of a body," thought Snow-White; so she ran down, and unbolted the door.
"Bless me!" said the woman, "how badly your stays are laced. Let me lace
them up with one of my nice new laces." Snow-White did not dream of any
mischief; so she stood up before the old woman who set to work so
nimbly, and pulled the lace so tightly that Snow-White lost her breath,
and fell down as if she were dead. "There's an end of all thy beauty,"
said the spiteful queen, and went away home.

In the evening the seven dwarfs returned; and I need not say how grieved
they were to see their faithful Snow-White stretched upon the ground
motionless, as if she were quite dead. However, they lifted her up, and
when they found what was the matter, they cut the lace; and in a little
time she began to breathe, and soon came to herself again. Then they
said, "The old woman was the queen; take care another time, and let no
one in when we are away."

When the queen got home, she went to her glass, and spoke to it, but to
her surprise it replied in the same words as before.

Then the blood ran cold in her heart with spite and malice to hear that
Snow-White still lived; and she dressed herself up again in a disguise,
but very different from the one she wore before, and took with her a
poisoned comb. When she reached the dwarfs' cottage, she knocked at the
door, and cried, "Fine wares to sell!" but Snow-White said, "I dare not
let any one in." Then the queen said, "Only look at my beautiful combs;"
and gave her the poisoned one. And it looked so pretty that the little
girl took it up and put it into her hair to try it; but the moment it
touched her head the poison was so powerful that she fell down
senseless. "There you may lie," said the queen, and went her way. But by
good luck the dwarfs returned very early that evening; and when they saw