Brick Fairy Tales: Cinderella, Rapunzel, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Hansel and Gretel, and More by John McCann, Monica Sweeney, Becky Thomas Read Free Book Online

morning when the sun awoke them, a carriage came driving up with eight white horses, which had white ostrich feathers on their heads, and were harnessed with golden chains, and behind stood the young King’s servant Faithful Henry.

    Faithful Henry had been so unhappy when his master was changed into a frog, that he had caused three iron bands to be laid round his heart, lest it should burst with grief and sadness.

    The carriage was to conduct the young King into his Kingdom. Faithful Henry helped them both in, and placed himself behind again, and was full of joy because of this deliverance.

    And when they had driven a part of the way the King’s son heard a cracking behind him as if something had broken.

    So he turned round and cried, “Henry, the carriage is breaking.”

    “No, master, it is not the carriage. It is a band from my heart, which was put there in my great pain when you were a frog and imprisoned in the well.” Again and once again while they were on their way something cracked, and each time the King’s son thought the carriage was breaking; but it was only the bands which were springing from the heart of faithful Henry because his master was set free and was happy.

Rumpelstiltskin

Once there was a miller who was poor, but who had a beautiful daughter. Now it happened that he had to go and speak to the King,

    and in order to make himself appear important he said to him, “I have a daughter who can spin straw into gold.”

    The King said to the miller, “That is an art which pleases me well; if your daughter is as clever as you say, bring her to-morrow to my palace, and I will try what she can do.”

    And when the girl was brought to him he took her into a room which was quite full of straw, gave her a spinning-wheel and a reel,

    and said, “Now set to work, and if by to-morrow morning early you have not spun this straw into gold during the night, you must die.” Thereupon he himself locked up the room, and left her in it alone.

    So there sat the poor miller’s daughter, and for the life of her could not tell what to do; she had no idea how straw could be spun into gold, and she grew more and more miserable, until at last she began to weep.

    But all at once the door opened, and in came a little man, and said, “Good evening, Mistress Miller; why are you crying so?”

    “Alas!” answered the girl, “I have to spin straw into gold, and I do not know how to do it.”

    “What will you give me,” said the manikin, “if I do it for you?”

    “My necklace,” said the girl. The little man took the necklace, seated himself in front of the wheel,

    and “whirr, whirr, whirr,” three turns, and the reel was full; then he put another on, and whirr, whirr, whirr, three times round, and the second was full too. And so it went on until the morning, when all the straw was spun, and all the reels were full of gold.

    By daybreak the King was already there, and when he saw the gold he was astonished and delighted, but his heart became only more greedy.

    He had the miller’s daughter taken into another room full of straw, which was much larger, and commanded her to spin that also in one night if she valued her life.

    The girl knew not how to help herself, and was crying,

    when the door again opened, and the little man appeared, and said, “What will you give me if I spin that straw into gold for you?”

    “The ring on my finger,” answered the girl.

    The little man took the ring, again began to turn the wheel, and by morning had spun all the straw into glittering gold.

    The King rejoiced beyond measure at the sight,

    but still he had not gold enough;

    and he had the miller’s daughter taken into a still larger room full of straw,

    and said, “You must spin this, too, in the course of this night; but if you succeed, you shall be my wife.”

    “Even if she be a miller’s daughter,” thought he, “I could not find a richer wife in the whole world.”

    When the girl was alone