A shoemaker, by no fault of his own, 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 which he wished to make the next morning. And as he had a good conscience,

There was a man who had three sons, the youngest of whom was called Dunderhead, and was despised, mocked, and put down on every occasion. It happened, that the eldest wanted to go into the forest to hew wood. Before he went his mother gave him a beautiful sweet cake

In the days when wishing was having, a King’s Son was enchanted by an old Witch, and shut up in an Iron Stove in a forest. There he passed many years, and no one could deliver him. Then a King’s Daughter came into the forest, who had lost herself and

There was once upon a time, a King who had twelve daughters, each one more beautiful than the other. They all slept together in one chamber, in which their beds stood side by side. Every night, when they were in them, the King locked the door, and bolted it. But

There was once a forester, who went into the forest to hunt. When he entered it, he heard a screaming as if a little child was there. He followed the sound, and at last came to a high tree. In the top of it a little child was sitting. His

Hard by a great forest, dwelt a poor woodcutter with his wife and his two children. The boy was called Haensel and the girl, Grethel. He had little to bite and to break; and once when great scarcity fell on the land, he could no longer procure daily bread. Now,

Two King’s Sons once went out in search of adventures, and fell into a wild, disorderly way of living, so that they never came home again. The youngest, who was called Simpleton, set out to seek his brothers. When at length he found them, they mocked him for thinking that

The wife of a rich man fell sick, and as she felt that her end was drawing near, she called her only daughter to her bedside and said, “Dear Child, be good and pious, and then the dear God will always protect you, and I will look down on you

There was once a man whose wife died, and a woman whose husband died; and the man had a daughter, and the woman also had a daughter. The girls were acquainted with each other. They went walking together, and came to the woman’s house. Then she said to the man’s

There was once on a time, a man who was about to set out on a long journey. At parting he asked his three daughters what he should bring back for them. Whereupon the eldest wished for pearls, the second wished for diamonds, but the third said, “Dear Father, I

A long time ago, there were a King and Queen who said every day, “Ah, if only we had a child!” but they never had one. But it happened that once when the Queen was bathing, a Frog crept out of the water on to the land, and said to

The Old Witch There was once upon a time, a very old woman, who lived with her flock of geese in a waste place among the mountains, and there had a little house. The waste was surrounded by a large forest, and every morning the Old Woman took her crutch

There was once a woman who had three daughters, the eldest of whom was called One-Eye, because she had only one eye in the middle of her forehead, and the second, Two-Eyes, because she had two eyes like other folks, and the youngest, Three-Eyes, because she had three eyes; and

There was once a man who had a daughter who was called Clever Elsie. And when she had grown up her father said, “We will get her married.” “Yes,” said the mother, “if only any one would come who would have her.” At length a man came from a distance,

In the olden time, there was a King, who had behind his palace a beautiful pleasure-garden, in which there was a tree that bore Golden Apples. When the apples were getting ripe they were counted, but on the very next morning one was missing. This was told to the King,

Once upon a time, a certain King was hunting in a great forest, and he chased a wild beast so eagerly that none of his attendants could follow him. When evening drew near, he stopped and looked around him, and saw that he had lost his way. He sought a

There was once a widow who had two daughters, one of whom was beautiful and industrious, whilst the other was ugly and lazy. But she was much fonder of the ugly and lazy one. Every day, the other, poor girl, had to sit by a well in the highway, and

There was once on a time, a soldier who for many years had served the King faithfully. But when the war came to an end he could serve no longer because of the many wounds which he had received. The King said to him, “You may return to your home,

There was once a poor man and a poor woman who had nothing but a little cottage. They earned their bread by fishing, and always lived from hand to mouth. But it came to pass one day, when the man was sitting by the waterside and casting his net, that

There was once a man who had three sons, and nothing else in the world but the house in which he lived. Now each of the sons wished to have the house after his father’s death; but the father loved them all alike, and did not know what to do.

There was once on a time, a poor peasant called Crab, who drove two oxen with a load of wood to town, and sold it to a doctor for two dollars. When the money was being counted out to him, it so happened that the doctor was sitting at table,

There was once an old castle in the midst of a large and thick forest, and in it an old woman, who was a Witch, dwelt all alone. In the daytime, she changed herself into a cat or a screech-owl, but in the evening she took her proper shape again

Once there was a miller who was poor, but who had a beautiful daughter. Now it happened that he had to 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

In old times, when wishing was having, there lived a King whose daughters were all beautiful, but the youngest was so beautiful that the sun itself, which has seen so much, was astonished whenever it shone in her face. Close by the King’s castle lay a great dark forest, and

There was once a man and a woman, who had long in vain wished for a child. At length, the woman hoped that God was about to grant her desire. These people had a little window at the back of their house from which a splendid garden could be seen.

