Creative Fairy Tales

Contents 3.1.6 Strong Hans 22

1 Preface 5 3.1.7 Old woman in the forest 24

2 Introduction 6 3.1.8 Two royal children 25
2.1 Rising Status 6 3.1.9 Two hikers 28
2.2 Similar Fairy Tales 7 3.1.10 Bremen Town Musicians 31
2.2.1 There are similar fairy tales
3.1.11 Three Brothers 32
in every country 7

2.2.2 Selection of fairy tales from 3.1.12 Three nursing staff 34

various countries 8
3.1.13 Three spinners 36
2.2.3 Famous fairy tale
collections 9 3.1.14 Three languages 37

2.3 Ways of Search 10 3.1.15 Gifts for little people 39

2.4 Intelligence Level 10 3.1.16 Golden Child 40

2.5 The Author's Point of View 11 3.1.17 Haggard Liz 42

2.6 Variants (e.g. from Folkes Tales) 3.1.18 Young Giant 43

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3.1.19 Golden Boy 46
3 Source Comments 14
3.1.20 Paradise Tailor 49
3.1 Human 14
3.2 Things or People 50
3.1.1 Sweet porridge 14
3.2.1 The Devil's Soot Brothers
3.1.2 King of the Golden 50
Mountain 15
3.2.2 The clear sun lights it up 51
3.1.3 The Robber Bridegroom 17
3.2.3 The Miller and the Mermaid
3.1.4 The Blacksmith of Utterbok 52
19
3.2.4 The Wolf and the Seven
3.1.5 Paradise Tailor 21 Little Goats 54

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 3.2.5 Wren 56 4.1.16 Prince Fearless 90

3.2.6 Raptor 57 4.1.17 Wren 92

3.2.7 Three feathers 60 4.1.18 Utterbok's Blacksmith 94

3.2.8 Little Red Riding Hood and 4.1.19 The Devil and His
the Big Bad Wolf 62 Grandmother 95

3.2.9 Three snake leaves 65 4.1.20 drummer 96

4 Fairy tale length 68 4.1.21 Wolves and Foxes 99

4.1 Very short 68 4.1.22 Wolves and Humans 100
4.1.1 Three lazy men 68 4.1.23 wren 101
4.1.2 The Dragon and the 4.1.24 The Wren and the Bear 103
Trickster 69
4.1.25 Two hikers 103
4.1.3 Three rotators 70
4.1.26 Queen Bee 106
4.1.4 The Farmer and the Devil
72 4.2 Shorter 107
4.1.5 The Cursed Donkey 73 4.2.1 Three nursing staff 107
4.1.6 Text and Annotations 74 4.2.2 Three lucky kids 109
4.1.7 Who is the stupidest? 75 4.2.3 Three dogs 110
4.1.8 How Farmers Learned to 4.2.4 Three dwarfs in the forest
Pray 77 112
4.1.9 The Value of the Lord's 4.2.5 The Goose Shepherd at the
Prayer 79 Well 113
4.1.10 Fundervogel 80 4.2.6 Owl 116
4.1.11 Mob 82 4.2.7 Gifts for children 117
4.1.12 From the Happy 4.2.8 Golden Goose 117
Shoemaker 84
4.2.9 Smart People 118
4.1.13 Springer 86
4.2.10 The Jews in the Jungle 120
4.1.14 Teapot 87
4.2.11 From Tebok 121
4.1.15 Water Drop 88
4.2.12 Strong Hans 123
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4.2.13 Faithful John 125 4.2.37 Star Money 198

4.2.14 The Three Sisters 4.2.38 Rumpelstiltskin 199

Chronicles 127
4.2.39 Child Mary 201
4.2.15 certainly 130
4.2.40 Toad's Story 204
4.2.16 collar 133
4.2.41 Thrush King 205
4.2.17 Great Lion Lark 135
4.2.42 Mrs. Holler 208
4.2.18 Allerleirauh 138
4.2.43 Hansel and Gretel 210
4.2.19 Piggy Bank 142
4.2.44 Doctor Who 215
4.2.20 The Frog Prince 144
4.2.45 Fried and the Catholics 217
4.2.21 The Brave Little Tailor 146
4.3 Generally shorter 222
4.2.22 Tom Thumb 148
4.3.1 Silver Shilling 222
4.2.23 Smart Else 152
4.3.2 Gardener and Master 226
4.2.24 Seven Crows 155
4.3.3 In the duck farm 231
4.2.25 Faithful Animal 157
4.3.4 Naughty boy 236
4.2.26 Four Art Brothers 160
4.3.5 Clumsy Hans 238
4.2.27 Bird Hunter 163
4.3.6 The Steadfast Tin Soldier
4.2.28 Hulda's mother 166 243

4.2.29 Jorinde and Joringel 169 4.3.7 The snail and the rose bush
248
4.2.30 Eight pence a day 171
4.3.8 The Little Match Girl 250
4.2.31 The King's Child 175
4.3.9 Little girl holding a sulfur
4.2.32 Natural Order 179 stick 253

4.2.33 Iron John 180 4.3.10 Bacon Hawker Brownies

253
4.2.34 Nice purchase 185
4.3.11 Pledge of Allegiance 256
4.2.35 The Miller in Paradise 187
4.3.12 The Emperor's New Clothes
4.2.36 Schneider's Thumbelina 258
195
4.3.13 Twelve Brothers 263

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 4.3.14 Darning needle 268 5.1.3 Rustam and the Iron
Fortress 367
4.3.15 Pigs 272
5.1.4 The Wise and the
4.3.16 Bride and groom 276 Apprentice 372

4.3.17 Butterfly 279 5.1.5 The Prince Who Married a

Fairy 375
4.3.18 snow White 282
5.1.6 The Dream of Khabib, the
4.3.19 Dog and sparrow 288 Son of Khabib 381

4.3.20 Brothers and sisters 291 5.1.7 The Bead Seller and the
Elf's Sister 385
4.3.21 Silly Peter 296
5.1.8 Wally and the Magic
4.3.22 Broken Boots Brothers 302 Saddlebags 391

5.1.9 Gushtaspur and Princess

4.3.23 farmer 308 Lum 396
4.3.24 title 314 5.1.10 The Princess and the
Donkey 400
4.3.25 One-eyed, two-eyed, three-
eyed 321 5.1.11 Rustam and Tamina 403
4.3.26 The Princess and the Pea 5.1.12 The Charcoal Burner and
328 the Bear 408
4.3.27 Rich and Poor 331 5.1.13 Nobles and slaves 417
4.3.28 Farmers 334 5.1.14 The Shoemaker's Son and
the Snake 422
4.4 Long fairy tale 340
5.1.15 Iskandar and Jadeite Ring
4.4.1 Long fairy tale example 1
429
340
5.1.16 Ahmed and his nagging
4.4.2 Long fairy tale example 2:
wife 436
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz 345
5.1.17 Prince Feroze Shah and
5 Other Fairy Tales 358
Pegasus 440
5.1 Short Tales from Folkes Tales
358 6 Reference 452

5.1.1 The Girl with Seven

Brothers 358

5.1.2 Jade Mountain 363

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1 Preface

People all over the world regard fairy tales as an important way to improve children's
intelligence! In the fairy tale world, all animals and plants speak human language!

Especially in Germany, there are many people who specialize in this field! Many people
agree that children are more creative than ordinary people!

Many countries have long regarded improving children's intelligence as the focus of
early education, and of course do not allow artificial hindrance to the development of
intelligence. However, this is not always the case in some countries. For example, the
author, as a world-renowned scholar, although he scored full marks in all subjects
except one subject with a score of 99 in elementary school, was troubled by whether he
could go to junior high school in his early years; the author's two elder brothers,
although generally considered to be very intelligent, were not able to go to junior high
school because China's politics at that time determined everything! --Everything was
based on recommendation! Those with poor political conditions were second-class
citizens.

All major economies train talents at an early stage, and they compete in the workplace
after more than ten years of training. The quality of talents is crucial! Therefore, fairy
tales also play a big role!

But once again, China is mentioned because China has too many problems! At the
moment, the competition among children is too fierce. The level of primary and
secondary schools is very high, but this kills the creativity of children! After entering
university, due to overwork, lack of interest, and lack of creativity, the speed gradually
slows down, and is much lower than that of developed countries in the world!

Different countries have slightly different approaches to using fairy tales to inspire
wisdom. For example, Chinese mythological characters such as the Monkey King have

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been stripped from fairy tales, but they still play the role of fairy tales. Just as people like
mythological stories, fairy tales not only affect children, but many adults also find fairy
tales interesting!

Enlighten wisdom and enhance children's creativity. Although it is a failure in China,

there are many writers who specialize in fairy tale creation in developed Western
countries such as Germany. Fairy tales have two benefits: improving intelligence and
creativity!

This article selects some shorter fairy tales that can enlighten people's wisdom, hoping
that readers' wisdom and creativity can be improved when reading these fairy tales!

Although there is a lot of information on this subject online, you usually have to pay to
download it or endure advertisements! The author of this book spent a lot of time doing
research in many fields, from the classification and presentation of fairy tales, etc.

2 Introduction

Many topics on fairy tales need to be discussed. Here are some of them.

2.1 Rising Status

The theme of a girl of low status rising to become queen through insight and judgement
can be found in many fairy tale cultures. There is much evidence that the fairy tale has
oriental/Indian roots (e.g. using a net as clothing), but the basic theme can also be
found in Nordic, especially Swedish fairy tales and legends, such as the fairy tale of the
peasant girl Disa. As the heroine, the peasant girl contrasts with other girls from the

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common people (such as Cinderella), who win the favor of the king's son by their beauty
and humility. In contrast, the peasant's daughter, despite her formally lower status, is
equal to the king from the start, and she only needs to prove it.

The fairy tale usually begins with the girl coming to the king's attention because of her
extraordinary wisdom. This is followed by three riddles, which usually involve making
the seemingly impossible possible (i.e., excluding a fact and its opposite at the same
time); this is the main part of the fairy tale. After the girl passes the test, she becomes
the king's wife. Later, she objects to a (court) ruling by her husband, arguing that his
decision is logically absurd. Apart from the main part, other parts may be missing or
placed at different places in the plot.

2.2 Similar Fairy Tales

2.2.1 There are similar fairy tales in every country

For example, the following fairy tale has been handed down from Southeast Europe
(―The Clever Girl Becomes Tsar‖, in Balkan Fairy Tales, edited by August Leskien,
Eugen Diederichs, 1915): The unmarried tsar announces that he will adopt as his son
whoever can successfully kill a stone. But a young girl disguised as a boy achieves the
impossible task by conveying the logical absurdity of the task to the tsar: She asks the
tsar to first give the stone a soul (i.e., make it alive) so that she can kill it.

The Tsar now offered to adopt her as his son, and she confessed that she was a girl.
He now asked her three riddles, similar to those in Grimm's fairy tales. She was
supposed to come on horseback, but she did not. She arrived so that everyone could
receive it, but no one received it. She was supposed to bring him a gift, but she did not.
The girl solved the first task by riding on a goat. The second time, she released some
rabbits that she had brought with her when she arrived. The people who wanted to

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receive them immediately chased after her. She solved the third task by giving the Tsar
two pigeons, and when she gave them to the Tsar, the pigeons flew away.

The fairy tale "The Poor Man's Wise Daughter" from Crete is more similar to Grimm's
"The Wise Peasant Daughter". (In New Fairy Tales, edited by Paul Kretzschmer, Eugen
Diederichs, 1919.) At the beginning, the king offers a basket of money to anyone who
can solve three riddles: two stationary objects, two moving objects, and two different
objects. The girl knows the answer immediately. The stationary objects are the sky and
the earth, the moving objects are the sun and the moon, and the two different objects
are night and day.

The king married her, but she had to promise never to interfere in his affairs. She broke
this promise when the king sentenced three peasants to death because one of their
horses had kicked a royal horse to death. She made the logic of his argument absurd by
making him admit that he was powerless against a sea monster. So how could three
simple pawns control the knights who had already passed? So the king revoked the
death penalty. His wife had to leave the castle and, like in the Grimm fairy tale, could
take something beautiful and precious with her.

For example, in China, there is the story of Grandma Wolf, see Chapter 3.

2.2.2 Selection of fairy tales from various countries

India : (1) Ramayana ; (2) Mahabharata, etc.

China : (1) The Magic Brush of Ma Liang ; (2) "Mrs. Xiong" ; "Ye Xian" ; "Mrs. Tiger"
( Taiwan ) , etc.

Japan : (1) "Kintaro" ; (2) "Ryuko Taro" ; "The Tale of Rakubo" ; "Urashima Taro" ;
"Momotaro" ; "The Tale of Bamboo", etc.

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France : (1) Beauty and the Beast ; (2) The Little Prince, etc.

United Kingdom : (1) Alice in Wonderland ; (2) Jack and the Beanstalk ; (3) The
Rescuers ; (4) Mary Poppins ; (5) The Three Little Pigs ; (6) The Jungle Book ; (7) The
Legend of the Condor Heroes ; (8) The Sword in the Stone ; (9) The Adventures of the
Prince of Ceylon, etc.

Italy : (1) The Adventures of Pinocchio, etc.

Norway : (1) "The Residents and Robbers of Douqiu Town" etc.

Germany : (1) The Thief Hojentsprze, etc.

United States : (1) The Princess Bride ; (2) The Gingerbread Man ; (3) The Wizard of
Oz ; (4) Little Raiders of the Cabinet ; (5) Charlotte's Web ; (6) The Little Red Hen, etc.

2.2.3 Famous fairy tale collections

"Aesop's Fables" is a collection of fables named after Aesop in ancient Greece, such as
"The Tortoise and the Hare", "The Fox and the Grapes", "The Farmer and the Snake",
"The Wolf and the Little Boy", and "The North Wind and the Sun".

"Mother Goose Tales", stories written and collected by Charles Perrault of France , such
as "Sleeping Beauty", "Cinderella", "Puss in Boots", "Little Red Riding Hood", "Mother
Goose", etc.

"Grimm's Fairy Tales", stories collected by the German Brothers Grimm, such as
"Rapunzel" and "Snow White".

"Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales", stories written by Danish writer Hans Christian
Andersen, such as "The Ugly Duckling" and "The Daughter of the Sea".

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The Happy Prince and Other Stories, stories from the Irish writer Oscar Wilde, such as
The Happy Prince and The Nightingale and the Rose.

2.3 Ways of Search

For electric circulation, there are better ways than to establish Index, via using regular
Search functions. So the index is not built [1].

2.4 Intelligence Level

Many fairy tales teach people to be diligent , especially in some countries that are
known for their diligence. At the same time, many fairy tales have high intellectual value.
For example, the fairy tale of the tortoise and the hare is found in many countries.
Although the hare ran very fast, the tortoise won the race in the end. How did the
tortoise win? There are two versions. One is based on diligence, because the hare was
too proud and fell asleep not far from the finish line! The other version is based on
intelligence! The tortoise went home and called his wife - anyway, male and female
tortoises look the same! They occupied the starting point and the finish line of the race,
so no matter how fast the hare ran, he had to admit defeat!

When I first read this German version of the fairy tale, I was attracted by its high
intelligence! I think of the current situation in some countries, such as China, where
even the basic creativity of children is stifled, and children are deprived of basic
educational opportunities in their early years! Because the level of competition in
elementary school, junior high school and high school is very high, but after college, it

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slows down, and even the idea of taking a breath after entering college (I was like that
at the beginning!) Isn‘t this the same as the rabbit falling asleep before the finish line?

The Tortoise and the Hare, Version 1

A rabbit made fun of a tortoise because he ran too slowly. So the tortoise challenged
the rabbit to a race. The rabbit thought it was a joke. But he accepted the challenge
anyway. The race was scheduled for the next [Link] day of the race arrived, and the
finish line was set. The tortoise and the rabbit lined up and got ready. As soon as the
starting gun sounded, the tortoise crawled slowly, but tirelessly. While the rabbit took
long leaps. When the rabbit was only a few steps away from the goal, he sat down on
the grass, panting, and fell asleep. The big jumps exhausted him, but he thought he
would win anyway. Suddenly, the rabbit woke up to the cheers of the audience. The
tortoise reached the finish line and won the race!

The Tortoise and the Hare , Version 2

A rabbit made fun of a tortoise because he ran too slowly. So the tortoise challenged
the rabbit to a race. The rabbit thought it was a joke. But he accepted the challenge
anyway. The race was scheduled for the next day. Then the tortoise ran home and said
to his wife: You wait at the finish line, and when the rabbit is about to run, you say: I've
been waiting for you, you're too slow! This is exactly what happened during the race.
The rabbit was not convinced and said: You got lucky, let's race again? The tortoise
agreed, and they raced again. The rabbit still did not accept it, but every time the
tortoise agreed to race again. As a result, the rabbit was exhausted!

2.5 The Author's Point of View

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Every author has his or her own point of view. This article only retells the author's work
and does not emphasize the author's point of view. Here is an example of how Germans
dislike Jews.

A servant served his master faithfully for three years and finally got his wages: three
helers. The servant was not very familiar with money, but he thought it was a good
wage and went away happily. On the way, he met a little old man who praised him for
his good mood. The servant thought he had good reason to do so because today he
had received the wages for three years of work - three helers! The old man asked him
for money because the servant was young and strong and could easily make more
money. The servant was a kind man, so he agreed. The little old man gratefully said
that he could fulfill the servant's three wishes. The servant's first wish was to get a
blowpipe, which he could use to hit anything he aimed at. The second wish was for a
violin, which everyone would dance when it was played. Third, he hoped that when he
made a request to someone, that person would not be able to refuse his request.

His wish came true, and as he continued on his way, he met a Jew who was listening to
a bird singing. The servant shot at the bird with a blowpipe, and it fell into a thorn bush.
The Jew tried to rescue him from the thorn hedge. But when he walked into the bush,
the servant began to play the violin. The Jew had to dance among the thorns, and soon
his clothes were tattered and hung on the thorns. He gave the servant a bag of gold so
that he would finally stop playing the violin. The servant liked the suggestion; he put the
violin away and ran away with the gold. The Jew cursed him and finally went to the
judge to report him. The servant was arrested for robbery and sentenced to be hanged.

As he is led to the gallows, the servant asks the judge to grant him one last wish. He
wants to play the violin again. The judge does not want to deny him a wish, and soon
everyone - the judge, the bailiff, the executioner, the onlookers and even the Jew -
starts dancing and cannot stop. In the end, the judge is willing to overturn the death
sentence if the criminal finally stops gambling. Everyone collapses from exhaustion. The
servant attacks the Jew: he should tell him where he got the gold, or he will start playing

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the violin again. The Jew admits to stealing the money and is finally sent to the gallows
in the servant's place.

The story provides evidence of latent anti-Semitism, which is also documented in other
publications and in the Grimm brothers‘ notebooks and letters. Anti-Semitism was not
an invention of the National Socialists, but had been widespread in Europe for centuries.
The attributes of the Jews in this fairy tale and the contrast with the capable, helpful but
somewhat foolish servants are certainly standard features of anti-Semitism. And since
the Grimm brothers‘ fairy tales must be seen in the context of the formation of the
German nation (―cultural nation‖), the significance of the anti-Semitic fairy tale in which
the Jews appear as ―not belonging here‖ cannot be easily ignored.

2.6 Variants (e.g. from Folkes Tales)

Folk tales are mostly mythological stories , and their basic techniques are similar to fairy
tales, but the readers of folk tales are mostly adults. Fairy tales often use small animals,
but folk tales are not limited to this. " How can a bear talk?" This question can be
applied to folk tales, but it is a bit too much for fairy tales! In short, most folk tales can be
incorporated into fairy tales.

Although the main readers of fairy tales are children, in many countries, the readers of
this genre are not limited to children. For example, in China, the scope of fairy tales has
been expanded, and the scope of readers has also been expanded, so there is a genre
called mythology! In many other countries, there are many folk tales with fairy tale
colors. Here are some of them.

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3 Source Comments

3.1 Human

3.1.1 Sweet porridge

A poor and hungry girl met an old woman in the forest. The old woman knew what the
girl needed and gave her a small pot. Just say to it: "Pot, boil!" and it will cook sweet
millet porridge. From then on, the girl and her mother no longer had to go hungry. Once,
the girl was away from home and her mother ordered: "Pot, boil!" But finally, the girl
came home and said: "Pot, stop!" Unfortunately, she didn't know how to stop the
disaster. Almost the whole city disappeared in the mountain of millet porridge. The pot
stopped cooking millet porridge immediately, but anyone who wanted to enter the city
had to eat the mountain of millet.

Comments

The millet mountain eventually covered the entire city, feeding everyone and reminding
people of the story of a land flowing with milk and honey. Ludwig Bechstein's version of
the fairy tale ends with the following words: But all over the country there is a wall of
porridge as high as a mountain. Anyone who wants to go in or out must drink it first.

The sweet porridge in this fairy tale is not made of rice, but of millet. This grain
originated in Asia and was introduced to Europe in the Middle Ages. For the poor, millet
(porridge) was an important staple food. Sugar was a luxury for a long time, and their
taste buds were not accustomed to it. The natural moderate sweetness of millet may be
enough for millet porridge to be called "sweet porridge".

Salt is as precious as sugar, and this forms the background of a famous Norwegian fairy
tale with a similar theme to the sweet porridge fairy tale. In "The Mill at the Bottom of the

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Sea", the pot is replaced by a (manual) mill, which can provide any amount of food to its
owner. Eventually, it is bought by a wealthy salt merchant who can never have enough.
Out of greed, he sinks the mill, his ship, the salt mountain and himself into the sea - and
the sea has become salty ever since.

3.1.2 King of the Golden Mountain

A wealthy merchant was facing bankruptcy. He had only one field left outside the city,
and to clear his mind he went for a walk there. Suddenly, a small black man stood
before him and asked why he was in so much pain. The man told him about his loss,
and the dwarf thought he could help - all the man had to do was promise to give him the
first creature that bumped into his leg when he returned home after a certain period of
time. The merchant agreed, thinking that the creature could only be his dog.

But on this day, his little boy took his first steps and ran joyfully towards his father on his
way home. The man was frightened but initially hoped that the little man was just joking
with him. But when he later found a large sum of money on the ground, he knew who he
had messed with. After all, he was now a rich man again and he would definitely find a
way to deal with the boy.

When the agreed time comes, the father and son go out to the field. They draw a circle
around themselves and wait for the evil to come. Of course, he has not forgotten the
contract and will not let anything stop him from keeping it. So the boy ends up having to
get on the boat and the father has to push the boat away with his own feet. He sees the
boat capsize and thinks his son is missing. But the son takes the boat to another world.

He came to a beautiful and enchanted castle, only to find it empty. Finally, he met a
snake, who claimed to be an enchanted princess and that he had been chosen to save
her. To do this, he had to endure beatings and torture from more and more black men
for three consecutive nights. On the last night, they would even cut off his head, but she

15
would regain her human form and revive him with the water of life. The boy did as the
snake wished, and, sure enough, everything happened as expected. He rescued the
enchanted princess, they got married, and he became the king of the Golden Mountain.

They lived happily and had a son. A few years later, King Jinshan missed his father and
wanted to visit him at least once more. His wife was not too happy but finally agreed.
She gave him a wishing ring but warned him not to use it to keep her away from Jinshan.
The king promised to keep his promise and wished to go to his father's city.

At first he did not believe that it was his son he saw, but the birthmark convinced him.
The father no longer believed him when he told the king that he was the King of the
Golden Mountain, that he had a beautiful wife and an equally handsome son, because
in order not to attract attention he was dressed in shepherd's clothes. The king was
furious and demanded as proof his wife and child. Both appeared immediately, but the
queen cried: he had broken his promise and ruined her happiness. She left him alone
where his father had put him on the ship. Now he did not know how to get back to the
Golden Mountain, his family and his castle.

Nevertheless, he sets out (see Search Hike) to rediscover his lost happiness. He meets
three giants who ask him to divide their shared inheritance fairly. The inheritance
consists of three magical things: a sword that can instantly chop off the heads of
everyone present (except yourself), an invisibility cloak, and a pair of seven-league
boots. Since the giants are quite stupid, the king can easily take these three things from
them (which at least ensures that the inheritance is divided fairly among the three). He
reaches the Golden Mountain and his castle wearing the seven-league boots, where the
queen is preparing to remarry. The invisibility cloak and the magic sword help him to
stop it all and become the king of the Golden Mountain again.

Comments

The King of the Golden Mountain is a fairy tale (children's and family story) by the
Brothers Grimm. This fairy tale combines the theme of a child (given away at random to

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a stranger, usually evil) with the theme of losing his wife, whom the hero wins back only
after a difficult ordeal (freeing the princess in the magic castle). Similar fairy tales
include The Singing and Leaping Skylark and The Three Princesses of Wittenland.

3.1.3 The Robber Bridegroom

A miller had a beautiful daughter and wanted to marry her to a rich man. He found a
suitor who suited his taste, but his daughter could not trust him, let alone develop
feelings for him. Yes, every time she saw him or thought about him, she felt a pang of
fear in her heart. One day, the groom wanted her to visit him at his home in the dark
forest. The girl tried to evade responsibility by claiming that she could not find the way.
But the groom did not give up: he was supposed to meet her the following Sunday, he
had invited guests, and in order for her to find the way, he would scatter his ashes.

With a bad feeling, the girl went into the forest on the appointed day, and for some
reason, she scattered some lentils and peas from time to time. Finally, she arrived at a
house that might be her fiancé. It was eerie and silent around her, but suddenly she
heard a voice

"Turn back, turn back, young bride,

You are now in the home of a murderer."

The warning came from a bird in a cage. The girl went through all the rooms of the
house, but she didn't see a single person. Finally she went into the basement. There sat
an old woman, shaking her head. She asked the old woman if her fiancé lived in the
house. But the old woman confirmed the bird's warning: the house was a murderer's
nest, and the girl's upcoming wedding was a wedding with death, because the groom
wanted to kill her. He was a cannibal, and she was supposed to be there, cooked in the
cauldron . But the old woman took pity on the beautiful girl and showed her a barrel,

17
asking her to hide in it. At night, when the robbers slept, they would try to escape
together. She, the old woman, had been waiting for such an opportunity for a long time.

As soon as the girl disappeared into the barrel, the robbers, drunk and shouting, came.
With them was another little girl, who was moaning and crying. The robbers gave her
three glasses of wine, tore off her clothes and laid her on the table. Then they cut the
beautiful body into pieces and sprinkled salt on it.

The bride witnessed all this from the barrel and she knew that the same fate was
waiting for her. The robbers found a gold ring on the victim's finger that they could not
remove. So they simply cut off the finger. The finger drew a high arc and flew straight
into the barrel where the bride was hiding. The robbers searched the entire cellar until
there was only one place left: the corner where the barrel was. The old woman
distracted the robbers with the food she provided. After dinner there was still time to
look for the ring. There was a large amount of wine in the meal, and the old woman also
mixed it with sleeping pills. When all the robbers were snoring, the old woman and the
rescued bride sneaked away. Although the ashes had been washed away by the rain,
the peas and lentils had sprouted and showed them the way.

Then the wedding day arrived. All the guests sat at the table and each was asked to tell
a story. When it was the bride's turn, she told a terrible story that she allegedly dreamed
of. It was a story of her experience at her fiancé's house. As the bride's story
progressed, the face of the robber bridegroom became paler and paler. Her story ended
with the unfortunate girl's severed finger falling into her leg. After saying these words,
she took out the finger (including the ring) and placed it on the table. The wedding
guests arrested the murderer and handed him over to the court. He and his accomplices
were executed for their crimes.

Comments

The Robber Bridegroom is a fairy tale (children's and family story) written by the
Brothers Grimm. This fairy tale can be considered a classic of horror literature (The

18
Maiden Killer). The depiction of violence is not for the faint of heart, not only because of
the violence itself, but more importantly because it is told from the perspective of a
terrified woman who witnesses a murder and simultaneously realizes that she is the
next victim.

3.1.4 The Blacksmith of Utterbok

A blacksmith from Terbok (Brandenburg) left his homeland when he was young. As a
skilled craftsman, he was welcomed everywhere. Its tincture was especially sought after,
because it could be used to polish armor, making it impenetrable to all kinds of weapons.
Thanks to this miraculous cure, he was appointed armorer to Emperor Frederick I
(Barbarossa) and accompanied him on the Crusades. Rich and old, he finally returned
to his homeland. When he was already more than a hundred years old, one day a dwarf
appeared in his garden and asked the blacksmith to shoe his donkey. The old
blacksmith did the work and did not ask for any reward, because the dwarf often
appeared to him as a protective spirit in his adventurous life.

The dwarf thanked him and said that the blacksmith had three wishes. But he should
not forget the best one. The blacksmith was often annoyed because thieves stole his
pears. So your first wish is that no one who climbs up the pear tree can get down on
their own. And since the thief has already been in his room, his second wish is that
anyone who sneaks into his room can at most get out through the keyhole. Before the
last wish, the dwarf warned again: "Don't forget the best one!", but the blacksmith's wish
was to get a bottle of gin that would never be empty.

The dwarf granted the blacksmith's wish and left him some silver. His life was no longer
difficult, but somewhere along the way, Death was knocking on his door. The blacksmith
agreed to go, but asked Death to pick him some pears from a tree that he had not been
able to climb for a long time. Of course, the blacksmith still didn't want to die, so he left
him in the tree and almost starved to death. However, at some point, it would become a

19
problem for no one on Earth to die. So the blacksmith made Death promise not to
bother him from now on, and let him go.

From then on, Death looked very haggard. He first cleared the floor, but he could not do
anything about the blacksmith. This annoyed him, so he incited the devil to deal with the
blacksmith. But the devil also found the acquaintance with the blacksmith unpleasant.
After entering the room, he realized that he could not get out by normal means. Unless
through the keyhole, of course, this was possible for him because he was the devil. But
behind the door stood the blacksmith, who was holding a large sack and holding it to the
keyhole to catch the devil. He made drastic changes to the sack and the devil with the
blacksmith's hammer.

The blacksmith lived a long and peaceful life until he finally grew tired of this earthly life
and volunteered to go to heaven. But Peter - the little old man who fulfilled his foolish
wish - would not let him in, but sent him to hell. Since the devil also had good reasons
not to let the blacksmith in, he entered Kyffhäuser and came to his former employer,
Emperor Barbarossa. Only when the crows stopped flying over the hills and the dead
pear trees sprouted new leaves did the emperor appear again. With him was his
quartermaster, the blacksmith from Törbok.

Comments

The Blacksmith of Utterbork is a fairy tale from Ludwig Bechstein's German Fairy Tale
Book (1845). Similar fairy tales and legends can be found in many European fairy tale
collections, where the blacksmith is associated with death and the devil (see The
Blacksmith and the Devil by the Brothers Grimm; The Good Man Suffers and His Dog
Poverty in Northern France; The Blacksmith in Hell They Don't Want by Asbjörnsen and
Mau). The story of the Blacksmith of Utterbork combines fairy tale material with the
legend of Emperor Barbarossa, who is buried at Kifhauser.

20
3.1.5 Paradise Tailor

A tailor dies and goes to heaven. He limps to the door with blisters on his feet, but Peter
doesn't want to let him in: once or twice the tailor has cheated customers and taken
some of their fabric. But the tailor complains, points out his damage and promises to do
a minimal job, so Peter finally gives in.

When God and his archangels walked through the gates of Heaven at noon, he asked
the tailor to look after Heaven for a while. The tailor could not resist sitting on God's
chair, from where he could see everything that happened in the world. He saw a
washerwoman washing other people's clothes by the river. Thinking no one was
watching, she took two delicate veils that obviously belonged to a noblewoman. The
tailor forgot that he had been a thief in his own life. He flew into a rage and threw a stool
at the thief, who thought the devil had thrown it at her and fled with nothing.

The Lord returned, having lost his footstool. The tailor proudly told how he had thrown
the stool at the woman. But the expected praise did not come; instead, the God
reminded him that if he had judged others as the tailor did, he himself would have
suffered great loss - he would have probably lost all his furniture. After hearing this
instruction, the tailor was driven out of heaven and had to live with the soldiers for a
while.

Comments

The Tailor in Paradise is a fairy tale full of legend; included in the Grimm Brothers'
Children's and Household Tales (2nd edition). Like some farces (e.g. The Brothers
Lustig), it is about a poor sinner negotiating with higher powers (God, the Devil, Peter)
to find a suitable destination for his soul. Here, however, the vacillating elements take a
back seat to a clear morality: the tailor is ultimately rejected from heaven not for the sins
he committed on earth, but for his presumption in judging other sinners.

21
3.1.6 Strong Hans

A young woman and her only child, two-year-old Hans, were kidnapped by robbers
while collecting firewood. From then on, she had to run the household for the robbers
for many years. When Hans was nine years old, he began to ask his father about his
fate and began to fight against the robbers. At first he was weaker than the robbers, but
after a few years he grew up and became stronger, defeated the robbers, filled his
pockets with gold and silver, and escaped from the robbers' den with his mother. They
found their old home and reunited with their father.

But strong Hans soon discovered that his parents' house was too small. He asked his
father to make him a walking stick that weighed a hundred pounds, and then he went off.
Soon he met a rude man in the forest, who was taller than he was, and who had
wrapped a rope from the trunk of a fir tree. Such a strong man was just the right
traveling companion for Hans. He called him "fir-twister" and continued on with him.
After a while, they heard knocking sounds and the whole ground shook. They continued
on and came across the source of the noise: a giant was chiseling boulders from the
rock with his bare hands to build a house for himself. Hans called him "Rock Scissors"
and invited him to join them.

In the evening, the three men came to an abandoned castle, which happened to be their
home. They agreed that two of them would go out hunting every day (because three
such big and strong men would need a lot of meat), and the third would stay home to
cook. First it was the Ham Twister's turn to cook, and while he was cooking, a thin and
shrunken man came up and asked for some meat. The Twister could only shout tiredly
"Get lost!" He was proud of the little man, and couldn't believe it when the little man
attacked him and beat him with his bare hands until he could hardly move. Ashamed of
his failure, he didn't tell the other two about the dwarves when they came home from
hunting. The next day, Rock Scissorhands had the same experience again, and he also
kept this unpleasant experience to himself.

22
On the third day, it was the turn of strong Hans to cook. Unlike the other two, he gave
the dwarf some meat, but when the dwarf became cheeky and asked for more, he gave
him a few punches. The dwarf ran away and Hans chased him. Hans saw the dwarf
disappear into a crevice and remembered the place. When the other two came back,
Hans told them about his experience. Now they admitted that they had also been visited
by the dwarf, but did not give him any meat and were therefore beaten by him.

Together they went to the crevice to see if the dwarves had hidden any treasure there.
Hans asked the others to lower him down in a basket. To his surprise, he found an
extremely beautiful but sad-looking maiden next to the dwarf, who was bound in chains.
Hans killed the dwarf with a club, and the maiden's chains fell off. He placed her in the
basket, and the two men waiting above pulled her up. When they lowered the basket
again, Hans felt so suspicious that he did not sit in the basket himself. He threw his club
in, and sure enough, in mid-air, the two giants dropped the basket to the ground, which
meant that he was doomed. Thanks to his caution, he survived, but how was he to get
up?

Hans saw a ring on the finger of the slain dwarf and put it on himself. It was a wishing
ring, and Hans was led back to the light by the invisible spirit. In the castle he found
neither his treacherous companions nor the beautiful maiden. He turned the wishing
ring again, and the spirit told him that they had escaped in a ship across the sea. Hans
followed them, and with his own strength and the help of his servants he reached the
ship. He threw the two giants into the sea, and then took the maiden back to her parents,
where they were married.

Comments

Strong Hans is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household Tales,
from the third edition), see also The Young Giant.

23
3.1.7 Old woman in the forest

A maid was driving through a forest with her mistress. They were attacked by robbers,
who killed all of them except the maid. She crouched under a tree in despair, not
knowing what to do with herself. A white dove came and gave her a small golden key.
She also showed her a large tree and a castle, and told her where she could find food.
The girl ate her fill, and then told herself how nice it would be if she had a bed to sleep
in. Then the white dove came again and gave her a second key. At the second tree, she
used this key to open the lock on the tree and found a comfortable, soft bed. The next
morning, the dove came a third time and brought back a key with which the girl could
get beautiful clothes from a third tree.

Thus the dove provided the girl with everything she needed for a long time. But one day
the dove asked the girl for a favor. She would take them to a house in the woods. There
would be an old woman sitting by the fire, wishing the girl a good day. She was not
allowed to answer under any circumstances, but to go into a room where many precious
rings were placed on a table. The girl did not need to pay any attention to these, but
only to look for a very simple ring. She was to take this to the dove.

The girl did as the pigeon told her. But she couldn't find the simple ring described. Then
she noticed the old woman trying to sneak out of the house with the birdcage - and the
bird trapped in the cage had the ring in its beak. She took the ring and ran out of the
house. Hoping the pigeon would come, she leaned against a tree and waited for it.

But the dove did not come. Instead, she felt the branches wrap around her. She felt the
trunk become soft and flexible. Now she saw that the tree had turned into a handsome
young man who embraced her and kissed her. He was the son of a king who had been
turned into a tree by the old woman and could only fly as a dove for a few hours a day.
The girl broke the spell by stealing the ring from the old woman. The two got married
and lived happily ever after.

Comments

24
The Old Woman in the Forest is a fairy tale (children's and family story) written by the
Brothers Grimm. The bird is an enchanted prince .

The themes of the fairy tale – the old woman in the forest, the imprisoned bird, the
metamorphosis – are particularly reminiscent of the fairy tales of Jorinde and Joringel,
with the difference that here it is not the girl who is transformed but the man, and the girl
plays the role of liberator. Another difference comes from the symbol of the ring (which
does not appear in "Jorinde" and "Joringel"), which, due to its simplicity, only represents
deep affection. As long as the ring remains in the old woman's hand, the king's son is
bound to her. Therefore, the most obvious interpretation of this fairy tale is that by
stealing the ring, the girl frees the man from the fatal mother-son relationship. Now he is
free to establish a relationship as a man with the woman whom he once treated like a
dove.

In the short fairy tale, the girl also undergoes a profound transformation. As is often the
case in fairy tales, the setting for this transformation is the forest. At first she is a maid,
who after an attack is not only penniless but also completely alone. After her physical
(food) and mental (bed) health are taken care of, she finds royal clothes in the third tree
(see also Allerleirauh), however, during her seclusion she sees no one except the
pigeons and herself. In her reclusive relationship with her friends, she feels her own
worth. This appreciation of self gives her the confidence to embark on an unknown
adventure with the old woman of the forest and win her prince.

3.1.8 Two royal children

A prince of sixteen was hunting in the forest when he suddenly saw a large stag in front
of him. He tried to shoot it but failed. When he was born, the stars predicted that he
would be killed by a stag when he was sixteen. Despite all the bad omens, he continued
to chase the stag until he finally found himself alone with the stag outside the forest.
Suddenly, it was not the stag that stood in front of him, but a tall man who told him that

25
he had been chasing him for a long time and took him back to his castle. Once there, he
asked to spend a night looking after his eldest daughter. He would come and call him
every hour. If he did not answer even once, or if he fell asleep, he would kill him. But if
he passed the test, he would marry the daughter.

The king's son passed the test, thanks to the tall stone Christopher, who answered the
questions for him after he fell asleep. But the foreign king refused to marry his eldest
daughter to him, and instead asked him to take the same test again, this time in the
bedroom of the second daughter. The test was the same as the first, but again the king
was not prepared to fulfill his promise. The prince spent a third night in the youngest
daughter's room, and again the stone Christopher answered the questions for him while
he himself slept. Even this was not enough for the king.

There were further tests: the prince had to chop down an entire forest, clean a pool of
mud, and finally a mountain covered with thorns and build a castle on it in one night. To
complete each task, the foreign king gave him the corresponding tools, but these tools
were made of glass and broke at the touch. Each time the king's son was desperate
because if he didn't complete the task, he would be killed. But the youngest princess
helped him every time by bringing him food at lunchtime. She comforted and caressed
him and put him to sleep. Then she called a group of "mongooses" (dwarves! Not those
cute little animals) and ordered them to complete the tasks assigned by her father.

But even after passing these three tests, the foreign king still did not keep his promise.
This time he argued that he had to marry off his two oldest daughters first. The next
night, the two royal children ran away together. When the girl discovered that her father
was following her, she saved herself and her lover by changing her shape. She turned
him into a bush of thorns, and she turned herself into a rose that bloomed among the
thorns. The father returned to the castle, and the queen told him the meaning of the
rose and the bush of thorns.

He continued his pursuit. This time, the girl turned the boy into a church and herself into
a priest preaching from a pulpit. He again returned empty-handed, so the queen went

26
after him herself. The girl turned the boy into a pond and herself into a fish swimming
around in the pond. The queen drank the pond dry to eat the fish, but this made her feel
sick, so she vomited all the water again. Realizing there was nothing more she could do,
she let the two royal children go. As a farewell gift, she gave her daughter three nuts
with a note saying they would help her when she was in dire need.

Shortly before the two arrived at the castle of the King's son's parents, the boy left his
bride in a village and asked her to wait for him there so that he could take her to the
castle with a carriage and servants. But when his mother came home and kissed him,
he suddenly forgot about his bride who was waiting for him in the village (see "The Real
Bride"). The King's daughter was alone and had no choice but to work as a maid for the
miller.

Meanwhile, the mother was looking for another bride for her son. But with the help of
nuts, the king's daughter was able to prevent this wedding with the wrong bride. Inside
each nut was a beautiful dress, which she would wear to the church for the wedding.
The false bride became so jealous each time that she postponed her vows. She got the
dress from a stranger, and in exchange she promised to sleep at the groom's door. At
night, she told him everything they had experienced together. On the third night, her
words finally reached his ears, and he remembered his real bride.

Comments

The Two Kings' Children is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, also known as The Two
Kings' Children (a collection of children's and household stories). This fairy tale is an
example of the "magical escape" fairy tale genre: a young man falls into the hands of an
evil antagonist with supernatural powers, who sets him a series of essentially
unsolvable tasks, with death if he fails. Surprisingly, the hero passes the test, but his
antagonist does not keep his promise to marry him his daughter (a princess). The hero
escapes further persecution with the help of acquired magical powers (magic items or
grateful animals).

27
3.1.9 Two hikers

A fun-loving young tailor sets out on a journey and meets a shoemaker on the way.
They decide to continue on together, especially since their trades fit in well. The
shoemaker turns out to be a man with a bad temper, which also affects the success of
his business. Anyway, in every place they pass through, the tailor makes more money
than the shoemaker. On the other hand, he spends money just as fast as he makes it
and shows generosity to his companions in the bar.

Their destination was the Imperial City, where the two travelers hoped to obtain more
than just the necessities of survival. To reach the city, they had to cross a large forest,
through which there were two paths. One of the paths would take the hikers two days,
the other seven. The ever-optimistic tailor had stored up a two-day ration of bread —
why would he needlessly store up seven days' worth of bread for himself? The
shoemaker, lacking optimism and trust in God, bought seven days' worth of bread. On
the third day of the hike, the forest was still dense and seemed to go on forever, and
both men realized they were on a longer path.

The tailor walked all day without eating, and even on the fourth day, despite being very
hungry, he continued to walk. He asked the shoemaker for some bread crumbs, but the
shoemaker just laughed. Now the tailor could finally experience what it was like to be
unhappy. But by the morning of the fifth day, the tailor was exhausted. The shoemaker
was willing to give him some bread - but it would come at a price. He really needed the
tailor's eye to solve this problem. The tailor had to accept this if he wanted to survive.
They continued their journey, and on the sixth day, the tailor was out of bread again. On
the morning of the seventh day, he was too exhausted to get out of bed. The
shoemaker asked for and got the tailor's second eye.

The tailor was blind and could not practice his trade in the future, so he had to rely on
the shoemaker‘s mercy. But he was hard-hearted and left him to his fate when they

28
finally came out of the forest. The tailor didn‘t know that he was standing under a
gallows, where two men who had just been hanged were hanging. But he heard one of
them say to the other that a special dew had fallen tonight. If anyone was blind and
washed his face with it, he would regain his sight. The tailor didn‘t need to be told twice.
He dipped some of the dew in his handkerchief and washed his face. He saw the royal
city glittering in the distance, and after testing whether he could still use his needle and
thread, he was ecstatic despite his hunger.

On the way to town, he met a foal and tried to climb on its back. But the foal begged him
to stop. It was not strong enough even for the skinny tailor. He felt hungry, so he
continued walking and met a stork. He grabbed his legs and roasted him. The stork
begged for mercy. After all, he was a magical bird and had never done anything wrong
to anyone. The tailor let him fly away, but his hunger was getting stronger. There were a
few ducklings in the pond. But when the mother duck begged him not to take what she
loved most, his compassion once again won over his growling stomach. Finally, he
thought he had found a food that would not hurt others - honey from a hollow tree. But
here the queen bee had something against it.

The tailor, hungry but happy, finally reached the royal city and soon found work with a
master. It didn't take long for him to become famous in the city. Every man's clothes
were made by him, thanks not only to his craftsmanship but also to his cheerful
character. So one day he was appointed court tailor, and by coincidence, his false friend
was appointed court shoemaker on the same day. He was afraid because it seemed
that sooner or later they would meet, and then his crime would be exposed.

The shoemaker tried to get rid of the tailor through cunning and trickery. He told the king
that the tailor boasted that he could find the king's crown, which had been lost not long
ago. When the king asked the tailor to put his words into action, the tailor thought that
the best thing for him would be to leave the city. So he met the old duck again. She was
happy to be able to repay the tailor's kindness. The lost crown lay at the bottom of the
pond.

29
Having reclaimed the King's beloved crown, the tailor naturally finds favor with the King.
This in turn unsettles the shoemaker, who continues to plot against the tailor. He claims
to the King that the tailor had boasted that he could make a wax model exactly like the
castle. Once again, the tailor attempts to escape, and this time he encounters the
Queen Bee, who is working with her people to build the model that the King wants. The
third plot becomes life-threatening for the tailor. This time, the King threatens to chop off
his head if he fails to get the fountain in the castle courtyard bubbling again. While on
the run, he encounters the horse he had saved as a child, who now helps him solve his
new quest.

After that he regained some peace. But then the shoemaker whispered to the king that
even if the tailor had the best wish in the world, he didn't know how to get it. The king
already had many daughters and finally wanted a son. Now it was the stork's turn to
return the favor. Since he had been bringing babies to the city for a long time, he
brought the king the son he longed for. The tailor married the king's eldest daughter, but
the shoemaker had to leave the city. He walked past the gallows, and the long walk
under the hot sun exhausted him, so he lay down in the shade and fell asleep. Then the
crows came and pecked out his eyes. Blinded and unconscious, he ran into the forest
and was never seen again.

Comments

"The Two Wanderers" is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, included in the Children's
and Household Tales since the 5th edition. It tells the story of the relationship between
two travelers, one of whom is open-minded and a little frivolous, while the other reveals
his vicious character at the first opportunity. This fairy tale replaced the fairy tale "The
Raven" which was previously ranked 107, which also contains the key scenes (gallows,
crows), but the characterization of the hero and his false friend is a bit simple. In
addition, the theme of grateful animals was added to the back of "The Two Wanderers".

30
3.1.10 Bremen Town Musicians

An old donkey served his master faithfully for many years, but when his strength was
worn out, his master wanted to slaughter him. So the donkey decided to run away from
home and become a musician in the town of Bremen. On the way, he met an old dog
who was not in good condition. When he was no longer fit for hunting, his master
wanted to kill him. With the well-known request

»...you can find anything better than death anywhere«

The donkey encourages the dog to go with him to Bremen to seek a chance to become
a musician. Later, they meet an old cat who no longer wants to catch mice and should
be drowned, and a rooster who should be put in a soup pot as a thank you for his
tireless crowing.

Since Bremen was far away, the animals had to spend the night in the forest.
Fortunately, the cock saw a light in the distance from his high perch. Domestic animals
always prefer comfortable places to sleep. When they discovered that the small house
in the forest was the robbers' shack, they did not get scared. Instead, they followed the
well-known routine - dog on donkey, cat on dog, cock on cat - and demonstrated their
tricks at the window of the robbers' hut, and then immediately drove the robbers away.
They did send a soldier to check the situation again, but he was in a bad state. The cat
looked terrible in the firelight, its eyes were gleaming, and it was scratching its face. The
donkey kicked him. The dog bit his leg, and the cock clucked and beat him to death.

Of course, the robber does not tell his accomplices that he was driven away by a few
ragtag pets. Instead, he tells of a witch with long nails, a man with a knife, a monster,
and a sinister judge who shouts his verdict from the rooftops. The animals give up their
plans to become musicians in Bremen and spend their last years of freedom in the
robber's cottage.

Comments

31
The Town Musicians of Bremen is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and
Household Tales, 2nd edition); one of the most famous animal fairy tales. The opening
theme of the cold rejection of useless animals can also be found in the fairy tale The
Old Sultan, for example; in The Dog and the Sparrow (both by the Brothers Grimm), the
relationship between dogs and humans is even more strained.

No other Grimm story is as directly related to a real city as The Town Musicians of
Bremen, even though the animals never reach their destination, Bremen, and no real
events are mentioned. The half-fatalistic, half-optimistic message that you can find
something better than death anywhere has been reflected in many different ways. The
heroes are classic losers: outcasts and outcasts, they set out to conquer a world that
does not wait for them; and although they do not find what they seek, they still find their
own little happiness. The picture of four animals stacked on top of each other is one of
the most famous themes in the Grimm fairy tales.

3.1.11 Three Brothers

A man had three sons and he didn't know how to pass on his property (which was
nothing but the house) to them. Selling the house and dividing the money was
impossible for him. Because it was his ancestral house, it should stay in the family. So
he sent the three men out to learn a craft. Whoever produced the best masterpiece
within the agreed time would get the house.

The first child became an apprentice to a blacksmith and even shoed the king's horse.
He was so confident in his craft that he was sure he would get the house. The second
child took lessons from a barber and soon cut the hair of many distinguished gentlemen.
He also had a passion for the game. Not to be outdone, the third child took lessons from
a fencing master, taking a few punches along the way. But he gritted his teeth at the
thought that he would definitely win against the family with his sword skills.

32
On the appointed day, the father and his sons met, but had no idea how to begin
showing their masterpieces. A rabbit ran up, and the barber took it upon himself to
demonstrate his skills on it. He soaped and shaved the rabbit as he ran, without
damaging a hair. The father loved this, but for formality's sake, the other two were
allowed to show their skills as well. When a gentleman drove by in his carriage, the
blacksmith seized the opportunity. He ripped the horseshoes off the horse as he
galloped and replaced them with new ones. The father was so excited that he almost
forgot that the third son wanted to show off his artistic talent as well. It began to rain,
and the fencer swung his sword over his head with amazing speed, without getting a
single drop of rain.

This feat was so amazing that he got the house. But because the brothers loved each
other from the bottom of their hearts, they moved into their father's house together.

Comments

Below is a description of the fairy tale "The Three Brothers" from the Grimm Brothers'
Children's and Household Tales. Of course, there are many other fairy tales with this
obvious title, including the one by Francesco Straparola. The structure of this fairy tale
is simple and reduced to a theme that appears in many other fairy tales as the
cornerstone of a more complex plot: three brothers (there are many more in other fairy
tales) learn a different craft at the request of their father and improve it to the highest
level of perfection (supernatural enhancement), and the whole story is intended as a
competition. In this fairy tale, the father wants to leave the house to the one who knows
his craft best. In other stories, for example, supernatural abilities are a condition for
winning the king's daughter (see "The Four Cunning Brothers").

33
3.1.12 Three nursing staff

Three well-traveled war surgeons, who were very confident in their abilities, stayed
overnight at an inn. The innkeeper wanted to see their skills, and the surgeons did not
hesitate to oblige. The first cut off his hand, the second dug out his heart, and the third
dug out his eye. Because they had an ointment that, simply by applying it, would cause
severed body parts to grow back. They placed the hand, heart, and eye on a plate and
gave it to the innkeeper so that he could keep it safely until the next morning.

The innkeeper handed the dishes to the maid, who was supposed to put them in the
kitchen cupboard. Whatever she did, her mind was not entirely on things. Because her
lover, a soldier, was coming to visit her. She set the table and sat down next to him.
Unfortunately, she forgot to lock the cupboard door. While she and her lover sat and
talked, the cat took out the unusual piece of meat from the cupboard. After the two
lovers finished their meal, the maid was going to put the dishes in the cupboard. She
was shocked to find that the door was open and the things she had entrusted to her
were gone.

She complained to her lover about how bad she would feel the next morning. But the
soldier knew what to do. A fresh corpse of a thief was hanging on the gallows. The
soldier cut off the dead man's right hand and brought it to his lover. Then he caught the
cat and dug out its eyes. The only thing missing was the heart. Fortunately, the
innkeeper had a freshly slaughtered pig in his cellar. He got his heart. The maid put the
hand, eye and heart back on the plate and put it back in the cupboard.

The next morning, the three field surgeons demonstrated their skills. With the help of
the miraculous ointment, they transplanted hands, eyes, and hearts. In fact, everything
grew back without any problems. The innkeeper was convinced of their skill and
promised to spread their praise everywhere.

The surgeons on the scene paid and left. However, they soon noticed some worrying
changes. The one with the pig heart could not help but rummage through dirty things

34
like a pig. The one with the cat eyes felt uneasy and thought there was something
wrong with his eyesight. In the evening, they moved into a new inn, and the third man
felt a strange itch in his right hand. Because a rich man was sitting in the inn and
counting money. When he turned away briefly, the surgeon stretched out the thief's
hand and took a handful of money. A comrade saw this and reprimanded him. The
surgeon who committed the theft explained that the attack had been carried out without
his consent or participation.

Finally, they went to bed. In the middle of the night, the man with the cat's eyes woke up
and saw a white mouse running around the room. He woke his companions and pointed
at the mouse, but in the darkness they could not see anything. Now, however, they all
realized something. The innkeeper had obviously deceived them and given them
someone else's body parts! So they returned the next morning and confronted the
innkeeper. He knew nothing and thought that only the maid was to blame. However, she
was smart enough and had escaped long ago. The innkeeper had no choice but to pay
a large compensation to the surgeon.

Comments

The Three Surgeons is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household
Tales). Until the 18th century, a "feldscher" was a medical officer employed by the army
whose primary responsibility was to treat wounds. "Treatment" here refers to specific
methods, such as cauterizing wounds with a red-hot iron, re-adjusting and amputating
limbs, or removing bullets. He was therefore more of a craftsman than a doctor, and his
skills were not acquired through academic training, but often from a barber
("Bartscherer"). His reputation was therefore not particularly high, being only slightly
higher than that of a common soldier. The point of the farce is that, although the artistic
achievements of the field surgeon were undeniable, even the common soldier had some
knowledge of their craft.

35
3.1.13 Three spinners

A mother had a daughter who was too lazy to spin. One day, she got so angry that she
beat the lazy girl. By chance, the Queen was driving by outside and heard the
heartbreaking cry. She went into the house and asked the mother why she beat her
daughter. The mother was too embarrassed to admit to the Queen that she had such a
lazy daughter. She preferred to lie and claimed that the girl loved spinning very much
and as a poor woman, she could not get enough flax.

The Queen loved this, for there was nothing she loved more than the whirring of the
spinning wheel. Even the most diligent spinner could not spin all the raw flax in her
castle so quickly. With her mother‘s consent, she took the supposedly capable girl to
her castle. She presented her with three rooms full of flax. When she was finished, she
would marry the Queen‘s eldest son, no matter how humble her origins. The girl was
miserable, for not only did she hate spinning, she simply could not spin. Three days
passed, and she still had not produced a single thread. She apologized, saying that she
was very sad to be separated from her mother. The Queen expressed her
understanding, but urged them to start as soon as possible.

Once again, the girl went to the window alone. Outside she saw three disfigured women.
One had flat feet, another had a large lower lip, and the third had a broad thumb. The
three offered her a hand, and in return all they asked was that she be invited to the
wedding of the king's son. She should introduce them to him as her aunts and should
not be ashamed of them. The girl agreed, and the three spinners set to work. One
kicked the wheel with her flat foot, another wet the thread with her lip, and the third
turned the wheel with her thumb. Soon they had spun all the flax, and there was no
longer any obstacle to the wedding.

The girl kept her promise and asked the prince to allow her to invite her three beloved
cousins. He agreed. When the women came in and were warmly welcomed by the bride,
he was annoyed by these unsightly relatives. He asked where their disfigurements

36
came from and the answers he received made him think deeply. The first had flat feet
from stepping on a spinning wheel, the second had a deformed lower lip from constantly
licking the thread, and the third had a wide thumb from twisting the thread. The prince
was horrified and ordered his beautiful bride never to touch a spinning wheel again.

Comments

"The Three Spinners" is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household
Tales, 1st edition titled "The Wicked Flax Spider").

Similar to fairy tales . "Seven Pigskins" There is a similar fairy tale in Ricdin-Ricdon.
However, there, the mother beats her daughter not because she is lazy, but because
she ate the bacon rind that was meant for soup. The first part of the fairy tale of the
three spinners is also reminiscent of the more famous Grimm fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin.
There, a folk man boasts about how good his daughter is at spinning, only to have her
fall into the same embarrassment. While a shady dwarf who pursues his own goals
appears as an assistant, the three disfigured spinners are selfless and only ask for
respect. In Ricdin-Ricdon, the similarities to the fairy tale of Rumpelstiltskin are even
more obvious, in which a suspicious male assistant appears instead of selfless spinners.
In Rumpelstiltskin, the girl falls into distress because of her father's boasting, while in
Ricdin-Ricdon, as in The Three Spinners, it is the mother's white lie that makes her feel
ashamed of her lazy daughter.

3.1.14 Three languages

The Count had an only son, but to his dismay, he couldn't seem to learn anything from
him. So he sent him abroad to learn from a master. But when the son returned a year
later, when asked what he had learned, he said he had learned the language of dogs.
This wasn't what the father had hoped for, but he gave him a second chance with
another master. After another year of apprenticeship, the son was finally able to

37
understand the calls of frogs. The father was losing patience. On his last try with a third
master, he warned his son that if he failed to meet his expectations again, he would
disown him.

A year later, when the son announced that he had now also learned the language of
birds, the old earl had the hunters take his only son to the forest, where they were to kill
him. As a sign, they were to bring him the eyes and tongue of the dead man. But the
hunters took pity on the young man and killed a deer instead. He asked for a place to
stay in the castle for the night, and the lord granted him that. However, he had to stay in
an old tower, which was avoided by everyone because wild dogs came out at night.

All the people around were saddened by the dogs. Not only did the dogs howl at night,
which was a nuisance, but at certain times they would demand human sacrifices. The
young man, who understood the dogs' language, was not afraid. In this way, he learned
from the dogs the reasons for their behavior. They were sentenced to guard a treasure
hidden in the tower. Only by retrieving the treasure could they find peace. The dogs also
told the boy what he had to do to get the treasure. So he picked up the treasure and
freed the area from the barking dogs. As a thank you, he married the beautiful maiden
of the castle.

One day, he had the idea of traveling to Rome with his wife. On the way, he heard the
croaking of frogs which made him sad. However, he did not tell his wife anything. When
they arrived in Rome, they found out that the Pope had died and a successor had to be
chosen. This was the news he heard from the frogs. The cardinals decided that the man
who revealed the miracle would become the Pope.

The man who could understand the language of animals walked into the church, and at
the same moment two white doves landed on his shoulders. There could hardly be a
clearer sign than this. The chosen one hesitated to accept the election, but the doves
convinced him and he said "Yes!" Later, when he had to say his first mass, the doves
landed on his shoulders again and told him the words he had never learned but knew all
the same.

38
Comments

The Three Languages is a fairy tale written by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and
Household Tales, 2nd edition). This fairy tale tells the story of a young man who learns
the language of animals.

The communication between father and son was seriously disturbed. The son did not
bring what the father expected. The son had a supernatural ability to understand the
language of animals, but this seemed to be of no value to the father.

―If you want to be understood, you must listen.‖ That‘s the subtitle of the 2006 film Babel,
about the breakdown (or even inability) of communication. And it also succinctly
describes the content of this fairy tale.

The surprising thing about the fairy tale ―The Three Languages‖ is that the young man
becomes the Pope. In many similar fairy tales, the young man becomes the king
( learning the language of animals is the motivation of shamanism, and the conclusion
that he is appointed the head of the Catholic Church is too surprising).

3.1.15 Gifts for little people

A tailor and a hunchbacked goldsmith were out traveling together at night. After the sun
went down, they heard strange music in the distance and soon saw a group of little men
and women dancing happily in the moonlight. The little animals took the two into their
circle and before they knew it, their beards and hair were shaved off. Although this
seemed strange to them, they did not dare to protest. At least the little children seemed
to be pleased with them. When they left, they were able to fill their pockets with coal. To
them, the gift seemed meaningless, but they were glad to be unscathed.

At their inn, they were surprised to see how heavy their luggage was and that they
found gold instead of the coal they had expected. Her hair had also grown back to its

39
original length. Even though a tailor‘s pockets are usually smaller than a goldsmith‘s, he
was satisfied. However, the goldsmith decided to go back to the dwarfs to get more coal.
But on the second visit, the coal was still the same, his head was still bald and his chin
was still smooth. But the worst part was that the dwarfs had grown him a second hump
in addition to the existing one, which from now on was located on his chest.

Comments

The Gift of the Elves is a collection of fairy tales (Children's and Household Tales) by
the Brothers Grimm, collected from the 6th edition in 1850.

The Grimm brothers did not use a special name for little creatures like dwarves or
goblins; it literally means "little men and women". Nevertheless, the descriptions (music
and dancing, gifts/mischief) are certainly strongly reminiscent of various stories about
Irish elves (thimbles). As early as 1826, the Grimm brothers translated the fairy tale
collection Irish Fairy Tales into German and published it.

3.1.16 Golden Child

One day, a poor fisherman caught a goldfish. The fish asked the fisherman to throw it
back into the water - then it would find its hut transformed into a palace, and it would
have the best food in the pantry at its disposal. The fisherman agreed, and found that
everything in his home was just as the fish had said. However, he added one condition:
the fisherman was not to tell anyone where his sudden wealth came from.

The fisherman did not keep his promise because of his wife‘s harassment. When he
mentioned the goldfish to her, the two of them returned to their humble hut. The
fisherman caught the goldfish a second time and was again rewarded with a castle and
more for throwing it back. But his wife again refused to let him go unless he told the
truth, and then all the extravagance disappeared again. Finally, he caught the fish a
third time, but the fish had realized that it was pointless to try to give the fisherman a
40
castle again. Instead, he told the fisherman to take it home and cut it into six pieces. He
should give two to his wife to eat, two to his horse, and two to bury. The woman would
give birth to two golden boys, the horse would give birth to two golden foals, and the
field would grow two golden lilies.

Everything happened just as the goldfish had predicted. When the golden boys grew up,
they rode out into the world on golden horses. The parents left golden lilies, which they
could use to judge whether their sons were well behaved. The brothers came to an inn,
where their lovely appearance was laughed at by the people. One of them became
discouraged and went home. The other, however, said to himself: "It is needed now
more than ever" and continued riding. He passed through a forest where everyone
warned him of dangers. The villains who lived there would not miss a golden boy like
him. Undeterred, he wrapped himself in a bear skin and draped another bear skin over
the golden horse, and thus passed safely. In the next village, he met a beautiful girl,
whom he thought was the most beautiful girl in the world, and married her.

One night he dreamed that he had hunted a magnificent stag, which impressed him so
much that he could not resist going hunting the next morning. Sure enough, he soon
saw a deer similar to the one in his dream. He was lured into the bushes by the
beautiful animal, and he could not see it from then on. After wandering for a while, he
found himself in front of a witch's house, whose puppy barked viciously at him. When he
pointed his gun at the puppy, the witch appeared and turned him into a millstone. Just
then, a golden lily in front of his parents' house fell down. When the other brother saw
this, he rode away on horseback and did not rest until he found the witch. He forced her
to restore her brother to human form. The freed man returned to his wife, and the other
returned to his parents.

Comments

"The Golden Child" is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household
Tales, 2nd edition). (In the first edition, the fairy tale was called "Goldkinder" and was

41
listed at number 63.) It is very similar to the fairy tale "The Two Brothers", but the
introduction initially recalls the fairy tale "The Fisherman and His Wife".

3.1.17 Haggard Liz

Day after day, thin Lise toiled, giving her tall husband Lenz "so much work that he had
to carry three bags, heavier than a donkey." Despite this, the two still struggled to make
ends meet. One night, Lise lay exhausted in bed, unable to rest. She told her husband
what was in her mind.

If she found a guilder, someone gave her another guilder, she borrowed another guilder,
and finally he, Lenz, gave her another guilder... yes, then she could buy a heifer!
Although Lenz didn't know where he would get the guilders, he basically liked Liese's
idea. Because if the cow had a calf, she would produce milk. And then he could drink a
little from time to time.

Skinny Liese protested. The milk was only for the calf, and when it grew up and fattened
up, it could be sold for a good price. Lenz didn't seem to agree with this - what was the
harm in diverting a small amount of energy? The couple argued about what to do with
the milk produced by the cow that didn't belong to them. Finally, Lenz pressed his Liese
against the pillow until she got tired of the scolding and finally fell asleep.

Comments

"The Gaunt Lise" is a short farce written by the Brothers Grimm (from the 4th edition of
"Children's and Household Tales"). At the beginning, it refers to another marriage farce
in the Brothers Grimm's collection, "The Lazy Heinz", which can be understood as a
comment on it. The thin Lise and her tall husband Lenz are completely different from the
lazy Heinz and the fat Trina, but the jokes of the two farces are very similar. From time
to time, the couple imagines possible events in the future, and the imagination is so
vivid that they believe these events are real.
42
3.1.18 Young Giant

A farmer had a son who was only the size of his thumb. When the farmer wanted to go
to the fields to work, the boy would sob and cry until his father reluctantly took him with
him. In the field, he placed the little boy in the furrow. Then he saw a giant coming from
a distance. He jokingly told the boy that the giant would come and catch him. But when
he actually picked up Thumbelina and put it in his pocket, he was so shocked that he
couldn't speak.

The Giant took care of the little creature like a mother - that is, he let it suck at his breast.
Two years later, the former "Thumb" had become so strong that he could pull up a small
tree by the roots. This was not enough for his foster father; so he took care of him for
another two years. Then the young Giant did the same with an older tree, and two years
later, even with the thickest oak tree. Satisfied, the old Giant led his student back to the
field where he had taken him so many years ago and where his father was now working
again.

But the farmer did not recognize the young giant as his thumb. Even though the old
giant told him that he would bring his son back, he did not want to hear any more news.
It was only because he was afraid of the young giant that he allowed him to help him
plow the field. He untied the horse and walked to the plow. He sent his father home and
greeted his mother: asking her to make him a big bowl of rice. In a few minutes, he had
plowed the whole field and then raked the ground with two harrows at the same time.

When he got home, his mother didn't recognize him either. She was scared and asked
her father who the huge man was. When he replied that it was their son, she didn't
believe him and asked the tall man to leave. But when he sat at the table, called her
"Mom" and asked about the food, she didn't dare to say no. She gave him enough food
to feed her and her husband for eight days. But the young giant asked for more. His
mother cooked everything they had. He still didn't feel completely full.

43
The young giant realized that he would never be satisfied in his parents' home. He
asked his father to bring him an iron rod, so strong that his knees could not break it. His
father got it, and it was so strong that he had to drive two horses to bring it back. But the
young giant broke them easily. He also easily drove the second one, which required
four horses to pull. As for the third one, his father had to drive eight horses to get it, and
when he tried to pick it up, a piece broke off the top. Without the walking stick he
wanted, he left his parents and went out into the world.

In one village, he was hired by a local blacksmith, who was known for his miserliness,
posing as an apprentice blacksmith. This tall, well-built man was just the right man for
the miser, especially considering that he was extremely stingy when it came to wages.
Like other skilled workers, the young giant was not paid, and was only asked to hammer
out iron for the blacksmith twice every two weeks. The blacksmith thought this was a
good deal and hired the boy. But when he started working the next morning, he broke
the red-hot iron he was forging in half and then drove the anvil deep into the ground.

The blacksmith couldn't afford to offend such a rude fellow. In order to get rid of him as
quickly as possible, the blacksmith asked him what he wanted in compensation. The
only thing the young giant wanted was to be allowed to play a trick on the blacksmith.
The blacksmith agreed, so the craftsman kicked him over four carts of hay. The young
giant found a piece of iron in the blacksmith's shop that met his requirements and set
out on his journey again.

Soon, he came to a farm (estate) and asked the farm manager (manager) if he needed
a farmhand. When the bailiff asked the young giant about his salary expectations, just
as the blacksmith had done before him, his answer was very similar. Instead of paying
the bailiff a yearly salary, he only wanted to beat the bailiff three times a year. The bailiff
was also a miser who thought that some pranks could be tolerated as long as he could
save his salary.

From the first day he arrived at the manor, he demonstrated an unconventional way of
working. The plan was for all the farm hands to go out into the forest to cut wood. Early

44
in the morning, while the others set out, the young giant preferred to sleep in and calmly
cook himself a large bowl of porridge for breakfast. Only then would he join the others in
pushing the cart. When he was a little way into the forest, he parked his horse in a
hollow and piled a large pile of branches and twigs behind the cart. When he reached
the other servants, they were loading the felled logs onto the cart. He knew very well
that they could not cross the ravine, so he let them go. Then he quickly pulled up a few
of the thickest trees and filled his cart.

When he came to the pile of stuff in the sunken road that blocked the other servants'
path, he laughed at them. If they had followed him, they would still be in the same place
now, but they could sleep in. Then he untied the harness, threw it on the roof of the car,
and pulled the car over the obstacle himself. The others stayed behind. The bailiff
examined the trunks delivered by the new foreman and was very satisfied.

A year passed, and the other servants had received their wages. The butler had long
since realized that he could not be fooled by his foreman. In desperation, he offered the
young giant the opportunity to become a bailiff, while he himself was content to serve as
foreman. But the other party insisted on the agreement. At least he agreed to give the
bailiff fourteen days.

During this time, the bailiff seriously consulted with his staff on what to do with the
foreman. The author believed that the foreman would never give up, which was why he
had to be eliminated. Their plan was to order the foreman to clean the well. As soon as
he entered the shaft, the large millstone was to be thrown behind him. It was said and
done. But no sooner had the millstone been lowered into the well than the foreman
shouted from below for the steward to drive the chickens away from the well, because
they seemed to be scraping sand into the well. The steward hurried over and pretended
to scare the chickens away. In a few moments, the foreman had finished cleaning the
well. He wore the millstone around his neck as an ornament.

Since the attack had failed, the day had come for the young giant to play a trick on the
bailiff. He again requested fourteen days, only to plan a new attack with his staff. This

45
time the foolproof plan was to send the foreman to the cursed mill. He used the excuse
of urgency to grind a few malts of grain there overnight. The miller warned the young
giant that he should wait until the next morning, as no one could survive a night in the
cursed mill. But he remained undeterred and continued to work.

At eleven o'clock in the evening, a table with food and wine suddenly appeared, along
with some chairs. But no guests were seen, only occasional people handling plates and
food. The young giant sat at the table, eating and drinking with the invisible man.
Suddenly, he felt a weak slap on the face. This did not particularly scare him, but
encouraged him to do the same. This went on repeatedly throughout the night. At dawn,
the haunting ended, and the miller was surprised to find that the young giant was still
alive. Not only was he surprised, but he was also very happy because finally someone
had survived the night and his cursed mill was freed. He offered the savior money as a
reward, but the savior just said that he already had enough money.

After returning to his employer, he finally demanded his wages, which made him sweat
in fear in the office. In a panic, the bailiff opened the window. The young giant kicked
him and sent him flying through the window into the sky. But since two pranks had been
planned, the second prank had to be carried out by the bailiff's wife. She also flew out of
the window, and due to her lighter weight, she flew even higher than her husband. But
the young giant walked away with the iron rod.

3.1.19 Golden Boy

One day, a poor fisherman caught a goldfish. The goldfish asked the fisherman to throw
it back into the sea - then it would find its hut transformed into a palace, with the best
food in the kitchen at its disposal. The fisherman agreed, and found that everything in
his home was just as the goldfish had described. However, he added one condition: the
fisherman was not to tell anyone where his sudden wealth came from.

46
The fisherman was unable to fulfill his promise due to his wife‘s pestering. When he told
his wife about the goldfish, the two returned to their humble cottage. The fisherman
caught the goldfish a second time and was again rewarded with a castle and threw the
goldfish back. But his wife again refused to let him go unless he told the truth, after
which all the luxury disappeared again. Finally, he caught the goldfish a third time, but
the goldfish realized that it was pointless to try to give him a castle again. Instead, it told
the fisherman to take it home and cut it into six pieces. He should give two pieces to his
wife to eat, two pieces to his horse, and two pieces to bury. The woman would give birth
to two golden boys, the horse would give birth to two golden foals, and two golden lilies
would grow in the field.

Everything happened just as the goldfish had predicted. When the golden boy grew up,
they rode out into the world on a golden horse. The parents left behind golden lilies to
judge whether their sons were well-behaved. The brothers came to an inn, where their
cute appearance attracted people's ridicule. One of the brothers became discouraged
and went home. The other brother, however, said to himself, "It is needed now more
than ever," and continued riding. He passed through a forest, and everyone warned him
of danger. The villains who lived there would not let a golden boy like him go.
Undeterred, he wrapped himself in a bear skin, put another bear skin on the golden
horse, and passed safely. In the next village, he met a beautiful girl, who he thought
was the most beautiful girl in the world, and married her.

One night he dreamed that he had hunted a magnificent stag, which impressed him so
much that he could not resist going hunting again the next morning. Sure enough, he
soon saw a deer similar to the one in his dream. He was lured into the bushes by the
beautiful animal and never saw it again. After wandering for a while, he found himself in
front of a witch's house, whose puppy barked at him fiercely. When he pointed his gun
at the puppy, the witch appeared and turned him into a millstone. Just then, a golden lily
in front of his parents' house fell down. The other brother saw this and fled on
horseback, not stopping until he found the witch. He forced the witch to change his

47
brother back to human form. The man who was free returned to his wife, and the other
returned to his parents.

Comments

The following fairy tale was circulated in southeastern Europe ("Smart Girl Becomes
Tsar", in Balkan Fairy Tales, edited by August Leskien and Eugene Diederichs, 1915):
The unmarried tsar announced that whoever could successfully kill a stone would be his
own. However, a young girl disguised as a boy completed this impossible task by
conveying to the tsar the logical absurdity of the task: she asked the tsar to first give the
stone a soul (that is, give it life) so that she could kill it.

The Tsar offered to adopt her as his son, and she confessed that she was a girl. He
asked her three riddles, similar to those in Grimm's fairy tales. She was supposed to
come on horseback, but she didn't. She was supposed to come so that everyone could
receive gifts, but no one received them. She was supposed to bring him a gift, but she
didn't. The first task was completed by the girl riding a goat. The second task was that
the girl released several rabbits that she brought when she arrived. People who wanted
to get gifts immediately chased her. The third task was that the girl gave the Tsar two
pigeons, and when she gave them to the Tsar, the pigeons flew away.

The Cretan fairy tale "The Poor Man's Wise Daughter" is more similar to Grimm's "The
Wise Peasant Daughter". (Excerpt from "New Fairy Tales", edited by Paul Kretzschmer,
Eugene Diederichs, 1919.) At the beginning of the story, the king offers a basket of
money to anyone who can solve three riddles: two stationary objects, two moving
objects, and two different objects. The girl knows the answer immediately. The
stationary objects are the sky and the earth, the moving objects are the sun and the
moon, and the two different objects are night and day.

The king married her, but she had to promise never to interfere in the king's affairs.
However, she broke this promise when the king sentenced three peasants to death
because one of their horses kicked a royal horse to death. She forced the king to admit

48
that he was powerless against a sea monster, which made the king's arguments
ridiculous. So how could three ordinary chess pieces control the knights who had
passed? So the king revoked the death penalty. His wife had to leave the castle, just
like in the Grimm fairy tale, taking a beautiful and precious thing with her.

3.1.20 Paradise Tailor

A tailor dies and goes to heaven. He limps to the door with blisters on his feet, but Peter
doesn't want to let him in: once or twice the tailor has cheated customers and taken
some of their fabric. But the tailor complains, points out his damage and promises to do
a minimal job, so Peter finally gives in.

When God and his archangels walked through the gates of Heaven at noon, he asked
the tailor to look after Heaven for a while. The tailor could not resist sitting on God's
chair, from where he could see everything that happened in the world. He saw a
washerwoman washing other people's clothes by the river. Thinking no one was
watching, she took two delicate veils that obviously belonged to a noblewoman. The
tailor forgot that he had been a thief in his own life. He flew into a rage and threw a stool
at the thief, who thought the devil had thrown it at her and fled with nothing.

The Lord returned, having lost his footstool. The tailor proudly told how he had thrown
the stool at the woman. But the expected praise did not come; instead, the God
reminded him that if he had judged others as the tailor did, he himself would have
suffered great loss - he would have probably lost all his furniture. After hearing this
instruction, the tailor was driven out of heaven and had to live with the soldiers for a
while.

Comments

The Tailor in Paradise is a fairy tale full of legend; included in the Grimm Brothers'
Children's and Household Tales (2nd edition). Like some farces (e.g. The Brothers
49
Lustig), it is about a poor sinner negotiating with higher powers (God, the Devil, Peter)
to find a suitable destination for his soul. Here, however, the vacillating elements take a
back seat to a clear morality: the tailor is ultimately rejected from heaven not for the sins
he committed on earth, but for his presumption in judging other sinners.

3.2 Things or People

3.2.1 The Devil's Soot Brothers

A destitute soldier left the army and didn't know what to do with his life. Then he met a
dwarf in the forest, who recruited him as a servant: so that he could live out the rest of
his life in peace. The little man was none other than the devil, but that no longer
frightened the hungry ex-soldier. He was employed for seven years, but the working
conditions were rather strange: he was not allowed to take a bath, comb his hair, or cut
his hair or nails. His job was to stoke the fire of the cauldrons and clear the ashes. He
also had to promise never to look into the cauldrons, where the devil's roast was
stewing. The soldier agreed and performed his duties to the satisfaction of his master.
However, at some point, he could not control his curiosity and looked into one of the
cauldrons. There he saw his former sergeant being roasted.

"Aha! Bird," he said, "I have met you here! You had me, and now I have you!"

The soldier added more matches. Twice he looked into the cauldron and saw his
lieutenant and the general there. He treated this devil's roast just like the first one, even
getting an extra piece of wood from the lieutenant and beating the general hard with the
bellows. Otherwise, the soldier would keep all the agreements with the devil: no bathing,
no combing, no cutting of hair or nails.

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When the seven years were up, the devil asked him if he had fulfilled his duty. He knew,
of course, that the soldier had broken his agreement not to look into the cauldron. But
he forgave him because he had not only shown mercy but had gone the extra mile.
When the devil paid the soldier, he was initially disappointed: his backpack was filled
with garbage, and he had to promise to return home unwashed and untied. When asked
who he was and where he came from, he had to answer like this: he was the devil's
brother, from Hell.

When the soldier who had escaped from Hell checked his backpack, he found only gold
in it. He stayed in an inn and was robbed during the night by the innkeeper. He returned
to Hell and complained to the devil. Now the devil himself bathed and groomed him, and
then sent him back to the innkeeper with a warm message: he should hand over the
gold, or serve in Hell instead of the soldier. The innkeeper gave the gold back to the
soldier. Freed from all financial worries, the soldier remembered that he had learned to
play music properly from the devil, so he began to play music. The king liked him so
much that he wanted to marry his eldest daughter to him. But she would rather go into
the water than become the wife of a minstrel. However, her youngest sister agreed. The
soldier was delighted, especially because they also got half the kingdom.

Comments

The Devil's Soot Brothers is from the fairy tales (children's and household stories)
written by the Brothers Grimm.

3.2.2 The clear sun lights it up

A tailor who was traveling around for a long time could not find a job. When he had no
money, he met a Jew on the road. The tailor was distressed and decided to rob the Jew.
The Jew begged for his life and claimed that such a blasphemous act was not worth it
because he only had eight hekels left. But the tailor beat him mercilessly. The Jew's last

51
words were: "The bright sun will illuminate it", and then he died, and the tailor hid his
body in the bushes.

From that point on, the tailor‘s fortunes began to improve. He found work for a master in
the city, fell in love with his daughter and married her. Not long after, his father died, so
the young tailor now had his own business. On a beautiful, sunny morning, the woman
brought the tailor coffee. The sun drew circles on the reflection of the coffee and on the
wall, and the tailor whispered, ―The sun wants to shine on it, but it can‘t.‖ The tailor‘s
wife wanted to know what these mysterious words meant. Since she wouldn‘t give up,
the tailor told her about the Jews. She promised not to tell anyone, but that same day
she told her godmother, and her godmother also promised not to tell anyone. Three
days later the whole town knew; the tailor was accused and put on trial.

Comments

This short, instructive story tells of an event that may or may not be true, and that may
have actually occurred in this or a similar way. In this respect, it is more an early
example of what we now call an "urban legend" (or "modern legend") than a fairy tale.

3.2.3 The Miller and the Mermaid

A once wealthy miller, who soon became impoverished, went to his mill pond every
morning to clear his head after a sleepless night. As he walked around there worriedly,
he suddenly saw a white woman floating out of the water. He immediately suspected
that this was the pond fairy he had to be wary of. But the mermaid spoke to him kindly
and asked the reason for his worries. The miller regained his confidence and told her
about his former wealth and his current predicament. The mermaid comforted him: if he
gave her the things that had just become young people in his family, he would be richer
than before. The miller accepted the offer and was not worried about the mermaid's
strange wish. All he could give her was a puppy and a kitten.

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As he happily rushes home, he realizes his mistake. His wife has given birth to a
premature baby boy. Rather than give their son to the mermaid, the miller's family warns
him to stay away from the dangerous pond. That way, the boy will grow up protected.
The miller slowly regains his wealth, and eventually - just as the mermaid promised - he
is richer than ever. But deep down he has a dark suspicion that one day the mermaid
will finally be rewarded for her help.

The son grew up, learned to hunt, and got married. One day, he shot a hare near the
forbidden pond and disemboweled it on the spot. When he tried to wash his bloody
hands in the pond, the mermaid pulled him in. The hunter's young wife found his bag by
the pond and understood its meaning. She wandered around the pond in despair and
finally fell into a deep sleep. She dreamed of a witch who claimed to know how to find
her husband again.

After waking up again, the young woman decided to go in search of the witch. In fact,
she found the woman and told her her sad story. The witch advised her to comb her hair
with a golden comb by the pond at night under the full moon and then put the comb on
the shore. It was the hunter's wife, and she did see her husband emerge from the water.
But she could not save him, because only his head emerged from the water. When the
big wave came, he disappeared again without saying a word.

The woman returned to the witch for new advice. This time she was supposed to play a
golden flute and place it on the shore. She followed the advice and saw her husband
emerge from the chest-deep water. He even stretched out his arms to her, but soon
after, he sank back into the realm of mermaids. On the third visit to the witch, she
advised her to turn a golden spinning wheel by the pond and then place the spinning
wheel on the shore. This time, the woman finally rescued her husband from the pond,
but happiness still eluded them. As soon as the man emerged from the pond, the water
rose and flooded the bank.

The witch saved the two people by turning the woman into a toad and the man into a
frog (see Animals in Fairy Tales), but they were swept in opposite directions. After the

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flood receded, they regained their human form, but remained separated from each other.
They lived the life of a shepherdess and a shepherd, and one day the man came to the
shepherdess's territory with his flock. Although they did not know each other, they
became friends. Until one night, under the light of a full moon, the shepherd blew his
golden flute, and the woman remembered her love and began to cry. Then the man also
realized who he was dealing with. They reunited as husband and wife and moved back
to their homeland.

Comments

The Miller and the Bilge is a fairy tale from Ludwig Bechstein's German Fairy Tale Book
(1845). It also appears in a slightly different form in the 5th edition (1843) and later
editions of the Brothers Grimm's Children's and Household Tales (among them: The
Bilge of the Pond). Both Bechstein and the Brothers Grimm used the story from the
Zittau-born linguist Moritz Haupt (*1808, †1874), who published the story in 1841 in the
German Antiquarian Magazine under the title The Upper Lusatian Fairy Tale.

Similar pond fairy legends can be found in many parts of Germany, although it is
relatively more common for the pond fairy to bring misfortune to the miller. On the one
hand, this can certainly be explained by the fact that the miller's residence was close to
the water (water mill). On the other hand, these stories also reflect the bad reputation of
medieval millers, who were suspected of gaining wealth through fraudulent means or
even colluding with the devil. Therefore, the mermaid in this fairy tale is more of a
female counterpart to evil than an elemental spirit (see Undine).

3.2.4 The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats

From time to time the mother goat would leave her seven children alone. Then she
would always warn the little ones not to let anyone into the house for fear of the big bad

54
wolf. As soon as the mother left, the wolf stood at the door and asked to come in. He
claimed to be the children's mother, but they recognized him by his hoarse voice.

Then the wolf went to the grocery store and ate the chalk. Despite his gentle voice, the
next attempt failed because the children saw his black paws through the crack in the
door, which could never be their mother's. The wolf cunningly asked the miller to smear
his paws with flour. On the third attempt, his plan succeeded - the children opened the
door for him. They realized their mistake too late and desperately tried to hide in the
apartment. The wolf easily tracked down their hiding place and devoured them. Only the
seventh and youngest, hiding in the bell case, remained undiscovered.

When the mother came home, the youngest child told her what had happened. The old
goat ran outside in despair and found the wolf standing under a tree, full of food and
snoring. There were movements and restlessness in his stomach, and the mother saw
hope and bravely cut open his stomach. And in fact, the children she had thought were
lost jumped out of the wolf's stomach unharmed. The mother asked them to pick up
pebbles to fill their stomachs. Then she sewed the stomach shut. When the wolf woke
up, he was very thirsty from the big meal. He walked to the well, was pulled by the
stones, and fell into the well.

… He drowned miserably. The seven little goats saw this and ran over, shouting, ―The
wolf is dead! The wolf is dead!‖ and dancing happily around the well with their mother.

Comments

The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats is a fairy tale (children's and family story) written by
the Brothers Grimm; One of the most famous animal fairy tales.

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3.2.5 Wren

The introduction to the fairy tale says that in ancient times, everything had its own
language, so every sound had its meaning. Back then, even birds could have rational
discussions, while today, everything is just chirping. So they concluded that it would be
a good idea if one of them was chosen as king, so that everything would be in order in
the future. Only one bird, the lapwing, didn't want to join. It thought it was born free and
wanted to be free after death; from then on, it lived alone in an area that other birds
tended to avoid.

All the birds except the lapwings came to the great party, including a small bird that did
not yet have a name. It was agreed that whoever flew the highest would be chosen as
the king of birds. The competition began the next morning. The smaller birds soon fell
behind, and most of the larger birds soon had to give up. After all, only the eagle could
continue to soar higher in the sky. When he was sure that no one was following him
anymore, he would glide leisurely. The others shouted to him from below, "You will be
our king." Suddenly, an unknown bird flew out from the eagle's breast feathers and flew
higher - so high, it was said, that it could see God sitting on his chair. Finally he fell
down and shouted, "I am the king! I am the king!" «

The other birds were very angry because this little naughty boy wanted to be king by
trickery. So they quickly set another condition: whoever could get the deepest into the
ground would become king. This was a good opportunity for the cock, and he
immediately started scratching. The duck jumped into the mud pit, but broke his leg.
The bird successfully got into the mouse hole and became the winner of this
competition.

The birds were angry that the Imp had defeated everyone for the second time with his
tricks. No matter what, they were not willing to accept him as their king. They decided
not to let him come out of the cave, so he had to starve there. When night fell, the owl
would guard the cave. Sometimes, she would feel tired and thought that she could at

56
least close one eye and then the other alternately. After a series of changes, she forgot
to open one eye while closing the other. The wren was waiting for this moment.

Since this incident, other birds would peck at the owl whenever they saw it during the
day (see the fairy tale 'The Owl'). That's why she preferred to go out at night when
everyone else was sleeping. The owl blamed the mouse, because if the mouse had not
dug such a hole, none of this would have happened. From then on, the mice had to be
afraid of the owl. The little bird had to continue to beware of other birds that it tried to
deceive. He loved to hide in hedges and fences and shout 'I am the king! I am the king! '
That's why the others nicknamed him 'Raine'.

Comments

The Wren is an animal fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household
Tales, 4th edition). It tells the story of the election of the King of Birds (similar to the
election of the King of Fishes in The Plaice), and explains the origin of the name of the
wren. This story is derived from Aesop's fables and is a popular fairy tale theme
throughout Europe. In addition to the wren, several other "character birds" appear in the
flock, especially eagles and owls, both of which are important to the plot. Among the
supporting characters, the lapwing is impressive, preferring to retreat into the swamp
alone rather than submit to the king. In The Wren and the Bear, the lapwing plays the
role of the weak, but cleverly confronts the strong.

3.2.6 Raptor

A king had an only daughter who was very ill. It was prophesied that she would become
healthy by eating an apple. So the king announced to the whole kingdom that whoever
could cure her with his apple would be able to marry her.

A peasant who had beautiful apples and three sons also heard about this. The eldest
set out with a basket of ruddy apples. On the way, he met a short, grumpy man who
57
asked him what was in the basket. The young man replied, "Frog legs." When he
uncovered the cloth at the court, he found that it was actually frog legs. He was driven
away in shame. But this did not stop the second brother from trying again. But he made
the same mistake as the first man. He also met the dwarf who asked him what was in
the basket. He replied, "Pig bristles." When he showed the basket to the court, he found
that it was indeed pig bristles.

Finally, the youngest brother, Foolish Hans, went to see the King's son with a basket of
apples. When he met the dwarf on the way, he answered his question truthfully:
"Apples," and that the apples were for the sick princess. Unlike his brothers, he actually
displayed the apples at court, and as soon as the King's daughter ate them she
recovered her health.

The king was delighted by this, but he still didn't want to marry his daughter to the farm
boy. So he gave the applicants a new and difficult task: to build a boat that could travel
faster on land than on the sea. Once again, Silly Hans' brothers were the first to attempt
this task. The eldest had already assembled a beautiful boat when the familiar little man
appeared and asked him what he was doing. He answered, "Stirring spoons." He
already had a large collection of stirring spoons in front of him. The same thing
happened to the second brother. Then Silly Hans began to build the boat. He answered
the little man's questions truthfully and explained what the boat had to be able to do and
why. Then the dwarf said, "That's it." To the king's surprise, Silly Hans arrived with his
boat.

