Chapter Chapter 154 · The Griffin

. The Griffin

There was once upon a time a King, but where he reigned and what he was

called, I do not know. He had no son, but an only daughter who had

always been ill, and no doctor had been able to cure her. Then it was

foretold to the King that his daughter should eat herself well with an

apple. So he ordered it to be proclaimed throughout the whole of his

kingdom, that whosoever brought his daughter an apple with which she

could eat herself well, should have her to wife, and be King. This

became known to a peasant who had three sons, and he said to the

eldest, “Go out into the garden and take a basketful of those beautiful

apples with the red cheeks and carry them to the court; perhaps the

King’s daughter will be able to eat herself well with them, and then

thou wilt marry her and be King.” The lad did so, and set out.

When he had gone a short way he met a little iron man who asked him

what he had there in the basket, to which replied Uele, for so was he

named, “Frogs’ legs.” On this the little man said, “Well, so shall it

be, and remain,” and went away. At length Uele arrived at the palace,

and made it known that he had brought apples which would cure the

King’s daughter if she ate them. This delighted the King hugely, and he

caused Uele to be brought before him; but, alas! when he opened the

basket, instead of having apples in it he had frogs’ legs which were

still kicking about. On this the King grew angry, and had him driven

out of the house. When he got home he told his father how it had fared

with him. Then the father sent the next son, who was called Seame, but

all went with him just as it had gone with Uele. He also met the little

iron man, who asked what he had there in the basket. Seame said, “Hogs’

bristles,” and the iron man said, “well, so shall it be, and remain.”

When Seame got to the King’s palace and said he brought apples with

which the King’s daughter might eat herself well, they did not want to

let him go in, and said that one fellow had already been there, and had

treated them as if they were fools. Seame, however, maintained that he

certainly had the apples, and that they ought to let him go in. At

length they believed him, and led him to the King. But when he

uncovered the basket, he had but hogs’ bristles. This enraged the King

most terribly, so he caused Seame to be whipped out of the house. When

he got home he related all that had befallen him, then the youngest

boy, whose name was Hans, but who was always called Stupid Hans, came

and asked his father if he might go with some apples. “Oh!” said the

father, “thou wouldst be just the right fellow for such a thing! If the

clever ones can’t manage it, what canst thou do?” The boy, however, did

not believe him, and said, “Indeed, father, I wish to go.” “Just get

away, thou stupid fellow, thou must wait till thou art wiser,” said the

father to that, and turned his back. Hans, however, pulled at the back

of his smock-frock and said, “Indeed, father, I wish to go.” “Well,

then, so far as I am concerned thou mayst go, but thou wilt soon come

home again!” replied the old man in a spiteful voice. The boy, however,

was tremendously delighted and jumped for joy. “Well, act like a fool!

