Part 5
“Blow, wind, blow! Blow Conrad’s hat away. It is rolling! Do not stay Till I have combed my hair And tied it up again.”
At once the wind caught Conrad’s hat from his head and sent it flying and rolling across the meadows, and Conrad was obliged to run after it or he would have lost it.
By the time he came back again with the hat the Princess had combed her hair and fastened it up under her cap so that not a thread of it could be seen.
Conrad was very cross when he went home with the Princess that evening. He would not speak a word to her.
The next morning when they started out with the geese they passed under the gateway as usual, and the Princess looked up and said:
“Ah, Falada, that thou shouldst hang there!”
And the head answered:
“Ah, Princess, that thou shouldst pass here! If thy mother knew thy fate, Then her heart would surely break.”
Conrad listened and wondered, but said nothing.
When they reached the meadow the Princess let down her hair as before and began to comb it. It looked so beautiful and glittering and bright that Conrad felt he must have a hair of it. He crept up behind her and then, just as he was about to seize it, the Princess sang:
“Blow, wind, blow! Blow Conrad’s hat away. It is rolling! Do not stay Till I have combed my hair And tied it up again.”
At once the wind whirled Conrad’s hat away across the meadows, and he had to run after it to catch it.
When he came back he was so sulky that he would not even look at the Princess, but already she had her hair combed and fastened up under her cap.
That evening the goose-herd went to the King and said, “I do not wish that girl to go out to the meadows with me any more. I would rather take care of the geese by myself.”
“Why?” asked the King. “What is the matter with her?”
“Oh, she vexes me, and she has strange ways that I cannot understand.”
“What ways?” asked the King.
Then Conrad told him how every day as he and the girl passed through the gateway she would look up at the horse’s head and say:
“Ah, Falada, that thou shouldst hang there!”
And how the head would answer:
“Ah, Princess that thou shouldst pass here! If thy mother knew thy fate, Then her heart would surely break.”
“I do not like such strange ways,” said Conrad.
The King looked thoughtful and stroked his beard. Then he told Conrad not to say anything about this matter to anyone. “I myself,” said he, “will watch by the gateway to-morrow morning, for I wish to hear for myself exactly what passes between the girl and Falada.”
So the next morning very early the King hid himself in the shadow beside the gateway, and presently the Princess and Conrad came along driving the geese before them.
As they reached the gateway the Princess looked up and sighed:
“Ah, Falada, that thou shouldst hang there!”
And the head answered:
“Ah, Princess, that thou shouldst pass here! If thy mother knew thy fate, Then her heart would surely break.”
After they had spoken thus the King stepped out from the shadow and called to the Princess. “What is the meaning of these words?” asked he. “Who are you, and what is your story?”
The Princess began to weep. “Alas, I cannot answer,” said she, “for I have sworn that I would not tell a single living soul.”
“Very well,” said the King, “if you have sworn, then you must keep your oath; but to-night, after all the servants have left the bakehouse go and tell your story to the great oven that is there.”
This the Princess promised she would do. So that night, when she came home, she went into the bakehouse and looked about her. She saw no one, and she thought she was alone there, but the King had hidden himself inside the oven, though she did not know it.
Then the Princess began to tell her story to the oven. She told how she had left home with her false-hearted waiting-maid. She told of how she had lost the kerchief with the drops of blood upon it, and how the waiting-maid had made her exchange clothing with her and dress herself as a servant; and she told how she had been forced to swear that she would not tell all this to a living soul. All, the whole story, she told to the bake-oven, and the King sat inside of it and listened and understood.
When she had made an end of speaking the King came out and took her by the hand. “You have been very cruelly treated,” said he, “but now your sorrows are over.”
He then led the Princess into the palace, and she was dressed in the richest clothes that were there, and when this was done she was as beautiful as the moon when the clouds drift over it.
The King sent for the Prince, and when he saw the Princess he was filled with joy and love, and he knew at once that this must be his true bride.
