The Goose-Girl

by The Brothers Grimm

　　THERE was once upon a time an old Queen whose husband had been dead formany years, and she had a beautiful daughter. When the princess grew upshe was betrothed to a prince who lived at a great distance. When the timecame for her to be married, and she had to journey forth into the distantkingdom, the aged Queen packed up for her many costly vessels of silverand gold, and trinkets also of gold and silver; and cups and jewels,in short, everything which appertained to a royal dowry, for she lovedher child with all her heart. She likewise sent her maid in waiting, whowas to ride with her, and hand her over to the bridegroom, and each hada horse for the journey, but the horse of the King's daughter was calledFalada, and could speak. So when the hour of parting had come, the agedmother went into her bedroom, took a small knife and cut her finger withit until it bled, then she held a white handkerchief to it into which shelet three drops of blood fall, gave it to her daughter and said, "Dearchild, preserve this carefully, it will be of service to you on your way."

　　So they took a sorrowful leave of each other; the princess put the pieceof cloth in her bosom, mounted her horse, and then went away to herbridegroom. After she had ridden for a while she felt a burning thirst,and said to her waiting-maid, "Dismount, and take my cup which thouhast brought with thee for me, and get me some water from the stream,for I should like to drink." "If you are thirsty," said the waiting-maid,"get off your horse yourself, and lie down and drink out of the water,I don't choose to be your servant." So in her great thirst the princessalighted, bent down over the water in the stream and drank, and was notallowed to drink out of the golden cup. Then she said, "Ah, Heaven!" andthe three drops of blood answered, "If thy mother knew, her heart wouldbreak." But the King's daughter was humble, said nothing, and mountedher horse again. She rode some miles further, but the day was warm,the sun scorched her, and she was thirsty once more, and when they cameto a stream of water, she again cried to her waiting-maid, "Dismount,and give me some water in my golden cup," for she had long ago forgottenthe girl's ill words. But the waiting-maid said still more haughtily,"If you wish to drink, drink as you can, I don't choose to be yourmaid." Then in her great thirst the King's daughter alighted, bent overthe flowing stream, wept and said, "Ah, Heaven!" and the drops of bloodagain replied, "If thy mother knew this, her heart would break." And asshe was thus drinking and leaning right over the stream, the handkerchiefwith the three drops of blood fell out of her bosom, and floated awaywith the water without her observing it, so great was her trouble. Thewaiting-maid, however, had seen it, and she rejoiced to think that shehad now power over the bride, for since the princess had lost the dropsof blood, she had become weak and powerless. So now when she wanted tomount her horse again, the one that was called Falada, the waiting-maidsaid, "Falada is more suitable for me, and my nag will do for thee"and the princess had to be content with that. Then the waiting-maid,with many hard words, bade the princess exchange her royal apparel forher own shabby clothes; and at length she was compelled to swear by theclear sky above her, that she would not say one word of this to any oneat the royal court, and if she had not taken this oath she would havebeen killed on the spot. But Falada saw all this, and observed it well.

　　The waiting-maid now mounted Falada, and the true bride the bad horse,and thus they traveled onwards, until at length they entered the royalpalace. There were great rejoicings over her arrival, and the princesprang forward to meet her, lifted the waiting-maid from her horse,and thought she was his consort. She was conducted upstairs, but thereal princess was left standing below. Then the old King looked outof the window and saw her standing in the courtyard, and how daintyand delicate and beautiful she was, and instantly went to the royalapartment, and asked the bride about the girl she had with her whowas standing down below in the courtyard, and who she was? "I pickedher up on my way for a companion; give the girl something to work at,that she may not stand idle." But the old King had no work for her,and knew of none, so he said, "I have a little boy who tends the geese,she may help him." The boy was called Conrad, and the true bride had tohelp him to tend the geese. Soon afterwards the false bride said to theyoung King, "Dearest husband, I beg you to do me a favour." He answered,"I will do so most willingly." "Then send for the knacker, and have thehead of the horse on which I rode here cut off, for it vexed me on theway." In reality, she was afraid that the horse might tell how she hadbehaved to the King's daughter. Then she succeeded in making the Kingpromise that it should be done, and the faithful Falada was to die;this came to the ears of the real princess, and she secretly promised topay the knacker a piece of gold if he would perform a small service forher. There was a great dark-looking gateway in the town, through whichmorning and evening she had to pass with the geese: would he be so goodas to nail up Falada's head on it, so that she might see him again, morethan once. The knacker's man promised to do that, and cut off the head,and nailed it fast beneath the dark gateway.

　　Early in the morning, when she and Conrad drove out their flock beneaththis gateway, she said in passing,

　　"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"

　　Then the head answered,

　　"Alas, young Queen, how ill you fare!

　　If this your tender mother knew,

　　Her heart would surely break in two."

