Chapter 33
“Very true, I daresay”, said the Prince; “but since all the others have tried, Katie may as well try too.”
“Katie”, he bawled out through the door; and Katie came trampling upstairs, and her wooden cloak clattered as if a whole regiment of dragoons were charging up.
“Now, you must try the shoe on, and be a Princess, you too,” said the other maids, and laughed and made game of her.
So Katie took up the shoe, and put her foot into it like nothing, and threw off her wooden cloak; and so there she stood in her gold kirtle, and it shone so that the sunbeams glistened from her; and, lo! on her other foot she had the fellow to the gold shoe.
So when the Prince knew her again, he grew so glad, he ran up to her and threw his arms round her, and gave her a kiss; and when he heard she was a King’s daughter, he got gladder still, and then came the wedding feast; and so,
Snip, snip, snover, This story’s over.
THUMBIKIN
Once on a time there was a woman who had an only son, and he was no taller than your thumb; and so they called him Thumbikin.
Now, when he had come to be old enough to know right and wrong, his mother told him to go out and woo him a bride, for now she said it was high time he thought about getting a wife. When Thumbikin heard that, he was very glad; so they got their driving gear in order and set off, and his mother put him into her bosom. Now they were going to a palace where there was an awfully big Princess, but when they had gone a bit of the way, Thumbikin was lost and gone. His mother hunted for him everywhere, and bawled to him, and wept because he was lost, and she couldn’t find him again.
“_Pip, Pip_”, said Thumbikin, “here I am”; and he had hidden himself in the horse’s mane.
So he came out, and had to give his word to his mother that he wouldn’t do so any more. But when they had driven a bit further on, Thumbikin was lost again. His mother hunted for him, and called him, and wept; but gone he was, and gone he stayed.
“_Pip, Pip_”, said Thumbikin at last; and then she heard how he laughed and tittered, but she couldn’t find him at all for the life of her.
“_Pip, Pip_, why, here I am now!” said Thumbikin, and came out of the horse’s ear.
So he had to give his word that he wouldn’t hide himself again; but they had scarce driven a bit further before he was gone again. He couldn’t help it. As for his mother, she hunted, and wept, and called him by name; but gone he was, and gone he stayed; and the more she hunted, the less she could find him in any way.
“_Pip, Pip_, here I am then”, said Thumbikin.
But she couldn’t make out at all where he was, his voice sounded so dull, and muffled.
So she hunted, and he kept on saying, “Pip, here I am”, and laughed and chuckled, but she couldn’t find him; but all at once the horse snorted, and it snorted Thumbikin out, for he had crept up one of his nostrils.
Then his mother took him and put him into a bag; she knew no other way, for she saw well enough he couldn’t help hiding himself.
So, when they came to the palace, the match was soon made, for the Princess thought him a pretty little chap, and it wasn’t long before the wedding came on too.
Now, when they were going to sit down to the wedding-feast, Thumbikin sat at the table by the Princess’s side; but he had worse than no seat, for when he was to eat he couldn’t reach up to the table; and so if the Princess hadn’t helped him up on to it, he wouldn’t have got a bit to eat.
Now it went good and well so long as he had to eat off a plate, but then there came a great bowl of porridge—that he couldn’t reach up to; but Thumbikin soon found out a way to help himself; he climbed up and sat on the lip of the bowl. But then there was a pat of melting butter right in the middle of the bowl, and that he couldn’t reach to dip his porridge into it, and so he went on and took his seat at the edge of the melting butter; but just then who should come but the Princess, with a great spoonful of porridge to dip it into the butter; and, alas! she went too near to Thumbikin, and tipped him over; and so he fell over head and ears, and was drowned in the melted butter.
DOLL I’ THE GRASS
Once on a time there was a King who had twelve sons. When they were grown big he told them they must go out into the world and win themselves wives, but these wives must each be able to spin, and weave, and sew a shirt in one day, else he wouldn’t have them for daughters-in-law.
To each he gave a horse and a new suit of mail, and they went out into the world to look after their brides; but when they had gone a bit of the way, they said they wouldn’t have Boots, their youngest brother, with them—he wasn’t fit for anything.
