The Original Folk and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm (77 page)

71. Princess Mouseskin (Prinzessin Mäusehaut). Source: Wild family.

The Grimms indicate that the major source is Charles Perrault's “Peau d'ane” in
Histoires ou contes du temps passé
(1697).

72. The Pear Refused to Fall (Das Birnli will nit fallen). Source: From an oral tale in Switzerland.

The Grimms refer to a Jewish folk song and quote a few refrains in their summary.

73. The Castle of Murder (Das Mordschloß). Source: Fräulein de Kinsky.

The Grimms translated this from Fräulein de Kinsky, and they printed the tale in Dutch in their note.

74. Johannes Waterspring and Caspar Waterspring (Von Johannes-Wassersprung und Caspar-Wassersprung). Source: Friederike Mannel.

75. The Bird Phoenix (Vogel Phönix). Source: Marie Hassenpflug.

76. The Carnation (Die Nelke). Source: Hassenpflug family.

77. The Carpenter and the Turner (Vom Schreiner und Drechsler). Source: Friederike Mannel.

78. The Old Grandfather and the Grandson (Der alte Großvater und der Enkel). Source: Johann Heinrich Jung-Stilling,
Heinrich Stillings Jugend
(1777).

The Grimms summarize an old minnesang that they obtained from Achim von Arnim's codex.

An old king cedes his throne and realm to his son, who is, however, to support the king until his death. The son gets married, and his young queen complains about the coughing of the old king. The son has the father sleep under a flight of stairs on some straw, where he must live for many years not much better than a dog. His grandson grows up and brings his grandfather food and something to drink every day. One time the grandfather is freezing and asks for a blanket from one of the horses, The grandson goes into the stable, takes a good blanket, cuts it in two because he is upset about the way his grandfather is being treated. His father asks him why he's done this, and he responds: “I'm going to bring one half of the blanket to grandfather, and the other half I'm going to save so that I can cover you when you get old.”

The Grimms also summarize an old French version:

A son disowns his old father because of his wife's complaints. The father asks for some warm clothes, and the son refuses to give him any. Then the father asks for a blanket from a horse because his heart is trembling from the cold. The son tells his own son to go into the stable with the old man and to give him a blanket. So the grandson cuts the blanket in two while his grandfather scolds him and reports him to his son for doing this. But the grandson defends his actions by telling his father that he did this to save the other half for him when the time will come to drive the father out of the house. As a consequence the father takes all this to heart and honors his father by taking him back into the house.

The Grimms also recall another similar short version that appeared in Johannes Pauli's
Schimpf und Ernst
(1522).

79. The Water Nixie (Die Wassernix). Source: Marie Hassenpflug.

80. The Death of Little Hen (Von dem Tod des Hühnchens). Source: Oral tale from Hesse.

The Grimms remark that there is a similar tale, “Erschreckliche Geschichte von Hünhnchen und Hänchen,” in Clemens Brentano's and Achim von Arnim's
Des Knaben Wunderhorn
(1805).

81. The Blacksmith and the Devil (Der Schmidt und der Teufel). Source: Marie Hassenpflug.

The Grimms state that this tale has been popular throughout Europe. They note various versions from the eighteenth century and discuss its German and French origins. Here is a 1772 variant about a blacksmith from Jüterbock:

The pious blacksmith from Jüterbock wore a black and white jacket, and one night he gladly and cheerfully provided lodging to a holy man. The next day, before the holy man's departure, he permitted the blacksmith three wishes. So the blacksmith asked (1) that his favorite chair near the oven be endowed with the power to retain each and every uninvited guest on the chair until the blacksmith lets him go; (2) that his apple tree in the garden be endowed with the power to retain anyone who climbs the tree; (3) that the sack he used for coal be able to retain anyone inside until the blacksmith lets the person go free.

After some time passes, death comes and sits down on the favorite chair where he is detained. Death must grant the blacksmith another ten years of life before the blacksmith will let him go. After the ten years pass, death returns and climbs the apple tree. He can't get down, and the blacksmith calls his apprentices, who give death a terrible beating with poles. This time the blacksmith won't let him down until he grants him eternal life. Death agrees sadly and departs, his arms and legs lame from the beating he received. As he is making his way through a forest, he encounters the devil and spills his heart out and tells him what he has suffered. The devil mocks him and declares that he can get the better of the blacksmith. However, the blacksmith refuses to give the devil lodging for the night. That is, he won't open the door, and the devil must enter through the keyhole, which is easily done by the devil. But the blacksmith has the coal sack ready, and once the devil enters through the keyhole and falls into the sack, the blacksmith ties it up. Then he has his apprentices pound the sack on the anvil. After they have beaten and hammered the poor devil to their hearts' content, the blacksmith lets him go, but the devil must slip through the keyhole the way he had entered.

