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Once there was a small kingdom ruled by a benevolent King and Queen
and located deep in the forests of Bavaria. They were blessed with a
son who showed great promise and was designated to become heir to the
throne. Early in his life, the young Prince developed a fascination
with all kinds of foods and their preparation. With not much to do
in the castle after his daily tutoring, he spent much of his free
time with the chefs and cooks in preparing and tasting foods that
came into the kingdom from all parts of the world. Soon all of his
favorite foods lost their appeal no matter how many different ways
they were prepared. More foods of different varieties were brought
in and they too failed to satisfy.
After many years of not liking any of the foods of his youth, the
Prince decided to set out on his own to try to find the best food in
the whole world. He started out on foot early one morning at sunrise
while the dew was still on the grass and while the fog was still
clinging to forest floor. At about mid-morning, he was beginning to
tire when he heard a noise coming through the trees. As he
approached the area where the noise was coming from, he encountered a
woodcutter at work. Being somewhat startled, the woodcutter asked,
"What is someone dressed like you doing in the woods this time of
day?" The Prince replied he was on a mission to find the best food
in the world and inquired of the woodcutter if he knew where he could
find it.
"Sure," replied the woodcutter, "I can show you the best food in the
world if you will help me chop trees and logs until noon." The
Prince agreed and began doing the hardest work he had ever done in
his life. He thought noon would never come and wondered why he had
ever agreed to such a foolish arrangement; but his desire to find the
ideal food overwhelmed his fatigue.
Soon it was lunchtime and the two men put away their tools and sat
down beside a large oak tree. The woodcutter reached under a nearby
log and puled out a leather pouch and a jug. The jug was filled with
water that he offered first to his guest before taking a huge drink
himself. From the leather pouch the woodcutter pulled out a large
loaf of dry brown bread. He gave the Prince a large helping of bread
that the Prince quickly ate before asking for more. This process was
repeated once more before the Prince finally took another large gulp
of water and rose to thank the woodcutter. "You were right, that has
to be the best food in the world," replied the Prince. "Today I will
return to the castle and announce to the chefs and cooks that I have
found the best food in the world."
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Another variant is The Prince Who Wasn't Hungry, which can be found
in the following collection: