yet why wouldn’t he think so, since he had already brought him a little dog that fitted inside an acorn? Accordingly he cracked the cherry stone, which had a solid kernel; at that an uproar broke out in the chamber, everyone was saying that the prince had been duped in his adventure. He replied nothing to the courtiers’ malicious pleasantries; he opened the kernel and found a grain of wheat and inside that a millet seed. Ha! Now it was his turn to be suspicious, and he muttered between his teeth: White Cat, White Cat, you have tricked me. At that moment he felt a cat’s claw on his hand, which scratched him so forcefully that his hand bled. He couldn’t decide whether this scratch was meant to encourage him or make him lose heart. Nevertheless he pried open the millet seed, and great was the astonishment of all when he withdrew from it a piece of linen four hundred ells long, of such extraordinary stitchery that all the birds, animals, and fish were depicted on it, along with the plants of the Earth, its rocky peaks, the curiosities and shellfish of the sea, the sun, the moon, the stars, the heavenly bodies and planets of the heavens; as well as the portraits of the kings and other sovereigns who reigned on Earth at that time; those of their wives, their mistresses, their children, and all their subjects, down to the last street urchin. Each one according to his condition was portrayed with the character that suited him, and was dressed according to the fashion of his native land. When the king saw the piece of linen he grew as pale as the prince had blushed red while he was searching so long for it. The needle was presented, and the cloth was passed and repassed through it six times. The king and the two princes maintained a gloomy silence, even though the beauty and rarity of the piece of linen forced them to acknowledge from time to time that everything else in the universe was inferior to it.

  The king heaved a deep sigh, and, turning toward his sons, said: Nothing can console me in my old age as much as the spectacle of your deference to my wishes; therefore I wish to put you to one more test. Go once more on a yearlong journey, and whoever returns at the end of the year with the most beautiful maiden shall wed her and be crowned king on his marriage; it is of course imperative that my successor have a wife. I swear and promise that I shall no longer postpone the recompense I have offered.

  The injustice of all this stunned our prince. The little dog and the linen cloth were worth ten kingdoms rather than one; but he was so well bred that he in no way wished to oppose his father’s will, and, without hesitation, climbed back into his barouche; all his retinue followed, and he returned to his beloved White Cat; she knew the day and the moment he would arrive; the road was strewn with flowers, and a thousand incense-burners were smoking on every side, and especially within the castle. She was seated on a Persian carpet, beneath a tent made of cloth-of-gold, in a loggia from which she could see him approaching. He was received by the hands which had always served him. All the cats climbed up to the eaves, so as to congratulate him with a desperate caterwauling.

  How now, king’s son, she said to him, so you have returned without a crown? Madam, he replied, your favors would indeed have gained it for me; but I am persuaded that the king’s distress at parting with it would be greater than my pleasure in possessing it. No matter, she said, you must neglect nothing to deserve it; I will serve you on this occasion; and since you must lead a beautiful maiden back to your father’s court, I’ll look for one who will win you the prize. Meanwhile, let’s rejoice; I have ordained a naval battle between my cats and the terrible rats that infest the region. My cats will be at a disadvantage, perhaps, for they are afraid of the water; but otherwise their superiority would be too great, and one must, insofar as possible, let equality reign in all things. The prince admired the probity of Madam Kitty. He sang her praises, and accompanied her onto a terrace which looked toward the sea.

  The cats’ vessels consisted of large chunks of cork, on which they sailed along quite easily. The rats had joined together several eggshells, and these were their warships. The combat was cruelly unsparing; the rats dived into the water, and swam much better than the cats, so that the latter were twenty times victors and vanquished; but Minagrobis, admiral of the feline fleet, pursued the rattish hordes to their ultimate débâcle. He devoured the general of their navy with his sharp teeth; it was an old, battle-scarred rat who had gone thrice around the world in stout vessels, wherein he was neither captain nor sailor, but merely an uninvited scrounger.

  White Cat did not desire the total destruction of these unfortunates. Well versed in politics, she understood that if there were neither rats nor mice in the land, her subjects would lapse into a state of idleness that might be detrimental to their well-being. The prince spent this year doing what he had done in the preceding ones, that is to say in hunting, fishing, and gaming, for White Cat was an excellent chess player. From time to time he couldn’t resist plying her with new questions, so as to know by what miracle she was able to speak. He asked her if she was a fairy, or whether someone had transformed her into a cat; but as she never said anything but what she wished to say, neither did she answer anything but what she wished to answer, which were random words signifying nothing, so that he had no trouble concluding that she didn’t choose to share her secret with him.

  Nothing flows faster than days that pass without care and without chagrin, and if the Cat hadn’t been so careful to remember the time for his return to the court, it is certain that the prince would have forgotten it absolutely. She advised him on the eve that it was only up to him to carry away one of the most beautiful princesses in the world, that the hour to destroy the fairies’ fatal handiwork had at last arrived, and that he must resolve to cut off her head and tail and throw them immediately into the fire. Me! he exclaimed. Blanchette! My love! Me, a barbarian who would slay you! Ah, no doubt you wish to put my heart to the test, but rest assured that it is incapable of lacking in the love and gratitude it owes you. No, king’s son, she continued, I suspect you of no ingratitude; I know your worth; neither you nor I may control our destiny in this affair. Do as I wish and we shall each of us begin to know happiness, and you will understand, on my honor as a cat, that I am truly your friend.

