The Crimson Fairy Book ....................................................................................................................................1

Andrew Lang...........................................................................................................................................1

Preface ......................................................................................................................................................1

Lovely Ilonka ...........................................................................................................................................2

Lucky Luck..............................................................................................................................................5

The Hairy Man .........................................................................................................................................9

To Your Good Health! ...........................................................................................................................11

The Story of the Seven Simons ..............................................................................................................15

The Language of Beasts .........................................................................................................................22

The Boy Who Could Keep A Secret ......................................................................................................24

The Prince And The Dragon ..................................................................................................................30

Little Wildrose.......................................................................................................................................35

Tiidu The Piper......................................................................................................................................39

Paperarelloo...........................................................................................................................................45

The Gifts Of The Magician ....................................................................................................................48

The Strong Prince..................................................................................................................................52

The Treasure Seeker..............................................................................................................................54

The Cottager And His Cat ......................................................................................................................62

The Prince Who Would Seek Immortality .............................................................................................64

The StoneCutter ...................................................................................................................................69

The GoldBearded Man........................................................................................................................71

Tritill, Litill, And The Birds..................................................................................................................77

The Three Robes ....................................................................................................................................80

The Six Hungry Beasts..........................................................................................................................85

HOW THE BEGGAR BOY TURNED INTO COUNT PIRO ..............................................................89

The Rogue And The Herdsman.............................................................................................................94

Eisenkopf...............................................................................................................................................99

The Death Of Abu Nowas And Of His Wife .......................................................................................103

Motikatika ............................................................................................................................................106

Niels And The Giants ...........................................................................................................................109

Shepherd Paul......................................................................................................................................114

How The Wicked Tanuki Was Punished .............................................................................................118

The Crab And The Monkey.................................................................................................................120

The Horse Gullfaxi And The Sword Gunnfoder ..................................................................................121

The Story Of The Sham Prince, Or The Ambitious Tailor ..................................................................126

The Colony Of Cats.............................................................................................................................133

How To Find Out A True Friend.........................................................................................................136

Clever Maria........................................................................................................................................141

The Magic Kettle.................................................................................................................................143

Each Fairy Book demands a preface from the Editor, and these introductions are inevitably both monotonous

and unavailing. A sense of literary honesty compels the Editor to keep repeating that he is the Editor, and not

the author of the Fairy Tales, just as a distinguished man of science is only the Editor, not the Author of

Nature. Like nature, popular tales are too vast to be the creation of a single modern mind. The Editor's

business is to hunt for collections of these stories told by peasant or savage grandmothers in many climes,

from New Caledonia to Zululand; from the frozen snows of the Polar regions to Greece, or Spain, or Italy, or

far Lochaber. When the tales are found they are adapted to the needs of British children by various hands, the

Editor doing little beyond guarding the interests of propriety, and toning down to mild reproofs the tortures

These explanations have frequently been offered already; but, as far as ladies and children are concerned, to

no purpose. They still ask the Editor how he can invent so many storiesmore than Shakespeare, Dumas,

and Charles Dickens could have invented in a century. And the Editor still avers, in Prefaces, that he did not

invent one of the stories; that nobody knows, as a rule, who invented them, or where, or when. It is only plain

that, perhaps a hundred thousand years ago, some savage grandmother told a tale to a savage granddaughter;

that the granddaughter told it in her turn; that various tellers made changes to suit their taste, adding or

omitting features and incidents; that, as the world grew civilised, other alterations were made, and that, at

last, Homer composed the 'Odyssey,' and somebody else composed the Story of Jason and the Fleece of Gold,

and the enchantress Medea, out of a set of wandering popular tales, which are still told among Samoyeds and

All this has been known to the wise and learned for centuries, and especially since the brothers Grimm wrote

in the early years of the Nineteenth Century. But children remain unaware of the facts, and so do their dear

mothers; whence the Editor infers that they do not read his prefaces, and are not members of the FolkLore

Society, or students of Herr Kohler and M. Cosquin, and M. Henri Guidoz and Professor Child, and Mr. Max

Muller. Though these explanations are not attended to by the Editor's customers, he makes them once more,

for the relief of his conscience. Many tales in this book are translated, or adapted, from those told by mothers

and nurses in Hungary; others are familiar to Russian nurseries; the Servians are responsible for some; a

rather peculiarly fanciful set of stories are adapted from the Roumanians; others are from the Baltic shores;

others from sunny Sicily; a few are from Finland, and Iceland, and Japan, and Tunis, and Portugal. No doubt

many children will like to look out these places on the map, and study their mountains, rivers, soil, products,

and fiscal policies, in the geography books. The peoples who tell the stories differ in colour; language,

religion, and almost everything else; but they all love a nursery tale. The stories have mainly been adapted or

'No, no!' said the king; 'you must not be in such a hurry. Wait till you have done some great deed. My father

The prince was much disappointed, but he never dreamed of disobeying his father, and he began to think with

all his might what he could do. It was no use staying at home, so one day he wandered out into the world to

try his luck, and as he walked along he came to a little hut in which he found an old woman crouching over

'Good evening, mother. I see you have lived long in this world; do you know anything about the three

'Yes, indeed, I've lived long and been much about in the world, but I have never seen or heard anything of

what you ask. Still, if you will wait till tomorrow I may be able to tell you something.'

Well, he waited till the morning, and quite early the old woman appeared and took out a little pipe and blew

in it, and in a moment all the crows in the world were flying about her. Not one was missing. Then she asked

The prince went on his way, and a little further on he found another hut in which lived an old man. On being

questioned the old man said he knew nothing, but begged the prince to stay overnight, and the next morning

The prince bade him farewell and set out. He wandered so far that he crossed seven kingdoms, and at last,

'Good evening to you, my dear son,' answered the old woman. 'It is lucky for you that you spoke to me or you

'I don't know anything myself, but wait till tomorrow. Perhaps I can tell you then.' So the next morning she

blew on her pipe, and lo! and behold every magpie in the world flew up. That is to say, all the magpies except

one who had broken a leg and a wing. The old woman sent after it at once, and when she questioned the

magpies the crippled one was the only one who knew where the three bulrushes were.

Then the prince started off with the lame magpie. They went on and on till they reached a great stone wall,

The prince wasted no time. He set his horse at the wall and leaped over it. Then he looked about for the three

bulrushes, pulled them up and set off with them on his way home. As he rode along one of the bulrushes

happened to knock against something. It split open and, only think! out sprang a lovely girl, who said: 'My

But how could the prince give it her when there was no water at hand? So the lovely maiden flew away. He

How careful he was of the third bulrush! He waited till he came to a well, and there he split it open, and out

sprang a maiden seven times lovelier than either of the others, and she too said: 'My heart's love, I am yours

This time the water was ready and the girl did not fly away, but she and the prince promised to love each

They soon reached the prince's country, and as he wished to bring his promised bride back in a fine coach he

went on to the town to fetch one. In the field where the well was, the king's swineherds and cowherds were

feeding their droves, and the prince left Ilonka (for that was her name) in their care.

Unluckily the chief swineherd had an ugly old daughter, and whilst the prince was away he dressed her up in

The prince returned before long, bringing with him his father and mother and a great train of courtiers to

escort Ilonka home. But how they all stared when they saw the swineherd's ugly daughter! However, there

was nothing for it but to take her home; and, two days later, the prince married her, and his father gave up the

But he had no peace! He knew very well he had been cheated, though he could not think how. Once he

desired to have some water brought him from the well into which Ilonka had been thrown. The coachman

went for it and, in the bucket he pulled up, a pretty little duck was swimming. He looked wonderingly at it,

and all of a sudden it disappeared and he found a dirty looking girl standing near him. The girl returned with

Of course she was very busy all day long, but whenever she had a little spare time she sat down to spin. Her

distaff turned of itself and her spindle span by itself and the flax wound itself off; and however much she

When the queenor, rather, the swineherd's daughterheard of this, she very much wished to have the

distaff, but the girl flatly refused to give it to her. However, at last she consented on condition that she might

sleep one night in the king's room. The queen was very angry, and scolded her well; but as she longed to have

the distaff she consented, though she gave the king a sleeping draught at supper.

Then the girl went to the king's room looking seven times lovelier than ever. She bent over the sleeper and

said: 'My heart's love, I am yours and you are mine. Speak to me but once; I am your Ilonka.' But the king

was so sound asleep he neither heard nor spoke, and Ilonka left the room, sadly thinking he was ashamed to

Soon after the queen again sent to say that she wanted to buy the spindle. The girl agreed to let her have it on

the same conditions as before; but this time, also, the queen took care to give the king a sleeping draught.

And once more Ilonka went to the king's room and spoke to him; whisper as sweetly as she might she could

Now some of the king's servants had taken note of the matter, and warned their master not to eat and drink

anything that the queen offered him, as for two nights running she had given him a sleeping draught. The

queen had no idea that her doings had been discovered; and when, a few days later, she wanted the flax, and

At supper that night the queen offered the king all sorts of nice things to eat and drink, but he declared he was

The queen repented bitterly her promise to the girl, but it was too late to recall it; for Ilonka had already

entered the king's room, where he lay anxiously waiting for something, he knew not what. All of a sudden he

saw a lovely maiden who bent over him and said: 'My dearest love, I am yours and you are mine. Speak to

At these words the king's heart bounded within him. He sprang up and embraced and kissed her, and she told

him all her adventures since the moment he had left her. And when he heard all that Ilonka had suffered, and

how he had been deceived, he vowed he would be revenged; so he gave orders that the swineherd, his wife

The next day the king was married, with great rejoicings, to the fair Ilonka; and if they are not yet

Once upon a time there was a king who had an only son. When the lad was about eighteen years old his father

had to go to fight in a war against a neighbouring country, and the king led his troops in person. He bade his

son act as Regent in his absence, but ordered him on no account to marry till his return.

Time went by. The prince ruled the country and never even thought of marrying. But when he reached his

twentyfifth birthday he began to think that it might be rather nice to have a wife, and he thought so much

that at last he got quite eager about it. He remembered, however, what his father had said, and waited some

time longer, till at last it was ten years since the king went out to war. Then the prince called his courtiers

about him and set off with a great retinue to seek a bride. He hardly knew which way to go, so he wandered

The king was delighted to see his son, and had a great many questions to ask and answer; but when he heard

that instead of quietly waiting for him at home the prince was starting off to seek a wife he was very angry,

and said: 'You may go where you please but I will not leave any of my people with you.'

Only one faithful servant stayed with the prince and refused to part from him. They journeyed over hill and

dale till they came to a place called Goldtown. The King of Goldtown had a lovely daughter, and the prince,

He was very kindly received, for he was extremely goodlooking and had charming manners, so he lost no

time in asking for her hand and her parents gave her to him with joy. The wedding took place at once, and the

feasting and rejoicings went on for a whole month. At the end of the month they set off for home, but as the

journey was a long one they spent the first evening at an inn. Everyone in the house slept, and only the

faithful servant kept watch. About midnight he heard three crows, who had flown to the roof, talking

'That's a handsome couple which arrived here tonight. It seems quite a pity they should lose their lives so

'Truly,' said the second crow; 'for tomorrow, when midday strikes, the bridge over the Gold Stream will

break just as they are driving over it. But, listen! whoever overhears and tells what we have said will be

The crows had hardly done speaking when away they flew. And close upon them followed three pigeons.

'Even if the prince and princess get safe over the bridge they will perish,' said they; 'for the king is going to

send a carriage to meet them which looks as new as paint. But when they are seated in it a raging wind will

rise and whirl the carriage away into the clouds. Then it will fall suddenly to earth, and they will be killed.

But anyone who hears and betrays what we have said will be turned to stone up to his waist.'

With that the pigeons flew off and three eagles took their places, and this is what they said:

'If the young couple does manage to escape the dangers of the bridge and the carriage, the king means to send

them each a splendid gold embroidered robe. When they put these on they will be burnt up at once. But

Early next morning the travellers got up and breakfasted. They began to tell each other their dreams. At last

'Gracious prince, I dreamt that if your Royal Highness would grant all I asked we should get home safe and

sound; but if you did not we should certainly be lost. My dreams never deceive me, so I entreat you to follow

'Don't make such a fuss about a dream,' said the prince; 'dreams are but clouds. Still, to prevent your being

At midday they reached the Gold Stream. When they got to the bridge the servant said: 'Let us leave the

carriage here, my prince, and walk a little way. The town is not far off and we can easily get another carriage

The prince looked well at the carriage. He did not think it looked so unsafe as his servant said; but he had

They got down and loaded the horses with the luggage. The prince and his bride walked over the bridge, but

the servant said he would ride the horses through the stream so as to water and bathe them.

They reached the other side without harm, and bought a new carriage in the town, which was quite near, and

set off once more on their travels; but they had not gone far when they met a messenger from the king who

said to the prince: 'His Majesty has sent your Royal Highness this beautiful carriage so that you may make a

The prince was so delighted that he could not speak. But the servant said: 'My lord, let me examine this

carriage first and then you can get in if I find it is all right; otherwise we had better stay in our own.'

The prince made no objections, and after looking the carriage well over the servant said: 'It is as bad as it is

smart'; and with that he knocked it all to pieces, and they went on in the one that they had bought.

At last they reached the frontier; there another messenger was waiting for them, who said that the king had

sent two splendid robes for the prince and his bride, and begged that they would wear them for their state

entry. But the servant implored the prince to have nothing to do with them, and never gave him any peace till

The old king was furious when he found that all his arts had failed; that his son still lived and that he would

have to give up the crown to him now he was married, for that was the law of the land. He longed to know

how the prince had escaped, and said: 'My dear son, I do indeed rejoice to have you safely back, but I cannot

imagine why the beautiful carriage and the splendid robes I sent did not please you; why you had them

'Indeed, sire,' said the prince, 'I was myself much annoyed at their destruction; but my servant had begged to

direct everything on the journey and I had promised him that he should do so. He declared that we could not

The old king fell into a tremendous rage. He called his Council together and condemned the servant to death.

The gallows was put up in the square in front of the palace. The servant was led out and his sentence read to

The rope was being placed round his neck, when he begged to be allowed a few last words. 'On our journey

home,' he said, 'we spent the first night at an inn. I did not sleep but kept watch all night.' And then he went

on to tell what the crows had said, and as he spoke he turned to stone up to his knees. The prince called to

him to say no more as he had proved his innocence. But the servant paid no heed to him, and by the time his

Oh! how grieved the prince was to lose his faithful servant! And what pained him most was the thought that

he was lost through his very faithfulness, and he determined to travel all over the world and never rest till he

Now there lived at Court an old woman who had been the prince's nurse. To her he confided all his plans, and

left his wife, the princess, in her care. 'You have a long way before you, my son,' said the old woman; 'you

must never return till you have met with Lucky Luck. If he cannot help you no one on earth can.'

So the prince set off to try to find Lucky Luck. He walked and walked till he got beyond his own country, and

he wandered through a wood for three days but did not meet a living being in it. At the end of the third day he

came to a river near which stood a large mill. Here he spent the night. When he was leaving next morning the

'Then I beg your Highness to ask Lucky Luck this question: Why is it that though I have an excellent mill,

with all its machinery complete, and get plenty of grain to grind, I am so poor that I hardly know how to live

The prince promised to inquire, and went on his way. He wandered about for three days more, and at the end

of the third day saw a little town. It was quite late when he reached it, but he could discover no light

anywhere, and walked almost right through it without finding a house where he could turn in. But far away at

the end of the town he saw a light in a window. He went straight to it and in the house were three girls

playing a game together. The prince asked for a night's lodging and they took him in, gave him some supper

Next morning when he was leaving they asked where he was going and he told them his story. 'Gracious

prince,' said the maidens, 'do ask Lucky Luck how it happens that here we are over thirty years old and no

Then he came to a great forest and wandered about in it from morning to night and from night to morning

before he got near the other end. Here he found a pretty stream which was different from other streams as,

instead of flowing, it stood still and began to talk: 'Sir prince, tell me what brings you into these wilds? I must

have been flowing here a hundred years and more and no one has ever yet come by.'

'I will tell you,' answered the prince, 'if you will divide yourself so that I may walk through.'

The stream parted at once, and the prince walked through without wetting his feet; and directly he got to the

'Oh, do ask Lucky Luck,' cried the brook, 'why, though I am such a clear, bright, rapid stream I never have a

When he got quite clear of the forest he walked on through a lovely valley till he reached a little house

Everything in the house was beautifully clean and tidy, and a cheerful honestlooking old woman was sitting

'Then you have come to the right place, my son, for I am his mother. He is not at home just now, he is out

digging in the vineyard. Do you go too. Here are two spades. When you find him begin to dig, but don't speak

a word to him. It is now eleven o'clock. When he sits down to eat his dinner sit beside him and eat with him.

After dinner he will question you, and then tell him all your troubles freely. He will answer whatever you

With that she showed him the way, and the prince went and did just as she had told him. After dinner they lay

All of a sudden Lucky Luck began to speak and said: 'Tell me, what sort of man are you, for since you came

'I am not dumb,' replied the young man, 'but I am that unhappy prince whose faithful servant has been turned

'And you do well, for he deserves everything. Go back, and when you get home your wife will just have had a

little boy. Take three drops of blood from the child's little finger, rub them on your servant's wrists with a

'I have another thing to ask,' said the prince, when he had thanked him. 'In the forest near here is a fine stream

'Because no one has ever been drowned in the stream. But take care, in crossing, to get as near the other side

'Another question, please, before I go. On my way here I lodged one night in the house of three maidens. All

were wellmannered, hardworking, and pretty, and yet none has had a wooer. Why was this?'

'And why is it that a miller, who has a large mill with all the best machinery and gets plenty of corn to grind

'Because the miller keeps everything for himself, and does not give to those who need it.'

The prince wrote down the answers to his questions, took a friendly leave of Lucky Luck, and set off for

When he reached the stream it asked if he brought it any good news. 'When I get across I will tell you,' said

he. So the stream parted; he walked through and on to the highest part of the bank. He stopped and shouted

'Listen, oh stream! Lucky Luck says you will never have any living creature in your waters until someone is

The words were hardly out of his mouth when the stream swelled and overflowed till it reached the rock up

which he had climbed, and dashed so far up it that the spray flew over him. But he clung on tight, and after

failing to reach him three times the stream returned to its proper course. Then the prince climbed down, dried

He spent the night once more at the mill and gave the miller his answer, and byandby he told the three

The prince had hardly arrived at home when some thieves tried to ford the stream with a fine horse they had

stolen. When they were halfway across, the stream rose so suddenly that it swept them all away. From that

The miller, too, began to give alms and became a very good man, and in time grew so rich that he hardly

And the three sisters, now that they no longer insulted the sun, had each a wooer within a week.

When the prince got home he found that his wife had just got a fine little boy. He did not lose a moment in

pricking the baby's finger till the blood ran, and he brushed it on the wrists of the stone figure, which

shuddered all over and split with a loud noise in seven parts and there was the faithful servant alive and well.

When the old king saw this he foamed with rage, stared wildly about, flung himself on the ground and died.

The servant stayed on with his royal master and served him faithfully all the rest of his life; and, if neither of

Somewhere or other, but I don't know where, there lived a king who owned two remarkably fine fields of

rape, but every night two of the rape heaps were burnt down in one of the fields. The king was extremely

angry at this, and sent out soldiers to catch whoever had set fire to the ricks; but it was all of no usenot a

soul could they see. Then he offered nine hundred crowns to anyone who caught the evildoer, and at the

same time ordered that whoever did not keep proper watch over the fields should be killed; but though there

The king had already put ninetynine people to death, when a little swineherd came to him who had two

dogs; one was called 'Psst,' and the other 'Hush'; and the boy told the king that he would watch over the ricks.

When it grew dark he climbed up on the top of the fourth rick, from where he could see the whole field.

About eleven o'clock he thought he saw someone going to a rick and putting a light to it. 'Just you wait,'

thought he, and called out to his dogs: 'Hi! Psst, Hush, catch him! ' But Psst and Hush had not waited for

Next morning he was brought bound before the king, who was so pleased with the boy that he gave him a

thousand crowns at once. The prisoner was all covered with hair, almost like an animal; and altogether he

was so curious to look at that the king locked him up in a strong room and sent out letters of invitation to all

That was all very well; but the king had a little boy of ten years old who went to look at the hairy man also,

and the man begged so hard to be set free that the boy took pity on him. He stole the key of the strong room

from his mother and opened the door. Then he took the key back, but the hairy man escaped and went off into

Then the kings and princes began to arrive one after another, and all were most anxious to see the hairy man;

but he was gone! The king nearly burst with rage and with the shame he felt. He questioned his wife sharply,

and told her that if she could not find and bring back the hairy man he would put her in a hut made of rushes

and burn her there. The queen declared she had had nothing to do with the matter; if her son had happened to

So they fetched the little prince and asked him all sorts of questions, and at last he owned that he had let the

hairy man out. The king ordered his servants to take the boy into the forest and to kill him there, and to bring

There was grief all over the palace when the king's command was known, for he was a great favourite. But

there was no help for it, and they took the boy out into the forest. But the man was sorry for him, and shot a

dog and carried pieces of his lungs and liver to the king, who was satisfied, and did not trouble himself any

The prince wandered about in the forest and lived as best he could for five years. One day he came upon a

poor little cottage in which was an old man. They began to talk, and the prince told his story and sad fate.

Then they recognised each other, for the old fellow was no other than the hairy man whom the prince had set

The prince stayed here for two years; then he wished to go further. The old man begged him hard to stay, but

he would not, so his hairy friend gave him a golden apple out of which came a horse with a golden mane, and

a golden staff with which to guide the horse. The old man also gave him a silver apple out of which came the

most beautiful hussars and a silver staff; and a copper apple from which he could draw as many foot soldiers

as ever he wished, and a copper staff. He made the prince swear solemnly to take the greatest care of these

The boy wandered on and on till he came to a large town. Here he took service in the king's palace, and as no

One day news was brought to the king that he must go out to war. He was horribly frightened for he had a

'Give me leave to go to the next villageI owe a small bill there, and I want to go and pay it'; and as there

When he got beyond the town he took out his golden apple, and when the horse sprang out he swung himself

into the saddle. Then he took the silver and the copper apples, and with all these fine soldiers he joined the

The king saw them approach with fear in his heart, for he did not know if it might not be an enemy; but the

prince rode up, and bowed low before him. 'I bring your Majesty reinforcements,' said he.

The king was delighted, and all dread of his enemy at once disappeared. The princesses were there too, and

they were very friendly with the prince and begged him to get into their carriage so as to talk to them. But he

declined, and remained on horseback, as he did not know at what moment the battle might begin; and whilst

they were all talking together the youngest princess, who was also the loveliest, took off her ring, and her

sister tore her handkerchief in two pieces, and they gave these gifts to the prince.

Suddenly the enemy came in sight. The king asked whether his army or the prince's should lead the way; but

the prince set off first and with his hussars he fought so bravely that only two of the enemy were left alive,

The king was overjoyed and so were his daughters at this brilliant victory. As they drove home they begged

the prince to join them, but he would not come, and galloped off with his hussars.

When he got near the town he packed his soldiers and his fine horse all carefully into the apple again, and

then strolled into the town. On his return to the palace he was well scolded by the housekeeper for staying

Well, the whole matter might have ended there; but it so happened that the younger princess had fallen in

love with the prince, as he had with her. And as he had no jewels with him, he gave her the copper apple and

One day, as the princesses were talking with their father, the younger one asked him whether it might not

have been their servant who had helped him so much. The king was quite angry at the idea; but, to satisfy her,

he ordered the servant's room to be searched. And there, to everyone's surprise, they found the golden ring

and the half of the handkerchief. When these were brought to the king he sent for the prince at once and

And so he did; but first he asked for the copper apple from the younger princess, and when all the soldiers

The king gave him his daughter and kingdom as a reward for his aid, and when he heard that the prince was

himself a king's son his joy knew no bounds. The prince packed all his soldiers carefully up once more, and

Not long after there was a grand wedding; perhaps they may all be alive still, but I don't know.

Long, long ago there lived a king who was such a mighty monarch that whenever he sneezed every one in the

whole country had to say 'To your good health!' Every one said it except the shepherd with the staring eyes,

The king heard of this and was very angry, and sent for the shepherd to appear before him.

The shepherd came and stood before the throne, where the king sat looking very grand and powerful. But

however grand or powerful he might be the shepherd did not feel a bit afraid of him.

'Well, yes; to mine, of course, to my own,' cried the shepherd, and gently tapped his breast.

The king was beside himself with fury and did not know what to do, when the Lord Chamberlain interfered:

'Say at oncesay this very moment: "To your health, your Majesty"; for if you don't say it you'll lose your

'No, I won't say it till I get the princess for my wife,' was the shepherd's answer. Now the princess was sitting

on a little throne beside the king, her father, and she looked as sweet and lovely as a little golden dove. When

she heard what the shepherd said she could not help laughing, for there is no denying the fact that this young

shepherd with the staring eyes pleased her very much; indeed he pleased her better than any king's son she

But the king was not as pleasant as his daughter, and he gave orders to throw the shepherd into the white

The guards led him away and thrust him into the pit with the white bear, who had had nothing to eat for two

days and was very hungry. The door of the pit was hardly closed when the bear rushed at the shepherd; but

when it saw his eyes it was so frightened that it was ready to eat itself. It shrank away into a corner and gazed

at him from there, and, in spite of being so famished, did not dare to touch him, but sucked its own paws from

sheer hunger. The shepherd felt that if he once removed his eyes off the beast he was a dead man, and in

order to keep himself awake he made songs and sang them, and so the night went by.

Next morning the Lord Chamberlain came to see the shepherd's bones, and was amazed to find him alive and

well. He led him to the king, who fell into a furious passion, and said: 'Well, you have learned what it is to be

But the shepherd answered: 'I am not afraid of ten deaths! I will only say it if I may have the princess for my

'Then go to your death,' cried the king; and ordered him to be thrown into the den with the wild boars. The

wild boars had not been fed for a week, and when the shepherd was thrust into their don they rushed at him to

tear him to pieces. But the shepherd took a little flute out of the sleeve of his jacket and began to play a merry

tune, on which the wild boars first of all shrank shyly away, and then got up on their hind legs and danced

gaily. The shepherd would have given anything to be able to laugh, they looked so funny; but he dared not

stop playing, for he knew well enough that the moment he stopped they would fall upon him and tear him to

pieces. His eyes were of no use to him here, for he could not have stared ten wild boars in the face at once; so

he kept on playing, and the wild boars danced very slowly, as if in a minuet, then by degrees he played faster

and faster till they could hardly twist and turn quickly enough, and ended by all falling over each other in a

Then the shepherd ventured to laugh at last; and he laughed so long and so loud that when the Lord

Chamberlain came early in the morning, expecting to find only his bones, the tears were still running down

As soon as the king was dressed the shepherd was again brought before him; but he was more angry than ever

to think the wild boars had not torn the man to bits, and he said: 'Well, you have learned what it feels to be

But the shepherd broke in with, 'I do not fear a hundred deaths, and I will only say it if I may have the

'Then go to a hundred deaths!' roared the king, and ordered the shepherd to be thrown down the deep vault of

The guards dragged him away to a dark dungeon, in the middle of which was a deep well with sharp scythes

all round it. At the bottom of the well was a little light by which one could see if anyone was thrown in

When the shepherd was dragged to the dungeons he begged the guards to leave him alone a little while that

he might look down into the pit of scythes; perhaps he might after all make up his mind to say 'To your good

health' to the king. So the guards left him alone and he stuck up his long stick near the well, hung his cloak

round the stick and put his hat on the top. He also hung his knapsack up inside the cloak so that it might seem

to have some body within it. When this was done he called out to the guards and said that he had considered

the matter but after all he could not make up his mind to say what the king wished. The guards came in, threw

the hat and cloak, knapsack and stick all down the well together, watched to see how they put out the light at

the bottom and came away, thinking that now there really was an end of the shepherd. But he had hidden in a

Quite early next morning came the Lord Chamberlain, carrying a lamp and he nearly fell backwards with

surprise when he saw the shepherd alive and well. He brought him to the king, whose fury was greater than

'Well, now you have been near a hundred deaths; will you say: "To your good health"?'

'Perhaps after all you may do it for less,' said the king, who saw that there was no chance of making away

with the shepherd; and he ordered the state coach to be got ready, then he made the shepherd get in with him

and sit beside him, and ordered the coachman to drive to the silver wood. When they reached it he said: 'Do

you see this silver wood? Well, if you will say, "To your good health," I will give it to you.'

The king was much vexed; he drove further on till they came to a splendid castle, all of gold, and then he

'Do you see this golden castle? Well, I will give you that too, the silver wood and the golden castle, if only

This time the king was overwhelmed with grief, and gave orders to drive on to the diamond pond, and there

'Do you see this diamond pond? I will give you that too, the silver wood and the golden castle and the

diamond pond. You shall have them allallif you will but say: "To your good health!"'

The shepherd had to shut his staring eyes tight not to be dazzled with the brilliant pond, but still he said:

Then the king saw that all his efforts were useless, and that he might as well give in, so he said:

'Well, well, it's all the same to meI will give you my daughter to wife; but, then, you really and truly must

'Of course I'll say it; why should I not say it? It stands to reason that I shall say it then.'

At this the king was more delighted than anyone could have believed. He made it known all through the

country that there were to be great rejoicings, as the princess was going to be married. And everyone rejoiced

to think that the princess, who had refused so many royal suitors, should have ended by falling in love with

There was such a wedding as had never been seen. Everyone ate and drank and danced. Even the sick were

But the greatest merrymaking was in the king's palace; there the best bands played and the best food was

And when the groomsman, according to custom, brought in the great boar's head on a big dish and placed it

before the king so that he might carve it and give everyone a share, the savoury smell was so strong that the

'To your very good health,' cried the shepherd before anyone else, and the king was so delighted that he did

In time, when the old king died, the shepherd succeeded him. He made a very good king and never expected

his people to wish him well against their wills; but, all the same, everyone did wish him well, for they all

Far, far away, beyond all sorts of countries, seas and rivers, there stood a splendid city where lived King

Archidej, who was as good as he was rich and handsome. His great army was made up of men ready to obey

his slightest wish; he owned forty times forty cities, and in each city he had ten palaces with silver doors,

golden roofs, and crystal windows. His council consisted of the twelve wisest men in the country, whose long

beards flowed down over their breasts, each of whom was as learned as a whole college. This council always

Now the king had everything to make him happy, but he did not enjoy anything because he could not find a

One day, as he sat in his palace looking out to sea, a great ship sailed into the harbour and several merchants

came on shore. Said the king to himself: 'These people have travelled far and beheld many lands. I will ask

So he ordered the merchants to be brought before him, and when they came he said: 'You have travelled

much and visited many wonders. I wish to ask you a question, and I beg you to answer truthfully.

'Have you anywhere seen or heard of the daughter of an emperor, king, or a prince, who is as clever and as

handsome as I am, and who would be worthy to be my wife and the queen of my country?'

The merchants considered for some time. At last the eldest of them said: 'I have heard that across many seas,

in the Island of Busan, there is a mighty king, whose daughter, the Princess Helena, is so lovely that she can

certainly not be plainer than your Majesty, and so clever that the wisest greybeard cannot guess her riddles.'

'It is not near,' was the answer. 'The journey would take ten years, and we do not know the way. And even if

'Your Majesty must pardon us; but just think for a moment. Should you send an envoy to the island he will

take ten years to get there and ten more to returntwenty years in all. Will not the princess have grown old

The king reflected gravely. Then he thanked the merchants, gave them leave to trade in his country without

After they were gone the king remained deep in thought. He felt puzzled and anxious; so he decided to ride

into the country to distract his mind, and sent for his huntsmen and falconers. The huntsmen blew their horns,

the falconers took their hawks on their wrists, and off they all set out across country till they came to a green

hedge. On the other side of the hedge stretched a great field of maize as far as the eye could reach, and the

The king drew rein and admired the field. 'Upon my word,' said he, 'whoever dug and planted it must be good

workmen. If all the fields in my kingdom were as well cared for as this, there would be more bread than my

Off rushed all his followers at once to do his bidding, and found a nice, tidy farmhouse, in front of which sat

seven peasants, lunching on rye bread and drinking water. They wore red shirts bound with gold braid, and

The messengers asked: 'Who owns this field of golden maize?' And the seven brothers answered: 'The field is

These answers were repeated to the king, who ordered the brothers to be brought before him at once. On

'We, King Archidej, are your labourers, children of one father and mother, and we all have the same name,

for each of us is called Simon. Our father taught us to be true to our king, and to till the ground, and to be

kind to our neighbours. He also taught each of us a different trade which he thought might be useful to us,

and he bade us not neglect our mother earth, which would be sure amply to repay our labour.'

The king was pleased with the honest peasant, and said: 'You have done well, good people, in planting your

field, and now you have a golden harvest. But I should like each of you to tell me what special trades your

'My trade, O king!' said the first Simon, 'is not an easy one. If you will give me some workmen and materials

'Mine, your Majesty, needs no great cleverness. When my brother has built the pillar I can mount it, and from

the top, far above the clouds, I can see what is happening: in every country under the sun.'

'My work is very simple, sire. You have many ships built by learned men, with all sorts of new and clever

improvements. If you wish it I will build you quite a simple boatone, two, three, and it's done! But my

plain little homemade ship is not grand enough for a king. Where other ships take a year, mine makes the

voyage in a day, and where they would require ten years mine will do the distance in a week.'

'My trade, O king, is really of no importance. Should my brother build you a ship, then let me embark in it. If

we should be pursued by an enemy I can seize our boat by the prow and sink it to the bottom of the sea.

'That is very clever of you,' answered the king; 'and what does Simon the fifth do?'

'My work, your Majesty, is mere smith's work. Order me to build a smithy and I will make you a crossbow,

but from which neither the eagle in the sky nor the wild beast in the forest is safe. The bolt hits whatever the

'That sounds very useful,' said the king. 'And now, Simon the sixth, tell me your trade.'

'Sire, it is so simple I am almost ashamed to mention it. If my brother hits any creature I catch it quicker than

any dog can. If it falls into the water I pick it up out of the greatest depths, and if it is in a dark forest I can

The king was much pleased with the trades and talk of the six brothers, and said: 'Thank you, good people;

your father did well to teach you all these things. Now follow me to the town, as I want to see what you can

do. I need such people as you about me; but when harvest time comes I will send you home with royal

The brothers bowed and said: 'As the king wills.' Suddenly the king remembered that he had not questioned

the seventh Simon, so he turned to him and said: 'Why are you silent? What is your handicraft?'

And the seventh Simon answered: 'I have no handicraft, O king; I have learnt nothing. I could not manage it.

And if I do know how to do anything it is not what might properly be called a real tradeit is rather a sort of

performance; but it is one which no onenot the king himselfmust watch me doing, and I doubt whether

'First, sire, give me your royal word that you will not kill me when I have told you. Then you shall hear.'

Then the seventh Simon stepped back a little, cleared his throat, and said: 'My trade, King Archidej, is of

such a kind that the man who follows it in your kingdom generally loses his life and has no hopes of pardon.

There is only one thing I can do really well, and that isto steal, and to hide the smallest scrap of anything I

have stolen. Not the deepest vault, even if its lock were enchanted, could prevent my stealing anything out of

When the king heard this he fell into a passion. 'I will not pardon you, you rascal,' he cried; 'I will shut you up

in my deepest dungeon on bread and water till you have forgotten such a trade. Indeed, it would be better to

'Don't kill me, O king! I am really not as bad as you think. Why, had I chosen, I could have robbed the royal

treasury, have bribed your judges to let me off, and built a white marble palace with what was left. But

though I know how to steal I don't do it. You yourself asked me my trade. If you kill me you will break your

'Very well,' said the king, 'I will not kill you. I pardon you. But from this hour you shall be shut up in a dark

dungeon. Here, guards! away with him to the prison. But you six Simons follow me and be assured of my

So the six Simons followed the king. The seventh Simon was seized by the guards, who put him in chains and

threw him in prison with only bread and water for food. Next day the king gave the first Simon carpenters,

masons, smiths and labourers, with great stores of iron, mortar, and the like, and Simon began to build. And

he built his great white pillar far, far up into the clouds, as high as the nearest stars; but the other stars were

Then the second Simon climbed up the pillar and saw and heard all that was going on through the whole

world. When he came down he had all sorts of wonderful things to tell. How one king was marching in battle

against another, and which was likely to be the victor. How, in another place, great rejoicings were going on,

while in a third people were dying of famine. In fact there was not the smallest event going on over the earth

Next the third Simon began. He stretched out his arms, once, twice, thrice, and the wondership was ready.

At a sign from the king it was launched, and floated proudly and safely like a bird on the waves. Instead of

ropes it had wires for rigging, and musicians played on them with fiddle bows and made lovely music. As the

ship swam about, the fourth Simon seized the prow with his strong hand, and in a moment it was gonesunk

to the bottom of the sea. An hour passed, and then the ship floated again, drawn up by Simon's left hand,

while in his right he brought a gigantic fish from the depth of the ocean for the royal table.

Whilst this was going on the fifth Simon had built his forge and hammered out his iron, and when the king

His Majesty went out into an open field at once, looked up into the sky and saw, far, far away, an eagle flying

Simon only smiled; he lifted his crossbow, took aim, fired, and the eagle fell. As it was falling the sixth

Simon ran with a dish, caught the bird before it fell to earth and brought it to the king.

'Many thanks, my brave lads,' said the king; 'I see that each of you is indeed a master of his trade. You shall

The six Simons bowed and went to dinner. But they had hardly begun before a messenger came to say that

the king wanted to see them. They obeyed at once and found him surrounded by all his court and men of

'Listen, my good fellows,' cried the king, as soon as he saw them. 'Hear what my wise counsellors have

thought of. As you, Simon the second, can see the whole world from the top of the great pillar, I want you to

climb up and to see and hear. For I am told that, far away, across many seas, is the great kingdom of the

Island of Busan, and that the daughter of the king is the beautiful Princess Helena.'

Off ran the second Simon and clambered quickly up the pillar. He gazed around, listened on all sides, and

'Sire, I have obeyed your orders. Far away I saw the Island of Busan. The king is a mighty monarch, but full

of pride, harsh and cruel. He sits on his throne and declares that no prince or king on earth is good enough for

his lovely daughter, that he will give her to none, and that if any king asks for her hand he will declare war

'Has the king of Busan a great army?' asked King Archidej; 'is his country far off?'

'As far as I could judge,' replied Simon, 'it would take you nearly ten years in fair weather to sail there. But if

the weather were stormy we might say twelve. I saw the army being reviewed. It is not so very largea

hundred thousand men at arms and a hundred thousand knights. Besides these, he has a strong bodyguard and

a good many crossbowmen. Altogether you may say another hundred thousand, and there is a picked body

of heroes who reserve themselves for great occasions requiring particular courage.'

The king sat for some time lost in thought. At last he said to the nobles and courtiers standing round: 'I am

The nobles, courtiers and counsellors said nothing, but tried to hide behind each other. Then the third Simon

'Pardon me, your Majesty, if I offer my advice. You wish to go to the Island of Busan? What can be easier?

In my ship you will get there in a week instead of in ten years. But ask your council to advise you what to do

when you arrivein one word, whether you will win the princess peacefully or by war?'

The king frowned, and was about to say something sharp, when the Court Fool pushed his way to the front

and said: 'Dear me, what are all you clever people so puzzled about? The matter is quite clear. As it seems it

will not take long to reach the island why not send the seventh Simon? He will steal the fair maiden fast

enough, and then the king, her father, may consider how he is going to bring his army over hereit will take

'What do I think? Why, that your idea is capital, and you shall be rewarded for it. Come, guards, hurry as fast

Not many minutes later, Simon the seventh stood before the king, who explained to him what he wished

done, and also that to steal for the benefit of his king and country was by no means a wrong thing, though it

'Come,' said the king, 'tell me truly. Do you think you could steal the Princess Helena?'

'Why should I not steal her, sire? The thing is easy enough. Let my brother's ship be laden with rich stuffs,

brocades, Persian carpets, pearls and jewels. Send me in the ship. Give me my four middle brothers as

When the king heard these words his heart became filled with longing, and he ordered all to be done as

Simon wished. Every one ran about to do his bidding; and in next to no time the wondership was laden and

The five Simons took leave of the king, went on board, and had no sooner set sail than they were almost out

of sight. The ship cut through the waters like a falcon through the air, and just a week after starting sighted

the Island of Busan. The coast appeared to be strongly guarded, and from afar the watchman on a high tower

called out: 'Halt and anchor! Who are you? Where do you come from, and what do you want?'

The seventh Simon answered from the ship: 'We are peaceful people. We come from the country of the great

and good King Archidej, and we bring foreign waresrich brocades, carpets, and costly jewels, which we

wish to show to your king and the princess. We desire to tradeto sell, to buy, and to exchange.'

The brothers launched a small boat, took some of their valuable goods with them, rowed to shore and went up

to the palace. The princess sat in a rosered room, and when she saw the brothers coming near she called her

nurse and other women, and told them to inquire who and what these people were, and what they wanted.

The seventh Simon answered the nurse: 'We come from the country of the wise and good King Archidej,' said

he, 'and we have brought all sorts of goods for sale. We trust the king of this country may condescend to

welcome us, and to let his servants take charge of our wares. If he considers them worthy to adorn his

This speech was repeated to the princess, who ordered the brothers to be brought to the redroom at once.

They bowed respectfully to her and displayed some splendid velvets and brocades, and opened cases of pearls

and precious stones. Such beautiful things had never been seen in the island, and the nurse and waiting

women stood bewildered by all the magnificence. They whispered together that they had never beheld

anything like it. The princess too saw and wondered, and her eyes could not weary of looking at the lovely

things, or her fingers of stroking the rich soft stuffs, and of holding up the sparkling jewels to the light.

'Fairest of princesses,' said Simon. 'Be pleased to order your waitingmaids to accept the silks and velvets,

and let your women trim their headdresses with the jewels; these are no special treasures. But permit me to

say that they are as nothing to the many coloured tapestries, the gorgeous stones and ropes of pearls in our

ship. We did not like to bring more with us, not knowing what your royal taste might be; but if it seems good

to you to honour our ship with a visit, you might condescend to choose such things as were pleasing in your

This polite speech pleased the princess very much. She went to the king and said: 'Dear father, some

merchants have arrived with the most splendid wares. Pray allow me to go to their ship and choose out what I

The king thought and thought, frowned hard and rubbed his ear. At last he gave consent, and ordered out his

royal yacht, with 100 crossbows, 100 knights, and 1,000 soldiers, to escort the Princess Helena.

Off sailed the yacht with the princess and her escort. The brothers Simon came on board to conduct the

princess to their ship, and, led by the brothers and followed by her nurse and other women, she crossed the

The seventh Simon spread out his goods, and had so many curious and interesting tales to tell about them,

that the princess forgot everything else in looking and listening, so that she did not know that the fourth

Simon had seized the prow of the ship, and that all of a sudden it had vanished from sight, and was racing

The crew of the royal yacht shouted aloud, the knights stood still with terror, the soldiers were struck dumb

and hung their heads. There was nothing to be done but to sail back and tell the king of his loss.

How he wept and stormed! 'Oh, light of my eyes,' he sobbed; 'I am indeed punished for my pride. I thought

no one good enough to be your husband, and now you are lost in the depths of the sea, and have left me

alone! As for all of you who saw this thingaway with you! Let them be put in irons and lock them up in

Whilst the King of Busan was raging and lamenting in this fashion, Simon's ship was swimming like any fish

under the sea, and when the island was well out of sight he brought it up to the surface again. At that moment

the princess recollected herself. 'Nurse,' said she, 'we have been gazing at these wonders only too long. I hope

She tore herself away and stepped on deck. Neither the yacht nor the island was in sight! Helena wrung her

hands and beat her breast. Then she changed herself into a white swan and flew off. But the fifth Simon

seized his bow and shot the swan, and the sixth Simon did not let it fall into the water but caught it in the

ship, and the swan turned into a silver fish, but Simon lost no time and caught the fish, when, quick as

thought, the fish turned into a black mouse and ran about the ship. It darted towards a hole, but before it could

reach it Simon sprang upon it more swiftly than any cat, and then the little mouse turned once more into the

Early one morning King Archidej sat thoughtfully at his window gazing out to sea. His heart was sad and he

would neither eat nor drink. His thoughts were full of the Princess Helena, who was as lovely as a dream. Is

that a white gull he sees flying towards the shore, or is it a sail? No, it is no gull, it is the wondership flying

along with billowing sails. Its flags wave, the fiddlers play on the wire rigging, the anchor is thrown out and

the crystal plank laid from the ship to the pier. The lovely Helena steps across the plank. She shines like the

Up sprang King Archidej in haste: 'Hurry, hurry,' he cried. 'Let us hasten to meet her! Let the bugles sound

And the whole Court swarmed with courtiers and servants. Golden carpets were laid down and the great gates

King Archidej went out himself, took her by the hand and led her into the royal apartments.

