time until he came to a little clearing in the forest not far from the
sea, where he saw a woman sitting on a chair and a big barrel standing
beside her. The Prince went up to her and saluted her politely, and
she received him very graciously. He looked down into the barrel then,
and saw lying at the bottom an unusually beautiful gold ring, which
pleased him so much that he could not take his eyes off it. The woman
saw this, and said that he might have it if he would take the trouble
to get it; for which the Prince thanked her, and said it was at least
worth trying. So he leaned over into the barrel, which did not seem
very deep, and thought he would easily reach the ring; but the more he
stretched down after it the deeper grew the barrel. As he was thus
bending down into it the woman suddenly rose up and pushed him in head
first, saying that now he could take up his quarters there. Then she
fixed the top on the barrel and threw it out into the sea.
[Illustration: The Woman Pushes Prince Ring into the Cask]
The Prince thought himself in a bad plight now, as he felt the barrel
floating out from the land and tossing about on the waves. How many
days he spent thus he could not tell, but at last he felt that the
barrel was knocking against rocks, at which he was a little cheered,
thinking it was probably land and not merely a reef in the sea. Being
something of a swimmer, he at last made up his mind to kick the bottom
out of the barrel, and having done so he was able to get on shore, for
the rocks by the sea were smooth and level; but overhead there were
high cliffs. It seemed difficult to get up these, but he went along
the foot of them for a little, till at last he tried to climb up,
which at last he did.
Having got to the top, he looked round about him and saw that he was
on an island, which was covered with forest, with apples growing, and
altogether pleasant as far as the land was concerned. After he had
been there several days, he one day heard a great noise in the forest,
which made him terribly afraid, so that he ran to hide himself among
the trees. Then he saw a Giant approaching, dragging a sledge loaded
with wood, and making straight for him, so that he could see nothing
for it but to lie down just where he was. When the Giant came across
him, he stood still and looked at the Prince for a little; then he
took him up in his arms and carried him home to his house, and was
exceedingly kind to him. He gave him to his wife, saying he had found
this child in the wood, and she could have it to help her in the
house. The old woman was greatly pleased, and began to fondle the
Prince with the utmost delight. He stayed there with them, and was
very willing and obedient to them in everything, while they grew
kinder to him every day.
One day the Giant took him round and showed him all his rooms except
the parlour; this made the Prince curious to have a look into it,
thinking there must be some very rare treasure there. So one day, when
the Giant had gone into the forest, he tried to get into the parlour,
and managed to get the door open half-way. Then he saw that some
living creature moved inside and ran along the floor towards him and
said something, which made him so frightened that he sprang back from
the door and shut it again. As soon as the fright began to pass off he
tried it again, for he thought it would be interesting to hear what it
said; but things went just as before with him. He then got angry with
himself, and, summoning up all his courage, tried it a third time, and
opened the door of the room and stood firm. Then he saw that it was a
big Dog, which spoke to him and said:
‘Choose me, Prince Ring.’
The Prince went away rather afraid, thinking with himself that it was
no great treasure after all; but all the same what it had said to him
stuck in his mind.
It is not said how long the Prince stayed with the Giant, but one day
the latter came to him and said he would now take him over to the
mainland out of the island, for he himself had no long time to live.
He also thanked him for his good service, and told him to choose some
one of his possessions, for he would get whatever he wanted. Ring
thanked him heartily, and said there was no need to pay him for his
services, they were so little worth; but if he did wish to give him
anything he would choose what was in the parlour. The Giant was taken
by surprise, and said:
‘There, you chose my old woman’s right hand; but I must not break my
word.’
Upon this he went to get the Dog, which came running with signs of
great delight; but the Prince was so much afraid of it that it was all
he could do to keep from showing his alarm.
After this the Giant accompanied him down to the sea, where he saw a
stone boat which was just big enough to hold the two of them and the
Dog. On reaching the mainland the Giant took a friendly farewell of
Ring, and told him he might take possession of all that was in the
island after he and his wife died, which would happen within two weeks
from that time. The Prince thanked him for this and for all his other
kindnesses, and the Giant returned home, while Ring went up some
distance from the sea; but he did not know what land he had come to,
and was afraid to speak to the Dog. After he had walked on in silence
for a time the Dog spoke to him and said:
‘You don’t seem to have much curiosity, seeing you never ask my name.’
The Prince then forced himself to ask, ‘What is your name?’
‘You had best call me Snati-Snati,’ said the Dog. ‘Now we are coming
to a King’s seat, and you must ask the King to keep us all winter, and
to give you a little room for both of us.’
The Prince now began to be less afraid of the Dog. They came to the
King and asked him to keep them all the winter, to which he agreed.
