You dont say so! Thats she, is it? said the South Wind.
Well, I have blustered about in most places in my time, but so far have I never blown; but if you will, Ill take you to my brother the North Wind; he is the oldest and strongest of the whole lot of us, and if he dont know where it is, youll never find any one in the world to tell you. You can get on my back, and Ill carry you thither.
Yes! she got on his back, and away he went from his house at a fine rate. And this time, too, she wasnt long on her way.
So when they got to the North Winds house, he was so wild and cross, cold puffs came from him a long way off.
Blast you both, what do you want? he roared out to them ever so far off, so that it struck them with an icy shiver.
Well, said the South Wind, you neednt be so foul-mouthed, for here I am, your brother, the South Wind, and here is the lassie who ought to have had the Prince who dwells in the castle that lies East of the Sun and West of the Moon, and now she wants to ask you if you ever were there, and can tell her the way, for she would be so glad to find him again.
Yes, I know well enough where it is, said the North Wind; once in my life I blew an aspen-leaf thither, but, I was so tired I couldnt blow a puff for ever so many days, after. But if you really wish to go thither, and arent afraid to come along with me, Ill take you on my back and see if I can blow you thither.
Yes! with all her heart; she must and would get thither if it were possible in any way; and as for fear, however madly he went, she wouldnt be at all afraid.
Very well, then, said the North Wind, but you must sleep here to-night, for we must have the whole day before us, if were to get thither at all.
Early next morning the North Wind woke her, and puffed himself up, and blew himself out, and made himself so stout and big, twas gruesome to look at him; and so off they went high up through the air, as if they would never stop till they got to the worlds end.
Down here below there was such a storm; it threw down long tracts of wood and many houses, and when it swept over the great sea, ships foundered by hundreds.
So they tore on and on no one can believe how far they went and all the while they still went over the sea, and the North Wind got more and more weary, and so out of breath he could scarce bring out a puff, and his wings drooped and drooped, till at last he sunk so low that the crests of the waves dashed over his heels.
Are you afraid? said the North Wind.
No! she wasnt.
But they werent very far from land; and the North Wind had still so much strength left in him that he managed to throw her up on the shore under the windows of the castle which lay East of the Sun and West of the Moon; but then he was so weak and worn out, he had to stay there and rest many days before he could get home again.
Next morning the lassie sat down under the castle window, and began to play with the gold apple; and the first person she saw was the Long-nose who was to have the Prince.
What do you want for your gold apple, you lassie? said the Long-nose, and threw up the window.
Its not for sale, for gold or money, said the lassie.
If its not for sale for gold or money, what is it that you will sell it for? You may name your own price, said the Princess.
Well! if I may get to the Prince, who lives here, and be with him to-night, you shall have it, said the lassie whom the North Wind had brought.
Yes! she might; that could be done. So the Princess got the gold apple; but when the lassie came up to the Princes bed-room at night he was fast asleep; she called him and shook him, and between whiles she wept sore; but all she could do she couldnt wake him up. Next morning, as soon as day broke, came the Princess with the long nose, and drove her out again.
So in the daytime she sat down under the castle windows and began to card with her carding-comb, and the same thing happened. The Princess asked what she wanted for it; and she said it wasnt for sale for gold or money, but if she might get leave to go up to the Prince and be with him that night, the Princess should have it. But when she went up she found him fast asleep again, and all she called, and all she shook, and wept, and prayed, she couldnt get life into him; and as soon as the first gray peep of day came, then came the Princess with the long nose, and chased her out again.
So, in the daytime, the lassie sat down outside under the castle window, and began to spin with her golden spinning-wheel, and that, too, the Princess with the long nose wanted to have. So she threw up the window and asked what she wanted for it. The lassie said, as she had said twice before, it wasnt for sale for gold or money; but if she might go up to the Prince who was there, and be with him alone that night, she might have it.
Yes! she might do that and welcome. But now you must know there were some Christian folk who had been carried off thither, and as they sat in their room, which was next the Prince, they had heard how a woman had been in there, and wept and prayed, and called to him two nights running, and they told that to the Prince.
That evening, when the Princess came with her sleepy drink, the Prince made as if he drank, but threw it over his shoulder, for he could guess it was a sleepy drink. So, when the lassie came in, she found the Prince wide awake; and then she told him the whole story how she had come thither.
Ah, said the Prince, youve just come in the very nick of time, for to-morrow is to be our wedding-day; but now I wont have the Long-nose, and you are the only woman in the world who can set me free. Ill say I want to see what my wife is fit for, and beg her to wash the shirt which has the three spots of tallow on it; shell say yes, for she doesnt know tis you who put them there; but thats a work only for Christian folk, and not for such a pack of Trolls, and so Ill say that I wont have any other for my bride than the woman who can wash them out, and ask you to do it.
So there was great joy and love between them all that night. But next day, when the wedding was to be, the Prince said:
First of all, Id like to see what my bride is fit for.
Yes! said the step-mother, with all her heart.
Well, said the Prince, Ive got a fine shirt which Id like for my wedding shirt, but somehow or other it has got three spots of tallow on it, which I must have washed out; and I have sworn never to take any other bride than the woman whos able to do that. If she cant, shes not worth having.
Well, that was no great thing they said, so they agreed, and she with the long-nose began to wash away as hard as she could, but the more she rubbed and scrubbed, the bigger the spots grew.
Ah! said the old hag, her mother, you cant wash; let me try.
But she hadnt long taken the shirt in hand before it got far worse than ever, and with all her rubbing, and wringing, and scrubbing, the spots grew bigger and blacker, and the darker and uglier was the shirt.
Then all the other Trolls began to wash, but the longer it lasted, the blacker and uglier the shirt grew, till at last it was as black all over as if it had been up the chimney.