A King had a daughter who was beautiful beyond all measure, but so proud and haughty withal that no suitor was good enough for her. She sent away one after the other, and made fun of them as well. Once the King gave a great feast and invited thereto, from

There was once upon a time, an old Queen, whose husband had been dead for many years, and she had a beautiful daughter. When the Princess grew up, she was betrothed to a Prince who lived very far away. When the time came for her to be married, and she

In former days, every sound had its meaning, the birds also had their own language which every one understood. Now it only sounds like chirping, screeching, and whistling, and to some, like music without words. It came into the birds’ mind, however, that they would no longer be without a

There was a poor, good little girl, who lived alone with her mother, and they had nothing more to eat. So the child went into the forest, and an Old Woman met her, who knew of her sorrow, and gave her a Little Pot, which, when she said: “Boil, Little

Once upon a time, in the middle of winter, when the flakes of snow were falling like feathers from the sky, a Queen sat at a window sewing, and the frame of the window was made of black ebony. And whilst she was sewing and looking out of the window

A father once called his three sons before him. He gave to the first a cock, to the second a scythe, and to the third a cat. “I am old,” said he, “my death is nigh, and I have wished to take thought for you before my end. Money I

There was once on a time, a Fisherman who lived with his wife in a miserable hovel close by the sea, and every day he went out fishing. And once, as he was sitting with his rod, looking at the clear water, his line suddenly went down, far down below,

A certain man had a Donkey, which had carried the corn-sacks to the mill faithfully for many a long year; but his strength was going, and he was growing more and more unfit for work. Then his master began to consider how he might best save his keep; but the

There was once a poor widow who lived in a lonely cottage. In front of the cottage was a garden wherein stood two rose-trees, one of which bore white and the other red roses. She had two children who were like the two rose-trees. One was called Snow-White, and the

There was once on a time, an old Goat who had seven little Kids, and loved them with all the love of a mother for her children. One day, she wanted to go into the forest and fetch some food. So she called all seven to her and said, “Dear

There was once upon a time, a miller who lived with his wife in great contentment. They had money and land, and their prosperity increased year by year more and more. But ill-luck comes like a thief in the night, as their wealth had increased so did it again decrease,

There was once a young huntsman, who went into the forest to lie in wait. He had a fresh and joyous heart, and as he was going thither, whistling upon a leaf, an ugly old crone came up, who spoke to him and said, “Good-day, dear huntsman, truly you are

A long time ago, there lived a King who was famed for his wisdom through all the land. Nothing was hidden from him, and it seemed as if news of the most secret things was brought to him through the air. But he had a strange custom. Every day after

A poor woodcutter lived with his wife and three daughters in a little hut on the edge of a lonely wood. One morning as he was about to go to his work, he said to his wife, “Let my dinner be brought into the wood to me by my eldest

I The mother of Hans said, “Whither away, Hans?” Hans answered, “To Grethel.” “Behave well, Hans.” “Oh, I’ll behave well. Good-bye, Mother.” “Good-bye, Hans.” Hans comes to Grethel. “Good day, Grethel.” “Good day, Hans. What do you bring that is good?” “I bring nothing, I want to have something given

In a certain mill, lived an old miller who had neither wife nor child. Three apprentices served under him. As they had been with him several years, he one day said to them, “I am old, and want to sit in the chimney-corner. Go out, and whichsoever of you brings

Once on a time there was a King who had a great forest near his palace, full of all kinds of wild animals. One day he sent out a huntsman to shoot him a roe, but he did not come back. “Perhaps some accident has befallen him,” said the King,

There was once upon a time, a tailor, who had three sons and only one goat. But as the goat supported the whole of them with her milk, she was obliged to have good food, and to be taken every day to pasture. The sons, therefore, did this, in turn.

There was once a man who had seven sons, but never a daughter no matter how much he wished for one. At length, his wife had a child, and it was a daughter. The joy was great. But the child was sickly and small, and so weak that it had

There was once on a time, a little girl whose father and mother were dead. She was so poor that she no longer had any little room to live in, or bed to sleep in. At last, she had nothing else but the clothes she was wearing and a little

There was once a girl whose father and mother died while she was still a little child. All alone, in a small house at the end of the village, dwelt her godmother, who supported herself by spinning, weaving, and sewing. The old woman took the forlorn child to live with

Once upon a time, there was a sweet little girl, who was loved by every one who looked at her, and most of all by her Grandmother. There was nothing that she would not have given the child! Once she gave her a little cap of red velvet, which suited

There was once a King who had a son who asked in marriage the daughter of a mighty King. She was called Maid Maleen, and was very beautiful. As her father wished to give her to another, the Prince was rejected. But since they both loved each other with all

There was once a man who understood all kinds of arts. He served in war, and behaved well and bravely, but when the war was over he received his dismissal, and three farthings for his expenses on the way. “Stop,” said he, “I shall not be content with this. If

Little brother took his little sister by the hand and said, “Since our mother died, we have had no happiness; our stepmother beats us every day, and if we come near her, she kicks us away with her foot. Our meals are the hard crusts of bread that are left

Hill and vale do not come together, but the children of men do, good and bad. In this way a shoemaker and a tailor once met with each other in their travels. The tailor was a handsome little fellow who was always merry and full of enjoyment. He saw the