Books: The Pink Fairy Book
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Andrew Lang, Ed. >> The Pink Fairy Book
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21 Scanned by JC Byers and proofread by JC Byers, Carrie Lorenz, and
Gaston Picard.
The Pink Fairy Book
Edited by Andrew Lang
Preface
All people in the world tell nursery tales to their children. The
Japanese tell them, the Chinese, the Red Indians by their camp
fires, the Eskimo in their dark dirty winter huts. The Kaffirs of
South Africa tell them, and the modern Greeks, just as the old
Egyptians did, when Moses had not been many years rescued out of
the bulrushes. The Germans, French, Spanish, Italians, Danes,
Highlanders tell them also, and the stories are apt to be like
each other everywhere. A child who has read the Blue and Red and
Yellow Fairy Books will find some old friends with new faces in
the Pink Fairy Book, if he examines and compares. But the
Japanese tales will probably be new to the young student; the
Tanuki is a creature whose acquaintance he may not have made
before. He may remark that Andersen wants to 'point a moral,' as
well as to 'adorn a tale; ' that he is trying to make fun of the
follies of mankind, as they exist in civilised countries. The
Danish story of 'The Princess in the Chest' need not be read to a
very nervous child, as it rather borders on a ghost story. It has
been altered, and is really much more horrid in the language of
the Danes, who, as history tells us, were not a nervous or timid
people. I am quite sure that this story is not true. The other
Danish and Swedish stories are not alarming. They are translated
by Mr. W. A. Craigie. Those from the Sicilian (through the
German) are translated, like the African tales (through the
French) and the Catalan tales, and the Japanese stories (the
latter through the German), and an old French story, by Mrs.
Lang. Miss Alma Alleyne did the stories from Andersen, out of the
German. Mr. Ford, as usual, has drawn the monsters and mermaids,
the princes and giants, and the beautiful princesses, who, the
Editor thinks, are, if possible, prettier than ever. Here, then,
are fancies brought from all quarters: we see that black, white,
and yellow peoples are fond of just the same kinds of adventures.
Courage, youth, beauty, kindness, have many trials, but they
always win the battle; while witches, giants, unfriendly cruel
people, are on the losing hand. So it ought to be, and so, on the
whole, it is and will be; and that is all the moral of fairy
tales. We cannot all be young, alas ! and pretty, and strong; but
nothing prevents us from being kind, and no kind man, woman, or
beast or bird, ever comes to anything but good in these oldest
fables of the world. So far all the tales are true, and no
further.
Contents
The Cat's Elopement.
How the Dragon was Tricked
The Goblin and the Grocer
The House in the Wood
Uraschimataro and the Turtle
The Slaying of the Tanuki
The Flying Trunk
The Snow Man.
The Shirt-Collar
The Princess in the Chest
The Three Brothers
The Snow-queen
The Fir-Tree
Hans, the Mermaid's Son
Peter Bull
The Bird 'Grip'
Snowflake
I know what I have learned
The Cunning Shoemaker
The King who would have a Beautiful Wife
Catherine and her Destiny
How the Hermit helped to win the King's Daughter
The Water of Life
The Wounded Lion
The Man without a Heart
The Two Brothers
Master and Pupil
The Golden Lion
The Sprig of Rosemary
The White Dove
The Troll's Daughter
Esben and the Witch
Princess Minon-Minette
Maiden Bright-eye
The Merry Wives
King Lindorm
The Jackal, the Dove, and the Panther
The Little Hare
The Sparrow with the Slit Tongue
The Story of Ciccu
Don Giovanni de la Fortuna .
The Cat's Elopement
[ From the Japanische Marchen und Sagen, von David Brauns
(Leipzig: Wilhelm Friedrich).]
Once upon a time there lived a cat of marvellous beauty, with a
skin as soft and shining as silk, and wise green eyes, that could
see even in the dark. His name was Gon, and he belonged to a
music teacher, who was so fond and proud of him that he would not
have parted with him for anything in the world.
Now not far from the music master's house there dwelt a lady who
possessed a most lovely little pussy cat called Koma. She was
such a little dear altogether, and blinked her eyes so daintily,
and ate her supper so tidily, and when she had finished she
licked her pink nose so delicately with her little tongue, that
her mistress was never tired of saying, 'Koma, Koma, what should
I do without you?'
