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anh — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 06:31:03 GMT

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The Two Kings' Children

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:41:44 GMT

http://www.secure.vinahost.vn/ac/aff.php?aff=311

There was once upon a time a king who had a little boy in whose stars it had been foretold that he should be killed by a stag when he was sixteen years of age, and when he had reached that age the huntsmen once went hunting with him. In the forest, the king's son was separated from the others, and all at once he saw a great stag which he wanted to shoot, but could not hit. At length he chased the stag so far that they were quite out of the forest, and then suddenly a great tall man was standing there instead of the stag, and said, "It is well that I have you. I have already ruined six pairs of glass skates with running after you, and have not been able to reach you." Then he took the king's son with him, and dragged him through a great lake to a great palace, and he had to sit down to table with him and eat something. When they had eaten something together the king said, "I have three daughters, you must keep watch over the eldest for one night, from nine in the evening till six in the morning, and every time the clock strikes, I will come myself and call, and if you then give me no answer, to-morrow morning you shall be put to death, but if you always give me an answer, you shall have her to wife." When the young folks went to the bedroom there stood a stone image of St. Christopher, and the king's daughter said to it, "My father will come at nine o'clock, and every hour till it strikes three, when he calls, give him an answer instead of the king's son." Then the stone image of St. Christopher nodded its head quite quickly, and then more and more slowly till at last it again stood still. The next morning the king said to him, "You have done the business well, but I cannot give my daughter away. You must now watch a night by my second daughter, and then I will consider with myself, whether you can have my eldest daughter to wife, but I shall come every hour myself, and when I call you, answer me, and if I call you and you do not reply, your blood shall flow." Then they both went into the sleeping-room, and there stood a still larger stone image of St. Christopher, and the king's daughter said to it, "If my father calls, answer him." Then the great stone image of St. Christopher again nodded its head quite quickly and then more and more slowly, until at last it stood still again. And the king's son lay down on the threshold, put his hand under his head and slept. The next morning the king said to him, "You have done the business really well, but I cannot give my daughter away, you must now watch a night by the youngest princess, and then I will consider with myself whether you can have my second daughter to wife. But I shall come every hour myself, and when I call you answer me, and if I call you and you answer not, your blood shall flow for me." Then they once more went to the sleeping-room together, and there was a much greater and much taller image of St. Christopher than the two first had been. The king's daughter said to it, "When my father calls, answer." Then the great tall stone image of St. Christopher nodded quite half an hour with its head, until at length the head stood still again. And the king's son laid himself down on the threshold of the door and slept. The next morning the king said, "You have indeed watched well, but I cannot give you my daughter now, I have a great forest, if you cut it down for me between six o'clock this morning and six at night, I will think about it." Then he gave him a glass axe, a glass wedge, and a glass mallet. When he got into the wood, he began at once to cut, but the axe broke in two. Then he took the wedge, and struck it once with the mallet, and it became as short and as small as sand. Then he was much troubled and believed he would have to die, and sat down and wept. Now when it was noon the king said, "One of you girls must take him something to eat." "No," said the two eldest, "we will not take it to him, the one by whom he last watched, can take him something." Then the youngest was forced to go and take him something to eat. When she got into the forest, she asked him how he was getting on. "Oh," said he, "I am getting on very badly." Then she said he was to come and just eat a little. "Nay," said he, "I cannot do that, I have to die anyway, so I will eat no more." Then she spoke so kindly to him and begged him just to try, that he came and ate something. When he had eaten something she said, "I will pick your lice a while, and then you will feel happier." So she loused him, and he became weary and fell asleep, and then she took her handkerchief and made a knot in it, and struck it three times on the earth, and said, "Earth-workers, come forth." In a moment, numbers of little earth-men came forth, and asked what the king's daughter commanded. Then said she, "In three hours, time the great forest must be cut down, and all the wood laid in heaps." So the little earth-men went about and got together the whole of their kindred to help them with the work. They began at once, and when the three hours were over, all was done, and they came back to the king's daughter and told her so. Then she took her white handkerchief again and said, "Earth-workers, go home." At this they all disappeared. When the king's son awoke, he was delighted, and she said, "Come home when it has struck six o'clock." He did as she told him, and then the king asked, "Have you made away with the forest?" "Yes," said the king's son. When they were sitting at table, the king said, "I cannot yet give you my daughter to wife, you must still do something more for her sake." So he asked what it was to be. "I have a great fish-pond," said the king. "You must go to it to-morrow morning and clear it of all mud until it is as bright as a mirror, and fill it with every kind of fish." The next morning the king gave him a glass shovel and said, "The fish-pond must be done by six o'clock." So he went away, and when he came to the fish-pond he stuck his shovel in the mud and it broke in two. Then he stuck his hoe in the mud, and it broke also. Then he was much troubled. At noon the youngest daughter brought him something to eat, and asked him how he was getting on. So the king's son said everything was going very ill with him, and he would certainly have to lose his head. "My tools have broken to pieces again." "Oh," said she, "you must just come and eat something, and then you will be in another frame of mind." "No," said he, "I cannot eat, I am far too unhappy for that." Then she gave him many good words until at last he came and ate something. Then she loused him again, and he fell asleep, so once more she took her handkerchief, tied a knot in it, and struck the ground thrice with the knot, and said, "Earth-workers, come forth." In a moment a great many little earth-men came and asked what she desired, and she told them that in three hours, time, they must have the fish-pond entirely cleaned out, and it must be so clear that people could see themselves reflected in it, and every kind of fish must be in it. The little earth-men went away and summoned all their kindred to help them, and in two hours it was done. Then they returned to her and said, "We have done as you have commanded." The king's daughter took the handkerchief and once more struck thrice on the ground with it, and said, "earth-workers, go home again." Then they all went away. When the king's son awoke the fish-pond was done. Then the king's daughter went away also, and told him that when it was six he was to come to the house. When he arrived at the house the king asked, "Have you got the fish-pond done?" "Yes," said the king's son. That was very good. When they were again sitting at table the king said, "You have certainly done the fish-pond, but I cannot give you my daughter yet, you must just do one thing more." "What is that, then?" asked the king's son. The king said he had a great mountain on which there was nothing but briars which must all be cut down, and at the top of it the youth must build a great castle, which must be as strong as could be conceived, and all the furniture and fittings belonging to a castle must be inside it. And when he arose next morning the king gave him a glass axe and a glass gimlet, and he was to have all done by six o'clock. As he was cutting down the first briar with the axe, it broke off short, and so small that the pieces flew all round about, and he could not use the gimlet either. Then he was quite miserable, and waited for his dearest to see if she would not come and help