But he still didn't get the King's daughter. The next test the King set him was to take
care of a hundred rabbits for a day. If no one was missing during the night, he could
marry the King's daughter. Clumsy Hans was able to solve this task with the help of the
dwarfs. But that wasn't enough for the King. Now he asked for something almost
impossible: he wanted Hans to bring him a griffin's feather.

So Hans sets out to find the Griffin. On the way, he spends the night with three people
who each have a big problem and think the Griffin knows the answer. The lord of a

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castle has lost the key to a treasure chest. The owner of another castle has a daughter
who is very sick and no one knows the cause of her pain. A man who carries people
across a large body of water wonders why he has to do this.

Finally, Hans arrived at the Griffin's home. Fortunately, only his wife was there at the
moment, because he learned from her that the Griffin had a great appetite for human
flesh. But she felt sorry for him and promised to ask him what he wanted to know about
the Griffin. Then she hid him under the bed. When the Griffin got home, he immediately
smelled human flesh, but Mrs. Griffin dissuaded him. After falling asleep, Hans pulled
off a feather and listened to the Griffin, half asleep, telling his wife the story of the lost
key, the sick girl, and the key holder.

Then he went home. When he reached safe shore, he told the porters to just drop the
next customer off in the middle of the water, because from then on another person
would have to carry the person. He told the sick girl's father that a toad had built a nest
under the stairs with the girl's hair. If her hair returned, she would be healthy. As a thank
you, Hans received rich gifts of gold and silver. After Hans told another lord of the castle
where the key to the treasure chest was, he received more gold and silver from him, as
well as cows, sheep, and goats.

He arrived at the castle of the king with all this luggage, and he wanted to marry the
king's daughter. When the father saw all this, he said he must have it too. Hans told him
to just go to the griffin and he would give him everything he wanted. The king set out.
But when the man carried him across the river, he dropped him in the middle of the river
- from now on, the king had to carry travelers from one side of the river to the other
endlessly. Hans Bute married the princess and became king.

Comments

The Griffin is a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and Household Tales, 3rd
edition) in the Alemannic dialect. The fairy tale combines the theme of three brothers,

59
the youngest of whom is considered foolish (Foolish Hans, see Fool) and a journey to
the house of evil (the Griffin), similar to the fairy tale The Three Golden-haired Devils.

3.2.7 Three feathers

An old king was agonizing over which of his three sons he should leave his kingdom to.
To avoid controversy, he decided to make the decision through a contest. He blew three
feathers into the air, and the three sons were to follow him. Whoever followed the pen's
instructions and brought back the most beautiful carpet would be the heir to the throne.

It was obvious that only one of the two eldest sons had a chance of becoming the
winner. The third son was so simple that everyone called him a fool. He was not even
lucky with his feathers, for the feathers of the older birds had flown far to the east and
west, while his feathers just fell helplessly to the ground. The fool lowered his head in
sorrow. Then he saw a trapdoor in the floor. He went down the stairs and found a lot of
toads behind a door. They presented him with a carpet the like of which had never been
woven on earth. The old king was greatly surprised and announced that according to
the task given, the kingdom should go to the youngest king.

But the two elder brothers persuaded him to set a new task. Whoever could bring the
most beautiful ring to their father would inherit the kingdom. Once again the princes
followed their feathers, and once again the fool went underground with the toad. They
presented him with a ring, as beautiful as any ring made by any goldsmith in the world.
Since the brothers did not take the fool seriously, they did not bother much and each
took the first carriage ring they saw. Even if they completed this task, the kingdom
would still go to the youngest prince.

The King was persuaded to set a third task: whoever brought back the most beautiful
bride would inherit the kingdom. This time the old toad chose one of her younger

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companions. She put them in a carriage made of carrots and pulled by mice. As soon
as the toad bride got into the carriage, she transformed into a beautiful girl.

The jealous brothers, who both chose two rude peasant women, tried one last time to
turn the tables: the bride should jump through the ring (they hoped that the peasant
woman, accustomed to manual labor, would succeed, but the beautiful young lady
would not). But when the peasant woman broke her arms and legs in practice, the fool's
petite bride jumped through the delicate ring - you didn't see. The fool became the king,
and she became his queen.

Comments

"The Three Feathers" is a fairy tale written by the Brothers Grimm (Children's and
Household Stories, 2nd Edition). This fairy tale tells the story of the youngest of three
brothers, who is a fool and not respected by the other brothers, but in the course of the
story, he finally gets liberated.

Similar fairy tales, In the Russian fairy tale "The Frog Princess", the old king asks his
three sons to shoot arrows, and then they follow the direction of the arrows to search for
brides all over the world. There is also a competition to see whose bride is the most
beautiful, smartest and most capable . The bride of the youngest son (Ivan = Hans) was
originally a toad, but later turned into the beautiful and smart Vasilisa. The theme of the
immature fairy tale hero first marrying a "mean" animal (frog, mouse, cat) and then
turning into a radiant princess appears in many other European fairy tales (for example,
"The Poor Miller and the Kitten", "The White Cat"), and also in the stories of "One
Thousand and One Nights".

Another variant is the Padde Fairy Tale from the collection of Johann Gustav Gottlieb
Büsching (Folk Tales, Fairy Tales and Legends, Reclam, Leipzig 1812). "Padde" is an
old name for toad (common). However, the beginning of this fairy tale is mainly known
in German-speaking countries through the fairy tale "Rapunzel". For Padde (frog, toad)
was once a beautiful girl who loved to eat parsley, or more precisely, parsley root. Since

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her mother was poor and could not buy parsley every day at the market, she sometimes
stole some parsley from the neighboring monastery garden. As punishment, the abbess
turned the girl into a toad (Padde), who later met the youngest of the king's three sons.
The rest of the fairy tale is similar to "The Frog Princess" or "The Three Feathers".

3.2.8 Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf

Once upon a time there was a lovely little girl who was loved by everyone who saw her,
but she loved her grandmother the most. However, her grandmother didn't know what to
give her as a gift. Once, her grandmother gave her a red velvet hat. Because it suited
her very well and she didn't want to wear any other hat, people simply called her Little
Red Riding Hood. Once, her mother said to her, "Little Red Riding Hood, go and bring
your grandmother a piece of cake and a bottle of wine. She is sick and weak, and eating
something will refresh her. But you must be good and say hello to her for me. When you
walk, take one step at a time and don't stray from the path, otherwise you will fall and
break the glass, and then your sick grandmother will have nothing." Little Red Riding
Hood said, "Okay, I will do everything," and promised her mother. But the grandmother
lived in the forest, half an hour away from the village. Little Red Riding Hood came to
the forest and met the Big Bad Wolf. Little Red Riding Hood didn't know what kind of evil
beast it was, and she was not afraid of it. "Hello, Little Red Riding Hood," she said. ——

"Thank you very much, Wolf." - "Little Red Riding Hood, where are you going so early?"
- "To Grandma's." - "What are you wearing under your apron?" - "Cakes and wine for
my sick Grandma; we baked them yesterday so that she can treat herself well and keep
healthy." - "Little Red Riding Hood, where does your Grandma live?" - "You will find it in
the forest, a quarter of an hour further, under three big oak trees, under a nut hedge."
said Little Red Riding Hood. The Wolf thought to himself: "This young and gentle girl is
such a precious gift for you, how can you get her?"

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So he walked beside Little Red Riding Hood for a while, and then said: "Little Red
Riding Hood, look at these beautiful flowers in the forest. Why don't you look around? I
don't think you heard the birds singing so beautifully? It's fun to be alone in the forest,
just like going to school. "

Little Red Riding Hood opened her eyes and saw the sun shining through the treetops
and the flowers blooming. She thought to herself: "Oh! If I bring my grandmother a
bouquet of flowers, she will love it. It's still early, I will definitely get there in time!" She
ran into the forest to pick flowers. After picking a flower, she thought there was another
one outside that was even more beautiful, so she chased it and ran deep into the forest.
However, the wolf went straight to the grandmother's house and knocked on the door.
"Who's outside?" - "Little Red Riding Hood, here's cake and wine for you, help me open
the door." - "Press the doorknob," the grandmother shouted, "I'm too weak to get up."
The wolf pressed the doorknob and without saying a word, rushed straight into the
grandmother's bed and swallowed her whole. Then he took off the grandmother's
clothes, put them on her, put the hat on her, lay on the bed, and drew the curtains.

Little Red Riding Hood had been looking for flowers everywhere, and when she had too
many to carry, she remembered her grandmother and went out to look for her. When
she got home, the door was open, which surprised her. She went into the room and
found it looked very strange, and thought to herself: "Oh! God, why am I so anxious
today! I usually like to stay with my grandmother." As she said this, she went to the bed
and drew back the curtains. There lay her grandmother, with her hat pulled tightly over
her face, looking very strange. "Oh, grandmother, your ears are so big!" - "So that I can
hear better." - "Oh, grandmother, your eyes are so big!" - "So that I can see better." -
"Oh, grandmother, your hands are so big!" - "So that I can hold you better." - "But
grandmother, your mouth is so big!" - "So that I can eat you better." As he said this, the
wolf jumped off the bed, pounced on poor Little Red Riding Hood, and ate her up.

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After the wolf finished eating the fat meat, he lay back on the bed and fell asleep. The
hunter happened to pass by and thought, "Why is this old woman snoring? Let's go see
if she missed anything."

So he went into the room, came to the bed, and found the wolf he had been looking for
lying there. Thinking that the wolf might have eaten grandma, he couldn't help but want
to shoot him. But in the end , he didn't shoot. Instead, he took a pair of scissors and cut
open the belly of the sleeping wolf. He cut a few times and saw the sparkling little red
hat. He cut a few more times and the little girl jumped out and shouted, "Oh, I'm scared,
the wolf's belly is so dark!" At this time, grandma came out alive. Little Red Riding Hood
brought a large and heavy stone and filled the big bad wolf's stomach. When the big
bad wolf woke up, he tried to jump away, but the stone was too heavy, and he
immediately fell to the ground and died.

All three were very happy. The hunter took the fur from the wolf, and the grandmother
ate the cake and drank the wine that Little Red Riding Hood brought. Little Red Riding
Hood thought to herself, "If your mother doesn't let you go, you will never go into the
forest alone again in your life."

It is said that once when Little Red Riding Hood was showing her grandmother some
baked cakes, another wolf accosted her and tried to lead her astray. But Little Red
Riding Hood was careful and went straight ahead. She told her grandmother that she
had seen the wolf and wished him a speedy recovery, but his eyes were very evil. "If I
were not in the street, he would eat me." "Let's go," said the grandmother, "let's lock the
door and don't let him in." After a while, the wolf knocked on the door and shouted,
"Grandma, open the door, I am Little Red Riding Hood, I have brought you some baked
cakes. " But they remained silent and did not open the door. The evil spirit circled the
house several times and finally jumped onto the roof, intending to wait for Little Red
Riding Hood to come home in the evening, sneak up behind her in the dark and eat her.
But the grandmother knew the evil spirit's idea. There was a large stone trough in front
of the house, and the grandmother said to the little girl, "Little Red Riding Hood, bring

64
the bucket. I cooked sausages yesterday, and you can scoop the water from the
sausages into the stone trough." Little Red Riding Hood kept carrying the bucket until
the large stone trough was completely full. At this time, the smell of sausages reached
the big bad wolf's nose. He sniffed, lowered his head, and finally stretched his neck. He
could no longer hold on and began to slide down; so he slid off the roof and fell directly
into the big stone trough and drowned. But Little Red Riding Hood went home happily
and no one hurt her.

Comments

Many countries have similar versions. For example, in Chinese fairy tales, there is the
story of Grandma Wolf. Chinese people pay more attention to the elderly, and usually
grandparents and grandchildren live together, but after marriage, the woman lives in the
man's house, so the woman's parents do not live with the woman, which led to the story
of Grandma Wolf. After the big bad wolf ate the grandmother, he pretended to be the
grandmother (Grandma Wolf), which gave rise to the story of Grandma Wolf.

3.2.9 Three snake leaves

A poor man who could not afford to raise his only son sent him into the army. On the
battlefield, he proved himself to be a great hero and saved the country. This young man
from a poor family gained honor and wealth. Eventually, he was even allowed to marry
the king's beautiful daughter. However, this was "very strange" because she had vowed
to bury her alive if she died before her future husband; and she agreed. Of course, this
unusual request was also the reason why the beautiful princess remained unmarried to
this day. But the old soldier, who had had many brushes with death, was not intimidated.
The wedding was held with great pomp and ceremony, and the newlyweds lived happily
for a while.

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The young queen fell ill and eventually died. The young widower was horrified at the
thought of his promise. But he had no choice but to allow himself to be locked in the
royal vault with his wife's body. To travel to the afterlife, he took four loaves of bread
and four bottles of wine; four candles also illuminated the desolate scene. He watched
helplessly as a snake approached the corpse, and he was filled with despair. To prevent
the snake from biting him, he drew his sword and cut the snake into pieces.

At this time, the second snake appeared, saw the body of the first snake, and returned
with three leaves in its mouth. With these leaves, she restored the broken limbs of the
snake and revived it; then, the two snakes disappeared together. The young king took
courage and tried to see if the healing snake leaf could revive his wife. It turned out to
be true; the two revealed themselves to the guards guarding the tomb and walked out of
the tomb with rosy faces. The young king gave the snake leaf to his faithful servant for
safekeeping.

But nothing is the same anymore; the woman's love for her husband is gone, even
though she herself has returned from the dead. One day, the young king decides to visit
his old father, which requires him to travel across the sea by boat. His wife
accompanies him on the voyage, and during the journey she flirts with the boatman.
When the young king falls asleep, the woman and the boatman grab him and throw him
into the sea. The woman convinces the boatman to return with her to her father's court -
she wants to convince the old man that her husband died during the journey, and that
the boatman has been taking good care of her. That way, there is nothing that can
stand in the way of their marriage.

But the murderer of her husband had not expected the magical power of the snake leaf.
The loyal servant of her legal husband witnessed the evil act and saved the drowning
man with the help of the snake leaf. They rowed home as fast as they could and
reached the old king's residence before the queen and the boatman. After the king's
daughter told her father the fairy tale of her husband's sudden death, he opened a door
and out of the door came a man who should have been dead, but was full of energy and

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vitality. The queen and the boatman were found guilty of lying and murder and were
forced to board a leaky boat. Both of them drowned in the sea.

Comments

Although the snake appears in the title of the fairy tale, its role is rather minor. As a
symbol of wisdom and healing, the snake gives the hero a magical herb (snake leaf),
which he uses to save not only his deceased wife but also his own life. However, the
hero does not achieve the deep harmony embodied by the reunion of the two snakes.
As the subsequent plot shows, his relationship with his wife has come to an end.

This theme is reinforced by the resurrection of the dead, similar to the rescue of the
condemned with the help of a magic potion (e.g. Death, Water of Life, Griffin), which
occasionally appears as a theme in fairy tales. The dead and the rescuer always have a
close relationship, often a familial one; the most common form of death is petrification,
decapitation, or dismemberment.

In the fairy tale "Faithful John", the two versions are directly related. In the first version,
the hero's loyal servant is petrified, but the hero resurrects him by sacrificing his own
children. After this act of extreme loyalty, the children's heads are replaced and they are
also resurrected. In the horror story "Fitch's Birds", a monster dismembers young girls,
but one of them escapes and pieces together the bodies of her sisters to revive them. In
the fairy tale "Mahandelboom", a woman kills her stepson - she opens the lid of the box
while he is bent over and cuts off his head. His stepsister cannot accept his death and
religiously guards his grave until he is finally resurrected.

In the fairy tales above, the men always die violently and are resurrected. In contrast,
the woman in this fairy tale dies of disease. However, the promise given as a condition
of marriage—a promise to follow the woman to the grave—suggests that the
relationship was violent from the start. Following the surviving partner to the grave was
a ―local custom‖ during Sinbad‘s fourth voyage, during which the adventurer was lost on
a remote island and married a local woman.

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4 Fairy tale length

4.1 Very short

4.1.1 Three lazy men

A king had three sons, and he loved all of them equally. He didn't know who to choose
as king after he died. Before he died, he called his children to him and said, "My dear
children, I have an idea to tell you: the laziest of you will be the king after me." The
eldest daughter said, "Dad, then the kingdom will be mine, because I am so lazy that
when I lie down to sleep, a drop of water falls into my eyes and I can't close my eyes to
sleep." The

second daughter said, "Dad, the kingdom will be mine, because I am so lazy that when I
sit by the fire to keep warm, I would rather let my heels be burned by the fire than pull
my legs back."

The third man said, "Father, this kingdom is mine because I am too lazy. If I were to be
hanged with the rope around my neck, and someone gave me a sharp knife so I could
cut the rope, I would rather be hanged than put my hand on the rope." The father heard
this and said, "You will be king."

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4.1.2 The Dragon and the Trickster

As they approached the top of the mountain, they saw the dragon, a terrible, scaly, foul-
smelling monster. The dragon had anticipated its victim and wanted to attack the girl.
The shepherd quickly shouted to his dog, "Tear him apart," and the dog killed the
monster and ate its remains. Only a few teeth of the dragon remained, which the
shepherd took away. The king's daughter thanked her savior and asked him to return to
her father, who would give him a rich reward. But the shepherd wanted to see the world
first. He promised to come to the palace in three years.

So the King‘s daughter returned to the coach alone and asked the coachman to take
her home. Considering the desolation of the place and the girl‘s confusion, the
coachman devised a plan to pretend to be her savior. He convinced her that her real
savior would not appreciate her gratitude (unlike him); at the same time, he threatened
to throw her into the river - no one would look for her because everyone would think she
was already dead. So once again, the King‘s daughter had no choice but to give in. The
King wanted her to marry the so-called savior, but since she was still too young, the
wedding could not take place for another year. When the deadline passed, the bride
asked for another year‘s postponement, and finally another year‘s postponement.

Now, three years have passed since the dragon was killed, and the shepherd's son
arrives at the palace with his three dogs as agreed. He asks why everything is
decorated so festively and learns that the king's daughter will eventually marry the brave
dragon slayer. The shepherd's son is furious and calls the so-called dragon slayer a liar
and is thrown into prison for it. He is about to give up, but then remembers his dog
"Brich Eisen", who rescued him from the dungeon and chains. As he is also hungry, he
orders "bring some food". The dog takes food straight from the royal table, and the
king's daughter recognizes it and gives it a napkin with a crown printed on it. Moreover,
now that she knows her true savior is nearby, she dares to confide in her father.

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The shepherd's son was brought before the king, and the dragon's tooth was shown to
him, clearing up any remaining doubts. The deceitful coachman was thrown into prison,
and the shepherd's son married the king's daughter. Soon after, he brought his sister to
court, so that she no longer had to live in her father's humble little house. But the dogs
announced that their time together was over. For he no longer needed her help, and his
sister's happiness was assured. After hearing this explanation, they turned into birds
and flew away.

4.1.3 Three rotators

There was once a girl who was very lazy and did not want to spin, and no matter what
her mother said, she could not force her to do it. At last, her mother could no longer
bear her anger and impatience, so she beat her, and she began to cry loudly. The
Queen was driving by, and when she heard the crying, she stopped her car, went into
the house, and asked the girl's mother why she beat her when she could hear her crying
in the street. The girl's mother was ashamed to expose her daughter's laziness, and
said, "I can't persuade her not to spin; she wants to keep spinning, and I'm poor and
can't get flax." "Well," answered the Queen, "I like spinning best, and the sound of the
spinning wheel makes me unhappy. Take your daughter to the castle. I have plenty of
flax, and she can spin as long as she wants." The mother was very happy, and the
Queen took the girl away.

When they entered the castle, she led the girl into three rooms filled from top to bottom
with the finest flax. "Now help me to spin this flax," she said, "and when it is finished,
you can marry my eldest son. I do not mind your poverty; your untiring industry is
enough."

The girl was afraid, because she could not spin flax, although she had lived three
hundred years and sat there spinning flax from morning till night every day.

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When it was alone, it began to weep, and sat motionless for three days. On the third
day the Queen came, and was astonished to see that nothing had been spun. The girl
begged that she must not begin spinning yet, for she was very sad to leave her mother's
house. The Queen accepted the request, but said as she left, "Tomorrow you must
begin to work."

When the girl was alone again, she did not know what to do, nor how to save herself,
and in distress she went to the window. Then it saw three women coming towards it, the
first of whom had broad and flat feet, the second had a large and thick lower lip that
hung down to her chin, and the third had a thick and thick thumb. They came to the
window, stopped, looked up at the girl, held out their hands to her, and said: "If you will
invite us to your wedding, do not be ashamed of us, call us aunts, and let us sit at your
table, then we will spin flax for you, and it will be spun soon." "Yes," it answered, "come
in, and begin spinning at once." With this it let the three strange women in, and opening
a crack in the first room, they sat down in it, and began to spin. One of the women
pulled the thread to turn the spinning wheel; another wet the spinning wheel; the third
turned the spinning wheel and tapped the table with her fingers, and at each tap some
of the yarn fell to the ground, so that the finest yarn was spun. She hid the three
spinners from the queen, and each time she came back, she showed the queen how
much yarn she had spun, and the queen praised her. After the first room was empty, we
went to the second room, and finally the third room, and soon finished spinning. When
the three women said goodbye, they said to the girl: "Don't forget your promise to us,
this will be your happiness!"

After the girl brought the empty room and the pile of yarn to the queen, she arranged
the wedding. The groom was very happy to marry such a smart and hardworking wife,
and praised her highly. "I have three aunts," said the girl, "who have helped me a lot,
and I don't want to forget them in my happiness. Please allow me to invite them to the
wedding and let them sit at the table." The queen and the groom readily agreed. When
the banquet began, three girls came in in strange costumes, and the bride said,

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"Welcome, dear cousins." "Ah," said the bridegroom, "how can you have such a vile
friendship?" Then he went up to the boy with the broad, flat feet and asked, "Why are
your feet so broad?" "I kicked them," she answered, "I kicked them." Then the
bridegroom went up to the second bride and asked, "Why are your lips drooping?" "I
licked them," she answered, "I licked them!" Then he asked the third child, "Where did
your thumb come from?" "I twisted it," she answered, "I twisted it!" The Prince was
horrified, and said, "My beautiful bride must never touch a spinning wheel again!" This
got rid of the evil flax spider.

4.1.4 The Farmer and the Devil

Once upon a time there lived a clever and mischievous little farmer, whose mischief
could be told at length: but the most wonderful story is the one in which he once caught
the Devil and played a trick on him.

One day, as the farmer was returning home from plowing his fields, it was getting dark
when he suddenly saw a pile of burning coals in the middle of his field. He walked over
to it in surprise, and saw a small black devil sitting on the embers. "You must be sitting
on a treasure," said the farmer. "Yes," replied the devil, "and there is more gold and
silver in the treasure than you have ever seen in your life."

The farmer said, "The treasure is in my field, and it belongs to me." "The treasure is
yours," the devil replied, "if you give me half of what your field produces in two years. I
have enough money, but I crave the fruit of the field." The farmer agreed to the deal.
"But to avoid disputes when the field is divided, " the devil said, "what is above ground is
yours, and what is below ground is mine." The devil was pleased, but the cunning
farmer planted turnips. When harvest time came, the devil showed up and tried to take
the turnips, but found only withered leaves. The farmer was very happy and dug up the
turnips. "You've taken advantage before," the devil said, "but it will be different next time.

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Your turnips are above ground, and mine are below ground." "I agree," the farmer
replied. But when it came time to plant, the farmer planted wheat instead of beets.
When the fruit was ripe, the farmer went to the field and cut the full stalks to the ground.
The devil came, but saw only stubble, and he became furious and drove his car into a
rocky ravine. "That's how you trick the fox," the little farmer said, and he went to get the
treasure.

4.1.5 The Cursed Donkey

Once upon a time there was a young man who was good for nothing, full of evil, and
everything he did in his life displeased God and all honest people. Finally, he was no
longer allowed to be with honest people, so he decided to go and hang out with villains.
Then he ran into the forest and met a gang of robbers, saying that he had learned their
trade, and hoped that they would take him into their group. The robbers said yes, but he
had to make his touchstone first. Just then, a farmer passed through the woods with a
donkey behind him. The robbers said, "Go and take the farmer's donkey away, don't let
him find out anything." So he quietly followed the farmer, took the bridle from the
donkey's head, put it on himself, let the donkey run away into the woods, and the
robbers caught it in one fell swoop. Didn't the farmer find out anything? Help!

The farmer continued walking through the woods, and the thief followed him on the rope;
but when he got tired, he stopped and said: Oh, my God, please let me go! The farmer
looked around and saw a man tied to a bridle, and was terrified. "Oh, God," he cried, "I
thought you were a donkey. How did you suddenly become a man? -

Oh, God, I did nothing good when I was a child, and was always playing cards: then my
mother cursed me to be a donkey for seven years. Let me go! The farmer said: What
should I do with you? I can't use you as a donkey anymore, so I let him go. Then he
went to the other imps and asked if their tests were completed. They said yes; but he

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had to go to the market to sell his donkey tomorrow. The farmer returned home and said
to his wife: Remember, our donkey has become a man on the road, and its life is over.
The woman answered, Didn't I always tell you that our donkey is a clever animal,
smarter than many people. Now you must go to the market to buy a new one tomorrow.
But be careful not to let this happen again.

The next morning, the farmer went to the market to buy a new donkey. When he got
there, he saw many donkeys standing in a row. He looked carefully and found that his
old donkey was among them. The farmer laughed and thought: He wants to cheat again
today. Then he pointed at him and said: No one who knows him will buy him. I don't
want to say more. After that, he patted the donkey on the back and whispered in its ear:
"Tell me, did you go to play cards again ? You won't... get ahead again.

4.1.6 Text and Annotations

A wealthy miller in Bavaria sent his son to study law at the University of Ingolstadt. The
course lasted three years and cost the miller a fortune. But he felt that his son would
learn something useful. After returning home, the old man complained that his son had
spent too much money on his studies. However, he said, "I would be happy if I knew
that the investment was worth it. Show me your book." At this time, the student brought
a thick book called the Codex. The handwriting in the middle was sloppy, and there
were small words around it.

The miller asked again: What does carbon copy mean? The son answered: The bold
words in the middle are the text, and the bold words around are the notes. The miller
said: I don't understand Latin, tell me in German. The son said: This text is a law issued
by the emperor, and the emperor should implement it according to this law.

But later scholars wrote many articles, each with their own understanding of how to

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understand this matter and how to deal with it in the court, which is called gloss. The
miller remained silent, although he didn't like it, and said: You will have dinner with your
uncle, the priest, this afternoon: he will talk to you in Latin, so I can know how you
spend your money and time. While the son was sitting at the priest's table and being
questioned, the miller took the book with the colored pages in the blank space, traced
them with red chalk, and then took the carpenter's axe and cut away the colored pages
around; but he kept the original text.

The son came back after having successfully passed the "tentamen" (test) of his uncle
(the priest) and saw the book lying on the table. He cried out: "Oh, you are unlucky!
Father, why did you destroy my best book?" The miller said: "I did not destroy it, but first
restored it, preserving the original appearance and the truth, and exposing the lies of
the scholars." The scholar said: "Oh, father, I cannot live according to the truth: if I do
not know how to trick and plot, how to debate and refute, how to whitewash evil and
how to fight against the opposition, then there will be no bread for my family."

The miller was angry and said: "We villagers do not respect this art, but we have our
own court under the bodhi tree, we pronounce according to true justice and make
judgments in a short time, while you often delay cases for personal gain rather than for
the public good, so as the saying goes, you lawyers are not good Christians."

If you only learn cunning and conspiracy, and do not know how to face the truth, then I
will not give you a penny. It is better for you to earn a living by working with your own
hands like me, and give up legal work, so that your soul will not be harmed.

4.1.7 Who is the stupidest?

A woman complained to her neighbors about her husband's stupidity in believing

everything he said. One neighbor said, the loss was not big, and my husband is not very

75
smart, so who knows what good it can do? "Of course," said the third neighbor, "you
can only do the best you can." Oh, the first man said, "What good can it do? You don't
know how much this will affect my husband. I bet if I tell him my husband is dead, he will
believe it and bury himself alive." Another man said, "Yes, if you can convince your
husband to do that, I will convince my husband to see the body in his shirt sleeves." The
third man said, "Then I guess he is a priest and has to preside over the funeral
procession." They agreed and went their separate ways. The next morning, while her
husband was still asleep, the woman mixed saffron and soot, smeared it on her
husband's face, and then began to moan and scream so loudly that the husband woke
up and asked, "What's the matter with you, moaning and crying so loudly?"

Oh, she cried, poor, devastated woman, shouldn't I be sad about your death? Am I dead?
The man asked in surprise: I know nothing about it. Of course, she said, because you
are already dead, you can't know. But just look in the mirror. Yes, the man said, now I
understand; but how can I believe it? Of course, the woman said, you slept soundly last
night:

who would have thought that you would have a stroke in the night! But now lie still and
stretch yourself: where have you seen a dead person lying so crooked? With the head
tilted back, the arms hanging down, and the legs stretched out. So! Now let me close
your eyes for you. The man held his breath, the woman closed her eyes, and ran out of
the room laughing, straight out of the house and said to the neighbors: "My husband is
all right, I just closed his eyes, and now he lies motionless, thinking he is dead. I will
bury him tomorrow morning at six o'clock; now you must keep your promise and send
someone to deal with the body." The neighbors said: "Don't worry, they will come."

At night, the next-door neighbor said to her husband, "Our neighbor Dole is dead; get
ready to go with me tomorrow morning to dispose of the body." The man said, "Yes,
dear wife, but please wake me up early and don't let me oversleep." She promised him.
The third neighbor waited until daybreak, got up while her husband was still asleep, and
shaved his head. Then she woke him up and shouted, "For God's sake, Father, get up

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quickly, you must bury your neighbor Dole." The man said, "Why, am I a priest?" "Yes,
of course, "Sir Father," she said, "don't you remember that you have become a priest?"
The man said, "I must have scratched the plate." Then he felt his head and found the
plate. But soon, "Sir Father," the woman shouted, "don't keep everyone waiting so long;
they are all gathered in front of the house. Here are the choir robes: I will help you put
them on, because you are not very familiar with them yet. "

At the same time, the third woman also fulfilled her promise to wake up her husband.
"My friend," she shouted, "get up quickly, the funeral procession will leave soon. "The
man stood up and tried to get his coat and trousers; but the woman put them aside.
"The coat is at the tailor's," she said to the man, who had just stood up. "It doesn't
matter, it's so hot, you can go without a skirt." But where are the trousers? the man
asked. "By the bed," said the woman. But she was ashamed of her absent-mindedness.
You just have to put them on . Follow me quickly, the body is already in the cemetery,
run, or you will be back when it's all over.

The woman's husband thought he had put on his trousers, so he ran after the funeral
procession in his shirt. When he reached the cemetery, people were blessing the body,
and all that remained was to close the coffin and bury it. At that moment, the neighbor
ran in wearing a shirt, and the peasants laughed at his suit. The deceased awoke with a
start, sat up, and seeing his neighbor coming towards him in his shirt, he said, "If I
weren't dead now, my neighbor Dole would laugh at me to death.

4.1.8 How Farmers Learned to Pray

A wealthy peasant went to confession. The confessor gave him seven prayers. The
peasant said he did not know how to pray, and he had always wanted to learn, but he
could not remember them. Didn't he learn to read and write? No, his father would not
send him to school. The confessor asked, how will you keep the money or grain you lent?

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The peasant said, I will not forget it. Do you want to give the grain to the poor as a
punishment, on the condition that they must return the grain after the harvest?

Yes, said the peasant, I am satisfied with that. The next day the confessor sent a poor
man whom he did not know. The man said to him: Your confessor sent me to ask you to
lend me two sesterces of grain until the harvest. The rich peasant asked: What is your
name? Our Father in Heaven. And what is your surname? He is a god in heaven. So
the peasant gave him two sesterces of grain.

A few days later, another man came who said, "Hallowed be your name" and "Your
kingdom come on us." He also lent him a few sesterces. Soon after, another man came
who said, "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

And so on and so forth to "Amen." After this, the confessor came to see him and asked
him if he had not yet learned to pray. The peasant said, No, who will teach me? The
confessor asked, Didn't you lend me grain either? "I think I did," said the peasant. What
is the name of your debtor? The first prayer was: Our Father in heaven; the other was:
Hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, etc.

Then the confessor said: Now tell me, to whom are you in debt? The peasant recited
the whole prayer. The confessor laughed. The peasant asked: "Sir, why are you
laughing?" The confessor said: "Because you know how to pray, but you don't know it."
This was the whole prayer. The rich peasant was very surprised when he heard it, and
was even more happy because he could now pray and give the borrowed grain to the
poor.

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4.1.9 The Value of the Lord's Prayer

A bishop found a poor man on the street and felt pity for him. He gave him a house in
his courtyard and promised to provide him with food every day for the rest of his life; but
the poor man had to pray the Our Father for him every day, asking God to protect him
from all disasters: the poor man agreed to this. So the bishop ordered his steward to
provide food for the poor man every day. After that, the poor man also prayed the Our
Father for the bishop every day, asking God to protect him from all disasters. This
continued until the bishop had to go to Rome; then one day the steward forgot to
provide food for the poor man. So the poor man omitted the Lord's Prayer and did not
pray it for the bishop.

The bishop was badly hurt that day, he almost drowned and was badly injured. The
bishop always remembered that day. Later, when he returned home, he asked the poor
man if he also said the Lord's Prayer for him every day. The poor man said yes, every
day, except one day. So I stopped because the steward didn't give me food. The bishop
was very angry when he heard this and said to the steward , "You have hurt me, you
must compensate me." The steward said, "Sir, don't be angry with me for a Lord's
Prayer, I will be happy to compensate you. Just tell me what you want in return." The
bishop said, "I only ask its value: go to Rome and ask the Pope how much a Lord's
Prayer is worth."

The steward had to go to Rome to ask the Pope how much a Lord's Prayer is worth.
The Pope said that a Our Father is worth one penny. So the guide went back to the
bishop and said, "Lord, I have been to Rome with the Pope, and I have tried my best
and got nothing. The Pope said that a copy of the Our Father is worth one penny. If you
can save me the trouble and expense, I will give you a hundred pennies." But the
bishop said, "Did the Pope also say a penny? There are gold coins, silver coins, and
copper coins." The guide said,

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" No, there is no doubt about it." The bishop said, "So you have to go again and ask
how much it costs." So the guide had to go back to Rome and ask the Pope what "a
penny" means. The Pope replied that it must be a gold penny. The guide went home
and said, "Sir, it must be a gold penny." But if you will forgive me for going back and
forth, I will gladly give you ten gold pennies. The bishop said, "But did the Pope also say
how big a penny coin should be?" The butler said, no, the Pope did not mention this at
all. The bishop said, "Go to Rome a third time and ask the Pope how much a penny
should be worth." Whether he wanted to or not, he had to go to Rome a third time to ask
the Pope how big a penny should be.

The Pope said: "A penny should be as big as the whole world and as thick as the sky."
The butler returned to the bishop sadly, knelt at the bishop's feet and said: "Dear sir,
have pity on me, I can't afford your Lord's Prayer, in fact, the whole world can't afford it,
because a penny should be as big as the whole world and as thick as the sky is above
the ground." The bishop took pity on him and forgave him again.

4.1.10 Fundervogel

Once upon a time, there was a forester who went to the forest to hunt. As soon as he
entered the forest, he heard a scream that sounded like a child. He followed the sound
of the scream and finally saw a tall tree with a child sitting on the top of the tree. The
mother and child were sleeping under the tree. At this time, a bird of prey saw the child
in the mother's arms, so it flew over, picked up the child in its beak and placed it high up
in the tree
. The forester climbed up the tree, took the child, and thought to himself, "Do you want
to take this child home and raise it with your little Leanqin?" So he took the child home,
and the two children grew up together. But the one found in the tree, because the bird
had taken it away, was called Fondvogel. Fondvogel and Leanqin loved each other

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deeply, no, they loved each other so deeply that they were sad when they could not see
each other.

The forester had an old cook. One evening, the cook went to the well with two buckets
to get water, and she went there not once, but many times. Lehnchen saw this and said,
"Listen, old Sanne, why are you carrying so much water?" - "If you don't want to tell
anyone anymore, I'll tell you." Lehnchen said, no, she didn't want to tell anyone
anymore. The cook said,

" Tomorrow morning, when the forester goes out hunting, I'll go boil some water, and
when the kettle boils, I'll throw the bird I found in to boil." The next morning, the forester
got up early to go hunting, and after he left, while the children were still sleeping,
Lehnchen said to the bird she found, "If you don't leave me, I won't leave you!"
Findvogel said, "Do it now, and never again." Then Lehnchen said, "I'll tell you straight
out. Sanne brought a lot of buckets of water into the house last night. I asked her why
she did that. She said, 'If I didn't want to tell anyone, she would tell me.' I said, "Of
course I don't want to tell anyone. ‖ She said, ―Tomorrow morning, when my father is out
hunting, she will boil a kettle of water and throw you in to boil.‖ But we must hurry up,
dress, and go together.

So the two children got up, dressed quickly, and went out. The water in the kettle boiled,
and the cook went into the bedroom and threw in the bird she had found. But when she
came back and rejoined the good children, both children were gone. She was very
frightened, and thought to herself, ―What shall I say when the forester comes back and
sees that the children are gone? Let‘s run after them and get them back!‖ So the cook
sent three servants to chase and bring the children back. But the children were sitting in
front of the forest, and when they saw the three servants running from a distance,
Lehnchen said to Findvogel, ―I will not leave you unless you leave me!‖ Findvogel said,
―Do it now, and never again!‖ Then Lehnchen said, ―You have become a rose bush, and
I have become the rose at the top! "When the three servants came to the forest, there
was nothing there except a rose bush with a single rose bud, and the children went
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away too. Then they said, "There is nothing to do here." They returned home and told
the cook that they had seen nothing in the world except a rose bush with a small rose
on the top. The old cook scolded them, "You fools, you should cut the rose bush in two
and pick the buds and take them home.

Hurry up, do it!" So they had to go out again to look for it. But the children saw them
coming from a distance, and Lehnchen said, "Fundevogel, if you don't leave me, I won't
leave you!" Fundevogel said, "Go away now and never leave again. " Lehnchen said,
"Then you will become a church, and I will be a crown in the church!" When the three
servants arrived there, there was nothing there but a church and a crown in it. So they
said to each other, "What are we doing here? Let's go home! "When they got home, the
cook asked them what they had found, and they said nothing, nothing at all, like a
church, which must have a crown in it. "You bunch of fools," the cook scolded, "why
don't you destroy the church and take the crown home?" At this time, the old cook stood
up himself and took the three servants to chase the children. The children saw the three
servants coming from a distance, and the cook staggered after them.

At this time, Leanqin said: "Witch, if you don't leave me, I won't leave you." The witch
said: "I will never leave you in my life." Leanqin said: "You turned into a pond, and I am
a duck on the pond!" The cook came, saw the pond, and lay on it, trying to drink up the
water. But the duck swam very fast, grabbed her head with its beak, and dragged her
into the water, so the old witch had to drown. The children went home together, very
happy that if they didn't die, they would still be alive.

4.1.11 Mob

The cock said to the hen, "The nuts are ripe. Let's go up the hill and eat them before the
squirrels get them away." "Well," answered the hen, "let's go, and have some fun
together." So they went up the hill together, and when it was day they stayed there till

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evening. Now, whether they were fat or a little cocky, they just didn't want to walk home,
so the hen made a little cart out of nut shells. Then the chicken sat down and said to the
chick, "You'll have to put on the harness yourself." "No," said the hen, "I'm perfectly all
right! I'd rather walk home than put on the harness; that wasn't what we made a bet
about. I'll be the driver and sit in the cart, but I won't pull the horses myself."

As they were arguing, a duck quacked, "Who let you into my Nut Hill, you thieves? Wait,
you will get what you want!" So the duck chased the chicken. But the chicken was not
lazy, and attacked the duck fiercely, and finally pecked the duck with his spurs, so that
the duck had to beg for mercy and willingly be harnessed to the cart to be punished.
Now the chicken got on the cart and acted as the driver, and they started chasing:
"Duck, run as fast as you can!" After driving for a while, they met two travelers with a pin
and a sewing needle.

They shouted, "Stop! Stop!" They said that it was getting dark soon, they could not walk
anymore, the street was too dirty, and they could not sit down for a while; they should
go to the tailor's shop before the city gate, but it was too late to drink beer. As they were
both small and didn't take up much room, the chicken let them get on the cart, but they
had to be careful not to step on their own toes or the chicken's toes. In the evening, they
came to an inn. Since they didn't want to go any further and the ducks were not good at
walking and always swayed from side to side, they stopped at an inn. At first, the
innkeeper tried to stop them, saying that his house was already full and that the family
might not be noble. But in the end, after their sweet persuasion, he gave him the eggs
laid by the hens on the road and kept the ducks that laid eggs every day, and he
compromised.

Now they were dressed again and lived in luxury. The next morning, just after dark,
when everyone was still asleep, the cock woke the hens and took the eggs, broke them,
and ate them all together; but they threw the bowl into the fire. Then they came to the
sleeping needle, caught the needle by the head, and stuck it into the innkeeper's
cushion, and the pin into the towel, and then they flew away across the wilderness

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without warning. The duck, who had been staying in the yard because he wanted to
sleep outside, heard the duck's snoring, woke up, found a stream, and swam along the
stream, the current faster than the car in front of him.

A few hours later, the innkeeper got up, washed, and was about to towel himself off
when he was pricked in the face by a needle; he went into the kitchen to light his pipe,
but just as he reached the stove an eggshell pierced his eye. "I had a terrible headache
this morning," he said sullenly, and sat down sullenly in his grandfather's chair. But he
soon jumped up again, crying out, "Ouch!" because the needle had pierced his head
even harder. He was now angry and suspicious of his guests who had come so late the
previous night, and when he looked for them, they had disappeared. So he vowed never
again to allow into his house those extravagant villains who would not give him money
but reward him with pranks.

4.1.12 From the Happy Shoemaker

Once upon a time, there was a shoemaker sitting on a tripod, happily spinning his spiral,
whistling and singing. At this time, the Lord Jesus passed by his house, saw this happy
man, sat down next to him, and said: "May God bless you, shoemaker!" - "Thank you
very much, Mr. Wanderer!" said the shoemaker, because he did not know the Lord
Jesus. "It seems to me that you are a very happy person," Jesus continued. The
shoemaker answered, "What do I need then? Yesterday I sold a pair of boots, and with
the money I bought new leather and fresh bread to take home. Tomorrow the boots will
be finished, and I will have some income again. Isn't this a happy life?" "Yes," Jesus
answered, "but listen, I have to leave here today, and I want you to do me a favor. Can
you sell me that pair of finished shoes? The price I will give you is enough to buy two
and a half pairs of leather. Is that enough?" - "Enough, why not?" said the shoemaker,
"thank you very much; but what do you want with that shoe? You have a strange idea." -

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"Don't worry," Jesus answered, and took the shoe, gave the money to the shoemaker,
and went on his way.

Three weeks later, Jesus came to the shoemaker again along the same road to see
what the shoemaker was doing. But the shoemaker's hut was very quiet, as quiet as a
rat hole. This surprised Jesus so much that he went in and asked the shoemaker why
he could no longer catch anything.

" Well," said the shoemaker, "I have the money you left for me, and now I see that my
children have neither shoes nor socks, and I would like to buy some; but I don't have
enough money, and if the money is left here, it could easily be stolen!" - "If that is all you
care about," said Jesus, "then I will help you." He gave the money to the shoemaker,
asked him to buy shoes and socks for the children, wished him a good day, and then
went on his way.

Three weeks later, the gentleman again came near the shoemaker's hut and was
delighted to hear the shoemaker's cheerful singing again, but he was mistaken, for the
hut was even quieter than before. Jesus was surprised and went in to ask him what he
needed; he had stopped singing. "Yes, thank God," the shoemaker exclaimed. "You
should have kept your stupid money, it only made a rat's nest in my brain." With that, he
reached under his pillow, pulled out the money, and threw it at the feet of the Lord
Jesus. The Lord Jesus was very angry about this and walked away.

The next morning, the gentleman wanted to see if the shoemaker was happier, so he
came down from heaven; but that heaven must have been six times higher than the
tallest church tower in the world, and he heard the shoemaker singing and shouting,
"Hail, Hail, Hail." The gentleman thought to himself, "How wonderful it would be if
everyone was as content as the shoemaker!"

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4.1.13 Springer

A flea, a grasshopper and a springbok want to see who can jump the highest. So they
invite everyone in the world who wants to come and watch the event. Gathered in the
room are three athletes who have the ability to skydive.

>"I will marry my daughter to the man who jumps the highest," said the king. >How sad
it would be if these men jumped in vain! <

The flea was the first to come up, and he greeted everyone very gracefully, for the
important thing was that he had women's blood flowing in his veins, and he was only
used to dealing with humans.

Then the locust came. It was indeed fat, but very well behaved, and dressed in its
natural green uniform. It also said that it had a very old family in Egypt, and was very
respected there; it had just been brought out of the fields and put into a three-story
house of cards, made entirely of colored cards, with the colored sides facing inwards;
the Queen of Hearts had doors and windows on it. "I sing so beautifully," it said. Sixteen
crickets, who had been chirping all their lives and had never received a house of cards,
were even more annoyed than before when they heard my voice!

Who were they? They probably thought they were going to marry a princess. The
springbok said nothing, but it was said he thought more; the farm dog sniffed him and
swore he must be of good family.

I'm sure he knows that the Springboks have a gift for fortune-telling; you can tell from
your back whether you're going to have a mild or harsh winter, but you can't even tell
from the back of the person who writes the calendar.

"Yes, I would rather say nothing," said the old king, "but I can only continue to think like
this!"

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Now it was time to act. The flea jumped so high that no one saw it, and then they said it
didn't jump at all, which was really mean. The grasshopper only jumped half as high and
landed right on the king's face, and the king said it was disgusting.

The springbok stood there for a long time, thinking, and finally decided that he couldn't
jump at all. "I hope he's not sick!" said the farm dog, sniffing him again. Slippery! With a
light leap he was in the arms of the princess, who was sitting on a golden stool.

4.1.14 Teapot

Once there was a proud teapot, proud of its porcelain, its long spout, its wide handle;
she put the front things behind, the spout in front, the handle in the back, and she loved
to talk about it. But it wasn't her eyelids she talked about; it was broken, it was full, it had
flaws, and people don't like to talk about their flaws; but others do.

Cups, cream pitcher and sugar bowl, the whole tea set will surely be remembered for
the flimsy lids rather than the good handles and excellent spouts; the teapot knows this.

>I know this, she said to herself, "I am well aware of my faults, and I acknowledge them,
and that is my modesty, my humility; we all have faults, but we also have talents. The
cup has a handle, the sugar bowl has a lid, I have both, and one thing they never have:
I have a spout, and that makes me the queen of the tea table. The sugar bowl and the
cream jug are given the privilege of being servants of exquisite taste, but I am the giver,
the master, and I bestow my blessing upon the thirsty human being; and deep within me
the Chinese tea is being processed in boiling, tasteless water."<<<

All this was said by the teapot in its carefree, youthful way. It stood on the table, held by
the most delicate of hands; but even the most nimble of hands would have been clumsy;
the teapot had fallen, the spout had broken, the handle had broken; the lid was not
worth mentioning, of which enough had already been said. The teapot lay limp on the
floor, the water had drained away.
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It was a hard blow to her and the worst part was that everyone was laughing at her
instead of her clumsy hands.

"I may never forget this memory!" the teapot later said to himself, recalling his life. "I
was called a patient, put in a corner, and the next day was given to a woman begging
for a drop of water; I fell into poverty and lost my inner and outer goals; but while I stood
there, my beautiful life began; you were something that became something completely
different. Clay was put into my body; for the teapot, it was like being buried, and for a
flower in the clay, it was like being buried."

Put the onion in it; who put it in there, who gave it to me, I don't know. But it was given
to me as a substitute for Chinese tea and boiling.

Watering, replacing broken handles and spouts. The onion lay in the soil, the onion lay
in me, it became my heart, my living heart; I had a heart like this before. Now I have life,
I have strength, great strength; the pulse beats, the onion sprouts, thoughts and feelings
are about to burst out; these will bloom into a flower; I see her, I put on her, I forget
myself because of her beauty; happy is he who forgets himself for the sake of others!
She did not thank me; she did not think of me - she was admired and praised. I was
very happy about this, and she should be happy! One day I heard someone say that
she deserved a better pot. They cut me in two; it was badly hurt; but the flower was
planted in a better pot, and I was thrown into the yard, lying there like a broken piece -
but I have memories, and no one can take it away from me !

4.1.15 Water Drop

You know a magnifying glass? One of those round magnifying glasses that magnifies
everything a hundred times. If you hold it up to your eye and look into a drop of water in
a pond, you'll see thousands of strange animals that you'd never see in water, but
they're there. It looks like a plate of crabs jumping around in it, very lively, tearing at

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each other's arms and legs, the ends and edges of their bodies, but they're happy and
joyful in their own way.

Once upon a time there was an old man whom everyone called Kribel because that was
his name. He always tried to do everything to the best of his ability, and when he
couldn't do it, he used magic to make it happen.

One day he was sitting there with his magnifying glass, watching a drop of water in the
ditch come out of a puddle. No, it stung and crawled! Thousands of little animals were
jumping around in it, pulling at each other, and devouring each other.

"Yes, but that's disgusting!" said old Dingle. "Can't we just leave them alone and do their
own thing?" He thought and thought, but nothing could be done, so he resorted to magic.
"I must color them, to make them more distinct!" He said, and dropped a drop of red
wine into the water, which was the best witch's blood, which could be bought for only
two shillings. Then all the strange animals turned rosy red; it looked as if the whole city
was filled with naked wild men.

"What do you have there?" asked another old troll whose name was unknown, and this
was the most amazing thing on him.

The nameless troll looked through his magnifying glass, and it looked as if the whole
city was walking around naked! It was a scary sight, but the scariest thing was seeing
them pushing and shoving, pinching and pulling each other, biting and pulling each
other. The bottom ones should go up, and the top ones should go down! Look! Look!
His legs are longer than mine! Snap! Get rid of it! There's a little bump behind one of his
ears, small and harmless, but it hurts him, and now it hurts even more! Because of that
little bump, they peck at him, pull him, and eat him. There's a little frog sitting there,
motionless, like a little girl who just wants to be alone, but this little girl has to come out,
so they pull her, drag her, and eat her!

" That's very interesting!" said the troll. "Yes, but what do you think it is?" asked Kribel.
"Can you guess?"<<<
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"Easy to spot!" said another. "Of course it's Copenhagen, or any other big city, it's the
same!

4.1.16 Prince Fearless

Part I: The King's Son and the Giant

The king's son was not afraid of anything, except perhaps boredom in his father's court.
So, fearlessly, he set out on his adventure. Soon, he came to the house of a giant and
sat on a bench in front of the house. His eyes fell on several huge cones, which were as
big as a man, with corresponding balls on top. He was eager to try these huge toys, so
he made a lot of noise. The noise attracted the giant to the window, and he was
surprised to see the little man playing with his toys. The bug was not afraid when the
giant talked to it.

The giant thought that there must be something special about this man. So he asked
the prince if he could pick an apple from the Tree of Life for him. More precisely, for his
bride, because she wanted such an apple. Unfortunately, the giant did not know where
the Tree of Life was. He only knew that he was standing in a garden guarded by various
dangerous animals. Even if someone found the Tree of Life and was not torn to pieces
by the animals, the third insurmountable obstacle was waiting for him. When he reached
out to pick the apple, a ring would appear in front of the tree, and he would have to pass
his arm through it. But no one had ever succeeded in doing this. The prince was full of
confidence: he would definitely find the Tree of Life. And he could also do his job with
animals and rings.

In fact, the prince could pick an apple from the tree of life. Indeed, as the giant had said,
many terrible animals lay in front of this beautiful garden. But the animals were all
asleep, so he could just step over them. When he reached through the ring to pick the
apple, the ring tightened around his arm. He suddenly felt a great power flowing through

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his veins. As he left the garden, a lion woke up. But the animal had no intention of
attacking him and from then on regarded him as its master.

He brought the apple to the giant, who was very happy. But when he gave the ring to
his beloved, she asked about it. Only when the prince showed her the apple would she
believe that he had taken it. The giant agreed to take the ring, but the prince did not
want to give it up voluntarily. So they began a duel. The giant thought he could easily
handle the king's son, even though he was already very strong for a human child. But
thanks to the magic of the ring, the king's son defeated the giant in the duel.

The giant came up with a plan. He pretended to be excited about the battle. Why not go
to the river together to cool off? The prince agreed and took off his clothes and the ring
on the river bank. This was exactly what the giant was expecting. As soon as the prince
entered the water, he snatched the ring and ran away. However, he didn't expect the
lion to snatch the ring from him and bring it to its owner.

When his cunning tactics failed, the giant tried force. Hiding behind a tree, he dug out
his opponent's eyes. Then, he approached the prince as if nothing had happened, as if
he wanted to guide him. Of course, he had no good intentions. He led the blind man to
the edge of the cliff and told him that he only had to take a few more steps ... But this
attempt also failed, because the loyal lion grabbed his master's clothes and saved his
life. The giant tried the same method for the second and last time. This time, the lion
was not satisfied with rescuing his master, but pushed the giant into the abyss. The lion
then took the prince to a stream and moistened his eyes with water. The water worked a
miracle and the prince's sight was restored.

Part 2: The King's Son and the Devil

The prince and the lion continue their journey and arrive at a magic castle. There he
meets a beautiful girl dressed in black. She asks the prince to break the evil spell that
has enchanted her. The task that awaits the prince is made for the brave and fearless.

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He only has to spend three nights in the hall without showing any signs of fear and,
most importantly, without making any sound.

The prince sat in the hall in high spirits, waiting for what was to happen. As midnight
approached, the hall was filled with many little devils. They lit a bonfire and began to
play, ignoring the prince at first. But whenever someone lost, he would complain about
the others in the room, saying that it was their fault that he (the little devil) lost. Finally,
they all pounced on the prince, pinched him, hit him, and tortured him until dawn. The
prince kept his promise to the girl in black and said nothing. The next morning, the
mysterious woman came to him and bathed him in the water of life. He immediately felt
refreshed and full of energy. He also saw that her feet had turned white.

The next night, the devil tortured him even more. This time, he also persevered. The
next morning, the Virgin Mary refreshed him, and now her whole body was as white as
snow, right down to her fingertips. Finally, after the third and most difficult night, without
him uttering a single cry of fear, the girl turned snow-white. She was saved. That same
day, the fearless prince married the beautiful girl, the daughter of a rich king.

4.1.17 Wren

The introduction to the fairy tale says that in ancient times, everything had its own
language, so every sound had its meaning. Back then, even birds could have rational
discussions, while today, everything is just chirping. So they concluded that it would be
a good idea if one of them was chosen as king, so that everything would be in order in
the future. Only one bird, the lapwing, didn't want to join. It thought it was born free and
wanted to be free after death; from then on, it lived alone in an area that other birds
tended to avoid.

All the birds except the lapwing came to the big party, including a small bird that didn't
have a name yet. It was agreed that whoever flew the highest would be chosen as the
king of birds. The competition began the next morning. The smaller birds soon fell
behind, and most of the larger birds soon had to give up. After all, only the eagle could

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continue to soar higher in the sky. When he was sure that no one was following him
anymore, he would glide leisurely. The others shouted to him from below: "You will be
our king." Suddenly, an unknown bird flew out from the eagle's breast feathers and flew
higher - so high that it was said that it flew so high that God could be seen sitting on his
chair. Finally he fell down and shouted: "I am the king! I am the king! «

The other birds were very angry because this little naughty boy wanted to be king by
trickery. So they quickly set another condition: whoever could get the deepest into the
ground would become king. This was a good opportunity for the cock, and he
immediately started scratching. The duck jumped into the mud pit, but broke his leg.
The bird successfully got into the mouse hole and became the winner of this
competition.

The birds were angry that the Imp had defeated everyone for the second time with his
tricks. No matter what, they were not willing to accept him as their king. They decided
not to let him come out of the cave, so he had to starve there. When night fell, the owl
would guard the cave. Sometimes, she would feel tired and thought that she could at
least close one eye and then the other alternately. After a series of changes, she forgot
to open one eye while closing the other. The wren was waiting for this moment.

Since this incident, other birds would peck at the owl whenever they saw it during the
day. That's why she preferred to go out at night when the others were asleep. The owl
blamed the mouse, because if the mouse hadn't dug such a hole, none of this would
have happened. From then on, the mice had to be afraid of the owl. The little bird had to
continue to beware of other birds that it tried to deceive. He loved to hide in hedges and
fences and shout 'I'm the king! I'm the king!' That's why the others nicknamed him
'Raine'.

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4.1.18 Utterbok's Blacksmith

A blacksmith from Terbok (Brandenburg) left his homeland when he was young. As a
skilled craftsman, he traveled far and wide and was in great demand. His tincture was
especially sought after, as it could be used to polish armor and make it impenetrable to
all kinds of weapons. Thanks to this miraculous potion, he was appointed armorer to
Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa) and accompanied him on the Crusades. He
eventually returned to his homeland, old and frail. When he was a hundred years old, a
dwarf appeared in his garden one day and asked the blacksmith to shoe his donkey.
The old blacksmith completed the job without asking for any reward, as the dwarf often
appeared in his adventurous life as his patron saint.

The dwarf thanked him and said that the blacksmith had three wishes. But he should
not forget the best one. The blacksmith was often annoyed because thieves stole his
pears. So your first wish is that no one who climbs up the pear tree can come down on
their own. Since the thief had already been in his room, his second wish is that anyone
who sneaks into his room can only get out through the keyhole at best. Before the last
wish, the dwarf warned again: "Don't forget the best one!" But the blacksmith's wish was
for a bottle of gin that would never be empty.

The dwarf granted the blacksmith's wish and left him some silver. His life was no longer
difficult, but somehow Death knocked on his door. The blacksmith agreed to go, but
asked Death to pick a few pears from a tree he hadn't climbed in a long time. Of course,
the blacksmith still didn't want to die, so he left Death in the tree and almost starved to
death. However, one day, no one on Earth would die, and this would become a problem.
So the blacksmith made Death promise not to bother him again in the future, and then
let him go.

From then on, Death looked haggard. He first cleaned the floor, but he could do nothing
with the blacksmith. This annoyed him, so he instigated the Devil to deal with the
blacksmith. But the Devil also found his acquaintance with the blacksmith unpleasant.

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After entering the room, he found that he could not get out in the normal way. Unless
through the keyhole, of course, this was possible for him because he was the Devil. But
behind the door stood the Blacksmith, who had a large sack in his hand and was facing
the keyhole to catch the Devil. He used the blacksmith's hammer to make drastic
changes to the sack and the Devil.

The blacksmith lived a long, peaceful life until he finally grew tired of earthly life and
volunteered to go to heaven. However, instead of letting him in, little old Peter, who
granted his foolish wish, sent him to hell. The devil also had good reason not to let the
blacksmith in heaven, so he entered Kifhauser and came to his former employer,
Emperor Barbarossa. Not until the crows stopped flying over the hills and the dead pear
trees sprouted new leaves, did the emperor appear again. With him appeared his
quartermaster, the blacksmith from Tolbok.

4.1.19 The Devil and His Grandmother

Three soldiers whose pay wasn't enough to make ends meet decided to desert. They
hid in a cornfield, but soon discovered it was a trap. They couldn't get out, but staying in
would soon starve to death. Two days later, a dragon flew by and offered to take them
over the army to safety. It turned out that the dragon was the devil. They signed a note
from the dragon saying that if they couldn't solve the riddle he posed by payday, he
would take their souls within seven years. He then gave each soldier a whip that had
the magical power to suck up money.

So, the soldiers lived a life of luxury for several years, happily serving the devil.
However, as the deadline approached, they became anxious and panicked. Two of the
soldiers felt sad about this, but the third soldier remained optimistic. There must be a
way to solve the devil's mystery!

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At the persuasion of an old woman, he went to the forest hut where the devil's
grandmother lived and told her about his troubles. Because he was so handsome, the
devil's grandmother took pity on him and hid him under a stone. At midnight, the devil
came and the grandmother brought him food. She casually asked him how his day was
and how many souls he would receive today. The devil replied that he had three
soldiers who would be picked up soon. The grandmother then said that it would not be
easy to deal with three soldiers because they would definitely escape the devil's pursuit.
In this way, she got from the devil the riddle he wanted to ask the soldiers, as well as
the answer.

The soldier listened carefully in his hiding place and shared what he saw and heard with
his companions. The next day, when the devil came to take the soldiers to Hell, he
asked the first soldier what food they would be given in Hell. He knew the correct
answer: a dead green vervet monkey in the Great North Sea, and that was what they
would eat. The devil was angry, but he had two other people. He asked the second
soldier what he wanted to eat. He also knew the correct answer: a dead whale rib would
be her spoon. Finally, the third soldier's soul escaped and he solved the mystery of what
they drank from: an old horseshoe was their wine glass.

4.1.20 drummer

A young drummer was walking by a lake when he found three ropes and took one of
them. The next night, as he was getting ready for bed, he heard a soft woman's voice
asking him to give her the shirt back. She was a king's daughter who had been
banished with her two sisters by a witch to the distant Glass Mountains, where they had
to bathe in the lake every night. Without her shirt, she could not return. The drummer
gave her the shirt and promised to rescue her from the witch's clutches. But he got only
one clue from her: the way to the Glass Mountains led through a dangerous forest filled
with cannibals.

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Undeterred, the drummer continued on his way. Soon, he saw the first giant lying
asleep on the grass. The drummer woke him up and told him that he was beating the
drum to show his comrades the right path. The giants, fearful of the wily little
earthworms, strode forward with joy and led the drummer to the Glass Mountain, hoping
to finish him off as soon as possible. Along the way, one of his companions took over,
and then the third. The drummer reached the foot of the Glass Mountain sooner than
expected. However, the third giant refused to carry him to the top of the Glass Mountain.
The drummer was confused because the Glass Mountain was as high as three peaks
stacked on top of each other. Best of all, it was smooth as a mirror, which a quick test
confirmed.

The drummer heard two men nearby arguing over a saddle. He said that it was foolish
to argue over a saddle since neither of them had a horse. The answer made him realize
why saddles were so controversial. It was a dream saddle: the man on it had only to
think about where he wanted to go - and then he was there. The drummer pretended to
want to settle the dispute between the two men by having them race. The winner would
get the saddle. He had driven a stake into the ground not far from the saddle as a target,
but after the two had run a few paces, he mounted the saddle, eager to climb the Glass
Mountain.

After reaching the top of the mountain, he found himself on a plateau. In front of him
was a fish pond and an old house, and behind him was a dark forest. He boldly knocked
on the door and asked the old woman who opened it if she could let him in and provide
him with food and a place to spend the night. The old woman agreed, but he had to
work hard for it. The next morning, the task she gave him was strange. He needed to
empty the fish pond with a thimble and sort the fish according to type and size. The
drummer tried his best. But after a morning of digging, he realized that the effort was
pointless and impossible. At noon, a beautiful girl came to bring him food. He told her
about the king's daughter, that he had come for her, but now he might never see her
again.

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The girl consoled him: he only had to rest his head on her lap for a while and sleep; the
work would be done. As soon as the drummer fell asleep, the girl (who, of course, was
the princess they were looking for) turned the wishing ring. The water in the pond
disappeared, and the fish lay neatly on the shore. Only one fish lay alone on the shore.
When the drummer woke up, the girl told him that at night the witch would ask him what
the fish was doing there. He should not answer, but throw the fish in the witch's face.

The drummer did as the girl asked. The witch realized that her powers were waning, but
she could only give the drummer a harder task to complete the next day. The task
involved thoroughly clearing the forest behind the house and splitting the wood with a
lead axe and a wooden wedge. Of course, the tools failed after a few hits, and the
drummer became frustrated again. The girl brought him food again and let him sleep on
her lap. After turning the wishing ring, the task was magically completed. There was an
unsplit branch left at the end of the branch; he was to use it to attack the witch. The
drummer did as he was told, and the witch just smiled.

The next day, he was to pile all the wood into a big pile and build a huge fire. The girl
with the wishing ring helped him again; when he woke up from his nap, the flames were
already rising into the sky. The witch came and said that he was now almost free and
that he only needed to do one small thing: take a piece of wood that would not burn and
put it in the middle of the pile. The drummer bravely climbed into the flames, but the
flames could not hurt him. When he put the wood on the ground in front of the witch, his
assistant appeared in a shining golden dress, and he finally realized that she was the
princess he was looking for. He grabbed the witch and threw her into the fire (which was
exactly what the girl had told him to do at noon).

Thus the King's daughter was freed, and she fell in love with the young drummer and
was ready to marry him. Of the treasures hidden in the witch's house, they took only the
gem. Then they left the Glass Mountain as fast as they could. They did not even use the
saddle that the drummer had brought, for the King's daughter had her wishing ring with
her. With this ring they planned to go to the gates of the city where the drummer's

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parents lived. He asked the bride to let him go to her parents alone first so that she
could be properly welcomed. The bride agreed, but strongly warned him not to kiss the
parents on their right sides in welcome. But the joy of being reunited made him forget
this warning - and the kiss of welcome made him forget her too.

The king's daughter waited in vain for him to come and pick her up. Finally, she made a
wish with her wishing ring and allowed herself to enter a remote forest cabin. Every
evening, she would pass by the drummer's house and sometimes see him, but he no
longer recognized her. After a while, she heard people talking about how the drummer
would soon marry the woman his parents had chosen for him.

Then she wished for her ring a dress that shone like the sun, and she wore it to meet
guests. The bride loved beautiful clothes the most, and she bargained with the stranger
and bought the golden dress, in return for which she was allowed to spend the night at
the groom's door. For safety, she gave the groom a sleeping pill so that he did not hear
the stranger's story about their shared experience on the Glass Mountain. But she did
not give up, and once again put on the dress that shone like the moon, and finally, for
the third time, the dress that shone like the stars. Finally, on the third night, the drummer
did not sleep because his neighbor told him about the stranger's speech, so he secretly
threw away the sleeping pill. Suddenly, he remembered the previous bride, and he
married her, and the other bride was given the beautiful dress as compensation.

4.1.21 Wolves and Foxes

A wolf and a fox joined forces. The fox was in a weak position, so he had to obey the
wolf's orders. The fox wanted to escape from those who exploited him. One day, the
wolf shouted, "Red fox, get me something to eat, or I will eat you!" The fox knew that
there were some lambs on a farm. They went there together, and the fox stole a lamb
for the wolf, who ate it. But one lamb was not enough for the wolf, and he wanted a
second one. This time he tried to steal it himself, but he was clumsy and the ewe began

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to bleat loudly. At this time, the farmer came and beat the wolf to a pulp. He complained
to the fox, thinking that the fox was the culprit. But the fox retorted, "What a glutton you
are?"

The next day, the wolf yelled again, "Red fox, give me something to eat, or I will eat
you!" The fox knew that a woman was going to bake pancakes in the evening. Once
again, the wolf was not satisfied with the fox's proposal. In a moment of greed, he
grabbed the pancake bowl on the table and called the housewife directly. The
housewife kneaded his fur, and he dragged himself back to the little fox with difficulty.
The wolf accused the fox of deceiving him, but the fox denied it: "What kind of glutton
are you?"

Day three, same game. This time the fox leads the wolf to a farmer who has just
slaughtered some livestock. There is a large amount of salted meat in the cellar. The
wolf insists that they go to the crime scene together this time so that he doesn't have to
take the beating alone. The fox also likes to eat meat, but from time to time he runs
back to the hole they came in from. The wolf finds this suspicious, and with good reason,
but the fox claims that he just wanted to see if anyone was coming. In reality, he was
checking to see if his entire body could still fit through the hole. Finally, the farmer
comes to check, probably woken by the fox's cries.

The fox escaped from the cave quickly. But the wolf found that he could not escape at
all, because his stomach had become so big from eating too much meat that he could
no longer get out of the cave he came in from. He paid the price of his greed with his life.
The fox was very happy because he finally got rid of the wolf.

4.1.22 Wolves and Humans

The fox told the wolves about the power of man and told them that they must be wary of
his power. But Isegrin felt that he was strong enough and said that if he met a man, he

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would not hesitate to attack him. The fox could help. The next morning, he and his
companions walked along the path that the hunters took every day into the forest. At
this time, a soldier came along the path, and the wolf asked the fox if he was a man.
The fox replied, "No, there was a man once." Then a schoolboy ran up, and the wolf
asked again, "Is that the man?" "No," said the fox, "it has not yet turned into a little
monkey."

Finally, the hunter arrived, and the fox confirmed, "Yes, that's it." The wolf charged at
him, but the hunter had already drawn his gun. Luckily for Isegrin, the hunter had only
loaded his shotgun with shells, not bullets. He endured the pain and attacked again.
Then the hunter drew his hunting knife and hacked and hacked at the attacker until he
finally ran away, howling and bleeding.

The fox asked him hypocritically about his encounter with humans. Isegrin said that the
hunter blew on the stick and lightning and thunder danced around his nose, revealing
his ignorance. He almost defeated the hunter, but in close combat, the hunter suddenly
pulled out one of his ribs and almost killed him. The fox called the wolf a braggart, and
the wolf realized that it was better to stay away from humans.

4.1.23 wren

In ancient times, everything had its own language, so every sound had its meaning.
Back then, even birds could have rational discussions, but now everything just chirps.
So they decided that it would be great if they chose one of them to be king, and
everything would be fine in the future. Only one bird - the lapwing - didn't want to join. It
thought it was born free and wanted to be free after death; from then on, it lived alone,
where other birds avoided it.

All the birds except the lapwings came to the great party, including a small bird that
didn't have a name yet. Everyone agreed that whoever flew the highest would be

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chosen as the king of birds. The competition began the next morning. The smaller birds
soon fell behind, and most of the larger birds had to give up. After all, only the eagle
could continue to soar in the sky. When he was sure that no one was chasing him
anymore, he would glide leisurely. The other birds shouted to him from below, "You will
be our king." Suddenly, an unknown bird flew out from the eagle's breast feathers and
flew higher - so high, it was said, that it flew so high that it could see God sitting on the
throne. Finally, he fell down, shouting, "I am the king! I am the king!"

The other birds were very angry because this naughty guy wanted to be king by trickery.
So they quickly set another condition: whoever could get the deepest into the ground
would be the king. This was a good opportunity for the cock, and he immediately started
scratching. The duck jumped into the mud puddle and broke his leg. The bird
successfully got into the mouse hole and became the winner of this game.

The birds were angry that the little devil had once again outwitted everyone. No matter
what, they were unwilling to acknowledge him as their king. They decided not to let him
leave the cave and let him die of starvation. As night fell, the owl would guard the cave.
Sometimes, he would get tired and think that he could at least close one eye alternately.
After a series of changes, he forgot to open one eye and closed the other. The wren
was waiting for this moment.

After this happened, other birds would peck at the owl whenever they saw it during the
day (see the fairy tale "The Owl"). So it preferred to go out at night when everyone was
asleep. The owl blamed the mouse, because if the mouse had not dug such a hole,
none of this would have happened. From then on, the mice had to be afraid of the owl.
The little bird had to continue to beware of other birds that it tried to deceive. It liked to
hide in hedges and fences and shout "I am the king! I am the king!", so the others
nicknamed it "Wren".

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4.1.24 The Wren and the Bear

The bear and the wolf went out for a walk and heard the singing of birds. The wolf
explained to the bear that it was the wren that sang so beautifully. At the bear's request,
the wolf took him to the lair of the king of flying beasts. After the father and mother wren
flew out, the bear took a look at the nest. The bear said contemptuously to the wren
children that it was a simple palace and these little children were dishonest children
because they claimed to be the king's children. When the wren learned of this, she flew
to the bear's lair and declared war on the bear and all four-legged animals.

The wren and the bear each gathered their own troops: birds, mosquitoes, wasps, bees
and flies on one side; cows, donkeys, bulls, deer, roe deer and all four-legged animals
on the other. The wren sent the mosquito out to find out who the four-legged animals
would appoint as the leader of the army and what their battle plan would be. The
mosquito reported that the fox had been appointed general. He would use his tail to
signal the troops. "Tail up" means attack! "Tail down" means retreat!

The battle began, with the enemy charging at each other, some running so fast that the
ground shook; others chirping, screaming, buzzing and humming as they flew, causing
fear and anxiety to the other side. The fox raised its tail when running, an agreed signal,
and the bumblebee knew this signal. She expertly stabbed the fox under the tail until it
could no longer bear the pain and withdrew its tail. His troops interpreted this as a signal
to retreat, especially when the fox howled in pain. The four-legged animals ran as fast
as they could, each fleeing to its own cave, so the winged creatures quickly won the
battle. The bear had to go to the wren's nest in person to apologize to its children.

4.1.25 Two hikers

A fun-loving young tailor was on a journey when he met a shoemaker. The two decided
to continue traveling together, especially since their businesses were so compatible. As
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it turned out, the shoemaker had a bad temper, which affected his business. In short, in
every place they passed, the tailor made more money than the shoemaker. However,
the shoemaker spent money freely and was generous to his companions in the bar.

Their destination was the Imperial City, where the two travelers hoped to obtain more
than just the necessities of life. To reach the Imperial City, they had to cross a large
forest through which there were two paths. One of the paths would take the hikers two
days, the other seven. The ever-optimistic tailor stored up two days' worth of bread -
why would he pointlessly store seven days' worth of bread for himself ? The shoemaker,
lacking optimism and faith in God, bought seven days' worth of bread. On the third day
of their walk, the forest was still dense and seemed endless, and both men realized they
were on a longer path.

The tailor walked all day without eating. Even on the fourth day, despite being very
hungry, he kept walking. He asked the shoemaker for some bread crumbs, but the
shoemaker just smiled. Now the tailor could finally experience what it was like to be
unhappy. But by the fifth morning, the tailor was exhausted. The shoemaker was willing
to give him some bread - but it came at a price. He really needed the tailor's eye to
solve this problem. The tailor had to accept this if he wanted to live. They continued on
their journey, and by the sixth day, the tailor was out of bread again. On the seventh
morning, he was too tired to get out of bed. The shoemaker asked the tailor for a
second eye, and got it.

The tailor was blind and could no longer do business. He had to rely on the mercy of the
shoemaker. But the shoemaker was heartless and left him to die after he finally left the
forest. The tailor didn't know that he was standing under the gallows, where two people
were just hanged. But he heard one of them say to the other that a special dew had
fallen tonight. If someone was blind and washed his face with this dew, he would be
able to see again. The tailor didn't need to say anything. He dipped his handkerchief in
some of the dew and washed his face. He saw the imperial city glittering in the distance,

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tried to see if he could still use his needle and thread, and was ecstatic despite his
hunger.

On his way into town, he met a foal and tried to climb on its back. But the foal begged
him to stop. It was too weak to carry even the skinny tailor. He was hungry, so he kept
going and met a stork. He grabbed the foal by the legs and roasted it. The stork begged
for mercy. After all, it was a magical bird that had never done anything wrong. The tailor
let it go, but it got hungrier and hungrier. There were some ducklings in the pond. When
the mother duck begged him not to take away what he loved most, his compassion
once again won out over his growling stomach. Finally, he thought he had found a food
that wouldn't hurt anyone else - honey from a hollow tree. But the queen bee was not
happy with him.

Hungry but satisfied, the tailor finally arrived at the imperial city and quickly found work
under a master. It didn't take long for him to become famous in the city. He made
clothes for everyone in the city, not only because of his superb skills but also because
of his cheerful personality. So, one day, he was appointed as the court tailor, and
coincidentally, his unfaithful friend was appointed as the court shoemaker on the same
day. He was afraid because he felt that sooner or later they would meet and his crime
would be exposed.

The shoemaker tried to get rid of the tailor with a cunning trick. He told the king that the
tailor boasted that he could find the king's crown which had been lost not long ago. The
king asked the tailor to fulfill his promise, but the tailor thought that leaving the city was
the best option for him. So he met the old duck again. The old duck was happy to repay
the tailor's kindness. The lost crown sank to the bottom of the pond.

The tailor has regained the king's beloved crown, which naturally wins the king's favor.
This in turn angers the shoemaker, who continues to plot against the tailor. He claims to
the king that the tailor had boasted that he could make a wax model of the castle
exactly like it. The tailor tries to escape again, and this time he encounters the queen
bee, who is working with her people to build the model the king wanted. A third plot

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endangers the tailor's life. This time, the king threatens to chop off his head if he doesn't
make the fountain in the castle courtyard boil again. On his way to escape, he
encounters the horse he saved as a child, who now helps him solve a new task.

After that, he regained some of his composure. But the shoemaker whispered to the
king that even if the tailor had the best wish in the world, he didn't know how to make it
come true. The king already had many daughters and finally wanted a son. Now it was
the stork's turn to repay his kindness. The stork had brought children to the city for
many years and finally brought the king the son he had always dreamed of. The tailor
married the king's eldest daughter, but the shoemaker had to leave the city. He walked
past the gallows, and the long walk under the hot sun made him tired, so he lay down in
the shade and fell asleep. At this time, crows flew over and pecked out his eyes. He lost
consciousness and ran into the forest, and was never heard from again.

4.1.26 Queen Bee

The king's two oldest sons went out on an adventure, living a dissolute life, but couldn't
find their way home. So they sent their youngest son to take them home, and everyone
laughed at him for being a fool. When the youngest son found the way, they laughed at
him again: how could he find the way if they hadn't found it yet? They were much
smarter than he was. Despite this, they set out together. When they passed an anthill,
two old ants wanted to destroy it, but they could only watch as the hardworking ants
saved their eggs. The young ant stopped her. On the rest of their journey, they
encountered similar situations: an old duck wanted to catch a group of ducks and roast
them, and there was also a beehive, which they wanted to smoke out to get honey.

In the evening, they came to a seemingly deserted castle. There were several petrified
horses in the stables. In a remote room, they finally found a gray stallion, which only
responded when they called it for the third time. The stallion was silent, but only led her
to a gorgeously laid table and then took her to the bedroom. The next morning, the short

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man showed them a stone tablet with three tasks engraved on it. Only those who
successfully completed these tasks could save the petrified castle, but those who failed
would turn to stone themselves.

The first task is to collect all the pearls that the princesses have scattered in the moss.
The second task is to find the key to the room of the King's daughter, which has sunk
somewhere under the sea. The third task is the most difficult. There are three
princesses in the castle, who look exactly the same and sleep in the castle as if they
were petrified. The goal is to find out who is the youngest and most favored princess
based on the candy that the children eat before going to bed. The youngest princess
eats honey, and the others eat sugar or syrup.

The brothers failed in the first task and turned to stone. But the youngest brother was
helped by ants, who collected all the pearls on the moss. The ducks helped him with the
second task, and the queen bee herself helped him with the third. She flew to the lips of
the king's daughters one after another, and finally sat with the princess who had eaten
the honey. The castle was saved and all those who had been petrified were resurrected,
including the brothers. The son of the young king married the daughter of the young
king, and his brothers also married the daughters of their two elder brothers.

4.2 Shorter

4.2.1 Three nursing staff

Three well-traveled war surgeons, confident in their skills, stayed overnight at an inn.
The innkeeper wanted to see their skills, and the surgeons agreed without hesitation.
The first surgeon cut off his own hand, the second surgeon dug out his heart, and the
third surgeon dug out his eye. Because they had an ointment that could make the

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severed limbs grow back just by applying it. They put the severed limb, heart, and eye
on a plate and handed it to the innkeeper, who kept it safely until the next morning.

The innkeeper handed the dishes to the maid, who was supposed to put them in the
kitchen cupboard. Whatever she did, her mind was not on the matter. Because her lover,
a soldier, was coming to visit her. She set the table and sat down next to him.
Unfortunately, she forgot to lock the cupboard door. While she and her lover sat and
talked, the cat took the unusual piece of meat from the cupboard. After the two finished
their meal, the maid was about to put the dishes in the cupboard. She was shocked to
find that the cupboard door was wide open and the things she had entrusted were gone.

She complained to her lover how miserable she would be the next morning. But the
soldier knew what to do. On the gallows hung the fresh body of a thief. The soldier cut
off the dead man's right hand and brought it to the lover. Then he caught the cat and
dug out its eyes. The only thing missing was the heart. Fortunately, the innkeeper had a
freshly slaughtered pig in his cellar. He got the heart. The maid put the hand, eye and
heart back on a plate and put it back in the cupboard.

The next morning, the three field surgeons demonstrated their skills. With the help of a
magic ointment, they transplanted a hand, an eye, and a heart. In fact, everything grew
back perfectly. The innkeeper was convinced by their skills and promised to spread the
word about them.

The surgeons present paid and left. However, they soon noticed some worrying
changes. The one with the pig heart couldn't help but rummage through dirt like a pig.
The one with the cat's eyes felt uneasy and suspected that something was wrong with
his eyesight. In the evening, they moved into a new inn, and the third man felt a strange
itch on his right hand. It turned out that a rich man was sitting in the inn counting money.
The rich man turned his back, and the surgeon reached out and grabbed a handful of
money from the thief. A companion saw this and scolded him. The surgeon who
committed the theft explained that the attack was neither with his consent nor his
participation.

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Finally, they went to bed. In the middle of the night, the cat-eyed man woke up and saw
a white rat scurrying around the room. He woke his companions and pointed at the rat,
but in the darkness they could not see anything. However, now they all realized
something. The innkeeper had obviously deceived them and given them someone
else's body parts! So, they returned the next morning to confront the innkeeper. He
knew nothing and thought that only the maid was to blame. However, the maid was
smart and had escaped long ago. The innkeeper had no choice but to pay a large sum
of compensation to the surgeon.

4.2.2 Three lucky kids

A father, sensing his imminent death, divides his inheritance among his sons: one gets
a rooster, another a sickle, and the third a cat. He advises them to take these heirlooms
to a completely strange country. They will surely become rich.

The eldest brother sets out to find the rooster, but he must travel a long way to a place
where no one knows the rooster exists. This place is an island, and the locals are
fascinated by the rooster's ability to tell time with its crowing. They want this magical
animal very much, and promise to give the stranger a donkey and let him load it with as
much gold as he can.

The second son also found his fortune. After a long journey, he came to an island where
the inhabitants practiced agriculture but had never seen a sickle. They used a cruel
method of harvesting: they shot the grain into the stalks from a cannon. Of course, this
caused considerable damage and noise pollution. When the stranger showed them how
to use the sickle, they bought it from him for a large sum of gold - enough gold to carry
on a horse.

Now the third son also wanted to see if he could turn his cat into gold. But there were
cats almost everywhere, more in number than one would have thought. In fact, there

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were so many kittens that they often drowned at birth. Finally, he also found an island
without cats. Of course, the local residents also had a rat infestation. The stranger took
good care of the cat, and later the residents asked the king to take the magical animal
back to the kingdom. The king was happy to buy the cat for a mule's load of gold. So the
third son also became a rich man.

However, the cat had sequelae. The king let them play in the castle, and the mice
danced on the table like ordinary people. Sometimes, when the cat was thirsty while
hunting, it turned its head, looked down at the king, and began to meow like a cat. The
king had never heard such screams and was filled with fear. The king sent servants to
persuade the cat to leave the castle voluntarily. But the cat always meowed, which was
understood as a stern refusal. So the king had to use force, that is, cannons, to drive
them out. However, the cannons only razed the castle to the ground. The cat cleverly
jumped out of the window and reached safety in time.

4.2.3 Three dogs

An old shepherd left his two children, a daughter and a son, with nothing but his hut and
three sheep. The brother asked his sister to choose, and she chose the hut; he himself
decided to travel the outside world with the sheep - after all, there were many people
who found happiness there, and he was a Sunday boy after all.

Happiness came slowly. One day, he met a man with three large black dogs who
offered to trade his sheep for the dogs. The young shepherd thought this ridiculous at
first, because sheep could at least forage for themselves, while dogs needed food. But
the stranger promised that it was different with the black dogs - they would feed their
owners. The shepherd was finally convinced by the dogs' names: the smallest one was
called "Send Food", the middle one was called "Tear It Up", and the largest one was
called "Break Iron". So he agreed to the deal and immediately asked the puppies to
bring him food to try it out. He happily pointed out that he had made a good deal.

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As he continued on his way, he came across a black coach with a beautiful but sad girl
in it. Like the coachman, the beauty was dressed in black. The reason for the people's
mourning was that there was a local dragon and every year a virgin was sacrificed to
the dragon to prevent something worse from happening. The dragon was chosen by
drawing lots to decide who to attack, and this time it attacked the king's fourteen-year-
old daughter. The shepherd saw his chance to prove himself a hero (with the help of his
sheepdog). He followed the coach until it finally stopped at the foot of a high mountain.
The king's daughter accepted her fate and continued to climb the mountain, with the
shepherd following closely behind.

The Dragon and the Trickster

When they approached the top of the mountain, they saw a terrible dragon, covered
with scales and emitting a foul smell. It had anticipated its prey and wanted to attack the
girl. The shepherd quickly shouted to his dogs: "Tear it apart!" The dogs killed the
monster and ate its remains. Only a few dragon teeth remained, which the shepherd
took off. The king's daughter thanked her savior and asked him to return to her father,
who would give him a rich reward. But the shepherd wanted to see the outside world
first. He promised to come to the palace in three years.

So the King's daughter returned to the coach alone and asked the coachman to take her
home. Considering the desolation of the time and the girl's confusion, the coachman
came up with a plan to pretend to be her savior. He convinced her that the real savior
would not appreciate her gratitude (unlike him); at the same time, he threatened to
throw her into the river - no one would look for her because everyone would think she
was dead. Once again, the King's daughter had no choice but to give in. The King
wanted her to marry the so-called savior, but because she was still too young, the
wedding would be postponed for another year. When the deadline expired, the bride
asked for another year's postponement, and finally another year's postponement.

Now, three years after the dragon was slain, the shepherd's son arrives at the palace
with his three dogs. He questions why everything is so festive and learns that the king's

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daughter will eventually marry the brave dragon slayer. The shepherd's son flies into a
rage and denounces the so-called dragon slayer as a liar, and is thrown into prison. He
is about to give up when he remembers his beloved dog "Bridge Eisen" who once
rescued him from the dungeon and chains. He is also hungry, so he asks "bring me
some food". The dog takes the food directly from the royal table, and the king's
daughter recognizes it and hands it a napkin with a crown printed on it. Now, she knows
that the real savior is nearby, and dares to confide in her father.

The shepherd's son was brought before the king, and the dragon's tooth appeared
before him, clearing all doubts. The cunning coachman was thrown into prison, and the
shepherd's son married the king's daughter. Soon after, he brought his sister to the
court so that she would no longer have to live in her father's humble cottage. But the
dogs announced that their time together was over. He no longer needed his sister's help,
and her happiness was guaranteed. After hearing this explanation, they turned into
birds and flew away.

4.2.4 Three dwarfs in the forest

A widower married a widow. They each had a daughter. The husband's daughter was
beautiful and loved, while the wife's daughter was ugly and quarrelsome. The
stepmother was jealous of her stepdaughter and bullied her. Once, in the dead of winter,
the stepmother made a dress out of paper for her stepdaughter and asked her to go to
the forest to pick strawberries, probably hoping that she would freeze to death. So the
cold-fearing girl came to a hut in the forest where three dwarfs lived. They asked her to
sweep the snow behind the hut, and she really found strawberries. In addition to the
strawberries, the three dwarfs also gave each girl a gift. The first wish was to make her
more beautiful, the second wish was that gold would fall out of her mouth when she
spoke, and the third wish was for the king to marry her.

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The wicked stepmother was surprised to see the annoying girl coming back with a
basket of strawberries. She saw the gold coins falling from her mouth and the king's
wish came true, so she sent her own daughter to pick strawberries. However, the girl
was wearing a thick fur coat.

Eventually, she also found the hut of the forest people and asked for strawberries.
However, instead of wishing her good fortune, the dwarves gave her evil blessings: she
would freeze like paper wrapped in a fur coat, grow even filthier, and eventually die
miserably. The mother and daughter wanted revenge on the lucky young queen. So
they wooed her and were allowed to live in the castle. However, when the queen
became pregnant with her first child, they threw her into the river. They tricked the king
into thinking that his wife had died of weakness.

For three consecutive evenings the Queen appeared before the kitchen boy in the form
of a duck and asked: What is my guest doing?

What is my baby doing?

On the third night, a spell caused the young queen to appear alive again before her
husband, and as punishment, her stepmother and stepsisters were thrown to wild
beasts to be eaten.

4.2.5 The Goose Shepherd at the Well

An old woman lived alone in the wilderness. Whenever she went out to do errands—
cutting wood from the forest, gathering wild fruits, pulling grass to feed the geese—she
would greet everyone she met warmly. But the villagers found her scary and thought
she was a witch. One day, she was gathering a large bale of grass when a young man
who was not her aunt walked by. He politely offered the old woman a hand.

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The bundle was much heavier than expected, and she also made him carry two baskets
of apples and pears. The young man sweated profusely, but the old woman became
more and more bold. She laughed at him and finally sat on his back herself. If he didn't
walk fast enough, she would beat his legs with nettles. He regretted his kindness early
on and wanted to throw the bundle away with the witch - but he couldn't! The bundle
stuck to his back as if it were glue.

At last, exhausted, he reached the old woman's cottage. A flock of geese flew toward
them, tended by an ugly old woman. The witch called her "younger daughter," and slid
down from behind the harness, to which she was now very kind. He should rest a while
on the bench before going to claim his due. The older daughter sent her into the house,
thinking that this would keep the young man from returning. He did not appreciate it—
even if she were thirty years younger than he was, he would have been cold to her.
Then he took a nap until the old woman woke him and handed him an emerald box.

After three days of wandering in the forest, the young man finally found his way to a
strange city. He was brought before the king and queen. He thought he should give the
queen the precious-looking box that the witch had given him. The queen opened the
box, looked inside, and fainted. In order to prevent the young man from being thrown
into prison, she opened her eyes again and explained what had happened to her.