'Madam,' said he, 'the fame of your beauty had reached me, but I had not dared to expect such loveliness. Still

I will not keep you here against your will. If you wish it, the wondership shall take you back to your father

and your own country; but if you will consent to stay here, then reign over me and my country as our queen.'

What more is there to tell? It is not hard to guess that the princess listened to the king's wooing, and their

The brothers Simon were sent again to the Island of Busan with a letter to the king from his daughter to invite

him to their wedding. And the wondership arrived at the Island of Busan just as all the knights and soldiers

Then the seventh Simon cried out from the ship: 'Stop! stop! I bring a letter from the Princess Helena!'

The King of Busan read the letter over and over again, and ordered the knights and soldiers to be set free. He

entertained King Archidej's ambassadors hospitably, and sent his blessing to his daughter, but he could not be

When the wondership got home King Archidej and Princess Helena were enchanted with the news it

The king sent for the seven Simons. 'A thousand thanks to you, my brave fellows,' he cried. 'Take what gold,

silver, and precious stones you will out of my treasury. Tell me if there is anything else you wish for and I

will give it you, my good friends. Do you wish to be made nobles, or to govern towns? Only speak.'

Then the eldest Simon bowed and said: 'We are plain folk, your Majesty, and understand simple things best.

What figures should we cut as nobles or governors? Nor do we desire gold. We have our fields which give us

food, and as much money as we need. If you wish to reward us then grant that our land may be free of taxes,

and of your goodness pardon the seventh Simon. He is not the first who has been a thief by trade and he will

'So be it,' said the king; 'your land shall be free of all taxes, and Simon the seventh is pardoned.'

Then the king gave each brother a goblet of wine and invited them to the wedding feast. And what a feast that

Once upon a time a man had a shepherd who served him many years faithfully and honestly. One day, whilst

herding his flock, this shepherd heard a hissing sound, coming out of the forest near by, which he could not

account for. So he went into the wood in the direction of the noise to try to discover the cause. When he

approached the place he found that the dry grass and leaves were on fire, and on a tree, surrounded by flames,

The shepherd stood wondering how the poor snake could escape, for the wind was blowing the flames that

way, and soon that tree would be burning like the rest. Suddenly the snake cried: 'O shepherd! for the love of

Then the shepherd stretched his staff out over the flames and the snake wound itself round the staff and up to

his hand, and from his hand it crept up his arm, and twined itself about his neck. The shepherd trembled with

fright, expecting every instant to be stung to death, and said: 'What an unlucky man I am! Did I rescue you

only to be destroyed myself?' But the snake answered: 'Have no fear; only carry me home to my father who is

the King of the Snakes.' The shepherd, however, was much too frightened to listen, and said that he could not

go away and leave his flock alone; but the snake said: 'You need not be afraid to leave your flock, no evil

So he set off through the wood carrying the snake, and after a time he came to a great gateway, made entirely

of snakes intertwined one with another. The shepherd stood still with surprise, but the snake round his neck

'When we are come to my father's house,' said his own snake to him, 'he will reward you with anything you

like to asksilver, gold, jewels, or whatever on this earth is most precious; but take none of all these things,

ask rather to understand the language of beasts. He will refuse it to you a long time, but in the end he will

Soon after that they arrived at the house of the King of the Snakes, who burst into tears of joy at the sight of

his daughter, as he had given her up for dead. 'Where have you been all this time?' he asked, directly he could

speak, and she told him that she had been caught in a forest fire, and had been rescued from the flames by the

shepherd. The King of the Snakes, then turning to the shepherd, said to him: 'What reward will you choose

'Make me to know the language of beasts,' answered the shepherd, 'that is all I desire.'

The king replied: 'Such knowledge would be of no benefit to you, for if I granted it to you and you told any

one of it, you would immediately die; ask me rather for whatever else you would most like to possess, and it

But the shepherd answered him: 'Sir, if you wish to reward me for saving your daughter, grant me, I pray you,

to know the language of beasts. I desire nothing else'; and he turned as if to depart.

Then the king called him back, saying: 'If nothing else will satisfy you, open your mouth.' The man obeyed,

and the king spat into it, and said: 'Now spit into my mouth.' The shepherd did as he was told, then the King

of the Snakes spat again into the shepherd's mouth. When they had spat into each other's mouths three times,

'Now you know the language of beasts, go in peace; but, if you value your life, beware lest you tell any one

So the shepherd set out for home, and on his way through the wood he heard and understood all that was said

by the birds, and by every living creature. When he got back to his sheep he found the flock grazing

peacefully, and as he was very tired he laid himself down by them to rest a little. Hardly had he done so when

two ravens flew down and perched on a tree near by, and began to talk to each other in their own language: 'If

that shepherd only knew that there is a vault full of gold and silver beneath where that lamb is lying, what

would he not do?' When the shepherd heard these words he went straight to his master and told him, and the

master at once took a waggon, and broke open the door of the vault, and they carried off the treasure. But

instead of keeping it for himself, the master, who was an honourable man, gave it all up to the shepherd,

saying: 'Take it, it is yours. The gods have given it to you.' So the shepherd took the treasure and built himself

a house. He married a wife, and they lived in great peace and happiness, and he was acknowledged to be the

richest man, not only of his native village, but of all the countryside. He had flocks of sheep, and cattle, and

One day, just before Christmas, he said to his wife: 'Prepare everything for a great feast, tomorrow we will

take things with us to the farm that the shepherds there may make merry.' The wife obeyed, and all was

prepared as he desired. Next day they both went to the farm, and in the evening the master said to the

shepherds: 'Now come, all of you, eat, drink, and make merry. I will watch the flocks myself tonight in your

When midnight struck the wolves howled and the dogs barked, and the wolves spoke in their own tongue,

'Shall we come in and work havoc, and you too shall eat flesh?' And the dogs answered in their tongue:

Now amongst the dogs there was one so old that he had only two teeth left in his head, and he spoke to the

wolves, saying: 'So long as I have my two teeth still in my head, I will let no harm be done to my master.'

All this the master heard and understood, and as soon as morning dawned he ordered all the dogs to be killed

excepting the old dog. The farm servants wondered at this order, and exclaimed: 'But surely, sir, that would

The master answered: 'Do as I bid you'; and made ready to return home with his wife, and they mounted their

horses, her steed being a mare. As they went on their way, it happened that the husband rode on ahead, while

the wife was a little way behind. The husband's horse, seeing this, neighed, and said to the mare: 'Come

along, make haste; why are you so slow?' And the mare answered: 'It is very easy for you, you carry only

your master, who is a thin man, but I carry my mistress, who is so fat that she weights as much as three.'

When the husband heard that he looked back and laughed, which the wife perceiving, she urged on the mare

till she caught up with her husband, and asked him why he laughed. 'For nothing at all,' he answered; 'just

because it came into my head.' She would not be satisfied with this answer, and urged him more and more to

tell her why he had laughed. But he controlled himself and said: 'Let me be, wife; what ails you? I do not

know myself why I laughed.' But the more he put her off, the more she tormented him to tell her the cause of

his laughter. At length he said to her: 'Know, then, that if I tell it you I shall immediately and surely die.' But

Meanwhile they had reached home, and before getting down from his horse the man called for a coffin to be

brought; and when it was there he placed it in front of the house, and said to his wife:

'See, I will lay myself down in this coffin, and will then tell you why I laughed, for as soon as I have told you

I shall surely die.' So he lay down in the coffin, and while he took a last look around him, his old dog came

out from the farm and sat down by him, and whined. When the master saw this, he called to his wife: 'Bring a

piece of bread to give to the dog.' The wife brought some bread and threw it to the dog, but he would not look

at it. Then the farm cock came and pecked at the bread; but the dog said to it: 'Wretched glutton, you can eat

like that when you see that your master is dying?' The cock answered: 'Let him die, if he is so stupid. I have a

hundred wives, which I call together when I find a grain of corn, and as soon as they are there I swallow it

myself; should one of them dare to be angry, I would give her a lesson with my beak. He has only one wife,

As soon as the man understood this, he got up out of the coffin, seized a stick, and called his wife into the

room, saying: 'Come, and I will tell you what you so much want to know'; and then he began to beat her with

the stick, saying with each blow: 'It is that, wife, it is that!' And in this way he taught her never again to ask

Once upon a time there lived a poor widow who had one little boy. At first sight you would not have thought

that he was different from a thousand other little boys; but then you noticed that by his side hung the scabbard

of a sword, and as the boy grew bigger the scabbard grew bigger too. The sword which belonged to the

scabbard was found by the little boy sticking out of the ground in the garden, and every day he pulled it up to

see if it would go into the scabbard. But though it was plainly becoming longer and longer, it was some time

However, there came a day at last when it slipped in quite easily. The child was so delighted that he could

hardly believe his eyes, so he tried it seven times, and each time it slipped in more easily than before. But

pleased though the boy was, he determined not to tell anyone about it, particularly not his mother, who never

Still, in spite of his resolutions, he could not hide altogether that something had happened, and when he went

'Oh, mother, I had such a nice dream last night,' said he; 'but I can't tell it to anybody.'

'You can tell it to me,' she answered. 'It must have been a nice dream, or you wouldn't look so happy.'

'No, mother; I can't tell it to anybody,' returned the boy, 'till it comes true.'

'I want to know what it was, and know it I will,' cried she, 'and I will beat you till you tell me.'

But it was no use, neither words nor blows would get the secret out of the boy; and when her arm was quite

tired and she had to leave off, the child, sore and aching, ran into the garden and knelt weeping beside his

little sword. It was working round and round in its hole all by itself, and if anyone except the boy had tried to

catch hold of it, he would have been badly cut. But the moment he stretched out his hand it stopped and slid

For a long time the child sat sobbing, and the noise was heard by the king as he was driving by. 'Go and see

who it is that is crying so,' said he to one of his servants, and the man went. In a few minutes he returned

saying: 'Your Majesty, it is a little boy who is kneeling there sobbing because his mother has beaten him.'

'Bring him to me at once,' commanded the monarch, 'and tell him that it is the king who sends for him, and

that he has never cried in all his life and cannot bear anyone else to do so.' On receiving this message the boy

dried his tears and went with the servant to the royal carriage. 'Will you be my son?' asked the king.

'Yes, if my mother will let me,' answered the boy. And the king bade the servant go back to the mother and

say that if she would give her boy to him, he should live in the palace and marry his prettiest daughter as soon

The widow's anger now turned into joy, and she came running to the splendid coach and kissed the king's

hand. 'I hope you will be more obedient to his Majesty than you were to me,' she said; and the boy shrank

away halffrightened. But when she had gone back to her cottage, he asked the king if he might fetch

something that he had left in the garden, and when he was given permission, he pulled up his little sword,

After they had gone some distance the king said: 'Why were you crying so bitterly in the garden just now?'

'Oh, I am sure you will when we get home,' said the king smiling, and he talked to him about other things till

'I have brought you such a nice present,' he said to his daughters, and as the boy was very pretty they were

'You must not spoil him,' observed the king one day, when he had been watching them playing together. He

'He will tell me,' answered the eldest princess; but the boy only shook his head.

'I will tell nobody till it comes true,' said the boy, as he had said before; 'and I will beat anybody who asks

The king was very sorry when he heard this, for he loved the boy dearly; but he thought it would never do to

keep anyone near him who would not do as he was bid. So he commanded his servants to take him away and

The sword clanked loudly as the boy was led away, but the child said nothing, though he was very unhappy at

being treated so badly when he had done nothing. However, the servants were very kind to him, and their

children brought him fruit and all sorts of nice things, and he soon grew merry again, and lived amongst them

Meanwhile the two eldest princesses had become women, and had married two powerful kings who ruled

over great countries across the sea. The youngest one was old enough to be married too, but she was very

particular, and turned up her nose at all the young princes who had sought her hand.

One day she was sitting in the palace feeling rather dull and lonely, and suddenly she began to wonder what

the servants were doing, and whether it was not more amusing down in their quarters. The king was at his

council and the queen was ill in bed, so there was no one to stop the princess, and she hastily ran across the

gardens to the houses where the servants lived. Outside she noticed a youth who was handsomer than any

prince she had ever seen, and in a moment she knew him to be the little boy she had once played with.

'Tell me your secret and I will marry you,' she said to him; but the boy only gave her the beating he had

promised her long ago, when she asked him the same question. The girl was very angry, besides being hurt,

That very day a gallows was built outside the town, and all the people crowded round to see the execution of

the young man who had dared to beat the king's daughter. The prisoner, with his hands tied behind his back,

was brought out by the hangman, and amidst dead silence his sentence was being read by the judge when

suddenly the sword clanked against his side. Instantly a great noise was heard and a golden coach rumbled

over the stones, with a white flag waving out of the window. It stopped underneath the gallows, and from it

stepped the king of the Magyars, who begged that the life of the boy might be spared.

'Sir, he has beaten my daughter, who only asked him to tell her his secret. I cannot pardon that,' answered the

'Give him to me, I'm sure he will tell me the secret; or, if not, I have a daughter who is like the Morning Star,

The sword clanked for the third time, and the king said angrily: 'Well, if you want him so much you can have

him; only never let me see his face again.' And he made a sign to the hangman. The bandage was removed

from the young man's eyes, and the cords from his wrists, and he took his seat in the golden coach beside the

king of the Magyars. Then the coachman whipped up his horses, and they set out for Buda.

The king talked very pleasantly for a few miles, and when he thought that his new companion was quite at

ease with him, he asked him what was the secret which had brought him into such trouble. ' That I cannot tell

'I will tell nobody,' replied the youth, and as he spoke the sword clanked loudly. The king said no more, but

The journey to Buda was long, and it was several days before they arrived there. The beautiful princess

'Oh, what a handsome youth! Have you brought him from fairyland?' cried she, when they all stood upon the

'I have brought him from the gallows,' answered the king; rather vexed at his daughter's words, as never

'I don't care where you brought him from,' said the spoilt girl. 'I will marry him and nobody else, and we will

'You will tell another tale,' replied the king, 'when you ask him his secret. After all he is no better than a

'That is nothing to me,' said the princess, 'for I love him. He will tell his secret to me, and will find a place in

But the king shook his head, and gave orders that the lad was to be lodged in the summerhouse.

One day, about a week later, the princess put on her finest dress, and went to pay him a visit. She looked so

beautiful that, at the sight of her, the book dropped from his hand, and he stood up speechless. 'Tell me,' she

said, coaxingly, 'what is this wonderful secret? Just whisper it in my ear, and I will give you a kiss.'

'My angel,' he answered, 'be wise, and ask no questions, if you wish to get safely back to your father's palace;

However, the girl would not listen, and went on pressing him, till at last he slapped her face so hard that her

nose bled. She shrieked with pain and rage, and ran screaming back to the palace, where her father was

waiting to hear if she had succeeded. 'I will starve you to death, you son of a dragon,' cried he, when he saw

her dress streaming with blood; and he ordered all the masons and bricklayers in the town to come before

'Build me a tower as fast as you can,' he said, 'and see that there is room for a stool and a small table, and for

nothing else. The men set to work, and in two hours the tower was built, and they proceeded to the palace to

inform the king that his commands were fulfilled. On the way they met the princess, who began to talk to one

of the masons, and when the rest were out of hearing she asked if he could manage to make a hole in the

tower, which nobody could see, large enough for a bottle of wine and some food to pass through.

'To be sure I can,' said the mason, turning back, and in a few minutes the hole was bored.

At sunset a large crowd assembled to watch the youth being led to the tower, and after his misdeeds had been

proclaimed he was solemnly walled up. But every morning the princess passed him in food through the hole,

and every third day the king sent his secretary to climb up a ladder and look down through a little window to

see if he was dead. But the secretary always brought back the report that he was fat and rosy.

This state of affairs lasted some time, till one day a messenger arrived from the Sultan bearing a letter for the

king, and also three canes. 'My master bids me say,' said the messenger, bowing low, 'that if you cannot tell

him which of these three canes grows nearest the root, which in the middle, and which at the top, he will

The king was very much frightened when he heard this, and though he took the canes and examined them

closely, he could see no difference between them. He looked so sad that his daughter noticed it, and inquired

'Alas! my daughter,' he answered, 'how can I help being sad? The Sultan has sent me three canes, and says

that if I cannot tell him which of them grows near the root, which in the middle, and which at the top, he will

'Oh, do not despair, my father,' said she. 'We shall be sure to find out the answer'; and she ran away to the

'Go to bed as usual,' replied he, 'and when you wake, tell your father that you have dreamed that the canes

must be placed in warm water. After a little while one will sink to the bottom; that is the one that grows

nearest the root. The one which neither sinks nor comes to the surface is the cane that is cut from the middle;

So, the next morning, the princess told her father of her dream, and by her advice he cut notches in each of

the canes when he took them out of the water, so that he might make no mistake when he handed them back

to the messenger. The Sultan could not imagine how he had found out, but he did not declare war.

The following year the Sultan again wanted to pick a quarrel with the king of the Magyars, so he sent another

messenger to him with three foals, begging him to say which of the animals was born in the morning, which

at noon, and which in the evening. If an answer was not ready in three days, war would be declared at once.

The king's heart sank when he read the letter. He could not expect his daughter to be lucky enough to dream

rightly a second time, and as a plague had been raging through the country, and had carried off many of his

soldiers, his army was even weaker than before. At this thought his face became so gloomy that his daughter

'I have had another letter from the Sultan,' replied the king, 'and he says that if I cannot tell him which of

three foals was born in the morning, which at noon, and which in the evening, he will declare war at once.'

'Oh, don't be cast down,' said she, 'something is sure to happen'; and she ran down to the tower to consult the

'Go home, idol of my heart, and when night comes, pretend to scream out in your sleep, so that your father

hears you. Then tell him that you have dreamt that he was just being carried off by the Turks because he

could not answer the question about the foals, when the lad whom he had shut up in the tower ran up and told

So the princess did exactly as the youth had bidden her; and no sooner had she spoken than the king ordered

'I did not think that you could have lived so long without food,' said he, 'and as you have had plenty of time to

repent your wicked conduct, I will grant you pardon, on condition that you help me in a sore strait. Read this

letter from the Sultan; you will see that if I fail to answer his question about the foals, a dreadful war will be

The youth took the letter and read it through. 'Yes, I can help you,' replied he; 'but first you must bring me

three troughs, all exactly alike. Into one you must put oats, into another wheat, and into the third barley. The

foal which eats the oats is that which was foaled in the morning; the foal which eats the wheat is that which

was foaled at noon; and the foal which eats the barley is that which was foaled at night.' The king followed

the youth's directions, and, marking the foals, sent them back to Turkey, and there was no war that year.

Now the Sultan was very angry that both his plots to get possession of Hungary had been such total failures,

and he sent for his aunt, who was a witch, to consult her as to what he should do next.

'It is not the king who has answered your questions,' observed the aunt, when he had told his story. 'He is far

too stupid ever to have done that! The person who has found out the puzzle is the son of a poor woman, who,

if he lives, will become King of Hungary. Therefore, if you want the crown yourself, you must get him here

After this conversation another letter was written to the Court of Hungary, saying that if the youth, now in the

palace, was not sent to Turkey within three days, a large army would cross the border. The king's heart was

sorrowful as he read, for he was grateful to the lad for what he had done to help him; but the boy only

laughed, and bade the king fear nothing, but to search the town instantly for two youths just like each other,

and he would paint himself a mask that was just like them. And the sword at his side clanked loudly.

After a long search twin brothers were found, so exactly resembling each other that even their own mother

could not tell the difference. The youth painted a mask that was the precise copy of them, and when he had

put it on, no one would have known one boy from the other. They set out at once for the Sultan's palace, and

when they reached it, they were taken straight into his presence. He made a sign for them to come near; they

all bowed low in greeting. He asked them about their journey; they answered his questions all together, and in

the same words. If one sat down to supper, the others sat down at the same instant. When one got up, the

others got up too, as if there had been only one body between them. The Sultan could not detect any

difference between them, and he told his aunt that he would not be so cruel as to kill all three.

'Well, you will see a difference tomorrow,' replied the witch, 'for one will have a cut on his sleeve. That is

the youth you must kill.' And one hour before midnight, when witches are invisible, she glided into the room

where all three lads were sleeping in the same bed. She took out a pair of scissors and cut a small piece out of

the boy's coatsleeve which was hanging on the wall, and then crept silently from the room. But in the

morning the youth saw the slit, and he marked the sleeves of his two companions in the same way, and all

three went down to breakfast with the Sultan. The old witch was standing in the window and pretended not to

see them; but all witches have eyes in the backs of their heads, and she knew at once that not one sleeve but

three were cut, and they were all as alike as before. After breakfast, the Sultan, who was getting tired of the

whole affair and wanted to be alone to invent some other plan, told them they might return home. So, bowing

The princess welcomed the boy back joyfully, but the poor youth was not allowed to rest long in peace, for

one day a fresh letter arrived from the Sultan, saying that he had discovered that the young man was a very

dangerous person, and that he must be sent to Turkey at once, and alone. The girl burst into tears when the

boy told her what was in the letter which her father had bade her to carry to him. 'Do not weep, love of my

So next morning at sunrise the youth set forth, and in a few days he reached the Sultan's palace. The old

witch was waiting for him at the gate, and whispered as he passed: 'This is the last time you will ever enter it.'

But the sword clanked, and the lad did not even look at her. As he crossed the threshold fifteen armed Turks

barred his way, with the Sultan at their head. Instantly the sword darted forth and cut off the heads of

everyone but the Sultan, and then went quietly back to its scabbard. The witch, who was looking on, saw that

as long as the youth had possession of the sword, all her schemes would be in vain, and tried to steal the

sword in the night, but it only jumped out of its scabbard and sliced off her nose, which was of iron. And in

the morning, when the Sultan brought a great army to capture the lad and deprive him of his sword, they were

Meanwhile the princess was in despair because the days slipped by, and the young man did not return, and

she never rested until her father let her lead some troops against the Sultan. She rode proudly before them,

dressed in uniform; but they had not left the town more than a mile behind them, when they met the lad and

his little sword. When he told them what he had done they shouted for joy, and carried him back in triumph

to the palace; and the king declared that as the youth had shown himself worthy to become his soninlaw,

he should marry the princess and succeed to the throne at once, as he himself was getting old, and the cares of

government were too much for him. But the young man said he must first go and see his mother, and the king

The old woman was quite frightened at seeing such an array draw up before her little house, and still more

surprised when a handsome young man, whom she did not know, dismounted and kissed her hand, saying:

'Now, dear mother, you shall hear my secret at last! I dreamed that I should become King of Hungary, and

my dream has come true. When I was a child, and you begged me to tell you, I had to keep silence, or the

Magyar king would have killed me. And if you had not beaten me nothing would have happened that has

Once upon a time there lived an emperor who had three sons. They were all fine young men, and fond of

hunting, and scarcely a day passed without one or other of them going out to look for game.

One morning the eldest of the three princes mounted his horse and set out for a neighbouring forest, where

wild animals of all sorts were to be found. He had not long left the castle, when a hare sprang out of a thicket

and dashed across the road in front. The young man gave chase at once, and pursued it over hill and dale, till

at last the hare took refuge in a mill which was standing by the side of a river. The prince followed and

entered the mill, but stopped in terror by the door, for, instead of a hare, before him stood a dragon, breathing

fire and flame. At this fearful sight the prince turned to fly, but a fiery tongue coiled round his waist, and

A week passed away, and when the prince never came back everyone in the town began to grow uneasy. At

last his next brother told the emperor that he likewise would go out to hunt, and that perhaps he would find

some clue as to his brother's disappearance. But hardly had the castle gates closed on the prince than the hare

sprang out of the bushes as before, and led the huntsman up hill and down dale, till they reached the mill. Into

this the hare flew with the prince at his heels, when, lo! instead of the hare, there stood a dragon breathing

fire and flame; and out shot a fiery tongue which coiled round the prince's waist, and lifted him straight into

Days went by, and the emperor waited and waited for the sons who never came, and could not sleep at night

for wondering where they were and what had become of them. His youngest son wished to go in search of his

brothers, but for long the emperor refused to listen to him, lest he should lose him also. But the prince prayed

so hard for leave to make the search, and promised so often that he would be very cautious and careful, that at

length the emperor gave him permission, and ordered the best horse in the stables to be saddled for him.

Full of hope the young prince started on his way, but no sooner was he outside the city walls than a hare

sprang out of the bushes and ran before him, till they reached the mill. As before, the animal dashed in

through the open door, but this time he was not followed by the prince. Wiser than his brothers, the young

man turned away, saying to himself: 'There are as good hares in the forest as any that have come out of it, and

For many hours he rode up and down the mountain, but saw nothing, and at last, tired of waiting, he went

back to the mill. Here he found an old woman sitting, whom he greeted pleasantly.

'Good morning to you, little mother,' he said; and the old woman answered: 'Good morning, my son.'

'My son,' replied the old woman, 'that was no hare, but a dragon who has led many men hither, and then has

eaten them all.' At these words the prince's heart grew heavy, and he cried, 'Then my brothers must have

'You have guessed right,' answered the old woman; 'and I can give you no better counsel than to go home at

'Then listen to me,' cried the prince. 'When the dragon comes back, ask him where he always goes when he

leaves here, and what makes him so strong; and when you have coaxed the secret from him, tell me the next

So the prince went home, and the old woman remained in the mill, and as soon as the dragon returned she

'Yes, little mother, I have indeed travelled far.' answered he. Then the old woman began to flatter him, and to

praise his cleverness; and when she thought she had got him into a good temper, she said: 'I have wondered

so often where you get your strength from; I do wish you would tell me. I would stoop and kiss the place out

Then the old woman jumped up and kissed the hearth; whereat the dragon laughed the more, and said:

'You foolish creature! I was only jesting. It is not in the hearthstone, but in that tall tree that lies the secret of

my strength.' Then the old woman jumped up again and put her arms round the tree, and kissed it heartily.

'Old fool,' he cried, as soon as he could speak, 'did you really believe that my strength came from that tree?'

'Where is it then?' asked the old woman, rather crossly, for she did not like being made fun of.

'My strength,' replied the dragon, 'lies far away; so far that you could never reach it. Far, far from here is a

kingdom, and by its capital city is a lake, and in the lake is a dragon, and inside the dragon is a wild boar, and

inside the wild boar is a pigeon, and inside the pigeon a sparrow, and inside the sparrow is my strength.' And

when the old woman heard this, she thought it was no use flattering him any longer, for never, never, could

The following morning, when the dragon had left the mill, the prince came back, and the old woman told him

all that the creature had said. He listened in silence, and then returned to the castle, where he put on a suit of

shepherd's clothes, and taking a staff in his hand, he went forth to seek a place as tender of sheep.

For some time he wandered from village to village and from town to town, till he came at length to a large

city in a distant kingdom, surrounded on three sides by a great lake, which happened to be the very lake in

which the dragon lived. As was his custom, he stopped everybody whom he met in the streets that looked

likely to want a shepherd and begged them to engage him, but they all seemed to have shepherds of their

own, or else not to need any. The prince was beginning to lose heart, when a man who had overheard his

question turned round and said that he had better go and ask the emperor, as he was in search of some one to

'Will you take care of my sheep?' said the emperor, when the young man knelt before him.

'Most willingly, your Majesty,' answered the young man, and he listened obediently while the emperor told

'Outside the city walls,' went on the emperor, 'you will find a large lake, and by its banks lie the richest

meadows in my kingdom. When you are leading out your flocks to pasture, they will all run straight to these

meadows, and none that have gone there have ever been known to come back. Take heed, therefore, my son,

not to suffer your sheep to go where they will, but drive them to any spot that you think best.'

With a low bow the prince thanked the emperor for his warning, and promised to do his best to keep the

sheep safe. Then he left the palace and went to the marketplace, where he bought two greyhounds, a hawk,

and a set of pipes; after that he took the sheep out to pasture. The instant the animals caught sight of the lake

lying before them, they trotted off as fast as their legs would go to the green meadows lying round it. The

prince did not try to stop them; he only placed his hawk on the branch of a tree, laid his pipes on the grass,

and bade the greyhounds sit still; then, rolling up his sleeves and trousers, he waded into the water crying as

he did so: 'Dragon! dragon! if you are not a coward, come out and fight with me!' And a voice answered from

'I am waiting for you, O prince'; and the next minute the dragon reared himself out of the water, huge and

horrible to see. The prince sprang upon him and they grappled with each other and fought together till the sun

'O prince, let me dip my burning head once into the lake, and I will hurl you up to the top of the sky.' But the

prince answered, 'Oh, ho! my good dragon, do not crow too soon! If the emperor's daughter were only here,

and would kiss me on the forehead, I would throw you up higher still!' And suddenly the dragon's hold

As soon as it was evening, the prince washed away all signs of the fight, took his hawk upon his shoulder,

and his pipes under his arm, and with his greyhounds in front and his flock following after him he set out for

the city. As they all passed through the streets the people stared in wonder, for never before had any flock

The next morning he rose early, and led his sheep down the road to the lake. This time, however, the emperor

sent two men on horseback to ride behind him, with orders to watch the prince all day long. The horsemen

kept the prince and his sheep in sight, without being seen themselves. As soon as they beheld the sheep

running towards the meadows, they turned aside up a steep hill, which overhung the lake. When the shepherd

reached the place he laid, as before, his pipes on the grass and bade the greyhounds sit beside them, while the

hawk he perched on the branch of the tree. Then he rolled up his trousers and his sleeves, and waded into the

'Dragon! dragon! if you are not a coward, come out and fight with me!' And the dragon answered:

'I am waiting for you, O prince,' and the next minute he reared himself out of the water, huge and horrible to

see. Again they clasped each other tight round the body and fought till it was noon, and when the sun was at

'O prince, let me dip my burning head once in the lake, and I will hurl you up to the top of the sky.' But the

'Oh, ho! my good dragon, do not crow too soon! If the emperor's daughter were only here, and would kiss me

on the forehead, I would throw you up higher still!' And suddenly the dragon's hold loosened, and he fell

As soon as it was evening the prince again collected his sheep, and playing on his pipes he marched before

them into the city. When he passed through the gates all the people came out of their houses to stare in

Meanwhile the two horsemen had ridden quickly back, and told the emperor all that they had seen and heard.

The emperor listened eagerly to their tale, then called his daughter to him and repeated it to her.

'Tomorrow,' he said, when he had finished, 'you shall go with the shepherd to the lake, and then you shall

'Will you really send me, your only child, to that dreadful place, from which most likely I shall never come

'Fear nothing, my little daughter, all will be well. Many shepherds have gone to that lake and none have ever

returned; but this one has in these two days fought twice with the dragon and has escaped without a wound.

So I hope tomorrow he will kill the dragon altogether, and deliver this land from the monster who has slain

Scarcely had the sun begun to peep over the hills next morning, when the princess stood by the shepherd's

side, ready to go to the lake. The shepherd was brimming over with joy, but the princess only wept bitterly.

'Dry your tears, I implore you,' said he. 'If you will just do what I ask you, and when the time comes, run and

Merrily the shepherd blew on his pipes as he marched at the head of his flock, only stopping every now and

'Do not cry so, Heart of Gold; trust me and fear nothing.' And so they reached the lake.

In an instant the sheep were scattered all over the meadows, and the prince placed his hawk on the tree, and

his pipes on the grass, while he bade his greyhounds lie beside them. Then he rolled up his trousers and his

'Dragon! dragon! if you are not a coward, come forth, and let us have one more fight together.' And the

dragon answered: 'I am waiting for you, O prince'; and the next minute he reared himself out of the water,

huge and horrible to see. Swiftly he drew near to the bank, and the prince sprang to meet him, and they

grasped each other round the body and fought till it was noon. And when the sun was at its hottest, the dragon

'O prince, let me dip my burning head in the lake, and I will hurl you to the top of the sky.' But the prince

'Oh, ho! my good dragon, do not crow too soon! If the emperor's daughter were only here, and she would kiss

Hardly had he spoken, when the princess, who had been listening, ran up and kissed him on the forehead.

Then the prince swung the dragon straight up into the clouds, and when he touched the earth again, he broke

into a thousand pieces. Out of the pieces there sprang a wild boar and galloped away, but the prince called his

hounds to give chase, and they caught the boar and tore it to bits. Out of the pieces there sprang a hare, and in

a moment the greyhounds were after it, and they caught it and killed it; and out of the hare there came a

pigeon. Quickly the prince let loose his hawk, which soared straight into the air, then swooped upon the bird

and brought it to his master. The prince cut open its body and found the sparrow inside, as the old woman had

'Now,' cried the prince, holding the sparrow in his hand, 'now you shall tell me where I can find my brothers.'

'Do not hurt me,' answered the sparrow, 'and I will tell you with all my heart.' Behind your father's castle

stands a mill, and in the mill are three slender twigs. Cut off these twigs and strike their roots with them, and

the iron door of a cellar will open. In the cellar you will find as many people, young and old, women and

By this time twilight had fallen, so the prince washed himself in the lake, took the hawk on his shoulder and

the pipes under his arm, and with his greyhounds before him and his flock behind him, marched gaily into the

town, the princess following them all, still trembling with fright. And so they passed through the streets,

Unknown to anyone, the emperor had stolen out on horseback, and had hidden himself on the hill, where he

could see all that happened. When all was over, and the power of the dragon was broken for ever, he rode

quickly back to the castle, and was ready to receive the prince with open arms, and to promise him his

daughter to wife. The wedding took place with great splendour, and for a whole week the town was hung

with coloured lamps, and tables were spread in the hall of the castle for all who chose to come and eat. And

when the feast was over, the prince told the emperor and the people who he really was, and at this everyone

rejoiced still more, and preparations were made for the prince and princess to return to their own kingdom,

The first thing he did when he reached his native country was to hasten to the mill, where he found the three

twigs as the sparrow had told him. The moment that he struck the root the iron door flew open, and from the

cellar a countless multitude of men and women streamed forth. He bade them go one by one wheresoever

they would, while he himself waited by the door till his brothers passed through. How delighted they were to

meet again, and to hear all that the prince had done to deliver them from their enchantment. And they went

home with him and served him all the days of their lives, for they said that he only who had proved himself

Once upon a time the things in this story happened, and if they had not happened then the story would never

have been told. But that was the time when wolves and lambs lay peacefully together in one stall, and

Once upon a time, then, my dear good children, there lived a man. Now this man was really a hundred years

old, if not fully twenty years more. And his wife was very old toohow old I do not know; but some said

she was as old as the goddess Venus herself. They had been very happy all these years, but they would have

been happier still if they had had any children; but old though they were they had never made up their minds

to do without them, and often they would sit over the fire and talk of how they would have brought up their

One day the old man seemed sadder and more thoughtful than was common with him, and at last he said to

'Get me some money out of the chest, for I am going a long journeyall through the worldto see if I

cannot find a child, for my heart aches to think that after I am dead my house will fall into the hands of a

stranger. And this let me tell you: that if I never find a child I shall not come home again.'

Then the old man took a bag and filled it with food and money, and throwing it over his shoulders, bade his

For long he wandered, and wandered, and wandered, but no child did he see; and one morning his wanderings

led him to a forest which was so thick with trees that no light could pass through the branches. The old man

stopped when he saw this dreadful place, and at first was afraid to go in; but he remembered that, after all, as

the proverb says: 'It is the unexpected that happens,' and perhaps in the midst of this black spot he might find

How long he might have been walking there he never could have told you, when at last he reached the mouth

of a cave where the darkness seemed a hundred times darker than the wood itself. Again he paused, but he

felt as if something was driving him to enter, and with a beating heart he stepped in.

For some minutes the silence and darkness so appalled him that he stood where he was, not daring to advance

one step. Then he made a great effort and went on a few paces, and suddenly, far before him, he saw the

glimmer of a light. This put new heart into him, and he directed his steps straight towards the faint rays, till

The hermit either did not hear the approach of his visitor, or pretended not to do so, for he took no notice, and

continued to read his book. After waiting patiently for a little while, the old man fell on his knees, and said:

'Good morning, holy father!' But he might as well have spoken to the rock. 'Good morning, holy father,' he

said again, a little louder than before, and this time the hermit made a sign to him to come nearer. 'My son,'

whispered he, in a voice that echoed through the cavern, 'what brings you to this dark and dismal place?

Hundreds of years have passed since my eyes have rested on the face of a man, and I did not think to look on

'My misery has brought me here,' replied the old man; 'I have no child, and all our lives my wife and I have

longed for one. So I left my home, and went out into the world, hoping that somewhere I might find what I

Then the hermit picked up an apple from the ground, and gave it to him, saying: 'Eat half of this apple, and

The old man stooped and kissed the feet of the hermit for sheer joy, and left the cave. He made his way

through the forest as fast as the darkness would let him, and at length arrived in flowery fields, which dazzled

him with their brightness. Suddenly he was seized with a desperate thirst, and a burning in his throat. He

looked for a stream but none was to be seen, and his tongue grew more parched every moment. At length his

eyes fell on the apple, which all this while he had been holding in his hand, and in his thirst he forgot what

the hermit had told him, and instead of eating merely his own half, he ate up the old woman's also; after that

When he woke up he saw something strange lying on a bank a little way off, amidst long trails of pink roses.

The old man got up, rubbed his eyes, and went to see what it was, when, to his surprise and joy, it proved to

be a little girl about two years old, with a skin as pink and white as the roses above her. He took her gently in

his arms, but she did not seem at all frightened, and only jumped and crowed with delight; and the old man

wrapped his cloak round her, and set off for home as fast as his legs would carry him.

When they were close to the cottage where they lived he laid the child in a pail that was standing near the

door, and ran into the house, crying: 'Come quickly, wife, quickly, for I have brought you a daughter, with

At this wonderful news the old woman flew downstairs, almost tumbling down ill her eagerness to see the

treasure; but when her husband led her to the pail it was perfectly empty! The old man was nearly beside

himself with horror, while his wife sat down and sobbed with grief and disappointment. There was not a spot

round about which they did not search, thinking that somehow the child might have got out of the pail and

hidden itself for fun; but the little girl was not there, and there was no sign of her.

'Where can she be?' moaned the old man, in despair. 'Oh, why did I ever leave her, even for a moment? Have

the fairies taken her, or has some wild beast carried her off?' And they began their search all over again; but

neither fairies nor wild beasts did they meet with, and with sore hearts they gave it up at last and turned sadly

And what had become of the baby? Well, finding herself left alone in a strange place she began to cry with

fright, and an eagle hovering near, heard her, and went to see what the sound came from. When he beheld the

fat pink and white creature he thought of his hungry little ones at home, and swooping down he caught her up

in his claws and was soon flying with her over the tops of the trees. In a few minutes he reached the one in

which he had built his nest, and laying little Wildrose (for so the old man had called her) among his downy

young eaglets, he flew away. The eaglets naturally were rather surprised at this strange animal, so suddenly

popped down in their midst, but instead of beginning to eat her, as their father expected, they nestled up close

Now, in the depths of the forest where the eagle had built his nest, there ran a stream whose waters were

poisonous, and on the banks of this stream dwelt a horrible lindworm with seven heads. The lindworm had

often watched the eagle flying about the top of the tree, carrying food to his young ones and, accordingly, he

watched carefully for the moment when the eaglets began to try their wings and to fly away from the nest. Of

course, if the eagle himself was there to protect them even the lindworm, big and strong as he was, knew that

he could do nothing; but when he was absent, any little eaglets who ventured too near the ground would be

sure to disappear down the monster's throat. Their brothers, who had been left behind as too young and weak

to see the world, knew nothing of all this, but supposed their turn would soon come to see the world also.

And in a few days their eyes, too, opened and their wings flapped impatiently, and they longed to fly away

above the waving treetops to mountain and the bright sun beyond. But that very midnight the lindworm,

who was hungry and could not wait for his supper, came out of the brook with a rushing noise, and made

straight for the tree. Two eyes of flame came creeping nearer, nearer, and two fiery tongues were stretching

themselves out closer, closer, to the little birds who were trembling and shuddering in the farthest corner of

the nest. But just as the tongues had almost reached them, the lindworm gave a fearful cry, and turned and fell

backwards. Then came the sound of battle from the ground below, and the tree shook, though there was no

wind, and roars and snarls mixed together, till the eaglets felt more frightened than ever, and thought their last

In the morning the eagle returned and saw traces of a fight below the tree, and here and there a handful of

yellow mane lying about, and here and there a hard scaly substance; when he saw that he rejoiced greatly, and

'Who has slain the lindworm?' he asked of his children; there were so many that he did not at first miss the

two which the lindworm had eaten. But the eaglets answered that they could not tell, only that they had been

in danger of their lives, and at the last moment they had been delivered. Then the sunbeam had struggled

through the thick branches and caught Wildrose's golden hair as she lay curled up in the corner, and the eagle

wondered, as he looked, whether the little girl had brought him luck, and it was her magic which had killed

'Children,' he said, 'I brought her here for your dinner, and you have not touched her; what is the meaning of

this?' But the eaglets did not answer, and Wildrose opened her eyes, and seemed seven times lovelier than

>From that day Wildrose lived like a little princess. The eagle flew about the wood and collected the softest,

greenest moss he could find to make her a bed, and then he picked with his beak all the brightest and prettiest

flowers in the fields or on the mountains to decorate it. So cleverly did he manage it that there was not a fairy

in the whole of the forest who would not have been pleased to sleep there, rocked to and fro by the breeze on

the treetops. And when the little ones were able to fly from their nest he taught them where to look for the

So the time passed by, and with each year Wildrose grew taller and more beautiful, and she lived happily in

her nest and never wanted to go out of it, only standing at the edge in the sunset, and looking upon the

beautiful world. For company she had all the birds in the forest, who came and talked to her, and for

playthings the strange flowers which they brought her from far, and the butterflies which danced with her.

One morning the emperor's son went out to hunt, and he had not ridden far, before a deer started from under a

grove of trees, and ran before him. The prince instantly gave chase, and where the stag led he followed, till at

length he found himself in the depths of the forest, where no man before had trod.

The trees were so thick and the wood so dark, that he paused for a moment and listened, straining his ears to

catch some sound to break a silence which almost frightened him. But nothing came, not even the baying of a

hound or the note of a horn. He stood still, and wondered if he should go on, when, on looking up, a stream of

light seemed to flow from the top of a tall tree. In its rays he could see the nest with the young eaglets, who

were watching him over the side. The prince fitted an arrow into his bow and took his aim, but, before he

could let fly, another ray of light dazzled him; so brilliant was it, that his bow dropped, and he covered his

face with his hands. When at last he ventured to peep, Wildrose, with her golden hair flowing round her, was

'Tell me how I can reach you?' cried he; but Wildrose smiled and shook her head, and sat down quietly.

The prince saw that it was no use, and turned and made his way out of the forest. But he might as well have

stayed there, for any good he was to his father, so full was his heart of longing for Wildrose. Twice he

returned to the forest in the hopes of finding her, but this time fortune failed him, and he went home as sad as

At length the emperor, who could not think what had caused this change, sent for his son and asked him what

was the matter. Then the prince confessed that the image of Wildrose filled his soul, and that he would never

be happy without her. At first the emperor felt rather distressed. He doubted whether a girl from a tree top

would make a good empress; but he loved his son so much that he promised to do all he could to find her. So

the next morning heralds were sent forth throughout the whole land to inquire if anyone knew where a

maiden could be found who lived in a forest on the top of a tree, and to promise great riches and a place at

court to any person who should find her. But nobody knew. All the girls in the kingdom had their homes on

the ground, and laughed at the notion of being brought up in a tree. 'A nice kind of empress she would make,'

they said, as the emperor had done, tossing their heads with disdain; for, having read many books, they

The heralds were almost in despair, when an old woman stepped out of the crowd and came and spoke to

them. She was not only very old, but she was very ugly, with a hump on her back and a bald head, and when

the heralds saw her they broke into rude laughter. 'I can show you the maiden who lives in the treetop,' she

'Get away, old witch!' they cried, 'you will bring us bad luck'; but the old woman stood firm, and declared that

'Go with her,' said the eldest of the heralds at last. 'The emperor's orders are clear, that whoever knew

anything of the maiden was to come at once to court. Put her in the coach and take her with us.'

