CINDERELLA’S SLIPPER

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23118, 18 February 1937, Page 10

CINDERELLA’S SLIPPER

NOT MADE OF GLASS NEW VERSION OF FAIRY TALES (Special to Daily Times) WELLINGTON, Feb. 17. Was Cinderella’s slipper made of glass as .according to popular story, or was it made so by a printer’s error? According to Mr C. R. H, Taylor, assistant librarian at the Turnbull Library. Wellington, who spoke on several mistakes occurring in children’s fairy tales at the New Zealand Library Association’s Conference, the original slipper was made of squirrel skin. He said that the tale was originally written in French, thp word “vair” (squirrel skin) describing the girl’s slipper. Through a printer's error the word was spelt wrongly, and when the book was printed it resembled the French equivalent of ? Mr S- Taylor said that the original story of the Pied Piper was written by Robert Browning, sen., but his son, who was named after him, made a much better job of it. When it was rewritten, credit for the tale was given to the son. St. George, of dragon fame, a model of saintliness, godliness, chivalry and goodness, was in reality just the opposite. In reality he was known as a brute of tyranny and evil. It was not until the eighteenth century that fairies began to appear in stories, because, prior to that, witchcraft raged throughout England and Europe. Gradually, however, people began to discount the powers of such spirits and to substitute good virtues for evil.