Music Welcome to Snewscast, the podcast designed to help you fall asleep. Find us at snoozecast.com and if you enjoy our show, please share us with a friend. This episode is dedicated to Monique and brought to you by Nature's Pure Spring. Tonight we'll read the opening chapters to a new series titled The Rose and the Ring. written by William Makepiece Thakray and originally published in 1854. The tale is set in the enchanting imaginary realms of Paflegonia and Crem Tartari. As we follow the lives of King Valoroso, his queen, and their princess Angelica, will experience a fascinating blend of royal manners and gentle magic. That great story explores themes of loyalty, power, and family dynamics and family dynamics with a touch of mystery and charm. Let's get cozy. Close your eyes. Relax your body into the softness of your bed.

Now, take a few deep breaths. Chapter 1 shows how the royal family sat down to breakfast. King Valoroso, the 24th of Palflegonia, is seated with his queen and only child at their royal breakfast table, as they received a special letter. It was from King Padela of Creme Tartari. The letter said that Prince Bulbo, Padela's son, was coming to visit. King Valoroso's face lit up with excitement. He was so busy reading the letter that his eggs got cold and his muffins were forgotten. What? That wicked brave delightful Prince Bulbo, pr, Princess Angelica, So handsome, so accomplished, so witty. The conqueror of Rimbamba Mento, Where he slew 10,000 giants. Who told you about him, my dear? The king asks, a little bird says Angelica. Poor Giglio says the queen while pouring out the tea. Bothered Giglio, Angelica exclaims tossing her, which rustles with a thousand curlers. I wish, growls the king. I wish Giglio was better. Yes, dear, he is better. The queen replies. Angelica's maid, Batz Sinda told me so when she brought my tea this morning.

They were always drinking tea, the king's scowls. It's better than port or brandy and water, the queen responds. Well, my dear, I just mentioned that you loved tea," said the king of Pathletonia, trying to control his temper. Angelica, I hope you have plenty of new dresses. Your milleners' bills are quite long. My dear Queen, you should organize some parties. I prefer dinners, but I know you'll want balls. I'm tired of your blue velvet dresses and I'd like you to get a new necklace. Order one, but keep it under a hundred or a hundred and fifty thousand pounds. And what about jiggly-o dear? Ask the queen. Jiggly-O can go to the... Oh, sir, he's your own nephew, and our late King's only son. Jiggly-O can go to the tailor and have the bills sent to Glomboso to pay. Forget him, I mean, bless his heart. He shouldn't need anything. Give him a few pounds for pocket money, dear, while you're at it. You might as well order some bracelets along with the necklace, Mrs. V. Mrs. V. As the king jokingly called her, even royalty can have some fun, and this family was very close. Hugged her husband and wrapping her arm around her daughter's waist, they left the breakfast room to prepare everything for their important guest. Once they left, the smile that had brightened the husband and father's face vanished. The king's pride disappeared, and he was left alone. If I had the skill of a great writer like GPR James, I'd describe Valoroso struggles in vivid detail, capturing his intense gaze, flaring nostrils, and his dressing gown, hanker chief, and boots. But since I don't have that kind of writing talent, I'll just say that Valoroso was alone. He rushed to the cupboard, grabbed an egg cup from the breakfast table, took out a bottle of fine cognac, filled and emptied the cup several times, and set it down with a Rough. Ha ha ha. Now Valoroso is a man again.

But oh, he continued, still sipping, I'm afraid to admit. Before I was king, I didn't need this strong drink. I used to hate hot brandy and only drank from nature's pure spring. I moved as swiftly as water rushing over rocks with a rifle in hand, clearing the morning dew. It's true what they say, wearing the crown isn't as easy as it looks. Why did I take my nephew, Cheeklyos? Take? No, not steel. Let me correct myself. I took and placed on my head the royal crown of Pafagonia I took, and with my royal hand, wheeled the scepter of pathagonia. I took, and in my hand, hold the royal orb of pathagonia. Could poor boy who was just in his nurse's arms yesterday, crying for sweets and milk, bear the heavy burden of crown, orb and scepter, and wear the sword of my royal ancestors, facing the fierce enemies. The king then began to convince himself, though we know that blank verse isn't exactly convincing, that he had a duty to keep what he had. Even though he had once considered restoring Jiglio, the idea of uniting two crowns and nations through asserted marriage, especially after years of costly conflict between the pathologonians and the kermians, made any thought of Jiglio's return to the throne impossible. In fact, if his own brother King Savio were still around, would have willingly given up the crown to make such a union happen. It's so easy to fool ourselves. We often convince ourselves that what we want is right. The king gathered his resolve, read the papers, finished his breakfast, and called for his prime minister. The queen, after considering whether to visit Jiglio, who had been ill, decided, not now, business-first, pleasure later. I'll see Darjeeglio this afternoon.