'You have declared that you can bring hither the maiden from the wood?' said the emperor, who was seated

'Give me first a kettle and a tripod,' asked the old w omen, and the emperor ordered them to be brought

instantly. The old woman picked them up, and tucking them under her arm went on her way, keeping at a

little distance behind the royal huntsmen, who in their turn followed the prince.

Oh, what a noise that old woman made as she walked along! She chattered to herself so fast and clattered her

kettle so loudly that you would have thought that a whole campful of gipsies must be coming round the next

corner. But when they reached the forest, she bade them all wait outside, and entered the dark wood by

She stopped underneath the tree where the maiden dwelt and, gathering some dry sticks, kindled a fire. Next,

she placed the tripod over it, and the kettle on top. But something was the matter with the kettle. As fast as

the old woman put it where it was to stand, that kettle was sure to roll off, falling to the ground with a crash.

It really seemed bewitched, and no one knows what might have happened if Wildrose, who had been all the

time peeping out of her nest, had not lost patience at the old woman's stupidity, and cried out: 'The tripod

'But where am I to move it to, my child?' asked the old woman, looking up to the nest, and at the same

'Didn't I tell you that it was no good doing that,' said Wildrose, more impatiently than before. 'Make a fire

The old woman took the kettle and hung it on a little twig, which broke at once, and the kettle fell to the

'If you would only show me how to do it, perhaps I should understand,' said she.

Quick as thought, the maiden slid down the smooth trunk of the tree, and stood beside the stupid old woman,

to teach her how things ought to be done. But in an instant the old woman had caught up the girl and swung

her over her shoulders, and was running as fast as she could go to the edge of the forest, where she had left

the prince. When he saw them coming he rushed eagerly to meet them, and he took the maiden in his arms

and kissed her tenderly before them all. Then a golden dress was put on her, and pearls were twined in her

hair, and she took her seat in the emperor's carriage which was drawn by six of the whitest horses in the

world, and they carried her, without stopping to draw breath, to the gates of the palace. And in three days the

wedding was celebrated, and the wedding feast was held, and everyone who saw the bride declared that if

Once upon a time there lived a poor man who had more children than bread to feed them with. However, they

were strong and willing, and soon learned to make themselves of use to their father and mother, and when

they were old enough they went out to service, and everyone was very glad to get them for servants, for they

worked hard and were always cheerful. Out of all the ten or eleven, there was only one who gave his parents

any trouble, and this was a big lazy boy whose name was Tiidu. Neither scoldings nor beatings nor kind

words had any effect on him, and the older he grew the idler he got. He spent his winters crouching close to a

warm stove, and his summers asleep under a shady tree; and if he was not doing either of these things he was

One day he was sitting under a bush playing so sweetly that you might easily have mistaken the notes for

those of a bird, when an old man passed by. 'What trade do you wish to follow, my son?' he asked in a

'If I were only a rich man, and had no need to work,' replied the boy, 'I should not follow any. I could not bear

The old man laughed as he heard this answer, and said: 'But I do not exactly see where your riches are to

come from if you do not work for them. Sleeping cats catch no mice. He who wishes to become rich must use

'Be silent, old man! I have been told all that a hundred times over; and it runs off me like water off a duck's

'You have one gift,' replied the old man, taking no notice of this speech, 'and if you would only go about and

play the pipes, you would easily earn, not only your daily bread, but a little money into the bargain. Listen to

me; get yourself a set of pipes, and learn to play on them as well as you do on your flute, and wherever there

'Blow on your flute for a few days,' replied the old man, 'and you will soon be able to buy your pipes.

Byandby I will come back again and see if you have taken my advice, and whether you are likely to grow

Tiidu stayed where he was a little longer, thinking of all the old man had told him, and the more he thought

the surer he felt that the old man was right. He determined to try whether his plan would really bring luck; but

as he did not like being laughed at he resolved not to tell anyone a word about it. So next morning he left

homeand never came back! His parents did not take his loss much to heart, but were rather glad that their

useless son had for once shown a little spirit, and they hoped that time and hardship might cure Tiidu of his

For some weeks Tiidu wandered from one village to another, and proved for himself the truth of the old

man's promise. The people he met were all friendly and kind, and enjoyed his fluteplaying, giving him his

food in return, and even a few pence. These pence the youth hoarded carefully till he had collected enough to

buy a beautiful pair of pipes. Then he felt himself indeed on the high road to riches. Nowhere could pipes be

found as fine as his, or played in so masterly a manner. Tiidu's pipes set everybody's legs dancing. Wherever

there was a marriage, a christening, or a feast of any kind, Tiidu must be there, or the evening would be a

failure. In a few years he had become so noted a piper that people would travel far and wide to hear him.

One day he was invited to a christening where many rich men from the neighbouring town were present, and

all agreed that never in all their lives had they heard such playing as his. They crowded round him, and

praised him, and pressed him to come to their homes, declaring that it was a shame not to give their friends

the chance of hearing such music. Of course all this delighted Tiidu, who accepted gladly, and left their

houses laden with money and presents of every kind; one great lord clothed him in a magnificent dress, a

second hung a chain of pearls round his neck, while a third handed him a set of new pipes encrusted in silver.

As for the ladies, the girls twisted silken scarves round his plumed hat, and their mothers knitted him gloves

of all colours, to keep out the cold. Any other man in Tiidu's place would have been contented and happy in

this life; but his craving for riches gave him no rest, and only goaded him day by day to fresh exertions, so

that even his own mother would not have known him for the lazy boy who was always lying asleep in one

Now Tiidu saw quite clearly that he could only hope to become rich by means of his pipes, and set about

thinking if there was nothing he could do to make the money flow in faster. At length he remembered having

heard some stories of a kingdom in the Kungla country, where musicians of all sorts were welcomed and

highly paid; but where it was, or how it was reached, he could not recollect, however hard he thought. In

despair, he wandered along the coast, hoping to see some ship or sailing boat that would take him where he

wished to go, and at length he reached the town of Narva, where several merchantmen were lying at anchor.

To his great joy, he found that one of them was sailing for Kungla in a few days, and he hastily went on

board, and asked for the captain. But the cost of the passage was more than the prudent Tiidu cared to pay,

and though he played his best on his pipes, the captain refused to lower his price, and Tiidu was just thinking

of returning on shore when his usual luck flew to his aid. A young sailor, who had heard him play, came

secretly to him, and offered to hide him on board, in the absence of the captain. So the next night, as soon as

it was dark, Tiidu stepped softly on deck, and was hidden by his friend down in the hold in a corner between

two casks. Unseen by the rest of the crew the sailor managed to bring him food and drink, and when they

were well out of sight of land he proceeded to carry out a plan he had invented to deliver Tiidu from his

cramped quarters. At midnight, while he was keeping watch and everyone else was sleeping, the man bade

his friend Tiidu follow him on deck, where he tied a rope round Tiidu's body, fastening the other end

carefully to one of the ship's ropes. 'Now,' he said, 'I will throw you into the sea, and you must shout for help;

and when you see the sailors coming untie the rope from your waist, and tell them that you have swum after

At first Tiidu did not much like this scheme, for the sea ran high, but he was a good swimmer, and the sailor

assured him that there was no danger. As soon as he was in the water, his friend hastened to rouse his mates,

declaring that he was sure that there was a man in the sea, following the ship. They all came on deck, and

what was their surprise when they recognised the person who had bargained about a passage the previous day

'Are you a ghost, or a dying man?' they asked him trembling, as they stooped over the side of the ship.

'I shall soon indeed be a dead man if you do not help me,' answered Tiidu, 'for my strength is going fast.'

Then the captain seized a rope and flung it out to him, and Tiidu held it between his teeth, while, unseen by

'Where have you come from?' said the captain, when Tiidu was brought up on board the ship.

'I have followed you from the harbour,' answered he, 'and have been often in sore dread lest my strength

should fail me. I hoped that by swimming after the ship I might at last reach Kungla, as I had no money to

pay my passage.' The captain's heart melted at these words, and he said kindly: 'You may be thankful that you

were not drowned. I will land you at Kungla free of payment, as you are so anxious to get there. So he gave

him dry clothes to wear, and a berth to sleep in, and Tiidu and his friend secretly made merry over their

For the rest of the voyage the ship's crew treated Tiidu as something higher than themselves, seeing that in all

their lives they had never met with any man that could swim for as many hours as he had done. This pleased

Tiidu very much, though he knew that he had really done nothing to deserve it, and in return he delighted

them by tunes on his pipes. When, after some days, they cast anchor at Kungla, the story of his wonderful

swim brought him many friends, for everybody wished to hear him tell the tale himself. This might have been

all very well, had not Tiidu lived in dread that some day he would be asked to give proof of his marvellous

swimming powers, and then everything would be found out. Meanwhile he was dazzled with the splendour

around him, and more than ever he longed for part of the riches, about which the owners seemed to care so

He wandered through the streets for many days, seeking some one who wanted a servant; but though more

than one person would have been glad to engage him, they seemed to Tiidu not the sort of people to help him

to get rich quickly. At last, when he had almost made up his mind that he must accept the next place offered

him, he happened to knock at the door of a rich merchant who was in need of a scullion, and gladly agreed to

do the cook's bidding, and it was in this merchant's house that he first learned how great were the riches of the

land of Kungla. All the vessels which in other countries are made of iron, copper, brass, or tin, in Kungla

were made of silver, or even of gold. The food was cooked in silver saucepans, the bread baked in a silver

oven, while the dishes and their covers were all of gold. Even the very pigs' troughs were of silver too. But

the sight of these things only made Tiidu more covetous than before. 'What is the use of all this wealth that I

have constantly before my eyes,' thought he, 'if none of it is mine? I shall never grow rich by what I earn as a

scullion, even though I am paid as much in a month as I should get elsewhere in a year.'

By this time he had been in his place for two years, and had put by quite a large sum of money. His passion

of saving had increased to such a pitch that it was only by his master's orders that he ever bought any new

clothes, 'For,' said the merchant, 'I will not have dirty people in my house.' So with a heavy heart Tiidu spent

One day the merchant held a great feast in honour of the christening of his youngest child, and he gave each

of his servants a handsome garment for the occasion. The following Sunday, Tiidu, who liked fine clothes

when he did not have to pay for them, put on his new coat, and went for a walk to some beautiful pleasure

gardens, which were always full of people on a sunny day. He sat down under a shady tree, and watched the

passersby, but after a little he began to feel rather lonely, for he knew nobody and nobody knew him.

Suddenly his eyes fell on the figure of an old man, which seemed familiar to him, though he could not tell

when or where he had seen it. He watched the figure for some time, till at length the old man left the crowded

paths, and threw himself on the soft grass under a lime tree, which stood at some distance from where Tiidu

was sitting. Then the young man walked slowly past, in order that he might look at him more closely, and as

'What have you done with your pipes?' asked he; and then in a moment Tiidu knew him. Taking his arm he

drew him into a quiet place and told him all that had happened since they had last met. The old man shook his

head as he listened, and when Tiidu had finished his tale, he said: 'A fool you are, and a fool you will always

be! Was there ever such a piece of folly as to exchange your pipes for a scullion's ladle? You could have

made as much by the pipes in a day as your wages would have come to in half a year. Go home and fetch

your pipes, and play them here, and you will soon see if I have spoken the truth.'

Tiidu did not like this advicehe was afraid that the people would laugh at him; and, besides, it was long

since he had touched his pipesbut the old man persisted, and at last Tiidu did as he was told.

'Sit down on the bank by me,' said the old man, when he came back, 'and begin to play, and in a little while

the people will flock round you.' Tiidu obeyed, at first without much heart; but somehow the tone of the pipes

was sweeter than he had remembered, and as he played, the crowd ceased to walk and chatter, and stood still

and silent round him. When he had played for some time he took off his hat and passed it round, and dollars,

and small silver coins, and even gold pieces, came tumbling in. Tiidu played a couple more tunes by way of

thanks, then turned to go home, hearing on all sides murmurs of 'What a wonderful piper! Come back, we

'What did I tell you?' said the old man, as they passed through the garden gate. 'Was it not pleasanter to play

for a couple of hours on the pipes than to be stirring sauces all day long? For the second time I have shown

you the path to follow; try to learn wisdom, and take the bull by the horns, lest your luck should slip from

you! I can be your guide no longer, therefore listen to what I say, and obey me. Go every Sunday afternoon to

those gardens; and sit under the lime tree and play to the people, and bring a felt hat with a deep crown, and

lay it on the ground at your feet, so that everyone can throw some money into it. If you are invited to play at a

feast, accept willingly, but beware of asking a fixed price; say you will take whatever they may feel inclined

to give. You will get far more money in the end. Perhaps, some day, our paths may cross, and then I shall see

how far you have followed my advice. Till then, farewell'; and the old man went his way.

As before, his words came true, though Tiidu could not at once do his bidding, as he had first to fulfil his

appointed time of service. Meanwhile he ordered some fine clothes, in which he played every Sunday in the

gardens, and when he counted his gains in the evening they were always more than on the Sunday before. At

length he was free to do as he liked, and he had more invitations to play than he could manage to accept, and

at night, when the citizens used to go and drink in the inn, the landlord always begged Tiidu to come and play

to them. Thus he grew so rich that very soon he had his silver pipes covered with gold, so that they glistened

in the light of the sun or the fire. In all Kungla there was no prouder man than Tiidu.

In a few years he had saved such a large sum of money that he was considered a rich man even in Kungla,

where everybody was rich. And then he had leisure to remember that he had once had a home, and a family,

and that he should like to see them both again, and show them how well he could play. This time he would

not need to hide in the ship's hold, but could hire the best cabin if he wished to, or even have a vessel all to

himself. So he packed all his treasures in large chests, and sent them on board the first ship that was sailing to

his native land, and followed them with a light heart. The wind at starting was fair, but it soon freshened, and

in the night rose to a gale. For two days they ran before it, and hoped that by keeping well out to sea they

might be able to weather the storm, when, suddenly, the ship struck on a rock, and began to fill. Orders were

given to lower the boats, and Tiidu with three sailors got into one of them, but before they could push away

from the ship a huge wave overturned it, and all four were flung into the water. Luckily for Tiidu an oar was

floating near him, and with its help he was able to keep on the surface of the water; and when the sun rose,

and the mist cleared away, he saw that he was not far from shore. By hard swimming, for the sea still ran

high, he managed to reach it, and pulled himself out of the water, more dead than alive. Then he flung

When he awoke he got up to explore the island, and see if there were any men upon it; but though he found

streams and fruit trees in abundance, there was no trace either of man or beast. Then, tired with his

For perhaps the first time in his life his thoughts did not instantly turn to money. It was not on his lost

treasures that his mind dwelt, but on his conduct to his parents: his laziness and disobedience as a boy; his

forgetfulness of them as a man. 'If wild animals were to come and tear me to pieces,' he said to himself

bitterly, 'it would be only what I deserve! My gains are all at the bottom of the seawell! lightly won, lightly

lostbut it is odd that I feel I should not care for that if only my pipes were left me.' Then he rose and

walked a little further, till he saw a tree with great red apples shining amidst the leaves, and he pulled some

down, and ate them greedily. After that he stretched himself out on the soft moss and went to sleep.

In the morning he ran to the nearest stream to wash himself, but to his horror, when he caught sight of his

face, he saw his nose had grown the colour of an apple, and reached nearly to his waist. He started back

thinking he was dreaming, and put up his hand; but, alas! the dreadful thing was true. 'Oh, why does not some

wild beast devour me?' he cried to himself; 'never, never, can I go again amongst my fellowmen! If only the

sea had swallowed me up, how much happier it had been for me!' And he hid his head in his hands and wept.

His grief was so violent, that it exhausted him, and growing hungry he looked about for something to eat. Just

above him was a bough of ripe, brown nuts, end he picked them and ate a handful. To his surprise, as he was

eating them, he felt his nose grow shorter and shorter, and after a while he ventured to feel it with his hand,

and even to look in the stream again! Yes, there was no mistake, it was as short as before, or perhaps a little

shorter. In his joy at this discovery Tiidu did a very bold thing. He took one of the apples out of his pocket,

and cautiously bit a piece out of it. In an instant his nose was as long as his chin, and in a deadly fear lest it

should stretch further, he hastily swallowed a nut, and awaited the result with terror. Supposing that the

shrinking of his nose had only been an accident before! Supposing that that nut and no other was able to

cause its shrinking! In that case he had, by his own folly, in not letting well alone, ruined his life completely.

But, no! he had guessed rightly, for in no more time than his nose had taken to grow long did it take to return

to its proper size. 'This may make my fortune,' he said joyfully to himself; and he gathered some of the

apples, which he put into one pocket, and a good supply of nuts which he put into the other. Next day he

wove a basket out of some rushes, so that if he ever left the island he might be able to carry his treasures

That night he dreamed that his friend the old man appeared to him and said: 'Because you did not mourn for

your lost treasure, but only for your pipes, I will give you a new set to replace them.' And, behold! in the

morning when he got up a set of pipes was lying in the basket. With what joy did he seize them and begin one

of his favourite tunes; and as he played hope sprang up in his heart, and he looked out to sea, to try to detect

the sign of a sail. Yes! there it was, making straight for the island; and Tiidu, holding his pipes in his hand,

The sailors knew the island to be uninhabited, and were much surprised to see a man standing on the beach,

waving his arms in welcome to them. A boat was put off, and two sailors rowed to the shore to discover how

he came there, and if he wished to be taken away. Tiidu told them the story of his shipwreck, and the captain

promised that he should come on board, and sail with them back to Kungla; and thankful indeed was Tiidu to

accept the offer, and to show his gratitude by playing on his pipes whenever he was asked to do so.

They had a quick voyage, and it was not long before Tiidu found himself again in the streets of the capital of

Kungla, playing as he went along. The people had heard no music like his since he went away, and they

crowded round him, and in their joy gave him whatever money they had in their pockets. His first care was to

buy himself some new clothes, which he sadly needed, taking care, however, that they should be made after a

foreign fashion. When they were ready, he set out one day with a small basket of his famous apples, and went

up to the palace. He did not have to wait long before one of the royal servants passed by and bought all the

apples, begging as he did so that the merchant should return and bring some more. This Tiidu promised, and

hastened away as if he had a mad bull behind him, so afraid was he that the man should begin to eat an apple

It is needless to say that for some days he took no more apples back to the palace, but kept well away on the

other side of the town, wearing other clothes, and disguised by a long black beard, so that even his own

The morning after his visit to the castle the whole city was in an uproar about the dreadful misfortune that

had happened to the Royal Family, for not only the king but his wife and children, had eaten of the stranger's

apples, and all, so said the rumour, were very ill. The most famous doctors and the greatest magicians were

hastily summoned to the palace, but they shook their heads and came away again; never had they met with

such a disease in all the course of their experience. Byandbye a story went round the town, started no one

knew how, that the malady was in some way connected with the nose; and men rubbed their own anxiously,

Matters had been in this state for more than a week when it reached the ears of the king that a man was living

in an inn on the other side of the town who declared himself able to cure all manner of diseases. Instantly the

royal carriage was commanded to drive with all speed and bring back this magician, offering him riches

untold if he could restore their noses to their former length. Tiidu had expected this summons, and had sat up

all night changing his appearance, and so well had he succeeded that not a trace remained either of the piper

or of the apple seller. He stepped into the carriage, and was driven post haste to the king, who was feverishly

counting every moment, for both his nose and the queen's were by this time more than a yard long, and they

Now Tiidu thought it would not look well to cure the royal family by giving them the raw nuts; he felt that it

might arouse suspicion. So he had carefully pounded them into a powder, and divided the powder up into

small doses, which were to be put on the tongue and swallowed at once. He gave one of these to the king and

another to the queen, and told them that before taking them they were to get into bed in a dark room and not

to move for some hours, after which they might be sure that they would come out cured.

The king's joy was so great at this news that he would gladly have given Tiidu half of his kingdom; but the

piper was no longer so greedy of money as he once was, before he had been shipwrecked on the island. If he

could get enough to buy a small estate and live comfortably on it for the rest of his life, that was all he now

cared for. However, the king ordered his treasure to pay him three times as much as he asked, and with this

Tiidu went down to the harbour and engaged a small ship to carry him back to his native country. The wind

was fair, and in ten days the coast, which he had almost forgotten, stood clear before him. In a few hours he

was standing in his old home, where his father, three sisters, and two brothers gave him a hearty welcome.

When the meeting was over, he began to make inquiries about a small estate that was for sale near the town,

and after he had bought it the next thing was to find a wife to share it with him. This did not take long either;

and people who were at the wedding feast declared that the best part of the whole day was the hour when

Tiidu played to them on the pipes before they bade each other farewell and returned to their homes.

Once upon a time there lived a king and a queen who had one son. The king loved the boy very much, but the

queen, who was a wicked woman, hated the sight of him; and this was the more unlucky for, when he was

Now the queen was very angry because the people, who knew how bad she was, seated her son on the throne

instead of herself, and she never rested till she had formed a plan to get him out of the way. Fortunately,

however, the young king was wise and prudent, and knew her too well to trust her.

One day, when his mourning was over, he gave orders that everything should be made ready for a grand hunt.

The queen pretended to be greatly delighted that he was going to amuse himself once more, and declared that

she would accompany him. 'No, mother, I cannot let you come,' he answered; 'the ground is rough, and you

are not strong.' But he might as well have spoken to the winds: when the horn was sounded at daybreak the

All that day they rode, for game was plentiful, but towards evening the mother and son found themselves

alone in a part of the country that was strange to them. They wandered on for some time, without knowing

where they were going, till they met with a man whom they begged to give them shelter. 'Come with me,'

said the man gladly, for he was an ogre, and fed on human flesh; and the king and his mother went with him,

and he led them to his house. When they got there they found to what a dreadful place they had come, and,

falling on their knees, they offered him great sums of money, if he would only spare their lives. The ogre's

heart was moved at the sight of the queen's beauty, and he promised that he would do her no harm; but he

stabbed the boy at once, and binding his body on a horse, turned him loose in the forest.

The ogre had happened to choose a horse which he had bought only the day before, and he did not know it

was a magician, or he would not have been so foolish as to fix upon it on this occasion. The horse no sooner

had been driven off with the prince's body on its back than it galloped straight to the home of the fairies, and

knocked at the door with its hoof. The fairies heard the knock, but were afraid to open till they had peeped

from an upper window to see that it was no giant or ogre who could do them harm. 'Oh, look, sister!' cried the

first to reach the window, 'it is a horse that has knocked, and on its back there is bound a dead boy, the most

beautiful boy in all the world!' Then the fairies ran to open the door, and let in the horse and unbound the

ropes which fastened the young king on its back. And they gathered round to admire his beauty, and

whispered one to the other: 'We will make him alive again, and will keep him for our brother.' And so they

Byandby the boy grew into a man, as boys will, and then the oldest of the fairies said to her sisters: 'Now I

will marry him, and he shall be really your brother.' So the young king married the fairy, and they lived

happily together in the castle; but though he loved his wife he still longed to see the world.

At length this longing grew so strong on him that he could bear it no more; and, calling the fairies together,

he said to them: 'Dear wife and sisters, I must leave you for a time, and go out and see the world. But I shall

The fairies wept and begged him to stay, but he would not listen, and at last the eldest, who was his wife, said

to him: 'If you really will abandon us, take this lock of my hair with you; you will find it useful in time of

The prince mounted his horse, and rode on all day without stopping once. Towards evening he found himself

in a desert, and, look where he would, there was no such thing as a house or a man to be seen. 'What am I to

do now?' he thought. 'If I go to sleep here wild beasts will come and eat me! Yet both I and my horse are

worn out, and can go no further.' Then suddenly he remembered the fairy's gift, and taking out the curl he

said to it: 'I want a castle here, and servants, and dinner, and everything to make me comfortable tonight; and

besides that, I must have a stable and fodder for my horse.' And in a moment the castle was before him just as

In this way he travelled through many countries, till at last he came to a land that was ruled over by a great

king. Leaving his horse outside the walls, he clad himself in the dress of a poor man, and went up to the

palace. The queen, who was looking out of the window, saw him approaching, and filled with pity sent a

servant to ask who he was and what he wanted. 'I am a stranger here,' answered the young king, 'and very

poor. I have come to beg for some work.' 'We have everybody we want,' said the queen, when the servant told

her the young man's reply. 'We have a gatekeeper, and a hall porter, and servants of all sorts in the palace;

the only person we have not got is a gooseboy. Tell him that he can he our gooseboy if he likes.' The youth

answered that he was quite content to be gooseboy; and that was how he got his nickname of Paperarello.

And in order that no one should guess that he was any better than a gooseboy should be, he rubbed his face

and his rags over with mud, and made himself altogether such a disgusting object that every one crossed over

'Do go and wash yourself, Paperarello!' said the queen sometimes, for he did his work so well that she took an

interest in him. 'Oh, I should not feel comfortable if I was clean, your Majesty,' answered he, and went

It happened one day that, owing to some accident to the great flour mills which supplied the city, there was

no bread to be had, and the king's army had to do without. When the king heard of it, he sent for the cook,

and told him that by the next morning he must have all the bread that the oven, heated seven times over,

could bake. 'But, your Majesty, it is not possible,' cried the poor man in despair. 'The mills have only just

begun working, and the flour will not be ground till evening, and how can I heat the oven seven times in one

night?' 'That is your affair,' answered the King, who, when he took anything into his head, would listen to

nothing. 'If you succeed in baking the bread you shall have my daughter to wife, but if you fail your head will

Now Paperarello, who was passing through the hall where the king was giving his orders, heard these words,

and said: 'Your Majesty, have no fears; I will bake your bread.' 'Very well,' answered the king; 'but if you fail,

you will pay for it with your head!' and signed that both should leave his presence.

The cook was still trembling with the thought of what he had escaped, but to his surprise Paperarello did not

seem disturbed at all, and when night came he went to sleep as usual. 'Paperarello,' cried the other servants,

when they saw him quietly taking off his clothes, 'you cannot go to bed; you will need every moment of the

'I really must have some sleep first,' replied Paperarello, stretching himself and yawning; and he flung himself

on his bed, and was fast asleep in a moment. In an hour's time, the servants came and shook him by the

shoulder. 'Paperarello, are you mad?' said they. 'Get up, or you will lose your head.' 'Oh, do let me sleep a

little more, answered he. And this was all he would say, though the servants returned to wake him many

At last the dawn broke, and the servants rushed to his room, crying: 'Paperarello! Paperarello! get up, the king

'Oh, don't scream so,' replied Paperarello, jumping out of bed as he spoke; and taking the lock of hair in his

hand, he went into the kitchen. And, behold! there stood the bread piled highfour, five, six ovens full, and

the seventh still waiting to be taken out of the oven. The servants stood and stared in surprise, and the king

said: 'Well done, Paperarello, you have won my daughter.' And he thought to himself: 'This fellow must

But when the princess heard what was in store for her she wept bitterly, and declared that never, never would

she marry that dirty Paperarello! However, the king paid no heed to her tears and prayers, and before many

days were over the wedding was celebrated with great splendour, though the bridegroom had not taken the

When night came he went as usual to sleep among his geese, and the princess went to the king and said:

'Father, I entreat you to have that horrible Paperarello put to death.' 'No, no!' replied her father, 'he is a great

magician, and before I put him to death, I must first find out the secret of his power, and thenwe shall see.'

Soon after this a war broke out, and everybody about the palace was very busy polishing up armour and

sharpening swords, for the king and his sons were to ride at the head of the army. Then Paperarello left his

geese, and came and told the king that he wished to go to fight also. The king gave him leave, and told him

that he might go to the stable and take any horse he liked from the stables. So Paperarello examined the

horses carefully, but instead of picking out one of the splendid wellgroomed creatures, whose skin shone

like satin, he chose a poor lame thing, put a saddle on it, and rode after the other menatarms who were

attending the king. In a short time he stopped, and said to them: 'My horse can go no further; you must go on

to the war without me, and I will stay here, and make some little clay soldiers, and will play at a battle.' The

Scarcely were they out of sight than Paperarello took out his curl, and wished himself the best armour, the

sharpest sword, and the swiftest horse in the world, and the next minute was riding as fast as he could to the

field of battle. The fight had already begun, and the enemy was getting the best of it, when Paperarello rode

up, and in a moment the fortunes of the day had changed. Right and left this strange knight laid about him,

and his sword pierced the stoutest breastplate, and the strongest shield. He was indeed 'a host in himself,'

and his foes fled before him thinking he was only the first of a troop of such warriors, whom no one could

withstand. When the battle was over, the king sent for him to thank him for his timely help, and to ask what

reward he should give him. 'Nothing but your little finger, your Majesty,' was his answer; and the king cut off

his little finger and gave it to Paperarello, who bowed and hid it in his surcoat. Then he left the field, and

when the soldiers rode back they found him still sitting in the road making whole rows of little clay dolls.

The next day the king went out to fight another battle, and again Paperarello appeared, mounted on his lame

horse. As on the day before, he halted on the road, and sat down to make his clay soldiers; then a second time

he wished himself armour, sword, and a horse, all sharper and better than those he had previously had, and

galloped after the rest. He was only just in time: the enemy had almost beaten the king's army back, and men

whispered to each other that if the strange knight did not soon come to their aid, they would be all dead men.

Suddenly someone cried: 'Hold on a little longer, I see him in the distance; and his armour shines brighter,

and his horse runs swifter, than yesterday.' Then they took fresh heart and fought desperately on till the

knight came up, and threw himself into the thick of the battle. As before, the enemy gave way before him,

The first thing that the victor did was to send for the knight to thank him for his timely help, and to ask what

gift he could bestow on him in token of gratitude. 'Your Majesty's ear,' answered the knight; and as the king

could not go back from his word, he cut it off and gave it to him. Paperarello bowed, fastened the ear inside

his surcoat and rode away. In the evening, when they all returned from the battle, there he was, sitting in the

On the third day the same thing happened, and this time he asked for the king's nose as the reward of his aid.

Now, to lose one's nose, is worse even than losing one's ear or one's finger, and the king hesitated as to

whether he should comply. However, he had always prided himself on being an honourable man, so he cut

off his nose, and handed it to Paperarello. Paperarello bowed, put the nose in his surcoat, and rode away. In

the evening, when the king returned from the battle, he found Paperarello sitting in the road making clay

dolls. And Paperarello got up and said to him: 'Do you know who I am? I am your dirty gooseboy, yet you

That night, when the king sat at dinner, Paperarello came in, and laying down the ear, and the nose, and the

finger on the table, turned and said to the nobles and courtiers who were waiting on the king: 'I am the

invincible knight, who rode three times to your help, and I also am a king's son, and no gooseboy as you all

think.' And he went away and washed himself, and dressed himself in fine clothes and entered the hall again,

looking so handsome that the proud princess fell in love with him on the spot. But Paperarello took no notice

of her, and said to the king: 'It was kind of you to offer me your daughter in marriage, and for that I thank

you; but I have a wife at home whom I love better, and it is to her that I am going. But as a token of farewell,

I wish that your ear, and nose, and finger may be restored to their proper places.' So saying, he bade them all

goodbye, and went back to his home and his fairy bride, with whom he lived happily till the end of his life.

Once upon a time there was an old man who lived in a little hut in the middle of a forest. His wife was dead,

and he had only one son, whom he loved dearly. Near their hut was a group of birch trees, in which some

blackgame had made their nests, and the youth had often begged his father's permission to shoot the birds,

One day, however, when the father had gone to a little distance to collect some sticks for the fire, the boy

fetched his bow, and shot at a bird that was just flying towards its nest. But he had not taken proper aim, and

the bird was only wounded, and fluttered along the ground. The boy ran to catch it, but though he ran very

fast, and the bird seemed to flutter along very slowly, he never could quite come up with it; it was always just

a little in advance. But so absorbed was he in the chase that he did not notice for some time that he was now

deep in the forest, in a place where he had never been before. Then he felt it would be foolish to go any

He thought it would be easy enough to follow the path along which he had come, but somehow it was always

branching off in unexpected directions. He looked about for a house where he might stop and ask his way, but

there was not a sign of one anywhere, and he was afraid to stand still, for it was cold, and there were many

stories of wolves being seen in that part of the forest. Night fell, and he was beginning to start at every sound,

when suddenly a magician came running towards him, with a pack of wolves snapping at his heels. Then all

the boy's courage returned to him. He took his bow, and aiming an arrow at the largest wolf, shot him through

the heart, and a few more arrows soon put the rest to flight. The magician was full of gratitude to his

deliverer, and promised him a reward for his help if the youth would go back with him to his house.

'Indeed there is nothing that would be more welcome to me than a night's lodging,' answered the boy; 'I have

'Come with me, you must be hungry as well as tired,' said the magician, and led the way to his house, where

the guest flung himself on a bed, and went fast asleep. But his host returned to the forest to get some food, for

While he was absent the housekeeper went to the boy's room and tried to wake him. She stamped on the

floor, and shook him and called to him, telling him that he was in great danger, and must take flight at once.

But nothing would rouse him, and if he did ever open his eyes he shut them again directly.

Soon after, the magician came back from the forest, and told the housekeeper to bring them something to eat.

The meal was quickly ready, and the magician called to the boy to come down and eat it, but he could not be

wakened, and they had to sit down to supper without him. Byandby the magician went out into the wood

again for some more hunting, and on his return he tried afresh to waken the youth. But finding it quite

While he was absent the boy woke up and dressed himself. Then he came downstairs and began to talk to the

housekeeper. The girl had heard how he had saved her master's life, so she said nothing more about his

running away, but instead told him that if the magician offered him the choice of a reward, he was to ask for

Byandby the old man came back and they all sat down to dinner. When they had finished the magician

'Give me the horse that stands in the third stall of your stable,' answered the youth. 'For I have a long way to

'Ah! my son,' replied the magician, 'it is the best horse in my stable that you want! Will not anything else

But the youth declared that it was the horse, and the horse only, that he desired, and in the end the old man

gave way. And besides the horse, the magician gave him a zither, a fiddle, and a flute, saying: 'If you are in

danger, touch the zither; and if no one comes to your aid, then play on the fiddle; but if that brings no help,

The youth thanked the magician, and fastening his treasures about him mounted the horse and rode off. He

had already gone some miles when, to his great surprise, the horse spoke, and said: 'It is no use your returning

home just now, your father will only beat you. Let us visit a few towns first, and something lucky will be sure

This advice pleased the boy, for he felt himself almost a man by this time, and thought it was high time he

saw the world. When they entered the capital of the country everyone stopped to admire the beauty of the

horse. Even the king heard of it, and came to see the splendid creature with his own eyes. Indeed, he wanted

directly to buy it, and told the youth he would give any price he liked. The young man hesitated for a

'Do not sell me, but ask the king to take me to his stable, and feed me there; then his other horses will become

The king was delighted when he was told what the horse had said, and took the animal at once to the stables,

and placed it in his own particular stall. Sure enough, the horse had scarcely eaten a mouthful of corn out of

the manger, when the rest of the horses seemed to have undergone a transformation. Some of them were old

favourites which the king had ridden in many wars, and they bore the signs of age and of service. But now

they arched their heads, and pawed the ground with their slender legs as they had been wont to do in days

long gone by. The king's heart beat with delight, but the old groom who had had the care of them stood

crossly by, and eyed the owner of this wonderful creature with hate and envy. Not a day passed without his

bringing some story against the youth to his master, but the king understood all about the matter and paid no

attention. At last the groom declared that the young man had boasted that he could find the king's war horse

which had strayed into the forest several years ago, and had not been heard of since. Now the king had never

ceased to mourn for his horse, so this time he listened to the tale which the groom had invented, and sent for

the youth. 'Find me my horse in three days,' said he, 'or it will be the worse for you.'

The youth was thunderstruck at this command, but he only bowed, and went off at once to the stable.

'Do not worry yourself,' answered his own horse. 'Ask the king to give you a hundred oxen, and to let them be

killed and cut into small pieces. Then we will start on our journey, and ride till we reach a certain river. There

a horse will come up to you, but take no notice of him. Soon another will appear, and this also you must leave

Everything happened just as the horse had said, and the third horse was safely bridled. Then the other horse

spoke again: 'The magician's raven will try to eat us as we ride away, but throw it some of the oxen's flesh,

and then I will gallop like the wind, and carry you safe out of the dragon's clutches.'

The old stableman was very jealous, when he heard of it, and wondered what he could do to injure the youth

in the eyes of his royal master. At last he hit upon a plan, and told the king that the young man had boasted

that he could bring home the king's wife, who had vanished many months before, without leaving a trace

behind her. Then the king bade the young man come into his presence, and desired him to fetch the queen

home again, as he had boasted he could do. And if he failed, his head would pay the penalty.

The poor youth's heart stood still as he listened. Find the queen? But how was he to do that, when nobody in

the palace had been able to do so! Slowly he walked to the stable, and laying his head on his horse's shoulder,

he said: 'The king has ordered me to bring his wife home again, and how can I do that when she disappeared

'Cheer up!' answered the horse, 'we will manage to find her. You have only got to ride me back to the same

river that we went to yesterday, and I will plunge into it and take my proper shape again. For I am the king's

Joyfully the young man sprang into the saddle and rode away to the banks of the river. Then he threw himself

off, and waited while the horse plunged in. The moment it dipped its head into the water its black skin

vanished, and the most beautiful woman in the world was floating on the water. She came smiling towards

the youth, and held out her hand, and he took it and led her back to the palace. Great was the king's surprise

and happiness when he beheld his lost wife stand before him, and in gratitude to her rescuer he loaded him

You would have thought that after this the poor youth would have been left in peace; but no, his enemy the

stableman hated him as much as ever, and laid a new plot for his undoing. This time he presented himself

before the king and told him that the youth was so puffed up with what he had done that he had declared he

At this news the king waxed so furious that he ordered a gallows to be erected at once, and the young man to

be hanged without a trial. He was not even allowed to speak in his own defence, but on the very steps of the

gallows he sent a message to the king and begged, as a last favour, that he might play a tune on his zither.

Leave was given him, and taking the instrument from under his cloak he touched the strings. Scarcely had the

first notes sounded than the hangman and his helper began to dance, and the louder grew the music the higher

they capered, till at last they cried for mercy. But the youth paid no heed, and the tunes rang out more merrily

than before, and by the time the sun set they both sank on the ground exhausted, and declared that the

The story of the zither soon spread through the town, and on the following morning the king and his whole

court and a large crowd of people were gathered at the foot of the gallows to see the youth hanged. Once

more he asked a favourpermission to play on his fiddle, and this the king was graciously pleased to grant.

But with the first notes, the leg of every man in the crowd was lifted high, and they danced to the sound of the

music the whole day till darkness fell, and there was no light to hang the musician by.

The third day came, and the youth asked leave to play on his flute. 'No, no,' said the king, 'you made me

dance all day yesterday, and if I do it again it will certainly be my death. You shall play no more tunes.

At these words the young man looked so sorrowful that the courtiers said to the king: 'He is very young to

die. Let him play a tune if it will make him happy.' So, very unwillingly, the king gave him leave; but first he

When he was made fast, the young man began to blow softly on his flute, and bound though he was, the

king's body moved to the sound, up and down the fir tree till his clothes were in tatters, and the skin nearly

rubbed off his back. But the youth had no pity, and went on blowing, till suddenly the old magician appeared

'They want to hang me,' answered the young man; 'the gallows are all ready and the hangman is only waiting

'Oh, I will put that right,' said the magician; and taking the gallows, he tore it up and flung it into the air, and

The young man pointed to the king, who was still bound to the fir; and without wasting words the magician

took hold of the tree also, and with a mighty heave both fir and man went spinning through the air, and

Then the youth was declared to be free, and the people elected him for their king; and the stable helper

drowned himself from envy, for, after all, if it had not been for him the young man would have remained poor

Once upon a time there lived a king who was so fond of wine that he could not go to sleep unless he knew he

had a great flaskful tied to his bedpost. All day long he drank till he was too stupid to attend to his business,

and everything in the kingdom went to rack and ruin. But one day an accident happened to him, and he was

struck on the head by a falling bough, so that he fell from his horse and lay dead upon the ground.

His wife and son mourned his loss bitterly, for, in spite of his faults, he had always been kind to them. So

they abandoned the crown and forsook their country, not knowing or caring where they went.

At length they wandered into a forest, and being very tired, sat down under a tree to eat some bread that they

had brought with them. When they had finished the queen said: 'My son, I am thirsty; fetch me some water.'

The prince got up at once and went to a brook which he heard gurgling near at hand. He stooped and filled his

hat with the water, which he brought to his mother; then he turned and followed the stream up to its source in

a rock, where it bubbled out clear and fresh and cold. He knelt down to take a draught from the deep pool

below the rock, when he saw the reflection of a sword hanging from the branch of a tree over his head. The

young man drew back with a start; but in a moment he climbed the tree, cutting the rope which held the

The queen was greatly surprised at the sight of anything so splendid in such a lonely place, and took it in her

hands to examine it closely. It was of curious workmanship, wrought with gold, and on its handle was

written: 'The man who can buckle on this sword will become stronger than other men.' The queen's heart

swelled with joy as she read these words, and she bade her son lose no time in testing their truth. So he

fastened it round his waist, and instantly a glow of strength seemed to run through his veins. He took hold of

This discovery put new life into the queen and her son, and they continued their walk through the forest. But

night was drawing on, and the darkness grew so thick that it seemed as if it could be cut with a knife. They

did not want to sleep in the wood, for they were afraid of wolves and other wild beasts, so they groped their

way along, hand in hand, till the prince tripped over something which lay across the path. He could not see

what it was, but stooped down and tried to lift it. The thing was very heavy, and he thought his back would

break under the strain. At last with a great heave he moved it out of the road, and as it fell he knew it was a

huge rock. Behind the rock was a cave which it was quite clear was the home of some robbers, though not

Hastily putting out the fire which burned brightly at the back, and bidding his mother come in and keep very

still, the prince began to pace up and down, listening for the return of the robbers. But he was very sleepy,

and in spite of all his efforts he felt he could not keep awake much longer, when he heard the sound of the

robbers returning, shouting and singing as they marched along. Soon the singing ceased, and straining his

ears he heard them discussing anxiously what had become of their cave, and why they could not see the fire

as usual. 'This must be the place,' said a voice, which the prince took to be that of the captain. 'Yes, I feel the

ditch before the entrance. Someone forgot to pile up the fire before we left and it has burnt itself out! But it is

all right. Let every man jump across, and as he does so cry out "Hop! I am here." I will go last. Now begin.'

The man who stood nearest jumped across, but he had no time to give the call which the captain had ordered,

for with one swift, silent stroke of the prince's sword, his head rolled into a corner. Then the young man cried

The second man, hearing the signal, leapt the ditch in confidence, and was met by the same fate, and in a few

Now the captain had wound round his neck the shawl of his lost wife, and the stroke of the prince's sword fell

harmless. Being very cunning, however, he made no resistance, and rolled over as if he were as dead as the

other men. Still, the prince was no fool, and wondered if indeed he was as dead as he seemed to be; but the

The prince next dragged the headless bodies into a chamber in the cave, and locked the door. Then he and his

mother ransacked the place for some food, and when they had eaten it they lay down and slept in peace.

With the dawn they were both awake again, and found that, instead of the cave which they had come to the

night before, they now were in a splendid castle, full of beautiful rooms. The prince went round all these and

carefully locked them up, bidding his mother take care of the keys while he was hunting.

