Part 2

So the youth promised and the troll said: “You must strike the swords on the tree with the sword you hold until the sparks fly. Then the pears which you see hanging from the swords will fall to the ground, but the tree will burn up.

“And then there will be nothing for me. My magic power will be gone forever. So I ask that you will then strike me with the sword on my middle head, and that will change me into a shape which will never harm any one again.”

This the youth said he would do and began to strike the swords on the tree, making the sparks fly and the pears drop, and then all at once the tree began to burn.

Keeping the sword still in his grasp, the youth looked for the largest of the green pears and picked it up, putting it in his pocket.

“Don’t forget your promise,” said the troll as the youth started to go away. “You need not be afraid,” he said as the youth drew back. “The blow will not hurt me.”

So the youth lifted the sword and brought it down on the troll’s middle head with such force that the sword fell from his hands and struck the mountain of ice with such a bang that the ice began to crack.

At first the youth did not see what had happened, the noise had startled him so, but the next minute he saw that in place of the troll stood a beautiful tree filled with pears, and the mountain was no longer ice, but covered with soft, green moss.

He did not stop, but down the mountain he ran and to his home, where the brindle cow stood in the barn, so hungry she opened her mouth at once and ate the pear, thinking it would be sweet and juicy, but it was far from that. It was so bitter and bad that had she not been so hungry she could not have eaten it, but it was swallowed before she knew it, and there in the stall of the peasant’s barn stood the pretty Princess looking about her in astonishment.

“How did I come in this horrid place, and what a dirty-looking man you are!” she said. “Take me home at once! My father is the King, and he will punish you if you do not obey me!”

It did not take the peasant long to take her home, and when the Queen and the King saw their daughter in her own form again they fell on their knees before the peasant youth and thanked him.

But the Princess did not understand what it all meant, and said: “Why do you kneel to him? He should kneel to you! Are you not King and Queen of this land, and this man a poor peasant?”

Before the King could explain to the Princess the youth said: “I have brought you your daughter, but you must keep her. I could never marry a maid who thought herself above me. Give me gold and let me go back to my home!”

He was wise enough to see that a poor peasant and a princess could not be happy together and a peasant girl was a more fitting bride for him.

The Princess was very sorry for all she had said when she found out the peasant had saved her, and when he was married she sent to his wife a chest of linen and silver which made her the envy of all the other peasants for miles around.

The troll was never heard of again, and only the peasant youth knows that the pear-tree on the side of the mountain which bears such juicy fruit was once the three-headed troll who lived under the tree of swords.

THE SILVER HORSESHOES

Once upon a time there lived a king who wanted a son-in-law who would be a good soldier as well as a good husband, so he put his daughter, the Princess, who, of course, was very beautiful, in a tower on top of a high mountain. Then he sent out word all over his kingdom and to all the other kingdoms that to the youth who could get to the top of the tower he would give the Princess for a wife.

But when the youths came from far and near they found the mountain was slippery as glass, and their horses slipped back faster than they could climb.

In a kingdom far from where the King lived was a poor prince whose father had lost all his lands and money in wars, so that when he died he left the Prince nothing but the castle and a black horse.

One day the Prince was feeding his horse and thinking of the Princess on top of the high mountain in the tower, and he spoke his thought out loud.

“If only I had some clothes fit to be seen,” he said, “I would try to reach the Princess in the tower, and this poverty would be at an end. And you, my beauty, would have oats in plenty then,” patting the horse on the neck.

“Why don’t you try, master?” said the horse.

The Prince was surprised to hear the horse speak, but still he had heard of such things happening, and he answered, saying: “I have no clothes; besides, many others have tried, and no horse is able to climb the mountain.”

“Master, go to the witch that lives in a cave in the middle of the woods at midnight and get my shoes,” said the horse. And then he fell to eating his scanty dinner and said no more.

The Prince thought there was nothing to lose by doing as the horse told him, so that night he went to the woods to find the witch. The woods he found easily, but to find the cave was a different matter. First he met a fox, and he asked the way to the cave of the witch.

“Oh, master,” said the fox, “take my advice and go home; no good will come to you if you find it.”

But the Prince would not give up the quest, so he asked a wolf that he met next where the cave was located in the woods.

The wolf ran away, saying: “You better go home. That cave will bring only harm to any one who finds it.”

The Prince was not to be frightened and on he went, and an owl was the next one he saw. “Where is the cave the old witch lives in?” he asked.

“Hoot! hoot!” said the owl, flapping his wings. “Be off, man, while there is time. Don’t go near that cave if you value your life,” and off flew the owl, leaving the Prince no wiser than before.

After going deep into the woods--in fact, he was at the very center and did not know it--the Prince stood still and listened.