The queen mourned for nearly three years for the youngest of her three daughters. The
king summoned her and her sisters to discuss how to divide the inheritance. To do this,
all three of them had to tell the king how much they loved him. The two sisters replied
with satisfaction: they loved him like the sweetest sugar or the most beautiful clothes.
However, the youngest daughter refused - she loved her father too much, she couldn't
imagine any comparison between him and her father. But her father didn't give up, so
she finally said: she loved her father like salt.

The king was so angry at these words that he had a bag of salt tied to her back and
sent two servants to take her into the forest. The queen was still grieving over the loss
of her beloved daughter. Her face was radiant and she had a special gift: when she

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cried, pearls and gems fell from her eyes instead of tears. And the pearl she saw in the
emerald box was from her daughter's eye. The king and queen took the young man to
the old woman's house, hoping to find at least some signs of life in their daughter there.

In the story, the perspective changes, and the audience (reader) understands the story
of the old woman and the goose boy at the well. Every evening, they sit quietly at the
spinning wheel. When the night owl calls, the old woman sends her daughter to work. At
this time, the goose boy comes to the well and takes off her old skin like a piece of
clothing. Then, she washes herself and washes off her shed skin.

The night before the young man and his parents went to look for their daughter, this
happened. This time, the old woman was cleaning the room when the goose shepherd
came back and was surprised that it was late. The old woman told her that they had to
part because it had been three years since she had taken her daughter in. The daughter
was in despair about this, but the old woman said she didn't have to worry. The old
woman had saved all the pearls that she had cried for her daughter for three years. So
she was now very rich.

The next evening, before midnight, the goose shepherd went to the well again. This
time, the young man, hiding in the treetops, watched her and could not believe his eyes
as she shed her skin and her long golden hair spread out. He also saw her sad
expression, and the tears that flowed from her eyes were not tears, but pearls. At this
time, a branch broke, and the beauty quickly slid down and disappeared. Returning to
the house, the old woman asked her to put on the silk dress she had worn when she
came in. When the goose shepherd changed back to his original form and turned into a
beautiful young woman, the king and queen knocked on the window. They embraced
their daughter with joy. The old woman suddenly disappeared without a trace, and the
simple cottage turned into a magnificent palace.

The story ends with the narrator‘s explanation—unusually vague for a Grimm fairy
tale—that he can‘t remember how the story continued: whether the king‘s daughter
married the young man, whether the goose was a girl who was transformed back to her

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original form by magic, whether the old woman was a fairy who gave the girl the
weeping pearl as a gift when she was born. The only thing that is certain is that the old
woman was not a witch, but a wise woman. The open ending, the faint melancholy, and
the lack of an evil force as an antagonist all suggest that this fairy tale is about
depression.

4.2.6 Owl

The farce begins by saying that this incident happened "hundreds of years ago in a
small town, when people were not so clever and naughty." An owl broke into a citizen's
barn. She dared not go out again, for fear that other birds would come to harass her.
When the farm worker went to the barn to get hay, he saw the strange big bird and was
terrified. At first, the owner laughed at him. But when he saw the owl with his own eyes,
he declared that the unknown creature was a monster. He asked his neighbors for help,
pointing out that not only he and the barn, but perhaps the whole town was in danger.
Citizens came from all directions, armed with spears, axes and pitchforks. The
councilman and the mayor also attended the meeting.

One man dared to break into the barn with a spear. But he came out again immediately
- pale and unable to utter a word. Two others had similar experiences. Finally, a man
who was said to have experience in war put on his armor. Then the barn door opened.
Now the curious crowd saw the monster with their own eyes, already sitting on the
beam. The hero brought a ladder and climbed up. When he was halfway up, the owl got
scared. It rolled its eyes, shook its feathers and shouted: "Shoe-hoo, shoe-hoo." This
was too much for the warrior. He slid down the ladder in a semi-conscious state.

What now? The concerned citizens call in their best friend, but even he can't do
anything about the monster. The mayor then agrees to pay for the barn owner to burn
down the barn and all its contents (especially the owl). Everyone agrees, so the owl
must have burned badly.

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4.2.7 Gifts for children

A tailor and a hunchbacked goldsmith went out together at night. After the sun went
down, they heard strange music in the distance, and soon saw a group of little men and
women dancing happily in the moonlight. The little animals gathered the two of them in
a circle, and before they knew it, their beards and hair were shaved off. Although this
seemed strange to them, they did not dare to resist. At least the children seemed to be
pleased with them. When they left, their pockets were full of coal. To them, the gift
seemed meaningless, but they were glad to be unscathed.

Upon returning to the inn, they were surprised to find their luggage heavy and that,
instead of the expected coal, they found gold. Her hair had also grown back to its
original length. Although a tailor's pockets were usually smaller than a goldsmith's, he
was still satisfied. However, the goldsmith decided to return to the dwarf for more coal.
But on his second visit, the coal was still the same, his head was still bald, and his chin
was still smooth. To make matters worse, the dwarf had grown a second hump on top of
his original one, which from then on grew on his chest.

4.2.8 Golden Goose

A couple had three sons. The youngest son was laughed at everywhere and called a
"fool". One day, the eldest son went to the forest to chop wood. His mother gave him a
pancake and a bottle of wine. In the forest, he met a white-haired old man who asked
him for food and water. But the eldest son refused mercilessly. Not long after, when he
started chopping trees, his arm was severely cut and he had to return empty-handed.
The second son had a similar experience.

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Finally, the fool asked his father to allow him to go to the forest to cut wood. At first, his
father didn't want to know anything because of the harm his two elder brothers and
younger brother had already suffered. Eventually, he was allowed to go, but instead of
pancakes and wine, his mother gave him ash cakes and sour beer. When he saw the
gray-haired old man again, he happily shared his food with the old man and even
apologized for his poverty. The little boy, in order to repay his father, showed him a tree
and told him that he should chop it down and that at the roots of the tree he would find
happiness.

The fool found a goose with golden feathers under a tree. He tucked the goose under
his arm and spent the night in an inn. The three daughters of the innkeeper were full of
praise for the golden goose and wanted to get at least one feather. As they plucked the
feathers, one by one they stuck to the goose. The next morning, the fool didn't care
about the goose's legs - the girls had to go with him. On the way, more people (priests,
sextons...) were stuck to the goose. The fool and his amazing retinue finally arrived in
the king's capital.

The king had a daughter who was very serious and the king was worried about her. So
he issued a decree that whoever could make his daughter laugh could marry her. But
when the daughter saw the fool with the goose and his servants, she burst into laughter.
The king wanted to find an excuse to avoid marrying his daughter to such a humble
man who was also called a fool. So he made another condition: the fool had to find him
a man who could drink a lot of wine, eat a lot of bread, and own a boat that could sail on
land and water. The white-haired old man helped him complete all these tasks, and
finally the fool got the king's daughter.

4.2.9 Smart People

Farmer Hans says goodbye to his wife Trina. He is away for three days, and during this
time the cattle dealer who wants to sell three cows to him might come by. So he warns

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Trina that the price of the cattle cannot be less than two hundred thalers. Trina explains
that she will take care of it and he doesn't have to worry. Hans is not so sure, and
threatens to beat her if she messes up.

After Hans left, the cattle dealer arrived and he immediately realized that he could
blackmail the woman. He agreed to pay the two hundred thalers he was asked for, but
unfortunately, he had forgotten his money bag today. So he offered to take the lucky cat
and two of the three cows with him. The third cow was left as collateral for Mrs. Trina.
Trina understood this, so when her husband came back, she still thought she had done
the right thing. She proudly told us that the cattle dealer had exchanged two hundred
thalers for two cows. Hans reached for his stick. But he quickly came to his senses and
gave Trina a chance. He would be out for three more days, and if he met someone
more stupid than her again, he would let her go.

Hans was waiting by the road when he saw a car approaching with a woman standing
inside. He asked the woman why she was standing instead of sitting on the straw pile in
the car. The woman replied that it was easier for the cattle to walk. Hans suspected that
he might have found what he was looking for in this woman. To prove it, he claimed that
he had fallen from the sky - could she take him back? The woman just said that it was a
pity that she didn't know the way. Then she asked him if he had seen her husband, who
had been there for three years. Hans said that he had, but that he had not chosen well.
His clothes were already in tatters and he would soon have to walk naked. The woman
thought this was terrible and entrusted Hans with all the money she had earned from
buying wheat yesterday.

When the woman returned home, she told her son about the old man in heaven and the
money she had given him to buy a new suit. The son was shocked: people from heaven,
such people don't come across every day. He was eager to see his mother, so he
saddled his horse and galloped in the direction where his mother came from.

Soon, he met Hans. Hans was sitting under a tree counting the stolen money. But he
never expected that this ordinary farmer was actually a messenger from heaven. So he

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asked Hans if he had seen the heavenly man. Hans said that he had. He pointed in the
direction of a high mountain and said that the heavenly man went up to heaven and
then went back home from the top of the mountain. If the rider kept riding forward, he
would definitely catch up with him. Oh, the rider groaned, he had worked hard all day
and was too tired to ride anymore. Could Hans do a favor and ride his horse to catch up
with the heavenly man and persuade him to turn back?

Hans needed no further words. He rode away from the fool's sight and returned to his
two-thirds home. Meanwhile, the foolish woman and her foolish son believed that the
farmer had given the horse to the gods in heaven, and that the gods had given the
horse to his father so that he would not have to work hard in heaven.

4.2.10 The Jews in the Jungle

A servant served his master faithfully for three years and finally got his wages: three
hired hands. The servant was not familiar with money, but he thought it was a good
wage and went away happily. On the way, he met an old man who praised him for his
good mood. The servant thought to himself that he had done this for a reason, because
today he got the wages for three years of work - three hired hands! The old man asked
him for money, because the servant was young and strong and could easily earn more
money. The servant was kind-hearted and agreed. The old man explained gratefully
that the servant had three wishes. The servant's first wish was to get a blowpipe, which
he could use to blow anything he aimed at. The second wish was to get a violin, and
everyone would dance when he played the violin. The third wish was that when he
made a request to someone, that person would not be able to refuse his request.

His wish came true, and as he continued on his way, he met a Jew who was listening to
a bird singing. The servant shot the bird with a blowpipe, and it fell into a thorn bush.
The Jew tried to rescue him from the thorn bush. But as he walked into the thorn bush,
the farmhand began to play his violin. The Jew had to dance among the thorns, and

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soon his clothes were torn and caught on the thorns. The farmhand gave the servant a
bag of gold, which finally made him stop playing the violin. The servant liked the
suggestion; he put the violin away and ran away with the gold. The Jew cursed him and
finally went to the judge to report him. The servant was arrested for robbery and
sentenced to be hanged.

As the servant is being led to the gallows, he asks the judge to grant him one last wish:
he wants to play the violin again. The judge is unwilling to deny him a wish, and soon
everyone - the judge, the bailiff, the executioner, the onlookers, and even the Jew -
starts dancing and can't stop. Finally, the judge offers to overturn the death sentence if
the criminal stops gambling. Everyone collapses from exhaustion. The servant attacks
the Jew: he must tell him where the gold came from, or he must play the violin again.
The Jew admits to stealing the money and is eventually sent to the gallows in the
servant's place.

4.2.11 From Tebok

A blacksmith from Terbok (Brandenburg) left his homeland when he was young. As a
skilled craftsman, he traveled far and wide and was in great demand. His tincture was
especially sought after, as it could be used to polish armor and make it impenetrable to
all kinds of weapons. Thanks to this miraculous potion, he was appointed armorer to
Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa) and accompanied him on the Crusades. He
eventually returned to his homeland, old and frail. When he was a hundred years old, a
dwarf appeared in his garden one day and asked the blacksmith to shoe his donkey.
The old blacksmith completed the job without asking for any reward, as the dwarf often
appeared in his adventurous life as his patron saint.

The dwarf thanked him and said that the blacksmith had three wishes , but he must not
forget the biggest one. The blacksmith was often annoyed by thieves who stole his
pears. So your first wish is that no one who climbs up the pear tree can come down on

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their own. Since the thief had already been in his room, his second wish is that anyone
who sneaks into his room can only get out through the keyhole at most. Before the last
wish, the dwarf warned again: "Don't forget the biggest one!" But the blacksmith's wish
was for a bottle of gin that would never be empty.

The dwarf granted the blacksmith's wish and left him some silver. His life was no longer
difficult, but somehow Death knocked on his door. The blacksmith agreed to go, but
asked Death to pick a few pears from a tree he hadn't climbed in a long time. Of course,
the blacksmith still didn't want to die, so he left Death in the tree and almost starved to
death. However, one day, no one on Earth would die, and this would become a problem.
So the blacksmith made Death promise not to bother him again in the future, and then
let him go.

From then on, Death looked haggard. He first cleaned the floor, but he could do nothing
with the blacksmith. This annoyed him, so he instigated the Devil to deal with the
blacksmith. But the Devil also found his acquaintance with the blacksmith unpleasant.
After entering the room, he found that he could not get out in the normal way. Unless
through the keyhole, of course, this was possible for him because he was the Devil. But
behind the door stood the Blacksmith, who had a large sack in his hand and was facing
the keyhole to catch the Devil. He used the blacksmith's hammer to make drastic
changes to the sack and the Devil.

The blacksmith lived a long, peaceful life until he finally grew tired of earthly life and
volunteered to go to heaven. However, instead of letting him in, little old Peter, who
granted his foolish wish, sent him to hell. The devil also had good reason not to let the
blacksmith in heaven, so he entered Kifhauser and came to his former employer,
Emperor Barbarossa. Not until the crows stopped flying over the hills and the dead pear
trees sprouted new leaves, did the emperor appear again. With him appeared his
quartermaster, the blacksmith from Tolbok.

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4.2.12 Strong Hans

A young woman and her only child, two-year-old Hans, were kidnapped by robbers
while collecting firewood. From then on, she had to run the household chores for the
robbers for many years. When Hans was nine years old, he began to ask his father
about his fate and began to fight the robbers. At first, he was weaker than the robbers,
but after a few years, he grew up and became stronger. He defeated the robbers, filled
his pockets with gold and silver, and escaped from the robbers' den with his mother.
They found their hometown and reunited with their father.

But strong Hans soon found his parents' house too small. He asked his father to make
him a hundred-pound walking stick, and then he set out. Soon he met a rude man in the
forest, taller than he was, who had wrapped a rope around a fir tree trunk. Such a
strong man was just the right traveling companion for Hans. He called him "the Fir Rope
Twister" and continued to follow him. After a while, they heard a knocking sound, and
the whole ground shook. They continued to walk and found the source of the sound: a
giant was chiseling away at the rock with his bare hands to build a house for himself.
Hans called him "Rock Scissors" and invited him to join them.

In the evening, the three men came to an abandoned castle, which happened to be their
home. They agreed that two of them would go out hunting every day (because three
such tall and strong men would need a lot of meat), and the third would stay home to
cook. First it was Ham Twister's turn to cook, and while he was cooking, a skinny man
came up and asked for meat. Twister could only shout tiredly, "Get lost!" He was proud
of the little man, and couldn't believe it when the little man attacked him and beat him
almost to the point of being unable to move with his bare hands. He was so ashamed of
his failure that he didn't tell the other two about the dwarf after they returned home from
hunting. The next day, Rock Scissorhands suffered the same experience again, and he
also kept this unpleasant experience to himself.

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On the third day, it was the turn of strong Hans to cook. Unlike the other two, he gave
the dwarf some meat, but when the dwarf became cheeky and asked for more, he gave
him a few punches. The dwarf ran away and Hans chased him. Hans saw the dwarf
disappear into a crevice and remembered the place. When the other two came back,
Hans told them about his experience. Now they admitted that they had also been visited
by the dwarf but did not give him meat and were therefore beaten by him.

Together they went to the crevice of the rocks to see if the dwarf had hidden any
treasure. Hans asked the others to lower him down in a basket. To his surprise, he
found an extremely beautiful but sad-looking girl next to the dwarf, who was bound in
chains. Hans beat the dwarf to death with a stick, and the girl's chains fell off. He put the
girl in the basket, and the two waiting above pulled her up. When they lowered the
basket again, Hans became suspicious and did not get in himself. He threw his stick in,
and sure enough, in mid-air, the two giants threw the basket to the ground, which meant
he was doomed. Fortunately, he was careful and survived, but how would he get up?

Hans saw a ring on the finger of the slain dwarf and put it on himself. It was a wishing
ring, and Hans was led back to the light by the invisible spirit. In the castle, he found
neither his treacherous companions nor the beautiful maiden. He turned the wishing
ring again, and the spirit told him that they had escaped across the sea in a ship. Hans
followed them and, with his own strength and the help of his servants, reached the ship.
He threw the two giants into the sea, and then took the maiden back to her parents,
where they were married.

Three soldiers whose pay wasn't enough to make ends meet decided to desert. They
hid in a cornfield, but soon discovered it was a trap. They couldn't get out, but staying in
would soon starve to death. Two days later, a dragon flew by and offered to take them
over the army to safety. It turned out that the dragon was the devil. They signed a note
from the dragon saying that if they couldn't solve the riddle he posed by payday, he
would take their souls within seven years. He then gave each soldier a whip that had
the magical power to suck up money.

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So, the soldiers lived a life of luxury for several years, happily serving the devil.
However, as the deadline approached, they became anxious and panicked. Two of the
soldiers felt sad about this, but the third soldier remained optimistic. There must be a
way to solve the devil's mystery!

At the persuasion of an old woman, he went to the forest hut where the devil's
grandmother lived and told her about his troubles. Because he was so handsome, the
devil's grandmother took pity on him and hid him under a stone. At midnight, the devil
came and the grandmother brought him food. She casually asked him how his day was
and how many souls he would receive today. The devil replied that he had three
soldiers who would be picked up soon. The grandmother then said that it would not be
easy to deal with three soldiers because they would definitely escape the devil's pursuit.
In this way, she got from the devil the riddle he wanted to ask the soldiers, as well as
the answer.

The soldier listened carefully in his hiding place and shared what he saw and heard with
his companions. The next day, when the devil came to take the soldiers to Hell, he
asked the first soldier what food they would be given in Hell. He knew the correct
answer: a dead green vervet monkey in the Great North Sea, and that was what they
would eat. The devil was angry, but he had two other people. He asked the second
soldier what he wanted to eat. He also knew the correct answer: a dead whale rib would
be her spoon. Finally, the third soldier's soul escaped and he solved the mystery of what
they drank from: an old horseshoe was their wine glass.

4.2.13 Faithful John

An old king, on his deathbed, summoned his loyal minister, John I, to his side. He told
John to take good care of his son and especially to show him around the estate, but to
keep a room that had a portrait of the king's daughter hanging on the golden roof . John

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kept his word, but after his father's death, he was unable to prevent the heir to the
throne from seeing the portrait and immediately falling in love with the unknown beauty.

So he accompanied him on his journey to find the woman. They found what they were
looking for in a distant foreign city. Disguised as merchants, they lured the beautiful
woman aboard their ship, where their most precious cargo was said to be stored . As
she rummaged through the sea, the ship set sail. While at sea, the young king revealed
his identity, which immediately comforted the kidnapped maiden.

The rumours of the crows did not bode well. He learned that when they arrived a horse
would gallop towards them. The king would climb into the saddle, but the horse would
not carry him back to the castle, but would fly away with him, never to be seen again.
Unless someone could mount the horse quickly and shoot it with a holstered gun before
the king arrived. Moreover, he could not reveal the whereabouts of the horse, or he
would be turned to stone. Even if this obstacle was overcome, the young king would not
be able to marry his bride. For he was faced with a wedding shirt that looked like gold
and silver, but was actually made of pitch and sulphur, and if he put it on, he would be
.7
burned. Unless someone picked up the glove and threw it into the fire If this obstacle
was overcome, the bride would fall down dead during the wedding dance. Unless
someone dared to suck three drops of blood from the bride's chest as she fell.

When they arrived, everything happened just as the crow had predicted. Faithful John
shot the horse and saved the king. He saved the king again by throwing his shirt into the
fire. Finally, he drew three drops of blood from the bride's chest, which the king thought
was too bold. He was sentenced to be hanged and allowed to say a few last words, as
was customary. So he revealed the reason for his strange behavior and was turned to
stone on the spot.

The king felt guilty for losing his loyal minister and believed that he was responsible for
his death. So the stone was placed in a prominent position in the king's bedroom. Soon,
the couple had two sons. When his wife went to the church alone, the king sighed in the
direction of the stone and said, "Oh, if only I could bring you back to life." The stone

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then spoke. If the king sacrificed the lives of the children, he could be reborn. The king
did so without hesitation. But the resurrected John put his head back on the children's
heads and gave them a new life.

When the woman returns, the king tests her by telling her that if she sacrifices her child,
Faithful John will be resurrected. Her willingness to do so represents a strong
exaggeration of the principle of fidelity, as the bond between John and her husband
extends to her as well, transcending her maternal love.

4.2.14 The Three Sisters Chronicles

A wealthy earl lived an extravagant life, which eventually forced him to mortgage his city,
fire his servants, and sell his silver. Eventually, he was left with only a ruined forest
castle, where he lived with his wife and three daughters. Since the women had never
learned to cook, they had no food other than potatoes every day. One day, he could not
wait to grab his hunting spear, hoping to kill a rabbit to fill his stomach. However, this
forest was famous for being full of magic. No one had ever returned from there; it was
said that there lived evil dwarves and wild beasts. The earl paid no attention to these
fairy tales and crawled deeper and deeper into the bushes, but he never found the
trophy he wanted.

Just as the Count rests and prepares to eat his food (potatoes, of course), a huge bear
rushes out of the bushes. The beast can speak, but what it says to the Count is
ominous. The bear says that as punishment for the Count's invasion of his kingdom, he
must kill him. Even a conciliatory invitation to a potato feast fails to calm him. The only
thing that can save the Count's life is his eldest daughter, whom the bear longs to marry.
"Necessity is not law," the Count says to himself, and he saves his own life by promising
to sell his daughter to the bear for a hundred pounds of gold. The faint hope of setting
up a roadblock to deceive the bear is dashed, for the bear shows up to take his bride as
agreed.

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The mother wept for a long time over the death of her eldest daughter, and the Count
returned to his old dissolute life. Soon he was deeply in debt, and his creditors took
away everything in the castle that was not nailed down. He only had an old falcon left,
which he took for a walk in the fields every day. Meanwhile, the Countess and the two
remaining sisters took care of the poor family.

One day, the falcon flew into the Enchanted Forest, where the Count had been avoiding
since his encounter with the bear. There, it was attacked and killed by an eagle, and the
Count's life was once again threatened. The Count had no choice but to agree to marry
his second daughter to the eagle to save his life. Seven weeks later, the eagle came
and carried off his bride, who had no idea how happy she was. He left the Count two
eggs weighing hundreds of pounds as a dowry. After a period of mourning, the old
extravagant life began again. After the Count went bankrupt again, he also lost his
youngest daughter when he accidentally tried to catch trout in a pond with large fish .
Seven months after this fateful encounter, a handsome knight took away the youngest
daughter, leaving behind several bags full of pearls.

Now the Count and his daughters no longer had to worry about financial problems. He
and his wife lived a life worthy of their status, but without the wealth and splendor they
once had. The Countess, distraught over the loss of her daughters, made a pilgrimage
to a pious hermit. The hermit gave her his blessing. Soon, despite her advanced age,
the Countess gave birth to a healthy boy, whom she named "Raynald the Prodigy." He
learned from his mother that he had three sisters and how they had disappeared.

When he grew up, he went in search of the magic forest. In a grotto, he saw a beautiful
young woman petting two bear cubs. He was sure that this must be his eldest sister. He
claimed to be her brother, but she did not believe it at first, because she had never
received any news from her parents. But when he told her all kinds of things that only
family members could know, she embraced her brother with joy. Then she hid him in the
bed box and prepared some food. Her husband was a ferocious bear six days a week,
but on the seventh day he changed into a human form and became very kind. Today,

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the couple lives a happy married life. Reynard had to wait for the seventh day in the bed
box. Then he was introduced to his brother-in-law, who welcomed him warmly and
brotherly.

But at night they had to say goodbye again, because the next morning, if Reynard was
still within their reach, he would turn into a bear and tear Reynard to pieces. The
brother-in-law suggested that he could be freed from the spell, but it would be too
dangerous for his wife's beloved brother. As a farewell, he gave Reynard three bear
skins, which would be very useful if needed.

So Reynard went on, and next he found the second sister, the wife of the eagle. Her
husband always turned into an eagle for six weeks, but turned into a man in the seventh
week. Here he went through a similar situation as the first sister, except that he had to
hide for six weeks and then enjoy the hospitality of his sister and brother-in-law for a
week. As a farewell gift, he received three feathers from his brother-in-law, as well as a
mysterious hint: in order to lift the spell, he must find a key and destroy an amulet.

Finally, he found the youngest sister who lived in a glass house in the lake. Her
husband always turned into a big fish for six months, and then into a human for a month.
Reynard had to hide here for a long time, and then stayed with the couple for a whole
month. As a farewell, he received three fish scales, as well as some hints about the
location of the key and the amulet.

Reynald kept going until he was sure he had found the place - a castle carved into the
rock. He fought a black bull and was nearly defeated. But just as the bull was about to
kill him, he remembered his brother-in-law's bear hair. He wiped it gently, and a fierce
bear immediately rushed over and tore the bull to pieces. A duck flew out of the bull's
stomach. Reynald quickly took an eagle feather to wipe it, and before the duck had time
to escape to safety, it was torn to pieces by a rushing eagle. An egg fell from the duck's
stomach and landed directly in the pond below. Reynald suspected that the contents of
the egg were the key he was looking for, so he quickly took out the fish scales. As soon

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as he finished wiping, a large fish appeared on the surface of the pond and spit out the
egg onto the shore. Reynald broke the egg and found the key as he wished.

He used his key to unlock the castle gate, but it seemed empty. In a small room in the
far corner, he found a virgin sleeping, and across from her was an alabaster board with
mysterious symbols carved on it. Reynald was sure that this was the amulet he had to
destroy. So he grabbed the board and threw it to the ground. That broke the spell. The
beautiful maiden awoke and told him her story. She and her brothers - the Bear, the
Eagle and the Fish - were punished for refusing to marry the evil wizard Zornebock. She
had to sleep for seven years before Zornebock came to ask if she had changed her
mind. Twenty-one years passed. Now the spell was broken, and everyone returned to
the court of Reynald's parents.

Fortunately, during this long period of time, the three sisters only aged three years,
because time seemed to stand still for them, while their husbands changed. After
everyone had a happy time, the eldest sister moved with her husband to the central
German town of Bernburg, whose coat of arms has a bear. The second sister moved
with her husband to Aarburg, Switzerland, whose coat of arms has an eagle. The
youngest sister moved with her husband to Dauphiné, France, whose coat of arms has
a dolphin. Reynald stayed at his parents' court and married his three brothers-in-law's
sisters.

4.2.15 certainly

"That's a terrible story," said a hen who lived in the place where the story did not
happen. "That's a terrible story that happened in the chicken coop! I can't sleep alone
tonight! It's so nice to have so many of us upstairs together." Then she told her story,
and the other chickens' feathers stood up, and the cockerel's comb fell off. It was really
true!

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Let's start from the beginning. It happened in a chicken coop in another part of town.
The sun had just set and the chickens were flying back to their roosts. One of the
chickens had white feathers and, despite its short legs, it laid eggs normally and
behaved like a hen. It walked to the top of the stairs and plucked a small feather with its
beak. It said, "There she lies." "The more I pluck, the more beautiful I become!"

This was only a joke; for this hen was the happiest of all, and, as I say, very respectable.

It was pitch black, and a hen was sitting next to another hen. The hen sitting next to the
white-feathered hen was not sleeping; she heard the noise, but she never heard it again,
as people should do in order to live in peace in this world. But she had to tell the other
neighbor, "Did you hear what was said here? I don't want to name anyone, but there is
a hen who wants to pluck her feathers to make herself look prettier. If I were a rooster, I
would despise them!"<<<

Above the chickens sat an owl, along with Mr. Owl and the owl children. The family had
good ears and could hear everything the neighbor's hens said. The hens rolled their
eyes, and the mother owl fanned with her wings: "Don't listen to it, but you should have
heard what they said, right? I heard it with my own ears, you have to listen to it a few
more times, or they will fall off!" One hen forgot how to be a hen, and sat there plucking
all her feathers, while the rooster watched. <<<

"'Take good care of the children!'" said the father owl. "That's not good for the children!"
I want to tell the neighbor owl that she is a very respectable owl! After that, the mother
owl flew away.

>>Hey! "Uh-huh!" They howled together, and the howling sound reached directly to the
neighbor's pigeon loft.

>>>Did you hear that? Did you hear that? Owl! There was a hen that plucked out all her
feathers and gave them to the rooster! If she hadn't frozen to death, wow! <«<

>>>Where? "Where?" the pigeon cooed.

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>>In the neighbor's yard. I almost saw it myself. It's almost inappropriate to tell this story.
But it's for sure! <«<

"It is so sure, we believe it, we believe every word of it," said the dove, and it buzzed
into the dovecote. One of the hens, yes, some said two, had plucked out her feathers in
order not to look different from the other hens and attract the cock's attention. It is a
dangerous game, you could catch a cold, or even a fever and die; and they both died!

Wake up! Wake up! The cock crowed and flew to the wooden fence, sleepy but still
crowing: three hens died because of an unfortunate love affair with a cock, and they
plucked out all their feathers. This story is terrible! I don't want to keep them for myself,
let them go!

"Let them go!" the bats whistled, the hens clucked, the cocks crowed: "Let them go!" Let
them go! <«Then the story passed from one chicken coop to another, and finally
returned to where it began.

>It is said that five hens plucked out all their feathers to show who was the most
devoted to a cock, then pecked each other to a bloody pulp and finally dropped dead,
bringing shame to their families and great loss to their owner. <

The molting hen, of course, didn't know her own story. As a proper hen, she said, "I
despise these chickens; but there are many such cases. People should not keep silent
about such things. I will try my best to publish this story in the newspaper and spread it
all over the country. These chickens deserve this treatment, and this family deserves it
too."

The news made it into the newspapers and was widely publicized: a tiny feather could
potentially turn into five chickens.

Comment: This is a story about a rumor. Originally, the hen plucked out a feather that
was a different color from the rest, and she was right. After plucking that feather, she did
become more beautiful. But in the end, the rumor spread to five other hens, and they

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plucked out all their feathers for the sake of beauty! So much so that the hen who
originally spread the rumor looked down on the hen who spread the rumor! These rumor
problems are often not intentional. For example, someone is queuing up, and the first
person tells the second person something, and the second person tells the third person
what he just heard, and so on. After just a dozen times of transmission, the information
is completely distorted!

4.2.16 collar

There was once a gentleman who had only one boot and a comb in his house. But he
had the most beautiful collar in the world, of which we shall come. Now he was of an
age to think of marrying, and he happened to go into the laundry with his garters on.

"No!" said the collar, "I have never seen anything so delicate, so fine, so soft, and so
lovely! What is your name, please?"

―I would not say so,‖ said the Lord of the Garter.

"Where are you from?" asked the collar.

But the naturally shy Garter thought that answer was a little odd. "You're a belt, aren't
you?" said the Collar. "Inner belt? I see. They double as decoration, little virgin!"

"Don't talk to me!" said the Lord of the Garter. "I don't think I gave any reason."

"Yes, as long as you are as beautiful as you are now!" said the collar. "That's reason
enough."<<<

"Don't come so close to me," said the Lord of the Garter. You look very manly. <<<

"I am a gentleman too!" said the collar, "I have a boot puller and a comb!" This was not
true at all, for only his master had such things; but he was proud of it.

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"Don't come near me!" said the Lord of the Garter. I'm not used to this. <<<

>>>"Timid girl!" said the collar, and then they were taken from the laundry; they were
starched and hung on a chair in the sun, and then placed on the ironing board. The
warm iron came.

>>>Widow<On the collar it says: "Little Widow! I feel so warm. I am a completely

different person, all the wrinkles are gone, you burned a big hole in me! Oh! I'm chasing
you!"<<<

"Behind the neck!" said the iron block proudly, crossing his neck and imagining himself
as a steam boiler pulling a carriage on the railway.

It said: "'Villain!'"

The edges of the collar were a little frayed so I used scissors to trim the fringe a bit.

"Oh!" said the collar. "You must be a solo dancer! You stretch your legs so well! It's the
most fascinating thing I've ever seen. No one can do it."

"I know!" said the scissors.

"You are worthy of a countess," said the collar. "I have only a gentleman, a bootmaker,
and a comb. If only I had a county!"<<<

"Will you marry me?" the scissors asked angrily. Then she gave him a hard cut and he
was finished.

"I'd better get a comb," Cora said. "It's amazing how well your hair stays, little girl.
Haven't you ever thought about getting engaged?"

Coral: "Yes, you should know," said Comb, "I'm engaged to that boot-taking whore!"

On his collar it said: "Engaged"; now he had no need to court. He despised courtship.

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After a long time, the collar was put into a box in the paper mill. There were a lot of rags
in the paper mill, and they used the fine ones and the coarse ones, and each had its
own use, and everything was just right. They all had a lot to say, but Cragen said the
most; he was really a braggart.

>I've been in so many bad relationships, said the collar, and I've never had peace! But
I'm a gentleman, too, and very capable! I have a boot remover and a comb that I never
use. You should have seen what I looked like, and what it was like when I was killed! I'll
never forget my first love; it was a garter, very delicate, very soft, and very lovely; she
jumped into the barrel because of me! I also had a widow who became glorious, but I
left her standing, and then she turned black. And a solo dancer who gave me scars that
I still have; she was so wild! My hairbrush fell in love with me, too, but lost all its hair
because of a broken heart. Yes, I've been in a lot of that. But most of all, I'm sorry for
that garter - I mean the one that fell into the barrel. My conscience is so badly
condemned that I've almost become a blank sheet of paper. <<<

All the rags turned into blank paper; and the collar turned into the blank paper we see
now, on which this story is printed. This is because he exaggerated what did not exist
originally; we should keep this in mind so as not to repeat the same mistake. Because
we really don‘t know whether one day we will be put into the rag box and become blank
paper, on which our story, even the most secret story, will be printed, and then we
ourselves will tell it everywhere like the collar.

4.2.17 Great Lion Lark

Once upon a time there was a man who was going on a journey to a faraway land.
Before he left, he asked his three daughters what they should take with them. The
eldest daughter wanted pearls, the second daughter wanted diamonds, but the third
daughter said, "Dear father, I want a singing and dancing lark." "Well," said the father, "if
I can get it, I will give it to you." He kissed the three daughters and left. When he was

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leaving, he bought pearls and diamonds for the two eldest daughters, but he looked
everywhere for the singing and dancing lark for the youngest daughter, but in vain. He
felt sad about this, because she was his favorite child. He was passing through a forest,
and in the center of the forest there was a magnificent castle. Near the castle there was
a tree, but he saw a lark singing and dancing on the top of the tree. "Well, you are just
what I need," he said happily, and told his servants to climb up and catch the little
animal. But when he approached the tree, a lion jumped up from under the tree, and
with a sudden shock, he roared so loudly that the leaves trembled: "Whoever dares to
steal my singing and dancing lark," he cried, "I will eat him."

The man said, "I did not know that the bird was yours. I will pay a great sum of gold to
atone for my fault and to redeem my life." The lion said, "Nothing can save you unless
you promise to give me the first thing you find in the house. If you do, I will spare your
life and give the bird to your daughter." The man refused, saying,

" It could be my youngest daughter, who loves me the most and always comes to greet
me when I come home." The servant was frightened and said, "Do you really want to
see your daughter? It doesn't matter if it's a cat or a dog." The man believed these
words and took the singing and dancing lark away, promising the lion that he would give
it the first thing he saw in the house. When he returned home and walked through the
door, the first thing that caught his eye was his youngest and dearest daughter; she ran
to kiss him and hugged him, and she was even more delighted when she saw that he
had brought a singing and dancing lark. But the father was not pleased and cried, "My
dearest child, I paid dearly for this little bird, and now I must marry you to a wild lion,
who will tear you to pieces and eat you when he catches you." He told her everything
that had happened and begged her not to go, no matter what happened. But she
consoled him, saying, "Dear father, you must keep your promise. I will go and appease
the lion, and then I will be able to return to you in safety." The next morning, someone
showed her the way, and she took her leave and walked confidently into the forest.
However

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, the lion was the son of a king who had been enchanted. During the day, he was a lion,
and his people were also lions, but at night they changed back to their natural human
form. When she arrived, he received her warmly and performed the wedding. At night,
he changed back into a handsome man. They lived happily for a long time, keeping
watch at night and sleeping during the day. One day he came back and said to me,
"Tomorrow there will be a great feast at your father's house, for your eldest sister is
getting married, and if you wish to go my lion will take you there." She agreed, saying
that she wanted to see her father again, and so she went with the lion. When she
arrived, everyone was delighted, for they had all thought that she had been dead for a
long time, and had been torn to pieces by the lion. But she told them that she was alive
and well, and had been with them during the wedding, and then she drove back into the
forest. When the second daughter got married, she was again invited to the wedding,
and she said to the lion, "This time I do not want to go alone, you must come with me."
But the lion was not impressed, saying that it would be too dangerous for him, for if the
light shone on him he would be turned into a dove and would have to fly with the dove
for seven years. But she did not abandon him, saying that she wanted to protect him
and keep him away from all light. So they moved in together, with their young child.

But she had built a great hall there, so thick and hard that not a single ray of light could
get through, and there the prince sat, waiting for the lighting of the wedding candles.

But the door was made of new wood, and the wood had split, and there was a small
crack in it, but no one noticed it. The wedding was celebrated with great pomp, but as
the funeral procession returned from the church, passing through the hall by the light of
many torches and lanterns, a ray of light as wide as a strand of hair fell on the prince,
and as it fell on him he was instantly changed. When she went in to look for him, she did
not see him, but only a white dove sitting there. The dove said to her, "Now I must fly
out and spend seven years in the outside world, and for every seven steps I take I will
drop a drop of my red blood and a white feather. They will show you the way, and if you
follow this path you will be saved."

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So the dove flew out the door, and she followed the dove, and every seven steps it took,
a drop of red blood and a white feather would fall to show her the way. In this way, she
continued to walk into the wide world, without looking around or resting, and seven
years passed quickly. She was very happy, thinking that they would be released soon,
and she was still very far away. Once, she continued to walk forward without dropping a
feather or a drop of red blood, and when she opened her eyes, the dove was gone.
Because she thought that "no one else can help you", she crawled to the sun and said
to it, "Your light shines into every crevice and over every mountain peak. Don't you see
a white dove flying?" "No," said the sun, "I don't see it, but I will give you a small box.
Open it when you are in great need."

4.2.18 Allerleirauh

Once upon a time, there was a king whose wife had pure golden hair, and she was so
beautiful that no one in the world could match her beauty. It happened that she was ill in
bed and thought she was going to die, so she summoned the king and said, "After I die,
if you want to marry again, you must not marry someone who is not as beautiful as me,
and whose hair is not as golden as mine. You must promise me." After the king
promised, she closed her eyes and passed away. The king could not calm down for a
long time and had no intention of marrying a second wife. Finally, his advisers said,
"There is no other way. The king must marry again, so that we can have a queen." So
the messengers sent people to all directions to find a bride as beautiful as the late
queen. But there was no one in the world as beautiful as her, and even if she had been
so beautiful, there would never be a bride as golden as her. So the messengers
returned empty-handed. The king had a daughter who was as beautiful as her late
mother, and she also had golden hair. When she grew up, the king observed her
carefully and found that she was inseparable from his late wife. He loved her deeply,
and said to the Avengers, "I will marry my daughter, because she is exactly like my late
wife, and I will never find another bride in the world." When the members of the

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parliament heard this, they were terrified and said, "God forbids a father to marry his
daughter. No good can come from sin."

The daughter was also terrified, but she still hoped to dissuade the king from his plan.
So she said to him: "Before I can fulfill your wish, I must first get three clothes: one as
golden as the sun, one as silver as the moon, and one as shining as the stars. In
addition, I need a cloak made of a thousand different skins and coarse cloth, and each
animal in your kingdom must donate a fur for this." She thought this was impossible and
my father had to give up his idea. But the king did not give up. He summoned the most
capable maidens in the kingdom and weaved three clothes: one as golden as the sun,
one as silver as the moon, and one as shining as the stars; the hunters had to catch all
the animals in the kingdom, skin them, and then use these skins to make a piece of
clothing with different degrees of coarseness. When everything was ready, the king sent
for these things and said, "Tomorrow the wedding will take place." Seeing that her
father's mind could not be changed, the king's daughter got up at night while everyone
was asleep and took three things from the treasure: a golden ring, a golden spinning
wheel, and a golden scroll. She put the three clothes of the sun, moon, and stars into a
shell, put on a cloak made of various coarse cloths, and painted her face and hands
black with soot. Then she dedicated herself to God and walked all night until she came
to a large forest. She was very tired and sat down in a hollow tree and fell asleep.

It was already daybreak, but she was still sleeping. It happened that the king, the owner
of the forest, was hunting in the forest, and his dog came to the tree, sniffed , ran
around the tree, and barked. The king said to the hunters, "See what game is hidden
there." The hunters went there, and when they came back they said, "In the hollow of
the tree lies a strange animal that we do not know and have never seen before; it has
hair of all kinds and shapes on its fur, but it lies there sleeping." The king said, "See if
you can catch it alive and tie it to your carriage and take it away." The hunters grabbed
the girl, and she woke up and was terrified, and said, "I am a poor child, and my parents
have abandoned me. Please have pity on me and take me away." The hunters said,
"Yes, Allerleirauh, you are well suited to work in the kitchen, come with me, there you
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can sweep the ashes." So they put the girl in the carriage and drove her back to the
palace. They took her to a small stable under the stairs where the sun did not shine,
and said, "Little raccoon, you can live and sleep there." Then she was sent to the
kitchen, where she carried wood and water, added wood to the fire, plucked the
chickens, washed vegetables and dishes, swept the ashes, and did all the other dirty
work. Allerleirauh lived in extreme poverty for a long time. Oh! What will become of you,
beautiful princess? Once, there was a great feast in the castle, and she said to the cook,
"May I go upstairs and see? I am standing outside the door." The cook replied, "Yes, go,
but you must come back in half an hour to collect the ashes." Then she took the oil lamp,
went into the stable, took off her fur coat, washed the soot from her face and hands, and
her beauty came out, like the sun shining out from a dark cloud. Then she opened the
nuts and took out her clothes, which shone like the sun. After doing this, she went to the
feast, and everyone made way for her because no one knew her, and everyone thought
she was the king's daughter. The king came forward, held out his hand to her, and
danced with her, thinking, "I have never seen anyone so beautiful." When the dance
was over, she bowed. The king looked around, but she had disappeared, and no one
knew where she had gone. The guards who were guarding the castle were called, but
no one was there.

But she had already run into the stable, and quickly undressed, and blackened her face
and hands, and put on her fur coat, and turned back into Alle-La-La-Vu. She went into
the kitchen, and was about to sweep the dust, when the cook said, "Leave that till
tomorrow, and go and make some soup for the king. I want to see how it is, too, and
don't let a hair fall into it, or you'll have nothing to eat soon!" So the cook went away,
and Alle-La-La-Vu made soup for the king, and tried to make it as good as possible.
When the soup was ready, she took her gold ring from the stable and put it in the soup
bowl. When the ball was over, the king had the soup brought up, and he drank it and
liked it very much, and thought he had never had such good soup. But when he got to
the bottom of the stable, he saw a gold ring lying there, and he couldn't understand how
it had gotten there. So he ordered the cook to come over; but the cook was very
surprised at the order, and said to the grotesque, "You must have dropped your hair into
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the soup, and if that's the case, I'll beat you up." The cook came to the king, and the
king asked who had made the soup. The cook answered, "I cooked it." But the king said,
"No, it's much better than usual." The cook replied, "I have to admit, it wasn't me who
cooked it, it was little Rhubarb." The king said, "Send it up." The moth came and asked,
"Who are you?" It answered, "I am a poor child who has lost his parents." He then
asked, "Why are you in my castle?" It answered, "I'm good for nothing except having
been kicked in the head by a boot." He then asked, "Where did you get the ring in the
soup?" It answered, "I know nothing about it." The king knew nothing and had to send it
away again.

After a while, there was another feast. Allelailau asked the cook to come and see, as he
had done the last time. The cook replied, "Yes, but come back in half an hour and make
the king his favorite bread soup." With that, she ran back to the little stable, took a quick
bath, took the moon-like dress from the nut and put it on. Then she went forward
pretending to be the king's daughter, and the king greeted her and was happy to see
her again. When the ball started, they danced together. When the ball was over, she
disappeared again so quickly that the king did not notice where she had gone. But she
jumped into the little stable, turned into a little beast again, and went into the kitchen to
make bread soup. When the cook went upstairs, he took down the golden spinning
wheel and put it in a bowl, so that the soup came out of the golden spinning wheel. The
soup was served to the king. The king ate it and liked it as much as before. So he called
the cook, who was forced to admit again that the soup was made by the motley girl. The
motley girl came to the king again, but she replied that she had only come there to be
hit on the head with a boot, and that she knew nothing about the golden spinning wheel.
However, when the king gave a third banquet, nothing happened any different from the
first. The cook said, "You little rascal, you always put things in the soup to make it so
delicious, the king likes your soup better than mine." But she begged him so much that
the king let her go and wait until the appointed time. Now she put on her dress that
sparkled like a star and walked into the hall.

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4.2.19 Piggy Bank

There were too many toys in the children's room; on the dressing table stood a piggy
bank; it was made of clay. Of course, there was a slit in the back of the purse, cut with a
knife, so that the silver coins could be put in. Now there were two silver coins and many
shillings in it. The piggy bank was full and no longer jingled, and that was its limit. It
stood on the dressing table and looked down at everything in the room. It probably knew
that with the food in its stomach, it should be able to buy everything, which would be a
good idea. The others thought of this too, although they did not say it out loud; there
were other things to talk about. The drawer of the dressing table was half open, and
there was a large doll in it. She was a little old, and her neck was covered with putty;
she leaned out and said, "Can we play with human figures now?" Great! <«< Then there
was chaos, and even the pictures on the wall were turned over; they knew they were
wrong, but they did not do it. At midnight, the moonlight poured in through the window,
bringing free light. The game was about to begin, and everyone was invited, even one
of the biggest toys, the baby carriage. He said: "Everyone has merit, but not everyone is
born noble!" As the saying goes, some people must be useful too! <«Only the piggy
bank received the written invitation; it stood so high that they did not believe it would
hear the verbal invitation, and as to whether it would come, there was no answer,
because it did not come; if it was going there, it had to enjoy the game at home, and
then they could take action, which they did.

The little puppet theatre was arranged so that the piggy bank could just look inside; they
wanted to see a comedy first, then have tea and do some mental exercises, which they
promptly did.

Topel--Hans talked of training, of thoroughbreds, of trains and carriages, and of steam

power--all of which was their province, and they knew how to talk of it. The clock told of
politics--tick-tick! She knew what the clock was striking; but they said it was going in the
wrong direction. The cane stood there, proudly displaying its tip and its silver handle, for
it was jeweled at the top and bottom; and on the sofa lay two embroidered pillows,

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lovely and funny--and then the comedy could begin. Everyone sat there and watched.
The participants were asked to clap, strike, and make noises according to their feelings.
But the whip said it would not break for old people, only for the unengaged. "Whatever
happens, I'll set off the firecrackers!" said the firecracker.

"You must find a place to live!" said the spittoon.

This is what everyone thinks about when watching a comedy.

The play is not very good, but the performance is wonderful. All the actors turn their
painted faces to the audience, and the audience can only see one side of them but not
the other. Their acting is very good, even a little exaggerated. The plot is too long for
them, but this makes them more eye-catching.

The cement doll was glued so tightly that the clips came loose, and the piggy bank was
also glued so tightly that it decided to do something for one of them and write his name
in the will as the person who would lie in the grave with it.

They were so delighted that they stopped drinking their tea and went on with their
intellectual game, which was called "playing human," and it was right, for that was what
they were doing, each thinking about himself and about what the piggy bank was
thinking about, and the piggy bank thought most of all, for it was thinking about wills and
funerals. When did it happen? Always before you expected it. Snap! It fell out of the
cupboard and broke into pieces, which were scattered on the floor, and the shillings
also flew and jumped. The smallest coins spun in circles, the larger ones rolled about,
and especially the silver coin, which was eager to go out smoothly and into the world. It
came, and they all gathered together; and the pieces of the piggy bank were thrown into
the garbage can. But the next day, a new clay piggy bank appeared in the cupboard.
There was not a penny in it, so it would not rattle. In this respect it was exactly like the
other one. This was at least a beginning - and we hoped that this would also be its end.

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4.2.20 The Frog Prince

Once upon a time there was a king's daughter who was very unhappy at home, not
knowing what to do. So she got up, took her golden ball, which she often played with,
and went into the forest. In the middle of the forest there was a spring of cool water, and
she sat there, throwing the golden ball into the air and catching it again, and it was
really a toy to her. But once the golden ball flew very high, and the princess had already
raised her arm and stretched out her little finger to catch it, but the golden ball fell to the
ground beside her and rolled straight into the water.

The King's daughter looked at her in horror. But the ball sank, and the well was so deep
that she could not see the bottom. When the ball had completely sunk, the girl began to
weep miserably, and she cried out, "Oh! my golden ball! If I could only get it back, I
would give everything I have in exchange for it: my clothes, my jewels, my pearls, even
my golden crown." As she was speaking, a frog poked its head out of the water and said,
"Princess, why do you complain so much?"
' Oh,' she said, 'you nasty frog, how can you help me! My golden ball has fallen into the
well.' 'I don't like your clothes, your jewels, your pearls, or even your golden crown,'
continued the frog; but if you will accept me as your friend and companion, and let me
sit at the right hand of the little table, and eat with you from your little golden plate, and
drink from your little cup, and sleep in your little bed, then I will bring you your ball.'
'What a fool this frog is,' thought the King's daughter. 'Frogs are not companions to men,
and must stay in the water with their own kind, but perhaps he can help me get my ball
out of the well.' 'Well,' she said to the frog, 'for my sake, bring me my golden ball; and I
will give you everything.'

When the princess had finished speaking, the frog put his head into the water and sank,
but after a while he came up again, took the ball in his mouth, and threw it into the grass.
The king's child was delighted to see his toy back in his hands. The frog cried out,
"Princess, wait a minute, take me with you!" But she would not listen, and ran home with
the golden ball in her mouth, and never thought of the frog again.

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The next day, she was sitting at the table with the king and his courtiers, eating from her
little golden plate, when suddenly there was a splash! splash! splash! splash!
Something came up the marble steps, and when it reached the top, it knocked at the
door and cried, "Little princess, daughter of the king, open the door!" She ran to see
who was outside, and when she opened the door she saw a frog sitting in front of it. She
quickly closed the door and sat back at the table, terrified. The King saw how fast her
heart was beating, and asked, "What are you afraid of? Is there a giant at the door who
wants to take you away?" "Oh, no," said the little girl, "it's not a giant, but a nasty frog,
which yesterday took my golden ball out of the water in the forest. In return I promised it
to be my companion, but I never thought it could get out of the water. Now it is outside
and wants to come in." Just then there was a second knock at the door, and a voice
called out,

" King's daughter, little princess, open the door! Don't you remember what you said to
me yesterday by the cool fountain? King's daughter, little princess, open the door!"

The King said, "Since you have promised, you must keep it. Go and open the door for
him." The Princess went to open the door, and the frog jumped in and followed her all
the way to her chair. There he sat, crying, "Help me up!" The Princess was reluctant to
help him up until the King ordered her to do so. After the frog sat down on the chair next
to her, he said, "Now push your little golden plate to me, and we will eat together." The
Princess did so, but it was obvious that she did not enjoy it. The frog was now enjoying
it, but almost every bite stuck in his throat. Then he said, "Now I am full and tired. Take
me to your little room, prepare your silk bed, and we will sleep there." The Princess was
afraid of the frog's indifference and began to cry. She did not dare to touch him, and
now he should sleep in her nice, clean little bed. But the King looked at her angrily and
said, "You must keep your promise, and the frog is your companion." She had to take
the frog away whether she wanted to or not. But she felt so miserable that she held him
between two fingers and took him upstairs. When they were in bed, instead of picking
him up, she threw him against the wall with all her might, saying, "Now you can be quiet,
you nasty frog!" However, it
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was not a dead frog that fell, but a living young prince, with beautiful and friendly eyes.
Now, according to her father's wishes, he was her dear companion and husband, as a
matter of course. So they fell asleep happily. The next morning, the sun woke them up,
and a carriage drawn by eight white horses came, decorated with feathers and golden
chains, and behind it stood the young king's servant, Faithful Henry. Faithful Henry was
so heartbroken to see his master turned into a frog that he had to put three iron rings
around his heart to prevent it from bursting with pain and sorrow. The carriage was
supposed to carry the young king back to his kingdom, and Faithful Henry took them
both into the carriage and then stood behind it, overjoyed at his rescue. They had not
gone far when the prince heard a loud noise behind him, as if something had broken.
He turned and cried, "Henrich, the carriage has broken down!" -

" No, sir, it's not the carriage that has broken down, but a stone in my heart that has
been lying there in pain ever since you were a frog sitting in the well." There were
crashing sounds on the road again and again, and the prince kept thinking that the
carriage had broken down, but it was only the shackles in the heart of loyal Henry that
were broken, because his master was free and happy again.

4.2.21 The Brave Little Tailor

One summer morning, a little tailor was sitting at a table by the window, sewing with
great interest. At this time, a peasant woman came from the street and shouted, "Good
raisins for sale! Good raisins for sale!"
The little tailor was overjoyed to hear this. He quickly stuck his head out of the window
and shouted, "Come up, dear lady, your goods are here."

The woman came up three flights of stairs with her heavy basket to the tailor and
unloaded all the jars in front of him. He looked at all the jams, lifted them up, smelled

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them, and finally said, "I think this jam is good. Dear madam, please weigh it for me.
Even a quarter of a pound is nothing to me." The woman, who had hoped to find a good
sale, gave him what he wanted and left in anger and irritation.

―And now, may God bless me with this jam,‖ cried the little tailor, ―may it give me
strength and power,‖ and as he said this he took a loaf of bread from the cupboard, cut
a piece from the whole loaf, and spread the jam on it.

"It won't be bitter," he said, "but I want to finish this double bread before I bite it." He put
the bread beside him and went on sewing, making his stitches bigger and bigger with
joy. Meanwhile, the smell of jam wafted to the wall, where flies gathered and fluttered.

"Hey, who invited you?" said the tailor, and he drove away the uninvited guest. But the
flies did not know German, and they could not be driven away, but came back in droves.
Then, as they say, the tailor could not bear it any longer, and he took out a rag from hell
and said, "Wait a minute, I'll give it to you!" The rag hit him mercilessly. He went away to
count, but saw seven bodies lying in front of him, with their legs stretched out.

" Are you that kind of person?" he said, admiring his courage. "The whole city should
know about this." The tailor quickly cut himself a belt, sewed it, and embroidered a few
words on it: "One hit, seven hits!" "Oh, come on, the whole city!" he continued, "the
whole world will know!" His heart trembled with excitement like a lamb's tail. The tailor
tied the belt and wanted to go out to explore, because he felt that the studio was too
small to contain his courage. Before leaving, he looked around the house to see if there
was anything he could take away. But he found nothing except a piece of old cheese,
which he put into his pocket. In the bushes before the door he found a bird; he had to
put it in his bag along with the cheese.

Now he walked bravely along the path between his legs, and because of his lightness
and agility he did not feel tired. The path led him up a hill, and when he reached the top
he saw a giant sitting there, looking around leisurely. The little tailor walked up to him

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boldly and said to him, "Hello, friend, are you sitting there looking at the world outside? I
am going there now to try my luck. Will you come with me?"

4.2.22 Tom Thumb

There was a poor peasant who sat by the stove in the evening and added wood while
his wife sat there spinning. Then he said, "What a pity that we have no children! It is so
quiet here, while other houses are so noisy and cheerful!" "Yes," the woman replied,
and then sighed. "If there were only one child, even if it was very small, only the size of
a thumb, I would be satisfied; we would love it with all our hearts." Then the woman fell
ill, and seven months later gave birth to a child with all its limbs intact, but no taller than
a thumb. They said, "This is exactly what we wanted, this is our dear child." They
named it "Thumbelina" because of its appearance. They had enough food, but the child
did not grow up, and was still the same as the first hour, but he had a keen eye and
soon showed that he was a smart child and was successful in everything he did.

Once, as the farmer was about to go into the forest to chop wood, he thought to himself,
"Now I really wish someone would help me pull the cart over." "Oh, father," cried Tom
Thumb, "I will see to it that the cart reaches the forest on time." The farmer laughed and
said, "How can that be? You are too small to pull the horse." "That's all right, father, as
long as mother is willing to take care of the horse, I will sit by the horse's ear and
command it." "All right," replied the father, "we will give it a try."

When the time came, the mother put on the harness, put her thumb on the horse's ear,
and then the little guy shouted how the horse should go, and yeah, ho, good, hare!
Everything went smoothly, as if he had met a master, and the cart drove in the right
direction of the forest. As it happened, when he turned the corner, the little guy... Ha!
"Ha!" shouted, and two strangers came up. "My God," said one, "what is that? There is
a carriage driving away, and the driver is calling for the horses, but I can't see it!" "It

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can't be," said the other, "let's follow the carriage and see where it stops. "The carriage
drove straight into the forest and came to the lumberyard. When Tom Thumb saw his
father, he shouted, "Dad, look, I'm pushing the carriage, let me down." The father
grabbed the horse with his left hand and took his little son out of the horse's ear with his
right hand. The little son sat happily on a piece of straw. The two strangers were so
surprised to see Tom Thumb that they were speechless. At this time, one of them pulled
the other aside and said, "Look, if we can take this little guy to the big city to make
money, we can make him rich; we will buy him." They went to the farmer and said, "Sell
this little guy to us, and he will live a good life here with us." "No," the father replied,
"even if there is all the gold in the world, I can't sell my love."

However, when Tom Thumb learned of the transaction, he got into his father's coat,
stood on his father's shoulders, and whispered in his ear, "Dad, let me out, I will be back
soon." Then the father sold him to the two men for a large sum of money. "Where do
you want to sit? " they asked him. "Oh, put me on the brim of your hat, so I can walk
around and see the scenery, as if I were in a picture gallery." They obeyed his wishes,
and after Tom Thumb took good-bye to his father, they set out with him. They walked
like this until evening, and the little fellow said, "Take me down once if necessary." "You
stay there," he said, sitting on his father's head, "I don't want to worry about it, and the
birds sometimes drop things on me." "No," said Tom Thumb, "I know what to do, just put
me down quickly." The man took off his hat and put the little fellow down in a field by the
roadside. The little fellow jumped and crawled among the clods of earth for a while, and
suddenly crawled into a mouse hole he found. He shouted: "Good evening, gentlemen,
you succeeded. "They ran forward and poked the hole with branches, but it was all in
vain. Tom Thumb kept climbing back, and it was soon dark, so they had to go home
with anger and empty luggage.

When Tom Thumb found that they were gone, he climbed out of the underground
passage again. "It's too dangerous to walk in the fields at night," he said, "It's easy to
break your neck or leg!" Fortunately, he found an empty snail shell: "Thank God! I can

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spend the night there safely!" Then he sat in it. Not long after, he was about to fall
asleep when he heard two people passing by, one of whom asked: "How can we get the
money and silver of that rich pastor?" "I'll tell you," Tom Thumb interrupted. "What is
that?" One of the thieves shouted in panic: "I hear someone talking." They stopped to
listen, and Tom Thumb spoke again: "Take me with you, I'll help you." "Where are you?"
He replied: "Just look at the ground and you'll know where the sound comes from."
Finally, the two thieves found him and helped him up. "You little bastard, why are you
helping us? " they said. "Listen," he answered, "I will slip into the parson's room through
the crack in the iron bars, and give you what you want. " "Well," said they, "we will see
what you can do." When they reached the parsonage, Tom Thumb crept in, but
immediately shouted at the top of his voice: "Do you want everything here?" The
robbers were frightened, and said, "Keep your voice down, or you will wake them."
Thumb pretended not to understand, and shouted again: "What do you want? Do you
want everything here?" The cook, who was sleeping in the next room, heard this, sat up
and listened. The robbers were so frightened that they stepped back a long way. At last,
they plucked up their courage, thinking that the little guy was teasing us, so they came
back and whispered to him: "Now talk seriously and give us something." Tom Thumb
shouted again: "As long as you stretch out your hand, I will give you everything. "The
maid heard it all, and leaped out of bed, and staggered out of the door. The robbers fled
as if there was a fire, but the maid saw nothing, so she went to light a candle. When she
came back with the candle, Thumbelina had slipped away into the barn; but the maid
looked for her everywhere, but could not find her, so she lay down on her bed again,
with her eyes open and her ears pricked up, thinking she was only dreaming.

Thumbelina climbed through the haystacks and found a comfortable place to sleep. She
wanted to rest there until daybreak and then go home to her parents. But what else was
she going to learn! Yes, there was too much sorrow and pain in the world! As usual, the
maid got up at dawn to feed the cows. Her first stop was the barn and grabbed a
handful of hay, in which poor Thumbelina lay down and fell asleep. But he was sleeping
so soundly that he knew nothing until he was awakened by the cow with the hay in its
mouth. "Oh, my God," he cried, "how did I get into the fuller's house!" But he soon
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realized where he was. You have to be careful not to let the hay get stuck in your teeth
and then slip into your stomach. "The windows of this hut are all forgotten," he said, "the
sun can't get in and can't get out!" In general, he didn't like his living place, and the
worst of it was that the closer the fresh hay was to the door, the smaller the space
became. At last he was so frightened that he cried out, "No more food! No more food!"
The maid was milking the cows, and when she saw that no one was there, she heard
voices, the same voices she had heard at night, and she was so frightened that she
slipped off her chair and spilled the milk. She ran to her master, crying, "Oh, God, father,
the cows are talking." The minister answered the maid, "You are mad!" But he went into
the cowshed himself to see what was going on. But no sooner had he entered than Tom
Thumb began to cry out again, "No more food! No more food!" The minister himself was
frightened, and thinking it was the devil, he ordered the cows to be killed. The cows
were now slaughtered, and Tom Thumb's belly was thrown into the dunghill. Mr. Thumb
tried to escape, but it was not easy. He managed to squeeze out a little space, but just
as he was about to put his head out, his misfortune came again: a wolf jumped over and
swallowed his whole belly in one gulp. Mr. Thumb was not discouraged. He thought the
wolf might listen to him, so he shouted from his stomach: "Dear wolf, I know a delicious
meal for you." "Where can I get it?" the wolf said. "At So-and-so's house. You must
crawl in through the gutter, and then you can find cakes, bacon, and sausages, and eat
as much as you want." He described his father's house in detail. The wolf did not need
repeated warnings. He crawled into the gutter at night and ate to his heart's content in
the pantry. When he was full, he wanted to go again, but he was so fat that he could not
walk. Tom Thumb had expected this, so he began to shout loudly in the wolf's stomach,
roaring at the top of his voice. "Be quiet!" the wolf said, "you are waking up the other
wolves." "Oh, hurry up," the little guy replied, "you are full, and I want to play too!" With
that, he shouted desperately again. This woke his parents, who ran into the room and
looked in through the crack. Seeing the wolf, they were terrified. The man took out his
axe and the woman took out her sickle. "Stay here," said the man, as they entered the
room, "and I will beat him to death, and if he is not dead, you may beat him and cut his

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body into pieces." Then Tom Thumb heard his father's voice, and cried out, "Father,
here I am, I am in the wolf's belly!"

The father said with joy, "Thank God, our dearest child has been found again." He told
the woman to put away the sickle and not to hurt him. Then he swung his arm and hit
the wolf on the head, and the wolf fell to the ground dead. They found a knife and a pair
of scissors, cut open the wolf's stomach, and pulled out their dear child. "Ah," said the
father, "we were so worried about you!" "Yes, father, I have been to many places in the
world, thank God, I can breathe fresh air again." "Where have you been?" "Ah, father, I
have crawled through rat holes, entered cows' stomachs, and entered wolves' stomachs,
and now I have finally come to you." "Even if we give you all the wealth in the world, we
will never sell you again." Then they hugged and kissed their dear thumb, gave him food
and drink, and made new clothes for him, because his own clothes were destroyed
during the journey.

4.2.23 Smart Else

Once upon a time there was a man who had a daughter named Elsa the Clever. When
she grew up, her father said, "We want her to marry." "Yes," said her mother, "if anyone
comes looking for her." Finally, a man named Hans came from a distant country and
proposed to her on the condition that Elsa the Clever would also be very clever. "Oh,"
said the father, "she has a thread in her head." "Ah," said the mother, "she can see the
wind in the street and hear the cough of the flies." "Yes," said Hans, "if she were not
clever, I would not have chosen her." As they sat down at the table to eat, the mother
said, "Elsa, go to the cellar and get some beer." So Elsa took the kettle from the wall
and went into the cellar, obediently closing the lid on the way so as not to get bored.
When she got downstairs, she moved a small chair in front of the barrel so that she
would not have to bend over and strain her back or suffer any accidental injuries. Then
she put the kettle in front of her and turned on the tap. As the beer flowed out, she didn't

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want to close her eyes and rest, so she looked up at the wall for a long time and saw a
pickaxe above her head, which was accidentally stuck in by the bricklayer. At this time,
smart Elsa began to shout: "If I have Hans and we have another child, when he grows
up and we take him to the cellar to get beer, the pickaxe will fall on his head and kill
him!"

She sat there, weeping bitterly for the misfortune that was about to happen. The people
upstairs were waiting for water, but clever Elsie never came back. So the woman said to
the maid, "Go to the cellar and see where Elsie is." The maid went to see her and found
her sitting by the barrel, screaming loudly. "Why are you crying?" asked the maid. "Oh,"
she answered, "I shouldn't cry! If I give birth to Hans, and we have another child, when
he grows up and wants to draw water here, the pickaxe may fall on his head and kill
him." The maid said, "We have a clever Elsie in the house!" She sat down next to Elsie
and began to cry for the misfortune that had happened.

After a while, the maid still didn't come back, and the people upstairs were thirsty, so the
man said to the servant, "Go to the cellar and see where Elsie and the maid are." The
maid went downstairs and saw clever Elsie sitting with the maid, and they were crying
bitterly. The maid asked, "Why are you crying?" "Ah," said Els, "I shouldn't cry! If I give
birth to Hans, we will have a child, and when he grows up and wants to draw water here,
the pickaxe will fall and kill him." The maid said, "Our Els is so smart!" He sat down next
to the maid and began to howl loudly. They waited upstairs for the maid, but she didn't
come. The man said to the woman, "Go to the cellar and see where Els is." The woman
went downstairs and found the three of them howling loudly. She asked why, and Els
told her that when her future child grows up and wants to draw beer, the pickaxe might
fall and kill him. At this time, the mother also said, "Oh, our Els is so smart!" Then she
sat down and cried. The man upstairs also waited for a while, and seeing that his wife
had not returned and that he was getting more and more thirsty, he said, "I must go
down to the basement myself and see where Elsa is." But when he went down to the
basement, he saw that everyone was sitting together crying, and he heard the reason:
something was wrong with Elsa's child, and that she might give birth to this child one
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day, and that if this child happened to sit under the pick and drink beer, the pick would
fall and kill her. He shouted, "Elsa is so clever!" and sat down and cried.

The bridegroom stayed upstairs alone for a long time. He thought, since no one wants
to come back, they must be waiting for you downstairs, and you must go and see what
they are doing. When he came down, he saw five people sitting there, crying and
shouting, each one more miserable than the other. "So, what bad thing happened?" he
asked. "Ah, dear Hans," said Else, "when we are married and have a child, when he
grows up, maybe we will let him come here to fetch water, and then the pickaxe will fall
and smash his head and leave him lying there. Then we won't cry anymore, right?"
"Well," said Hans, "there is no need to say more. Since you are so smart, I will marry
you." He took her hand, led her upstairs, and married her.

Hans stayed with her for a while and said, "Wife, I want to go out and work to earn some
money. You go to the fields and harvest the crops, so that we can have bread to eat."
"Yes, dear Hans, I will go at once." After Hans left, she cooked herself some porridge
and took it with her to the fields. When she came to the fields, she said to herself, "What
shall I do? Harvest first or eat first? Ah! I will eat first!" Now that she had finished her
porridge and was full, she said again, "What shall I do? Eat first or sleep first? Ah! I will
sleep first!" Then she lay down in the corn and fell asleep. Hans had been home for a
long time, but Els did not want to come back, so he said, "I have a clever Els! She is so
busy that she does not even come home for dinner." But when she had not come home
yet and it was already dark, Hans went out to see what she had harvested, but he found
that she had harvested nothing and was sleeping in the corn. Hans ran home quickly
and got a bird-proof net with little bells hanging on it and covered her with it, but she
continued to sleep. Then he ran home, sat down on a chair and closed the front door.
Finally, when it was already dark, clever Elsa woke up. She stood up and with every
step she took there was a creaking sound around her .

She was frightened and wondered if she was clever Elsa, so she asked, "Is it me?" But
she didn't know how to answer and hesitated for a while. Finally, she thought, "I'll go

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home and ask if it's me, and then they'll know." Then she ran to the front door, which
was locked, and she knocked on the window and shouted, "Hans, is Elsa in there?"
"Yes," Hans answered, "she's in there." She was immediately frightened and shouted,
"Oh my God! That's not me!" Then she went to another door, but people would not open
their doors when they heard the bell, and she did that everywhere. Then she ran out of
the village.

4.2.24 Seven Crows

A man had seven sons, but no daughter, no matter how much he desired. Finally, his
wife gave him another hope of having a child, and when the child was born, it was a girl.
Although she was old, she was still small and delicate, and because of her weak
constitution, she had to be baptized urgently. So the father sent one boy to the spring to
get water, but the other six boys chased after him. Each wanted to be the first to draw
water, but his pot fell into the well; they stood there, at a loss, and no one dared to go
home. The father was worried that the girl would die because she was not baptized, and
wondered why the boys had not returned home for so long. "They must have played
games again and forgot about baptism!" When they still did not appear, he cursed
angrily: "I wish all the boys would turn into crows!" As soon as he finished speaking, he
heard a whirring sound in the air above his head, and looking up, he saw seven black
crows flying up.

A man had seven sons, but no daughter, no matter how much he desired. Finally, his
wife gave him another hope of having a child, and when the child was born, it was a girl.
Although she was old, she was still small and delicate, and because of her weak
constitution, she had to be baptized urgently. So the father sent one boy to the spring to
get water quickly, but the other six boys chased after him. Each wanted to be the first to
get water, but their pitchers fell into the well; they stood there, at a loss, and no one
dared to go home. The father was afraid that the girl would die because she was not

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baptized, and wondered why the boys had not returned home for so long.

" They must have forgotten because of their games again!" Seeing that they still did not
appear, he cursed angrily: "I wish all the boys would turn into ravens!" As soon as he
finished speaking, he heard a whirring sound overhead, and looking up, he saw seven
black ravens flying up. The parents could no longer take back the curse, and although
they were sad about the loss of their seven sons, they found some comfort in their dear
little daughter, who quickly regained her strength and became more beautiful every day.
For a long time she had no idea she had any brothers or sisters, her parents carefully
kept it a secret from her, until one day she heard people talking about her: yes, she was
beautiful, but in fact, she was responsible for the misfortunes of her seven brothers. She
was very sad, so she went to her parents and asked if she had any brothers and where
they had gone. Now her parents could no longer keep the secret, so they said it was
God's will and that her birth was just an innocent chance; but the girl felt guilty every day,
convinced that she had an obligation to save her brothers and sisters, and she would
never be at peace unless she secretly went out into the world and tried at all costs to
find and save her brothers. She took nothing with her, only a small ring given by her
parents as a souvenir, a piece of bread (for when she was hungry), a pot of water (for
when she was thirsty), and a small chair (for when she was tired).

Now it stretched infinitely, to the end of the world. Then it came to the Sun, but the Sun
was too hot and terrible, and ate the child; she hurried to the Moon, but the Moon was
too cold and terrible, too evil. When the Moon noticed the child, she said, "I smell it, I
smell human flesh!" So she hurried to the stars, and they were all very kind to him, and
each sat down on his own little chair. But the Morning Star stood up, gave him a small
bone, and said, "If you don't have a bone, you can't go into the Glass Mountain, and
your brothers are in the Glass Mountain." The girl took the small bone, wrapped it in a
cloth, and went on until she came to the Glass Mountain, and the door was closed. Now
she wanted to get the small bone, but when she opened the handkerchief, it was empty,
and she had lost the gift of the kind star. What should she do now? She wanted to save
her brother, but she didn't have the key to the Glass Mountain? The kind little sister took
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out a knife, cut off her little finger, stuck it into the door, and happily opened it. As soon
as he entered the door, one of the dwarfs came up to him and asked, "What are you
looking for, child?" "I am looking for my brothers, the seven crows," the crows answered.
"The crows are not at home, so if you want to wait for them here, come in." The dwarfs
put food for the crows on seven small plates and seven small cups, and the little sister
ate a little crumb from each plate and drank from each cup. But she dropped the little
ring she had been wearing into the last cup.

Suddenly, he heard a rustling sound in the air, and the dwarf said, "Now the crows are
going home!" Then they flew over, wanting to eat and drink, and looked for their little
plates and cups; then they said one after another, "Who eats from my little plate? Who
drinks from my little cup? This is a human mouth!" When the seventh child climbed to
the bottom, a little ring fell towards him. He looked and saw that it was a ring given by
his parents, so he said, "May God bless our little sister, otherwise we are lost!" The girl
who was eavesdropping behind the door heard this and came out, and all the crows
regained their human form. They hugged and kissed each other, and then went home
happily.

4.2.25 Faithful Animal

Once upon a time there was a man who had no money and had to go out with what little
he had left to earn a living. Then he came to a village where the boys were gathered
together, jumping for joy and making noise. "What are you doing, boys?" he asked.
"Well," they answered, "there's a mouse here who wants to dance for us. Look how well
it dances! How happily it dances!" But the man felt sorry for the poor little animal and
said, "Boys, let the mouse go and I'll give you money." So he gave them the money and
they let the mouse go, and it ran away quickly into a hole. After the man left, he came to
another village where the boys had a monkey, and they made it dance and do
somersaults, and laughed at it and would not let it rest. So the man gave them money

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and they let the monkey go. After that, the man came to a third village where the boys
had a bear, and the bear had to sit up and dance, and the boys roared after the bear,
and the boys agreed. Then the man bought it back, and the bear happily stood up on all
fours again and trotted away.

But now the man had spent all the little money he had left, and had nothing left in his
pocket. So he thought to himself, "There is plenty of money in the king's treasury, and
he doesn't need it. You won't starve to death. Take some and give it back when you
have money." So he went to the treasury and took out some money. But when he
sneaked out, he was caught by the king's men.

They accused him of being a thief, took him to court, and sentenced him to be placed in
a chest on water. The lid of the chest was full of holes for breathing, and inside was a
jug of water and a piece of bread. He was swimming in the water, scared out of his wits,
when he heard something crawling, gnawing, and snoring on the lock, and suddenly the
lock sprang open, and the lid flew up, and inside stood the rat, the monkey, and the
bear, who had done it. Because he had helped them, they wanted to help him again.
They were wondering what to do and talking to each other, when a white stone floated
on the water, like a round egg. The bear said, "It has come just in time. It is a magical
stone. Whoever possesses it can have any wish fulfilled." So the man took the stone,
held it in his hand, and wished for a castle with a garden and a stable. As soon as he
had said his wish, he sat in the castle, which had a garden and a stable. Everything was
so beautiful and splendid that he was amazed.

After a while a merchant passed by. "Look," they cried, "what a magnificent castle that
is! When we last passed it was only a pile of sand." Curious, they went in and asked the
man how he had built all this so quickly. "I did not do it," he answered, "but my
Philosopher's Stone." - "What is this stone?" they asked. So he went and fetched the
Philosopher's Stone and showed it to the merchant. They were very eager to do so, and
asked if they could buy him, promising to buy all the beautiful Malkins. The man, whose
eyes were attracted by Malkins and whose heart was fickle, accepted the inquiry, and

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thinking that these beautiful things were more valuable than his Philosopher's Stone,
gave it to them. But no sooner had he let it go than all his good fortune vanished, and
he suddenly found himself sitting in a locked chest by the river, with a jug of water and a
piece of bread beside him. The faithful animals, the mouse, the monkey, and the bear,
seeing his misfortune, came again and wanted to help him, but they could not even
open the lock, for it was much stronger than the first time.

The bear said, "We must get the Philosopher's Stone back, or all this will be in vain."
The merchants still lived in the castle, so the animals went to the castle together. As
they approached, the bear said, "Mouse, go to the keyhole and see if you can do
anything. You are too small, and no one will notice you." The mouse was willing, but
soon turned away and said, "That's impossible. I looked inside. The Philosopher's Stone
was hung under the mirror with a red ribbon, and on either side sat two huge cats with
flaming eyes. They are said to be the guardians of the Philosopher's Stone." The other
animals said, "Go back and wait until the master is asleep, then crawl through the hole,
climb onto the bed, pinch the master's nose and bite off his hair." The mouse went back
to the house and did what the other mice said. The master woke up, rubbed his nose,
and said angrily, "These cats are so mean; they made the mice bite off the hair on my
head." With that, they both ran away. The mouse won the game.

The next night, while the owner was asleep, the mouse got in, bit off the red ribbon that
was hanging from the stone, and dragged it to the front door. This made the poor little
mouse very angry, and she said to the monkey, who had been waiting for her: "Now
stretch out your paws and get it all out!" This was easy for the monkey, and he took the
stone on his shoulders, and together they walked towards the river. The monkey asked:
"How can we get the box now?" The bear said: "It will be very quick and easy. I will go
swimming. Monkey, sit on my back, but hold on with your hands and hold the stone in
your mouth. Mouse, you can sit by my right ear." So they did as they were told, and
swam down the river. After a while, the bear quieted down and began to chatter: "Listen,
monkey, we are good friends, don't you think?" - but the monkey did not answer and
remained silent. "Hey!" said the bear, "You won't answer me? Those who don't answer

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are bad people!" When the monkey heard this, he opened his mouth, threw the stone
into the water, and said, "I can't answer. The stone was in my mouth and now it's gone.
It's all your fault." "Quiet," said the bear, "we'll find a way." So they talked together,
summoned the tree frogs, toads, and all the pests that lived in the water, and said, "A
powerful enemy is coming. Collect stones, and we'll build you a wall to protect you." The
animals were terrified and threw stones from all directions. Finally, an old and fat frog
slid up from the bottom of the water, holding the red ribbon with the magic stone in his
mouth. The bear saw this and was very happy: "We got what we wanted." He took the
frog's burden, told the animals that it was all right, and hurriedly said goodbye. So the
three of them went downstairs to the man in the box and blew open the lid of the box
with the stone. They arrived in time because he had eaten bread and drank water and
was in a semi-comatose state. When he had the stone, he hoped that he would regain
his strength and health, and be able to go to his beautiful castle with its garden and
stables, and live happily there, and the three animals would be able to keep him
company for the rest of his life.

4.2.26 Four Art Brothers

Once upon a time, there was a poor man who had four sons. When they grew up, he
said to them, "My dear children, you must go out into the world. I have nothing to give
you. Go abroad and learn a trade and see if you can survive." After that, the four
brothers leaned on their crutches, said goodbye to their father, and walked out together.
They walked a short distance and came to a crossroads leading to four different regions.
The eldest son said, "We have to part here, but we will meet here again in four years
and try our luck then." So everyone went their separate ways. The eldest son met a
man and asked him where he was going and what he wanted to do. "I want to learn a
trade," he replied.

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Then the man said, "Come with me and be a thief." "No," he answered, "this is no
longer a serious business, and someone has to ring the bell in the end." "Oh!" said the
man, "you don't have to be afraid of the gallows. I just want to teach you how to get
what others can't get, and how to make others can't find you." So he was persuaded,
and followed the man and became a skilled thief, and his skill was so superb that he
couldn't take anything that the man wanted. The second brother met a man who asked
him the same question: what did he want to learn in this world? He answered, "I don't
know yet." "Then come with me and be a stargazer: there is nothing better than this,
and nothing can be hidden from you." He enjoyed this feeling and finally became a
skilled stargazer. When he finished his apprenticeship and wanted to move on, the
master gave him a mirror and said to him:

" With this mirror, you can see everything that happens in the sky and the earth, and
nothing can be hidden from you."

The third brother met a hunter, who took him as an apprentice and carefully taught him
various hunting techniques, making him a skilled hunter. Before he left, the master gave
him a gun and said, "This gun will not miss. Whatever you aim at with it, it will hit it."

The third child also met a man who spoke to him and asked him what he was doing.
"Don't you want to be a tailor?" "Oh, no," the little boy said, "I sit hunched from morning
to night, waving my needle back and forth, and never think of using an iron." "Come,"
the man replied, "follow me, and you will learn a completely different tailoring skill." So
he accepted the master's advice and learned the craft according to his master's
teachings. Before he left, the man gave him a needle and said, "With this needle, you
can sew anything you think is as soft as an egg or as hard as steel together, and there
will be no cracks."

Four years later, the four brothers met at the crossroads at the appointed time,
embraced and kissed each other, and then returned to their father. They told their father
what had happened and that each of them had learned something. Now they were
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sitting under a big tree in front of the house; the father said, "I want to try you and see
what you can do." Then he looked up and said to the second son, "There is a
chaffinch's nest at the top of this tree. Tell me, how many eggs are there in it?" The
stargazer took up his telescope, looked up, and said, "There are five." The father said to
the eldest son, "Go and get the eggs, and don't disturb the little bird that is hatching
them." The artificial thief climbed up the tree and took five eggs from under the little bird.
The little bird didn't notice anything, sat quietly, and then took the eggs to its father. The
father took the eggs and placed them on the four corners of the table, the fifth in the
middle of the table, and then said to the hunter, "You must shoot all five eggs in half
with one shot." The hunter raised his gun, took aim, and shot all five eggs in one shot,
just as his father had asked. "Now it's your turn," he said to the fourth son. "You sew the
eggs and the chicks inside so that the bullets can't hurt them." The tailor took the needle
and sewed according to the instructions. After sewing, the thief must take the needle
back to the bird's nest in the tree and put it back under the bird without the bird knowing.
The birds all hatched, and a few days later, the chicks crawled out, with red stripes on
their necks sewn by the tailor.

"Yes," said the old man to his sons, "you are well-informed and well-lived. I cannot say
who deserves this honor more. If only you had learned earlier!" Soon after, there was a
great uproar throughout the kingdom, for the news came that the King's daughter had
been kidnapped by a dragon. The King, who was worried day and night, declared:
"Whoever can bring her back will marry her." The four brothers said to each other: "This
is our chance to show off." So they decided to release the King's daughter. "I will soon
know where she is," said the stargazer, looking through the telescope: "I see her sitting
on a rock in the sea far away from here, and a dragon is watching over her." So he went
to the King and asked him for a boat, which he would give to him and his brothers, to
accompany them across the sea until they reached their destination. There sat the
King's daughter, and the dragon was sleeping on her lap; the hunter said: "I cannot
shoot him, or I would kill the beautiful girl at the same time." "Then I will try my luck,"
said the thief, and he stole it from under the dragon, so gently and so quickly that the
monster did not notice it at all, but continued to snore. They were so overjoyed that they
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quickly took her on board and put out to sea. At this time, the dragon woke up and did
not find the king's daughter, so he chased after her, snorting angrily in the air. Just as
he flew over the boat and was about to let go, the hunter took aim and shot him in the
heart, and he fell dead. But he was so huge that the whole ship broke into pieces when
he fell, and they had to float on the sea on a few planks. The tailor was not idle either.
He took out his magic needle and sewed several planks together with a few stitches of
thick thread. Then he sat in the boat and sailed to his destination, gathering all the parts
of the boat. He sewed these things skillfully, and soon the boat was ready to sail, and
they returned home safely.

Everyone was very happy when they brought their daughter back to the king. The King
said to the four brothers, "You may marry her, but it is up to you to decide." Then a
quarrel broke out among them, and the astrologer said, "If I have not seen the King's
daughter, all your magic has been in vain; therefore she is mine." The thief said, "What
was the use of seeing her if I had not snatched her from the dragon's claws? Therefore
she is mine." The huntsman said, "If I had not killed the monster, it would have torn you
and the King's daughter to pieces, so I am talking about her."

The tailor said, "If I had not used my skill to repair the boat, you would all have been
drowned, so she is mine." The King said, "You are right, since none of you can have the
girl, then no one can have her, but I will give each of you half of the kingdom as a
reward." The two brothers said, "We had better not quarrel." The King gave each of
them half of the kingdom, and they lived happily with their father.

4.2.27 Bird Hunter

Once upon a time, there was a wizard who, in the form of a poor man, went from house
to house begging and captured many beautiful girls. No one knew where he took them,
for they never appeared again. Now, he often appeared at the door of a man with three

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beautiful daughters in the form of a poor and weak beggar, carrying a basket on his
back, as if he was going to beg. He begged for some food, and when the eldest
daughter came out to give him a piece of bread, he just touched her, and she
immediately jumped into the dirt he vomited. Then, with firm steps, he led her through a
forest to his home. Everything in the house was beautiful. He gave her everything she
wanted and said, "You will be satisfied with me, because you have everything you
want." After a few days, he said, "I must go and leave you alone for a while. Here is the
key of the house. You can look around, except for one room, which can only be opened
by this small key. I will not let you do this, otherwise I will sentence you to life
imprisonment. Here is also an egg. Keep it for me and carry it with you at all times. If
you lose it, it will be bad."

She took the key and the egg and promised to take care of everything. But after he left,
she could not help her curiosity, and after looking around the house, she went to the
forbidden door and opened it. But when she went inside, she was horrified: in the
middle was a large bloody basin, in which lay dead bodies and dismembered people.
She was so frightened that she dropped the egg in her hand into the water. She quickly
took it out and wiped the blood, but it was no use, the blood appeared again in an
instant. She wiped and scratched, but she couldn't wipe it off. Not long after, the man
returned from his journey and said, "Now give me the key and the egg." She handed it
to him tremblingly, and he looked and found that she had entered the blood house.
Then he said: "If you entered the blood house against my will, now you must go back
against your will. Your life is over." With that, he grabbed her, brought her in, chopped
her into pieces, and the bright red blood flowed to the ground, and then threw her into
the pool with the others.

"Now I want the second one," said the wizard, and he again took the form of a poor man
and went out to beg. Then the second sister brought him a piece of bread, and he
seized her as he had seized the eldest, but only touched her, and led her out, and killed
her in the bloody room, because she had looked in. Then he seized the third sister and
led her out as well. The third sister was clever and cunning; he gave her the key and the
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egg and left, and she first took the egg and locked it, and then entered the forbidden
room. But

what did she see! Her two dear sisters had died tragically in the pool. She began to
gather the limbs together and put them in order, including the head, body, arms and
legs. When everything was restored to normal, the limbs began to move and connect
together, and both girls opened their eyes and came to life again. They kissed and
embraced each other in joy, but the youngest child took the limbs out and hid them.
When the man came back, he asked for the key and the egg. He found that there was
no blood on the egg, and said, "You have passed the test and can be my bride." "Yes,"
she answered, "but you must promise me that when I arrange the wedding, you will go
to my parents with a basket of gold on your back." Then she went into the hut where her
sister was hiding and said, "I will go to rescue you now, and call me for help as soon as
you get home." Then she put them in a basket and covered them completely with gold
so that nothing could be seen. She called the wizard in and said, "Take the basket away
now, but don't stop to rest on the way! I will watch you from my little window, and you
must keep an eye on it."

The wizard walked away with the basket on his back, but the basket was so heavy that
he was sweating profusely and felt that he was about to be crushed to death. He
wanted to rest for a while, but someone suddenly called him from the basket: "I'll look
through my little window to see if you are resting. Do you want to leave immediately?"
He thought it was the bride calling him, so he went out again. He wanted to sit down
again, but the basket called him again: "I'll look through my little window to see if you
are resting. Do you want to leave immediately?" Every time he stood still, the basket
would call him, so he had to carry the basket full of gold and go to the home of the two
girls' parents, panting.

The bride set up a wedding reception at home. She took a grinning skull, placed
decorations on it, and then took it to the hole in the ground and made it look out. After
that, she invited her magician friends to the party. After the party, she put herself in a

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barrel of honey, cut the honey bed, and rolled around on the ground, making herself
look like a strange bird and no one could recognize her. So she walked out of the house
and met some wedding guests on the way, who asked her: "Fitch's bird, where are you
from?" "I'm from Fitz Fitch's house." "What is the young bride doing there?" "She has
cleaned the house from top to bottom and is now looking out of the hole in the ground."
The groom came up to her and asked:
" Fitch's bird, where are you from?"

"I'm from Fitz Fitch's." "What's my bride doing there?" "Sweeping the house from top to
bottom and then looking out of a hole in the ground." The groom looked up and saw the
polished skull. Thinking it was his bride, he nodded to her and greeted her warmly.
However, when he and his guests entered the house, the sisters came to help, and they
closed all the doors of the house to prevent anyone from escaping. Then they set fire to
the house so that the wizard and his accomplices would be burned to the ground.

4.2.28 Hulda's mother

The widow had two daughters, one was pretty and hardworking, the other was ugly and
lazy. But she preferred the ugly and lazy daughter because she was her own daughter,
while the other daughter had to do all the housework and become the "Cinderella" of the
family. Every day he sat by the well by the roadside spinning until his fingers bled. Once,
the spool was covered with blood, and he bent down to take the spool to the well to
wash it, but the spool jumped out of his hand and fell into the well. She ran to her
stepmother crying and told her about her misfortune. The stepmother scolded her
severely and said mercilessly: "You dropped the spool, pick it up again!" The girl
returned to the well at a loss and jumped down in fear.

When he woke up again, he found himself in a beautiful meadow, the sun was shining,
and there were many flowers in bloom. He continued across the meadow until he came
to an oven full of bread; but the bread cried out, "Oh! Pull me out! Pull me out! Or I will

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burn, I am already burnt!" So he went on diligently and took out everything. Then he
went on and came to a tree full of apples, and cried to the tree, "Oh! Shake me! Shake
me! We are all ripe apples!" The tree began to shake, and the apples fell like raindrops,
until there was not a single apple left on the top of the tree, and the tree disappeared
again.

