Snowdrop, well pleased, went with him, and they were married with much state and grandeur.
The wicked stepmother was invited to the feast. Richly dressed, she stood before the mirror, and asked of it:
"Little glass upon the wall,
Who is fairest among us all?"
The mirror answered:
"Lady queen, so grand and tall,
Here, you are fairest among them all;
But the young queen over the mountains old,
Is fairer than you a thousandfold."
The evil-hearted woman uttered a curse, and could scarcely endure her anguish. She first resolved not to attend the wedding, but curiosity would not allow her to rest. She determined to travel, and see who that young queen could be, who was the most beautiful in all the world. When she came, and found that it was Snowdrop alive again, she stood petrified with terror and despair. Then two iron shoes, heated burning hot, were drawn out of the fire with a pair of tongs, and laid before her feet. She was forced to put them on, and to go and dance at Snowdrop's wedding—dancing, dancing on these red hot shoes till she fell down dead.
THE BLUE BIRD.
