The elves and the Shoemaker, Brothers Grimm

  The Wise Little Girl, Russian Folk Tale

  The Fir Tree, Hans Christian Andersen

  The Sleeping Beauty, Brothers Grimm

  The Frog Prince, Brothers Grimm

 Aesop Fables, Aesop

 

  Hansel and Gretel, Brothers Grimm

  The Golden Goose, Brothers Grimm

  The Selfish Giant, Oscar Wilde

  The Three Little Pigs

  Little Red Riding Hood, Brothers Grimm

 The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings, Carolyn Sherwin Bailey

 Cinderella, Brothers Grimm

  Thumbelina, Hans Christian Andersen

  Rumpelstiltskin, Brothers Grimm

The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Petre Ispirescu

  Rapunzel, Brothers Grimm

 

The Woodpecker, The Turtle, and The Deer, Ellen C. Babbitt

 

Toads and Diamonds, Charles Perrault

 

A Real Friend, Teodora Sirko

 

The Little Purse with two Half-pennies, Ion Creanga

  The Lost Rabbit, Anonymous

 The Night Before Christmas, Clement Clarke Moore

The elves and the Shoemaker

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Once upon a time there was a poor shoemaker who lived with his wife. He made excellent shoes and worked quite diligently, but even so he could not earn enough to support himself and his family. He became so poor that he he could not even afford to buy the leather he needed to make shoes; finally he had only enough to make one last pair. He cut them out with great care and put the pieces on his workbench, so that he could sew them together the following morning. His wife asked, "What will happen to us? The cupboards are bare, and we have no firewood. Even our last candle has almost burned away." She was very worried."Don’t worry," said the shoemaker. "Things will work out for us. You'll see, I will finish these shoes tomorrow, and someone will buy them."He cut out the leather and then went to bed. The shoemaker would finish working first thing in the morning.

The next morning, he awoke early and went down to his workshop. On his bench he found an exquisite pair of shoes! They had small and even stitches, formed so perfectly that he knew he couldn't have produced a better pair himself. Upon close examination, the shoes proved to be from the very pieces of leather he had set out the night before. The shoemaker called for his wife to come and look at the wonderful shoes. She was just as amazed as he was. "Who could have made these shoes?" she asked.They immediately put the fine pair of shoes in the window and drew back the blinds

 

Who in the world could've done this great service for me?" he asked himself. Even before he could make up an answer, a rich man strode into his shop and bought the shoes-- and for a fancy price.

The shoemaker was ecstatic; he immediately went out and purchased plenty of food for his family--and some more leather. That afternoon he cut out two pairs of shoes and, just as before, laid all the pieces on the bench so that he could sew them the next day. Then he went upstairs to enjoy the good meal with his family.

 

My goodness!" he cried the next morning when he found two pairs of beautifully finished shoes on his workbench. "Who could make such fine shoes--and so quickly?" He put them in his shop window, and before long some wealthy people came in and paid a great deal of money for them. The happy shoemaker went right out and bought even more leather. This continued for many nights, until the shoemaker's shelves were filled with beautiful shoes like no one had ever seen before.

 

Soon his small shop was crowded with customers. He cut out many types of shoes: stiff boots lined with fur, delicate slippers for dancers, walking shoes for ladies, tiny shoes for children. Soon his shoes had bows and laces and buckles of fine silver. The little shop prospered as never before, and it's proprietor was soon a rich man himself. His family wanted for nothing.

As the shoemaker and his wife sat by the fire one night, he said, "One of these days, I shall have to learn who has been helping us."

We could hide behind the cupboard in your workroom," she said. "That way, we could find out just who your helpers are."

 

And that was just what they did. That evening, when the clock struck twelve, the shoemaker and his wife heard a noise. Two tiny men, each with a bag of tools, were squeezing beneath a crack under the door. Their clothing was old and worn, which made the shoemaker and his wife sad. The elves wore thin, torn pants that were ripped and covered with patches. They were making shoes, but they didn't have any for themselves.

 

The next day, the shoemaker's wife said, "Those little elves have done so much good for us. We should make some gifts for them."

"Yes!" cried the shoemaker. "I'll make some shoes that will fit them, and you make some clothes." They worked until dawn. The presents were laid out upon the workbench: two tiny jackets, two pairs of trousers, and two pairs of shoes. They also left out some plates of good things to eat and drink. Then they hid once again behind the cupboard and waited to see what would happen.

 

Just as before, the elves appeared at the stroke of midnight. They jumped onto the bench to begin their work, but when they saw all the presents they began to laugh and shout with joy. They tried on all the clothes, then helped themselves to the food and drink. Then they jumped down and danced excitedly around the workroom, and disappeared beneath the door.

 

After that, the shoemaker cut out his leather as he always had--but the two elves never returned. "I believe they have heard us whispering," his wife said. "Elves are so very shy when it comes to people, you know."

"I know I will miss their help," the shoemaker said, "but we will manage. The shop is always so busy now. But my stitches will never be as tight and small as theirs!"

The shoemaker did indeed continue to prosper, but he and his wife always remembered the good elves who had helped them during the hard times.

The Wise Little Girl

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At dusk, they stopped beside an empty hut and tethered their horses outside, before going to sleep themselves on two heaps of straw. Great was their surprise, when, next morning they saw three horses outside, instead of two. Well, to be exact the newcomer was not really a horse. It was a foal, to which the mare had given birth during the night. Soon it had the strength to struggle to its feet, and after a drink of its mother's milk, the foal staggered its first few steps. The stallion greeted it with a cheerful whinny, and when the two brothers set eyes on it for the first time, the foal was standing beside the stallion. "It belongs to me!" exclaimed Dimitri, the rich brother, the minute he saw it. "It's my stallion's foal." Ivan, the poor brother, began to laugh. "Whoever heard of a stallion having a foal? It was born to my mare!" "No, that's not true! It was standing close to the stallion, so it's the stallion's foal. And therefore it's mine!"

The brothers started to quarrel, then they decided to go to town and bring the matter before the judges. Still arguing, they headed for the big square where the courtroom stood. It was a special day, the day when, once a year, the Emperor himself administered the law. He himself received all who came seeking justice. The brothers were ushered into his presence, and they told him all about the dispute. Of course, the Emperor knew perfectly well who was the owner of the foal. He was on the point of proclaiming in favor of the poor brother, when suddenly Ivan developed an unfortunate twitch in his eye. The Emperor was greatly annoyed by this familiarity by a humble peasant, and decided to punish Ivan for his disrespect. After listening to both sides of the story, he declared it was difficult, indeed impossible, to say exactly who was the foal's rightful owner. And being in the mood for a spot of fun, and since he loved posing riddles and

solving them as well, to the amusement of his counselors, he exclaimed. "I can't judge which of you should have the foal, so it will be awarded to whichever of you solves the following four riddles: what is the fastest thing in the world? What is the fattest? What's the softest and what is the most precious? I command you to return to the palace in a week's time with your answers!"

When Dimitri reached home, he realized he had nobody to help him. "Well, I'll just have to seek help, for if I can't solve these riddles, I'll lose the foal!" Then he remembered a woman, one of his neighbours, to whom he had once lent a silver ducat. That had been some time ago, and with the interest, the neighbor now owed him three ducats. And since she had a reputation for being quick-witted, but also very astute, he decided to ask her advice, in exchange for canceling part of her debt. But the woman was not slow to show how astute she really was, and promptly demanded that the whole debt be wiped out in exchange for the answers. "The fastest thing in the world is my husband's bay horse," she said. "Nothing can beat it! The fattest is our pig! Such a huge beast has never been seen! The softest is the quilt I made for the bed, using my own goose's feathers. It's the envy of all my friends. The most precious thing in the world is my three-month old nephew. There isn't a more handsome child. I wouldn't exchange him for all the gold on earth, and that makes him the most precious thing on earth!" Dimitri was rather doubtful about the woman's answers being correct. On the other hand, he had to take some kind of solution back to the Emperor. And he guessed, quite rightly, that if he didn't, he would be punished.