Well, Boots had to stay behind, and he didn’t know what to do or whither to turn; and so he grew so downcast, he got off his horse, and sat down in the tall grass to weep. But when he had sat a little while, one of the tufts in the grass began to stir and move, and out of it came a little white thing, and when it came nearer, Boots saw it was a charming little lassie, only such a tiny bit of a thing. So the lassie went up to him, and asked if he would come down below and see “Doll i’ the Grass”.
Yes, he’d be very happy, and so he went.
Now, when he got down; there sat Doll i’ the Grass on a chair; she was so lovely and so smart, and she asked Boots whither he was going, and what was his business.
So he told her how there were twelve brothers of them, and how the King had given them horses and mail, and said they must each go out into the world and find them a wife who could spin, and weave, and sew a shirt in a day.
“But if you’ll only say at once you’ll be my wife, I’ll not go a step further”, said Boots to Doll i’ the Grass.
Well, she was willing enough, and so she made haste and span, and wove, and sewed the shirt, but it was so tiny, tiny little. It wasn’t longer than so————long.
So Boots set off home with it, but when he brought it out he was almost ashamed, it was so small. Still the King said he should have her, and so Boots set off, glad and happy to fetch his little sweetheart. So when he got to Doll i’ the Grass, he wished to take her up before him on his horse; but she wouldn’t have that, for she said she would sit and drive along in a silver spoon, and that she had two small white horses to draw her. So off they set, he on his horse and she on her silver spoon, and the two horses that drew her were two tiny white mice; but Boots always kept the other side of the road, he was so afraid lest he should ride over her, she was so little. So, when they had gone a bit of the way, they came to a great piece of water. Here Boots’ horse got frightened, and shied across the road and upset the spoon, and Doll i’ the Grass tumbled into the water. Then Boots got so sorrowful because he didn’t know how to get her out again; but in a little while up came a merman with her, and now she was as well and full grown as other men and women, and far lovelier than she had been before. So he took her up before him on his horse, and rode home.
When Boots got home all his brothers had come back each with his sweetheart, but these were all so ugly, and foul, and wicked, that they had done nothing but fight with one another on the way home, and on their heads they had a kind of hat that was daubed over with tar and soot, and so the rain had run down off the hats on to their faces, till they got far uglier and nastier than they had been before. When his brothers saw Boots and his sweetheart, they were all as jealous as jealous could be of her; but the King was so overjoyed with them both, that he drove all the others away, and so Boots held his wedding-feast with Doll i’ the Grass, and after that they lived well and happily together a long long time, and if they’re not dead, why they’re alive still.
THE LAD AND THE DEIL
Once on a time there was a lad who was walking along a road cracking nuts, so he found one that was worm-eaten, and just at that very moment he met the Deil.
“Is it true, now”, said the lad, “what they say, that the Deil can make himself as small as he chooses, and thrust himself in through a pinhole?”
“Yes it is”, said the Deil.
“Oh! it is, is it? then let me see you do it, and just creep into this nut”, said the lad.
So the Deil did it.
Now, when he had crept well in through the worm’s hole, the lad stopped it up with a pin.
“Now, I’ve got you safe”, he said, and put the nut into his pocket.
So when he had walked on a bit, he came to a smithy, and he turned in and asked the smith if he’d be good enough to crack that nut for him.
“Aye, that’ll be an easy job”, said the smith, and took his smallest hammer, laid the nut on the anvil, and gave it a blow, but it wouldn’t break.
So he took another hammer a little bigger, but that wasn’t heavy enough either.
Then he took one bigger still, but it was still the same story; and so the smith got wroth, and grasped his great sledge-hammer.
“Now, I’ll crack you to bits”, he said, and let drive at the nut with all his might and main. And so the nut flew to pieces with a bang that blew off half the roof of the smithy, and the whole house creaked and groaned as though it were ready to fall.
“Why! if I don’t think the Deil must have been in that nut”, said the smith.
“So he was; you’re quite right”, said the lad, as he went away laughing.
THE COCK AND HEN A-NUTTING
Once on a time the cock and the hen went out into the hazel-wood to pick nuts; and so the hen got a nutshell in her throat, and lay on her back, flapping her wings.