him in his need. When it was mid-day she came and brought him something to eat. He went to meet her and told her all, and ate something, and let her louse him and fell asleep. Then she once more took the knot and struck the earth with it, and said, "Earth-workers, come forth." Then came once again numbers of earth-men, and asked what her desire was. Then said she, "In the space of three hours you must cut down the whole of the briars, and a castle must be built on the top of the mountain that must be as strong as any one could conceive, and all the furniture that pertains to a castle must be inside it." They went away, and summoned their kindred to help them and when the time was come, all was ready. Then they came to the king's daughter and told her so, and the king's daughter took her handkerchief and struck thrice on the earth with it, and said, "Earth-workers, go home, on which they all disappeared." When therefore the king's son awoke and saw everything done, he was as happy as a bird in air. When it had struck six, they went home together. Then said the king, "Is the castle ready?" "Yes," said the king's son. When they sat down to table, the king said, "I cannot give away my youngest daughter until the two eldest are married." Then the king's son and the king's daughter were quite troubled, and the king's son had no idea what to do. But he went by night to the king's daughter and ran away with her. When they had got a little distance away, the king's daughter peeped round and saw her father behind her. "Oh," said she, "what are we to do? My father is behind us, and will take us back with him. I will at once change you into a briar, and myself into a rose, and I will shelter myself in the midst of the bush." When the father reached the place, there stood a briar with one rose on it, and he was about to gather the rose, when the thorn pricked his finger so that he was forced to go home again. His wife asked why he had not brought their daughter back with him. So he said he had nearly got up to her, but that all at once he had lost sight of her, and a briar with one rose was growing on the spot. Then said the queen, "If you had but gathered the rose, the briar would have been forced to come too." So he went back again to fetch the rose, but in the meantime the two were already far over the plain, and the king ran after them. Then the daughter once more looked round and saw her father coming, and said, "Oh, what shall we do now? I will instantly change you into a church and myself into a priest, and I will stand up in the pulpit, and preach." When the king got to the place, there stood a church, and in the pulpit was a priest preaching. So he listened to the sermon, and then went home again. Then the queen asked why he had not brought their daughter with him, and he said, "Nay, I ran a long time after her, and just as I thought I should soon overtake her, a church was standing there and a priest was in the pulpit preaching." "You should just have brought the priest," said his wife, "and then the church would soon have come. It is no use to send you, I must go there myself." When she had walked for some time, and could see the two in the distance, the king's daughter peeped round and saw her mother coming, and said, "Now we are undone, for my mother is coming herself, I will immediately change you into a fish-pond and myself into a fish." When the mother came to the place, there was a large fish-pond, and in the midst of it a fish was leaping about and peeping out of the water, and it was quite merry. She wanted to catch the fish, but she could not. Then she was very angry, and drank up the whole pond in order to catch the fish, but it made her so ill that she was forced to vomit, and vomited the whole pond out again. Then she cried, "I see very well that nothing can be done now, and asked them to come back to her." Then the king's daughter went back again, and the queen gave her daughter three walnuts, and said, "With these you can help yourself when you are in your greatest need." So the young folks once more went away together. And when they had walked quite ten miles, they arrived at the castle from whence the king's son came, and near it was a village. When they reached it, the king's son said, "Stay here, my dearest, I will just go to the castle, and then will I come with a carriage and with attendants to fetch you." When he got to the castle they all rejoiced greatly at having the king's son back again, and he told them he had a bride who was now in the village, and they must go with the carriage to fetch her. Then they harnessed the horses at once, and many attendants seated themselves outside the carriage. When the king's son was about to get in, his mother gave him a kiss, and he forgot everything which had happened, and also what he was about to do. At this his mother ordered the horses to be taken out of the carriage again, and everyone went back into the house. But the maiden sat in the village and watched and watched, and thought he would come and fetch her, but no one came. Then the king's daughter took service in the mill which belonged to the castle, and was obliged to sit by the pond every afternoon and clean the tubs. And the queen came one day on foot from the castle, and went walking by the pond, and saw the well-grown maiden sitting there, and said, "What a fine strong girl that is. She pleases me well." Then she and all with her looked at the maid, but no one knew her. So a long time passed by during which the maiden served the miller honorably and faithfully. In the meantime, the queen had sought a wife for her son, who came from quite a distant part of the world. When the bride came, they were at once to be married. And many people hurried together, all of whom wanted to see everything. Then the girl said to the miller that he might be so good as to give her leave to go also. So the miller said, "Yes, do go there." When she was about to go, she opened one of the three walnuts, and a beautiful dress lay inside it. She put it on, and went into the church and stood by the altar. Suddenly came the bride and bridegroom, and seated themselves before the altar, and when the priest was just going to bless them, the bride peeped half round and saw the maiden standing there. Then she stood up again, and said she would not be given away until she also had as beautiful a dress as that lady there. So they went back to the house again, and sent to ask the lady if she would sell that dress. No, she would not sell it, but the bride might perhaps earn it. Then the bride asked her how she was to do this. Then the maiden said if she might sleep one night outside the king's son's door, the bride might have what she wanted. So the bride said, "Yes," she was willing to do that. But the servants were ordered to give the king's son a sleeping draught, and then the maiden laid herself down on the threshold and lamented all night long. She had had the forest cut down for him, she had had the fish-pond cleaned out for him, she had had the castle built for him, she had changed him into a briar, and then into a church, and at last into a fish-pond, and yet he had forgotten her so quickly. The king's son did not hear one word of it, but the servants had been awakened, and had listened to it, and had not known what it could mean. The next morning when they were all up, the bride put on the dress, and went away to the church with the bridegroom. In the meantime the maiden opened the second walnut, and a still more beautiful dress was inside it. She put it on, and went and stood by the altar in the church, and everything happened as it had happened the time before. And the maiden again lay all night on the threshold which led to the chamber of the king's son, and the servant was once more to give him a sleeping draught. The servant, however, went to him and gave him something to keep him awake, and then the king's son went to bed, and the miller's maiden bemoaned herself as before on the threshold of the door, and told of all that she had done. All this the king's son heard, and was sore troubled, and what was past came back to him. Then he wanted to go to her, but his mother had locked the door. The next morning, however, he went at once to his beloved, and told her everything which had happened to him, and prayed her not to be angry with him for having forgotten her. Then the king's daughter opened the third walnut, and within it was a still more magnificent dress, which she put on, and went with her bridegroom to church, and numbers of children came who gave them flowers, and offered them gay ribbons to bind about their feet, and they were blessed by the priest, and had a merry wedding. But the false mother and the bride had to depart. And the mouth of the person who last told all this is still warm.