 

In the meantime, Ivan, who was a widower, had gone back to the humble cottage where he lived with his small daughter. Only seven years old, the little girl was often left alone, and as a result, was thoughtful and very clever for her age. The poor man took the little girl into his confidence, for like his brother, he knew he would never be able to find the answers by himself. The child sat in silence for a moment, then firmly said. "Tell the Emperor that the fastest thing in the world is the cold north wind in winter. The fattest is the soil in our fields whose crops give life to men and animals alike, the softest thing is a child's caress and the most precious is honesty."

 

The day came when the two brothers were to return before the Emperor. They were led into his presence. The Emperor was curious to hear what they had to say, but he roared with laughter at Dimitri's foolish answers. However, when it was Ivan's turn to speak, a frown spread over the Emperor's face. The poor brother's wise replies made him squirm. He angrily demanded: "Who gave you these answers?" Ivan told the Emperor that it was his small daughter. Still annoyed, the great man said. "You shall be rewarded for having such a wise and clever daughter. You shall be awarded the foal that your brother claimed, together with a hundred silver ducats... But... but..." and the Emperor winked at his counselors. "You will come before me in seven days' time, bringing your daughter. And since she's so clever, she must appear before me neither naked nor dressed, neither on foot nor on horseback, neither bearing gifts nor empty-handed. And if she does this, you will have your reward. If not, you'll have your head chopped off for your impudence!"

 

The onlookers began to laugh, knowing that the poor man would never to able to fulfill the Emperor's conditions. Ivan went home in despair, his eyes brimming with tears. But when he had told his daughter what had happened, she calmly said. "Tomorrow, go and catch a hare and a partridge. Both must be alive! You'll have the foal and the hundred silver ducats! Leave it to me!" Ivan did as his daughter said. He had no idea what the two creatures were for, but he trusted in his daughter's wisdom. On the day of the audience with the Emperor, the palace was thronged with bystanders, waiting for Ivan and his small daughter to arrive. At last, the little girl appeared, draped in a fishing net, riding the hare and holding the partridge in her hand. She was neither naked nor dressed, on foot or on horseback. Scowling, the Emperor told her. "I said neither bearing gifts nor empty-handed!" At these words, the little girl held out the partridge. The Emperor stretched out his hand to grasp it, but the bird fluttered into the air. The third condition had been fulfilled. In spite of himself, the Emperor could not help admiring the little girl who had so cleverly passed such a test, and in a gentler voice, he said.

 

"Is your father terribly poor, and does he desperately need the foal." "Oh, yes!" replied the little girl. "We live on the hares he catches in the rivers and the fish he picks from the trees!" "Aha!" cried the Emperor triumphantly. "So you're not as clever as you seem to be! Whoever heard of hares in the river and fish in the trees! To which the little girl swiftly replied. "And whoever heard of a stallion having a foal?" At that, both Emperor and Court burst into peals of laughter. Ivan was immediately given his hundred silver ducats and the foal, and the Emperor proclaimed. "Only in my kingdom could such a wise little girl be born!"

The Fir Tree<< back to story pages

Far down in the forest, where the warm sun and the fresh air made a sweet resting-place, grew a pretty little fir-tree, and yet it was not happy, it wished so much to be tall like its companions— the pines and firs which grew around it. The sun shone, and the soft air fluttered its leaves, and the little peasant children passed by, prattling merrily, but the fir-tree heeded them not. Sometimes the children would bring a large basket of raspberries or strawberries, wreathed on a straw, and seat themselves near the fir-tree, and say, “Is it not a pretty little tree?” which made it feel more unhappy than before. As it grew, it complained, “Oh! how I wish I were as tall as the other trees!” The tree was so discontented, that it took no pleasure in the warm sunshine, the birds, or the rosy clouds that floated over it morning and evening. Sometimes, in winter, when the snow lay white and glittering on the ground, a hare would come springing along, and jump right over the little tree; and then how angry it would feel! Two winters passed, and when the third arrived, the tree had grown very tall. Yet it remained unsatisfied, and would exclaim, “Oh, if I could but keep on growing tall and old! There is nothing else worth caring for in the world!”

 

In autumn the wood-cutters always came and cut down some of the largest trees and then they were laid in carts, and the horses dragged them out of the wood. Where did they go to? What became of them? In spring, when the swallows and the storks came, the Tree asked them, "Don't you know where they have been taken? Have you not met them anywhere?" The swallows did not know anything about it; but the Stork looked musing, nodded his head, and said, "Yes; I think I know; I met many ships as I was flying hither from Egypt; on the ships were magnificent masts, and I venture to assert that it was they that smelt so of fir. I may congratulate you, for they lifted themselves on high most majestically!" "Oh, were I but old enough to fly across the sea! But how does the sea look in reality? What is it like?" "That would take a long time to explain," said the Stork, and with these words off he went. "Rejoice in thy growth!" said the Sunbeams. "Rejoice in thy vigorous growth, and in the fresh life that moveth within thee!" but the Fir understood it not.

 

Christmas-time drew near, and many young trees were cut down, some even smaller and younger than the fir-tree who enjoyed neither rest nor peace with longing to leave its forest home. These young trees, which were chosen for their beauty, kept their branches, and were also laid on wagons and drawn by horses out of the forest.

 

“Where are they going?” asked the fir-tree. “They are not taller than I am: indeed, one is much less; and why are the branches not cut off? Where are they going?” “We know, we know,” sang the sparrows; “we have looked in at the windows of the houses in the town, and we know what is done with them. They are dressed up in the most splendid manner. We have seen them standing in the middle of a warm room, and adorned with all sorts of beautiful things,—honey cakes, gilded apples, playthings, and many hundreds of wax tapers.” “And then what happens?” “We did not see any more,” said the sparrows; “but this was enough for us.” “I wonder whether anything so brilliant will ever happen to me,” thought the fir-tree. I long for it almost with pain. Oh! when will Christmas be here? I am now as tall and well grown as those which were taken away last year. Oh! that I were now laid on the wagon, or standing in the warm room, with all that brightness and splendor around me!” “Rejoice with us,” said the air and the sunlight. “Enjoy thine own bright life in the fresh air.” But the tree would not rejoice, though it grew taller every day.

 

A short time before Christmas, the discontented fir-tree was the first to fall. As the axe cut through the stem, and divided the pith, the tree fell with a groan to the earth, conscious of pain and faintness, and forgetting all its anticipations of happiness, in sorrow at leaving its home in the forest. It knew that it should never again see its dear old companions, the trees, nor the little bushes and many-colored flowers that had grown by its side; perhaps not even the birds. Neither was the journey at all pleasant.

