Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm
J >> Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm >> Household Stories by the Brothers GrimmHOUSEHOLD STORIES
GRIMM
[Illustration: THE SLEEPING BEAUTY
"--AT LAST HE CAME TO THE
TOWER & OPENED THE DOOR
OF THE LITTLE ROOM WHERE
ROSAMOND LAY."]
HOUSEHOLD
STORIES,
FROM
THE COLLECTION OF THE BROS:
GRIMM:
TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN
BY
LUCY CRANE;
AND
DONE INTO PICTURES
BY
WALTER CRANE
DOVER
PUBLICATIONS, INC.
NEW YORK
This new Dover edition, first published in 1963, is an unabridged
republication of the work first published by Macmillan and Company in
1886.
_Standard Book Number: 486-21080-4_
_Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 64-16327_
Manufactured in the United States of America
Dover Publications, Inc.
180 Varick Street
New York, N. Y. 10014
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
HALF-TITLE.
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY. _Frontispiece_
TITLE-PAGE. PAGE
THE RABBIT'S BRIDE, Headpiece 1
Tailpiece 2
SIX SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, Headpiece 3
Tailpiece 8
CLEVER GRETHEL, Headpiece 9
Tailpiece 11
THE DEATH OF THE HEN, Headpiece 12
Tailpiece 13
HANS IN LUCK, Headpiece 14
Tailpiece 19
THE GOOSE GIRL _To face page_ 20
Headpiece 20
Tailpiece 25
THE RAVEN, Headpiece 26
Tailpiece 31
THE FROG PRINCE, Headpiece 32
Tailpiece 36
CAT AND MOUSE IN PARTNERSHIP, Headpiece 37
Tailpiece 39
THE WOLF AND THE SEVEN KIDS, Headpiece 40
Tailpiece 42
FAITHFUL JOHN _To face page_ 43
Headpiece 43
Tailpiece 51
THE WONDERFUL MUSICIAN, Headpiece 52
Tailpiece 55
THE TWELVE BROTHERS, Headpiece 56
Tailpiece 61
THE VAGABONDS, Headpiece 62
Tailpiece 64
THE BROTHER AND SISTER, Headpiece 65
Tailpiece 71
RAPUNZEL _To face page_ 72
Headpiece 72
Tailpiece 75
THE THREE LITTLE MEN IN THE WOOD, Headpiece 76
Tailpiece 81
THE THREE SPINSTERS, Headpiece 82
Tailpiece 84
HANSEL AND GRETHEL, Headpiece 85
Tailpiece 92
THE WHITE SNAKE _To face page_ 93
Headpiece 93
Tailpiece 97
THE STRAW, THE COAL, AND THE BEAN, Headpiece 98
Tailpiece 99
THE FISHERMAN AND HIS WIFE, Headpiece 100
Tailpiece 108
THE GALLANT TAILOR, Headpiece 109
Tailpiece 117
ASCHENPUTTEL, Headpiece 118
Tailpiece 125
THE MOUSE, THE BIRD, AND THE SAUSAGE, Headpiece 126
Tailpiece 127
MOTHER HULDA _To face page_ 128
Headpiece 128
Tailpiece 131
LITTLE RED-CAP, Headpiece 132
Tailpiece 135
THE BREMEN TOWN MUSICIANS, Headpiece 136
Tailpiece 139
PRUDENT HANS, Headpiece 140
Tailpiece 144
CLEVER ELSE, Headpiece 145
Tailpiece 148
THE TABLE, THE ASS, AND THE STICK, Headpiece 149
Tailpiece 159
TOM THUMB, Headpiece 160
Tailpiece 166
HOW MRS. FOX MARRIED AGAIN, Headpiece 167
Initial 169
Tailpiece 170
THE ELVES, Headpiece 171
Initial 173
Initial 174
Tailpiece 174
THE ROBBER BRIDEGROOM _To face page_ 175
Headpiece 175
Tailpiece 178
MR. KORBES, Headpiece 179
Tailpiece 180
TOM THUMB'S TRAVELS, Headpiece 181
Tailpiece 185
THE ALMOND TREE _To face page_ 186
Headpiece 186
Tailpiece 194
OLD SULTAN, Headpiece 195
Tailpiece 197
THE SIX SWANS _To face page_ 198
Headpiece 198
Tailpiece 203
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Headpiece 204
Tailpiece 207
KING THRUSHBEARD, Headpiece 208
Tailpiece 212
SNOW-WHITE _To face page_ 213
Headpiece 213
Tailpiece 221
THE KNAPSACK, THE HAT, AND THE HORN, Headpiece 222
Tailpiece 227
RUMPELSTILTSKIN, Headpiece 228
Tailpiece 231
ROLAND, Headpiece 232
Tailpiece 235
THE GOLDEN BIRD, _To face page_ 236
Headpiece 236
