Popular Tales from the Norse.doc

popularpopular talestales fromfrom thethe norsenorse byby georgegeorge webbewebbe dasentdasent 1904 1904 目录目录 popularpopular talestales 1 truetrue andand untrueuntrue 3 whywhy thethe seasea isis saltsalt 7 thethe oldold damedame andand herher henhen 11 easteast o o thethe sunsun andand westwest o o thethe moonmoon 17 bootsboots whowho ateate a a matchmatch withwith thethe trolltroll 26 haconhacon grizzlebeardgrizzlebeard 28 bootsboots whowho mademade thethe princessprincess say say that s that s a a story story 35 thethe twelvetwelve ducksducks 37 thethe giantgiant whowho hadhad nono heartheart inin hishis bodybody 43 thethe foxfox asas herdsmanherdsman 49 thethe mastermaidmastermaid 51 thethe catcat onon thethe dovrefelldovrefell 64 princessprincess onon thethe glassglass hillhill 65 howhow oneone wentwent outout toto woowoo 72 thethe cockcock andand henhen 73 thethe master smithmaster smith 74 thethe twotwo step sistersstep sisters 79 buttercupbuttercup 88 tamingtaming thethe shrewshrew 92 shortshanksshortshanks 93 gudbrandgudbrand onon thethe hill sidehill side 107 thethe blueblue beltbelt 110 whywhy thethe bearbear isis stumpy tailedstumpy tailed 122 notnot a a pinpin toto choosechoose betweenbetween themthem 122 one sone s ownown childrenchildren areare alwaysalways prettiestprettiest 128 thethe threethree princessesprincesses ofof whitelandwhiteland 128 thethe lassielassie andand herher godmothergodmother 133 thethe threethree auntsaunts 137 thethe cock cock thethe cuckoo cuckoo andand thethe blackcockblackcock 140 richrich peterpeter thethe pedlarpedlar 141 gertrude sgertrude s birdbird 152 bootsboots andand thethe trolltroll 153 gooseygoosey grizzelgrizzel 158 thethe ladlad whowho wentwent toto thethe northnorth windwind 163 thethe mastermaster thiefthief 165 thethe bestbest wishwish 179 thethe threethree billy goatsbilly goats gruffgruff 187 wellwell donedone andand illill paidpaid 188 thethe husbandhusband whowho waswas toto mindmind thethe househouse 191 dapplegrimdapplegrim 192 farmerfarmer weatherskyweathersky 202 lordlord peterpeter 209 thethe sevenseven foalsfoals 215 thethe widow swidow s sonson 221 bushybushy bridebride 229 bootsboots andand hishis brothersbrothers 235 bigbig peterpeter andand littlelittle peterpeter 240 tatterhoodtatterhood 246 thethe cockcock andand henhen thatthat wentwent toto thethe dovrefelldovrefell 251 katiekatie woodencloakwoodencloak 255 thumbikinthumbikin 265 dolldoll i i thethe grassgrass 267 thethe ladlad andand thethe deildeil 268 thethe cockcock andand henhen a nuttinga nutting 269 thethe bigbig birdbird dandan 272 soriasoria moriamoria castlecastle 281 bruinbruin andand reynardreynard 290 tomtom totherhousetotherhouse 292 littlelittle annieannie thethe goose girlgoose girl 294 truetrue andand untrueuntrue once on a time there were two brothers one was called true and the other untrue true was always upright and good towards all but untrue was bad and full of lies so that no one could believe what he said their mother was a widow and hadn t much to live on so when her sons had grown up she was forced to send them away that they might earn their bread in the world each got a little scrip with some food in it and then they went their way now when they had walked till evening they sat down on a windfall in the wood and took out their scrips for they were hungry after walking the whole day and thought a morsel of food would be sweet enough if you re of my mind said untrue i think we had better eat out of your scrip so long as there is anything in it and after that we can take to mine yes true was well pleased with this so they fell to eating but untrue got all the best bits and stuffed himself with them while true got only the burnt crusts and scraps p 2 next morning they broke their fast off true s food and they dined off it too and then there was nothing left in his scrip so when they had walked till late at night and were ready to eat again true wanted to eat out of his brother s scrip but untrue said no the food was his and he had only enough for himself nay but you know you ate out of my scrip so long as there was anything in it said true all very fine i daresay answered untrue but if you are such a fool as to let others eat up your food before your face you must make the best of it for now all you have to do is to sit here and starve very well said true you re untrue by name and untrue by nature so you have been and so you will be all your life long now when untrue heard this he flew into a rage and rushed at his brother and plucked out both his eyes now try if you can see whether folk are untrue or not you blind buzzard and so saying he ran away and left him poor true there he went walking along and feeling his way through the thick wood blind and alone he scarce knew which way to turn when all at once he caught hold of the trunk of a great bushy lime tree so he thought he would climb up into it and sit there till the night was over for fear of the wild beasts when the birds begin to sing he said to himself then i shall know it is day and i can try to grope my way farther on so he climbed up into the lime tree after he had sat there a little time he heard how some one came and began to make a stir and clatter under the p 3 tree and soon after others came and when they began to greet one another he found out it was bruin the bear and greylegs the wolf and slyboots the fox and longears the hare who had come to keep st john s eve under the tree so they began to eat and drink and be merry and when they had done eating they fell to gossiping together at last the fox said shan t we each of us tell a little story while we sit here well the others had nothing against that it would be good fun they said and the bear began for you may fancy he was king of the company the king of england said bruin has such bad eyesight he can scarce see a yard before him but if he only came to this lime tree in the morning while the dew is