For now, I'll head to the jewelers

to look for a necklace and bracelets.

The princess went to her room and had her maid,

but Sinda bring out all her dresses.

As for Jeeglio, they forgot about him

as completely as I forget what I had for dinner a year ago. Chapter 2 How King Valoroso got the crown, and Prince Giglio went without. Peflagonia, 10 or 20,000 years ago, seems to have been a place where succession laws weren't clear. When King Savio died, leaving his brother as Regent and guardian of Savio's orphaned infant, this unfaithful Regent ignored the late King's will. He declared himself King Valoroso the 24th.

Had a grand coronation and demanded that all the nobles pay him tribute. As long as Valoroso hosted plenty of balls, handed out money and offered well-paying jobs, The Paflegonian elite didn't care who was king.

The people too were indifferent at that time. Young Prince Giglio, too young to understand his loss, was perfectly happy with toys, sweets, frequent holidays, and shooting outings when he got older. Most importantly, he enjoyed the company of his beloved cousin, the King's only child. Giglio did an envy his uncle's royal robes, the hot and uncomfortable throne, or the heavy crown. the the portrait we have of King Valoroso, it's clear he must have occasionally felt weighed down by all the velvet, diamonds, fur, and grandeur. I wouldn't want to wear that heavy robe and crown myself. No doubt, the queen must have been charming when she was younger, although her features in her portrait remain quite pleasant. If she had a fondness for flattery, gossip, card games and fine clothes, let's be understanding of her imperfections, which may not be any greater than our own. She was kind to her nephew, and if she had any concerns about her husband taking the young prince's crown, she reassured herself that the king was a respectable man. She believed that when the king died, Prince Giglio would be restored to his throne and share it with his beloved cousin. The Prime Minister was Gloomboso, a seasoned politician who happily pledged loyalty to King Valoroso and took charge of running the kingdom.

All Valoroso cared about was having plenty of money, enjoying his hunting, receiving lots of praise, and dealing with as little hassle as possible. As long as he got his sport, he didn't mind how his people financed it. He engaged in some wars, and of course, the Paflegonian newspapers reported impressive victories. Statues of him were erected in every city, and his portraits were everywhere, including all the print shops. He was celebrated as Valoroso the magnificent Valoroso the victorious Valoroso the great and so on, proving that even back then people knew how to flatter their rulers. This royal couple had only one child, Princess Angelica, who was considered perfect in everyone's eyes, by her parents and by herself. It was said that she had the longest hair, the biggest eyes, the slimmest waist, the smallest feet, and the most beautiful complexion of any young woman in Paflegonia. Her talents were said to surpass her beauty. Governesses would use her as an example to motivate their students. She could play the most complex music on site, answer any question from Magnaul's questions, and new every date in Palflegonian history as well as other countries. She was fluent in French, English, Italian, German, Spanish, Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Cappadochean, Semothracian, Aegean, and Crimean Tartar. In short, she was an exceptionally talented young woman with a strict Countess Gruff enough as her governess and lady in waiting. From her appearance, you might think Countess Gruff enough was of the highest social standing. She looked so vain that you'd expect her to be a princess with a notable family history. However, she wasn't any more distinguished than many who make a show of their importance and sensible people saw through her pretensions. The truth is, she had started as a maid to the queen when her majesty was still a princess, and her husband had been the head footman. After his death or disappearance, what she'll hear about soon, Mrs. Gruffinoth managed to become a favorite of the queen by flattering and ingratiating herself. Queen queen, who was somewhat impressionable, gave her a title and appointed her as the nursery governess to Princess Angelica. Now I need to talk about Princess Angelica's so-called talents and accomplishments, which contributed to her

