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Grimms' Fairy Tales
The
Three Feathers
There was once on a time a King who had three
sons, of whom two were clever and wise, but the third did
not speak much, and was simple, and was called the Simpleton.
When the King had become old and weak, and was thinking
of his end, he did not know which of his sons should inherit
the kingdom after him. Then he said to them, "Go forth,
and he who brings me the most beautiful carpet shall be
King after my death." And that there should be no dispute
amongst them, he took them outside his castle, blew three
feathers in the air, and said, "You shall go as they
fly." One feather flew to the east, the other to the
west, but the third flew straight up and did not fly far,
but soon fell to the ground. And now one brother went to
the right, and the other to the left, and they mocked Simpleton,
who was forced to stay where the third feather had fallen.
He sat down and was sad, then all at once he saw that there
was a trap-door close by the feather. He raised it up, found
some steps, and went down them, and then he came to another
door, knocked at it, and heard somebody inside calling ,
"Little green maiden small,
Hopping hither and thither;
Hop to the door,
And quickly see who is there."
The door opened, and he saw a great, fat toad sitting,
and round about her a crowd of little toads. The fat toad
asked what he wanted? He answered, "I should like to
have the prettiest and finest carpet in the world."
Then she called a young one and said,
"Little green maiden small,
Hopping hither and thither,
Hop quickly and bring me
The great box here."
The young toad brought the box, and the fat toad opened
it, and gave Simpleton a carpet out of it, so beautiful
and so fine, that on the earth above, none could have been
woven like it. Then he thanked her, and ascended again.
The two others had, however, looked on their youngest brother
as so stupid that they believed he would find and bring
nothing at all. "Why should we give ourselves a great
deal of trouble to search?" said they, and got some
coarse handkerchiefs from the first shepherds' wives whom
they met, and carried them home to the King. At the same
time Simpleton also came back, and brought his beautiful
carpet, and when the King saw it he was astonished, and
said, "If justice be done, the kingdom belongs to the
youngest." But the two others let their father have
no peace, and said that it was impossible that Simpleton,
who in everything lacked understanding, should be King,
and entreated him to make a new agreement with them. Then
the father said, "He who brings me the most beautiful
ring shall inherit the kingdom," and led the three
brothers out, and blew into the air three feathers, which
they were to follow. Those of the two eldest again went
east and west, and Simpleton's feather flew straight up,
and fell down near the door into the earth. Then he went
down again to the fat toad, and told her that he wanted
the most beautiful ring. She at once ordered her great box
to be brought, and gave him a ring out of it, which sparkled
with jewels, and was so beautiful that no goldsmith on earth
would have been able to make it. The two eldest laughed
at Simpleton for going to seek a golden ring. They gave
themselves no trouble, but knocked the nails out of an old
carriage-ring, and took it to the King; but when Simpleton
produced his golden ring, his father again said, "The
kingdom belongs to him." The two eldest did not cease
from tormenting the King until he made a third condition,
and declared that the one who brought the most beautiful
woman home, should have the kingdom. He again blew the three
feathers into the air, and they flew as before.
Then Simpleton without more ado went down to the fat toad,
and said, "I am to take home the most beautiful woman!"
"Oh," answered the toad, "the most beautiful
woman! She is not at hand at the moment, but still thou
shalt have her." She gave him a yellow turnip which
had been hollowed out, to which six mice were harnessed.
Then Simpleton said quite mournfully, "What am I to
do with that?" The toad answered, "Just put one
of my little toads into it." Then he seized one at
random out of the circle, and put her into the yellow coach,
but hardly was she seated inside it than she turned into
a wonderfully beautiful maiden, and the turnip into a coach,
and the six mice into horses. So he kissed her, and drove
off quickly with the horses, and took her to the King. His
brothers came afterwards; they had given themselves no trouble
at all to seek beautiful girls, but had brought with them
the first peasant women they chanced to meet. When the King
saw them he said, "After my death the kingdom belongs
to my youngest son." But the two eldest deafened the
King's ears afresh with their clamour, "We cannot consent
to Simpleton's being King," and demanded that the one
whose wife could leap through a ring which hung in the centre
of the hall should have the preference. They thought, "The
peasant women can do that easily; they are strong enough,
but the delicate maiden will jump herself to death."
The aged King agreed likewise to this. Then the two peasant
women jumped, and jumped through the ring, but were so stout
that they fell, and their coarse arms and legs broke in
two. And then the pretty maiden whom Simpleton had brought
with him, sprang, and sprang through as lightly as a deer,
and all opposition had to cease. So he received the crown,
and has ruled wisely for a length of time.
From Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, Household Tales, trans. Margaret
Hunt (London: George Bell, 1884), 1:271-274. |
