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

`It is no use even to think of that; if the Troll catches sight of

you he will take your life.’

`You had better tell me about him,’ said Minnikin. `Where is

he gone? It would be amusing to see him.’

So the King’s daughter told Minnikin that the Troll was out

trying to get hold of someone who could brew a hundred lasts of

malt at one brewing, for there was to be a feast at the Troll’s, at

which less than that would not be drunk.

`I can do that,’ said Minnikin.

`Ah! if only the Troll were not so quick-tempered I might have

told him that,’ answered the Princess, `but he is so ill-natured

that he will tear you to pieces, I fear, as soon as he comes in. But

I will try to find some way of doing it. Can you hide yourself

here in the cupboard? and then we will see what happens.’

Minnikin did this, and almost before he had crept into the cupboard

and hidden himself, came the Troll.

`Huf! What a smell of Christian man’s blood!’ said the Troll.

`Yes, a bird flew over the roof with a Christian man’s bone in

his bill, and let it fall down our chimney,’ answered the Princess.

`I made haste enough to get it away again, but it must be that

which smells so, notwithstanding.’

`Yes, it must be that,’ said the Troll.

Then the Princess asked if he had got hold of anyone who could

brew a hundred lasts of malt at one brewing.

`No, there is no one who can do it,’ said the Troll.

`A short time since there was a man here who said he could do

it,’ said the King’s daughter.

`How clever you always are!’ said the Troll. `How could

you let him go away? You must have known that I was just

wanting a man of that kind.’

`Well, but I didn’t let him go, after all,’ said the Princess;

`but father is so quick-tempered, so I hid him in the cupboard, but

if father has not found any one then the man is still here.’

`Let him come in,’ said the Troll.

When Minnikin came, the Troll asked if it were true that he

could brew a hundred lasts of malt at one brewing.

`Yes,’ said Minnikin, `it is.’

`It is well then that I have lighted on thee,’ said the Troll.

`Fall to work this very minute, but Heaven help thee if thou dost

not brew the ale strong.’

`Oh, it shall taste well,’ said Minnikin, and at once set himself

to work to brew.

`But I must have more trolls to help to carry what is wanted,’

said Minnikin; `these that I have are good for nothing.’

So he got more and so many that there was a swarm of them,

and then the brewing went on. When the sweet-wort was ready

they were all, as a matter of course, anxious to taste it, first the

Troll himself and then the others; but Minnikin had brewed the

wort so strong that they all fell down dead like so many flies as

soon as they had drunk any of it. At last there was no one left

but one wretched old hag who was lying behind the stove.

`Oh, poor old creature!’ said Minnikin, `you shall have a taste

of the wort too like the rest.’ So he went away and scooped up a

little from the bottom of the brewing vat in a milk pan, and gave

it to her, and then he was quit of the whole of them.

While Minnikin was now standing there looking about him, he

cast his eye on a large chest. This he took and filled it with gold

and silver, and then he tied the cable round himself and the

Princess and the chest, and tugged at the rope with all his might,

whereupon his men drew them up safe and sound.

As soon as Minnikin had got safely on his ship again, he said:

`Now go over salt water and fresh water, over hill and dale, and do

not stop until thou comest unto the King’s palace.’ And in a

moment the ship went off so fast that the yellow foam rose up all

round about it.

When those who were in the King’s palace saw the ship, they

lost no time in going to meet him with song and music, and thus

they marched up towards Minnikin with great rejoicings; but

the gladdest of all was the King, for now he had got his other

daughter back again.

But now Minnikin was not happy, for both the Princesses

wanted to have him, and he wanted to have none other than the

one whom he had first saved, and she was the younger. For this

cause he was continually walking backwards and forwards, thinking

how he could contrive to get her, and yet do nothing that was unkind

to her sister. One day when he was walking about and thinking

of this, it came into his mind that if he only had his brother, King

Pippin, with him, who was so like himself that no one could

distinguish the one from the other, he could let him have the elder

Princess and half the kingdom; as for himself, he thought, the

other half was quite enough. As soon as this thought occurred to

him he went outside the palace and called for King Pippin, but no

one came. So he called a second time, and a little louder, but no!

still no one came. So Minnikin called for the third time, and with

all his might, and there stood his brother by his side.