  Tears came two or three times to the eyes of the young prince, at the mere thought that he must cut off the head of his little pussycat who was so graceful and pretty. Again he said everything he could think of to dissuade her; she replied obstinately that she wished to die at his hand; and that it was the only way to prevent his brothers from assuming the crown; in a word she urged him with such ardor, that trembling, he drew his sword and with an unsteady hand cut off the head and tail of his good friend the Cat; at the same moment he witnessed the most charming metamorphosis imaginable. White Cat’s body grew tall, and suddenly changed into a girl. It would be impossible to describe how perfect she was in every detail, how superior to all other maidens. Her eyes delighted all hearts, and her sweetness gave them pause: Her form was regal, her manner noble and modest, her nature affectionate, her manners engaging; in a word, she towered above all that was most lovable in the world.

  Seeing
her, the prince was overcome with surprise, a surprise so delightful that he thought he must be under a spell. He was unable to speak; his eyes weren’t big enough to look at her; he was too tongue-tied to explain his amazement, but even this paled when he saw an enormous crowd of ladies and lords enter the room, each with their cat’s skin slung over their shoulders: They knelt before the queen and expressed their joy at seeing her again in her natural state. She received them with tokens of kindness which bore ample witness to the goodness of her heart. And after holding court for a few moments, she ordered that she be left alone with the prince, and addressed him thus: Do not imagine, my lord, that I was always a Cat, nor that my condition among men was a lowly one. My father was the ruler of six kingdoms. He loved my mother tenderly, and gave her absolute freedom to do as she wished. Her chief passion was for travel, and so it came about that while she was carrying me she undertook to go and see a certain mountain, of which she had heard tell surprising things. As she was on her way there, she was told that close to the place she was passing through was a fairy’s ancient castle, the most beautiful in the world, or at any rate so it was supposed to be, according to legend, for since no one ever entered there, no one could be sure; but what was known with certainty was that in their garden those fairies had the finest fruits, the tastiest and most delicate that ever were eaten.

  Immediately my mother the queen had such a violent urge to taste them that she made straight for the castle. She arrived at the gate of that magnificent edifice, which glittered with gold and lapis on all sides, but she knocked to no avail; no one at all appeared; it seemed that everyone inside was dead. Her appetite whetted by frustration, she called for ladders to be brought so that she might climb over the walls into the garden; and this would have happened, but the walls grew taller before their very eyes, even though nobody was seen at work on them; ladders were joined together; they collapsed under the weight of those ordered to climb them, who were injured or killed.

  The queen was in despair. She saw great trees laden with fruits which she imagined to be delicious, she would eat of them or die; thus she had gorgeous tents pitched before the castle, and remained there six weeks with all her court. She neither ate nor slept, but sighed unceasingly; she spoke of naught but the fruits of the inaccessible garden; at last she fell dangerously ill, without anyone’s being able to supply her with the slightest remedy, for the inexorable fairies hadn’t even made an appearance since she installed herself near their castle. Her officers were all deeply distressed: One heard nothing but sobs and sighs, while the dying queen demanded fruits of those who served her, but would have only those that were denied her.

  One night when she had dozed off a bit, she saw on waking a little old woman, ugly and decrepit, seated in an armchair by her bedside. She was surprised that her ladies-in-waiting would have let a stranger come so close, when the woman said: We find your majesty most importunate, to wish so obstinately to eat of our fruits; but since your precious life hangs in the balance, my sisters and I have consented to give you as much as you can carry with you, and for as long as you stay here, provided you make us a gift. Ah! good mother, speak, I’ll give you my kingdoms, my heart, my soul, if only I may have fruits; I couldn’t buy them too dear! We wish, she said, that your majesty give us the daughter you are carrying in your womb; as soon as she is born, we shall come to fetch her; she will be well cared for with us, there are no virtues, no beauties, no sciences with which we shan’t endow her: In a word, she will be our child, we shall make her happy; but note that your majesty will not see her again until she be wed. If this proposal suits you I shall cure you straightaway, and lead you to our orchards; in spite of the night you will see clear enough to choose what you like. If what I tell you displeases you, good evening, your highness the queen, I am going to sleep. However harsh the law you impose upon me, replied the queen, I accept it rather than perish; for it is certain that I haven’t a day left to live, thus I shall lose my child in losing myself. Heal me, wise fairy, she went on, and let me not wait a moment before savoring the privilege you have just granted me.

  The fairy touched her with a little gold wand, saying: May your majesty be free of all the ills which bind you to this bed. At once it seemed to her that a harsh and heavy cloak that had been crushing her was lifted from her shoulders, and that there were places where she felt it still. It was apparently these places where the evil was the most severe. She had her ladies summoned, and gaily told them how well she felt, that she was going to rise from her bed, and that at last the fairies’ palace gates, so strongly bolted and barricaded, were to be opened for her to eat the lovely fruits, and take away as many as she pleased.