A sound reached his ear which seemed like the clatter of horses’ hoofs, and the Prince went in the direction from which the sound came.

All at once he found himself in front of the cave for which he had searched so long, and, looking in, he saw the old witch prancing about in the craziest manner.

She would climb the side of her cave with as much ease as she could walk across the floor, and then, giving a spring, she would walk on the top of the cave, her head hanging down toward the floor.

While the Prince was looking and wondering at this strange performance he noticed something shining on her feet, and when he looked closer, to his surprise he saw that the witch had on her feet silver horseshoes. Then he knew what his black horse had said was worth listening to--he was to get the shoes the old witch was wearing.

But then he thought: “She has on only two; I must have four. I wonder where are the other two.”

Just then a black cat came dancing into the cave, and on her hind feet the Prince saw the other two shoes he wanted. Such dancing and climbing the Prince had never seen as was done by the old witch and her black cat. The silver shoes seemed to take them anywhere and they could do anything while they wore them.

After a while the witch and the black cat grew weary and took off the shoes, and the Prince saw them lift up a stone in the middle of the cave and drop the four silver horseshoes into a hole and then drop the stone again.

After the witch and the black cat were fast asleep in one corner of the cave the Prince crept in softly and lifted the stone. At the bottom of a deep hole he saw the horseshoes, and he was wondering how he could get them when he felt a push from behind and down he went into the hole, landing at the bottom where the shoes were.

The old witch had awakened and had pushed him in, and the Prince could hear her and the cat jumping about and laughing with glee that they had trapped him.

When the Prince found himself in the hole under the cave where the old witch lived he thought his end had come. It was as dark as a dungeon. The only thing he could see was the glitter of the silver horseshoes.

While he stood looking at them and thinking how the old witch and her cat jumped about, and wondering what she would do with him, he suddenly was struck with an idea.

He would put on the shoes, one on each foot, and take the other two in his hands.

No sooner did he think it than he did it, and, giving a spring, up he went, the stone flying off the top of the hole as he touched it with his hands holding the silver horseshoes.

Into the cave he jumped, and the old witch and her black cat sprang at him, but he had only to run, and, without touching the ground, away he flew through the forest, the old witch and her cat after him.

Sometimes they would almost catch him, for the witch had jumped on her broomstick and the cat sat on behind her, and they flew over trees and bushes as well as the Prince.

The Prince knew he was lost if they caught him, and finally decided to turn around and run toward them, thinking he might be able to knock the witch off her broomstick and so stop their flight.

No sooner did he turn than the shining silver shoes cast a ray of light on the old witch and her cat and like magic they tumbled off the broomstick, and away went the stick higher and higher in the air until it disappeared; and on the ground where the cat and the old witch fell the Prince saw two stones, one big and the other smaller and almost black, so he knew he was rid of his enemies and could get out of the forest safely with the silver horseshoes.

The black horse danced with delight when he saw the shoes, and stood still until they were fastened on his feet; then he pranced about and shook his head in a very knowing manner, though he did not speak again, and the Prince mounted him and rode away, forgetting all about his shabby coat.

The black horse trotted along like any other horse until they came to the mountain on top of which the Princess lived in the tower; then the Prince felt himself gliding up the mountain, past all the other youths who were vainly trying to climb to the top.

Up and up they went until the Prince found himself by the tower. When he looked at the height he knew his troubles were not at an end. He looked around for some way to scale the wall, but it was as smooth as glass. While he stood looking at the top he saw something white slowly coming down the wall from a little window.

Down it came until the Prince could see that it was a piece of white thread, and on the end of it was a little golden curl.

The Prince untied it and kissed it, then, looking up at the window, he kissed his hand, for he knew that somewhere in the tower the Princess had been looking for the Prince who was to come for her, and had seen him.

He was more anxious than ever to reach the Princess, but how could he climb those slippery walls?

How? And then he thought of the silver shoes that the witch had walked on the top of the cave with, and he took them off his horse and tied one on each foot and took one in each hand.

Placing his hands on the wall of the tower, he walked up as easily as if he were walking on the ground, and in a few minutes was at the little window above.

The Princess smiled when she saw him, and then he saw that the window which looked so small to him from the ground was really a door.

He stepped in and knelt at the feet of the blushing Princess, who said, “I shall be glad to leave here, but how can I get to the ground?”

“In my arms,” answered the bold Prince, and, picking her up, he stepped out on the smooth wall again, easily reaching the ground with the Princess.

He placed her in front of him on his horse and rode down the mountain, at the bottom of which a crowd was waiting for him, and the King also, for it had been noised abroad that a youth had been seen to climb the mountain and the people wanted to see him.

