บทที่ บทที่ 61 · Allerleirauh

. Allerleirauh

There was once on a time a King who had a wife with golden hair, and

she was so beautiful that her equal was not to be found on earth. It

came to pass that she lay ill, and as she felt that she must soon die,

she called the King and said, “If thou wishest to marry again after my

death, take no one who is not quite as beautiful as I am, and who has

not just such golden hair as I have: this thou must promise me.” And

after the King had promised her this she closed her eyes and died.

For a long time the King could not be comforted, and had no thought of

taking another wife. At length his councillors said, “There is no help

for it, the King must marry again, that we may have a Queen.” And now

messengers were sent about far and wide, to seek a bride who equalled

the late Queen in beauty. In the whole world, however, none was to be

found, and even if one had been found, still there would have been no

one who had such golden hair. So the messengers came home as they went.

Now the King had a daughter, who was just as beautiful as her dead

mother, and had the same golden hair. When she was grown up the King

looked at her one day, and saw that in every respect she was like his

late wife, and suddenly felt a violent love for her. Then he spake to

his councillors, “I will marry my daughter, for she is the counterpart

of my late wife, otherwise I can find no bride who resembles her.” When

the councillors heard that, they were shocked, and said, “God has

forbidden a father to marry his daughter, no good can come from such a

crime, and the kingdom will be involved in the ruin.”

The daughter was still more shocked when she became aware of her

father’s resolution, but hoped to turn him from his design. Then she

said to him, “Before I fulfil your wish, I must have three dresses, one

as golden as the sun, one as silvery as the moon, and one as bright as

the stars; besides this, I wish for a mantle of a thousand different

kinds of fur and hair joined together, and one of every kind of animal

in your kingdom must give a piece of his skin for it.” But she thought,

“To get that will be quite impossible, and thus I shall divert my

father from his wicked intentions.” The King, however, did not give it

up, and the cleverest maidens in his kingdom had to weave the three

dresses, one as golden as the sun, one as silvery as the moon, and one

as bright as the stars, and his huntsmen had to catch one of every kind

of animal in the whole of his kingdom, and take from it a piece of its

skin, and out of these was made a mantle of a thousand different kinds

of fur. At length, when all was ready, the King caused the mantle to be

brought, spread it out before her, and said, “The wedding shall be

to-morrow.”

When, therefore, the King’s daughter saw that there was no longer any

hope of turning her father’s heart, she resolved to run away from him.

In the night whilst every one was asleep, she got up, and took three

different things from her treasures, a golden ring, a golden

spinning-wheel, and a golden reel. The three dresses of the sun, moon,

and stars she put into a nutshell, put on her mantle of all kinds of

fur, and blackened her face and hands with soot. Then she commended

herself to God, and went away, and walked the whole night until she

reached a great forest. And as she was tired, she got into a hollow

tree, and fell asleep.

The sun rose, and she slept on, and she was still sleeping when it was

full day. Then it so happened that the King to whom this forest

belonged, was hunting in it. When his dogs came to the tree, they

sniffed, and ran barking round about it. The King said to the huntsmen,

“Just see what kind of wild beast has hidden itself in there.” The

huntsmen obeyed his order, and when they came back they said, “A

wondrous beast is lying in the hollow tree; we have never before seen

one like it. Its skin is fur of a thousand different kinds, but it is

lying asleep.” Said the King, “See if you can catch it alive, and then

fasten it to the carriage, and we will take it with us.” When the

huntsmen laid hold of the maiden, she awoke full of terror, and cried

to them, “I am a poor child, deserted by father and mother; have pity

on me, and take me with you.” Then said they, “Allerleirauh, thou wilt

be useful in the kitchen, come with us, and thou canst sweep up the

ashes.” So they put her in the carriage, and took her home to the royal

palace. There they pointed out to her a closet under the stairs, where

no daylight entered, and said, “Hairy animal, there canst thou live and

sleep.” Then she was sent into the kitchen, and there she carried wood

and water, swept the hearth, plucked the fowls, picked the vegetables,

raked the ashes, and did all the dirty work.