  All of her ladies-in-waiting supposed that the queen was raving, and that at this moment she was dreaming of the fruits she had so longed for; so that instead of replying they began to weep, and had the physicians awakened so they could see the state she was in. This delay drove the queen to despair; she at once demanded her robes; they were refused her; she grew angry, her face reddened. They said it was because of the fever; but now the doctors arrived and, after they had taken her pulse and performed their usual rigmarole, were obliged to admit that she was in perfect health. Her ladies, realizing the error their zeal had caused them to commit, sought to repair it and lost no time in dressing her. Each begged her pardon, the matter was settled, and she hastened to follow the old fairy who was still awaiting her.

  She entered the palace, where nothing could have been added to make it the most beautiful place in the world; you will believe it easily, my lord, added Queen White Cat, when I tell you that it’s the very one in which we are at this moment; two other fairies a little less aged than the one who led my mother met them at the gate, and welcomed her most kindly. She beseeched them to lead her directly to the garden, and toward the espaliers where the finest fruits were to be found. All were equally good, they replied, and if it weren’t for your wanting to have the pleasure of plucking them yourself, we should have only to call out for them to arrive here. I beg you, ladies, to let me have the satisfaction of seeing such an extraordinary sight. The oldest stuck her fingers in her mouth and whistled three times; then called out: Apricots, peaches, clingstones, nectarines, cherries, plums, white cherries, melons, pears, muscats, apples, oranges, lemons, currants, strawberries, raspberries, come when I call! But, said the queen, all those you have just called for ripen in different seasons. That is not the case with our orchards, they told her; we have all the fruits that exist on Earth, always ripe, always good, and they never spoil.

  And at that very moment they arrived, rolling, creeping, pell-mell, without getting bruised or dirty; in such wise that the queen, anxious to slake her craving, flung herself on them, seized the first that came to her hands, and devoured rather than ate them.

  Feeling a little sated now, she begged the fairies to let her go and see the espaliers, so as to have the pleasure of inspecting them before making her choice. We are happy to let you, said the three fairies, but remember the promise you gave us; you will no longer be allowed to retract it. I am persuaded, she replied, that life here with you is so agreeable, and this palace seems so fine to me, that were it not for the love I bear my husband the king, I would offer to remain here; for this reason you must never believe that I would take back my word. The fairies, delighted, opened all their gardens and enclosures to her; she stayed for three days and three nights without wishing to leave, so delicious did she find everything. She gathered fruits for her provision, and since they never spoil, she had four thousand mules brought to her and laden with them. The fairies added gold baskets of exquisite workmanship to hold them, and several rarities whose price was excessive; they promised to raise me as a princess, to make me perfect, and to choose me a husband; that she would be notified of the wedding and that they sincerely hoped she would attend.

  The king was delighted by the queen’s return; the whole court bore witness to his joy; there were balls, masquerades, tilting at the ring,5 and
feasts at which the queen’s fruits were served as a sumptuous treat. The king ate them in preference to everything that was served him. He knew nothing of the bargain she had struck with the fairies, and often asked her in what country she had found such delicacies; she replied that they came from an almost inaccessible mountain; another time she said they came from valleys, and then from a garden in the depths of a vast forest. The king was surprised by so many contradictions. He questioned those who accompanied her, but she had so sternly forbidden them to tell anyone of her adventure, that they dared not speak of it. Finally, disturbed by what she had promised the fairies, and sensing the time of her confinement fast approaching, she sank into a frightful state of despondency, so that even her appearance was altered. The king was distressed, and urged the queen to tell him the cause of her sadness, and after much shedding of tears, she told him everything that had happened between herself and the fairies, and how she had promised them the child she was expecting. What! cried the king, we have no offspring, you know how much I long for a child, and for a matter of two or three apples you are capable of giving yours away? Obviously you love me not at all. Thereupon he overwhelmed her with a thousand reproaches, causing my poor mother to feel she would die of grief, but not content with this, he had her shut up in a tower with guards on all sides to prevent her from having commerce with anyone in the outside world, save the officers who waited on her, and even so he removed those who had been with her to the fairies’ castle.

  The bad blood between the king and queen plunged the court into deep consternation. Everyone doffed their rich robes to dress in a manner more suited to the general sorrow. The king, for his part, appeared inexorable; he no longer saw his wife, and as soon as I was born he had me brought to his palace to be nursed, while she remained a prisoner and crushed by misery. The fairies were ignorant of nothing that had happened; they grew irritated, they wanted me, they considered me their property and that they had been robbed of it. Before mapping a vengeance which would be proportionate to the crime, they sent an illustrious embassy to the king, warning him to release the queen and restore her to favor, and to beg him also to hand me over to their ambassadors so that I might be raised and educated by them. The ambassadors were so stunted and deformed, for they were in fact hideous dwarfs, that they were in no way able to persuade the king to do their bidding. He refused them rudely, and if they hadn’t left posthaste they might have met with a worse fate.