“Well done, my son,” said the King, riding up to greet them. “You will make a good soldier, for you have shown that you can overcome obstacles to gain that which you desire. Come home; the wedding feast is prepared.” So the Prince gained a princess for a wife, a father-in-law who admired his courage, and was happy ever after.

THE BLUE CASTLE

Once upon a time in a far-off country there lived a witch on top of a high mountain, and every year she came down into the country about and appeared at the palace of the King and asked for a bag of gold.

One night when the King and his Queen were making merry and having a big feast in honor of the birth of their little daughter, the Princess Lily, the old witch came to the palace and asked for her bag of gold.

“Tell her to begone,” said the King to his servant. “I have used all the gold in the vaults for the feast; she will have to come next year.”

Now the old witch was very angry when she heard this message, and she hid in the grounds of the palace until all were asleep that night, and then she entered the palace and carried off the baby Princess.

The Queen and the King were beside themselves with grief when they discovered their loss, and they offered big rewards for the return of their daughter, but she could not be found.

“Find the old witch who came here the night of the feast,” said one of the King’s wise men, “and you will find the Princess.”

They hunted far and near, but the witch could not be found, for when any one attempted to climb the mountain where the old witch lived the insects would become as thick as mist and clouds and they could not see where to go.

One after another gave up the attempt, and so after a while the King and Queen mourned their daughter as dead and the old witch never came to the palace again.

The Queen and King never had any more children, and every day they grieved because there would be no one to reign after they were gone.

One day one of the King’s wise men said to him: “In a cave in the forest lives an ogre who has a wonderful horse; it is kept in a stable made of marble, and its stall is of gold, and it is fed on corn grown in a field of pearls.

“If we could get this horse we might be able to climb the mountain where the old witch lives, and perhaps the Princess is still alive.”

“But how can we get this horse?” asked the King.

“Ah! that is the hard part,” answered the wise man. “The enchanted creature can only be caught and mounted by one who can feed him with the magic corn, and it is said that any one who tries to gather the corn from the field of pearls finds himself sinking, and has to run for his life, so that only the ogre, who knows the magic words that keep the pearls from drawing him down, can gather the corn.”

When the King heard this he sent for all the princes in the land to come to his palace, and when they came he told them he would give to the one who could catch and mount the ogre’s enchanted horse his kingdom if he could find the lost Princess Lily, and she should become his wife.

But all the princes were rich enough, and did not care to take such a risk, especially as they had never seen the Princess Lily.

Then the King sent out word to all the poor young men in his kingdom to come to him, and he made them the same offer, but one by one they turned away, and at last there was only a poor peasant youth left.

“I will try, Your Majesty,” he said, “but I will not marry the Princess unless I can love her, and if she does not wish to marry me I will not hold you to that part of the bargain, either, but I will take the kingdom if I bring back your child.”

So that night the peasant boy went to a fairy that lived in the woods and asked her to help him.

“You can only enter the field of magic corn by wearing the magic shoes belonging to the ogre, and he sleeps with them under his bed. They are tied to the big toe of his right foot by a silken thread, and no one can cut it or break it without awakening the ogre.

“I will give you a feather, and if you are fortunate enough to enter his chamber without being caught, for he is guarded well by a dog with two heads, use this feather to tickle his left foot and you can cut the silken thread without the ogre knowing it. This is all I can do to help you. The two-headed dog is not in my power to control.”

So the peasant took the magic feather and that night he went to the ogre’s castle in the woods and waited until he heard his snore, and then he took from his pocket two big bones.

He opened the door to the castle, for the ogre was afraid of no one and did not lock his door at night.

The two-headed dog growled and sprang toward the peasant, but he quickly thrust the bones in the mouth of each and that quieted them.

The two heads began to eat, and while they were eating the peasant crept softly into the room of the sleeping ogre and tickled his left foot, which was sticking out from under the bedclothes.

The old ogre began to laugh, and he laughed so hard and loudly that no other sound could be heard; and the peasant had time to break the slender thread which was tied to the magic shoes with one hand while he kept tickling the ogre’s left foot with the feather held in the other hand.

When he had the shoes under his arm he crept softly away from the bed, leaving the ogre still laughing.

The two-headed dog was still eating the bones, and the peasant went out and sat on the steps of the castle to put on the magic shoes.

He had just drawn the shoes on when the two-headed dog finished the bones and set up a bark that the peasant thought at first was thunder.

He ran to the field of pearls where grew the magic corn, and was just pulling the ears when the ogre came dashing out of his castle, followed by the two-headed dog, with both mouths wide open and looking as though he would devour him.

Out of the field ran the peasant, but not before the ogre had entered, and down went the ogre out of sight, the pearls closing over his head, for, of course, he forgot all about his shoes when he heard the two-headed dog bark, and anyway he thought they were tied to the big toe of his right foot.

