by Jacob Grimm
Now the white snake was an enchanted princess; and she rejoiced greatly to see him, and said, ‘Art thou at last come to be my deliverer? Twelve long years have I waited for thee, for thou alone canst save me. This night twelve men will come: their faces will be black, and they will be hung round with chains. They will ask what thou dost here; but be silent, give no answer, and let them do what they will – beat and torment thee. Suffer all, only speak not a word, and at twelve o’clock they must depart. The second night twelve others will come; and the third night twenty-four, who will even cut off thy head; but at the twelfth hour of that night their power is gone, and I shall be free, and will come and bring thee the water of life and health.’ And all came to pass as she had said; the merchant’s son spoke not a word, and the third night the princess appeared, and fell on his neck and kissed him; joy and gladness burst forth throughout the castle; the wedding was celebrated, and he was king of the Golden Mountain.
They lived together very happily, and the queen had a son. Eight years had passed over their heads when the king thought of his father: and his heart was moved, and he longed to see him once again. But the queen opposed his going, and said, ‘I know well that misfortunes will come.’ However, he gave her no rest till she consented. At his departure she presented him with a wishing-ring, and said, ‘Take this ring, and put it on your finger; whatever you wish it will bring you: only promise that you will not make use of it to bring me hence to your father’s.’ Then he promised what she asked, and put the ring on his finger, and wished himself near the town where his father lived. He found himself at the gates in a moment; but the guards would not let him enter, because he was so strangely clad. So he went up to a neighbouring mountain where a shepherd dwelt, and borrowed his old frock, and thus passed unobserved into the town. When he came to his father’s house, he said he was his son; but the merchant would not believe him, and said he had had but one son, who he knew was long since dead; and as he was only dressed like a poor shepherd, he would not even offer him any thing to eat. The king however persisted that he was his son, and said, ‘Is there no mark by which you would know if I am really your son?’ ‘Yes,’ observed his mother, ‘our son has a mark like a raspberry under the right arm.’ Then he showed them the mark, and they were satisfied that what he had said was true. He next told them how he was king of the Golden Mountain, and was married to a princess, and had a son seven years old. But the merchant said, ‘That can never be true; he must be a fine king truly who travels about in a shepherd’s frock.’ At this the son was very angry; and, forgetting his promise, turned his ring, and wished for his queen and son. In an instant they stood before him; but the queen wept, and said he had broken his word, and misfortune would follow. He did all he could to soothe her, and she at last appeared to be appeased; but she was not so in reality, and only meditated how she should take her revenge.
One day he took her to walk with him out of the town, and showed her the spot where the boat was turned adrift upon the wide waters. Then he sat himself down, and said, ‘I am very much tired; sit by me, I will rest my head in your lap, and sleep a while.’ As soon as he had fallen asleep, however, she drew the ring from his finger, and crept softly away, and wished herself and her son at home in their kingdom. And when the king awoke, he found himself alone, and saw that the ring was gone from his finger. ‘I can never return to my father’s house,’ said he; ‘they would say I am a sorcerer; I will journey forth into the world till I come again to my kingdom.’
So saying, he set out and travelled till he came to a mountain, where three giants were sharing their inheritance; and as they saw him pass, they cried out and said, ‘Little men have sharp wits; he shall divide the inheritance between us.’ Now it consisted of a sword that cut off an enemy’s head whenever the wearer gave the words ‘Heads off!’; a cloak that made the owner invisible, or gave him any form he pleased; and a pair of boots that transported the person who put them on wherever he wished. The king said they must first let him try these wonderful things, that he might know how to set a value upon them. Then they gave him the cloak, and he wished himself a fly, and in a moment he was a fly. ‘The cloak is very well,’ said he; ‘now give me the sword.’ ‘No,’ said they, ‘not unless you promise not to say “Heads off!” for if you do, we are all dead men.’ So they gave it him on condition that he tried its virtue only on a tree. He next asked for the boots also; and the moment he had all three in his possession he wished himself at the Golden Mountain; and there he was in an instant. So the giants were left behind with no inheritance to divide or quarrel about.
