The Violet Fairy Book (32 page)

In a short time the two elder brothers came home, and their
mother asked to see the linen which had been woven out of the
skeins of flax she had given them. They all three left the room;
and in a few minutes the two eldest returned, bringing with them
the linen that had been spun by their chosen wives. But the
youngest brother was greatly troubled, for he had nothing to show
for the skein of flax that had been given to him. Sadly he
betook himself to the pond, and sitting down on the bank, began
to weep.

Flop! and the frog appeared out of the water close beside him.

'Take this,' she said; 'here is the linen that I have spun for
you.'

You may imagine how delighted the youth was. She put the linen
into his hands, and he took it straight back to his mother, who
was so pleased with it that she declared she had never seen linen
so beautifully spun, and that it was far finer and whiter than
the webs that the two elder brothers had brought home.

Then she turned to her sons and said: 'But this is not enough,
my sons, I must have another proof as to what sort of wives you
have chosen. In the house there are three puppies. Each of you
take one, and give it to the woman whom you mean to bring home as
your wife. She must train it and bring it up. Whichever dog
turns out the best, its mistress will be my favourite
daughter-in-law.'

So the young men set out on their different ways, each taking a
puppy with him. The youngest, not knowing where to go, returned
to the pond, sat down once more on the bank, and began to weep.

Flop! and close beside him, he saw the frog. 'Why are you
weeping?' she said. Then he told her his difficulty, and that he
did not know to whom he should take the puppy.

'Give it to me,' she said, 'and I will bring it up for you.'
And, seeing that the youth hesitated, she took the little
creature out of his arms, and disappeared with it into the pond.

The weeks and months passed, till one day the mother said she
would like to see how the dogs had been trained by her future
daughters-in-law. The two eldest sons departed, and returned
shortly, leading with them two great mastiffs, who growled so
fiercely, and looked so savage, that the mere sight of them made
the mother tremble with fear.

The youngest son, as was his custom, went to the pond, and called
on the frog to come to his rescue.

In a minute she was at his side, bringing with her the most
lovely little dog, which she put into his arms. It sat up and
begged with its paws, and went through the prettiest tricks, and
was almost human in the way it understood and did what it was
told.

In high spirits the youth carried it off to his mother. As soon
as she saw it, she exclaimed: 'This is the most beautiful little
dog I have ever seen. You are indeed fortunate, my son; you have
won a pearl of a wife.'

Then, turning to the others, she said: 'Here are three shirts;
take them to your chosen wives. Whoever sews the best will be my
favourite daughter-in-law.'

So the young men set out once more; and again, this time, the
work of the frog was much the best and the neatest.

This time the mother said: 'Now that I am content with the tests
I gave, I want you to go and fetch home your brides, and I will
prepare the wedding-feast.'

You may imagine what the youngest brother felt on hearing these
words. Whence was he to fetch a bride? Would the frog be able
to help him in this new difficulty? With bowed head, and
feeling very sad, he sat down on the edge of the pond.

Flop! and once more the faithful frog was beside him.

'What is troubling you so much?' she asked him, and then the
youth told her everything.

'Will you take me for a wife?' she asked.

'What should I do with you as a wife,' he replied, wondering at
her strange proposal.

'Once more, will you have me or will you not?' she said.

'I will neither have you, nor will I refuse you,' said he.

At this the frog disappeared; and the next minute the youth
beheld a lovely little chariot, drawn by two tiny ponies,
standing on the road. The frog was holding the carriage door
open for him to step in.

'Come with me,' she said. And he got up and followed her into
the chariot.

As they drove along the road they met three witches; the first of
them was blind, the second was hunchbacked, and the third had a
large thorn in her throat. When the three witches beheld the
chariot, with the frog seated pompously among the cushions, they
broke into such fits of laughter that the eyelids of the blind
one burst open, and she recovered her sight; the hunchback rolled
about on the ground in merriment till her back became straight,
and in a roar of laughter the thorn fell out of the throat of the
third witch. Their first thought was to reward the frog, who had
unconsciously been the means of curing them of their misfortunes.

The first witch waved her magic wand over the frog, and changed
her into the loveliest girl that had ever been seen. The second
witch waved the wand over the tiny chariot and ponies, and they
were turned into a beautiful large carriage with prancing horses,
and a coachman on the seat. The third witch gave the girl a
magic purse, filled with money. Having done this, the witches
disappeared, and the youth with his lovely bride drove to his
mother's home. Great was the delight of the mother at her
youngest son's good fortune. A beautiful house was built for
them; she was the favourite daughter-in-law; everything went well
with them, and they lived happily ever after.

(From the Italian.)

Once there was a king who had great riches, which, when he died,
he divided among his three sons. The two eldest of these lived
in rioting and feasting, and thus wasted and squandered their
father's wealth till nothing remained, and they found themselves
in want and misery. The youngest of the three sons, on the
contrary, made good use of his portion. He married a wife and
soon they had a most beautiful daughter, for whom, when she was
grown up, he caused a great palace to be built underground, and
then killed the architect who had built it. Next he shut up his
daughter inside, and then sent heralds all over the world to make
known that he who should find the king's daughter should have her
to wife. If he were not capable of finding her then he must die.

Many young men sought to discover her, but all perished in the
attempt.

After many had met their death thus, there came a young man,
beautiful to behold, and as clever as he was beautiful, who had a
great desire to attempt the enterprise. First he went to a
herdsman, and begged him to hide him in a sheepskin, which had a
golden fleece, and in this disguise to take him to the king. The
shepherd let himself be persuaded so to do, took a skin having a
golden fleece, sewed the young man in it, putting in also food
and drink, and so brought him before the king.