Tailpiece 243
THE DOG AND THE SPARROW, Headpiece 244
Tailpiece 247
FRED AND KATE, Headpiece 248
Tailpiece 255
THE LITTLE FARMER, Headpiece 256
Tailpiece 261
THE QUEEN BEE, Headpiece 262
Tailpiece 264
THE GOLDEN GOOSE, Headpiece 265
Tailpiece 269
THE RABBIT'S BRIDE
THERE was once a woman who lived with her daughter in a beautiful
cabbage-garden; and there came a rabbit and ate up all the cabbages. At
last said the woman to her daughter,
"Go into the garden, and drive out the rabbit."
"Shoo! shoo!" said the maiden; "don't eat up all our cabbages, little
rabbit!"
"Come, maiden," said the rabbit, "sit on my tail and go with me to my
rabbit-hutch." But the maiden would not.
Another day, back came the rabbit, and ate away at the cabbages, until
the woman said to her daughter,
"Go into the garden, and drive away the rabbit."
"Shoo! shoo!" said the maiden; "don't eat up all our cabbages, little
rabbit!"
"Come, maiden," said the rabbit, "sit on my tail and go with me to my
rabbit-hutch." But the maiden would not.
Again, a third time back came the rabbit, and ate away at the cabbages,
until the woman said to her daughter,
"Go into the garden, and drive away the rabbit."
"Shoo! shoo!" said the maiden; "don't eat up all our cabbages, little
rabbit!"
"Come, maiden," said the rabbit, "sit on my tail and go with me to my
rabbit-hutch."
And then the girl seated herself on the rabbit's tail, and the rabbit
took her to his hutch.
"Now," said he, "set to work and cook some bran and cabbage; I am going
to bid the wedding guests." And soon they were all collected. Would you
like to know who they were? Well, I can only tell you what was told to
me; all the hares came, and the crow who was to be the parson to marry
them, and the fox for the clerk, and the altar was under the rainbow.
But the maiden was sad, because she was so lonely.
"Get up! get up!" said the rabbit, "the wedding folk are all merry."
But the bride wept and said nothing, and the rabbit went away, but very
soon came back again.
"Get up! get up!" said he, "the wedding folk are waiting." But the bride
said nothing, and the rabbit went away. Then she made a figure of straw,
and dressed it in her own clothes, and gave it a red mouth, and set it
to watch the kettle of bran, and then she went home to her mother. Back
again came the rabbit, saying, "Get up! get up!" and he went up and hit
the straw figure on the head, so that it tumbled down.
And the rabbit thought that he had killed his bride, and he went away
and was very sad.
SIX SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE
THERE was once a man who was a Jack-of-all-trades; he had served in the
war, and had been brave and bold, but at the end of it he was sent about
his business, with three farthings and his discharge.
"I am not going to stand this," said he; "wait till I find the right man
to help me, and the king shall give me all the treasures of his kingdom
before he has done with me."
Then, full of wrath, he went into the forest, and he saw one standing
there by six trees which he had rooted up as if they had been stalks of
corn. And he said to him,
"Will you be my man, and come along with me?"
"All right," answered he; "I must just take this bit of wood home to my
father and mother." And taking one of the trees, he bound it round the
other five, and putting the faggot on his shoulder, he carried it off;
then soon coming back, he went along with his leader, who said,
"Two such as we can stand against the whole world."