Off went the cock to fetch water for her; so he came to the Spring and said:
“Dear good friend Spring give me a drop of water, that I may give it to Dame Partlet, my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
But the Spring answered:
“You’ll get no water from me until I get leaves from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Linden, and said:
“Dear good friend Linden, give me some of your leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, and the Spring’ll give me water to give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no leaves from me”, said the Linden, “until I get a red ribbon with a golden edge from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Virgin Mary.
“Dear good Virgin Mary, give me a red ribbon with a golden edge, and I’ll give the red ribbon to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, and the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door, in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no red ribbon from me”, answered the Virgin Mary, “until I get shoes from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Shoemaker and said
“Dear good friend Shoemaker, give me shoes, and I’ll give the shoes to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no shoes from me”, said the Shoemaker, “until I get bristles from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Sow and said:
“Dear good friend Sow, give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no bristles from me”, said the Sow, “until I get corn from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Thresher and said:
“Dear good friend Thresher, give me corn, the corn I’ll give to the Sow, the Sow’ll give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no corn from me”, said the Thresher, “until I get a bannock from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Baker’s wife and said:
“Dear good friend Mrs. Baker, give me a bannock, the bannock I’ll give to the Thresher, the Thresher’ll give me corn, the corn I’ll give to the Sow, the Sow’ll give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no bannock from me”, said the Baker’s wife, until I get wood from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Woodcutter and said:
“Dear good friend Woodcutter, give me wood, the wood I’ll give to the Baker’s wife, the Baker’s wife’ll give me a bannock, the bannock I’ll give to the Thresher, the Thresher’ll give me corn, the corn I’ll give to the Sow, the Sow’ll give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no wood from me”, answered the Woodcutter, “until I get an axe from you.”
So the Cock ran to the Smith and said:
“Dear good friend Smith, give me an axe, the axe I’ll give to the Woodcutter, the Woodcutter’ll give me wood, the wood I’ll give to the Baker’s wife, the Baker’s wife’ll give me a bannock, the bannock I’ll give to the Thresher, the Thresher’ll give me corn, the corn I’ll give to the Sow, the Sow’ll give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.”
“You’ll get no axe from me”, answered the Smith, “until I get charcoal of you.”
So the Cock ran to the Charcoal-burner and said
“Dear good friend Charcoal-burner, give me charcoal, the charcoal I’ll give to the Smith, the Smith’ll give me an axe, the axe I’ll give to the Woodcutter, the Woodcutter’ll give me wood, the wood I’ll give to the Baker’s wife, the Baker’s wife’ll give me a bannock, the bannock I’ll give to the Thresher, the Thresher’ll give me corn, the corn I’ll give to the Sow, the Sow’ll give me bristles, the bristles I’ll give to the Shoemaker, the Shoemaker’ll give me shoes, the shoes I’ll give to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary’ll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I’ll give to the Linden, the Linden’ll give me leaves, the leaves I’ll give to the Spring, the Spring’ll give me water, the water I’ll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death’s door in the hazel-wood.
So the Charcoal-burner took pity on the Cock, and gave him a bit of charcoal, and then the Smith got his coal, and the Woodcutter his axe, and the Baker’s wife her wood, and the Thresher his bannock, and the Sow her corn, and the Shoemaker his bristles, and the Virgin Mary her shoes, and the Linden its red ribbon with a golden edge, and the Spring its leaves, and the Cock his drop of water, and he gave it to Dame Partlet, his mate, who lay there at death’s door in the hazel-wood, and so she got all right again.
THE BIG BIRD DAN
Once on a time there was a king who had twelve daughters, and he was so fond of them they must always be at his side; but every day at noon, while the king slept, the Princesses went out to take a walk. So once, while the king was taking his noontide nap, and the Princesses had gone to take their walk, all at once they were missing, and worse, they never came home again. Then there was great grief and sorrow all over the land, but the most sorry of all was the king. He sent messengers out throughout his own and other realms, and gave out their names in all the churches, and had the bells tolled for them in all the steeples; but gone the Princesses were, and gone they stayed, and none could tell what was become of them. So it was as clear as day that they must have been carried off by some witchcraft.