The Skilful Huntsman

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:40:40 GMT

There was once a young fellow who had learnt the trade of locksmith, and told his father he would now go out into the world and seek his fortune. Very well, said the father, I am quite content with that, and gave him some money for his journey. So he traveled about and looked for work. After a time he resolved not to follow the trade of locksmith any more, for he no longer liked it, but he took a fancy for hunting. Then there met him in his rambles a huntsman dressed in green, who asked whence he came and whither he was going. The youth said he was a locksmith's apprentice, but that the trade no longer pleased him, and he had a liking for huntsmanship, would he teach it to him. "Oh, yes," said the huntsman, "if you will go with me." Then the young fellow went with him, apprenticed himself to him for some years, and learnt the art of hunting. After this he wished to try his luck elsewhere, and the huntsman gave him nothing in the way of payment but an air-gun, which had, however, this property, that it hit its mark without fail whenever he shot with it. Then he set out and found himself in a very large forest, which he could not get to the end of in one day. When evening came he seated himself in a high tree in order to escape from the wild beasts. Towards midnight, it seemed to him as if a tiny little light glimmered in the distance. Then he looked down through the branches towards it, and kept well in his mind where it was. But in the first place he took off his hat and threw it down in the direction of the light, so that he might go to the hat as a mark when he had descended. He got down and went to his hat, put it on again and went straight forwards. The farther he went, the larger the light grew, and when he got close to it he saw that it was an enormous fire, and that three giants were sitting by it, who had an ox on the spit, and were roasting it. Presently one of them said, "I must just taste if the meat will soon be fit to eat," and pulled a piece off, and was about to put it in his mouth when the huntsman shot it out of his hand. "Well, really," said the giant, "if the wind has not blown the bit out of my hand," and helped himself to another. But when he was just about to bite into it, the huntsman again shot it away from him. On this the giant gave the one who was sitting next him a box on the ear, and cried angrily, "Why are you snatching my piece away from me?" "I have not snatched it away," said the other, "a sharpshooter must have shot it away from you." The giant took another piece, but again could not keep it in his hand, for the huntsman shot it out. Then the giant said, "That must be a good shot to shoot the bit out of one's very mouth, such an one would be useful to us." And he cried aloud, "Come here, you sharpshooter, seat yourself at the fire beside us and eat your fill, we will not hurt you, but if you will not come, and we have to bring you by force, you are a lost man." On this the youth went up to them and told them he was a skilled huntsman, and that whatever he aimed at with his gun, he was certain to hit. Then they said if he would go with them he should be well treated, and they told him that outside the forest there was a great lake, behind which stood a tower, and in the tower was imprisoned a lovely princess, whom they wished very much to carry off. "Yes," said he, "I will soon get her for you." Then they added, "But there is still something else, there is a tiny little dog, which begins to bark directly any one goes near, and as soon as it barks every one in the royal palace wakens up, and for this reason we cannot get there, can you undertake to shoot it dead?" "Yes," said he, "that will be quite fun for me." After this he got into a boat and rowed over the lake, and as soon as he landed, the little dog came running out, and was about to bark, but the huntsman took his airgun and shot it dead. When the giants saw that, they rejoiced, and thought they already had the king's daughter safe, but the huntsman wished first to see how matters stood, and told them that they must stay outside until he called them. Then he went into the castle, and all was perfectly quiet within, and every one was asleep. When he opened the door of the first room, a sword was hanging on the wall which was made of pure silver, and there was a golden star on it, and the name of the king, and on a table near it lay a sealed letter which he broke open, and inside it was written that whosoever had the sword could kill everything which opposed him. So he took the sword from the wall, hung it at his side and went onwards, then he entered the room where the king's daughter was lying sleeping, and she was so beautiful that he stood still and, holding his breath, looked at her. He thought to himself, "How can I give an innocent maiden into the power of the wild giants, who have evil in their minds?" He looked about further, and under the bed stood a pair of slippers, on the right one was her father's name with a star, and on the left her own name with a star. She wore also a large scarf of silk embroidered with gold, and on the right side was her father's name, and on the left her own, all in golden letters. Then the huntsman took a pair of scissors and cut the right corner off, and put it in his knapsack, and then he also took the right slipper with the king's name, and thrust that in. Now the maiden still lay sleeping, and she was quite sewn into her night-dress, and he cut a morsel from this also, and thrust it in with the rest, but he did all without touching her. Then he went forth and left her lying asleep undisturbed, and when he came to the gate again, the giants were still standing outside waiting for him, and expecting that he was bringing the princess. But he cried to them that they were to come in, for the maiden was already in their power, that he could not open the gate to them, but there was a hole through which they must creep. Then the first approached, and the huntsman wound the giant's hair round his hand, pulled the head in, and cut it off at one stroke with his sword, and then drew the rest of him in. He called to the second and cut his head off likewise, and then he killed the third also, and he was well pleased that he had freed the beautiful maiden from her enemies, and he cut out their tongues and put them in his knapsack. Then thought he, "I will go home to my father and let him see what I have already done, and afterwards I will travel about the world, the luck which God is pleased to grant me will easily find me." But when the king in the castle awoke, he saw the three giants lying there dead. So he went into the sleeping-room of his daughter, awoke her, and asked who could have killed the giants. Then said she, "Dear father, I know not, I have been asleep." But when she arose and would have put on her slippers, the right one was gone, and when she looked at her scarf it was cut, and the right corner was missing, and when she looked at her night-dress a piece was cut out of it. The king summoned his whole court together, soldiers and every one else who was there, and asked who had set his daughter at liberty, and killed the giants. Now it happened that he had a captain, who was one-eyed and a hideous man, and he said that he had done it. Then the old king said that as he had accomplished this, he should marry his daughter. But the maiden said, "Rather than marry him, dear father, I will go away into the world as far as my legs can carry me." But the king said that if she would not marry him she should take off her royal garments and wear peasant's clothing, and go forth, and that she should go to a potter, and begin a trade in earthen vessels. So she put off her royal apparel, and went to a potter and borrowed crockery enough for a stall, and she promised him also that if she had sold it by the evening, she would pay for it. Then the king said she was to seat herself in a corner with it and sell it, and he arranged with some peasants to drive over it with their carts, so that everything should be broken into a thousand pieces. When therefore the king's daughter had placed her stall in the street, by came the carts, and broke all she had into tiny fragments. She began to weep and said, "Alas, how shall I ever pay for the pots now." The king, however, had wished by this to force her to marry the captain; but instead of that, she again went to the potter, and asked him if he would lend to her once more. He said, no, she must first pay for what she already had. Then she went to her father and cried and lamented, and said she would go forth into the world. Then said he, "I will have a little hut built for you in the forest outside, and in it you shall stay all your life long and cook for every one, but you shall take no money for it." When the hut was ready, a sign was hung on the door whereon was written, to-day given, to-morrow sold. There she remained a long time, and it was rumored about the world that a maiden was there who cooked without asking for payment, and that this was set forth on a sign outside her door. The huntsman heard it likewise, and thought to himself, that would suit you. You are poor, and have no money. So he took his air-gun and his knapsack, wherein all the things which he had formerly carried away with him from the castle as tokens of his truthfulness were still lying, and went into the forest, and found the hut with the sign, to-day given, to-morrow sold. He had put on the sword with which he had cut off the heads of the three giants, and thus entered the hut, and ordered something to eat to be given to him. He was charmed with the beautiful maiden, who was indeed as lovely as any picture. She asked him whence he came and whither he was going, and he said, "I am roaming about the world." Then she asked him where he had got the sword, for that truly her father's name was on it. He asked her if she were the king's daughter. "Yes," answered she. "With this sword," said he, "did I cut off the heads of three giants." And he took their tongues out of his knapsack in proof. Then he also showed her the slipper, and the corner of the scarf, and the piece of the night-dress. Hereupon she was overjoyed, and said that he was the one who had delivered her. On this they went together to the old king, and fetched him to the hut, and she led him into her room, and told him that the huntsman was the man who had really set her free from the giants. And when the aged king saw all the proofs of this, he could no longer doubt, and said that he was very glad he knew how everything had happened, and that the huntsman should have her to wife, on which the maiden was glad at heart. Then she dressed the huntsman as if he were a foreign lord, and the king ordered a feast to be prepared. When they went to table, the captain sat on the left side of the king's daughter, but the huntsman was on the right, and the captain thought he was a foreign lord who had come on a visit. When they had eaten and drunk, the old king said to the captain that he would set before him something which he must guess. "Supposing someone said that he had killed the three giants and he were asked where the giants, tongues were, and he were forced to go and look, and there were none in their heads. How could that have happened?" The captain said, "Then they cannot have had any." "Not so," said the king. "Every animal has a tongue," and then he likewise asked what punishment should be meted out to anyone who made such an answer. The captain replied, "He ought to be torn in pieces." Then the king said he had pronounced his own sentence, and the captain was put in prison and then torn in four pieces, but the king's daughter was married to the huntsman. After this he brought his father and mother, and they lived with their son in happiness, and after the death of the old king he received the kingdom.

The Shroud

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:39:23 GMT

There was once a mother who had a little boy of seven years old, who was so handsome and lovable that no one could look at him without liking him, and she herself worshipped him above everything in the world. Now it so happened that he suddenly became ill, and God took him to himself, and for this the mother could not be comforted and wept both day and night. But soon afterwards, when the child had been buried, it appeared by night in the places where it had sat and played during its life, and if the mother wept, it wept also, and when morning came it disappeared. But as the mother would not stop crying, it came one night, in the little white shroud in which it had been laid in its coffin, and with its wreath of flowers round its head, and stood on the bed at her feet, and said, "Oh, mother, do stop crying, or I shall never fall asleep in my coffin, for my shroud will not dry because of all your tears, which fall upon it." The mother was afraid when she heard that, and wept no more. The next night the child came again, and held a little light in its hand, and said, "Look, mother, my shroud is nearly dry, and I can rest in my grave." Then the mother gave her sorrow into God's keeping, and bore it quietly and patiently, and the child came no more, but slept in its little bed beneath the earth.

Hans the Hedgehog

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:38:36 GMT

Hans the Hedgehog

There was once a country man who had money and land in plenty, but
however rich he was, his happiness was still lacking in one respect -
he had no children. Often when he went into the town with the other
peasants they mocked him and asked why he had no children. At last
he became angry, and when he got home he said, "I will have a child,
even if it be a hedgehog." Then his wife had a child that was a
hedgehog in the upper part of his body and a boy in the lower, and
when she saw the child, she was terrified, and said, "See, there you
have brought ill-luck on us." Then said the man, "What can be done
now? The boy must be christened, but we shall not be able to get a
godfather for him." The woman said, "And we cannot call him anything
else but Hans the hedgehog."