Allerleirauh lived there for a long time in great wretchedness. Alas,

fair princess, what is to become of thee now! It happened, however,

that one day a feast was held in the palace, and she said to the cook,

“May I go up-stairs for a while, and look on? I will place myself

outside the door.” The cook answered, “Yes, go, but you must be back

here in half-an-hour to sweep the hearth.” Then she took her oil-lamp,

went into her den, put off her fur-dress, and washed the soot off her

face and hands, so that her full beauty once more came to light. And

she opened the nut, and took out her dress which shone like the sun,

and when she had done that she went up to the festival, and every one

made way for her, for no one knew her, and thought no otherwise than

that she was a king’s daughter. The King came to meet her, gave his

hand to her, and danced with her, and thought in his heart, “My eyes

have never yet seen any one so beautiful!” When the dance was over she

curtsied, and when the King looked round again she had vanished, and

none knew whither. The guards who stood outside the palace were called

and questioned, but no one had seen her.

She had, however, run into her little den, had quickly taken off her

dress, made her face and hands black again, put on the fur-mantle, and

again was Allerleirauh. And now when she went into the kitchen, and was

about to get to her work and sweep up the ashes, the cook said, “Leave

that alone till morning, and make me the soup for the King; I, too,

will go upstairs awhile, and take a look; but let no hairs fall in, or

in future thou shalt have nothing to eat.” So the cook went away, and

Allerleirauh made the soup for the king, and made bread soup and the

best she could, and when it was ready she fetched her golden ring from

her little den, and put it in the bowl in which the soup was served.

When the dancing was over, the King had his soup brought and ate it,

and he liked it so much that it seemed to him he had never tasted

better. But when he came to the bottom of the bowl, he saw a golden

ring lying, and could not conceive how it could have got there. Then he

ordered the cook to appear before him. The cook was terrified when he

heard the order, and said to Allerleirauh, “Thou hast certainly let a

hair fall into the soup, and if thou hast, thou shalt be beaten for

it.” When he came before the King the latter asked who had made the

soup? The cook replied, “I made it.” But the King said, “That is not

true, for it was much better than usual, and cooked differently.” He

answered, “I must acknowledge that I did not make it, it was made by

the rough animal.” The King said, “Go and bid it come up here.”

When Allerleirauh came, the King said, “Who art thou?” “I am a poor

girl who no longer has any father or mother.” He asked further, “Of

what use art thou in my palace?” She answered, “I am good for nothing

but to have boots thrown at my head.” He continued, “Where didst thou

get the ring which was in the soup?” She answered, “I know nothing

about the ring.” So the King could learn nothing, and had to send her

away again.

After a while, there was another festival, and then, as before,

Allerleirauh begged the cook for leave to go and look on. He answered,

“Yes, but come back again in half-an-hour, and make the King the bread

soup which he so much likes.” Then she ran into her den, washed herself

quickly, and took out of the nut the dress which was as silvery as the

moon, and put it on. Then she went up and was like a princess, and the

King stepped forward to meet her, and rejoiced to see her once more,

and as the dance was just beginning they danced it together. But when

it was ended, she again disappeared so quickly that the King could not

observe where she went. She, however, sprang into her den, and once

more made herself a hairy animal, and went into the kitchen to prepare

the bread soup. When the cook had gone up-stairs, she fetched the

little golden spinning-wheel, and put it in the bowl so that the soup

covered it. Then it was taken to the King, who ate it, and liked it as

much as before, and had the cook brought, who this time likewise was

forced to confess that Allerleirauh had prepared the soup. Allerleirauh

again came before the King, but she answered that she was good for

nothing else but to have boots thrown at her head, and that she knew

nothing at all about the little golden spinning-wheel.