Unfortunately, the queen, like all women, could not bear to think that there was anything which she did not

know. So the moment that her son had turned his back, she opened the doors of all the rooms, and peeped in,

till she came to the one where the robbers lay. But if the sight of the blood on the ground turned her faint, the

sight of the robber captain walking up and down was a greater shock still. She quickly turned the key in the

Soon after her son came in, bringing with him a large bear, which he had killed for supper. As there was

enough food to last them for many days, the prince did not hunt the next morning, but, instead, began to

explore the castle. He found that a secret way led from it into the forest; and following the path, he reached

another castle larger and more splendid than the one belonging to the robbers. He knocked at the door with

his fist, and said that he wanted to enter; but the giant, to whom the castle belonged, only answered: 'I know

'I am no robber,' answered the prince. 'I am the son of a king, and I have killed all the band. If you do not

open to me at once I will break in the door, and your head shall go to join the others.'

He waited a little, but the door remained shut as tightly as before. Then he just put his shoulder to it, and

immediately the wood began to crack. When the giant found that it was no use keeping it shut, he opened it,

And the prince was glad to make peace, for he had caught a glimpse of the giant's beautiful daughter, and

Now the queen led a dull life all alone in the castle, and to amuse herself she paid visits to the robber captain,

who flattered her till at last she agreed to marry him. But as she was much afraid of her son, she told the

robber that the next time the prince went to bathe in the river, he was to steal the sword from its place above

the bed, for without it the young man would have no power to punish him for his boldness.

The robber captain thought this good counsel, and the next morning, when the young man went to bathe, he

unhooked the sword from its nail and buckled it round his waist. On his return to the castle, the prince found

the robber waiting for him on the steps, waving the sword above his head, and knowing that some horrible

fate was in store, fell on his knees and begged for mercy. But he might as well have tried to squeeze blood

out of a stone. The robber, indeed, granted him his life, but took out both his eyes, which he thrust into the

Weeping, the blind youth felt his way to the giant's house, and told him all the story.

The giant was full of pity for the poor young man, but inquired anxiously what he had done with the eyes.

The prince drew them out of his pocket, and silently handed them to the giant, who washed them well, and

then put them back in the prince's head. For three days he lay in utter darkness; then the light began to come

But though he could not rejoice enough over the recovery of his eyes, he bewailed bitterly the loss of his

'Never mind, my friend,' said the giant, 'I will get it back for you.' And he sent for the monkey who was his

'Tell the fox and the squirrel that they are to go with you, and fetch me back the prince's sword,' ordered he.

The three servants set out at once, one seated on the back of the others, the ape, who disliked walking, being

generally on top. Directly they came to the window of the robber captain's room, the monkey sprang from the

backs of the fox and the squirrel, and climbed in. The room was empty, and the sword hanging from a nail.

He took it down, and buckling it round his waist, as he had seen the prince do, swung himself down again,

and mounting on the backs of his two companions, hastened to his master. The giant bade him give the sword

to the prince, who girded himself with it, and returned with all speed to the castle.

'Come out, you rascal! come out, you villain!' cried he, 'and answer to me for the wrong you have done. I will

The noise he made brought the robber into the room. He glanced up to where the sword usually hung, but it

was gone; and instinctively he looked at the prince's hand, where he saw it gleaming brightly. In his turn he

fell on his knees to beg for mercy, but it was too late. As he had done to the prince, so the prince did to him,

and, blinded, he was thrust forth, and fell down a deep hole, where he is to this day. His mother the prince

sent back to her father, and never would see her again. After this he returned to the giant, and said to him:

'My friend, add one more kindness to those you have already heaped on me. Give me your daughter as my

So they were married, and the wedding feast was so splendid that there was not a kingdom in the world that

did not hear of it. And the prince never went back to his father's throne, but lived peacefully with his wife in

Once, long ago, in a little town that lay in the midst of high hills and wild forests, a party of shepherds sat one

night in the kitchen of the inn talking over old times, and telling of the strange things that had befallen them

'Comrades,' said he, 'you have had wonderful adventures; but I will tell you something still more astonishing

that happened to myself. When I was a young lad I had no home and no one to care for me, and I wandered

from village to village all over the country with my knapsack on my back; but as soon as I was old enough I

took service with a shepherd in the mountains, and helped him for three years. One autumn evening as we

drove the flock homeward ten sheep were missing, and the master bade me go and seek them in the forest. I

took my dog with me, but he could find no trace of them, though we searched among the bushes till night

fell; and then, as I did not know the country and could not find my way home in the dark, I decided to sleep

under a tree. At midnight my dog became uneasy, and began to whine and creep close to me with his tail

between his legs; by this I knew that something was wrong, and, looking about, I saw in the bright moonlight

a figure standing beside me. It seemed to be a man with shaggy hair, and a long beard which hung down to

his knees. He had a garland upon his head, and a girdle of oakleaves about his body, and carried an uprooted

firtree in his right hand. I shook like an aspen leaf at the sight, and my spirit quaked for fear. The strange

being beckoned with his hand that I should follow him; but as I did not stir from the spot he spoke in a

hoarse, grating voice: "Take courage, fainthearted shepherd. I am the Treasure Seeker of the mountain. If you

'Though I was still deadly cold with terror I plucked up my courage and said: "Get away from me, evil spirit;

'"Simpleton! Do you scorn your good fortune? Well, then, remain a ragamuffin all your days."

'He turned as if to go away from me, then came back again and said: "Bethink yourself, bethink yourself,

'When the apparition saw that I gave no heed to him he ceased to urge me, saying only: "Some day you will

rue this," and looked at me sadly. Then he cried: "Listen to what I say, and lay it well to heart, it may be of

use to you when you come to your senses. A vast treasure of gold and precious stones lies in safety deep

under the earth. At twilight and at high noon it is hidden, but at midnight it may be dug up. For seven

hundred years have I watched over it, but now my time has come; it is common property, let him find it who

can. So I thought to give it into your hand, having a kindness for you because you feed your flock upon my

'Thereupon the spectre told me exactly where the treasure lay, and how to find it. It might be only yesterday

'"Go towards the little mountains," said he, "and ask there for the Black King's Valley, and when you come to

a tiny brook follow the stream till you reach the stone bridge beside the sawmill. Do not cross the bridge,

but keep to your right along the bank till a high rock stands before you. A bowshot from that you will

discover a little hollow like a grave. When you find this hollow dig it out; but it will be hard work, for the

earth has been pressed down into it with care. Still, work away till you find solid rock on all sides of you, and

soon you will come to a square slab of stone; force it out of the wall, and you will stand at the entrance of the

treasure house. Into this opening you must crawl, holding a lamp in your mouth. Keep your hands free lest

you knock your nose against a stone, for the way is steep and the stones sharp. If it bruises your knees never

mind; you are on the road to fortune. Do not rest till you reach a wide stairway, down which you will go till

you come out into a spacious hall, in which there are three doors; two of them stand open, the third is

fastened with locks and bolts of iron. Do not go through the door to the right lest you disturb the bones of the

lords of the treasure. Neither must you go through the door to the left, it leads to the snake's chamber, where

adders and serpents lodge; but open the fastclosed door by means of the wellknown springroot, which

you must on no account forget to take with you, or all your trouble will be for naught, for no crowbar or

mortal tools will help you. If you want to procure the root ask a woodseller; it is a common thing for hunters

to need, and it is not hard to find. If the door bursts open suddenly with great crackings and groanings do not

be afraid, the noise is caused by the power of the magic root, and you will not be hurt. Now trim your lamp

that it may not fail you, for you will be nearly blinded by the flash and glitter of the gold and precious stones

on the walls and pillars of the vault; but beware how you stretch out a hand towards the jewels! In the midst

of the cavern stands a copper chest, in that you will find gold and silver, enough and to spare, and you may

help yourself to your heart's content. If you take as much as you can carry you will have sufficient to last your

lifetime, and you may return three times; but woe betide you if you venture to come a fourth time. You would

have your trouble for your pains, and would be punished for your greediness by falling down the stone steps

and breaking your leg. Do not neglect each time to heap back the loose earth which concealed the entrance of

'As the apparition left off speaking my dog pricked up his ears and began to bark. I heard the crack of a

carter's whip and the noise of wheels in the distance, and when I looked again the spectre had disappeared.'

So ended the shepherd's tale; and the landlord who was listening with the rest, said shrewdly:

'Tell us now, Father Martin, did you go to the mountain and find what the spirit promised you; or is it a

'Nay, nay,' answered the graybeard. 'I cannot tell if the spectre lied, for never a step did I go towards finding

the hollow, for two reasons:one was that my neck was too precious for me to risk it in such a snare as that;

the other, that no one could ever tell me where the springroot was to be found.'

"Tis a pity, Father Martin, that your secret has grown old with you. If you had told it forty years ago truly you

would not long have been lacking the springroot. Even though you will never climb the mountain now, I

will tell you, for a joke, how it is to be found. The easiest way to get it is by the help of a black woodpecker.

Look, in the spring, where she builds her nest in a hole in a tree, and when the time comes for her brood to fly

off block up the entrance to the nest with a hard sod, and lurk in ambush behind the tree till the bird returns to

feed her nestlings. When she perceives that she cannot get into her nest she will fly round the tree uttering

cries of distress, and then dart off towards the sunsetting. When you see her do this, take a scarlet cloak, or

if that be lacking to you, buy a few yards of scarlet cloth, and hurry back to the tree before the woodpecker

returns with the springroot in her beak. So soon as she touches with the root the sod that blocks the nest, it

will fly violently out of the hole. Then spread the red cloth quickly under the tree, so that the woodpecker

may think it is a fire, and in her terror drop the root. Some people really light a fire and strew spikenard

blossoms in it; but that is a clumsy method, for if the flames do not shoot up at the right moment away will

The party had listened with interest to this speech, but by the time it was ended the hour was late, and they

went their ways homeward, leaving only one man who had sat unheeded in a corner the whole evening

Master Peter Bloch had once been a prosperous innkeeper, and a mastercook; but he had gone steadily down

Formerly he had been a merry fellow, fond of a joke, and in the art of cooking had no equal in the town. He

could make fishjelly, and quince fritters, and even wafercakes; and he gilded the ears of all his boars'

heads. Peter had looked about him for a wife early in life, but unluckily his choice fell upon a woman whose

evil tongue was well known in the town. Ilse was hated by everybody, and the young folks would go miles

out of their way rather than meet her, for she had some illword for everyone. Therefore, when Master Peter

came along, and let himself be taken in by her boasted skill as a housewife, she jumped at his offer, and they

were married the next day. But they had not got home before they began to quarrel. In the joy of his heart

Peter had tasted freely of his own good wine, and as the bride hung upon his arm he stumbled and fell,

dragging her down with him; whereupon she beat him soundly, and the neighbours said truly that things did

not promise well for Master Peter's comfort. Even when the illmatched couple were presently blessed with

children, his happiness was but short lived, the savage temper of his quarrelsome wife seemed to blight them

Though Master Peter had no great wealth to leave behind him, still it was sad to him to be childless; and he

would bemoan himself to his friends, when he laid one baby after another in the grave, saying: 'The lightning

has been among the cherryblossoms again, so there will be no fruit to grow ripe.'

But, byandby, he had a little daughter so strong and healthy that neither her mother's temper nor her

father's spoiling could keep her from growing up tall and beautiful. Meanwhile the fortunes of the family had

changed. From his youth up, Master Peter had hated trouble; when he had money he spent it freely, and fed

all the hungry folk who asked him for bread. If his pockets were empty he borrowed of his neighbours, but he

always took good care to prevent his scolding wife from finding out that he had done so. His motto was: 'It

will all come right in the end'; but what it did come to was ruin for Master Peter. He was at his wits' end to

know how to earn an honest living, for try as he might illluck seemed to pursue him, and he lost one post

after another, till at last all he could do was to carry sacks of corn to the mill for his wife, who scolded him

This grieved the tender heart of his pretty daughter, who loved him dearly, and was the comfort of his life.

Peter was thinking of her as he sat in the inn kitchen and heard the shepherds talking about the buried

treasure, and for her sake he resolved to go and seek for it. Before he rose from the landlord's armchair his

plan was made, and Master Peter went home more joyful and full of hope than he had been for many a long

day; but on the way he suddenly remembered that he was not yet possessed of the magic springroot, and he

stole into the house with a heavy heart, and threw himself down upon his hard straw bed. He could neither

sleep nor rest; but as soon as it was light he got up and wrote down exactly all that was to be done to find the

treasure, that he might not forget anything, and when it lay clear and plain before his eyes he comforted

himself with the thought that, though he must do the rough work for his wife during one more winter at least,

he would not have to tread the path to the mill for the rest of his life. Soon he heard his wife's harsh voice

singing its morning song as she went about her household affairs, scolding her daughter the while. She burst

open his door while he was still dressing: 'Well, Toper!' was her greeting, 'have you been drinking all night,

Master Peter, who was well used to this sort of talk, did not disturb himself, but waited till the storm blew

'Do not be annoyed, dear wife. I have a good piece of business in hand which may turn out well for us.'

'I am making my will,' said he, 'that when my hour comes my house may be in order.'

These unexpected words cut his daughter to the heart; she remembered that all night long she had dreamed of

a newly dug grave, and at this thought she broke out into loud lamentations. But her mother only cried:

'Wretch! have you not wasted goods and possessions, and now do you talk of making a will?'

And she seized him like a fury, and tried to scratch out his eyes. But byandby the quarrel was patched up,

and everything went on as before. From that day Peter saved up every penny that his daughter Lucia gave

him on the sly, and bribed the boys of his acquaintance to spy out a black woodpecker's nest for him. He sent

them into the woods and fields, but instead of looking for a nest they only played pranks on him. They led

him miles over hill and vale, stock and stone, to find a raven's brood, or a nest of squirrels in a hollow tree,

and when he was angry with them they laughed in his face and ran away. This went on for some time, but at

last one of the boys spied out a woodpecker in the meadowlands among the woodpigeons, and when he

had found her nest in a halfdead alder tree, came running to Peter with the news of his discovery. Peter

could hardly believe his good fortune, and went quickly to see for himself if it was really true; and when he

reached the tree there certainly was a bird flying in and out as if she had a nest in it. Peter was overjoyed at

this fortunate discovery, and instantly set himself to obtain a red cloak. Now in the whole town there was

only one red cloak, and that belonged to a man of whom nobody ever willingly asked a favourMaster

Hammerling the hangman. It cost Master Peter many struggles before he could bring himself to visit such a

person, but there was no help for it, and, little as he liked it, he ended by making his request to the hangman,

who was flattered that so respectable a man as Peter should borrow his robe of office, and willingly lent it to

Peter now had all that was necessary to secure the magic root; he stopped up the entrance to the nest, and

everything fell out exactly as Blaize had foretold. As soon as the woodpecker came back with the root in her

beak out rushed Master Peter from behind the tree and displayed the fiery red cloak so adroitly that the

terrified bird dropped the root just where it could be easily seen. All Peter's plans had succeeded, and he

actually held in his hand the magic rootthat masterkey which would unlock all doors, and bring its

possessor unheardof luck. His thoughts now turned to the mountain, and he secretly made preparations for

his journey. He took with him only a staff, a strong sack, and a little box which his daughter Lucia had given

It happened that on the very day Peter had chosen for setting out, Lucia and her mother went off early to the

town, leaving him to guard the house; but in spite of that he was on the point of taking his departure when it

occurred to him that it might be as well first to test the muchvaunted powers of the magic root for himself.

Dame Ilse had a strong cupboard with seven locks built into the wall of her room, in which she kept all the

money she had saved, and she wore the key of it always hung about her neck. Master Peter had no control at

all of the money affairs of the household, so the contents of this secret hoard were quite unknown to him, and

this seemed to be a good opportunity for finding out what they were. He held the magic root to the keyhole,

and to his astonishment heard all the seven locks creaking and turning, the door flew suddenly wide open,

and his greedy wife's store of gold pieces lay before his eyes. He stood still in sheer amazement, not knowing

which to rejoice over mostthis unexpected find, or the proof of the magic root's real power; but at last he

remembered that it was quite time to be starting on his journey. So, filling his pockets with the gold, he

carefully locked the empty cupboard again and left the house without further delay. When Dame Ilse and her

daughter returned they wondered to find the house door shut, and Master Peter nowhere to be seen. They

knocked and called, but nothing stirred within but the house cat, and at last the blacksmith had to be fetched

to open the door. Then the house was searched from garret to cellar, but no Master Peter was to be found.

'Who knows?' cried Dame Ilse at last, 'the wretch may have been idling in some tavern since early morning.'

Then a sudden thought startled her, and she felt for her keys. Suppose they had fallen into her

goodfornothing husband's hands and he had helped himself to her treasure! But no, the keys were safe in

their usual place, and the cupboard looked quite untouched. Midday came, then evening, then midnight, and

still no Master Peter appeared, and the matter became really serious. Dame Ilse knew right well what a

torment she had been to her husband, and remorse caused her the gloomiest forebodings.

'Ah! Lucia,' she cried, 'I greatly fear that your father has done himself a mischief.' And they sat till morning

As soon as it was light they searched every corner of the house again, and examined every nail in the wall

and every beam; but, luckily, Master Peter was not hanging from any of them. After that the neighbours went

out with long poles to fish in every ditch and pond, but they found nothing, and then Dame Ilse gave up the

idea of ever seeing her husband again and very soon consoled herself, only wondering how the sacks of corn

were to be carried to the mill in future. She decided to buy a strong ass to do the work, and having chosen

one, and after some bargaining with the owner as to its price, she went to the cupboard in the wall to fetch the

money. But what were her feelings when she perceived that every shelf lay empty and bare before her! For a

moment she stood bewildered, then broke into such frightful ravings that Lucia ran to her in alarm; but as

soon as she heard of the disappearance of the money she was heartily glad, and no longer feared that her

father had come to any harm, but understood that he must have gone out into the world to seek his fortune in

About a month after this, someone knocked at Dame Ilse's door one day, and she went to see if it was a

customer for meal; but in stepped a handsome young man, dressed like a duke's son, who greeted her

respectfully, and asked after her pretty daughter as if he were an old friend, though she could not remember

However, she invited him to step into the house and be seated while he unfolded his business. With a great air

of mystery he begged permission to speak to the fair Lucia, of whose skill in needlework he had heard so

much, as he had a commission to give her. Dame Ilse had her own opinion as to what kind of commission it

was likely to bebrought by a young stranger to a pretty maiden; however, as the meeting would be under

her own eye, she made no objection, but called to her industrious daughter, who left off working and came

obediently; but when she saw the stranger she stopped short, blushing, and casting down her eyes. He looked

'Ah! Friedlin, why are you here? I thought you were a hundred miles away. Are you come to grieve me

'No, dearest girl,' answered he; 'I am come to complete your happiness and my own. Since we last met my

fortune has utterly changed; I am no longer the poor vagabond that I was then. My rich uncle has died,

leaving me money and goods in plenty, so that I dare to present myself to your mother as a suitor for your

Lucia's pretty blue eyes had looked up shyly as he spoke, and now a smile parted her rosy lips; and she stole a

glance at her mother to see what she thought about it all; but the dame stood lost in amazement to find that

her daughter, whom she could have declared had never been out of her sight, was already well acquainted

with the handsome stranger, and quite willing to be his bride. Before she had done staring, this hasty wooer

had smoothed his way by covering the shining table with gold pieces as a wedding gift to the bride's mother,

and had filled Lucia's apron into the bargain; after which the dame made no difficulties, and the matter was

While Ilse gathered up the gold and hid it away safely, the lovers whispered together, and what Friedlin told

Now a great hurryburly began in the house, and preparations for the wedding went on apace. A few days

later a heavily laden waggon drove up, and out of it came so many boxes and bales that Dame Ilse was lost in

wonder at the wealth of her future soninlaw. The day for the wedding was chosen, and all their friends and

neighbours were bidden to the feast. As Lucia was trying on her bridal wreath she said to her mother: 'This

weddinggarland would please me indeed if father Peter could lead me to the church. If only he could come

back again! Here we are rolling in riches while he may be nibbling at hunger's table.' And the very idea of

'I should not be sorry myself to see him come backthere is always something lacking in a house when the

But the fact was that she was growing quite tired of having no one to scold. And what do you think

On the very eve of the wedding a man pushing a wheelbarrow arrived at the city gate, and paid toll upon a

barrel of nails which it contained, and then made the best of his way to the bride's dwelling and knocked at

The bride herself peeped out of the window to see who it could be, and there stood father Peter! Then there

was great rejoicing in the house; Lucia ran to embrace him, and even Dame Ilse held out her hand in

welcome, and only said: 'Rogue, mend your ways,' when she remembered the empty treasure cupboard.

Father Peter greeted the bridegroom, looking at him shrewdly, while the mother and daughter hastened to say

all they knew in his favour, and appeared to be satisfied with him as a soninlaw. When Dame Ilse had set

something to eat before her husband, she was curious to hear his adventures, and questioned him eagerly as to

'God bless my native place,' said he. 'I have been marching through the country, and have tried every kind of

work, but now I have found a job in the iron trade; only, so far, I have put more into it than I have earned by

it. This barrel of nails is my whole fortune, which I wish to give as my contribution towards the bride's house

This speech roused Dame Ilse to anger, and she broke out into such shrill reproaches that the bystanders were

fairly deafened, and Friedlin hastily offered Master Peter a home with Lucia and himself, promising that he

should live in comfort, and be always welcome. So Lucia had her heart's desire, and father Peter led her to the

church next day, and the marriage took place very happily. Soon afterwards the young people settled in a fine

house which Friedlin had bought, and had a garden and meadows, a fishpond, and a hill covered with vines,

and were as happy as the day was long. Father Peter also stayed quietly with them, living, as everybody

believed, upon the generosity of his rich sonin law. No one suspected that his barrel of nails was the real

Peter had made the journey to the treasure mountain successfully, without being found out by anybody. He

had enjoyed himself by the way, and taken his own time, until he actually reached the little brook in the

valley which it had cost him some trouble to find. Then he pressed on eagerly, and soon came to the little

hollow in the wood; down he went, burrowing like a mole into the earth; the magic root did its work, and at

last the treasure lay before his eyes. You may imagine how gaily Peter filled his sack with as much gold as he

could carry, and how he staggered up the seventyseven steps with a heart full of hope and delight. He did

not quite trust the gnome's promises of safety, and was in such haste to find himself once more in the light of

day that he looked neither to the right nor the left, and could not afterwards remember whether the walls and

However, all went wellhe neither saw nor heard anything alarming; the only thing that happened was that

the great ironbarred door shut with a crash as soon as he was fairly outside it, and then he remembered that

he had left the magic root behind him, so he could not go back for another load of treasure. But even that did

not trouble Peter much; he was quite satisfied with what he had already. After he had faithfully done

everything according to Father Martin's instructions, and pressed the earth well back into the hollow, he sat

down to consider how he could bring his treasure back to his native place, and enjoy it there, without being

forced to share it with his scolding wife, who would give him no peace if she once found out about it. At last,

after much thinking, he hit upon a plan. He carried his sack to the nearest village, and there bought a

wheelbarrow, a strong barrel, and a quantity of nails. Then he packed his gold into the barrel, covered it well

with a layer of nails, hoisted it on to the wheelbarrow with some difficulty, and set off with it upon his

homeward way. At one place upon the road he met a handsome young man who seemed by his downcast air

to be in some great trouble. Father Peter, who wished everybody to be as happy as he was himself, greeted

'Into the wide world, good father, or out of it, where ever my feet may chance to carry me.'

'It has done nothing to me, nor I to it,' he replied. 'Nevertheless there is not anything left in it for me.'

Father Peter did his best to cheer the young man up, and invited him to sup with him at the first inn they came

to, thinking that perhaps hunger and poverty were causing the stranger's trouble. But when good food was set

before him he seemed to forget to eat. So Peter perceived that what ailed his guest was sorrow of heart, and

'Where is the good, father?' said he. 'You can give me neither help nor comfort.'

'Who knows?' answered Master Peter. 'I might be able to do something for you. Often enough in life help

'I am,' said he, 'a crossbowman in the service of a noble count, in whose castle I was brought up. Not long

ago my master went on a journey, and brought back with him, amongst other treasures, the portrait of a fair

maiden so sweet and lovely that I lost my heart at first sight of it, and could think of nothing but how I might

seek her out and marry her. The count had told me her name, and where she lived, but laughed at my love,

and absolutely refused to give me leave to go in search of her, so I was forced to run away from the castle by

night. I soon reached the little town where the maiden dwelt; but there fresh difficulties awaited me. She lived

under the care of her mother, who was so severe that she was never allowed to look out of the window, or set

her foot outside the door alone, and how to make friends with her I did not know. But at last I dressed myself

as an old woman, and knocked boldly at her door. The lovely maiden herself opened it, and so charmed me

that I came near forgetting my disguise; but I soon recovered my wits, and begged her to work a fine

tablecloth for me, for she is reported to be the best needlewoman in all the country round. Now I was free to

go and see her often under the presence of seeing how the work was going oil, and one day, when her mother

had gone to the town, I ventured to throw off my disguise, and tell her of my love. She was startled at first;

but I persuaded her to listen to me, and I soon saw that I was not displeasing to her, though she scolded me

gently for my disobedience to my master, and my deceit in disguising myself. But when I begged her to

marry me, she told me sadly that her mother would scorn a penniless wooer, and implored me to go away at

'Bitter as it was to me, I was forced to go when she bade me, and I have wandered about ever since, with grief

gnawing at my heart; for how can a masterless man, without money or goods, ever hope to win the lovely

Master Peter, who had been listening attentively, pricked up his ears at the sound of his daughter's name, and

very soon found out that it was indeed with her that this young man was so deeply in love.

'Your story is strange indeed,' said he. 'But where is the father of this maidenwhy do you not ask him for

her hand? He might well take your part, and be glad to have you for his soninlaw.'

'Alas!' said the young man, 'her father is a wandering goodfornaught, who has forsaken wife and child, and

gone off who knows where? The wife complains of him bitterly enough, and scolds my dear maiden when

Father Peter was somewhat amused by this speech; but he liked the young man well, and saw that he was the

very person he needed to enable him to enjoy his wealth in peace, without being separated from his dear

'If you will take my advice,' said he, 'I promise you that you shall marry this maiden whom you love so much,

'Comrade,' cried Friedlin indignantly, for he thought Peter did but jest with him, 'it is ill done to mock at an

unhappy man; you had better find someone else who will let himself be taken in with your fine promises.'

And up he sprang, and was going off hastily, when Master Peter caught him by the arm.

'Stay, hothead!' he cried; 'it is no jest, and I am prepared to make good my words.'

Thereupon he showed him the treasure hidden under the nails, and unfolded to him his plan, which was that

Friedlin should play the part of the rich soninlaw, and keep a still tongue, that they might enjoy their

The young man was overjoyed at this sudden change in his fortunes, and did not know how to thank father

Peter for his generosity. They took the road again at dawn the next morning, and soon reached a town, where

Friedlin equipped himself as a gallant wooer should. Father Peter filled his pockets with gold for the wedding

dowry, and agreed with him that when all was settled he should secretly send him word that Peter might send

off the waggon load of house plenishings with which the rich bridegroom was to make such a stir in the little

town where the bride lived. As they parted, father Peter's last commands to Friedlin were to guard well their

Master Peter long enjoyed the profits of his journey to the mountain, and no rumour of it ever got abroad. In

his old age his prosperity was so great that he himself did not know how rich he was; but it was always

supposed that the money was Friedlin's. He and his beloved wife lived in the greatest happiness and peace,

and rose to great honour in the town. And to this day, when the citizens wish to describe a wealthy man, they

Once upon a time there lived an old man and his wife in a dirty, tumbledown cottage, not very far from the

splendid palace where the king and queen dwelt. In spite of the wretched state of the hut, which many people

declared was too bad even for a pig to live in, the old man was very rich, for he was a great miser, and lucky

besides, and would often go without food all day sooner than change one of his beloved gold pieces.

But after a while he found that he had starved himself once too often. He fell ill, and had no strength to get

The night following his death, the son dreamed that an unknown man appeared to him and said: 'Listen to me;

your father is dead and your mother will soon die, and all their riches will belong to you. Half of his wealth is

illgotten, and this you must give back to the poor from whom he squeezed it. The other half you must throw

into the sea. Watch, however, as the money sinks into the water, and if anything should swim, catch it and

The remembrance of his dream troubled him greatly. He did not want to part with the riches that his father

had left him, for he had known all his life what it was to be cold and hungry, and now he had hoped for a

little comfort and pleasure. Still, he was honest and goodhearted, and if his father had come wrongfully by

his wealth he felt he could never enjoy it, and at last he made up his mind to do as he had been bidden. He

found out who were the people who were poorest in the village, and spent half of his money in helping them,

and the other half he put in his pocket. From a rock that jutted right out into the sea he flung it in. In a

moment it was out of sight, and no man could have told the spot where it had sunk, except for a tiny scrap of

paper floating on the water. He stretched down carefully and managed to reach it, and on opening it found six

The young man stood and looked at it thoughtfully. 'Well, I can't do much with this,' he said to himself; but,

after all, six shillings were better than nothing, and he wrapped them up again and slipped them into his coat.

He worked in his garden for the next few weeks, and he and his mother contrived to live on the fruit and

vegetables he got out of it, and then she too died suddenly. The poor fellow felt very sad when he had laid her

in her grave, and with a heavy heart he wandered into the forest, not knowing where he was going.

Byandby he began to get hungry, and seeing a small hut in front of him, he knocked at the door and asked

if they could give him some milk. The old woman who opened it begged him to come in, adding kindly, that

if he wanted a night's lodging he might have it without its costing him anything.

Two women and three men were at supper when he entered, and silently made room for him to sit down by

them. When he had eaten he began to look about him, and was surprised to see an animal sitting by the fire

different from anything he had ever noticed before. It was grey in colour, and not very big; but its eyes were

large and very bright, and it seemed to be singing in an odd way, quite unlike any animal in the forest. 'What

is the name of that strange little creature?' asked he. And they answered, 'We call it a cat.'

'I should like to buy itif it is not too dear,' said the young man; 'it would be company for me.' And they told

him that he might have it for six shillings, if he cared to give so much. The young man took out his precious

bit of paper, handed them the six shillings, and the next morning bade them farewell, with the cat lying

For the whole day they wandered through meadows and forests, till in the evening they reached a house. The

young fellow knocked at the door and asked the old man who opened it if he could rest there that night,

adding that he had no money to pay for it. 'Then I must give it to you,' answered the man, and led him into a

room where two women and two men were sitting at supper. One of the women was the old man's wife, the

other his daughter. He placed the cat on the mantel shelf, and they all crowded round to examine this strange

beast, and the cat rubbed itself against them, and held out its paw, and sang to them; and the women were

delighted, and gave it everything that a cat could eat, and a great deal more besides.

After hearing the youth's story, and how he had nothing in the world left him except his cat, the old man

advised him to go to the palace, which was only a few miles distant, and take counsel of the king, who was

kind to everyone, and would certainly be his friend. The young man thanked him, and said he would gladly

He sent a message to the king to beg for an audience, and received a reply that he was to go into the great

The king was at dinner with his court when the young man entered, and he signed to him to come near. The

youth bowed low, and then gazed in surprise at the crowd of little black creatures who were running about the

floor, and even on the table itself. Indeed, they were so bold that they snatched pieces of food from the King's

own plate, and if he drove them away, tried to bite his hands, so that he could not eat his food, and his

'What sort of animals are these?' asked the youth of one of the ladies sitting near him.

'They are called rats,' answered the king, who had overheard the question, 'and for years we have tried some

way of putting an end to them, but it is impossible. They come into our very beds.'

At this moment something was seen flying through the air. The cat was on the table, and with two or three

shakes a number of rats were lying dead round him. Then a great scuffling of feet was heard, and in a few

For some minutes the King and his courtiers only looked at each other in astonishment. 'What kind of animal

is that which can work magic of this sort?' asked he. And the young man told him that it was called a cat, and

And the King answered: 'Because of the luck you have brought me, in freeing my palace from the plague

which has tormented me for many years, I will give you the choice of two things. Either you shall be my

Prime Minister, or else you shall marry my daughter and reign after me. Say, which shall it be?'

Once upon a time, in the very middle of the middle of a large kingdom, there was a town, and in the town a

palace, and in the palace a king. This king had one son whom his father thought was wiser and cleverer than

any son ever was before, and indeed his father had spared no pains to make him so. He had been very careful

in choosing his tutors and governors when he was a boy, and when he became a youth he sent him to travel,

so that he might see the ways of other people, and find that they were often as good as his own.

It was now a year since the prince had returned home, for his father felt that it was time that his son should

learn how to rule the kingdom which would one day be his. But during his long absence the prince seemed to

have changed his character altogether. From being a merry and lighthearted boy, he had grown into a

gloomy and thoughtful man. The king knew of nothing that could have produced such an alteration. He vexed

himself about it from morning till night, till at length an explanation occurred to himthe young man was in

Now the prince never talked about his feelingsfor the matter of that he scarcely talked at all; and the father

knew that if he was to come to the bottom of the prince's dismal face, he would have to begin. So one day,

after dinner, he took his son by the arm and led him into another room, hung entirely with the pictures of

'My dear boy,' he said, 'you are very sad; perhaps after all your wanderings it is dull for you here all alone

with me. It would be much better if you would marry, and I have collected here the portraits of the most

beautiful women in the world of a rank equal to your own. Choose which among them you would like for a

'Alas! your Majesty,' answered the prince, 'it is not love or marriage that makes me so gloomy; but the

thought, which haunts me day and night, that all men, even kings, must die. Never shall I be happy again till I

have found a kingdom where death is unknown. And I have determined to give myself no rest till I have

The old king heard him with dismay; things were worse than he thought. He tried to reason with his son, and

told him that during all these years he had been looking forward to his return, in order to resign his throne and

its cares, which pressed so heavily upon him. But it was in vain that he talked; the prince would listen to

nothing, and the following morning buckled on his sword and set forth on his journey.

He had been travelling for many days, and had left his fatherland behind him, when close to the road he came

upon a huge tree, and on its topmost bough an eagle was sitting shaking the branches with all his might. This

seemed so strange and so unlike an eagle, that the prince stood still with surprise, and the bird saw him and

flew to the ground. The moment its feet touched the ground he changed into a king.

'I am condemned to do this, for neither I nor any of my kindred can die till I have rooted up this great tree,'

replied the king of the eagles. 'But it is now evening, and I need work no more today. Come to my house

The prince accepted gratefully the eagle's invitation, for he was tired and hungry. They were received at the

palace by the king's beautiful daughter, who gave orders that dinner should be laid for them at once. While

they were eating, the eagle questioned his guest about his travels, and if he was wandering for pleasure's sake,

or with any special aim. Then the prince told him everything, and how he could never turn back till he had

'Dear brother,' said the eagle, 'you have discovered it already, and it rejoices my heart to think that you will

stay with us. Have you not just heard me say that death has no power either over myself or any of my kindred

till that great tree is rooted up? It will take me six hundred years' hard work to do that; so marry my daughter

and let us all live happily together here. After all, six hundred years is an eternity!'

'Ah, dear king,' replied the young man, 'your offer is very tempting! But at the end of six hundred years we

should have to die, so we should be no better off! No, I must go on till I find the country where there is no

Then the princess spoke, and tried to persuade the guest to change his mind, but he sorrowfully shook his

head. At length, seeing that his resolution was firmly fixed, she took from a cabinet a little box which

'As you will not stay with us, prince, accept this box, which will sometimes recall us to your memory. If you

are tired of travelling before you come to the Land of Immortality, open this box and look at my picture, and

you will be borne along either on earth or in the air, quick as thought, or swift as the whirlwind.'

The prince thanked her for her gift, which he placed in his tunic, and sorrowfully bade the eagle and his

Never was any present in the world as useful as that little box, and many times did he bless the kind thought

of the princess. One evening it had carried him to the top of a high mountain, where he saw a man with a bald

head, busily engaged in digging up spadefuls of earth and throwing them in a basket. When the basket was

full he took it away and returned with an empty one, which he likewise filled. The prince stood and watched

him for a little, till the baldheaded man looked up and said to him: 'Dear brother, what surprises you so

'Oh!' replied the man, 'I am condemned to do this, for neither I nor any of my family can die till I have dug

away the whole of this mountain and made it level with the plain. But, come, it is almost dark, and I shall

work no longer.' And he plucked a leaf from a tree close by, and from a rough digger he was changed into a

stately baldheaded king. 'Come home with me,' he added; 'you must be tired and hungry, and my daughter

will have supper ready for us.' The prince accepted gladly, and they went back to the palace, where the

baldheaded king's daughter, who was still more beautiful than the other princess, welcomed them at the door

and led the way into a large hall and to a table covered with silver dishes. While they were eating, the

baldheaded king asked the prince how he had happened to wander so far, and the young man told him all

about it, and how he was seeking the Land of Immortality. 'You have found it already,' answered the king,

'for, as I said, neither I nor my family can die till I have levelled this great mountain; and that will take full

eight hundred years longer. Stay here with us and marry my daughter. Eight hundred years is surely long

'Oh, certainly,' answered the prince; 'but, all the same, I would rather go and seek the land where there is no

So next morning he bade them farewell, though the princess begged him to stay with all her might; and when

she found that she could not persuade him she gave him as a remembrance a gold ring. This ring was still

more useful than the box, because when one wished oneself at any place one was there directly, without even

the trouble of flying to it through the air. The prince put it on his finger, and thanking her heartily, went his

He walked on for some distance, and then he recollected the ring and thought he would try if the princess had

spoken truly as to its powers. 'I wish I was at the end of the world,' he said, shutting his eyes, and when he

opened them he was standing in a street full of marble palaces. The men who passed him were tall and strong,

and their clothes were magnificent. He stopped some of them and asked in all the twentyseven languages he

knew what was the name of the city, but no one answered him. Then his heart sank within him; what should

he do in this strange place if nobody could understand anything? he said. Suddenly his eyes fell upon a man

dressed after the fashion of his native country, and he ran up to him and spoke to him in his own tongue.

'It is the capital city of the Blue Kingdom,' replied the man, 'but the king himself is dead, and his daughter is

With this news the prince was satisfied, and begged his countryman to show him the way to the young

queen's palace. The man led him through several streets into a large square, one side of which was occupied

by a splendid building that seemed borne up on slender pillars of soft green marble. In front was a flight of

steps, and on these the queen was sitting wrapped in a veil of shining silver mist, listening to the complaints

of her people and dealing out justice. When the prince came up she saw directly that he was no ordinary man,

and telling her chamberlain to dismiss the rest of her petitioners for that day, she signed to the prince to

follow her into the palace. Luckily she had been taught his language as a child, so they had no difficulty in

The prince told all his story and how he was journeying in search of the Land of Immortality. When he had

finished, the princess, who had listened attentively, rose, and taking his arm, led him to the door of another

room, the floor of which was made entirely of needles, stuck so close together that there was not room for a

'Prince,' she said, turning to him, 'you see these needles? Well, know that neither I nor any of my family can

die till I have worn out these needles in sewing. It will take at least a thousand years for that. Stay here, and

'Certainly,' answered he; 'still, at the end of the thousand years I should have to die! No, I must find the land

The queen did all she could to persuade him to stay, but as her words proved useless, at length she gave it up.

Then she said to him: 'As you will not stay, take this little golden rod as a remembrance of me. It has the

Scarcely had he left the town behind him when he came to a broad river which no man might pass, for he was

standing at the end of the world, and this was the river which flowed round it. Not knowing what to do next,

he walked a little distance up the bank, and there, over his head, a beautiful city was floating in the air. He

longed to get to it, but how? neither road nor bridge was anywhere to be seen, yet the city drew him upwards,

and he felt that here at last was the country which he sought. Suddenly he remembered the golden rod which

the mistveiled queen had given him. With a beating heart he flung it to the ground, wishing with all his

might that it should turn into a bridge, and fearing that, after all, this might prove beyond its power. But no,

instead of the rod, there stood a golden ladder, leading straight up to the city of the air. He was about to enter

the golden gates, when there sprang at him a wondrous beast, whose like he had never seen. 'Out sword from

the sheath,' cried the prince, springing back with a cry. And the sword leapt from the scabbard and cut off

some of the monster's heads, but others grew again directly, so that the prince, pale with terror, stood where

The queen of the city heard the noise and looked from her window to see what was happening. Summoning

one of her servants, she bade him go and rescue the stranger, and bring him to her. The prince thankfully

The moment she looked at him, the queen also felt that he was no ordinary man, and she welcomed him

graciously, and asked him what had brought him to the city. In answer the prince told all his story, and how

'You have found it,' said she, 'for I am queen over life and over death. Here you can dwell among the

but they had flown so fast that the time seemed no more than six months. There had not been one instant of

the thousand years that the prince was not happy till one night when he dreamed of his father and mother.

Then the longing for his home came upon him with a rush, and in the morning he told the Queen of the

Immortals that he must go and see his father and mother once more. The queen stared at him with

amazement, and cried: 'Why, prince, are you out of your senses? It is more than eight hundred years since

'Well, do not be in a hurry,' continued the queen, understanding that he would not be prevented. 'Wait till I

make some preparations for your journey.' So she unlocked her great treasure chest, and took out two

beautiful flasks, one of gold and one of silver, which she hung round his neck. Then she showed him a little

trapdoor in one corner of the room, and said: 'Fill the silver flask with this water, which is below the

trapdoor. It is enchanted, and whoever you sprinkle with the water will become a dead man at once, even if

he had lived a thousand years. The golden flask you must fill with the water here,' she added, pointing to a

well in another corner. 'It springs from the rock of eternity; you have only to sprinkle a few drops on a body

The prince thanked the queen for her gifts, and, bidding her farewell, went on his journey.

He soon arrived in the town where the mistveiled queen reigned in her palace, but the whole city had

changed, and he could scarcely find his way through the streets. In the palace itself all was still, and he

wandered through the rooms without meeting anyone to stop him. At last he entered the queen's own

chamber, and there she lay, with her embroidery still in her hands, fast asleep. He pulled at her dress, but she

did not waken. Then a dreadful idea came over him, and he ran to the chamber where the needles had been

kept, but it was quite empty. The queen had broken the last over the work she held in her hand, and with it the

Quick as thought the prince pulled out the golden flask, and sprinkled some drops of the water over the

'Oh, my dear friend, I am so glad you wakened me; I must have slept a long while!'

'You would have slept till eternity,' answered the prince, 'if I had not been here to waken you.'

At these words the queen remembered about the needles. She knew now that she had been dead, and that the

prince had restored her to life. She gave him thanks from her heart for what he had done, and vowed she

The prince took his leave, and set out for the country of the baldheaded king. As he drew near the place he

saw that the whole mountain had been dug away, and that the king was lying dead on the ground, his spade

and bucket beside him. But as soon as the water from the golden flask touched him he yawned and stretched

himself, and slowly rose to his feet. 'Oh, my dear friend, I am so glad to see you,' cried he, 'I must have slept

'You would have slept till eternity if I had not been here to waken you,' answered the prince. And the king

remembered the mountain, and the spell, and vowed to repay the service if he ever had a chance.

Further along the road which led to his old home the prince found the great tree torn up by its roots, and the

king of the eagles sitting dead on the ground, with his wings outspread as if for flight. A flutter ran through

the feathers as the drops of water fell on them, and the eagle lifted his beak from the ground and said: 'Oh,

how long I must have slept! How can I thank you for having awakened me, my dear, good friend!'

'You would have slept till eternity if I had not been here to waken you'; answered the prince. Then the king

remembered about the tree, and knew that he had been dead, and promised, if ever he had the chance, to

At last he reached the capital of his father's kingdom, but on reaching the place where the royal palace had

stood, instead of the marble galleries where he used to play, there lay a great sulphur lake, its blue flames

darting into the air. How was he to find his father and mother, and bring them back to life, if they were lying

at the bottom of that horrible water? He turned away sadly and wandered back into the streets, hardly

knowing where he was going; when a voice behind him cried: 'Stop, prince, I have caught you at last! It is a

thousand years since I first began to seek you.' And there beside him stood the old, whitebearded, figure of

Death. Swiftly he drew the ring from his finger, and the king of the eagles, the baldheaded king, and the

mistveiled queen, hastened to his rescue. In an instant they had seized upon Death and held him tight, till the

prince should have time to reach the Land of Immortality. But they did not know how quickly Death could

fly, and the prince had only one foot across the border, when he felt the other grasped from behind, and the

The Queen of the Immortals was watching from her window, and cried to Death that he had no power in her

'Quite true,' answered Death; 'but his foot is in my kingdom, and that belongs to me!'