When he was christened, the parson said, "He cannot go into any
ordinary bed because of his spikes." So a little straw was put behind
the stove, and Hans the hedgehog was laid on it. His mother could
not suckle him, for he would have pricked her with his quills. So he
lay there behind the stove for eight years, and his father was tired
of him and thought, if he would but die. He did not die, however,
but remained lying there.

Now it happened that there was a fair in the town, and the peasant
was about to go to it, and asked his wife what he should bring back
with him for her. "A little meat and a couple of white rolls which
are wanted for the house," said she. Then he asked the servant, and
she wanted a pair of slippers and some stockings with clocks. At last
he said also, "And what will you have, Hans my hedgehog?" "Dear
father," he said, "do bring me bagpipes." When, therefore, the father
came home again, he gave his wife what he had bought for her, meat
and white rolls, and then he gave the maid the slippers, and the
stockings with clocks, and, lastly, he went behind the stove, and
gave Hans the hedgehog the bagpipes.

And when Hans the hedgehog had the bagpipes, he said, "Dear father,
do go to the forge and get the cock shod, and then I will ride away,
and never come back again." At this, the father was delighted to
think that he was going to get rid of him, and had the cock shod for
him, and when it was done, Hans the hedgehog got on it, and rode
away, but took swine and asses with him which he intended to keep in
the forest. When they got there he made the cock fly on to a high
tree with him, and there he sat for many a long year, and watched his
asses and swine until the herd was quite large, and his father knew
nothing about him. And while he was sitting in the tree, he played
his bagpipes, and made music which was very beautiful.

Once a king came traveling by who had lost his way and heard the
music. He was astonished at it, and sent his servant forth to look
all round and see from whence this music came. He spied about, but
saw nothing but a little animal sitting up aloft on the tree, which
looked like a cock with a hedgehog on it which made this music. Then
the king told the servant he was to ask why he sat there, and if he
knew the road which led to his kingdom. So Hans the hedgehog
descended from the tree, and said he would show the way if the king
would write a bond and promise him whatever he first met in the royal
courtyard as soon as he arrived at home. Then the king thought, I
can easily do that, Hans the hedgehog understands nothing, and I can
write what I like. So the king took pen and ink and wrote something,
and when he had done it, Hans the hedgehog showed him the way, and he
got safely home. But his daughter, when she saw him from afar, was
so overjoyed that she ran to meet him, and kissed him. Then he
remembered Hans the hedgehog, and told her what had happened, and
that he had been forced to promise whatsoever first met him when he
got home, to a very strange animal which sat on a cock as if it were
a horse, and made beautiful music, but that instead of writing that
he should have what he wanted, he had written that he should not have
it. Thereupon the princess was glad, and said he had done well, for
she never would have gone away with the hedgehog.

Hans the hedgehog, however, looked after his asses and pigs, and was
always merry and sat on the tree and played his bagpipes. Now it came
to pass that another king came journeying by with his attendants and
runner, and he also had lost his way, and did not know how to get
home again because the forest was so large. He likewise heard the
beautiful music from a distance, and asked his runner what that could
be, and told him to go and see. Then the runner went under the tree,
and saw the cock sitting at the top of it, and Hans the hedgehog on
the cock. The runner asked him what he was doing up there. I am
keeping my asses and my pigs, but what is your desire. The messenger
said that they had lost their way, and could not get back into their
own kingdom, and asked if he would not show them the way. Then Hans
the hedgehog descended the tree with the cock, and told the aged king
that he would show him the way, if he would give him for his own
whatsoever first met him in front of his royal palace. The king
said, "Yes," and wrote a promise to Hans the hedgehog that he should
have this. That done, Hans rode on before him on the cock, and
pointed out the way, and the king reached his kingdom again in
safety. When he got to the courtyard, there were great rejoicings.
Now he had an only daughter who was very beautiful, she ran to meet
him, threw her arms round his neck, and was delighted to have her old
father back again. She asked him where in the world he had been so
long. So he told her how he had lost his way, and had very nearly
not come back at all, but that as he was traveling through a great
forest, a creature, half hedgehog, half man, who was sitting astride
a cock in a high tree, and making music, had shown him the way and
helped him to get out, but that in return he had promised him
whatsoever first met him in the royal court-yard, and how that was
she herself, which made him unhappy now. But on this she promised
that, for love of her father, she would willingly go with this Hans
if he came.

Hans the hedgehog, however, took care of his pigs, and the pigs
became more pigs until there were so many in number that the whole
forest was filled with them. Then Hans the hedgehog resolved not to
live in the forest any longer, and sent word to his father to have
every stye in the village emptied, for he was coming with such a
great herd that all might kill who wished to do so. When his father
heard that, he was troubled, for he thought Hans the hedgehog had
died long ago. Hans the hedgehog, however, seated himself on the
cock, and drove the pigs before him into the village, and ordered the
slaughter to begin.

Ha. - Then there was a butchery and a chopping that might have been
heard two miles off. After this Hans the hedgehog said, "Father, let
me have the cock shod once more at the forge, and then I will ride
away and never come back as long as I live." Then the father had the
cock shod once more, and was pleased that Hans the hedgehog would
never return again.

Hans the hedgehog rode away to the first kingdom. There the king had
commanded that whosoever came mounted on a cock and had bagpipes with
him should be shot at, cut down, or stabbed by everyone, so that he
might not enter the palace. When, therefore, Hans the hedgehog came
riding thither, they all pressed forward against him with their
pikes, but he spurred the cock and it flew up over the gate in front
of the king's window and lighted there, and Hans cried that the king
must give him what he had promised, or he would take both his life
and his daughter's. Then the king began to speak to his daughter,
and to beg her to go away with Hans in order to save her own life and
her father's. So she dressed herself in white, and her father gave
her a carriage with six horses and magnificent attendants together
with gold and possessions. She seated herself in the carriage, and
placed Hans the hedgehog beside her with the cock and the bagpipes,
and then they took leave and drove away, and the king thought he
should never see her again. But he was deceived in his expectation
for when they were at a short distance from the town, Hans the
hedgehog took her pretty clothes off, and pierced her with his
hedgehog's spikes until she bled all over. "That is the reward of
your falseness," said he. "Go your way, I will not have you," and on
that he chased her home again, and she was disgraced for the rest of
her life.

Hans the hedgehog, however, rode on further on the cock, with his
bagpipes, to the dominions of the second king to whom he had shown
the way. But this one had arranged that if any one resembling Hans
the hedgehog should come, they were to present arms, give him safe
conduct, cry long life to him, and lead him to the royal palace.

But when the king's daughter saw him she was terrified, for he really
looked too strange. Then she remembered that she could not change
her mind, for she had given her promise to her father. So Hans the
hedgehog was welcomed by her, and married to her, and had to go with
her to the royal table, and she seated herself by his side, and they
ate and drank. When the evening came and they wanted to go to sleep,
she was afraid of his quills, but he told her she was not to fear,
for no harm would befall her, and he told the old king that he was to
appoint four men to watch by the door of the chamber, and light a
great fire, and when he entered the room and was about to get into
bed, he would creep out of his hedgehog's skin and leave it lying
there by the bedside, and that the men were to run nimbly to it,
throw it in the fire, and stay by it until it was consumed.

When the clock struck eleven, he went into the chamber, stripped off
the hedgehog's skin, and left it lying by the bed. Then came the men
and fetched it swiftly, and threw it in the fire, and when the fire
had consumed it, he was saved, and lay there in bed in human form,
but he was coal-black as if he had been burnt. The king sent for his
physician who washed him with precious salves, and anointed him, and
he became white, and was a handsome young man. When the king's
daughter saw that she was glad, and the next morning they arose
joyfully, ate and drank, and then the marriage was properly
solemnized, and Hans the hedgehog received the kingdom from the aged
king.