 

Then came two servants and carried the fir-tree into a large and beautiful apartment. There were rocking chairs, silken sofas, large tables. Then the fir-tree was placed in a large tub, full of sand; but green baize hung all around it, so that no one could see it was a tub. How the fir-tree trembled! “What was going to happen to him now?” Some young ladies came, and the servants helped them to adorn the tree. On one branch they hung little bags cut out of colored paper, and each bag was filled with sweetmeats; from other branches hung gilded apples and walnuts, as if they had grown there; and above, and all round, were hundreds of red, blue, and white tapers, which were fastened on the branches. The tree had never seen such things before and at the very top was fastened a glittering star, made of tinsel. Oh, it was very beautiful! “This evening,” they all exclaimed, “how bright it will be!” “Oh, that the evening were come,” thought the tree, “and the tapers lighted! then I shall know what else is going to happen. Will the trees of the forest come to see me? I wonder if the sparrows will peep in at the windows as they fly? shall I grow faster here, and keep on all these ornaments summer and winter?”

At last the tapers were lighted, and then what a glistening blaze of light the tree presented! It trembled so with joy in all its branches, that one of the candles fell among the green leaves and burnt some of them. “Help! help!” exclaimed the young ladies, but there was no danger, for they quickly extinguished the fire. After this, the tree tried not to tremble at all, though the fire frightened him; he was so anxious not to hurt any of the beautiful ornaments, even while their brilliancy dazzled him. And now the folding doors were thrown open, and a troop of children rushed in as if

they intended to upset the tree; they were followed more silently by their elders. For a moment the little ones stood silent with astonishment, and then they shouted for joy, till the room rang, and they danced merrily round the tree, while one present after another was taken from it. “What are they doing? What will happen next?” thought the fir. At last the candles burnt down to the branches and were put out. Then the children received permission to plunder the tree.

 

In the morning the servants and the housemaid came in. “Now,” thought the fir, “all my splendor is going to begin again.” But they dragged him out of the room and up stairs to the garret, and threw him on the floor, in a dark corner. “What does this mean?” thought the tree, “what am I to do here? I can hear nothing in a place like this,” and he had time enough to think, for days and nights passed and no one came near him. So the tree was completely hidden from sight as if it had never existed. “It is winter now,” thought the tree, “the ground is hard and covered with snow, so that people cannot plant me. I shall be sheltered here, I dare say, until spring comes. How pleasant it was out in the forest while the snow lay on the ground, when the hare would run by, yes, and jump over me too, although I did not like it then. Oh! it is terrible lonely here.” “Squeak, squeak,” said a little mouse, creeping cautiously towards the tree; then came another; and they both sniffed at the fir-tree and crept between the branches. “Where do you come from? and what do you know?” asked the mice, who were full of curiosity. “Have you seen the most beautiful places in the world, and can you tell us all about them? and have you been in the storeroom, where cheeses lie on the shelf, and hams hang from the ceiling?” “I know nothing of that place,” said the fir-tree, “but I know the wood where the sun shines and the birds sing.” And then the tree told the little mice all about its youth. They had never heard such an account in their lives; and after they had listened to it attentively, they said, “What a number of things you have seen! you must have been very happy.” “Happy!” exclaimed the fir-tree, and then as he reflected upon what he had been telling them, he said, “Ah, yes! after all those were happy days.” But when he went on and related all about Christmas-eve, and how he had been dressed up with cakes and lights, the mice said, “How happy you must have been, you old fir-tree.”

One morning people came to clear out the garret, the boxes were packed away, and the tree was pulled out of the corner, and thrown roughly on the garret floor; then the servant dragged it out upon the staircase where the daylight shone. “Now life is beginning again,” said the tree, rejoicing in the sunshine and fresh air. Then it was carried down stairs and taken into the courtyard. The court was close to a garden, where everything looked blooming. Fresh and fragrant roses hung over the little palings. The linden-trees were in blossom. “Now I shall live,” cried the tree, joyfully spreading out its branches; but alas! they were all withered and yellow, and it lay in a corner amongst weeds and nettles. The star of gold paper still stuck in the top of the tree and glittered in the sunshine. In the same courtyard two of the merry children were playing who had danced round the tree at Christmas, and had been so happy. The youngest saw the gilded star, and ran and pulled it off the tree. “Look what is sticking to the ugly old fir-tree,” said the child, treading on the branches till they crackled under his boots. And the tree saw all the fresh bright flowers in the garden, and then looked at itself, and wished it had remained in the dark corner of the garret. It thought of its fresh youth in the forest, of the merry Christmas evening.” “Past! past!” said the old tree; “Oh, had I but enjoyed myself while I could have done so! but now it is too late.”

 

The Golden Goose<< back to story pages

 

There was once a man who had three sons, the youngest of whom was called the Simpleton, and was despised, laughed at, and neglected, on every occasion, by his brothers.

It happened one day that the eldest son wished to go into the forest to cut wood, and before he went his mother gave him a delicious cake and a flask of wine. When he came into the forest a little old grey man met him, who wished him good day, and said,"Give me a bit of your cake, and let me have a drink of your wine; I am so hungry and thirsty."But the youth answered,"Give you my cake and my wine? I haven't got any; be off with you."And leaving the little man standing there, he went off. Then he began to fell a tree, but he had not been at it long before he made a wrong stroke, and the hatchet hit him in the arm, so that he was obliged to go home and get it bound up. That was what came of the little grey man.

 

Afterwards the second son went into the wood, and the mother gave to him, as to the eldest, a cake and a flask of wine. The little old grey man met him also, and begged for a little bit of cake and a drink of wine. But the second son spoke out plainly, saying,"What I give you I lose myself, so be off with you."And leaving the little man standing there, he went off. The punishment followed; as he was chopping away at the tree, he hit himself in the leg so severely that he had to be carried home.

 

Then said the Simpleton,"Father, let me go for once into the forest to cut wood;" and the father answered, "Your brothers have hurt

themselves by so doing; give it up, you understand nothing about it."But the Simpleton went on begging so long, that the father said at last,"Well, be off with you; you will only learn by experience."The mother gave him a cake and with it a flask of sour beer. When he came into the forest the little old grey man met him, and greeted him, saying,"Give me a bit of your cake, and a drink from your flask; I am so hungry and thirsty."And the Simpleton answered, "I have only a flour and water cake and sour beer; but if that is good enough for you, let us sit down together and eat." Then they sat down, and as the Simpleton took out his flour and water cake it became a rich cake, and his sour beer became good wine; then they ate and drank, and afterwards the little man said,"As you have such a kind heart, and share what you have so willingly, I will bestow good luck upon you. Yonder stands an

old tree; cut it down, and at its roots you will find something," and thereupon the little man took his departure.

 

The Simpleton went there, and hewed away at the tree, and when it fell he saw, sitting among the roots, a goose with feathers of pure gold. He was very happy to see that and he lifted it out and took it with him to an inn where he intended to stay the night.

 

The landlord had three daughters who, when they saw the goose, were curious to know what wonderful kind of bird it was, and ended by longing for one of its golden feathers. The eldest thought, "I will wait for a good opportunity, and then I will pull out one of its feathers for myself;" and so, when the Simpleton was gone out, she seized the goose by its wing—but there her finger and hand had to stay, held fast. Soon after came the second sister with the same idea of plucking out one of the golden feathers for herself; but scarcely had she touched her sister, than she also was obliged to stay, held fast. Lastly came the third with the same intentions; but the others screamed out,"Stay away! for heaven's sake stay away!"But she did not see why she should stay away, and thought, "If they do so, why should not I?" and went towards them. But when she reached her sisters there she stopped, hanging on

with them. And so they had to stay, all night.

 The next morning the Simpleton took the goose under his arm and went away, unmindful of the three girls that hung on to it. The three had always to run after him, left and right, wherever his legs carried him. In the midst of the fields they met the parson, who, when he saw the procession, said,"Shame on you, girls, running after a young fellow through the fields like this," and forthwith he seized hold of the youngest by the hand to drag her away, but hardly had he touched her when he too was obliged to run after them himself.