Well, it happened one day that these two, when out for an evening
stroll, met under a cherry tree, and in one moment fell madly in
love with each other. Gon had long felt that it was time for him
to find a wife, for all the ladies in the neighbourhood paid him
so much attention that it made him quite shy; but he was not easy
to please, and did not care about any of them. Now, before he had
time to think, Cupid had entangled him in his net, and he was
filled with love towards Koma. She fully returned his passion,
but, like a woman, she saw the difficulties in the way, and
consulted sadly with Gon as to the means of overcoming them. Gon
entreated his master to set matters right by buying Koma, but her
mistress would not part from her. Then the music master was asked
to sell Gon to the lady, but he declined to listen to any such
suggestion, so everything remained as before.
At length the love of the couple grew to such a pitch that they
determined to please themselves, and to seek their fortunes
together. So one moonlight night they stole away, and ventured
out into an unknown world. All day long they marched bravely on
through the sunshine, till they had left their homes far behind
them, and towards evening they found themselves in a large park.
The wanderers by this time were very hot and tired, and the grass
looked very soft and inviting, and the trees cast cool deep
shadows, when suddenly an ogre appeared in this Paradise, in the
shape of a big, big dog! He came springing towards them showing
all his teeth, and Koma shrieked, and rushed up a cherry tree.
Gon, however, stood his ground boldly, and prepared to give
battle, for he felt that Koma's eyes were upon him, and that he
must not run away. But, alas! his courage would have availed him
nothing had his enemy once touched him, for he was large and
powerful, and very fierce. From her perch in the tree Koma saw it
all, and screamed with all her might, hoping that some one would
hear, and come to help. Luckily a servant of the princess to whom
the park belonged was walking by, and he drove off the dog, and
picking up the trembling Gon in his arms, carried him to his
mistress.
So poor little Koma was left alone, while Gon was borne away full
of trouble, not in the least knowing what to do. Even the
attention paid him by the princess, who was delighted with his
beauty and pretty ways, did not console him, but there was no use
in fighting against fate, and he could only wait and see what
would turn up.
The princess, Gon's new mistress, was so good and kind that
everybody loved her, and she would have led a happy life, had it
not been for a serpent who had fallen in love with her, and was
constantly annoying her by his presence. Her servants had orders
to drive him away as often as he appeared; but as they were
careless, and the serpent very sly, it sometimes happened that he
was able to slip past them, and to frighten the princess by
appearing before her. One day she was seated in her room, playing
on her favourite musical instrument, when she felt something
gliding up her sash, and saw her enemy making his way to kiss her
cheek. She shrieked and threw herself backwards, and Gon, who had
been curled up on a stool at her feet, understood her terror, and
with one bound seized the snake by his neck. He gave him one bite
and one shake, and flung him on the ground, where he lay, never
to worry the princess any more. Then she took Gon in her arms,
and praised and caressed him, and saw that he had the nicest bits
to eat, and the softest mats to lie on; and he would have had
nothing in the world to wish for if only he could have seen Koma
again.
Time passed on, and one morning Gon lay before the house door,
basking in the sun. He looked lazily at the world stretched out
before him, and saw in the distance a big ruffian of a cat
teasing and ill-treating quite a little one. He jumped up, full
of rage, and chased away the big cat, and then he turned to
comfort the little one, when his heart nearly burst with joy to
find that it was Koma. At first Koma did not know him again, he
had grown so large and stately; but when it dawned upon her who
it was, her happiness knew no bounds. And they rubbed their heads
and their noses again and again, while their purring might have
been heard a mile off.
Paw in paw they appeared before the princess, and told her the
story of their life and its sorrows. The princess wept for
sympathy, and promised that they should never more be parted, but
should live with her to the end of their days. By-and-bye the
princess herself got married, and brought a prince to dwell in
the palace in the park. And she told him all about her two cats,
and how brave Gon had been, and how he had delivered her from her
enemy the serpent.
And when the prince heard, he swore they should never leave them,
but should go with the princess wherever she went. So it all fell
out as the princess wished; and Gon and Koma had many children,
and so had the princess, and they all played together, and were
friends to the end of their lives.
How the Dragon Was Tricked
From Griechtsche und Albanesische Marchen, von J. G. von Hahn.