When several years had passed he went with his wife to his father,
and said that he was his son. The father, however, declared he had
no son - he had never had but one, and he had been born like a
hedgehog with spikes, and had gone forth into the world. Then Hans
made himself known, and the old father rejoiced and went with him to
his kingdom.
My tale is done,
and away it has run
to little augusta's house.

The Two Travellers

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:37:44 GMT

Hill and vale do not meet, but the children of men do, good and bad. In this way a shoemaker and a tailor once met on their travels. The tailor was a handsome little fellow who was always merry and full of enjoyment. He saw the shoemaker coming towards him from the other side, and as he observed by his bag what kind of a trade he plied, he sang a little mocking song to him, sew me the seam, draw me the thread, spread it over with pitch, knock the nail on the head. The shoemaker, however, could not bear a joke, he pulled a face as if he had drunk vinegar, and made a gesture as if he were about to seize the tailor by the throat. But the little fellow began to laugh, reached him his bottle, and said, "No harm was meant, take a drink, and swallow your anger down." The shoemaker took a very hearty drink, and the storm on his face began to clear away. He gave the bottle back to the tailor, and said, "I took a hearty gulp, they say it comes from much drinking, but not from great thirst. Shall we travel together?" "All right," answered the tailor, "if only it suits you to go into a big town where there is no lack of work." "That is just where I want to go," answered the shoemaker. "In a small hamlet there is nothing to earn, and in the country, people like to go barefoot." They traveled therefore onwards together, and always set one foot before the other like a weasel in the snow. Both of them had time enough, but little to bite and to break. When they reached a town they went about and paid their respects to the tradesmen, and because the tailor looked so lively and merry, and had such fine red cheeks, every one gave him work willingly, and when luck was good the master's daughters gave him a kiss beneath the porch, as well. When he again fell in with the shoemaker, the tailor had always the most in his bundle. The ill-tempered shoemaker made a wry face, and thought, the greater the rascal the more the luck. But the tailor began to laugh and to sing, and shared all he got with his comrade. If a couple of pence jingled in his pockets, he ordered good cheer, and thumped the table in his joy till the glasses danced and it was lightly come, lightly go, with him. When they had traveled for some time, they came to a great forest through which passed the road to the capital. Two foot-paths, however, led through it, one of which was a seven days, journey and the other only two, but neither of the travelers knew which way was the short one. They seated themselves beneath an oak-tree, and took counsel together how they should forecast, and for how many days they should provide themselves with bread. The shoemaker said, "One must look before one leaps, I will take with me bread for a week." "What," said the tailor, "drag bread for seven days on one's back like a beast of burden and not be able to look about? I shall trust in God, and not trouble myself about anything. The money I have in my pocket is as good in summer as in winter, but in hot weather bread gets dry, and moldy into the bargain, even my coat does not last as far as it might. Besides, why should we not find the right way? Bread for two days, and that's enough." Each, therefore, bought his own bread, and then they tried their luck in the forest. It was as quiet there as in a church. No wind stirred, no brook murmured, no bird sang, and through the thickly-leaved branches no sunbeam forced its way. The shoemaker spoke never a word, the bread weighed so heavily on his back that the sweat streamed down his cross and gloomy face. The tailor, however, was quite merry, he jumped about, whistled on a leaf, or sang a song, and thought to himself, God in heaven must be pleased to see me so happy. This lasted two days, but on the third the forest would not come to an end, and the tailor had eaten up all his bread, so after all his heart sank down a yard deeper. Nevertheless, he did not lose courage, but relied on God and on his luck. On the evening of the third day he lay down hungry under a tree, and rose again next morning hungry still, so also passed the fourth day, and when the shoemaker seated himself on a fallen tree and devoured his dinner the tailor was only a spectator. If he begged for a little piece of bread, the other laughed mockingly, and said, "You have always been so merry, now you can see for once what it is to be sad, the birds which sing too early in the morning are struck by the hawk in the evening." In short, he was pitiless. But on the fifth morning the poor tailor could no longer stand up, and was hardly able to utter one word for weakness, his cheeks were white, and his eyes were red. Then the shoemaker said to him, "I will give you a bit of bread to-day, but in return for it, I will put out your right eye." The unhappy tailor who still wished to save his life, had to submit, he wept once more with both eyes, and then held them out, and the shoemaker, who had a heart of stone, put out his right eye with a sharp knife. The tailor called to remembrance what his mother had formerly said to him when he had been eating secretly in the pantry. Eat what one can, and suffer what one must. When he had consumed his dearly-bought bread, he got on his legs again, forgot his misery and comforted himself with the thought that he could always see enough with one eye. But on the sixth day, hunger made itself felt again and gnawed him almost to the heart. In the evening he fell down by a tree, and on the seventh morning he could not raise himself up for faintness, and death was close at hand. Then said the shoemaker, "I will show mercy and give you bread once more, but you shall not have it for nothing, I shall put out your other eye for it." And now the tailor felt how thoughtless his life had been, prayed to God for forgiveness, and said, "Do what you will, I will bear what I must, but remember that our Lord God does not always look on passively, and that an hour will come when the evil deed which you have done to me, and which I have not deserved of you, will be requited. When times were good with me, I shared what I had with you. My trade is of that kind that each stitch must always be exactly like the other. If I no longer have my eyes and can sew no more I must go a-begging. At any rate do not leave me here alone when I am blind, or I shall die of hunger." The shoemaker, however, who had driven God out of his heart, took the knife and put out his left eye. Then he gave him a bit of bread to eat, held out a stick to him, and drew him on behind him. When the sun went down, they got out of the forest, and before them in the open country stood the gallows. Thither the shoemaker guided the blind tailor, and then left him alone and went his way. Weariness, pain, and hunger made the wretched man fall asleep, and he slept the whole night. When day dawned he awoke, but knew not where he lay. Two poor sinners were hanging on the gallows, and a crow sat on the head of each of them. Then one of the men who had been hanged began to speak, and said, "Brother, are you awake?" "Yes, I am awake," answered the second. "Then I will tell you something," said the first, "the dew which this night has fallen down over us from the gallows, gives every one who washes himself with it his eyes again. If blind people did but know this, how many would regain their sight who do not believe that to be possible." When the tailor heard that, he took his pocket-handkerchief, pressed it on the grass, and when it was moist with dew, washed the sockets of his eyes with it. Immediately was fulfilled what the man on the gallows had said, and a couple of healthy new eyes filled the sockets. It was not long before the tailor saw the sun rise behind the mountains, in the plain before him lay the great royal city with its magnificent gates and hundred towers, and the golden balls and crosses which were on the spires began to shine. He could distinguish every leaf on the trees, saw the birds which flew past, and the midges which danced in the air. He took a needle out of his pocket, and as he could thread it as well as ever he had done, his heart danced with delight. He threw himself on his knees, thanked God for the mercy he had shown him, and said his morning prayer. Nor did he forget to pray for the poor sinners who were hanging there swinging against each other in the wind like the pendulums of clocks. Then he took his bundle on his back and soon forgot the pain of heart he had endured, and went on his way singing and whistling. The first thing he met was a brown foal running about the fields at large. He caught it by the mane, and wanted to spring on it and ride into the town. The foal, however, begged to be set free. "I am still too young," it said, "even a light tailor such as you are would break my back in two - let me go till I have grown strong. A time may perhaps come when I may reward you for it." "Run off," said the tailor, "I see you are still a giddy thing." He gave it a touch with a switch over its back, whereupon it kicked up its hind legs for joy, leapt over hedges and ditches, and galloped away into the open country. But the little tailor had eaten nothing since the day before. The sun to be sure fills my eyes, said he, but the bread does not fill my mouth. The first thing that comes my way and is even half edible will have to suffer for it. In the meantime a stork stepped solemnly over the meadow towards him. "Halt, halt," cried the tailor, and seized him by the leg. "I don't know if you are good to eat or not, but my hunger leaves me no great choice. I must cut your head off, and roast you." "Don't do that," replied the stork, "I am a sacred bird which brings mankind great profit, and no one does me an injury. Leave me my life, and I may do you good in some other way." "Well, be off, cousin longlegs," said the tailor. The stork rose up, let its long legs hang down, and flew gently away. "What's to be the end of this," said the tailor to himself at last, "my hunger grows greater and greater, and my stomach more and more empty. Whatsoever comes in my way now is lost." At this point he saw a couple of young ducks which were on a pond come swimming towards him. "You come just at the right moment," said he, and laid hold of one of them and was about to wring its neck. On this an old duck which was hidden among the reeds, began to scream loudly, and swam to him with open beak, and begged him urgently to spare her dear children. "Can you not imagine," said she, "how your mother would