still on the leaves and took and rubbed his eyes with the dew he would get back his sight as good as ever very true said greylegs the king of england has a deaf and dumb daughter too but if he only knew what i know he would soon cure her last year she went to the communion she let a crumb of the bread fall out of her mouth and a great toad came and swallowed it down but if they only dug up the chancel floor they would find the toad sitting right under the altar rails with the bread still sticking in his throat if they were to cut the toad open and take and give the bread to the princess she would be like other folk again as to her speech and hearing that s all very well said the fox but if the king of england knew what i know he would not be so badly off for water in his palace for under the great stone in p 4 his palace yard is a spring of the clearest water one could wish for if he only knew to dig for it there ah said the hare in a small voice the king of england has the finest orchard in the whole land but it does not bear so much as a crab for there lies a heavy gold chain in three turns round the orchard if he got that dug up there would not be a garden like it for bearing in all his kingdom very true i dare say said the fox but now it s getting very late and we may as well go home so they all went away together after they were gone true fell asleep as he sat up in the tree but when the birds began to sing at dawn he woke up and took the dew from the leaves and rubbed his eyes with it and so got his sight back as good as it was before untrue plucked his eyes out then he went straight to the king of england s palace and begged for work and got it on the spot so one day the king came out into the palace yard and when he had walked about a bit he wanted to drink out of his pump for you must know the day was hot and the king very thirsty but when they poured him out a glass it was so muddy and nasty and foul that the king got quite vexed i don t think there s ever a man in my whole kingdom who has such bad water in his yard as i and yet i bring it in pipes from far over hill and dale cried out the king like enough your majesty said true but if you would let me have some men to help me to dig up this great stone which lies here in the middle of your yard you would soon see good water and plenty of it p 5 well the king was willing enough and they had scarcely got the stone well out and dug under it a while before a jet of water sprang out high up into the air as clear and full as if it came out of a conduit and clearer water was not to be found in all england a little while after the king was out in his palace yard again and there came a great hawk flying after his chicken and all the king s men began to clap their hands and bawl out there he flies there he flies the king caught up his gun and tried to shoot the hawk but he couldn t see so far so he fell into great grief would to heaven he said there was any one who could tell me a cure for my eyes for i think i shall soon go quite blind i can tell you one soon enough said true and then he told the king what he had done to cure his own eyes and the king set off that very afternoon to the lime tree as you may fancy and his eyes were quite cured as soon as he rubbed them with the dew which was on the leaves in the morning from that time forth there was no one whom the king held so dear as true and he had to be with him wherever he went both at home and abroad so one day as they were walking together in the orchard the king said i can t tell how it is that i can t there isn t a man in england who spends so much on his orchard as i and yet i can t get one of the trees to bear so much as a crab well well said true if i may have what lies three times twisted round your orchard and men to dig it up your orchard will bear well enough yes the king was quite willing so true got men and p 6 began to dig and at last he dug up the whole gold chain now true was a rich man far richer indeed than the king himself but still the king was well pleased for his orchard bore so that the boughs of the trees hung down to the ground and such sweet apples and pears nobody had ever tasted another day too the king and true were walking about and talking together when the princess passed them and the king was quite downcast when he saw her isn t it a pity now that so lovely a princess as mine should want speech and hearing he said to true ay but there is a cure for that said true when the king heard that he was so glad that he promised him the princess to wife and half his kingdom into the bargain if he could get her right again so true took a few men and went into the church and dug up the toad which sat under the altar rails then he cut open the toad and took out the bread and gave it to the king s daughter and from that hour she got back her speech and could talk like other people now true was to have the princess and they got ready for the bridal feast and such a feast had never been seen before it was the talk of the whole land just as they were in the midst of dancing the bridal dance in came a beggar lad and begged for a morsel of food and he was so ragged and wretched that every one crossed themselves when they looked at him but true knew him at once and saw that it was untrue his brother do you know me again said true oh where should such a one as i ever have seen so great a lord said untrue p 7 still you have seen me before said true it was i whose eyes you plucked out a year ago this very day untrue by name and untrue by nature so i said before and so i say now but you are still my brother and so you shall have some food after that you may go to the lime tree where i sat last year if you hear anything that can do you good you will be lucky so untrue did not wait to be told twice if true has got so much good by sitting in the lime tree that in one year he has come to be king over half england what good may not i get he thought so he set off and climbed up into the lime