But though he was rid of the ogre he was not of the two-headed dog, which ran after him, showing his two sets of big teeth and barking all the while. But the peasant was far ahead of the dog, so he reached the stable and fed the magic corn to the enchanted horse, who neighed in the most friendly manner and let the peasant mount him.

He wore a bridle of gold and silver trimmed with rubies, and he was pure white, with a saddle of purple velvet, with gold and silver trimmings.

He was a horse fit for a king to ride, and the poor peasant looked strangely out of place on his back.

Just as the peasant rode into the yard of the castle the two-headed dog dashed at the hind feet of the enchanted horse to bite him, but the horse kicked at him and over he rolled.

The peasant looked back to see what had happened to the dog, but he was nowhere to be seen; in the place where he had lain was a big black-looking rock with a ragged-looking top like a set of huge teeth.

The peasant was rid of both his pursuers now, and he rode off toward the mountain where the King had told him the witch lived.

Up the mountain dashed the enchanted white horse, as though he had wings instead of feet, and in a few minutes he had carried the peasant to the top.

The peasant looked about him, expecting to see a cave, but to his surprise he saw only a grove of trees with something glistening through their leaves which looked like a house.

When he rode nearer to the grove he saw a deep-blue castle of glass without doors or windows, and inside he could see a girl spinning.

She looked up as the shadow of the horse and rider fell on the glass castle, and her eyes grew big with surprise, but before the peasant could jump from his horse an old woman came up through the floor of the house and tapped the girl on the head with her cane, and she turned into a mouse.

The peasant was too astonished to move for a minute, but the laugh of the old woman brought him to his senses and he knew she must be the witch.

“Ha, ha! you caught the horse, but you cannot bring back the Princess until I will it!” she screamed, and then disappeared through the floor.

The peasant walked around the blue castle, but no door or window could he find, or an opening of any kind.

He was leading the horse by his gold bridle when suddenly it lifted one of its front feet and struck the blue castle.

Crash! went the blue glass, and the peasant saw an opening large enough for him to enter.

He was about to do so, leaving the enchanted horse outside, when he heard another crash--the enchanted horse was following him in; it had broken a place large enough for both of them to enter.

The mouse was crouching in one corner of the room and the peasant picked it up carefully and put it in his pocket.

The horse went to the spot where the old witch had disappeared, and tapped on the glass floor three times with one of his front feet, and up from the floor came the old witch. But this time she was not laughing; she looked frightened, and trembled so she had to lean on her cane to keep from falling.

The enchanted horse took her by the dress and shook her three times, and out from her pocket fell a black bean with a white spot on it.

As it dropped the old witch screamed and fell on the floor, and the horse picked up the bean and swallowed it.

The peasant all this time was standing watching all the strange happenings, not daring to move for fear of breaking the spell, and wondering what would happen next.

As the horse swallowed the bean he seemed to shrink away from sight and a blue mist filled the room. When it cleared the peasant beheld a handsome young man where the horse had stood, and where the witch had been was a deep hole.

“Did she fall into it?” asked the peasant, not knowing what else to say.

“No; in that hole we will find the magic charm that will restore the Princess to her own form,” said the young man. “The witch disappeared in the blue mist.”

“Let us hurry and find the magic charm,” he said, dropping into the hole, and the peasant followed him.

There was a ladder down which they climbed, and down they went until it seemed they would never reach the bottom.

But at last their feet touched something firm and soft and they stood in a beautiful room on a carpet of blue velvet.

The room was hung with velvet the color of sapphire, and the chairs were of burnished gold with velvet seats.

A gold fountain played in the middle of the room and the water fell into a basin of sapphire.

“This is the magic fountain,” said the youth. “You must throw the little mouse into it if you wish to bring back the Princess.”

The peasant took from his pocket the trembling little mouse. “It is frightened,” he said. “I hate to throw it into that deep water.”

Without replying the youth grabbed the mouse from the peasant and threw it with great force into the fountain and it disappeared from sight.

“Oh, you have killed it!” said the peasant, looking into the deep-blue water with frightened eyes.

Then he saw a head rise slowly from the bottom of the blue basin; then it came above the water; and then a beautiful girl stepped from the fountain, her golden hair all wet and glistening.

A soft warm breeze came through the windows and soon her hair and clothes were dry, and the peasant thought he had never seen any one so beautiful as the Princess.

“I am the Prince who was changed into the horse for the ogre,” said the youth, addressing the Princess. “I was stolen at the same time you were and the ogre who was the husband of the witch took me and the witch took you, but this youth has rescued us, for it was here that the magic bean was kept that restored me to my own form, and if it had not been for a fairy who came to me one night and told me the secret I never should have regained my own form.”