 

Not long after the Bishop came that way, and seeing the respected parson following at the heels of the three girls, he called out,"Ho, your reverence, whither away so quickly? You forget that we have another christening to-day;" and he seized hold of him by his hand; but no sooner had he touched him than he was obliged to follow on too. As the five tramped on, one after another, two peasants came up from the fields, and the parson cried out to them, and begged them to come and set him and the Bishop free, but no sooner had they touched the Bishop than they had to follow on too; and now there were seven following the Simpleton and the goose.By and by they came to a town where a king reigned, who had an only daughter who was so serious that no one could make her laugh; therefore the king had given out that whoever should make her laugh should have her in marriage.

 

The Simpleton, when he heard this, went with his goose and his hangers-on into the presence of the king's daughter, and as soon as she saw the seven people following always one after the other, she found that so funny that she burst out laughing, and seemed as if she could never stop.

 

And so the Simpleton earned a right to her as his bride. The marriage took place immediately, and at the death of the king the Simpleton possessed the kingdom, and lived long and happily with his wife.

The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings<< back to story pages

 

Once upon a time there was a little White Rabbit with two beautiful long pink ears and two bright red eyes and four soft little feet- such a pretty little White Rabbit. But he wasn't happy!....

 

Just think, this little White Rabbit wanted to be somebody else instead of the nice little Rabbit that he was.When Mr. Bushy Tail, the gray squirrel, went by, the little White Rabbit would say to his Mummy, "Oh, Mummy, I wish I had a long gray tail like Mr.Bushy Tail's."

 

And when Mr. Porcupine went by, the little White Rabbit would say to his Mummy,

"Oh, Mummy, I wish I had a back full of bristles like Mr. Porcupine's."

And when Miss Puddle-Duck went by in her two little red rubbers, the little White Rabbit would say, "Oh, Mummy, I wish I had a pair of red rubbers like Miss Puddle-Duck's."

 

So he went on and on wishing until his Mummy was quite tired out with his wishing and Old Mr. Ground Hog heard him one day. Old Mr. Ground Hog is very wise indeed, so he said to the little White Rabbit, "Why don't you go down to Wishing Pond, and if you look in the water at yourself and turn around three times in a circle, you will get your wish."

 

So the little White Rabbit trotted off, all alone by himself through the woods until he came to a little pool of green water lying in a low tree stump, and that was the Wishing Pond. There was a little, little bird, all red sitting on the edge of the Wishing Pond to get a drink, and as soon as the little White Rabbit saw him he began to wish again, "Oh, I wish I had a pair of little red wings!" he said.

 

Just then he looked in the Wishing Pond and he saw his little white face. Then he turned around three times and something happened. He began to have a queer feeling in his shoulders, like he felt in his mouth when he was cutting his teeth. It was his wings coming through. So he sat all day in the woods by the Wishing Pond waiting for them to grow, and, by and by, when it was almost sundown, he started home to see his Mummy and show her, because he had a beautiful pair of long, trailing red wings.

 

But by the time he reached home it was getting dark, and when he went in the hole at the foot of a big tree where he lived, his Mummy didn't know him. No, she really and truly did not know him, because, you see, she had never seen a rabbit with red wings in all her life. And so the little White Rabbit had to go out again, because his Mummy wouldn't let him get into his own bed. He had to go out and look for some place to sleep all night.

 

He went and went until he came to Mr. Bushy Tail's house, and he rapped on the door and said, "Please, kind Mr. Bushy Tail, may I sleep in your house all night?" But Mr. Bushy Tail opened his door a crack and then he slammed it tight shut again. You see, he had never seen a rabbit with red wings in all his life.

 

So the little White Rabbit went and went until he came to Miss Puddle-Duck's nest down by the marsh and he said, "Please, kind Miss Puddle-Duck, may I sleep in your nest all night?" But Miss Puddle-Duck poked her head up out of her nest just a little way, and then she shut her eyes and stretched her wings out so far that she covered her whole nest. You see she had never seen a rabbit with red wings in all her life.

 

So the little White Rabbit went and went until he came to Old Mr. Ground Hog's hole and Old Mr. Ground Hog let him sleep with him all night, but the hole had beechnuts spread all over it. Old Mr. Ground liked to sleep on them, but they hurt the little White Rabbit's feet and made him very uncomfortable before morning came.

 

When morning came, the little White Rabbit decided to try his wings and fly a little, so he climbed up on a hill and spread his wings and sailed off, but he landed in a low bush all full of prickles, and his four feet got mixed up with the twigs so he couldn't get down. "Mummy,

Mummy, Mummy, come and help me!" he called.

 So the little White Rabbit went down to the Wishing Pond and he saw his face in it. Then he turned around three times, and sure enough, his red wings were gone. Then he went home to his Mummy, who knew him right away and was so glad to see him and he never, never wished to be something different from what he really was again.

Thumbelina<< back to story pages

 

There was once a woman who wanted very much to have a child. So one day she went to a Fairy and said to her: 'I should so much like to have a little child; can you tell me where I can get one?''Here is a barley-corn for you’, said the Fairy. ‘Put it in a flower-pot, and then you will see something happen.'The woman went home and planted the barley-corn; there grew out of it a large and beautiful flower, but the petals were tightly closed as if it were still only a bud.'What a beautiful flower!' exclaimed the woman, and she kissed the red and yellow petals; but as she kissed them the flower burst open and in the middle of the blossom sat a little girl, quite tiny, trim, and pretty. She was scarcely half a thumb in height; so they called her Thumbelina.

 

But one night, when she was lying in her pretty little bed which was an elegant walnut-shell, an ugly old toad crept in through a broken pane in the window. She hopped on to the table where Thumbelina lay asleep.'This would make a beautiful wife for my son,' said the toad, taking up the walnut-shell, with Thumbelina inside, and hopping with it through the window into the garden.There flowed a great wide stream, with slippery and marshy banks; here the toad lived with her son. Ugh! how ugly and clammy he was, just like his mother! 'Croak, croak, croak!' was all he could say when he saw the pretty little girl in the walnut- shell.

 

The tiny Thumbelina woke up very early in the morning, and when she saw where she was she began to cry bitterly; for she was placed on a great green leaf in the middle of the water, and she could not get to the land.The old toad was decorating her room, to make it very grand for her new daughter-in-law; then she swam out with her ugly son to the leaf where Thumbelina lay. The old toad said: 'Here is my son; you shall marry him, and live in great magnificence down under the marsh.'Then they took the neat little cradle and swam away with it; but Thumbelina sat alone on the great green leaf and wept, for she did not want to live with the clammy toad, or marry her ugly son.

 

The little fishes swimming about under the water had seen the toad quite plainly, and heard what she had said; so they put up their heads to see the little girl. When they saw her, they thought her so pretty that they were very sorry she should go down with the ugly toad to live. No; that must not happen. They assembled in the water round the green stalk which supported the leaf on which she was sitting, and nibbled the stem in two. Away floated the leaf down the stream, bearing Thumbelina far

beyond the reach of the toad.On she sailed past several towns, and the little birds sitting in the bushes saw her, and sang, 'What a pretty little girl!' The leaf floated farther and farther away; thus Thumbelina left her native land.