And when they had gone on a little while, they came to a huntsman who
was kneeling on one knee and taking careful aim with his rifle.
"Huntsman," said the leader, "what are you aiming at?"
"Two miles from here," answered he, "there sits a fly on the bough of an
oak-tree, I mean to put a bullet into its left eye."
"Oh, come along with me," said the leader; "three of us together can
stand against the world."
The huntsman was quite willing to go with him, and so they went on till
they came to seven windmills, whose sails were going round briskly, and
yet there was no wind blowing from any quarter, and not a leaf stirred.
"Well," said the leader, "I cannot think what ails the windmills,
turning without wind;" and he went on with his followers about two miles
farther, and then they came to a man sitting up in a tree, holding one
nostril and blowing with the other.
"Now then," said the leader, "what are you doing up there?"
"Two miles from here," answered he, "there are seven windmills; I am
blowing, and they are going round."
"Oh, go with me," cried the leader, "four of us together can stand
against the world."
So the blower got down and went with them, and after a time they came to
a man standing on one leg, and the other had been taken off and was
lying near him.
"You seem to have got a handy way of resting yourself," said the leader
to the man.
"I am a runner," answered he, "and in order to keep myself from going
too fast I have taken off a leg, for when I run with both, I go faster
than a bird can fly."
"Oh, go with me," cried the leader, "five of us together may well stand
against the world."
So he went with them all together, and it was not long before they met a
man with a little hat on, and he wore it just over one ear.
"Manners! manners!" said the leader; "with your hat like that, you look
like a jack-fool."
"I dare not put it straight," answered the other; "if I did, there would
be such a terrible frost that the very birds would be frozen and fall
dead from the sky to the ground."
"Oh, come with me," said the leader; "we six together may well stand
against the whole world."
So the six went on until they came to a town where the king had caused
it to be made known that whoever would run a race with his daughter and
win it might become her husband, but that whoever lost must lose his
head into the bargain. And the leader came forward and said one of his
men should run for him.
"Then," said the king, "his life too must be put in pledge, and if he
fails, his head and yours too must fall."
When this was quite settled and agreed upon, the leader called the
runner, and strapped his second leg on to him.
"Now, look out," said he, "and take care that we win."
It had been agreed that the one who should bring water first from a far
distant brook should be accounted winner. Now the king's daughter and
the runner each took a pitcher, and they started both at the same time;
but in one moment, when the king's daughter had gone but a very little
way, the runner was out of sight, for his running was as if the wind
rushed by. In a short time he reached the brook, filled his pitcher full
of water, and turned back again. About half-way home, however, he was
overcome with weariness, and setting down his pitcher, he lay down on
the ground to sleep. But in order to awaken soon again by not lying too
soft he had taken a horse's skull which lay near and placed it under his
head for a pillow. In the meanwhile the king's daughter, who really was
a good runner, good enough to beat an ordinary man, had reached the
brook, and filled her pitcher, and was hastening with it back again,
when she saw the runner lying asleep.
"The day is mine," said she with much joy, and she emptied his pitcher
and hastened on. And now all had been lost but for the huntsman who was
standing on the castle wall, and with his keen eyes saw all that
happened.
"We must not be outdone by the king's daughter," said he, and he loaded
his rifle and took so good an aim that he shot the horse's skull from
under the runner's head without doing him any harm. And the runner awoke
and jumped up, and saw his pitcher standing empty and the king's
daughter far on her way home. But, not losing courage, he ran swiftly to
the brook, filled it again with water, and for all that, he got home ten
minutes before the king's daughter.
"Look you," said he; "this is the first time I have really stretched my
legs; before it was not worth the name of running."
The king was vexed, and his daughter yet more so, that she should be
beaten by a discharged common soldier; and they took counsel together
how they might rid themselves of him and of his companions at the same
time.