At last he came to a little house, and an old woman was looking out from the house, but
her teeth were so big that he was terrified and wanted to run away. But the old woman
called after him, "Do not be afraid, dear child, stay with me. If you finish all the work at
home, you will get better. If you help me make my bed, shake the sheets so hard that
the feathers fly and snow will fall on the ground; I am Mother Holle." The old woman
spoke to him so kindly that the girl agreed to serve her. He did everything she asked
him to do, always shaking her bed vigorously, but in return he lived happily with her,
never said a bad word, and had food cooked and fried every day. Now she had been
with Mother Holle for some time, and she felt sad, and although it was a thousand times
better than home, she still wanted to leave. At last he said to her, "I have brought my
misery home with me, and although I am living well here, I can't stay any longer."
Mother Holle said, "You are right, for your loyalty, I will bring you back myself."

Then she took him by the hand and led him to a big door. The door opened, and the girl
stood under it, when suddenly a great deal of gold fell, and all the gold stuck to her, and
she was covered with gold. "You have worked so hard, and this is yours," said Mother
Holler, returning the spool of thread that had fallen into the well. Then the door closed,
and the girl found herself in the outside world, not far from her mother's house. She
went into the yard, and saw the cockerel squatting by the well and calling:

" Cock-a-doodle-doo! Our golden girl has returned again!"

Then he returned to his mother and was welcomed with great joy, for he was covered
with gold.

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The mother heard that wealth had come, and wanted to give the other ugly and lazy
daughter the same happiness, so she also had to sit by the well and spin. In order to
make the spool bleed, she pricked her finger and let the thorn bush cut her hand. Then
she threw the spool into the well and jumped in herself. Like the other lady, she came to
a beautiful meadow and continued along the same path. When she came to the oven,
the loaf cried out again, "Oh! Pull me out! Pull me out! Or I shall burn, I am already
burnt!" The lazy loaf replied, "I want to get myself dirty!" and went away. After a while,
she came to the apple tree, which cried out, "Oh! Shake me! Shake me! Our apples are
ripe!" But she answered, "You will soon fall on me, and when you fall you may hit me on
the head!" and continued to do so. When she came to Mrs. Holler's house, she was not
afraid, because she had heard that Mrs. Holler had big teeth, so she immediately took
her job. On the first day, she forced herself to work hard and obeyed everything Mrs.
Holler said, because she thought Mrs. Holler would give her a lot of gold; but on the
second day she became lazy, and on the third day she was even lazier; she did not
want to get up in the morning. She also made Mrs. Holler's bed very badly, and did not
shake the sheets well, so that the feathers flew off the sheets.

Mother Holler soon got tired of this life and told the lazy woman not to work anymore.
The lazy woman was very satisfied and thought that gold would rain from the sky.
Mother Holler led her to the gate, but when she stood under the gate, it was not gold
that poured out, but a large jar of pitch. "This is a reward for your hard work," Mother
Holler said, and closed the gate. The lazy woman went home covered with pitch and
never wanted to wash it off. The rooster at the well saw her and shouted, "Cock, cock,
cock! Our dirty girl is here again!"

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4.2.29 Jorinde and Joringel

Once upon a time, in a large, dense forest, there was an old castle. In the castle lived
an old woman who was a magician. During the day, she would transform into a cat or a
night owl, but at night, she would change back to human form. She could lure game and
birds, then kill, cook, and roast them. If anyone came within a hundred steps of the
castle, they had to stand still until the old woman let them go, and they could not leave
the spot; but if a chaste girl entered the castle, the old woman would turn her into a bird
and lock her in a basket in one of the rooms of the castle. She might have seven
thousand such baskets in her castle, filled with these rare birds.

Once upon a time there lived a maiden named Jorinde, who was prettier than any other
girl, and to whom was betrothed a handsome young man named Joringer. They were
on their wedding night, and were in perfect happiness. In order to talk in private, they
went for a walk in the forest. "Be careful," Joringer said, "and don't go too close to the
castle!"

It was a beautiful evening, and the sun shone through the tree trunks, shining on the
green forest, and the turtledoves sang sadly in the ancient beech trees.

Sometimes Jöringel would weep and sit in the sun and groan. Jöringel would complain,
too; they were terrified, as if they were dying. They looked around, confused, not
knowing how to get home. The sun was half still and half already set over the hills;
Jöringel looked through the bushes and saw the old castle walls just around the corner;
he was afraid and panicked. Jöringel sang:
" My little bird with the red ring sings grief, grief, grief; it sings the death of the dove,
grief, grief - siskus! siskus! siskus!"

Jolind took care of Jolind. Jolind became a nightingale and sang Sikus! Sikus! A night
owl with glowing eyes flew around her three times and called three times: "Hoo-hoo-
hoo!" Jolind did not move; he stood there like a stone, unable to cry, speak, or move his

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hands or feet. The sun went down and the owl flew into a bush, and immediately out of
the bush came a hunchbacked old woman, she was yellow and thin, with large red eyes
and a crooked nose that extended all the way to her chin. She whispered something,
grabbed the nightingale, and carried it away. Jolind could not say a word, nor could she
leave the scene; the nightingale flew away, and finally the old woman came back and
whispered: "Hello, Zaheer! Wait until the moonlight shines into the basket, and then
untie it at the right time, Zaheer!"

Then Jollinger was set free; but he still knelt before the old woman and begged her to
give him back his Jollinde; but the old woman said he would never have her again, and
went away. He cried, he wept, he groaned, but all in vain. Alas! What shall I do?
Jollinger walked along until he came to a strange village; he had been herding sheep
there for a long time. He often walked around the castle, but did not dare to approach it.
At last, one night, he dreamed that he had found a blood-red flower, with a large,
beautiful pearl in the center. He plucked the flower and brought it back to the castle;
everything that was touched by the flower was freed from the spell; he dreamed that he
had found his Jollinde. The next morning, when he woke up, he began to walk through
the valley to see if he could find such a flower. He searched until the ninth morning,
when he finally found the blood-red flower. In the center of the flower was a large
dewdrop, as big as the most beautiful pearl. He brought the flower to the castle day and
night. When he was within a hundred paces of the castle he did not stop, but continued
toward the gate.

Jorindel was so overjoyed that he touched the door with the flower, and it opened
immediately. He went into the courtyard and listened, and heard the singing of many
birds. At last he heard the birds; he went to the hall and found the witch, who was
feeding seven thousand baskets full of birds. When the witch saw Jorindel, she flew into
a rage and was furious, and she scolded him loudly and spat venom and bile at him, but
she could not get two steps near him. Jorindel paid no attention to them, but went to
look at the baskets with the birds. But there were hundreds of nightingales in the
baskets; how could he find his Jorindel? As he was watching, he saw the old woman

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steal a basket with birds and was walking towards the door. He quickly jumped up and
touched the basket with flowers, and then touched the old woman; now she could no
longer work magic, and Jorindel stood there with his arms around her neck, and she
was still as beautiful as ever. Then he made all the other birds virgins, and he went
home with his Jorindel, and they lived happily for a long time.

4.2.30 Eight pence a day

Once upon a time, there was an emperor who issued a decree that anyone who worked
on his festivals would be punished with death. So he summoned a magician and told
him the decree he had issued; but he was afraid that violations of the decree would be
concealed, so he had to find a way to identify the violators. So the magician used magic
to erect a pillar in the center of the city and placed an idol on it, symbolizing who had
violated the decree and worked on the forbidden days. Many people had already died
because of the accusation of this idol. There was a blacksmith in the capital who usually
worked on the emperor's festivals as usual, and today he worked as usual. At night, he
lay in bed and reflected on how he had violated the emperor's decree and how many
people had died because of the pillar's treachery. After saying this, he stood up, walked
up to the idol and threatened: "Pillar, pillar, your nonsense has taken the lives of many
poor sinners; but now I command you not to betray me, otherwise I will cut off your head
and smash it with my hammer. So listen to my advice and keep silent."

In the morning, the emperor sent a messenger to the army as usual to ask if anyone
had disobeyed his orders. However, after the vote was out, the emperor's order was
carried out, but the pillar said: "Look at what is written on my forehead." The messenger
looked up and saw that it was written on the pillar:

" Times have changed, things have changed, and whoever speaks the truth will have
his head smashed with a hammer. So if you want to live in peace, listen, watch, and

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keep silent. Go and tell your master what you have heard and read."

Then the messenger left the statue and reported what he had heard to the emperor.
When the emperor heard this, he immediately ordered twelve knights to quickly arm
themselves and go to the pillar. If anyone came to offend, they were to tie his hands and
feet and bring him before the emperor as a prisoner. The twelve knights came to the
pillar, saluted it in the name of the emperor, and asked it to tell the name of the person
who had violated the commandment and threatened it. She said: "Then arrest the
blacksmith, because he disobeyed the emperor's order and threatened me."

So the twelve knights went to arrest the blacksmith and brought him before the emperor.
The emperor asked him, "Tell me, why don't you keep the commandments I gave you?"
The blacksmith replied, "I can't keep this commandment because I have to earn eight
pence a day, and I can't afford it if I don't work." The emperor asked again, "What do
you want these eight pence for?" The blacksmith said, "I tell you. In a year, I have to
pay back two pence every day, borrow two pence, pay back two pence, and spend two
pence. In other words, I must have eight pence a day." "How should I understand this?"
asked the emperor. "You must explain more clearly." Then the blacksmith began to
speak: "Sir, I have to pay twopence to my father, who brought me up from my childhood,
but now he is old and can earn nothing. I have a son who goes to school, to whom I
have to lend twopence every day, and he will not pay me back until I am old. In addition,
I have a wife, to whom I have to give twopence every day: this money is wasted,
because if I die, she will find another and forget me completely. Finally, I myself need
twopence to buy food and drink. So, kind sir, please consider my needs and judge fairly,
because you must have heard that I can't save even a penny." The emperor was

at a loss when he heard this. He thought: If I order him to change these habits, it will
only cause him trouble and confusion; I would rather give him strict orders and punish
him for all his violations of my orders if he does not obey them. He said to the
blacksmith: "Follow God and work as hard as before. Only be careful not to reveal our

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conversation to anyone, unless you have seen our noble faces a hundred times first,
otherwise you will be put to death." The emperor ordered his clerk to record this order.
The blacksmith took his leave and went to work.

Soon after, the emperor summoned all the wise men in the country to the court for a test.
He told them the case of eight pence: two pence were returned, two pence were lent,
two pence were lost, and two pence were consumed, and asked them what they should
understand. The wise men did not immediately realize the problem and asked for eight
days to think about it, which the emperor granted. They met to discuss it, but despite
their best efforts, they could not solve the mystery until they finally speculated that the
problem was related to the blacksmith who had been arrested and brought before the
emperor. So they went to the blacksmith's residence and asked him what these strange
words meant. But the blacksmith was clear-headed and careful not to reveal the secret.
But when they finally gave him the money, he agreed, saying, "If you insist on knowing,
give me a hundred gold coins: otherwise you will not know." The wise men had no
choice and did not want to miss the deadline, so they brought the gold coins he asked
for. Before the blacksmith even opened his mouth, he took the gold coins in his hand
one by one and carefully examined the carvings on them, and found that on one side of
the gold coins was the head of the emperor. After doing all this, he told the wise men
everything he had said to the emperor about the eight pennies. Then they left, satisfied,
and waited for eight days.

After doing this, the emperor called the wise men before him and listened to the
answers of the wise men to the questions they had asked. Lo and behold, their answers
were exactly the same as what the blacksmith had said. The emperor was very
surprised at their discovery. So he called the blacksmith before him and thought to
himself, "I will give him a good price. They will pester him with..." He used promises and
threats until he told them everything; with their wisdom, they would never be able to say
it. But he hurt himself by doing so.

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When the smith came, the Emperor said to him: "Master, you have disobeyed my orders
severely, and have disclosed a secret which I had commanded to be kept secret: you
have done this in vain." "Merciful sir," said the smith, "you can do this not only against
me, but against the whole world; I obey you as I would my beloved father and master.
But I do not think I have disobeyed your orders, for you commanded me not to reveal to
anyone what I had told you, unless I had first seen your noble face a hundred times. I
therefore refused to listen to the requests of the wise men of the place, until I had
satisfied the conditions they proposed. I then tried to satisfy their wishes, but they gave
me a hundred gold florins before I had even opened my mouth. I carefully observed the
face which had thus formed before them, and then I told them what they wished to know.
I said this without any intention of offending you, sir.

The Emperor laughed, and said: "May God bless you, you are wiser than all my wise
men. May God bless you with health and peace!" The smith took his leave and lived
quietly according to his own way.

The Stiefelschmer Brothers - A Fairy Tale of Simrock A Sincere Prayer

There was an old woman who went to church every day and expressed her wishes to
the picture of the Virgin Mary. These wishes were simple, for she only asked for a little
salad, a little roast, and two pints of red wine every day.

The son of the sexton noticed this, and one day when she came back, he stood behind
the picture of the Virgin Mary and overheard the old woman's pious prayers. When she
came to the place where it was written "a small glass of red wine, a small glass of roast
and two pints of red wine", he interrupted her crisply: "Well, I think a pint will be
enough." The old woman then realized that the Holy Child in the Virgin's arms was
calling her, and she shouted at him: "Nonsense, fool, shut up and let your mother call
you: she knows best what is good for the old woman."

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4.2.31 The King's Child

A soldier dreamed that he was on leave and would become rich. So he went to his
captain and asked for leave. But the captain persuaded him to stay, promising to
promote him and immediately make him a private. The soldier was persuaded; but at
night he dreamed again that he must take leave, otherwise he would not be happy. So
he returned to the captain and begged him to leave. But the captain said that he should
stay, he could still be promoted to general, and immediately made him a corporal. The
soldier was persuaded again; but when he dreamed again at night that he must leave,
otherwise he would not be happy, he went to the captain for the third time and insisted
on leaving, and then he really understood. He set out quickly and arrived at a capital city
where everything was covered with black cloth. So he went into an inn and asked what
the black cloth hung on all the houses meant. The innkeeper said that the king's
daughter was cursed before she was born; but as soon as she was born, she told the
king that she must die within three days; then the king was to bury her in front of a high
altar and set a sentinel to guard it every night. There was also a piece of roast veal and
a barrel of wine on the table.

So it happened; but every morning the sentinel's neck was broken; so that now there
was no one standing there any more, although the king had declared that whoever
could save his child would marry her and inherit the throne after his death. The soldier
said that he should go and report to the king that there was a corporal willing to take the
position tonight. The innkeeper looked at him with wide eyes and said that he must have
great courage.

Yes, he also needed courage, and he should go to the king with him at once. Then the
innkeeper took him to the king: the king was very happy, gave him a military cap, a rifle
and a bullet, and told him the time when he must go to the church. When the bells were
about to ring, he felt a little scared; so he went to the bar to drink to give himself
courage. Then the innkeeper warned him again that he would definitely die, just like

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everyone before him. At last, he was so scared that he suddenly decided to put on a full
set of clothes. But as he reached the door, he heard a voice behind him: "John, John,
where are you going? That is not the way to the post office. If you don't go, you will not
find your happiness." "Oh," he thought, "in that case, you had better go." So he turned
and walked straight towards the church: then the same voice shouted that he should
patrol diligently before the altar, but at a quarter to twelve, he should put down his rifle,
hang his bullets, saber and hat on his rifle, and go out and sit on the pulpit. In this way,
every time the clock struck twelve, the coffin would rise, the lid would be opened, and
the king's child would come out to look for him; but if he did not move, the coffin would
not find him. The corporal did so, patrolling diligently to and fro before the high altar, and
at a quarter to twelve, he should put down his rifle, hang his bullets, saber and hat on
his rifle, and go out and sit on the pulpit.

At twelve o'clock the coffin rose, the lid slammed shut, and the child came out, looked
around, and said, "My father sent a sentinel today, but I sent neither roasted calves nor
barrels of wine, and I don't know where the sentinel is. Sentinel, report now!" The
corporal felt a sharp pain and trembled all over, but he remained silent and made no
sound. At this time, the child floated across the center of the church, came to the organ,
and began to play. He played for nearly an hour. Then it floated back to the church, saw
the soldier on the pulpit, and shouted, "Sentinel! Sentinel! Why don't you report now? I
don't have time now, or you will get sick!" Then, at one o'clock, it lay back in the coffin,
which also closed and sank. Now all was quiet, and the corporal stepped down from the
pulpit and paced diligently to and fro in front of the high altar. In the morning, the king
rode up on four black horses and inserted the key in the church door. The corporal cried
out, "Who's there?" "Good friend!" said the king, "are you still alive? Oh! I am glad! You
can still save my child." Then he had to ride in the carriage with the king, and go to the
castle together, where they would have a good dinner. After this, the king said that he
could now walk or ride at will; but he had to return to the church for duty in the evening.
When the time came, he was still uncertain, so he went back to the bar and had a drink.
The innkeeper said, "He has succeeded once; but he should not rely on it, otherwise he
will end up believing in it like everyone else." This made him worry again that he would
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abscond with the money, but this time he tried to take a different route to avoid the voice.
But he had just reached the door when he heard someone call his name again: "John,
where are you going? This is not the way out of Boston. If you don't go, you will not find
happiness. Listen, and I will also tell you what you must do to avoid harm. When the
clock strikes twelve, hide behind the statue of St. Johanna on the high altar, and don't
let the child see you."

Then the corporal returned to the church and walked diligently around the high altar as
he had done the day before. Only this time he went out and sat behind St. John on the
high altar. When the clock struck twelve, the coffin was lifted and opened. The child
came out, looked around, and said, "Today my father sent a sentinel, but he brought
neither the roasted calf nor the barrel of wine, and I don't know where the sentinel is.
Sentinel, come and report!" But the sentinel was silent and made no sound. Then the
child floated across the church to the organ and began to play, and played for nearly an
hour. Then it floated back from the organ to the pulpit, and was blown by the wind
towards the pulpit, which it blew to pieces. But when it reached the high altar, it saw the
sentinel sitting behind St. John, and shouted, "Sentinel! Sentinel! Why didn't you report?
If I had time, you would be in trouble. Now I must get back to my coffin!" After the coffin
was closed and the coffin was lowered, the corporal climbed down from the high altar
behind St. John and walked around until daybreak. At this time, the king drove up with
six black horses and kindly took the corporal to the carriage. He told him that the child
had...

But now the table with the roast veal and the barrel of wine were gone for the second
time. Why didn't he put them in the church? "Yes," said the king, "it was stipulated when
he was born; but since nothing was done, it was forgotten at last. But if he had come
early, he would have everything he needed tomorrow." So that night the corporal went
back to the bar again and drank a little to give himself courage, for things were not
going well again. But this time the innkeeper did not dare to look back, so he fled for the
third time with all his belongings, out the third door; he thought he would not be heard
there. But as soon as he was out of the door, she called to him: "Hey, comrade, do you

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really want to escape from your happiness? Tomorrow you can be married, and if you
hold out just once more, you can be king. I will tell you what to do. Before twelve o'clock,
hide in the confessional; before the child comes down from the organ, lie in the coffin:
then nothing can hurt you."

The corporal entered the church confidently, and patrolled before the high altar until a
quarter to eleven, when he hung his cartridges, sabre, and cap on his rifle and hid
behind the confessional. At the stroke of twelve the coffin rose and leaped away. The
child came out, looked around, and cried, "Today my father not only sent a sentinel to
me, but also brought me a table of roast veal and a barrel of wine, but I never saw the
sentinel again. Sentinel, report!" But the sentinel was silent, and made no sound. So the
child sat at the table and ate the whole roast veal in one gulp, and drank the whole
barrel of wine. The wine floated across the church to the organ, which played only a few
notes, and the corporal had barely time to walk from the confessional to the high altar
and lie down in the open coffin. Then the child floated back into the church and blew on
the clay image of St. John, which fell from the high altar and broke to pieces. When the
child came to the coffin and saw the sentry lying there, she shouted, "Sentry, stand up,
this is my place!" But the sentry did not move. The child was lying in the coffin above the
soldier just as the bomb hit one of them. The coffin was freezing cold and heavy as lead.
The lid of the coffin slammed shut and sank, and the child lay on it until it regained its
natural warmth and weight. It began to grow, bigger and lighter, and the cold gradually
dissipated. At last, she became a maiden of twenty years old: then the coffin rose up,
the lid slammed shut, and the beautiful girl jumped out, holding out her hand to the
sentry and saying, "Sentry, stand up; you have saved me, and now you will be my
husband." With this, she drew him to her and made him kiss her. Wasn't he rich there?
At this time, day broke: the king came with eight black horses. When he found that his
daughter was saved, he asked the coachman to return with the carriage and ordered
eight gray and white horses to be harnessed. Then he took the corporal and the young
queen into his carriage, and, sitting with them, drove to the castle. A great feast was
prepared, and it was announced to the whole city that the king's daughter had been
redeemed, and that her redeemer would carry her to the altar as the king's heir. There
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was great rejoicing, and the black scarves were exchanged for red, and all crowded into
the church for the wedding. The celebrations were so great that I wished I had been
there.

4.2.32 Natural Order

A man and a woman lived in a simple hut. Every day, the man worked in the fields,
while the woman cooked at home. One day, after breakfast, the man said to his wife:
"You cook, I have to work hard in the fields." "Shall we switch roles?" The woman said:
"I'll go to the fields to work, and you cook at home." "I'd love to," said the man. So they
switched roles: the woman took off the burden from her shoulders and went to work in
the fields; the man stayed at home with a wooden spoon in his hand. But the first
question was what dish should he cook? "Well," he recalled, "the cross bearer would
pray for himself: I want to cook my favorite dish, which is porridge." However , when he
fetched the wood and lit the fire, he heard the cows bellowing. "Okay, you yell," said the
man, "I have to get some water first, otherwise the fire will be in vain."

So he took his bucket to the well and drew water, poured it into the pot, and put it on the
fire. Then the cow mooed again. "Yes, you can moo as much as you want," he said. "It's
not your turn yet. You have to put the rice in the pot first so that it can rise." So he ran
over, got the rice, poured it into the pot, and stirred it with a spoon. Then the cow mooed
again. "Yes," the man said, "it's your turn to eat now." So he went into the cowshed and
saw the cow, and was horrified to find that the cow had no food.

" Oh my God," he thought, "if I cook now, the water will boil and the rice will overflow,
and my favorite dish will be ruined." Then he led the cow down the hill to the mossy
thatched roof and let it graze there. But as he was pouring out the boiling water in the
kitchen and pouring out more rice water, he thought, ―If the cow falls, it may break its
neck and legs, which would be a pity for the cow.‖ So he ran back to the roof, tied a

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rope around the cow‘s neck, and threw one end of the rope down the chimney into the
kitchen; but in the kitchen he tied the rope around the cow‘s legs, thinking, ―Now I can
cook porridge here in peace.‖

He quickly dumped out the boiling water, added milk to the porridge, and then put the
porridge back on the fire, stirring it constantly with a wooden spoon to prevent it from
getting mushy. Meanwhile, the cow was grazing on the narrow ridge of the house,
carefully walking up to it step by step like a tightrope walker. Then, stretching her neck
to pick a few narrow herbs, she lost her balance and fell; but because the rope was too
short, she hung in the air and did not fall to the ground. However, the weight of the rope
was enough to pull the man at the other end up, and finally he was hanging in the
chimney between the sky and the earth, just above the rice porridge.

The woman returned home and saw the cow hanging there, with its tongue sticking out
of its throat. Fortunately, she had a cheese knife in her pocket: she took out the knife,
grabbed the rope with her right hand, cut it with her left hand, and let the cow slide
gently to the ground; then she ran into the kitchen to scold her husband, but his head
was stuck in the porridge pot, and the woman had to help him up. But it was too early to
scold him now, his eyes and ears were covered with paste. She scolded him a few
times before she started to teach him a lesson, but her husband covered her mouth and
said, "Don't talk, you've made your words so clear. From now on, you cook at home and
I'll go to the fields to farm. Don't mess up the world's affairs."

4.2.33 Iron John

An old servant dreamed that he could become rich by saying goodbye. So the next
morning, he went to the captain and asked to be fired. Peace had just come and the
king no longer needed soldiers. The captain said, "Go if you want to, for God's sake, I
can't stop you." Then the captain gave him a farewell letter and an old backpack, but not

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a penny for the journey. So he walked along the path between his legs, exhausted on
the first day, and came to a large forest at dusk. He thought that if he couldn't find other
accommodation, he could save the cost of accommodation and spend the night in a tree.
However, when he climbed up the tree, he saw a small light in the distance, so he
climbed down again and walked towards the light until he came to a small house. He
knocked on the door with confidence: an old woman opened the door, said good night
to him, and said that he could become rich if he wanted. Hey, he thought to himself,
your dream has come true so soon? You should get rich here right away! The old
woman then brought him food and water, as if she had been waiting for him. When he
had eaten and drunk his fill, she brought him a basket and a long rope, and bade him
follow her and do whatever she told him.

So they went out of the house and into the forest, to an old well. Then she made him sit
in the basket and lowered him down with a rope. She also described to him what to do
downstairs. First, he was to come to a garden and then walk through it to the castle.
There was an iron man standing guard in front of the castle, but she was not afraid of
him and would not do anything to him.

So he should enter the castle and go straight into the hall: there would be a wax stick on
the table. He should take it and come back to her immediately. The soldier did as she
said and walked through the garden to the castle, where the iron man was standing
guard. But he ignored her and went out the door and into the hall: the wax stick was on
the table. The door to the next room was also open. He went into the first treasure room:
it was full of silver. Well, he thought, he could fill his backpack with all this silver, which
is much better than the wax stick. When he filled his backpack, he looked into another
room: it was full of gold. So he went back and poured out the silver again and filled his
backpack with gold. When he looked into the third room, he saw that it was full of pearls
and gems. He went back again, poured out the gold again, and filled his knapsack with
compasses and gems. Now he felt that he had enough money to last him the rest of his
life. When he passed through the three side rooms and returned to the hall, he saw a
harp hanging in each of the side rooms. He liked them very much; but because they
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were too big for him to carry, he hung them up. Then he remembered that the old
woman had asked him to get the wax sticks. So he took the basket from the table and
walked through the garden to the well where the basket was hanging.

He sat down and swung the rope, and the old woman pulled him up. After he quickly
stood up, the old woman stopped him and asked if he had brought the wax stick. Yes,
he would have it in his hand. Then the old woman pulled him up high enough to get the
wax stick. But as soon as she caught him, she let go of the rope and tried to throw him
down. With great effort he climbed out of the shaft, holding on to the stones with his
hands and feet. When he got there, he was angry that the old woman wanted to let him
fall, but the old woman immediately ran away with the lamp, and he forgave her. He
caught the old woman, snatched her wax stick, and beat her until she was limp. Then
he took the wax stick, put it in his backpack, and went away happily, because he now
had enough money and felt that he had become rich. Towards the evening, he came to
a large city; it was the capital of the country. So he went to a very luxurious hotel directly
opposite the palace and asked the waiter if he could stay there. The innkeeper saw him
in ragged clothes and carrying a backpack, so he walked over and said, "The people
living here are not ordinary soldiers, but wealthy earls and lords." As he spoke, he took
out a handful of gold coins from his backpack. The innkeeper immediately changed his
attitude and asked him politely which number he wanted.

The soldier said he would not mind as long as he had a beautiful room with a view of
the palace. The innkeeper said he could have the best of the whole house. So he
stayed there for a while, made himself beautiful clothes, lived like a gentleman, and
thought that his wealth would never run out. But it all came to an end soon. One night
he was sitting up in his room, not wanting to go to sleep, because he kept thinking about
the king's daughter he saw from the window. But his lamp had burned out, and it was
late, and everyone was asleep, so he had to sit in the dark. Then he remembered that
he had a wax stick in his backpack: he wanted to light it. The lamp came on, and the
iron man, who had been watching in the garden in front of the castle, stood before him
and asked: "My lord, what do you want?" What? He said, "I have nothing to tell you."

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The iron man said, "Yes, I must do what your majesty wants." If that is the case, he said,
then bring me the harp that is hanging in the first room next to the castle. In a few
moments he had the harp. Then he asked the iron man his name; and he said that his
name was Iron John, and that he would do whatever John told him to do, and that he
would follow him as long as the light was on, and that as soon as the light went out he
would go back to the front of the castle. That is all right now, he thought, and he blew
out the light and went to bed. The next morning he took up his harp, sat down by the
open window, and began to play, and everything he had thought about the harp came
true. The King's daughter, who lived across the hall, heard this, and was delighted to
buy the harp from him, for its tone was like the purest silver. She immediately sent to
ask him how much he wanted for the harp. He answered that the harp was not for sale;
but that if the King's daughter came to see him, he would give it to her.

The king's daughter did not want to come in person, but sent a maid to take the harp he
had brought. But he made an agreement with the innkeeper that if the king's daughter
came in person, he would light up the night sky for her with two candles; the maid only
had one. The king's daughter promised the maid that if she could bring the harp, she
would give her a hundred thalers. The maid came to him in the evening and stayed until
the next morning, when the soldier gave her the harp. The king's daughter was very
happy and immediately gave the maid the hundred thalers. She also asked the maid
how she and the Junker were getting along. "Oh, very well," the maid replied, "she can
lie down beside the Junker in peace."

Before dinner, the soldiers relit the candles. Iron John immediately stood before him and
asked, "What do you want, your Majesty?" Then he ordered his maid to bring him a
harp from another room. He immediately took the harp, sat down by the window and
began to play: this piece was more beautiful than the first, and the sound was like pure
gold. When the king's daughter heard it, she sent someone to ask him what harp he
wanted. He sent word that he would not sell the harp, but that he would give it to the
king's daughter if she came to see him. But the king's daughter did not want to go

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herself, so she sent a maid and promised to give her a thousand thalers if she brought
the harp back.

At night the innkeeper lit a lamp for her; the next morning she received the harp, and
brought it to the king's daughter. The king's daughter immediately paid her a thousand
thalers, and asked how she was getting along with the servants. Oh, she said, very well,
and she could sleep as well as in her own bed. The next morning the soldier lit the wax
sticks again: immediately Iron John appeared, and asked for the third harp. When he
got the harp and played it on the heart window, it sounded ten times more beautiful than
the others, and the tone was like pearls and diamonds. The king's daughter was
overjoyed, and immediately sent to ask him what harp he wanted. He replied that he did
not want to sell it, but should give it to her when she came to visit him. The king's
daughter thought to herself that her maids slept well, and she could make money
herself. When she came back in the evening, the innkeeper lit her way out with two
candles, and the next morning when she left, he gave her the harp as a gift. However,
she did not sleep well that night, and after a while she felt unwell and complained to her
father.

The king was very angry when he heard this, and he immediately called the soldiers
together. The soldiers told him that if the king wanted to speak to him, he should go to
him. In this way, he spent the whole day in peace; but at night, while he was sleeping,
the king's guards climbed in through the window, tied his hands and feet, and put him in
prison. At this time, he heard the sentry coming in and out of the room: the sentry
promised to give him two gold Louis, if he would go to the innkeeper and take a candle
end that was placed in the room. The guard thought that this was easy money, so he
brought him the candle end, cigars and matches. Now he was left alone, and he lit the
lamp, and immediately Iron John stood there and asked: "What do you want, my lord?"
Then he said that he should tear down the prison and the whole palace; but not hurt the
king and his daughter.

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Iron John did so, and smashed everything to pieces, leaving not a stone behind. But the
soldier quietly returned to the inn and moved into his old room. When the king saw that
he could do nothing with him, he sent to inform him and told him to come over, because
the king would give him his daughter and half the kingdom. But he answered that if the
king had anything to say about it, he would still live in his old place.

Then the King came with his daughter, and promised to give him the whole kingdom if
he would marry her immediately. The King was very pleased with this, and he married
her immediately. Then he relit the lamps, and ordered Iron John to dig up the castle, the
garden, and the whole sunken kingdom, and put them back in their original place. Iron
John did so, and came back to tell him that the castle was back in its original place, but
now he asked him to come with him to the castle gate.

When they arrived, Iron John lifted a heavy stone from the ground in front of the
threshold: under the stone was a sword. Iron John said that he would have to cut off his
head with the sword to be saved. The new king said that since he was so loyal to the
king, he couldn't do that. But Iron John said that he had to do it so that he would be
happy forever and the whole kingdom would belong to him. So he became the king of
two countries as he wished, and if he didn't die, then he was still alive.

4.2.34 Nice purchase

A man had two girlfriends besides his lawful wife. One day he wanted to go to market to
do some business. So he went to his first friend and asked her what he should bring.
She asked him to buy her a good mink. Then he went to another woman: she wanted to
bring some good cloth to make a new dress. Finally, he asked his wife what he should
bring her. She said, "Buy me some sense and understanding for two pence, so that I
can stop you from doing stupid things." When he came to market and his business was
done, he bought his friends what they wanted; but he could not buy sense and
understanding, because they were not for sale.

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But he went to the innkeeper, and told him that he had promised his wife that if he gave
her twopence she would come to her senses and stop being a fool. He also told her
what he had bought. "I sell you my sense and my understanding," the innkeeper replied,
"for three white pence."

He received her, and said: When you go home, catch a cock, kill it, and smear the blood
on your faces, then put on your rags and go to the first friend you meet, and tell them
that you have been wounded, robbed, and have lost all your possessions.

Then go to another friend, and finally to your wife, and tell them the same thing. He did
the same. When he returned to the house of his first love, he began to weep bitterly,
saying that he had lost everything and was only badly wounded. When the false friend
heard that he had become a poor man, she drove him out, saying: "Get out, you bastard,
and go to your wife: what do I have to do with you?" Then he went to

the second friend and spoke to her as he had to the first, and she gave him the same
answer. Then he went to his wife and told her what he had said to his friends. She
embraced him with compassion and said: "Take courage: I will heal your wounds, and if
you have lost everything, we will go together to buy new ones." When

the man saw her kindness and loyalty, he admitted that he had only spoken to her like
this on the advice of his master, and now he had recognized the hypocrisy of his friend.
From then on, he wanted to be faithful to her alone, because she was the only one who
truly loved him. So he gave her all the things he had originally intended to give to his
friend. Now he came to his senses and understood the truth, and bought a good thing
with three white coins.

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4.2.35 The Miller in Paradise

There was a clever miller who taught the sacks to dance. Whenever they came to his
mill, he would play a little ballad for them, and if they would not dance along, they had to
leave some grain as punishment. When he died, two priests arranged a grand funeral
for him, because his mill was right on the border of two parishes, and one priest wanted
to bury him there, while the other wanted more. To settle the dispute, a wise man
suggested tying him to a donkey: wherever the donkey carried him, there he would be
buried. See, the donkey knew best, because it carried him directly to the gallows and
buried him there. However, the devil took his soul and took him to the gates of hell.
Master Satan stood there and asked, "Who are you dragging?" "The clever miller from
Zweibrücken," the devil answered. "Hey, Patamagoli," Satan shouted, "he can't get in
like this. He must see heaven first, and when he sees the happiness of heaven but can't
enjoy it, he will be even more sad." So the devil took him to the gate of heaven: there
was singing and playing, and little angels were dancing on the walls. "Do you
understand now?" the devil asked him, "how much fun it is there?"

"You fool," replied the miller, "can I look through the wall? Wait till the door opens." Just
then, St. Peter came to the door and opened it wide to let in a pious man. The clever
miller pretended that he only wanted to look in; but before the devil could react, he
sneaked up behind St. Peter. The devil immediately made a fuss and demanded to eat
his roast: this was not food for a gourmet.

St. Peter, who thought his complaint was justified, soon smelled him and asked, "How
did you get in here? Get out of here quickly, you have nothing to do here." "Wait,"
Pfeffer taunted, "don't worry! It's so beautiful here that I don't want to leave. I will never
deny my Savior until the cock crows three times." His teeth were covered with hair, and
St. Paul thought to himself , I have to help this old man. "Well, my friend, please
continue. The carpenter left a hole there." "So who is this guest who has the honor of
talking to me?" the miller asked politely. "I am St. Paul the Apostle." "If you are St.

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Paul," said the Miller, "keep your hands off and do not throw stones at me. I am not St.
Stephen. Blind enthusiasm can only bring harm." "That is your share," said Peter. St.
Paul was ashamed, and he went away and complained to God about this absurdity.

He immediately sent St. Christopher to drive him out. The wise miller recognized him at
once, because he had a big stick in his hand, and he used it roughly. "You old man, do
you think I am afraid of your big stick? You have committed great crimes with it, and it is
stained with the blood of innocent people." Then the Lord sent other saints to him; but
he pointed out their weaknesses, so they lowered their eyes and kept silent. Now they
were very embarrassed and didn't know how to drive him out. Finally, they decided to
send the innocent children who had been killed by King Herod against him, because he
could not hurt them. But the clever miller immediately thought of a new trick. He gave
them gingerbread and apples with rosy cheeks and beautiful little patterns painted on
them, brightly colored and decorated with gold leaf; then he shook pears and plums
from the trees and made them feed the fish in the pond. He also made them windmills,
forest devils, and various other toys; finally, he whistled a little song for them and taught
them to dance in circles, which they understood better than his sack. He could not drive
him out. At last the Virgin Mary herself arose, came to him, and said, "My friend, you
must go! You cannot stay here any longer." "Beautiful woman," said the miller, "who are
you? I have never seen anything so beautiful in my life."

The sun of heaven must be hiding from you." "I am the Virgin," said the Virgin. "O Virgin,
you will not harm me. You are full of grace, you are a merciful mother. The whole world
awaits your intercession, and your Son will refuse you nothing. You are the Queen of
heaven: I commit myself to your protection." Then the Virgin turned to her Son and said,
"I cannot harm this man; he has given me such a fate, and I cannot bear to send him
away." Then said the Son of God, "If we want to get rid of him, I must go to him myself."
Then he came to the miller with the heavenly host and said to him, "My friend, your
home is not here: your plots, whistles, and sharp tongue will no longer help you." Then
said the miller, "You are fair and beautiful, and you come with a large retinue; who are
you then?" "I am," said God, "the God who created heaven and earth and redeemed

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men." "You are God," said the miller, "I hear it clearly. But then I shall not be turned out,
for you yourselves have said, as I have often heard, that whoever comes to your
Father‘s house you will receive. ‖

― Yes,‖ said the Lord, ―even if he does the will of my Father. If my Father had sent you to
me, you would have been with me forever. But you have never done anything good, so
there is no help for your soul.‖ ―And what about me?‖ said the miller. ―Didn‘t I send you
an old sack? Where is it now?‖ said the Lord God, ―Go and give him that old sack, and
let him take it. He cannot stay here.‖ The old sack was immediately brought. Without a
second thought, the miller spread it on the ground and sat on it. ―Now go out,‖ said the
master, ―you have received your share.‖ ―I will take my place,‖ said the miller, ―I will see
who wants to turn me out.‖ – At this point our Lord had to laugh at his prank and let him
sit. He still sits behind the door unless he later finds a better place. The little guy

Once upon a time, there was a little fellow who was growing up day by day; but
whenever he came to the inn for a beer or wine, the innkeeper would say to him: "Hello,
little fellow." This made him very unhappy. Finally, we went to the shoemaker and asked
him to put high heels under his boots. When we entered the workshop, the shoemaker
said: "Hello, little fellow. How can I help you?" The little fellow said: "You should put a
pair of high heels under my boots so that people will not always call me little fellow. It
annoys me." The shoemaker did so and took the money. When the little fellow left the
workshop, he said: "Goodbye, little fellow." He was very angry because the shoemaker
no longer respected his work. But he thought that the innkeeper should open his eyes
and talk differently. So he went to the inn to buy a beer or wine. Once inside, the owner
said: "Hello, little fellow, what would you like to drink, beer or wine?" He was very
annoyed that the high heels did not help. After leaving the inn, he went straight to the
hatter and bought a tall hat. Entering the shop, the hatter said:

"Hello, young man! How can I help you?" "I want to buy myself a hat," the little fellow
said, "so that people won't always call me a dwarf. It makes me angry when people call
me a dwarf." So the hatter gave him a tall hat, took his money, and said, "Goodbye,

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dwarf!" He was very angry because the hatter no longer respected his product.

" But things are different in the pub now!" So he put on his hat and walked into the pub
like an Englishman. At this time, the pub owner came in and immediately said, "Hello,
young man. What would you like to drink, beer or wine?" This annoyed him because he
had high heels under his boots and a tall hat on his head. He thought it was incredible
that people could still call him a dwarf. He also asked why everyone had always called
him a dwarf; now he was grown up, wearing high heels under his boots and a tall hat on
his head. Why did they still call him a dwarf? But that was all he asked. No one wanted
to tell him; this made him very frustrated. Finally, he thought to himself that if no one
here knew, he would go to Rome to see the Pope: he would know. The next day, he
really tied seven bagpipes together and walked with them between his legs. One
evening, he came to an inn and asked for the night.

He walked into the inn, and the innkeeper said, "Hello, little guy! Where are you going?"
"To Rome to see the Pope," the little guy said, "He should tell me why I wear high heels
under my boots and a high crown on my head, which annoys me and makes me always
called a little guy." "Okay!" said the innkeeper, "So I want to ask the Pope with you why I
am always called a poor innkeeper." The doorman heard it and said, "I will go and ask
the Pope why I am always called a lazy servant." The next day, the three set out and
reported to the Pope when they arrived in Rome. Then they were taken into a room with
a large mirror. The Pope came and heard their request. He said to the innkeeper,
"Stand here with your backs to the mirror, look over your left shoulder, and tell me what
you see." The innkeeper said that he saw many women sitting at the tea table. The
Pope asked if his wife was also there.

" Yes," said the innkeeper, "she sits under the table." "Yes, you see, Mr. innkeeper,"
said the Pope, "your wife goes to the coffee machine and makes it herself: so you are
and will always be a poor innkeeper." Now it was the servant's turn: he also had to turn
his back to the mirror, look over his left shoulder, and then tell me what he saw. The

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servant said that the dogs were chasing a hare. The Pope asked him if the dogs could
not catch up with their master? "No," said the servant, the hare was as fast as the dogs
and they could hardly catch up. "Yes," said the Pope to the servant, "if you could carry
out the orders of the innkeeper or the guest as quickly as the hare runs ahead of the
dogs, you would not be called a lazy servant." Now it was finally the little fellow's turn:

he also had to turn his back to the mirror and look over his left shoulder. Then the Pope
asked him what he was looking at. The little fellow said that he only saw himself. The
Pope asked him if he looked taller in the mirror than he really was. "No," said the little
one, "they are the same height." "Well, listen," said the Pope, "I have no advice except
to measure your height before you grow up. I won't have to call you little ones anymore.
The Clever Little Tailor

Once upon a time, there was a very proud princess: whenever a suitor came, she would
ask him to guess a question, and if he could not guess it, she would laugh at him and
drive him away. She also announced that whoever guessed it correctly would marry her,
and anyone who wanted to come could come. At this time, three tailors gathered
together, and the two oldest tailors thought that since they had made so many fine
stitches and sewed them just right, they would inevitably make mistakes; they must also
achieve their goals here. But the third tailor was a nobody, useless, and did not even
know his own profession. The two tailors said to him: "Stay at home, you can't do
anything with your cleverness." But the little tailor refused to give up, saying that as long
as he made up his mind, he would work on his own, and then he went away as if the
whole world belonged to him.
So all three of them went to the princess and asked her to give a riddle: the right person
will come, the one with a sharp mind and who can thread the needle. The princess said
again: "I have two kinds of hair on my head, what color are they?"

"If it were only that," said the first, "then it would be only black and white, like caraway
and salt." "You are wrong," answered the second, "if it were not black and white, then it
would be brown and red, like my father's frock." "You are wrong," said the princess. The

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third answered, "I can see it in his face, he must know." The little tailor came up and
said, "One of the princess's hair is silver and the other is golden, that's the difference."
The princess turned

pale and almost fell to the ground with fear, because the little tailor had hit her, and she
was sure that no one in the world could discover this. When she came to her senses,
she said, "You have not won my heart yet. There is one more thing you must do. There
is a bear lying in the stable, and you must spend the night with it. If I wake up tomorrow
and you are still alive, you must marry me." But she thought this was a way to get rid of
the little tailor, because the bear never spared anyone who fell into his claws. "I will do
the same," said the little tailor happily.

In the evening my little tailor was brought to the bear; and the bear wanted to go straight
to him, and greet him warmly with his paw. "Gently, gently," said the little tailor, "I can
still calm you down." Then, very leisurely, and as if without any effort, he took some
Welsh nuts from his pocket, cracked them open, and ate the kernels; and the bear,
seeing this, was eager to get some nuts too. The little tailor put his hand into his pocket
and gave him a handful; but they were not nuts, but pebbles. The bear put the pebbles
into his mouth, but no matter how much he tried to bite them, he could not bite them
open. "Oh," he thought, "you are such a fool! You can't even crack a nut!" So he said to
the little tailor, "Ah, help me crack the nut." "Now you know what kind of a fellow you
are," said the little tailor, "you have such a big mouth, and you can't even bite this little
nut." So he took the stone, put the nut into his mouth quickly, and broke it into pieces!
She was very troubled. "I must try again," said the bear. "I think I can do it."

So the tailor handed him the stone again, and the bear bit it with all her might; but don't
think he annoyed her. After the end, the tailor took out a violin from her coat and played
a short piece of music. The bear couldn't help jumping up when he heard it. He danced
for a while and liked it very much, so he asked the tailor: "Listen, is it difficult to play the
violin?" "Not difficult at all, you see, I press the strings with my left hand and draw the

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bow with my right hand, it's very interesting, hopsasavivallalera!" "Can you teach me?"
said the bear. "I want to learn to play the violin, so that I can dance whenever I want." "I
will be glad to do so," said the little tailor. "If you want to learn, let me see your claws,
they are amazingly long; I must trim your nails first." As he said this, he brought a pair of
pliers, and the bear put his claws on them, but the little tailor clamped them tightly,
saying, "Now wait until I come back with the scissors." He left the music in the bar
where it was, and let it hum its little tune, and then he lay down on a bale of straw in the
corner and fell asleep.

That night, the princess heard the bear roar loudly, and thought it was a roar of joy, and
the tailor was done. In the morning she got up very happy, but when she looked towards
the stable, she found the little tailor in good spirits and in good health. Now she could no
longer object, because she had already made a public promise, and the king sent for a
coach to take her and the little tailor to the church, where she was to be married. They
got into the coach, and the other two fake tailors, who did not wish him happiness, went
into the stable and unscrewed the bear. The bear was now furious and ran after the
carriage. The princess heard the bear's snorting and was terrified, saying, "Alas! The
bear is behind us and wants to get you." The little tailor was nearby, standing on his
head with his legs sticking out of the window, and shouted, "Do you see the vise? If you
don't want to go, go back." Seeing this, the bartender turned and ran away. Then my
little tailor drove quietly to the church, and the princess married him, and he and the
princess lived a very contented life. If you don't believe me, pay one thaler. He didn't
want the house either, because it belonged to his ancestors, otherwise he would have
divided the money among them. At last he hit on an idea and said to his sons, "Go out
on an adventure, and each learn a craft. When you come back, whoever can make the
most outstanding work will get the house." Death of the Chicken

Once upon a time, a hen and a rooster came to Nut Hill. They agreed that whoever
found a nut would share it with the other chicks. The chick found a big nut, but she said
nothing and just wanted to eat the kernel by herself. But the juice of the nut was so thick
that she couldn't swallow it at all and it got stuck in her throat. She was afraid of choking,
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so she shouted, "Chicken, run, get me some water, or I will choke to death." The chick
ran quickly to the well and said, "Dad, you must give me water." The chick was lying on
the Nut Hill and was about to choke on a big nut.

The fountain answered, "Go first to the bride and ask for the red silk." The rooster ran to
the bride and said, "Brides, you must give me a red silk. I will give it to the well, and
there will be water in the well, and I will give the water to the hen who lies on the nut hill
and wants to choke on the nuts." The bride answered, "Go first and take down my little
wreath, which is hanging on a willow tree."

With this, the rooster ran to the pasture, took the wreath from the branches and brought
it to the bride. The bride gave him the red silk, and the bride brought it to the well, and
the well gave him water. The cockerel gave the water to the hen, but when he got there,
the hen had suffocated and lay there motionless. The cockerel was very sad and cried
loudly. All the animals came to mourn the hen. Six mice built a carriage and carried the
hen to the grave. When the carriage was ready, they put on the harness and drove it
with the cockerel. But on the way, the fox came: "Where are you going, little chicken?" -
"I want to bury my chicken." - "Can I go with you?"

"Yes, but please sit in the back of the cart, my horse cannot sit in the front." So the fox
sat in the back, and then the wolf, the bear, the deer, the lion, and all the animals in the
forest. They continued on their way and came to a stream. "How are we going to cross
the stream now?" asked the chicken. There was a straw with a message on it saying "I
want to lie on it so you can ride on me"; but when the six mice climbed up on the straw,
it suddenly slipped and fell into the water, and all six mice fell in and drowned. The need
arose again, and a lump of coal came along and said, "I am big enough to lie on it, and
you can ride on me."

The coal also lay down by the water, but unfortunately, as soon as it touched the water,
it hissed, went out, and died. A stone saw this and wanted to help the chicken, so he
also lay down on the water. The chicken pulled the cart alone, but when he quickly

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pulled the cart to the other side and lifted the dead chicken ashore, he tried to pull up
the other chickens who were sitting behind the cart, but because there were so many
chickens, the cart tipped over backwards and they all fell into the water and drowned.
Only the cockerel and the dead hen were left, and the cockerel dug a grave for it and
buried it in it, and piled a mound of earth on top, and it sat on it to mourn until it died too.
Everything was dead.

4.2.36 Schneider's Thumbelina

The tailor had a son who was very small, only as big as a thumb, so people called him
Thumb. But he plucked up his courage and said to his father: "Father, I have to go and
must go." "All right, my child," said the old man, taking out a darning needle and tying a
knot with sealing wax by the light: "Here is a sword for your journey." The little tailor
wanted to eat with the other children again, so he went into the kitchen to see what his
mother had finally cooked. The meal was just ready and the bowl was on the stove. So
he asked: "What are we going to eat today?" "You decide for yourself," said his mother.
He jumped onto the stove and looked into the bowl, but because he stretched his neck
too far, the steam of the food rolled him up and drove him out of the chimney, and finally
sank again. In this way, the little tailor came into the world, running around and working
for his master, but food could not fill his stomach. "Madam, if you don't make us
something nice to eat," said Thumb, "I will go away in the morning and write on your
front door with chalk: 'Too many potatoes, too little meat, goodbye, Potato King!'" -
"What do you want to do, grasshopper!" said the lady, and she grabbed a rag angrily
and was about to hit her, but my little tailor quickly got under the thimble, stuck his head
out from under the rags and stuck out his tongue at the lady. She quickly picked up the
thimble and tried to grab it, but Thumb jumped into the pile of rags. When the lady threw
away the rags and went to look for him, he got into the crack of the table. "Hey! Hey!
Madam!" he raised his head and shouted, and every time the lady tried to attack him, he

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always jumped into the drawer. But in the end, she caught him and drove him out of the
house.

The little tailor wandered about and came to a large forest, where he met a gang of
robbers who were about to steal the king's treasure. They saw the little tailor and
thought that such a tool would be of great use to us. "Hey," one of the robbers called out,
"you mighty giant, do you want to come with me to the treasury? You can sneak in and
throw out the money." Thumbelina thought about it and finally agreed and followed him
to the treasury. So he checked the door above and below to see if there was a crack.
Fortunately, he found one and was about to climb in when a sentinel said,

" What is this nasty spider you caught? I'm going to kick it to death." "Well, let the poor
animal go," said another, "it didn't do anything to you." Thumbelina then safely entered
the treasury through the crack, opened the window where the robbers were standing,
and threw out the silver coins one by one. When the tailor's stone was at its best, it
heard the king coming to inspect the treasury and had to hide for a while. The king
noticed that many hard silver coins were missing, but didn't know who had stolen them,
because the castle was well preserved and everything seemed to be in good condition.
So he went away again, saying to the two guards, "Look out, there's someone behind
the coins!" When Thumb Bear began to work again, they heard the coins inside move
and make a rattling sound: rattling! rattling! rattling! So they hurried down to catch the
thief. When the little tailor heard them coming, he moved even more swiftly, jumped into
a corner, covered himself with a silver coin, so that he could not see anything, and
teased the guards, shouting, "Here I am!" The guards hurried over, but when they
reached him he had already jumped under a silver coin in another corner and shouted,
"Hey! Here I am!" The guards hurried back, but he had already run to the third corner
and shouted, "Hey! Here I am!" So he played a trick on them and drove them around
the vault until they were tired and had no way out. He threw out all the coins one by one,
caught the last one with all his strength, and then jumped up swiftly and flew out of the
window with it. The robbers praised him highly: "You are a real hero, will you be our
captain?" But he thanked him and said that he must see the world first. Now they
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collected the stolen goods, but the little tailor only wanted one cross coin because he
could not carry it.

Then he put his sword back on his body, saluted the robbers, and went down the crotch
path. She did find work for several masters, but at last, because she was not good
enough, she had to work as a valet in an inn. However, the maids did not like her
because she secretly saw everything they did without their knowing it. She reported to
the master and mistress what they took from the dishes and what they brought back
from the cellar. Then they said, "Wait a minute, we will give you a glass of wine too."
They promised to play a trick on him. Once, one of the maids was mowing the grass in
the garden and saw Thumbboy jumping around and climbing up and down in the grass,
so she quickly mowed Thumbboy with the grass, wrapped him in a large cloth, and
secretly threw him to the cow. Now there was a huge black giant down there, who
swallowed him up without hurting him; but he did not like it there because it was dark
and there was no light. When he was milking, he kept shouting, "Milking, milking,
milking, is the bucket almost full?" But when he was milking, no one could understand
his voice.

At this time, the master came into the cowshed and said, "The cow will be slaughtered
tomorrow." Thumb was frightened and shouted, "Here I am!" The master heard the
sound, but did not know where it came from, so he asked him, "Where are you?" "Oh,
the black cow!" he answered, but the master did not understand and turned away. The
next morning, the cow was slaughtered. Fortunately, Thumb was not hit in the process
of cutting the cow, but he was entangled in the sausage meat. The butcher came
forward and shouted, "Don't cut too deep! Don't cut too deep! I'm down there! " Because
of the noise, no one heard it, and poor Thumb got into trouble, but trouble is always
disgusting. He jumped nimbly between the machetes, and no knife touched him, and he
escaped unscathed. But he could not escape, and had no choice but to let himself be
stuffed with bacon slices in black pudding. The room was a bit narrow, and he was hung
in the chimney to be smoked. Time and space seemed so long to him. Finally, in winter,
he was taken down because he had to serve sausages to customers. As the hostess
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cut the sausage, he was careful not to stick his head out too far to avoid cutting his neck.
Finally, he saw his advantage, took a deep breath, and jumped out.

But the tailor would not stay in the house that had treated him so badly, and he
immediately set out on his journey again. As he was crossing a field, he met a fox, who
saw him. "Oh, Mr. Fox," cried the tailor, "I have caught you by the throat; let me go."
"You are right," answered the fox, "you have as much as you have nothing; I will let you
go if you promise to give me the chickens from your father's yard." "With pleasure,"
replied the thumb, "I will give you all the chickens, I promise you." So the fox let him go
again, and took him home himself. When the father saw his youngest son again, he
gladly gave the chickens to the fox. "I will bring you some money," said the thumb to the
father, and handed him the kroos that he had earned on his way.
" But why did the fox eat these poor little birds?" - "Well, you fool, your father will love
his children more than the chickens on the farm."

4.2.37 Star Money

Once upon a time, there was a little girl whose parents had died. She lived in extreme
poverty. She had no room to live in, no bed to sleep in, and nothing except the clothes
she was wearing and a piece of bread in her hand. This piece of bread was given to her
by a kind person.

But she was kind and pious. Because she was abandoned by the whole world, she
walked into the fields and trusted in the dear God; then, she met a poor man, who said,
"Oh, give me something to eat, I am starving."

She gave him the whole piece of bread and said, "God bless you!" Then she continued
to walk forward. At this time, a child came up and groaned, saying, "My head is cold,
give me something to cover it!" So she took off her hat and gave it to him. She walked a

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little further and met another child who had no vest on and felt cold, so she gave him
her vest; further on, someone asked her for a small coat, and she gave it to him too.
Finally, she came to a forest, and it was dark, and another girl came and asked her for a
shirt. The pious girl thought to herself:

It was a dark night, and you might as well give your shirt away. And you did. As she
stood there with nothing, suddenly the stars fell from the sky, and only hard, shining
coins remained. Although she had given away the little shirt, she received a new one
made of the finest linen. So he saved up a large sum of silver coins and became rich for
the rest of his life.

4.2.38 Rumpelstiltskin

Once upon a time there was a miller who was very poor, but had a beautiful daughter.
One day he came to the king and said, "I have a daughter who can spin straw into
gold." The king loved gold very much, and was very impressed by this skill, so he
ordered the miller's daughter to be brought to him immediately. The king took her into a
room full of straw, gave her a spinning wheel and a spool, and said, "If you don't spin
straw into gold by tomorrow morning, you will die." Then he locked the room and left her
alone.
The poor miller's daughter sat there, not knowing what to do, because she had no idea
how to spin straw into gold. She became more and more frightened, and finally began to
cry. Suddenly the door opened, and a little man came in and said, "Good evening, Miss
Miller, why is she crying so hard?" "Oh!" the girl answered, "I should know how to spin
straw into gold, but I don't know how to do it."

"If I spin for you," the dwarf said, "what will you give me?" "My necklace," the girl said.
The man put on the necklace and sat down at the spinning wheel, making a whirring
sound! Whew! Whew! After three turns, the spool was full.

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Then it put on another reel, and it went whirr! whirr! whirr! After three reels, the second
spool was full. And so it went on until the next morning, when all the straw was spun
and all the spools were full of gold.

The King came and was amazed and delighted to see all this, but his heart was filled
with even greater desire, so he sent for the Miller's daughter to be taken to another,
larger room, which was full of straw, and commanded her to spin all the straw in one
night if she valued her life. The girl was overwhelmed and began to cry. Then the door
opened again, and the dwarf came up and asked, "What will you give me if I spin the
straw into gold for you?" "The ring on my finger," the girl answered. The dwarf took the
ring and started spinning again, and the next morning he had spun all the straw into
glittering gold. The King was overjoyed to see the gold, but he was not satisfied yet. He
had the miller's daughter taken to a larger room filled with straw and said, "You must
spin this straw tonight; if you succeed, you will be my wife," because he thought that
there was no richer woman in the world.

When the girl was alone, the dwarf came back for the third time and asked, "What will
you pay me if I help you spin straw this time?" The girl answered, "I have nothing." "So
promise me that when you become queen, you will give me your first child." "Who
knows what the result will be?" The miller's daughter thought that she didn't know what
else to do when she needed it most, so she agreed to the dwarf, and the dwarf spun the
straw into gold again. The next morning, the king returned and found that everything
was as he wished, so he married her and the beautiful miller's daughter became queen.
A year later, the queen gave birth to a beautiful child and never thought of the dwarf
again. At this time, the dwarf went into the queen's room and asked her to fulfill her
promise to him. The queen was very scared and was willing to give the dwarf all the
wealth in the country to give her the child. But the dwarf said, "No, I would rather have a
living thing than all the wealth in the world." The queen began to moan and cry. The
dwarf was terrified and said, "I give you three days. If you know my name by then, you
can keep your child."

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The queen spent the whole night thinking about all the names she had heard and sent
messengers to all parts of the country to collect new names. The next day, the dwarf
came and began to tell the queen the names she knew one by one, starting with Caspar,
Melchior and Balzers, but the dwarf said after each name: "That's not my name." The
next day, she asked everyone around her and gave the dwarfs all kinds of strange
names, such as: Rib Beast, Ham Legs, and Lace Legs, but he insisted: "That's not my
name." On the third day, the messenger came back and told this story: "I can't think of
any new names at all. I came to a high hill in the corner of the forest, where the fox and
the hare were saying goodnight to each other. I saw a little house with a fire burning in
front of the house, and next to the fire, a funny dwarf was hopping on one leg and
shouting: 'Today I will bake bread, tomorrow I will make wine, and the day after
tomorrow I will give birth to a child for the queen; oh, how lucky it is that no one knows
my name is Rumpelstiltskin!'"

The queen was very happy after hearing this. At this time, the dwarf came over and
asked, "Queen, what is my name?" She asked first, "Is your name Kunz?" "No." "Is your
name Heinz?" "No." "Is your name Rumpelstiltskin?" "The devil told you! The devil told
you!" The short man roared, and in a rage, he dug his right foot deep into the ground,
poking it up above his body. Then, in a rage, he grabbed his left foot with both hands
and tore himself in half.

4.2.39 Child Mary

In front of a big forest lived a woodcutter, his wife and his only child - a little girl of three
years old. But they were very poor, they had no bread to eat, and they didn't know what
to give her to eat. One morning, the woodcutter went to work in the forest with a heavy
heart. While he was chopping wood, a tall and beautiful woman suddenly stood in front
of him. She had a shining star crown on her head and said to him: "I am the Virgin Mary,

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the mother of the Holy Child. You are poor and need help. Just bring your money." No
matter what he did, the fear could not go away, his heart kept beating and he couldn't
calm down. No matter how he washed it, the gold was on his finger and it wouldn't fall
off.

A few days later, the Virgin Mary returned from her journey, and she called to the girl,
saying, "Give me back the key of heaven." She handed over the package, looked at the
girl and asked, "Have you not opened the thirteenth door yet?" - "No," she answered.
Then she put her hand on the girl's heart and felt its beat, but found that he did not obey
her command to open the door. So she asked again, "You certainly did not do it?" "No,"
the girl said for the second time. Then she saw that she had touched the golden finger
of the sky fire, and knew that she was guilty, so she said for the third time, "Didn't you
do it?" "No," the girl said for the third time. The Virgin Mary said, "You have violated my
will and lied, and you are not worthy to enter heaven again."

Then the girl fell into a deep sleep, and when she woke up, she found herself lying next
to a tall tree, surrounded by dense bushes, so that she could not get through. His mouth
was also tightly closed, and he could not say a word. There was a cave in the tree, and
he slept in it at night, and sat in it when it rained and thundered; he ate roots and wild
berries, as much of these as he could find. In the fall he gathered leaves and hid them
in the hollows of trees, and there he hid when the snow and ice came in. His clothes
became dirty and fell off, so he had to wrap himself in leaves.

When the warm sun shone again, it went out and sat in front of the tree, wrapping its
long hair around its body like a cloak. It sat there for a long time, feeling the pain and
suffering of the world.

One spring day, the King was hunting in the forest and chased a deer. The deer
escaped into the bushes around a hollow tree, so the King dismounted and tore it apart
with his sword. As he squeezed past, he saw a beautiful girl sitting under the tree. She
had golden hair that reached down to her toes. He was surprised and asked, "How did

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you get into this wilderness?" But the girl remained silent because she couldn't open her
mouth. The King continued, "Will you come with me to my castle?" She just nodded
slightly. The King took her in his arms, put her on his horse, took her home, dressed her,
and gave her rich gifts. Although she couldn't speak, she was so beautiful and lovely
that the King loved her with all his heart and married her.

About a year later, the queen gave birth to a son. Later, one night when she was alone,
the Virgin Mary appeared to her and said, "If you now tell the truth and admit that you
opened the forbidden door, I will open your mouth and restore your ability to speak. But
if you still fall into sin and stubbornly deny it, I will take your newborn child away." The
queen had a chance to answer, but she said, "No, I did not open the forbidden door."
The Virgin Mary took the newborn from her arms and disappeared with it. The next
morning, the child was gone, and people began to talk about it, saying that the queen
was a cannibal and killed her own child. She heard everything but could not refute it, but
the king loved her too much and he did not believe it.

A year later, the queen gave birth to another son. That night, the Virgin Mary appeared
to her again and said, "If you now admit that you opened the forbidden door, I will give
you your child and you will no longer make mistakes. But if you continue to sin and deny
this, I will take this newborn away." The queen said again, "No, I did not open the
forbidden door." The Virgin Mary took the child from her arms and sent him to heaven.
The next morning, when people heard that the child was also missing, they shouted that
the queen had eaten the child and asked the king's privy council to judge her. But the
king loved her deeply and refused to believe it. He ordered the ministers not to mention
this matter again, otherwise they would be executed.

A year later, the queen gave birth to a beautiful little girl. The Virgin Mary appeared to
her again at night and said, "Follow me." She took the Virgin Mary's hand and led her to
heaven, where she saw the two oldest children, who were smiling at her and playing
with the globe. The queen was overjoyed, and the Virgin Mary said, "If you now admit
that you opened the forbidden door, I will return your two sons to you." The queen

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answered for the third time, "No, I did not open the forbidden door." After that, she
buried the Virgin Mary in the ground again and took her third child away.

The next morning, the news spread and the crowds shouted, "The queen is a cannibal
and must be condemned!" The king could no longer refuse his offer. She was brought to
court, but since she could not argue or defend herself, she was sentenced to be burned
at the stake. When the wood was collected, she was tied to the stake, and the flames
burned around her. She was filled with remorse and thought, "If only I could admit
before I die that I opened the door." She cried, "Oh, Mary, I opened it!" Just as the
remorse rose in her heart, rain came from heaven and extinguished the flames. A light
appeared above her and the Virgin Mary descended with her two young sons and her
newborn daughter. She kindly said to her, "Anyone who confesses his sins and repents
will be forgiven." She gave her the children, stopped her mouth, and gave her a life of
happiness.

4.2.40 Toad's Story

A child was sitting on the ground at the doorstep, eating a small bowl of milk and bread
crumbs. Then a toad came over, put its little head into the bowl, and started eating with
him. The next day, the toad came back again, and for a while, it came back every day.
The child accepted the toad, but when he saw that the toad only drank milk and
scattered bread crumbs everywhere, he took a spoon, tapped the toad on the head, and
said, "Ting, you should have some bread crumbs too!" From then on, the child grew tall
and beautiful. But his mother, who was standing behind him, saw the toad, ran up and
beat it to death; from then on, the child became thinner and thinner, and finally died.

An orphan girl was sitting on a wall spinning when she saw a toad coming towards her.
The toad spread a piece of blue silk cloth next to her. The toads loved the cloth so much
that they only wanted to walk on it. Seeing this, the toads immediately turned back, took
a small golden crown, put it on the tree, and then left. Not long after, the toad came

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back, but it could no longer see the crown, so it climbed up the wall, was very sad, and
hit the crown hard with its little head, and finally lay on the wall and died. If the girl had
left the crown there, the toad might have brought more treasure out of the cave.

4.2.41 Thrush King

A king's daughter was very beautiful, but she was so proud that all her suitors were not
good enough for her. She rejected them one by one and even laughed at them. Once,
the king held a great banquet and invited all the men who wanted to marry him. They
were lined up according to their rank and status. First came the king, then the dukes,
princes, earls and barons, and finally the nobles. The king's daughter was brought to
each rank, but she had something to say about each one. One of them was too fat for
her: "Like a wine barrel!" she said. Another was too long: "Long and wobbly, and
staggering!" The third was too short: "Short, fat and useless!" The fourth was too pale:
"Pale dead man!" The fifth was too red: "Like a broken cock!" The sixth was not straight
enough: "Like a green wood dried behind the stove!" So she had something to find fault
with everyone, and especially laughed at a good king who was in a high position and
had a slightly crooked chin. "What's wrong?" she cried with a smile, "His chin is like the
beak of a thrush! " From then on, he was called a thrush. But when the old king saw that
his daughter always laughed at the people and rejected all the suitors who gathered at
the door, he became furious and vowed to marry his daughter to the first beggar who
came to the door.

A few days later, a minstrel began to sing under the window in order to earn some alms.
The king heard it and said, "Let him come up!" At this time, a vulgar minstrel came in
and sang in front of the king and his daughter. After singing, he asked for alms. The
king said, "I like your song so much that I will marry my daughter to you."

The king's daughter was afraid, but the king said, "I swear that I will marry you to the

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first beggar I meet, and I will keep my oath." The king was helpless, so the priest was
called and she had to marry the minstrel immediately. When everything was arranged,
the king said, "It is not suitable for you to stay in my castle anymore; you must leave
with your husband."

The beggar took them out, and they came to a great forest; then she said, 'Oh, whose is
this beautiful forest?' 'It belongs to the Thrush King: if you take it, it's yours!' 'Poor,
gentle girl, if I could only marry the Thrush King!' 'Then they came to a meadow, and
she said, 'Whose is this beautiful green meadow?' 'It belongs to the Thrush King: if you
take him, it's yours!'

'Poor, gentle girl, if I could only marry the Thrush King!' Then they passed through a
great city, and she said:
' Whose great, beautiful city is this?' 'It belongs to the Thrush King: if you take him away,
it will be yours!' 'Poor, gentle girl, if I could only marry the Thrush King!

"I don't like it at all," said the bard. "You always want someone else to be your husband.
Am I not good enough?" At last they came to a very small house, and she said, "Oh, my
goodness! Such a small house! Whose hut is this?" The bard answered, "This is my
house and yours, and we live together." "Where are the servants?" asked the king's
daughter. "What servants!" The beggar answered, "Go yourself. Just make a fire and
boil some water, and you can cook for me. I am so tired." But the king's daughter could
neither make a fire nor cook, so the beggar had to do it himself. After this simple meal,
they went to bed. But the next morning he sent her out early because she had to take
care of the house. They lived in poverty for several days and spent all the money they
had saved. The man said, "Wife, we can't stand it anymore. We can't earn anything
living here. You should weave baskets." He went out to cut willow trees and brought
them home. She began to weave, but the hard branches pricked her delicate hands. "I
know not," said the man, "but spin, and perhaps you will do better." She sat down and
tried to spin, but the hard thread soon cut her tender fingers, and blood ran down them.
"You see," said the man, "you can't do any work well; I don't get along with you. Now I

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want to go into pottery. You should go to the market and sit and sell your wares." "Ah,"
she thought, "when the people of my father's kingdom come to the market and see me
sitting there selling things, they will laugh at me!"

But it was no use, if she didn't want to starve to death, she had to go. Everything went
well at first, for people were happy to buy her wares, because she was beautiful, and
they paid her the price she wanted; many even gave her money and left her the
flowerpot. They lived on their savings until the last moment, when the man bought a lot
of new dishes, which she sat in a corner of the market, arranged around herself, and
then sold. Suddenly, a drunken hussar came running and ran straight into the flowerpot,
smashing everything in it to pieces. She burst into tears, terrified and at a loss what to
do. "Oh, I will be well!" she cried. "What will my husband say!" She ran home and told
him the misfortune. "Who is that sitting in the corner of the market with the pottery?" the
man said. "Don't cry. I can see that you are not fit for any respectable work. So I went to
the king's palace and asked if they needed a kitchen maid, and they promised to take
you in for free."

Now the King's daughter became a kitchen maid, and had to help the cook with the
hardest work. She tied a small jar on each side of her sack, and took the rest home, and
the family lived on this. It happened that the eldest son was to be married, and the poor
woman went upstairs and stood at the door of the hall to watch. When the lights came
on and everything looked so bright and beautiful, she could not help but regret her fate
and curse her arrogance, which had brought her to such a poor end. Among the
delicious food that came and went, she sometimes received some food from the
servants, which she would put into her own little jar and wanted to take home. Suddenly,
the King's son appeared in a golden robe, and when he saw the beautiful woman
standing at the door, he took her hand and wanted to dance with her, but she would not,
and was very scared, because she saw that it was the Thrush King who had proposed
to her, but she had tauntedly refused. When she resisted, he pulled her in, and the
ropes that tied the sack loosened, and the pot fell out, and the soup spilled, and the
fragments flew everywhere. Everyone who saw this laughed and laughed, and she was
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so ashamed that she would rather be buried a thousand feet under the earth. She
jumped to the door and tried to escape, but a man caught up with her on the stairs and
pulled her back. She looked and saw that it was the Thrush King himself, who said,
"Don't be afraid, I am the same person as the minstrel who lived with you in that shabby
house. I disguised myself for you, and I am also the hussar who broke your pottery pot
to pieces. All this was to curb your arrogance and to punish you for laughing at my
arrogance. But now it is over, and now is our wedding feast." The maids came and
dressed her in the most gorgeous clothes, and her father and the whole court came to
bless her to marry the Thrush King and live happily. The real joy was just beginning. I
hope you and I can go there too.

4.2.42 Mrs. Holler

The widow had two daughters, one was pretty and hardworking, the other was ugly and
lazy. But she preferred the ugly and lazy daughter because she was her own daughter,
while the other daughter had to do all the housework and become the "Cinderella" of the
family. Every day he sat by the well by the roadside spinning until his fingers bled. Once,
the spool was covered with blood, and he bent down to take the spool to the well to
wash it, but the spool slipped out of his hand and fell into the well. She burst into tears
and ran to her stepmother and told her about her misfortune. The stepmother scolded
her severely and said mercilessly: "You dropped the spool, pick it up again!" The girl
returned to the well at a loss and jumped down in fear.

When he woke up again, he found himself in a beautiful meadow, the sun was shining,
and flowers were blooming. He continued across the meadow until he came to an oven
full of bread; but the bread cried out, "Oh! Pull me out! Pull me out! Or I will burn, I am
already burnt! " So he went on diligently and took out everything. Then he went on and
came to a tree full of apples, and cried to the tree, "Oh! Shake me! Shake me! We are
all ripe apples!" The tree began to shake, and the apples fell like raindrops, until there

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was not a single apple left on the top of the tree, and the tree disappeared again.

At last he came to a little house, and an old woman was looking out from inside, but
because her teeth were so big, he was terrified and wanted to run away. But the old
woman called after him, "Don't be afraid, dear child, stay with me. If you finish all the
work at home, it will be all right. Just make my bed well, shake the sheets, let the
feathers fly, and then it will snow on earth; I am Mother Holle." The old woman spoke to
him so kindly that the girl agreed to serve her. He also fulfilled all her requests and
always shook her bed vigorously, but in return he lived happily with her, never said a
bad word, and had food cooked and fried every day. Now she had been with Mother
Holle for some time, and she felt sad, and although it was a thousand times better than
home, she still wanted to leave. At last he said to her, "I have brought my misery home
with me, and although I am living well here, I can't stay any longer." Mother Holle said,
"You are right, for your loyalty, I will bring you back myself."

Then she took him by the hand and led him to a big door. The door opened, and the girl
stood under it, and a great deal of gold fell down, and all the gold stuck to her, and she
was covered with gold. "You are very industrious, and this is yours," said Mother Holler,
and gave her back the spool of thread that had fallen into the well. Then the door closed,
and the girl found herself in the outside world, not far from her mother's house. She
went into the yard, and saw the cockerel squatting by the well and calling:

" Cock-a-doodle-doo! Our golden girl has returned again!"

Then he returned to his mother, covered with gold, and was warmly welcomed.

The mother heard that wealth had come, and wanted to give the other ugly and lazy
daughter the same happiness, so she also had to sit by the well and spin. In order to
make the spool bleed, she pricked her finger and let the thorns cut her hand. Then she
threw the spool into the well and jumped in herself. Like the other lady, she came to a

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beautiful meadow and continued along the same path. When she came to the oven, the
bread cried out again: "Oh! Pull me out! Pull me out! Or I shall burn, I am already burnt!"
But the lazy bread answered: "I want to get myself dirty!" and went away. After a while,
she came to the apple tree, which cried out: "Oh! Shake me! Shake me! Our apples are
ripe!" But she answered: "You will soon fall on me, and you may hit my head when you
fall!" and continued to do so. When she came to Mrs. Holler's house, she was not afraid,
because she had heard that Mrs. Holler had big teeth, so she immediately took her job.
On the first day, she forced herself to work hard and obeyed everything Mrs. Holler said,
because she thought Mrs. Holler would give her a lot of gold; but on the second day she
became lazy, and on the third day she was even lazier; she did not want to get up in the
morning. She also made Mrs. Holler's bed very badly and did not shake the sheets well,
so that the feathers flew out of the sheets.

Mother Holle soon got tired of this kind of life and told the lazy woman not to work
anymore. The lazy woman was very satisfied and thought it was time for a golden rain.
Mother Holle led her to the gate, but when she stood under the gate, what flowed out
was not gold, but a large jar of asphalt. "This is a reward for your hard work," Mother
Holle said and closed the gate. The lazy woman returned home, covered in asphalt and
never wanted to wash it off. The rooster at the well saw her and shouted:
" Cuckoo! Our dirty girl is here again!" - "Hansel and Gretel" - Fairy Tales of the Brothers
Grimm

4.2.43 Hansel and Gretel

In front of a large forest lived a poor woodcutter. He had nothing to eat and nothing to
break. The daily bread was barely enough for his wife and two children, Hansel and
Gretel. Finally, he was at his wits' end and didn't know what to do. That night, he tossed
and turned, and his wife said to him, "Listen, husband, take the two children tomorrow
morning, give each a piece of bread, and then take them to the deepest part of the

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forest, where the woods are the thickest, make a big fire for them, and then go away
and leave them alone there; we can no longer feed them." "No, wife," the man said,
"How can I bear to give my dear children to the wild beasts in the forest? They will tear
them to pieces in no time!" "If you don't do this," said the woman, "we will all starve to
death." Only when he agreed did the matter end.

The two children woke up hungry and heard what their mother and father said. Gretel
thought to herself, "This is the end of me," and she cried pitifully. Hansel said, "Don't
worry, Gretel, I'll help us." Then he stood up, put on his coat, opened the door
downstairs, and tiptoed out. The moon was high in the sky, and the white pebbles
sparkled like gold nuggets. Hansel bent down, stuffed everything he could into his
pockets, and then went back to the house.

" Gretel, lie down comfortably and have a good sleep," he said, and fell asleep on the
bed again. The next morning, before the sun rose, the mother came to wake the two
children: "Get up quickly, we are going to take a walk in the forest. Each of you should
hold a piece of bread in your hand and save it for lunch." Hansel had a stone in his
pocket, so Gretel hid the bread under her apron, and then they set out for the forest.
After walking for a while, Hansel stopped and looked back at the house, and then
looked again and again. Dad said, "Hansel, why do you keep looking back? Back away?
Be careful and put your legs up." - "Oh, Dad, I'm looking for my little white cat. It's sitting
on the roof and wants to say goodbye to me." Mom said, "Oh, silly, that's not your kitten,
that's the morning sunshine shining on the chimney." But Hansel didn't care about the
kitten. Instead, he always took a sparkling pebble from his pocket and threw it on the
road.

When they reached the deepest part of the forest, the father said, "Now, children, go
and gather wood, and I will make a fire, so that we will not get frostbite." Hansel and
Gretel carried the wood up the hill. They lit the fire, and when it was burning brightly, the
mother said, "Now, lie down by the fire and go to sleep, while we go to the forest to
chop wood; we will come back and pick you up."

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Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire until noon, each eating his own piece of bread. They
thought their father was still in the forest, for they heard their fellow man knocking at the
door, but it was only a branch tied to a tree, swaying to and fro in the wind. They waited
until evening, but neither father nor mother was home, and no one wanted to come to
pick them up. When night fell, Gretel began to cry, but Hansel said, "Wait a little longer,
until the moon rises." When the moon rose, he took Gretel's hand, and there lay the
pebble, shining like a new coin, to show them the way. In this way they walked all night,
and at daybreak they returned to their father's home. The father was very happy to see
his children again, for he had been sad to have left them alone; the mother also looked
happy, but inwardly she was very angry.

Soon after, there was no bread at home again. In the evening, Hansel and Gretel heard
their mother say to their father, "The children found their way back once, and I let them
go; but now there is nothing in the house except half a loaf of bread. Tomorrow you
must take them deep into the forest and make sure they can't find their way back;
otherwise, no one can help them." The father felt heavy-hearted and thought that he
should share the last bite of bread with the children; but since he had done it once, he
couldn't refuse. The children heard their conversation, and Hansel stood up and wanted
to pick up pebbles again, but when he reached the door, his mother had already locked
it. He comforted Gretel and said, "Gretel, go to bed, God will help us."

In the morning they received the bread, which was smaller than the last time. On the
way, Hansel broke everything in his pocket and stopped from time to time to throw the
crumbs on the ground. "Hansel, why do you always stand there looking around?" said
the father. "Let's go." "Oh! I'm looking for my little pigeon, which sits on the roof and
wants to say goodbye to me." "You fool," said the mother, "that's not your little pigeon,
it's the morning sun shining in from the chimney upstairs." But Hansel broke all the
bread and threw the crumbs on the road.

The mother took them to the deep forest, a place they had never been to in their lives,
where they would sit by the campfire again and sleep, and their parents would come to

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pick them up in the evening. At noon, Gretel gave her bread to Hansel, because he had
scattered all the bread on the road. But noon passed, and evening passed, and no one
came to visit the two poor children. Hansel comforted Gretel by saying, "When the moon
rises, I will see the bread crumbs I scattered, and they will show us the way home." The
moon rose, but when Hansel went to look for the bread crumbs, they were gone;
thousands of birds in the forest had found them and were eating them. Hansel thought
he could find his way home and took Gretel with him, but they soon got lost in the
wilderness and walked all day and all night until they fell asleep from exhaustion. They
walked another day but could not get out of the forest and were very hungry because
they had nothing to eat except a few small berries on the ground.

At noon on the third day, they came to a small house. This house was made entirely of
bread, covered with cakes, and the windows were made of light white sugar. "We will sit
there and eat our fill," said Hansel. "Gretel, I want to eat from the roof, and you from the
window, it will be sweet." Gretel was chewing the candy when a gentle voice came from
the house:

" Crunch, crunch, crunch! Who is chewing my house?"

The children answered: "Wind! Wind! Children of heaven!"

Then they continued to eat. Gretel broke a whole round window glass, and Hansel tore
a large piece of cake from the roof. At this time, the door opened and an old woman
came out on tiptoe. Hansel and Gretel were so scared that they dropped everything in
their hands. The old woman shook her head and said: "Oh, dear children, where are
you from? Come in with me, you will have a lot of fun." She took them both by the hand
and led them into her little house. The food prepared in the house was delicious: milk,
sugar pancakes, apples and nuts. Then two beautiful little beds were prepared. Hansel
and Gretel lay down on them and thought they were in heaven.

However, the old woman was a wicked witch who had been waiting for the children to
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come and had built her little bakery to lure them. When one of the children fell into her
hands, she killed it, cooked it and ate it, which was a feast for her. She was very happy
when Hansel and Gretel ran to her. In the early morning, before the children woke up,
she got up and went to the children's little beds. She was very happy to see that the
children were sleeping so soundly, and murmured to herself: "It is a blessing for me!"
Then she took Hansel into a little stable. When he woke up, he was caged like a
chicken and could only take a few steps. Gretel woke Hansel up and shouted, "Get up,
you lazy bone, get some water, and go to the kitchen to make something delicious. Your
brother is in the stable. I will fatten him up first and then eat him when he is fat; now you
have to feed him." Gretel was terrified and cried, but she had to do what the witch told
her. So the witch prepared the best food for Hansel every day to make him fat, but
Gretel only got crab shells. The old woman came to Hansel every day and said, "Hansel,
stretch out your finger so that I can feel if you are fat." But Hansel always showed her a
small bone. To her surprise, he didn't want to get fat at all.

One evening four weeks later, the witch said to Gretel: "Go get some water. No matter
how fat your brother is, I will kill him and cook him tomorrow. In the meantime, I will go
to knead the dough and bake something to eat." Gretel felt sad, so she got up to get
some water to cook Hansel. The next morning, Gretel had to get up, light the fire, and
hang up the kettle. "Now listen carefully," said the witch, "I will go to the stove to light
the fire and put the bread in." Gretel stood in the kitchen, tears streaming down her face,
thinking that if the beasts in the forest ate us all and we died together, we would not
have to endure the pain, and I would not have to boil water myself for the death of my
dear brother: "Dear God, please help us poor children out of suffering!"

At this time, the old woman called out, "Gretel, come to the oven quickly." Gretel came
and said, "Go in and see if the bread is well baked, golden and crisp. I have poor
eyesight and cannot see far. If you cannot see far, sit on the board and I will push you in.
Then you can walk around and have a look." However, while Gretel was inside, she
wanted to close the door and let Gretel bake in the blazing hot oven, and she also
wanted to eat all the baked goods: this was the idea of the evil witch, so she was called

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Gretel. But the girl who was inspired by God said, "I don't know how to start. You teach
me to sit up first, and then I will push you in." The old woman then sat on the board, and
Gretel, who was lighter, pushed her in with all her strength, and then quickly closed the
door and locked it with an iron bolt. At this time, the old woman began to scream and
groan in the blazing hot oven, but Gretel ran away and she had to be burned painfully.

Gretel ran to Hansel, opened his little door, and cried, "Hansel, jump out, we are saved!"
Hansel jumped out like a bird in a cage when the door is opened. They cried for joy and
kissed each other passionately. The whole cottage was filled with gems and pearls,
which they put into their pockets and set out for home. But they came to a large body of
water and could not cross. Then the little sister saw a little white duck swimming around,
and cried to it, "Oh, dear little duck, carry us on your back." The little duck heard it,
swam over, took Gretel in his arms, and then took Hansel in his arms. In this way, they
soon found their home. The father was very happy to see them again, for he had not
had a happy day since the children left. But the mother was gone.

Now the children have enough wealth and no longer have to worry about food and drink.

4.2.44 Doctor Who

Once upon a time, there was a poor peasant named Krebs. He brought a load of wood
with two oxen into town and sold it to a doctor for two thalers. The money was given to
the doctor, who was sitting at his table. The peasant was delighted to see the doctor
eating and drinking, and he wanted to become a doctor, too. So he stayed for a while,
and finally asked the doctor if he could become a doctor himself. "Oh, yes," said the
doctor, "it will be done very quickly. First, you have to buy a primer with a cock on the
cover; turn your wagon and two oxen into money to buy clothes and everything a doctor
needs; and third, draw a sign saying 'I am the Universal Doctor' and nail it to your door."
The peasant did so. After he had performed some small amount of medical skills, a rich

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man's money was stolen. Later, the Universal Doctor, who lived in a certain village, told
him, and he must have known where the money had gone.

So the gentleman drove up to the village in his carriage and asked him if he was the
Doctor of All Knowing. "Yes, that's him." - "So he should go and get the stolen money
back." "Oh, yes, but his wife Grete must go too." The lord was satisfied, put them both in
the carriage, and drove away together. When they arrived at the noble courtyard, the
table was already set; he should eat with us first. "Yes, but his wife Grete must go too,"
he said, and sat down with her behind the table.

When the first servant came with a bowl of delicious food, the peasant nudged his wife
and said, "Grete, this is the first one." He thought it was the first one to bring the food.
But the servant thought he meant "this is the first thief," and he was the first thief, so he
was frightened and said to his companions outside, "The Doctor of All Knowing, we are
in trouble, he said I was the first thief." The second man didn't want to come in, but he
had to come in. When he came in with the bowl, the peasant nudged his wife, "Grete,
this is the second one." The servant also went out in fear. The third one was not much
better. The farmer said again, "Grete, this is the third one."

The fourth person was to carry a covered plate, and the gentleman asked the doctor to
see what was under the plate. It turned out to be a crab. The farmer looked at the plate,
not knowing what to do, and said, "Oh, poor crab!" The master heard this and shouted,
"Well! He knows now, and now he knows who the money belongs to."

The servants were terrified and blinked at the doctor and asked him to come out. When
the doctor came out, all four confessed to him that they had stolen the money; if he
would not betray them, they would return it and give him a large sum of money;
otherwise it would be their fault. They also showed him where the money was hidden.
The doctor was satisfied with this and went back to the house and said, "Sir, now I will
look in my account book and see where the money is." The fifth servant sneaked into
the oven to hear if the doctor knew anything else. The doctor sat down, opened his ABC

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book, flipped through it, and found the rooster. Since he couldn't find it, he said, "You
must come out there." At this time, the man in the furnace thought he was the one being
talked about, jumped out in fear, and shouted, "This man knows everything!" Dr. All-
Knowing told the gentleman where the money was, but did not reveal who stole it. He
received a huge reward from both sides and became a celebrity.

4.2.45 Fried and the Catholics

There was a man and a woman named Fried, who were married and lived together like
a young couple. One day, Fried said, "Catherlieschen, I am going to work in the fields
now. When I come back, there must be baked food on the table to fill my stomach and
fresh water to drink to quench my thirst." "Go, Fried," Catherlieschen replied, "Go, I will
arrange it for you." It was almost dinner time, and she took a sausage from the chimney,
put it in the frying pan, added some butter, and put it on the fire. The sausage began to
fry and hissed, and Catherlieschen stood by, holding the handle of the pan, thinking for
a long time, and suddenly it occurred to her: While the sausage is frying, she can pour
the beer into the cellar. So she grabbed the handle of the pan, took a can, went to the
cellar, and poured the beer in. The beer flowed into the can, and Catherlieschen
watched all this and suddenly thought: Hey! The dog upstairs is unhappy, and he might
take the sausage from your pan! You stay with me! In Huizhou, it was on the basement
stairs; but the Spitz had already dragged the sausage to the ground.

But Catherine was not lazy and chased it for a long distance, all the way to the field. But
the dog was faster than Catherine and kept holding the sausage tightly, jumping around
in the field. "All right!" Catherine said, turning around, because she was tired from
running, she walked slowly and calmed down slowly. At the same time, beer continued
to flow from the barrel, because Catherine did not turn on the tap, and when the jug was
full and there was no room left, the beer flowed into the cellar until the entire barrel was
empty.

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Catherine witnessed all this from the stairs. "Ugh!" it shouted, "Fred didn't notice it, what
are you going to do now!" It thought for a while and finally remembered that there was a
bag of good flour on the ground, which had fallen on the last time it went to the market,
and it wanted to take it down and sprinkle it in the beer. "Yes," it said, "keep it in time,
and you can get it later when you need it!" Then it climbed down from the attic, took
down the sack, and threw it directly on the jug full of beer. The jug turned over and
Fred's beer floated into the cellar. "Oh, if there is one, there must be another! " said
Catherine, scattering flour everywhere, and finally, she was very satisfied with her
masterpiece and said, "How neat and tidy it looks here!"