thou growest more stupid every day!” said the father again. Hans,

however, did not care about that, and did not let it spoil his

pleasure, but as it was then night, he thought he might as well wait

until the morrow, for he could not get to court that day. All night

long he could not sleep in his bed, and if he did doze for a moment, he

dreamt of beautiful maidens, of palaces, of gold, and of silver, and

all kinds of things of that sort. Early in the morning, he went forth

on his way, and directly afterwards the little shabby-looking man in

his iron clothes, came to him and asked what he was carrying in the

basket. Hans gave him the answer that he was carrying apples with which

the King’s daughter was to eat herself well. “Then,” said the little

man, “so shall they be, and remain.” But at the court they would none

of them let Hans go in, for they said two had already been there who

had told them that they were bringing apples, and one of them had

frogs’ legs, and the other hogs’ bristles. Hans, however, resolutely

maintained that he most certainly had no frogs’ legs, but some of the

most beautiful apples in the whole kingdom. As he spoke so pleasantly,

the door-keeper thought he could not be telling a lie, and asked him to

go in, and he was right, for when Hans uncovered his basket in the

King’s presence, golden-yellow apples came tumbling out. The King was

delighted, and caused some of them to be taken to his daughter, and

then waited in anxious expectation until news should be brought to him

of the effect they had. But before much time had passed by, news was

brought to him: but who do you think it was who came? it was his

daughter herself! As soon as she had eaten of those apples, she was

cured, and sprang out of her bed. The joy the King felt cannot be

described! but now he did not want to give his daughter in marriage to

Hans, and said he must first make him a boat which would go quicker on

dry land than on water. Hans agreed to the conditions, and went home,

and related how it had fared with him. Then the father sent Uele into

the forest to make a boat of that kind. He worked diligently, and

whistled all the time. At mid-day, when the sun was at the highest,

came the little iron man and asked what he was making? Uele gave him

for answer, “Wooden bowls for the kitchen.” The iron man said, “So it

shall be, and remain.” By evening Uele thought he had now made the

boat, but when he wanted to get into it, he had nothing but wooden

bowls. The next day Seame went into the forest, but everything went

with him just as it had done with Uele. On the third day Stupid Hans

went. He worked away most industriously, so that the whole forest

resounded with the heavy strokes, and all the while he sang and

whistled right merrily. At mid-day, when it was the hottest, the little

man came again, and asked what he was making? “A boat which will go

quicker on dry land than on the water,” replied Hans, “and when I have

finished it, I am to have the King’s daughter for my wife.” “Well,”

said the little man, “such an one shall it be, and remain.” In the

evening, when the sun had turned into gold, Hans finished his boat, and

all that was wanted for it. He got into it and rowed to the palace. The

boat went as swiftly as the wind. The King saw it from afar, but would

not give his daughter to Hans yet, and said he must first take a

hundred hares out to pasture from early morning until late evening, and

if one of them got away, he should not have his daughter. Hans was

contented with this, and the next day went with his flock to the

pasture, and took great care that none of them ran away.

Before many hours had passed came a servant from the palace, and told

Hans that he must give her a hare instantly, for some visitors had come

unexpectedly. Hans, however, was very well aware what that meant, and

said he would not give her one; the King might set some hare soup

before his guest next day. The maid, however, would not believe in his

refusal, and at last she began to get angry with him. Then Hans said

that if the King’s daughter came herself, he would give her a hare. The

maid told this in the palace, and the daughter did go herself. In the

meantime, however, the little man came again to Hans, and asked him

what he was doing there? He said he had to watch over a hundred hares

and see that none of them ran away, and then he might marry the King’s

daughter and be King. “Good,” said the little man, “there is a whistle

for thee, and if one of them runs away, just whistle with it, and then

it will come back again.” When the King’s daughter came, Hans gave her

a hare into her apron; but when she had gone about a hundred steps with

it, he whistled, and the hare jumped out of the apron, and before she

could turn round was back to the flock again. When the evening came the

hare-herd whistled once more, and looked to see if all were there, and

then drove them to the palace. The King wondered how Hans had been able

to take a hundred hares to graze without losing any of them; he would,

however, not give him his daughter yet, and said he must now bring him

a feather from the Griffin’s tail. Hans set out at once, and walked

straight forwards. In the evening he came to a castle, and there he

asked for a night’s lodging, for at that time there were no inns. The

lord of the castle promised him that with much pleasure, and asked

where he was going? Hans answered, “To the Griffin.” “Oh! to the

Griffin! They tell me he knows everything, and I have lost the key of

an iron money-chest; so you might be so good as to ask him where it

is.” “Yes, indeed,” said Hans, “I will do that.” Early the next morning

he went onwards, and on his way arrived at another castle in which he

again stayed the night. When the people who lived there learnt that he

was going to the Griffin, they said they had in the house a daughter

who was ill, and that they had already tried every means to cure her,

but none of them had done her any good, and he might be so kind as to

ask the Griffin what would make their daughter healthy again? Hans said

he would willingly do that, and went onwards. Then he came to a lake,

and instead of a ferry-boat, a tall, tall man was there who had to

carry everybody across. The man asked Hans whither he was journeying?