 

A great cockchafer came flying past; he caught sight of Thumbelina, and in a moment had put his arms round her slender waist, and had flown off with her to a tree. Oh, dear! how terrified poor little Thumbelina was when the cockchafer flew off with her to the tree. Later on, all the other cockchafers who lived in the same tree came to pay calls; they examined Thumbelina closely. 'How ugly she is!' said all the lady chafers--and yet Thumbelina was really very pretty.When the cockchafer heard all the ladies saying she was ugly, he began to think so too, and would not keep her; she might go wherever she liked. So he flew down from the tree with her and put her on a daisy.

 

The whole summer poor little Thumbelina lived alone in the great wood. The summer and autumn passed, but then came winter-the long, cold winter. She was terribly cold. Poor little Thumbelina! she would surely be frozen to death.She came across the door of a field-mouse, who had a little hole under a corn-stalk. Thumbelina went up to the door and begged for a little piece of barley.'Poor little creature!' said the field-mouse, come into my warm room and have some dinner with me.'As Thumbelina pleased her, she said: 'As far as I am concerned you may spend the winter with me; but you must keep my room clean and tidy, and tell me stories, for I like that very much.'

 

And Thumbelina did all that the kind old field-mouse asked, and did it remarkably well too.'Now I am expecting a visitor,' said the field-mouse; 'my neighbour comes to call on me once a week. He is very wealthy, has great, big rooms, and wears a fine black-velvet coat. If you could only marry him, you would be well provided for. But he is blind. You must tell him all the prettiest stories you know.'But Thumbelina did not trouble her head about him, for he was only a mole. He came and paid them a visit in his black-velvet coat. He liked Thumbelina very much and expressed his desire to marry her.

 

A short time before he had dug a long passage through the ground from his own house to that of his neighbour; in this he gave the field-mouse and Thumbelina permission to walk as often as they liked. But he begged them not to be afraid of the dead bird that lay in the passage. Thumbelina was very sorry, for she was very fond of all little birds.Thumbelina bent down to the bird, and kissed his closed eyes gently. Later, she plaited a great big blanket and spread it over the dead bird, so that the poor little thing should lie warmly buried. Then she laid her head against the bird's heart. But the bird was not dead: he had been frozen, but now that she had warmed him, he was coming to life again. Thumbelina was so amazed to see the bird was alive!'Thank you, pretty little child!' said the swallow to her. 'I am so beautifully warm! Soon I shall regain my strength, and then I shall be able to fly out again into the warm sunshine.'

 

When the spring came, and the sun warmed the earth again, the swallow said farewell to Thumbelina and flew away.'Now you are to be a bride this very autumn, Thumbelina!' said the field-mouse, 'for our neighbour has proposed for you! What a piece of fortune for a poor child like you! But she was not at all pleased about it, for she did not like the stupid mole.Spring and summer passed and the wedding-day arrived. The mole had come to fetch Thumbelina to live with him deep down under the ground, never to come out into the warm sun again, for that was what he didn't like. 'Tweet, tweet!' sounded in her ear all at once. She looked up. There was the swallow flying past! 'The cold winter is coming now,' said the swallow. 'I must fly away to warmer lands: will you come with me? You can sit on my back, and we will fly over the mountains, to the warm countries where the sun shines more brightly than here, where it is always summer, and there are always beautiful flowers.’ 'Yes, I will go with you,' said Thumbelina, and got on the swallow's back. Up he flew

into the air, over woods and seas, over the great mountains where the snow is always lying.

 

At last they came to warm lands; there the sun was brighter and the sky seemed twice as high. The swallow flew down with Thumbelina, and set her upon one flower. But there, to her astonishment, she found a tiny little man sitting in the middle of the flower; he had the prettiest golden crown on his head, and the most beautiful wings on his shoulders; he himself was no bigger than Thumbelina. He was the spirit of the flower. In each blossom there dwelt a tiny man or woman; but this one was the Prince.'How handsome he is!' whispered Thumbelina to the swallow.When the Prince saw Thumbelina, he was delighted, for she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He asked her name, and then invited her to his castle. The Prince fell in love with her, so he asked her if she would be his wife, and Queen over all the flowers. This certainly was a very different sort of husband to the son of a toad, or the mole; so she said, “Yes,” to the handsome prince. She was gifted then with a beautiful pair of wings so she too could fly from flower to flower. 'You shall not be called Thumbelina!' said the Prince to her. We will call you May Blossom.' So she married the Prince and became the Queen of the Flowers.

Rumpelstiltskin<< back to story pages

Once there was a very poor miller, who could not even pay his taxes to the kingdom. Because of this, the king ordered that he should be sent to prison. The miller was afraid, so he tried to trick the king:“Forgive me,” he beseeched, “and I will give you my daughter who can spin straw into gold.””Then bring her to me and I will forgive you,” the king said.

 

The miller was very sorry for what he said, but it was too late. That night, the king took the miller’s daughter into a room filled with straw. “You must spin the straw into gold by morning,” he said, “or you and your father will be sent to prison.” Then he locked the door. But the poor girl had no idea how she was supposed to do that. She strove hard, but nothing happened. Then, she began to weep bitterly.Suddenly, the door opened and a strange little man entered. “Good evening, mistress miller. Why are you so sad?”

“The king ordered me to spin the straw into gold,” she sobbed.“I can help you, but you must give me something in return.””Here’s my necklace,” she said. In response, the dwarf grabbed it in an instant.

 

The little man sat down at the spinning wheel and, as soon as he started to spin it, the reel was filled with gold. And he did so the whole night till he finished spinning all the straw. By morning, the room was full of glittering gold. The king was so amazed to see all that gold that sparkled and shined incredibly!

 

But the king became greedier and took the girl into a bigger room, with more straw than before and ordered her to spin all of it into gold.

The little man came to her rescue again. This time, the girl offered him her golden ring, which was a gift from her mother.

 

The king’s greed grew again, though he tried to fight it, feeling compassion for the girl. But he locked her, anyway, for the third time into a tower filled with straw and made a promise to her: “If you can spin all this straw into gold by morning, I promise to marry you,” he said.

Once again, the little man came in, but this time, the girl had nothing left to offer him.“Then you must give me your first born child after you get married,” he said. The girl agreed, desperate as she was, though she promised herself never to do that.

The next day, the king was very happy to see so much gold again. At the same time, he was touched by the girl’s patience

and endurance. He felt his greed melting away and love blooming instead.The king asked the girl for forgiveness, then, he kept his promise and married the miller’s daughter and made her his queen.

 

A year later, the queen gave birth to a child. She had completely forgotten about the little man. But one day, he came into her room again.“I have come to take what you promised me, remember?” he said. The queen offered him all the riches in the world, hoping she could keep her baby, but he just wouldn’t hear.

“Something alive is more precious to me than all the riches of this world,” he said.Then, the little man proposed her a strange game:

 

The queen spent the whole night making a long list with all the names she had ever heard.

The next day, she read all the names to the little man, but she didn’t guess.Then, the queen sent messengers to search for names throughout the kingdom. Even so, she could not guess the little man’s name.

The third day, the queen lost all hope. She sent her messengers again to search for names. When she least expected, the last messenger returned with a strange story.

“I was just passing through the forest, when I saw a funny little man dancing around a big fire,” he told the queen. “He was singing: ‘The queen is never going to win,For my name is Rumpelstiltskin.’”

 That night, at first, the queen played a little with the dwarf: “Is your name Scattin?”

“No, this is not my name,” he answered. “Then, is it Ierarhlon?”“No, it’s not this either.” “Could it be Rumpelstiltskin?” she finally asked, smiling.On hearing this, the little man became so angry, that he turned blue. And he stamped his feet so hard, that he made a hole into the floor. Rumpelstiltskin ran off ashamed and he was never seen again.