When, for the third time, the King held a festival, all happened just

as it had done before. The cook said, “Faith rough-skin, thou art a

witch, and always puttest something in the soup which makes it so good

that the King likes it better than that which I cook,” but as she

begged so hard, he let her go up at the appointed time. And now she put

on the dress which shone like the stars, and thus entered the hall.

Again the King danced with the beautiful maiden, and thought that she

never yet had been so beautiful. And whilst she was dancing, he

contrived, without her noticing it, to slip a golden ring on her

finger, and he had given orders that the dance should last a very long

time. When it was ended, he wanted to hold her fast by her hands, but

she tore herself loose, and sprang away so quickly through the crowd

that she vanished from his sight. She ran as fast as she could into her

den beneath the stairs, but as she had been too long, and had stayed

more than half-an-hour she could not take off her pretty dress, but

only threw over it her fur-mantle, and in her haste she did not make

herself quite black, but one finger remained white. Then Allerleirauh

ran into the kitchen, and cooked the bread soup for the King, and as

the cook was away, put her golden reel into it. When the King found the

reel at the bottom of it, he caused Allerleirauh to be summoned, and

then he espied the white finger, and saw the ring which he had put on

it during the dance. Then he grasped her by the hand, and held her

fast, and when she wanted to release herself and run away, her mantle

of fur opened a little, and the star-dress shone forth. The King

clutched the mantle and tore it off. Then her golden hair shone forth,

and she stood there in full splendour, and could no longer hide

herself. And when she had washed the soot and ashes from her face, she

was more beautiful than anyone who had ever been seen on earth. But the

King said, “Thou art my dear bride, and we will never more part from

each other.” Thereupon the marriage was solemnized, and they lived

happily until their death.

66 The Hare’s Bride

There was once a woman and her daughter who lived in a pretty garden

with cabbages; and a little hare came into it, and during the winter

time ate all the cabbages. Then says the mother to the daughter, “Go

into the garden, and chase the hare away.” The girl says to the little

hare, “Sh-sh, hare, you are still eating up all our cabbages.” Says the

hare, “Come, maiden, and seat yourself on my little hare’s tail, and

come with me into my little hare’s hut.” The girl will not do it. Next

day the hare comes again and eats the cabbages, then says the mother to

the daughter, “Go into the garden, and drive the hare away.” The girl

says to the hare, “Sh-sh, little hare, you are still eating all the

cabbages.” The little hare says, “Maiden, seat thyself on my little

hare’s tail, and come with me into my little hare’s hut.” The maiden

refuses. The third day the hare comes again, and eats the cabbages. On

this the mother says to the daughter, “Go into the garden, and hunt the

hare away.” Says the maiden, “Sh-sh, little hare, you are still eating

all our cabbages.” Says the little hare, “Come, maiden, seat thyself on

my little hare’s tail, and come with me into my little hare’s hut.” The

girl seats herself on the little hare’s tail, and then the hare takes

her far away to his little hut, and says, “Now cook green cabbage and

millet-seed, and I will invite the wedding-guests.” Then all the

wedding-guests assembled. (Who were the wedding-guests?) That I can

tell you as another told it to me. They were all hares, and the crow

was there as parson to marry the bride and bridegroom, and the fox as

clerk, and the altar was under the rainbow.

The girl, however, was sad, for she was all alone. The little hare

comes and says, “Open the doors, open the doors, the wedding-guests are

merry.” The bride says nothing, but weeps. The little hare goes away.

The little hare comes back and says, “Take off the lid, take off the

lid, the wedding-guests are hungry.” The bride again says nothing, and

weeps. The little hare goes away. The little hare comes back and says,

“Take off the lid, take off the lid, the wedding-guests are waiting.”

Then the bride says nothing, and the hare goes away, but she dresses a

straw-doll in her clothes, and gives her a spoon to stir with, and sets

her by the pan with the millet-seed, and goes back to her mother. The

little hare comes once more and says, “Take off the lid, take off the

lid,” and gets up, and strikes the doll on the head so that her cap

falls off.

Then the little hare sees that it is not his bride, and goes away and

is sorrowful.