"I have a plan," said the king; "do not fear but that we shall be quit
of them for ever." Then he went out to the men and bade them to feast
and be merry and eat and drink; and he led them into a room, which had a
floor of iron, and the doors were iron, the windows had iron frames and
bolts; in the room was a table set out with costly food.
"Now, go in there and make yourselves comfortable," said the king.
And when they had gone in, he had the door locked and bolted. Then he
called the cook, and told him to make a big fire underneath the room, so
that the iron floor of it should be red hot. And the cook did so, and
the six men began to feel the room growing very warm, by reason, as they
thought at first, of the good dinner; but as the heat grew greater and
greater, and they found the doors and windows fastened, they began to
think it was an evil plan of the king's to suffocate them.
"He shall not succeed, however," said the man with the little hat; "I
will bring on a frost that shall make the fire feel ashamed of itself,
and creep out of the way."
So he set his hat straight on his head, and immediately there came such
a frost that all the heat passed away and the food froze in the dishes.
After an hour or two had passed, and the king thought they must have all
perished in the heat, he caused the door to be opened, and went himself
to see how they fared. And when the door flew back, there they were all
six quite safe and sound, and they said they were quite ready to come
out, so that they might warm themselves, for the great cold of that room
had caused the food to freeze in the dishes. Full of wrath, the king
went to the cook and scolded him, and asked why he had not done as he
was ordered.
"It is hot enough there: you may see for yourself," answered the cook.
And the king looked and saw an immense fire burning underneath the room
of iron, and he began to think that the six men were not to be got rid
of in that way. And he thought of a new plan by which it might be
managed, so he sent for the leader and said to him,
"If you will give up your right to my daughter, and take gold instead,
you may have as much as you like."
"Certainly, my lord king," answered the man; "let me have as much gold
as my servant can carry, and I give up all claim to your daughter." And
the king agreed that he should come again in a fortnight to fetch the
gold. The man then called together all the tailors in the kingdom, and
set them to work to make a sack, and it took them a fortnight. And when
it was ready, the strong man who had been found rooting up trees took it
on his shoulder, and went to the king.
"Who is this immense fellow carrying on his shoulder a bundle of stuff
as big as a house?" cried the king, terrified to think how much gold he
would carry off. And a ton of gold was dragged in by sixteen strong men,
but he put it all into the sack with one hand, saying,
"Why don't you bring some more? this hardly covers the bottom!" So the
king bade them fetch by degrees the whole of his treasure, and even then
the sack was not half full.
"Bring more!" cried the man; "these few scraps go no way at all!" Then
at last seven thousand waggons laden with gold collected through the
whole kingdom were driven up; and he threw them in his sack, oxen and
all.
"I will not look too closely," said he, "but take what I can get, so
long as the sack is full." And when all was put in there was still
plenty of room.
"I must make an end of this," he said; "if it is not full, it is so much
the easier to tie up." And he hoisted it on his back, and went off with
his comrades.
When the king saw all the wealth of his realm carried off by a single
man he was full of wrath, and he bade his cavalry mount, and follow
after the six men, and take the sack away from the strong man.
Two regiments were soon up to them, and called them to consider
themselves prisoners, and to deliver up the sack, or be cut in pieces.
"Prisoners, say you?" said the man who could blow, "suppose you first
have a little dance together in the air," and holding one nostril, and
blowing through the other, he sent the regiments flying head over heels,
over the hills and far away. But a sergeant who had nine wounds and was
a brave fellow, begged not to be put to so much shame. And the blower
let him down easily, so that he came to no harm, and he bade him go to
the king and tell him that whatever regiments he liked to send more
should be blown away just the same. And the king, when he got the
message, said,
"Let the fellows be; they have some right on their side." So the six
comrades carried home their treasure, divided it among them, and lived
contented till they died.
CLEVER GRETHEL
THERE was once a cook called Grethel, who wore shoes with red heels, and
when she went out in them she gave herself great airs, and thought
herself very fine indeed. When she came home again, she would take a
drink of wine to refresh herself, and as that gave her an appetite, she
would take some of the best of whatever she was cooking, until she had
had enough;--"for," said she, "a cook must know how things taste."