 The king discovered a new treasure, more precious than gold: Love. He learned that family makes you the richest man on earth. So the king and the queen lived happily ever after together with their beautiful daughter.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses<< back to story pages

Once upon a time, there was a poor boy called Joseph, who led a humble life in a small village, working for his master, who was very pleased with his work, All the other peasant boys envied him, because he was clever, handsome and hardworking. The village girls were desperately trying to make him notice them, but he paid them no attention. They used to call him Prince Charming.

One sunny day, tired as he was after working very hard, he slipped into the forest and lay down under a huge oaktree and slept under its hospitable shelter. And while he slept, a beautiful fairy dressed in a robe sparkling with diamonds appeared before him and told him:“Go to the king’s castle,because you’ll find your fortune there.”

 

No sooner had he reached home, than he went straight to his master and said to him:“Master, I have a good mind to go into the wide world to seek my fortune. I have served you enough and now it’s time for me to turn over a new leaf.” His master tried to change his mind and make him stay to no avail, so he paid the boy for his work and he was gone.

 

Joseph soon reached the king's court and went to the gardener to ask for work. Seeing him so tidy and clever, the gardener liked him and accepted his services. His main job was to make twelve little bouquets every day and give them to the king’s twelve daughters each morning when they went out for a walk. The twelve princesses were doomed not to be able to marry until someone could make one of them fall in love with him and thus, deliver them from their fate, which gifted them with the passion for dance. The princesses were crazy about dance and every night they tore up their

 

Then the king made it known to all the land, that if any person could find out where it was that the princesses danced in the night, he should have the one he liked best for his wife, and should be king after his death.

Many suitors came to the castle, but the princes who had been watching during the night could no longer be found in the morning. They just disssapeared, and no one knew what had happened to them. Eleven princes were lost so far and no one dared to try his luck any more.

 

Joseph did his job very well, and the princesses were pleased with his work. He was so humble that he didn’t even dare to look at them when he gave them the bouquets. It was only when he gave the flowers to the youngest of them, Laura, that his cheeks flushed and his heart started to beat wildly. The princess felt the same way about him, though her sisters were not delighted at all to see that. He was thinking to go and watch, too, but he didn’t dare.

 

One night, the fairy appeared in his dreams again and said to him :“Go to the eastern angle of the garden and there you’ll find two small laurel trees. Take good care of them. When they have grown, ask anything you want, and they will give it to you.Saying this, she disappeared from sight.As soon as he woke up, he went straight to the place described by the fairy. When he reached there, he just couldn’t believe his eyes. The laurel trees were right there! He took very good care of them and when they grew up enough, he asked them to make him invisible. His wish was granted immediately.

 

In the evening, when the princesses entered their room, Joseph sneaked inside. The doors were then shut and locked up by nine bolts. He noticed that, instead of preparing to go to bed, the princesses began to brush their hair, to dress themselves in beautiful clothes and to put on jewels like they were going to leave somewehere. Then, the eldest sister stamped her foot on the floor three times and suddenly, a trap door opened. They went down on a secret staircase till they reached a garden whose gates opened when the eldest sister stamped her foot again. Joseph followed them everywhere they went.

 

They passed through a forest with silver leaves, then through another one where all the leaves were of gold, then into a third with the leaves glittering with diamonds and after that they came to a great lake.In the middle of the lake, there was a marvellous castle, beautiful beyond description, dazzling in its brilliance.Twelve boats with twelve paddlers were waiting for them ashore. The princesses seated themselves into the boats. Joseph entered the boat where the youngest princess was seated.

 

When they reached the other side of the lake, a merry music of horns and trumpets could be heard. The princesses ran into the castle as soon as they landed. Joseph was surprised to see that the princes who had watched them and had disappeared were all present there. They began dancing together. “So, that’s why they were never seen again…,” Joseph thought.He seated himself into a corner, looking at everything that was going on there in open-mouthed wonder. He soon found himself dancing, too, among the others. The princesses danced on, till their shoes were worn out and they had to return home.

 

On their way back, Joseph broke a twig from each forest they went through. Each time he did that, the forest made a loud noise, which startled a little the princesses, but since they couldn’t explain what happened, they decided to go on. The next day, when Joseph gave the princesses the little bouquets, he slipped the three twigs into Laura’s bouquet. She was so amazed to see those twigs in her bouquet and had no idea how they could have reached there.

 

Now that he knew everything, Joseph went to his laurels and asked them to dress him like a prince. In the twinkling of an eye, his appearance was that of a prince. His judgement was different, too, his wits grew sharper and he was dressed in fine clothes. “That’s unbelievable!” he exclaimed. “No one would recognize me!”

 

Then he went to the king and asked him to allow him to watch his daughters one night. The king felt sorry for him and advised him to give up rather than lose his life. He insisted and the king finally agreed. He didn’t suspect that the prince might be the gardener boy. When he took him to the princesses, they didn’t recognize him either. Laura alone was startled by his sight, and her heart went pit-a-pat.

 

The following night, the princesses took him with them. They reached the bewitched castle, and when dancing stopped, they went to the supper room. He was given the wine that all the other princes drank, too, that was meant to kindle the passion for dance in his heart, as well, making him lose his mind and soul. That moment he confessed his love to the youngest

princess. She responded in the same way and asked him to throw away the wine. He obeyed. 

Everyone present stood thunderstruck, staring at them, upon hearing their words of love. Love triumphed and broke the spell that had been cast upon the princesses for so many years. They all found themselves in the king’s palace again. The bewitched castle sanked out of sight like it had never been. The king was so happy to see the charm was broken, that he made a great wedding, all of his daughters marrying the princes who had watched them. Joseph married Laura and they all lived happily ever after.

Cinderella<< back to story pages

 

In former times, a rich man and his wife were the parents of a beautiful little daughter; but before she had arrived at womanhood, her dear mother fell sick and died to the grief of her husband and daughter. After a time, the little girl’s father married another lady. Now this lady was proud and haughty, and had two grown-up daughters as disagreeable as herself. She could not endure her step-daughter and she gave her the most degrading occupations, and compelled her to wash the dishes and clean the stairs. When the poor girl had finished her work, she used to sit in the chimney-corner amongst the cinders, which made her sisters give her the name of “Cinderella.” However, in her shabby clothes Cinderella was ten times handsomer than her sisters.

 It happened that the king's son sent invitations to a ball, which was to last two nights, and to which all the great people of the land were invited, the two sisters among the rest. This delighted them very much. They sent to engage the services of the most fashionable hairdresser, but they also called Cinderella to their aid; for she had very good taste, and she offered, in the most amiable manner, to arrange their heads herself. Whilst so occupied, the eldest said, “Cinderella, whould you like to go to the ball?”“Alas!” said she, “you are ridiculing me. I am not likely to go to the ball.”“You are right,” replied the sister; “people would be amused to see a Cinderella there.”

 

At length the long-wished-for evening arrived, and these proud misses stepped into their carriage, and drove away to the palace.Cinderella looked after the coach as far as she could see, and then returned to the kitchen in tears, where, for the first time, she bewailed her hard and cruel lot, little dreaming that a kind fairy was at the same moment watching over her. She continued sobbing in the chimney-corner until a rap at the door aroused her, and she got up to see what had caused it. She saw a beautiful woman who asked her: “Hey! dearee me! what are all these tears about, my child?”And then Cinderella told her of all her griefs,—how her sisters had gone to the ball, and how she should like to have gone

also.“But you shall go,„ exclaimed her visitor. “Dry up your tears, because I am your godmother and I can help you.”