Ah! said the Prince, youre none of you worth a straw; you cant wash. Why there, outside, sits a beggar lassie, Ill be bound she knows how to wash better than the whole lot of you. Come in, Lassie! he shouted.
Well, in she came.
Can you wash this shirt clean, lassie you? said he.
I dont know, she said, but I think I can.
And almost before she had taken it and dipped it in the water, it was as white as driven snow, and whiter still.
Yes; you are the lassie for me, said the Prince.
At that the old hag flew into such a rage, she burst on the spot, and the Princess with the long nose after her, and the whole pack of Trolls after her at least Ive never heard a word about them since.
As for the Prince and Princess, they set free all the poor Christian folk who had been carried off and shut up there; and they took with them all the silver and gold, and flitted away as far as they could from the Castle that lay East of the Sun and West of the Moon.
THE BLUE BELT
Once on a time there was an old beggar-woman, who had gone out to beg. She had a little lad with her, and when she had got her bag full she struck across the hills towards her own home. So when they had gone a bit up the hill-side, they came upon a little Blue Belt which lay where two paths met, and the lad asked his mothers leave to pick it up.
No, said she, maybe theres witchcraft in it; and so with threats she forced him to follow her. But when they had gone a bit further, the lad said he must turn aside a moment out of the road; and meanwhile his mother sat down on a tree-stump. But the lad was a long time gone, for as soon as he got so far into the wood that the old dame could not see him, he ran off to where the Belt lay, took it up, tied it round his waist, and lo! he felt as strong as if he could lift the whole hill. When he got back, the old dame was in a great rage, and wanted to know what he had been doing all that while. You dont care how much time you waste, and yet you know the night is drawing on, and we must cross the hill before it is dark! So on they tramped; but when they had got about half-way, the old dame grew weary, and said she must rest under a bush.
Dear mother, said the lad, maynt I just go up to the top of this high crag while you rest, and try if I cant see some sign of folk hereabouts?
Yes! he might do that; so when he had got to the top he saw a light shining from the north. So he ran down and told his mother.
We must get on, mother; we are near a house, for I see a bright light shining quite close to us in the north. Then she rose and shouldered her bag, and set off to see; but they hadnt gone far, before there stood a steep spur of the hill, right across their path.
Just as I thought! said the old dame, now we cant go a step farther; a pretty bed we shall have here!
But the lad took the bag under one arm, and his mother under the other, and ran straight up the steep crag with them.
Now, dont you see? Dont you see that we are close to a house? Dont you see that bright light?
But the old dame said those were no Christian folk, but Trolls, for she was at home in all that forest far and near, and knew there was not a living soul in it, until you were well over the ridge and had come down on the other side. But they went on, and in a little while they came to a great house which was all painted red.
Whats the good? said the old dame. We darent go in, for here the Trolls live.
Dont say so; we must go in. There must be men where the lights shine so, said the lad. So in he went, and his mother after him, but he had scarce opened the door before she swooned away, for there she saw a great stout man, at least twenty feet high, sitting on the bench.
Good evening, grandfather! said the lad.
Well, here Ive sat three hundred years, said the man who sat on the bench, and no one has ever come and called me grandfather before. Then the lad sat down by the mans side, and began to talk to him as if they had been old friends.
But whats come over your mother? said the man, after they had chatted a while. I think she swooned away; you had better look after her.
So the lad went and took hold of the old dame, and dragged her up the hall along the floor. That brought her to herself, and she kicked and scratched, and flung herself about, and at last sat down upon a heap of firewood in the corner; but she was so frightened that she scarce dared to look one in the face.
After a while, the lad asked if they could spend the night there.
Yes, to be sure, said the man.
So they went on talking again, but the lad soon got hungry, and wanted to know if they could get food as well as lodging.
Of course, said the man, that might be got too. And after he had sat a while longer, he rose up and threw six loads of dry pitch-pine on the fire. This made the old hag still more afraid.
Oh! now hes going to roast us alive, she said, in the corner where she sat.
And when the wood had burned down to glowing embers, up got the man and strode out of his house.
Heaven bless and help us! what a stout heart you have got! said the old dame. Dont you see we have got amongst Trolls?
Stuff and nonsense! said the lad; no harm if we have.
In a little while, back came the man with an ox so fat and big, the lad had never seen its like, and he gave it one blow with his fist under the ear, and down it fell dead on the floor. When that was done, he took it up by all the four legs and laid it on the glowing embers, and turned it and twisted it about till it was burnt brown outside. After that, he went to a cupboard and took out a great silver dish, and laid the ox on it; and the dish was so big that none of the ox hung over on any side. This he put on the table, and then he went down into the cellar and fetched a cask of wine, knocked out the head, and put the cask on the table, together with two knives, which were each six feet long. When this was done he bade them go and sit down to supper and eat. So they went, the lad first and the old dame after, but she began to whimper and wail, and to wonder how she should ever use such knives. But her son seized one, and began to cut slices out of the thigh of the ox, which he placed before his mother. And when they had eaten a bit, he took up the cask with both hands, and lifted it down to the floor; then he told his mother to come and drink, but it was still so high she couldnt reach up to it; so he caught her up, and held her up to the edge of the cask while she drank; as for himself, he clambered up and hung down like a cat inside the cask while he drank. So when he had quenched his thirst, he took up the cask and put it back on the table, and thanked the man for the good meal, and told his mother to come and thank him too, and, a-feared though she was, she dared do nothing else but thank the man. Then the lad sat down again alongside the man and began to gossip, and after they had sat a while the man said:
Well! I must just go and get a bit of supper too; and so he went to the table and ate up the whole ox hoofs, and horns, and all and drained the cask to the last drop, and then went back and sat on the bench.