'At any rate half of him is mine,' replied the Queen, 'and what good can the other half do you? Half a man is

no use, either to you or to me! But this once I will allow you to cross into my kingdom, and we will decide by

And so it was settled. Death stepped across the narrow line that surrounds the Land of Immortality, and the

queen proposed the wager which was to decide the prince's fate. 'I will throw him up into the sky,' she said,

'right to the back of the morning star, and if he falls down into this city, then he is mine. But if he should fall

In the middle of the city was a great open square, and here the queen wished the wager to take place. When

all was ready, she put her foot under the foot of the prince and swung him into the air. Up, up, he went, high

amongst the stars, and no man's eyes could follow him. Had she thrown him up straight? the queen wondered

anxiously, for, if not, he would fall outside the walls, and she would lose him for ever. The moments seemed

long while she and Death stood gazing up into the air, waiting to know whose prize the prince would be.

Suddenly they both caught sight of a tiny speck no bigger than a wasp, right up in the blue. Was he coming

straight? No! Yes! But as he was nearing the city, a light wind sprang up, and swayed him in the direction of

the wall. Another second and he would have fallen half over it, when the queen sprang forward, seized him in

her arms, and flung him into the castle. Then she commanded her servants to cast Death out of the city, which

they did, with such hard blows that he never dared to show his face again in the Land of Immortality.

Once upon a time there lived a stonecutter, who went every day to a great rock in the side of a big mountain

and cut out slabs for gravestones or for houses. He understood very well the kinds of stones wanted for the

different purposes, and as he was a careful workman he had plenty of customers. For a long time he was quite

Now in the mountain dwelt a spirit which now and then appeared to men, and helped them in many ways to

become rich and prosperous. The stonecutter, however, had never seen this spirit, and only shook his head,

with an unbelieving air, when anyone spoke of it. But a time was coming when he learned to change his

One day the stonecutter carried a gravestone to the house of a rich man, and saw there all sorts of beautiful

things, of which he had never even dreamed. Suddenly his daily work seemed to grow harder and heavier,

and he said to himself: 'Oh, if only I were a rich man, and could sleep in a bed with silken curtains and golden

At the sound of the voice the stonecutter looked round, but could see nobody. He thought it was all his

fancy, and picked up his tools and went home, for he did not feel inclined to do any more work that day. But

when he reached the little house where he lived, he stood still with amazement, for instead of his wooden hut

was a stately palace filled with splendid furniture, and most splendid of all was the bed, in every respect like

the one he had envied. He was nearly beside himself with joy, and in his new life the old one was soon

It was now the beginning of summer, and each day the sun blazed more fiercely. One morning the heat was

so great that the stonecutter could scarcely breathe, and he determined he would stay at home till the

evening. He was rather dull, for he had never learned how to amuse himself, and was peeping through the

closed blinds to see what was going on in the street, when a little carriage passed by, drawn by servants

dressed in blue and silver. In the carriage sat a prince, and over his head a golden umbrella was held, to

'Oh, if I were only a prince!' said the stonecutter to himself, as the carriage vanished round the corner. 'Oh,

if I were only a prince, and could go in such a carriage and have a golden umbrella held over me, how happy

And the voice of the mountain spirit answered: 'Your wish is heard; a prince you shall be.'

And a prince he was. Before his carriage rode one company of men and another behind it; servants dressed in

scarlet and gold bore him along, the coveted umbrella was held over his head, everything heart could desire

was his. But yet it was not enough. He looked round still for something to wish for, and when he saw that in

spite of the water he poured on his grass the rays of the sun scorched it, and that in spite of the umbrella held

over his head each day his face grew browner and browner, he cried in his anger: 'The sun is mightier than I;

And the sun he was, and felt himself proud in his power. He shot his beams above and below, on earth and in

heaven; he burnt up the grass in the fields and scorched the faces of princes as well as of poorer folk. But in a

short time he began to grow tired of his might, for there seemed nothing left for him to do. Discontent once

more filled his soul, and when a cloud covered his face, and hid the earth from him, he cried in his anger:

'Does the cloud hold captive my rays, and is it mightier than I? Oh, that I were a cloud, and mightier than

And a cloud he was, and lay between the sun and the earth. He caught the sun's beams and held them, and to

his joy the earth grew green again and flowers blossomed. But that was not enough for him, and for days and

weeks he poured forth rain till the rivers overflowed their banks, and the crops of rice stood in water. Towns

and villages were destroyed by the power of the rain, only the great rock on the mountain side remained

unmoved. The cloud was amazed at the sight, and cried in wonder: 'Is the rock, then, mightier than I? Oh, if I

And the rock he was, and gloried in his power. Proudly he stood, and neither the heat of the sun nor the force

of the rain could move him. 'This is better than all!' he said to himself. But one day he heard a strange noise at

his feet, and when he looked down to see what it could be, he saw a stonecutter driving tools into his

surface. Even while he looked a trembling feeling ran all through him, and a great block broke off and fell

upon the ground. Then he cried in his wrath: 'Is a mere child of earth mightier than a rock? Oh, if I were only

And the mountain spirit answered: 'Your wish is heard. A man once more you shall be!'

And a man he was, and in the sweat of his brow he toiled again at his trade of stonecutting. His bed was

hard and his food scanty, but he had learned to be satisfied with it, and did not long to be something or

somebody else. And as he never asked for things he had not got, or desired to be greater and mightier than

other people, he was happy at last, and heard the voice of the mountain spirit no longer.

Once upon a time there lived a great king who had a wife and one son whom he loved very much. The boy

was still young when, one day, the king said to his wife: 'I feel that the hour of my death draws near, and I

want you to promise that you will never take another husband but will give up your life to the care of our

The queen burst into tears at these words, and sobbed out that she would never, never marry again, and that

her son's welfare should be her first thought as long as she lived. Her promise comforted the troubled heart of

the king, and a few days after he died, at peace with himself and with the world.

But no sooner was the breath out of his body, than the queen said to herself, 'To promise is one thing, and to

keep is quite another.' And hardly was the last spadeful of earth flung over the coffin than she married a noble

from a neighbouring country, and got him made king instead of the young prince. Her new husband was a

cruel, wicked man, who treated his stepson very badly, and gave him scarcely anything to eat, and only rags

Now by the palace grounds there ran a brook, but instead of being a waterbrook it was a milkbrook, and

both rich and poor flocked to it daily and drew as much milk as they chose. The first thing the new king did

when he was seated on the throne, was to forbid anyone to go near the brook, on pain of being seized by the

watchmen. And this was purely spite, for there was plenty of milk for everybody.

For some days no one dared venture near the banks of the stream, but at length some of the watchmen noticed

that early in the mornings, just at dawn, a man with a gold beard came down to the brook with a pail, which

he filled up to the brim with milk, and then vanished like smoke before they could get near enough to see

At first the king would not believe their story, but as they persisted it was quite true, he said that he would go

and watch the stream that night himself. With the earliest streaks of dawn the goldbearded man appeared,

and filled his pail as before. Then in an instant he had vanished, as if the earth had swallowed him up.

The king stood staring with eyes and mouth open at the place where the man had disappeared. He had never

seen him before, that was certain; but what mattered much more was how to catch him, and what should be

done with him when he was caught? He would have a cage built as a prison for him, and everyone would talk

of it, for in other countries thieves were put in prison, and it was long indeed since any king had used a cage.

It was all very well to plan, and even to station a watchman behind every bush, but it was of no use, for the

man was never caught. They would creep up to him softly on the grass, as he was stooping to fill his pail, and

just as they stretched out their hands to seize him, he vanished before their eyes. Time after time this

happened, till the king grew mad with rage, and offered a large reward to anyone who could tell him how to

The first person that came with a scheme was an old soldier who promised the king that if he would only put

some bread and bacon and a flask of wine on the bank of the stream, the goldbearded man would be sure to

eat and drink, and they could shake some powder into the wine, which would send him to sleep at once. After

This idea pleased the king, and he ordered bread and bacon and a flask of drugged wine to be placed on the

bank of the stream, and the watchers to be redoubled. Then, full of hope, he awaited the result.

Everything turned out just as the soldier had said. Early next morning the goldbearded man came down to

the brook, ate, drank, and fell sound asleep, so that the watchers easily bound him, and carried him off to the

palace. In a moment the king had him fast in the golden cage, and showed him, with ferocious joy, to the

strangers who were visiting his court. The poor captive, when he awoke from his drunken sleep, tried to talk

to them, but no one would listen to him, so he shut himself up altogether, and the people who came to stare

took him for a dumb man of the woods. He wept and moaned to himself all day, and would hardly touch

food, though, in dread that he should die and escape his tormentors, the king ordered his head cook to send

The goldbearded man had been in captivity about a month, when the king was forced to make war upon a

neighbouring country, and left the palace, to take command of his army. But before he went he called his

'Listen, boy, to what I tell you. While I am away I trust the care of my prisoner to you. See that he has plenty

to eat and drink, but he careful that he does not escape, or even walk about the room. If I return and find him

The young prince was thankful that his stepfather was going to the war, and secretly hoped he might never

come back. Directly he had ridden off the boy went to the room where the cage was kept, and never left it

One day he was shooting at a mark with a silver bow; one of his arrows fell into the golden cage.

'Please give me my arrow,' said the prince, running up to him; but the goldbearded man answered:

'I may not let you out,' replied the boy, 'for if I do my stepfather says that I shall have to die a horrible death

when he returns from the war. My arrow can be of no use to you, so give it to me.'

The man handed the arrow through the bars, but when he had done so he begged harder than ever that the

prince would open the door and set him free. Indeed, he prayed so earnestly that the prince's heart was

touched, for he was a tenderhearted boy who pitied the sorrows of other people. So he shot back the bolt,

'I will repay you a thousand fold for that good deed.' said the man, and then he vanished. The prince began to

think what he should say to the king when he came back; then he wondered whether it would be wise to wait

for his stepfather's return and run the risk of the dreadful death which had been promised him. 'No,' he said to

himself, 'I am afraid to stay. Perhaps the world will be kinder to me than he has been.'

Unseen he stole out when twilight fell, and for many days he wandered over mountains and through forests

and valleys without knowing where he was going or what he should do. He had only the berries for food,

when, one morning, he saw a woodpigeon sitting on a bough. In an instant he had fitted an arrow to his

bow, and was taking aim at the bird, thinking what a good meal he would make off him, when his weapon

'Do not shoot, I implore you, noble prince! I have two little sons at home, and they will die of hunger if I am

'You have forgotten,' answered the woodpigeon, 'the proverb that runs, "mountain and mountain can never

meet, but one living creature can always come across another."' The boy laughed at this speech and went his

Byandby he reached the edge of a lake, and flying towards some rushes which grew near the shore he

beheld a wild duck. Now, in the days that the king, his father, was alive, and he had everything to eat he

could possibly wish for, the prince always had wild duck for his birthday dinner, so he quickly fitted an arrow

'Do not shoot, I pray you, noble prince!' cried the wild duck; 'I have two little sons at home; they will die of

'Oh, prince! I will repay your deed of mercy,' exclaimed the grateful wild duck.

'You have forgotten,' answered the wild duck, 'the proverb that runs, "mountain and mountain can never

meet, but one living creature can always come across another."' The boy laughed at this speech and went his

He had not wandered far from the shores of the lake, when he noticed a stork standing on one leg, and again

'Do not shoot, I pray you, noble prince,' cried the stork; 'I have two little sons at home; they will die of hunger

'You have forgotten,' answered the stork, 'the proverb that runs, "mountain and mountain can never meet, but

The boy laughed at hearing these words again, and walked slowly on. He had not gone far, when he fell in

The boy was glad of company and they went on, and on, and on, through seven kingdoms, without finding

anything they were able to do. At length they reached a palace, and there was the king standing on the steps.

So the king told the soldiers that they might become his coachmen; but he made the boy his companion, and

gave him rooms near his own. The soldiers were dreadfully angry when they heard this, for of course they did

not know that the boy was really a prince; and they soon began to lay their heads together to plot his ruin.

'Your Majesty,' they said, 'we think it our duty to tell you that your new companion has boasted to us that if

he were only your steward he would not lose a single grain of corn out of the storehouses. Now, if your

Majesty would give orders that a sack of wheat should be mixed with one of barley, and would send for the

youth, and command him to separate the grains one from another, in two hours' time, you would soon see

The king, who was weak, listened to what these wicked men had told him, and desired the prince to have the

contents of the sack piled into two heaps by the time that he returned from his council. 'If you succeed,' he

added, 'you shall be my steward, but if you fail, I will put you to death on the spot.'

The unfortunate prince declared that he had never made any such boast as was reported; but it was all in vain.

The king did not believe him, and turning him into an empty room, bade his servants carry in the huge sack

The prince hardly knew where to begin, and indeed if he had had a thousand people to help him, and a week

to do it in, he could never have finished his task. So he flung himself on the ground in despair, and covered

'How can I help weeping at the task set me by the king. For he says, if I fail to do it, I shall die a horrible

'Oh, there is really nothing to cry about,' answered the woodpigeon soothingly. 'I am the king of the

woodpigeons, whose life you spared when you were hungry. And now I will repay my debt, as I promised.'

So saying he flew out of the window, leaving the prince with some hope in his heart.

In a few minutes he returned, followed by a cloud of woodpigeons, so dense that it seemed to fill the room.

Their king showed them what they had to do, and they set to work so hard that the grain was sorted into two

heaps long before the council was over. When the king came back he could not believe his eyes; but search as

he might through the two heaps, he could not find any barley among the wheat, or any wheat amongst the

barley. So he praised the prince for his industry and cleverness, and made him his steward at once.

This made the two soldiers more envious still, and they began to hatch another plot.

'Your Majesty,' they said to the king, one day, as he was standing on the steps of the palace, 'that fellow has

been boasting again, that if he had the care of your treasures not so much as a gold pin should ever be lost.

Put this vain fellow to the proof, we pray you, and throw the ring from the princess's finger into the brook,

And the foolish king listened to them, and ordered the prince to be brought before him.

'My son,' he said, 'I have heard that you have declared that if I made you keeper of my treasures you would

never lose so much as a gold pin. Now, in order to prove the truth of your words, I am going to throw the ring

from the princess's finger into the brook, and if you do not find it before I come back from council, you will

It was no use denying that he had said anything of the kind. The king did not believe him; in fact he paid no

attention at all, and hurried off, leaving the poor boy speechless with despair in the corner. However, he soon

remembered that though it was very unlikely that he should find the ring in the brook, it was impossible that

For some time the prince wandered up and down peering into the bottom of the stream, but though the water

was very clear, nothing could he see of the ring. At length he gave it up in despair, and throwing himself

'What is the matter, dear prince?' said a voice just above him, and raising his head, he saw the wild duck.

'The king of this country declares I must die a horrible death if I cannot find the princess's ring which he has

'Oh, you must not vex yourself about that, for I can help you,' replied the bird. 'I am the king of the wild

ducks, whose life you spared, and now it is my turn to save yours.' Then he flew away, and in a few minutes a

great flock of wild ducks were swimming all up and down the stream looking with all their might, and long

before the king came back from his council there it was, safe on the grass beside the prince.

At this sight the king was yet more astonished at the cleverness of his steward, and at once promoted him to

Now you would have thought that by this time the king would have been satisfied with the prince, and would

have left him alone; but people's natures are very hard to change, and when the two envious soldiers came to

'Gracious Majesty,' said they, 'the youth whom you have made keeper of your jewels has declared to us that a

child shall be born in the palace this night, which will be able to speak every language in the world and to

play every instrument of music. Is he then become a prophet, or a magician, that he should know things

At these words the king became more angry than ever. He had tried to learn magic himself, but somehow or

other his spells would never work, and he was furious to hear that the prince claimed a power that he did not

possess. Stammering with rage, he ordered the youth to be brought before him, and vowed that unless this

miracle was accomplished he would have the prince dragged at a horse's tail until he was dead.

In spite of what the soldiers had said, the boy knew no more magic than the king did, and his task seemed

more hopeless than before. He lay weeping in the chamber which he was forbidden to leave, when suddenly

'Someone has told the king that I have prophesied that a child shall be born this night in the palace, who can

speak all the languages in the world and play every musical instrument. I am no magician to bring these

things to pass, but he says that if it does not happen he will have me dragged through the city at a horse's tail

'Do not trouble yourself,' answered the stork. 'I will manage to find such a child, for I am the king of the

The stork flew away and soon returned carrying in his beak a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid it

down near a lute. In an instant the baby stretched out its little hands and began to play a tune so beautiful that

even the prince forgot his sorrows as he listened. Then he was given a flute and a zither, but he was just as

well able to draw music from them; and the prince, whose courage was gradually rising, spoke to him in all

the languages he knew. The baby answered him in all, and no one could have told which was his native

The next morning the king went straight to the prince's room, and saw with his own eyes the wonders that

baby could do. 'If your magic can produce such a baby,' he said, 'you must be greater than any wizard that

ever lived, and shall have my daughter in marriage.' And, being a king, and therefore accustomed to have

everything the moment he wanted it, he commanded the ceremony to be performed without delay, and a

splendid feast to be made for the bride and bridegroom. When it was over, he said to the prince:

'Now that you are really my son, tell me by what arts you were able to fulfil the tasks I set you?'

'My noble fatherinlaw,' answered the prince, 'I am ignorant of all spells and arts. But somehow I have

always managed to escape the death which has threatened me.' And he told the king how he had been forced

to run away from his stepfather, and how he had spared the three birds, and had joined the two soldiers, who

The king was rejoiced in his heart that his daughter had married a prince, and not a common man, and he

chased the two soldiers away with whips, and told them that if they ever dared to show their faces across the

borders of his kingdom, they should die the same death he had prepared for the prince.

Once upon a time there lived a princess who was so beautiful and so good that everybody loved her. Her

father could hardly bear her out of his sight, and he almost died of grief when, one day, she disappeared, and

though the whole kingdom was searched through and through, she could not be found in any corner of it. In

despair, the king ordered a proclamation to be made that whoever could bring her back to the palace should

have her for his wife. This made the young men start afresh on the search, but they were no more successful

Now there dwelt, not far from the palace, an old man who had three sons. The two eldest were allowed by

their parents to do just as they liked, but the youngest was always obliged to give way to his brothers. When

they were all grown up, the eldest told his father that he was tired of leading such a quiet life, and that he

The old people were very unhappy at the thought that they must part with him, but they said nothing, and

began to collect all that he would want for his travels, and were careful to add a pair of new boots. When

For some miles his road lay through a wood, and when he left it he suddenly came out on a bare hillside.

Here he sat down to rest, and pulling out his wallet prepared to eat his dinner.

He had only eaten a few mouthfuls when an old man badly dressed passed by, and seeing the food, asked if

'Not I, indeed!' answered he; 'why I have scarcely enough for myself. If you want food you must earn it.' And

After the young man had finished his dinner he rose and walked on for several hours, till he reached a second

hill, where he threw himself down on the grass, and took some bread and milk from his wallet. While he was

eating and drinking, there came by an old man, yet more wretched than the first, and begged for a few

Towards evening the young man reached an open space in the wood, and by this time he thought he would

like some supper. The birds saw the food, and flew round his head in numbers hoping for some crumbs, but

he threw stones at them, and frightened them off. Then he began to wonder where he should sleep. Not in the

open space he was in, for that was bare and cold, and though he had walked a long way that day, and was

At length he saw a deep sort of hole or cave under a great rock, and as it seemed quite empty, he went in, and

lay down in a corner. About midnight he was awakened by a noise, and peeping out he beheld a terrible

ogress approaching. He implored her not to hurt him, but to let him stay there for the rest of the night, to

which she consented, on condition that he should spend the next day in doing any task which she might

choose to set him. To this the young man willingly agreed, and turned over and went to sleep again. In the

morning, the ogress bade him sweep the dust out of the cave, and to have it clean before her return in the

The young man took the spade, and began to clean the floor of the cave, but try as he would to move it the

dirt still stuck to its place. He soon gave up the task, and sat sulkily in the corner, wondering what

punishment the ogress would find for him, and why she had set him to do such an impossible thing.

He had not long to wait, after the ogress came home, before he knew what his punishment was to be! She just

gave one look at the floor of the cave, then dealt him a blow on the head which cracked his skull, and there

Meanwhile his next brother grew tired of staying at home, and let his parents have no rest till they had

consented that he also should be given some food and some new boots, and go out to see the world. On his

road, he also met the two old beggars, who prayed for a little of his bread and milk, but this young man had

never been taught to help other people, and had made it a rule through his life to keep all he had to himself.

Byandby he, too, came to the cave, and was bidden by the ogress to clean the floor, but he was no more

Anyone would have thought that when the old people had only one son left that at least they would have been

kind to him, even if they did not love him. But for some reason they could hardly bear the sight of him,

though he tried much harder to make them comfortable than his brothers had ever done. So when he asked

their leave to go out into the world they gave it at once, and seemed quite glad to be rid of him. They felt it

was quite generous of them to provide him with a pair of new boots and some bread and milk for his journey.

Besides the pleasure of seeing the world, the youth was very anxious to discover what had become of his

brothers, and he determined to trace, as far as he could, the way that they must have gone. He followed the

road that led from his father's cottage to the hill, where he sat down to rest, saying to himself: 'I am sure my

He was hungry as well as tired, and took out some of the food his parents had given him. He was just going

to begin to eat when the old man appeared, and asked if he could not spare him a little. The young man at

once broke off some of the bread, begging the old man to sit down beside him, and treating him as if he was

an old friend. At last the stranger rose, and said to him: 'If ever you are in trouble call me, and I will help you.

My name is Tritill.' Then he vanished, and the young man could not tell where he had gone.

However, he felt he had now rested long enough, and that he had better be going his way. At the next hill he

met with the second old man, and to him also he gave food and drink. And when this old man had finished he

said, like the first: 'If you ever want help in the smallest thing call to me. My name is Litill.'

The young man walked on till he reached the open space in the wood, where he stopped for dinner. In a

moment all the birds in the world seemed flying round his head, and he crumbled some of his bread for them

and watched them as they darted down to pick it up. When they had cleared off every crumb the largest bird

with the gayest plumage said to him: 'If you are in trouble and need help say, "My birds, come to me!" and

Towards evening the young man reached the cave where his brothers had met their deaths, and, like them, he

thought it would be a good place to sleep in. Looking round, he saw some pieces of the dead men's clothes

and of their bones. The sight made him shiver, but he would not move away, and resolved to await the return

Very soon she came striding in, and he asked politely if she would give him a night's lodging. She answered

as before, that he might stay on condition that he should do any work that she might set him to next morning.

So the bargain being concluded, the young man curled himself up in his corner and went to sleep.

The dirt lay thicker than ever on the floor of the cave when the young man took the spade and began his

work. He could not clear it any more than his brothers had done, and at last the spade itself stuck in the earth

so that he could not pull it out. The youth stared at it in despair, then the old beggar's words flashed into his

And Tritill stood beside him and asked what he wanted. The youth told him all his story, and when he had

finished, the old man said: 'Spade and shovel do your duty,' and they danced about the cave till, in a short

time, there was not a speck of dust left on the floor. As soon as it was quite clean Tritill went his way.

With a light heart the young man awaited the return of the ogress. When she came in she looked carefully

round, and then said to him: 'You did not do that quite alone. However, as the floor is clean I will leave your

The following morning the ogress told the young man that he must take all the feathers out of her pillows and

spread them to dry in the sun. But if one feather was missing when she came back at night his head should

The young man fetched the pillows, and shook out all the feathers, and oh! what quantities of them there

were! He was thinking to himself, as he spread them out carefully, how lucky it was that the sun was so

bright and that there was no wind, when suddenly a breeze sprang up, and in a moment the feathers were

dancing high in the air. At first the youth tried to collect them again, but he soon found that it was no use, and

He had hardly said the words when there they all were; and when the birds had brought all the feathers back

again, Tritill, and Litill, and he, put them away in the pillows, as the ogress had bidden him. But one little

feather they kept out, and told the young man that if the ogress missed it he was to thrust it up her nose. Then

Directly the ogress returned home she flung herself with all her weight on the bed, and the whole cave

quivered under her. The pillows were soft and full instead of being empty, which surprised her, but that did

not content her. She got up, shook out the pillowcases one by one, and began to count the feathers that were

in each. 'If one is missing I will have your head,' said she, and at that the young man drew the feather from his

pocket and thrust it up her nose, crying 'If you want your feather, here it is.'

'You did not sort those feathers alone,' answered the ogress calmly; 'however, this time I will let that pass.'

That night the young man slept soundly in his corner, and in the morning the ogress told him that his work

that day would be to slay one of her great oxen, to cook its heart, and to make drinking cups of its horns,

before she returned home 'There are fifty oxen,' added she, 'and you must guess which of the herd I want

killed. If you guess right, tomorrow you shall be free to go where you will, and you shall choose besides

three things as a reward for your service. But if you slay the wrong ox your head shall pay for it.'

Left alone, the young man stood thinking for a little. Then he called: 'Tritill, Litill, come to my help!'

In a moment he saw them, far away, driving the biggest ox the youth had ever seen. When they drew near,

Tritill killed it, Litill took out its heart for the young man to cook, and both began quickly to turn the horns

into drinking cups. The work went merrily on, and they talked gaily, and the young man told his friends of

the payment promised him by the ogress if he had done her bidding. The old men warned him that he must

ask her for the chest which stood at the foot of her bed, for whatever lay on the top of the bed, and for what

lay under the side of the cave. The young man thanked them for their counsel, and Tritill and Litill then took

Scarcely had they disappeared when the ogress came back, and found everything ready just as she had

ordered. Before she sat down to eat the bullock's heart she turned to the young man, and said: 'You did not do

that all alone, my friend; but, nevertheless, I will keep my word, and tomorrow you shall go your way.' So

When the sun rose the ogress awoke the young man, and called to him to choose any three things out of her

'I choose,' answered he, 'the chest which stands at the foot of your bed; whatever lies on the top of the bed,

'You did not choose those things by yourself, my friend,' said the ogress; 'but what I have promised, that will

'The thing which lay on the top of the bed' turned out to be the lost princess. 'The chest which stood at the

foot of the bed' proved full of gold and precious stones; and 'what was under the side of the cave' he found to

be a great ship, with oars and sails that went of itself as well on land as in the water. 'You are the luckiest man

With much difficulty the youth put the heavy chest on his shoulders and carried it on board the ship, the

princess walking by his side. Then he took the helm and steered the vessel back to her father's kingdom. The

king's joy at receiving back his lost daughter was so great that he almost fainted, but when he recovered

himself he made the young man tell him how everything had really happened. 'You have found her, and you

shall marry her,' said the king; and so it was done. And this is the end of the story.

Long, long ago, a king and queen reigned over a large and powerful country. What their names were nobody

knows, but their son was called Sigurd, and their daughter Lineik, and these young people were famed

There was only a year between them, and they loved each other so much that they could do nothing apart.

When they began to grow up the king gave them a house of their own to live in, with servants and carriages,

For many years they all lived happily together, and then the queen fell ill, and knew that she would never get

'Promise me two things,' she said one day to the king; 'one, that if you marry again, as indeed you must, you

will not choose as your wife a woman from some small state or distant island, who knows nothing of the

world, and will be taken up with thoughts of her grandeur. But rather seek out a princess of some great

kingdom, who has been used to courts all her life, and holds them at their true worth. The other thing I have

to ask is, that you will never cease to watch over our children, who will soon become your greatest joy.'

These were the queen's last words, and a few hours later she was dead. The king was so bowed down with

sorrow that he would not attend even to the business of the kingdom, and at last his Prime Minister had to tell

him that the people were complaining that they had nobody to right their wrongs. 'You must rouse yourself,

sir,' went on the minister, 'and put aside your own sorrows for the sake of your country.'

'You do not spare me,' answered the king; 'but what you say is just, and your counsel is good. I have heard

that men say, likewise, that it will be for the good of my kingdom for me to marry again, though my heart

will never cease to be with my lost wife. But it was her wish also; therefore, to you I entrust the duty of

finding a lady fitted to share my throne; only, see that she comes neither from a small town nor a remote

So an embassy was prepared, with the minister at its head, to visit the greatest courts in the world, and to

choose out a suitable princess. But the vessel which carried them had not been gone many days when a thick

fog came on, and the captain could see neither to the right nor to the left. For a whole month the ship drifted

about in darkness, till at length the fog lifted and they beheld a cliff jutting out just in front. On one side of

the cliff lay a sheltered bay, in which the vessel was soon anchored, and though they did not know where they

The minister left the rest of his followers on board the ship, and taking a small boat rowed himself to land, in

order to look about him and to find out if the island was really as deserted as it seemed.

He had not gone far, when he heard the sound of music, and, turning in its direction, he saw a woman of

marvellous beauty sitting on a low stool playing on a harp, while a girl beside her sang. The minister stopped

and greeted the lady politely, and she replied with friendliness, asking him why he had come to such an

'I am in the same state as your master,' replied the lady; 'I was married to a mighty king who ruled over this

land, till Vikings [searobbers] came and slew him and put all the people to death. But I managed to escape,

And the daughter listened, and said softly to her mother: 'Are you speaking the truth now?'

'Remember your promise,' answered the mother angrily, giving her a pinch which was unseen by the minister.

'Blauvor,' she replied 'and my daughter is called Laufer'; and then she inquired the name of the minister, and

of the king his master. After this they talked of many things, and the lady showed herself learned in all that a

woman should know, and even in much that men only were commonly taught. 'What a wife she would make

for the king,' thought the minister to himself, and before long he had begged the honour of her hand for his

master. She declared at first that she was too unworthy to accept the position offered her, and that the minister

would soon repent his choice; but this only made him the more eager, and in the end he gained her consent,

The minister then conducted the mother and daughter back to the ship; the anchor was raised, the sails spread,

Now that the fog had lifted they could see as they looked back that, except just along the shore, the island was

bare and deserted and not fit for men to live in; but about that nobody cared. They had a quick voyage, and in

six days they reached the land, and at once set out for the capital, a messenger being sent on first by the

When his Majesty's eyes fell on the two beautiful women, clad in dresses of gold and silver, he forgot his

sorrows and ordered preparations for the wedding to be made without delay. In his joy he never remembered

to inquire in what kind of country the future queen had been found. In fact his head was so turned by the

beauty of the two ladies that when the invitations were sent by his orders to all the great people in the

kingdom, he did not even recollect his two children, who remained shut up in their own house!

After the marriage the king ceased to have any will of his own and did nothing without consulting his wife.

She was present at all his councils, and her opinion was asked before making peace or war. But when a few

months had passed the king began to have doubts as to whether the minister's choice had really been a wise

one, and he noticed that his children lived more and more in their palace and never came near their

It always happens that if a person's eyes are once opened they see a great deal more than they ever expected;

and soon it struck the king that the members of his court had a way of disappearing one after the other

without any reason. At first he had not paid much attention to the fact, but merely appointed some fresh

person to the vacant place. As, however, man after man vanished without leaving any trace, he began to grow

Things were in this state when, one day, his wife said to him that it was time for him to make a progress

through his kingdom and see that his governors were not cheating him of the money that was his due. 'And

you need not be anxious about going,' she added, 'for I will rule the country while you are away as carefully

The king had no great desire to undertake this journey, but the queen's will was stronger than his, and he was

too lazy to make a fight for it. So he said nothing and set about his preparations, ordering his finest ship to be

ready to carry him round the coast. Still his heart was heavy, and he felt uneasy, though he could not have

told why; and the night before he was to start he went to the children's palace to take leave of his son and

He had not seen them for some time, and they gave him a warm welcome, for they loved him dearly and he

had always been kind to them. They had much to tell him, but after a while he checked their merry talk and

'If I should never come back from this journey I fear that it may not be safe for you to stay here; so directly

there are no more hopes of my return go instantly and take the road eastwards till you reach a high mountain,

which you must cross. Once over the mountain keep along by the side of a little bay till you come to two

trees, one green and the other red, standing in a thicket, and so far back from the road that without looking for

them you would never see them. Hide each in the trunk of one of the trees and there you will be safe from all

With these words the king bade them farewell and entered sadly into his ship. For a few days the wind was

fair, and everything seemed going smoothly; then, suddenly, a gale sprang up, and a fearful storm of thunder

and lightning, such as had never happened within the memory of man. In spite of the efforts of the frightened

That very night Prince Sigurd had a dream, in which he thought his father appeared to him in dripping

clothes, and, taking the crown from his head, laid it at his son's feet, leaving the room as silently as he had

Hastily the prince awoke his sister Lineik, and they agreed that their father must be dead, and that they must

lose no time in obeying his orders and putting themselves in safety. So they collected their jewels and a few

They hurried on till they arrived at the mountain without once looking back. Then Sigurd glanced round and

saw that their stepmother was following them, with an expression on her face which made her uglier than the

ugliest old witch. Between her and them lay a thick wood, and Sigurd stopped for a moment to set it on fire;

then he and his sister hastened on more swiftly than before, till they reached the grove with the red and green

Now, at that time there reigned over Greece a king who was very rich and powerful, although his name has

somehow been forgotten. He had two children, a son and a daughter, who were more beautiful and

accomplished than any Greeks had been before, and they were the pride of their father's heart.

The prince had no sooner grown out of boyhood than he prevailed on his father to make war during the

summer months on a neighbouring nation, so as to give him a chance of making himself famous. In winter,

however, when it was difficult to get food and horses in that wild country, the army was dispersed, and the

During one of these wars he had heard reports of the Princess Lineik's beauty, and he resolved to seek her

out, and to ask for her hand in marriage. All this Blauvor, the queen, found out by means of her black arts,

and when the prince drew near the capital she put a splendid dress on her own daughter and then went to meet

She bade him welcome to her palace, and when they had finished supper she told him of the loss of her

'But where is the Princess Lineik?' asked the prince when she had ended her tale.

'Here,' answered the queen, bringing forward the girl, whom she had hitherto kept in the background.

The prince looked at her and was rather disappointed. The maiden was pretty enough, but not much out of the

'Oh, you must not wonder at her pale face and heavy eyes,' said the queen hastily, for she saw what was

passing in his mind. 'She has never got over the loss of both father and mother.'

'That shows a good heart,' thought the prince; 'and when she is happy her beauty will soon come back.' And

without any further delay he begged the queen to consent to their betrothal, for the marriage must take place

The queen was enchanted. She had hardly expected to succeed so soon, and she at once set about her

preparations. Indeed she wished to travel with the young couple, to make sure that nothing should go wrong;

but here the prince was firm, that he would take no one with him but Laufer, whom he thought was Lineik.

They soon took leave of the queen, and set sail in a splendid ship; but in a short time a dense fog came on,

and in the dark the captain steered out of his course, and they found themselves in a bay which was quite

strange to all the crew. The prince ordered a boat to be lowered, and went on shore to look about him, and it

was not long before he noticed the two beautiful trees, quite different from any that grew in Greece. Calling

one of the sailors, he bade him cut them down, and carry them on board the ship. This was done, and as the

sky was now clear they put out to sea, and arrived in Greece without any more adventures.

The news that the prince had brought home a bride had gone before them, and they were greeted with flowery

arches and crowns of coloured lights. The king and queen met them on the steps of the palace, and conducted

the girl to the women's house, where she would have to remain until her marriage. The prince then went to his

The next morning the prince bade his attendants bring his future bride to his own apartments, and when she

came he gave her silk which she was to weave into three robesone red, one green, and one blueand

these must all be ready before the wedding. The blue one was to be done first and the green last, and this was

Left alone, Laufer sat and stared at the heap of shining silk before her. She did not know how to weave, and

burst into tears as she thought that everything would be discovered, for Lineik's skill in weaving was as

famous as her beauty. As she sat with her face hidden and her body shaken by sobs, Sigurd in his tree heard

her and was moved to pity. 'Lineik, my sister,' he called, softly, 'Laufer is weeping; help her, I pray you.'

'Have you forgotten the wrongs her mother did to us' answered Lineik, 'and that it is owing to her that we are

But she was not really unforgiving, and very soon she slid quietly out of her hidingplace, and taking the silk

from Laufer's hands began to weave it. So quick and clever was she that the blue dress was not only woven

but embroidered, and Lineik was safe back in her tree before the prince returned.

'It is the most beautiful work I have ever seen,' said he, taking up a bit. 'And I am sure that the red one will be

still better, because the stuff is richer,' and with a low bow he left the room.

Laufer had hoped secretly that when the prince had seen the blue dress finished he would have let her off the

other two; but when she found she was expected to fulfil the whole task, her heart sank and she began to cry

loudly. Again Sigurd heard her, and begged Lineik to come to her help, and Lineik, feeling sorry for her

distress, wove and embroidered the second dress as she had done the first, mixing gold thread and precious

stones till you could hardly see the red of the stuff. When it was done she glided into her tree just as the

'You are as quick as you are clever,' said he, admiringly. 'This looks as if it had been embroidered by the

fairies! But as the green robe must outshine the other two I will give you three days in which to finish it.

Now, as he spoke, there rose up in Laufer's mind all the unkind things that she and her mother had done to

Lineik. Could she hope that they would be forgotten, and that Lineik would come to her rescue for the third

time? And perhaps Lineik, who had not forgotten the past either, might have left her alone, to get on as best

she could, had not Sigurd, her brother, implored her to help just once more. So Lineik again slid out of her

tree, and, to Laufer's great relief, set herself to work. When the shining green silk was ready she caught the

sun's rays and the moon's beams on the point of her needle and wove them into a pattern such as no man had

ever seen. But it took a long time, and on the third morning, just as she was putting the last stitches into the

Lineik jumped up quickly, and tried to get past him back to her tree; but the folds of the silk were wrapped

'I have thought for some time that all was not quite straight here,' said he. 'Tell me who you are, and where

Lineik then told her name and her story. When she had ended the prince turned angrily to Laufer, and

declared that, as a punishment for her wicked lies, she deserved to die a shameful death.

But Laufer fell at his feet and begged for mercy. It was her mother's fault, she said: 'It was she, and not I, who

passed me off as the Princess Lineik. The only lie I have ever told you was about the robes, and I do not

She was still on her knees when Prince Sigurd entered the room. He prayed the Prince of Greece to forgive

Laufer, which he did, on condition that Lineik would consent to marry him. 'Not till my stepmother is dead,'

answered she, 'for she has brought misery to all that came near her.' Then Laufer told them that Blauvor was

not the wife of a king, but an ogress who had stolen her from a neighbouring palace and had brought her up

as her daughter. And besides being an ogress she was also a witch, and by her black arts had sunk the ship in

which the father of Sigurd and Lineik had set sail. It was she who had caused the disappearance of the

courtiers, for which no one could account, by eating them during the night, and she hoped to get rid of all the

people in the country, and then to fill the land with ogres and ogresses like herself.

So Prince Sigurd and the Prince of Greece collected an army swiftly, and marched upon the town where

Blauvor had her palace. They came so suddenly that no one knew of it, and if they had, Blauvor had eaten

most of the strong men; and others, fearful of something they could not tell what, had secretly left the place.

Therefore she was easily captured, and the next day was beheaded in the marketplace. Afterwards the two

Lineik had no longer any reason for putting off her wedding, and married the Prince of Greece at the same

time that Sigurd married the princess. And Laufer remained with Lineik as her friend and sister, till they

found a husband for her in a great nobleman; and all three couples lived happily until they died.

Once upon a time there lived a man who dwelt with his wife in a little hut, far away from any neighbours. But

they did not mind being alone, and would have been quite happy, if it had not been for a marten, who came

every night to their poultry yard, and carried off one of their fowls. The man laid all sorts of traps to catch the

thief, but instead of capturing the foe, it happened that one day he got caught himself, and falling down,

Not long after the marten came by on the look out for his supper. Seeing the dead man lying there, he said to

himself: 'That is a prize, this time I have done well'; and dragging the body with great difficulty to the sledge

which was waiting for him, drove off with his booty. He had not driven far when he met a squirrel, who

The marten laughed and answered: 'Did you ever hear anything so strange? The old man that you see here set

traps about his henhouse, thinking to catch me but he fell into his own trap, and broke his own neck. He is

very heavy; I wish you would help me to draw the sledge.' The squirrel did as he was asked, and the sledge

Byandby a hare came running across a field, but stopped to see what wonderful thing was coming. 'What

have you got there?' she asked, and the marten told his story and begged the hare to help them pull.

The hare pulled her hardest, and after a while they were joined by a fox, and then by a wolf, and at length a

bear was added to the company, and he was of more use than all the other five beasts put together. Besides,

The worst of it was that they soon began to get hungry again, and the wolf, who was the hungriest of all, said

'I suppose we shall have to eat the smallest of us,' replied the bear, and the marten turned round to seize the

squirrel who was much smaller than any of the rest. But the squirrel ran up a tree like lightning, and the

marten remembering, just in time, that he was the next in size, slipped quick as thought into a hole in the

'What shall we eat now?' asked the wolf again, when he had recovered from his surprise.

'We must eat the smallest of us,' repeated the bear, stretching out a paw towards the hare; but the hare was not

a hare for nothing, and before the paw had touched her, she had darted deep into the wood.

Now that the squirrel, the marten, and the hare had all gone, the fox was the smallest of the three who were

left, and the wolf and the bear explained that they were very sorry, but they would have to eat him. Michael,

the fox, did not run away as the others had done, but smiled in a friendly manner, and remarked: 'Things taste

so stale in a valley; one's appetite is so much better up on a mountain.' The wolf and the bear agreed, and they

turned out of the hollow where they had been walking, and chose a path that led up the mountain side. The

fox trotted cheerfully by his two big companions, but on the way he managed to whisper to the wolf: 'Tell

This simple question seemed to put out the wolf very much. What would they have for their next dinner, and,

what was more important still, who would there be to eat it? They had made a rule always to dine off the

smallest of the party, and when the fox was gone, why of course, he was smaller than the bear.

'Dear brothers, would it not be better for us to live together as comrades, and everyone to hunt for the

'It is the best thing I have ever heard,' answered the fox; and as they were two to one the bear had to be

content, though in his heart he would much have preferred a good dinner at once to any friendship.

For a few days all went well; there was plenty of game in the forest, and even the wolf had as much to eat as

he could wish. One morning the fox as usual was going his rounds when he noticed a tall, slender tree, with a

magpie's nest in one of the top branches. Now the fox was particularly fond of young magpies, and he set

about making a plan by which he could have one for dinner. At last he hit upon something which he thought

would do, and accordingly he sat down near the tree and began to stare hard at it.

'What are you looking at, Michael?' asked the magpie, who was watching him from a bough.

'I'm looking at this tree. It has just struck me what a good tree it would be to cut my new snowshoes out of.'

But at this answer the magpie screeched loudly, and exclaimed: 'Oh, not this tree, dear brother, I implore you!

'It will not be easy to find another tree that would make such good snowshoes,' answered the fox, cocking

his head on one side, and gazing at the tree thoughtfully; 'but I do not like to be illnatured, so if you will

Not knowing what to do the poor magpie had to agree, and flying back, with a heavy heart, he threw one of

his young ones out of the nest. The fox seized it in his mouth and ran off in triumph, while the magpie,

though deeply grieved for the loss of his little one, found some comfort in the thought that only a bird of

extraordinary wisdom would have dreamed of saving the rest by the sacrifice of the one. But what do you

think happened? Why, a few days later, Michael the fox might have been seen sitting under the very same

tree, and a dreadful pang shot through the heart of the magpie as he peeped at him from a hole in the nest.

'At this tree. I was just thinking what good snowshoes it would make,' answered the fox in an absent voice, as

'Oh, my brother, my dear little brother, don't do that,' cried the magpie, hopping about in his anguish. 'You

know you promised only a few days ago that you would get your snowshoes elsewhere.'

'So I did; but though I have searched through the whole forest, there is not a single tree that is as good as this.

I am very sorry to put you out, but really it is not my fault. The only thing I can do for you is to offer to give

up my snowshoes altogether if you will throw me down one of your young ones in exchange.'