In another 1806 version collected by Johannes Falk in
Grotesken
, there is a similar tale about the blacksmith from Apolda:

In this version the Lord is traveling with St. Peter, and they spend the night in the blacksmith's home. The next day the Lord grants the blacksmith three wishes, which are: (1) whoever sticks his hand into the sack of nails will not be able to take it out until the sack falls apart; (2) whoever climbs his apple tree must stay above in the tree until the tree collapses; (3) whoever sits on his easy chair cannot stand up until the chair falls apart. Eventually three wicked angels come and want to take him away. However, the blacksmith leads them into all the traps that he had wished for so that the angels must give up their attempt to take him with them. However, death finally comes and forces the blacksmith to go with him. But he is granted one favor and is allowed to have his hammer placed in the coffin with him. When the blacksmith approaches heaven's gate, St. Peter won't open up, and so the blacksmith goes to heaven, where he makes a key. Then he promises to do all kinds of work in heaven and make himself useful, such
as making hoofs for St. George's horse. Finally, St. Peter lets him enter through heaven's gate.

The third variant collected by the Grimms has the title, “Histoire nouvelle et divertissement du bon homme Misère,” and though printed in France, the Grimms believe it to be of Italian origin:

In this tale Peter and Paul arrive in a village during bad weather. They encounter a washerwoman who thanks heaven that the rain isn't wine but water. They knock on the door of a rich man who refuses to give them lodging. So they go to poor Misery, who takes them in. Then they grant him one wish that pertains to his pear tree that a thief has been robbing. Anyone who climbs the tree gets stuck there. The thief is caught, as are even other people who climb the tree out of curiosity when they hear the terrible cries of the thief and want to free him. Finally, death arrives, and Misery asks death to lend him his sickle so that he can cut down the most beautiful pears to take with him. Death won't let anyone take the sickle out of his hands, and so, like a good soldier, he takes charge of climbing the pear tree himself to cut off the pears. So Misery won't let him come down until death promises him to leave him in peace until the day of judgment. And this is why misery continues to exist in the world.

The Grimms conclude the note by stating that there is another oral version that relates how misery dies and arrives at the gate of heaven, but St. Peter won't let him enter because he had not requested a better wish such as admission to heaven. So misery goes to hell, but the devil won't allow him to enter because misery had made a fool out of him. Consequently, misery must return to earth, and this is why the world is still full of misery.

There are a few other versions that the Grimms mention, indicating how wide-spread the tale was in Europe.

82. The Three Sisters (Die drei Schwestem). Source: Johann August Musäus, “Die Bücher der Chronika der drey Schwestern,”
Volksmährchen der Deutschen
(1782–87).

The Grimms point to other similar tales in Giambattista Basile's “Li tre'rri anemale,”
Il Pentamerone
(1634), and some Scottish and English ballads.

83. The Poor Maiden (Das arme Mädchen). Source: Unknown.

84. The Mother-in-Law (Die Schwiegermutter). Source: Probably Charles Perrault's “La belle au bois dormant,”
Histoires ou contes du temps passé
(1697).

The Grimms also mention Giambattista Basile's “Sole, Luna e Talia,”
Il Pentamerone
(1634).

85. Fragments (Fragmente).

Snowflower (Schneeblume). Source: Based on a French oral tale and published as a poem, “Perceneige” in
Thibaut ou la nassance du comte de champagne
(1811).

The Princess with the Louse (Prinzessin mit der Laus). Source: Marie Hassenpflug.

The Grimms also cite Giambattista's “La Polece,”
Il Pentamerone
(1634).

Prince Johannes (Vom Prinz Johannes). Source: Taken from the monthly magazine,
Erheiterungen
(1812).

The Grimms prose version is based on a poem by Karl Graß, a painter and poet. The Good Cloth (Der gute Lappen). Source: Probably the Hassenpflug family.

86. The Fox and the Geese (Der Fuchs und die Gänse). Source: Von Haxthausen family.

This tale without an end was purposely chosen by the Grimms to demonstrate the endlessness of storytelling, and it also provocatively indicates how weaker animals can outsmart the stronger ones.

Volume II

1.   The Poor Man and the Rich Man (Der Arme und der Reiche). Source: Ferdinand Siebert.

The Grimms note that this tale is based on the ancient story of Philemon and Baucis in Ovid's
Metamorphosis
. They discuss how the moralistic theme of the punishment of the rich because of their greed and arrogance and the reward of the poor because of their generosity and humility can be found in many different European tales. Among the authors they cite is Benedikte Naubert and her
Neue Volksmährchen der Deutschen
(1789).