mourn if any one wanted to carry you off, and give you your finishing stroke." "Just be quiet," said the good-tempered tailor, "you shall keep your children," and put the prisoner back into the water. When he turned round, he was standing in front of an old tree which was partly hollow, and saw some wild bees flying in and out of it. "There I shall at once find the reward of my good deed," said the tailor, "the honey will refresh me." But the queen-bee came out, threatened him and said, "If you touch my people and destroy my nest, our stings shall pierce your skin like ten thousand red-hot needles. But if you leave us in peace and go your way, we will do you a service for it another time." The little tailor saw that here also nothing was to be done. Three dishes empty and nothing on the fourth is a bad dinner. He dragged himself therefore with his starved-out stomach into the town, and as it was just striking twelve, all was ready-cooked for him in the inn, and he was able to sit down at once to dinner. When he was satisfied he said, "Now I will get to work." He went round the town, sought a master, and soon found a good situation. And as he had thoroughly learnt his trade, it was not long before he became famous, and every one wanted to have his new coat made by the little tailor, whose importance increased daily. "I can go no further in skill," said he, "and yet things improve every day." At last the king appointed him court-tailor. But what odd things do happen in the world. On the very same day his former comrade the shoemaker also became court-shoemaker. When the latter caught sight of the tailor, and saw that he had once more two healthy eyes, his conscience troubled him. "Before he takes revenge on me," thought he to himself, "I must dig a pit for him." He, however, who digs a pit for another, falls into it himself. In the evening when work was over and it had grown dusk, he stole to the king and said, "Lord king, the tailor is an arrogant fellow and has boasted that he will get the golden crown back again which was lost in ancient times." "That would please me very much," said the king, and he caused the tailor to be brought before him next morning, and ordered him to get the crown back again, or to leave the town for ever. "Oho," thought the tailor, "a rogue gives more than he has got. If the surly king wants me to do what can be done by no one, I will not wait till morning, but will go out of the town at once, to-day." He packed up his bundle, therefore, but when he was without the gate he could not help being sorry to give up his good fortune, and turn his back on the town in which all had gone so well with him. He came to the pond where he had made the acquaintance of the ducks, at that very moment the old one whose young ones he had spared, was sitting there by the shore, pluming herself with her beak. She knew him again instantly, and asked why he was hanging his head so. "You will not be surprised when you hear what has befallen me," replied the tailor, and told her his fate. "If that be all," said the duck, "we can help you. The crown fell into the water, and it lies down below at the bottom, we will soon bring it up again for you. In the meantime just spread out your handkerchief on the bank." She dived down with her twelve young ones, and in five minutes she was up again and sat with the crown resting on her wings, and the twelve young ones were swimming round about and had put their beaks under it, and were helping to carry it. They swam to the shore and put the crown on the handkerchief. No one can imagine how magnificent the crown was, when the sun shone on it, it gleamed like a hundred thousand carbuncles. The tailor tied his handkerchief together by the four corners, and carried it to the king, who was full of joy, and put a gold chain round the tailor's neck. When the shoemaker saw that one blow had failed, he contrived a second, and went to the king and said, "Lord king, the tailor has become insolent again, he boasts that he will copy in wax the whole of the royal palace, with everything that pertains to it, loose or fast, inside and out." The king sent for the tailor and ordered him to copy in wax the whole of the royal palace, with everything that pertained to it, movable or immovable, within and without, and if he did not succeed in doing this, or if so much as one nail on the wall were wanting, he should be imprisoned for his whole life underground. The tailor thought, "It gets worse and worse. No one can endure that," and threw his bundle on his back, and went forth. When he came to the hollow tree, he sat down and hung his head. The bees came flying out, and the queen-bee asked him if he had a stiff neck, since he hung his head so. "Alas, no," answered the tailor, "something quite different weighs me down," and he told her what the king had demanded of him. The bees began to buzz and hum amongst themselves, and the queen-bee said, "Just go home again, but come back to-morrow at this time, and bring a large sheet with you, and then all will be well." So he turned back again, but the bees flew to the royal palace and straight into it through the open windows, crept round about into every corner, and inspected everything most carefully. Then they hurried back and modelled the palace in wax with such rapidity that any one looking on would have thought it was growing before his eyes. By the evening all was ready, and when the tailor came next morning, the whole of the splendid building was there, and not one nail in the wall or tile of the roof was wanting, and it was delicate withal, and white as snow, and smelt sweet as honey. The tailor wrapped it carefully in his cloth and took it to the king, who could not admire it enough, placed it in his largest hall, and in return for it presented the tailor with a large stone house. The shoemaker, however, did not give up, but went for the third time to the king and said, "Lord king, it has come to the tailor's ears that no water will spring up in the court-yard of the castle and he has boasted that it shall rise up in the midst of the court-yard to a man's height and be clear as crystal." Then the king ordered the tailor to be brought before him and said, "If a stream of water does not rise in my court-yard by to-morrow as you have promised, the executioner shall in that very place make you shorter by a head." The poor tailor did not take long to think about it, but hurried out to the gate, and because this time it was a matter of life and death to him, tears rolled down his face. While he was thus going forth full of sorrow, the foal to which he had formerly given its liberty, and which had now become a beautiful chestnut horse, came leaping towards him. "The time has come," it said to the tailor, "when I can repay you for your good deed. I know already what is needful to you, but you shall soon have help, get on me, my back can carry two such as you." The tailor's courage came back to him, he jumped up in one bound, and the horse went full speed into the town, and right up to the court-yard of the castle. It galloped as quick as lightning thrice round it, and at the third time it fell violently down. At the same instant, however, there was a terrific clap of thunder, a fragment of earth in the middle of the court-yard sprang like a cannon-ball into the air, and over the castle, and directly after it a jet of water rose as high as a man on horseback, and the water was as pure as crystal, and the sunbeams began to dance on it. When the king saw this, he arose in amazement, and went and embraced the tailor in the sight of all men. But good fortune did not last long. The king had daughters in plenty, one still prettier than the other, but he had no son. So the malicious shoemaker betook himself for the fourth time to the king, and said, "Lord king, the tailor has not given up his arrogance. He has now boasted that if he liked, he could cause a son to be brought to the lord king through the air." The king commanded the tailor to be summoned, and said, "If you cause a son to be brought to me within nine days, you shall have my eldest daughter to wife." "The reward is indeed great," thought the little tailor, "one would willingly do something for it, but the cherries grow too high for me, if I climb for them, the bough will break beneath me, and I shall fall." He went home, seated himself cross-legged on his work-table, and thought over what was to be done. "It can't be managed," cried he at last, "I will go away, after all, I can't live in peace here." He tied up his bundle and hurried away to the gate. When he got to the meadow, he perceived his old friend the stork, who was walking backwards and forwards like a philosopher. Sometimes he stood still, took a frog into close consideration, and at length swallowed it down. The stork came to him and greeted him. "I see," he began, "that you have your pack on your back. Why are you leaving the town?" The tailor told him what the king had required of him, and how he could not perform it, and lamented his misfortune. "Don't let that turn your hair grey," said the stork, "I will help you out of your difficulty. For a long time now, I have carried the children in swaddling-clothes into the town, so for once in a way, I can fetch a little prince out of the well. Go home and be easy. In nine days from this time repair to the royal palace, and there will I come." The little tailor went home, and at the appointed time was at the castle. It was not long before the stork came flying thither and tapped at the window. The tailor opened it, and cousin longlegs came carefully in, and walked with solemn steps over the smooth marble pavement. He had, moreover, a baby in his beak that was as lovely as an angel, and stretched out its little hands to the queen. The stork laid it in her lap, and she caressed it and kissed it, and was beside herself with delight. Before the stork flew away, he took his traveling bag off his back and handed it over to the queen. In it there were little paper parcels with colored sweetmeats, and they were divided amongst the little princesses. The eldest, however, received none of them, but instead got the merry tailor for a husband. "It seems to me," said he, "just as if I had won the highest prize. My mother was if right after all, she always said that whoever trusts in God and only has good luck, can never fail." The shoemaker had to make the shoes in which the little tailor danced at the wedding festival, after which he was commanded to quit the town for ever. The road to the forest led him to the gallows. Worn out with anger, rage, and the heat of the day, he threw himself down. When he had closed his eyes and was about to sleep, the two crows flew down from the heads of the men who were hanging there, and pecked his eyes out. In his madness he ran into the forest and must have died there of hunger, for no one has ever either seen him or heard of him again.

