Grimm's Household Tales

FIRST STORY

Through no fault of his own, a shoemaker had become so poor that at last he had nothing left but leather for one pair of shoes. So in the evening he cut out the shoes that he wished to begin making the next morning, and since he had a good conscience, he lay down quietly in his bed, commended himself to God, and fell asleep. In the morning, after he had said his prayers and was just about to sit down to work, the two shoes stood quite finished on his table. He was astounded and did not know what to say. He took the shoes in his hands to look at them more closely, and they were so neatly made that there was not one bad stitch in them, just as if they were meant to be a masterpiece. Soon after, a buyer came in, and because the shoes pleased him so well, he paid more for them than was customary, and with the money the shoemaker was able to buy leather for two pairs of shoes. He cut them out at night, and next morning he was about to set to work with fresh courage, but he had no need to, for when he got up, they were already made, and there was no lack of buyers, who gave him enough money to buy leather for four pairs of shoes. The following morning, too, he found the four pairs made, and so it went on continually: what he cut out in the evening was finished by morning, so that he soon had his honest independence again and at last became a wealthy man. Now it happened one evening not long before Christmas that, when the man had been cutting out, he said to his wife before going to bed, “What do you think if we stay up tonight to see who it is that lends us this helping hand?” The woman liked the idea and lit a candle, and then they hid themselves in a corner of the room behind some clothes that were hanging there, and watched. When it was midnight, two pretty little naked men came, sat down by the shoemaker’s table, took all the cut-out work in front of them, and began to stitch, sew, and hammer so skillfully and so quickly with their little fingers that the shoemaker could not turn his eyes away in astonishment. They did not stop until everything was done and stood finished on the table, and then they ran quickly away.

Next morning the woman said, “The little men have made us rich, and we really must show that we are grateful for it. They run about so, and have nothing on, and must be cold. I’ll tell you what I’ll do: I will make them little shirts, coats, vests, and trousers, and knit each of them a pair of stockings, and you, too, make them two little pairs of shoes.” The man said, “I shall be very glad to do it.” One night, when everything was ready, they laid their presents all together on the table instead of the cut-out work, and then hid themselves to see how the little men would behave. At midnight the little men came bounding in and wanted to get to work at once, but when they did not find any leather cut out, only the pretty little articles of clothing, they were at first astonished and then showed intense delight. They dressed themselves with the greatest speed, putting on the pretty clothes and singing,

“Now we are boys so fine to see, / Why should we longer cobblers be?”

Then they danced and skipped and leapt over chairs and benches. At last they danced out of doors. From that time forth they came no more, but as long as the shoemaker lived, all went well with him, and all his undertakings prospered.

SECOND STORY

There was once a poor servant girl who was industrious and clean. She swept the house every day and emptied her sweepings onto the great heap in front of the door. One morning, when she was just going back to her work, she found a letter on this heap, and since she could not read, she put her broom in the corner and took the letter to her master and mistress, and behold, it was an invitation from the elves, who asked the girl to hold a child for them at its christening. The girl did not know what to do, but at length, after much persuasion, and because they told her it was not right to refuse an invitation of this kind, she consented. Then three elves came and led her to a hollow mountain, where the little folks lived. Everything there was small, but more elegant and beautiful than can be described. The baby’s mother lay in a bed of black ebony decorated with pearls, the coverlets were embroidered with gold, the cradle was of ivory, and the bath was of gold. The girl stood as godmother, and then she wanted to go home again, but the little elves urgently begged her to stay three days with them. So she stayed and passed the time in pleasure and merriment, and the little folks did all they could to make her happy. At last she set out on her way home. First they filled her pockets quite full of money, and after that they led her out of the mountain again. When she got home, she wanted to begin her work, so she took the broom, which was still standing in the corner, in her hand and began to sweep. Then some strangers came out of the house and asked her who she was and what business she had there. And she had not, as she thought, been three days with the little men in the mountains, but seven years, and in the meantime her former masters had died.

THIRD STORY

A certain mother’s child had been taken out of its cradle by the elves, and a changeling with a large head and staring eyes, which would do nothing but eat and drink, had been laid in its place. In her trouble she went to her neighbor and asked her advice. The neighbor said that she should carry the changeling into the kitchen, set it down on the hearth, light a fire, and boil some water in two eggshells, which would make the changeling laugh, and if he laughed, all would be over with him. The woman did everything her neighbor told her to do. When she put the eggshells with water on the fire, the imp said, “I am as old now as the Wester forest, but never yet have I seen anyone boil anything in an eggshell!” And he began to laugh at it. While he was laughing, a host of little elves suddenly came, brought the right child, set it down on the hearth, and took the changeling away with them.