(Leipzig: Engelmann. 1864.)
Once upon a time there lived a man who had two sons but they did
not get on at all well together, for the younger was much
handsomer than his elder brother who was very jealous of him.
When they grew older, things became worse and worse, and at last
one day as they were walking through a wood the elder youth
seized hold of the other, tied him to a tree, and went on his way
hoping that the boy might starve to death.
However, it happened that an old and humpbacked shepherd passed
the tree with his flock, and seeing the prisoner, he stopped and
said to him, 'Tell me, my son why are you tied to that tree?'
'Because I was so crooked,' answered the young man; 'but it has
quite cured me, and now my back is as straight as can be.'
'I wish you would bind me to a tree,' exclaimed the shepherd, 'so
that my back would get straight.'
'With all the pleasure in life,' replied the youth. 'If you will
loosen these cords I will tie you up with them as firmly as I
can.'
This was soon done, and then the young man drove off the sheep,
leaving their real shepherd to repent of his folly; and before he
had gone very far he met with a horse boy and a driver of oxen,
and he persuaded them to turn with him and to seek for
adventures.
By these and many other tricks he soon became so celebrated that
his fame reached the king's ears, and his majesty was filled with
curiosity to see the man who had managed to outwit everybody. So
he commanded his guards to capture the young man and bring him
before him.
And when the young man stood before the king, the king spoke to
him and said, 'By your tricks and the pranks that you have played
on other people, you have, in the eye of the law, forfeited your
life. But on one condition I will spare you, and that is, if you
will bring me the flying horse that belongs to the great dragon.
Fail in this, and you shall be hewn in a thousand pieces.'
'If that is all,' said the youth, 'you shall soon have it.'
So he went out and made his way straight to the stable where the
flying horse was tethered. He stretched his hand cautiously out
to seize the bridle, when the horse suddenly began to neigh as
loud as he could. Now the room in which the dragon slept was just
above the stable, and at the sound of the neighing he woke and
cried to the horse, 'What is the matter, my treasure? is anything
hurting you?' After waiting a little while the young man tried
again to loose the horse, but a second time it neighed so loudly
that the dragon woke up in a hurry and called out to know why the
horse was making such a noise. But when the same thing happened
the third time, the dragon lost his temper, and went down into
the stable and took a whip and gave the horse a good beating.
This offended the horse and made him angry, and when the young
man stretched out his hand to untie his head, he made no further
fuss, but suffered himself to be led quietly away. Once clear of
the stable the young man sprang on his back and galloped off,
calling over his shoulder, 'Hi! dragon! dragon! if anyone asks
you what has become of your horse, you can say that I have got
him!'
But the king said, 'The flying horse is all very well, but I want
something more. You must bring me the covering with the little
bells that lies on the bed of the dragon, or I will have you hewn
into a thousand pieces.'
'Is that all?' answered the youth. 'That is easily done.'
And when night came he went away to the dragon's house and
climbed up on to the roof. Then he opened a little window in the
roof and let down the chain from which the kettle usually hung,
and tried to hook the bed covering and to draw it up. But the
little bells all began to ring, and the dragon woke and said to
his wife, 'Wife, you have pulled off all the bed-clothes!' and
drew the covering towards him, pulling, as he did so, the young
man into the room. Then the dragon flung himself on the youth and
bound him fast with cords saying as he tied the last knot,
'To-morrow when I go to church you must stay at home and kill him
and cook him, and when I get back we will eat him together.'
So the following morning the dragoness took hold of the young man
and reached down from the shelf a sharp knife with which to kill
him. But as she untied the cords the better to get hold of him,
the prisoner caught her by the legs, threw her to the ground,
seized her and speedily cut her throat, just as she had been
about to do for him, and put her body in the oven. Then he
snatched up the covering and carried it to the king.
The king was seated on his throne when the youth appeared before
him and spread out the covering with a deep bow. 'That is not
enough,' said his majesty; 'you must bring me the dragon himself,
or I will have you hewn into a thousand pieces.'
'It shall be done,' answered the youth; 'but you must give me two
years to manage it, for my beard must grow so that he may not
know me.'
'So be it,' said the king.
And the first thing the young man did when his beard was grown
was to take the road to the dragon's house and on the way he met
a beggar, whom he persuaded to change clothes with him, and in
the beggar's garments he went fearlessly forth to the dragon.
