wife could find no further excuse for delaying to
come down. So she slowly and tremblingly de-
scended the stairs. With hair dishevelled and with
her face bathed in tears she threw herself on her
knees, and begged him to spare her life.
‘It is of no avail,’ answered Blue-beard ; ‘die you
must and shall.’
Seizing her by the hair—her golden hair—with one
hand, and brandishing the cutlass with the other,
he prepared to strike the fatal blow.
‘Stay! stay!’ she said; ‘I have on my neck the
beautiful chain you gave me.’
‘Take it off, lest it turn the edge of my sword,’
said he. ;
She obeyed with fingers that shook as if she had
the palsy. Again he raised the cutlass above her
head. ‘Stay! stay!’ she said; ‘I am wearing my
white bridal silken dress, and it will be all dappled
and stained with my heart’s blood.’
‘Take it off, he said. She obeyed slowly, so great
was her fear. Then she knelt down again, and
again he raised the cutlass to strike off her head,
when she cried out: ‘Stay! stay! the parrot is in
the window, and he will talk and tell-how you have
killed me.’
‘That is true,’ said Blue-beard; and he removed
the cage and put it in another room.
Then he came back, and raised the cutlass, and
said: ‘I will not be put off again.’
But at that moment a loud knocking was heard
at the gates, which made Blue-beard pause.
The gates were burst open, and two young men in
shining steel armour, with their swords drawn,
rushedin. They flew upon Blue-beard and pursued
him as he attempted to escape; they overtook him
before he had mounted the platform on top of
the castle, and ran him through the heart with
their swords.
The poor wife, almost dead with terror, was un-
a 167

BLUE-
BEARD