Now it happened that one day her master said to her,--
"Grethel, I expect a guest this evening; you must make ready a pair of
fowls."
"Certainly, sir, I will," answered Grethel. So she killed the fowls,
cleaned them, and plucked them, and put them on the spit, and then, as
evening drew near, placed them before the fire to roast. And they began
to be brown, and were nearly done, but the guest had not come.
"If he does not make haste," cried Grethel to her master, "I must take
them away from the fire; it's a pity and a shame not to eat them now,
just when they are done to a turn." And the master said he would run
himself and fetch the guest. As soon as he had turned his back, Grethel
took the fowls from before the fire.
"Standing so long before the fire," said she, "makes one hot and
thirsty,--and who knows when they will come! in the meanwhile I will go
to the cellar and have a drink." So down she ran, took up a mug, and
saying, "Here's to me!" took a good draught. "One good drink deserves
another," she said "and it should not be cut short;" so she took another
hearty draught. Then she went and put the fowls down to the fire again,
and, basting them with butter, she turned the spit briskly round. And
now they began to smell so good that Grethel saying, "I must find out
whether they really are all right," licked her fingers, and then cried,
"Well, I never! the fowls are good; it's a sin and a shame that no one
is here to eat them!"
So she ran to the window to see if her master and his guest were coming,
but as she could see nobody she went back to her fowls. "Why, one of the
wings is burning!" she cried presently, "I had better eat it and get it
out of the way." So she cut it off and ate it up, and it tasted good,
and then she thought,
"I had better cut off the other too, in case the master should miss
anything." And when both wings had been disposed of she went and looked
for the master, but still he did not come.
"Who knows," said she, "whether they are coming or not? they may have
put up at an inn." And after a pause she said again, "Come, I may as
well make myself happy, and first I will make sure of a good drink and
then of a good meal, and when all is done I shall be easy; the gifts of
the gods are not to be despised." So first she ran down into the cellar
and had a famous drink, and ate up one of the fowls with great relish.
And when that was done, and still the master did not come, Grethel eyed
the other fowl, saying, "What one is the other must be, the two belong
to each other, it is only fair that they should be both treated alike;
perhaps, when I have had another drink, I shall be able to manage it."
So she took another hearty drink, and then the second fowl went the way
of the first.
Just as she was in the middle of it the master came back. "Make haste,
Grethel," cried he, "the guest is coming directly!" "Very well, master,"
she answered, "it will soon be ready." The master went to see that the
table was properly laid, and, taking the great carving knife with which
he meant to carve the fowls, he sharpened it upon the step. Presently
came the guest, knocking very genteelly and softly at the front door.
Grethel ran and looked to see who it was, and when she caught sight of
the guest she put her finger on her lip saying, "Hush! make the best
haste you can out of this, for if my master catches you, it will be bad
for you; he asked you to come to supper, but he really means to cut off
your ears! Just listen how he is sharpening his knife!"
The guest, hearing the noise of the sharpening, made off as fast as he
could go. And Grethel ran screaming to her master. "A pretty guest you
have asked to the house!" cried she.
"How so, Grethel? what do you mean?" asked he.
"What indeed!" said she; "why, he has gone and run away with my pair of
fowls that I had just dished up."
"That's pretty sort of conduct!" said the master, feeling very sorry
about the fowls; "he might at least have left me one, that I might have
had something to eat." And he called out to him to stop, but the guest
made as if he did not hear him; then he ran after him, the knife still
in his hand, crying out, "Only one! only one!" meaning that the guest
should let him have one of the fowls and not take both, but the guest
thought he meant to have only one of his ears, and he ran so much the
faster that he might get home with both of them safe.
The DEATH of the HEN
ONCE on a time the cock and the hen went to the nut mountain, and they
agreed beforehand that whichever of them should find a nut was to divide
it with the other. Now the hen found a great big nut, but said nothing
about it, and was going to eat it all alone, but the kernel was such a
fat one that she could not swallow it down, and it stuck in her throat,
so that she was afraid she should choke.