Then the huntsman spoke further and said, father, will you see the maiden who brought me up so tenderly and who was afterwards to murder me, but did not do it, though her own life depended on it. The king replied, yes, I would like to see her. The son said, most gracious father, I will show her to you in the form of a beautiful flower, and he thrust his hand into his pocket and brought forth the pink, and placed it on the royal table, and it was so beautiful that the king had never seen one to equal it. Then the son said, now will I show her to you in her own form, and wished that she might become a maiden, and she stood there looking so beautiful that no painter could have made her look more so.
And the king sent two waiting-maids and two attendants into the tower, to fetch the queen and bring her to the royal table. But when whe was led in she ate nothing, and said, the gracious and merciful God who has supported me in the tower, will soon set me free. She lived three days more, and then died happily, and when she was buried, the two white doves which had brought her food to the tower, and were angels of heaven, followed her body and seated themselves on her grave. The aged king ordered the cook to be torn in four pieces, but grief consumed the king's own heart, and he soon died. His son married the beautiful maiden whom he had brought with him as a flower in his pocket, and whether they are still alive or not, is known to God.
There was once a very old man, whose eyes had become dim, his ears dull of hearing, his knees trembled, and when he sat at table he could hardly hold the spoon, and spilt the broth upon the table-cloth or let it run out of his mouth. His son and his son's wife were disgusted at this, so the old grandfather at last had to sit in the corner behind the stove, and they gave him his food in an earthenware bowl, and not even enough of it. And he used to look towards the table with his eyes full of tears.
Once, too, his trembling hands could not hold the bowl, and it fell to the ground and broke. The young wife scolded him, but he said nothing and only sighed. Then they bought him a wooden bowl for a few half-pence, out of which he had to eat.
They were once sitting thus when the little grandson of four years old began to gather together some bits of wood upon the ground. What are you doing there, asked the father. I am making a little trough, answered the child, for father and mother to eat out of when I am big.
The man and his wife looked at each other for a while, and presently began to cry. Then they took the old grandfather to the table, and henceforth always let him eat with them, and likewise said nothing if he did spill a little of anything.
A little brother and sister were once playing by a well, and while they were thus playing, they both fell in. A water-nixie lived down below, who said, now I have got you, now you shall work hard for me, and carried them off with her. She gave the girl dirty tangled flax to spin, and she had to fetch water in a bucket with a hole in it, and the boy had to hew down a tree with a blunt axe, and they got nothing to eat but dumplings as hard as stones.
Then at last the children became so impatient, that they waited until one sunday, when the nixie was at church, and ran away. But when church was over, the nixie saw that the birds were flown, and followed them with great strides. The children saw her from afar, and the girl threw a brush behind her which formed an immense hill of bristles, with thousands and thousands of spikes, over which the nixie was forced to scramble with great difficulty, at last, however, she got over.
When the children saw this, the boy threw behind him a comb which made a great ridge with a thousand times a thousand teeth, but the nixie managed to keep herself steady on them, and at last crossed over. Then the girl threw behind her a looking-glass which formed a hill of mirrors, and was so slippery that it was impossible for the nixie to cross it. Then she thought, I will go home quickly and fetch my axe, and cut the hill of glass in half. Long before she returned, however, and had hewn through the glass, the children had escaped to a great distance, and the water-nixie was obliged to trundle back to her well again.
There was one upon a time a great war, and when it came to an end, many soldiers were discharged. Then brother lustig also received his dismissal, and with it nothing but a small loaf of ammunition-bread, and four kreuzers in money, with which he departed.
St. Peter, however, had placed himself in his way in the form of a poor beggar, and when brother lustig came up, he begged alms of him.
Brother lustig replied, dear beggar-man, what am I to give you. Ihave been a soldier, and have received my dismissal, and have nothing but this little loaf of ammunition-bread, and four kreuzers of money.
When that is gone, I shall have to beg as well as you. Still I will give you something.
Thereupon he divided the loaf into four parts, and gave the apostle one of them, and a kreuzer likewise. St. Peter thanked him, went onwards, and threw himself again in the soldier's way as a beggar, but in another shape, and when he came up begged a gift of him as before.
Brother lustig spoke as he had done before, and again gave him a quarter of the loaf and one kreuzer. St. Peter thanked him, and went onwards, but for the third time placed himself in another shape as a beggar in the road, and spoke to brother lustig. Brother lustig gave him also the third quarter of bread and the third kreuzer. St. Peter thanked him, and brother lustig went onwards, and had but a quarter of the loaf, and one kreuzer.