As he came near to the castle he heard the sound of merry music; and the people around told him that his queen was about to celebrate her marriage with another prince. Then he threw his cloak around him, and passed through the castle, and placed himself by the side of his queen, where no one saw him. But when any thing to eat was put upon her plate, he took it away and ate it himself; and when a glass of wine was handed to her, he took and drank it: and thus, though they kept on serving her with meat and drink, her plate continued always empty.
Upon this, fear and remorse came over her, and she went into her chamber and wept; and he followed her there. ‘Alas!’ said she to herself, ‘did not my deliverer come? why then doth enchantment still surround me?’
‘Thou traitress!’ said he, ‘thy deliverer indeed came, and now is near thee: has he deserved this of thee?’ And he went out and dismissed the company, and said the wedding was at an end, for that he was returned to his kingdom: but the princes and nobles and counsellors mocked at him. However, he would enter into no parley with them, but only demanded whether they would depart in peace, or not. Then they turned and tried to seize him; but he drew his sword, and, with a word, the traitors’ heads fell before him; and he was once more king of the Golden Mountain.
The Golden Goose
There was a man who had three sons. The youngest was called Dummling, and was on all occasions despised and ill-treated by the whole family. It happened that the eldest took it into his head one day to go into the wood to cut fuel; and his mother gave him a delicious pasty and a bottle of wine to take with him, that he might refresh himself at his work. As he went into the wood, a little old man bid him good day, and said, ‘Give me a little piece of meat from your plate, and a little wine out of your bottle; I am very hungry and thirsty.’ But this clever young man said, ‘Give you my meat and wine! No, I thank you; I should not have enough left for myself;’ and away he went. He soon began to cut down a tree; but he had not worked long before he missed his stroke, and cut himself, and was obliged to go home to have the wound dressed. Now it was the little old man that caused him this mischief.
Next went out the second son to work; and his mother gave him too a pasty and a bottle of wine. And the same little old man met him also, and asked him for something to eat and drink. But he too thought himself vastly clever, and said, ‘Whatever you get, I shall lose; so go your way!’ The little man took care that he should have his reward; and the second stroke that he aimed against a tree, hit him on the leg; so that he too was forced to go home.
Then Dummling said, ‘Father, I should like to go and cut wood too.’ But his father answered, ‘Your brothers have both lamed themselves; you had better stay at home, for you know nothing of the business.’ But Dummling was very pressing; and at last his father said, ‘Go your way; you will be wiser when you have suffered for your folly.’ And his mother gave him only some dry bread, and a bottle of sour beer; but when he went into the wood, he met the little old man, who said, ‘Give me some meat and drink, for I am very hungry and thirsty.’ Dummling said, ‘I have only dry bread and sour beer; if that will suit you, we will sit down and eat it together.’ So they sat down; and when the lad pulled out his bread, behold it was turned into a capital pasty, and his sour beer became delightful wine. They ate and drank heartily; and when they had done, the little man said, ‘As you have a kind heart, and have been
willing to share every thing with me, I will send a blessing upon you. There stands an old tree; cut it down, and you will find something at the root.’ Then he took his leave, and went his way.
Dummling set to work, and cut down the tree; and when it fell, he found in a hollow under the roots a goose with feathers of pure gold. He took it up, and went on to an inn, where he proposed to sleep for the night. The landlord had three daughters; and when they saw the goose, they were very curious to examine what this wonderful bird could be, and wished very much to pluck one of the feathers out of its tail. At last the eldest said, ‘I must and will have a feather.’ So she waited till his back was turned, and then seized the goose by the wing; but to her great surprise there she stuck, for neither hand nor finger could she get away again. Presently in came the second sister, and thought to have a feather too; but the moment she touched her sister, there she too hung fast. At last came the third, and wanted a feather; but the other two cried out, ‘Keep away! for heaven’s sake, keep away!’ However, she did not understand what they meant. ‘If they are there,’ thought she, ‘I may as well be there too.’ So she went up to them; but the moment she touched her sisters she stuck fast, and hung to the goose as they did. And so they kept company with the goose all night.
