The Frog Prince

A king had a young daughter who liked to play by a deep well in the woods with a golden ball.One day she threw the ball too high, and it fell into the well and sank out of sight.The princess sat down and cried, because the golden ball was her favourite thing.

A frog put its head out of the water and asked, "Why are you crying?""My golden ball has fallen into the well," she said, "and the water is far too deep.""I will bring it back," said the frog, "if you promise to let me be your friend, and eat from your plate, and sleep in your room."

The princess promised, though she did not really mean it, and the frog dived down and brought up the ball.She snatched it and ran home as fast as she could, and soon she forgot all about the frog.But the next evening, something went flip, flap up the stairs and knocked at the door.

It was the frog, and the frightened princess shut the door in his face.Her father the king asked what was wrong, and she told him about her promise by the well."You made a promise," said the king, "so you must keep it. Let the frog come in."

The frog hopped to the table and ate from her golden plate, while the princess could hardly eat at all.When it was time for bed, the frog asked to come upstairs too, and again the king told her to keep her word.She was very cross, and almost threw the frog down — but then she remembered her promise and set him down gently on a soft cushion.

At that moment the frog changed into a young prince with kind, smiling eyes.A witch's spell had turned him into a frog long ago, he said, and only a kept promise could break it.