Once upon a time there was a little girl who lived on the edge of a big wood. She had very beautiful hair, which hung in long curls down her back. In the rays of the sun it shone like pure gold, and so she was called Goldilocks.

Every day, as her mother brushed her hair, she said: “Now Goldilocks, you may go and play in the meadow, but don't go into the wood, for if you wander too far you will get lost.”

One morning, very early, as Goldilocks was picking flowers before breakfast, she saw some beautiful blue ones growing just within the wood, on the grassy banks of a little path winding away among the trees.

Quite forgetting her promise, Goldilocks wandered further and further into the wood, filling her basket with the flowers as she went.

At last her basket was full and she turned to go home, only to find that she was lost. There were so many paths, and she did not know which one to take. She felt very lonely and was about to sit down and cry when, to her joy, she saw a little cottage among the trees. Smoke was coming from its chimney and the door stood open.

Goldilocks tapped on the door, meaning to ask the way home, but there was no answer, and when she peeped inside, there was no one there.

It was very strange. Although the table was laid for breakfast with three bowls of porridge, from which the steam was still rising, there was no one to be seen.

There was a big bowl, a middle-sized bowl, and teeny-tiny bowl.

“Oh, how hungry I am!” cried Goldilocks and, picking up a spoon, she tried the big bowl. It was far too hot, so she tried the middle-sized bowl. That was a little too cold, however, so she tried the teeny-tiny bowl, which was just right, so she gobbled it all up quickly.

Round the table were three wooden chairs. At the head was a big chair, opposite it was a middle-sized chair, and between them was a teeny-tiny chair. “Oh how tired I am!” said Goldilocks, “I really must sit down.”

First she tried the big chair, but that was not at all comfortable, so she tried the middle-sized chair. That was not much better, so she tried the teeny-tiny chair. That just fitted her, but by this time she was so tired that she sat down rather hard, and broke the teeny-tiny chair all to pieces.

Goldilocks was rather frightened when she saw what she had done. She peeped out of the window to see if anyone was coming, but no one was in sight. She still felt very tired so she looked around for somewhere else to sit down.

There was nothing else in the room, however, except the clock ticking on the wall and the kettle singing on the fire.

Presently she spied a wooden stair-case winding upwards in the corner of the room, so she tip-toed up the stairs to see what was at the top.

There she found the cosiest little bedroom you can imagine. It has curtains with pink flowers on, and three beds, each with a pink coverlet.

There was a big bed, a middle-sized bed, and a teeny-tiny bed in the corner.

“Oh, how sleepy I am,” yawned Goldilocks and flung herself on the big bed.

It was far too hard, however, so she climbed down and tried the middle-sized bed. That was far too soft, so Goldilocks tried the teeny-tiny bed in the corner. That was just right and Goldilocks was soon fast asleep.

Now this cottage belonged to three bears. There was a Big Bear, who was the Father Bear, a Middle-sized Bear, who was the Mother Bear, and a Teeny-tiny Bear, who was the Baby Bear.

That morning, when Mother Bear served the porridge, Father Bear quickly took a big spoonful of his. “Ouch! he said, “this is too hot.”

Mother bear had been blowing on hers, so it was quite cool; but as she never argued with Father Bear, she agreed to go for a walk to gather sticks, and return for breakfast later.

The Bears gathered sticks in the forest till the Father Bear had a great big bundle. The Mother Bear had only a middle-sized bundle, whilst the Teeny-tiny Bear was too small to carry more than two or three, which even then he kept dropping all the time.

The Father Bear soon said, however, that they had enough to keep the fire in all day, and as the porridge would now be cool, they would return home for breakfast.

So the three bears went back to the cottage where Goldilocks was sleeping so peacefully upstairs.

No sooner had they got into the house, however, than the Father Bear went to taste his porridge. He could tell at once that someone had put a spoon into his bowl.

“Who's been eating my porridge?” he cried in his big voice.

Mother Bear then tried her porridge, which was now quite cold and horrid.

“Who's been eating my porridge?” she said at once.

And, “Who's been eating my porridge?” squeaked the Teeny-tiny Bear in his little voice, “and gobbled it al up.”

The Father Bear was so surprised he sat down rather heavily in his chair. He could tell at once that someone had been sitting there.

“Who's been sitting in my chair?” he cried in his big voice.

The Mother Bear sat down in her chair rather more slowly because, although she was middle-sized, she was also rather plump.

“Who's been sitting in my chair?” she said in her middle-sized voice.

And “Who's been sitting in my chair?” said the Baby Bear in his teeny-tiny voice, “and broken it all to pieces!”

They looked around the kitchen, but as they could not see anyone they decided to look upstairs in the bedroom.

Father Bear's bed was all crumpled.

“Who's been sleeping in my bed?” he roared in his great big voice.

All the soft pillows on Mother Bear's bed were untidy.

“Who's been sleeping in my bed?” she said.

As for the Baby Bear “Who's been sleeping in my bed?” he squeaked, and there, lying on the bed with her golden curls spread all over the pillow, was the prettiest little girl they had ever seen.

Goldilocks sat up in the bed and rubbed her eyes. When she saw the three bears gazing at her, she was so frightened that she jumped out of bed and ran down the stairs before they could catch her.

She ran and she ran through the forest, hardly stopping to take breath, till at last she came to the edge, and saw her own dear cottage, with her mother standing at the door looking for her.

She was so glad to be safely home that she never went wandering in the woods by herself again.

THE END