The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:36:45 GMT

In a certain mill lived an old miller who had neither wife nor child, and three apprentices served under him. As they had been with him several years, he one day said to them, "I am old, and want to sit behind the stove. Go out, and whichsoever of you brings me the best horse home, to him will I give the mill, and in return for it he shall take care of me till my death." The third of the boys, however, was the dunce, who was looked on as foolish by the others, they begrudged the mill to him, and afterwards he would not even have it. Then all three went out together, and when they came to the village, the two said to stupid Hans, "You may just as well stay here, as long as you live you will never get a horse." Hans, however, went with them, and when it was night they came to a cave in which they lay down to sleep. The two smart ones waited until Hans had fallen asleep, then they got up, and went away leaving him where he was. And they thought they had done a very clever thing, but it was certain to turn out ill for them. When the sun rose, and Hans woke up, he was lying in a deep cavern. He looked around on every side and exclaimed, "Oh, heavens, where am I?" Then he got up and clambered out of the cave, went into the forest, and thought, "Here I am quite alone and deserted, how shall I obtain a horse now?" Whilst he was thus walking full of thought, he met a small tabby-cat which said quite kindly, "Hans, where are you going?" "Alas, you can not help me." "I well know your desire," said the cat. "You wish to have a beautiful horse. Come with me, and be my faithful servant for seven years long, and then I will give you one more beautiful than any you have ever seen in your whole life." "Well, this is a strange cat," thought Hans, "But I am determined to see if she is telling the truth." So she took him with her into her enchanted castle, where there were nothing but kittens who were her servants. They leapt nimbly upstairs and downstairs, and were merry and happy. In the evening when they sat down to dinner, three of them had to make music. One played the bass viol, the other the fiddle, and the third put the trumpet to his lips, and blew out his cheeks as much as he possibly could. When they had dined, the table was carried away, and the cat said, "Now, Hans, come and dance with me." "No," said he, "I won't dance with a pussy cat. I have never done that yet." "Then take him to bed," said she to the cats. So one of them lighted him to his bed-room, one pulled his shoes off, one his stockings, and at last one of them blew out the candle. Next morning they returned and helped him out of bed, one put his stockings on for him, one tied his garters, one brought his shoes, one washed him, and one dried his face with her tail. "That feels very soft," said Hans. He, however, had to serve the cat, and chop some wood every day, and to do that, he had an axe of silver, and the wedge and saw were of silver and the mallet of copper. So he chopped the wood small, stayed there in the house and had good meat and drink, but never saw anyone but the tabby-cat and her servants. Once she said to him, "Go and mow my meadow, and dry the grass," and gave him a scythe of silver, and a whetstone of gold, but bade him deliver them up again carefully. So Hans went thither, and did what he was bidden, and when he had finished the work, he carried the scythe, whetstone, and hay to the house, and asked if it was not yet time for her to give him his reward. "No," said the cat, "you must first do something more for me of the same kind. There is timber of silver, carpenter's axe, square, and everything that is needful, all of silver - with these build me a small house." Then Hans built the small house, and said that he had now done everything, and still he had no horse. Nevertheless the seven years had gone by with him as if they were six months. The cat asked him if he would like to see her horses. "Yes," said Hans. Then she opened the door of the small house, and when she had opened it, there stood twelve horses, - such horses, so bright and shining, that his heart rejoiced at the sight of them. And now she gave him to eat and drink, and said, "Go home, I will not give you your horse now, but in three days, time I will follow you and bring it." So Hans set out, and she showed him the way to the mill. She, however, had never once given him a new coat, and he had been obliged to keep on his dirty old smock, which he had brought with him, and which during the seven years had everywhere become too small for him. When he reached home, the two other apprentices were there again as well, and each of them certainly had brought a horse with him, but one of them was a blind one, and the other lame. They asked Hans where his horse was. "It will follow me in three days, time." Then they laughed and said, "Indeed, stupid Hans, where will you get a horse?" "It will be a fine one." Hans went into the parlor, but the miller said he should not sit down to table, for he was so ragged and torn, that they would all be ashamed of him if any one came in. So they gave him a mouthful of food outside, and at night, when they went to rest, the two others would not let him have a bed, and at last he was forced to creep into the goose-house, and lie down on a little hard straw. In the morning when he awoke, the three days had passed, and a coach came with six horses and they shone so bright that it was delightful to see them - and a servant brought a seventh as well, which was for the poor miller's boy. And a magnificent princess alighted from the coach and went into the mill, and this princess was the little tabby-cat whom poor Hans had served for seven years. She asked the miller where the miller's boy and dunce was. Then the miller said, "We cannot have him here in the mill, for he is so ragged, he is lying in the goose-house." Then the king's daughter said that they were to bring him immediately. So they brought him out, and he had to hold his little smock together to cover himself. The servants unpacked splendid garments, and washed him and dressed him, and when that was done, no king could have looked more handsome. Then the maiden desired to see the horses which the other apprentices had brought home with them, and one of them was blind and the other lame. So she ordered the servant to bring the seventh horse, and when the miller saw it, he said that such a horse as that had never yet entered his yard. "And that is for the third miller's boy," said she. "Then he must have the mill," said the miller, but the king's daughter said that the horse was there, and that he was to keep his mill as well, and took her faithful Hans and set him in the coach, and drove away with him. They first drove to the little house which he had built with the silver tools, and behold it was a great castle, and everything inside it was of silver and gold, and then she married him, and he was rich, so rich that he had enough for all the rest of his life. After this, let no one ever say that anyone who is silly can never become a person of importance.

Stories About Snakes

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:35:56 GMT

There was once a little child whose mother gave her every afternoon a small bowl of milk and bread, and the child seated herself in the yard with it. But when she began to eat, a paddock came creeping out of a crevice in the wall, dipped its little head in the dish, and ate with her. The child took pleasure in this, and when she was sitting there with her little dish and the paddock did not come at once, she cried, paddock, paddock, come swiftly hither come, thou tiny thing, thou shalt have thy crumbs of bread, thou shalt refresh thyself with milk. Then the paddock came in haste, and enjoyed its food. It even showed gratitude, for it brought the child all kinds of pretty things from its hidden treasures, bright stones, pearls, and golden playthings. The paddock, however, drank only the milk, and left the bread-crumbs alone. Then one day the child took its little spoon and struck the paddock gently on its head, and said, eat the bread-crumbs as well, little thing. The mother, who was standing in the kitchen, heard the child talking to someone, and when she saw that she was striking a paddock with her spoon, ran out with a log of wood, and killed the good little creature. From that time forth, a change came over the child. As long as the paddock had eaten with her, she had grown tall and strong, but now she lost her pretty rosy cheeks and wasted away. It was not long before the funeral bird began to cry in the night, and the redbreast to collect little branches and leaves for a funeral wreath and soon afterwards the child lay on her bier. II An orphan child was sitting by the town walls spinning, when she saw a paddock coming out of a hole low down in the wall. Swiftly she spread out beside it one of the blue silk handkerchiefs for which paddocks have such a strong liking, and which are the only things they will creep on. As soon as the paddock saw it, it went back, then returned, bringing with it a small golden crown, laid it on the handkerchief, and then went away again. The girl took up the crown, which glittered and was of delicate golden filagree work. It was not long before the paddock came back for the second time, but when it did not see the crown any more, it crept up to the wall, and in its grief smote its little head against it as long as it had strength to do so, until at last it lay there dead. If the girl had but left the crown where it was, the paddock would certainly have brought still more of its treasures out of the hole. III The paddock cries, huhu, huhu. The child says, come out. The paddock comes out, whereupon the child inquires about her little sister, have you not seen little red-stockings. The paddock says, no, I have not. Have you. Huhu, huhu, huhu.

