The Red Fairy Book by Andrew Lang (interesting novels to read .txt) 📕

When the younger had walked for some time he caught sight

of his brother a short distance in front of him, and called to him

and bade him to stop.

`Wait a minute,’ he said; `you are walking as if for a wager,

but you ought to have stayed to see your younger brother before

you hurried off into the world.’

So the elder stood still and looked back, and when the younger

had got up to him, and had told him that he was his brother, he said:

`But now, let us sit down and see what kind of food our mother has

given us,’ and that they did.

When they had walked on a little farther they came to a brook

which ran through a green meadow, and there the younger said that

they ought to christen each other. `As we had to make such haste,

and had no time to do it at home, we may as well do it here,’ said he.

`What will you be called?’ asked the elder.

`I will be called Minnikin,’ answered the second; `and you,

what will you be called?’

`I will be called King Pippin,’ answered the elder.

They christened each other and then went onwards. When they

had walked for some time they came to a crossway, and there they

agreed to part, and each take his own road. This they did, but no

sooner had they walked a short distance than they met again. So

they parted once more, and each took his own road, but in a very

short time the same thing happened again—they met each other

before they were at all aware, and so it happened the third time also.

Then they arranged with each other that each should choose his

own quarter, and one should go east and the other west.

`But if ever you fall into any need or trouble,’ said the elder,

`call me thrice, and I will come and help you; only you must not

call me until you are in the utmost need.’

`In that case we shall not see each other for some time,’ said

Minnikin; so they bade farewell to each other, and Minnikin went

east and King Pippin went west.

When Minnikin had walked a long way alone, he met an old,

old crook-backed hag, who had only one eye. Minnikin stole it.

`Oh! oh!’ cried the old hag, `what has become of my eye?’

`What will you give me to get your eye back?’ said Minnikin.

`I will give thee a sword which is such a sword that it can

conquer a whole army, let it be ever so great,’ replied the woman.

`Let me have it, then,’ said Minnikin.

The old hag gave him the sword, so she got her eye back.

Then Minnikin went onwards, and when he had wandered on for

some time he again met an old, old crook-backed hag, who had only

one eye. Minnikin stole it before she was aware.

`Oh! oh! what has become of my eye?’ cried the old hag.

`What will you give me to get your eye back?’ said Minnikin.

`I will give thee a ship which can sail over fresh water and salt

water, over high hills and deep dales,’ answered the old woman.

`Let me have it then,’ said Minnikin.

So the old woman gave him a little bit of a ship which was no

bigger than he could put in his pocket, and then she got her eye

back, and she went her way and Minnikin his. When he had

walked on for a long time, he met for the third time an old, old

crook-backed hag, who had only one eye. This eye also Minnikin

stole, and when the woman screamed and lamented, and asked

what had become of her eye, Minnikin said, `What will you give

me to get your eye back?’

`I will give thee the art to brew a hundred lasts of malt in one

brewing.’

So, for teaching that art, the old hag got her eye back, and they

both went away by different roads.

But when Minnikin had walked a short distance, it seemed to

him that it might be worth while to see what his ship could do; so

he took it out of his pocket, and first he put one foot into it, and

then the other, and no sooner had he put one foot into the ship than

it became much larger, and when he set the other foot into it, it grew

as large as ships that sail on the sea.

Then Minnikin said: `Now go over fresh water and salt water,

over high hills and deep dales, and do not stop until thou comest

to the King’s palace.’

And in an instant the ship went away as swiftly as any bird in

the air till it got just below the King’s palace, and there it stood

still.

From the windows of the King’s palace many persons had seen

Minnikin come sailing thither, and had stood to watch him; and

they were all so astounded that they ran down to see what manner

of man this could be who came sailing in a ship through the air.

But while they were running down from the King’s palace, Minnikin

had got out of the ship and had put it in his pocket again; for the

moment he got out of it, it once more became as small as it had

been when he got it from the old woman, and those who came from

the King’s palace could see nothing but a ragged little boy who was

standing down by the seashore. The King asked where he had

come from, but the boy said he did not know, nor yet could he tell

them how he had got there, but he begged very earnestly and

prettily for a place in the King’s palace. If there was nothing else

for him to do, he said he would fetch wood and water for the

kitchen-maid, and that he obtained leave to do.