tree he had not sat there long before all the beasts came as before and ate and drank and kept st john s eve under the tree when they had left off eating the fox wished that they should begin to tell stories and untrue got ready to listen with all his might till his ears were almost fit to fall off but bruin the bear was surly and growled and said some one has been chattering about what we said last year and so now we will hold our tongues about what we know and with that the beasts bade one another good night and parted and untrue was just as wise as he was before and the reason was that his name was untrue and his nature untrue too whywhy thethe seasea isis saltsalt once on a time but it was a long long time ago there were two brothers one rich and one poor now one christmas eve the poor one hadn t so much as a crumb in the house either of meat or bread so he went to his brother to ask him for something to keep christmas with in god s name it was not the first time his brother had been forced to help him and you may fancy he wasn t very glad to see his face but he said if you will do what i ask you to do i ll give you a whole flitch of bacon so the poor brother said he would do anything and was full of thanks well here is the flitch said the rich brother and now go straight to hell what i have given my word to do i must stick to said the other so he took the flitch and set off he walked the whole day and at dusk he came to a place where he saw a very bright light maybe this is the place said the man to himself so he turned aside and the first thing he saw was an old old man with a long white beard who stood in an outhouse hewing wood for the christmas fire good even said the man with the flitch the same to you whither are you going so late said the man p 9 oh i m going to hell if i only knew the right way answered the poor man well you re not far wrong for this is hell said the old man when you get inside they will be all for buying your flitch for meat is scarce in hell but mind you don t sell it unless you get the hand quern which stands behind the door for it when you come out i ll teach you how to handle the quern for it s good to grind almost anything so the man with the flitch thanked the other for his good advice and gave a great knock at the devil s door when he got in everything went just as the old man had said all the devils great and small came swarming up to him like ants round an anthill and each tried to outbid the other for the flitch well said the man by rights my old dame and i ought to have this flitch for our christmas dinner but since you have all set your hearts on it i suppose i must give it up to you but if i sell it at all i ll have for it that quern behind the door yonder at first the devil wouldn t hear of such a bargain and chaffered and haggled with the man but he stuck to what he said and at last the devil had to part with his quern when the man got out into the yard he asked the old woodcutter how he was to handle the quern and after he had learned how to use it he thanked the old man and went off home as fast as he could but still the clock had struck twelve on christmas eve before he reached his own door wherever in the world have you been said his old dame here have i sat hour after hour waiting and p 10 watching without so much as two sticks to lay together under the christmas brose oh said the man i couldn t get back before for i had to go a long way first for one thing and then for another but now you shall see what you shall see so he put the quern on the table and bade it first of all grind lights then a table cloth then meat then ale and so on till they had got everything that was nice for christmas fare he had only to speak the word and the quern ground out what he wanted the old dame stood by blessing her stars and kept on asking where he had got this wonderful quern but he wouldn t tell her it s all one where i got it from you see the quern is a good one and the mill stream never freezes that s enough so he ground meat and drink and dainties enough to last out till twelfth day and on the third day he asked all his friends and kin to his house and gave a great feast now when his rich brother saw all that was on the table and all that was behind in the larder he grew quite spiteful and wild for he couldn t bear that his brother should have anything twas only on christmas eve he said to the rest he was in such straits that he came and asked for a morsel of food in god s name and now he gives a feast as if he were count or king and he turned to his brother and said but whence in hell s name have you got all this wealth from behind the door answered the owner of the quern for he didn t care to let the cat out of the bag but p 11 later on the evening when he had got a drop too much he could keep his secret no longer and brought out the quern and said there you see what has gotten me all this wealth and so he made the quern grind all kind of things when his brother saw it he set his heart on having the quern and after a deal of coaxing he got it but he had to pay three hundred dollars for it and his brother bargained to keep it till hay harvest for he thought if i keep it till then i can make it grind meat and drink that will last for years so you may fancy the quern didn t grow rusty for want of work and when hay harvest came the rich brother got it but the other took care not to teach him how to handle it it was evening when the rich brother got the quern home and next morning he told his wife to go out into the hay field and toss while the mowers cut the grass and he would stay at home and get the dinner ready so when dinner time drew near he put the quern on the kitchen table and said grind herrings and broth and grind them good and fast so the quern began to grind herrings and broth first of all all the dishes full then all the tubs full and so on till the kitchen floor was quite covered then the man twisted and twirled at the quern to get it to stop but