And the poor magpie, in spite of his wisdom, was obliged to throw another of his little ones out of the nest;

and this time he was not able to console himself with the thought that he had been much cleverer than other

He sat on the edge of his nest, his head drooping and his feathers all ruffled, looking the picture of misery.

Indeed he was so different from the gay, jaunty magpie whom every creature in the forest knew, that a crow

who was flying past, stopped to inquire what was the matter. 'Where are the two young ones who are not in

'I had to give them to the fox,' replied the magpie in a quivering voice; 'he has been here twice in the last

week, and wanted to cut down my tree for the purpose of making snowshoes out of it, and the only way I

Oh, you fool,' cried the crow, 'the fox was only trying to frighten you. He could not have cut down the tree,

for he has neither axe nor knife. Dear me, to think that you have sacrificed your young ones for nothing!

Dear, dear! how could you be so very foolish!' And the crow flew away, leaving the magpie overcome with

The next morning the fox came to his usual place in front of the tree, for he was hungry, and a nice young

magpie would have suited him very well for dinner. But this time there was no cowering, timid magpie to do

'My good fox,' said the magpie putting his head on one side and looking very wise'my good fox, if you

take my advice, you will go home as fast as you can. There is no use your talking about making snowshoes

'Who has been teaching you wisdom?' asked the fox, forgetting his manners in his surprise at this new turn of

'The crow was it?' said the fox, 'well, the crow had better not meet me for the future, or it may be the worse

As Michael, the cunning beast, had no desire to continue the conversation, he left the forest; but when he

came to the high road he laid himself at full length on the ground, stretching himself out, just as if he was

dead. Very soon he noticed, out of the corner of his eye, that the crow was flying towards him, and he kept

stiller and stifer than ever, with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. The crow, who wanted her supper very

badly, hopped quickly towards him, and was stooping forward to peck at his tongue when the fox gave a

snap, and caught him by the wing. The crow knew that it was of no use struggling, so he said:

'Ah, brother, if you are really going to eat me, do it, I beg of you, in good style. Throw me first over this

precipice, so that my feathers may be strewn here and there, and that all who see them may know that your

cunning is greater than mine.' This idea pleased the fox, for he had not yet forgiven the crow for depriving

him of the young magpies, so he carried the crow to the edge of the precipice and threw him over, intending

to go round by a path he knew and pick him up at the bottom. But no sooner had the fox let the crow go than

he soared up into the air, and hovering just out of teach of his enemy's jaws, he cried with a laugh: 'Ah, fox!

With his tail between his legs, the fox slunk into the forest. He did not know where to look for a dinner, as he

guessed that the crow would have flown back before him, and put every one on their guard. The notion of

going to bed supperless was very unpleasant to him, and he was wondering what in the world he should do,

This poor animal had just lost his wife, and was going to get some one to mourn over her, for he felt her loss

greatly. He had hardly left his comfortable cave when he had come across the wolf, who inquired where he

was going. 'I am going to find a mourner,' answered the bear, and told his story.

'Oh, certainly, godfather, certainly,' replied the wolf; but the bear said he should like to have a specimen of

his howling, to make sure that he knew his business. So the wolf broke forth in his song of lament: 'Hu, hu,

hu, hum, hoh,' he shouted, and he made such a noise that the bear put up his paws to his ears, and begged him

A little further down the road the hare was resting in a ditch, but when she saw the bear, she came out and

spoke to him, and inquired why he looked so sad. The bear told her of the loss of his wife, and of his search

after a mourner that could lament over her in the proper style. The hare instantly offered her services, but the

bear took care to ask her to give him a proof of her talents, before he accepted them. 'Pu, pu, pu, pum, poh,'

piped the hare; but this time her voice was so small that the bear could hardly hear her. 'That is not what I

It was after this that the fox came up, and he also was struck with the bear's altered looks, and stopped. 'What

'Yes, beautifully, just listen,' and the fox lifted up his voice and sang weeping: 'Lou, lou, lou! the famous

spinner, the baker of good cakes, the prudent housekeeper is torn from her husband! Lou, lou, lou! she is

'Now at last I have found some one who knows the art of lamentation,' exclaimed the bear, quite delighted;

and he led the fox back to his cave, and bade him begin his lament over the dead wife who was lying

'One cannot wail properly in this cave,' he said, 'it is much too damp. You had better take the body to the

storehouse. It will sound much finer there.' So the bear carried his wife's body to the storehouse, while he

himself went back to the cave to cook some pap for the mourner. From time to time he paused and listened

for the sound of wailing, but he heard nothing. At last he went to the door of the storehouse, and called to the

And the fox, who, instead of weeping over the dead bear, had been quietly eating her, answered:

'There only remain now her legs and the soles of her feet. Give me five minutes more and they will be gone

When the bear heard that he ran back for the kitchen ladle, to give the traitor the beating he deserved. But as

he opened the door of the storehouse, Michael was ready for him, and slipping between his legs, dashed

straight off into the forest. The bear, seeing that the traitor had escaped, flung the ladle after him, and it just

caught the tip of his tail, and that is how there comes to be a spot of white on the tails of all foxes.

Once upon a time there lived a man who had only one son, a lazy, stupid boy, who would never do anything

he was told. When the father was dying, he sent for his son and told him that he would soon be left alone in

the world, with no possessions but the small cottage they lived in and a pear tree which grew behind it, and

that, whether he liked it or not, he would have to work, or else he would starve. Then the old man died.

But the boy did not work; instead, he idled about as before, contenting himself with eating the pears off his

tree, which, unlike other pear trees before or since, bore fruit the whole year round. Indeed, the pears were so

much finer than any you could get even in the autumn, that one day, in the middle of the winter, they

'Dear me; what lovely pears!' he said to the youth. 'Do give me a basket of them. It will bring you luck!'

'Ah, little fox, but if I give you a basketful, what am I to eat?' asked the boy.

'Oh, trust me, and do what I tell you,' said the fox; 'I know it will bring you luck.' So the boy got up and

picked some of the ripest pears and put them into a rush basket. The fox thanked him, and, taking the basket

in his mouth, trotted off to the king's palace and made his way straight to the king.

'Your Majesty, my master sends you a few of his best pears, and begs you will graciously accept them,' he

'Pears! at this season?' cried the king, peering down to look at them; 'and, pray, who is your master?'

'Oh, he has everything he wants,' replied the fox; 'he is richer even than you are, your Majesty.'

'Well, tell him how heartily I thank him, and how much I shall enjoy them.' And the fox went away.

He trotted back to the cottage with his empty basket and told his tale, but the youth did not seem as pleased to

'But, my dear little fox,' said he, ' you have brought me nothing in return, and I am so hungry!'

'Let me alone,' replied the fox; 'I know what I am doing. You will see, it will bring you luck.'

'Ah, little fox, what shall I eat if you take away all my pears?' answered the youth.

'Be quiet, it will be all right,' said the fox; and taking a bigger basket than before, he filled it quite full of

'Your Majesty, as you seemed to like the first basket of pears, I have brought you some more,' said he, 'with

'Now, surely it is not possible to grow such pears with deep snow on the ground?' cried the king.

'Oh, that never affects them,' answered the fox lightly; 'he is rich enough to do anything. But today he sends

'If he is so much richer than I am,' said the king, 'I shall be obliged to refuse. My honour would not permit me

'Oh, your Majesty, you must not think that,' replied the fox; 'and do not let the question of a dowry trouble

you. The Count Piro would not dream of asking anything but the hand of the princess.'

'Did I not tell your Majesty that he was richer than you?' answered the fox reproachfully.

So the fox went back to the young man and said: 'I have told the king that you are Count Piro, and have asked

'Oh, little fox, what have you done?' cried the youth in dismay; 'when the king sees me he will order my head

'Oh, no, he won't!' replied the fox; 'just do as I tell you.' And he went off to the town, and stopped at the house

'My master, the Count Piro, begs that you will send him at once the finest coat that you have in your shop,'

said the fox, putting on his grandest air, 'and if it fits him I will call and pay for it tomorrow! Indeed, as he is

in a great hurry, perhaps it might be as well if I took it round myself.' The tailor was not accustomed to serve

counts, and he at once got out all the coats he had ready. The fox chose out a beautiful one of white and

silver, bade the tailor tie it up in a parcel, and carrying the string in his teeth, he left the shop, and went to a

horsedealer's, whom he persuaded to send his finest horse round to the cottage, saying that the king had

Very unwillingly the young man put on the coat and mounted the horse, and rode up to meet the king, with

'What am I to say to his Majesty, little fox?' he asked anxiously; 'you know that I have never spoken to a king

'Say nothing,' answered the fox, 'but leave the talking to me. "Good morning, your Majesty," will be all that is

By this time they had reached the palace, and the king came to the door to receive Count Piro, and led him to

the great hall, where a feast was spread. The princess was already seated at the table, but was as dumb as

'The Count speaks very little,' the king said at last to the fox, and the fox answered: 'He has so much to think

about in the management of his property that he cannot afford to talk like ordinary people.' The king was

quite satisfied, and they finished dinner, after which Count Piro and the fox took leave.

'Very well, little fox; but remember it may cost me my life,' answered the youth.

'Oh, leave it to me, and do as I tell you, and you will see that in the end it will bring you luck,' answered the

'My master, Count Piro, sends you these pears,' he said, 'and asks for an answer to his proposal.'

'Tell the count that the wedding can take place whenever he pleases,' answered the king, and, filled with

'But I can't bring the princess here, little fox?' cried the young man in dismay.

'You leave everything to me,' answered the fox; ' have I not managed well so far?'

And up at the palace preparations were made for a grand wedding, and the youth was married to the princess.

After a week of feasting, the fox said to the king: 'My master wishes to take his young bride home to his own

'Very well, I will accompany them,' replied the king; and he ordered his courtiers and attendants to get ready,

and the best horses in his stable to be brought out for himself, Count Piro and the princess. So they all set out,

He stopped at the sight of a great flock of sheep, which was feeding peacefully on the rich grass. 'To whom

do these sheep belong?' asked he of the shepherd. 'To an ogre,' replied the shepherd.

'Hush,' said the fox in a mysterious manner. 'Do you see that crowd of armed men riding along? If you were

to tell them that those sheep belonged to an ogre, they would kill them, and then the ogre would kill you! If

they ask, just say the sheep belong to Count Piro; it will be better for everybody.' And the fox ran hastily on,

'What beautiful sheep!' he said, drawing up his horse. 'I have none so fine in my pastures. Whose are they?'

'Well, he must be a very rich man,' thought the king to himself, and rejoiced that he had such a wealthy

Meanwhile the fox had met with a huge herd of pigs, snuffling about the roots of some trees.

'Hush!' whispered the fox, though nobody could hear him; 'do you see that troop of armed men riding towards

us? If you tell them that the pigs belong to the ogre they will kill them, and then the ogre will kill you! If they

ask, just say that the pigs belong to Count Piro; it will be better for everybody.' And he ran hastily on.

'What fine pigs!' he said, reining in his horse. 'They are fatter than any I have got on my farms. Whose are

'Count Piro's,' answered the swineherd, who did not know the king; and again the king felt he was lucky to

This time the fox ran faster than before, and in a flowery meadow he found a troop of horses feeding. 'Whose

'Hush!' whispered the fox, 'do you see that crowd of armed men coming towards us? If you tell them the

horses belong to an ogre they will drive them off, and then the ogre will kill you! If they ask, just say they are

'Oh, what lovely creatures! how I wish they were mine!' he exclaimed. 'Whose are they?'

Count Piro's,' answered the man, who did not know the king; and the king's heart leapt as he thought that if

At last the fox came to the castle of the ogre himself. He ran up the steps, with tears falling from his eyes, and

'Do you see that troop of horsemen who are riding along the road? They are sent by the king to kill you!'

'Well, I will do what I can,' answered the fox. 'The best place is for you both to hide in the big oven, and

The ogre and ogress scrambled into the oven as quick as thought, and the fox banged the door on them; just

'Do us the honour to dismount, your Majesty,' said the fox, bowing low. 'This is the palace of Count Piro!'

'Why it is more splendid than my own!' exclaimed the king, looking round on all the beautiful things that

'His Excellency the Count Piro wished the princess to choose them for herself,' answered the fox, and the

king nodded his approval. He then rode on, leaving the bridal pair in the castle. But when it was dark and all

was still, the fox crept downstairs and lit the kitchen fire, and the ogre and his wife were burned to death. The

'Now that you are rich and happy, you have no more need of me; but, before I go, there is one thing I must

ask of you in return: when I die, promise me that you will give me a magnificent coffin, and bury me with

'Oh, little, little fox, don't talk of dying,' cried the princess, nearly weeping, for she had taken a great liking to

After some time the fox thought he would see if the Count Piro was really grateful to him for all he had done,

and went back to the castle, where he lay down on the doorstep, and pretended to be dead. The princess was

just going out for a walk, and directly she saw him lying there, she burst into tears and fell on her knees

'My dear little fox, you are not dead,' she wailed; 'you poor, poor little creature, you shall have the finest

'A coffin for an animal?' said Count Piro. 'What nonsense! just take him by the leg and throw him into the

Then the fox sprang up and cried: 'You wretched, thankless beggar; have you forgotten that you owe all your

Count Piro was frightened when he heard these words, as he thought that perhaps the fox might have power

to take away the castle, and leave him as poor as when he had nothing to eat but the pears off his tree. So he

tried to soften the fox's anger, saying that he had only spoken in joke, as he had known quite well that he was

not really dead. For the sake of the princess, the fox let himself be softened, and he lived in the castle for

many years, and played with Count Piro's children. And when he actually did die, his coffin was made of

In a tiny cottage near the king's palace there once lived an old man, his wife, and his son, a very lazy fellow,

who would never do a stroke of work. He could not be got even to look after their one cow, but left her to

look after herself, while he lay on a bank and went to sleep in the sun. For a long time his father bore with

him, hoping that as he grew older he might gain more sense; but at last the old man's patience was worn out,

and he told his son that he should not stay at house in idleness, and must go out into the world to seek his

The young man saw that there was no help for it, and he set out with a wallet full of food over his shoulder.

'What do you want?' asked the old man who opened it. And the youth told him how his father had turned him

out of his house because he was so lazy and stupid, and he needed shelter for the night.

'That you shall have,' replied the man; 'but tomorrow I shall give you some work to do, for you must know

The youth made no answer to this. He felt, if he was to be made to work after all, that he might as well have

stayed where he was. But as he did not see any other way of getting a bed, he went slowly in.

The herdsman's two daughters and their mother were sitting at supper, and invited him to join them. Nothing

In the morning, when the young man was dressed, the herdsman called to him and said:

'Yes; but this time you will have to do it properly,' said the herdsman; and he took the youth to the place

where the pigs were feeding, and told him to drive them to the woods on the side of the mountain. This the

young man did, but as soon as they reached the outskirts of the mountain they grew quite wild, and would

have run away altogether, had they not luckily gone towards a narrow ravine, from which the youth easily

'Where do all these pigs come from, and how did you get them?' asked the old man in surprise, when his son

'They belong to the king's chief herdsman,' answered his son. 'He gave them to me to look after, but I knew I

could not do it, so I drove them straight to you. Now make the best of your good fortune, and kill them and

'What are you talking about?' cried the father, pale with horror. 'We should certainly both be put to death if I

'No, no; do as I tell you, and I will get out of it somehow,' replied the young man. And in the end he had his

way. The pigs were killed, and laid side by side in a row. Then he cut off the tails and tied them together with

a piece of cord, and swinging the bundle over his back, he returned to the place where they should have been

feeding. Here there was a small swamp, which was just what he wanted, and finding a large stone, he

fastened the rope to it, and sank it in the swamp, after which he arranged the tails carefully one by one, so that

only their points were seen sticking out of the water. When everything was in order, he hastened home to his

master with such a sorrowful face that the herdsman saw at once that something dreadful had happened.

'Oh, don't speak of them!' answered the young man; 'I really can hardly tell you. The moment they got into

the field they became quite mad, and each ran in a different direction. I ran too, hither and thither, but as fast

as I caught one, another was off, till I was in despair. At last, however, I collected them all and was about to

drive them back, when suddenly they rushed down the hill into the swamp, where they vanished completely,

'No, it is the real truth; come with me and I'll prove it.' And they went together to the spot, and there sure

enough were the points of the tails sticking up out of the water. The herdsman laid hold of the nearest, and

pulled at it with all his might, but it was no use, for the stone and the rope held them all fast. He called to the

young man to help him, but the two did not succeed any better than the one had done.

'Yes, your story was true after all; it is a wonderful thing,' said the herdsman. 'But I see it is no fault of yours.

and I must put up with my loss as well as I can. Now let us return home, for it is time for supper.

Next morning the herdsman said to the young man: 'I have got some other work for you to do. Today you

'I will do my best,' replied the youth. And he opened the gate of the fold, where the sheep had been all night,

and drove them out into the meadow. But in a short time they grew as wild as the pigs had done, and

scattered in all directions. The young man could not collect them, try as he would, and he thought to himself

that this was the punishment for his laziness in refusing to look after his father's one cow.

At last, however, the sheep seemed tired of running about, and then the youth managed to gather them

'Whose sheep are these, and what are they doing here?' asked the old man in wonder, and his son told him.

'No, no,' answered the youth; 'I am not so stupid as that! We will kill them and have them for dinner.'

'Oh, I am not sure of that!' said the son, 'and, anyway, I will have my will for once.' And he killed all the

sheep and laid them on the grass. But he cut off the head of the ram which always led the flock and had bells

round its horns. This he took back to the place where they should have been feeding, for here he had noticed a

high rock, with a patch of green grass in the middle and two or three thick bushes growing on the edge. Up

this rock he climbed with great difficulty, and fastened the ram's head to the bushes with a cord, leaving only

the tips of the horns with the bells visible. As there was a soft breeze blowing, the bushes to which the head

was tied moved gently, and the bells rang. When all was done to his liking he hastened quickly back to his

'Where are the sheep?' asked the herdsman as the young man ran panting up the steps.

'Oh! don't speak of them,' answered he. 'It is only by a miracle that I am here myself.'

The youth began to sob, and stammered out: 'II hardly know how to tell you! Theytheythey were

soso troublesomethat I could not manage them at all. Theyran about inin all directions, and I

Iran after them and nearly died of fatigue. Then I heard aa noise, which II thought was the wind.

Butbutit was the sheep, which, bebefore my very eyes, were carried straight upup into the air. I

stood watching them as if I was turned to stone, but there kept ringing in my ears the sound of the bells on the

'Well, come with me,' said the youth. By this time it was evening and the dusk was falling. The young man

brought the herdsman to the foot of the great rock, but it was so dark you could hardly see. Still the sound of

sheep bells rang softly from above, and the herdsman knew them to be those he had hung on the horns of his

'Yes, I hear; you have spoken the truth, and I cannot blame you for what has happened. I must bear the loss as

He turned and went home, followed by the young man, who felt highly pleased with his own cleverness.

'I should not be surprised if the tasks I set you were too difficult, and that you were tired of them,' said the

herdsman next morning; 'but today I have something quite easy for you to do. You must look after forty

oxen, and be sure you are very careful, for one of them has goldtipped horns and hoofs, and the king

The young man drove out the oxen into the meadow, and no sooner had they got there than, like the sheep

and the pigs, they began to scamper in all directions, the precious bull being the wildest of all. As the youth

stood watching them, not knowing what to do next, it came into his head that his father's cow was put out to

grass at no great distance; and he forthwith made such a noise that he quite frightened the oxen, who were

easily persuaded to take the path he wished. When they heard the cow lowing they galloped all the faster, and

The old man was standing before the door of his hut when the great herd of animals dashed round a corner of

'Whose cattle are these, and why are they here?' he asked; and his son told him the story.

'Take them back to your master as soon as you can,' said the old man; but the son only laughed, and said:

For a long while the old man refused to have anything to do with such a wicked scheme; but his son talked

him over in the end, and they killed the oxen as they had killed the sheep and the pigs. Last of all they came

The son had a rope ready to cast round its horns, and throw it to the ground, but the ox was stronger than the

rope, and soon tore it in pieces. Then it dashed away to the wood, the youth following; over hedges and

ditches they both went, till they reached the rocky pass which bordered the herdsman's land. Here the ox,

thinking itself safe, stopped to rest, and thus gave the young man a chance to come up with it. Not knowing

how to catch it, he collected all the wood he could find and made a circle of fire round the ox, who by this

time had fallen asleep, and did not wake till the fire had caught its head, and it was too late for it to escape.

The young man gasped, and seemed as if he was unable to speak. At last he answered:

'I am telling you the exact truth,' answered the young man. 'Directly we came to the meadow they grew so

wild that I could not keep them together. Then the big ox broke away, and the others followed till they all

disappeared down a deep hole into the earth. It seemed to me that I heard sounds of bellowing, and I thought I

recognised the voice of the golden horned ox; but when I got to the place from which the sounds had come, I

could neither see nor hear anything in the hole itself, though there were traces of a fire all round it.'

'Wretch!' cried the herdsman, when he had heard this story, 'even if you did not lie before, you are lying now.'

'If I find you have deceived me, you are a dead man, said the herdsman; and they went out together.

'What do you call that?' asked the youth. And the herdsman looked and saw the traces of a fire, which seemed

'Wonder upon wonder,' he exclaimed, 'so you really did speak the truth after all! Well, I cannot reproach you,

though I shall have to pay heavily to my royal master for the value of that ox. But come, let us go home! I

will never set you to herd cattle again, henceforward I will give you something easier to do.'

'I have thought of exactly the thing for you,' said the herdsman as they walked along, ' and it is so simple that

you cannot make a mistake. Just make me ten scythes, one for every man, for I want the grass mown in one

At these words the youth's heart sank, for he had never been trained either as a smith or a joiner. However, he

Slowly and sadly he went to bed, but he could not sleep, for wondering how the scythes were to be made. All

the skill and cunning he had shown before was of no use to him now, and after thinking about the scythes for

many hours, there seemed only one way open to him. So, listening to make sure that all was still, he stole

away to his parents, and told them the whole story. When they had heard everything, they hid him where no

Time passed away, and the young man stayed at home doing all his parents bade him, and showing himself

very different from what he had been before he went out to see the world; but one day he said to his father

'When I served the king's chief herdsman,' added he, 'I saw his daughter, and I am resolved to try if I cannot

'Well, I will do my best,' replied his son; 'but first give me the sword which hangs over your bed!'

The old man did not understand what good the sword would do, however he took it down, and the young man

Late in the evening he arrived at the house of the herdsman, and knocked at the door, which was opened by a

'So it is you?' cried the herdsman, when he had received the message. 'Well, you can sleep here tonight if

'I have come for something else besides a bed,' replied the young man, drawing his sword, 'and if you do not

promise to give me your youngest daughter as my wife I will stab you through the heart.'

What could the poor man do but promise? And he fetched his youngest daughter, who seemed quite pleased

Then the young man went home to his parents, and bade them get ready to welcome his bride. And when the

wedding was over he told his fatherinlaw, the herdsman, what he had done with the sheep, and pigs, and

cattle. Byandby the story came to the king's ears, and he thought that a man who was so clever was just the

man to govern the country; so he made him his minister, and after the king himself there was no one so great

Once upon a time there lived an old man who had only one son, whom he loved dearly; but they were very

poor, and often had scarcely enough to eat. Then the old man fell ill, and things grew worse than ever, so he

'My dear boy, I have no longer any food to give you, and you must go into the world and get it for yourself. It

does not matter what work you do, but remember if you do it well and are faithful to your master, you will

So Peter put a piece of black bread in his knapsack, and strapping it on his back, took a stout stick in his

hand, and set out to seek his fortune. For a long while he travelled on and on, and nobody seemed to want

him; but one day he met an old man, and being a polite youth, he took off his hat and said: 'Good morning,' in

a pleasant voice. 'Good morning,' answered the old man; 'and where are you going?'

'Then stay with me, for I can give you plenty,' said the old man, and Peter stayed.

His work did not seem hard, for he had only two horses and a cow to see after, and though he had been hired

for a year, the year consisted of but three days, so that it was not long before he received his wages. In

payment the old man gave him a nut, and offered to keep him for another year; but Peter was homesick;

and, besides, he would rather have been paid ever so small a piece of money than a nut; for, thought he, nuts

grow on every tree, and I can gather as many as I like. However, he did not say this to the old man, who had

The nearer Peter drew to his father's house the more ashamed he felt at having brought back such poor wages.

What could one nut do for him? Why, it would not buy even a slice of bacon. It was no use taking it home, he

might as well eat it. So he sat down on a stone and cracked it with his teeth, and then took it out of his mouth

to break off the shell. But who could ever guess what came out of that nut? Why, horses and oxen and sheep

stepped out in such numbers that they seemed as if they would stretch to the world's end! The sight gave

Peter such a shock that he wrung his hands in dismay. What was he to do with all these creatures, where was

he to put them? He stood and gazed in terror, and at this moment Eisenkopf came by.

'Oh, my friend, there is plenty the matter,' answered Peter. 'I have gained a nut as my wages, and when I

cracked it this crowd of beasts came out, and I don't know what to do with them all!'

'Listen to me, my son,' said Eisenkopf. 'If you will promise never to marry I will drive them all back into the

In his trouble Peter would have promised far harder things than this, so he gladly gave the promise Eisenkopf

asked for; and at a whistle from the stranger the animals all began crowding into the nut again, nearly

tumbling over each other in their haste. When the last foot had got inside, the two halves of the shell shut

No sooner had he reached it than he cracked his nut for the second time, and out came the horses, sheep, and

oxen again. Indeed Peter thought that there were even more of them than before. The old man could not

believe his eyes when he saw the multitudes of horses, oxen and sheep standing before his door.

'How did you come by all these?' he gasped, as soon as he could speak; and the son told him the whole story,

The next day some of the cattle were driven to market and sold, and with the money the old man was able to

buy some of the fields and gardens round his house, and in a few months had grown the richest and most

prosperous man in the whole village. Everything seemed to turn to gold in his hands, till one day, when he

and his son were sitting in the orchard watching their herds of cattle grazing in the meadows, he suddenly

'But, my dear father, I told you I can never marry, because of the promise I gave to Eisenkopf.'

'Oh, one promises here and promises there, but no one ever thinks of keeping such promises. If Eisenkopf

does not like your marrying, he will have to put up with it all the same! Besides, there stands in the stable a

grey horse which is saddled night and day; and if Eisenkopf should show his face, you have only got to jump

on the horse's back and ride away, and nobody on earth can catch you. When all is safe you will come back

And so it all happened. The young man found a pretty, brownskinned girl who was willing to have him for a

husband, and the whole village came to the wedding feast. The music was at its gayest, and the dance at its

'Oh, ho, my brother! what is going on here? It has the air of being a wedding feast. Yet I fanciedwas I

mistaken?that you had given me a promise that you never would marry.' But Peter had not waited for the

end of this speech. Scarcely had he seen Eisenkopf than he darted like the wind to the stable and flung

himself on the horse's back. In another moment he was away over the mountain, with Eisenkopf running fast

On they went through thick forests where the sun never shone, over rivers so wide that it took a whole day to

sail across them, up hills whose sides were all of glass; on they went through seven times seven countries till

'Good day, my son,' answered she, 'and what are you doing here, at the world's end?'

'I am flying for my life, mother, flying to the world which is beyond all worlds; for Eisenkopf is at my heels.'

'Come in and rest then, and have some food, for I have a little dog who will begin to howl when Eisenkopf is

So Peter went in and warmed himself and ate and drank, till suddenly the dog began to howl.

'Quick, my son, quick, you must go,' cried the old woman. And the lightning itself was not quicker than Peter.

'Stop a moment,' cried the old woman again, just as he was mounting his horse, 'take this napkin and this

cake, and put them in your bag where you can get hold of them easily.' Peter took them and put them into his

Round and round he rode, through seven times seven countries, through forests still thicker, and rivers still

wider, and mountains still more slippery than the others he had passed, till at length he reached a house where

'I am flying for my life, mother, flying to the world that is beyond all worlds, for Eisenkopf is at my heels.'

'Come in, my son, and have some food. I have a little dog who will begin to howl when Eisenkopf is still

Then she went to the kitchen and baked a number of cakes, more than Peter could have eaten in a whole

'Now, my son, you must go,' cried the old woman 'but first put these cakes and this napkin in your bag, where

On he rode, through seven times seven countries, till he came to the house of a third old woman, who

welcomed him as the others had done. But when the dog howled, and Peter sprang up to go, she said, as she

gave him the same gifts for his journey: 'You have now three cakes and three napkins, for I know that my

sisters have each given you one. Listen to me, and do what I tell you. Ride seven days and nights straight

before you, and on the eighth morning you will see a great fire. Strike it three times with the three napkins

and it will part in two. Then ride into the opening, and when you are in the middle of the opening, throw the

Peter thanked her for her counsel, and was careful to do exactly all the old woman had told him. On the

eighth morning he reached a fire so large that he could see nothing else on either side, but when he struck it

with the napkins it parted, and stood on each hand like a wall. As he rode through the opening he threw the

cakes behind him. From each cake there sprang a huge dog, and he gave them the names of World'sweight,

Ironstrong, and Quickear. They bayed with joy at the sight of him, and as Peter turned to pat them, he

beheld Eisenkopf at the edge of the fire, but the opening had closed up behind Peter, and he could not get

'Stop, you promisebreaker,' shrieked he; 'you have slipped through my hands once, but wait till I catch you

When Peter knew that he had nothing more to fear from Eisenkopf, he rode on slowly till he came to a small

white house. Here he entered and found himself in a room where a grayhaired woman was spinning and a

beautiful girl was sitting in the window combing her golden hair. 'What brings you here, my son?' asked the

After that Peter's life was a very happy one. He sowed and ploughed all day, except now and then when he

took his dogs and went to hunt. And whatever game he brought back the maiden with the golden hair knew

One day the old woman had gone to the town to buy some flour, and Peter and the maiden were left alone in

the house. They fell into talk, and she asked him where his home was, and how he had managed to come

through the fire. Peter then told her the whole story, and of his striking the flames with the three napkins as he

had been told to do. The maiden listened attentively and wondered in herself whether what he said was true.

So after Peter had gone out to the fields, she crept up to his room and stole the napkins and then set off as fast

At the third blow she gave the flames divided, and Eisenkopf, who had been watching and hoping for a

chance of this kind, ran down the opening and stood before her. At this sight the maiden was almost

frightened to death, but with a great effort she recovered herself and ran home as fast as her legs would carry

her, closely pursued by Eisenkopf. Panting for breath she rushed into the house and fell fainting on the floor;

but Eisenkopf entered behind her, and hid himself in the kitchen under the hearth.

Not long after, Peter came in and picked up the three napkins which the maiden had dropped on the threshold.

He wondered how they got there, for he knew he had left them in his room; but what was his horror when he

saw the form of the fainting girl lying where she had dropped, as still and white as if she had been dead. He

lifted her up and carried her to her bed, where she soon revived, but she did not tell Peter about Eisenkopf,

who had been almost crushed to death under the hearthstone by the body of World'sweight.

The next morning Peter locked up his dogs and went out into the forest alone. Eisenkopf, however, had seen

him go, and followed so closely at his heels that Peter had barely time to clamber up a tall tree, where

Eisenkopf could not reach him. 'Come down at once, you gallows bird,' he cried. 'Have you forgotten your

'Oh, I know it is all up with me,' answered Peter, 'but let me call out three times.'

'You can call a hundred times if you like,' returned Eisenkopf, 'for now I have got you in my power, and you

'Ironstrong, World'sweight, Quickear, fly to my help!' cried Peter; and Quickear heard, and said to his

'You are dreaming, fool,' answered World'sweight; 'why he has not finished his breakfast.' And he gave

This time World'sweight heard also, and he said, 'Ah, now our master is really calling.'

'How silly you are!' answered Ironstrong; 'you know that at this hour he is always eating.' And he gave

Peter sat trembling on the tree dreading lest his dogs had never heard, or else that, having heard, they had

refused to come. It was his last chance, so making a mighty effort he shrieked once more:

And Ironstrong heard, and said: 'Yes, he is certainly calling, we must go at once.' And in an instant he had

burst open the door, and all three were bounding away in the direction of the voice. When they reached the

foot of the tree Peter just said: 'At him!' And in a few minutes there was nothing left of Eisenkopf.

As soon as his enemy was dead Peter got down and returned to the house, where he bade farewell to the old

woman and her daughter, who gave him a beautiful ring, all set with diamonds. It was really a magic ring, but

Peter's heart was heavy as he set out for home. He had ceased to love the wife whom he had left at his

wedding feast, and his heart had gone out to the goldenhaired girl. However, it was no use thinking of that,

The fire had to be passed through before he had gone very far, and when he came to it, Peter shook the

napkins three times in the flames and a passage opened for trim. But then a curious thing happened; the three

dogs, who had followed at his heels all the way, now became three cakes again, which Peter put into his bag

with the napkins. After that he stopped at the houses of the three old women, and gave each one back her

'Oh, my dear son, why did you ever leave us? After you had vanished, no one knew where, your poor wife

grew more and more wretched, and would neither eat nor drink. Little by little she faded away, and a month

At this news Peter began to weep, for he had loved his wife before he went away and had seen the

He went sorrowfully about his work for the space of half a year, when, one night, he dreamed that he moved

the diamond ring given him by the maiden from his right hand and put it on the wedding finger of the left.

The dream was so real that he awoke at once and changed the ring from one hand to the other. And as he did

so guess what he saw? Why, the goldenhaired girl standing before him. And he sprang up and kissed her,

and said: 'Now you are mine for ever and ever, and when we die we will both be buried in one grave.'

Once upon a time there lived a man whose name was Abu Nowas, and he was a great favourite with the

One day Abu Nowas came weeping into the hall of the palace where the Sultan was sitting, and said to him:

'That is bad news,' replied the Sultan; 'I must get you another wife.' And he bade his Grand Vizir send for the

'Oh, then we must get him another,' answered the Sultana; 'I have a girl that will suit him exactly,' and

clapped her hands loudly. At this signal a maiden appeared and stood before her.

'I will take him,' answered the maiden; and as Abu Nowas made no objection, it was all arranged. The Sultana

had the most beautiful clothes made for the bride, and the Sultan gave the bridegroom his wedding suit, and a

So Abu Nowas took his wife home, and for some time they were very happy, and spent the money freely

which the Sultan had given them, never thinking what they should do for more when that was gone. But

come to an end it did, and they had to sell their fine things one by one, till at length nothing was left but a

cloak apiece, and one blanket to cover them. 'We have run through our fortune,' said Abu Nowas, 'what are

we to do now? I am afraid to go back to the Sultan, for he will command his servants to turn me from the

door. But you shall return to your mistress, and throw yourself at her feet and weep, and perhaps she will help

'Well, then, stay at home, if you like,' answered Abu Nowas, 'and I will ask to be admitted to the Sultan's

presence, and will tell him, with sobs, that my wife is dead, and that I have no money for her burial. When he

The Sultan was sitting in the hall of justice when Abu Nowas entered, his eyes streaming with tears, for he

had rubbed some pepper into them. They smarted dreadfully, and he could hardly see to walk straight, and

'We must all die,' answered the Sultan; but this was not the reply for which Abu Nowas had hoped.

'True, O Sultan, but I have neither shroud to wrap her in, nor money to bury her with,' went on Abu Nowas,

'Well, give him a hundred pieces of gold,' said the Sultan, turning to the Grand Vizir. And when the money

was counted out Abu Nowas bowed low, and left the hall, his tears still flowing, but with joy in his heart.

'Yes, a hundred gold pieces,' said he, throwing down the bag, 'but that will not last us any time. Now you

must go to the Sultana, clothed in sackcloth and robes of mourning, and tell her that your husband, Abu

Nowas, is dead, and you have no money for his burial. When she hears that, she will be sure to ask you what

has become of the money and the fine clothes she gave us on our marriage, and you will answer, "before he

The wife did as she was told, and wrapping herself in sackcloth went up to the Sultana's own palace, and as

she was known to have been one of Subida's favourite attendants, she was taken without difficulty into the

'My husband lies dead at home, and he has spent all our money, and sold everything, and I have nothing left

Then Subida took up a purse containing two hundred gold pieces, and said: 'Your husband served us long and

The wife took the money, and, kissing the feet of the Sultana, she joyfully hastened home. They spent some

happy hours planning how they should spend it, and thinking how clever they had been. 'When the Sultan

goes this evening to Subida's palace,' said Abu Nowas, 'she will be sure to tell him that Abu Nowas is dead.

"Not Abu Nowas, it is his wife," he will reply, and they will quarrel over it, and all the time we shall be

sitting here enjoying ourselves. Oh, if they only knew, how angry they would be!'

As Abu Nowas had foreseen, the Sultan went, in the evening after his business was over, to pay his usual visit

'No; really you are quite wrong. She came to tell me herself only a couple of hours ago,' replied Subida, 'and

'You must be dreaming,' exclaimed the Sultan. 'Soon after midday Abu Nowas came into the hall, his eyes

streaming with tears, and when I asked him the reason he answered that his wife was dead, and they had sold

everything they had, and he had nothing left, not so much as would buy her a shroud, far less for her burial.'

For a long time they talked, and neither would listen to the other, till the Sultan sent for the doorkeeper and

bade him go instantly to the house of Abu Nowas and see if it was the man or his wife who was dead. But

Abu Nowas happened to be sitting with his wife behind the latticed window, which looked on the street, and

he saw the man coming, and sprang up at once. 'There is the Sultan's doorkeeper! They have sent him here

to find out the truth. Quick! throw yourself on the bed and pretend that you are dead.' And in a moment the

wife was stretched out stiffly, with a linen sheet spread across her, like a corpse.

She was only just in time, for the sheet was hardly drawn across her when the door opened and the porter

'My poor wife is dead,' replied Abu Nowas. 'Look! she is laid out here.' And the porter approached the bed,

'He only says that to please you,' cried Subida in a rage; and calling to her chamberlain, she ordered him to go

at once to the dwelling of Abu Nowas and see which of the two was dead. 'And be sure you tell the truth

As her chamberlain drew near the house, Abu Nowas caught sight of him. 'There is the Sultana's

chamberlain,' he exclaimed in a fright. 'Now it is my turn to die. Be quick and spread the sheet over me.' And

he laid himself on the bed, and held his breath when the chamberlain came in. 'What are you weeping for?'

'My husband is dead,' answered she, pointing to the bed; and the chamberlain drew back the sheet and beheld

Abu Nowas lying stiff and motionless. Then he gently replaced the sheet and returned to the palace.

'But I tell you he was with me only a few hours ago,' cried the Sultan angrily. 'I must get to the bottom of this

The coach was before the door in another five minutes, and the Sultan and Sultana both got in. Abu Nowas

had ceased being a dead man, and was looking into the street when he saw the coach coming. 'Quick! quick!'

he called to his wife. 'The Sultan will be here directly, and we must both be dead to receive him.' So they laid

themselves down, and spread the sheet over them, and held their breath. At that instant the Sultan entered,

followed by the Sultana and the chamberlain, and he went up to the bed and found the corpses stiff and

motionless. 'I would give a thousand gold pieces to anyone who would tell me the truth about this,' cried he,

and at the words Abu Nowas sat up. 'Give them to me, then,' said he, holding out his hand. 'You cannot give

'Oh, Abu Nowas, you impudent dog!' exclaimed the Sultan, bursting into a laugh, in which the Sultana

joined. 'I might have known it was one of your tricks!' But he sent Abu Nowas the gold he had promised, and

Once upon a time, in a very hot country, a man lived with his wife in a little hut, which was surrounded by

grass and flowers. They were perfectly happy together till, byandby, the woman fell ill and refused to take

any food. The husband tried to persuade her to eat all sorts of delicious fruits that he had found in the forest,

but she would have none of them, and grew so thin he feared she would die. 'Is there nothing you would like?'

'Yes, I think I could eat some wild honey,' answered she. The husband was overjoyed, for he thought this

He came back with a wooden pan quite full, and gave it to his wife. 'I can't eat that,' she said, turning away in

disgust. 'Look! there are some dead bees in it! I want honey that is quite pure.' And the man threw the

rejected honey on the grass, and started off to get some fresh. When he got back he offered it to his wife, who

treated it as she had done the first bowlful. 'That honey has got ants in it: throw it away,' she said, and when

he brought her some more, she declared it was full of earth. In his fourth journey he managed to find some

that she would eat, and then she begged him to get her some water. This took him some time, but at length he

came to a lake whose waters were sweetened with sugar. He filled a pannikin quite full, and carried it home

to his wife, who drank it eagerly, and said that she now felt quite well. When she was up and had dressed

herself, her husband lay down in her place, saying: 'You have given me a great deal of trouble, and now it is

'I am thirsty and want some water,' answered he; and she took a large pot and carried it to the nearest spring,

which was a good way off. 'Here is the water,' she said to her husband, lifting the heavy pot from her head;

'You have drawn it from the pool that is full of frogs and willows; you must get me some more.' So the

'This water tastes of rushes,' he exclaimed, 'go and get some fresh.' But when she brought back a third supply

he declared that it seemed made up of waterlilies, and that he must have water that was pure, and not spoilt

by willows, or frogs, or rushes. So for the fourth time she put her jug on her head, and passing all the lakes

she had hitherto tried, she came to another, where the water was golden like honey. She stooped down to

'It is my husband who has sent me,' she replied, trembling all over. 'But do not kill me! You shall have my

'Oh, that is easily managed. I will shave both sides of his head, and hang some white beads round his neck.

And when you come to the hut you have only to call "Motikatika!" and he will run to meet you, and you can

'Very well,' said the ogre, 'you can go home.' And after filling the pot she returned, and told her husband of

Now, though his mother did not know it, the baby was a magician and he had heard all that his mother had

The next morning she shaved his head on both sides, and hung the white beads round his neck, and said to

him: 'I am going to the fields to work, but you must stay at home. Be sure you do not go outside, or some

As soon as his mother was out of sight, the baby took out some magic bones, and placed them in a row before

him. 'You are my father,' he told one bone, 'and you are my mother. You are the biggest,' he said to the third,

'so you shall be the ogre who wants to eat me; and you,' to another, 'are very little, therefore you shall be me.

'Collect all the babies in the village the same size as yourself,' answered the bones; 'shave the sides of their

heads, and hang white beads round their necks, and tell them that when anybody calls "Motikatika," they are

Motikatika went out directly, and brought back quite a crowd of babies, and shaved their heads and hung

white beads round their little black necks, and just as he had finished, the ground began to shake, and the

'We are all Motikatika,' they replied. And the ogre sat down in bewilderment, for he dared not eat the children

of people who had done him no wrong, or a heavy punishment would befall him. The children waited for a

The ogre remained where he was, till the evening, when the woman returned from the fields.

'I did, but all the babies in the village seemed to be named Motikatika,' answered the ogre; 'you cannot think

The woman did not know what to make of it, so, to keep him in a good temper, she entered the hut and

'Have patience,' answered she; 'I will call him, and you can eat him at once.' And she went into the hut and

'I am coming, mother,' replied he; but first he took out his bones, and, crouching down on the ground behind

'Change yourself into a mouse,' said the bones; and so he did, and the ogre grew tired of waiting, and told the

'Tomorrow I will send him into the field to pick some beans for me, and you will find him there, and can eat

'Very well,' replied the ogre, 'and this time I will take care to have him,' and he went back to his lake.

Next morning Motikatika was sent out with a basket, and told to pick some beans for dinner. On the way to

the field he took out his bones and asked them what he was to do to escape from the ogre. 'Change yourself

into a bird and snap off the beans,' said the bones. And the ogre chased away the bird, not knowing that it was

The ogre went back to the hut and told the woman that she had deceived him again, and that he would not be

'Return here this evening,' answered she, 'and you will find him in bed under this white coverlet. Then you

But the boy heard, and consulted his bones, which said: 'Take the red coverlet from your father's bed, and put

yours on his,' and so he did. And when the ogre came, he seized Motikatika's father and carried him outside

the hut and ate him. When his wife found out the mistake, she cried bitterly; but Motikatika said: 'It is only

just that he should be eaten, and not I; for it was he, and not I, who sent you to fetch the water.'