Wise Folks

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:35:01 GMT

One day a peasant took his good hazel-stick out of the corner and said to his wife, trina, I am going across country, and shall not return for three days. If during that time the cattle-dealer should happen to call and want to buy our three cows, you may strike a bargain at once, but not unless you can get two hundred talers for them, nothing less, do you hear. For heaven's sake, just go in peace, answered the woman, I will manage that. You, indeed, said the man. You once fell on your head when you were a little child, and that affects you even now, but let me tell you this, if you do anything foolish, I will make your back black and blue, and not with paint, I assure you, but with the stick which I have in my hand, and the coloring shall last a whole year, you may rely on that. And having said that, the man went on his way. Next morning the cattle-dealer came, and the woman had no need to say many words to him. When he had seen the cows and heard the price, he said, I am quite willing to give that. Honestly speaking, they are worth it. I will take the beasts away with me at once. He unfastened their chains and drove them out of the byre, but just as he was going out of the yard-door, the woman clutched him by the sleeve and said, you must give me the two hundred talers now, or I cannot let the cows go. True, answered the man, but I have forgotten to buckle on my money-belt. Have no fear, however, you shall have security for my paying. I will take two cows with me and leave one, and then you will have a good pledge. The woman saw the force of this, and let the man go away with the cows, and thought to herself, how pleased Hans will be when he finds how cleverly I have managed it. The peasant came home on the third day as he had said he would, and at once inquired if the cows were sold. Yes, indeed, dear Hans, answered the woman, and as you said, for two hundred talers. They are scarcely worth so much, but the man took them without making any objection. Where is the money, asked the peasant. Oh, I have not got the money, replied the woman, he had happened to forget his money-belt, but he will soon bring it, and he left good security behind him. What kind of security, asked the man. One of the three cows, which he shall not have until he has paid for the other two. I have managed very cunningly, for I have kept the smallest, which eats the least. The man was enraged and lifted up his stick, and was just going to give her the beating he had promised her, when suddenly he let the stick fail and said, you are the stupidest goose that ever waddled on God's earth, but I am sorry for you. I will go out into the highways and wait for three days to see if I find anyone who is still stupider than you. If I succeed in doing so, you shall go scot-free, but if I do not find him, you shall receive your well-deserved reward without any discount. He went out into the great highways, sat down on a stone, and waited for what would happen. Then he saw a peasant's waggon coming towards him, and a woman was standing upright in the middle of it, instead of sitting on the bundle of straw which was lying beside her, or walking near the oxen and leading them. The man thought to himself, that is certainly one of the kind I am in search of, and jumped up and ran backwards and forwards in front of the waggon like one who is not in his right mind. What do you want, my friend, said the woman to him. I don't know you, where do you come from. I have fallen down from heaven, replied the man, and don't know how to get back again, couldn't you drive me up. No, said the woman, I don't know the way, but if you come from heaven you can surely tell me how my husband is, who has been there these three years. You must have seen him. Oh, yes, I have seen him, but all men can't get on well. He keeps sheep, and the sheep give him a great deal to do. They run up the mountains and lose their way in the wilderness, and he has to run after them and drive them together again. His clothes are all torn to pieces too, and will soon fall off his body. There is no tailor there, for saint peter won't let any of them in, as you know by the story. Who would have thought it, cried the woman, I tell you what, I will fetch his sunday coat which is still hanging at home in the cupboard. He can wear that and look respectable. You will be so kind as to take it with you. That won't do very well, answered the peasant, people are not allowed to take clothes into heaven, they are taken away at the gate. Then listen, said the woman, I sold my fine wheat yesterday and got a good lot of money for it, I will send that to him. If you hide the purse in your pocket, no one will know that you have it. If you can't manage it any other way, said the peasant, I will do you that favor. Just sit still where you are, said she, and I will drive home and fetch the purse, I shall soon be back again. I do not sit down on the bundle of straw, but stand up in the waggon, because it makes it lighter for the cattle. She drove her oxen away, and the peasant thought, that woman has a perfect talent for folly, if she really brings the money, my wife may think herself fortunate, for she will get no beating. It was not long before she came in a great hurry with the money, and with her own hands put it in his pocket. Before she went away, she thanked him again a thousand times for his courtesy. When the woman got home again, she found her son who had come in from the field. She told him what unexpected things had befallen her, and then added, I am truly delighted at having found an opportunity of sending something to my poor husband. Who would ever have imagined that he could be suffering for want of anything up in heaven. The son was full of astonishment. Mother, said he, it is not every day that a man comes from heaven in this way, I will go out immediately, and see if he is still to be found, he must tell me what it is like up there, and how the work is done. He saddled the horse and rode off with all speed. He found the peasant who was sitting under a willow-tree, and was about to count the money in the purse. Have you seen the man who has fallen down from heaven, cried the youth to him. Yes, answered the peasant, he has set out on his way back there, and has gone up that hill, from whence it will be rather nearer, you could still catch him up, if you were to ride fast. Alas, said the youth, I have been doing tiring work all day, and the ride here has completely worn me out, you know the man, be so kind as to get on my horse, and go and persuade him to come here. Aha, thought the peasant, here is another who has not a brain in his head. Why should I not do you this favor, said he, and mounted the horse and rode off at a quick trot. The youth remained sitting there till night fell, but the peasant never came back. The man from heaven must certainly have been in a great hurry, and would not turn back, thought he, and the peasant has no doubt given him the horse to take to my father. He went home and told his mother what had happened, and that he had sent his father the horse so that he might not have to be always running about. You have done well, answered she, your legs are younger than his, and you can go on foot. When the peasant got home, he put the horse in the stable beside the cow which he had as a pledge, and then went to his wife and said, trina, as your luck would have it, I have found two who are still sillier fools than you, this time you escape without a beating. I will store it up for another occasion. Then he lighted his pipe, sat down in his grandfather's chair, and said, it was a good stroke of business to get a sleek horse and a great purse full of money into the bargain, for two lean cows. If stupidity always brought in as much as that, I would be quite willing to hold it in honor. So thought the peasant, but you no doubt prefer simpletons.

Sweet Porridge

anh — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:33:13 GMT

There was a poor but good little girl who lived alone with her mother, and they no longer had anything to eat. So the child went into the forest, and there an aged woman met her who was aware of her sorrow, and presented her with a little pot, which when she said, cook, little pot, cook, would cook good, sweet porridge, and when she said, stop, little pot, it ceased to cook. The girl took the pot home to her mother, and now they were freed from their poverty and hunger, and ate sweet porridge as often as they chose. Once on a time when the girl had gone out, her mother said, cook, little pot, cook. And it did cook and she ate till she was satisfied, and then she wanted the pot to stop cooking, but did not know the word. So it went on cooking and the porridge rose over the edge, and still it cooked on until the kitchen and whole house were full, and then the next house, and then the whole street, just as if it wanted to satisfy the hunger of the whole world, and there was the greatest distress, but no one knew how to stop it. At last when only one single house remained, the child came home and just said, stop, little pot, and it stopped and gave up cooking, and whosoever wished to return to the town had to eat his way back.