The next morning Dummling carried off the goose under his arm; and took no notice of the three girls, but went out with them sticking fast behind; and wherever he travelled, they too were obliged to follow, whether they would or no, as fast as their legs could carry them.
In the middle of a field the parson met them; and when he saw the train, he said, ‘Are you not ashamed of yourselves, you bold girls, to run after the young man in that way over the fields? is that proper behaviour?’ Then he took the youngest by the hand to lead her away; but the moment he touched her he too hung fast, and followed in the train. Presently up came the clerk; and when he saw his master the parson running after the three girls, he wondered greatly, and said, ‘Hollo! hollo! your reverence! whither so fast? there is a christening today.’ Then he ran up, and took him by the gown, and in a moment he was fast too. As the five were thus trudging along, one behind another, they met two labourers with their mattocks coming from work; and the parson cried out to them to set him free. But scarcely had they touched him, when they too fell into the ranks, and so made seven, all running after Dummling and his goose.
At last they arrived at a city, where reigned a king who had an only daughter. The princess was of so thoughtful and serious a turn of mind that no one could make her laugh; and the king had proclaimed to all the world, that whoever could make her laugh should have her for his wife. When the young man heard this, he went to her with his goose and all its train; and as soon as she saw the seven all hanging together, and running about, treading on each other’s heels she could not help bursting into a long and loud laugh. Then Dummling claimed her for his wife; the wedding was celebrated, and he was heir to the kingdom, and lived long and happily with his wife.
Mrs Fox
There was once a sly old fox with nine tails, who was very curious to know whether his wife was true to him: so he stretched himself out under a bench, and pretended to be as dead as a mouse.
Then Mrs Fox went up into her own room and locked the door: but her maid, the cat, sat at the kitchen fire cooking; and soon after it became known that the old fox was dead, some one knocked at the door, saying,
‘Miss Pussy! Miss Pussy! how fare you today?
Are you sleeping or watching the time away?’
Then the cat went and opened the door, and there stood a young fox; so she said to him,
‘No, no, Master Fox, I don’t sleep in the day,
I’m making some capital white wine whey.
Will your honour be pleased to dinner to stay?’
‘No, I thank you,’ said the fox; ‘but how is poor Mrs Fox?’ Then the cat answered,
‘She sits all alone in her chamber up stairs,
And bewails her misfortune with floods of tears:
She weeps till her beautiful eyes are red;
For, alas! alas! Mr Fox is dead.’
‘Go to her,’ said the other, ‘and say that there is a young fox come, who wishes to marry her.’
Then up went the cat, – trippety trap,
And knocked at the door, – tippety tap;
‘Is good Mrs Fox within?’ said she.
‘Alas! my dear, what want you with me?’
‘There waits a suitor below at the gate.’
Then said Mrs Fox,
‘How looks he, my dear? is he tall and straight?
Has he nine good tails? There must be nine,
Or he never shall be a suitor of mine.’
‘Ah!’ said the cat, ‘he has but one.’ ‘Then I will never have him,’ answered Mrs Fox.
So the cat went down, and sent this suitor about his business. Soon after, some one else knocked at the door; it was another fox that had two tails, but he was not better welcomed than the first. After this came several others, till at last one came that had really nine tails just like the old fox.
When the widow heard this, she jumped up and said,
‘Now, Pussy, my dear, open windows and doors,
And bid all our friends at our wedding to meet;
And as for that nasty old master of ours,
Throw him out of the window, Puss, into the street.’
But when the wedding feast was all ready, up sprang the old gentleman on a sudden, and taking a club, drove the whole company, together with Mrs Fox, out of doors.