`I told you that you were not to call me unless you were in the

utmost need,’ he said to Minnikin, `and there is not even so much

as a midge here who can do you any harm!’ and with that he

gave Minnikin such a blow that he rolled over on the grass.

`Shame on you to strike me!’ said Minnikin. `First have I won

one Princess and half the kingdom, and then the other Princess

and the other half of the kingdom; and now, when I was just thinking

that I would give you one of the Princesses and one of the

halves of the kingdom, do you think you have any reason to give

me such a blow?’

When King Pippin heard that he begged his brother’s pardon,

and they were reconciled at once and became good friends.

`Now, as you know,’ said Minnikin, `we are so like each other

that no one can tell one of us from the other; so just change clothes

with me and go up to the palace, and then the Princesses will think

that I am coming in, and the one who kisses you first shall be

yours, and I will have the other.’ For he knew that the elder

Princess was the stronger, so he could very well guess how things

would go.

King Pippin at once agreed to this. He changed clothes with

his brother, and went into the palace. When he entered the

Princess’s apartments they believed that he was Minnikin, and

both of them ran up to him at once; but the elder, who was bigger

and stronger, pushed her sister aside, and threw her arms round

King Pippin’s neck and kissed him; so he got her to wife, and

Minnikin the younger sister. It will be easy to understand that

two weddings took place, and they were so magnificent that they

were heard of and talked about all over seven kingdoms.[27]

[27] From J. Moe.

THERE was once on a time a widower who had a son and a

daughter by his first wife. They were both good children,

and loved each other with all their hearts. After some time had

gone by the man married again, and he chose a widow with one

daughter who was ugly and wicked, and her mother was ugly and

wicked too. From the very day that the new wife came into the

house there was no peace for the man’s children, and not a corner

to be found where they could get any rest; so the boy thought that

the best thing he could do was to go out into the world and try to

earn his own bread.

When he had roamed about for some time he came to the

King’s palace, where he obtained a place under the coachman; and

very brisk and active he was, and the horses that he looked after

were so fat and sleek, that they shone again.

But his sister, who was still at home, fared worse and worse.

Both her stepmother and her stepsister were always finding

fault with her, whatsoever she did and whithersoever she went,

and they scolded her and abused her so that she never had

an hour’s peace. They made her do all the hard work, and hard

words fell to her lot early and late, but little enough food

accompanied them.

One day they sent her to the brook to fetch some water home,

and an ugly and horrible head rose up out of the water, and said,

`Wash me, girl!’

`Yes, I will wash you with pleasure,’ said the girl, and began

to wash and scrub the ugly face, but she couldn’t help thinking

that it was a very unpleasant piece of work. When she had done

it, and done it well, another head rose up out of the water, and

this one was uglier still.

`Brush me, girl!’ said the head.

`Yes, I will brush you with pleasure,’ said the girl, and set to

work with the tangled hair, and, as may be easily imagined, this

too was by no means pleasant work.

When she had got it done, another and a much more ugly and

horrible-looking head rose up out of the water.

`Kiss me, girl!’ said the head.

`Yes, I will kiss you,” said the man’s daughter, and she did it,

but she thought it was the worst bit of work that she had ever had

to do in her life.

So the heads all began to talk to each other, and to ask what

they should do for this girl who was so full of kindliness.

`She shall be the prettiest girl that ever was, and fair and

bright as the day,’ said the first head.

`Gold shall drop from her hair whenever she brushes it,’

said the second.

`Gold shall drop from her mouth whenever she speaks,’

said the third head.

So when the man’s daughter went home, looking as beautiful

and bright as day, the stepmother and her daughter grew much

more ill-tempered, and it was worse still when she began to talk,

and they saw that golden coins dropped from her mouth. The

stepmother fell into such a towering passion that she drove the

man’s daughter into the pig-stye—she might stay there with her

fine show of gold, the stepmother said, but she should not be

permitted to set foot in the house.

It was not long before the mother wanted her own daughter to

go to the stream to fetch some water.

When she got there with her pails, the first head rose up out of

the water close to the bank. `Wash me, girl!’ it said.

`Wash yourself!’ answered the woman’s daughter.

Then the second head appeared.

`Brush me, girl!’ said the head.

`Brush yourself!’ said the woman’s daughter.

So down it went