He found his enemy before his house, very busy making a box, and
addressed him politely, 'Good morning, your worship. Have you a
morsel of bread?'
'You must wait,' replied the dragon, 'till I have finished my
box, and then I will see if I can find one.'
'What will you do with the box when it is made?' inquired the
beggar.
'It is for the young man who killed my wife, and stole my flying
horse and my bed covering,' said the dragon.
'He deserves nothing better,' answered the beggar, 'for it was an
ill deed. Still that box is too small for him, for he is a big
man.'
'You are wrong,' said the dragon. 'The box is large enough even
for me.'
'Well, the rogue is nearly as tall as you,' replied the beggar,
'and, of course, if you can get in, he can. But I am sure you
would find it a tight fit.'
'No, there is plenty of room,' said the dragon, tucking himself
carefully inside.
But no sooner was he well in, than the young man clapped on the
lid and called out, 'Now press hard, just to see if he will be
able to get out.'
The dragon pressed as hard as he could, but the lid never moved.
'It is all right,' he cried; 'now you can open it.'
But instead of opening it, the young man drove in long nails to
make it tighter still; then he took the box on his back and
brought it to the king. And when the king heard that the dragon
was inside, he was so excited that he would not wait one moment,
but broke the lock and lifted the lid just a little way to make
sure he was really there. He was very careful not to leave enough
space for the dragon to jump out, but unluckily there was just
room for his great mouth, and with one snap the king vanished
down his wide red jaws. Then the young man married the king's
daughter and ruled over the land, but what he did with the dragon
nobody knows.
The Goblin and the Grocer
Translated from the German of Hans Andersen.
There was once a hard-working student who lived in an attic, and
he had nothing in the world of his own. There was also a
hard-working grocer who lived on the first floor, and he had the
whole house for his own.
The Goblin belonged to him, for every Christmas Eve there was
waiting for him at the grocer's a dish of jam with a large lump
of butter in the middle.
The grocer could afford this, so the Goblin stayed in the
grocer's shop; and this teaches us a good deal. One evening the
student came in by the back door to buy a candle and some cheese;
he had no one to send, so he came himself.
He got what he wanted, paid for it, and nodded a good evening to
the grocer and his wife (she was a woman who could do more than
nod; she could talk).
When the student had said good night he suddenly stood still,
reading the sheet of paper in which the cheese had been wrapped.
It was a leaf torn out of an old book--a book of poetry
'There's more of that over there!' said the grocer 'I gave an old
woman some coffee for the book. If you like to give me twopence
you can have the rest.'
'Yes,' said the student, 'give me the book instead of the cheese.
I can eat my bread without cheese. It would be a shame to leave
the book to be torn up. You are a clever and practical man, but
about poetry you understand as much as that old tub over there!'
And that sounded rude as far as the tub was concerned, but the
grocer laughed, and so did the student. It was only said in fun.
But the Goblin was angry that anyone should dare to say such a
thing to a grocer who owned the house and sold the best butter.
When it was night and the shop was shut, and everyone was in bed
except the student, the Goblin went upstairs and took the
grocer's wife's tongue. She did not use it when she was asleep,
and on whatever object in the room he put it that thing began to
speak, and spoke out its thoughts and feelings just as well as
the lady to whom it belonged. But only one thing at a time could
use it, and that was a good thing, or they would have all spoken
together.
The Goblin laid the tongue on the tub in which were the old
newspapers.
'Is it true,' he asked, ' that you know nothing about poetry?'
'Certainly not!' answered the tub. 'Poetry is something that is
in the papers, and that is frequently cut out. I have a great
deal more in me than the student has, and yet I am only a small
tub in the grocer's shop.'
And the Goblin put the tongue on the coffee-mill, and how it
began to grind! He put it on the butter-cask, and on the till,
and all were of the same opinion as the waste-paper tub. and one
must believe the majority.
'Now I will tell the student!' and with these words he crept
softly up the stairs to the attic where the student lived.
There was a light burning, and the Goblin peeped through the
key-hole and saw that he was reading the torn book that he had
bought in the shop.