On one of the great moors over in Jutland, where trees won't grow because the soil is so sandy and the wind

so strong, there once lived a man and his wife, who had a little house and some sheep, and two sons who

helped them to herd them. The elder of the two was called Rasmus, and the younger Niels. Rasmus was quite

content to look after sheep, as his father had done before him, but Niels had a fancy to be a hunter, and was

not happy till he got hold of a gun and learned to shoot. It was only an old muzzleloading flintlock after

all, but Niels thought it a great prize, and went about shooting at everything he could see. So much did he

practice that in the long run he became a wonderful shot, and was heard of even where he had never been

seen. Some people said there was very little in him beyond this, but that was an idea they found reason to

The parents of Rasmus and Niels were good Catholics, and when they were getting old the mother took it into

her head that she would like to go to Rome and see the Pope. The others didn't see much use in this, but she

had her way in the end: they sold all the sheep, shut up the house, and set out for Rome on foot. Niels took

'What do you want with that?' said Rasmus; 'we have plenty to carry without it.' But Niels could not be happy

It was in the hottest part of summer that they began their journey, so hot that they could not travel at all in the

middle of the day, and they were afraid to do it by night lest they might lose their way or fall into the hands

of robbers. One day, a little before sunset, they came to an inn which lay at the edge of a forest.

'What an idea!' said Niels, who was growing impatient at the slow progress they were making. 'We can't

travel by day for the heat, and we remain where we are all night. It will be long enough before we get to

Rasmus was unwilling to go on, but the two old people sided with Niels, who said, 'The nights aren't dark,

and the moon will soon be up. We can ask at the inn here, and find out which way we ought to take.'

So they held on for some time, but at last they came to a small opening in the forest, and here they found that

the road split in two. There was no signpost to direct them, and the people in the inn had not told them

'What's to be done now?' said Rasmus. 'I think we had better have stayed at the inn.'

'There's no harm done,' said Niels. 'The night is warm, and we can wait here till morning. One of us will keep

Rasmus chose to take the first watch, and the others lay down to sleep. It was very quiet in the forest, and

Rasmus could hear the deer and foxes and other animals moving about among the rustling leaves. After the

moon rose he could see them occasionally, and when a big stag came quite close to him he got hold of Niels'

'That's nothing,' said Niels. 'I've often shot a sparrow, which is a much more difficult thing to do.'

It was now close on midnight, so Niels began his watch, and Rasmus went to sleep. It began to get colder,

and Niels began to walk about a little to keep himself warm. He soon found that they were not far from the

edge of the forest, and when he climbed up one of the trees there he could see out over the open country

beyond. At a little distance he saw a fire, and beside it there sat three giants, busy with broth and beef. They

were so huge that the spoons they used were as large as spades, and their forks as big as hayforks: with

these they lifted whole bucketfuls of broth and great joints of meat out of an enormous pot which was set on

the ground between them. Niels was startled and rather scared at first, but he comforted himself with the

thought that the giants were a good way off, and that if they came nearer he could easily hide among the

bushes. After watching them for a little, however, he began to get over his alarm, and finally slid down the

When he had climbed back to his former position, he took good aim, and waited till one of the giants was just

in the act of putting a large piece of meat into his mouth. Bang! went Niels' gun, and the bullet struck the

handle of the fork so hard that the point went into the giant's chin, instead of his mouth.

'None of your tricks,' growled the giant to the one who sat next him. 'What do you mean by hitting my fork

'I never touched your fork,' said the other. 'Don't try to get up a quarrel with me.'

'Look at it, then,' said the first. 'Do you suppose I stuck it into my own chin for fun?'

The two got so angry over the matter that each offered to fight the other there and then, but the third giant

While the quarrel was going on, Niels had loaded the gun again, and just as the second giant was about to put

a nice titbit into his mouth, bang! went the gun again, and the fork flew into a dozen pieces.

This giant was even more furious than the first had been, and words were just coming to blows, when the

'Don't be fools,' he said to them; 'what's the good of beginning to fight among ourselves, when it is so

necessary for the three of us to work together and get the upper hand over the king of this country. It will be a

hard enough task as it is, but it will be altogether hopeless if we don't stick together. Sit down again, and let

us finish our meal; I shall sit between you, and then neither of you can blame the other.'

Niels was too far away to hear their talk, but from their gestures he could guess what was happening, and

This time it was the third giant's fork that caught the bullet, and snapped in two.

'Well,' said he, 'if I were as foolish as you two, I would also fly into a rage, but I begin to see what time of

day it is, and I'm going off this minute to see who it is that's playing these tricks with us.'

So well had the giant made his observations, that though Niels climbed down the tree as fast as he could, so

as to hide among the bushes, he had just got to the ground when the enemy was upon him.

'Stay where you are,' said the giant, 'or I'll put my foot on you, and there won't be much of you left after that.'

'You don't deserve any mercy at our hands,' said his captor 'but as you are such a good shot you may be of

great use to us, so we shall spare your life, if you will do us a service. Not far from here there stands a castle,

in which the king's daughter lives; we are at war with the king, and want to get the upper hand of him by

carrying off the princess, but the castle is so well guarded that there is no getting into it. By our skill in magic

we have cast sleep on every living thing in the castle, except a little black dog, and, as long as he is awake,

we are no better off than before; for, as soon as we begin to climb over the wall, the little dog will hear us,

and its barking will waken all the others again. Having got you, we can place you where you will be able to

shoot the dog before it begins to bark, and then no one can hinder us from getting the princess into our hands.

Niels had to consent, and the giants set out for the castle at once. It was surrounded by a very high rampart, so

high that even the giants could not touch the top of it. 'How am I to get over that?' said Niels.

'No, thanks,' said Niels. 'I might fall down on the other side, or break my leg or neck, and then the little dog

'No fear of that,' said the giant; 'the rampart is quite wide on the top, and covered with long grass, so that you

Niels had to believe him, and allowed the giant to throw him up. He came down on his feet quite unhurt, but

the little black dog heard the dump, and rushed out of its kennel at once. It was just opening its mouth to

'Go down on the inside now,' said the giant, 'and see if you can open the gate to us.'

Niels made his way down into the courtyard, but on his way to the outer gate he found himself at the entrance

to the large hall of the castle. The door was open, and the hall was brilliantly lighted, though there was no one

to be seen. Niels went in here and looked round him: on the wall there hung a huge sword without a sheath,

and beneath it was a large drinkinghorn, mounted with silver. Niels went closer to look at these, and saw

that the horn had letters engraved on the silver rim: when he took it down and turned it round, he found that

Niels took out the silver stopper of the horn, and drank some of the wine, but when he tried to take down the

sword he found himself unable to move it. So he hung up the horn again, and went further in to the castle.

Before long he came to an apartment in which a beautiful princess lay asleep in a bed, and on a table by her

side there lay a goldhemmed handkerchief. Niels tore this in two, and put one half in his pocket, leaving the

other half on the table. On the floor he saw a pair of goldembroidered slippers, and one of these he also put

in his pocket. After that he went back to the hall, and took down the horn again. 'Perhaps I have to drink all

that is in it before I can move the sword,' he thought; so he put it to his lips again and drank till it was quite

empty. When he had done this, he could wield the sword with the greatest of ease, and felt himself strong

enough to do anything, even to fight the giants he had left outside, who were no doubt wondering why he had

not opened the gate to them before this time. To kill the giants, he thought, would be using the sword for the

right; but as to winning the love of the princess, that was a thing which the son of a poor sheepfarmer need

When Niels came to the gate of the castle, he found that there was a large door and a small one, so he opened

'Can't you open the big door?' said the giants; 'we shall hardly be able to get in at this one.'

'The bars are too heavy for me to draw,' said Niels; 'if you stoop a little you can quite well come in here.' The

first giant accordingly bent down and entered in a stooping posture, but before he had time to straighten his

back again Niels made a sweep with the sword, and oft went the giant's head. To push the body aside as it fell

was quite easy for Niels, so strong had the wine made him, and the second giant as he entered met the same

reception. The third was slower in coming, so Niels called out to him: 'Be quick,' he said, 'you are surely the

oldest of the three, since you are so slow in your movements, but I can't wait here long; I must get back to my

own people as soon as possible.' So the third also came in, and was served in the same way. It appears from

By this time day was beginning to break, and Niels thought that his folks might already be searching for him,

so, instead of waiting to see what took place at the castle, he ran off to the forest as fast as he could, taking

the sword with him. He found the others still asleep, so he woke them up, and they again set out on their

journey. Of the night's adventures he said not a word, and when they asked where he got the sword, he only

pointed in the direction of the castle, and said, 'Over that way.' They thought he had found it, and asked no

When Niels left the castle, he shut the door behind him, and it closed with such a bang that the porter woke

up. He could scarcely believe his eyes when he saw the three headless giants lying in a heap in the courtyard,

and could not imagine what had taken place. The whole castle was soon aroused, and then everybody

wondered at the affair: it was soon seen that the bodies were those of the king's great enemies, but how they

came to be there and in that condition was a perfect mystery. Then it was noticed that the drinkinghorn was

empty and the sword gone, while the princess reported that half of her handkerchief and one of her slippers

had been taken away. How the giants had been killed seemed a little clearer now, but who had done it was as

great a puzzle as before. The old knight who had charge of the castle said that in his opinion it must have

been some young knight, who had immediately set off to the king to claim the hand of the princess. This

sounded likely, but the messenger who was sent to the Court returned with the news that no one there knew

'We must find him, however,' said the princess; 'for if he is willing to marry me I cannot in honour refuse

him, after what my father put on the horn.' She took council with her father's wisest men as to what ought to

be done, and among other things they advised her to build a house beside the highway, and put over the door

this inscription:'Whoever will tell the story of his life, may stay here three nights for nothing.' This was

done, and many strange tales were told to the princess, but none of the travellers said a word about the three

In the meantime Niels and the others tramped on towards Rome. Autumn passed, and winter was just

beginning when they came to the foot of a great range of mountains, towering up to the sky. 'Must we go over

'Here comes a man,' said Niels; 'let us ask him the way to Rome.' They did so, and were told that there was no

'And is it far yet?' said the old people, who were beginning to be worn out by the long journey. The man held

up his foot so that they could see the sole of his shoe; it was worn as thin as paper, and there was a hole in the

'These shoes were quite new when I left Rome,' he said, 'and look at them now; that will tell you whether you

This discouraged the old people so much that they gave up all thought of finishing the journey, and only

wished to get back to Denmark as quickly as they could. What with the winter and bad roads they took longer

to return than they had taken to go, but in the end they found themselves in sight of the forest where they had

'What's this?' said Rasmus. 'Here's a big house built since we passed this way before.'

'No, we can't afford that,' said the old people; 'it will be too dear for the like of us.'

However, when they saw what was written above the door, they were all well pleased to get a night's lodging

for nothing. They were well received, and had so much attention given to them, that the old people were quite

put out by it. After they had got time to rest themselves, the princess's steward came to hear their story.

'You saw what was written above the door,' he said to the father. 'Tell me who you are and what your history

'Dear me, I have nothing of any importance to tell you,' said the old man, 'and I am sure we should never have

made so bold as to trouble you at all if it hadn't been for the youngest of our two sons here.'

'Never mind that,' said the steward; ' you are very welcome if you will only tell me the story of your life.'

'Well, well, I will,' said he, 'but there is nothing to tell about it. I and my wife have lived all our days on a

moor in North Jutland, until this last year, when she took a fancy to go to Rome. We set out with our two

sons but turned back long before we got there, and are now on our way home again. That's all my own story,

and our two sons have lived with us all their days, so there is nothing more to be told about them either.'

'Yes there is,' said Rasmus; 'when we were on our way south, we slept in the wood near here one night, and I

The steward was so much accustomed to hearing stories of no importance that he thought there was no use

going further with this, but reported to the princess that the newcomers had nothing to tell.

'Well, no; not directly,' said he; 'but the father said that none of them could tell me any more than he had

'You are getting careless,' said the princess; 'I shall go and talk to them myself.'

Niels knew the princess again as soon as she entered the room, and was greatly alarmed, for he immediately

supposed that all this was a device to discover the person who had run away with the sword, the slipper and

the half of the handkerchief, and that it would fare badly with him if he were discovered. So he told his story

much the same as the others did (Niels was not very particular), and thought he had escaped all further

trouble, when Rasmus put in his word. 'You've forgotten something, Niels,' he said; 'you remember you found

'I know,' said the steward, 'I saw where he laid it down when they came in;' and off he went to fetch it, while

Niels wondered whether he could make his escape in the meantime. Before he had made up his mind,

however, the steward was back with the sword, which the princess recognised at once.

Niels was silent, and wondered what the usual penalty was for a poor sheepfarmer's son who was so

'See what else he has about him,' said the princess to the steward, and Niels had to submit to be searched: out

of one pocket came a goldembroidered slipper, and out of another the half of a goldhemmed handkerchief.

'That is enough,' said the princess; 'now we needn't ask any more questions. Send for my father the king at

'Why, who said anything about doing harm?' said the princess. 'You must stay here till my father comes.'

The way in which the princess smiled when she said this gave Niels some hope that things might not be bad

for him after all, and he was yet more encouraged when he thought of the words engraver on the horn, though

the last line still seemed too good to be true. However, the arrival of the king soon settled the matter: the

princess was willing and so was Niels, and in a few days the wedding bells were ringing. Niels was made an

earl by that time, and looked as handsome as any of them when dressed in all his robes. Before long the old

king died, and Niels reigned after him; but whether his father and mother stayed with him, or went back to

the moor in Jutland, or were sent to Rome in a carriage and four, is something that all the historians of his

Once upon a time a shepherd was taking his flock out to pasture, when he found a little baby lying in a

meadow, left there by some wicked person, who thought it was too much trouble to look after it. The

shepherd was fond of children, so he took the baby home with him and gave it plenty of milk, and by the time

the boy was fourteen he could tear up oaks as if they were weeds. Then Paul, as the shepherd had called him,

He walked on for many miles, seeing nothing that surprised him, but in an open space of the wood he was

The man stopped his work and laughed. 'I am Tree Comber,' he answered proudly; 'and the greatest wish of

'May all your wishes be fulfilled as easily, for I am Shepherd Paul, and can wrestle with you at once,' replied

the lad; and he seized Tree Comber and flung him with such force to the ground that he sank up to his knees

in the earth. However, in a moment he was up again, and catching hold of Paul, threw him so that he sank up

to his waist; but then it was Paul's turn again, and this time the man was buried up to his neck. 'That is

Byandby they reached a man who was grinding stones to powder in his hands, as if they had been nuts.

'Good morning,' said Paul politely; 'upon my word, you must be a strong fellow!'

'I am Stone Crusher,' answered the man, and the greatest wish of my life is to wrestle with Shepherd Paul.'

'May all your wishes be as easily fulfilled, for I am Shepherd Paul, and will wrestle with you at once,' and the

sport began. After a short time the man declared himself beaten, and begged leave to go with them; so they

A little further on they came upon a man who was kneading iron as if it had been dough. 'Good morning,' said

'Let us begin at once then,' replied Paul; and on this occasion also, Paul got the better of his foe, and they all

At midday they entered a forest, and Paul stopped suddenly. 'We three will go and look for game,' he said,

'and you, Tree Comber, will stay behind and prepare a good supper for us.' So Tree Comber set to work to

boil and roast, and when dinner was nearly ready, a little dwarf with a pointed beard strolled up to the place.

'I'll give you some on your back, if you like,' answered Tree Comber rudely. The dwarf took no notice, but

waited patiently till the dinner was cooked, then suddenly throwing Tree Comber on the ground, he ate up the

contents of the saucepan and vanished. Tree Comber felt rather ashamed of himself, and set about boiling

some more vegetables, but they were still very hard when the hunters returned, and though they complained

Next day Stone Crusher was left behind, and after him Iron Kneader, and each time the dwarf appeared, and

they fared no better than Tree Comber had done. The fourth day Paul said to them: 'My friends, there must be

some reason why your cooking has always been so bad, now you shall go and hunt and I will stay behind.' So

He set to work at once, and had just got all his vegetables simmering in the pot when the dwarf appeared as

before, and asked to have some of the stew. 'Be off,' cried Paul, snatching up the saucepan as he spoke. The

dwarf tried to get hold of his collar, but Paul seized him by the beard, and tied him to a big tree so that he

could not stir, and went on quietly with his cooking. The hunters came back early, longing to see how Paul

'You are great useless creatures,' said he, 'who couldn't even outwit that little dwarf. When we have finished

supper I will show you what I have done with him!' But when they reached the place where Paul had left the

dwarf, neither he nor the tree was to be seen, for the little fellow had pulled it up by the roots and run away,

dragging it after him. The four friends followed the track of the tree and found that it ended in a deep hole.

'He must have gone down here,' said Paul, 'and I will go after him. See! there is a basket that will do for me to

sit in, and a cord to lower me with. But when I pull the cord again, lose no time in drawing the basket up.'

At last it touched the ground and he jumped out and looked about him. He was in a beautiful valley, full of

meadows and streams, with a splendid castle standing by. As the door was open he walked in, but a lovely

maiden met him and implored him to go back, for the owner of the castle was a dragon with six heads, who

had stolen her from her home and brought her down to this underground spot. But Paul refused to listen to all

her entreaties, and declared that he was not afraid of the dragon, and did not care how many heads he had;

In a little while the dragon came in, and all the long teeth in his six heads chattered with anger at the sight of

'I am Shepherd Paul,' said the young man, 'and I have come to fight you, and as I am in a hurry we had better

'Very good,' answered the dragon. 'I am sure of my supper, but let us have a mouthful of something first, just

Whereupon he began to eat some huge boulders as if they had been cakes, and when he had quite finished, he

offered Paul one. Paul was not fond of boulders, but he took a wooden knife and cut one in two, then he

snatched up both halves in his hands and threw them with all his strength at the dragon, so that two out of the

six heads were smashed in. At this the dragon, with a mighty roar, rushed upon Paul, but he sprang on one

side, and with a swinging blow cut off two of the other heads. Then, seizing the monster by the neck, he

When the maiden heard that the dragon was dead, she thanked her deliverer with tears in her eyes, but told

him that her two younger sisters were in the power of dragons still fiercer and more horrible than this one. He

vowed that his sword should never rest in its sheath till they were set free, and bade the girl come with him,

The maiden gladly consented to go with him, but first she gave him a golden rod, and bade him strike the

castle with it. He did so, and it instantly changed into a golden apple, which he put in his pocket. After that,

They had not gone far before they reached the castle where the second girl was confined by the power of the

dragon with twelve heads, who had stolen her from her home. She was overjoyed at the sight of her sister and

of Paul, and brought him a shirt belonging to the dragon, which made every one who wore it twice as strong

as they were before. Scarcely had he put it on when the dragon came back, and the fight began. Long and

hard was the struggle, but Paul's sword and his shirt helped him, and the twelve heads lay dead upon the

Then Paul changed the castle into an apple, which he put into his pocket, and set out with the two girls in

It was not long before they found it, and within the walls was the third sister, who was younger and prettier

than either of the other two. Her husband had eighteen heads, but when he quitted the lower regions for the

surface of the earth, he left them all at home except one, which he changed for the head of a little dwarf, with

The moment that Paul knew that this terrible dragon was no other than the dwarf whom he had tied to the

tree, he longed more than ever to fly at his throat. But the thought of the eighteen heads warned him to be

careful, and the third sister brought him a silk shirt which would make him ten times stronger than he was

He had scarcely put it on, when the whole castle began to shake violently, and the dragon flew up the steps

'Well, my friend, so we meet once more! Have you forgotten me? I am Shepherd Paul, and I have come to

'Ah, I am glad to see you again,' said the dragon. 'Those were my two brothers whom you killed, and now

your blood shall pay for them.' And he went into his room to look for his shirt and to drink some magic wine,

but the shirt was on Paul's back, and as for the wine, the girl had given a cupful to Paul and then had allowed

At this the dragon grew rather frightened, but in a moment had recollected his eighteen heads, and was bold

'Come on,' he cried, rearing himself up and preparing to dart all his heads at once at Paul. But Paul jumped

underneath, and gave an upward cut so that six of the heads went rolling down. They were the best heads too,

and very soon the other twelve lay beside them. Then Paul changed the castle into an apple, and put it in his

pocket. Afterwards he and the three girls set off for the opening which led upwards to the earth.

The basket was still there, dangling from the rope, but it was only big enough to hold the three girls, so Paul

sent them up, and told them to be sure and let down the basket for him. Unluckily, at the sight of the maidens'

beauty, so far beyond anything they had ever seen, the friends forgot all about Paul, and carried the girls

straight away into a far country, so that they were not much better off than before. Meanwhile Paul, mad with

rage at the ingratitude of the three sisters, vowed he would be revenged upon them, and set about finding

some way of getting back to earth. But it was not very easy, and for months, and months, and months, he

wandered about underground, and, at the end, seemed no nearer to fulfilling his purpose than he was at the

At length, one day, he happened to pass the nest of a huge griffin, who had left her young ones all alone. Just

as Paul came along a cloud containing fire instead of rain burst overhead, and all the little griffins would

certainly have been killed had not Paul spread his cloak over the nest and saved them. When their father

returned the young ones told him what Paul had done, and he lost no time in flying after Paul, and asking

'By carrying me up to the earth,' answered Paul; and the griffin agreed, but first went to get some food to eat

'Now get on my back,' he said to Paul, 'and when I turn my head to the right, cut a slice off the bullock that

hangs on that side, and put it in my mouth, and when I turn my head to the left, draw a cupful of wine from

For three days and three nights Paul and the griffin flew upwards, and on the fourth morning it touched the

ground just outside the city where Paul's friends had gone to live. Then Paul thanked him and bade him

At first Paul was too tired to do anything but sleep, but as soon as he was rested he started off in search of the

three faithless ones, who almost died from fright at the sight of him, for they had thought he would never

'You know what to expect,' Paul said to them quietly. 'You shall never see me again. Off with you!' He next

took the three apples out of his pocket and placed them all in the prettiest places he could find; after which he

tapped them with his golden rod, and they became castles again. He gave two of the castles to the eldest

sisters, and kept the other for himself and the youngest, whom he married, and there they are living still.

The hunters had hunted the wood for so many years that no wild animal was any more to be found in it. You

might walk from one end to the other without ever seeing a hare, or a deer, or a boar, or hearing the cooing of

the doves in their nest. If they were not dead, they had flown elsewhere. Only three creatures remained alive,

and they had hidden themselves in the thickest part of the forest, high up the mountain. These were a

greyfurred, longtailed tanuki, his wife the fox, who was one of his own family, and their little son.

The fox and the tanuki were very clever, prudent beasts, and they also were skilled in magic, and by this

means had escaped the fate of their unfortunate friends. If they heard the twang of an arrow or saw the glitter

of a spear, ever so far off, they lay very still, and were not to be tempted from their hidingplace, if their

hunger was ever so great, or the game ever so delicious. 'We are not so foolish as to risk our lives,' they said

to each other proudly. But at length there came a day when, in spite of their prudence, they seemed likely to

die of starvation, for no more food was to be had. Something had to be done, but they did not know what.

Suddenly a bright thought struck the tanuki. 'I have got a plan,' he cried joyfully to his wife. 'I will pretend to

be dead, and you must change yourself into a man, and take me to the village for sale. It will be easy to find a

buyer, tanukis' skins are always wanted; then buy some food with the money and come home again. I will

The fox laughed with delight, and rubbed her paws together with satisfaction. 'Well, next time I will go,' she

said, 'and you can sell me.' And then she changed herself into a man, and picking up the stiff body of the

tanuki, set off towards the village. She found him rather heavy, but it would never have done to let him walk

As the tanaki had foretold, buyers were many, and the fox handed him over to the person who offered the

largest price, and hurried to get some food with the money. The buyer took the tanuki back to his house, and

throwing him into a corner went out. Directly the tanaki found he was alone, he crept cautiously through a

chink of the window, thinking, as he did so, how lucky it was that he was not a fox, and was able to climb.

Once outside, he hid himself in a ditch till it grew dusk, and then galloped away into the forest.

While the food lasted they were all three as happy as kings; but there soon arrived a day when the larder was

as empty as ever. 'It is my turn now to pretend to be dead,' cried the fox. So the tanuki changed himself into a

peasant, and started for the village, with his wife's body hanging over his shoulder. A buyer was not long in

coming forward, and while they were making the bargain a wicked thought darted into the tanuki's head, that

if he got rid of the fox there would be more food for him and his son. So as he put the money in his pocket he

whispered softly to the buyer that the fox was not really dead, and that if he did not take care she might run

away from him. The man did not need twice telling. He gave the poor fox a blow on the head, which put an

In former times he had been very fond of his little son; but since he had betrayed his wife he seemed to have

changed all in a moment, for he would not give him as much as a bite, and the poor little fellow would have

starved had he not found some nuts and berries to eat, and he waited on, always hoping that his mother would

At length some notion of the truth began to dawn on him; but he was careful to let the old tanuki see nothing,

though in his own mind he turned over plans from morning till night, wondering how best he might avenge

One morning, as the little tanuki was sitting with his father, he remembered, with a start, that his mother had

taught him all she knew of magic, and that he could work spells as well as his father, or perhaps better. 'I am

as good a wizard as you,' he said suddenly, and a cold chill ran through the tanuki as he heard him, though he

laughed, and pretended to think it a joke. But the little tanaki stuck to his point, and at last the father proposed

'Change yourself into any shape you like,' said he, 'and I will undertake to know you. I will go and wait on the

bridge which leads over the river to the village, and you shall transform yourself into anything you please, but

I will know you through any disguise.' The little tanuki agreed, and went down the road which his father had

pointed out. But instead of transforming himself into a different shape, he just hid himself in a corner of the

He had not been there long when his father arrived and took up his place near the middle of the bridge, and

'Ah! he thinks that now he has changed himself into a king I shall not know him,' thought the old tanuki, and

as the king passed in his splendid carriage, borne by his servants, he jumped upon it crying: 'I have won my

wager; you cannot deceive me.' But in reality it was he who had deceived himself. The soldiers, conceiving

that their king was being attacked, seized the tanuki by the legs and flung him over into the river, and the

And the little tanoki saw it all, and rejoiced that his mother's death had been avenged. Then he went back to

the forest, and if he has not found it too lonely, he is probably living there still.

There was once a crab who lived in a hole on the shady side of a mountain. She was a very good housewife,

and so careful and industrious that there was no creature in the whole country whose hole was so neat and

One day she saw lying near the mouth of her hole a handful of cooked rice which some pilgrim must have let

fall when he was stopping to eat his dinner. Delighted at this discovery, she hastened to the spot, and was

carrying the rice back to her hole when a monkey, who lived in some trees near by, came down to see what

the crab was doing. His eyes shone at the sight of the rice, for it was his favourite food, and like the sly fellow

he was, he proposed a bargain to the crab. She was to give him half the rice in exchange for the kernel of a

sweet red kaki fruit which he had just eaten. He half expected that the crab would laugh in his face at this

impudent proposal, but instead of doing so she only looked at him for a moment with her head on one side

and then said that she would agree to the exchange. So the monkey went off with his rice, and the crab

For some time the crab saw no more of the monkey, who had gone to pay a visit on the sunny side of the

mountain; but one morning he happened to pass by her hole, and found her sitting under the shadow of a

'Good day,' he said politely, 'you have some very fine fruit there! I am very hungry, could you spare me one

'Oh, certainly,' replied the crab, 'but you must forgive me if I cannot get them for you myself. I am no

'Pray do not apologise,' answered the monkey. 'Now that I have your permission I can get them myself quite

easily.' And the crab consented to let him go up, merely saying that he must throw her down half the fruit.

In another moment he was swinging himself from branch to branch, eating all the ripest kakis and filling his

pockets with the rest, and the poor crab saw to her disgust that the few he threw down to her were either not

'You are a shocking rogue,' she called in a rage; but the monkey took no notice, and went on eating as fast as

he could. The crab understood that it was no use her scolding, so she resolved to try what cunning would do.

'Sir Monkey,' she said, ' you are certainly a very good climber, but now that you have eaten so much, I am

quite sure you would never be able to turn one of your somersaults.' The monkey prided himself on turning

better somersaults than any of his family, so he instantly went head over heels three times on the bough on

which he was sitting, and all the beautiful kakis that he had in his pockets rolled to the ground. Quick as

lightning the crab picked them up and carried a quantity of them into her house, but when she came up for

another the monkey sprang on her, and treated her so badly that he left her for dead. When he had beaten her

It was a lucky thing for the poor crab that she had some friends to come to her help or she certainly would

have died then and there. The wasp flew to her, and took her back to bed and looked after her, and then he

consulted with a ricemortar and an egg which had fallen out of a nest near by, and they agreed that when the

monkey returned, as he was sure to do, to steal the rest of the fruit, that they would punish him severely for

the manner in which he had behaved to the crab. So the mortar climbed up to the beam over the front door,

and the egg lay quite still on the ground, while the wasp set down the waterbucket in a corner. Then the crab

dug itself a deep hole in the ground, so that not even the tip of her claws might be seen.

Soon after everything was ready the monkey jumped down from his tree, and creeping to the door began a

long hypocritical speech, asking pardon for all he had done. He waited for an answer of some sort, but none

came. He listened, but all was still; then he peeped, and saw no one; then he went in. He peered about for the

crab, but in vain; however, his eyes fell on the egg, which he snatched up and set on the fire. But in a moment

the egg had burst into a thousand pieces, and its sharp shell struck him in the face and scratched him horribly.

Smarting with pain he ran to the bucket and stooped down to throw some water over his head. As he stretched

out his hand up started the wasp and stung him on the nose. The monkey shrieked and ran to the door, but as

he passed through down fell the mortar and struck him dead. 'After that the crab lived happily for many years,

Many many years ago there lived a king and queen who had one only son, called Sigurd. When the little boy

was only ten years old the queen, his mother, fell ill and died, and the king, who loved her dearly, built a

splendid monument to his wife's memory, and day after day he sat by it and bewailed his sad loss.

One morning, as he sat by the grave, he noticed a richly dressed lady close to him. He asked her name and

she answered that it was Ingiborg, and seemed surprised to see the king there all alone. Then he told her how

he had lost his queen, and how he came daily to weep at her grave. In return, the lady informed him that she

had lately lost her husband, and suggested that they might both find it a comfort if they made friends.

This pleased the king so much that he invited her to his palace, where they saw each other often; and after a

After the wedding was over he soon regained his good spirits, and used to ride out hunting as in old days; but

One evening Ingiborg said to Sigurd: 'Tomorrow your father is going out hunting, and you must go with

him.' But Sigurd said he would much rather stay at home, and the next day when the king rode off Sigurd

refused to accompany him. The stepmother was very angry, but he would not listen, and at last she assured

him that he would be sorry for his disobedience, and that in future he had better do as he was told.

After the hunting party had started she hid Sigurd under her bed, and bade him be sure to lie there till she

Sigurd lay very still for a long while, and was just thinking it was no good staying there any more, when he

felt the floor shake under him as if there were an earthquake, and peeping out he saw a great giantess wading

'Good morning, Sister Ingiborg,' cried she as she entered the room, 'is Prince Sigurd at home?'

'No,' said Ingiborg; 'he rode off to the forest with his father this morning.' And she laid the table for her sister

and set food before her. After they had both done eating the giantess said: 'Thank you, sister, for your good

dinnerthe best lamb, the best can of beer and the best drink I have ever had; butis not Prince Sigurd at

Ingiborg again said 'No'; and the giantess took leave of her and went away. When she was quite out of sight

The king returned home at night, but his wife told him nothing of what had happened, and the next morning

she again begged the prince to go out hunting with his father. Sigurd, however, replied as before, that he

So once more the king rode off alone. This time Ingiborg hid Sigurd under the table, and scolded him well for

not doing as she bade him. For some time he lay quite still, and then suddenly the floor began to shake, and a

As she entered the house she asked, as the first one had done: 'Well, Sister Ingiborg, is Prince Sigurd at

'No,' answered Ingiborg,' he rode off hunting with his father this morning'; and going to the cupboard she laid

the table for her sister. When they had finished their meal the giantess rose and said: 'Thank you for all these

nice dishes, and for the best lamb, the best can of beer and the nicest drink I have ever had; butis Prince

'No, certainly not!' replied Ingiborg; and with that they took leave of each other.

When she was well out of sight Sigurd crept from under the table, and his stepmother declared that it was

most important that he should not stay at home next day; but he said he did not see what harm could come of

it, and he did not mean to go out hunting, and the next morning, when the king prepared to start, Ingiborg

implored Sigurd to accompany his father. But it was all no use, he was quite obstinate and would not listen to

a word she said. 'You will have to hide me again,' said he, so no sooner had the king gone than Ingiborg hid

Sigurd between the wall and the panelling, and byandby there was heard once more a sound like an

earthquake, as a great giantess, wading knee deep through the ground, came in at the door.

'Good day, Sister Ingiborg!' she cried, in a voice like thunder; 'is Prince Sigurd at home?'

'Oh, no,' answered Ingiborg, 'he is enjoying himself out there in the forest. I expect it will be quite dark before

'That's a lie!' shouted the giantess. And they squabbled about it till they were tired, after which Ingiborg laid

the table; and when the giantess had done eating she said: 'Well, I must thank you for all these good things,

and for the best lamb, the best can of beer and the best drink I have had for a long time; butare you quite

'Quite,' said Ingiborg. 'I've told you already that he rode off with his father this morning to hunt in the forest.'

At this the giantess roared out with a terrible voice: 'If he is near enough to hear my words, I lay this spell on

him: Let him be half scorched and half withered; and may he have neither rest nor peace till he finds me.'

For a moment Ingiborg stood as if turned to stone, then she fetched Sigurd from his hidingplace, and, to her

'Now you see what has happened through your own obstinacy,' said she; 'but we must lose no time, for your

Going quickly into the next room she opened a chest and took out a ball of string and three gold rings, and

gave them to Sigurd, saying: 'If you throw this ball on the ground it will roll along till it reaches some high

cliffs. There you will see a giantess looking out over the rocks. She will call down to you and say: "Ah, this is

just what I wanted! Here is Prince Sigurd. He shall go into the pot tonight"; but don't be frightened by her.

She will draw you up with a long boathook, and you must greet her from me, and give her the smallest ring

as a present. This will please her, and she will ask you to wrestle with her. When you are exhausted, she will

offer you a horn to drink out of, and though she does not know it, the wine will make you so strong that you

will easily be able to conquer her. After that she will let you stay there all night. The same thing will happen

with my two other sisters. But, above all, remember this: should my little dog come to you and lay his paws

on you, with tears running down his face, then hurry home, for my life will be in danger. Now, goodbye,

That same evening the ball stopped rolling at the foot of some high rocks, and on glancing up, Sigurd saw the

'Ah, just what I wanted!' she cried out when she saw him; 'here is Prince Sigurd. He shall go into the pot

With these words she reached out a long boat hook and hauled him up the cliff. At first Sigurd was rather

frightened, but he remembered what Ingiborg had said, and gave the giantess her sister's message and the

The giantess was delighted, and challenged him to wrestle with her. Sigurd was fond of all games, and began

to wrestle with joy; but he was no match for the giantess, and as she noticed that he was getting faint she gave

him a horn to drink out of, which was very foolish on her part, as it made Sigurd so strong that he soon

Next morning Sigurd threw down the ball again and away it rolled for some time, till it stopped at the foot of

another high rock. Then he looked up and saw another giantess, even bigger and uglier than the first one, who

called out to him: 'Ah, this is just what I wanted! Here is Prince Sigurd. He shall go into the pot tonight.

The prince gave her his stepmother's message and the second largest ring. The giantess was greatly pleased

They struggled for a long time, till at last Sigurd grew faint; so she handed him a horn to drink from, and

On the third morning Sigurd once more laid down his ball, and it rolled far away, till at last it stopped under a

very high rock indeed, over the top of which the most hideous giantess that ever was seen looked down.

When she saw who was there she cried out: 'Ah, this is just what I wanted! Here comes Prince Sigurd. Into

the pot he goes this very night. Come up here, my friend, and wrestle with me.' And she hauled him up just as

Sigurd then gave her his stepmother's message and the last and largest ring. The sight of the red gold

delighted the giantess, and she challenged Sigurd to a wrestling match. This time the fight was fierce and

long, but when at length Sigurd's strength was failing the giantess gave him something to drink, and after he

had drunk it he soon brought her to her knees. 'You have beaten me,' she gasped, so now, listen to me. 'Not

far from here is a lake. Go there; you will find a little girl playing with a boat. Try to make friends with her,

and give her this little gold ring. You are stronger than ever you were, and I wish you good luck.'

With these words they took leave of each other, and Sigurd wandered on till he reached the lake, where he

found the little girl playing with a boat, just as he had been told. He went up to her and asked what her name

So Sigurd gave her the little gold ring, and proposed that they should have a game. The little girl was

delighted, for she had no brothers or sisters, and they played together all the rest of the day.

When evening came Sigurd asked leave to go home with her, but Helga at first forbade him, as no stranger

had ever managed to enter their house without being found out by her father, who was a very fierce giant.

However, Sigurd persisted, and at length she gave way; but when they came near the door she held her glove

over him and Sigurd was at once transformed into a bundle of wool. Helga tucked the bundle under her arm

Almost at the same moment her father rushed in and hunted round in every corner, crying out: 'This place

'Oh, well, perhaps it was that I smelt,' said the old man, and troubled himself no more.

The following day Helga went out to play and took the bundle of wool with her under her arm. When she

reached the lake she held her glove over it again and Sigurd resumed his own shape.

They played the whole day, and Sigurd taught Helga all sorts of games she had never even heard of. As they

walked home in the evening she said: 'We shall be able to play better still tomorrow, for my father will have

When they were near the house Helga again held her glove over Sigurd, and once more he was turned into a

Very early next morning Helga's father went to the town, and as soon as he was well out of the way the girl

held up her glove and Sigurd was himself again. Then she took him all over the house to amuse him, and

opened every room, for her father had given her the keys before he left; but when they came to the last room

Sigurd noticed one key on the bunch which had not been used and asked which room it belonged to.'

'I suppose you don't mind my seeing the room which it opens?' asked Sigurd, and as he spoke he saw a heavy

iron door and begged Helga to unlock it for him. But she told him she dared not do so, at least if she did open

the door it must only be a very tiny chink; and Sigurd declared that would do quite well.

The door was so heavy, that it took Helga some time to open it, and Sigurd grew so impatient that he pushed

it wide open and walked in. There he saw a splendid horse, all ready saddled, and just above it hung a richly

ornamented sword on the handle of which was engraved these words: 'He who rides this horse and wears this

At the sight of the horse Sigurd was so filled with wonder that he was not able to speak, but at last he gasped

out: 'Oh, do let me mount him and ride him round the house! Just once; I promise not to ask any more.'

'Ride him round the house! ' cried Helga, growing pale at the mere idea. 'Ride Gullfaxi! Why father would

'But it can't do him any harm,' argued Sigurd; 'you don't know how careful I will be. I have ridden all sorts of

'Well, perhaps, if you come back directly,' replied Helga, doubtfully; 'but you must be very quick, or father

'And the sword,' he said, looking fondly up to the place where it hung. 'My father is a king, but he has not got

any sword so beautiful as that. Why, the jewels in the scabbard are more splendid than the big ruby in his

'It is called "Gunnfjoder," the "Battle Plume,"' answered Helga, 'and "Gullfaxi" means "Golden Mane." I don't

suppose, if you are to get on the horse at all, it would matter your taking the sword too. And if you take the

'They are easily carried,' said Sigurd, gazing at them with scorn; 'what wretched driedup things! Why in the

'Bather says that he would rather lose Gullfaxi than lose them,' replied Helga, 'for if the man who rides the

horse is pursued he has only to throw the twig behind him and it will turn into a forest, so thick that even a

bird could hardly fly through. But if his enemy happens to know magic, and can throw down the forest, the

man has only to strike the stone with the stick, and hailstones as large as pigeons' eggs will rain down from

Having said all this she allowed Sigurd to ride 'just once' round the house, taking the sword and other things

with him. But when he had ridden round, instead of dismounting, he suddenly turned the horse's head and

Soon after this Helga's father came home and found his daughter in tears. He asked what was the matter, and

when he heard all that had happened, he rushed off as fast as he could to pursue Sigurd.

Now, as Sigurd happened to look behind him he saw the giant coming after him with great strides, and in all

haste he threw the twig behind him. Immediately such a thick wood sprang up at once between him and his

enemy that the giant was obliged to run home for an axe with which to cut his way through.

The next time Sigurd glanced round, the giant was so near that he almost touched Gullfaxi's tail. In an agony

of fear Sigurd turned quickly in his saddle and hit the stone with the stick. No sooner had he done this than a

But had Sigurd struck the stone without turning round, the hail would have driven right into his face and

After the giant was dead Sigurd rode on towards his own home, and on the way he suddenly met his

stepmother's little dog, running to meet him, with tears pouring down its face. He galloped on as hard as he

could, and on arriving found nine menservants in the act of tying Queen Ingiborg to a post in the courtyard

Wild with anger Prince Sigurd sprang from his horse and, sword in hand, fell on the men and killed them all.

The king lay in bed sick with sorrow, and neither eating nor drinking, for he thought that his son had been

killed by the queen. He could hardly believe his own eyes for joy when he saw the prince, and Sigurd told

After that Prince Sigurd rode back to fetch Helga, and a great feast was made which lasted three days; and

every one said no bride was ever seen so beautiful as Helga, and they lived happily for many, many years,

Once upon a time there lived a respectable young tailor called Labakan, who worked for a clever master in

Alexandria. No one could call Labakan either stupid or lazy, for he could work extremely well and

quicklywhen he chose; but there was something not altogether right about him. Sometimes he would stitch

away as fast as if he had a redhot needle and a burning thread, and at other times he would sit lost in

thought, and with such a queer look about him that his fellowworkmen used to say, 'Labakan has got on his

On Fridays he would put on his fine robe which he had bought with the money he had managed to save up,

and go to the mosque. As he came back, after prayers, if he met any friend who said 'Goodday,' or 'How are

you, friend Labakan?' he would wave his hand graciously or nod in a condescending way; and if his master

happened to say to him, as he sometimes did, 'Really, Labakan, you look like a prince,' he was delighted, and

Things went on like this for some time, and the master put up with Labakan's absurdities because he was, on

One day, the sultan's brother happened to be passing through Alexandria, and wanted to have one of his state

robes altered, so he sent for the master tailor, who handed the robe over to Labakan as his best workman.

In the evening, when every one had left the workshop and gone home, a great longing drove Labakan back to

the place where the royal robe hung. He stood a long time gazing at it, admiring the rich material and the

splendid embroidery in it. At last he could hold out no longer. He felt he must try it on, and lo! and behold, it

'Am not I as good a prince as any other?' he asked himself, as he proudly paced up and down the room. 'Has

It seemed to him that he must be the son of some unknown monarch, and at last he determined to set out at

He felt as if the splendid robe had been sent him by some kind fairy, and he took care not to neglect such a

precious gift. He collected all his savings, and, concealed by the darkness of the night, he passed through the

The new prince excited a good deal of curiosity where ever he went, for his splendid robe and majestic

manner did not seem quite suitable to a person travelling on foot. If anyone asked questions, he only replied

However, he soon found out that walking made him ridiculous, so at last he bought a quiet, steady old horse,

One day, as he was ambling along upon Murva (that was the horse's name), a horseman overtook him and

asked leave to join him, so that they might both beguile the journey with pleasant talk. The newcomer was a

bright, cheerful, goodlooking young man, who soon plunged into conversation and asked many questions.

He told Labakan that his own name was Omar, that he was a nephew of Elfi Bey, and was travelling in order

to carry out a command given him by his uncle on his death bed. Labakan was not quite so open in his

confidences, but hinted that he too was of noble birth and was travelling for pleasure.

The two young men took a fancy to each other and rode on together. On the second day of their journey

Labakan questioned Omar as to the orders he had to carry out, and to his surprise heard this tale.