The fairy took Cinderella by the hand, and said, “Now, my dear, go into the garden, and fetch me a pumpkin.”Cinderella brought her immediately the best she found. Her godmother took the pumpkin and hollowed it out, leaving only the rind; she then struck it with her wand, and the pumpkin was immediately changed into a beautiful gilt coach. She next sent Cinderella for the mouse-trap, wherein were found six mice alive. She directed Cinderella to raise the door of the trap, and as each mouse came out she struck it with her wand, and it was immediately changed into a beautiful horse; so that she had now six splendid grays for her gilt coach.The fairy was perplexed how to find a coachman, but Cinderella said, “I will go and see if there is a rat in the rat-trap; if there is, he will make a capital coachman.”Cinderella brought the rat-trap, in which there were three large rats. The fairy selected one, and, having touched it, it was changed into a coachman.Then she touched Cinderella with her magic wand, and her clothes were instantly changed into a most magnificent ball-dress. The fairy now took from her pocket a beautiful pair of elastic glass slippers, which she caused Cinderella to put on; and when she had thus completed her work, and Cinderella stood before her, the fairy was much pleased, and desired her to get into the carriage with all expedition, as the ball had already commenced. Her godmother, however, before she took leave, strictly charged her on no account whatever to stay at the ball after the clock had struck the hour of midnight; and then added that if she stopped but a single moment beyond that time her fine coach would again become a gourd, her horses mice and her old clothes resume their former appearance.

The arrival of so splendid an equipage as Cinderella's could not fail to attract general notice at the palace gates, and as it drove up to the marble portico the servants, in great numbers, came out to see it.The king's son, to whom it was announced that an unknown princess had arrived, hastened to receive her. He handed her out of the carriage, and led her to the ball-room. Immediately she entered the dancing ceased, and the violins stopped playing; so much was every one struck with the extreme beauty of the unknown princess; and the only sound heard was that of admiration. The king's son conducted her to the most distinguished place, and invited her to dance. She danced with such grace that everybody was in raptures with her.When Cinderella saw that it wanted but a quarter of an hour of midnight she left as quickly as possible.

 Soon, the two sisters knocked at the door, and Cinderella went to open it for them. “O, how late you are in coming home,” said Cinderella, rubbing her eyes, as if just awakened.“If you had been at the ball,” said one of the sisters, “you would not have been tired; for there was the most beautiful princess that ever was seen, who paid us much attention, and gave us oranges and citrons.”Cinderella could scarcely contain herself for joy. She asked the name of the princess, but they said it was not known, and that the king's son was therefore much distressed, and would give anything he had to know who she could be.

 

The next evening the sisters again went to the ball, and Cinderella soon made her appearance, more magnificently dressed than before. The king's son was constantly at her side, saying the most agreeable things; so that Cinderella did not notice how the time passed, and had quite forgotten her godmother's words. She was startled by the first stroke of midnight. She rose very hastily, and fled as lightly as a fawn, the prince following, though he could not overtake her. In her flight she let one of her glass slippers fall, which the prince picked up with the greatest care.Cinderella arrived at home out of breath, without carriage or servants, in her shabby clothes, and had nothing remaining of all her former magnificence except one of her little glass slippers.

When the two sisters returned from the ball Cinderella asked if they had enjoyed themselves, and if the beautiful lady had again been there. They told her that she had been there, but that when the clock struck twelve she had started off so quickly that she let one of her pretty glass slippers fall off; that the prince, who quickly followed her, had picked it up, and had done nothing but look at it all the rest of the evening; and that he was evidently very much in love with the beautiful creature to whom it belonged, and would spare no pains to find her.This was indeed the case; for, a few days after, the prince caused it to be published, with the sound of trumpets, that he would marry the lady whose foot would exactly fit the slipper.So the slipper was first tried on by all the princesses, then by all the duchesses, and next by all the ladies belonging to the court; but in vain. It was then taken to the two sisters, who tried every possible way of getting their foot into it, but without success.

 

Cinderella, who was looking at them, and now recognized her slipper, said, laughingly, “Let me see if it will fit me.”The sisters immediately began to laugh, and to ridicule her; but the gentleman who had been appointed to try on the slipper, having looked attentively at Cinderella, and finding her very pretty, said she was quite right in her request; for he was ordered to try it on to everybody.He desired her to sit down, and at once found that the slipper would go on her foot, without any trouble, and, indeed, fitted her like wax.The astonishment of the sisters was very great, but still greater when Cinderella drew from her pocket the fellow-slipper, and, to the great delight of the gentleman, placed it upon her other foot.

 

Her godmother now made her appearance, and, having touched Cinderella with her wand, she made her look even more magnificent than on either of the former occasions.The sisters now recognized in Cinderella the beautiful person they had seen at the ball, and threw themselves at her feet, to implore forgiveness for all the ill-treatment they had shown her. Cinderella raised them up, and, embracing them, said she forgave them. She told them she had never forgotten the last words of her mother, on her death-bed:—“My child, always be good, and bear with patience everything that occurs to you; then, whatever toils and troubles you may suffer during life, happiness will be your lot in the end.”

Cinderella was taken to the palace, dressed in all her splendor. The prince thought Cinderella more beautiful than ever, and in a few days married her.

Toads and Diamonds<< back to story pages

 

Once upon a time there was a widow who had two daughters. The elder was very disagreeable and arrogant, just like her mother and no one could stand her. The younger girl was kind and good, just like her father and her beauty was remarkable. But the mother loved only her elder daughter, because she had her likeness and disliked the other one, in spite of her beauty and goodness, treating her like a servent.

 

Her mother used to send her twice a day to a spring a half mile away, to bring water into a pitcher. One day when she arrived at the spring an old woman appeared before her, begging for a drink. "I will gladly help you. Here is some water for you to quench your thirst" said the beautiful girl, handing her the pitcher, full of water, lifting it up so that she could drink more easily.

 

The girl didn’t know that the old woman was, actually, a fairy who wanted to test the girl’s generosity and good heart, so she took the humble appearance of an old poor woman. "Your generosity is equal to your beauty" she said, when she had finished drinking. “Thank you very much for helping me. I want to reward you with a wonderful gift. From now on, with every word you speak, a flower or a precious stone shall fall from your mouth." When the beautiful girl reached home, her mother was very angry with her for being late."Forgive me, mother," the poor child cried, "for being so late," and as she spoke these words, two roses, two pearls, and two large diamonds fell from her mouth.

 

"What are these?" her mother asked astonished. "Are there really pearls and diamonds falling from your mouth? What happend to you, my daughter?" This was the first time she had ever called her “daughter”.The girl told her what had happened, scattering precious diamonds, flowers and pearls, as she spoke. "I must send your sister there, too,” her mother said. “Come here, Fanchon. You must go to the spring right away and give water to drink to an old woman and she will make precious stones fall from your mouth.” "You send me to the spring?" replied the arrogant girl, frowning."Yes, I do, hurry up,” her mother urged her.She obeyed at last, though unwillingly. When she finally arrived at the spring, a beautiful lady, very well dressed came out of the woods, instead of an old woman as her mother had told her and she asked for a drink. This was the same fairy who had appeared to her sister, but she was disguised as a princess this time in order to see how far this girl's bad manners would go. "I’m sorry, but I am not your servant, so help yourself,” the rude girl said. “I am not going to dirty myself, just to give madam some water.”"Your heart is already dirty," replied the fairy, not angry, though. "It’s your choice! In

return for your rudeness and wicked nature I grant that for every word you speak a snake or a toad shall drop out of your mouth."