When the latter saw the golden lamb, he asked the herd: 'Will
you sell me this lamb?'

But the herd answered: 'No, oh king; I will not sell it; but if
you find pleasure therein, I will be willing to oblige you, and I
will lend it to you, free of charge, for three days, after that
you must give it back to me.'

This the king agreed to do, and he arose and took the lamb to his
daughter. When he had led it into her palace, and through many
rooms, he came to a shut door. Then he called 'Open, Sartara
Martara of the earth!' and the door opened of itself. After that
they went through many more rooms, and came to another closed
door. Again the king called out: 'Open, Sartara Martara of the
earth!' and this door opened like the other, and they came into
the apartment where the princess dwelt, the floor, walls, and
roof of which were all of silver.

When the king had embraced the princess, he gave her the lamb, to
her great joy. She stroked it, caressed it, and played with it.

After a while the lamb got loose, which, when the princess saw,
she said: 'See, father, the lamb is free.'

But the king answered: 'It is only a lamb, why should it not be
free?'

Then he left the lamb with the princess, and went his way.

In the night, however, the young man threw off the skin. When
the princess saw how beautiful he was, she fell in love with him,
and asked him: 'Why did you come here disguised in a sheepskin
like that?'

Then he answered: 'When I saw how many people sought you, and
could not find you, and lost their lives in so doing, I invented
this trick, and so I am come safely to you.'

The princess exclaimed: 'You have done well so to do; but you
must know that your wager is not yet won, for my father will
change me and my maidens into ducks, and will ask you, "Which of
these ducks is the princess?" Then I will turn my head back, and
with my bill will clean my wings, so that you may know me.'

When they had spent three days together, chatting and caressing
one another, the herd came back to the king, and demanded his
lamb. Then the king went to his daughter to bring it away, which
troubled the princess very much, for she said they had played so
nicely together.

But the king said: 'I cannot leave it with you, my daughter, for
it is only lent to me.' So he took it away with him, and gave it
back to the shepherd.

Then the young man threw the skin from off him, and went to the
king, saying: 'Sire, I am persuaded I can find your daughter.'

When the king saw how handsome he was, he said: 'My lad, I have
pity on your youth. This enterprise has already cost the lives
of many, and will certainly be your death as well.'

But the young man answered, 'I accept your conditions, oh king; I
will either find her or lose my head.'

Thereupon he went before the king, who followed after him, till
they came to the great door. Then the young man said to the
king: 'Speak the words that it may open.'

And the king answered: 'What are the words? Shall I say
something like this: "Shut; shut; shut"?'

'No,' said he; 'say "Open, Sartara Martara of the earth." '

When the king had so said, the door opened of itself, and they
went in, while the king gnawed his moustache in anger. Then they
came to the second door, where the same thing happened as at the
first, and they went in and found the princess.

Then spoke the king and said: 'Yes, truly, you have found the
princess. Now I will turn her as well as all her maidens into
ducks, and if you can guess which of these ducks is my daughter,
then you shall have her to wife.'

And immediately the king changed all the maidens into ducks, and
he drove them before the young man, and said: 'Now show me which
is my daughter.'

Then the princess, according to their understanding, began to
clean her wings with her bill, and the lad said: 'She who cleans
her wings is the princess.'

Now the king could do nothing more but give her to the young man
to wife, and they lived together in great joy and happiness.

(From the German.)

Once upon a time there lived an emperor who was a great
conqueror, and reigned over more countries than anyone in the
world. And whenever he subdued a fresh kingdom, he only granted
peace on condition that the king should deliver him one of his
sons for ten years' service.

Now on the borders of his kingdom lay a country whose emperor was
as brave as his neighbour, and as long as he was young he was the
victor in every war. But as years passed away, his head grew
weary of making plans of campaign, and his people wanted to stay
at home and till their fields, and at last he too felt that he
must do homage to the other emperor.

One thing, however, held him back from this step which day by day
he saw more clearly was the only one possible. His new overlord
would demand the service of one of his sons. And the old emperor
had no son; only three daughters.

Look on which side he would, nothing but ruin seemed to lie
before him, and he became so gloomy, that his daughters were
frightened, and did everything they could think of to cheer him
up, but all to no purpose.

At length one day when they were at dinner, the eldest of the
three summoned up all her courage and said to her father:

'What secret grief is troubling you? Are your subjects
discontented? or have we given you cause for displeasure? To
smooth away your wrinkles, we would gladly shed our blood, for
our lives are bound up in yours; and this you know.'

'My daughter,' answered the emperor, 'what you say is true.
Never have you given me one moment's pain. Yet now you cannot
help me. Ah! why is not one of you a boy!'

'I don't understand,' she answered in surprise. 'Tell us what is
wrong: and though we are not boys, we are not quite useless!'

'But what can you do, my dear children? Spin, sew, and
weave—that is all your learning. Only a warrior can deliver me
now, a young giant who is strong to wield the battle-axe: whose
sword deals deadly blows.'

'But WHY do you need a son so much at present? Tell us all
about it! It will not make matters worse if we know!'

'Listen then, my daughters, and learn the reason of my sorrow.
You have heard that as long as I was young no man ever brought an
army against me without it costing him dear. But the years have
chilled my blood and drunk my strength. And now the deer can
roam the forest, my arrows will never pierce his heart; strange
soldiers will set fire to my houses and water their horses at my
wells, and my arm cannot hinder them. No, my day is past, and
the time has come when I too must bow my head under the yoke of
my foe! But who is to give him the ten years' service that is
part of the price which the vanquished must pay?'