“To the Griffin,” said Hans. “Then when you get to him,” said the man,

“just ask him why I am forced to carry everybody over the lake.” “Yes,

indeed, most certainly I’ll do that,” said Hans. Then the man took him

up on his shoulders, and carried him across. At length Hans arrived at

the Griffin’s house, but the wife only was at home, and not the Griffin

himself. Then the woman asked him what he wanted? Thereupon he told her

everything;—that he had to get a feather out of the Griffin’s tail, and

that there was a castle where they had lost the key of their

money-chest, and he was to ask the Griffin where it was?—that in

another castle the daughter was ill, and he was to learn what would

cure her?—and then not far from thence there was a lake and a man

beside it, who was forced to carry people across it, and he was very

anxious to learn why the man was obliged to do it. Then said the woman,

“But look here, my good friend, no Christian can speak to the Griffin;

he devours them all; but if you like, you can lie down under his bed,

and in the night, when he is quite fast asleep, you can reach out and

pull a feather out of his tail, and as for those things which you are

to learn, I will ask about them myself.” Hans was quite satisfied with

this, and got under the bed. In the evening, the Griffin came home, and

as soon as he entered the room, said, “Wife, I smell a Christian.”

“Yes,” said the woman, “one was here to-day, but he went away again;”

and on that the Griffin said no more.

In the middle of the night when the Griffin was snoring loudly, Hans

reached out and plucked a feather from his tail. The Griffin woke up

instantly, and said, “Wife, I smell a Christian, and it seems to me

that somebody was pulling at my tail.” His wife said, “Thou hast

certainly been dreaming, and I told thee before that a Christian was

here to-day, but that he went away again. He told me all kinds of

things that in one castle they had lost the key of their money-chest,

and could find it nowhere.” “Oh! the fools!” said the Griffin; “the key

lies in the wood-house under a log of wood behind the door.” “And then

he said that in another castle the daughter was ill, and they knew no

remedy that would cure her.” “Oh! the fools!” said the Griffin; “under

the cellar-steps a toad has made its nest of her hair, and if she got

her hair back she would be well.” “And then he also said that there was

a place where there was a lake and a man beside it who was forced to

carry everybody across.” “Oh, the fool!” said the Griffin; “if he only

put one man down in the middle, he would never have to carry another

across.” Early the next morning the Griffin got up and went out. Then

Hans came forth from under the bed, and he had a beautiful feather, and

had heard what the Griffin had said about the key, and the daughter,

and the ferry-man. The Griffin’s wife repeated it all once more to him

that he might not forget it, and then he went home again. First he came

to the man by the lake, who asked him what the Griffin had said, but

Hans replied that he must first carry him across, and then he would

tell him. So the man carried him across, and when he was over Hans told

him that all he had to do was to set one person down in the middle of

the lake, and then he would never have to carry over any more. The man

was hugely delighted, and told Hans that out of gratitude he would take

him once more across, and back again. But Hans said no, he would save

him the trouble, he was quite satisfied already, and pursued his way.

Then he came to the castle where the daughter was ill; he took her on

his shoulders, for she could not walk, and carried her down the

cellar-steps and pulled out the toad’s nest from beneath the lowest

step and gave it into her hand, and she sprang off his shoulder and up

the steps before him, and was quite cured. Then were the father and

mother beyond measure rejoiced, and they gave Hans gifts of gold and of

silver, and whatsoever else he wished for, that they gave him. And when

he got to the other castle he went at once into the wood-house, and

found the key under the log of wood behind the door, and took it to the

lord of the castle. He also was not a little pleased, and gave Hans as

a reward much of the gold that was in the chest, and all kinds of

things besides, such as cows, and sheep, and goats. When Hans arrived

before the King, with all these things—with the money, and the gold,

and the silver and the cows, sheep and goats, the King asked him how he

had come by them. Then Hans told him that the Griffin gave every one

whatsoever he wanted. So the King thought he himself could make such

things useful, and set out on his way to the Griffin; but when he got

to the lake, it happened that he was the very first who arrived there

after Hans, and the man put him down in the middle of it and went away,

and the King was drowned. Hans, however, married the daughter, and

became King.