When Minnikin went up to the King’s palace he saw that

everything there was hung with black both outside and inside, from

the bottom to the top; so he asked the kitchen-maid what that

meant.

`Oh, I will tell you that,’ answered the kitchen-maid. `The

King’s daughter was long ago promised away to three Trolls, and

next Thursday evening one of them is to come to fetch her. Ritter

Red has said that he will be able to set her free, but who knows

whether he will be able to do it? so you may easily imagine what

grief and distress we are in here.’

So when Thursday evening came, Ritter Red accompanied the

Princess to the seashore; for there she was to meet the Troll, and

Ritter Red was to stay with her and protect her. He, however, was

very unlikely to do the Troll much injury, for no sooner had the

Princess seated herself by the seashore than Ritter Red climbed

up into a great tree which was standing there, and hid himself as

well as he could among the branches.

The Princess wept, and begged him most earnestly not to go and

leave her; but Ritter Red did not concern himself about that. `It

is better that one should die than two,’ said he.

In the meantime Minnikin begged the kitchen-maid very prettily

to give him leave to go down to the strand for a short time.

`Oh, what could you do down at the strand?’ said the kitchen-maid. `You have nothing to do there.’

`Oh yes, my dear, just let me go,’ said Minnikin. `I should

so like to go and amuse myself with the other children.’

`Well, well, go then!’ said the kitchen-maid, `but don’t let me

find you staying there over the time when the pan has to be set on

the fire for supper, and the roast put on the spit; and mind you

bring back a good big armful of wood for the kitchen.’

Minnikin promised this, and ran down to the seashore.

Just as he got to the place where the King’s daughter was

sitting, the Troll came rushing up with a great whistling and

whirring, and he was so big and stout that he was terrible to see, and

he had five heads.

`Fire!’ screeched the Troll.

`Fire yourself!’ said Minnikin.

`Can you fight?’ roared the Troll.

`If not, I can learn,’ said Minnikin.

So the Troll struck at him with a great thick iron bar which he

had in his fist, till the sods flew five yards up into the air.

`Fie!’ said Minnikin. `That was not much of a blow. Now

you shall see one of mine.’

So he grasped the sword which he had got from the old crook-backed woman, and slashed at the Troll so that all five heads went

flying away over the sands.

When the Princess saw that she was delivered she was so

delighted that she did not know what she was doing, and skipped

and danced.

`Come and sleep a bit with your head in my lap,’ she said to

Minnikin, and as he slept she put a golden dress on him.

But when Ritter Red saw that there was no longer any danger

afoot, he lost no time in creeping down from the tree. He then

threatened the Princess, until at length she was forced to promise

to say that it was he who had rescued her, for he told her that if

she did not he would kill her. Then he took the Troll’s lungs and

tongue and put them in his pocket-handkerchief, and led the

Princess back to the King’s palace; and whatsoever had been

lacking to him in the way of honour before was lacking no longer,

for the King did not know how to exalt him enough, and always

set him on his own right hand at table.

As for Minnikin, first he went out on the Troll’s ship and took

a great quantity of gold and silver hoops away with him, and then

he trotted back to the King’s palace.

When the kitchen-maid caught sight of all this gold and silver

she was quite amazed, and said: `My dear friend Minnikin, where

have you got all that from?’ for she was half afraid that he had

not come by it honestly.

`Oh,’ answered Minnikin, `I have been home a while, and these

hoops had fallen off some of our buckets, so I brought them away

with me for you.’

So when the kitchen-maid heard that they were for her, she

asked no more questions about the matter. She thanked Minnikin,

and everything was right again at once.

Next Thursday evening all went just the same, and everyone

was full of grief and affliction, but Ritter Red said that he had been

able to deliver the King’s daughter from one Troll, so that he could

very easily deliver her from another, and he led her down to the

seashore. But he did not do much harm to this Troll either, for

when the time came when the Troll might be expected, he said as

he had said before: `It is better that one should die than two,’ and

then climbed up into the tree again.

Minnikin once more begged the cook’s leave to go down to the

seashore for a short time.

`Oh, what can you do there?’ said the cook.

`My dear, do let me go!’ said Minnikin; `I should so like to go