At noon, Fred returned home. "So, woman, what did you do?" "Oh, Fred," she answered,
"I wanted to grill you a sausage! But when I poured the beer, the dog took the sausage
away; when I ran after the dog, the beer spilled; and when I wiped the beer with flour, I
also knocked over the can; but now the cellar is completely dry!" Fred said:
"Katharissen, Katharissen! You shouldn't have done this! You let the sausage be eaten,
let the beer flow out of the barrel, and even spilled our fine flour!" "Yes, Fred, I didn't
know, you should tell me!"

The man thought to himself, if your wife does this, then you'd better be careful. Now that
he had saved a large sum of money, he changed it into gold and said to Catherine,
"Look, these are yellow chickpeas. I will put them in a jar and bury them in the cowshed,
but don't come with me or you will die." Catherine said, "No, Friedchin, I won't do it."
After Friedchin left, some shopkeepers from the village who sold earthenware bowls
and pots came and asked the young woman what they had in exchange. "Oh, my good
man, I have no money," said Catherine, "I can't buy anything; but if you need anything
yellow, I can buy it!" "Yellow chickpeas, oh, yes, why not? Let's go and see." "Well, go
and dig in the cowshed, you will find yellow chickpeas there, I won't let you go there."
The villains went to dig, but found nothing but gold; so they packed up and ran away,
leaving all the pots and pans in the house. Catherine thought that she would have to
use the plates too, because there were enough in the kitchen. So she knocked off the
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bottom of every pot and glued the plates to the fence posts around the house for Ilrat to
use. When Fred returned and saw the new decorations, he asked, "What have you
done, Catherine?" "Fred, I bought it for the yellow fixture under the cow trough. I was
not there, and the shopkeepers had to dig it out themselves." "Oh, woman," said Fred,
"what have you done! These are not tricks, but pure gold, all our wealth! You shouldn't
have done that!" "Yes, Fred," she answered, "I didn't know, you should have told me
sooner."

Catherine stood for a moment, thinking, and then she said, "Listen, Frederick, we're
going to get the money back, we're going to go after the thieves." "Let's go," said
Frederick, "try it, but you'll have to take some butter and cheese with you so we can
have something to eat on the way." "Yes, Frederick, I think so." They set off, Frederick
walking more easily, and Catherine following behind. What's wrong with that, she
thought? If we go back, I can get a little ahead. Now we came to a hill, and there were
deep ruts on both sides of the road. "Look," she said, "how broken, how cruel, how
oppressive they have made this poor land! It will never be restored to its original state in
his lifetime!" Out of sympathy, she took out butter and spread it on both sides of the rails
so that the rails would not be crushed by the wheels. And how she...

As he bent down out of pity, a piece of cheese rolled out of his pocket and rolled down
the hill. Catherine said, "I have already gone up once, and I will not come down again;
perhaps someone will come to pick it up." So he took another piece of cheese and
rolled it down. But the two cheeses did not come back, so she let the third cheese roll
down, thinking that perhaps they were waiting for their companions and did not like to
go alone. When all three butterflies did not appear, he said, "I don't know what that
means! But it may be that the third butterfly can't find the way and is lost. I'd better send
the fourth butterfly to call them." But the fourth butterfly was no better than the third ,
and Catherine was angry and threw the fifth and sixth butterflies down, and these two
were the last two. It stood for a while, waiting for them to come, but when they didn't
come, it said: "Ah, you are really a master of seeking death, taking so long to come
back. Do you think I will wait for you? I am leaving, you come with me, your legs are

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younger than mine!" After Catherine Lishen walked away, she found Fred who stopped
to wait for food: "Now, give me what you brought." She handed him the dry bread.
"Where are the butter and cheese?" the man asked. "Oh, Catherine Lishen," Catherine
said, "I have spread butter on the path, and the cheese will be here soon. A piece of
cheese ran away from me, so I sent someone to call it." Fred said: "Catherine Lishen,
you shouldn't do this, spread butter on the road and then roll the cheese down the hill!"
"Yes, Catherine Lishen, you should have told me earlier!"

Then they ate dry bread together, and Friedchin said, "Catherine, did you look after our
house while you were away?" "No, Friedchin, you should have told me earlier." "Then
go home and settle the house before you leave. Bring some food with you, I'll wait for
you here." After Catherine went back, she thought: Friedchin would like to eat
something else, he may not like butter and cheese, so I will get a cloth, fill it with biscuits,
and give him a pot of vinegar to drink. As he said this, he locked the upper door, but
lifted the lower door and carried it on his shoulder, thinking that as long as he had a
door, the house would be safe. Catherine hastened leisurely along, and when she
returned to Friedchen she said: "Here is the front door, Friedchen, you can look after the
house yourself!" "Oh, goodness," he said, "what a clever woman I have! Lift up the
lower door so everybody can run in, and then lock it from the top! It's too late to go
home now, but if you lift up the door here you can lift it higher." "I would like to lift the
door, Friedchen, but those little jars and the vinegar jug are too heavy for me. I'll hang
them on the door, and they can carry them."

They went into the forest to look for the two villains, but found nothing. As it was getting
dark, they climbed up a tree, intending to spend the night there. But when they reached
the top of the tree, someone came to help them carry the lingering things and find them
before they were lost. They sat down under the tree where Fried and Kaselishen were
sitting, made a fire, and planned to share their prey. Fried climbed down from the other
side, picked up some stones, and then climbed up with them, intending to throw the two
thieves to death. But the stone missed, and the two villains shouted, "It's almost
daybreak, the wind is blowing all the pine cones down." Catherine was still holding the

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door, which was pressed too tightly, and she thought it must be Huzel's fault, so she
said, "Fried, I must push Huzel down!" "No, Catherine, not now," he answered, "they will
betray us!" "Oh, Frederick, I have to do it, they are pushing me too hard!" "Well, in the
name of the executioner, do it!" As he said this, the husks rolled down from the
branches, and the people below said, "The bird has pooped!" After a while, because the
door was still closed, Catherine said, "Oh, Frederick, I must pour out the vinegar." "No,
Catherine, you can't do this, it will reveal our whereabouts." "Oh, Friedrich, I have to do
this, he demands too much from me!" "Well, in the name of the executioner, do it." As
she said this, she poured out the vinegar and splashed it on the children, and the
children said to each other, "The dew has begun to drip!" Finally, Catherine wondered if
it was the door that bothered me so much? She said: "Friedrich, I must push the door
down." "No, Catherine, not now, she might betray us." "Oh, Friedrich, I must do it, she
demands too much of me." "No, Catherine, hold her tight." "Oh, Friedrich, I will put her
down." "Oh," answered Friedrich angrily, "for the devil's sake, let her die!" Then it fell
down with a thump, and the people below shouted: "The devil has come down from the
tree!" and ran away, leaving everything behind. The next morning, when the two came
down, they found all the gold and took it back home.

When they got home, Friedrich said, "Now you must work hard, Katharise." "Yes,
Friedrich," it answered, "I will, I will go to the fields to pick fruit." Katharise was working
in the fields, and she said to herself, "Shall I eat first and then cut, or shall I sleep first
and then cut? Oh, I will eat first!" Then Katharise began to eat, and while she was eating
she became sleepy, and began to cut, and in a half-asleep state she cut all her clothes
in two, aprons, coats, shirts. Katharise woke up from a long sleep, and stood there half
naked, saying to herself, "Is it me, or is it not me? Oh, it is not me!" At this time, night fell,
and Katharise ran into the village, knocked at her husband's window, and shouted,
"Friedrich?" "What's the matter?" - "Don't you know Katharise is in there!" "Yes, yes,"
Friedrich answered, "it may be lying in there sleeping." She said, "That is certainly not
me," and ran away.

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Catherishen saw a few villains outside who wanted to steal things, so she went up to
her and said, "I will help you steal." The villains thought they had seen the business
opportunity here and were satisfied. Catherishen walked to the front of the house and
shouted, "Do you have anything? We want to steal!" The villains thought this was a
good opportunity and wanted to drive Catherishen away again. So they said to him,
"The priest has some radishes in the field outside the village. Go and help us pick
some." Catherishen walked to the countryside and began to pick radishes, but was too
lazy to look up. At this time, a passerby saw it and stopped, thinking that it was the devil
turning over the radishes. He ran back to the village and came to the priest and said,
"Oh, priest, the devil came to your radish field and is pulling radishes." "Oh, God," said
the priest, "I am lame and can't drive it away." The man said, "Then I will squat you." As
he said, he squatted him down. After landing, Catherishen stood up and stretched. "Oh,
damn!" the priest screamed, and the two ran away quickly. The priest was so frightened
that he limped and walked straighter than a squatting man could walk with his legs
straight.

4.3 Generally shorter

4.3.1 Silver Shilling

Once upon a time, a shilling came out of the mint, glittering, leaping, and
jingling. >>Great! Now I'm going out into the world! <<And then he really left.

The child held it warmly, the miser held it cold and wet; the elder son twisted it this way
and that, the younger son rolled it rapidly. This shilling, made of silver with only a small
amount of copper, circulated for a whole year in the country where it was struck.
Afterwards, he traveled abroad. It was the last national coin that his wandering master

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had ever carried in his wallet; and he had never realized that he still had it until this
shilling fell into his hands.

"I've got another shilling from home," he said, "and this one will keep us going!" As the
shilling was put back into the wallet, it jingled and cheered. Here he rests with strangers
who come and go. One shilling is exchanged for another, but the shilling at home
remains. I feel honored.

Now, many weeks had passed, and the shilling had been scattered all over the world,
and no one knew where it had gone. He had heard from other coins that they were from
France and Italy. Some said they were in this city, others said they were in that city, but
the shilling could not come up with any answer. When you are always buried in your
bag, you cannot see the outside world, and that was the case with him. But one day, as
he was lying there, he found that his wallet was not closed properly, so he stole over to
the opening of the wallet and looked out. He should not have done so, but his curiosity
was too strong, so he paid the price. It slipped into his trouser pocket. At night, the
wallet was put aside, and the shilling still lay where it was, and it followed his clothes
into the hall; he immediately fell to the ground; no one heard or saw it.

The next morning, the clothes were delivered, and the master put them on, leaving the
shilling, and went away. The master found him and asked him to return to his post, and
the other three shillings were also taken away.

>It must be fun to travel the world, Schilling thought. ⟫Meeting other people and
learning other customs! <<

"What's a shilling worth?" someone suddenly said. "This isn't the national currency! He's
wrong, he's not a good guy!"

Yes, now begins Schilling‘s story, as he later told it himself.

*Wrong! Not good! "This hit me hard," said Schilling. "I know I am made of pure silver,
with a nice voice and real marks. Everyone must have misunderstood, they can't be

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referring to me, but they are targeting me on purpose! They called my name wrong, I
am not a good person! I must "Get me out of the darkness!" said the person who caught
me at the time, and then I was put into the darkness, and then insulted again in broad
daylight - "Wrong, not good!" We must find a way to get rid of him! <<<

Whenever the shilling was secretly distributed to the people, it trembled between fingers
and was regarded as the national currency.

>>I am only a poor shilling! What good are my silver, my worth, my currency, if they
mean nothing? You are only what the world sees you as! How terrible it is to feel so
guilty and twisted because of what others say and do when I am completely innocent!
Every time I was led out, I was afraid of being looked at; I knew I would be pushed back
and thrown on the table, as if I were a complete fraud.

Once I came to the house of a poor old woman, who took me in as a daily wage for her
hard work; but now she could not let me go; no one would take me in, and I was a real
misfortune to them.

>I can't bear to bring this upon anyone else! <she said. >I can't tolerate false shillings;
it's what the rich baker deserves and he can best afford it, but it would still be an
injustice if I did it! <

Now I'm going to make a woman's conscience condemn me too! <Xilin sighed. Have I
really changed so much since I grew up? <

The woman went to the rich baker, but he knew too well the value of a shilling in those
days to let me stay, and threw me right in the woman's face; and she could not get me
any bread, and I was very upset because I had caused trouble to others, while I was so
bold and confident in my youth, and so clear about my own value and true character.
When a poor shilling is not welcome, I become very melancholy. But the woman took
me home again, and looked at me affectionately, gently, and kindly. "No, I didn't mean
to use you to deceive anyone!" she said. I was thinking of making a hole in you so that
everyone could see that you were a fraud, but now it suddenly occurred to me that you
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might be a lucky shilling, yes, I believe it! I just thought of it. I would make a hole in the
shilling, and pass the string through the hole, and then hang the shilling around the neck
of the neighbor's child as a lucky shilling.

She punched me in the face; being covered in holes is never a good thing, but people
can put up with a lot if it's done with good intentions! A string was passed through me
and I became a pendant that could be worn. I was hung around the child's neck, he
smiled at me, kissed me, and I spent the night snuggling against the child's warm,
innocent chest. The next morning, I soon noticed that the mother was holding me
between her fingers, looking at me, minding her own business. She took a pair of
scissors and cut the string.

>Lucky shilling! she said. "Yes, we shall soon find out!"< She soaked me in vinegar, and
dyed me green all over. Then she patched up the hole, cleaned me up, and went to the
ticket office in the evening and bought a lottery ticket that would bring her good luck.

What agony I felt! My heart seemed to burst with a rumbling sound; I knew I would be
called a counterfeit, and thrown to the ground, even more than the many other coins
and shillings lying there with inscriptions and portraits, of which they would surely be
proud. But I escaped; there were so many people around the collector that he fell into
the drawer with the other coins with a loud noise. I don't know whether I remembered
winning the lottery afterwards, but I know that the next day I was recognized as a
counterfeit shilling, put aside, and then sent to cheat repeatedly.

If you really have personality, it's unbearable, and I want to claim that for myself.

For years I went from door to door, always insulted, always unwelcome. No one
believed in me, and I didn't believe in myself or the world; it was a hard time.

One day a traveler came here and gave me to him. He was naive and took me for
granted; but now as he was about to give me to him, I heard the cry again: "No! Wrong!"

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>I took it for granted! <said the man, looking at me closely. Suddenly his face was filled
with a smile that would not have shown if the others had looked at me closely. "Yes, but
what is that?" he asked. >It is one of our own national coins, a fine, genuine shilling
struck at home, but with a hole in it, what is now called a counterfeit. This is very
strange! I will keep you and take you home. <

I was filled with joy; they said I was worth a shilling, and I could go home, and
everybody at home would know me, and know that I was made of real silver and real
money. I could have burst into a spark of joy, but it was not in my nature; steel would do,
but silver would not.

I was wrapped in fine white paper to prevent myself from being mixed in with the coins
and being spent. Only during festivals and when the citizens gathered, would they carry
me around and praise me. They said I was very interesting; and, so interesting that I
could make people feel interesting without saying a word!

Then I was home again! All my troubles were over, and my joy began; I was made of
fine silver, and I had the stamp of the real thing on me, so that even if someone put a
hole in me and said I was a fake, it would not harm my reputation. Even if you are not, it
doesn't matter! You just have to hold on; everything will be fine! "It's just my belief!" said
Shirin.

Comment: This article tells the story of the shilling's amazing international journey from
a first-person perspective. Overseas, the shilling is considered a counterfeit. Only in
China does it have its true value!

4.3.2 Gardener and Master

A mile from the capital stood an ancient manor house with thick walls, towers, and
crenellated gables.

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A wealthy noble family lived here, though they only lived there in the summer. The farm
was the finest and most beautiful of all hers; it looked as if newly built from the outside,
and warm and cozy inside. The family crest was engraved in the stone above the gate;
gorgeous roses entwined the crest and the bay windows, the front yard was covered
with a hawthorn and redthorn lawn, and even the outside of the greenhouse was
planted with rare flowers.

The lord also had an able gardener; the gardens and orchards were a real delight to the
eye. Adjoining were the remains of an old garden that had once belonged to the farm,
with some boxwood hedges, clipped into the shape of canopies and pyramids. Behind
the hedges stood two tall old trees; they were almost always bare, and it was easy to
think that a storm or a tornado had blown them away, with large pieces of dung, but in
fact, each piece of dung was a bird's nest. Since ancient times, flocks of crows and
ravens have built their nests here, and it is a veritable bird village, and the birds are the
rulers, the landlords, the oldest family on the estate, and the real owners of the estate.
The people below have nothing to do with them, but they tolerate these low creatures,
although they occasionally fire a gun, the sound of which sends chills down the birds'
backs, and each bird screams in fear: "Run!" "Run!" he shouts.

The gardener often tells the master to cut down the old trees. They are not nice to look
at, and if they are cut down, they will drive away the screaming birds that will have to
find another place to live. But the ruler does not want to see these trees, nor to avoid
the birds; the court cannot lose this; it is a thing of the past and should not be
completely eliminated.

>Trees are the birds' heritage, let us let them keep it, my good Larsen! <<

The gardener's name was Larsen, but that didn't mean anything.

>Dear Larsen, aren't you busy enough here? With the garden, the greenhouse, the
vegetable garden, you can't keep up? <<

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He owned them, and took care of them with all his heart, and was very efficient at his
work. His master and mistress acknowledged this, but she made no secret of
confessing that she had often eaten fruit in strangers' houses, and seen more beautiful
flowers than in her own garden. This made the gardener very sad, for he was bent on
growing the best, and he did his best. He was kind-hearted and did his work well.

One day, the master and host summoned him and said in a very gentle and solemn
tone that they had received apples and pears from several distinguished guests the day
before, which were so juicy and delicious that they and all the guests were amazed.
These fruits must not be local, but must have been imported from abroad, and if the
climate permits, they must have been grown here. It is said that these fruits were bought
from the first fruit merchant in the city. The gardener should ride into the city, inquire
about the source of these apples and pears, and then get the recipe for grafting
branches.

The gardener knew the fruit merchant well, for he sold him a great deal of fruit from the
lord's garden. The gardener rode into the town and asked the fruit merchant where his
precious apples and pears came from.

"These are from your own garden!" the fruit vendor said, showing him the apples and
pears he recognized.

Yes, the gardener was so happy! He ran home to see his master and told him that these
apples and pears were from his own garden.

The ruler couldn't believe it. »This is impossible, Larsen!

Can you get a written confirmation from the fruit seller? 'He did. He brought a written
confirmation.

>>>This is very strange! "said the master.

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From now on, the host's table will be filled with bowls of delicious apples and pears
picked from their own garden every day, and friends in the city, outside the city, and
even abroad will receive tons of fruit. It's really a joy! However, they have to add that
these two summers have been particularly good for fruit trees, and fruit trees all over the
country are growing well.

After a long time. One day at noon, the nobles and ladies were dining in the palace. The
next day, the gardener was called in front of the master. The table was full of melons,
fresh and juicy; these melons were all grown in the king's greenhouse.

>>Good Larson, you must ask the court gardener to get us some seeds of this delicious
melon! <<<

"But the court gardener got the seeds from us!" said the gardener happily.

"So this person has learned how to make this fruit reach a higher level!" the master
replied. "Every melon is delicious!" <<<

"Yes, I am proud of it!" said the gardener. "I want to tell you, my Lord, that the gardener
in the castle had a bad melon harvest this year, but when he saw how delicious our
melons were, he tasted them and ordered three melons to be shipped back to the
castle!"

>>>Larsen! Don't think that's the melon from our garden! <<<

"But I believe it!" said the gardener, and he went to the palace gardener and got a
written certificate from him that the melons on the royal table came from the manor. This
really surprised the rulers, who did not hide the fact; the gardener produced the
certificate, and sure enough, the melon seeds were sent far away, just like the grafted
melon branches in the past.

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It is said that these vineyards were so successful and produced excellent fruit that they
were named after the lord's estate, so much so that the name can now be pronounced
in English, German and French. No one had thought of this before!

"I hope the gardener won't think too highly of himself!" said the master.

The gardener and the host and mistress have done it, and there is still a long way to go!
The young storks behaved very well and were said to "get along well with frogs and
snakes". This is the best proof; they were allowed to eat frogs and snakes immediately,
and they did so.

"Now we want revenge!" they shouted.

"Well," said the mother stork, "I have just thought of a wonderful idea. I know that big
pond where all the little children lie, waiting for the stork to pick them up and bring them
to their parents. The little dears sleep soundly and dream of things they can never have.
All parents wish for children like that, and all children wish for brothers and sisters. We
will fly to the pond and find a brother or sister for every child in the village who does not
sing along to this annoying song that makes fun of us storks. The rest will get nothing. "

>>But what shall we do with this bad, ugly boy who has begun to sing? cried the young
storks. <<>

>There was a little goat lying in a pond, and he dreamed that he was dead. We would
take the pond away for him. Then he cried because we had brought him a dead brother.
But you will not forget the good boy who said that it was mean to laugh at animals? We
have brought him a brother and a sister, and since he is called Peter, you will all be
called Peter from now on!

That‘s how it happened, and that‘s why all storks were called Peter, and they are still
called that to this day.

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4.3.3 In the duck farm

This duck comes from Portugal, some say Spain, but it's the same; it's called a
Portuguese duck, it lays eggs, it's killed, and it's served; that's its history. All the little
animals that hatch from eggs are called Portuguese ducks, and the name makes sense.
Now, there is only one duck left in the family's duck farm, the chickens can come and go
as they please, and the rooster is very arrogant here.

"His loud crows make me uncomfortable," the Portuguese woman said. >But he is
handsome, there is no doubt about that, even if he is not a male dragon. He should be
moderate, but moderation is an art and a manifestation of higher learning, and the little
songbird in the linden tree in the neighbor's garden has this quality. What beautiful
songs they sing! There is something very touching in her song, which I call Portuguese!
If I had a little songbird like this, I would like to be its mother, it is sweet and kind, it flows
in my blood and in my Portuguese! <<<

As he was speaking, a small songbird flew down from the roof and the cat chased it, but
the bird escaped, with a broken wing, and fell into the duck yard.

>>>That piece of trash looks like a cat!<, said the Portuguese woman,>>I remember her
from when I was a little girl! A creature like that could live and walk on roofs! I didn‘t
think there were such things in Portugal!<‖ She felt sorry for the little songbird; people
outside Portugal felt sorry for him too.

"Poor little creatures!" they said, and one came up, and another. "We can't sing
ourselves," they said, "but we have the power of singing in us, or something like it; and
even if we don't sing it out loud, we can feel it!"

" There's purslane in her crops!" said one of the little commoners. It was so funny, and
the other commoners thought the word "purslane" was a great one, too. It sounded like
"Portugal"; they pushed each other and said, "Lapp!" It was so funny! Then they started
playing with the little songbird.

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"I never thought about my temper," said the Portuguese, "but I know this: I love all my
kind, except that cat, and no one can expect me to do that! She ate my two cats; but
you can do it if you feel comfortable. I am a foreigner myself, as can be seen from my
posture and feathers! My dragon is a local and has no blood of my own, but I am not
arrogant! - If there is anyone in this yard who can understand you, I can say for sure
that it is me!"

"Squeak!" cried the bird with the broken wing. Although it could not shake off the feeling,
it understood the purpose of the bath. "You are very kind, ma'am!" it said, but did not
want to say anything more.

It's everyone's duty to do something for him! ' Then she stumbled into the trough and
flapped her wings. The bird was almost drowned in the pouring rain, but she meant well.
'This is a good thing,' she said, 'and others can do the same! '

Little songbird, can I chat with you for a while? <<

"Don't torture him like this!" said the Portuguese woman. "He needs rest and care."

One of the elders said: "You have a beautiful voice!" »It must be wonderful to entertain
so many people like you do! Of course, I don't know anything, so I just keep silent,
which is better than saying stupid things to you like everyone else! <<<

It is said: "The Portuguese really know Portuguese!" >> We don't brag, but our
participation is just as genuine! Even if we don't do anything for you, we do it quietly; we
think it's best this way! <<<

"Oh no, let me stay dry," he pleaded.

"Therapy is the only thing that helps me," the Portuguese woman said. »Distraction is
good, too. And now the neighbors' chickens are visiting, two of them well-educated
Mamluks imported from China, which makes me admire them even more. <<<

The hens came and so did the cock; he was too polite today to be rude.

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"You're such a songbird," he said, "you say it all with that little voice of yours. But you
need to be a little stronger so that everyone can hear that you're a man."<<<<

Two Chinese people stood there, delighted to see the songbird; his hair was disheveled
from his shower, and they thought he looked like a Chinese chick. »He was so cute!
<<<<

Then they looked at him more closely; they murmured words with the "p" sound in
elegant Chinese.

>>We are your kind, too. Ducks, even Portuguese ducks, are swimming birds, as you
have surely noticed. You don't know us yet, but how many do, or are trying to know us?
No one knows us, not even the chickens, although we are born to sit higher than most. -
- Never mind, we move quietly among those who do not share our principles; but we
only see the good, and people only talk about the good, although it is hard to find good
where there is none. In the whole chicken coop, there is not a single talented and
honest person except the two of us and the cock! But the inhabitants of the duck farm
are not like that. We warn you, little songbird! Do not trust that blunt-tailed fellow, she's
sneaky! The spotted woman with the crooked mirror on her wing loves to argue, never
lets anyone have the last word, and she's always wrong. Fat ducks say bad things
about everyone, it's against our nature; if you can't say anything good, you must shut up.
The Portuguese are the only ones who have some education and can get along, but
she's warm --

"Beep!" he said. "Ma'am, you kick really hard!"

"Why are you blocking my way?" she asked. "You can't be that sensitive! I was nervous
too, but I never said 'peek'!"

"Don't be angry!" said the bird. "I just heard

Beak. <<<

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The Portuguese girl ignored him and pounced on the delicious food, eating it with relish.
When she finished her meal and lay down again, the bird flew over and tried to be
friendly, talking a lot about Portugal! <<

"Those two Chinese guys are always whispering!" some of the ducks said. "We think
they are boring. We never talk to them."

Now here comes the drake! He thought the songbird was a sparrow. "Yeah, I can't tell
the difference," he said, but that doesn't matter! He belongs

A toy that once you have it, you own it!

"Don't worry about what he said," the Portuguese whispered.

Good at business, business is everything. But now I'm going to rest. You should make
yourself nice and fat, until your belly is full of apples and plums. <<<

Then she sat down in the sun, blinking one eye; she was lying well, she was well, and
that was why she slept so soundly.

The little songbird tugged at its broken wing and lay down beside its keeper. The sun
was warm and beautiful; it was wonderful out here.

The neighbor's chickens were walking around and scratching the ground, basically
coming to eat. The Chinese left first, then the others; the witty duckling said that
Portuguese women would soon become as childish as ducklings, and the other ducks
laughed: "As childish as ducklings!" It was so funny! Then they repeated the previous
joke: > Purslane! It was so funny; then they lay down.

They lay there for a while, when suddenly some food was thrown into the duck yard;
there was a loud noise, and all the ducks in the flock jumped up and flapped their wings;
the Portuguese duck also woke up, rolled on the ground, and crushed the little songbird
to death pitifully.

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The day is not over yet, don't stand there like this! <<<>>>>You look at me with those
angry eyes, those evil eyes staring at me-

"You don't seem to know how to tell time," the Portuguese said.

Dark grey! I feel so sad! <<<

"It's done!" the Portuguese woman said. »Your expression isn't perfect, I want to point
that out! <<<<

>>It was sunny here yesterday," said the bird, "and today

"But you're mad at me!" he said. >>What did I do? <<

"You can give this to that chick!" she said. »Don't stand next to me

Blocking the way! <<<

The little songbird was surprised, for he meant well. Later, when the lady awoke, he
stood before her with a kernel of corn he had found;

Follow the house rules! Now I'm going to sleep! <<<

I fly over bushes and trees! <<<

"Now I need to rest after dinner!" she said.

>>Kelesi! "You rude man!" the Portuguese woman said. >>>Compare me to a cat, a
predator! There is not a drop of evil blood in my body; I take you under my wing and
teach you how to be a man! <<

She then bites off the songbird's head, leaving it to die.

"What is this?" she said. "He can't stand it? Yes, so he doesn't belong to this world
either! I'm like a mother to him."

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I've been there, I know! Because I have a kind heart! <<

The neighbor's rooster poked his head into the yard and crowed like a locomotive.

"You make me sick!" she said. "This is all your fault; he's mad, and I'm going mad, too."

"There's nothing where he fell!" said the cock.

"Speak to him with respect," the Portuguese said. "He speaks with an accent, a
beautiful voice, and is highly educated. He is loving, gentle and considerate, just as he
should be, both to animals and so-called humans."<<<

All the ducks gathered around the dead little songbird. Ducks are naturally envious or
compassionate, and since there was nothing to be envious of, they felt pity, and so did
the two Chinese chickens. "We never hear such songbirds again! It was almost a
Chinese chicken!" They clucked, and all the chickens clucked too, while the ducks
walked around with red eyes.

"We have heart!" they said. "No one can deny that!" "Heart!" "Yes, we have as much
heart as the Portuguese," the Portuguese said. "Almost as much."

Now let's think about eating something to fill our stomachs, the drake said, "That's more
important! Even if the toys are broken, we still have money!"

4.3.4 Naughty boy

Once upon a time, there was an old poet, a very kind old poet, and one evening he was
sitting at home, and the weather outside was very bad; it was raining heavily, but the old
poet was sitting comfortably and warmly by the fire, and the fire was burning brightly,
and the apples were crackling.

"These poor fellows can't keep dry in this weather!" he said, for he was a very good poet.

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>Oh, open the door! "I'm so cold and wet!" a child outside shouted. There were cries
and knocks at the door, and the rain was coming down hard, and the wind was rattling
all the windows.

"You poor little fellow!" said the old poet, and he went and opened the door. Inside
stood a little boy, naked, with his long blond hair dripping with water. He was shivering
with cold; if he were not allowed in, he would surely die in this bad weather.

" You poor little fellow!" said the old poet, taking his hand. "Come to me, and I will warm
you up! You shall have wine and apples, for you are a handsome child!"

He did so. His eyes were like two clear stars, and his golden hair, though wet, curled
beautifully. He looked like a little angel, but his face was pale from the cold, and his
whole body was trembling. In his hand he held a magnificent bow, but the rain had
completely ruined it, and all the colors on the beautiful arrows were mixed together
because of the erosion of the rain.

The old poet sat by the fire, held the little boy on his lap, wrung the water out of his hair,
warmed his hands with his own, and boiled a pot of sweet wine for him.

Then he came to himself, his cheeks flushed, and he jumped to the ground, dancing—

I am surrounded by old poets.

"But your bow is broken!" said the old poet.

"Oh no," said the little boy, picking it up and looking at it. "Oh, it's dry and not broken at
all. The rope is tight! Now I'm going to try it!"

Then he drew the bowstring, nocked the arrow, took aim, and shot the arrow straight
into the heart of the kind old poet. "Now you see my bow is not broken?" He smiled and
walked away. What a naughty boy! He only shot at the old poet who had let him into the
warm room, who had been so kind to him, and who had given him good wine and good
apples.

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The kind poet lay on the ground weeping, his heart deeply shaken, and then he said:
"Alas, this Cupid is such a naughty child!" I will tell this to all the kind children, let them
be careful, never play with him, because he will hurt them! <<<

All the good children, boys and girls, hearing this, became wary of the evil Cupid. But he
led them all in anyway, because he was cunning! When the students were leaving class,
he walked beside them in his black coat with a book under his arm. The students didn't
even recognize him and hugged him, thinking he was a student too, but he shot them
through the chest with an arrow. He would also chase the girls when they came back
from the priest for confirmation. Yes, he was always following someone! He sat on the
big chandelier in the theater and the light was so bright that people thought it was a
lamp, but then they noticed something else. He ran around in the royal gardens and on
the city walls! Once he shot your parents through the heart with a bullet! Ask them and
you will hear what they say. Yes, this Cupid is a bad boy and you can never be with him.

There is work to be done. He is hunting them down! Come to think of it, he even shot an
arrow at the old grandmother; but that was long ago, and it is over now, but she will
never forget it. Ah, wicked Cupid! But now you know him, what a naughty boy he is!

" You are such an interesting child!" said the old man. "What's your name?"

"My name is Cupid," he said, "don't you know me? This is my bow! I shoot arrows with it,
believe me! Look, the weather outside is getting better and better; the moon is so
bright!"<<<

4.3.5 Clumsy Hans

But there lay a man in the country, and nine of old Gansham's men were so wounded
that they had to call for help. She remained in the presence of the king, because the
princess told her that she would get courage from the one who could speak best for her.

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They had been preparing for eight days. It was not much time, but they had enough
time because they had known about it before, which was helpful. The director could
read a Latin dictionary and read three years of city newspapers, front and back. The
other director was familiar with all the guild rules and knew what every guild leader
needed to know. He said it meant he had a say throughout the country, and he also
knew how to embroider suspenders because he was skilled and had nimble fingers.

"Who will marry the king's daughter?" they said, and their father gave each of them a
horse: the one who could recite the dictionary and newspapers got a pair of charcoal-
black chopsticks; the one who was as smart as a guild master and could embroider got
a pair of milky white chopsticks. Then, they wiped the corners of their mouths with cod
liver oil to make them soft. All the servants were in the yard watching her riding. At this
time, the third brother came. There were three brothers in total. But no one regarded
him as a brother because he was not as knowledgeable as the two of them, so
everyone called him "Foolish Hans". "Where do you want to go after you join the state-
owned enterprise?" he asked.

»Go to the court and persuade us to marry the king's daughter! Haven't you heard what
is being spread all over the country? Then they told him.

"Oh my goodness, I must go!" said Silly Hans. The brothers laughed and rode away on
their horses. "Dad, give me a horse!" cried Sople Hans. "I'm so excited to be married. If
she chooses me, she chooses me; if she doesn't, I choose her!"

Walter said, That's bullshit. I won't give her a penny. You can go with Leon! No, DeSean
Blind, these are Starzkel.

If I had no horse, said Tilpel-Hans, I would call you Dregenbock, it would belong to me,
it would make me a great horseman

Then he leaned over the car, put his index finger against his, and sped off along the
country road. Is this possible!

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― I‘ll climb higher,‖ said Silly Hans, and then he sang the song so loudly that it gave me
chills.

It should be carefully crafted.

But the brothers were thinking silently, they didn't say a word, they had to think about all
the good ideas they wanted to bring, because

"Hello!" cried Jack the Fool. "Here I come, and see what I have found in Landsmabe!"
Then he showed them a crow he had found. They said, "What do you want to do with it,
Fool?"

I want to give it to the king's daughter!

―Yeah, let‘s do that,‖ they said, laughing, and continued their search.

It‘s not every day you get the chance to walk a country road!

Hello! I'm here, look what I found, and you will find it too

The brothers turned around again because they wanted to see what it was. They said,
"Idiot." It was an old wooden school with a door in it.

It's out! Should the King's daughter have it, too? > So be it, said Jack Hans, and the
brothers laughed.

Far ahead.

>Hello! "Here I come!" cried Jack the Fool. »No, now it's worse! Hello! Incomparable! <<

"What do you find now?" asked the brothers.

>>Oh, said Jack, you never know! How happy she would be if she could be the King's
daughter! <<

"Ah!" said the brothers, "this is all dirt straight out of the ditch."

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Throw it away! <<<

"Yeah, that's it," Jack said. "It's hard to catch a good guy." Then he filled his pockets.

Foolish Hans But the brothers rode so fast that they stopped at the city gate a full hour
early, and the punters were numbered as they arrived and lined up in six rows so tight
that they couldn't move their arms, which was just as well because otherwise they would
have cut each other's backs for standing in front of another.

The rest of the country was standing at the windows of the castle, watching the King's
daughter receive the suitors, when one of them came into the room and his ability to
speak suddenly became very poor.

"It's no use!" said the King's daughter. "Go away!"

Now here comes the brother who could recite the dictionary. But he had totally forgotten
that as he stood in line. The floorboards creaked, the ceiling was plate glass, and he
saw himself standing upside down, and at each window stood three clerks and a
guildmaster, writing down every word people said so that they could print it in the
newspaper and sell it on the street corner for two shillings. It was horrible, and then they
fired up the furnace so that the pipes were red hot.

"It's quite warm here," said the pursuer.

>Because my father is going to roast a chicken today! ' said the Queen.

Ah! there he stood! He had not the least idea of what to say; he could not understand a
word.

said; because he wanted to say something interesting. Ah!

>It's no use, said the King's daughter. "Go!" So he went.

Now my second brother is here too.

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―It‘s too hot here,‖ he said.

"Yes, we're going to roast a chicken today!" said the princess. >>>How is it? <«, he said,
and then all the writers wrote: How is it?

"It's no use!" said the King's daughter. "Go away!"

At that moment, Puzzled Hans came riding up on his billy goat. "It's too hot!" he said.

"Excellent!" said Sopel-Hans. "Then I could have one. I could roast a chicken!" said the
King's daughter. "And fried crow?"

"You have done very well!" said the Princess. "But have you anything to fry? I have
neither pot nor plate."

"Of course!" said Silly Hans. "It's a tin can, and the sides are tin too!" Then he took out
an old wooden shoe and put the Crow in the middle of it.

"This is a wonderful meal!" said the Princess. "Where did we get the sauce?"

" I put it in my pocket!" said Simple Jack. "I have so many things.

Silly Hans can throw it away! ' Then he poured some mud from his pocket--

Get out. "I like it!" said the Princess. "You can answer, you can talk, I want you to be my
husband! But do you know that everything we say will be written down and published in
tomorrow's newspaper? In every window you will see three scribes and an old
guildmaster, and the guildmaster is the worst because he knows nothing!" She said this
just to scare him. All the scribes hissed and a drop of ink spilled on the ground.

"That must be the president!" said the fool, "I have to pay my most sincere respects to
the president!" After that, he turned out his pockets and splashed the mud directly on his
face.

"Well done!" said the King's daughter. "I can't do it, but I will learn!"

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And so Idiot Jack became king, got a wife and a crown, and sat on the throne, as we
learn directly from the newspaper of the head of the guild - but you can't rely on it.

4.3.6 The Steadfast Tin Soldier

Once upon a time there were twenty-five tin soldiers, all brothers, for they had all been
born from an old tin spoon. They held their guns in their arms and faced forward; their
uniforms were red and blue, and very handsome. When the lid of the box in which they
were standing was opened, the first words they heard were: "Tin Soldier!" cried a little
boy, clapping his hands. He had received this present because it was his birthday, and
he now laid it on the table.

One of the soldiers was exactly like the other, with only one difference: it had only one
leg, for it was the last to be cast, and there was not enough tin left; but he stood firmly
on one leg, just as the other soldiers stood on two, and that made him special.

The king said, "He who jumps the highest shall be able to reach my daughter, for that is
the most wonderful thing; but it takes a clever mind to think of such a thing, and the
springbok has shown that it has a brain!"< And so he got the princess.

"I jump the highest," said the flea. "But that doesn't matter. Let them pick up goose
bones with chopsticks. Woe to them! I jump the highest; but in this world, you need flesh
and blood to see you!"

Later, the flea went to serve as a soldier abroad and was beaten. The grasshopper sat
in the ditch outside, thinking about the truth of all things in the world, and said, "The
body is also part of the world! The body is also part of the world! << Then she sang a
melancholy little song. From this we know that even if it is published, it may be a lie.

On the table where these toys were placed there were many other toys; but the most
attractive of all was a beautiful castle made of paper. Through the little windows one

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could get a glimpse of what was going on in the hall. Outside, small trees surrounded a
small mirror, which represented a lake. Over the mirror some large white swans swam,
reflecting their own reflections. Everything was beautiful; but the most charming of all
was a little girl standing in the middle of the open door of the castle. She was also cut
out of paper; but she had on a dress of the finest material, with a thin little blue ribbon
hanging over her shoulders like a gown. In the center of the ribbon hung a shining
brooch, as big as her whole face. The little girl stretched out her arms, for she was a
dancer, and then she lifted one leg so high that the Tin Soldier did not notice it, and
thought she had only one leg, like him.

This is the woman I want, he thought; but she is very noble and lives in a castle, and I
have only one box, and there are twenty-five of us, which is not suitable for her! But I
must get to know her better! Then he lay down behind a snuffbox, from where he could
see the petite and beautiful lady best. She continued to stand on one leg without losing
her balance.

At night, the other tin soldiers returned to their boxes and everyone in the house went to
sleep. The toys began to play, "greeting each other, fighting and playing", "passing the
ball". The tin soldiers made noises in the box, trying to join in, but they could not get the
lid up. The Nutcracker tumbled and tumbled, and the blackboard was covered with
nonsense; this spectacular sight woke the canary, who began to sing along. Only the tin
soldier and the little dancer did not move; she stood on tiptoe, arms outstretched; he
stood firmly on the box, and could not leave her for a moment.

It was exactly twelve o'clock, and with a "bang", the lid of the snuff box popped up, but
there was no tobacco inside, but a little black goblin. This was really a trick.

"Tin Soldier," said the Goblin, "do you want to control your eyes?"

But the Tin Soldier pretended not to hear.

"Well, we will wait till tomorrow," said the Fairy.

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At daybreak, the children got up and put the tin soldier on the window, not knowing
whether it was a devil or a vent - suddenly, the window opened and the tin soldier fell
from the third floor. He fell hard; he stretched out his legs, supported his body with his
hat, and stuck his bayonet in the crack between the cobblestones.

The maid and the little boy ran downstairs at once to look for him; but, though they
nearly trod upon him, they could not see him. If the tin soldier had called out, "Here I
am!" they would have found him, but he thought that would not be the right thing to do,
as he was in uniform.

war.

It was now beginning to rain, in heavy rain, and as he passed by two street urchins
came up.

"Look," one of them said, "there lies a tin soldier!" He should set sail now! <<<<

Then they made a boat out of newspaper and put the tin soldier in the middle of it and
sank him into the gutter. The children came running and clapped their hands. Keep us
safe! The gutter was surging and the water was high! And it was raining hard. The boat
rocked up and down and sometimes turned around, which frightened the tin soldier
inside. But he stood there, looking serious, with the rifle in his hand.

Suddenly the boat drifted under a long gutter board; it was pitch dark all around, and he
felt as if he were trapped in a box.

Where am I going now? he thought. Yes, yes, it's all that goblin's fault! Oh, I don't care
how dark it is as long as that little girl is on the boat!

Just then a large water rat crawled out from under the gutter.

"Do you have a passport?" the mouse asked. "Give me your passport!"

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The tin soldier said nothing and tightened his grip on his gun. The boat moved slowly
forward, and the mouse followed closely behind. Wow! She bared her teeth and
shouted at the stick and straw: "Catch him! Catch him! He hasn't paid the customs! He
hasn't shown his passport! <<

But the current was getting stronger and stronger, and the tin soldier could already see
the bright sunshine at the end of the plank ahead. But he also heard a roar that would
have frightened any brave man. Think about it: the plank ended in a gutter that led
directly to a large canal; it was as dangerous for him as it would be for us to go down
the waterfall.

Now he was almost there and could not stop. The boat was moving away, and the poor
tin soldier clung to it for dear life. No one could believe that he had blinked.

After three or four rotations it is filled with water; it must sink.

The water was up to the tin soldier's neck, and the boat was sinking deeper and deeper.
The paper was melting more and more, and now the water was gone.

Over the soldier's head - and then he thought of the lovely little dancer whom he would
never see again, and in his ears rang:

>>Come, come, warrior! You must bear the pain of death! <<<

Now the paper broke in two, and the tin soldier fell down - but at the same time he was
swallowed by a huge fish.

No, it's too dark inside! Even darker than

The tin soldier stood firmly on the gutter board, which was very narrow at that time. But
the tin soldier stood upright, with the rifle in his hand, and lay there as long as he could.

The fish moved about in all directions, making the most terrible movements. At last it
stood still, and a thing like a light passed through it, very bright, and someone shouted,

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"Tin Soldier!" The fish had been caught and sold at the market, but now it was brought
back to the kitchen, and the girl cut it up with a large knife. She hooked two fingers
around the waist of the Tin Soldier and led him into the room. Everyone wanted to see
this strange creature that swam in the belly of the fish; but the Tin Soldier was not proud
at all. They laid him on the table, and then - no, things in the world are so strange
sometimes! The Tin Soldier stood in the same room where he had been before. He saw
the same child and toys on the table: the beautiful castle and the cute little dancer. She
was still standing on one leg, with the other leg raised high, and she was not moving.
This touched the Tin Soldier so much that he almost cried, but this was obviously not
right.

He looked at her and she looked at him, but they said nothing.

Just then, a little boy grabbed the tin soldier and threw him into the furnace for no
apparent reason. It must have been the work of the genie in the jar.

The tin soldier stood in the dazzling light and felt a terrible heat. But he did not know
whether this power came from real fire or from love. The blood in his face had
completely disappeared; no one knew whether this happened during the journey or
because of sadness. He looked at the girl, and the girl looked at him, and he felt that he
was about to melt, but he still stood firmly with the gun in his hand. At this time, a door
opened, and the wind blew up the dancer, who flew into the oven like a ghost, came to
the tin soldier, burned, and disappeared. The tin soldier melted into a ball, and the next
day, when the girl took out the ashes, she found that he had become a small tin heart;
however, only one brooch of the dancer was left, and it was burned black.

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4.3.7 The snail and the rose bush

The garden was surrounded by a hazel hedge, and outside were fields and meadows,
with cows and sheep, and in the center of the garden grew a bush of blooming
[Link] him sat a snail, which had many things in its body;

―I just have to wait until the time is right!‖ she said. ―I want more than just growing roses,
producing nuts, or producing milk like cows and goats!‖

"I had high hopes for you!" said the rose bush. "When was that?"

"I'll take my time!" said the snail. "You're always in such a hurry. This isn't something
worth looking forward to!"

The next year, the snail lay in the same spot under the rose bush, basking in the sun.
The rose bush had buds and roses again, always fresh. The snail crawled out of its
shell, extended its tentacles, and retracted them.

>>Everything is the same as last year! No progress. The rose bush grows along with
the roses and won't grow any more! <<<

Summer passed, and then autumn. The rose bush continued to bloom and put forth its
buds until the snow fell and the weather turned cold and wet. The rose bush drooped
toward the ground, and the snail burrowed into the soil.

Now the new year has begun, the roses are blooming, and so is the snail. "Now you are
an old rose!" said the snail. "You must consider going back soon. You gave everything
you had to the world, and now you have everything. Whether it is worth it or not, you
must think deep down in your heart - I don't have time. But it is clear that you have not
done anything for your inner development, otherwise things would certainly be
different."

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Come out from among them. Can you take this responsibility? You'll soon be a stick! Do
you understand me?

"You frightened me!" said the rosebush. "I never thought of that!"

>>No, you really haven't! Have you ever explained why you bloomed and how you
bloomed? Why did you bloom this way and not that way? <<

"No!" said the rosebush. "I am so happy, because I have nothing to do. The sun is so
warm, the air is so fresh, I enjoy the dew and the rain. I breathe, I live! A power rises
from the earth, another power comes from the sky, and I feel a happiness that is always
new and great. That is why I must bloom; this is my life, I have no choice!"

"Your life is easy!" said the snail. >> "Of course! I have everything," said the rosebush,
"but you

Snails and rose bushes give more! You are a thoughtful, profound person with enough
talent to rock the world.

"That's not what I meant!" said the snail. "This world is none of my business! What does
it have to do with me? I'm good enough, and my heart is good enough!"

>But shouldn't we all try to give to others in this world, to give them all we can? --Yes, I
only gave roses! --And you, with all your gifts, what did you give to the world? What did
you give to her?

What did I give her? What should I give her? - I spat at them! She is not a good person!
It is none of my business. Plant roses and no more! May the hazel bear nuts, and the
cows and sheep give milk; everyone has his audience, and so do I! I go into my heart
and stay there. The world has nothing to do with me!

The snail then returns to its home and seals it with cement.

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"How pathetic!" said the rose bush. »Even if I had the best will in the world, I could not
get inside myself; I must keep reaching out, I must cultivate this rose. The leaves have
fallen, they are blown away by the wind! But I see a rose in a housewife's hymnbook,
one of my roses in the arms of a beautiful girl, and another kissed by the happy lips of a
child. It makes me feel very good, it is really a happy thing. This is my memory, my life!
<<<

Rose bushes bloomed innocently, snails lay lazily in the house. This world had nothing
to do with her.

Many years passed.

Snails are dirt in the dirt, and rose bushes are dirt in the dirt; the memorial roses in the
hymn book wither, but new rose bushes bloom in the garden, and new snails grow up.
They crawl into their

The house was built and then torn down - the world had nothing to do with them. Do we
have to read the story again from the beginning? Will she

Nothing else.

4.3.8 The Little Match Girl

The night was getting darker. It was also the last night of the year, New Year's Eve. In
the cold and darkness, a poor little girl was walking down the street, bareheaded and
barefoot; yes, she was wearing slippers when she went out, but what good were those
slippers? They were a pair of very large slippers, the same size as the ones her mother
had worn last time. The little girl was in a hurry to cross the street, and two carriages
sped by, and the slippers were lost. One slipper was lost, and the other was picked up
by a little boy; he said that when he had a child, he would use it as a cradle.

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The little girl walked there barefoot, her feet were red and purple from the cold. Her old
apron was stuffed with matches, and she was holding a package in her hands. No one
had ever bought anything from her, and no one had ever given her a shilling. She was
hungry and cold, and she looked frightened the way she walked, poor little thing! The
snow fell on her long golden hair, and her hair fluttered on her head, so beautiful.

She shrank her neck, but she certainly didn't expect such a grand scene. All the
windows were lit, and the aroma of roast goose filled the streets. It was New Year's Eve,
yes, she didn't expect it!

In a corner between two houses, one a little higher than the other, she crouched. She
huddled up her little legs, but still she felt colder and was afraid to go home. She had
not sold a single match, nor had she received a shilling. Her father would have beaten
her, and the house was cold; there was only the roof over her head, and the wind
whistled through it, though the largest cracks were filled with straw and rags. Her little
hands were almost frozen. Oh! a small match might be of use. If she would only dare to
take one from the bundle and rub it against the wall to warm her fingers! She pulled one
out, and snap! How the flames shot out and burned! When she covered it with her hand,
the flame was warm and bright, like a little lamp. It was a strange light, and the little girl
felt as if she were sitting in front of a huge iron stove, with gleaming copper balls and
pipes around the fire. How the fire burned, how comfortable the warmth was; no, what it
was! The little girl was about to stretch out her feet to warm them, but the flame went
out. The stove was gone, and she sat there with a small burning match in her hand.

A new picture was being painted, it burned and shone, and when the light fell on the
wall it became transparent like a veil; she looked straight into the room, where a table
was covered with a dazzling white tablecloth, laid with fine china, and a roast goose
stuffed with prunes and apples was steaming. And still more wonderful: the roast goose
jumped off the plate, with the knife and fork stuck in its back, and waddled across the
room; she came straight towards the poor girl. Then the match went out, and only the
thick, cold wall was revealed.

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Night Tree; this Christmas tree was bigger and more beautiful than the ones she had
seen when she was a child lighting new Christmas trees. She sat under the most
beautiful Christmas tree she had seen through the glass door in the store last Christmas.
Thousands of candles and equally colorful pictures burned on the verdant branches.

The little girl with the ribbon in the window looked down at her. She held out her hand,
and the match went out; she saw the Christmas lights rising higher and higher, and now
they were bright stars, and one of them fell, leaving a long streak of fire in the sky. The
little girl said that someone was courting her now, because the only old grandmother
who had been kind to her had said, "When a star falls, its soul goes up to God."

She was like a match on the wall, emitting light, and the old lady stood in the light, so
clear, so dazzling, so gentle and lovely.

Grandma, the little girl cried, "Oh, take me with you! I know that when the match goes
out, you will disappear, just like the warm stove, the delicious roast goose, and the tall
Christmas tree full of blessings."

She quickly lit the remaining bundle of matches. She wanted to hug her grandmother
tightly; the matches were brighter than the day; her grandmother had never been so
beautiful, so tall; she held the little girl high in her arms, and they flew high, very high,
full of glory and joy; there was no cold, no hunger, no fear, they were with God.

But in the cold morning, there sat a little girl in the corner, with rosy cheeks and a smile
on her lips - she was dead, frozen to death on the last night of the old year. As the new
year's morning rose, the sun shone on her small body, and she sat beside a few
matches, one of which was almost burned out.

They said she was just trying to keep herself warm. No one knew what beautiful things
she had seen, or what glorious world she had entered with her grandmother.

It is to celebrate the New Year.

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4.3.9 Little girl holding a sulfur stick

The Little Girl in the Sulphur Hat "What do you want?" asked the blacksmith.

Comment: This article tells the miserable life of the lower class people. In the cold, the
little match girl had to strike matches to keep warm. Before she froze to death, she
dreamed of her grandmother...

4.3.10 Bacon Hawker Brownies

Once upon a time there was a real student who lived in the attic and had nothing.
Meanwhile there was a real bacon merchant who lived on the ground floor and owned
the whole house. Little Brownie followed him because every Christmas Eve he got a
bowl of porridge with a big piece of butter in it; the bacon merchant could give him that;
Little Brownie stayed in the store and it benefited him a lot.

One evening the student came in by the back door to buy candles and cheese; he had
no one to help him, so he went on his own. He made his purchase and paid for it, and
the bacon-shop owner and his wife nodded goodbye.

The student was reading attentively the paper which wrapped the cheese. It was a page
torn from an old book which should never have been torn out, and which was full of
poetry. "And here's the rest," said the bacon vendor. "I gave some coffee beans to an
old woman; and if you give me eight shillings, the rest is yours."

"Thank you," said the student, "I'll use this instead of cheese." "I can eat the sandwich
without any toppings; it would be a sin to tear up the whole book. You are a clever man
and a practical man, but you don't understand poetry any more than that bucket does."

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It was a very rude thing to say, especially to a barrel. But the bacon vendor laughed,
and the student laughed; it sounded like a joke. But Brownie was very angry that
someone had the audacity to say such things to a bacon vendor who sold the best
butter.

Night fell, the shops closed, and everyone except the students went to bed. The goblin
went in and took possession of the landlady's mouth; she didn't need it while she was
asleep. He put his mouth on anything in the room, and that thing would gain speech and
voice, able to express its thoughts and feelings like the landlady. But only one person
could have it at a time, which was a good thing, because otherwise they would all be
talking at the same time. The goblin put his mouth on a bucket covered with old
newspapers.

It asks, ―Don‘t you really know what poetry is?‖

"Yes, I know," said the bucket, "the kind that's written at the bottom of a newspaper and
cut out. I suppose I've got more of that than a student, but I'm nothing compared to the
bacon vendor. Brownie put the nozzle on the coffee grinder—oh, how fine it grinds!
Then it was the butter churn and the cash box. They all agreed on the churn, and what
the majority agrees on, you have to respect.

Now I'm going to give it to my students! After saying this, Little Brownie quietly walked
up the kitchen stairs to the attic.

Little Brownie lived in the bacon stand. The light was on in the room, and the elf looked
through the hole and saw the student downstairs reading Jas's tattered book. But how
bright it was inside! A clear light came out of the book and became a tree trunk, a huge
tree, towering into the sky, with branches and leaves, towering into the sky, towering
into the sky, towering into the sky, towering into the sky, towering into the sky, towering
into the sky, towering into the sky. Every leaf was so fresh, and every flower was like
the head of a beautiful girl, some with dark and bright eyes, and some with blue and
bright eyes. Every fruit was like a shining star, and the songs and voices were so

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beautiful that they were incomparable. No, the elf had never imagined such a
magnificent sight, let alone seen or heard it with his own eyes. So he stood on tiptoe
and looked until the light inside went out. The students blew out their candles and went
to bed, but the elf still stood there, for the singing sounded so soft and sweet that it was
like a sweet lullaby to the students who lay down to rest.

This is a wonderful place, the elf said. "I had not thought of that. I think I'll just follow the
student." It thought for a moment - thought rationally - and then sighed: "Students don't
have rollers." Then it went - yes, it went back to the bacon vendor; which was a good
thing, because the barrel had used up all the words that came out of the landlady's
mouth from one side, and now it was about to turn around and repeat the same words
from the other side. Just then the elf came with a mouth just like the landlady's. But from
then on, everyone in the whole store, from the cashier to the woodcutter, agreed with
the barrel and respected and trusted it so much that the bacon vendor always believed
that what the barrel said was true when he saw art and drama reviews on his own news
- the evening news.

But the elf no longer sat still, listening to all the wisdom and understanding below; no, as
long as there was light in the attic, the light was like a strong anchor rope, pulling it up,
and it was obliged to look through the keyhole; and a great power roared around it, such
as we feel when God comes through the rough sea in a storm. At this time Brownie
interrupted.

The elf seized the magic book on the table, put it in his red hat and held it in his hands:
the most precious treasure in the house was saved. Then he flew away, ran onto the
roof, climbed up the chimney and sat there, with the burning house opposite to it lighting
it up, holding the red hat in his hands and the treasure in his hands. Now he understood
the inclination of his heart and to whom he really belonged. But when the fire was put
out and Brownie regained consciousness - yes! He said: "I want to share myself with
them.

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But in the middle of the night, the elf was awakened by a terrible knock at the door:
Someone was knocking outside! The night watchman blew a whistle, and the fire grew
bigger and bigger, and the whole street was lit up. Was it this house on fire, or was it the
neighbor's house? Where? It was terrible! The bacon seller's wife was panicked, took
off the gold earrings from her ears and put them in her pockets, trying to grab something;
the bacon seller ran to get his collateral, and the maid ran to get the silk scarves she
could afford. Everyone wanted to keep the best, and little Brownie was no exception. He
ran up the stairs in a few steps and entered the student's room. The student stood
calmly at the open window, looking at the fire blazing in the yard opposite.

It stood in the cold corridor, the autumn wind blew down from the ground, so cold, so
cold; but only when the attic light went out and the wind sound gradually faded away,
the little boy felt it. Hull then felt that he had crawled back to the warm corner. It was so
comfortable and warm there! When a big piece of butter was added to the Christmas
porridge, yes, the bacon merchant was the master.

It would have been a wonderful thing to sit under the tree with the students, but it could
not be arranged - the elf was very happy with the keyhole. He looked out and didn't
even know why he was crying, but there was a hint of happiness in his cry.

4.3.11 Pledge of Allegiance

We actually tell this story in two parts; the first part could easily be omitted, but it
provides prior knowledge, which is useful!

We were staying at a country estate, and one day, as it happened, the local lord was
away from home. Then, a lady from a nearby trading town came with her pug. She said
she was there because someone wanted to buy "shares" in her tannery. She brought
some documents with her, and we advised her to put all the documents in an envelope
and address it to "Mr. General Staff, Mr. Ritter, etc."

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She listened to us, picked up the pen, paused, and asked us to repeat the address
slowly. We wrote, and she wrote, but she was caught up in this "total war" and sighed:
"I'm just a woman!"

As she wrote, she put the pug on the floor and it growled; after all, it was here to play
and be healthy, so you shouldn't be put on the floor. Its physical features were a snub
nose and a fat back.

"He doesn't bite anymore," the lady said. "He has no teeth anymore. He was part of the
family, loyal but bad-tempered, but my grandchildren took him there; they acted in a
wedding and then wanted him to be a bridesmaid, which was really tiring for him, poor
guy!"<<<

She handed over the papers and tucked the pug under her arm. This is part one - or
you can skip it!

The pug died, and this is part two.

About a week later we arrived at the trading town and checked into an inn, our windows
looking out onto a courtyard with a wooden fence in the middle.

The stalls were divided in half; the stall nearest us had raw hides and tanned skins
hanging in it. Here were stored all the materials needed for the tannery, and half of it
belonged to the widow. Pug had died that morning and was buried in the yard; as Pug
had not yet married, the widow's grandchildren, the widows of tanners, had built the
tomb. It was a very pretty tomb; it must have been very comfortable to lie in it.

The grave was surrounded by pottery shards and dusted with sand; on top of it was a
half-full beer bottle, neck up, not a metaphor.

The children danced around the grave, and the oldest of them, a practical young man,
suggested that anyone in the street should visit Pug's grave: the admission fee should

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be a suspender buckle for a seven-year-old; this was something every boy had, and he
could also provide it for little girls, and the suggestion was unanimously passed.

All the kids from the alleys and backyards came to donate their badges, and that
afternoon, many wore only a suspender. "But at least you saw the Pug Graves, it was
definitely worth it."

But outside the tannery, right at the door, stood a little weather-beaten girl, very lovely,
with the most beautiful curls and clear blue eyes that made the heart happy. She said
nothing and didn't cry, but every time the door opened she looked out as far as she
could. She had no buttons herself, and she knew it, so she stood outside sadly until
everyone had seen enough and left again. Then she sat down and covered her eyes
with her little brown hands and cried loudly. Only she didn't see the pug's grave. For a
grown man, this is often extremely sad.

We see it all from above, and from above it looks like our own suffering and the
suffering of others - yes, one can laugh it off!

4.3.12 The Emperor's New Clothes

Many years ago, there was an emperor who loved beautiful new clothes and spent all
his money on them. He didn't care about soldiers, plays, or exploring the forests, he just
wanted to show off his new clothes. He had a new set of clothes every day and every
hour, and just as people used to say that the king was in a meeting, people here also
used to say: Caesar is hiding in the closet!

In the big city where he lived, life was very pleasant. Many strangers visited him every
day. One day, two impostors came; they pretended to be weavers and claimed that they
could weave the most beautiful cloth that people could imagine. Not only were the

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colors and patterns of the clothes made of this cloth extremely beautiful, but they also
had a strange property: they were completely invisible to incompetent or extremely
stupid people.

The emperor thought to himself: "These clothes are so beautiful! When I put them on, I
will be able to tell which families in my country are not worthy of being officials and
which are not. I will be able to tell who is smart and who is stupid. Yes, I must have a
set knitted for me immediately!" He gave the two swindlers a large sum of money in
advance and asked them to start cheating.

They also set up two looms and pretended to work, but there was nothing on the looms.
Without saying a word, they demanded the finest silk and the most gorgeous gold, put
the money into their pockets, and worked on the empty chairs until late at night.

Now I would love to know how far they have progressed in this regard, thought the
Emperor, but it is strange that no fool or man at all unfit for his position would see that.

Of course. Now he felt that there was nothing to be afraid of; but he wanted to send
someone to check the situation first. Everyone in the city knew how strange this thing
was, and everyone wanted to see how bad and stupid the neighbors were.

I will send my honest old minister to the weavers, thought the Emperor, for he knows
these things best; for he has understanding, and no one can do it better than he!

At this moment the good old priest came into the hall where the two swindlers were
sitting, busy at their empty looms. "God help us," thought the old priest, opening his
eyes wide, "I can't see anything!" - but he didn't say it out loud.

The two impostors begged him to come closer and asked him if the pattern was
beautiful and colorful. Then they pointed to the empty loom. The poor old priest still had
his eyes open, but he could see nothing because there was nothing there. My God, he
thought to himself, I am such a fool! I should never believe it and I should never let
anyone know! Am I unworthy of my position? No, I can't say I can't see these things!

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>>> So, you have nothing to say? ' asked the weaver.

"Oh, it's beautiful, it's beautiful!" said the old priest, looking through his glasses. "This
pattern, this color! - Yes, I will tell the emperor that I like it very much!"<<<

"Great, we are very happy!" said the two weavers. They named the colors of the cloth
and explained the strange pattern. The old minister listened carefully, thinking that he
could tell the emperor the same thing when he got home, so the emperor did so.

Now the swindlers demanded money again, more silk and gold, because they needed it
to weave the cloth. They put everything into their own pockets and did not send even a
fiber to the loom; but they continued to work on their empty looms as before.

The emperor soon sent another kind official to check on the weavers to see if the cloth
would soon be ready. The official was in the same situation as the minister, he looked
and looked, but because there was nothing but an empty loom, he saw nothing. The
Emperor's New Clothes Yes, it is a beautiful cloth! "said the two swindlers, pointing out
and explaining the marvelous pattern that did not exist.

I'm not stupid, the man thought, I'm not suitable for this job, but it's okay. This is strange,
but you can't show it! Then he praised the things he had never seen and assured them
that he was very happy with the beautiful colors and magnificent patterns. "Yes, it's
lovely!" he said to the emperor.

The whole town was talking about this amazing thing. Now I want the emperor to see
the painting himself while it was still on the loom.

He led a large group of selected people, including the two kind old officials who had
arrived earlier, to the two cunning swindlers who were working hard to weave but had
no thread.

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"Yes, it's really beautiful!" said the two kind officials. "Your Majesty, please take a look at
the pattern and color!" They pointed to the empty loom because they thought others
should be able to see the woven fabric.

What the hell is this, the Emperor thought to himself? I don't see anything! This is
terrible! Am I stupid? Am I unworthy of being an Emperor? That would be the worst
thing that could ever happen to me! "Oh, it's beautiful!" said the Emperor. "I pay my
highest respects to this!" He nodded with satisfaction, looking at the empty loom; he
didn't mean to say that he didn't see anything. People around him looked and looked.
But they saw just as little as everyone else, but they said the same thing as the Emperor:
"Oh, it's beautiful!" They suggested that the Emperor wear clothes made of this new
fabric at the upcoming grand parade. "Brilliant!" "Brilliant, wonderful, it's so good to wear
it for the first time!" They were very happy about it. The Emperor awarded each
impostor a knight's medal for the buttons on their chest.

The parade was expected to last all night until dawn. This is the title of "blie-" and
"Weberjunker". The tricksters appeared and lit more than sixteen lamps. It can be seen
that they are in a hurry to complete the emperor's new clothes.

They pretended to take the cloth from the loom, cut it in the air with a pair of giant
scissors, sewed it with a needle instead of thread, and finally said, "Look, now the dress
is finished!"

"Yes!" the gentlemen answered in unison, but they saw nothing, for there was nothing
there. "If the Emperor is willing to take off your clothes," the swindlers said, "then we will
dress you in new clothes in front of this big mirror!"

The Emperor himself came there with his most distinguished knights, and the two
impostors raised one hand as if holding something, and said, "Look, these are trousers!
This is a skirt! This is a coat!"<< they continued. >>As light as a spider's web! You might
have thought you were wearing nothing, but that is exactly the advantage! <<What
naughty children with the Emperor's new clothes! How beautifully he skirted! In what a

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sacred place it sat! "No one wanted to reveal that he had seen nothing, otherwise he
would appear unworthy of the position, or else look very foolish. The Emperor's new
clothes had never been praised so highly.

"But he has nothing on!" said one of the children.

"God, listen to the voices of the innocent!" the father said. One child whispered back
what the other child had said.

>>He has nothing on, a child said, He has nothing on! <<

"He's wearing nothing!" the whole audience finally shouted. The emperor understood,
because he felt they were right. But he thought: Now I must insist on attending the
parade. So he acted even more arrogantly, and the attendants hurried to hold the reins
that didn't exist.

The emperor took off all his clothes, and the swindler pretended to give him every new
piece of clothing that needed to be sewn. Then he put his arms around the emperor's
waist, as if tying something, which was the train of his skirt, and the emperor turned and
twisted in front of the mirror.

My goodness, how beautifully they were dressed! "What a perfect fit!" they said. What a
pretty pattern! What bright colors! It was a precious dress!

The maids who were responsible for holding up the hems of the skirts groped on the
ground with their hands, as if they were trying to lift up the hems of the skirts, and they
held something in their hands as they walked, not wanting to be seen to have nothing.
Then the emperor marched in procession under the splendid throne canopy, and
everyone in the streets and at the windows said, "Oh, God!

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4.3.13 Twelve Brothers

Once upon a time, there was a king and a queen who lived a peaceful life and had
twelve children, all boys. The king said to the queen, "If the thirteenth child you give
birth to is a girl, then the other twelve boys should all die, so that she can have great
wealth and inherit the throne." He made twelve more coffins, filled them with sawdust,
put a funeral pillow in each coffin, and moved the coffins into a locked room. Then he
gave the key to the queen and told her not to tell anyone.

But the mother sat there all day in mourning, with a sorrow beyond words. Her youngest
son, who had always been with her and whom she had named Benjamin according to
the Scriptures, said to her, "Mother, why are you so sad?" "Dear child," she answered, "I
cannot tell you." But he would not let her rest until she went and opened the room and
showed him twelve coffins filled with sawdust, and said, "My dearest Benjamin, these
coffins your father has prepared for you and your eleven brothers, for if I give birth to a
girl, you will all be killed and buried in these coffins." The son said, "Don't cry, mother,
we will help each other and go together." She said, "Go to the forest with your eleven
brothers, and one of you must sit in the highest tree and watch over the castle tower. If I
give birth to a little girl, "My sons, I will raise a white flag, and you will come back; if I
give birth to a little girl, I will raise a red flag, and you will escape, and God will protect
you. I will get up every night and pray for you: in winter, may you keep warm by the fire,
and in summer, may you not be frozen in the heat of the day."

So she blessed her sons, and they went into the forest. One by one, they sat on the
tallest oak tree and looked up at the tower. Eleven days passed, and it was Benjamin's
turn. He saw a flag raised, but it was not a white flag, but a blood-red flag, announcing
that they would all die. When the brothers heard this, they became very angry and said,
"If we must die for this girl, then we swear to avenge her and shed her blood wherever
we find her."

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Then they went deep into the great forest, and in the deepest and darkest part of the
forest, they found a small, empty magic house.

They said, "We will live here, and you, Benjamin, who are the youngest and weak, must
stay at home and look after the house, while we go out to look for food." So they went
into the forest and killed hares, deer, birds, pigeons, and anything that could be eaten;
and then they brought the game to Benjamin, who had to prepare good food for them so
that they could fill their stomachs. They lived together in the cottage for ten years, but it
did not seem long to them. The little girl who was born to her mother, the queen, was
now grown up and had a beautiful face and a golden star on her forehead. Once, when
she was washing clothes, she saw twelve men's shirts among them, and asked her
mother, "Whose twelve shirts are these? Are they too small for father to wear?" She
answered with a heavy heart, "Dear child, these are your twelve brothers." The girl said,
"Where are my twelve brothers? I have never heard of them." She answered, "Only God
knows where they are, they are wandering all over the world." Then she took the girl,
opened the room, and showed her the twelve coffins, sawdust, and funeral pillows.
"These things," she said, "were meant for her, but were stolen from her before you were
born. " She told him what had happened. "Don't cry, mother," said the girl, "I am going
to find my brothers." So she took the twelve shirts and went straight into the forest. She
walked all day, and at dusk she came to the cursed cottage. She went into the house
and found a little boy. She asked her, "Where are you from? Where are you going?"
The little boy was surprised to see that the girl was so beautiful, dressed in royal clothes,
and had a star on her forehead. She answered, "I am the king's daughter, and I am
looking for my twelve brothers. I will go to the ends of the earth until I find them." Then
she showed him the shirts of the twelve brothers. Benjamin then realized that it was his
sister, and said, "I am Benjamin, your youngest brother!" She cried for joy, and
Benjamin cried too, and they kissed and hugged each other.

Then he said, "Dear sister, there is one more thing to observe. We have agreed before

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that every girl we meet must die, for we must leave our kingdom for that girl." She said,
"I am willing to die if I can redeem my twelve brothers." "No," he answered, "you will not
die. Sit under this barrel until the eleven brothers come, and I will make an agreement
with them." She did so; and night fell, and the others returned from hunting, and the
meal was ready. As they sat down to eat, he asked, "What is new?" Benjamin said,
"Don't you know anything?" They answered, "No." He continued, "You went to the forest,
and I stayed at home, and I know more than you do." "Then tell us," they cried. He
answered, "Can you promise that the first girl we meet will not be killed?" "Yes," they
cried in unison, "Please have mercy on us and tell us." Then he said, "Here comes our
sister." With that he lifted up the barrel, and out came the king's daughter. She was
beautiful and slender, with a petite figure, and a golden star on her forehead, dressed in
royal clothes. Everyone was very happy and they threw their arms around her neck,
kissed her, and loved her with all their hearts.

Now she stayed at home with Benjamin and helped him with his work. The elves went
out into the forest to look for game, deer, hares, birds and doves, so that they would
have something to eat. The sister and Benjamin were responsible for preparing the food.
She looked for wood for cooking, herbs for vegetables, and kept the fire warm so that
the meal would be ready when the elves came. She also kept the house in good order
and swept the beds white and clean. The brothers were always satisfied and got along
well with her. One day, the two of them prepared a meal at home, and everyone
gathered together to eat, drink and have fun. There was a small garden near the magic
house, and in it grew twelve lilies, also called "students". She wanted to make her
brothers happy, so she picked twelve flowers and wanted to give each of them one for
dinner. But when she picked the flowers, the twelve brothers turned into twelve crows
and flew over the forest and over the house.

The garden disappeared. The poor girl was alone in the wild forest, and she looked
around, and an old woman stood by her and said, "Oh! oh! my child, what has

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happened to you? Why didn't you leave those twelve white flowers? They were your
brothers, but now they have become crows forever." The girl cried, "Is there no way to
save her?" "No," said the old woman, "there is only one way. But it is too difficult, you
cannot save her with it, because you must be dumb for seven years, and you cannot
speak or laugh. If you say a word, and there is only one hour left before the seven years,
everything will be gone, and your brothers will die because of what you said. "

The girl said to herself, "I must save my brothers." So she went to a great tree and sat
there spinning, without speaking a word or laughing. A king was hunting in the forest.
He had a greyhound, and it ran to the tree where the maiden sat, jumping, barking, and
yelping. When the king came back, he saw the beautiful princess, who had a golden
star on her forehead. He was so attracted by her beauty that he called her and asked
her if she would marry him. She made no answer, but only nodded slightly; so he
climbed up the tree himself, took her down, and laid her on his horse. The wedding took
place with great celebration and joy, although the bride spoke not a word or laughed.
After they had lived happily for several years, the king's mother, a wicked woman,
began to slander the young queen, saying to the king, "You have brought only a
common beggar girl, and who knows what she is doing secretly. Although she is dumb
and cannot speak, she sometimes laughs, but he who does not laugh is guilty." The
king did not want to believe it at first, but she persuaded him until he was finally
convinced and sentenced her to death.

Now there was a great fire in the yard where she was to be burned at the stake, and the
King stood watching it with tears in his eyes, for he still loved her dearly. As she lay on
the stake, and the flames licked her clothes with their red tongues, the last moment of
the seven years had just passed, and there was a whirring sound in the air. Twelve
ravens came and alighted on the ground, and when they saw that they were the twelve
brothers whom she had redeemed, they burned down the fire, put out the flames, and
freed their dear sister, kissing her and embracing her. She was now allowed to speak,

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and told the King why she could not speak and never laughed. The King was glad that
she was innocent, and they lived together in happiness and harmony until they died.
The wicked stepmother was thrown into a vat of boiling oil and poisonous snakes, and
died miserably. The Three Dwarfs in the Forest

Once upon a time, there was a poor peasant named Krebs. He brought a load of wood
with two oxen into the city and sold it to a doctor for two thalers. After the money was
given to the doctor, who was sitting at the table, the peasant saw the doctor eating and
drinking, and was very happy, and wanted to become a doctor too. So he stayed for a
while, and finally asked the doctor if he could become a doctor too. "Oh, yes," said the
doctor, "it will be done very quickly. First, you have to buy a primer with a cockerel on
the cover; turn your cart and two oxen into money to buy clothes and everything a
doctor needs; third, draw a sign saying 'I am the universal doctor' and nail it to your
door." The peasant did it. He performed some medical skills, but not much, and a rich
man's money was stolen. Later, the universal doctor who lived in a certain village told
him, and he must also know where the money went.

So the gentleman drove up to the village in his carriage and asked him if he was the
Doctor of All Knowing. "Yes, that's him." - "So he should go and get the stolen money
back." "Oh, yes, but his wife Grete must go too." The lord was satisfied, put them both in
the carriage, and drove away together. When they arrived at the noble courtyard, the
table was already set; he should eat with us first. "Yes, but his wife Grete must go too,"
he said, and sat down with her behind the table.

When the first servant came with a bowl of delicious food, the peasant nudged his wife
and said, "Grete, this is the first one." He thought it was the first one to bring the food.
But the servant thought he meant "this is the first thief," and he was the first thief, so he
was frightened and said to his companions outside, "The Doctor of All Knowing, we are
in trouble, he said I was the first thief." The second man didn't want to come in, but he
had to come in. When he came in with the bowl, the peasant nudged his wife, "Grete,

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this is the second one." The servant also went out in fear. The third one was not much
better. The farmer said again, "Grete, this is the third one."

The fourth person was to carry a covered plate, and the gentleman asked the doctor to
see what was under the plate, and it turned out to be a crab. The farmer looked at the
plate, not knowing what to do, and said, "Oh, poor crab!" When the master heard this,
he shouted, "Well! He knows, now he knows who the money belongs to."

The servants were terrified, blinked at the doctor, and asked him to come out. When the
doctor came out, all four confessed to him that they had stolen the money; if he would
not betray them, they would return it and give him a large sum of money; otherwise it
would be their fault. They also showed him where the money was hidden. The doctor
was satisfied with this, and went back to the house and said, "Sir, now I will look in my
account book and see where the money is." The fifth servant sneaked into the oven to
hear if the doctor knew anything else. The doctor sat down, opened his ABC book,
flipped through it, and found the rooster. Since he couldn't find it, he said, "You must
come out there." At this time, the man in the furnace thought he was the one being
talked about, jumped out in fear, and shouted, "This man knows everything!" Dr. All-
Knowing told the gentleman where the money was, but did not reveal who stole it. He
received a huge reward from both sides and became a celebrity.

4.3.14 Darning needle

Once upon a time, there was a darning needle. She thought she was very clever, so
she imagined herself to be a sewing needle.

"Now look at what you have in your hand!" Daan said to the finger that was pulled out.
"Don't lose me! If I fall to the ground, you will never find me again. I am so powerful!"<<

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"Just right," he said, gripping her body with his fingers.

"Look! Here come I and my followers!" said the Darning Needle, drawing from behind
her a long thread, but the thread had not yet been knotted.

The fingers were guiding the needle straight towards the chef's slippers, the upper
leather of which had split and now needed to be sewn up.

" This is such a dirty job!" said the Darning Needle. "I'll never get through it, I'll break
down! I'll break down!"<<—and then she broke down too. "Didn't I tell you?" said the
Darning Needle. "I'm too good!"

"It's of no use now," said the fingers, but they must hold it; and the cook dripped sealing
wax on the pin and thrust it into the front of the shawl.

"See, now I am a brooch!" said the Darning Needle. "I knew I was flattered; if you are
great, you will always be great!" And she smiled to herself, for she could not see that
she was smiling. She sat there, looking around with pride, as if she were driving a
carriage.

"Excuse me, are you made of gold?" she asked the needle next to her. "You are so
beautiful and have your own ideas, but you are very stingy! You have to watch it grow
up, because not everything can be polished to a shine in the end!" After saying this, the
darning needle stood up proudly, and when the cook was washing dishes, it fell from the
cloth into the sink.

Come on, Loren! <<

"And now we shall be off!" said the Darning Needle.

But she did it.

"I'm too perfect for the world," she said, sitting in the gutter. "I'm confident, and this is a
little fun after all!" The darning needle persisted, still keeping its good mood.

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All sorts of things flew over their heads: twigs, straws, bits of newspaper. "Look how
smoothly they fly!" said the darning needle. "They don't know what's down there! I'm
stuck! I sit here. For example, there's a twig that thinks only of itself; there's a straw
floating, look how it swings and turns. Don't think too much, or you'll hit the pebbles! -
There's a newspaper floating there! What's written on it has been forgotten, but it's
spreading! - I sit patiently and quietly! I know what kind of person I am, and I'll always be
like this! <<<

One day there was a beautiful light shining around her, and the darning needle thought
it was a diamond; but it was actually a brooch, and it shone so brightly that the darning
needle spoke to it and revealed the true face of the brooch. "You are a diamond, aren't
you?" - "Yes, a little bit!" So he believed it.

One of them tells the other that a darning needle is really worth a lot of money, and then
they start talking about how arrogant the world is.

"Yes, I live in a box with a girl," said the darning needle, who was a cook. She had five
fingers on each hand, but I never saw anything so vain as these fingers, which lifted me
up, took me out of the box, and put me back again. <<

" Are they noble?" asked the broken bottle.

"'Your Excellency!' said Darning Needle. No, but rather haughty! There were five
brothers, all born in Fingers; and they were of different heights, but all stood erect
together. The outermost, Thumb, was short and fat, and staggered about, and had only
one joint in his back, so that he could only hunch over; but he said that if a man's head
was dug out, the whole man would be unfit for military service. Licking Pot came to All
Saints' Day, and pointed to the sun and the moon, and when they wrote, he pressed it
down. Langerman looked over the heads of the others, and Gold Medal walked with his
gold ring, and little Peter Spielman did nothing, and he was proud of it. It was boasting,
it was boasting, and then I fell into the gutter!<<

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"Now we'll sit here and sparkle!" said the glass. Meanwhile, more water poured into the
gutter, overflowing all the banks, carrying fragments of glass with it.

"'Look, she's got a promotion now!'" said the darning needle. "I'll just sit still, I'm all right,
but this is my pride, it's worth respecting!" Then she straightened up and thought for a
long time. "I'm so delicate, I almost believe that a ray of sunshine gave birth to me. Don't
I think the sun has been looking for me under the water? Oh, I'm so good that even my
mother can't find me; if I still have my broken old eye, I'm sure I could cry! But I won't cry
- crying, that's not good."

One day some street urchins were rummaging in the gutter and found old nails, shillings,
etc. It was a dirty trick but they enjoyed it.

>>>Ouch! said a man, who had been pricked by a darning needle. »He was a man! <<<

"I am not a man, I am a girl!" said the darning needle, but no one heard her. The paint
had fallen off her body, and she herself had turned black, but black makes people thin,
so she thought she was more beautiful than before.

"Here's an eggshell floating!" said the boys, and they thrust their darning needles into
the eggshell.

"White walls and black figures," said the Darning Needle, "how that suits you! You can
see me there! If only I weren't seasick, or I'd be broke!" But she wasn't seasick, and she
wasn't broke.

>>You need a good stomach to avoid seasickness. Remember, you are not an ordinary
person! Now my seasickness has eased! The stronger you are, the more you can
endure! <<>> Clark! >>As the eggshell said, a truck drove over it.

>Ouch, that hurts! 'Darnindle said, 'Now I'm going to be seasick! I'm going to faint! I'm
going to faint! ' But she didn't faint, even after being run over by the truck; she just lay
there lengthwise - she just stayed there!

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4.3.15 Pigs

The ship was noisy again, full of life. She saw the Prince and his beautiful bride looking
for her, gazing longingly at the rolling foam, as if they knew she had fallen into the
waves. She kissed the bride's forehead invisibly, smiled at the Prince, and then rose up
with the other children of the air into the rosy clouds that floated in the sky.

Once upon a time there lived a poor Prince; his kingdom was small; but still large
enough for him to marry, or so thought the Emperor, when out flew the Nightingale; and
now her singing was so beautiful that no one could say a bad thing about her at once.

"Excellent!" said the ladies of the Court, for they all spoke French, and some spoke it
worse than the latter.

Anyway, let the prince come.

"I just don't want to believe that he is still alive," said the princess. "Yes, it is a living
bird!" said the man who brought the bird. "Yes, let it go," said the princess, who did not
want to

"This bird reminds me of the late Empress's music-box," said an old gentleman. "Oh,
yes! Exactly the same tune, exactly the same expression!" "Yes," said the Emperor, and
then he began to cry like a little child.

Everything is gone, gone, gone! <<<

But the most unnatural feeling is that you only have to put your finger in the steam from
the pot to immediately smell the aroma of food cooking on every stove in the city; and lo
and behold, it is indeed not a rose.

>>Oh, dear Augustine,

So the prince was hired as the royal swineherd. They gave him a shabby little hut next
to the pigsty, and he had to live there. But he sat there working all day, and by the

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evening he had made a very lovely little flowerpot. All around the flowerpot were hung
bells, and whenever the flowerpot was opened the bells would ring beautifully and play
that old melody:

But he was not intimidated; he painted his face brown and black, pushed his hat up on
his forehead, and knocked on the door. "Good morning, Emperor!" he said. "Can't I find
work in this castle?"

"Yes, there are so many people who have signed up," said the emperor. "But let me
think about it! I need someone who can herd pigs."

The Princess was strolling with her maids, and when she heard this melody, she
stopped and looked ecstatic, for she could also play "Ah, thy dear Augustine"; it was the
only melody she knew, and she played it with only one finger. "I can sing this song, too,"
she said. "So he must be an educated swineherd! Listen, and ask him what the
instrument is worth!"

So a maid had to go in, but she was wearing wooden shoes. "How much is this pot
worth?" the maid asked.

"I want ten kisses from the princess!" said the swineherd. >

>God bless us!<,‖ the maid said.

"Yes, I won't give him up even if the price is lower," said the swineherd.

>>So, what did he say? asked the princess.

"I can't see it," said the maid. "It's too horrible."

>>Then whisper in my ear. «Then she whispered.

"Swineherd," he said. She went on. But soon after she had gone the sound of the bells
became so beautiful:

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>>Oh, dear Augustine,

Everything is gone, gone, gone! <<<

>Listen, the princess said, "Ask him if he wants ten kisses from my maids!"<<<

"Thank you, but thanks!" said the swineherd. "Princess, I give you ten kisses, or I'll give
you my pot!"

You have to stand in front of me so no one can see! <<<<

The ladies of the court lined up before her, spreading their skirts, and then the
swineherd got ten kisses and she got the pot.

What an honor! The fires in the pots were kept burning day and night; they knew what
was cooking in every stove in the city, whether it was the eunuch's or the shoemaker's.
The maids danced and clapped their hands.

Have some grits and meatballs! So happy! <<<>

"Very interesting!" said the maid.

Yes, but you have to shut up because I am the emperor's daughter! <<<<

"God save us!" they cried in unison.

The swineherd—that is, the prince, but he was only known as a real swineherd—was
very busy that day, but he made a gun, and when he swung it, all the waltzes and
dances and polkas since the creation of the world began to sound.

" But this is wonderful music!" said the Princess as she passed by. "I have never heard
such beautiful music! Listen, go in and ask him what it is."

Always stay with him and ask.

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The price of the instrument. But I won't kiss him again! "He wants a hundred kisses from
the princess!" said the maid.

"I think he's crazy!" the princess said, and she went away. But she had not gone far
before she stopped. "You must encourage art," she said. "I am the Emperor's daughter!
Tell him he deserves ten kisses like he got yesterday, and my maid will give the rest!"

"Yes, but we don't want to!" said the maids.

"This is ridiculous!" said the princess. "If I can kiss him, so can you! Remember, I give
you food and wages!" After that, the maid had to go back to him.

"The princess gives you a hundred kisses!" he said. »Or each one keeps his own kiss.
<<>

"This is really a foolish thing to do," said the Princess.

>>We know who's going to get the soup and the pancakes! We know who's in the front,
she said, the ladies in front of her,

Then he kissed.

"It must be very noisy in the pigsty!" said the Emperor, as he walked out onto the
balcony. He rubbed his eyes and adjusted his glasses. It turned out that the maids of
honor were gathered there! I must go find them! Then he pulled his slippers behind him,
for they were worn out.

God, he was so anxious.

As he entered the courtyard, his steps light, the maids of the court were so busy
counting his kisses, making sure that everything was true, that there were no more and
no less kisses from the swineherd; they did not even notice the emperor. He stood on
tiptoe.

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The emperor saw them kissing and asked, "What is this?" Then he hit them on the head
with his slipper, and the swineherd got the eighty-sixth kiss. "Get out!" the emperor
shouted. Because of his evil deeds, both the princess and the swineherd were expelled
from his empire.

She stood there weeping; the swineherd cursed loudly, and the rain came down in
torrents.

"Oh, what a poor thing I am!" said the princess. "If only I had chosen the handsome
prince! Oh, how pitiful I am!"

So the swineherd went behind a tree, wiped the dark brown paint off his face, took off
his ugly clothes, and came out wearing the prince's robes. The robes were so beautiful
that the princess had to bow to him. "I have begun to despise you, you!" he said. "You
don't want an honest prince! You don't understand roses and nightingales, but you can
kiss the swineherd for a while! That's what you get!"

Then he returned to his kingdom and bolted the door. She could stand outside and sing
to her heart's content:

Oh, dear Augustine,

It's all gone, gone, gone!

4.3.16 Bride and groom

The top and the ball were placed in a drawer with other toys, and the top said to the ball,
"Since we are lying in the same drawer, are we not bride and groom?" But the ball was
made of morocco leather and was as vain as a fine toy-

There was a young lady who was reluctant to answer such a question.

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The next day, the toy's owner, a little boy, came. He painted the top red and yellow and
nailed a copper nail in the middle of the top. When the top started spinning, it looked
spectacular.

"Look at me," he said to the ball. "What are you saying now? So we don't want to be
bride and groom? We're perfect for each other. If you jump, I'll jump too."

Let's dance! No one is happier than us! <<<<

So, do you believe it?" Qiuqiu asked. You obviously don't know that my parents are
Moroccan slippers, and

There's a cork in my body! <<<

"Yes, but I'm made of mahogany!" said the top. "The mayor made me himself. He has
his own lathe, and

Very happy!

"Yes, can I rely on it?" said Ball.

>If I lie, I won't be whipped!'

" You are right," said the ball, "but I can't. I am like an engaged swallow. Every time I
jump up, she puts her head out of the nest and says, 'Do you want it?'" "Do you want
it?" Now I have agreed in my heart, which is almost half of the engagement, but I
promise you that I will never forget you!

Oh, I don't have that much," the top said, and then they spoke

Never see you again.

The next day, the ball was taken out. Top watched it fly up into the air like a bird, until it
finally disappeared. It would come back each time, but would bounce high each time it
landed; either out of eagerness or because it had a cork in its body. On the ninth

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attempt, the ball disappeared and never came back; the boy looked for it again and
again, but it was gone. "I know where it is!" Top sighed. "It's in the swallow's nest,
married to the swallow!"

The more the spinning top thought about it, the more he became obsessed with the ball.
Because he couldn't get it, his love for it grew stronger; its special thing was that it could
take others away.

The top spun and whirred, but he kept thinking about the ball, and it became more and
more beautiful in his mind. Years passed like this - after all, it was still an old love.

The carousel was no longer young. But one day, it was completely covered in gold and
had never been more beautiful. Now it had grown into a golden top, dancing and purring.
Yes, it was great! But suddenly...

He jumped so high that the bride and groom could not see him, and then he flew away!
They searched and searched, even in the basement, but there was no sign of him.
Where had he gone?

He jumped into a garbage can filled with all sorts of stuff: cabbage stalks, trash, and
debris from the gutters.