2. The Singing, Springing Lark (Das singende, springende Löweneckerchen). Source: Henriette Dorothea Wild.

The Grimms trace the origins of this tale to “Cupid and Psyche” in Apuleius's
The Golden Ass
(second century) and note its similarity to their own tale “Von dem Sommer- und Wintergarten” and to “Vom singenden, klingenden Bäumchen” in the anonymous
Feen-Mährchen
(1801).

3. The Goose Girl (Die Gänsemagd). Source: Dorothea Viehmann.

The Grimms discuss the motif of talking horses as well as the Nordic derivation of names in the tale. They also cite Giambattista Basile's “Le doje pizzelle,”
Il Pentamerone
(1634).

4. The Young Giant (Von einem jungen Riesen). Source: Georg August Friedrich Goldmann.

At the beginning of this note the Grimms discuss the significance of the giant in the Nordic oral and literary tradition. In particular there are many references to tales about Siegfried and Thor as well as to Sampson (Bible), Scharmack (Bohemia), and Gargantua. They also summarize another Hessian version, “Kürdchen Bingeling.”

Kürdchen Bingeling drank from his mother's breast for seven years. This is why he became so tremendously big and why he could eat so much and could never be
satisfied. Meanwhile, he tormented and made fools of all the people he encountered, Consequently, everyone in the community comes together to capture and kill him. He becomes aware of this and sets himself down beneath the gate (similar to Gargantua) so that nobody can come through without chopping and shoveling. Then he goes calmly on his way to another village. He is the same rascal as before, so the entire community decides to rise up against him and capture him. Since there is no gate that he can use as a barricade, he jumps into a well. Now all the villagers stand around the well and consult with each other about their next move. Finally, they decide to throw a millstone down on his head. With great effort they bring a large rock to the well and roll it down. Just as they think he is dead, his head suddenly emerges from the well through the hole in the millstone, which is now hanging from his shoulders so that he cries out: “Oh what a beautiful collar I now have!” When the villagers see this, they begin consulting with one another again and they decide to send for the large bell from the church tower. Then they throw it on him and are sure that they have hit their target (similar to Scharmack). When they are certain that he is lying down in the well and is dead, the villagers leave. All at once, however, he springs out of the well wearing the bell on his head, and he cries out joyfully: “Oh, what a beautiful little cap I've got!” And he runs off.

5. The Gnome (Dat Erdmänneken). Source: Ludowine von Haxthausen and Fernandine von Haxthausen.

The Grimms state that there is another version from Cologne that differs somewhat from “The Gnome”:

A powerful king has three beautiful daughters. One day during a splendid celebration, they take a walk in the garden, and they fail to return from the walk in the evening. When they don't appear the next day, the king orders a search throughout the entire realm, but nobody can find them. Then he announces that whoever finds them could have one of his daughters for his wife. In addition, whoever succeeds would receive enough wealth to live on for the rest of his life. Many men set out to find the daughters, but none succeed. Finally, three knights depart and declare that they won't rest until they are successful. They end up in a large forest, where they continue riding, hungry and thirsty. Finally, at nightfall they see a little light in the distance that leads them to a magnificent castle that is apparently empty. Since they are so hungry, they look for food, and one of them finds a piece of meat that is raw. Then the youngest says: “Why don't you two go off and look for something to drink while I roast this meat?” So he sticks the piece of meat on a spit, and while it is sizzling, a little gnome with a long white beard that reaches his knees suddenly appears next to him. His hands and feet are shivering. “Let me warm my hands and feet by the fire, and I'll keep turning the spit and pour butter on the meat.” The
knight lets him do this, and the gnome turns the roast nimbly, but whenever the knight isn't looking, he sticks his finger in the frying pan and licks the warm brew. The knight catches him doing this a couple of times and tells him to stop, but the tiny thing can't resist and is constantly trying to dip his fingers into the frying pan. Then the knight becomes furious and grabs the gnome by the beard and ruffles him so hard that he screams bloody murder and runs off. Meanwhile, the other two knights come back with some wine that they had found in the cellar, and now they eat and drink together. The next morning they continue searching the castle and find a deep hole. That's where the king's daughters must be hidden, they say to each other, and they draw lots to see which one of them would be let down by a rope while the other two hold on to the rope. The youngest, who had encountered the gnome, draws the lot. It takes a long time before he reaches the ground, where it is completely dark. All at once a door opens, and the gnome, whose beard he had pulled, comes and says: “I should actually pay you back for the wicked thing you did to me, but I pity you. I am the king of the gnomes, and I'll lead you out of this cave because if you stay here one moment longer, you will die.”