glowing reputation. Angelica was certainly bright, but she was as lazy as could be. She could play a couple of pieces on-site and pretend she was seeing them for the first time. She could answer a few Manganol's questions, but only if you ask the right ones. As for her language skills, she had numerous tutors, but I doubt she knew more than a few phrases in each language despite her claims. Her embroidery and drawing were impressive, but the real question is, who actually did the work? This leads me to tell the full story, starting with the tale of the fairy Black Stick. Chapter 3 tells who the fairy Black Stick was and who were ever so many grand personages besides. Between the kingdoms of Paflegonia and Crim Tartari lived a mysterious figure known as the fairy Black Stick. She was named after the Ebony wand or crutch she carried, which she used to travel to the moon for business or pleasure and to perform her magical feats. When she was young and had just learned the art of magic from her father, the Sorcerer, she was constantly practicing her skills. She zipped from one kingdom to another on her black stick, granting her fairy blessings to various princesses. She had many royal god children and transformed countless wicked people into animals, objects, or other whimsical forms. In short, she was one of the most energetic and busy members of the fairy community. After a couple of thousand years of this, I guess Black Stick started to get bored. Or maybe she wondered, what am I really accomplishing by putting a princess to sleep for a hundred years? By sticking a black pudding on that full snows, by making diamonds and pearls fall from one girl's mouth while snakes and toads come from another's. It seems like I might be doing as much harm as good with my magic. Perhaps it's time to put away my spells and let things unfold naturally. I gave my two young god-dotters, the wives of King Savio and Duke Padilla, gifts meant to make them charming to their husbands and win their love forever. What did my rose and ring actually do for them? Nothing. They used actually to patronize me when I went to pay them a visit.

Me, the fairy blackstack, who knows all the wisdom of the necromancers, and could have turned them into baboons and all their diamonds into strings of onions by a single wave of my rod. So she put her books away, stop doing magic, and barely used her wand, except as a walking stick. So when Duke Padella's wife had a baby boy, the Duke was then one of the top nobles in crim tartare. Blackstick, though invited to the christening, didn't show up. She just sent her regards and a silver baby spoon worth only a couple of pounds. Around the same time, the queen of pathlegonia had a sun, and the whole capital celebrated with fireworks, illuminations, and countless feasts.

Everyone expect? Paplegonia had a son, and the whole capital celebrated with fireworks, illuminations, and countless feasts. Everyone expected that Black Stick, who had been asked by the baby's godmother, would give a grand gift like an invisible jacket, a flying horse, or a magical purse. instead. She visited the baby Giglio's cradle during the celebrations and said, My poor child, the best I can offer you is a small misfortune. This remark disappointed Giglio's parents, who soon passed away, leading to Giglio's uncle becoming King, as described in chapter 1. Similarly, when Caval Fiori, King of Crim tartare, had a christening for his only child, Rosalba, the fairy-black stick, who was also invited, was just as ungracious as she had been at Prince Giglio's event. While everyone was admiring the beautiful baby in congratulating the parents, Black stick glanced at the baby and mother with a sad expression and said, My dear, the people who are praising you now will be the first to turn against you. And for this little one, the best I can wish is a small misfortune. With that, she touched Rosalba with her black wand, gave a dismissive nod to the courteers, and slowly floated out of the window. After she left, the people at court who had been quiet and respectful while she was there started talking. What a terrible fairy, they said. She acted like she was doing something at the King of Paflegonia's christening, but what good did it actually do? The prince, her godson, was overthrown by his uncle. Would we let anyone take away our beloved princesses' rights? Absolutely not. And they all echo together.

Absolute. They are beloved princesses' rights. Absolutely not.

And they all echo together. Absolutely not. Now let's see how these so-called loyal courteers really showed their support. And one of King Caval Fiori's subjects, Duke Padilla rebelled, the King set out to deal with him. The courteers exclaimed, who would dare go against our great King? He's unbeatable. He'll come back with Padilla as a prisoner, tied to a donkey's tail, and parade him through town to show everyone how he deals with rebels. The king set out to defeat Padela, but the queen, feeling overwhelmed and anxious, unfortunately, fell ill and passed on. left instructions instructions for her attendants to look after a little resolve, and of course, they promised they would. They swore they'd do whatever it took to keep the princess safe. Initially, the crim tar tarry court journal reported that the king was winning major victories over the rebellious Pade. Then it was announced that Padela's troops were retreating. The journal claimed the royal army would soon catch up with the enemy. Then unexpectedly it was announced that King Cavalfiore had been defeated and replaced by King Padela I. With the news spreading, some courteers hurried to greet the new king, while others dashed off with the best items from the palace. Little Resolba was left alone. She wandered through the rooms, calling for Countess and Duchess, though she could only say, Countess and Duchess. She looked for her mutton soup, saying, I'm hungry, but there was no one to be found. She went from the private rooms to the throne room, then to the ballroom, and down the grand staircase, searching everywhere. Eventually, she ended up in the garden, and then the forest, where she was never seen again. A piece of her torn cloak was found in the woods by King Padela, now the ruler of

Krim Tartari and his hunting party. It seems the little princess has gone missing, he said. Meanwhile, hanging much higher above in the tree canopy was a mother baboon, and her newly adopted baby baboon. It was of smiling little princess Rosalba. back down on the forest floor. The new king carried on pacing with his great chest puffed out words. Well, there's nothing more to be done. Let's enjoy our lunch. of the courteers kept the shoe as a keepsake. Yn yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n y