 

When she returned home, her mother was very anxious to know what happened. But as soon as her daughter opened her mouth and began talking, two vipers and two toads fell from her mouth. "That’s not possible!" cried the mother. “Your sister is guilty for this and she is going to pay for it.” She went out of the house to punish her, but the poor girl managed to run away into the woods.

 

Now it happened that the king's son was passing through the woods just then, returning home from hunting, and noticing how beautiful she was, he asked her why she was so grieved and how he could help her. "Alas, sir, I ran away from home, because I am afraid of my mother who is angry with me." As she spoke the king's son was surprised to see pearls and diamonds fall from her mouth. He begged her to tell him how this was possible, and she told him the whole story. The king's son fell in love with her, and considering that such a gift as had been bestowed upon her was worth more than any dowry that he might receive from someone else, he took her to his father's palace, where he married her.

A Real Friend<< back to story pages

 

A new summer holiday has just started and Elsa, a 10 year old girl, was wondering what it had in store for her this time. The sun was smiling at her, promising captivating moments this summer, the leaves were whispering secrets which wind carried along, so that she could hear them…She was looking at the clouds wondering where they led to, wishing she could step into their way, following them. “If only I had wings to fly and lose myself among the birds and the clouds…”, she thought.

“Elsa, have you finished packing? You’ll be late again and I don’t think you want to miss the train,” her mother’s voice sounded suddenly from the kitchen, bringing her back to reality.“Yes, mom, I’m ready to go. Here I am.”“Ok, sweetheart, let’s go then. We must hurry.”

One hour later, the train was heading for her grandmother’s at a quick pace. The travel by train was always pleasant for Elsa because she loved to gaze through the window of her compartment, admiring the beauty of the landscape.

 

Time flew and there she was, right in front of her grandmother’s house.After long hugs and a lot of talking about school, she escaped into the forest, joined by her friends, Alex, Daniel and Clara. “We all missed you so much, Elsa and it’s so good to have you back with us again,” Daniel said. “Even the forest missed you, listen how it welcomes you…Look how joyful it is now that you’re back.”“It’s because it knows I love it and I love you, as well, my friends.”“Come, we have a surprise for you, Elsa,” Clara burst out enthusiastically. “We want to show you our newest discovery.” “That sounds captivating. Let’s go, guys.”

 

They started walking and went deep into the forest, till they reached a point where the sunrays could no longer filter through the branches and the darkness wrapped up everything. It seemed pretty scary, but thrilling, at the same time. They were down into some valley, where only the ripple of some fretful brooks could be heard. Everything else was silent, even the wind stopped blowing and the birds seemed to avoid carefully this place. Right in front of them, a big dark hole opened.

 

“It’s a cave! Wow! Elsa’s face kindled with surprise.”“We knew you would love it. This is our new shelter now. We have come here a couple of times.” “Is it safe in there?” Elsa faltered, having a bad feeling.“It’s ok. Come and see,” Alex urged.

That moment, a leaf fell from the tree and seemed to wither away right after the fall, unnaturally, like a bad sign. Elsa noticed that, she listened to the forest’s whisper, saw that the sun no longer sent its rays to her, but decided to ignore these signs, though.“Let’s go inside and explore the cave,” she suggested instead.“Great,” the others smiled.At the first step into the cave, a cold shudder spread all over, and the darkness grew deeper. Elsa felt her courage melting bit by bit. “Does anyone have a flash lamp?” she whispered.“Yes, here it is,” and Alex turned on his flash lamp.

That moment Elsa saw strange drawings and figures on the wall, showing the hunting of some freakish being.“That’s pretty creepy,” she remarked. “Come on, don’t be so chicken-hearted,” Daniel laughed. “There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

 Right that moment, a fierce roaring was heard just behind them. When they turned around, a huge bear was standing at the mouth of the cave. The children gave out a yell with dismay. “Let’s run quickly, come this way, I know another exit from the cave,” Daniel cried. “Follow me!” They all started running, but Alex fell and sprained his ankle.

“Fellows, help me, please,” he shouted, but, Daniel and Clara were already gone and, though they heard Alex, kept running.Elsa saw the danger her friend was in and turned back to help him raise and walk, but he could hardly move. She seemed to have completely forgotten about her fear.

“Look, there are some matches and a sheet of paper into my pocket, burn it and make a fire,” Alex suggested. “It will scare the bear off.” “We don’t have time to make the fire, the bear is too close already. Let’s play the dead. It will not hurt us this way.”They both did so, and when the bear drew near them, it smelled them for some moments and then made its way into the depth of the cave.

 

“Wow, it was easier then I thought. Your advice saved our life,” Alex breathed again.Elsa helped her friend to walk out of the cave and they were soon away from any danger. Alex received the right treatment to his ankle while Elsa searched for Clara and for Daniel, but couldn’t find them anywhere.

Later, Alex came to her house to express all his gratitude. “I really don’t know what I would have done without your help. Everyone thought you were the chicken-hearted, but they, actually proved out to be the real cowards. You stood there for me when everyone else left me. I can’t thank you enough. You proved out to be my real friend by what you did.”“I did just what my heart told me to do. You are my friend, how could I leave you in a bad moment like that? When I saw you in danger, I felt a strange power inside me. My fear was gone.”“A friend in need is a friend indeed,” Alex smiled.That was an experience Elsa would not forget easily. She learned about the real value of

friendship. And she continued her journey with the clouds and the birds into the deep unknown lands of the mind.

The Lost Rabbit<< back to story pages

 

Bunny was a little rabbit, the youngest of a large family. His home was in an old wood, where the trees were very high, and wild-flowers grew in great abundance. His mother had given him to understand that he must not stray away from her, lest he should get lost, and not be able to find her.

But Bunny was self-willed. He thought his mother was over-careful; and so, one day, when nobody was watching him, he slipped away from her, and sat down amid the grass, under a high beech-tree

 

He heard his mother calling him, but took no notice of her call. It was a warm summer day, and he fell asleep. Soon he was startled by the loud barking of dogs. He woke up, and, oh, how frightened he was!Luckily for him, the dogs did not come where he lay crouching; for their masters were shooting birds, not rabbits. Bunny thought the best thing he could do now was to scamper back to his mother, his brothers and sisters as fast as he could.But it was not quite so easy to find them again. No sooner had he got into the open path than a troop of boys caught sight of him; and at once there was a volley of stones from their hands. By rare good luck he was not hit by the stones.

But he had not gone many paces farther, when a man with a gun shot at him. Happily the man missed his aim, and the shot went into some bushes.

 

Having escaped this new danger, Bunny leaped swiftly over the high grass, till he came to the fallen trunk of a tree. Here he hoped to find his mother; but, ah! there was no trace of her to be seen. Night came on; and poor Bunny had to lie down all alone and go to sleep.The next morning it rained heavily; and Bunny crept into the hollow trunk of the tree, where he could keep warm and dry. But before noon the sun came out beautifully; and the little rabbit, being very hungry, ran out.The first thing he saw was his mother and the rest of the family eating their dinner. Oh, how glad he was! His mother did not scold him, but gave him plenty to eat; and he made up his mind, that he never would run away again from so good a mother.

The Night Before Christmas<< back to story pages

 

‘Twas the night before Christmas,

When all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

 

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

 

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar- plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

 

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted,

And called them by name:

“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”

 

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound. 

He had a broad face and a little round belly,

That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

 

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,

“Happy Christmas to all, And to all a good-night.”