But the youngest brother was not dead. By good fortune the well was dry, and he fell upon soft moss without being hurt, but he could not get out again. Even in this strait the faithful fox did not leave him, it came and leapt down to him, and upbraided him for having forgotten its advice. But yet I cannot give up, he said, I will help you up again into daylight. He bade him grasp his tail and keep tight hold of it, and then he pulled him up. You are not out of all danger yet, said the fox. Your brothers were not sure of your death, and have surrounded the wood with watchers, who are to kill you if you let yourself be seen. But a poor man was sitting upon the road, with whom the youth changed clothes, and in this way he got to the king's palace.
No one knew him, but the bird began to sing, the horse began to eat, and the beautiful maiden left off weeping. The king, astonished, asked, what does this mean. Then the maiden said, I do not know, but I have been so sorrowful and now I am so happy. I feel as if my true bridegroom had come. She told him all that had happened, although the other brothers had threatened her with death if she were to betray anything.
The king commanded that all people who were in his castle should be brought before him, and amongst them came the youth in his ragged clothes, but the maiden knew him at once and fell upon his neck. The wicked brothers were seized and put to death, but he was married to the beautiful maiden and declared heir to the king.
But what happened to the poor fox. Long afterwards the king's son was once again walking in the wood, when the fox met him and said, you have everything now that you can wish for, but there is never an end to my misery, and yet it is in your power to free me, and again he asked him with tears to shoot him dead and chop off his head and feet. So he did it, and scarcely was it done when the fox was changed into a man, and was no other than the brother of the beautiful princess, who at last was freed from the magic charm which had been laid upon him. And now they had all the happiness they wanted as long as they lived.
There were once upon a time two brothers, one rich and the other poor. The rich one was a goldsmith and evil-hearted. The poor one supported himself by making brooms, and was good and honorable. He had two children, who were twin brothers and as like each other as two drops of water. The two boys went in and out of the rich house, and often got some of the scraps to eat. It happened once when the poor man was going into the forest to fetch brush-wood, that he saw a bird which was quite golden and more beautiful than any he had ever chanced to meet with. He picked up a small stone, threw it at it, and was lucky enough to hit it, but one golden feather only fell down, and the bird flew away. The man took the feather and carried it to his brother, who looked at it and said, it is pure gold. And gave him a great deal of money for it. Next day the man climbed into a birch-tree, and was about to cut off a couple of branches when the same bird flew out, and when the man searched he found a nest, and an egg lay inside it, which was of gold. He took the egg home with him, and carried it to his brother, who again said, it is pure gold, and gave him what it was worth. At last the goldsmith said, I should indeed like to have the bird itself. The poor man went into the forest for the third time, and again saw the golden bird sitting on the tree, so he took a stone and brought it down and carried it to his brother, who gave him a great heap of gold for it. Now I can get on, thought he, and went contentedly home.
The goldsmith was crafty and cunning, and knew very well what kind of a bird it was. He called his wife and said, roast me the gold bird, and take care that none of it is lost. I have a fancy to eat it all myself. The bird, however, was no common one, but of so wondrous a kind that whosoever ate its heart and liver found every morning a piece of gold beneath his pillow. The woman prepared the bird, put it on the spit, and let it roast. Now it happened that while it was on the fire, and the woman was forced to go out of the kitchen on account of some other work, the two children of the poor broom-maker ran in, stood by the spit and turned it round once or twice. And as at that very moment two little bits of the bird fell down into the pan, one of the boys said, we will eat these two little bits. I am so hungry, and no one will ever miss them. Then the two ate the pieces, but the woman came into the kitchen and saw that they were eating something and said, what have you been eating. Two little morsels which fell out of the bird, answered they. That must have been the heart and the liver, said the woman, quite frightened, and in order that her husband might not miss them and be angry, she quickly killed a young cock, took out his heart and liver, and put them beside the golden bird. When it was ready, she carried it to the goldsmith, who consumed it all alone, and left none of it. Next morning, however, when he felt beneath his pillow, and expected to bring out the piece of gold, no more gold pieces were there than there had always been.
The two children did not know what a piece of good-fortune had fallen to their lot. Next morning when they arose, something fell rattling to the ground, and when they picked it up there were two gold pieces.
They took them to their father, who was astonished and said, how can that have happened. When next morning they again found two, and so on daily, he went to his brother and told him the strange story. The goldsmith at once knew how it had happened, and that the children had eaten the heart and liver of the golden bird, and in order to revenge himself, and because he was envious and hard-hearted, he said to the father, your children are in league with the evil one, do not take the gold, and do not suffer them to stay any longer in your house, for he has them in his power, and may ruin you likewise. The father feared the evil one, and painful as it was to him, he nevertheless led the twins forth into the forest, and with a sad heart left them there.