He and the King planned together as to how the false bride should be punished. And this is what was done:
A grand feast and entertainment were arranged. The Prince sat upon a high seat with the false bride upon one hand and the true bride upon the other. But the false bride was so dazzled by all the splendor, and by her own pride that she did not even see the Princess.
Everyone ate and drank to his heart’s content, and then the King began asking riddles. After the riddles he said he would tell the guests a story, and the story he told was that of the Princess and the waiting-maid, and still the false bride was too dazzled by her own splendor to understand the story.
When he had finished the story the King asked, “What should be the punishment of such a false servant as that?”
Then the false bride cried boldly, “She should be taken to a high cliff and thrown over into the sea.”
“So shall it be,” cried the King sternly, “for you yourself are that false servant, and here sits the true bride whom you have wronged.”
Then the waiting-maid understood what she had done, and she was filled with terror. But the Princess had pity on her, and begged for mercy for her. So the waiting-maid was not thrown into the sea, but her fine clothes were stripped from her, and she was driven out to beg her way through the world.
Then the Prince and Princess were married and lived happily ever after, and Falada’s head was taken down and placed upon his body and he came to life again and lived for many years in the castle stable, and the Princess loved him dearly.
[Illustration]
THE LITTLE OLD WOMAN AND HER PIG
One time a little old woman was sweeping her room, and she found in the corner a bright silver shilling. “There!” said the old woman, “Now I can buy that little pig I have been wanting for such a long time.”
She finished her sweeping in a hurry and put on her bonnet and her shawl and started off to market to buy her pig, and she carried a tin pail with her so she could gather blackberries along the way.
The bushes were fairly loaded down with berries, so it did not take her long to fill her pail, and after that she got to market in no time.
At first she could not find just the pig she wanted. Some were too little and some were too big; some were too fat and some were too thin. But at last she found just exactly the right pig; it was round and pink and it had one black ear, and the curliest tail there was in the market. She paid just exactly a shilling for it, and then she tied a rope around its hind leg and started home with it, driving it before her, and carrying the pail of blackberries on her arm.
At first all went well. The little pig trotted quietly along, and the sun shone, and the birds sang, and the little white clouds floated across the sky. But presently they came to a stile, and the pig did not want to go over it. Now, there was no way to go round, and no way to get home except over this stile.
“Go on, piggy,” said the old woman, shaking the rope. But piggy wouldn’t go on. The old woman tried to drive him, and he wouldn’t go, and then she tried to lead him, and then she coaxed him and talked to him, but he just _wouldn’t_ go over the stile.
At last the old woman quite lost patience with him. She saw a dog trotting along the road, and she called to him. “Here! here, good dog; come and bite piggy, for I can’t make pig go over the stile, and at this rate I won’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
The dog stopped and looked at her and looked at the pig, but he would not bite it.
[Illustration: THE PIG WOULD NOT GO OVER THE STILE]
Close by a stick lay in the road, and the woman called to it (and she was quite cross by this time). “Stick, stick, beat dog; dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and at this rate I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the stick wouldn’t. It lay there quietly in the road just as though she hadn’t spoken to it.
Over in the field a fire was burning, and the old woman called to it, “Fire, fire, burn stick; stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and at this rate I won’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the fire wouldn’t.
Then the old woman called to a brook near by, “Water, water, quench fire; fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the brook wouldn’t.
She saw an ox over in the field. “Ox, ox,” she cried, “drink water; water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the ox wouldn’t.
She saw a butcher riding along the road, and she called to him “Butcher, butcher, kill ox; ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and I won’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the butcher wouldn’t.
There was a piece of rope twisted about the fence. “Rope, rope,” she cried, “hang butcher; butcher won’t kill ox, ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the rope wouldn’t.
Then she called to a rat that lived in a hole under the stile, “Rat, rat, gnaw rope; rope won’t hang butcher, butcher won’t kill ox, ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, pig won’t go over the stile, and I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
But the rat wouldn’t.