>>Now that I'm really lying right, the gilding here will soon fall off; I'm so unlucky! ' Then
he looked at a long cabbage stem that had been pulled out too much and a strange
round object that looked like an old apple; but it was not an apple, but an old ball that
had lain in the gutter for many years, and the water had seeped into the sphere.

"Thank God, there's finally someone like me who I can talk to!" the ball said, looking at
the gilded top. "I'm actually made of morocco leather, hand-sewn, and I have a cork in
my body, but no one can tell! I almost married a swallow; but then I fell into a gutter and
lay soaking wet for five years. For a virgin, this is a long time, believe me!"

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But Toph said nothing, and he thought of his old love, and the more he listened, the
clearer it became that it was her.

At this time, the maid came and wanted to empty the trash can. "Hey, there's the golden
canopy!" she said. The gyroscope was once again treated with great respect and
reverence in the room.

But the ball never made any sound again, and the spinning top never mentioned the old
love again; the feeling disappeared, when the person you love has been lying in the sink
for five years and has become wet; when you meet her in the trash can, you can't even
recognize her.

4.3.17 Butterfly

The butterfly wanted a bride; of course, it wanted a lovely little flower. It looked at her;
they sat quietly on the stem, thoughtful, like unengaged virgins; but there were so many
flowers that it was hard to choose, and the butterfly was unhappy, so it flew to the daisy.
The French call it "Marguerite"; they know it can tell fortunes, when lovers pluck leaf
after leaf and ask each other if the beloved is really in love with you - Is there pain? - It
cannot be measured? A little? Not at all? Or something like that. Each person asks in
his own language. The butterfly comes to ask too; but instead of picking leaves, he
kisses each one, because he believes that kindness brings the greatest good.

"Dear Margaret Daisy!" he said. "You are the wisest woman of all the flowers, and you
can tell fortunes! Tell me, please, should I choose this or that? Or which one should I
choose? If I knew, I could go directly to her--"

Fly around them and stop. <<<

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But Margaret said nothing. He called her "woman" and it irritated her; because she was
a virgin and you were not a woman. He asked her a second time, and a third time, and
she said nothing, so he gave up and just kept flying.

It was early spring, and the snowdrops and crocuses were in bloom. "They are so
pretty," said the cute little butterfly, who was still a teenager even though he was young!
Like all young men, he liked to look at older girls. Then he flew to the anemones; the
anemones were a little too bitter for him; the violets were a little too warm; the tulips
were in bloom; the daffodils were too plain; the linden flowers were too small, and...

This was so important; apple blossoms look like roses, but they bloom today and wither
tomorrow, all at the mercy of the wind. He thought to himself that such a marriage would
be too short. He liked pea blossoms the most, red and white, delicate and fragile,
belonging to those simple girls with pretty faces that are suitable for being placed in the
kitchen. Just as he was about to propose to her, he suddenly saw a pea pod hanging
next to her, with a withered flower on the top of the pod.

"Who's that?" he asked.

― That‘s my sister,‖ said Pea Blossom.

>>Okay, that's what you want! <«< This scares the butterflies

Then he flew away.

The fences were full of honeysuckle and there were many long-faced, yellow-skinned
girls. He didn't like this style. Yes, but what do you like?

What should he do? Ask him yourself!

Still no progress.

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Flowers are dressed in their most beautiful clothes, but what good is it? They lack the
freshness and fragrance of youth. The aging soul especially needs fragrance, but
dahlias and hollyhocks have no special fragrance.

So the butterfly landed on the mint tree.

>>Although it has no flowers, it is full of flowers, exuding fragrance from root to tip, and
every leaf exudes the fragrance of flowers. I accept it! <<<

Eventually he got married.

But Speermint stopped and said at last: *Friendship, yes! But nothing more! I am old,
and you are old too; we can live well together, but we should not be so foolish as to
marry at such an old age! <<<No! Let us marry!

So Butterfly never had a wife. He had been looking for a wife for too long. You shouldn't
do that! As people often say, Butterfly has always been single.

It was late autumn, rainy and cloudy. The cold wind blew across the backs of the old
willow trees, and the trunks were cracked. It was not a good thing to fly around outside
in summer clothes, because you would feel the love.

Go, as they say. But the butterfly wasn't flying around outside either; it just happened to
fly under the roof where the fire was burning; yes, it was warm there like summer; it was
nice to live in. "But it's not enough to just live!" he said. >>You must have sunshine,
freedom and a little flower! <<

He flew to the windowpane, was seen, admired, and finally pinned to a pin in a box of
curiosities; we could no longer help him. "Now I sit on a stem like a flower!" said the
butterfly.

>>But it's not pleasant! It's like getting married

——You are trapped! << He comforted himself like this.

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"It's really uncomfortable!" said the potted plant in the room. >>But you can't really trust
the potted flowers, said the butterfly-

Trin, you have too much contact with people! <<<

Spring passed, summer passed, and then fall came;

4.3.18 snow White

Snow White A long, long time ago, in the dead of winter, snowflakes fell from the sky
like feathers. A queen was sitting by an ebony window doing needlework. As she was
sewing, she looked up at the snowy scene, and unexpectedly, the needle pierced her
finger, and three drops of blood fell on the snow. The bright red blood was particularly
beautiful against the white snow, and she thought to herself: "If only I could have a child
who was as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as a mirror frame!" Soon, she
gave birth to a little girl, whose skin was as white as snow, as red as blood, and whose
hair was as black as ebony, so she was named Snow White. After the child was born,
the queen died. About a year later, the king married another wife, who was a beautiful
woman, but she was proud of her beauty and could not bear to be surpassed by anyone.
She had a wonderful mirror, and when she stood in front of the mirror and looked at
herself, she said:

―Mirror, mirror, mirror: who is the most beautiful woman in the world?‖ He answered,
― You are the most beautiful woman in the world, Queen.‖ The Queen was satisfied
because she knew the mirror was telling the truth.

Snow White grew up and became more and more beautiful. When she was seven years
old, she was as beautiful as the clear sky and more beautiful than the queen. The
queen asked the magic mirror again: "Mirror, mirror,
who is the most beautiful woman in the world?"
The mirror replied:
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" Queen, you are the most beautiful woman here, but Snow White is a thousand times
more beautiful than you." The queen was shocked, angry, and jealous. From that
moment on, every time she saw Snow White, her heart was in turmoil and she hated
her to the bone. Her jealousy and pride became stronger and stronger, making her
restless day and night. So she called a huntsman and said, "Take the child to the wild
forest, where I will never see him again.

Kill him there and bring me his lungs and liver as a token of love." The huntsman
obeyed and brought Snow White out. When he drew his hunting knife and was about to
pierce her innocent heart, she cried out, "Oh, dear hunter, spare me! I will flee into the
forest and never come home again." Because she was so beautiful, the hunter felt pity
for her and said, "Then run away, poor child." He thought that the wild animals would
soon eat you, but he thought that there was no need to kill it, and the stone in his heart
seemed to be lifted . At this time, a little pig was jumping around, so the hunter stabbed
it to death, took out its lungs and liver, and brought them to the queen as a souvenir.
The queen was greedy and cooked and ate these lungs and liver, thinking that she had
eaten Snow White's lungs and liver. Poor Snow White was alone in the big forest and
was very scared. She looked at the leaves on the trees and thought about how to save
herself. Then she began to run, jumping over sharp stones and through thorns. The wild
animals jumped over her but did not hurt her. She ran as fast as she could until it was
almost dark, and she saw a small house and went in to rest. The things in the house
were not big, but they were very clean. In the hut there was a table covered with a white
cloth, on which stood seven little plates, with a spoon on each plate, seven little knives
and forks, and seven little cups. There were seven little beds, side by side against the
wall, covered with snow-white sheets. Snow White ate a little of the vegetables and
bread from each of the little plates, and drank a drop of wine from each of the little cups,
because she did not want to take everything from one person. Then she was too tired,
so she lay down on one of the beds, but none of them suited her; one was too long, one

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was too short, and finally the seventh was just right, and she lay there, prayed to God,
and fell asleep.

The seventh prince looked towards his bed and saw Snow-White lying there fast asleep.
So he called the other princes, and they came running over, exclaiming, and took out
seven little candles and shone them on Snow-White. "Oh my goodness! Oh my
goodness!" they cried, "What on earth is this child!" They were so happy that they did
not wake her up, but left her to sleep in her little bed. The seventh dwarf went to sleep
with his companions, and each slept for an hour, and that was the end of the night.
The next morning Snow-White awoke, and was terrified to see the seven dwarfs. They
asked her in a friendly way, "What are your names?" "My name is Snow-White," she
answered. "How did you get into our house?" the dwarfs continued to ask. Then she
told them that she had wanted to kill her stepmother, but the huntsman had spared her
life, and that she had been running all day until she had finally found her little house.
The dwarfs said: "If you can take care of our home: cook, make the beds, wash, sew,
knit, keep everything clean, then you can live with us and you will need nothing." Snow
White agreed and lived with them. They kept the house in great order. In the morning,
they went into the mountains to look for ore and gold. In the evening, they came back to
prepare food. During the day, the girl was alone, and the kind dwarfs warned her: "Be
careful about your stepmother, she will soon know that you are here. Don't let anyone
in."

But the queen thought that she had eaten Snow White's lungs and liver and wanted to
become the first and most beautiful woman again, so she went to the mirror and asked:
"Mirror, mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the most beautiful woman in the world?" The
mirror replied:

"Queen, you are the most beautiful here; but Snow White, who has crossed seven
mountains with the seven dwarfs, is a thousand times more beautiful than you!" The
Queen was suddenly terrified, because she knew that the mirror was not telling the truth,
and she realized that the huntsman had deceived her and that Snow White was still

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alive. When she heard that the mirror had crossed seven mountains with the seven
dwarfs, she thought about how to kill it again, because jealousy made her unwilling to
give up unless she became the most beautiful person in the land. She finally came up
with a plan, painted her face red and dressed up as an old shopkeeper, so that she
would not be recognized at all. However, she crossed seven mountains in this image,
came to the dwarfs' house, knocked on the door, and shouted: "Good things, cheap!
Cheap!" Snow White looked out the window and shouted: "Hello, dear lady, what do you
sell?" "Good things, beautiful things," she answered, "Lace of all colors." So she took
out a bunch of colorful silk lace and showed it to everyone. Snow White thought to
herself, I can let this kind lady in, she meant well: she opened the door and bought
herself this colorful shoelace. "Wait, child," said the old woman, "how do you look?
Come, I will help you tie your shoe properly." Snow White thought nothing, and stood
before the princess and put on her new shoelace. But the old woman's fingers moved
too quickly in tying the shoelace and tied it too tightly, and Snow White immediately lost
her breath and fell to the ground, as if dead. "Now you are the most beautiful," said the
wicked woman and left.
Not long after, at night, the seven dwarfs returned home. When they found dear Snow
White lying on the ground, motionless, as if dead, they were terrified! They lifted her up
and saw that she was tied too tightly, so they cut the straps. At this time, she began to
breathe a little and gradually regained consciousness. The dwarf heard what had
happened and said, "The old innkeeper's wife is the queen. Be careful not to let anyone
in while we are away."

But when the wicked woman returned home, she went to the mirror and asked:

"Mirror, mirror, mirror, who is the most beautiful woman in the world?" He answered,
"Queen, you are the most beautiful woman here; but Snow White, who came over the
mountains with the seven dwarfs, is a thousand times more beautiful than you." When
the queen heard this, her blood rushed to her heart and she was terrified because she
saw Snow White alive again. She thought about how to kill her again, so she made a
poison comb. Then she disguised herself and became a poor woman again, but a
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completely different woman. So she climbed over the seven mountains and came to the
dwarfs' house, knocked on the door and shouted, "Good things, cheap! Cheap!" Snow
White looked out and said, "I won't let anyone in." But the old woman shouted, "Look at
this beautiful beehive!" As she said this, she took out the poisoned beehive and showed
it to her. The little girl liked it very much and opened the door. After the old woman
bought a comb, she said, "Now I will comb your hair too." Snow White didn't think much
about it, but the old woman stuck the comb into her hair and the poison in the comb
took effect immediately. The poison was so strong that Snow White fell to the ground
dead. "Now you just lie there, you beauty!" she said, and went away. Fortunately, it was
getting dark soon when the seven dwarfs returned home. They saw Snow White lying
on the ground as if dead, and immediately thought that the wicked stepmother wanted
to kill her again, so they looked around and found the poisoned comb; they pulled him
out, and he came back to life and told them what had happened. Then they warned him
again to be careful and not to let anyone open the door.

The queen stood in front of the mirror at home and asked: "Mirror, mirror, who is the
most beautiful woman in the world?" He answered as before: "Queen, you are the most
beautiful person here; but Snow White, who lives over the mountain with the seven
dwarfs, is a thousand times more beautiful than you." Hearing this, she was so angry
that she trembled all over and said: "Snow White must die, even if it means my death!"
After that, she went into a secluded and empty room and made a poisoned apple. It was
beautiful in appearance, white as snow, and its cheeks were rosy, so everyone who saw
it wanted to eat it, but whoever ate a piece would die. The apple was ripe, so she
painted the apple with paint, disguised herself as a peasant woman, climbed over seven
mountains, came to the dwarfs' house, and knocked on the door. Snow White put her
head out of the window and said, "I won't let anyone in. The dwarfs forbade you to eat
it." "Well, if you don't want to eat it," the farmer's wife replied, "it's all right. I'll throw my
apple away. Here, I'll give you one." "No," said Snow White, "I won't accept anything."
"Well, you may be afraid of poison; come, bite off the red-cheeked apple and I'll eat the
white-cheeked one," said the old woman. But the apples were artificially grown, and
only the red-cheeked ones were poisonous. Snow White was salivating over the
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beautiful apple, and when she saw the farmer's wife eating it, she couldn't help herself
and reached for the poisoned half. But as soon as she bit into it, she fell to the ground
and died. The queen said, "No one can wake you up this time." After saying that, she
went home and asked the mirror, "Mirror, mirror, who is the most beautiful woman in the
world?" The mirror finally answered, "Queen, you are the most beautiful person in this
land." Her jealous heart finally calmed down.

When the dwarfs came home in the evening, they found Snow White lying on the
ground, not breathing, dead. They took her up and looked for some poison they could
find, untied her, combed her hair, and bathed her with water and wine, but nothing
helped; the lovely child was dead and still. They laid her on a coffin, and the seven
dwarfs sat by it and wept for her for three days. They wanted to bury her, but she still
looked as fresh as a human being, and her cheeks were still rosy and beautiful, so they
said, "We cannot bury her in the black earth." They made a transparent coffin out of
glass so that people could see her clearly, and then they put her in it and wrote her
name on it in gold letters, saying that she was the King's daughter. Then they placed the
coffin on the hill and one of them kept watch over it. The animals also came to mourn
Snow White, first the owl, then the crow, and finally the dove.

Snow White lay in the coffin for a long, long time, but she did not decay, and looked as if
she were alive, only asleep, for her skin was still white as snow, red as blood, and her
hair was black as ebony. One day, one of the king's sons happened to walk into the
forest and came to the dwarfs' house, where he spent the night. He saw the beautiful
Snow White lying in the coffin on the hill, and read the words written in gold on it. So he
said to the dwarfs, "Leave the coffin to me, and I will give it to you whatever I want." The
dwarfs answered, "We would not give him up even for all the gold in the world." So he
said, "Give it to me, I cannot live without Snow White. I will love and respect her as I
love her." So the kind dwarfs took pity on him and gave him the coffin. The king's son
asked the servants to carry the coffin on their shoulders. Just then, they stumbled over
a bush, and Snow White was startled, and the residue of the poisoned apple that she
had bitten off flowed down her throat. She came to life again and stood up. Then it said,

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"Oh, God! Where am I?" The prince was overjoyed and said, "You are with me." He told
the prince what had happened and said, "I love you more than anything in the world.
Come with me to my father's castle and you will be my wife." Snow White was very kind
to him and followed him. Their wedding was held with great ceremony and splendor.
Snow White's stepmother, who did not believe in God, was also invited to the wedding.
She put on a beautiful dress and stood in front of the mirror and said, "Mirror, mirror,
who is the most beautiful woman in the world?" The mirror answered:

"Queen, you are the most beautiful here, but the young queen is a thousand times more
beautiful than you!" The evil woman was so frightened that she couldn't say a word. She
didn't want to attend the wedding, but jealousy drove her to see the young queen. When
she entered, she saw that it was Snow White. She was so frightened that she couldn't
move. The iron slippers were already on the charcoal fire. When the iron slippers were
red hot, they were brought in and she was asked to put on the red slippers. She kept
dancing until her feet were burned and she was half dead.

4.3.19 Dog and sparrow

This German shepherd dog did not meet a good master, but met an owner who made
him starve. He could no longer bear it and left sadly. On the way, he met a sparrow. The
sparrow said, "Brother dog, why are you so sad?" The dog replied, "I am very hungry,
but I have nothing to eat." The sparrow said, "Dear brother, come with me to the city,
and I will give you food." So they went to the city together and came to a butcher's shop.
The sparrow said to the dog, "Wait there, I will pick out a piece of meat for you." He sat
in the butcher's shop, looked around to see if anyone noticed him, and then pecked and
pulled at a piece of meat that was placed on the side of the butcher's shop until it
slipped off. The dog grabbed the meat and ran to the corner to eat it. "Now come with
me to another butcher's shop," said the sparrow, "and I will pick out another piece for
you, so that you can be full." When the dog had finished the second piece, the sparrow

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asked, "Brother Dog, are you full?" "Yes, I am," he answered, "but I have not eaten any
bread yet." "You can eat too," said the sparrow, "just follow me." So the sparrow took
the dog to a bakery and pecked at several loaves of bread until they all fell off; the dog
still wanted some bread, so the sparrow took him to another dog and brought him more
bread. When they had finished, the sparrow asked, " Brother Dog, are you full?" "Yes,"
he answered, "now let's go out of town for a walk."

Now the two of them came to a country road, and the weather was very warm. After
walking for a while, the dog said, "I am tired and want to sleep." "Yes, I will sleep for a
while," replied the sparrow, "I will sit on the branch in a while." So the dog lay down on
the street and fell asleep. While he was sleeping, a coachman drove up with a three-
horse carriage, and the carriage was loaded with two barrels of wine.

Seeing that he would not turn around, but stayed by the road where the dog lay, he
shouted, "Carpenter, don't do this, or I will make you poor!" However, the carpenter
thought to himself, "You will not make me poor!" He swung his whip and drove the cart
over the dog, who was crushed to death by the wheels. The sparrow cried out, "You
have killed my dog brother, and this will cost you your cart." "Yes, the cart!" said the
driver, "Can you hurt me?" and then continued. The sparrow climbed under the awning
and pecked at the mouth of a barrel until it came loose and all the wine flowed out, but
the driver was unaware of it. He looked around and saw that the cart was dripping, so
he went to check and found that one of the barrels was empty. "Oh, poor me!" it cried.
"Not so poor!" said the sparrow, and flew to the head of a horse and pecked out its eyes.
The driver saw this and pulled out his mattock and was about to chop the sparrow, but
the sparrow flew up and the driver hit the horse on the head with the mattock, and the
horse fell to the ground dead. "Oh, poor me!" he cried. "Not so poor!" said the sparrow.
The driver drove on with the two horses, and the sparrow crawled under the cloth again
and pecked open the stopper of the second barrel, and all the wine spilled out.

The driver saw this and cried again: "Alas, I am such a poor devil!" The sparrow replied:
"Not so poor!" Then it flew to the head of the second horse and pecked out its eyes. The

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driver ran forward and swung his pickaxe, but the sparrow flew up and hit the horse
hard, so that the horse fell down: "Alas, I am such a poor devil!" "Not so poor!" said the
sparrow, and flew to the head of the third horse and pecked out its eyes. The driver was
furious and hit the sparrow without looking back, but missed and killed the third horse
instead. "Alas, I am such a poor devil!" he cried. "Not so poor!" The sparrow replied:
"Now I will make you poor at home!" Then it flew away.

The driver had to abandon the car and go home in anger. "Alas," he said to his wife,
"what a bad luck I have! The wine has been spilled, and all three horses are dead." "Ah,
man," she answered, "the damned bird has flown into the house! It has gathered all the
birds in the world together, and they have all settled on the drum above our heads and
eaten it up!" He climbed up and saw thousands of birds sitting on the ground, gnawing
at the drum, and the sparrows were sitting among them. The coachman cried out, "Oh,
what a poor man I am!" "Not poor enough," answered the sparrow, "coachman, if you
were poor you would have been dead long ago!" and flew out.

The coachman, who had lost all his possessions, returned to his room, and sat behind
the stove, glaring at him in anger. But the sparrow was sitting outside the window, and
cried out, "Carter, this will kill you!" So the coachman seized the pick and threw it at the
sparrow, but the pick broke the window and missed the sparrow. The sparrow jumped in,
sat on the stove, and cried, "Carter, this will kill you!" He was so angry that he broke the
stove, and then flew around like a sparrow, breaking all his belongings, mirrors, chairs,
benches, tables, and finally the walls of the house, but he missed himself. But at last he
caught the sparrow, and his wife said, "Shall I kill him?" "No," he cried, "that would be
too gentle, and he would die a worse death, I will eat him up!" And she swallowed him
up in one breath. But the sparrow began to flutter inside him, and then flew up again,
flew into the man's mouth, and then put his head out and cried, "Carter, this will kill you!"
The coachman handed the hoe to his wife and said, "Wife, kill the bird in my mouth."
The woman swung her fist at the coachman, but missed, and hit him directly on the
head, and he fell dead. But the sparrow flew away.

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4.3.20 Brothers and sisters

The brother took his sister's hand and said, "Since our mother died, our life has been
hard. Our stepmother beats us every day, and when we go to her, she kicks us away.
The remaining crusts of bread are our food, and the little dog under the table is better
off because she sometimes throws some good food to it. May God bless our mother to
know this! Let us go out and explore the world together." They walked all day long,
through meadows, fields and stones. When it rained, the sister said, "God cries with our
hearts!" In the evening, they came to a large forest. They were tired from pain, hunger
and long journey, so they sat down in a hollow tree and fell asleep.
The next morning when they woke up, the sun was high above the treetops, shining
warmly on the treetops. The brother said, "Little sister, I am thirsty. If I knew there was a
little spring here, I would definitely go and drink. I think I hear the sound of the spring
water gurgling." The brother stood up, took his sister's hand, and went to find a well
together. The evil stepmother was a witch. She saw the two men's tracks and followed
them secretly like a witch, cursing all the wells in the forest. They found a small
sparkling fountain on a rock, and the brother wanted to drink the water; but the sister
heard the sound of the fountain flowing: "Whoever drinks my water will become a tiger!
Whoever drinks my water will become a tiger!" The sister cried out: "Oh, brother, I beg
you, don't drink, otherwise you will turn into a wild animal and tear me to pieces."

Although the younger brother was very thirsty, he did not drink the water. He said, "I'll
wait until next spring to drink." When they came to the second well, the younger sister
heard the water in the well saying, "Whoever drinks my water will become a wolf!
Whoever drinks my water will become a wolf!" At this time, the younger sister began to
cry, "Oh, brother, please, don't drink, otherwise you will become a wolf and eat me." The
younger brother did not drink the water and said, "I will wait until next spring to drink.
You can say whatever you want then. I'm really thirsty." When they came to the third
spring, the younger sister heard the sound of rushing water saying, "Whoever drinks my

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water will become a deer! Whoever drinks my water will become a deer!" The younger
sister said, "Oh, little brother, don't drink the water, otherwise you will become a deer
and run away from me." But the little brother knelt down by the spring, bent down and
drank the water. When the first drop of water fell on his lips, he lay there like a deer.

The little sister wept for her poor, cursed brother, and the fawn wept too, and sat beside
him in sorrow. At last the girl said, "Be quiet, dear fawn, I will never leave you." Then
she took off her golden garter and put it around the fawn's neck, and plucked some
rushes and made a soft string. The fawn tied the fawn to the string and took it deep into
the forest. They walked for a long time until they came to a little house. The girl looked
inside and saw that the house was empty, so she thought, "We can stay here and live."
So she took leaves and moss and made a soft bed for the fawn. Every morning she
went out to gather roots, berries and nuts, and brought back tender grass for the fawn.
The fawn ate the grass with his hands and played happily in front of him. At night, when
the sister was tired, she said her prayers and rested her head on the fawn's back, which
was her pillow, and fell asleep peacefully. If her brother had a human form, his life
would have been wonderful.

They had been alone in the wilderness for some time, when the King held a great hunt
in the forest. The sound of horns, the barking of dogs, and the joyful shouts of the
hunters were heard, and the little deer could not wait to go there. "Oh," she said to her
sister, "let me go hunting, I can't stand it any longer." She begged her sister until she
agreed. "But," the little deer said to him, "come back to me at night; I will shut my little
door and protect myself from the hunters in the wild; and to know you, you must knock
at the door and say: My little sister, let me in! If you don't say so, I won't open my little
door." The little deer jumped out and felt comfortable and happy in the open air. The
King and his hunters saw the beautiful little deer and chased after it, but they could not
catch it. When they thought they had definitely caught it, it jumped over the bushes and
disappeared. After dark, she ran to the hut, knocked at the door, and said, "Little sister,
let me in!" The little door was opened for him, and he jumped in and slept all night on
the soft bed. The next morning, the hunt began again. When the deer again heard the

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hunting horn and the call of "whoo! whoo!", the hunter did not sit idle either, and said,
"Little sister, open the door for me, I am going out for a while." The little sister opened
the door for him, saying, "But you must come back in the evening and tell me your little
song." The king and the hunters saw the little deer with the golden collar again, and they
chased after it, but it ran too fast and too swiftly for them to catch up. This went on all
day; at last, in the evening, the hunters finally surrounded it, and one of them injured its
foot, so that it could only limp away slowly. Then he followed it quietly to the hut, and
heard it cry out, "My little sister, let me in!" Then he saw the door open and then close it
again. The hunter remembered all this, and went to the king and told him what he had
seen and heard. The king said, "Tomorrow we will go hunting again."

But when the fawn came back wounded, the sister was terrified. She washed off the
blood, smeared it with herbs, and said: "Dear fawn, go back to your bed and you will get
better." However, the wound was small, and the next morning the fawn felt no more pain.
When he heard the hunting outside again, he said: "I can't stand it anymore, I must go
there; no one can catch me so quickly." The sister cried: "Now they are going to kill you,
I won't let you go out." "If you stop me, then I will die of a broken heart here," he
answered. "When I heard the hunting horn, I felt like I was going to jump out of my
shoes!" The sister couldn't help it, and with a heavy heart she opened the door for him,
and the fawn jumped into the forest healthy and happy. When the King saw it, he said to
the hunters, "Now you must chase it all day and until evening, but make sure no one
hurts it." When the sun went down, the King said to the hunters, "Come now and show
me the little house in the forest." He came to the little door, knocked, and called out,
"Dear little sister, let me in!" The door opened, and the King came in, and saw a girl
standing there, who was more beautiful than any girl he had ever seen. The girl was
terrified, for it was not her fawn that came in, but the King with the golden crown. The
King looked at her kindly, held out his hand to her, and said, "Will you come with me to
my castle and be my dear wife?" "Oh, yes," answered the girl, "but the fawn must come
too, for I will not leave it behind." The King said, "It will always be with you as long as
you live, and you will have nothing to lack." The girl came bounding in, and her sister

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tied her to the rope again, and holding the rope herself, she went with her to the little
house in the forest.

The King took the beautiful girl back to his castle, where they were married with great
fanfare, and she was now the Queen, and they lived happily together for a long time.
The fawns were well cared for, and played in the castle gardens. However, the wicked
stepmother, for whom the children had come into the world, could only think of their little
sister being torn to pieces by wild beasts in the forest, and their little brother being shot
like a fawn by hunters. When she heard how happy they were and how everything was
going so well, jealousy and resentment grew in her heart and tormented her, and she
only thought of how to bring misfortune to both of them. Her daughter, who was ugly as
the night and had only one eye, reproached her, saying, "Become queen, and
happiness will be mine!" "Be quiet," said the old woman contentedly, "I will come in due
time." When the time came, the queen gave birth to a beautiful little boy, and the king
went out hunting. The old witch, disguised as a maid, went into the queen's room and
said to the sick woman, "Come, the bath is ready; it will do you good and give you
strength, so take it before it gets cold." Her daughter was nearby, and they carried the
weakened queen into the bathhouse, put her down, and then quickly left, locking the
door. However, they had kindled a real hellfire in the bathhouse, which soon suffocated
the young and beautiful queen.

When all was done, the old woman took up her daughter, put a hat on her, and laid her
in the queen's bed. She had given her daughter the queen's figure and features, but she
could not give her the eyes she had lost; but in order that the king might not notice all
this, she had to lie on her side, without eyes. In the evening, the king came home, and
was overjoyed to hear that he had given birth to a son, and wanted to go to his wife's
bedside to see what she was doing. The old woman hurriedly cried out: "For God's sake,
draw the curtains. The queen must not see the light and must keep quiet." The king
went back, not knowing that a false queen was lying in the bed.
Midnight fell, and everyone was asleep, only the nurse who was sitting by the cradle in
the nursery was still awake, and she saw the door open and the real queen came in;

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she took the child out of the cradle, held it in her arms, and gave him something to drink.
Then she shook out the fawn's pillow, put it back in its place, and covered it with the
quilt. But she did not forget the fawn, and went to the corner where it lay and stroked its
back. Then she went out silently. The next morning the nurse asked the guards if they
had seen anyone come into the castle during the night; but they answered, "No, we saw
no one!" So she came several more nights without saying anything; and the nurse often
saw her, too, but she dared not tell anyone.

After a long time, the queen suddenly asked in the night: "What are my children doing?
What are my deer doing? I will come again this time, and then I will never come again!"
The nurse did not answer her, but she disappeared again and came to the king and told
him everything. The king said: "Oh my God! What is going on? I will take care of the
children tomorrow night." In the evening, he also went to the nurse's room, but in the
middle of the night, the queen appeared again and asked: "What are my children doing?
What are my deer doing? I will come again this time, and then I will never come again!"
After saying this, she took care of the children as usual and disappeared again. The
king did not dare to speak to her. But the next night, he woke up again, and she asked
again: "What are my children doing? What are my deer doing? I will come again this
time, and then I will never come again!" The king could no longer control himself,
jumped in front of her, and said: "You can only be my wife!" She answered: "Yes, I am
your wife!" At this time, by the grace of God, she was reborn; she was full of energy,
ruddy, and healthy. She told the king about the crimes committed against her by the
wicked witch and her daughter. The king brought them both to court and sentenced
them both guilty. The daughter was taken into the forest, where the wild beasts tore her
to pieces as soon as they saw her; while the witch was thrown into the fire and burned
to death in agony. As she was consumed by the fire, the fawn also turned back into
human form, and the brother and sister lived happily together until the end of their lives.

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4.3.21 Silly Peter

Once upon a time, there lived in a small house a woman who had two children: one was
a girl, whom she loved very much, and the other was a boy, who was treated as an
outcast in the family. The boy's situation was worse than that of the dog, because the
dog slept on fresh straw, while "Stupid Peter," as people called him, had to endure dry
blisters, and the roof of the stable where he slept was leaking so badly that when it
rained, it dripped everywhere. People always said that he was good for nothing, but he
had to do all the hard work: peel potatoes, chop wood, herd cattle, clean the house,
wash dishes, go to market. In short, he was good at everything, but people didn't like
him. Whenever his mother gave him a sandwich, he would always hear these words:
"You lazy guy, you good for nothing, you lazy guy, you have never been good at work,
but when it comes to eating, you are always the first." Finally, stupid Peter couldn't
stand it anymore and thought to himself: "No, I work like a horse, but instead of being
appreciated, I get beaten and scolded. I'd better get out of here."

When he was beaten for no reason again, he said to his mother, "Mom, I want to go out
into the world because I find myself abandoned here." "Good boy," said his mother, "go
away, you are right, see if you can find another way to make a living, we can't be
together forever, that won't work. I'll give you a little hammer, I can't give you anything,
now go away."

Foolish Peter took the hammer and set off. After walking a long way, he saw a beautiful
big castle in the distance. When he got closer, he saw three beautiful girls looking out of
the attic window. He knocked on the door, and the girls opened it and asked him what
he wanted. "I ran away from home because my mother had no bread to give me,"
answered foolish Peter. "What is your name? What is your occupation ? " the three girls
asked him. He answered, "My name is Silly Peter, and I am a cowherd by profession."
"Oh, that's great," the three girls shouted in unison, "We need a cowherd now, and if
you are willing, you can come and help us." Silly Peter was very happy to hear this, and

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the girls also prepared delicious food and drinks for him; he liked this job very much and
decided to do this new job forever. It was really great. The next morning, my Silly Peter
got up early, ate a hearty sandwich, and went to the pasture with his cows. He stayed
there all day until dark. Then he left with his cows and wanted to go home. But at this
moment, he saw a gentleman riding a horse and dressed in silver coming straight
towards him from a distance. He asked with an expression that he wanted to eat Peter,
"What are you doing here?" Silly Peter glanced at him sideways and answered, "It's
none of your business." The gentleman was furious and shouted loudly, "What did you
say? It's none of my business? Wait a minute, I'm going to teach you a lesson, how can
you be so shameless!" After that, he pulled out a big knife and was about to kill Peter.
But foolish Peter did not hesitate, for as soon as he noticed the rider reaching to his left,
he quickly seized the hammer and struck the rider hard on the head, causing him to fall
from his horse. "See, now you have got something at last," he said with a laugh. Then
he tied the horse to the shepherd's hut and stripped the dead man of his silver coat.
Having hidden the body, he threw it into the water and drove the cows home. The three
girls, who were again crouching at the balcony window, saw Peter coming back with the
cows, and their surprise was understandable, for until then they had never been able to
support a shepherd, and no matter how many times they went out to herd the cows in
the morning, the cows always came home alone in the evening. "Ah, foolish Peter is
here!" the three of them shouted, jumping down the stairs like rabbits and opening the
door for him. But he said nothing, and was silent, with sweat dripping down his cheeks.
After driving the cows into the cowshed, he had to come in again to eat a hearty meal
and drink a sip of good wine. He loved it very much and was as happy as a king, but he
said nothing.

Next morning he was again provided with some good bread and butter, and went with
the cattle to the pasture. The girls stood and looked at him with tears in their eyes, for
they thought he would not come back this time. He had been in the pasture all day, and
when it was getting dark, he gathered the cattle together again, and was going home.
Just then he saw a gentleman coming on horseback, all dressed in gold; and he rode up
to him, and asked with a stern face, "What are you doing here?" Peter looked askance
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at him, and answered, "It is none of your business." "What are you talking about?" the
man cried. "Wait, I will teach you a lesson, and make you less impudent," and he seized
the leather, but Peter was careful, and quickly seized the hammer and struck himself on
the head. Immediately the master and the slave fell from their horses, and Peter took off
his gold and hid himself with the others; and he tied his horse to the shepherd's hut,
threw the body into the water, and went home. The three girls were again leaning
against the balcony window, and were already restless; but when they saw Peter, they
were still more delighted. "Oh, here comes stupid Peter!" the three of them cried
together, jumping down the stairs like rabbits and opening the door for him. He drove
the cows into the cowshed and then went into the castle. Fine food was prepared for
him and the girls were waiting for him. But he was silent, and the sweat ran down his
nose, and he said nothing.

Now it was the third day. Foolish Peter got his bread and butter again, and drove the
cattle to the pasture. The three girls watched him go with tears in their eyes, for they
thought, This time we will certainly never see him again. Peter would stay in the pasture
until the sun went down; but when she slept behind the hill, he flew away with the cattle
and went home. Then he saw a trap door open in another pasture in the distance, and a
man came out of the field, riding a horse covered with diamonds. Foolish Peter may
have noticed the position of the trap door and was ready to wait for his master to play a
trick. He rode up to his master and shouted loudly, as if he was very angry: "What are
you doing?" "It's none of your business," Foolish Peter said calmly, and before his
master could continue or reach for his saber, he grabbed the small hammer and
smashed his head. Then he took off the diamond clothes and hid them, tied the horses
to the other two, and threw the body into the water.

All was well, but foolish Peter was anxious to know what else lay beneath the trap-door,
so he left the cow where she was, and went straight to the place where he had seen the
trap-door open. He found the cow too, seized her, and seeing the staircase he went
down. Then he entered a hall filled with rich clothes. "They can't suit me; I have three
coats left in the pasture, and I shall never wear them out," he said to himself, and

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passed through a door into another hall. There was a table, on which were laid all kinds
of dishes. "Aha, then I must eat," said foolish Peter, pushing his chair forward and
holding on to it with all his strength. When he had eaten and drunk his fill, he looked
around, and saw a little iron door in the corner. So he went up to it, and tried to open it,
but could not, for there was neither a key nor a key-hole in it; he rubbed it with his foot,
but this did not help. He was so angry that he seized a hammer and smashed the door
with all his might, so that it broke into pieces; and at the same moment a great heap of
money rolled over and threw him to the ground. He quickly calmed himself and rubbed
his eyes vigorously with both hands. He thought he was dreaming, but soon convinced
himself that it was not so, and rolled in the heap of gold with joy, and then jumped up
again with joy. "Great, I know it!" he shouted, and then jumped up the stairs and closed
the trapdoor silently. When he returned to the pasture, he grabbed all the cows by the
neck and ran like mad bulls; he jumped up the trees and then rushed into the grass, first
running upright, then running on his hands and feet, shouting so loudly that no one
would think he was very smart. Suddenly, he remembered something, opened the fence,
blew a breath, and let the cows go home alone.

The three girls again leaned over the balcony window and looked out to see if Silly
Peter had come, but he did not come until it was dark and the cow bleated into the yard.
The girls became very sad and could not comfort themselves, sobbing: "Oh, Silly Peter
is dead! Silly Peter is dead!"

In the evening, the door lock suddenly "clicked", and the three girls opened the door and
saw a gentleman decorated with diamonds standing there. They politely invited him to
come in and rest for a while, and offered him delicious food and drink. They were very
surprised at his precious diamond clothes and were soon fascinated by them. Finally,
they talked a lot and asked the handsome gentleman's name and address. At this time,
the man laughed and shouted: "Haha, don't you know me? I am Silly Peter." - "Oh, my
God! Silly Peter?" The three girls shouted, and he jumped up with joy and shouted
again: "Yes, of course, I am Silly Peter!" Laughing so hard that his belly shook. The
three girls were so shocked that they clapped their hands and shouted, "Oh my God!
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Peter is such a fool!" When they finally gave in to the surprise, they asked him how he
got all those beautiful clothes. He told them in detail about his experiences on the ranch
for three days. After that, he plucked up the courage to propose to the oldest of the
three girls. It is not difficult to imagine that the girl would not refuse him since Silly Peter
was so rich. The wedding was held a few days later. After the wedding, Silly Peter dug
up all the money in the field. There was so much money that he had to drive for seven
nights to transport the money to its destination. You know, he used a two-horse carriage
to pull it, and he loaded as many horses as possible each time.

After foolish Peter had been in the castle for some time with his wife and the other two
girls, he was anxious to know how his family was doing, so he said to his wife: "Wife, I
must go home, but I want to take them by a good route. I will go back in my old ragged
clothes; you follow in a beautiful carriage, and when you get home, pretend that the
wheels are broken, and then find a place to stay for the night." - "Good," said the
woman. Foolish Peter put on his old ragged clothes and went home. When his mother
and sister saw him, they sang the old song again, shouting: "You lazy man, you are
back again? We have nothing to eat, get out of here quickly, or we will drive you out." -
"Oh, for God's sake, take me in," said Peter with a pitiful look on his face, "I am starving
and can't earn bread anywhere; I am happy to work and do anything." This touched the
old woman's heart, and she called Peter in, put a basket of potatoes in front of him and
asked him to peel them, and foolish Peter took the knife and peeled the potatoes quickly.
Suddenly, a gorgeous carriage stopped at the door, and a gorgeously dressed and
beautiful woman came out of the carriage. Stupid Peter's mother and sister immediately
jumped to the door, knelt down and bowed to the woman, asking if they could provide
anything. The woman said, "I just want to ask if I can stay here for a while; one of the
wheels of my carriage is broken and it can't move." - "Of course, ma'am," the two said,
"Come in, ma'am, and sit down." As soon as the woman entered the door, the old
woman grabbed stupid Peter by the collar and threw him out of the kitchen door,
shouting, "You scum, get yourself dirty quickly and don't let the lady see you." Stupid
Peter just watched all this silently.

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"It is getting late," said the woman, "and I do not think my coach can be fixed to-day;
may I stay here to-night?"—"Of course, God will, may God grant us all happiness (all
joy), madam," said the old woman, "as long as you are pleased, madam; we are poor,
madam, and have a hard time, madam."

So the old procuress stayed. When the meal was ready, everyone sat down, but stupid
Peter sat alone in the kitchen, eating only a piece of dry bread and butter. He restrained
himself again; but while they were eating, he crept in and took a potato from the lady's
plate with his dirty hands. The old woman flew into a rage, and taking up a large
wooden spoon, was about to hit stupid Peter's fingers, when she cried out, "There is
such a naughty imp in the world! Stay away from the lady! Oh, madam, never mind,
madam, I have not seen him." "Forget it," said the old woman. But the old woman was
not satisfied, and she seized stupid Peter by the sleeve, hit him several times on the
back, and then sent him to bed. Silly Peter endured it all, lying on the half-rotten leaves.

The next morning, my sister came to Peter's stable and shouted, "Hey, hey, Peter! Get
up and grind the coffee!" Yes, it was Peter who didn't answer. My sister opened the
stable door a crack and looked in, and found that my Peter was gone. Now, of course,
she had to make coffee herself, and when it was ready, she went to the lady's bedroom
to wake her up. She knocked on the door once, but the lady didn't answer. She knocked
again and again, but the lady didn't answer. Finally, she sneezed, opened the door
gently, but immediately shrank back and ran to her mother, crying, "Oh my God, mother!
Peter and the lady are sleeping together." At this time, the old woman came with a big
piece of wood, and she would have killed Peter if the old woman hadn't stopped her
mother. The old woman wanted to scold him, but he smiled and said, "Hey, that's my
wife, and I'm her husband."

Mother and sister were so shocked that they couldn't say anything. When Peter and his
wife told them everything, they all blushed because they were so mean to Peter. But he
was kind-hearted, and laughed and said it didn't matter, because all his wealth came
from Little Hammer and his mother. Then he built them a splendid house, gave them
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enough money to live comfortably, and then he and his wife moved back to the castle,
where they would still be if they hadn't moved out yet.

4.3.22 Broken Boots Brothers

A butcher's apprentice got lost in the deep woods and met a hunter who was resting on
a tree trunk, dressed in gorgeous clothes and wearing shiny leather boots. He greeted
the apprentice warmly, because the apprentice was also tired, so he sat down beside
him and asked: "Brother Stiefelschmer, where are you going? Where did you come
from?"

The hunter couldn't help laughing and said: "I don't know where I came from or where
I'm going. I lost my way in the forest and I hope you know the way. It shouldn't be in this
forest." The butcher said: "Ah!" "It's no use scaring people. Do you see my magic staff?
As long as I have it, I am not afraid of ten thousand demons." The hunter looked at the
staff and said: "Well, it's not so dangerous now. I have a hunting knife and a rifle; but
what good will it do if we fall into the hands of the robbers who are active here? Don't be
afraid!" said the butcher. We must stick together; I don't know the roads and bridges
here. "This is really pitiful," said the hunter.

They walked together and soon came to a house in the forest. The butcher was
overjoyed and shouted: "Brother Stiefelschmer, come quickly! Everything is fine here."

The hunter followed reluctantly. He did not feel comfortable there. But the butcher was
already in the room and ordered dinner and two beds. Brother Stiefelschmer,
eavesdropping at the door, heard an old woman say to his companion: "You have come
at a very bad time. You should leave here as soon as possible, because I have twelve
sons. If they come home and find you here, you will become the sons of the god of
death. Nonsense!" The butcher said: "We should go there too.

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I am not afraid: just bring us something to be happy about as soon as possible,
otherwise we will starve to death. I heard that is the worst way to die." With this, he went
out to look for the hunter. But the hunter had already hidden in the barn. At last he found
it between two large bales of hay: he had to pull it out by force. Be smart, he said: "Do
you want to starve here? Come in and lean on my magic wand. With this wand, you
have nothing to fear. Now you can prepare food, and I bet you will like it too." "But we
have fallen into a robber's den," pointed out the hunter. The butcher replied: "Do you
think a man can survive on air in a robber's den? Come in and have your meal for two,
who knows if we can get anything else: there are very few snack stands in this forest . I
suggest you drink a mouthful of good soup right away: then, when the robbers come, I
will add a little salt to their soup, and you will not eat anything. But you have to pretend
that you are not full. Do you hear, brother Stiefelschmer? One more thing: cheer up and
don't show your fear of the Prussians. Wait until you see me swinging my stick in the air
three times, and then When you knock on the table like hammers and make the glasses
clink, do as I do with your hunting knife. You will find it works well. Now follow me,
brother Stiefelschmer.

Then, whether brother Stiefelschmer likes it or not, he must go into the house with him
and take a sip and drink the wine in the glass directly. "After a while, the twelve robbers
also arrived, and the captain saw the two guests and shouted: "Yo, listen to the drum
and whistle: that's the plaster." We caught nothing all day; now at least a few birds flew
into our nets. "Are you fat too?" said the butcher, shaking his cat, and the golden chips
made a sound. I felt that brother Stiefelschmer's empty wallet seemed to have not been
illuminated by the moonlight. Since we already know that the bells are ringing, you can
certainly prepare a hearty feast for us. But we must at least fight well first, instead of
jumping over the blade with empty stomachs. The help the old woman gave us here
was like a drop in the ocean, because we were starving in the forest. "

You are right," said the captain, "we do not mind a meal. But do not forget to pray

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before we eat. When we are in good shape, we will not make such a fuss. But why don't
you put it on, old man?" said the woman? Don't you see how weak we are? We have a
good harvest here: you must prepare a good meal.

" It's inside," said the old woman. I didn't know that strangers would eat with us. Come in,
the roast is already steaming, and I will add some mulled wine if you don't mind.

" All right, old cat," said the captain. But fill a full bucket, for the king has made us work
in sweat. I don't know if there is a drop of blood left in me. It is said that he hunts
incognito in the forest, and we have searched all the places there, even the icehouse;
but if you were not so lucky, we would not have seen the butterfly king.

" Who knows what it is for," said the robber. I don't believe the king has the courage to
hunt in the forest alone; but if the whole crew comes to meet us

- never mind," said the captain, "come in with me. "Well, I can see the old woman has
thought of us. There's still enough food. Come and take us hungry birds on the gallows.
The old woman should have set out two more places. But that's the fact. Sit down now
and make yourself at home. All right, good friend, for my green side. But if I don't mind,
Brother Stiefelschmer, why don't you sit down - yes, Brother Stiefelschmer, you can see
it by the way he walks. He hasn't really stirred up the people yet, that's why he quoted
like that. When the fists come, he'll forget about it.

All fourteen were now seated around the table, enjoying the delicacies the old woman
had brought. The Stiefelschmer brothers also ate at their leisure , less from hunger than
to avoid being warned. When they had finished their hearty meal of dumplings, the old
woman came up and said that the bucket of water was so heavy that it would take two
people to carry it to the table; she had not the strength to do it. The captain sent his
neighbor on the left and the butcher on the right. They were both men of great strength;
but when they raised their huge fists to the table, the belt broke. The captain insisted on

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pouring the wine himself. At this point the butcher patted his neighbor on the shoulder
and said: "

Now, brother Stiefelschmer, come here, and let's drink a toast to the whole team."
"That's right," cried the captain, "our guest with the cat knows how to live. "He's a smart
man and we need him very much. Everyone raised their glasses: Long live the team,
cheers! However, the Stiefelschmer brothers have to make things better. Does the wine
taste good?

The butcher said, he is a little weak; but you have to drink more water; maybe that will
help. Can I have another toast? Well, the captain, pleased with his guest's courage,
shouted, why not? Give me two more glasses! "Well, two more glasses," said the
butcher. "Then I'll drink to our captain and wish him long life and prosperity! "He stood
up again! This is the third time! Cheers! Everyone cheered and clinked their glasses
with the butcher until they broke their glasses. The Stiefelschmer brothers also raised
their glasses without hesitation and drank them all. Now I really don't know who will
make the third toast, he thought.

The captain thanked the strangers for their respect, filled their glasses again, and
invited them to toast for the third time. The butcher took his glass, raised it, and said: "I
toast the third time to my brothers in the icehouse over there, and to make your toast
more pleasant, I greet you and announce that they have captured the king. "Caught the
king! "Too bitter," said the captain. It's a pity that we didn't ourselves. But he added that
he was very happy to be captured, which might be true. The whole team in the icehouse
stood up! Stiefelschmer stood up again! And for the third time! Everyone clinked their
glasses and drank; the Stiefelschmer brothers did not wait for warning, but did their duty.

"I want sweet and bitter wine: Brother Broken Boot, how can you stand such soft wine?"
"I love punch," the hunter replied. "Too sweet, brother Stiefelschmer, too sweet! I can't
help drinking the third glass, and I want another one."

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But the captain interrupted him and asked, "How did you get this mission? Do you know
this symbol? You don't look like a member of this gang at all. Let's look at this symbol!
The butcher stood up and swung his stick over his head three times, hitting the table
like a tuning hammer, and the wine glass made a sound. Brother Stiefelschmer almost
simultaneously did the same thing with his hunting knife. Who would have thought it?
The captain said unhappily. And the frightened little rabbit, brother Stiefelschmer, was
also a member of this gang? People's understanding of the "Children of Man" is really
wrong. Now, I will drink to your health. Long live the two guests, cheers! "Please wait a
moment," said the butcher. The wine is too sweet, don't drink too much. Ask the old
woman if she has any green oranges. "Oranges," said the captain, "they grow in this
forest, too!" said the butcher, "my cats can't get them either, but I always have some
with me." "Look! Throw them in: they're fresh and green and

smell so good!" This had a special heart-strengthening effect. He showed the captain
the goldfish, and after catching them the captain salivated, but now he missed them,
because they were members of the Icehouse Gang and were good friends. But he soon
put the matter behind him: the king's imprisonment was more comforting than twenty
golden cats. So he took a big sip of punch and forgot all about the toast he had
announced. The riper the green oranges, the better they tasted. He gave gifts to his
neighbors and was diligent in expressing his love for people near and far, and he didn't
need to convince anyone; only the Stiefelschmer brothers criticized the drink: it was too
bitter, and the green bitter oranges shouldn't have been in it so long. We don't argue
about this, said the butcher brother Stiefelschmer; but I don't think it's the bitter oranges'
fault. You had already drunk the rest before, and now you are afraid of Saint Ulrich. You
are wrong. Now you can drink another eighth. Bitter in the mouth, healthy in the heart.
The others agreed with this view, and talked until one fell from the right chair, another
fell from the left chair, and the captain was lying under the table.

Now hurry to the stables, brother Stiefelschmer: I saw several shining black horses
there. So we rode to the capital and locked the birds in cages. The lime sticks will

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preserve them for a long time: I will let the green bitter oranges try. The other gang in
the ice cellar is about to be cut down: the king will praise his servants. However, we
must first lock the old woman in the cellar to prevent her from ruining our plans. "This is
easier than he thought, because the old woman did herself a favor and is now sleeping
like a log. They lifted her out of the bed and placed her on the saddle between two
barrels in the cellar like an anchor, and she didn't even notice it. "

Brother Stiefelschmer, are you still in a heavy mood now? The butcher and the
Stiefelsheimer brothers whistled, mounted their fat black horses, and rode towards the
palace. When they reached the gate, the guards immediately drew up their weapons
and lined up, occasionally stopping to signal. But the two did not care about

this and continued to ride towards the palace square. In front of the palace, drums
rumbled, all the guards jumped down and lined up, and the officers gave the order:
"Raise your guns!" The Stiefelsheimer brothers looked at the butcher to see if he was
surprised, but he could not help but see a hint of surprise. When they dismounted and
entered the castle, the butcher said: "One of us must be king, will you dethrone him?"
"Well, I will dethrone him," said the hunter. "But who are you, my savior? I am the newly
appointed chief of police, your majesty, and I beg your pardon if I demand too much
anonymity from them." Now the king was shocked. "But how did you learn that signal in
the ice cellar?" the king asked. I disguised myself as the new leader of another gang
and captured the king himself. They also tasted the green orange. Did I do my job well?
You did it well: I hereby entrust the Stiefelschmer brothers to you; since the
Stiefelschmer brothers have sent you their regards, your Majesty will forgive me and
shut up. Now, your Majesty, finish your work, take a team of men and two ladder trucks,
and dig out the two nests. There is enough space there... the palace area.

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4.3.23 farmer

A young king of Portugal married a beautiful wife, the daughter of the King of England.
But he longed to visit distant foreign lands. Whenever a ship came to port, pilgrims and
merchants were received with great hospitality by the king's officials and taken to the
castle to tell the king about their journeys. He was never tired of the world: it occupied
all his thoughts, and he tossed his body day and night, longing to see it with his own
eyes and feel its wonders. He actually equipped a ship and asked the queen to grant
him a year's vacation; he would strictly abide by this period. The queen was very afraid
and begged him to stay with her. She could not leave him: in a foreign country, no one
would treat her well, and she needed his protection. "But if I don't have to worry about
you," she continued, "I don't care about the dangers. This world is full of infidelity and
dangers, and I foresee that this journey will not end well."

But the young King said, "Be of good cheer, I have nothing to fear. I am afraid for you
not because I do not know whether you are safe in my land and with me, but because,
as the saying goes, women have long hair and short hearts. I ask only one thing: you
must be faithful to me for this short year. If I do not come back and send you no
message, you can use your power and this kingdom as you please."

When the Queen heard that he could not change his mind, she wept bitterly, for she
loved her husband with all her heart. "Not only this year," she cried, "I will wait for you
forever. Since you care about my loyalty, I am relieved. Put on this shirt: as long as it is
white, my honor and loyalty will always be pure." When he was about to board the ship,
she saw him to the shore and said goodbye to him affectionately. When the ship
weighed anchor, she stood on the shore and watched him until the last glimmer of the
white sail disappeared in the distant air. Then she sang softly:

My love, my only property, I can't live without it, go to heaven to take care of you, you
love! Goodbye, forget-me-not, take good care of this little flower: I am thinking only of

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you: Goodbye, good

night! The young King of Portugal now traveled through all the countries and coasts,
visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and all the places he had heard of. But as the
year came to an end, he remembered his promise and ordered his helmsman to take
the coastal road to Portugal. But after sailing for a day, they were boarded by three
privateers, who, after a heroic resistance, were overpowered and thrown overboard. His
companions were sent to the slave market, but the pirates gave him to the Sultan of
Babylon. The Sultan showed no mercy to these Christian dogs, and hitched the king to
the plow like an animal, and gave him a cowherd who whipped him mercilessly and
made him fertilize the fields with his own sweat and blood. He had been enduring this
torture for more than a year, and one day the Sultan passed him while walking in the
garden. So he seized the opportunity, bowed before him, and offered to buy his freedom
for a large ransom: "My subjects and my faithful wife will certainly be willing to pay the
fee you ask to free me from this cruel slavery." "Hush, Christian dog," cried the Sultan,
"how dare you call this a cruel slavery? Judging by your shirt, you have not sweated
much in your service to-day." The slave replied: "Sultan, I have worn this shirt for many
years. Since I began to plow the fields for you, I have never worn any other clothes, and
it has always been spotless. My wife gave it to me when I left home, saying that as long
as she guarded her honor, this shirt would let me know that she was loyal to me. As
long as she guarded her honor, this shirt would remain pure and spotless."

The Sultan did not want to believe it, but the driver assured him that the slave had never
worn a shirt and was still as clean as on the first day. The Sultan was astonished at this
miracle and swore on his beard that he would go to the Queen of Portugal and test her
loyalty. He immediately equipped a ship and set out for Lisbon. Arriving at noon, he sent
word that the King of Babylon wanted to speak with her. The Queen replied that he
could not receive her today, but would receive him at the last minute tomorrow. But she
received him only in the presence of all her courtiers. Then he came before the Queen,
shining with gold and precious stones, and offered her his heart, his hands, and the
most powerful throne in the world. "Do not despise me," he said, "for you will never
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again be so blessed. Know that in my kingdom the sun never sets, and I rule over three
continents. No emperor in Christendom can compare with me." The queen said to him,
"Sir, I am married; but even if I were free, I would be a Christian, and you a pagan." The
Sultan replied, "Madam, this is no obstacle; you are not the only Christian among my
wives. But if your faith requires your husband to marry only you, then I will dismiss all
my harem and make you my only Sultana. As for your marriage, your husband is my
slave, he is harnessed to the plow, and plows the fields for me. I have only to nod, and
this obstacle is removed. However, if you wish him to live, I will give him his freedom
and build a ship for him to return to Portugal unscathed. But the price will be your
hands." The queen was so frightened that she almost fainted when she heard her
husband say this. But she soon recovered herself, and said: "I would gladly give all my
wealth to buy my husband; but you cannot win my heart. I know that my master and
husband would not buy his freedom and life at such a price." Then she left him there to
weep, and when he asked to speak to her alone again, she told him never to appear
before her again.

After returning to the ship, the queen covered her face with a veil and hurried to the
forest to see a pious hermit from whom she often received comfort and advice. The
hermit did not let her return empty-handed this day, but gave her a harp, a minstrel's
beard and a set of clothes he had worn when he traveled around the world. After
disguising herself, the queen went to the seashore where the Sultan's ship was, sat on
a stone and began to sing:

My heart, what is the matter with you? Why do you beat so violently in my body? Why
do you toss so violently in my body? Why do you appear with such great power to
disturb my night's

peace and sweet sleep? The Sultan heard the minstrel's song, listened attentively, and
walked over, because he had never heard such singing and playing in his life. The
minstrel pretended not to see him and continued singing:
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I already know the reason, I have been asking for so long, what else is there to ask? A
sudden storm has brought me into this suffering. The waves of misfortune are rushing
towards me.

"Bard, do you want to come across the sea with us?" the Sultan asked. "No," he said,
"what can I do in a foreign land?" "When you sing, it's like you're floating on the sea."
"That's exactly what I thought," the bard answered. "Listen," said the Sultan, "travel with
me and you will become rich. You know, I am the Sultan of Babylon, the most powerful
king in the world." The bard refused; but the Sultan did not stop pressuring him. He
promised to send him home as soon as possible; as a reward, he would also fulfill his
every wish and swear to him on his beard. The bard finally agreed and went on board
with him. On the way, he had to sing all the songs for the Sultan, and the Sultan never
tired of listening to him. When they came to Babylon, he was treated with respect by
everyone; he had to sit at the table; he was also given many gifts, and his court and all
the princes were amazed at his singing. One day, the Sultan and he were walking
through the rose garden and stopped beside a man who was plowing a field. "Look," he
said to him, "here is the King of Portugal; are you not sorry that your King has to till the
fields here?" "I am not Portuguese," said the poet, "I am English; but we poets have no
homeland: we travel everywhere and are welcomed everywhere. However, I would
gladly return to the other side of the sea: the longing for the sea keeps me awake at
night."

" Don't you like our country?" asked the Sultan. "No place is more beautiful than this
rose garden," answered the poet. Then he began to sing:

Not long ago, I came to a beautiful garden where all kinds of flowers bloomed. But the
one I liked best was a rose: its thorny stem was covered with beautiful flowers.

The Sultan asked him which rose he meant. So he showed a rose to the Sultan, who
immediately broke it. Then the poet sang: You noble rose, standing among thorns, no
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matter how you prick my heart, your light and brilliant colors still make me happy, and I
whispered in pain: Goodbye, good night!

So saying, they left the garden, and the poet sang: Now I must leave this garden with
sorrow, to see if the one I have always loved is bound; but if you follow me, I will not
look back: only there, only there, and not here, will the happiness of my life bloom.

From that day on, the bard became more and more silent and sad; and his song
became more innocent and moving every day. He was noticeably thinner and his
cheeks were pale, which showed that he was suffering from a disease that could only
be cured on the other side of the ocean. Therefore, when he came to the Sultan and
asked to be sent home, the Sultan could not refuse him, and said: "My dear bard, if I
had not seen you go so far, I would have given you all the treasures in my room, so that
you could stay with me. Since the homesickness is no longer bearable, go back in
peace; but tell me what you want as a reward for your song; you know that I swear on
my beard that I will not refuse you anything." The bard said: "Sir, the wealth you have
given me here is enough to live a good life. But if you are willing to do me a favor,
please give me a Christian slave, so that I will have a loyal companion on my way
home." So the king summoned all the slaves, including a man who pulled a plow. The
bard went around one by one, carefully examined each one, and finally chose the King
of Portugal. The Sultan was not angry at this; on the contrary, he prepared a splendid
ship full of treasure for him and his companions. The bard took leave of the Sultan and
all the gentlemen of the court, pretending to go on board the ship with the King of
Portugal; but he slipped away secretly and made a pilgrimage on foot to the Holy
Sepulchre, because he had promised the hermit in the forest that his plan would be
successful. As the saying goes, it is not the choir that goes to the church, so God
rewarded him by letting him arrive in Lisbon before the King of Portugal... The next day,
he also sailed into the port and was warmly welcomed by his wives who were already
standing on the shore.

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But the fact that the queen had not seen her for many years could not be concealed.
They had been imprisoned by the king for a long time and lied endlessly, so they
accused them of infidelity. But the king would not listen to them, because the shirt he
wore when he was imprisoned still did not take off, and it was still as white as new snow.
But the accusations became more and more sharp: finally, driven by jealousy, he asked
her across the table where she had been all these years. The queen covered her face
with a cloth, got up, and walked out of the hall crying. The king had already ordered her
to be captured, when the minstrel came in and began to sing:

Now I must go to the grave with sorrow.

Soon, I will see the one I love , In the arms of another. Is this the reward for loyalty? My
tone brightened: Goodbye, good night!

The king recognized the bard at a glance, but he did not understand the meaning of his
song. But he continued to sing:

Ah, blooming rose, perched among thorns, how your doubts pierced my heart! I saved
you from a distant foreign land; your hands abandoned me with kindness and sincerity.
With this, he let the bard's clothes slip from his shoulders, and the Queen of Portugal
stood before him in royal dress. The king was shocked and jumped up from his seat, fell
at her feet, kissed the hem of her robe, and apologized for his mistakes with tears. Then
he took the harp himself, knelt down and sang:

You are the reflection of my soul, and I am guilty! Tears of regret flowed, and guilt made
my cheeks red. I kissed your hands, your feet, and the hem of your garment. I lay in the
dust: Forgive me, my love! You have freed me from chains and shackles, and brought
me back to my kingdom from poverty and disgrace. I shall live my life in gratitude to you
and be your faithful servant, my dearest one!

The Queen took him in her arms, pressed him to her breast, and kissed away the tears
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from his face. From the balcony of the castle, the King told his companions at the table
and all the people about all that the Queen had done for him, and how he owed his
kingdom and his freedom entirely to her. At the Queen's request, and in order not to
spoil the joy of the day, he also pardoned all those who had accused her. The whole
country rejoiced. The capital was decorated with lights and red cloths, and the
newlywed royal couple passed through the markets and streets in a triumphal
procession. Now they live out their old age in happiness and recall with relish the
hardships they had overcome.

4.3.24 title

A father had two sons. The elder son was clever and knew everything; the younger son
was clumsy and could not learn anything. When people saw him, they said, "Daddy is
going to make trouble for him!" Now, whenever there was something to do, the elder
son had to do it. But if his father asked him to go get something late at night, or even at
night, and the road led to a cemetery or some other spooky place, he would answer,
"Oh, no, daddy, I won't go there, it scares me," because he was afraid. Or, in the
evening, when they told stories around the campfire, the audience would sometimes
say, "Oh, I'm so scared!" The youngest child would sit in the corner and listen, not
understanding what this meant. "They always say: It scares me! It scares me! It doesn't
scare me: it must be some kind of art that I don't understand."

As it happened, his father had said to him, "Listen, you have been growing up in this
corner since you were a child, you are growing up, and you must learn something to
support your family. You see how hard your brother works, but you are just wasting your
time." "Well, dad," he replied, "I want to learn something; yes, if possible, I want to learn
to be afraid; I know nothing at the moment."

The eldest son laughed and thought to himself: "My God, my brother is such a fool! He

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will never amount to anything in his life. If you want to be a hook, you must first learn to
bend." The father sighed and replied, "You can be afraid, but you won't be able to
support your family by being afraid."

Soon after, the sexton came to visit, and the father told him of his troubles, saying that
his little son knew nothing; he knew nothing, and yet he had learned everything.
"Imagine that when I asked him how he wanted to earn his living, he should teach me to
be afraid." "Well," replied the sexton, "he can learn from me; just bring him to me, and I
will plan him flat." The father was very happy, for he thought to himself, "This boy can
be taught a lesson." So the sexton took him into the house and made him ring the bell.
A few days later, he woke him up in the middle of the night and made him climb up the
church tower and ring the bell. "You will then know what it is to be afraid," he thought to
himself, but in order to frighten the boy further, he crept into the room and made the boy
think he was a ghost. The boy climbed calmly to the top of the tower, and when he
reached the top, he saw a figure in the sound hole.

"Who is that standing there?" he called out, but the ghost did not move. So he said
again: "What are you doing here at this late hour? Get out now, or I'll push you down."
The sexton thought to himself: "Perhaps it is not so bad after all." He stood there in
silence. The boy called him a third time, but there was still no response, so he ran away,
pushed the ghost to the ground, and broke its neck and legs. Then he rang the doorbell,
and after ringing the doorbell, he went downstairs again and lay down on the bed
without saying a word and fell asleep. The sexton's wife waited for her husband for a
long time, but he did not come back. At last, not wanting to wake the boy, she asked:
"Don't you know where my husband is? He went up to the tower with us." "I don't know,"
the boy answered, "but there was someone standing in the soundhole, and he didn't
move or answer, so I pushed him down. Go there and you'll know if it was him." The
woman rushed to the churchyard in horror and found her husband lying on the ground,
dead.

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She ran screaming to the boy's father, woke him up, and said, "Ah, you are a villain! He
threw my husband into the soundhole, and now he is dead in the churchyard!" The
father was terrified, ran up to him, and scolded him: "What a vicious plot! The devil must
have framed you." "Well, father," he answered, "listen, I am innocent: he stood there at
night like a man with evil intentions. I didn't know who he was; I warned him three times,
why didn't he go away?" "Ah," said the father, "I will only make you angry, get out of my
sight, I don't want to see you again." "Yes, father, I will do it with pleasure. I will be out at
daybreak. , learn to be afraid. Then I will acquire a skill that will enable me to
persevere." "Learn whatever you want to learn," said the father, "it is all the same to me.
I will give you fifty silver coins. Take them and get out of my sight, and tell no one where
you come from or who your father is. I am so ashamed of you." "Yes, father, as you
wish, I can easily satisfy you if you have no other request."

At daybreak, the boy put the fifty silver coins in his pocket and went out to the road,
repeating to himself: "If only I could feel the vibrations! If only I could feel the vibrations!"
A man was walking beside him and heard their conversation. They walked a distance
and finally saw the gallows. The man said to the boy: "Look, that tree is where seven
men married the ropemaker's daughter. Sit under that tree until dark, and you will soon
feel the vibrations." "If that is all," answered the boy, "I will do it with pleasure; but if I
soon learn to tremble, take my fifty silver coins and come to me in the morning. " So
saying, the boy went to the gallows and sat under it, waiting for the night to fall. He felt
cold, so he built a fire. But the wind was cold in the middle of the night, and even with
the fire, he could not get warm. The wind pushed the men on the gallows this way and
that, rocking them back and forth, and he thought to himself, "You are shivering by the
fire below, and the people above must be cold and annoyed." He felt pity for them, so
he built a ladder, climbed up, untied the seven men one by one, and let them down.
Then he stoked the fire, blew on it, and asked them to sit around to keep warm. But they
sat there motionless, and the fire burned their clothes. The boy said, "Be careful, or I will
hang you again." But the dead men did not listen, and said nothing, letting their rags
burn. He became furious and said, "If you don't listen, I can't help it, and I don't want to

316
burn with you." So he hung the dead men up one by one. After saying this, he sat by the
fire and fell asleep. The next morning, the man came to him and asked for fifty silver
coins, saying, "Do you know what trembling is?" "I don't know," he answered, "How
should I know? The man above was very quiet and stupid, so he burned some rags on
his body." The man then realized that he would not get fifty silver coins that day, so he
walked away, saying, "I have never seen such a man."

The boy also continued on his way, and he began to talk to himself again: "Oh, if I could
feel that trembling! Oh, if I could feel that trembling!" The coachman walking behind him
heard him and asked, "Who are you?" "I don't know," the boy answered. The coachman
asked again, "Where are you from?" "I don't know." "Who is your father?" "I can't tell
you." "What are you talking about?" "Well," the boy answered, "I want to be afraid, but
no one can teach me." "Don't talk nonsense," the coachman said, "Come with me, I will
find you a place to stay." The boy followed the coachman and in the evening he came to
an inn, intending to spend the night there. As soon as he entered the room, he shouted
again: "If only I could feel the cold! If only I could feel the cold!" The innkeeper heard
him and laughed: "That's a chance here." "Oh, don't say it," said the innkeeper, "so
many curious people have died; it would be a pity if these beautiful eyes never saw the
sun again." But the boy said: "No matter how hard it is, I will learn it one day; that's why
I came here." He did not reassure the innkeeper until the innkeeper told him that there
was a magic castle not far away, and anyone who was willing to stay there for three
nights could experience the horrors there. The king promised to marry his daughter to
anyone who dared to challenge him, and she was the most beautiful girl the sun had
ever seen. There was also a huge treasure hidden in the castle, guarded by evil spirits,
which were about to be released. Many people have entered, but no one has ever come
out. The next morning the boy came to the king and said, "If you will allow me, I will
gladly spend three sleepless nights in this enchanted castle." The king looked at him,
and because he liked him very much, he said, "You may ask for three more things, but
they must be inanimate, and you may bring them to the castle." Then he answered,
"Then I will get a fire, a lathe, and a carving bench with a knife.

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The King had sent all the things to the castle during the day. When night fell, the boy
went upstairs and made a bright fire in his room, and placed the carving stool with the
knife beside him, and sat on the lathe. "Oh, if I were afraid!" he said, "but I am not here
to study." At midnight, he wanted to make a fire. He was blowing on the fire when a cry
came from a corner: "Meow! It's cold!" "You fools," he cried, "what are you crying for? If
you feel cold, come and sit by the fire and warm yourself." As soon as he finished
speaking, two big black cats jumped up and sat on either side of him, staring at him
fiercely. After a while, they were warm and said, "Comrade, shall we play cards?" "Yes,"
he answered, "but please let me see your claws." Then they held out their claws. "Hey,"
he said, "your nails are so long! Wait a minute, I have to cut them first." Then he took
them by the collar and lifted them to the carving table, holding their claws tightly. "I see
your fingers," he said, "I don't want to play cards anymore." With that, he killed her and
threw her into the water. But just as he calmed them down and was about to sit down by
the fire again, black cats and dogs in glittering chains came from all directions, so many
that he could no longer hide from them. They screamed terribly, trampled on his fire,
tore it to pieces, and tried to put it out. He watched calmly for a while, but finally he
could not help it, so he grabbed the carving knife, cursed, "Get out, you villain!", and
began to cut the fire. Some jumped away, and some he killed and dragged into the
pond. When he came back, he blew out the sparks and relit the fire to keep warm. He
sat there, unable to open his eyes anymore, and wanted only to sleep. Then he looked
around and saw a big bed in the corner, so he went over and lay down. But just as he
was about to close his eyes, the bed moved by itself and circled the castle.

"Yes," he said, "it's much more comfortable this way." Then the bed began to move up
and down the thresholds and stairs as if it were harnessed to six horses: suddenly, jump!
jump! He turned the bed over, from bottom to top, and then he was lying under it. But he
threw his blankets and pillows into the air, climbed out, and said, "Now, whoever wants
to go may go." Then he lay down by the fire and slept until daybreak. The next morning,
the king came and saw him lying on the ground, thinking that the ghosts had killed him
and that he was dead. He said again, "What a pity, such a handsome man." The little
boy sat up and said, "It hasn't come to that yet!" The king was surprised and happy, and
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asked him how he was doing. "Well," he answered, "one night has passed, and two
more will pass." He came to the innkeeper, opened his eyes, and said, "I never thought
I would see you alive again. Do you know what trembling is now?" "I don't know," he
said, "I don't know. If only someone could tell me!"

The next night he returned to the castle, sat by the fire, and sang the old song again: "If
only I could tremble!" Towards midnight there was a sudden noise and a crash, light at
first, then louder and louder, then quiet for a while, and finally, with a loud cry, half a
man fell down the chimney and fell in front of him. "Hey!" he shouted, "we need another
half a liter, this is not enough." At this time, the sound of fresh air began to rise and roar,
and the other half fell down. "Wait a moment," he said, "I will blow the fire first." When
he had finished blowing the fire, he looked around again and saw that the two pieces of
wood had been joined together, and a gray-haired man had taken his place. "That's not
what I meant," said the boy, "this bench is mine." The man tried to push him away, but
the boy would not give up, and pushed him away and sat down on his own seat. Then,
one after another, more people fell down, each with nine dead legs and two skeletons,
and they sat down to play ninepins. The boy was also tempted and asked, "Listen, can I
come with you?" "Yes, as long as you have money." "I have enough money," he
answered, "but your balls are not very round." So he took the skeletons and put them on
the lathe to turn them. "This will make them better for shoveling snow," he said, "and
now it will be fun!" He continued to play and lost some money, but when the clock struck
twelve, everything disappeared from his sight. He lay down and fell asleep peacefully.
The next morning, the king came and wanted to ask. "How was it this time?" he asked.
"I was bowling," he answered, "and lost a few pennies." "Don't you find it creepy?" "Oh,
never mind," he said, "I had a good time. If I only knew what 'creeping' was!"

On the third night he sat on the bench again and said sullenly, "If only I found it creepy!"
It was getting dark, and six tall men came in carrying a coffin. They said, "Ha, ha, that
must be my little cousin who died the other day." They waved their fingers and shouted,
"Cousin, come on, come on." They put the coffin on the ground, but he went over and

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opened the lid and found a dead man lying inside. He touched the dead man's face and
found it was cold. "Wait a minute," he said, "I want to warm you up." He went to the fire,
warmed his hands, and then put them on the dead man's face, but the dead man was
still cold. He took the dead man out and sat by the fire, holding him on his lap and
rubbing his arms to warm him up. But this did not work, and he thought that two people
sleeping in the same bed would keep each other warm, so he took the dead man to the
bed, covered him up, and lay down beside him. After a while, the dead man also
warmed up and began to move. The boy said, "Little cousin, you see how good you
would be if I had not warmed you!" But the dead man cried out, "Now I will strangle you
to death." "What," he said, "Is this my thank-you gift to you? You will soon return to the
coffin." He picked up the dead man, threw him in, and closed the coffin lid. At this time,
the six men came again and carried him away. "I don't want to be afraid," he said, "I
can't learn anything here."

At this time, a man taller than any of them came in, and he looked terrible; but he was
old and had a long white beard. "Oh, you bastard," he cried, "now you will soon know
what horror is, because you will die." "Don't worry," the boy replied, "if I want to die, I
must go there." "I will catch you," said the old man. "Now, be gentle, and do not make
too much of yourself; I am as strong as you, and perhaps stronger." "I will see," said the
old man, "if you are stronger than I am, I will let you go; come, let us try." Then he led
him through a dark corridor to a blacksmith's shop, and taking up an axe, he smashed
an anvil into the ground with one blow. "I can do better," said the boy, and went to
another anvil. The old man stood by, wanting to see, and his white beard drooped. Then
the boy seized the axe, and with one blow split the anvil, cutting his beard into it as well.
"Now I have caught you," said the boy, "it is your turn to die." Then he took up an iron
rod and beat the old man hard until he whimpered and begged him to stop, for he
wanted to give him a great fortune. The boy drew out the axe and let him go. The old
man took him back to the castle, and showed him three chests full of gold in the cellar.
"Part," he said, "for the poor, part for the king, and a third for you." When the clock
struck twelve, the ghost disappeared, leaving the boy standing in the darkness. "I can

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do it myself," he said, and groped his way into the room, where he fell asleep by the fire.
The next morning the King came and asked, "Do you know what fear is now?" "No," he
answered, "Why? My dead cousin is here, and a bearded man has been here and
showed me a lot of money down there, but no one has taught me to be afraid." The King
said, "You have redeemed the castle, and you can marry my daughter." "That's good,"
he answered, "but I still don't know what fear is."

Then the gold was collected and the wedding took place. However, the young King, no
matter how much he loved his wife and no matter how happy he was, kept saying, "If
only I could tremble, if only I could tremble." This statement finally annoyed his wife. Her
maid said, "I will help him; he will learn to be afraid." She went to the stream and had a
bucket of dolphins brought in. At night, while the young King was asleep, his wife had to
lift his blankets and pour buckets full of cold water and small fish over him, so that the
fish would wriggle around him. Then he awoke, crying out: "Oh, I am so frightened, I am
so frightened, dear woman! Yes, now I know what terror is."

4.3.25 One-eyed, two-eyed, three-eyed

Once upon a time there was a woman who had three daughters. The eldest was called
One-Eye, because she had only one eye, in the middle of her forehead. The second
was called Two-Eye, because she had two eyes like everyone else. The third was
called Three-Eye, because she had three eyes, and the third eye was also in the middle
of her forehead. However, because Two-Eye looked exactly like a human child, her
sisters and mother could not stand her and said to her, "You only have two eyes, just
like everyone else. You are not one of us." They pushed her, threw rags at her, fed her
only leftovers, and did everything they could to make her sad.

It happened that Two Eyes had to go to the fields to tend the sheep, and because her
sisters gave her too little food, she was still very hungry. So she sat on the edge of the

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field and cried, and two small tears flowed from her eyes. One day, she looked up at the
sky, and a woman standing next to her asked her, "Two Eyes, why are you crying?"
Two Eyes replied, "Shouldn't I cry? Because I have only two eyes like the others, and
my sisters and mother don't like me. They bully me, throw rags at me, and only give me
what they have left to eat. Today they gave me almost nothing, so I am still very
hungry." The witch said, "Two Eyes, wipe your face, and I will tell you something, so
that you will never be hungry again. Just say to your goat:

' Little goat, bleat!' Set the table!"

Then a neatly laid table will appear before you, filled with the most delicious food, and
you can eat as much as you want. When you are full and no longer need the little table,
just say:

" Little goat, bleat!

Little table!" and it will disappear from your sight.

So the wise man went away; and Two Eyes thought to herself, "I must try right away if
what she said is true, for I am very hungry." So she said,

" Baa, little goat!

Put away the little table!" And just as she had finished her words, a little table covered
with a white cloth appeared before her, and on it stood a plate with a knife, fork and
spoon, and around it were beautiful dishes, still steaming, as if they had just come out of
the kitchen. So Two Eyes said the shortest prayer she knew, "May God always be our
guest. Amen!" And she reached out for the food and ate to her heart's content. When
she had eaten her fill, she said just as the wise man had said,

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" Baa, little goat!

Put away the little table!" And soon the table and everything on it disappeared again.
What a lovely family, Two Eyes thought, and she was very happy and in a very good
mood.

In the evening, she drove the sheep home, and did not even touch the earthenware
bowl of food that her sisters had prepared for her. The next day, she drove the sheep
out again, and left behind even the few crumbs that her sisters had given her. The first
and second time, the sisters didn't take it seriously, but each time it happened, they
would notice and say, "There's something wrong with little Two Eyes. She always
leaves food behind, and before she would eat everything we gave her. She must have
found another way." But to find out the truth, One Eye had to take Two Eyes to the
ranch and watch what she was doing and if anyone brought her food and water.

When Two Eyes was driving the sheep out again, One Eye came up to her and said, "I
will go with her to take good care of the sheep and drive them to the pasture." Two Eyes
understood One Eye's thoughts, so they drove the sheep into the tall grass and said,
"Come, One Eye, let's sit down and I will sing for you." One Eye sat down, exhausted
from the unfamiliar road and the hot sun. Two Eyes continued to sing:

" One Eye, are you awake? One Eye, are you asleep?" After saying this, One Eye
closed one eye and fell asleep. Two Eyes saw that One Eye was sleeping soundly and
could not say anything, so they said,

" Baa, little lamb!

Set the table!" It sat at its little table and ate and drank until it was full, then it called out
again:

" Baa-baa!
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Move the table!" Everything disappeared, and Two Eyes woke One Eye and said, "Oh,
One Eye, you were tending the goats, but you fell asleep while tending the goats, and
the goats may have run out! Come on, let's go home." So they went home, and Two
Eyes again did not touch her bowl, and One Eye could not tell her mother why she did
not want to eat, so she said, "I fell asleep out there."

The next day the mother said to Three Eyes, "Come with me and see if Two Eyes is
eating out there, and if anyone has brought her food and water, because she needs
food and water." So Three Eyes went up to Two Eyes and said, "I will go with you and
see if the goats are well taken care of and well fed." But Two Eyes noticed what Three
Eyes was thinking, and he drove the goats into the tall grass and said, "Three Eyes,
let's sit there and I will sing to you." Three Eyes sat down, very tired from the journey
and the sun. Two Eyes sang the same song as before:

" Three eyes, are you awake?" But it did not sing

" Three eyes, are you asleep?" Instead, it sang carelessly:

" Two eyes, are you asleep?" It always sang:

" Three eyes, are you awake?

Two eyes, are you asleep?" As it spoke, the two eyes of Three Eyes closed and fell
asleep, but the third eye, which was not mentioned in the nursery rhyme, did not fall
asleep. However, Three Eyes closed his eyes only out of cunning, as if he had fallen
asleep with them, and just blinked his eyes, and saw everything clearly. Two Eyes
thought that Three Eyes was asleep, so he hummed the nursery rhyme: "Little goat,
bleat! Set the table!" Then he ate and drank to his heart's content, and finally ordered
the table to be removed: "Little goat, bleat! Set the table!"

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Three Eyes saw everything. Then Two Eyes came and woke him up, saying, "Ah, Three
Eyes, are you asleep? You can take good care of the children! Let's go home." After
returning home, Two Eyes never ate again. Three Eyes said to his mother, "Now I know
why this arrogant fellow never eats. When she said to the goats outside,

' Baa, little lamb!

Set the table!'" She had a small table in front of her, filled with the best food, much
better than what we have here. When she had eaten her fill, she said,

" Baa, little goat!

Set the table!" Then everything disappeared. I watched carefully, and she made my two
eyes fall asleep with a little rhyme, but fortunately the eye on my forehead did not open.
When my mother heard this, she shouted angrily, "Do you want to live better than us?"
You will lose all your happiness! "He took a butcher's knife and stabbed the goat
through the heart, and the goat fell to the ground dead.

When Two Eyes saw this, he went out sadly and sat down on the edge of the field again,
crying bitterly. Suddenly, the wise man stood by him again and said, "Two Eyes, why
are you crying?" "Shouldn't I cry?" It answered, "The goat that only listened to your little
songs and decorated my table so beautifully every day was stung to death by my
mother; now I must endure hunger and sorrow again." The witch said, "Two Eyes, I
have a good idea. Ask your sisters to give you the entrails of the slaughtered goat and
bury them in front of the front door, and you will have good luck." Then she disappeared.
Two Eyes returned home and said to his sisters, "Dear sisters, please give me some of
my goat. I don't want anything good, just give me the entrails." Then they laughed and
said, " If you don't want anything else, we can give you this." So Two Eyes took the
entrails and buried them quietly in front of the door that night as the witch suggested.

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The next morning, they woke up and went to the front door and saw a tall tree covered
with silver leaves and golden fruits; there was perhaps nothing more beautiful and
precious in the world. But they did not know how the tree had grown so suddenly
overnight; only Two Eyes noticed that it had grown from the goat's entrails, for it grew
right where the goat had buried her. So the mother said to One Eye, "Climb up, child,
and give us the fruit of the tree." The one-eyed girl climbed up, but when she tried to
pick a golden apple, the branch slipped from her hand as usual, so that no matter how
hard she tried, she could not get any apples. The mother said, "Three Eyes, climb up,
you have three eyes that see better than one eye." One Eye slipped down, and Three
Eyes climbed up; but Three Eyes was not smart, and no matter how hard she tried, the
golden apples kept slipping away. Finally, the mother could not wait any longer and
climbed up herself. But she could pick no fruit and hold nothing, just like One Eye and
Three Eyes. Two Eyes said, "I will get up there some day, and perhaps I shall succeed
sooner." The sisters cried, "What do you want to do, Two Eyes?" Two Eyes climbed up,
and the golden apples did not leave her hand, but seemed to fly to her hand, and she
picked them one by one, until her hand was full of golden apples. Their mother took the
apples from them, and instead of being kind to poor Two Eyes, One Eye, and Three
Eyes, she became even more harsh to her because she was jealous of her being able
to pick the golden apples alone.

One day, as they were standing near the tree, a young knight came up to them. "Quick,
Two Eyes," cried the sisters, "get down, and we will not be ashamed of you!" With great
difficulty they pushed poor Two Eyes under an empty bucket near the tree, and placed
under the bucket the golden apples she had broken off. When the knight came up, he
was a handsome gentleman, who admired the magnificent tree, interwoven with gold
and silver, and said to the two sisters, "Whose beautiful tree is this? Whoever can give
me a branch can ask for anything he wants." One Eye and Three Eyes replied that the
tree was theirs, and that they could break off a branch from it. They all tried their best,
but could not succeed, for the branches and the fruits always hid themselves from them.
"How strange," said the knight, "the tree is yours, and you have no right to cut it off!"
They insisted that the tree was their property; and as they were speaking, two golden
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apples suddenly appeared from the bottom of the bucket and rolled to the knight's feet.
It was very unkind of One Eye and Three Eyes to hide the truth. The knight was
surprised to see the apples and asked where they came from. One-Eye and Three-Eyes
replied that they had a sister, but she was not allowed to show herself because she had
only two eyes like ordinary people. The knight wanted to see her, so he called out,
"Two-Eyes, come out." Two-Eyes confidently crawled out from the bottom of the barrel,
and the knight was amazed by her beauty and said, "Two-Eyes, can you help me break
a branch from the tree?" "Yes," Two-Eyes replied, "I can, for this tree is mine." She
climbed up and easily broke off a branch with silver leaves and golden fruits, which she
handed to the knight. The knight said, "Two-Eyes, what can I give in exchange for you?"
"Ah," Two-Eyes replied, "I suffer hunger, thirst, sorrow and poverty from morning till
night. If you can take me with you and save me, I would be very grateful." With this, the
knight lifted Two-Eyes onto his horse and took her back to her father's castle. There he
dressed her in beautiful clothes and let her eat, drink and have fun. Because he loved
her deeply, he blessed her and held a wedding for her in a joyful atmosphere.

When Two Eyes was carried off by the handsome knight, the two sisters were very
jealous of his good fortune. "Well, the wonderful tree is still preserved for us," they
thought, "even if we cannot pick any fruit, everyone will stop before it and come to us to
praise it; who knows what kind of happiness will await us next?" But the next morning,
the tree was gone, and her hopes were shattered; and when Two Eyes looked out of
her little room, she was delighted to see him standing there, following her.

Two Eyes lived happily for a long time; but one day two poor women came to her castle
and begged from her. Two Eyes looked at their faces and recognized them as her
sisters, One Eye and Three Eyes. They had fallen into poverty and had to wander
around their doorsteps looking for bread. Two Eyes received them warmly, treated them
well, and took care of them, and they both regretted from the bottom of their hearts the
bad things they had done to their sister when she was a child.

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4.3.26 The Princess and the Pea

Once upon a time, there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess, but he had to
marry a real princess. So he traveled all over the world looking for a princess, but
wherever he went, he had trouble. There were many princesses, but he couldn't tell if
they were real princesses. There was always something wrong with them. So he went
back home and was very sad because he wanted a real princess very much.

One night, there was a terrible storm; there were thunder and lightning, heavy rain, and
it was terrible weather! There was a knock on the city gate, and the old king went to
open it.

There stood a princess outside. But, my goodness, she looked so horrible in the rain
and in the bad weather! The water was running down her hair, down her clothes, down
the toes of her shoes, down her high heels, and yet she said she was a real princess.

"We will find out," thought the old queen. But she said nothing, went into the bedroom,
threw back all the bedding, and put a pea at the foot of the bed. She took twenty
mattresses and laid them on the pea, and then she put twenty more eiderdowns on top
of the mattresses.

The princess was supposed to lie there at night. In the morning she was asked how she
had slept.

"Oh, it's horrible!" said the Princess. "I haven't slept all night! God knows what
happened to my bed! I was lying on something hard, and I'm all brown, red and purple!
It's horrible!"

Now they knew she was a real princess, for she had found the pea between twenty
mattresses and twenty eiderdowns. No one but a real princess could have been so
sensitive.

Look, this is a true story!

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So the Prince married her, for he now knew that he had a real Princess, and the Pea
was put into the Art Room, where people can see it to this day unless someone takes it
away.

Life in the country was wonderful. It was summer, the corn was yellow, the oats were
green, and hay was piled on the green meadows. The stork walked on his long red legs
and chirped in Egyptian, for he had learned that language from his mother. Thick forests
surrounded the fields and meadows, and deep in the forests were deep lakes. Yes, the
country was beautiful there. In the sunshine stood an old manor house, surrounded by
deep canals, and from the wall to the water's edge there grew huge leaves of sorrel, so
high that children could stand under the largest leaf; it was as desolate as the deepest
forest. There was a duck in the nest. He had to hatch his ducklings himself, but now he
was beginning to get tired of it because it took so long and so few people came to visit
him. The other ducks would rather swim in the canal than run under the sorrel leaves
and quack with him.

Finally, one egg after another broke: "Squeak, squeak!" it screamed, and all the yolks
came to life and poked out their little heads.

"Knock! knock!" said the mother. They knocked hard and looked around under the
green leaves. The mother told them to look quietly because the green is good for the
eyes.

"What a big world!" all the boys said, because the space inside the egg was completely
different from before.

'Do you think that's the whole world?' asked Mother. 'It stretches all the way to the other
side of the garden, into the parson's field. But I've never been there! - You're all here,
aren't you?' Then she stood up: 'No, I haven't taken them all away, the biggest egg is
still here; how long will that take? I'm getting tired of it now!'<<Then she sat down again.