Well, it wasn’t long before these tidings spread far and wide, over land and town, aye, over many lands; and so the news came to a king ever so many lands off, who had twelve sons. So when these Princes heard of the twelve king’s daughters, they asked leave of their father to go out and seek them. They had hard work to get his leave, for he was afraid lest he should never see them again, but they all fell down on their knees before the king, and begged so long, at last he was forced to let them go after all.
He fitted out a ship for them, and gave them Ritter Red, who was quite at home at sea, for a captain. So they sailed about a long, long time, landed on every shore they came to, and hunted and asked after the Princesses, but they could neither hear nor see anything of them. And now, a few days only were wanting to make up seven years since they set sail, when one day a strong storm rose, and such foul weather, they thought they should never come to land again, and all had to work so hard, they couldn’t get a wink of sleep so long as the storm lasted. But when the third day was nearly over, the wind fell, and all at once it got as still as still could be. Now, they were all so weary with work and the rough weather, they fell fast asleep in the twinkling of an eye; all but the youngest Prince, he could get no rest, and couldn’t go off to sleep at all.
So as he was pacing up and down the deck, the ship came to a little island, and on the island ran a little dog, and bayed and barked at the ship as if it wanted to come on board. So the Prince went to that side of the deck, and tried to coax the dog, and whistled and whistled to him, but the more he whistled and coaxed, the more the dog barked and snarled. Well, he thought it a shame the dog should run about there and starve, for he made up his mind that it must have come thither from a ship that had been cast away in the storm; but still he thought he should never be able to help it after all, for he couldn’t put out the boat by himself, and as for the others, they all slept so sound, he wouldn’t wake them for the sake of a dog. But then the weather was so calm and still; and at last he said to himself: “Come what may, you must go on shore and save that dog”, and so he began to try to launch the boat, and he found it far easier work than he thought. So he rowed ashore, and went up to the dog; but every time he tried to catch it, it jumped on one side, and so it went on till he found himself inside a great grand castle, before he knew where he was. Then the dog, all at once, was changed into a lovely Princess; and there, on the bench, sat a man so big and ugly, the Prince almost lost his wits for fear.
“YOU’VE NO NEED TO BE AFRAID”, said the man—but the Prince, to tell you the truth, got far more afraid when he heard his gruff voice—“for I know well enough what you want. There are twelve Princes of you, and you are looking for the twelve Princesses that are lost. I know, too, very well whereabouts they are; they’re with my lord and master, and there they sit, each of them on her chair, and comb his hair; for he has twelve heads. And now you have sailed seven years, but you’ll have to sail seven years more before you find them. As for you, you might stay here and welcome, and have my daughter; but you must first slay him, for he’s a hard master to all of us, and we’re all weary of him, and when he’s dead I shall be King in his stead; but first try if you can brandish this sword”.
Then the King’s son took hold of a rusty old sword which hung on the wall, but he could scarce stir it.
“Now you must take a pull at this flask”, said the Troll; and when he had done that he could stir it, and when he had taken another he could lift it, and when he had taken a third he could brandish the sword as easily as if it had been his own.
“Now, when you get on board”, said the Troll Prince, “you must hide the sword well in your berth, that Ritter Red mayn’t set eyes on it; he’s not man enough to wield it, but he’ll get spiteful against you, and try to take your life. And when seven years are almost out all but three days”, he went on to say, “everything will happen just as now; foul weather will come on you, with a great storm, and when it is over you’ll all be sleepy. Then you must take the sword and row ashore, and so you’ll come to a castle where all sorts of guards will stand—wolves, and bears, and lions; but you needn’t be afraid of them, for they’ll all come and crouch at your feet. But when you come inside the castle, you’ll soon see the Troll; he sits in a splendid chamber in grand attire and array; twelve heads he has of his own, and the Princesses sit round them, each on her chair, and comb his heads, and that’s a work you may guess they don’t much like. Then you must make haste, and hew off one head after the other as quick as you can; for if he wakes and sets his eyes on you, he’ll swallow you alive”.