A cat was sitting on a gate-post. “Puss, puss, catch rat,” called the old woman. “Rat won’t gnaw rope, rope won’t hang butcher, butcher won’t kill ox, ox won’t drink water, water won’t quench fire, fire won’t burn stick, stick won’t beat dog, dog won’t bite pig, and I shan’t get home till midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
“No,” answered puss, “I am very comfortable sitting here. Why should I disturb myself just to please you. But if you will get the red cow to give you a saucerful of milk for me then I will catch the rat.”
So the little old woman tied the pig to the stile, and then she climbed over the fence into the field where the red cow was standing.
“Please, good cow, give me a saucerful of milk for puss,” she said, “so that puss will catch the rat that won’t gnaw the rope that won’t hang the butcher who won’t kill the ox that won’t drink the water that won’t quench the fire that won’t burn the stick that won’t beat the dog that won’t bite the pig that won’t go over the stile so that I can get home before midnight with my pail of fine ripe blackberries.”
Said the cow, “If you will go over yonder to where the haymakers are working and fetch me a wisp of hay to eat, then I will give you the milk.”
So the little old woman went over to the haymakers and said, “Please, good kind haymakers, give me a wisp of hay to give to the cow so that she may give me some milk to give to the cat.”
The haymakers were very hot and thirsty and they said, “Very well; if you will go down to the stream and fetch us a pailful of water we will give you the hay.”
So the little old woman emptied out her blackberries on the ground very carefully and then she hurried down to the stream and brought back to the haymakers a pailful of fresh cool water.
The haymakers drank deep of it and then they gave the little old woman all the hay she wanted. She put the blackberries back in the pail and hurried back to the cow with the hay.
The cow gladly gave her a saucerful of milk in return for the hay.
The old woman took the milk to the cat, and while puss was drinking it the old woman untied the rope that fastened the pig to the stile.
Puss finished the milk and licked up the last drop of it, and then she bounded down beside the stile and began to catch the rat.
The rat squeaked with terror and began to gnaw the rope.
The rope began to hang the butcher, the butcher began to kill the ox, the ox began to drink the water, the water began to quench the fire, the fire began to burn the stick, the stick began to beat the dog, the dog began to bite the pig, and the pig squealed at the top of its lungs and scrambled over the stile and ran for home so fast that the little old woman could hardly keep up with it.
They got home in less than no time; it wasn’t even midday, and the little old woman had her blackberries for dinner, and what was left over she gave to the pig.
THE WHITE CAT
There was once a king who had three sons, and he loved them all so tenderly that each one was dearer to him than the others. He loved them all so well that he could not make up his mind to which one to leave his kingdom. He thought and thought, and then he called his wise old councilor to him and asked his advice.
“Your Majesty,” said the Councilor, “you love all three of the princes equally, and so my advice is to leave the kingdom to the one who loves you best.”
“But I do not know which one loves me best,” said the King.
“Then set them three tasks. The one who performs the tasks the best, and who takes the most trouble to please you,—he must be the one who bears you the most love.”
This advice pleased the King, and he sent for his three sons, and told them what he had decided to do. “I have,” said he, “a great wish for a little dog to amuse me. I will give you a year in which to find me the smallest and prettiest little dog in the world. Whichever of you will bring me such a dog shall receive a third of my kingdom.”
As soon as the princes heard this they were eager to set out in search of such a dog. The two older brothers were sure one of them would find it, for they did not think much of their younger brother. Each one rode away to a great city, and went to the best dog dealers there. The eldest son bought a little white dog no larger than a small kitten, and very pretty and playful. The second son bought a red dog so small it could curl up in the palm of his hand. Each was content with his choice, and rode home without searching further.
The King was delighted with the dogs they brought, and his sons wished him to decide at once as to which of them deserved the kingdom, but this the King would not do. “No, no,” said he, “we must wait until your brother comes. He can hardly find another dog as pretty as these, but still it is only right to wait until he returns, or until the year is up.”
Meanwhile the youngest prince had ridden on and on, much farther than either of his other brothers. Everywhere he asked for dogs, and hundreds of them were brought to him, big and little, fat and thin, black and white, and gray and red and yellow. But not one of them was what the Prince wanted.