　　Then they went still further out of the town, and drove their geeseinto the country. And when they had come to the meadow, she sat down andunbound her hair which was like pure gold, and Conrad saw it and delightedin its brightness, and wanted to pluck out a few hairs. Then she said,

　　"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,

　　Blow Conrad's little hat away,

　　And make him chase it here and there,

　　Until I have braided all my hair,

　　And bound it up again."

　　And there came such a violent wind that it blew Conrad's hat far awayacross country, and he was forced to run after it. When he came back shehad finished combing her hair and was putting it up again, and he couldnot get any of it. Then Conrad was angry, and would not speak to her, andthus they watched the geese until the evening, and then they went home.

　　Next day when they were driving the geese out through the dark gateway,the maiden said,

　　"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"

　　Falada answered,

　　"Alas, young Queen, how ill you fare!

　　If this your tender mother knew,

　　Her heart would surely break in two."

　　And she sat down again in the field and began to comb out her hair,and Conrad ran and tried to clutch it, so she said in haste,

　　"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,

　　Blow Conrad's little hat away,

　　And make him chase it here and there,

　　Until I have braided all my hair,

　　And bound it up again."

　　Then the wind blew, and blew his little hat off his head and far away,and Conrad was forced to run after it, and when he came back, her hairhad been put up a long time, and he could get none of it, and so theylooked after their geese till evening came.

　　But in the evening after they had got home, Conrad went to the old King,and said, "I won't tend the geese with that girl any longer!" "Whynot?" inquired the aged King. "Oh, because she vexes me the whole daylong." Then the aged King commanded him to relate what it was that shedid to him. And Conrad said, "In the morning when we pass beneath thedark gateway with the flock, there is a sorry horse's head on the wall,and she says to it,

　　"Alas, Falada, hanging there!"

　　And the head replies,

　　"Alas, young Queen how ill you fare!

　　If this your tender mother knew,

　　Her heart would surely break in two."

　　And Conrad went on to relate what happened on the goose pasture, andhow when there he had to chase his hat.

　　The aged King commanded him to drive his flock out again next day, andas soon as morning came, he placed himself behind the dark gateway, andheard how the maiden spoke to the head of Falada, and then he too wentinto the country, and hid himself in the thicket in the meadow. Therehe soon saw with his own eyes the goose-girl and the goose-boy bringingtheir flock, and how after a while she sat down and unplaited her hair,which shone with radiance. And soon she said,

　　"Blow, blow, thou gentle wind, I say,

　　Blow Conrad's little hat away,

　　And make him chase it here and there,

　　Until I have braided all my hair,

　　And bound it up again."

　　Then came a blast of wind and carried off Conrad's hat, so that he had torun far away, while the maiden quietly went on combing and plaiting herhair, all of which the King observed. Then, quite unseen, he went away,and when the goose-girl came home in the evening, he called her aside,and asked why she did all these things. "I may not tell you that, and Idare not lament my sorrows to any human being, for I have sworn not todo so by the heaven which is above me; if I had not done that, I shouldhave lost my life." He urged her and left her no peace, but he could drawnothing from her. Then said he, "If thou wilt not tell me anything, tellthy sorrows to the iron-stove there," and he went away. Then she creptinto the iron-stove, and began to weep and lament, and emptied her wholeheart, and said, "Here am I deserted by the whole world, and yet I am aKing's daughter, and a false waiting-maid has by force brought me to sucha pass that I have been compelled to put off my royal apparel, and she hastaken my place with my bridegroom, and I have to perform menial serviceas a goose-girl. If my mother did but know that, her heart would break."

　　The aged King, however, was standing outside by the pipe of the stove,and was listening to what she said, and heard it. Then he came back again,and bade her come out of the stove. And royal garments were placed onher, and it was marvellous how beautiful she was! The aged King summonedhis son, and revealed to him that he had got the false bride who wasonly a waiting-maid, but that the true one was standing there, as thesometime goose-girl. The young King rejoiced with all his heart whenhe saw her beauty and youth, and a great feast was made ready to whichall the people and all good friends were invited. At the head of thetable sat the bridegroom with the King's daughter at one side of him,and the waiting-maid on the other, but the waiting-maid was blinded,and did not recognize the princess in her dazzling array. When they hadeaten and drunk, and were merry, the aged King asked the waiting-maidas a riddle, what a person deserved who had behaved in such and sucha way to her master, and at the same time related the whole story,and asked what sentence such an one merited? Then the false bride said,"She deserves no better fate than to be stripped entirely naked, and putin a barrel which is studded inside with pointed nails, and two whitehorses should be harnessed to it, which will drag her along through onestreet after another, till she is dead." "It is thou," said the aged King,"and thou hast pronounced thine own sentence, and thus shall it be doneunto thee." And when the sentence had been carried out, the young Kingmarried his true bride, and both of them reigned over their kingdom inpeace and happiness.