The Prince Finds a Slipper(Robin Joy Wirth) Once there was a handsome prince who wished to find a bride. To help him in his search, he held a huge ball and invited all the fairest maidens of the land.

On the night of the ball he met the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, but before he was able to discover who she was she ran away. Saddened, the prince followed her outside, but she was nowhere to be seen. The only thing he saw was a slipper on the steps.

“She must have lost her slipper as she ran,” he said, and went to pick it up.

The next day the prince told his father, “I will marry the girl who fits this slipper.”

“But son, that slipper is huge and smelly,” his father protested. “No woman with a slipper like that could possibly be the most beautiful in the land.”

“Nevertheless, I will search the kingdom until she is found.”

The prince and his footman searched and searched, but could not find a woman with a foot that fit the slipper. They did, however, manage to make the thing smellier than ever after all the women had tried it on. They returned to the castle in defeat.

“We will never find her,” the prince lamented.

“Here now, what are you doing with my slipper?” demanded a stout scullery maid as she marched right over and took it out of the footman’s hand. “I’ve been looking everywhere for that thing.”

The prince and the footman looked at each other in surprise as the maid put the slipper back on her foot.

“Maybe she cleans up nice?” the footman suggested.

"I hope so," said the prince.

And so the prince and the scullery maid were married, and she lived happily ever after.

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