At last one day he came to a deep forest. A storm had risen; the Prince was wet to the skin with rain, and covered with mud. He saw a light before him shining through the trees, and he rode toward it. He hoped he might find there some shelter for the night.
What was his surprise, as he drew near the light, to see it came from a magnificent palace that had been built here in the deep forest far away from any city. The Prince knocked at the door and at once it opened before him. He went in and looked about him, but he saw no one, though invisible hands closed the door behind him. An unseen hand took his and he was led through several rooms to a handsome chamber that seemed to have been made ready for him. His wet and muddy clothes were removed and he was dressed in a suit of white and silver; but with all this he still saw no one.
He was then led to a banquet hall where a fine feast was laid out.
Suddenly, while the Prince stood looking about him there was a sound of trumpets; the doors opposite to him swung open, and a strange procession marched into the room. First, walking upright came a small and very pretty white cat. She was dressed all in black, and wore a long black veil, and an ebony crown. She was followed by other cats. Some of these were dressed as ladies-in-waiting, some as courtiers, and some as trumpeters.
The White Cat came up to the Prince and bade him welcome. “I saw you as you rode through the forest,” she said, “and this feast was made ready for you. Come, Prince, let us take our places at the table and eat.”
The cat then seated herself at the head of the table and motioned the Prince to sit beside her.
Unseen hands at once served them with the most rare and delicious dishes. The cat ate daintily, and the Prince noticed that she touched nothing but some oddly cooked birds, and some cream.
He himself was hungry and ate of everything, and while he ate the White Cat talked to him with so much sense and wit that he was delighted with her.
After supper the White Cat left him and he was led by invisible hands to a magnificent chamber, where he spent the night.
The next morning when he awoke he found a hunting-suit of green laid out for him, and high riding-boots and a plumed hat. Unseen hands dressed him, and food was served to him in a breakfast-room hung about with curtains of satin embroidered with gold.
After he had eaten, the Prince went in search of the White Cat. He found her in the courtyard. She and her attendants and several cats dressed as huntsmen were about to set out on a hunt. She invited the Prince to go with them, and he gladly accepted.
[Illustration: THE PRINCE GOES HUNTING WITH THE WHITE CAT]
A troop of monkeys all saddled and bridled were led up to the palace steps. The Prince looked on in wonder while the White Cat sprang upon the back of the largest and finest monkey. The other cats also mounted, but as the Prince was too large to ride a monkey a large wooden horse on wheels was brought for him to ride. This seemed so absurd to the Prince that he was about to refuse, but the White Cat motioned him to it so politely that he was ashamed to say no. He sprang to the back of the wooden steed, and at once he felt it move and stir under him as though it were alive. The cat-huntsmen sounded their horns, and away the hunting-party went. The White Cat and the Prince rode first, and the Prince found the wooden horse rolled along so smoothly and swiftly that nothing could have been pleasanter.
The day was spent in hunting through the forest, and in the evening there was another grand feast at the palace, this time with music and dancing. The dancers were six large black cats dressed in spangled clothes, and their leaps and bounds and twirlings were wonderful. The Prince had never been so well amused in his life before.
Day after day slipped by, and still the Prince stayed at the White Cat’s palace, and he was so happy there that he quite forgot his father and the kingdom he had hoped to win. The year had passed, all but three days, when suddenly the Prince remembered his errand. He was filled with dismay, for now it was too late for him to seek for a little dog, and he feared he had lost all chance of winning the kingdom.
But the White Cat saw his trouble. “Do not be dismayed, Prince,” she said. “I know the errand that brought you here, and I am ready to help you.” She then handed him an acorn. “Here,” she said, “take this and you will find in it the thing you seek.”
The Prince thought the cat was mocking him, but she bade him put the acorn to his ear and listen. When he did this he could hear from within the acorn a sound of barking as thin and small as the squeaking of a mouse.
“Do not open it until you reach home,” said the White Cat. “Then, when your father sees what is inside of it he will know that you are the one who deserves the kingdom.”