"Well, how are you?" asked an old duck who came to visit her.

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"It's such a pain to hatch eggs!" said the duck in the nest. >>It's not broken! But now
you'll see the other ducks. They are the cutest little ducklings I've ever seen. They all
look like their dad. What a scoundrel! He didn't even come to see me. <<>

"Let me see that unbreakable egg!" said the old woman. "Believe me, it is a turkey egg!
So I was deceived, and had to go through sorrow and trouble with the children; for they
were afraid of water, I tell you! I could not get her to

The ugly duckling's water is disappearing! I knocked and slapped, but it didn't work! -
Let me see the egg! Yes, it's a turkey egg! Leave it alone and teach the other kids a
lesson

Swim! <<

"I want to sit on it for a while!" said the duck. >>I have been sitting on it for so long, I can
sit on it for a few more days!

"You are here!" said the old duck and left.

Finally, the big egg broke. "Boo-boo!" cried the little bear and fell down. It was big and
ugly. The duck saw it: "It's a big duckling!" she said. "It doesn't look like the others! It
can't be a baby turkey? Well, we'll find out soon enough! It should go into the water,
even if I have to push it out myself!"

The next day, the weather was surprisingly good. The sun was shining brightly,
illuminating the entire green dock. Mother Duck brought her family to the canal. Splash!
She jumped into the water.

"La-la, la-la!" she called, and out jumped the ducklings one by one. The water went over
their heads, but they came out quickly, swimming beautifully. Their legs moved of their
own accord, and all of them came out, even the ugly grizzly bear.

"No, it's not a turkey!" she said. "Look how gracefully it walks on its legs and how steady
it stands! It's my own baby! In fact, if you look closely, it's quite pretty. Hehe! - Now

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come with me and I'll show you the world and the duck farm. But stay close to me so
you don't get stepped on and watch out for cats! <<<<

Then they came to the duck farm. Suddenly there was a terrible noise. It turned out that
two families were fighting over the head of an eel, which was eaten by the cat.

"See, that's how it is with all creatures!" said the mother duck with her pointed beak, for
she wanted the eel's head, too. "Now use your legs!" she said. "You must pull yourself
together and bow to that old duck over there; she's the most distinguished creature here,
she's Spanish, that's why she's so fat, and you see, she has a red ribbon on her leg. It's
a very beautiful and glorious creature. The singing lark that jumps

4.3.27 Rich and Poor

In ancient times, God was still walking on earth. One night, he felt very tired, and it was
not until late in the evening that he found an inn. On the road in front of him, there were
two houses facing each other, one tall and beautiful, and the other small and simple.
The big one belonged to a rich man, and the small one belonged to a poor man. God
thought to himself, "I won't bother the rich man, I'll just knock on his door." The rich man
heard the knock on the door, opened the window, and asked the stranger what he was
looking for. God replied, "I just want to find a place to stay for the night." He looked at
the traveler from head to toe , and because the kind God was dressed simply and didn't
look like a wealthy man, he shook his head and said:

"I can't take you in. My room is full of herbs and seeds, and if I took in everyone who
knocked at my door, I would have to beg for my own. You'd better go make a living
somewhere else." He slammed the window, leaving the god standing there. So the god
turned his back on him, walked to the hut and knocked. As soon as he knocked, the
poor man opened the door and invited the traveler to come in for the night. "It's dark,"
he said, "you can't go any further today." This pleased the god, so he came to him. The

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poor man's wife held out her hand to him, welcomed him, and told him to be comfortable
and content. They were poor, but they were happy to give away everything they had.
Then she put potatoes on the fire, and while they were cooking, she squeezed some
goat milk so that the god could have some milk. When the table was set, the kind god
sat down to eat with them. Although the food was not much, the god thought it tasted
good because everyone present was smiling. When the meal was over and it was time
to go to bed, the woman secretly called her husband and said, "Listen, dear husband,
let's get some straw tonight and let this poor tramp lie down on his bed to rest. He has
been walking all day and must be tired." "I offer him the straw with all my heart," he
replied, "I will." Then he went to God and asked God if he would let him lie down on her
bed and give his limbs a good rest. The kind God was reluctant to take the bed away
from the two old people, but they could not help it, and they lay down on it until God
finally took it back; but they spread the straw on the ground. The next morning, before
daybreak, they got up and tried their best to prepare breakfast for their guests. When
the sun shone through the little window, God got up, and he ate with them again, and
then he wanted to go on his way.

He stood at the door and said, "For your kindness and piety, please make three wishes
and I will grant them to you." The poor man said, "What else can I wish for except that
we both live forever, have good health, and have enough food for life? As for the third
wish, I don't know what to make." God said, "Don't you want to build a new house for
this old house?" The rich man agreed and said he would be very happy if he could do it.
So God granted their wishes and turned their old house into a beautiful new house.
Then he left and continued on his way.

At dawn, the rich man got up and lay by the window. He saw a beautiful new house
opposite his old house. He opened his eyes, called his wife, and said, "Wife, look, what
has happened? Last night it was a poor hut, but now it has become a beautiful new
house. Run over and hear what has happened." The woman asked the poor man, who
told her, "Last night a traveler came and wanted a place to stay for the night. This
morning when we set out, he granted us three wishes: eternal happiness, lifelong health,
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daily bread, and a beautiful new house to replace our old hut." When the rich man's wife
heard this, she ran away and told her husband. The rich man said, "If I knew, I would
have wanted to tear myself in pieces and beat myself to death! The stranger was with
me, but I drove him away." "Hurry," said the woman, "get on your horse. The man is not
far away. You must catch up with him and grant his three wishes." Then

the man sat up and caught up with the god, and said to him gently and sweetly that he
should not be sad that he could not come in right away, because he had been looking
for the key to the front door and had been out all this time: when he came back that way,
he must stay with him. "Okay," said the god, "I'll do that when I get back." The rich man
asked if he could make three wishes like his neighbor . "Okay," said the god, "you can,
but it won't do him any good, he shouldn't wish for anything." But the rich man said he
would choose good things if they would come true. "Just ride home," said the god, "and
all three wishes will come true."

The rich man got what he wanted, and he rode home, thinking about what he should
wish for. As he was thinking, he threw away the reins, and the horse jumped up, and his
thoughts were constantly disrupted, and he couldn't concentrate at all. Then he got
angry at the horse again and said impatiently, "Then I hope you break its neck!" As
soon as he finished speaking, he fell clumsily to the ground, and the horse lay
motionless and dead. The first wish came true. But he was a miser and couldn't bear to
leave the saddle behind, so he cut it off, hung it on his back, and walked home. But he
comforted himself that there were still two wishes to be fulfilled. Walking on the sand,
the midday sun burning him, he felt hot and irritated: the saddle pressed against his
back, but he still hadn't thought of making a wish. "Even if I wished for all the wealth and
treasures..." In the world," he thought, "I will make all kinds of wishes in the future, this,
that, I already know them all. "But I will arrange my wishes so that I don't want to do
anything," he thought this time. Even if he had some wishes, they would be too few and
too insignificant for him. Then he realized how lucky his wife was now, sitting in the cool
room of the house enjoying life. This annoyed him, and he said subconsciously: "I wish

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she was at home sitting on the saddle, unable to get off, instead of me carrying him
everywhere." As soon as the last word came out, the saddle disappeared from his back,
and he realized that his second wish had also been fulfilled. Then he began to feel hot
and started running, thinking about sitting alone at home and thinking about something
great about his last wish. But when he got home and opened the door to the living room,
his wife was sitting on the saddle, unable to get off, groaning and screaming. Then he
said, "Be content, I will wish you all the world's gifts, and you will only sit there." But she
answered, "What good are all the world's gifts to me? I... I am sitting in the saddle? You
must help me down if you want me to mount." Now, whether he wanted to or not, he
had to make a third wish, which was to get her down, and then get down himself; and
this wish was granted. So he got nothing but trouble, effort, and a lost horse: but the
poor people lived happily, peacefully, and piously until the end of their happiness.

4.3.28 Farmers

A peasant was driving his oxen to the market, where he sold seven thalers. On his way
home he passed a pond, and heard the frogs croaking in the distance: "Quack, quack!
quack, quack!" "Yes," he thought, "they are also called Haberfields, and I redeemed
seven thalers, not eight." He went to the water's edge and shouted at them: "You stupid
animals! Don't you understand? It was seven thalers, not eight!" But the frogs continued
to croak! Quack! Quack! "Well, if you don't believe me, I'll tell you." He took the money
out of his pocket and counted out seven thalers, one thaler equaling twenty-four
groschen. But the frogs refused to count, and croaked again: "Quack, quack! quack,
quack!" "Well," the peasant shouted angrily, "if you want to know better than me, count it
yourself!" And with that, they threw the money into the water together. The peasant
stopped to wait for them to count the money before giving it back to him, but the frogs
insisted on doing it, and kept croaking: "Quack! quack! quack!" and never threw the
money again. He waited for a while longer until night fell and he had to go home. So he
scolded the frogs again: "You splashing guys, you have such big mouths and sore ears,

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but you can't count seven silver coins! Do you think I will stand there and wait for you to
finish counting? " After saying that, he left, but the frogs kept croaking behind him:
"Quack! Quack! Quack!" So he went home in a bad mood.

After a while, he got another cow and killed it. He thought that if he could sell the beef
for a good price, he could make as much money as the two cows, and the hide as well.
When he returned to the city with the meat, a group of dogs gathered at the city gate,
led by a big gray dog. It jumped around the meat, sniffed it, and barked: "What, what!
What, what!" Seeing it barking non-stop, the farmer said to it: "Yes, I know what you are
talking about! Because you want meat, and if I want to give you meat, I have to go
there."

The dog did not answer, but only said: "Why, why, don't you want to eat it too, and then
stand up for your friend?" "What, what!" said the dog. "Well, if you stick with it, I'll give
you the money. I know you well, and I know for whom you work. But I must tell you this:
I must get the money in three days; and you bring it out to me." With that, he unloaded
the meat and returned; the dog jumped on it, barking loudly: "What, what!" The farmer
heard all this at a distance, and said to himself: "Listen, everyone is asking for things
now, but the big man has to answer to me."

Three days passed, and the farmer was happy and thought: Tonight you will be able to
put the money in your pocket. But no one came to pay. "You can't count on anyone
anymore," he said. He finally couldn't stand it anymore, so he went to the butcher in the
city to ask for money. The butcher thought he was joking, but the farmer said: "You are
joking, I want money, didn't the big dog bring you the whole cow three days ago?" The
butcher was furious and grabbed a broom and drove him out. "Wait," said the farmer,
"there is still justice in the world!" Then he went to the palace and asked the king to
listen to his request. He was brought before the king, who was sitting with his daughter.
The king asked him: "What misfortune has happened to him?" "Oh," he said, "the frog
and the dog took my things, and the butcher gave them back to me with a stick." He told
him everything. After hearing this, the king's daughter laughed. The king said to him, "I

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cannot treat you fairly here, but in return you may marry my daughter. She has never
laughed in her life, except at your side. I have betrothed her to a man who can make her
laugh. You should thank God for the good fortune he has bestowed on you." "Oh," the
farmer replied, "I don't want her at all. I have only one wife at home, and every time I go
home, I feel as if there is another wife around every corner." The king was furious and
said, "Since you are such a bully, I will return your wages. Now leave here quickly and
come back in three days, and I will give you five hundred pounds."

The farmer went out of the door, and the sentry said, "You must have got something
good by making the king's daughter laugh." "Yes, that's what I mean!" The farmer
replied, "I will give you five hundred pounds." "Listen," said the soldier, "give me some
of this." What are you going to do with the money? ' "Well," said the farmer, "since it is
you, you have two hundred pieces. In three days, report to the king and let him count
them. ' A merchant was standing nearby and heard their conversation. He overtook the
peasant, seized him by his coat, and said, "My goodness, you are a lucky boy! I will
change it for you and give you the change. What do you want these hard silver coins
for?" "Mashael," said the peasant, "you have three hundred groschen left, give them to
me now. The king will pay you in three days." The merchant was very pleased with his
profit and brought some bad groschen, because three bad groschen were worth two
good groschen. Three days later, the peasant went to the king as the king had ordered.
"Take off your coat," he said, "and you will get your five hundred groschen." "Ah!" said
the peasant, "They are no longer mine. I gave the sentry two hundred, and the
merchant gave me three hundred. By rights, I cannot get a penny back." Just then, the
soldier and the merchant came in and demanded the farmer's winnings, and received a
well-deserved beating. The soldier endured it patiently, for he knew what it was like, but
the merchant said pitifully, "Oh, my goodness! These are hard silver coins!" The king's
anger had subsided, and he smiled at the peasant and said, "If you lose your wages
before you receive them, I will give you the money back. Go to my vault and take as
much as you want." The peasant volunteered and stuffed all he could take into his
pocket. Then he returned to the inn and counted his money. The merchant followed the

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peasant and heard him talking to himself, "This villain king has deceived me! If he had
not given me the money with his own hands, I would have known how much I had in my
hand. Now how can I know that the money in my pocket is real?" "I wish he would not
do this," thought the merchant, "he dared to speak so rudely to our master. I will go and
report him, and then I will not only be rewarded but also punished." When

the king heard what the peasant said, he was furious and ordered the merchant to bring
out the criminal. The merchant ran to the peasant and said, "Go to the king at once and
stand still." "I know best what to do," replied the peasant. "I'll make myself a new coat
first. I have so much money, do you think I will go wearing this shabby coat?" The
merchant thought that he could not leave without giving the farmer a coat, and he was
afraid that the king would be angry, he would lose his reward, and the farmer would be
punished, so he said: "Out of friendship, I will lend you a coat for a while; my God! How
can people not love?" The farmer accepted this suggestion, put on the coat the
merchant gave him, and went with him. The king blamed the merchant for the vicious
words he said to him.

" Ah!" said the farmer, "The merchant always lies and never tells the truth: that guy over
there actually said that I was wearing his coat!" "What does this have to do with me?"
The merchant shouted, "Isn't that coat mine? Didn't I lend it to you out of friendship so
that you could go to see the king?" The king heard it and said, "This merchant must
have cheated someone, either me or the farmer!" So he asked him to pay more hard
silver coins. But the farmer went home wearing good clothes and taking good silver, and
said, "This time I succeeded!" - "The Wise Farmer's Daughter"

Once upon a time there was a poor peasant who had no land, only a small house and
an only daughter. The daughter said, "We should ask the king for a little piece of
Rusland." The king heard that they were poor, so he gave them a little piece of turf. She
and her father began to hoe it, intending to plant some corn and other fruits on it. Just
as they were about to get the turf, they found a mortar made of pure gold on the ground.
"Listen," the father said to his daughter, "since the king has so kindly given us this land,
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we must give him the mortar back." But the daughter refused and said, "Father, if we
have a mortar but no pestle, we will have to make our own pestle, so you had better
shut up." But he would not listen to her, and took the mortar and gave it to the king,
saying that he had found it in the wilderness. The king took the mortar and asked if he
had found anything else? The peasant said no. The king said, "He should bring the
pestle now, too." The peasant said that they had not found him, but that it would help
him a lot, just as if he had talked to the wind. He was thrown into prison and had to stay
there until he brought the pestle. Every day the servants brought him the prison's bread
and water. They heard the peasant cry out again and again: "Oh! If only I had listened to
my daughter! Oh! Oh! If only I had listened to my daughter!"

So the servant went to the king and said that the prisoner kept crying, "Oh! I wish I had
listened to my daughter!" and would not eat or drink. The king ordered the servant to
bring him to him, and the king asked him why he kept crying, "Oh! I wish I had listened
to my daughter!" "What did your daughter say?" - "Yes," she said, "I should not have
brought the mortar, otherwise I would have had to bring the pestle."

" If you have such a clever daughter, let her come when she is free." So she had to
come to the king; the king asked her if she was really so clever. He said he wanted to
give her a riddle, and if she could answer it correctly, he would marry her. She agreed
and asked her to guess it. The king said, "Come to me without clothes, without being
naked, without being ridden, without being driven, without being in the way, without
being in the way, and if you can do this, I will marry you." So she went and took off her
clothes, naked (for she had no clothes), took a large fishing net, sat in it, and wrapped
herself in the fishing net (for she was not naked). She borrowed a donkey with money
and tied a fishing net to the donkey's tail, so that the donkey had to drag her with the
fishing net. The king neither rode nor drove the donkey, but let the donkey drag her
along the path, so that she could only touch the ground with her big toe, neither blocking
the road nor getting in the way. She came to the king, and the king said that she had
solved the riddle and everything had come true. So the king released her father, married
her, and entrusted all the royal property to her.
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Many years passed, and whenever the king came on his rounds, the peasants would
stop their wagons in front of the castle. They were selling wood; some were leading
cows, others were leading horses. One peasant had three horses, and one of them had
a foal, and the horse ran away and lay in the middle of a wagon with two cows. The
peasants got together and began to quarrel, throwing things, and making a scene. The
cowherd wanted to keep the foal, saying that the cows had eaten it. Another peasant
said, "No, his horse ate it, and it's his." The quarrel reached the king, and he ordered
that the foal should remain where it lay, and the cowherd got it, even though it didn't
belong to him. Then the other horse went away crying, mourning for his foal. Now that
he heard that the queen was so kind, because she also came from a poor peasant
family, he went to the queen and asked if she could help him get his foal back. She said,
"Yes, if you promise me that you will not betray me, I will tell you this: Tomorrow
morning, when the king is leaving for the battle, you will stand in the middle of the street
where he will pass, holding a large fishing net, and pretend to be fishing. Keep catching
fish, and then pour out the water from the net as if it were full of water." She also told
him what he should say if the king asked. The next day, the farmer stood in a dry place
fishing; the king passed by and saw this scene, so he sent a messenger to ask the
foolish man what he was doing. He answered, "I am fishing." The messenger asked,
how can you catch fish without water? The farmer said, "Just as two cows can give birth
to a calf, I can also catch fish on land."

So the messenger went and brought the answer to the king. The king called the peasant
before him and said to him, "This is not from his own mouth, from whom did he hear it?"
He should immediately admit it. But the peasant would not do it, and kept saying, "Oh
my God!" He had received the letter himself. But they tied him to a bundle of straw and
beat and tortured him until he admitted that the queen had given it to him. When the
king returned home, he said to his wife, "Why have you been so unfaithful to me? I don't
want to marry you anymore. Your time has come. Go back to where you came from, to
your cottage. " But he allowed her to do one thing: she should take with her the most
precious and best thing she knew, which was her farewell.
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She said, "Yes, dear husband, I will do it if you tell me to." Then she fell on the king,
kissed him, and said she wanted to say goodbye to him. Then she had a bottle of strong
sleeping medicine brought to him, and asked him to drink it before saying goodbye. The
king drank a large cup of wine, and she drank only a little, and the king soon fell into a
deep sleep. Seeing this, she called a servant and took a piece of beautiful white linen to
wrap him up. The servants took him to the carriage at the door, and then she drove him
back to her cottage. After that, she laid him in her little bed, and he slept all day and all
night. When he woke up, he looked around and said, "Oh, my God! Where am I?" He
called out to the servants, but no one answered. At last his wife came to the bedside
and said, 'Dear King, you commanded me to take away the most precious and best
things in the castle. Now I have nothing better or more precious than you, so I will take
you away.' The king said, 'Dear wife, you are mine and I am yours.' Then he took her
back to the palace and married her again, and they might live together again.

4.4 Long fairy tale

Fairy tales can be very long. A fairy tale can be a book or a movie.

4.4.1 Long fairy tale example 1

Chapter 1: Down The Rabbit Hole

One day, Alice, feeling depressed, sat with her sister by the river. Suddenly, she saw a
strange white rabbit passing by . It was dressed up, holding a pocket watch, talking to
itself, and walking in a hurry. Curious Alice followed it and jumped into the rabbit hole.
The hole was very, very deep, and after a long time, Alice finally landed. She was
shocked to find that she was in a strange hall, surrounded by doors of all sizes, and all
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the doors were locked. She picked up a key, but it could only open a small door.
Because the door was too small, she could only look through it, but found that there was
a beautiful garden over there. She put the key on the table and found a bottle of drink
with "Drink Me" written on it somewhere else in the hall. Alice drank it without saying
anything, and found that she had shrunk. When she could pass through the small door,
she couldn't get the key back on the table. In a panic, she picked up a cake with "Eat
Me" written on it. This time, after Alice ate it, she suddenly grew bigger again, so big
that even her head was touching the ceiling.

Chapter 2: The Pool of Tears

The mouse and Alice falling into tears.

Alice burst into tears, and the whole hall was filled with tears. She accidentally picked
up a fan, and her body became smaller again. She had to swim in her tears. On the way,
she met a mouse who was also swimming. Alice wanted to chat with it, but she kept
talking about her cat "Dinah", which of course angered the mouse who regarded cats as
his mortal enemy.

The Caucus Race and a Long Tale

The tears washed away the other animals and birds; Alice was surrounded by them.
They gathered on the shore and discussed how to dry themselves. The mouse gave a
long speech about William I, which bored Alice very much; the dodo thought the best
way was to have a race without a result: everyone would run in a circle, but there would
be no winner. Alice talked about the house cat again, which scared all the animals away
again.

Rabbit Sends a Little Bill

Mr. White Rabbit, who made Alice fall into the ground, reappears. This time, he is
looking for the Duchess's gloves and fan. Mr. White Rabbit orders Alice to go into the
house to retrieve the items. However, as soon as Alice enters the house, she sees a

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biscuit and starts eating it. Her body becomes bigger again. Mr. White Rabbit is
frightened, so he orders Bill the gardener lizard to crawl into the house through the
chimney to find the lost items. At this time, a group of animals have gathered outside
the house. They stare at Alice's huge arms and start throwing pebbles at her. The
pebbles turn into cakes; Alice eats them one by one, and her body shrinks again.

Advice from a Caterpillar

Alice saw a mushroom with a blue caterpillar sitting on it. He smoked a hookah and
asked Alice about it. Alice replied that she was in the process of personality
transformation and was often upset. She couldn't even remember a poem. Before the
caterpillar left, he told her the secret of the mushroom: eating half of it would make her
taller, and eating the other half would make her shorter. So she cut the mushroom in
half. Sure enough, eating half of it made her very short, and eating the other half made
her neck longer. Her head reached the bushes, and the pigeons on the trees even
mistook her long neck for a poisonous snake. After some effort, Alice finally recovered
her original height. She staggered and accidentally entered a small manor. At the same
time, she used mushrooms to adjust the most suitable height.

Chapter 6: Pig and Pepper

Mr. Fish wants to give the invitation to the Duchess in the house, so he asks Mr. Frog to
do the job. Alice observes the process and speaks a lot of obscure words to Mr. Frog,
but finally lets himself into the house. It turns out that the Duchess's cook is throwing
dishes around and cooking soup, and adding a lot of pepper. There is so much pepper
that Alice, the Duchess and her baby are sneezing continuously, but the cook and the
grinning Cheshire Cat are not affected. The baby can't help but howl, and the Duchess,
who is always bad-tempered, is of course very disgusted by this, and finally gives the
baby to Alice to take care of. Alice takes the baby away, but soon she finds that the
baby has turned into a pig.

Chapter 7: A Mad Tea Party

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The Cheshire Cat appears in a tree and points Alice in the direction of the March Hare's
house. Then he disappears, but his toothy smile is still there, floating in the air, which
makes Alice notice that most of the cats she has seen don't have smiling faces, but she
has never seen a cat with just a smile and no body.

Then, Alice goes to the March Hare's house. At that time, the March Hare, Mr. Hat (now
more commonly known as the Mad Hatter) and the Dormouse are holding a crazy tea
party, and Alice becomes a guest of the tea party. In this chapter, the Dormouse is
almost always in a state of deep sleep; the others tell Alice riddles and anecdotes. The
Mad Hatter reveals to her that because he was punished, time always stopped at 6 pm,
which is afternoon tea time, so they have to stay at tea all day. During the conversation,
Alice was insulted and couldn't stand the fatigue bombardment of riddles and stories, so
she decided to leave. Before leaving, she even asserted that this was the most boring
tea party she had ever been to.

Chapter 8: The Queen's Croquet Ground

Alice left the tea party and walked into a garden. She met three playing card servants
who were painting the white roses on the tree red for the Queen of Hearts who hated
white roses. Then, more card servants, the King and Queen, and even Mr. White Rabbit
came in a procession. Alice met the King and Queen. The Queen was very difficult to
please. She said that if she was not satisfied with something, she would shout her
catchphrase "Cut off his head!"

The Queen invites (or some would say orders) Alice to play croquet with them, but the
game quickly degenerates into chaos. They use live flamingos as clubs and hedgehogs
as balls. Then Alice encounters the Cheshire Cat again. The Queen of Hearts orders
the Cheshire Cat to be beheaded, but the executioner complains that he can't do it
because he can only see the Cheshire Cat's head. Since the Cheshire Cat belongs to
the Duchess, the Queen has to release the Duchess from prison and then deal with the
beheading.

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Chapter 9: The Mock Turtle's Story

At Alice's request, the Duchess is taken to the croquet grounds, where she ponders the
meaning of everything around her. The Queen of Hearts gives up the idea of beheading
the Cheshire Cat, and introduces Alice to the Griffin. The Griffin takes Alice to the Mock
Turtle. The Mock Turtle, though not having anything to be sad about, feels extremely
lost. He tells her that he was once a real turtle at school. However, the Griffin interrupts
him so that they can play a game together.

Chapter 10: Lobster Quadrille

The Mock Turtle and the Griffin danced the Lobster Square Dance, while Alice recited
"This is the sound of the lobster." Finally, the Mock Turtle sang "Beautiful Soup " for
Alice. At this time, the voice of "The trial begins" came from afar, so the Griffin took
Alice to participate in the trial.

Who Stole the Tarts ?

Alice arrives at the trial, where the Knave of Hearts is accused of stealing the Queen's
pie. The jury is made up of various animals, including Bill the Lizard, and Mr. White
Rabbit plays the trumpeter. During the trial, Alice notices that she is growing bigger and
bigger, and the dormouse says that she has no right to grow so fast, and that she is
squeezing him to death. Alice replies that the dormouse's accusation is ridiculous,
because everyone grows, and she can't stop the process. Meanwhile, the Mad Hatter
and the Duchess's cook are called to testify, and when these two are finished, Alice is
called by Mr. White Rabbit as the next witness.

Alice 's Evidence

Alice is called as a witness, and when she stands up, she knocks over the jury box
because she is too big, so the King has to order the trial to be suspended until the jury
returns to their seats. The King and Queen cite Article 42 , which states that anyone
over a mile tall must leave the court, but Alice denies it and refuses to leave. Finally,

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after a quarrel between the Queen and Alice, Alice orders Alice's head to be chopped
off, but Alice is not afraid, as she thinks they are just playing cards. The whole deck of
cards flies up into the sky and falls on Alice. When Alice is about to wave the cards
away, she finds herself waking up by the river, with her head resting on her sister's legs,
and her sister is waving dead leaves off Alice's face. Alice tells her sister about the
dream and leaves first, while her sister falls asleep in a trance, thinking about Alice's
strange dream.

4.4.2 Long fairy tale example 2: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz ( U.S. )

In chronological order , the history of Oz begins with The Wizard of Oz , which tells the
story of a little girl named Dorothy's adventures in Oz with the Cowardly Lion, the Tin
Man, and the Scarecrow in pursuit of courage, kindness, and wisdom. Sometimes it
also refers specifically to the book The Wizard of Oz. Some people call this series of
stories "Fairy Tales of Oz" or "Oz Series". The first 14 books were written by Lyman
Frank Baum, the original author of The Wizard of Oz. After his death, Ruth Plumly
Thompson continued the series of stories and created another 19 books . Together with
the seven books by other writers, they are regarded as the original stories of this classic
story, collectively known as " Famous Forty ". In addition to these more than 40 books,
other writers have also written stories about Oz, such as Soviet writer Alexander M.
Volkov. Baum also published a collection of Oz short stories ( 1914 ) and ten other
quasi-Oz fairy tales that are closely related to the characters in Oz . [1]

The series of stories was first published in Chicago in 1900 and was widely acclaimed,
with numerous reprints under the title The Wizard of Oz (also the title of the 1902 stage
play and the 1939 acclaimed film version). Due to the success of the 1939 MGM film
based on the story, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, it has become one of the most famous
stories in American popular culture and has been translated into many languages. Its

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initial acclaim, as well as the success of Baum's 1902 Broadway play based on the story,
led to the writing and publication of Baum's 13 subsequent Oz stories.

The original book "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" entered the public domain in the United
States in 1956. Baum's 13 sequels also entered the public domain between 1960 and
1986. The copyright to these books had originally belonged to Walt Disney, and the
expiration of these copyrights enabled the filming of the 1985 film "Return to Oz," based
on Baum's second and third Oz stories.

Story Scene

The Land of Oz is surrounded by deserts, with four kingdoms in the east, south, west
and north, and the Emerald City in the center.

Emerald City: ruled by the wizard Oz, connected to the four kingdoms of East, West,
South and North by yellow roads. The kingdom is full of emeralds and there is a very tall
castle, with the palace of King Oz on top. There is a dark square below the palace, and
inside the square is the Emerald Room, and below the room is the Fountain of Oblivion.

North Country: The name of the North Country is Gillies, and it is ruled by the North
Country Witch. The Mombi family is located in the North Country.

East Country: East Country is called Manjijing and is ruled by the East Country Witch,
and the people are controlled by the East Country Witch. On the road from Emerald
Country to East Country, there are cliffs, rapids, dangerous creatures, poisonous
flowers and big lions.

West Country: The name of the West Country is Wenji, which is ruled by the West
Country Witch and the people are controlled by the West Country Witch. The road from
the Emerald Country to the West Country is very desolate, and dangerous creatures
include giant spiders.

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Forest: There is a forest between the Emerald Kingdom and the West Kingdom, where
the giant spider is king.

Southland: The Southland is called Karlin and is ruled by the Southland Witch. On the
road from Emerald Country to Southland, there are huge rocks and caves. Dangerous
creatures include: strange trees that can grab people, green pillars and pointed heads
that block people from passing through, and Namu people living in the caves.

Ceramic Kingdom: Located south of the Jade Kingdom and north of the South Kingdom.

Nam: Located in the rocky area outside the desert at the border of Oz, there are tunnels
leading to various places. Judging from the tunnel leading to the Emerald Kingdom
passing through the West Kingdom, it should be located west of the West Kingdom.

figure

Main Characters

The main characters who first visited Oz

Dorothy : An American girl from Kansas who lived with her Uncle Henry and Aunt Em.
Because of a tornado , her house and her dog Toto were blown to the Land of Oz. In
order to return to Kansas, she sought help in Oz.

Toto : Dorothy's dog .

The Scarecrow : He originally lived in the corn fields from the East to the Emerald
Kingdom, taking care of the crops to prevent them from being eaten by crows. He got
tired of life and went to the Emerald Kingdom to seek help from King Oz in order to
pursue " brains " . He succeeded King Oz and became the King of the Emerald
Kingdom, but later gave the throne to Ozma.

Tin Woodman : He was originally a native of the East Country. He lived in a wooden
house in the forest between the East Country and the Emerald Country. He had a

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girlfriend, but the Witch of the East Country got jealous and took away his body and soul,
turning him into a tin man. He became rusty and unable to move due to heavy rain a
year ago. He recovered his mobility after the Scarecrow and Dorothy applied lubricant.
In order to pursue the " heart " , he went to the Emerald Country to ask King Oz for help.
Later, he succeeded the Witch of the West Country and became the King of the West
Country.

Cowardly Lion : He originally lived on the road from the East to the Emerald Kingdom.
He was a timid lion. In pursuit of " courage " , he went to the Emerald Kingdom to seek
help from King Oz. Later, he became the king of all beasts in the forest between the
West and the Emerald Kingdom.

The villain who first came to Oz

The Witch of the East and the Witch of the West.

The main characters of the second visit to Oz

Dorothy is a girl from Kansas, USA. She returns to Oz because of misusing the magic of
the silver shoes and works hard to resolve the issue of the Golden Horn usurping the
throne.

Tip: Was fostered by Mombi, left Mombi to save Dorothy, his real identity is Ozma.

Master Pumpkin: A doll made by Tip out of a pumpkin, a prop to scare Mombi. It gains
life after being sprinkled with life powder and calls Tip "Dad".

Wooden Horse / Deer Head: A logging platform in the forest / a decoration in the Palace
of Oz, which gains life after being sprinkled with life powder.

Scarecrow / Tin Man: Scarecrow temporarily becomes king when Ozma returns, but he
is unhappy. Because Golden Horn usurps the throne, he and Tin Man seek a solution to
the problem.

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Ozma: The daughter of the great devil Oz, who has been missing for many years.

The villain of the second visit to Oz

Mombi: A bad witch from the North who adopted Tipu and intended to rule Oz. She
mainly uses magic potions to cast spells and often exchanges magic potions with others.
She also studies drugs that can turn people into stone.

Golden Horn: The girl and her friends formed a five-member group, occupied the
Emerald Kingdom, and wanted to become king.

The main characters of the third visit to Oz

Dorothy: A girl from Kansas, USA, who returned to Oz because of the magic of the
silver shoes and worked hard to resolve the issue of Prince Ibe being captured by Nam.

Tick-tick-tick: The clockwork robot of Langley / Ibekoku.

Scarecrow / Tin Man / Lion: Together they seek a solution to the problem of Prince Ibe
being captured by the Nam Kingdom.

Bilina: She was originally the royal laying hen of King Nam. Because her eggs hit the
king's head, she was driven out of Nam and became an old hen wandering in the desert.
Later, she lived in Ibe.

Ozma: Queen of Oz.

The villain of the third visit to Oz

King Naam: The great king of the Naam people.

Brandy: CEO of Nam Nation.

Kaf: Give advice to King Nam to attack the Emerald Kingdom.

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Little Cutie: A giant earthworm raised by Kafu. It dug a giant tunnel for Nam to attack the
Emerald Kingdom and only eats stones.

Onitsuka: A friend of Kafu, he is extremely strong and has a huge appetite. He assists
Kafu in attacking the Emerald Kingdom.

Rulers of various countries

The King of Oz Rule the Emerald Kingdom:

The first King of Oz: King Ozma, who was said to be a powerful magician and Ozma's
father, died of illness. Before his death, the man who distributed flyers ( King Oz ) came
to the Emerald Kingdom and entrusted his son to King Oz.

The second King of Oz: King Oz, who was actually a flyer distributor from the Omaha
circus, accidentally came to Oz and became the King of Oz. Before leaving Oz, he
passed the throne to the Scarecrow, and later returned to Kansas and continued to
work in the circus. In the novel, after Ozma ascended the throne, King Oz returned to
Oz, learned magic, and became Ozma's advisor, known as the Wizard of Oz.

The third King of Oz: The Scarecrow, whose throne was taken away by the Golden
Horn.

The fourth King of Oz: Golden Horn, who usurped the throne from the Scarecrow. Later,
the throne was taken back by Dorothy, the Scarecrow, Glinda, Tip and others.

The fifth King of Oz: Ozma, the daughter of the Great Devil Ozma. Because of the
usurpation of the throne by the Golden Horn, the Scarecrow pointed out the legitimacy
of the Golden Horn's throne. Glinda also pointed out the legitimacy of the Scarecrow's
throne, pointing out that the descendants of the Great Devil Ozma are the heirs to the
throne. After the flyer distributor accepted the entrustment of the Great Devil Ozma, he
gave Ozma to Mombi to raise. Mombi turned Ozma into a boy named Tip . When Ozma
wanted to return to her true gender, she was dissatisfied for a while.

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Witch of the North She rules the North and is a good witch. Her magic power is not very
reliable and is not as strong as that of the Witch of the East. She gave Dorothy a kiss as
a gift and invited her to the Emerald Kingdom to find King Oz.

The Witch of the East She ruled the East Kingdom and was a bad witch. Her magic
weapon was the "Silver Shoes". She was crushed to death by Dorothy's house. After
her death, her body was melted by light and disappeared. The Silver Shoes became
Dorothy's magic weapon.

Witch of the West The Tin Man ruled the West Country. He was a bad witch. His magic
weapon was the "Golden Hat". He coveted Dorothy's "Silver Shoes". Dorothy dissolved
them with water and the Golden Hat became Dorothy's magic weapon. Later, the
people of the West Country asked the Tin Man to be the King of the West Country.

Witch of the South She ruled the South and was a good witch named Glinda. She had
great magical powers and told Dorothy the secret of the magic weapon and sent her
back to Kansas.

In the novel, there were originally bad witches in the east, west, south and north, who
designed the ruler of Oz , Ozma's grandfather, to become the ruler of each side. Later,
the Good Witch of the North and Glinda defeated the Bad Witch of the North (Mombi)
and the Bad Witch of the South respectively, and replaced them as the rulers of the
North and South respectively.

Ruler of Ibe / Langali

First : King Ibe

The second one : Princess Langeli: She is actually Langeli, a maid from Ibe country.
She becomes a princess by proxy when her master is away. She has a dual personality
of a princess and a maid, and she loves collecting hats.

The third : Prince Ibe

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King Nam He rules the kingdom of Nam and is a villain. He treats the people as slaves
and turns them into decorative statues for fun. He intends to occupy the Emerald
Kingdom.

Other Characters

Clindas A monster between the East Kingdom and the Emerald Kingdom─a giant tiger.

Rat Queen The queen of all wild mice, was rescued by the Tin Man and the Scarecrow
while being chased by the wild cat, and promised to help Dorothy and her friends.

Nam They mainly live underground in the desert, but there are also Nam people living
under the ground of Oz, such as in the underground caves between the South Kingdom
and the Ceramic Kingdom.

Plot Summary

The theme of this story is " travel and return " proposed by writer Christopher Booker .
Since there are many versions of the story, this paragraph is mainly written based on
the Japanese cartoon "Oz no Magikitei".

Dorothy's First Visit to Oz

In 1889 , Dorothy lived on a farm in Kansas with her uncle Henry, aunt Em and dog
Toto. One day, Dorothy and her farm house were blown to the kingdom of the dwarves
by a tornado. The falling house crushed the Witch of the East, and the sunlight made
the witch disappear.

The Witch of the North and the dwarves thanked Dorothy and gave her the Silver Shoes
of the Witch of the East. In order to return to Kansas, the Witch of the North told Dorothy
that she must go to the Emerald City to find the Wizard of Oz to help her.

On the yellow brick road leading to the Emerald City, Dorothy rescued the Scarecrow
who was hanging on a pole, used a can of oil to restore the rusty Tin Man, and

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encouraged the Cowardly Lion to join her and Toto to go to the Emerald City. The
Scarecrow wanted a brain, the Tin Man wanted a heart, and the Cowardly Lion needed
courage. Dorothy convinced them that the Wizard of the Emerald City could help them.
So they started their journey to the Emerald City with Dorothy. After many obstacles,
they arrived at the Emerald City and met the Wizard.

The Wizard appears in a different form each time. To Dorothy he is a head; to the
Scarecrow he is a beautiful woman; to the Tin Man he is a hungry beast; and to the Lion
he is a ball of fire. The Wizard agrees to help them, but only if they kill the Wicked Witch
of the West. They overcome the obstacles set by the Wicked Witch of the West, but are
finally captured by the winged monkeys that she summons using the power of the
Golden Hat. The Wicked Witch of the West tricks Dorothy into giving her one of her
silver shoes, and Dorothy, angry, throws a pot of water on the Wicked Witch of the West,
accidentally killing her. The people of Winkie Country rejoice at being freed from the
tyranny of the Witch of the West, and help to reassemble the Scarecrow and the Tin
Man. They like the Tin Man very much and hope that he can become their ruler. The Tin
Man promises them that he will grant their wishes after helping Dorothy return to
Kansas.

When Dorothy and her friends meet the Wizard of Oz again, he tries to put them off.
Toto accidentally knocks over the screen in the corner and discovers that the Wizard of
Oz is just an Omaha who arrived long ago in a hot air balloon. He gives the Scarecrow
a brain made of chaff pins and needles, the Tin Man a heart made of silk filled with
sawdust, and the Lion a potion of courage. Because of their trust in the Wizard's power,
these useless items really give them what they want. To help Dorothy and Toto get
home, the Wizard realizes that they and he must fly back in a new balloon. After
appearing for the last time in front of the people of the Emerald City, he entrusts the
Scarecrow, with the power of his brain, to rule the Emerald City in his place. However,
Dorothy is unable to get on the hot air balloon in order to catch Toto back. The rope
breaks and the Wizard flies away alone.

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Dorothy had to ask the winged monkeys for help, but they could not take her across the
desert surrounding the Land of Oz. The green-bearded soldier told them that the Witch
of the South might be able to help them. So they set out on a journey with the
Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Lion to the Witch of the South. They were warmly
welcomed at the Witch of the South's palace. The Witch also told them that Dorothy
actually had the power to go home. It turned out that the silver shoes Dorothy wore
could take her anywhere she wanted to go. She embraced her friends with tears in her
eyes, and then the Witch of the South used the power of the Golden Hat to send them
back to their respective territories: the Scarecrow went to the Emerald City, the Tin Man
went to the West (Winkie Country), and the Lion returned to the forest. The Golden Hat
was returned to the King of the Winged Monkeys, so that they would no longer be
bound by the spell. Dorothy and Toto finally returned to Kansas, and the family was
happily reunited. But the silver shoes were lost during her flight home.

Dorothy's Second Trip to Oz

Dorothy accidentally knocked on the silver shoes and thought about returning to Oz, so
she went to Mombi's house in Oz. Unexpectedly, Mombi wanted to turn Dorothy and
Gibb into stone statues, so they fled to the Emerald Kingdom with Master Pumpkin and
the Wooden Horse.

Due to the usurpation of the throne by Golden Horn, Dorothy and her companions,
along with the Scarecrow, went to the West Country to ask the Tin Man for help, and
later went to the South Country to seek advice from the Witch of the South.

The Witch of the South tells the story of how the Great King of Oz came to the throne,
and points out that the throne should be returned to the heir of the Great King of Oz.

The following is only about "Lyman Frank Baum " and "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
( Fairy Tale ) " [2]

Plot excerpts: Part of the conversation between Dorothy, the Scarecrow and the Tin
Woodman.
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Dorothy: "My name is Dorothy. I am going to the Emerald City to find the King of Oz and
ask him to help me return to my home in Kansas."

Scarecrow: "Who is Oz the Great and Powerful ? And where is the Emerald City?"

Dorothy: "Don't you know?"

Scarecrow: "Well, I really don't know anything, because my body is just filled with straw,
so I don't have a brain to think ! If I go with you to find King Oz, do you think he will be
willing to give me a brain?"

Dorothy: "You can come with me if you want ! Even if he doesn't give you the brain,
your situation won't be any worse than it is now."

Scarecrow: "I don't like people calling me a fool. My head is filled with straw instead of a
brain like yours, so I don't understand anything."

Dorothy: "If you had brains, you would be as good as the rest."

Scarecrow: "Yes, I really want to be wise, because it feels bad to be regarded as a fool
by others."

Dorothy was always thinking seriously when she was walking, so she didn't notice the
pothole in front of her, causing the Scarecrow to fall.

The Tin Woodman: "Why don't you go around the hole?"

Scarecrow: "I didn't know I had to take a detour because my head was filled with straw.
That's why I wanted to ask King Oz to give me a brain."

Tin Woodcutter: "I see. But the brain is not the most important thing in the world."

Scarecrow: "So do you have brains?"

Tin Woodman: "No, my head is empty too, but if I have to choose between having a
head and a heart, I would rather have a heart."
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Tin Woodman: "My experience was tragic, but it gave me a year to think. It turned out
that my greatest loss was the loss of my heart. When I was in love, I felt that I was the
happiest person in the world, but a person without a heart cannot fall in love again, so I
decided to ask King Oz to give me a heart. If he can make my wish come true, I will go
back to the girl from Munchkin and ask her to marry me."

Scarecrow: "But I still want to get a brain, because a fool wouldn't know what to do even
if he had a heart."

Tin Woodman: "I want to have a heart, because having a brain cannot make a person
happy, and happiness is the most important thing in the world."

Once the Tin Woodman accidentally stepped on a small beetle and killed it, which made
him very sad.

The Tin Woodman said, "I must be especially careful with my steps in the future,
because if I step on a small insect to death, I will be so sad that I will cry, and then I will
become rusty and unable to speak."

Therefore, the Tin Woodman was very careful with every step he took. He kept his eyes
on the road, and if he saw a small ant crawling on the ground, he would carefully step
over it. Because the Tin Woodman lacked a heart, he became more careful, and he
didn't want to hurt any living creature.

Tin Woodman: "Because you all have a heart that can guide you not to do wrong things,
but I don't have a heart, so I have to be extra careful. If King Oz gave me a heart, I
wouldn't have to mind so much."

Political implications

Mankiw notes in Macroeconomics that the images and characters used by Baum and
Denslow are closely related to political concepts that were well known in the United

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States in the late 19th century and 1890s , especially the debate about monetary policy
at the time:

" yellow brick road " represents the gold standard monetary system.

The silver shoes (ruby shoes in the film version) represent the 16 : 1 gold to silver
exchange ratio.

Many other characters and story lines in the story also represent real people and the
environment at that time.

The Wicked Witches of the East and West represent the local banking and railroad
industries, respectively, both of which drive small farmers out of business.

The straw man represents the farmers in the Democratic Party. They try to reduce their
debt by minting more silver. A return to bimetallism would accelerate inflation, reducing
the real value of their debt.

The Tin Man represents the industrial workers of the industrialized North, who the
Democrats believe are oppressed, paid very little, and work long hours, ultimately losing
their human hearts and becoming mechanized.

The Puppy and the Lion: The puppy's name , Toto , is seen as an abbreviation of the
word teetotaler , or prohibitionist ; it should be noted that the fiery Democratic
presidential candidate, William Jennings Bryan , was a teetotaler himself. He also
became associated with the cowardly lion in the story because he abandoned his
support for free silver coins when the economy improved in the late 1890s . However,
some people believe that the cowardly lion represented the Wall Street investors in the
economic situation at the time. The citizens of the Dwarf Country represent the general
public.

The Emerald City represents the disorienting effect of Washington and its green money.

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The Great and Powerful King of Oz: The wizard who deceived the people into believing
he had great powers represented then-President William McKinley .

The Good Witch of the North‘s Kiss is an electoral mandate.

Dorothy defeats the Wicked Witch of the West - Dorothy must use water (the United
States was experiencing a drought at the time) to defeat the Wicked Witch of the West -
the old " regime " (monetary system) on the West Coast.

" Oz " is the abbreviation of ounce , the unit of weight of precious metals .

However, some of Baum's biographers and scholars believe that this view is an
unreasonable fabrication. [ Source request ] Their basis is some details in Baum's
biography, his own statements and descriptions of the purpose of writing, and
contemporary publications discussing these metaphors. Most people believe that these
books were written simply for Baum's younger readers, with the purpose of giving them
a world of possibilities and fantasy.

5 Other Fairy Tales

5.1 Short Tales from Folkes Tales

5.1.1 The Girl with Seven Brothers

Once upon a time, in ancient Iran, there lived a girl high up in a mountain. Seven demon
kings went out hunting one day and found her in the woods, so they took her back to

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their castle. She was raised by their old nurse until she was seventeen years old. On
her seventeenth birthday, she was as beautiful as the most beautiful princess in the
world. She looked out the window and saw someone coming up the path that led to the
castle.

"Nurse, nurse," she cried to the old woman, "what on earth is this? It's coming up the hill
toward the castle? I never saw anything like it before."

" Miss Fatima," cried the nurse, a tall, ugly devil with a wart on her chin, "get out of that
window, for it is a man you see, and you must not speak to him, or your seven brothers
will be angry."

"Nonsense, Nanny," said Fatima, for she was a little wilful, and liked to have her own
way. "I will open the window and call him, for he looks tired and hot, and I am sure he is
lost and very hungry."

The nurse began to hiss and roar in anger, but Fatima ignored her, opened the window,
and called out in a melodious voice: "Come into the castle, man, so that you can have
something to eat and drink, for I am alone here, and my brothers have been out hunting
all day."

As it happened, the stranger was a prince named Nureddin, who had lost his horse
while riding nearby. When he looked up and saw the girl looking down at him, he was
overjoyed. The nurse opened the door, and within half an hour Nureddin was sitting with
Fatima, eating grapes, cheese, and delicious sweet hurva.

Fatima was very pleased with him and asked him many questions. The prince told her
about the outside world. "I must see those wonderful places," she said, "if my brothers
would let me go..."

"No, Miss Fatima," the nurse who waited on them scolded, "you know my seven
masters will never let you leave the castle, because they are very jealous, and if they

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see this man here, they will kill him." "Then I will run away myself," Fatima vowed, "and I
will witness all the wonders in the world that this young man has described."

The prince was overjoyed and promised Fatima that he would take her back to his
father's kingdom after he had rested for the journey. But at this moment, before Fatima
could answer, there was a loud shouting from the road outside, mixed with the barking
of dogs and the neighing of horses.

cried the nurse, 'hide yourself in this box, for my masters are coming back, and they will
tear you to pieces the moment they see you.'

Although she was a demon king and generally hated humans, she knew that her
mistress liked the young man and she wanted to help him. The prince quickly entered
the box, and Fatima closed the box with trembling hands.

As soon as the prince had hidden himself, the door opened and seven devils came into
the room. "Sister Fatima, Sister Fatima, what shall we eat tonight?" the first witch cried,
and the others began to laugh and take off their big boots, while the nurse and Fatima
began to help them take off their fur coats.

"Nurse, bring us some wine, we are dying of thirst!" they ordered, and the old devil
hurried away. The servants were leading the horses away in the yard, and the dogs
were growling at the horse bones in the kitchen. Suddenly, one by one, the devils began
to sniff around with their big noses, and one of them shouted angrily: "A man! A man! I
smell a man."

Fatima's face turned pale and her heart began to beat wildly. The prince huddled in his
chest, his clothes blocking his view. "Someone has been here! Sister Fatima, where is
he?" All the demons stood up at once, their voices loud and angry. They began to rush
from room to room, slamming open doors and sniffing around like wild animals.
Somehow, they were too excited to even think of looking at Prince Nureddin's treasure
chest. So, as soon as they left the room, Fatima opened the chest and dragged him out.

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"Hurry, hurry, I will show you a secret way out of the castle, otherwise my brothers will
tear you to pieces!" As night fell, the goddesses were still searching everywhere, and
Fatima began to feel afraid.

They held hands and ran to the fireplace. Fatima helped the prince into the chimney.
The prince climbed the small dark steps.

"Come with me, Fatima, I will rescue you from this terrible place." He whispered. Fatima
nodded silently. They walked up the slippery stone steps and finally came to the starry
night sky.

"Where are the horses?" the prince asked eagerly. Fatima took him to the stables. They
slipped into the back of the castle as quietly as two shadows. The grooms were
preparing their spoils for the day, so they didn't know that Nur ad-Din had prepared two
of the finest stallions for Fatima and him.

As they both mounted their horses the noise in the castle grew louder, and seven
knights saw them in the moonlight as they rode out of the great gates.

"Catch them!" the oldest demon roared. "Bring them back alive, and we'll roast them like
chickens!"

The horses raced down the hill like enchanted animals, and they were, and soon they
were followed by seven other devas on equally swift and powerful horses.

"Fatima! Come back! We will forgive you, but give us that human!"

The frightened girl heard shouting behind her and knew that in a few minutes the flying
monster would rush over, so she reached into her pocket, pulled out a magic grass
seed, and threw it out.

We passed over her left shoulder. In an instant, a vast grassland appeared between Div
and the fugitives. Div's horses could not run as they had before until they passed
through the dense tall grass, which entangled their legs and slowed them down. But in

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less than half an hour, they were on them again, and Nureddin shouted, "Fatima, what
should we do? We must try to stop them, because we are only halfway to my father's
kingdom, and if we can find a way to stop those demons, we should be able to arrive
before dawn . " "Don't be afraid," Fatima said bravely, reaching into her pocket again, "I
think I can do it." As she said this, she threw a pine cone over her shoulder. In an
instant, a dense pine forest appeared, and the fugitives were able to continue running
without noticing the demons behind them.

As the handsome horses carried them closer and closer to the prince's kingdom,
Fatima's hair fluttered in the wind and she finally began to feel safe.

Alas, they are upon us once more. Unless something stops them, we shall be caught in
a few minutes... Fatima searched through her pockets, barely able to hold on to the
reins of her horse. In her despair, her fingers felt a grain of salt in the corner of her
pocket. She threw it behind her, and immediately a huge foaming wave rose up behind
her horse's hoof, sweeping the seven Daevas and their mounts into the wave. They
were drowned, for Daevas could not swim safely in salt water.

Fatima and Nur ad-Din rode on for a while longer, until at daybreak they arrived at the
beautiful city. The palace was glittering with gold and turquoise splendor, and peacocks
pranced and soared along the garden paths. Soldiers on the battlements blew silver
trumpets studded with rare gemstones as they saw the prince approaching. Thus,
Fatima was treated like a princess, and indeed she soon became one when she married
Prince Nur ad-Din at a grand banquet that lasted seven days and nights.

As for the magic horses that brought them here, they disappeared a month later, on the
night of the full moon. They knew that their little mistress was a mortal after all, and they
would rather serve the devil than a mortal, because this is the law of magic, which was
set by the magician and the king of magic beasts Suliman (peace be upon him!) at the
beginning of creation.

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5.1.2 Jade Mountain

Once upon a time, the prince and princess held a grand wedding. Just as they were
about to enter the bridal chamber, a huge magic lamp fell from the sky and carried the
princess on its shoulders away.

The prince, named Anwar, was so grief-stricken that he tore his hair, scattered ashes on
his head, and cried out:

"Oh, my dear, what's the matter with you? How can I find you again?"

Hearing this question, Ma, who had been standing quietly outside the window, stuck his
head in and said:

"Prince Khorasan, let me help you. I am not just a horse, but a bewitched man."

The prince walked into the garden, held the horse's head in his hands and said:

" Go ahead, noble man, tell me everything, and don't omit any details."

"I was a young man of a noble family," said the horse, "I lived a happy life with my
parents in a distant province. One day, my mother accidentally dropped her veil on her
way to the spa, and an evil magician happened to see her. He wanted to take her away
because she was so stunningly beautiful, but I held on to her tightly.

He was talking to her when I caught hold of his hand. When I saw his evil intentions, I
grabbed him by the beard. His spell was meant for both of us, but I got in his way and
my mother escaped. Alas, I was turned into a horse, as you can see. That is the tragedy
of my life, that I should be turned into a horse, but I know more about magicians and
elves than I did as a man, so I can help you with this problem.

"But what can you do to help?" Prince Anwar wailed, grabbing his hair again. "My poor
princess has been taken away. I fear for her life."

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"Don't be afraid, Prince," answered the horse, "take some food with you, and let us
travel, and I will lead you to the place where the princess is imprisoned."

"How do you know that?" the prince exclaimed. "Explain it to me, I don't understand."

"Before I was sold to the market, and brought to your stable," continued the horse, "I
was in the service of a merchant. One day he accompanied me on a long journey to
Cathay. Day after day he rode me over the mountains, until we came to a high pass,
where few men have ever travelled. The rocks are made of jasper, and their beauty is
beyond description. My rider could go no further, for neither man nor beast could stand
on the rocks. Suddenly a gate in the mountain burst open, and a small creature with
huge flat feet appeared. "Go back, man and enchanted horse," he said (for he knew us
well, and was evidently a spirit). "There is no place here where you can pass safely. My
prisoners are carried on the shoulders of the green goblins through the air to the Jade
Mountain, and here they are imprisoned. Princesses, peasant girls, or children who will
become kings, are kept here for my master."

"So we went back the way we came . "

The prince was terrified, for he had never seen a demon before, and with his hands
trembling with fear, he stabbed me in the side with his spur, and I flew away with him
from the Jade Mountain.

"Ah," cried the Prince of Khorasan, slapping his forehead, "there you must take me, for
there my poor bride may be hiding."

"Yes," the horse agreed, "let's take the food and go."

The prince then took off his fine clothes and put on simpler ones more suitable for a
traveler, took a bag of oats for the horse and some dried mulberries for himself, and
they set out.

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The horse carried the prince day and night through valleys and plains until he came to
the foot of the majestic Jade Mountain.

"Listen," said the horse, munching his oats, as he stood beside the prince, who was
sitting on a rock chewing a handful of mulberries, "you must not let the little fairy who
guards the gate know that you are here to rescue the princess. Just pretend that you
have a great treasure to show him, and when he looks out throw my bag of oats over
his head. When he has wrapped it up, we can go in."

The prince and his horse soon reached a place where there was nowhere to stand. Just
then, a door suddenly opened and the devil's head appeared.

"Go back, go back, Prince and magic horse," cried the devil, "there is no place for you to
pass safely.

Because the Jade Mountain here holds my prisoners, brought here by the Green
Elves...'

The prince raised his hand.

"In this bag of mine," he said, smiling, "I have a large sum of money. I want to show it to
you. Just look inside.

Hearing this, the curious demon king put his head into the top of the oat bag, and Prince
Anwar put the demon king in and tied the rope tightly. Then he tucked the bag under his
arm and walked into the entrance of Yushan, calling the horse to come in as well. The
demon king in the oat bag screamed angrily, but could not get out, so the prince had to
put it down and threw it on the ground.

There was a huge jade cave inside the Jade Mountain, and a strange and eerie light
shone from inside the cave. He saw girls and children with their hands tied to rings on
the rocks everywhere, and he quickly rescued them. Soon, a small group of people
gathered around him, some laughing, some…

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The crying continued, but he still couldn't see the princess. Suddenly, he heard a cry
coming from a golden cage, which was hung high on a huge steel hook.

"Anwar, save me, I am your unfortunate bride!" a voice shouted, and the prince looked
up and saw that it was indeed his princess, crying bitterly.

"Wait a minute, I'll help you!" Prince Anwar shouted, and he climbed onto the magic
horse's back and opened the cage door. Soon, the princess was in his arms, and he
helped her wipe away her tears.

" How can we escape from here?" the other prisoners wailed, "Because the elf will come
back at any time and destroy us all!"

"Don't be afraid," said the magic horse, "I can help you. Each of you take a hair from my
tail and put it in front of you. If the elf comes back, you will be able to become invisible
with this hair."

Each prisoner quickly plucked a hair from the horse's tail

and took it up. As soon as the prince had pulled out a hair and become invisible, the
terrible green elf appeared, and it seemed to him that the cave was empty. He saw the
green elf tied in the bag and shouted:

"Who did this to you? Tell me and I will tear him to pieces. Where are my prisoners?"
He untied the ropes.

The magister began to look around, but for him, the prisoner had also disappeared.

―A prince and an enchanted horse set them free, great spirit, and look, there the horse
is now!‖ Unfortunately, the horse couldn‘t turn invisible, so it just stood there, munching
on its oats, looking pretty peaceful.

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"Poor horses!" the elf roared. "I carried them through the clouds and brought them here.
What happened to them? What happened to them? If you can't tell me, I will turn you
into a human!"

The horse did not respond, so the elf chanted a spell, and lo and behold, the horse
turned back into human form in the blink of an eye! The elf was surprised to see a
handsome young man standing in front of him, holding a huge sword. Before the elf
could stop him, the young man pounced on him and cut off his head. The demon king
let out a terrified scream and crawled on the floor of the jade cave, begging for his life.

Then all the prisoners, delighted to see the lamp destroyed, emerged and danced
around the body of the evil lamp that had held them captive in the eerie green darkness
for so long. Prince Khorasan and the young man who had been a horse led the people
out of the Jade Gate one by one, leaving the lamp behind because it would not leave
the mountain.

They walked away happily together until they each returned to their own home.

The prince and princess took their new friend, the young man who had once been a
horse, back to Khorasan and entertained him for seven days and nights. The prince
gave him a bag of gold and told him to go home happy. Allah also gave them many
sons.

5.1.3 Rustam and the Iron Fortress

Once upon a time, there was a great hero in Persia named Rustam. He was adopted for
a period of time by a mythical bird named Simurg. When Rustam was about to return to
his people, the mythical bird gave him a feather.

"If you need help," said Simurg, "throw this feather on the fire and burn it, and I will
come to help you."

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At the time we are telling this story, Rustam met an enemy named Bahman. Bahman
went to Rustam and challenged him. Rustam was hunting lions in the mountains, and
Bahman found him. The two wrestled with each other for a whole day. When night fell,
both were too tired to get up and fell to the ground.

"Will you give up and become my slave?" Bachmann cried feebly as they lay side by
side on the ground, gasping for breath.

"Never," Rustam replied, and he rose with great effort and stood before his enemy.
Bahman left with a troubled heart, for he wanted to tie up the mighty Rustam and bring
him in chains to the king's court.

So Rustam continued to hunt lions, and he killed a majestic lion and used its skin to
make himself a coat and a hat. This hat had a magical property, which was invisibility.
When Rustam put on the lion skin hat, he immediately became invisible.

When Bachmann returned to the court, everyone asked him:

You boasted that you could capture the great hero Rustam single-handedly and bring
him here in chains to show the king what a great warrior you are, but what has
happened to him now?"

Bahman was ashamed and his face turned blue because his boast had not come true.
He decided to capture Rustam by any means necessary to make himself the greatest
hero in the land. So he built a huge castle on the mountain and covered the walls with
iron plates, making it the strongest fortress in the world. He placed armed men on the
walls and dug a wide moat around it. Then he sent people to meet Rustam to duel with
maces.

Rustam came to the gate of the fortress with his horse Rakhsh, the horse that had
carried him bravely on the battlefield. Bahman looked at them with great joy.

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"Welcome, Rustam," he said, "to my fortress, and to my death, for I can no longer
endure you, for you alone are the greatest hero of Persia."

He opened the gates and sent out two Everit men named Kepsh and Yarapsh to attack
Rustam with their bare hands. The horse reared up, turned around, and struck Kepsh
on the head with its hind legs. Rustam swung his huge wooden club and knocked
Yarapsh off balance. The two Everit men screamed in pain, and Rustam put on a lion-
skin hat and became invisible. Then he rode his horse into the courtyard of the Iron Fort.

Bahman only saw the horse and wondered why Rustam was gone. He shouted:

"Search for Rustam in every corner of the fortress. He has disappeared before my eyes!
A thousand tomans."

The first one to see him!‘ The soldiers and Everett ran around, searching all the rooms,
but they could not find Rustam.

Rustam tied his horse to the door, dismounted himself, and quietly sneaked into the
heart of the Iron Fortress. He intended to fight the hateful Bahman to the death, but the
question of time was up to him. At this moment, he was curious to know what was going
on in the fortress. He checked the four rooms, each of which had a door studded with
iron nails. One room was full of gold, and another was full of jewels, piled from floor to
ceiling. Another room was full of gunpowder barrels, and another was full of spears and
pikes. But the fifth room was locked, and through the keyhole he saw a beautiful girl tied
by her hair to a hook on the ceiling. Rustam pushed the door open with his shoulder,
then took off his invisible hat and untied the prisoners' ropes.

"My lady," he said, "pardon my looking at you, but I think you must be the King's
daughter." She was adorned with priceless jewels and a rich brocade gown.

"Yes, it is indeed I," she said, "my name is Mahanaz, which means the Moon's Favorite,
and I am very grateful to you, for I have been bound in this evil fortress for so long and I
do not know why."

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"Follow me," said Rustam, "and I will take you; but first I must kill my enemy, for he has
called me hither only to destroy me, for he thinks he should be a hero to all Persia."

"Oh, honorable sir, then you must be Rustam. Oh, I beg you to take me back to my
father's Kingdom of Turkestan, he will not be ungrateful." said the girl.

"Put this lion-skin hat on your head," he said, "and follow me. I want to go to
Bachmann."

For we must fight. If anything happens to me, burn this feather and my magical guardian,
Simurg, will appear. Let her take you to your father's country, and you will be back there
faster than you can say.

―No, no, don‘t talk about anything that happened to you!‖ Mahnaz shouted, but she put
on her invisibility cap and, feather in her hand, followed Rustam along the dark passage
toward the main courtyard.

Suddenly, a group of soldiers rushed in and seized Rustam because they recognized
him in his lion-skin coat. Eventually, he was subdued by the Evrit, Kepsh, and Yarapsh
and taken to the center of the fortress, where Bahman was sitting on a black marble
throne, and twenty goddesses were fanning him.

"Great Rustam, hero of Persia!" Bachman taunted, "You finally came to fight! Let him go,
Everitz, give him a mace, we will see how strong you are, my friend."

They fought until night fell and the stars shone brightly. As they fought, the soldiers and
the everites gathered in a circle and cheered for their master. But no one cheered for
Rustam except Mahnaz, and she could only remain silent, trembling all over, holding the
bird's feather tightly in her hand.

Suddenly, Rustam, who was seriously wounded, fell to the ground and could no longer
stand up. There was a cry of surprise from the crowd. Mahnaz, worried that Rustam's
last moment had come, threw the feather into the fire. There was a fierce flapping of

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wings, and just as Bahman was about to chop off Rustam's head, all the torches in the
iron fortress went out. It was pitch black all around, and Mahnaz screamed in fear.
Soldiers fell one after another.

They knelt, Bachmann frozen in place, as a gigantic bird appeared in the room, emitting
a strange phosphorescent glow.

"Who dares to attack Rustam, who is under my protection?" Smurg said in a thunderous
voice. "In the name of Suleiman, son of David (peace be upon him!), turn into stone, you
evil men!" She fanned Rustam with her wing feathers, and he became strong again.
Bahman was surrounded by his minions and was fleeing, when Smurg chanted a spell
and they all turned to stone. Rustam and the lady passed through the silent fortress and
came to Marakhsh.

Until "Mount your horse, my child," said the bird, "and bring Mahanaz back to her father,
the King of Turkestan. Peace be to you!"

Before Rustam could thank her for saving him, the bird disappeared, leaving only
another feather on the ground. Rustam hid the feather for later use, and then set the
Mah-Naz on the saddle bow. Then they rode through the open fortress gates, their
horses' hooves clacking on the cobblestones. The soldiers on the city walls were gone,
and only a few stone buildings remained where the soldiers had once stood.

Meanwhile, the princess continued to wear her invisibility cap, for it was still a long way
to Turkestan, but she sang for Rustam as the horses carried them across the plains.
When Rustam and Mahnaz reached the border of Turkestan, the people were delighted
to recognize their princess, for she had been stolen by Bahman while she was sleeping
on the balcony.

The king entertained Rustam for several weeks and stuffed his mouth with gold. Later,
Princess Mahnaz thought that Rustam would be a suitable husband for her, so she sent
him to the king.

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The nurse pleaded with him on behalf of the mistress, but as soon as the old woman
finished her words, Rustam put on his lion hat and disappeared from her sight, because
he had devoted his life to fighting and hunting wild animals and had no intention of
settling down and enjoying the happiness of a family.

5.1.4 The Wise and the Apprentice

Once upon a time, there was a very wise old man who lived alone in a hut made of
branches and grass.

One day a young man came to him and said, "I am an apprentice. Father, if I follow you,
can you teach me to be wise?"

"My child," said the saint, "I cannot teach you anything. Everything useful in this world
must be learned by practice."

Despite this, the young man vowed to serve the old man for life and begged hard,
claiming that he had no father or mother, and the old man allowed him to stay. The
apprentice, named Abdul, cooked for his master day after day and worked hard to learn
the master's erudite teachings.

One day, the old man said, "Abdul, I am going on a journey, so I want to say goodbye to
you. Thank you for everything you have done for me, but I no longer need your service."

Abdul's tears rolled down his cheeks and he cried out, "Father, take me away. I swear
to accompany you and serve you all my life."

So the old man relented, and they continued to cross the land, getting food from the
villagers and living a simple life happily.

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But they came to a village where the people were not friendly. They threw stones at the
old man and the boy and said, "Don't bother us. Beggars are not welcome here. Go
away."

The village dogs followed them, barking and yelping, and even the children laughed at
them with their harsh barks. The apprentice was distressed, for he had not eaten for a
long time.

They had been busy all day, and as they neared the village, they were looking forward
to a meal. However, as they walked away, the old man did not seem overly worried. At
the edge of the village, they came to a wall that was about to collapse. The old man
picked up stones and some sticks and carefully repaired the wall.

They walked until dark before they saw a light among the reeds on the river bank.

" This is the fisherman's hut," said the apprentice. "I will go and see if the owner can
give us something to eat."

"Yes," said the wise man, "we can stay here and rest."

When they knocked on the door, there was only a poor old woman at home, who told
them that her son, a fisherman—

The man had been taken away to serve in the army by order of the king. Their boat,
which she used to take people across the river, was her only source of income.
However, she said they were welcome to have some of her soup. After they both drank
a bowl of hot soup, the old man and the boy lay down outside by the stove and fell
asleep.

When day came, the old woman gave them some goat's milk and a piece of bread, and
blessed them, then she took them across the river, and the wise man gave her a few
pennies, and she returned to the other side.

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When she had tied up the boat and entered the hut, the wise man picked up some
heavy stones and began to hit the boat with them.

"Dad! What are you doing?" Abdul shouted in horror. "You are sinking the old woman's
boat! Her son is a soldier and she can't make any money. She will starve to death!"

"No, no, do not be afraid," said the saint, "everything is for the best."

For the next few hours, he continued his trek in silence, but the apprentice was
heartbroken by his master's behavior and decided to leave him next time he had the
chance.

When they reached a caravanserai where camels and donkeys were stabled for the
night, the old man said, "Son, you are unhappy. Tell me what's the matter."

The apprentice stammered, "I really don't understand. I'm afraid I have to leave you,
because you have done so many strange things. First you repaired the wall of the bad
villagers who threw stones at us and insulted us. Then you damaged the boat of the old
woman who was so kind to us and shared her soup and goat's milk with us. Why did
you do this? What does this mean?"

"There are reasons for both situations," the old man said. "Please tell me why, so that I
can leave with a happier heart than I am now," Abdul pleaded.

"Inside the destroyed wall there happened to be a treasure of gold coins," the sage said
slowly, "and if the wall had fallen those bad villagers would have gotten the treasure.
But they were not ready, so I repaired the wall." "But what about the old woman?" "In
the case of the old woman, it was this: The king's soldiers have been scouring the
countryside for boats of every kind and description. Now, tomorrow the old woman's
boat may have sunk to the bottom of the river, eluding the search. Afterwards, her son
will return from the army, salvage the boat and repair it. But if the soldiers take the boat,
she will have nothing. So now you understand the reasoning behind my actions in both
cases.

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The apprentice asked the old man for forgiveness and told him that he would never ask
any questions about what he did. The old man then forgave him, and Abdul stayed with
him until the end of his life.

5.1.5 The Prince Who Married a Fairy

During the time of Darius the Great, a prince went out hunting one day. He lost his way
and ended up in a clearing deep in the forest.

In these woods there lived a beautiful fairy, as lovely as the most delicate princess in
the world, and when the prince first saw her combing her long dark hair in the sunshine,
he fell in love with her and asked her to marry him.

"No, I can never marry you," said the fairy, "for you are a mortal, and you would be sad
if I tried to return to my people."

"I will never let you return to your own people," said the Prince passionately, "for I will
make you so happy in my father's kingdom that you will never want to leave us."

So he finally persuaded her to mount her horse and ride ahead of him, and he returned
triumphantly to his father's palace with his bride. Everyone was fascinated by the
beautiful girl with her long black hair and strange grey-green eyes. When she put on her
new silk gown, with gold rings on her fingers and jewels in her ears, she looked like a
real princess. All the people in the town...

People cheered as the wedding procession passed through the streets, scattering
flowers along the way.

The prince took her to the Pearl Palace, which had been built especially for her, and
they lived happily for several months. Then the prince grew tired of staying at home and
began to go out hunting again, often leaving the fairy bride alone. She began to cry and

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longed to return to her people. But the prince did not notice this, for he was too
interested in his hunting friends.

This person's name was Perry. One day, as poor unfortunate Perry was sitting in her
bedroom, crying and sobbing alone, she suddenly became aware of the figure of a
veiled woman in the room.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"My child, I am Queen Perris, and I am here to help you because you are unhappy. And
no wonder, for you married a mortal, and you know how much sorrow this always brings
to us Perris."

"Sire," cried the Fairy, "cannot I return now to my people? I cannot endure to be
separated from them any longer."

" No, dear," said the Queen, "you must stay here for another five years before you can
come back to us. During this time you will have a daughter and you will take care of her
for five years. Then you can come back."

Having said that, she disappeared.

The princess was so delighted that a few months later, her daughter was born and she
was so happy that she forgot about Queen Perris's visit.

There was great rejoicing throughout the country, and everyone came to give presents
to the little girl, whose name was Gulabi Jan. She was so beloved by everyone, and
because she was such a sweet and happy child, her mother soon forgot to go home.
She devoted herself to her little girl, and played with her, and she became as happy as
she had been when she lived in the deep forest.

Five years passed and the princess was sitting at her embroidery frame, sewing flowers
on a silk cushion, when Queen Perris suddenly reappeared.

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"Are you ready, then, to go back to your own people?" she asked. The Fairy Princess
turned pale, and clasped her little daughter, who was playing nearby, to her breast. No,
no, she cried, "I don't want to go now!" "Ah, but you must," the Queen told her, "you
cannot stay."

Leave here, abandon the fairy tribe, and live with mortals. Leave your daughter here
and follow me. 'As she spoke, she stretched out her cold long hand, and the fairy's eyes
suddenly became dark. It was not until she opened her eyes and found herself in the
middle of the forest again that she regained consciousness.

There she was welcomed by her sisters and cousins, who danced around her, wearing
garlands of flowers and rejoicing at her return.

When little Gulabi Jan saw her mother missing, she cried and searched everywhere.
When the old nurse heard the heartbreaking cry of the little girl and returned to the room,
she could not find the fairy. When the prince came back from hunting, he immediately
learned that his wife was missing. He immediately realized that his wife must have gone
back to her parents' home because he had ignored her for too long. So he beat his
chest and cried out loudly:

"Fairy! Fairy! Come back, I will never leave you alone again! Come back, I will take care
of you and never let you leave!"

But there was no reply.

So, a few years later, the prince forgot about the fairy, thinking she was dead, and
married a beautiful and evil woman who had no feelings for little Gulabi Young. After the
new princess Zora gave birth to a daughter, she completely forgot about the existence
of Gulabi Young. Poor Gulabi Young was sent to the kitchen to play with the cook's
children. She no longer wore the gorgeous clothes that a prince's daughter should have,
and could only sit by the kitchen fire in rags to keep warm.

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Now, Gulabi Young was very beautiful, while her half-sister Zeben was ugly. Zeben had
silk clothes and beautiful toys, while Gulabi Young had only old clothes to wear, and her
toys were crude dolls carved out of wood by the cooks in the palace kitchens. However,
everyone noticed the beauty of little Gulabi Young, and no one could help being
horrified by Zeben's ugliness, for she was both ugly and vicious.

The Prince was unaware of this, for he was again spending much of his time in the
forest hunting. He was heartbroken when his fairy wife disappeared, and he knew that
her leaving him was his fault.

The evil and wicked Princess Zora became jealous every time she saw Gulabi Jan, so
she came up with a terrible plan. She called her servant Saifuddin to her side and said:

"Take the prince's eldest daughter deep into the forest and let her be devoured by wild
wolves there, for I cannot bear to see her any longer."

"Princess, I understand. Your order must be carried out today, tonight," the servant
replied, and then continued with his work.

Poor Gulabi-Yan had no idea what was happening to her, as she was suddenly covered
with a rough cloak and carried away. She was lying alone in the middle of the dark and
eerie woods. When she opened her eyes, only the moon above her head shone eerily.
She began to cry, and as it was getting colder, she tried to pull the cloak over her body
to warm her aching limbs. Suddenly, she heard singing, and she could...

A few words came from afar:

"I am a lonely and unfortunate fairy who has abandoned my dear Gulabi Jan."

Then Gulabi-Yan stood up, ran towards the direction of the sound, and shouted:

"My name is Gulabi-Jan. This is my name. How did you know this? In this deep forest?"

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Then the beautiful fairy appeared and told her that she was her mother, who had
abandoned her at home long ago, because the fairy queen had taken her back to her
own people.

Gulabi Jan was overjoyed, and her mother was overjoyed to see her again. They
danced together on the grass, and in a moment Gulabi Jan was dressed in a green silk
robe like her mother's. They were both served by enchanted hands, bringing fruit and
sweets until they could eat no more. The moon shone brightly in the clearing, and
suddenly the Queen of Perris appeared, with a large group of Perris people of all
shapes and ranks.

" My dear," said the fairy, as she and her daughter bowed low before her, "I am glad to
see you, and Gulabi Jan, but she cannot live with us, for she is half-mortal, and you
know that would only bring us trouble."

"Sire," begged the Fairy, falling on her knees, "will you be so wise as to make an
exception for me, for I am no longer alone in the forest, and I am unhappy without my
daughter and her father. May I return to the palace and live as I have lived before?"

Now, they are no longer the same as they were when you went there as a bride. You
must know, dear, that the prince has married a wicked and cruel princess, and she and
her daughter have driven poor little Gulabi Jan into the palace kitchen. Tonight, she has
sent the unfortunate creature into the forest with a man who was going to leave her
there to be devoured by wild beasts.

"Oh! this is so dreadful!" sobbed the Fairy. "I wish I had not left my poor child in those
hands! This is all the more reason for keeping her with me."

"No, no, I have a better idea," said the Queen. "In a few days, you will return to the
country of your prince husband, and he will come to you personally... Then I can make
up for my mistake of taking you away from that mortal. In a month, you will become a
mortal too, and no longer one of us!"

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When the fairy tried to thank her, she took back her words, gestured to her attendants,
and disappeared without a trace.

The Fairy sat with her daughter, singing sad songs, and walking through the woods until
three days and three nights were past.

Gulabi Jan was picking some flowers in the sunshine when she heard the sound of
hunting horns in the distance.

"Mother! Come quickly! I hear my father, the prince, blowing his hunting horn," she cried.

"Yes, it is he," murmured the Fairy, and they waited together until the Prince suddenly
burst out from the bushes.

They were soon hugging each other tightly, crying and laughing together, telling the
whole story.

When the prince heard that his second wife was treating Gulabi Jan like a servant and
was planning to keep her in the forest, he became so angry that he announced that he
was going to exile her permanently.

Three days later they returned to the palace, and the Fairy and her daughter were
placed in the old rooms of the Pearl Palace.

But when Princess Zora heard that her plan to kill Gulabi Jan had failed and the prince
had returned to her and her perry mother, her anger reached its peak.

" I'm going to boil a big pot of water and pour it on her!" she screamed to her daughter.
They both ran to the well and drew buckets of water to pour on her. But they were so
angry that they didn't pay attention to what they were doing, and they both fell into the
well and drowned.

The prince, the fairy and Gulabi Jan lived happily for the rest of their lives.

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5.1.6 The Dream of Khabib, the Son of Khabib

Carpet maker Habib sits at his loom all day, with his apprentices surrounding him,
weaving beautiful carpets.

But his youngest son, Habib's son, was always bold enough to be away from home. He
had no interest in carpets. He would go to the caravanserai where camel trains
gathered on their way to Samarkand, Bukhara or the shores of the Golden Horn.

―If only I could join the caravan,‖ thought Habib‘s son, as he watched the groom comb
the shiny silver tails of the Tabriz merchants‘ horses.

"Why are you so interested in my master's horse?" the groom asked. "You dusty little
boy, you must be more used to donkeys!"

―One day, when I become a merchant,‖ said Habib‘s son, ―I will own a horse like this,
bags of gold, and marry a princess!‖

"Go away, my little gamecock!" the groom shouted. "You'd better stay away from that
horse, or you'll get kicked where you least expect it."

So the boy went away, and when he returned home his father was out looking for him
with a big stick.

"Lazy fellow!" Habib shouted. "When I needed you, you were gone sorting the colored
wool. Where have you been? I must have been to the caravanserai again. Get back to
work, or I'll give you a good beating.

"Dad, if I can follow the caravan to some exciting places, I can make a fortune, and I
believe I can." "Still daydreaming!" Habib patted his son's head, then grabbed his ear
and led him into the carpet shop.

That night, Habib's son, Habib, sneaked out of his house in the bright moonlight,
determined to join the next caravan that would set out at dawn. Under his arm he

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carried a small rug, the oldest rug in the shop, which he knew no one would miss
because it had been lying in a corner for as long as he could remember. He hoped that
by the time his father came looking for him, he would be far away.

In the market, kneeling camels were loaded with goods, with bells jingling on their
harnesses, and merchants were arranging saddlebags and baskets on the camels'
backs over and over again.

Habib's son Habib went up to an old man with a beard and said to him:

"Good sir, will you let me travel with you? For I want to travel, and my father will not
allow me to make carpets." "Go," said the merchant, "I cannot take you with me without
your father's consent. Come back and take your

Father, I will think about it. ‖ So Habib‘s son Habib went to another merchant and said, ―I
will take care of your camels and let me go with you to a far place.‖ But the man replied,
―You are too young, and besides, I have two sons of my own, and I will water the
camels when I go out. Go quickly and return home so that they don‘t miss you!‖

At this time, the sound of roosters crowing could be heard, the sky was getting brighter,
and the camels gradually got up. They slowly walked out of the city gate and embarked
on their journey to a foreign land.

As the last camel was about to leave, the camel driver said to Habib's son, "My son, do
you want to go with the camel caravan? You seem to be all alone and there is no one to
take care of you. Will you go with me to Samarkand?"

Habib son of Habib jumped for joy and bounded to the last camel. The man, a wool
merchant, strode beside the camel, happy to have the boy's company because the
camel was heavily laden. His name was Kadir, and he told Habib son of Habib that he
would give him a silver dinar every month if he helped lead the camel to the well and the
waterhole.

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The boy followed at the end of the huge camel caravan, happily day and night, crossing
mountain passes, crossing the desert, enduring the sun and rain, and finally arrived in
Samarkand.

Habib's son Habib got his first silver coin in his life. He looked for things in the streets
and alleys of Samarkand with the first silver coin in his life. He bought a white round hat
embroidered with silk and a green felt vest lined with green cotton. That night, he was
so excited that he couldn't sleep all night. He sat on the carpet he brought from home
and looked at the earrings he bought for his mother.

"I wish I could fly away on this carpet," he whispered, looking around. As soon as he
finished speaking, he flew up and sat cross-legged on the carpet.

The moonlight was bright, as bright as day, and he saw that the carpet was slowly
leading him to the roof of a marble palace. There, in the moonlight, Princess Golden
Flower was playing with marbles. The princess was the same age as Habib, and she
was delighted to see a playmate, thinking it was the water carrier's son, so she called
him over to play with her. The princess handed him a ruby marble, took another crystal
marble, and told him to try to beat her. Soon, several precious marbles - a diamond, an
emerald, and a turquoise - were flying everywhere, flicked by Habib's ruby marble.

Just as Princess Golden Flower was about to lay out another row of marbles, she heard
a shout and her nurse came running toward them.

"Princess, Princess, go back to bed!" she cried. "How dare a dusty peasant boy in a
green felt waistcoat come here and play with the King's daughter!"

Just then, Habib's son Habib jumped onto the magic carpet and called to it to rise.
"Take me back to my own home!" he said. As soon as he had said this, the carpet
began to fly, to the great surprise of the princess and the old woman below.

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There was a sound of airflow, and Habib's son's eyes went dark. He began to feel
drowsy and closed his eyes. The carpet fluttered, and he soon fell into a deep sleep,
and did not wake up until he returned to his father's house again.

"A magic carpet!" he exclaimed. "I didn't know about it all these years." Then he added
to the magic carpet:

"Take me to the palace of the king of this land."

He opened his eyes and found himself lying on his bed. The cock crowed and it was
already daybreak.

"Wake up, my child," said the carpet-maker, shaking his son. Holding his shoulder, he
said, "Do you want to join the caravan and see the world? I have made an appointment
with a merchant in Baghdad to take you with him."

Habib's son Habib looked at his father in amazement. Was it all a dream? But in his
hand he held a round red ball, a ruby marble. He handed it to his father. "Look, this is
what I won playing with the princess," he said.

Amazingly, the carpet maker turned the ruby around.

"Where did you find it? If we sell it to a jeweler, we'll be rich. But are you sure you didn't
steal it?"

"I won," the boy insisted, and told his father the whole story from beginning to end.

"This is magic!" Habib exclaimed, and ran to tell his wives. When they questioned him
together, he told the story again, and the wives believed him.

"Where is the flying carpet?" his mother asked. But the carpet was nowhere to be seen.
So Habib's son, Habib, packed some food and set out for the caravanserai. Habib saw
him off and blessed him as he left. The merchant in Baghdad promised to bring the child
back in six months.

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A few years later, he grew up and became a carpet merchant, bringing his father's
goods from one country to another and accumulating a lot of wealth. Now, he began to
doubt whether the Golden Flower Princess he saw in his dream and the ruby she gave
him really existed.

So he began to ask around as he walked, and one day he arrived in Sogdia.

As he sat in the teahouse, he asked, "What is the name of the king's daughter?"

"Princess Golden Flower," they said. Then he knew his search was over.

He sent the king valuable gifts and asked for permission to marry the princess.

"Only if my daughter wishes," said the king, and he arranged for Gold Flower to see the
young man through a secret lattice window in the wall of the audience chamber.

As soon as the princess saw the handsome young carpet merchant, she fell in love with
him and sent a message to her father, saying that she would marry him and no one else.

"So be it," the king said. "My daughter's happiness is more important than her status.
Let's hold the wedding." At the wedding banquet, Habib's son Habib set a priceless ruby
on a gold chain and hung it around his wife's neck. From then on, they lived happily
together until Allah called them back.

5.1.7 The Bead Seller and the Elf's Sister

Once upon a time, there was a bead merchant and his wife was called Kubra, who was
very beautiful. One Friday, the bead merchant, called Mahbub, was selling beads
outside the palace. The Sultan looked out and saw Kubra standing next to her husband,
her veil blown open by the wind, with strings of shining beads hanging on her arms.

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"Oh my God!" cried the Sultan, "she is a most beautiful lady; I have no equal in all my
palace. I must marry her." He sent for his Grand Vizier.

"Vizier," he said, "bring me the wife of the bead merchant. I must bring her to the palace,
and her husband must die."

"Long live your life, Sultan," said the vizier. "Of course, we will try to get rid of the bead
dealer, but we cannot kill him. The people will rise up against you, and your majesty
may have to flee. So, if I can suggest a plan,

Your Majesty, do you want to hear it?'

―Of course, Vizier, please continue and don‘t leave out any details,‖ the Sultan said.

" Lord of the World," the vizier intoned, "please call the bead merchant to make a curtain
of so many yards long and so many yards wide to hang behind the throne.

"Beads! Beads! Buy my beads from Bukhara, buy beads from Damascus." At this time,
the Grand Vizier came over and tapped the bead seller with his golden cane. Mahbub
and his wife bowed before the court officials, terrified by such a magnificent scene, and
the Vizier said:

"Come with me to the palace at once. The Sultan has entrusted me with an order."

"Me? Carrying out the Sultan's orders?" Mahbub shouted, "But what can I do for His
Majesty the Sultan?"

"Leave your beads and follow me," said the courtier, and Mahbub gave all the beads to
his wife and followed the vizier.

Inside the palace, the vizier led the bead seller to the throne room and pointed to the
twenty-foot-long and twenty-foot-wide lattice window behind the throne.

"Your Majesty, the source of wisdom and knowledge, orders you to provide him with the
lattice curtain behind the throne," the Vizier said solemnly.

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"Allah is my judge!" Mahbub cried, "I can neither spin nor weave. I am just a humble
bead seller. How can I do such a thing for Your Majesty?"

You have seven days to complete it,‖ the Vizier said.

"If you don't bring it back to the palace after this period of time, you will die." He waved
his hand and let Mahbub leave.

When the bead seller returned to the stall, his wife asked him, "What does the Sultan
want you to do?" "He wants me to make a curtain several feet long and wide," Mahbub
said, "but I can't do it in seven days, so I must run for my life, or I will be killed." "Don't
be afraid, husband," she said, "I will tell you what to do." She then went on to explain
that she was actually the sister of a female genie who lived in the well.

"Go to the well by the broken door," she continued, "and say to the well: 'O Sister Kubra,
your sister hails you! Give me the magic spinning wheel and the magic loom frame in
her name, for she needs them.'"

Mahbub quickly ran to the ruined city gate and shouted to the bottom of the well: "Oh,
Sister Kubra, your sister salutes you! In her name, give me the magic spinning wheel
and the magic loom--"

As soon as he had finished speaking, the two objects he had mentioned appeared on
the top of the well. He picked them up and brought them back to his wife. She locked
herself in her room, and he heard her spinning and weaving all night long. In the
morning, at the first crow of the cock, she came out exhausted and lay down to sleep all
day. For six days she slept every day, and for six nights he heard the sounds of
spinning and weaving. On the seventh day, the cock crowed, and dawn was
approaching.

Kubra came out of the room with a curtain in his arms that was twenty feet long and
twenty feet wide. The curtain was made of the most beautiful dark blue cloth and shone

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like a night sky dotted with thousands of stars. Mahbub looked at it in wonder and
delight.

"Ah, wife," he said, "what's so strange about this? This curtain will suit any palace
window. God bless you, my life is saved!"

When the sun was high in the sky, Mahbub put on his best clothes, went to the palace
and asked to enter the vizier's room.

The vizier was amazed at the wonderful fabric and ordered the court attendants to hang
the magical curtain just behind the throne. Mahbub returned home with a bag of gold,
and the Sultan gave him the bag of gold when he saw the exquisite weaving of the
fabric.

"What shall we do now?" said the Sultan. "This bead seller is too clever for us to figure
out. I cannot kill him now, but I cannot forget the poor man's beautiful wife!"

"Long live your Majesty!" said the Vizier. "I have an idea in my mind which will never
come to pass, so give me another week, and I shall be able to put it into practice."

The next day, the bead seller and his wife were again displaying their wares to passers-
by when the Grand Vizier again approached.

"Oh, bead seller, His Majesty asked me to tell you that if you cannot give birth to a
seven-day-old child within a week who can tell stories to the Sultan in the palace, your
life will be gone!" After saying this, the vizier turned and left.

Now the bead seller was completely desperate.

