The Story Of The Three Bears (Arthur Rackham)
From “English Fairy Tales” by Flora Annie Steel
Once upon a time, there were three Bears who lived together in a house of their own, in a wood. One was a Little Wee Bear, one was a Middle-sized Bear, and the other was a Great Big Bear. Each had a bowl for their porridge, a little bowl for the Little Wee Bear; a middle-sized bowl for the Middle-sized Bear; and a great bowl for the Great Big Bear. And they had each a chair to sit in; a little chair for the Little Wee Bear; a middle-sized chair for the Middle-sized Bear; and an excellent chair for the Great Big Bear. And they had each a bed to sleep in; a little bed for the Little Wee Bear; a middle-sized bed for the Middle-sized Bear; and an excellent bed for the Great Big Bear.
One day, after they had made the porridge for their breakfast and poured it into their porridge bowls, they walked out into the wood while the porridge was cooling, so they might not burn their mouths by beginning too soon, for they were polite, well-brought-up Bears. And while they were away, a little girl called Goldilocks lived on the other side of the wood and had been sent on an errand by her mother, passed by the house and looked in at the window. And then she peeped in at the keyhole, for she was not a well-brought-up little girl. Then seeing nobody in the house, she lifted the latch. The door was not fastened because the Bears were good Bears, who did nobody any harm and never suspected that anybody would harm them. So Goldilocks opened the door and went in, and well pleased was she when she saw the porridge on the table. If she had been a well-brought-up little girl, she would have waited till the Bears came home, and then, perhaps, they would have asked her to breakfast; for they were good Bears – a little rough or so, as the manner of Bears is, but for all that very good-natured and hospitable. But she was an impudent, rude little girl, so she set about helping herself.
First, she tasted the Great Big Bear’s porridge, which was too hot for her. Next, she tasted the porridge of the Middle-sized Bear, but that was too cold for her. And then she went to the porridge of the Little Wee Bear and tasted it, which was neither too hot nor too cold, but just right, and she liked it so well that she ate it all up, every bit!
Then Goldilocks, tired, for she had been catching butterflies instead of running on her errand, sat down in the chair of the Great Big Bear, but that was too hard for her. And then she sat down in the middle-sized Bear’s chair, which was too soft for her. But when she sat down in the chair of the Little Wee Bear, that was neither too hard nor too soft but just right. So she seated herself in it, and there she sates till the bottom of the chair came out, and down she came, plump upon the ground; that made her very cross, for she was a bad-tempered little girl.
Now, determined to rest, Goldilocks went upstairs into the bed-chamber where the Three Bears slept. And first, she lay down upon the bed of the Great Big Bear, but that was too high at the head for her. And next, she lay down upon the bed of the Middle-sized Bear, which was too high at the foot. And then she lay down upon the bed of the Little Wee Bear, which was neither too high at the head nor at the foot, but just right. So she covered herself comfortably and lay there till she fell fast asleep.
By this time, the Three Bears thought their porridge would be excellent enough for them to eat it properly, so they came home to breakfast. Now careless, Goldilocks had left the spoon of the Great Big Bear standing in his porridge.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE!”
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
Then the Middle-sized Bear looked at his porridge and saw the spoon was standing in it too.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE!”
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
Then the Little Wee Bear looked at his, and there was the spoon in the porridge bowl, but the porridge was all gone!
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN AT MY PORRIDGE AND HAS EATEN IT ALL!”
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Upon this, the Three Bears, seeing that someone had entered their house, and eaten up the Little Wee Bear’s breakfast, began to look about them. Now the careless Goldilocks had not put the hard cushion straight when she rose from the chair of the Great Big Bear.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR!”
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And the careless Goldilocks had squatted down the soft cushion of the Middle-sized Bear.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR!”
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN SITTING IN MY CHAIR AND HAS SATE THE BOTTOM THROUGH!”
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Then the Three Bears thought they had better make a further search in case it was a burglar, so they went upstairs into their bedchamber. Now Goldilocks had pulled the pillow of the Great Big Bear out of its place.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED!”
said the Great Big Bear in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And Goldilocks had pulled the bolster of the Middle-sized Bear out of its place.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED!”
said the Middle-sized Bear in his middle-sized voice.
But when the Little Wee Bear came to look at his bed, the bolster was in its place!
And the pillow was in its place upon the bolster!
And upon the pillow – –?
Goldilocks’s yellow head was not in its place, for she had no business there.
“SOMEBODY HAS BEEN LYING IN MY BED – AND HERE SHE IS STILL!”
said the Little Wee Bear in his little wee voice.
Now Goldilocks had heard in her sleep the great, rough, gruff voice of the Great Big Bear, but she was so fast asleep that it was no more to her than the roaring of wind or the rumbling of thunder. And she had heard the middle-sized voice of the Middle-sized Bear, but it was only as if she had heard someone speaking in a dream. But when she heard the little wee voice of the Little Wee Bear, it was so sharp and shrill that it awakened her at once. Up she started, and when she saw the Three Bears on one side of the bed, she tumbled out at the other and ran to the window. Now the window was open because the Bears, like sound, tidy Bears, as they were, always opened their bed-chamber window when they got up in the morning. So naughty, frightened little Goldilocks jumped; whether she broke her neck in the fall, ran into the wood and was lost there, or found her way out of the wood and got whipped for being a bad girl and playing truant, no one can say. But the Three Bears never saw anything more of her.