Elfi Bey, Pacha of Cairo, had brought up Omar from his earliest childhood, and the boy had never known his

parents. On his deathbed Elfi Bey called Omar to him, and then told him that he was not his nephew, but the

son of a great king, who, having been warned of coming dangers by his astrologers, had sent the young prince

Elfi Bey did not tell Omar his father's name, but expressly desired him to be at a great pillar four days'

journey east of Alexandria on the fourth day of the coming month, on which day he would be twentytwo

years old. Here he would meet some men, to whom he was to hand a dagger which Elfi Bey gave him, and to

If they answered: 'Praised be the Prophet who has preserved you,' he was to follow them, and they would take

Labakan was greatly surprised and interested by this story, but after hearing it he could not help looking on

Prince Omar with envious eyes, angry that his friend should have the position he himself longed so much for.

He began to make comparisons between the prince and himself, and was obliged to confess that he was a

At the same time, he felt sure that had he been in the prince's place any royal father might have been glad to

These thoughts haunted him all day, and he dreamt them all night. He woke very early, and as he saw Omar

sleeping quietly, with a happy smile on his face, a wish arose in his mind to take by force or by cunning the

The dagger which was to act as a passport was sticking in Omar's girdle. Labakan drew it gently out, and

hesitated for a moment whether or not to plunge it into the heart of the sleeping prince. However, he shrank

from the idea of murder, so he contented himself with placing the dagger in his own belt, and, saddling

Omar's swift horse for himself, was many miles away before the prince woke up to realise his losses.

For two days Labakan rode on steadily, fearing lest, after all, Omar might reach the meeting place before

him. At the end of the second day he saw the great pillar at a distance. It stood on a little hill in the middle of

a plain, and could be seen a very long way off. Labakan's heart beat fast at the sight. Though he had had some

time in which to think over the part he meant to play his conscience made him rather uneasy. However, the

thought that he must certainly have been born to be a king supported him, and he bravely rode on.

The neighbourhood was quite bare and desert, and it was a good thing that the new prince had brought food

Towards the middle of the next day he saw a long procession of horses and camels coming towards him. It

halted at the bottom of the hill, and some splendid tents were pitched. Everything looked like the escort of

some great man. Labakan made a shrewd guess that all these people had come here on his account; but he

checked his impatience, knowing that only on the fourth day could his wishes be fulfilled.

The first rays of the rising sun woke the happy tailor. As he began to saddle his horse and prepare to ride to

the pillar, he could not help having some remorseful thoughts of the trick he had played and the blighted

hopes of the real prince. But the die was cast, and his vanity whispered that he was as fine looking a young

man as the proudest king might wish his son to be, and that, moreover, what had happened had happened.

With these thoughts he summoned up all his courage sprang on his horse, and in less than a quarter of an hour

was at the foot of the hill. Here he dismounted, tied the horse to a bush, and, drawing out Prince Omar's

At the foot of the pillar stood six men round a tall and stately person. His superb robe of cloth of gold was

girt round him by a white cashmere shawl, and his white, richly jewelled turban showed that he was a man of

Labakan went straight up to him, and, bending low, handed him the dagger, saying: 'Here am I whom you

'Praised be the Prophet who has preserved you! replied the old man with tears of joy. 'Embrace me, my dear

The proud tailor was deeply moved by these solemn words, and with mingled shame and joy sank into the old

But his happiness was not long unclouded. As he raised his head he saw a horseman who seemed trying to

Only too soon Labakan recognised his own old horse, Murva, and the real Prince Omar, but having once told

At last the horseman reached the foot of the hill. Here he flung himself from the saddle and hurried up to the

'Stop!' he cried, 'whoever you may be, and do not let a disgraceful impostor take you in. My name is Omar,

This turn of affairs threw the standersby into great surprise. The old king in particular seemed much moved

as he looked from one face to the other. At last Labakan spoke with forced calmness, 'Most gracious lord and

father, do not let yourself be deceived by this man. As far as I know, he is a halfcrazy tailor's apprentice

These words infuriated the prince. Foaming with rage, he tried to press towards Labakan, but the attendants

threw themselves upon him and held him fast, whilst the king said, 'Truly, my dear son, the poor fellow is

quite mad. Let him be bound and placed on a dromedary. Perhaps we may be able to get some help for him.'

The prince's first rage was over, and with tears he cried to the king, 'My heart tells me that you are my father,

'Oh! heaven forbid!' was the reply. 'He is talking nonsense again. How can the poor man have got such

With these words the king took Labakan's arm to support him down the hill. They both mounted richly

The unlucky prince was tied hand and foot, and fastened on a dromedary, a guard riding on either side and

The old king was Sached, Sultan of the Wachabites. For many years he had had no children, but at length the

son he had so long wished for was born. But the soothsayers and magicians whom he consulted as to the

child's future all said that until he was twentytwo years old he stood in danger of being injured by an enemy.

So, to make all safe, the sultan had confided the prince to his trusty friend Elfi Bey, and deprived himself of

the happiness of seeing him for twentytwo years. All this the sultan told Labakan, and was much pleased by

When they reached their own country they were received with every sign of joy, for the news of the prince's

safe return had spread like wildfire, and every town and village was decorated, whilst the inhabitants

thronged to greet them with cries of joy and thankfulness. All this filled Labakan's proud heart with rapture,

At length they arrived in the capital, where the public rejoicings were grander and more brilliant than

anywhere else. The queen awaited them in the great hall of the palace, surrounded by her entire court. It was

getting dark, and hundreds of coloured hanging lamps were lit to turn night into day.

The brightest hung round the throne on which the queen sat, and which stood above four steps of pure gold

inlaid with great amethysts. The four greatest nobles in the kingdom held a canopy of crimson silk over the

In this state she awaited her husband and her son. She, too, had not seen Omar since his birth, but so many

dreams had shown her what he would look like that she felt she would know him among a thousand.

And now the sound of trumpets and drums and of shouts and cheers outside announced the long looked for

moment. The doors flew open, and between rows of lowbending courtiers and servants the king approached

But the queen interrupted him, 'That is not my son!' she cried. 'That is not the face the Prophet has shown me

Just as the king was about to reason with her, the door was thrown violently open, and Prince Omar rushed in,

followed by his keepers, whom he had managed to get away from. He flung himself down before the throne,

panting out, 'Here will I die; kill me at once, cruel father, for I cannot bear this shame any longer.'

Everyone pressed round the unhappy man, and the guards were about to seize him, when the queen, who at

'Hold!' cried she. 'This and no other is the right one; this is the one whom my eyes have never yet seen, but

The guards had stepped back, but the king called to them in a furious voice to secure the madman.

'It is I who must judge,' he said in tones of command; 'and this matter cannot be decided by women's dreams,

but by certain unmistakable signs. This one' (pointing to Labakan) 'is my son, for it was he who brought me

But the king would not listen to his son's voice, for he had always been accustomed to depend on his own

judgment. He let the unhappy Omar be dragged from the hall, whilst he himself retired with Labakan to his

own rooms, full of anger with the queen his wife, in spite of their many years of happy life together.

The queen, on her side, was plunged in grief, for she felt certain that an impostor had won her husband's heart

When the first shock was over she began to think how she could manage to convince the king of his mistake.

Of course it would be a difficult matter, as the man who declared he was Omar had produced the dagger as a

token, besides talking of all sorts of things which happened when he was a child. She called her oldest and

wisest ladies about her and asked their advice, but none of them had any to give. At last one very clever old

woman said: 'Did not the young man who brought the dagger call him whom your majesty believes to be

'Might it not be,' said the old lady, 'that the impostor has called your real son by his own name? If this should

And she whispered some words to the queen, who seemed much pleased, and went off at once to see the king.

Now the queen was a very wise woman, so she pretended to think she might have made a mistake, and only

begged to be allowed to put a test to the two young men to prove which was the real prince.

The king, who was feeling much ashamed of the rage he had been in with his dear wife, consented at once,

and she said: 'No doubt others would make them ride or shoot, or something of that sort, but every one learns

these things. I wish to set them a task which requires sharp wits and clever hands, and I want them to try

The king laughed. 'No, no, that will never do. Do you suppose my son would compete with that crazy tailor

But the queen claimed his promise, and as he was a man of his word the king gave in at last. He went to his

son and begged that he would humour his mother, who had set her heart on his making a kaftan.

The worthy Labakan laughed to himself. 'If that is all she wants,' thought he, 'her majesty will soon be

Two rooms were prepared, with pieces of material, scissors, needles and threads, and each young man was

The king felt rather curious as to what sort of garment his son would make, and the queen, too, was very

On the third day they sent for the two young men and their work. Labakan came first and spread out his

kaftan before the eyes of the astonished king. 'See, father,' he said; 'see, my honoured mother, if this is not a

Impatiently he threw the stuff and scissors down on the floor. 'I have been taught how to manage a horse, to

draw a sword, and to throw a lance some sixty paces, but I never learnt to sew, and such a thing would have

'Ah, true son of your father,' cried the queen; 'if only I might embrace you and call you son! Forgive me, my

lord and husband,' she added, turning to the king, 'for trying to find out the truth in this way. Do you not see

yourself now which is the prince and which the tailor? Certainly this kaftan is a very fine one, but I should

The king sat deep in thought, looking now at his wife and now at Labakan, who was doing his best to hide his

vexation at his own stupidity. At last the king said: 'Even this trial does not satisfy me; but happily I know of

He ordered his swiftest horse to be saddled, mounted, and rode off alone into a forest at some little distance.

Here lived a kindly fairy called Adolzaide, who had often helped the kings of his race with her good advice,

In the middle of the forest was a wide open space surrounded by great cedar trees, and this was supposed to

be the fairy's favourite spot. When the king reached this place he dismounted, tied his horse to the tree, and

standing in the middle of the open place said: 'If it is true that you have helped my ancestors in their time of

need, do not despise their descendant, but give me counsel, for that of men has failed me.'

He had hardly finished speaking when one of the cedar trees opened, and a veiled figure all dressed in white

'I know your errand, King Sached,' she said; 'it is an honest one, and I will give you my help. Take these two

little boxes and let the two men who claim to be your son choose between them. I know that the real prince

She then handed him two little boxes made of ivory set with gold and pearls. On the lid of each (which the

king vainly tried to open) was an inscription in diamonds. On one stood the words 'Honour and Glory,' and on

He lost no time in sending for the queen and for all his court, and when all were assembled he made a sign,

and Labakan was led in. With a proud air he walked up to the throne, and kneeling down, asked:

The king replied: 'My son, doubts have been thrown on your claim to that name. One of these boxes contains

He then pointed to the ivory boxes, which were placed on two little tables near the throne.

Labakan rose and looked at the boxes. He thought for some minutes, and then said: 'My honoured father,

what can be better than the happiness of being your son, and what nobler than the riches of your love. I

'We shall see presently if you have chosen the right one. For the present take a seat there beside the Pacha of

Omar was next led in, looking sad and sorrowful. He threw himself down before the throne and asked what

was the king's pleasure. The king pointed out the two boxes to him, and he rose and went to the tables. He

carefully read the two mottoes and said: 'The last few days have shown me how uncertain is happiness and

how easily riches vanish away. Should I lose a crown by it I make my choice of "Honour and Glory."'

He laid his hand on the box as he spoke, but the king signed to him to wait, and ordered Labakan to come to

Then the king rose from his throne, and in solemn silence all present rose too, whilst he said: 'Open the

The boxes were opened with the greatest ease. In the one Omar had chosen lay a little gold crown and sceptre

The king told the two young men to bring him their boxes. They did so. He took the crown in his hand, and as

he held it, it grew bigger and bigger, till it was as large as a real crown. He placed it on the head of his son

Omar, kissed him on the forehead, and placed him on his right hand. Then, turning to Labakan, he said:

'There is an old proverb, "The cobbler sticks to his last." It seems as though you were to stick to your needle.

You have not deserved any mercy, but I cannot be harsh on this day. I give you your life, but I advise you to

Full of shame, the unlucky tailor could not answer. He flung himself down before Omar, and with tears in his

'Oh, my true son!' cried the king as he clasped the prince in his arms, whilst all the pachas and emirs shouted,

In the midst of all the noise and rejoicing Labakan slipped off with his little box under his arm. He went to

the stables, saddled his old horse, Murva, and rode out of the gate towards Alexandria. Nothing but the ivory

box with its diamond motto was left to show him that the last few weeks had not been a dream.

When he reached Alexandria he rode up to his old master's door. When he entered the shop, his master came

forward to ask what was his pleasure, but as soon as he saw who it was he called his workmen, and they all

fell on Labakan with blows and angry words, till at last he fell, half fainting, on a heap of old clothes.

The master then scolded him soundly about the stolen robe, but in vain Labakan told him he had come to pay

for it and offered three times its price. They only fell to beating him again, and at last pushed him out of the

He could do nothing but remount his horse and ride to an inn. Here he found a quiet place in which to rest his

bruised and battered limbs and to think over his many misfortunes. He fell asleep fully determined to give up

Next morning he set to work to fulfil his good resolutions. He sold his little box to a jeweller for a good price,

bought a house and opened a workshop. Then he hung up a sign with, 'Labakan, Tailor,' over his door, and sat

down to mend his own torn clothes with the very needle which had been in the ivory box.

After a while he was called away, and when he went back to his work he found a wonderful thing had

happened! The needle was sewing away all by itself and making the neatest little stitches, such as Labakan

Certainly even the smallest gift of a kind fairy is of great value, and this one had yet another advantage, for

Labakan soon got plenty of customers. He used to cut out the clothes, make the first stitch with the magic

needle, and then leave it to do the rest. Before long the whole town went to him, for his work was both so

good and so cheap. The only puzzle was how he could do so much, working all alone, and also why he

And so the promise on the ivory box of 'Wealth and Happiness' came true for him, and when he heard of all

the brave doings of Prince Omar, who was the pride and darling of his people and the terror of his enemies,

the exprince thought to himself, 'After all, I am better off as a tailor, for "Honour and Glory" are apt to be

Long, long ago, as far back as the time when animals spoke, there lived a community of cats in a deserted

house they had taken possession of not far from a large town. They had everything they could possibly desire

for their comfort, they were well fed and well lodged, and if by any chance an unlucky mouse was stupid

enough to venture in their way, they caught it, not to eat it, but for the pure pleasure of catching it. The old

people of the town related how they had heard their parents speak of a time when the whole country was so

overrun with rats and mice that there was not so much as a grain of corn nor an ear of maize to be gathered in

the fields; and it might be out of gratitude to the cats who had rid the country of these plagues that their

descendants were allowed to live in peace. No one knows where they got the money to pay for everything,

nor who paid it, for all this happened so very long ago. But one thing is certain, they were rich enough to

keep a servant; for though they lived very happily together, and did not scratch nor fight more than human

beings would have done, they were not clever enough to do the housework themselves, and preferred at all

events to have some one to cook their meat, which they would have scorned to eat raw. Not only were they

very difficult to please about the housework, but most women quickly tired of living alone with only cats for

companions, consequently they never kept a servant long; and it had become a saying in the town, when

anyone found herself reduced to her last penny: 'I will go and live with the cats,' and so many a poor woman

Now Lizina was not happy at home, for her mother, who was a widow, was much fonder of her elder

daughter; so that often the younger one fared very badly, and had not enough to eat, while the elder could

have everything she desired, and if Lizina dared to complain she was certain to have a good beating.

At last the day came when she was at the end of her courage and patience, and exclaimed to her mother and

'As you hate me so much you will be glad to be rid of me, so I am going to live with the cats!'

'Be off with you!' cried her mother, seizing an old broomhandle from behind the door. Poor Lizina did not

wait to be told twice, but ran off at once and never stopped till she reached the door of the cats' house. Their

cook had left them that very morning, with her face all scratched, the result of such a quarrel with the head of

the house that he had very nearly scratched out her eyes. Lizina therefore was warmly welcomed, and she set

to work at once to prepare the dinner, not without many misgivings as to the tastes of the cats, and whether

Going to and fro about her work, she found herself frequently hindered by a constant succession of cats who

appeared one after another in the kitchen to inspect the new servant; she had one in front of her feet, another

perched on the back of her chair while she peeled the vegetables, a third sat on the table beside her, and five

or six others prowled about among the pots and pans on the shelves against the wall. The air resounded with

their purring, which meant that they were pleased with their new maid, but Lizina had not yet learned to

understand their language, and often she did not know what they wanted her to do. However, as she was a

good, kindhearted girl, she set to work to pick up the little kittens which tumbled about on the floor, she

patched up quarrels, and nursed on her lap a big tabbythe oldest of the communitywhich had a lame

paw. All these kindnesses could hardly fail to make a favourable impression on the cats, and it was even

better after a while, when she had had time to grow accustomed to their strange ways. Never had the house

been kept so clean, the meats so well served, nor the sick cats so well cared for. After a time they had a visit

from an old cat, whom they called their father, who lived by himself in a barn at the top of the hill, and came

down from time to time to inspect the little colony. He too was much taken with Lizina, and inquired, on first

seeing her: 'Are you well served by this nice, blackeyed little person?' and the cats answered with one voice:

At each of his visits the answer was always the same; but after a time the old cat, who was very observant,

noticed that the little maid had grown to look sadder and sadder. 'What is the matter, my child has any one

been unkind to you?' he asked one day, when he found her crying in her kitchen. She burst into tears and

answered between her sobs: 'Oh, no! they are all very good to me; but I long for news from home, and I pine

Old Gatto, being a sensible old cat, understood the little servant's feelings. 'You shall go home,' he said, 'and

you shall not come back here unless you please. But first you must be rewarded for all your kind services to

my children. Follow me down into the inner cellar, where you have never yet been, for I always keep it

Lizina looked round her in astonishment as they went down into the great vaulted cellar underneath the

kitchen. Before her stood the big earthenware water jars, one of which contained oil, the other a liquid

shining like gold. 'In which of these jars shall I dip you?' asked Father Gatto, with a grin that showed all his

sharp white teeth, while his moustaches stood out straight on either side of his face. The little maid looked at

the two jars from under her long dark lashes: 'In the oil jar,' she answered timidly, thinking to herself: 'I could

But Father Gatto replied: 'No, no; you have deserved something better than that.' And seizing her in his strong

paws he plunged her into the liquid gold. Wonder of wonders! when Lizina came out of the jar she shone

from head to foot like the sun in the heavens on a fine summer's day. Her pretty pink cheeks and long black

hair alone kept their natural colour, otherwise she had become like a statue of pure gold. Father Gatto purred

loudly with satisfaction. 'Go home,' he said, 'and see your mother and sisters; but take care if you hear the

cock crow to turn towards it; if on the contrary the ass brays, you must look the other way.'

The little maid, having gratefully kissed the white paw of the old cat, set off for home; but just as she got near

her mother's house the cock crowed, and quickly she turned towards it. Immediately a beautiful golden star

appeared on her forehead, crowning her glossy black hair. At the same time the ass began to bray, but Lizina

took care not to look over the fence into the field where the donkey was feeding. Her mother and sister, who

were in front of their house, uttered cries of admiration and astonishment when they saw her, and their cries

became still louder when Lizina, taking her handkerchief from her pocket, drew out also a handful of gold.

For some days the mother and her two daughters lived very happily together, for Lizina had given them

everything she had brought away except her golden clothing, for that would not come off, in spite of all the

efforts of her sister, who was madly jealous of her good fortune. The golden star, too, could not be removed

from her forehead. But all the gold pieces she drew from her pockets had found their way to her mother and

'I will go now and see what I can get out of the pussies,' said Peppina, the elder girl, one morning, as she took

Lizina's basket and fastened her pockets into her own skirt. 'I should like some of the cats' gold for myself,'

The cat colony had not yet taken another servant, for they knew they could never get one to replace Lizina,

whose loss they had not yet ceased to mourn. When they heard that Peppina was her sister, they all ran to

meet her. 'She is not the least like her,' the kittens whispered among themselves.

No, decidedly she was not at all like Lizina. Even the most reasonable and largeminded of the cats soon

The very first day she shut the kitchen door in the face of the tomcats who used to enjoy watching Lizina at

her work, and a young and mischievous cat who jumped in by the open kitchen window and alighted on the

With every day that passed the household became more and more aware of its misfortune.

The work was as badly done as the servant was surly and disagreeable; in the corners of the rooms there were

collected heaps of dust; spiders' webs hung from the ceilings and in front of the windowpanes; the beds

were hardly ever made, and the feather beds, so beloved by the old and feeble cats, had never once been

shaken since Lizina left the house. At Father Gatto's next visit he found the whole colony in a state of uproar.

'Caesar has one paw so badly swollen that it looks as if it were broken,' said one. 'Peppina kicked him with

her great wooden shoes on. Hector has an abscess in his back where a wooden chair was flung at him; and

Agrippina's three little kittens have died of hunger beside their mother, because Peppina forgot them in their

basket up in the attic. There is no putting up with the creaturedo send her away, Father Gatto! Lizina

herself would not be angry with us; she must know very well what her sister is like.'

'Come here,' said Father Gatto, in his most severe tones to Peppina. And he took her down into the cellar and

showed her the same two great jars that he had showed Lizina. 'In which of these shall I dip you?' he asked;

and she made haste to answer: 'In the liquid gold,' for she was no more modest than she was good and kind.

Father Gatto's yellow eyes darted fire. 'You have not deserved it,' he uttered, in a voice like thunder, and

seizing her he flung her into the jar of oil, where she was nearly suffocated. When she came to the surface

screaming and struggling, the vengeful cat seized her again and rolled her in the ashheap on the floor; then

when she rose, dirty, blinded, and disgusting to behold, he thrust her from the door, saying: 'Begone, and

Stumbling and raging, Peppina set off for home, thinking herself fortunate to find a stick by the wayside with

which to support herself. She was within sight of her mother's house when she heard in the meadow on the

right, the voice of a donkey loudly braying. Quickly she turned her head towards it, and at the same time put

her hand up to her forehead, where, waving like a plume, was a donkey's tail. She ran home to her mother at

the top of her speed, yelling with rage and despair; and it took Lizina two hours with a big basin of hot water

and two cakes of soap to get rid of the layer of ashes with which Father Gatto had adorned her. As for the

donkey's tail, it was impossible to get rid of that; it was as firmly fixed on her forehead as was the golden star

on Lizina's. Their mother was furious. She first beat Lizina unmercifully with the broom, then she took her to

the mouth of the well and lowered her into it, leaving her at the bottom weeping and crying for help.

Before this happened, however, the king's son in passing the mother's house had seen Lizina sitting sewing in

the parlour, and had been dazzled by her beauty. After coming back two or three times, he at last ventured to

approach the window and to whisper in the softest voice: 'Lovely maiden, will you be my bride?' and she had

Next morning, when the prince arrived to claim his bride, he found her wrapped in a large white veil. 'It is so

that maidens are received from their parents' hands,' said the mother, who hoped to make the king's son marry

Peppina in place of her sister, and had fastened the donkey's tail round her head like a lock of hair under the

veil. The prince was young and a little timid, so he made no objections, and seated Peppina in the carriage

Their way led past the old house inhabited by the cats, who were all at the window, for the report had got

about that the prince was going to marry the most beautiful maiden in the world, on whose forehead shone a

golden star, and they knew that this could only be their adored Lizina. As the carriage slowly passed in front

of the old house, where cats from all parts of world seemed to be gathered a song burst from every throat:!

Mew, mew, mew! Prince, look quick behind you! In the well is fair Lizina, And you've got nothing but

When he heard this the coachman, who understood the cat's language better than the prince, his master,

'Does your highness know what the grimalkins are saying?' and the song broke forth again louder than ever.

With a turn of his hand the prince threw back the veil, and discovered the puffedup, swollen face of

Peppina, with the donkey's tail twisted round her head. 'Ah, traitress!' he exclaimed, and ordering the horses

to be turned round, he drove the elder daughter, quivering with rage, to the old woman who had sought to

deceive him. With his hand on the hilt of his sword he demanded Lizina in so terrific a voice that the mother

hastened to the well to draw her prisoner out. Lizina's clothing and her star shone so brilliantly that when the

prince led her home to the king, his father, the whole palace was lit up. Next day they were married, and lived

happy ever after; and all the cats, headed by old Father Gatto, were present at the wedding.

Once upon a time there lived a king and queen who longed to have a son. As none came, one day they made a

vow at the shrine of St. James that if their prayers were granted the boy should set out on a pilgrimage as

soon as he had passed his eighteenth birthday. And fancy their delight when one evening the king returned

All the people came crowding round to peep at it, and declared it was the most beautiful baby that ever was

seen. Of course that is what they always say, but this time it happened to be true. And every day the boy grew

bigger and stronger till he was twelve years old, when the king died, and he was left alone to take care of his

In this way six years passed by, and his eighteenth birthday drew near. When she thought of this the queen's

heart sank within her, for he was the light of her eyes' and how was she to send him forth to the unknown

dangers that beset a pilgrim? So day by day she grew more and more sorrowful, and when she was alone

Now the queen imagined that no one but herself knew how sad she was, but one morning her son said to her,

'Nothing, nothing, my son; there is only one thing in the world that troubles me.'

'What is that one thing?' asked he. 'Are you afraid your property is badly managed? Let me go and look into

This pleased the queen, and he rode off to the plain country, where his mother owned great estates; but

everything was in beautiful order, and he returned with a joyful heart, and said, 'Now, mother, you can be

happy again, for your lands are better managed than anyone else's I have seen. The cattle are thriving; the

'That is good news indeed,' answered she; but it did not seem to make any difference to her, and the next

'Dear mother,' said her son in despair, 'if you will not tell me what is the cause of all this misery I shall leave

'Ah, my son, my son,' cried the queen, 'it is the thought that I must part from you which causes me such grief;

for before you were born we vowed a vow to St. James that when your eighteenth birthday was passed you

should make a pilgrimage to his shrine, and very soon you will be eighteen, and I shall lose you. And for a

whole year my eyes will never be gladdened by the sight of you, for the shrine is far away.'

'Will it take no longer than that to reach it?' said he. 'Oh, don't be so wretched; it is only dead people who

After this manner he comforted his mother, and on his eighteenth birthday his best horse was led to the door

of the palace, and he took leave of the queen in these words, 'Dear mother, farewell, and by the help of fate I

The queen burst into tears and wept sore; then amidst her sobs she drew three apples from her pocket and

held them out, saying, 'My son, take these apples and give heed unto my words. You will need a companion

in the long journey on which you are going. If you come across a young man who pleases you beg him to

accompany you, and when you get to an inn invite him to have dinner with you. After you have eaten cut one

of these apples in two unequal parts, and ask him to take one. If he takes the larger bit, then part from him, for

he is no true friend to you. But if he takes the smaller bit treat him as your brother, and share with him all you

The young man rode a long way without meeting a single creature, but at last he saw a youth in the distance

about the same age as himself, and he spurred his horse till he came up with the stranger, who stopped and

'I am making a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James, for before I was born my mother vowed that I should go

'That is my case too,' said the stranger, 'and, as we must both travel in the same direction, let us bear each

The young man agreed to this proposal, but he took care not to get on terms of familiarity with the new comer

Byandby they reached an inn, and at sight of it the king's son said, 'I am very hungry. Let us enter and

order something to eat.' The other consented, and they were soon sitting before a good dinner.

When they had finished the king's son drew an apple from his pocket, and cut it into a big half and a little

half, and offered both to the stranger, who took the biggest bit. 'You are no friend of mine,' thought the king's

son, and in order to part company with him he pretended to be ill and declared himself unable to proceed on

'Well, I can't wait for you,' replied the other; 'I am in haste to push on, so farewell.'

'Farewell,' said the king's son, glad in his heart to get rid of him so easily. The king's son remained in the inn

for some time, so as to let the young man have a good start; them he ordered his horse and rode after him. But

he was very sociable and the way seemed long and dull by himself. 'Oh, if I could only meet with a true

friend,' he thought, 'so that I should have some one to speak to. I hate being alone.'

Soon after he came up with a young man, who stopped and asked him, 'Where are you going, my fine

fellow?' The king's son explained the object of his journey, and the young man answered, as the other had

'Well, we can ride on together,' said the king's son, and the road seemed much shorter now that he had some

At length they reached an inn, and the king's son exclaimed, 'I am very hungry; let us go in and get something

When they had finished the king's son drew an apple out of his pocket and cut it in two; he held the big bit

and the little bit out to his companion, who took the big bit at once and soon ate it up. 'You are no friend of

mine,' thought the king's son, and began to declare he felt so ill he could not continue his journey. When he

had given the young man a good start he set off himself, but the way seemed even longer and duller than

before. 'Oh, if I could only meet with a true friend he should be as a brother to me,' he sighed sadly; and as

the thought passed through his mind, he noticed a youth going the same road as himself.

The youth came up to him and said, 'Which way are you going, my fine fellow?' And for the third time the

king's son explained all about his mother's vow. Why, that is just like me,' cried the youth.

Now the miles seemed to slip by, for the new comer was so lively and entertaining that the king's son could

More quickly than he could have thought possible they reached an inn by the roadside, and turning to his

companion the king's son said, 'I am hungry; let us go in and have something to eat.' So they went in and

ordered dinner, and when they had finished the king's son drew out of his pocket the last apple, and cut it into

two unequal parts, and held both out to the stranger. And the stranger took the little piece, and the heart of the

king's son was glad within him, for at last he had found the friend he had been looking for. 'Good youth,' he

cried, 'we will be brothers, and what is mine shall be thine, and what is thine shall be mine. And together we

will push on to the shrine, and if one of us dies on the road the other shall carry his body there.' And the

It took them a whole year to reach the shrine, and they passed through many different lands on their way. One

day they arrived tired and halfstarved in a big city, and said to one another, 'Let us stay here for a little and

rest before we set forth again.' So they hired a small house close to the royal castle, and took up their abode

The following morning the king of the country happened to step on to his balcony, and saw the young men in

the garden, and said to himself, 'Dear me, those are wonderfully handsome youths; but one is handsomer than

the other, and to him will I give my daughter to wife;' and indeed the king's son excelled his friend in beauty.

In order to set about his plan the king asked both the young men to dinner, and when they arrived at the castle

he received them with the utmost kindness, and sent for his daughter, who was more lovely than both the sun

and moon put together. But at bedtime the king caused the other young man to be given a poisoned drink,

which killed him in a few minutes, for he thought to himself, 'If his friend dies the other will forget his

When the king's son awoke the next morning he inquired of the servants where his friend had gone, as he did

not see him. 'He died suddenly last night,' said they, 'and is to be buried immediately.'

But the king's son sprang up, and cried, 'If my friend is dead I can stay here no longer, and cannot linger an

'Oh, give up your journey and remain here,' exclaimed the king, 'and you shall have my daughter for your

wife.' 'No,' answered the king's son, 'I cannot stay; but, I pray you, grant my request, and give me a good

horse, and let me go in peace, and when I have fulfilled my vow then I will return and marry your daughter.'

So the king, seeing no words would move him, ordered a horse to be brought round, and the king's son

When the king's son reached the shrine of St. James he got down from his horse, took his friend in his arms as

if he had been a child, and laid him before the altar. 'St. James,' he said, 'I have fulfilled the vow my parents

made for me. I have come myself to your shrine, and have brought my friend. I place him in your hands.

Restore him to life, I pray, for though he be dead yet has he fulfilled his vow also.' And, behold! while he yet

prayed his friend got up and stood before him as well as ever. And both the young men gave thanks, and set

When they arrived at the town where the king dwelt they entered the small house over against the castle. The

news of their coming spread very soon, and the king rejoiced greatly that the handsome young prince had

come back again, and commanded great feasts to be prepared, for in a few days his daughter should marry the

king's son. The young man himself could imagine no greater happiness, and when the marriage was over they

At length the king's son said, 'My mother awaits me at home, full of care and anxiety. Here I must remain no

longer, and tomorrow I will take my wife and my friend and start for home.' And the king was content that

Now in his heart the king cherished a deadly hate towards the poor young man whom he had tried to kill, but

who had returned to him living, and in order to do him hurt sent him on a message to some distant spot. 'See

that you are quick,' said he, 'for your friend will await your return before he starts.' The youth put spurs to his

horse and departed, bidding the prince farewell, so that the king's message might be delivered the sooner. As

soon as he had started the king went to the chamber of the prince, and said to him, 'If you do not start

'Oh, he will be back in an hour,' replied the king, 'and I will give him my best horse, so that he will be sure to

catch you up.' The king's son allowed himself to be persuaded and took leave of his fatherinlaw, and set

Meanwhile the poor friend had been unable to get through his task in the short time appointed by the king,

'Your comrade is a long way off by now; you had better see if you can overtake him.'

So the young man bowed and left the king's presence, and followed after his friend on foot, for he had no

horse. Night and day he ran, till at length he reached the place where the king's son had pitched his tent, and

sank down before him, a miserable object, worn out and covered with mud and dust. But the king's son

And at last they came home again, and the queen was waiting and watching in the palace, as she had never

ceased to do since her son had rode away. She almost died of joy at seeing him again, but after a little she

remembered his sick friend, and ordered a bed to be made ready and the best doctors in all the country to be

sent for. When they heard of the queen's summons they flocked from all parts, but none could cure him. After

everyone had tried and failed a servant entered and informed the queen that a strange old man had just

knocked at the palace gate and declared that he was able to heal the dying youth. Now this was a holy man,

It happened that at this very time a little daughter was born to the king's son, but in his distress for his friend

he had hardly a thought to spare for the baby. He could not be prevailed on to leave the sick bed, and he was

bending over it when the holy man entered the room. 'Do you wish your friend to be cured?' asked the new

'What price?' answered the king's son; 'only tell me what I can do to heal him.'

'Listen to me, then,' said the old man. 'This evening you must take your child, and open her veins, and smear

the wounds of your friend with her blood. And you will see, he will get well in an instant.'

At these words the king's son shrieked with horror, for he loved the baby dearly, but he answered, 'I have

sworn that I would treat my friend as if he were my brother, and if there is no other way my child must be

As by this time evening had already fallen he took the child and opened its veins, and smeared the blood over

the wounds of the sick man, and the look of death departed from him, and he grew strong and rosy once

more. But the little child lay as white and still as if she had been dead. They laid her in the cradle and wept

'Look at her once more,' said the holy man, and as they drew near the cradle there lay the baby smiling up at

'I am St. James of Lizia,,' said the old man, 'and I have come to help you, for I have seen that you are a true

friend. From henceforward live happily, all of you, together, and if troubles should draw near you send for

And they obeyed him, and were happy and content, and tried to make the people of the land happy and

There was once a merchant who lived close to the royal palace, and had three daughters. They were all pretty,

but Maria, the youngest, was the prettiest of the three. One day the king sent for the merchant, who was a

widower, to give him directions about a journey he wished the good man to take. The merchant would rather

not have gone, as he did not like leaving his daughters at home, but he could not refuse to obey the king's

commands, and with a heavy heart he returned home to say farewell to them. Before he left, he took three

pots of basil, and gave one to each girl, saying, 'I am going a journey, but I leave these pots. You must let

nobody into the house. When I come back, they will tell me what has happened.' 'Nothing will have

The father went away, and the following day the king, accompanied by two friends, paid a visit to the three

girls, who were sitting at supper. When they saw who was there, Maria said, 'Let us go and get a bottle of

wine from the cellar. I will carry the key, my eldest sister can take the light, while the other brings the bottle.'

But the king replied, 'Oh, do not trouble; we are not thirsty.' 'Very well, we will not go,' answered the two

elder girls; but Maria merely said, 'I shall go, anyhow.' She left the room, and went to the hall where she put

out the light, and putting down the key and the bottle, ran to the house of a neighbour, and knocked at the

door. 'Who is there so late?' asked the old woman, thrusting her head out of the window.

'Oh, let me in,' answered Maria. 'I have quarrelled with my eldest sister, and as I do not want to fight any

So the old woman opened the door and Maria slept in her house. The king was very angry at her for playing

truant, but when she returned home the next day, she found the plants of her sisters withered away, because

they had disobeyed their father. Now the window in the room of the eldest overlooked the gardens of the

king, and when she saw how fine and ripe the medlars were on the trees, she longed to eat some, and begged

Maria to scramble down by a rope and pick her a few, and she would draw her up again. Maria, who was

goodnatured, swung herself into the garden by the rope, and got the medlars, and was just making the rope

fast under her arms so as to be hauled up, when her sister cried: 'Oh, there are such delicious lemons a little

farther on. You might bring me one or two.' Maria turned round to pluck them, and found herself face to face

with the gardener, who caught hold of her, exclaiming, 'What are you doing here, you little thief?' 'Don't call

me names,' she said, 'or you will get the worst of it,' giving him as she spoke such a violent push that he fell

panting into the lemon bushes. Then she seized the cord and clambered up to the window.

The next day the second sister had a fancy for bananas and begged so hard, that, though Maria had declared

she would never do such a thing again, at last she consented, and went down the rope into the king's garden.

This time she met the king, who said to her, 'Ah, here you are again, cunning one! Now you shall pay for

And he began to crossquestion her about what she had done. Maria denied nothing, and when she had

finished, the king said again, 'Follow me to the house, and there you shall pay the penalty.' As he spoke, he

started for the house, looking back from time to time to make sure that Maria had not run away. All of a

sudden, when he glanced round, he found she had vanished completely, without leaving a trace of where she

had gone. Search was made all through the town, and there was not a hole or corner which was not ransacked,

but there was no sign of her anywhere. This so enraged the king that he became quite ill, and for many

Meanwhile the two elder sisters had married the two friends of the king, and were the mothers of little

daughters. Now one day Maria stole secretly to the house where her elder sister lived, and snatching up the

children put them into a beautiful basket she had with her, covered with flowers inside and out, so that no one

would ever guess it held two babies. Then she dressed herself as a boy, and placing the basket on her head,

And the king in his bed heard what she said, and ordered one of his attendants to go out and buy the basket. It

was brought to his bedside, and as he raised the lid cries were heard, and peeping in he saw two little

children. He was furious at this new trick which he felt had been played on him by Maria, and was still

looking at them, wondering how he should pay her out, when he was told that the merchant, Maria's father,

had finished the business on which he had been sent and returned home. Then the king remembered how

Maria had refused to receive his visit, and how she had stolen his fruit, and he determined to be revenged on

her. So he sent a message by one of his pages that the merchant was to come to see him the next day, and

bring with him a coat made of stone, or else he would be punished. Now the poor man had been very sad

since he got home the evening before, for though his daughters had promised that nothing should happen

while he was away, he had found the two elder ones married without asking his leave. And now there was

this fresh misfortune, for how was he to make a coat of stone? He wrung his hands and declared that the king

would be the ruin of him, when Maria suddenly entered. 'Do not grieve about the coat of stone, dear father;

but take this bit of chalk, and go to the palace and say you have come to measure the king.' The old man did

not see the use of this, but Maria had so often helped him before that he had confidence in her, so he put the

'That is no good,' said the king, when the merchant had told him what he had come for.

The merchant did not reply, but went sorrowfully back to his house, where Maria sat waiting for him.

'Oh, my dear child, why was I born? The king says that, instead of the coat, I must deliver you up to him.'

'Do not be unhappy, dear father, but get a doll made, exactly like me, with a string attached to its head, which

The king remained patiently in his palace, feeling sure that this time Maria could not escape him; and he said

to his pages, 'If a gentleman should come here with his daughter and ask to be allowed to speak with me, put

When the door was shut on Maria, who had concealed the doll under her cloak, she hid herself under the

'Senhora Maria, I hope you are well,' said the king when he entered the room. The doll nodded. 'Now we will

reckon up accounts,' continued he, and he began at the beginning, and ended up with the flowerbasket, and

at each fresh misdeed Maria pulled the string, so that the doll's head nodded assent. 'Whoso mocks at me

merits death,' declared the king when he had ended, and drawing his sword, cut off the doll's head. It fell

towards him, and as he felt the touch of a kiss, he exclaimed, 'Ah, Maria, Maria, so sweet in death, so hard to

me in life! The man who could kill you deserves to die!' And he was about to turn his sword on himself,

when the true Maria sprung out from under the bed, and flung herself into his arms. And the next day they

Right in the middle of Japan, high up among the mountains, an old man lived in his little house. He was very

proud of it, and never tired of admiring the whiteness of his straw mats, and the pretty papered walls, which

in warm weather always slid back, so that the smell of the trees and flowers might come in.

One day he was standing looking at the mountain opposite, when he heard a kind of rumbling noise in the

room behind him. He turned round, and in the corner he beheld a rusty old iron kettle, which could not have

seen the light of day for many years. How the kettle got there the old man did not know, but he took it up and

looked it over carefully, and when he found that it was quite whole he cleaned the dust off it and carried it

'That was a piece of luck,' he said, smiling to himself; 'a good kettle costs money, and it is as well to have a

second one at hand in case of need; mine is getting worn out, and the water is already beginning to come

Then he took the other kettle off the fire, filled the new one with water, and put it in its place.

No sooner was the water in the kettle getting warm than a strange thing happened, and the man, who was

standing by, thought he must be dreaming. First the handle of the kettle gradually changed its shape and

became a head, and the spout grew into a tail, while out of the body sprang four paws, and in a few minutes

the man found himself watching, not a kettle, but a tanuki! The creature jumped off the fire, and bounded

about the room like a kitten, running up the walls and over the ceiling, till the old man was in an agony lest

his pretty room should be spoilt. He cried to a neighbour for help, and between them they managed to catch

the tanuki, and shut him up safely in a wooden chest. Then, quite exhausted, they sat down on the mats, and

consulted together what they should do with this troublesome beast. At length they decided to sell him, and

When Jimmu arrived, the old man told him that he had something which he wished to get rid of, and lifted

the lid of the wooden chest, where he had shut up the tanuki. But, to his surprise, no tanuki was there, nothing

but the kettle he had found in the corner. It was certainly very odd, but the man remembered what had taken

place on the fire, and did not want to keep the kettle any more, so after a little bargaining about the price,

Now Jimmu had not gone very far before he felt that the kettle was getting heavier and heavier, and by the

time he reached home he was so tired that he was thankful to put it down in the corner of his room, and then

forgot all about it. In the middle of the night, however, he was awakened by a loud noise in the corner where

the kettle stood, and raised himself up in bed to see what it was. But nothing was there except the kettle,

which seemed quiet enough. He thought that he must have been dreaming, and fell asleep again, only to be

roused a second time by the same disturbance. He jumped up and went to the corner, and by the light of the

lamp that he always kept burning he saw that the kettle had become a tanuki, which was running round after

his tail. After he grew weary of that, he ran on the balcony, where he turned several somersaults, from pure

gladness of heart. The tradesman was much troubled as to what to do with the animal, and it was only

towards morning that he managed to get any sleep; but when he opened his eyes again there was no tanuki,

As soon as he had tidied his house, Jimmu set off to tell his story to a friend next door. The man listened

quietly, and did not appear so surprised as Jimmu expected, for he recollected having heard, in his youth,

something about a wonderworking kettle. 'Go and travel with it, and show it off,' said he, 'and you will

become a rich man; but be careful first to ask the tanuki's leave, and also to perform some magic ceremonies

Jimmu thanked his friend for his counsel, which he followed exactly. The tanuki's consent was obtained, a

booth was built, and a notice was hung up outside it inviting the people to come and witness the most

They came in crowds, and the kettle was passed from hand to hand, and they were allowed to examine it all

over, and even to look inside. Then Jimmu took it back, and setting it on the platform, commanded it to

become a tanuki. In an instant the handle began to change into a head, and the spout into a tail, while the four

paws appeared at the sides. 'Dance,' said Jimmu, and the tanuki did his steps, and moved first on one side and

then on the other, till the people could not stand still any longer, and began to dance too. Gracefully he led the

fan dance, and glided without a pause into the shadow dance and the umbrella dance, and it seemed as if he

might go on dancing for ever. And so very likely he would, if Jimmu had not declared he had danced enough,

Day after day the booth was so full it was hardly possible to enter it, and what the neighbour foretold had

come to pass, and Jimmu was a rich man. Yet he did not feel happy. He was an honest man, and he thought

that he owed some of his wealth to the man from whom he had bought the kettle. So, one morning, he put a

hundred gold pieces into it, and hanging the kettle once more on his arm, he returned to the seller of it. 'I have

no right to keep it any longer,' he added when he had ended his tale, 'so I have brought it back to you, and

The man thanked Jimmu, and said that few people would have been as honest as he. And the kettle brought

them both luck, and everything went well with them till they died, which they did when they were very old,