"Wife, wife," he cried, tears on the verge of falling, "the Sultan has asked me for
something impossible. How can I find a seven-day-old child within a week so that he
can tell stories to the Sultan in the audience hall? This is a death sentence, so I must
flee tonight and never see you again."

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"Listen, husband," said Kubra, "remember what I told you; my sister is a spirit, and has
she not helped us before? Be of good cheer, and go to the well again in seven days."

"What shall I say?" he asked.

" Go to the same well as before and cry into it: 'Sister of Kubra, your sisters salute you!
Send up your seven-day-old child, for we need him for the night.'

The bead seller could hardly believe her words, so he endured it and waited until a
week had passed before he went to the well. He told the people down there everything
his wife had told him.

At this moment, he heard a voice saying:

"Pull up the bucket." He did so and was surprised to find a baby wrapped in swaddling
clothes in the bucket. He took the baby home and said to his wife:

"The baby is here. What do I do now?"

"Take it to the audience hall," she said, "the Sultan and all his court are there. Today is
the seventh day." Then she chanted the name of God in the child's ears, and Mahbub
went to the palace.

When he arrived, all the courtiers made way for him, and the Sultan sat on his throne
and watched with interest as the baby was placed on a cushion before him.

"What! This baby can speak? Only seven days old?" asked the vizier.

"Yes, sire," replied Mahbub, "and once all is quiet it will tell a story to the Imperial
Sultan."

The huge audience hall was filled with silence. The baby struggled to sit up and soon
opened his mouth as if he wanted to speak.

"Nonsense!" said the Sultan. "It is too young to tell me any stories. It cannot even cry."

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Hearing this, the child sat up suddenly from his cushion and said to the Sultan:

"Oh, auspicious Sultan! Fountain of knowledge, may I speak?"

The king was so surprised that he could only nod. The baby continued:

Once upon a time, a man bought a melon at the market for a copper coin. He cut the
melon open and found a city inside, so he went down to the city and began to walk
around the city to see what kind of place it was. He walked into a courtyard and tried to
find a concierge to ask for directions, but he saw a strange scene. Hens were crowing
and roosters were laying eggs. The concierge appeared and told him the way to a
teahouse where he could have tea. However, after drinking the tea, the owner of the
teahouse not only didn't have to pay, but gave him a gold coin in return for the tea and
cake! Just then, there was a commotion in the streets and people began to gather to tell
him that the king had come. All the people in the city were wearing their most gorgeous
clothes, but when the king appeared, he was dressed in rags.

" Stop, stop, I can't listen to this anymore!" the Sultan roared. "Who has ever heard of a
city in Guar where hens crow like cocks, teahouse owners pay their customers for their
tea, or kings wear rags while common people wear silk?"

"Sire," answered the child, "who ever heard of a king marrying the wife of a bead
merchant?"

The Sultan laughed, and at that moment his love for the bead seller's wife disappeared.
He motioned to Mahbub to take the child away, and Mahbub thanked Allah for saving
him. The child was then taken back to its jinn mother, and the bead seller took his
beautiful wife to another town.

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5.1.8 Wally and the Magic Saddlebags

Once upon a time, there lived three brothers in a small village not far from the town of
Herat.

The eldest child is named Masood, the second is Hamid, and the youngest is Wali.

Their parents died in the famine, and although their neighbors were willing to take them
in, the brothers decided to go out and make their own living.

The kind neighbors put the remaining money into a leather bag and sent them on their
way with many blessings.

They walked a long way, sat down at the foot of the mountain, and fell asleep. At night,
Masood had a strange dream. He dreamed that a bell rang and someone said to him:

―Masood, Masood, dig in the ground beneath your feet and find gold.‖ Sure enough,
when morning came, Masood pulled a shovel from his backpack, started digging, and
began to find gold in the soil.

So he filled his pockets, and said, "My brothers, now I have found gold enough to build
a fine house and marry a wife. So, good-bye, and I hope you will be as good as I am."
And with that he went home.

Hamid and Wali continued their trek because they thought they had to keep going to
find their destiny. So they walked for another day, and as night fell, they came to the
edge of a large forest. They sat down under a big tree and fell asleep. In the middle of
the night, Hamid had a strange dream. He dreamed that he heard a trumpet sound and
heard someone say, "Hamid, Hamid, dig the ground under you and you will find jewels."

When the morning came, Hamid pulled a small pickaxe from his backpack and began
digging. He kept digging and digging, and when Wali woke up, his brother had found a
clay jar filled with all kinds of precious jewels.

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' Brother,' said Hamid, 'now that I have become rich, I shall return home and buy a
house and a wife, just as Masood did. So, farewell, and I hope you will become like me.'
As I did. 'Then he returned by the way he had come.

After his brother left, Wally felt a little lonely, but he did not despair and continued
walking in the forest.

There was a path that was very narrow and lined with trees on both sides. He wondered
if he could find a clearing in the forest with a stream, for he was very thirsty. But the
woods seemed endless, and he began to think that he might die of hunger before he got
through them. He climbed to the top of a tall tree and looked in all directions, but he
could see nothing but trees everywhere.

When he climbed down, he was surprised to find a saddlebag with beautiful floral
embroidery on the ground. There seemed to be no one around, so he quickly searched
for it, and it was said that the person who dropped it had left some food in it. But it was
empty.

"Oh, what bad luck I have!" he said to himself. "One of my brothers found gold, and
another found jewels, but I am left with an empty saddlebag. Oh, if only I could fill it with
the most delicious things!"

As he finished his words, he noticed that the saddlebag, which had been empty, was
now bulging.

He opened the box, and inside was a roast chicken, some grapes, some sweets, and a
bottle of iced snow. He was very hungry, and he quickly finished all these things, and
then sat down with peace of mind.

"Surely," he thought, "this is a magic saddlebag, and I only have to wish for what I
want." So he immediately wished for a new suit of clothes, and lo! lo! he found a pair of
fine trousers and a fur-lined leather coat. Then he wished for a pair of boots, and they

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appeared instantly. Once again he set out lightly and comfortably, with the saddlebag
slung over his shoulder, through the woods.

He had not yet asked for the gold, silver, and gems in his saddlebags, for he feared that
it would be best not to take anything valuable on such a journey, lest he should be
attacked by robbers, so he travelled at ease from day to day, taking only the food he
needed, and only enough to eat his fill.

Six days later, he walked through the woods and came to the edge of a fertile plain.
Corn fields swayed in the breeze, and apple, peach, and pear trees were laden with fruit.
In the distance, he saw a house surrounded by flowers and roses in full bloom.

The fisherman returned to his residence and gave him some cooked fish to eat. The two
chatted for a while, and the fisherman began to tell Wali the greatest sorrow in his life:
the day before, robbers came and took away his wife.

"I can never get her back," he said sadly, "because I don't have the ransom to redeem
her."

" Why, I think I can do something," Wally told him, "If you turn your head away for one
minute and count to a hundred, your wife will come back to you."

The fisherman did so, and Wally (after making a wish) opened the saddlebag, and the
fisherman‘s wife emerged from it unharmed.

"Have mercy on us!" cried the fisherman. "Are you a god or a spirit, able to work such
magic?" And he embraced his wife, who seemed not to have been hurt by her
adventure.

"No," said Wally, "I am just as human as you or your wife, but I have a rather special
kind of saddlebag."

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So they all gathered together and enjoyed a whole night of fun and feasting, for Vali
provided them with everything.

The next morning, after Wally went out to get some fresh air, he heard the fisherman's
wife say to him:

"Husband, husband, you must get hold of that young man's saddlebags, and see how
useful they are to us. You won't have to be a fisherman any more, and we can live like
important people."

When Wally heard this, he realized that he had to keep going, because this scheming
woman would not give up until she got the saddlebags to her husband, and what would
happen to him then? So he continued to walk across the bridge over the river, and when
he reached the other side, the sun was already high in the sky.

All around him were huge boulders and jagged rocks, and from time to time he could
see vultures circling overhead. The rocks grew larger and larger, and the path became
rougher and rougher, until he had to stop and sit down because his new boots were
almost worn to pieces. The sun was beating down on him, and the weather was getting
hotter and hotter. Suddenly, he thought he heard someone calling him from behind the
bushes:

"Help! Help! Help me, help me, for God's sake!"

He jumped up, slung his saddlebag over his shoulder, and began to look for the owner
of the voice. After a while, he heard the sound again and saw a poor girl, dressed in
rags, with her hands and feet tied behind a huge rock. She had long black hair, which
was unkempt, and was barefoot.

Vali pulled a knife from his belt and cut the ropes around her wrists and ankles.

"Who did this to you?" he asked. "How did you become like this?"

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"My name is Zuleika," she whispered after Wali gave her a drink from his bottle. "My
father remarried last month. But instead of taking good care of me, my new stepmother
gave me away to the servants because she couldn't bear to see me. I escaped from the
people who held me captive at her behest, but I was kidnapped by a bandit who took all
my jewels and left me to die among these rocks near my old home."

― I‘m lucky to be passing by here.

"Stop and rest my sore feet, or I'm afraid you'll never find it," said Wally. "Take me to my
father's house, I'm sure you won't think him ungrateful," cried the girl. "It's not far from
here."

"If you tell me where to go, I'll take you there right away," said Vali. "But if you'll excuse
my intrusion, I think you should get some new clothes first." Then he laid her down in
the shade of a large rock, found a comfortable spot, and wished that she would have
everything she needed. Presently, before the girl's astonishment, he pulled out of his
saddlebag silk trousers, a rose-pink veil, a velvet tunic, and golden slippers. When she
was dressed under the cover of the bushes, she looked like a princess. Meanwhile, Vali
prepared a delicious meal for both of them and prepared rose water for them to wash
their hands.

Vali then asked the magic saddlebag for a new pair of boots, and after putting them on,
he and Zuleika set out for their destination - her father's house. The sun was not so
harsh now, and walking was much easier. Suddenly, the girl pointed to a building on the
hillside.

"Look, that's my home," she cried, "let's go, I can't wait to tell Dad about my
adventures."

Soon, Wali knocked on the door. Zuleika covered her face with a veil because she was
afraid of being seen by her stepmother. The guard asked Wali what he wanted and
looked at him suspiciously.

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"Say you have news about his daughter Zuleika," the girl whispered, and Wali did so.

"Oh, how could my poor young mistress be so unlucky and missing?" said the man, and
he immediately opened the door.

Soon, Wali and Zuleika were standing before the householder, who greeted them
warmly and asked them to tell him everything, leaving out no detail.

"Sir," said Wali, "your daughter Zuleika is safe and sound, and you will be able to see
her soon." "What good news," cried the old man, for I had feared that the dear girl,
though she was the light of my eyes, had died.

"How did you find her? Where is she now?" Zuleyka couldn't hold back her tears
anymore. She lifted her veil and threw herself into her father's arms. And so, bit by bit,
she told him the whole story. When her father heard how cruel his new wife was, he
sent her back to her people, never to set foot in his home again.

After Vali and Zuleika got married, they lived happily ever after. Every day they would
take what they needed from the magic saddlebag, and it never let them down. For the
saddlebag was designed so that as long as they only asked for the necessities, it would
continue to serve them. If they were greedy and asked for too much, it would disappear,
never to be seen again.

5.1.9 Gushtaspur and Princess Lum

Once upon a time, there was a prince in Iran named Gushtaspur. His father, King
Ruhraspur, sat on the ivory throne of Kay Khusrau. Although he was the eldest son, his
father did not love him, so Gushtaspur ran away from home and went to Rome.

When Gushtaspu arrived in Rome, he went to the palace and asked if he could see the
king of Rome because he was a foreigner. He did not say he was a prince because he

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wanted to get a position in the court, and he thought that he could not serve in the court
because he was born into the royal family.

"Dear foreigner," said Gushtaspur, greeting the nobles of Rum, "you may come to pay
homage to our great Caesar any morning before noon, and you must stay in our
guesthouse. All foreigners who come to us are warmly received."

Gushtaspur then walked away full of joy, refreshed and grateful for the experience that
had brought him here.

The next day he wandered among the court nobles, paying homage to the great Caesar,
but his heart was heavy, for he was far from home, and he found it difficult to
understand the language of the Roumis.

After he had been in Rome for seven days, a large wild boar suddenly appeared in the
wilderness. Gushtaspur took several servants to kill it. This made the people of Rum
very happy because it had destroyed their crops for many days. Afterwards, the nobles
invited him to their homes as a guest to show their respect. Gushtaspur felt accepted
and became happier, and his homesickness was alleviated.

He began to think that he ought to move on, for he saw that he had no chance of getting
a position at court as he had hoped.

One day, there was a polo match, and Gushtaspur was among foreign princes and
nobles. In the royal stands sat the King of Rome, surrounded by his three daughters.
Each of them was as beautiful as a swan, and the jewels they wore sparkled like stars.

The eldest daughter, Catayun, said to her father, ―Who is that young foreigner playing
polo like a hero?‖ Her father said, ―I don‘t know, daughter, but you should not look at
these strangers from countries other than our Roman state, because we must set an
example to the world.‖

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"I must marry him, father," she said, "for I think he will make a good husband for me.
Besides, I am sure he is of noble birth."

"Nonsense, how did you know that, my dear?" said the King. "Now go back to your
embroidery with your sisters, and don't make me hear any more of this."

Katayun was troubled by the thought of the young Iranian, whose princely manners she
admired, so one evening she sent her old nurse to bring him to a window of the palace,
where she appeared to Prince Gushtaspur in all her extraordinary beauty.

"Rest in peace, foreigner," she said, smiling. "I saw you playing polo, and I must marry
you. Go to my father and ask for your hand in marriage. I am determined to marry and
escape the shackles of the royal family."

Gushtaspur fell deeply in love with the princess. "Oh, Princess Lum, I will neither sleep
nor eat until I meet your father the King and ask for your hand in marriage."

The next day, there was a great feast throughout the country, and everyone was
rejoicing, but Gastasp did not stop, neither slept nor ate, until he was received by the
King of Rum.

"Oh, great and powerful Caesar," said Gushtaspur, bowing deeply, "I come to ask for
your daughter Katyayun, whom I would like to marry and bring back to my country."

"Come back to-night," said the king, "when all the court is assembled for the feast, and I
will give you a hint if my daughter Katayun will marry you."

So Gushtaspur went away to prepare for the evening ceremony. That evening, in the
great hall, the king and

All the nobles sat in a semicircle, and the king's three daughters sat behind a curtain.
When everyone gathered, the musicians began to play, and the king's eldest daughter
came out with a bouquet of flowers in her hand. At that time, it was customary in those
parts for a lady who wanted to marry a man to publicly acknowledge him by handing

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him a bouquet of flowers in front of everyone. Gushtaspur was sitting with his friends
when Princess Katayyun came up to him and placed the bouquet in his hands. Then
she returned to her sisters behind the curtain. Gushtaspur's heart was filled with joy,
because now the daughter of the Roman king had publicly announced her willingness to
marry him.

The Roman king was disturbed because he did not know who this young man was. So
he called him into a private room. When they were alone, the king asked, "Who are you?
What is your father's name? I must know all this because my daughter cannot marry a
commoner." Gushtaspur answered, "I am an Iranian prince, the eldest son of my father,
King Ruhrasp."

King Lum was surprised and said, "Take my daughter, blessed be you, though she must
go to your country, yet I am glad, for she will be queen."

All arrangements for the wedding were made, and Katayun arrived at Gushtaspur with
jewels and gold, and the two were married. The poor were also well fed, and they ate
for seven days and nights. After a banquet was held in every noble house in the city, the
bride and groom finally set off for Iran. They were loaded with a hundred camels, loaded
with silk, silver, amber, ivory, frankincense and jade.

In this way, Prince Gushtaspur and Princess Katayun traveled all the way and finally
arrived at the palace of King Ruhrasp. The king's heart softened when he saw his son
again after a long absence. He embraced his son with joy and was deeply attracted by
the beauty of Princess Ruhra. He said: "Gushtaspur, my son, I am old and the burden of
the throne is on my shoulders. Now that you have returned to Iran, I beg you to rule in
my place."

Then Gushtaspur ascended the ivory throne of Kay Khusrau and lived happily till the
end of his life in the company of Kathayun.

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5.1.10 The Princess and the Donkey

Long ago, in the city of Isfahan, there lived a great and noble king. He had a daughter
who was like a pearl in his eyes. Her name was Noor Chusham. She had black hair, a
face as bright as the moon on the 14th night, and she always wore silk clothes.
However, although she wore different clothes every day and every hour, and different
jewelry every week, she was not completely happy. Why was that? Because what
Princess Noor Chusham really wanted was exactly what she wanted.

The one thing she wasn't allowed to have was a donkey. A soft, cute, fuzzy donkey.

"You, my beloved daughter, want a donkey like a child at the market place? No, no, no,
a thousand noes." And he went away.

But Noel Chusham went to her aunt, Lady Lalla Rook, and said to her: "Auntie, auntie,
tell me how I can get my father to let me have a donkey as a pet, for it is the only thing I
want in the world." Her aunt smiled behind her veil, took her up in her arms, pointed to
the Princess and said: "Come to me in three days, my dear, and I will see what I can
do."

So Noor-Chusham grew impatient. She waited, and could hardly contain her excitement
when dawn came and she could see her aunt again.

Now, you must know that Lady Lala-Rook is actually a female demon, beautiful and kind,
who can cast various spells and has good intentions towards humans. She married the
king's brother a long time ago and severed her ties with the demons she met in her
youth. So it took her three days to remember a spell that would work for her.

When Noel Chusham arrived at her aunt's apartment there was a strong smell of
burning incense and Mrs. Lara Rook was rubbing her hands over a small brazier filled
with red-hot coals in the middle of the tiled audience room.

"Auntie, auntie, what are you doing?" she shouted.

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" Sit there, child, I think I understand," the aunt said quietly. As she spoke, a puff of
green smoke came out of the brazier, and a huge god appeared before them, with his
arms crossed, his copper bracelets gleaming, and emerald drops hanging from his long
pointed ears.

"In the name of Suliman, son of David".

"Silence!" roared the devil. "Madam, why did you wake me from my sleep?"

"You have to do things in the palace according to my requirements!" Lala Luke said
firmly. The devil smiled and showed his sharp white fangs, because he loved flattery.

"You shall have red-eyed rats running through the rooms of the harem, and you shall
have flocks of bats flying around the king's throne." At night, all the windows will hiss
and scream, and whenever the king wants to take a nap, parrots will chatter in a
hundred different languages. "Stand, my wise man!" "I obey." The devil nodded, closed
his large black eyes, and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

So it happened. In less than an hour the maids of honor in the harem came screaming
to the palace guards, telling them that hundreds of red-eyed rats were running
everywhere. The guards came with knives and daggers and tried to drive the rats away,
but no sooner had they caught rats and thrown them into sacks than more appeared.
The king's guards were also busy catching bats, which appeared and disappeared in
the throne room. When night fell and everyone went to sleep, there was no peace in the
palace, because wild cats hissing and screaming appeared at all the windows and even
jumped onto the balconies of the highest rooms. The next day, the rats were still there,
and the bats were still there. The king wanted to take a nap in his study, the safest room
in the palace, but he saw parrots. Red parrots, green parrots, and colorful parrots
screamed, laughed, and chirped.

In a hundred different languages. There was great confusion. So the king sent for Lady
Lala Luke and said to her, "Things in the palace are becoming more and more strange. I
suspect there is some kind of magic involved. Can you tell me what is going on?"
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"Your Majesty," she said, "give me three hours and I will find the answer."

So she took a veiled and curtained sedan chair, carried by four tall black slaves, and
walked directly into Isfahan. Everyone was stunned to see this noble lady, wearing a
star-embroidered cloak, bargaining with a donkey dealer for a long-eared, plump,
shaggy animal. The gorgeous sedan chair returned to the palace, led by a royal groom
and followed by a donkey.

Three hours later the king summoned all his courtiers, and they were all stunned when
Princess Noor Chusham came in holding the donkey by the bridle.

" What does this mean?" the king roared in rage.

"Your Majesty," said Lady Lala-Rook, stepping forward, "here is the remedy for all the
strange things that have happened in the palace. Give this donkey to Noel-Chusham,
and all will be well."

Suddenly the parrots stopped and the mice disappeared. Then all the courtiers cheered,
and the king had to give in and give the donkey to his daughter. She was so overjoyed
that she threw her arms around her new pet and gave it a loving kiss. No more bats flew
around the throne, and the wild cats stopped neighing. Then, as everyone stared in
amazement, the donkey began to kick its hind legs high and neigh like a madman
before the throne. Lady Lala Luke shrank back on her cushions, and Princess Noel
Chusham was so frightened that she let go of her pet's reins. The donkey seemed to
be... possessed. "Guards!" the captain of the guard shouted, "Seize the animal, if left
alone it will kick the nobles of our beloved monarch... But no sooner had he finished his
words than the shaggy gray body of the neighing animal fell to the ground, trembling
and motionless.

"Oh, my poor donkey! What happened?" Noel Chusham cried bitterly.

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Just then, a young man emerged from the donkey skin. He was slim, handsome, and
dressed in the most expensive high-end clothes.

"Thank you, Princess," he said, bowing politely. "You have freed me from the spell that
had bound me to that donkey for twenty years. When you kissed me, the spell was
broken."

Everybody was therefore delighted, for before the young man returned home he caused
another donkey to be bought as a present for Noor Chusham, and ordered that all the
poor people of Isfahan be given money and clothes in gratitude for his deliverance.

5.1.11 Rustam and Tamina

Long ago, the great warrior hero Rustam of Persia went out hunting. Intent on tracking a
mountain lion, he tied his beloved horse, Rakhsh, to a tree far away. He eventually shot
the lion with a bow and arrow, slung the horse over his shoulders, and prepared to take
it back to where Rakhsh was tied. When he arrived, the horse was gone. The reins had
somehow broken, and Rakhsh had galloped off in the direction of his master. A passing
Turkmen horseman tried to grab the steed to add to his team of Mongol ponies. Rakhsh
reared up, kicked with his hooves, and finally escaped, but miles away from where
Rustam had tied him.

Rustam bent down, trying to follow Rakhsh's trail. But as night fell and the puma's body
was too heavy, he decided to spend the night on the hillside. He gathered some
firewood, built a fire, and wrapped himself in a blanket beside it.

At this time, a servant of the noble saw a light not far from his master's territory, so he
came out and took him back to the city. Then they sent spies to find Rustam's horse.
While they were away, the noble took Rustam to a banquet.

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"Peace, good Rustam," the paladin said, "your famous steed cannot remain hidden for
long. If he is lost anywhere in these parts, my men will find him."

Then Rustam calmed down and collected himself, for he loved his horse so much that
he would give anything for its safe return.

At the table of the nobleman named Samagan, everyone was in high spirits and talking
and laughing, and when Rustam prepared to go to bed, night was almost dawn.

A very beautiful lady, attended by a negro slave, furnished his chamber with fur covers
and silk cushions. She sprinkled the place with rose-water and musk, and said:

Sleep well, great Rustam. May your dreams be filled with happiness!

Do not grieve for your horse, for it was frightened by a Turkman and ran away, but is
now being brought back by the servants. 'Then she returned to the harem.

Rustam was amazed by her perfect beauty and strange prophecy, so he asked the
black slave who served him:

―Tell me, dark brother, who is this gazelle?

Are you happy?

The slave replied:

―She is Lady Tamina (daughter of my Lord Samakan) and is well versed in all magic
and sorcery.

Her mother was a fairy, and she returned to her people after the child was born,
because marrying a mortal would eventually bring great sorrow to the fairies, as they
would be misunderstood in the human world.

Rustam realizes that Tamina must have known what happened to Rakhsh through her
magic and he falls into a deep sleep, all his anxieties gone.

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Sure enough, just as Mrs. Tamina said, Rakhsh was brought back soon, and when
Rustam woke up, he heard the joyful sound of horses neighing outside the window.

So Rustam decided to marry the beautiful Tamina and sent messages to the nobles,
asking for a meeting with her as soon as possible.

At noon, the master sent a reply to Rustam.

―Oh, mighty Rustam, if you wish to see my daughter, our family will do you honor.

Rustam played polo with Samaqan and the male members of the family all day, and as
the sun set, a large gong sounded, summoning everyone to a feast.

Lady Tamina, dressed in a fine silk gown, sat on the left hand side of her distinguished
father, while Rustam sat on the right hand side of his host. Afterwards, everyone
reveled until dawn, with music and laughter. After the banquet, Rustam wanted to tell
Tamina that he wanted to marry her, but she wouldn't let him. Every time he tried to
speak, she smiled and changed the subject. After the servants removed the snow-white
tablecloth covering the banquet, Tamina tried to escape to...

But he took her arm and said, "I asked you once, I asked you twice, will you be my
wife?"

She laughed again, and when he grabbed her arm she turned into a spitting wildcat,
using her sharp claws.

―I‘ve asked you twice, I‘ve asked you three times, are you willing?

"Marry me?" Rustam asked again, and she had turned back into a woman. But as soon
as he grabbed her arm, she turned into a huge black snake with fangs bared, hissing at
him, but he still did not retreat.

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When she turned into a woman again, Rustam held her arms tightly, and even though
she turned into a lioness and then a gazelle, she could not escape his grasp. Then,
seeing that he was serious, Tamina whispered -

"Well, O Rustam, I consent to marry you; let us marry according to custom."

At the wedding, a thousand gold coins were thrown to the poor and a hundred sheep
were roasted in the market place.

The bride was dressed in a jewel-encrusted outfit, and Rustam tied an amulet around
her arm to protect her from all harm from any evil spirits that might be in the air during
the celebration.

"Lord Rustam," she said, "I give up all my knowledge of magic and sorcery for this
marriage, for as your wife I should not dabble in the arts my mother taught me. Your fine
sword arms are now my only protection."

When the seven days of feasting were over, Rustam took Tamina to the saddle and
rode away.

Take her to your home.

A year passed, and a son was born, whom Tahmina named Sohrab, but Rustam never
got to see the boy, for he was far away in the Shah's most remote domains.

When Sohrab was fourteen years old, he went to his mother and asked her:

"Where is my father? Why hasn't he come home for so many years? Please bless me, I
will go find him."

Tamina cried and tied the amulet Rustam had given her to his right arm.

"My son, your father has been fighting the enemies of the Shah since you were born,
and he has forgotten us," she said. "But ride to Chin, where the Shah's army is now
engaged."

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She blessed him and asked him to ride off in search of the powerful Rustam.

Sohrab rode and fought for many days and nights until he heard the news of King Qin's
death and the news that the victorious Iranian army had returned loaded with spoils and
honor.

Soon, Suhrab rode to the camp and asked everyone which was the great Rustam's tent.
But everyone was afraid that he was a spy and told him that Rustam was not there.
That night, Suhrab slept on his horse, not knowing that his father was sleeping in that
tent with a yak tail hanging on the door curtain.

The next day, Sohrab rode his horse proudly among the Shah's soldiers, looking for
Rustam, but he found nothing. At this time, Rustam personally stopped the arrogant
young man and said:

"Who are you that you have the audacity to ride on a horse through Rustam's camp as if
you were of noble birth?"

Sohrab proudly replied:

"I am Rustam's biological son. He left me and my mother as soon as he was born to
fight in the Shah's army." "How do you prove who you are?" Rustam exclaimed. He
couldn't believe his ears. He had fought in countless battlefields and had forgotten
everything except the art of war.

"Look at this amulet that my mother tied on my arm," said the young man. "It belonged
to my father, and he gave it to her on her wedding night."

Rustam was sure that this was indeed his son, so he hugged him and laughed happily
and proudly. They ate together until the cockcrowed.

So the next day Rustam and the boy rode home, their saddlebags filled with rare
treasures and gold, to reconcile themselves with Tamina, to make up for her master's
long absence, and to give her some presents to please her.

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5.1.12 The Charcoal Burner and the Bear

"Oh, poor bear, come in, you must warm yourself here," said the three sisters, and they
opened the door to let him in. He sat down by the fire, and then lay down on the stone
hearth, shivering all over as if he had a fever.

"Sister, give the poor bear a bowl of soup!" Soria said, and they served the frozen bear
a bowl of hot soup.

He drank it down gratefully.

"Thank you, my dears," he said. "I will go back to my cave and lie down now, for I must
sleep all winter, or I shall die."

Once upon a time, there was a poor charcoal burner who had three daughters. Farida,
the eldest, Semina, the second, and Soyria, the youngest. They were all happy,
because although they were poor, they loved life, and they would sing together while
picking berries in the woods around their hut. Their mother had died, so they took care
of their father and even burned wood with him when he burned charcoal.

One evening they were sitting by the fire, talking and chatting. Their father was still in
the forest chopping wood, but they knew he would be home soon. They had a large pot
of soup boiling over the fire.

"Hush," Farida said suddenly, "sisters, did you hear anything?"

"What? What do you mean? It's just the wind howling around the house," said Semina.
But Soilia was the bravest of the three. She threw open the window and shouted:

"Who's out there? We can hear it. Come on, put on a show."

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As she spoke a huge shadow appeared at the window, and then two eyes and a row of
white teeth. It was a bear, and he begged them to let him in by the fire because it was
too windy outside.

With that, he tottered away, promising to visit them again in the spring.

When the charcoal burner got home he was worried and told his daughters to stay in
the cabin and hide because the snow was full of bear tracks.

" Oh, Dad, don't be afraid, the bear is here and he talked to us; he was so cold and we
gave him a bowl of soup," Farida said.

―He sat by the fire to keep warm and said he was going to his cave for the winter,‖
Semina said.

"You silly girls!" the father shouted. "How can a bear talk?

Soup? You must have been dreaming by the fire while I was gone. Now, go get some
charcoal, and when it's ready, we'll all have soup.

When they found it useless to tell their father that the bear had indeed spoken to them,
and to warm themselves near the log, the three sisters decided not to speak of the
animal any more, and soon they had forgotten all about it.

That winter was very cold and snowy. The poor charcoal burners could only go out for
one or two hours a day and could not work at home.

They were busy in the woods all day, so their stocks of charcoal to take to market were
smaller than ever before. And market time was only a week away.

"My dear friends," said the charcoal burner one morning, "if the snow does not stop
soon, I am afraid I shall be bankrupt, for if I cannot get wood I shall not be able to make
charcoal, and what shall we do then?" And he began to cough and sneeze.

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"Don't worry, Dad," Soria said, "the three of us will go out today to find some firewood.
You must stay by the fire, because you are too cold and sneezing to go out."

Despite the charcoal burner's protests, they wrapped themselves in tattered cloaks and
walked deeper into the woods. The wind howled and the chill hit them. It was getting
dark and it was time to go home, but they only managed to pick up a few branches and
sticks. A blizzard howled around them until they could no longer stand. Suddenly,
Farida shouted:

"Sisters, sisters, here is a cave where we can hide until the storm passes." So they
crawled into the cave one by one, and were so tired from climbing that they lay down at
once and fell asleep.

When they woke up, they saw a blazing fire in the cave, and beside each of them was a
bowl of warm milk. They looked around for someone to thank, but though they got up
and looked around, there seemed to be no one. They quickly drank the milk and
immediately felt better. The snow had stopped, the wind had died down, and it was
daybreak.

As they left the cave, Semina shouted, "Why, that is the bear that came to our cabin the
other night. Look, he has a load of wood on his back!" Sure enough, the huge bear
returned from the woods with a large amount of wood tied with vines and creepers.

" Good morning, Bear!" they cried in unison. "It is good to see you again. Was it you
who made the fire and put the bowl of hot milk beside us?"

"Yes, dear," said the bear. "When I was cold and chilly, you gave me a bowl of soup by
the fire, and I

I'm just returning the favor you've shown me.'

410
"Well, we must go back now, though we wish we had as much wood as you do," said
Farida, "for though we have been wandering about all day, we have only these few
sticks."

"Ah, don't think so much, my dear girls," grunted the bear, "this piece of wood on my
back is yours, for I always get all the wood I want. Let's go to your house together, and
you can take it. You are welcome."

So the whole family set out for the charcoal burner's hut, laughing and singing all the
way, with the big bear walking beside them.

The charcoal burner heard the sound, looked out the window and said:

"Oh my God!" he said to himself, "it seems that a bear is with my daughters. It will surely
attack all of us..." Then he put down the old gun in his hand, held it tremblingly, and
prepared to shoot as soon as the bear came within range.

As the girls approached, the charcoal burners were surprised to see the bear carrying a
load of wood and talking to them like a human.

"Father! We are here, safe and sound, in the cave of the kind bear," cried Semina, and
her sisters added:

"Look at all the wood we got, all thanks to this amazing bear!"

The old man could hardly believe his eyes and ears, but he realized that this was no
ordinary bear, and he quickly

He dropped the gun because he was ashamed of his actions.

"Thank you very much, good bear," he said, "if you wish to come here, this humble
cottage is your home. My daughters and I are poor, but all we can give you will be
yours.'

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Then they helped the bear to pile all the wood in the shed, and soon they sat down
together to eat soup and bread. When they had finished, the bear thanked them for their
hospitality and said he must go back to his cave to finish his winter hibernation. He
promised to come back and see them in the spring.

At the market, the charcoal burner got a good price. He bought three little cloaks for the
girls and a new pair of trousers for himself, and everyone was very happy.

Spring came, and the flowers in the woods bloomed, and the birds' songs echoed
among the treetops, but there was no sign of the bear. The charcoal burner said to his
daughters:

"What happened to our good friend the Bear? I hope all is well."

Before he had finished speaking, he heard the sounds of hunters in the forest. There
were men on horseback, servants running beside their masters, and each hunter with a
small pack of hounds, following the tracks beside the horses' hooves.

Farida, Semina and Soiriya stood at the door of the hut, covering their faces with veils,
as the hunters broke through the bushes with their prey, frightening them.

The charcoal burner went out to collect firewood as usual. The hunter called to the three
girls:

"Have you seen a big black bear around here? We've been chasing him for hours and
he's completely disappeared."

The two sisters looked at each other and Farida said:

"No, we didn't see him pass this way."

"Then we must keep moving forward, because our master has ordered us to go hunting
today and bring him back a black bear skin." Amidst barking and shouting, the team
continued to move deeper into the forest.

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As soon as they left, Farida, Semina and Soiriya began to cry and rub their hands in
grief.

"Oh, oh, oh, poor bear!" they cried. "How can we help him? He must have awakened
from his hibernation, and the hunters have seen him. Perhaps he is coming to see us,
just as he promised." They cried even louder.

When the charcoal-burner returned home for dinner, he saw that the three girls had red
eyes, and it took them a moment to realize what had happened. Then he said, "Dear,
there is only one thing we must do. We must try to find the bear, bring him back here,
and hide him until the hunters stop tracking him."

"But what should I do, father?"

"Okay, kids, I have an idea, and we're going to put it into practice.

Action. I will now go to find our old friend, and when I find him I will do as I say. "

Just then there was a knock at the door, and the bear, panting with exhaustion,
stumbled into the hut.

" The hunters are after me!" he gasped. "I can't walk any further." "Don't be afraid, noble
bear," said the charcoal-burner. "Stay in this closet until we tell you it's safe."

Without another word the bear did as he was bidden, and they heard cries and shouts,
which told them that the hunters were out again.

"Quick, put some green wood on the fire, and let the smoke come out, so that it will burn
their eyes sorely."

The charcoal burner went out to face the hunter.

"Old man!" cried the hunter from his horse, "come out and tell us what you did with the
bear we found about the cabin?"

413
Smoke poured from the cabin's windows and chimneys, and the dogs stopped because
they could not smell the bear in the billowing smoke.

"I am deaf, gentlemen, and cannot hear what you are saying," cried the charcoal-burner,
"I have gone to the woods to gather wood, and now my daughters and I are burning it to
make charcoal, for that is our livelihood."

"Have you seen a black bear around here?" the hunter shouted again, but the old man
still pretended not to understand. At this time, the hounds had completely lost their
tracks. Some ran in one direction, while others circled in place. Smoke floated out from
the crack in the door. The hunter, who was talking to the charcoal burner, turned his
horse around and walked back along the way he came.

"We must keep going!" he shouted to the others. "Obviously there are no bears here,
and this poor charcoal burner is obviously a fool!"

The old man and the girls kept adding wood to the fire until night fell, and they could not
stop crying and almost choked to death. So they all left and never came back.

"I think we may safely say that the hunters are gone," whispered the charcoal-burner,
"so we must turn off the smoke, and get that unfortunate bear out of the cupboard, for
he must have been nearly choked to death by the smoke, as we were."

So they opened the cupboard door, and the poor black bear fell to the floor, completely
unconscious. With great difficulty they dragged it into the kitchen and poured a bucket of
water over its head. The three girls and the old man gathered in a circle, wiping its eyes
with wet cloths, hoping that the bear had not died after its ordeal. But just as they began
to fear the worst, it shook itself, slowly stood up on its hind legs, and rocked back and
forth for a long time.

"He's alive!" cried Soilia, rushing to throw her arms around his hairy neck. Farida and
Semina, overjoyed at his recovery, followed his lead. By this time, the smoke from the
green wood had cleared, and they had started a fire with the best dry wood.

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That evening they all sat together in great joy, for Bear was his old self again, and
grateful for the happy sight. When the moon rose in the sky and the fire died down, Bear
jumped up and said good-night.

"I must be on my way now," he said, "for I must be back to my cave before daybreak.
May God bless you, and thank you a thousand times for saving my life." They begged
him to stay and sleep by the fire.

But he shook his head and disappeared into the shadows under the trees.

After some time, two young princes, Daud and Ahmad, came to the hut and knocked on
the door.

When the charcoal burner saw the two visitors, he was very excited, because he could
tell at a glance that they were of noble birth.

"Father," said Daoud, "can you tell us where we are? Our horses and money have been
taken by a gang of robbers, and it is so difficult for me and my brother to get by?"

―Yes,‖ Ahmed added, ―we would be very grateful if you could give us some water and let
us rest for a while in your house.‖

"Oh, gentlemen, come in," said the charcoal-burner, bowing respectfully to them, "and
all that I have shall be yours." Then he called his daughters, and said, "Go and fetch
some cool water from the well for the two little gentlemen, for they are tired and thirsty."

So Farida, Semina, and Solia did as they were told, and soon they were chatting and
laughing with the two princes as if they had known them all their lives.

"Which way should we take to get back to the village?" Ahmed asked. The charcoal
burner was giving him directions when there was a knock at the door and the bear came
in. When it saw the two young men, it gave a loud cry and the three of them began to
dance together.

415
"What's the matter?" cried Daoud. "This is our poor brother Mahmoud, who five years
ago was turned into a bear by our wicked stepmother. We rode into the woods in search
of him, and fell into the hands of the robbers."

"We brought a magic powder that will turn him back into human form. Look, here it is!"
Ahmed shouted, and he pulled a small piece from his pocket. He sprinkled a packet of
whimpering powder on the bear, who sneezed violently three times.

The charcoal burner and his daughters were amazed to see that the black bear had
transformed into a handsome prince.

The brothers were very happy to be reunited, and they set out together for their father's
palace.

Farida, Semina and Soyria are sad to see their old friend go, although they are happy
that he is finally free from the spell of his evil stepmother.

A month passed, and the old charcoal burner was surprised to see a group of court
officials riding on horses, leading white horses with golden reins, and carrying silk sedan
chairs.

"Daughters," he cried, "look, here come some messengers from the three princes. Let
us see what they want."

The Grand Vizier, leaning on a silk sedan chair with a long white beard and a huge
green turban, shouted, "Good charcoal burner, my master the king has sent me to take
you and your three daughters to the palace in recognition of your kindness to his son
who was turned into a bear. His Majesty wishes your daughters to marry his sons and
that you can spend your old age with them."

After this long speech, the Grand Vizier waved his hand, and three sedan chairs with
curtains were carried up. The three daughters of the charcoal burner got on the
carriages happily and excitedly.

416
But the old man shook his head.

"Take my daughters to the palace," he said, "they will be happy there. But what can I do
as a simple charcoal-burner in the court of a great king? No, I will stay happy in the
woods, and they may come to see me whenever they like."

So the charcoal-burning girls became princesses and lived happily in the palace with
their husbands. They would visit their father every month and bring him gifts so that he
would not be neglected or lonely. He had a boy to help him burn charcoal and two
donkeys to carry firewood, so he lived happily until the end of his life.

5.1.13 Nobles and slaves

Once upon a time, there was a mansion near Samarkand where a noble lived. The
mansion's spacious courtyard was full of roses and fruit trees, and the gardeners
worked hard all day to keep it beautiful.

One day, a nobleman named Abdul Azim bought a male slave, taught him to read and
write, and treated him like his own son. This angered the other servants, who hated the
male slave named Cavour and took every opportunity to plot against him. They spread
rumors about Cavour to their master, making his life miserable. However, the nobleman
realized that they were just jealous, so every time they brought up a rumor about
Cavour, he would sternly send them back to do their own thing.

Cavour absorbed knowledge from books, wisdom and art day by day, and soon he was
on equal footing with the nobles. They went to the court together and gave speeches
before the king.

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It was at the palace that the king's daughter, Shiraz, saw him through the lattice window
behind her father's throne. Her heart was filled with love for him, and she knew that she
must marry him or never again. She consulted her old nurse, who promised to take the
young man aside and tell him of the princess's feelings for him.

One evening the old woman approached Cavour and handed him a miniature of the
most beautiful young girl.

"Young sir," she said, her veil so tight that only one eye was visible, "this is the
photograph of my mistress, a lady of high rank, who is in love with you. Will you give her
a message for me, so that she may hope for the event?"

When Cavour saw the portrait, he also felt the pain of love and said to his servant:

"Tell your lady that all her affections are mutual, and I do love her. But can you tell me
who she is?

"No, no, I cannot do that," cried the old woman, "you must wait until I contact you again,
for my mistress has asked me to show you this and to record your reaction. I must
return to her now." With these words, she completely covered her veil and hurried away.

Cavour was very interested in this and followed her from a distance. He was very upset
when he saw her return to the palace. Apparently, her mistress was a member of the
king's court. But who was she? He returned home in a very depressed mood.

The nobleman's son was extremely jealous of Cavour and went to his father to tell him
that Cavour was ambitious and cunning. He also said that he had heard that Cavour
wanted to usurp his master's position, rule the family, and become more and more
powerful because he was going to marry the king's daughter. Unfortunately, the old
woman told her son, the nobleman's stable boy, about her mistress's infatuation. He told
the news to the master's son in order to further discredit poor Cavour.

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Abdul Azim, concerned about his slave's apparent ambition, decided to test him. If
Ghafoor intended to succeed him, there was a good way to find out.

"Cavour," he said when the slave returned that evening, "I am going on a long journey,
for about two years. While I am gone, I want you to take care of my household. All the
affairs that I normally deal with will be in your charge. You must pay the servants' wages,
and the merchants' bills. You will also protect my wife and family, advise my son, and
represent me at the king's court." He ended his speech. How would Cavour respond?
The slave's face seemed to have only sadness.

"Two years, master?" he said. "I have been separated from you for so long. But if you
like, I will do my best to take care of everything while you are away." Then he went to
bed.

Abdul Azim looked at him thoughtfully. Was all the rumour about Cavour true?

That night, Cavour tossed and turned. In the middle of the night, he got up and went to
the window. He looked out at the garden. The moon was high in the sky, clear and
bright. Outside the window, the fountain was spraying water. He got dressed, walked to
the fountain, and watched the crystal water splash into the marble pool. Suddenly, there
was a pleasant laugh, and a beautiful fairy appeared in front of him, right in the center of
the fountain.

"Know, mortal," she said, "that I am your guiding spirit, and you are my responsibility.
For I was with you when you were born, and I have protected you from that moment on.
Now I must appear and give you some advice, for you are in danger."

"Danger?" asked Cavour. "What kind of danger? I have no enemies in the world!"

The fairy laughed again. "Oh, of course you do, my poor child, your employer's son, and
his servants. Now the nobleman himself bears a grudge against you, so I will tell you
how to win his favor again, otherwise you will never win."

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"My master is going on a pilgrimage, and I am to be put in charge of his house," cried
Cavour, "how can this prove that he does not trust me?"

―That was a trick,‖ answered the Fairy, ―for he said it only to see what you would do
when he was not around.

Take my advice, listen to me.''Go on, I will listen,' Cavour promised, and then he was
silent.

"Tomorrow you will put on a ragged robe, sew a hundred pieces of gold on the lining,
and go to your master. Say to him, 'Sir, I cannot stay here and take charge of everything
while you are away, because I am not worthy. Please send your son to take charge of
everything, and let me follow you wherever you go, even to the ends of the earth!'"

"Yes, I will remember that," Cavour said. "But I am also in love with a noblewoman who
is apparently a member of the king's court. How can I learn her name or even meet
her?"

"Don't worry about her," the fairy told him, "I will arrange everything there too. May you
be safe and happy!" With that, she disappeared from the center of the fountain, which
was still tinkling in the marble pool in the moonlight.

Cavour began to wonder if he was dreaming, but he realized that if the fairy was indeed
his protector , he had better do as she said. So, early the next morning, he put on a
tattered, patched cloak, inside which he had carefully sewn a hundred gold coins, his
only worldly possessions.

He dressed like this until his master's eyes fell on him through the window.

" Cavour," he said, "why are you dressed like a wandering fakir? Tell me what is the
meaning of this masquerade?"

"Sir, I do not want to take charge of everything when you are so far from home," said
Cavour, as the fairy had bidden him. "Let me go with you in disguise, so that if you fall

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into the hands of robbers or need rescue, I can follow you and protect you. I have sewn
a hundred gold coins into this old cloak, so that even if you spend all your money, I can
still keep both of us. Let me go with you. In your absence, let your son be the master of
the house, not me, for I am the least worthy in every way." After saying this, he fell silent,
letting his words sink into the hearts of the people.

After hearing this, Abdul Azim embraced him and told him that it was just a test and that
he was not really going on a pilgrimage. Then, Abdul Azim told Cavour that some
people doubted him and he had to find out the truth. In this way, thanks to the protection
of the fairy, Cavour was saved.

He then tells his master that he has fallen in love with a noble lady, whose servant gives
him a portrait of her mistress, with a message of love.

"My dear Cavour," the nobleman said, seeing the miniature, "this is none other than the
King's daughter, Princess Silja! If she falls in love with you, you are a lucky man, for the
King will reject her."

Nothing. So I will do your bidding and treat you as my future son-in-law. The lady is now
of marriageable age, so the king will look for a young man of good character to marry
her.

"But I am not worthy of her," said Cavour dejectedly. "How do you think I, a lowly slave,
should be received at court?"

"Do not be afraid," Abdul Azim replied, "I release you and declare you free from now on.
I will give you a bag of gold and adopt you as my second son. My family is old and
prominent, so you will be warmly received at court."

When the sons and servants heard this, they asked for forgiveness, and Cavour gladly
forgave them all.

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So Cavour and the princess were married. At the wedding feast, among other gifts,
there were bags of gold and jewels. The courtiers were amazed, looking at the
treasures, and realized that Cavour was almost as rich as the king. Then the fairy's
voice rang in his ears: "I wish you happiness and many children!" The gold and jewels
never decreased, because they were in the magic bag, and it seemed that they would
be filled as long as...

Cavour and the princess lived happily together until the end of their lives, distributing
hundreds of coins to the poor every Friday.

The king died without a son, and Cavour succeeded him. In this way, he jumped from a
slave to a king and was deeply loved by the people.

5.1.14 The Shoemaker's Son and the Snake

Once upon a time, the governor of Bukhara sent a man to a large forest to hunt a lion
there. After a few days, the man did not return. The governor thought that he must have
met with an accident, so he sent two other people to look for him. But they did not return
either.

The governor then sent a troop of cavalry into the forest and ordered them to search
every place, but strangely, they all disappeared as well. After the news spread, no one
went to the forest anymore, not even close to it. The only sign of life was the occasional
stag or deer eating.

Leaves of suburban trees.

A few years passed, and one day, the Governor of Bukhara felt that this situation could
not continue, so he ordered a proclamation to be read throughout the country,
announcing that anyone who could enter the forest, find and kill a lion would receive a
generous reward.

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Once upon a time, there was a poor shoemaker whose son was named Hassan. One
evening, Hassan said to his father:

"Father, please bless me, because I am going to the palace to offer myself to complete
the task of hunting the lion. The governor's edict says that the prize is rich, and I want to
bring it home."

"Be careful, my son," the shoemaker said, "don't do anything stupid. Go ahead and try
your luck." He blessed Hassan, but his heart was heavy as he watched little Hassan go
away. The shoemaker's wife had passed away, and Hassan was his only support in the
world.

The guard at the palace gate recognized Hassan at a glance. When he saw him coming,
he burst into laughter and asked:

"Son of the shoemaker, what is the matter with you? Have you not brought my noble
master's shoes and boots, which your father has been mending?"

"No, I came here on the governor's orders to read a proclamation throughout Bukhara
about the lion in the forest. I think I can kill the lion."

"Hahaha, young man, you really are a promising guy!" the guard said with a smile. "Well,
go in and see the captain of the guard, he will take you to see the governor."

Soon, Hassan knelt before the governor, dazzled by the splendor of the palace, the
jewels of the courtiers, and the governor's golden sword.

"Speak, boy," cried the Governor, "who are you? And what makes you think you can
accomplish this task?"

"I am the son of Hassan the shoemaker, and I know I can find out what went wrong in
the Enchanted Forest," Hassan said boldly.

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"Well, give it a try. I admire your courage, a young man with a bare head like you!
Captain of the guard, give him a sword, a helmet, a mail, and a strong shield."

Thus protected, Hassan set out, cheered by the townspeople. As night fell, he reached
the woods, a lit tar torch in his right hand.

He took his shield in his left hand and walked bravely into the shadows of the trees.
Steadily he advanced into the darkness, his sword clanking in its scabbard and rubbing
against his legs. He planned to hide in a cave or a tree until daybreak, when he could
really hunt the lion. He made his way through the trees, looking around carefully until he
came to a ruined castle with some remains of the walls. He carefully stuck his pitch
torch into the dirt next to an old wall and decided to sit there and make a fire.

Hassan had just picked up a few pieces of wood and started the fire when he heard a
voice behind him:

Calling his name. "Hassan, Hassan, can I come to your stove to warm myself?"

"Of course," Hassan replied, feeling a little scared because he didn't see anyone.
"Whoever you are, please come with me." He secretly hoped that it was not an invisible
evil spirit, because someone had told him that there might be some evil spirits in the
woods.

Then, from the shadows behind the wall, emerged a huge snake with gleaming golden
scales and a pair of gleaming black eyes. As the snake slithered forward, Hassan
stepped back in fear, but it said in a sweet girlish voice, "Son of the shoemaker, do not
hide from me. I am not..."

"A snake, actually, but a girl who was unlucky enough to be turned into a snake by a
magician. You must know, Hassan, that one day I was playing my flute by the window
and a magician passed by, and because I was not wearing a veil, his eyes fell on me.
He then asked me to go with him and be his bride, but I closed the window and wanted
to run and tell my mother. The evil fellow, muttering the name of Suliman, son of David

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(peace be upon him), turned me into a snake, as you can see. Then he went away
laughing. But I returned to the room with a glass of sorbet that I had asked her to buy,
and uttered a scream, and the servants, not knowing my fate, beat me with bamboo
sticks. I managed to escape, but when I reached this wood, I found a refuge, although it
seemed that I was destined to stay here for the rest of my life. I will be transformed into
a snake for the rest of my life."

" Unfortunate girl," cried Hassan, "come with me, I will go in search of the lion that lives
in this place, and see if I can find anything that will free you from the spell."

"I will follow you anywhere, as long as there is hope," Snake replied.

"That's it," Hassan said, "I'm going to sleep now, and you can go too."

When he awoke it was daylight and the sun was shining through the trees. The fire was
out, but the snake woman was still sitting, coiled up like a spring, watching him.

"Good morning, Hassan," she said. "If I am to travel with you, let me show you first the
hidden treasures of these ruins, so that you may learn something. I have descended
into the depths of the ruins in the form of a serpent, and have found gold and jewels
beneath the broken floorboards of one of the ruins."

Hassan was overjoyed when he heard this, and when he found the treasure he could
hardly believe it was his wildest dreams. But he decided to hide it until he could uncover
the secret of the lion. So he marked the spot with a stone, hung the snake around his
neck, and continued through the woods. When the sun was at its hottest, they came to
a stream that flowed along a rocky bed.

As he was licking his cracked lips, he heard a blood-curdling roar, and looking around,
he saw a huge, scarred lion lashing its tail in anger.

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"Human villain!" roared the lion. "What are you doing in my territory? Haven't you heard
of my reputation? I kill everyone I see? I have killed the governor's hunters and cavalry,
and now I will kill you."

"Noble lion," stammered Hassan, who thought he had better use a little flattery than to
try to attack the animal, which could not reach the sword, "do not kill me, for I am not
worthy of your toyour way, but listen to me, for I have a very interesting story to tell you."

"Really? What is that?" the lion asked curiously. He was a bit lazy, not hungry, and too
lazy to kill anyone. "Come with me to my cave and tell me what's inside." With the snake
still wrapped around his neck, Hassan followed the lion to a huge underground cave not
far away.

"You must know, noble lion," said Hassan, sitting down on a rock in the cave, "that the
snake I carry is not a real reptile, but a human maiden whom I protect. I am seeking a
man who can remove the spell from her, for it is not pleasant for a sensitive person to
be bound by a spell like this maiden."

The lion was very interested and asked the snake girl to tell him her story. The snake
girl then told him the whole story from beginning to end in her sweet voice.

― I have a secret ointment that a wizard gave me to spare his life, and it is said to restore
a bewitched person to his original state.

"Look, I'll take it in my hand and you can taste it." He stretched out his claws and
touched a recess in the rock on the cave wall, where there was a small round clay pot.

The lion rubbed the ointment with his paw, and then touched the snake's head. In an
instant, a thick cloud of smoke came out of the cave, and a strong smell of sulfur hit the
nose. The glittering snake disappeared, and lo! Lo! A slender woman wearing a veil and
colorful silk stood there.

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"Thank you so much," she cried. "I can't tell you how wonderful it is to be back in normal
form. My parents will be so happy to see me, for they must have thought me dead. But
how can I get back to them?"

"You can never go back," the lion roared, swishing his tail, "since you have regained
your human form, I will put you and this young man in a cage and fatten you up and eat
you."

"Oh, no, no, no, please don't kill us," the girl cried, but the lion ignored her tears and
shut her up with Hassan in a large wooden cage in the corner of the cave. Then he lay
down, covered his eyes with his paws, and fell asleep.

"My dear lady," Hassan whispered, "I am sorry that I could not protect you from this
terrible fate, but I was unable to draw my sword in time. I thought I would be able to cut
off his head once we reached the cave, but now I have lost my sword and shield and
cannot kill him."

"Do not be afraid, Hassan," his companion replied, "take this silver girdle that I have
round my waist, and when the lion attempts to take us out and kill us, you may put it
around his neck and strangle him."

So, for three days in a row, the lion placed food between the bars, and they ate and
drank, waiting for the moment when the lion would open the cage and rescue them. On
the fourth day, the opportunity came. The lion roared with hunger and opened the cage
door. Hassan quickly put the silver chain around the lion's neck. He pulled with all his
strength, and the lion soon died.

"Oh, you are very brave and strong," said the girl, whose name was Fawzia, "but we
had better get out of here as soon as possible, because it will take us a long time to get
out of the woods."

So Hassan took the sword that lay nearby, cut off the lion's head, and wrapped it in his
cloak, for he wanted to prove to the governor that he had indeed killed the terrible beast.

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Then they retraced their steps, remembering to dig out the remains of Fawzia, who had

It was a snake. When Hassan and Fawzia arrived at the Governor's Palace

With the lion's head and treasure, the people welcomed them with great enthusiasm.
The governor gave Hassan a noble robe and filled his mouth with gold, which Hassan
distributed to the poor. Whoever could enter the forest and kill the lion would receive a
priceless carpet, which was presented to Hassan with great ceremony at the court.

As Hassan was carried on the shoulders of his neighbors through the town, followed by
the veiled Fawzia on horseback, and the carpet was carried by four of the governor‘s
servants, the procession arrived at the poor shoemaker‘s house and spread the fine
carpet on the ground outside, because it was too large for the shoemaker‘s tiny room.

Eat and sleep. Fawzia got off her horse and gave half of the treasure she brought back
from the ruins to Hassan's father. The old shoemaker almost cried because now he
didn't have to work and didn't have to repair shoes anymore. He took the bag of gold
coins and jewels.

Hassan and Fawzia stood together on the carpet admiring it when Fawzia said, "Oh, I
wish I could go back home and see my parents again."

Just then, the magic carpet rose into the sky and began to fly over the fields. Hassan
and Fawzia were stunned and hugged each other tightly. As the magic carpet rose
higher and higher, the houses and farms below them became smaller and smaller.
Suddenly, the magic carpet began to fall, and Fawzia shouted, "Oh, that's my father and
mother, walking in the rose garden!" They came down and arrived at the rose garden.

The Khorasan merchant could not believe his eyes when he saw his daughter, who had
been missing for five years, running to him. Fawzia's father, hearing that Hassan had
the courage to go into the forest, kill the lion, and bring the head back to the governor,
welcomed the young man with joy.

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Fawzia (who had been secretly in love with Hassan since she first saw him) told her
parents that if they wanted, she would marry Hassan, provided that Hassan also wanted
to. As a result, Hassan fell in love with Fawzia as soon as he saw her take off her veil,
and they got married the next day. So they settled down in Khorasan and lived happily
ever after.

When they wanted to visit Hassan's father in Bukhara, they had to take a camel caravan
because, alas! the blanket could no longer fly. No matter how many times they tried, no
matter where they were taken, it never took them across the sky again. As far as the
governor knew, it had never flown before. So they hung it on the wall of their mansion,
just to admire its beautiful colors.

This only goes to show that while a magic carpet may take you somewhere once in your
life, there is no use expecting it to take you there again if it is not your will.

5.1.15 Iskandar and Jadeite Ring

The young prince was named Iskandar, and he was loved by his parents and seven
sisters. One day when he was ten years old, he was playing with a golden bow and
arrow in the palace garden when the magician appeared in front of him.

"Take me to your mother, Queen," the magician said in a low, sinister whisper, and
Iskandar, mesmerized by the magician's eyes, led the old man to his mother's
apartment.

Once upon a time there was a queen who had seven daughters, each of them as
beautiful as the moon on the night when she was fourteen years old. The queen loved
them dearly, but the king felt sad when he looked at them because he had no son.

"Sir, I have heard of your magical powers," the wizard said to him. "Can you give me a
secret recipe so that I can have a son? I only have seven daughters."

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"Madam, when you return home, at midnight, drink this and your wish will come true,"
said the magician, and he handed the queen a small bottle containing a green liquid.

The queen was grateful and gave him a bag of gold, then returned to the palace. That
night, she drank a glass of rose-flavored ice, drank the liquid in it, and fell into a deep
sleep.

Soon, a boy was born, and the whole country rejoiced. The king was overjoyed and
ordered food and money to be distributed to the poor for thirty days and thirty nights
until there was no more hungry people in the country.

"Madam," said the magician, bowing before the queen, who was terrified at the sight of
the old man, "your son must come with me; I need him."

'Oh, no, no,' cried the poor Queen, 'why do you want to keep him? I cannot allow it.'

"Then give me one of your daughters," said the magician, "or I shall have to turn the boy
into a toad."

"Well, take one of the girls, then," the queen agreed in horror, and calling her eldest
daughter, Silla, she handed her over to the magician.

The unfortunate queen mourned for Shiraz for a long time, but then she forgot all about
her, because she was so happy that the young prince had survived.

A year passed, and the magician came again. "Give me your second daughter," he said,
"or I will turn your son into a gazelle."

"No, no, no," cried the Queen, "please do not do this, you can certainly have my
daughter Shahnaz."

In this way, year after year, the six daughters were taken away by the evil wizard and
imprisoned in a high tower.

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When Iskandar was seventeen, only the youngest princess left. Her name was Shirin.
She was the prince's favorite sister, and he could not bear to think that she would soon
be taken away like the others. He went to her mother and said:

"Please don't hand my sister Shirine over to the evil wizard, because I will be alone
without playmates of my own age."

"My son," said the Queen, "your father would be heartbroken if anything happened to
you. I try not to think about your sisters, but what can I do?"

"Mom, you have to let me go and save them. I know what to do because the next time
the wizard comes, I will follow him."

‗If you must go, Iskandar, my son,‘ said the queen sadly, ‗then you must go, but take
this emerald ring with you, for it will bring you the spirit in your time of need.‘ She placed
on Sikandar‘s finger a golden ring with a strange green stone in it, and strange symbols
engraved on it.

"This is the ring my mother gave me. She was one of the maidens of David's son
Suleiman (peace be upon him!). When you need help, rub it three times and the jinn will
appear." Then she sent for her youngest daughter Shireen and said, "My child, you will
undoubtedly soon meet the same fate as your sisters, but your brother is determined to
save you. So, when you are taken away by the sorcerer, eat this pomegranate and
scatter the seeds on the ground to guide you."

As soon as she finished speaking, the magician appeared.

"Hello, Queen," he said, "I am here on behalf of the Prince."

Iskandar, because I need him."

"Oh, no, no, not now, please leave him to me a little longer," pleaded the Queen,
twisting her fingers in agony.

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"Well," said the magician, "I must take your youngest daughter."

Shirine had stood quietly beside her mother while the old man spoke, and now she
slowly walked forward.

"Can I take this pomegranate with me on the road?" she asked.

"Yes, yes," said the magician, "you may take whatever you like, but make haste, for I
must be going."

The queen said goodbye to her daughter, and she tried to hold back her tears as she
saw the magician take her away. The prince then disguised himself as a wandering
musician, with a flute and a small drum on his waist, and set out to pursue the prince.
The queen did not dare to tell the king that the child had undertaken such a dangerous
mission, so she pretended that he was going hunting.

Iskandar followed the pomegranate seeds that his sister had dropped until night fell.
The magician and the princess came to a high tower that could only be entered through
an iron door. After they entered, Iskandar, who was hiding in the bushes, saw that all
the lights in the tower were on, and outside the seven iron windows, he saw his
imprisoned sisters.

It was time for Iskandar to summon the genie, so he rubbed the emerald ring three
times. As soon as he finished, there was a thunderclap and a cloud of smoke rose from
the ground. In the center of the smoke appeared a smiling genie, with his arms crossed,
and said:

"In the name of Suliman son of David (peace be upon him!), what is your wish, owner of
the emerald ring?"

"Bring me seven ladders, seven saws, and seven pure white Arabian horses, for my
sisters are in this magic tower, and I have come to rescue them," said Iskandar.

"I obey," said the spirit instantly, and it vanished.

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Iskandar hid behind a bush, waiting for his order to be delivered. Sure enough, a few
minutes later, he heard a neigh, and lo and behold, seven purebred white horses were
tied to a tree trunk. There were seven saws under his feet, and seven ladders leaning
against the tower, one by each window.

Soon Iskandar had climbed every ladder, sawed off the fence, and helped the sisters
down to the ground. Just as they were crying and laughing with excitement, the
magician suddenly appeared at a window.

"Come back, you foolish girls!" he screamed, throwing up his hands. Iskandar rubbed
the Ring three times in a flash, and when the Spirit appeared he cried:

"In the name of Suliman, son of David (peace be upon him!), send us immediately to
another province,

Forever free from the wizard's power! 'Then there was a roar of thunder and a cloud of
smoke.

"I obey," the elf replied. Iskandar rode a beautiful snow-white horse, galloping as fast as
the wind. His sister Shirin sat behind him, holding him tightly around the waist, and the
other six sisters also rode a horse. The moonlight shone on them, and they found
themselves on a sandy land, far away from any trace of humans. Iskandar raised his
hand to signal them to stop, and then, when they all reined in their horses, he said,
"Sisters, we must rest for the night and return home tomorrow morning."

So they all wrapped themselves in their cloaks and huddled together to keep warm in
the cold desert night. Iskandar tied his horse to a small date palm nearby and watched
over the sisters all night.

When morning came and the sun rose high in the sky, they mounted their horses,
hungry and thirsty, and headed towards the distant horizon.

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" I will call upon the jinn," said Iskandar, "and have him bring us food and water." But his
blood froze as he searched for the magic ring. It was not on his finger; it must have
fallen into the sand.

When he told the girls what had happened, they cried and wailed:

"Oh, brother, brother, what shall we do? We have escaped the witches' pursuit, but
what terrible fate awaits us in this desert if we cannot reach the oasis?"

Iskandar did his best to cheer them up, and they rode on, the interior of the car growing
hotter as the sun beat down overhead.

Suddenly they came to a high ground and rode down to a small depression in the sand
where there were trees and a well. They all dismounted and drank gratefully. Then three
men in patched robes came up and Iskandar called out to them, "Peace and happiness
to you! My seven sisters and I must rest, for we have been hungry and thirsty since the
sun rose. Have you bought us something to eat? We have a long way to go from home."

The three men were ascetics, and they said, 'Peace be upon you! We cannot sell you
any food, for we have but a little ourselves, but please share with us, you are welcome,
for if you have come here on horseback since dawn, you must be hungry.'

Then they sat in a circle and motioned to Iskandar and the girls to join them. One by
one they handed out some dried dates, the sweetest dates Iskandar had ever tasted.
"What kind of dates are these?" he then asked the dervish for him.

"This is the date of knowledge," the old man replied. "Whoever eats it will know more
than before they ate it."

As Iskandar swallowed the dates, he suddenly noticed that his horse was limping away
from the other horses.

"Good God!" he said, "something has got stuck in my horse's hoof." He stood up and
looked carefully. To his surprise, it was the wonderful emerald ring, which must have

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been stuck at the bottom of the hoof. He put the ring on his finger and rubbed it three
times.

When the spirit appeared, he shouted:

"Most excellent spirit, take us home, that we may never wander again, but remain safe
in my father's kingdom, safe from witchcraft!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the sky darkened, the sun was blocked, and the wind
blew.

Suddenly, Iskandar found himself back in the Royal Rose Garden, surrounded by his
sisters. The queen was watching from the balcony window, and they ran towards her.
The queen cried with joy and hugged her children one by one.

" Oh, Iskandar, my brave son, you have brought your sisters back safely. My heart is
filled with joy," she cried.

"This is all thanks to the magic of this magical ring," said Iskandar, taking the ring off his
finger and handing it to her.

You could never do what I did.'

At this time, a small green parrot appeared and perched on the Queen's hand.

"I claim this ring in the name of Suleiman son of David (peace be upon him!), and it
must now be returned to King Suleiman himself," the parrot screamed, picked up the
ring in its beak, and flew away.

But the Queen was so happy to have her children back that she didn't care, and they all
lived happily until the end of their lives.

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5.1.16 Ahmed and his nagging wife

Once upon a time, there was a man named Ahmed who worked in the fields all day and
led a peaceful country. One day, he set a trap to catch a few birds for dinner, because
his wife only had a little barley left in her cupboard at the time. As she was a nagging
woman, Ahmed was a little afraid of her. He knew that if he didn't bring some extra food
home to cook, she would bother him in the evening.

When he walked to the trap, he found a little bird in the net and was about to put it into
the bag. Unexpectedly, the little bird spoke: "Oh human, please send me back to the
freedom of the sky, and I will fulfill all your requests."

Ahmed was so surprised that he could hardly speak, and he was not sure if he had
heard it correctly. But he grabbed the bird by its legs and stared at it until it said again:

"Let me go, and I will grant you whatever you ask for, for I am one of the most favored
servants of Suliman, son of David, peace be upon him!"

"Is this true?" Ahmed asked. "Well, if you can do it, let me understand the language of
animals."

"Of course," the bird replied, "I can do that easily."

― I promise never to tell this to my wife,‖ Ahmed said, releasing the bird.

When he got home, his wife called out from the kitchen, ―I‘m trying to make barley soup
here while you bring back a bird or something to season it.

Husband, what have you brought?'

"Alas, good woman," he said, "I gained nothing, for there was such a small and delicate
bird in the trap that I was obliged to let it out."

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Just then, the barley soup overflowed, and the wife threw a wooden bowl at her
husband in anger.

"Good-for-nothing!" she screamed. "You've been out all day, and you've brought nothing
back to plant in the barley. Well, let's just leave it at that!"

There were two cats sitting by the hearth, and one (a female) said to the other, "How
our mistress treats our poor master! Isn't it awful to hear these human quarrels? What
would you have done if I had done this to you, and you hadn't seized the opportunity?"

mice for dinner? The tomcat replied, ‗My dear, if you speak to me like that, I assure you
that I will give you a slap in the face very soon!‘ Hearing this, Ahmed burst into laughter
and he became even more ferocious.

"Husband," she said, "if you continue to laugh at me, I will take back my dowry and
return to my parents' home!"

"My dear," he said, "I never laughed at you."

"What else can you laugh at except me?" she demanded. But he did not dare to tell her
that he understood the language of animals, because he had promised the enchanted
bird, so he could only endure it in silence.

The next day Ahmed caught a rabbit in a trap, and the rabbit spoke: "Oh, man, let me
go, I am one of the magical creatures of Suliman son of David, peace be upon me!" So
he had to let it go, and the only thing he could bring back to his wife was a large carrot
that he had dug up from the field.

"Hubby," she said, "the barley is all gone, do you have anything to put in the stew
tonight? I wish you had caught a rabbit or something, it would make the stew even
tastier?"

"No, dear," he said, "I'm afraid I have nothing but this big carrot."

437
" Idiot!" she yelled, throwing a spoon at him. "If you keep going like this, I'll take back my
dowry and go back to my parents' home!"

The two guard dogs, standing at the kitchen door looking for scraps, began talking to
each other, and Ahmed understood what they were saying.

"Look at the tone of our mistress and master," said the bitch, "what would you do to me
if I answered you like that?"

"Why, dear," said the male dog, "I will bite you hard where it hurts most, I can tell you."

Then Ahmed started laughing, but his wife hit him hard on the head and screamed
angrily:

"Don't laugh at me, you piece of shit, or I'll leave you in the morning!"

Ahmed had to apologize to her because he didn't dare tell her that he understood the
language of animals, but he did regret asking for such a gift.

Seven days passed, and Ahmad's wife scolded him more and more harshly every day,
and he felt that he could not bear it anymore. He sat on the prayer rug, facing the Holy
of Holies, and prayed to God to guide him on how to bear these insults. Because he
knew that if he told his wife every time what made him laugh, the revenge of Suliman,
son of David, would come upon him. Should he tell his wife to let the terrible jinn come
to him, just to get peace from her tongue?

After the prayer, Ahmed stood up and went to the cupboard where the prayer rug was.
He saw two mice in the cupboard and heard one mouse say to the other:

―Oh, sister, our poor master is in such a bad condition tonight that I fear he may even go
to the jinn of Suliman, son of David (peace be upon him!), rather than endure the
scoldings of our mistress any longer.‖

The other mouse replied:

438
"Well, sister, if he could be more reasonable,

"Next time she goes out, just give her a good beating with a big stick, and all will be well.
She thinks he's a fool just because he's docile!"

Ahmed closed the cupboard door and thought for a moment. The mouse was right; he
wanted to show his wife who was the master of his own house. So he smiled to himself,
walked to the pile of kindling by the stove, and picked up a thick stick.

" Husband, what are you laughing at? Tell me a joke!" the wife shouted, throwing a
handful of nut shells at him. "Don't ask me what I'm laughing at!" he roared, swinging
the stick above his head, "or I'll hit you with this stick! You mind your own business, and
I'll mind mine!"

Hearing this, his wife looked at him with a new eye. He was not as stupid as she had
imagined. She said meekly:

"Okay, honey, I'm sorry I've been a little grumpy lately. I'll try to correct it."

She did so, and they lived in harmony ever since.

One day, just after Ramadan, word came that a magician from a distant land was
seeking an audience with the king.

"Send him in," said the Grand Vizier, and led him ceremoniously into the audience
chamber.

The magician wore a tall felt hat, a long black cloak, and red leather sandals. He had a
high nose bridge, bright eyes, and a messy white beard.

"What country are you from?" the king asked as the stranger approached the throne.
"What can you show me?" The old magician bowed deeply.

"Your Majesty, I am an Arabian horse," he said, "and I have brought to your Majesty a
marvelous horse. It is unique in all the world."

439
"Send it to the stables at once," said the king, "and my son and I will examine it there,
for we are both very good at distinguishing between real and fake horses. Is it an
Arabian stallion or a mare?"

"Oh, most auspicious majesty," said the magician, "it is neither, for it is made of ebony,
and has wings of gold, and eyes of jewels."

"What!" exclaimed the King. "How can a horse be made of ebony and gold? Lead the
way, old man. I can control it.

5.1.17 Prince Feroze Shah and Pegasus

He held the hand of his son, Prince Feroze Shah, and together they went to the royal
stables.

There stood a beautiful black horse, eyes sparkling, neck held high and proud. It was
made with great skill, like a real horse. On closer inspection, it was made of ebony, with
golden wings folded at its sides, and stirrups made of fine leather. "It can fly," the Arab
said.

"How does it do that?" the king asked with great interest, he could hardly believe his
eyes, for the horse was obviously a wonderful work of art, and he wanted to see how it
flew.

"Your Majesty, I will teach you." The magician said, and immediately jumped onto the
saddle. He touched the horse's neck with a wooden stake, and the horse immediately
flew up from the ground, carrying the old man on its back. Everyone looked up in
amazement, and the golden wings spread out like an eagle, and the magician flew high
above their heads and circled in the air.

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When the horse fell to the ground again, the king was the first to catch it. Then the
prince came along, eager to try it himself.

"Please give me a ride," the prince pleaded as the magician got out of the car. "This is
the most amazing thing I have ever seen in my life."

"Certainly, sir," the magician whispered, "just touch the stake here, and the horse will fly
into the air." Before he had finished his words, Feroze Shah had mounted the saddle,
and the magic horse took to the air as before.

"Alas," cried the magician, "his Highness did not wait for me to tell him how to stop the
horse. There is a stake hidden in the mane on the other side of its neck. I hope

The prince will have no trouble finding it, for if he can't, the horse will carry him to the
ends of the earth!'

The king looked up and saw the horse rising higher and higher until it turned into a black
dot in the distance. He anxiously waited for the prince to return, but soon the horse
disappeared.

"Damned magician!" the king roared. "If my son dies, you will pay with your life!"

"Your Majesty!" The magician begged after being caught by the royal guards, "If the
prince turns another stake, he can come back. Let's give him a little more time..."

But though they waited for an hour, anxiously watching the clouds, Feroze Shah did not
reappear.

"Take him to the torture chamber!" the people shouted. "Lock up the Arab until the
prince returns." So the old man was dragged away, and the Persians threw stones at
him as they went.

The king was in despair, for he had never let his beloved heir out of his sight in his life,
and now this terrible thing had happened again. He threw ashes on his head and cried

441
out in mourning, and the whole court followed suit. The whole palace was in mourning,
and everyone was grieving for their young prince. There was no more laughter, and
everything was at a standstill.

Meanwhile, Firoz Shah, flying through the sky, saw a beautiful city, with golden minarets
and domes gleaming in the sun below. It occurred to him that he should try to stop the
horse, so he looked around to see if there was anything on the horse's neck that he
could turn. He noticed a wooden stake on the other side of the horse's neck, hidden in
the silky mane. He touched it. Slowly, the horse began to descend, and soon came to
rest on a broad platform of rose-colored marble.

Firoz Shah crept down from his saddle and looked around. He saw a jewel-encrusted
bed with a silk coverlet. He realized that he must be on the terrace of some palace and
that perhaps an important person was sleeping under the coverlet. He was about to
mount his horse again when someone moved in the bed and he saw that it was a
beautiful girl.

She opened her eyes wide and looked at him in surprise.

"Madam," he said dejectedly, "I beg your pardon, I did not mean to disturb you, my
horse simply fell from the sky."

"From the sky?" the girl asked again, "Do you have a Pegasus like an elf? Are you a
monster or a demon?"

"No, forgive me, ma'am, I am Prince Firoz Shah of Persia, and a magician brought this
marvelous horse to my father's court to show us its power. I saddled myself and
galloped here, but I have no idea where this is or to whom I can turn for help."

"You have come to Bengal," she said, "and I am the daughter of the King of that land.
Now, come and help me to my bed, and show me your wonderful horse, for I am so
curious to know all about it."

442
Then Firoz Shah took her by the hand, and helped her out of the bed, and showed her
the horse of ebony and gold in detail. The princess, whose name was Shirindir, begged
the prince to take her on the horse, for she had never seen such a beautiful toy in her
life.

As they were talking and looking at the horses, the chief eunuch in charge of the harem
looked out of the window and saw his mistress in her nightgown with a stranger. He ran
to the King of Bengal in panic, threw himself on the ground, and shouted:

Oh, Reflection of the Thousand Suns, your daughter, the princess, is being carried
away by a young man in strange clothes, and his horse is on the terrace of the harem at
this moment.'

"Young man? Horse? Stole my daughter? Stop them and bring the young man to me
immediately!" the King of Bengal roared.

So, while Feroze Shah and Shirin Dil were laughing together, the huge black chief
eunuch rushed onto the terrace and seized the prince.

"Damned foreigner!" the eunuch hissed. "You shall not steal my mistress! Instead, you
shall be brought before the most noble Majesty of the East, our noble King."

The princess began to cry and, pulling her cloak over her nightgown, she followed them
to the throne room where her father sat on the ivory throne, fuming with anger.

"Young man, what is this?" the king said angrily. "How dare you enter my daughter's
terrace and try to take her away? I will kill you for your intrusion!"

Feroze Shah replied: "Your Majesty, I am the king's son. A magician showed this
magical flying horse to my father and me, and I asked for permission to ride it. I rode the
horse through the air for an unknown period of time, and finally landed by chance on the
terrace of your palace. Please forgive me, I meant no offense..."

443
"That's enough! Let's take a look at this flying horse!" said the King of Bengal. So they
went out to the terrace to take a closer look.

The king was amazed by the magical horse with golden wings. Then, when the king
was convinced

The Prince of Persia bore his daughter no ill will, and invited her to stay in the palace for
as long as she pleased, and then return home.

After seven days and seven nights of feasting, Prince Feroze Shah took leave of the
king and princess and rode away again on his magical horse. All the people of Bengal
were in disbelief as they saw a young man of strange appearance leaping into the air on
a horse as black as ebony and with golden wings.

Feroze Shah disappeared from sight.

The princess began to cry and felt her heart broken. She had fallen in love with the
Prince of Persia, and he had not promised to come back, and she was afraid she would
never see him again.

When Pegasus rose to mid-air, the prince turned his horse's head toward Persia and sat
in the saddle until he could see the roofs of Isfahan. When he was over the palace, he
dismounted and walked into the hall. People were weeping all around him, and the
whole place was filled with an atmosphere of mourning.

"Someone must have died," he thought, and went to look for his father. When he arrived
at the palace, he found his parents with pale faces and ashes on their heads.

When he appeared, everyone cheered and asked where he had been and how he had
returned safely when everyone thought he was dead.

He related the whole story, leaving out no detail, until the royal family and courtiers had
heard it all. He was carried to his chambers, bathed, and dressed in new clothes. His
family gathered at a banquet held in his honor . Prisons were opened, money was

444
distributed to the poor, and the palace floor was strewn with thousands of flowers.
Hundreds of courtiers came to kiss the hand of their prince and thank Allah for his
miraculous return.

"My son," said the king, when the feast was over, "the only man in all my dominions
whom I have not set free is that cursed Arab magician who brought that enchanted
horse here. If I had kept him locked up here for the rest of his life, I would never have
forgiven him!"

"No, father, I beg you, don't be so harsh on him, after all I have come back safe and
sound after so many hardships. Please let him go, let him go," said the prince. At his
son's repeated pleas, the Persian king finally agreed to forgive the old magician, so he
was released. The old man was overjoyed, kissed the king's feet, and expressed
endless blessings to him. The king gave him a noble robe, asked him to carry as much
gold as he could, and a priceless emerald, which he asked him to hang around his neck
as a sign of the king's forgiveness.

"Now, my son," said the king, "be careful not to touch that black horse again, for it may
lead you to your ruin. I will ask the cursed Arab magician to take it away with him when I
go."

But the prince hardly listened to his father, for his mind was far away in Bengal, thinking
of the beautiful Princess Shirindir, whom he loved. So at night, when all the palace was
asleep, he crept out, went to the chained magic horse in the stable, and mounted it. He
turned the bolt on the horse's neck, and the horse rose up with him as before. Now the
Princess of Bengal was lying in her room.

Lying in bed, she dreamed of the Prince of Persia. She woke up instantly when the
magic horse landed on her terrace. Prince Feroze Shah walked towards her and
embraced her.

"Princess," he said, "I cannot leave again, although my father has forbidden me to ride
the magic horse, for he fears it may lead me to my destruction."
445
"Oh, Prince of my heart," she cried, "I am so glad to see you again. Let us go to my
father, tell him of our mutual affection, and ask his blessing on our marriage."

"Until then," said the prince, "come with me back to my native Persia, and see my family,
and then I will take you back to the palace for lunch." He lifted her up and laid her on the
saddle, and then he jumped on board, and soon they were flying high into the air,
soaring into the clouds, and flying as fast as the wind.

When the horse finally landed in the rose garden of the Isfahan Palace, a white light had
just appeared on the horizon.

" Wait here for me, my dear," said Firoz Shah, leaving the princess among the rose-
bushes, "I will go and tell my father of your coming, that he may receive you with the
dignity you deserve." With these words he kissed her, and hid her among the rose-
bushes, while the ebony horse remained beside her.

As the prince was travelling at night, he was not seen. While the king was getting
dressed, the prince came up to his father and said:

"Oh, Mirror of the Universe, guess where I've been? Who did I bring to visit you?"

"My son," said the king, "did you dream an exciting dream last night, or are you mad?"

"No, father, I am out for a ride on Pegasus! I have come to visit you with a noble
Princess, the daughter of the King of Bengal, who is waiting for your invitation in the
rose garden."

"Well, I will receive her with all the splendor she deserves," replied the king, and he
caused his most magnificent robes to be put on, "and the whole city to be adorned with
rich carpets, and I will ask my nobles to send their wives to serve the lady, and I will
bring her to the palace."

Feroze Shah then donned the prince's attire and adorned himself with a jeweled belt
and tiara so as to appear more handsome in the eyes of Princess Shirindil.

446
The king sat on a throne made of pure gold, carried by four tall black men, followed by
the prince and a group of musicians playing tambourines and flutes.

When they reached the Rose Garden, Feroze Shah shouted:

"Princess, princess, show your beautiful face. My father is here to pay tribute to you."

But no one responded. Feroze Shah was horrified to find that both the ebony horse and
the princess had disappeared. The entire royal family was confused, but the prince
knew that it was the work of the evil Arab magician and he had asked his father to spare
his life. And it was so. The magician found his horse, a magical creature he had created,
standing among the rose bushes and decided to ride away. However, he smelled the
fragrance of the princess's dress and went into the rose room where she was hiding.
When he saw the princess wearing jewels, a veil and a golden crown on her head, he
immediately realized that she was no ordinary girl.

When he bowed low before her, she said, "Go away from here, most terrible old man,
for I am waiting for Prince Feroze Shah to appear, and he will be angry if he comes and
finds you here."

"Don't be afraid, madam," said the magician calmly, "I am sent by the prince himself to
take you to the palace, for I am the Grand Vizier."

" How do I get there then?" Shirindil asked.

"Well, let's ride on the magic horse," said the magician, smiling in his most amiable
manner, "and in a few seconds you will be at the palace."

The princess held out her hand to him, and they mounted their horses, and soon the
horses bore them to heaven.

"Why, where are we going?" she cried in terror as they flew higher and higher into the
clouds. "Aren't you taking me to my prince, Firoz Shah? I'm going to introduce him to his
father, the King of Persia?"

447
At this the magician began to laugh, and the poor girl's blood froze as she realized she
had been deceived.

"That stupid little bastard? No, I will not take you to the man who stole my precious
ebony horse with gold wings that I made with my own hands. No, princess, you will
come with me, wherever I want to take you! So, don't move." He touched her with his
long cold fingers, and everything in front of her eyes turned black.

When she came to herself she was in a strange country, utterly foreign to her, walking
beside horses and old men.

'Princes, this is where we are to live, and you are to cook for me, for you are mine now,
and it is best to forget - to change completely - your former life.'

At this critical moment, a powerful caliph returned from a pilgrimage with his retinue and
appeared on the scene. The caliph saw the beautiful girl with a haggard face and an old
man leading a black horse beside her, so he sent the captain of his guard to visit her.

"Stop!" cried the captain. "My noble master has noticed that the young lady is crying,
and wishes me to ascertain the cause."

"She is very sorry, for she has left a dear one behind in a far country," said the magician
quickly, as the captain looked into his face, but the princess was still weeping and
shaking her head.

"You are not telling the truth, old man," said the captain, and ordered his men to seize
the magician. When the girl and the old man were brought before the Caliph, the
princess sobbed and said:

"I was kidnapped by this old Arab wizard. I am a Bengali princess."

"I will do my best to protect you, Princess of Bengal. As for that magician, he must be
taught a lesson."

448
Guards, take him away! Put him in prison with this villain.' Then the Caliph placed the
fainted girl on the ebony horse and led it back to the provincial capital himself. There,
Shirindir was placed in a magnificent palace, where she felt completely at home. The
Caliph was very pleased with the magical ebony and gold horse, but the princess did
not tell him about its magic, so that he thought the folded golden wings on the horse
were just decorations.

Now, unable to live peacefully without his beloved princess for many months, Feroze
Shah disguised himself as a wandering fakir and set out in search of her.

He went from country to country, asking around, asking if they had ever seen a lady and
an old man riding an ebony horse. Most of the people he met thought he was crazy, and
laughed at him, saying they had never seen anything like it in their lives.

One evening, he was sitting in a teahouse feeling depressed while travelers were
drinking hot tea when he heard someone say:

"I was traveling in a certain country when I heard a strange story. The caliph of that
country returned from a pilgrimage with his entourage and met a beautiful girl, an ugly
old magician, and a horse made entirely of ebony and gold."

"My friend," cried the Prince, "pardon my interrupting your private conversation, but will
you tell me where you heard this story, for it interests me greatly?"

The traveler, somewhat surprised by the dervish's concern, told him that it was about a
hundred miles away. It took a long time for Feroze Shah to get there on foot, but he
joined a caravan of traders leading silk camels and eventually reached his destination.

The princess waited for months, hoping to ride the magical horse back to her father's
kingdom. However, the Caliph locked the ebony and golden horse in his treasury and
asked the princess to marry him. The princess was so frightened by the Caliph's plea
that she pretended to lose her mind. So the Caliph, in grief, locked the princess in the
palace and could not leave for a moment unless she took a few slaves with her.

449
The poor girl's plight was well known at the fair, and doctors frequently visited to see if
they could cure the princess's madness, but to no avail.

As soon as Feroze Shah arrived in the city of the Caliphate, he went through all the tea
houses, listening to the gossip, and after a while he realized that this was indeed the
place he was looking for. He asked for an audience with the king, who said he knew a
cure for the princess's illness.

"Hello, Caliph, and all hail," said the disguised prince, standing before the throne. "I
have heard that you are protecting a Bengali princess, but she is no longer in her right
mind. Let me try my secret recipe, and I think I can help her."

"Well, dervish," the Caliph agreed, "come with me, and I will take you to the poor girl's
abode. Heal her as quickly as possible, and when she is well, I hope to marry her."

As soon as they reached the ill-fated Princess Shirindir, she recognized the face of the
dervish as that of her beloved Firoz Shah. He motioned her to be quiet, for she had
almost called out his name. He held her wrist and whispered a verse from the Qur'an.
Then, turning to the Caliph, he asked:

The lady had lost some toy or treasure, and was saddened by it, but if she could find it
again, the sight of it would instantly bring her to her senses.

"Alas, wonderful dervish," cried the Caliph, "this must be the golden ebony horse of
which you spoke, which I had locked up in the treasury. Why did I not think of it before?"
And he sent for the horse to be brought, and placed in the courtyard of the princess's
chamber.

When the girl saw the horse, she cried out with joy and threw her arms around its neck.
Then she knelt before the Caliph and thanked him in such a gentle and grateful tone
and in such beautiful words that the Caliph no longer doubted her sanity.

The Caliph was pleased and asked Devichi to sell the ink and give him power.

450
"I will not allow the woody Pomeni, as a humble ascetic, but I will endure it for another
hour".

The Caliph said: "You will be cut into pieces for your sins, and the punishment will be
distributed to the poor. Tomorrow, all the country will hold a banquet to celebrate my
wedding." After that, he left the county, leaving Frosh to guard the prison.

As soon as the Caliph left, the prince jumped onto the saddle made of golden ebony
bones and motioned the prisoner to ride behind him. The prisoner hugged the prince
tightly and grabbed the bones by the neck. They tried hard to shoot the light into the air
and avoid the Caliph's eyes.

As soon as they were outside, the harem guards closed the door and told the Caliph
about Taco. He was an Indian and an Asian magician.

Why can you get from me the fact that it went up into the air with E on the back of the
day home? Now when this miraculous horse fell outside the palace of the King of
Bengal, beautiful Shirindil was believed to be dead.

Then Prince Feroshak changed his clothes, came to his lover's father, and begged for
forgiveness-

The king was delighted to see his daughter again, and she related to him her
adventures in detail, without causing her any trouble, so he was glad to forgive Feroth
Shah.

"Holy Third of Persia," he said kindly, "marry my daughter, she is like a jewel in my eye,
and I know you will make her happy. You have rescued her from the tyrannical Caliph,
which proves you to be a worthy husband." He embraced the young man and placed a
rare ruby ring on his finger.

The next day, after resting, Ferothsar and Scheindl rode on the magic Pegasus in front
of the townspeople.

451
When they arrived in Persia again, they were welcomed with great joy. The Persian king
ordered a full month of celebration and made young Hednich a member of the royal
family. However, when the month was over and the newlyweds returned to live in the
palace, the king himself destroyed Johnny's bones and scattered the fragments
throughout the...

poor, so it would never take his son away again. Then, Fone-hah and Hindi lived happily
together and brought them many joys.

6 Reference

[1] Joan Lambert: ―Microsoft Word Step By Step―:―You don‘t need to create Indexes for
documents that will be distributed electronically, because the readers can use
Navigation panel to find the information they need―. For more information, see ―find and
rerplace text: in Chaper 3 ‚Enter and Edit text―.

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