After some time, however, the old fox really died; and soon afterwards a wolf came to pay his respects, and knocked at the door.
Wolf. ‘Good day, Mrs Cat, with your whiskers so trim;
How comes it you’re sitting alone so prim?
What’s that you are cooking so nicely, I pray?’
Cat. ‘O, that’s bread and milk for my dinner today.
Will your worship be pleased to stay and dine,
Or shall I fetch you a glass of wine?’
‘No, I thank you! Mrs Fox is not at home, I suppose?’
Cat. ‘She sits all alone,
Her griefs to bemoan;
For, alas! alas! Mr Fox is gone.’
Wolf. ‘Ah! dear Mrs Puss! that’s a loss indeed:
D’ye think she’d take me for a husband instead?’
Cat. ‘Indeed, Mr Wolf, I don’t know but she may
If you’ll sit down a moment, I’ll step up and see.’
So she gave him a chair, and shaking her ears,
She very obligingly tripped it up stairs.
She knocked at the door with the rings on her toes,
And said, ‘Mrs Fox, you’re within, I suppose?’
‘O yes,’ said the widow, ‘pray come in, my dear,
And tell me whose voice in the kitchen I hear.’
‘It’s a wolf,’ said the cat, ‘with a nice smooth skin,
Who was passing this way, and just stepped in
To see (as old Mr Fox is dead)
If you like to take him for a husband instead.’
‘But,’ said Mrs Fox, ‘has he red feet and a sharp snout?’ ‘No,’ said the cat. ‘Then he won’t do for me.’ Soon after the wolf was sent about his business, there came a dog, then a goat, and after that a bear, a lion, and all the beasts, one after another. But they all wanted something that old Mr Fox had, and the cat was ordered to send them all away. At last came a young fox, and Mrs Fox said, ‘Has he four red feet and a sharp snout?’ ‘Yes,’ said the cat.
‘Then, Puss, make the parlour look clean and neat,
And throw the old gentleman into the street;
A stupid old rascal! I’m glad that he’s dead,
Now I’ve got such a charming young fox instead.’
So the wedding was held, and t
he merry bells rung,
And the friends and relations they danced and they sung,
And feasted and drank, I can’t tell how long.
Hansel and Grettel
Hansel one day took his sister Grettel by the hand, and said, ‘Since our poor mother died we have had no happy days; for our new mother beats us all day long and when we go near her, she pushes us away. We have nothing but hard crusts to eat; and the little dog that lies by the fire is better off than we; for he sometimes has a nice piece of meat thrown to him. Heaven have mercy upon us! O if our poor mother knew how we are used! Come, we will go and travel over the wide world.’ They went the whole day walking over the fields, till in the evening they came to a great wood; and then they were so tired and hungry that they sat down in a hollow tree and went to sleep.
In the morning when they awoke, the sun had risen high above the trees, and shone warm upon the hollow tree. Then Hansel said, ‘Sister, I am very thirsty; if I could find a brook, I would go and drink, and fetch you some water too. Listen, I think I hear the sound of one.’ Then Hansel rose up and took Grettel by the hand and went in search of the brook. But their cruel step-mother was a fairy, and had followed them into the wood to work them mischief: and when they had found a brook that ran sparkling over the pebbles, Hansel wanted to drink; but Grettel thought she heard the brook, as it babbled along, say, ‘Whoever drinks here will be turned into a tiger.’ Then she cried out, ‘Ah, brother! do not drink, or you will be turned into a wild beast and tear me to pieces.’ Then Hansel yielded, although he was parched with thirst. ‘I will wait,’ said he, ‘for the next brook.’ But when they came to the next, Grettel listened again, and thought she heard, ‘Whoever drinks here will become a wolf.’ Then she cried out, ‘Brother, brother, do not drink, or you will become a wolf and eat me.’ So he did not drink, but said, ‘I will wait for the next brook; there I must drink, say what you will, I am so thirsty.’