Popular Tales from the Norse Part 62

So she hunted, and he kept on saying, 'Pip, here I am', and laughed and chuckled, but she couldn't find him; but all at once the horse snorted, and it snorted Thumbikin out, for he had crept up one of his nostrils.

Then his mother took him and put him into a bag; she knew no other way, for she saw well enough he couldn't help hiding himself.

So, when they came to the palace, the match was soon made, for the Princess thought him a pretty little chap, and it wasn't long before the wedding came on too.

Now, when they were going to sit down to the wedding-feast, Thumbikin sat at the table by the Princess's side; but he had worse than no seat, for when he was to eat he couldn't reach up to the table; and so if the Princess hadn't helped him up on to it, he wouldn't have got a bit to eat.

Now it went good and well so long as he had to eat off a plate, but then there came a great bowl of porridge--that he couldn't reach up to; but Thumbikin soon found out a way to help himself; he climbed up and sat on the lip of the bowl. But then there was a pat of melting b.u.t.ter right in the middle of the bowl, and that he couldn't reach to dip his porridge into it, and so he went on and took his seat at the edge of the melting b.u.t.ter; but just then who should come but the Princess, with a great spoonful of porridge to dip it into the b.u.t.ter; and, alas! she went too near to Thumbikin, and tipped him over; and so he fell over head and ears, and was drowned in the melted b.u.t.ter.

DOLL I' THE GRa.s.s

Once on a time there was a King who had twelve sons. When they were grown big he told them they must go out into the world and win themselves wives, but these wives must each be able to spin, and weave, and sew a shirt in one day, else he wouldn't have them for daughters-in-law.

To each he gave a horse and a new suit of mail, and they went out into the world to look after their brides; but when they had gone a bit of the way, they said they wouldn't have Boots, their youngest brother, with them--he wasn't fit for anything.

Well, Boots had to stay behind, and he didn't know what to do or whither to turn; and so he grew so downcast, he got off his horse, and sat down in the tall gra.s.s to weep. But when he had sat a little while, one of the tufts in the gra.s.s began to stir and move, and out of it came a little white thing, and when it came nearer, Boots saw it was a charming little la.s.sie, only such a tiny bit of a thing. So the la.s.sie went up to him, and asked if he would come down below and see 'Doll i' the Gra.s.s'.

Yes, he'd be very happy, and so he went.

Now, when he got down; there sat Doll i' the Gra.s.s on a chair; she was so lovely and so smart, and she asked Boots whither he was going, and what was his business.

So he told her how there were twelve brothers of them, and how the King had given them horses and mail, and said they must each go out into the world and find them a wife who could spin, and weave, and sew a shirt in a day.

'But if you'll only say at once you'll be my wife, I'll not go a step further', said Boots to Doll i' the Gra.s.s.

Well, she was willing enough, and so she made haste and span, and wove, and sewed the shirt, but it was so tiny, tiny little. It wasn't longer than so--------long.

So Boots set off home with it, but when he brought it out he was almost ashamed, it was so small. Still the King said he should have her, and so Boots set off, glad and happy to fetch his little sweetheart. So when he got to Doll i' the Gra.s.s, he wished to take her up before him on his horse; but she wouldn't have that, for she said she would sit and drive along in a silver spoon, and that she had two small white horses to draw her. So off they set, he on his horse and she on her silver spoon, and the two horses that drew her were two tiny white mice; but Boots always kept the other side of the road, he was so afraid lest he should ride over her, she was so little. So, when they had gone a bit of the way, they came to a great piece of water. Here Boots' horse got frightened, and shied across the road and upset the spoon, and Doll i' the Gra.s.s tumbled into the water. Then Boots got so sorrowful because he didn't know how to get her out again; but in a little while up came a merman with her, and now she was as well and full grown as other men and women, and far lovelier than she had been before. So he took her up before him on his horse, and rode home.

When Boots got home all his brothers had come back each with his sweetheart, but these were all so ugly, and foul, and wicked, that they had done nothing but fight with one another on the way home, and on their heads they had a kind of hat that was daubed over with tar and soot, and so the rain had run down off the hats on to their faces, till they got far uglier and nastier than they had been before. When his brothers saw Boots and his sweetheart, they were all as jealous as jealous could be of her; but the King was so overjoyed with them both, that he drove all the others away, and so Boots held his wedding-feast with Doll i' the Gra.s.s, and after that they lived well and happily together a long long time, and if they're not dead, why they're alive still.

THE LAD AND THE DEIL

Once on a time there was a lad who was walking along a road cracking nuts, so he found one that was worm-eaten, and just at that very moment he met the Deil.

'Is it true, now', said the lad, 'what they say, that the Deil can make himself as small as he chooses, and thrust himself in through a pinhole?'

'Yes it is', said the Deil.

'Oh! it is, is it? then let me see you do it, and just creep into this nut', said the lad.

So the Deil did it.

Now, when he had crept well in through the worm's hole, the lad stopped it up with a pin.

'Now, I've got you safe', he said, and put the nut into his pocket.

So when he had walked on a bit, he came to a smithy, and he turned in and asked the smith if he'd be good enough to crack that nut for him.

'Aye, that'll be an easy job', said the smith, and took his smallest hammer, laid the nut on the anvil, and gave it a blow, but it wouldn't break.

So he took another hammer a little bigger, but that wasn't heavy enough either.

Then he took one bigger still, but it was still the same story; and so the smith got wroth, and grasped his great sledge-hammer.

'Now, I'll crack you to bits', he said, and let drive at the nut with all his might and main. And so the nut flew to pieces with a bang that blew off half the roof of the smithy, and the whole house creaked and groaned as though it were ready to fall.

'Why! if I don't think the Deil must have been in that nut', said the smith.

'So he was; you're quite right', said the lad, as he went away laughing.

THE c.o.c.k AND HEN A-NUTTING

Once on a time the c.o.c.k and the hen went out into the hazel-wood to pick nuts; and so the hen got a nutsh.e.l.l in her throat, and lay on her back, flapping her wings.

Off went the c.o.c.k to fetch water for her; so he came to the Spring and said:

'Dear good friend Spring give me a drop of water, that I may give it to Dame Partlet, my mate, who lies at death's door in the hazel- wood.'

But the Spring answered:

'You'll get no water from me until I get leaves from you.'

So the c.o.c.k ran to the Linden, and said:

'Dear good friend Linden, give me some of your leaves, the leaves I'll give to the Spring, and the Spring'll give me water to give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death's door in the hazel-wood.'

'You'll get no leaves from me', said the Linden, 'until I get a red ribbon with a golden edge from you.'

So the c.o.c.k ran to the Virgin Mary.

'Dear good Virgin Mary, give me a red ribbon with a golden edge, and I'll give the red ribbon to the Linden, the Linden'll give me leaves, the leaves I'll give to the Spring, the Spring'll give me water, and the water I'll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death's door, in the hazel-wood.'

'You'll get no red ribbon from me', answered the Virgin Mary, 'until I get shoes from you.'

So the c.o.c.k ran to the Shoemaker and said

'Dear good friend Shoemaker, give me shoes, and I'll give the shoes to the Virgin Mary, the Virgin Mary'll give me a red ribbon, the red ribbon I'll give to the Linden, the Linden'll give me leaves, the leaves I'll give to the Spring, the Spring'll give me water, the water I'll give to Dame Partlet my mate, who lies at death's door in the hazel-wood.'