But how bright it was! Out of the book shot a streak of light
which grew into a large tree and spread its branches far above
the student. Every leaf was alive, and every flower was a
beautiful girl's head, some with dark and shining eyes, others
with wonderful blue ones. Every fruit was a glittering star, and
there was a marvellous music in the student's room. The little
Goblin had never even dreamt of such a splendid sight, much less
seen it.
He stood on tiptoe gazing and gazing, till the candle in the
attic was put out; the student had blown it out and had gone to
bed, but the Goblin remained standing outside listening to the
music, which very softly and sweetly was now singing the student
a lullaby.
'I have never seen anything like this!' said the Goblin. 'I never
expected this! I must stay with the student.'
The little fellow thought it over, for he was a sensible Goblin.
Then he sighed, 'The student has no jam!'
And on that he went down to the grocer again. And it was a good
thing that he did go back, for the tub had nearly worn out the
tongue. It had read everything that was inside it, on the one
side, and was just going to turn itself round and read from the
other side when the Goblin came in and returned the tongue to its
owner.
But the whole shop, from the till down to the shavings, from that
night changed their opinion of the tub, and they looked up to it,
and had such faith in it that they were under the impression that
when the grocer read the art and drama critiques out of the paper
in the evenings, it all came from the tub.
But the Goblin could no longer sit quietly listening to the
wisdom and intellect downstairs. No, as soon as the light shone
in the evening from the attic it seemed to him as though its
beams were strong ropes dragging him up, and he had to go and
peep through the key-hole. There he felt the sort of feeling we
have looking at the great rolling sea in a storm, and he burst
into tears. He could not himself say why he wept, but in spite of
his tears he felt quite happy. How beautiful it must be to sit
under that tree with the student, but that he could not do; he
had to content himself with the key-hole and be happy there!
There he stood out on the cold landing, the autumn wind blowing
through the cracks of the floor. It was cold--very cold, but he
first found it out when the light in the attic was put out and
the music in the wood died away. Ah ! then it froze him, and he
crept down again into his warm corner; there it was comfortable
and cosy.
When Christmas came, and with it the jam with the large lump of
butter, ah! then the grocer was first with him.
But in the middle of the night the Goblin awoke, hearing a great
noise and knocking against the shutters--people hammering from
outside. The watchman was blowing his horn: a great fire had
broken out; the whole town was in flames.
Was it in the house? or was it at a neighbour's? Where was it?
The alarm increased. The grocer's wife was so terrified that she
took her gold earrings out of her ears and put them in her pocket
in order to save something. The grocer seized his account books.
and the maid her black silk dress.
Everyone wanted to save his most valuable possession; so did the
Goblin, and in a few leaps he was up the stairs and in the
student's room. He was standing quietly by the open window
looking at the fire that was burning in the neighbour's house
just opposite. The Goblin seized the book lying on the table, put
it in his red cap, and clasped it with both hands. The best
treasure in the house was saved, and he climbed out on to the
roof with it--on to the chimney. There he sat, lighted up by the
flames from the burning house opposite, both hands holding
tightly on his red cap, in which lay the treasure; and now he
knew what his heart really valued most--to whom he really
belonged. But when the fire was put out, and the Goblin thought
it over--then--
'I will divide myself between the two,' he said. 'I cannot quite
give up the grocer, because of the jam!'
And it is just the same with us. We also cannot quite give up the
grocer--because of the jam.
The House in the Wood
From the German of Grimm.
A poor woodcutter lived with his wife and three daughters in a
little hut on the borders of a great forest.
One morning as he was going to his work, he said to his wife,
'Let our eldest daughter bring me my lunch into the wood; and so
that she shall not lose her way, I will take a bag of millet with
me, and sprinkle the seed on the path.'
When the sun had risen high over the forest, the girl set out
with a basin of soup. But the field and wood sparrows, the larks
and finches, blackbirds and green finches had picked up the
millet long ago, and the girl could not find her way.
She went on and on, till the sun set and night came on. The trees
rustled in the darkness, the owls hooted, and she began to be
very much frightened. Then she saw in tile distance a light that
twinkled between the trees. 'There must be people living yonder,'
she thought, 'who will take me in for the night,' and she began
walking towards it.
Not long afterwards she came to a house with lights in the
windows.
She knocked at the door, and a gruff voice called, 'Come in!'
The girl stepped into the dark entrance, and tapped at the door
of the room.
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