When the King’s men saw the Dog they began to laugh at it, and make as
if they would tease it; but when the Prince saw this he advised them
not to do it, or they might have the worst of it. They replied that
they didn’t care a bit what he thought.
After Ring had been with the King for some days the latter began to
think there was a great deal in him, and esteemed him more than the
others. The King, however, had a counsellor called Red, who became
very jealous when he saw how much the King esteemed Ring; and one day
he talked to him, and said he could not understand why he had so good
an opinion of this stranger, who had not yet shown himself superior to
other men in anything. The King replied that it was only a short time
since he had come there. Red then asked him to send them both to cut
down wood next morning, and see which of them could do most work.
Snati-Snati heard this and told it to Ring, advising him to ask the
King for two axes, so that he might have one in reserve if the first
one got broken. Next morning the King asked Ring and Red to go and cut
down trees for him, and both agreed. Ring got the two axes, and each
went his own way; but when the Prince had got out into the wood Snati
took one of the axes and began to hew along with him. In the evening
the King came to look over their day’s work, as Red had proposed, and
found that Ring’s wood-heap was more than twice as big.
‘I suspected,’ said the King, ‘that Ring was not quite useless; never
have I seen such a day’s work.’
Ring was now in far greater esteem with the King than before, and Red
was all the more discontented. One day he came to the King and said,
‘If Ring is such a mighty man, I think you might ask him to kill the
wild oxen in the wood here, and flay them the same day, and bring you
the horns and the hides in the evening.’
‘Don’t you think that a desperate errand?’ said the King, ‘seeing they
are so dangerous, and no one has ever yet ventured to go against
them?’
Red answered that he had only one life to lose, and it would be
interesting to see how brave he was; besides, the King would have good
reason to ennoble him if he overcame them. The King at last allowed
himself, though rather unwillingly, to be won over by Red’s
persistency, and one day asked Ring to go and kill the oxen that were
in the wood for him, and bring their horns and hides to him in the
evening. Not knowing how dangerous the oxen were, Ring was quite
ready, and went off at once, to the great delight of Red, who was now
sure of his death.
As soon as Ring came in sight of the oxen they came bellowing to meet
him; one of them was tremendously big, the other rather less. Ring
grew terribly afraid.
‘How do you like them?’ asked Snati.
‘Not well at all,’ said the Prince.
‘We can do nothing else,’ said Snati, ‘than attack them, if it is to
go well; you will go against the little one, and I shall take the
other.’
With this Snati leapt at the big one, and was not long in bringing him
down. Meanwhile the Prince went against the other with fear and
trembling, and by the time Snati came to help him the ox had nearly
got him under, but Snati was not slow in helping his master to kill
it.
[Illustration: Snati and Prince Ring Fight With the Oxen]
Each of them then began to flay their own ox, but Ring was only half
through by the time Snati had finished his. In the evening, after they
had finished this task, the Prince thought himself unfit to carry all
the horns and both the hides, so Snati told him to lay them all on his
back until they got to the Palace gate. The Prince agreed, and laid
everything on the Dog except the skin of the smaller ox, which he
staggered along with himself. At the Palace gate he left everything
lying, went before the King, and asked him to come that length with
him, and there handed over to him the hides and horns of the oxen. The
King was greatly surprised at his valour, and said he knew no one like
him, and thanked him heartily for what he had done.
After this the King set Ring next to himself, and all esteemed him
highly, and held him to be a great hero; nor could Red any longer say
anything against him, though he grew still more determined to destroy
him. One day a good idea came into his head. He came to the King and
said he had something to say to him.
‘What is that?’ said the King.
Red said that he had just remembered the gold cloak, gold chess-board,
and bright gold piece that the King had lost about a year before.
‘Don’t remind me of them!’ said the King.
Red, however, went on to say that, since Ring was such a mighty man
that he could do everything, it had occurred to him to advise the King
to ask him to search for these treasures, and come back with them
before Christmas; in return the King should promise him his daughter.
The King replied that he thought it altogether unbecoming to propose
such a thing to Ring, seeing that he could not tell him where the
things were; but Red pretended not to hear the King’s excuses, and
went on talking about it until the King gave in to him. One day, a
month or so before Christmas, the King spoke to Ring, saying that he
wished to ask a great favour of him.
‘What is that?’ said Ring.
‘It is this,’ said the King: ‘that you find for me my gold cloak, my
gold chess-board, and my bright gold piece, that were stolen from me
about a year ago. If you can bring them to me before Christmas I will
give you my daughter in marriage.’
‘Where am I to look for them, then?’ said Ring.
‘That you must find out for yourself,’ said the King; ‘I don’t know.’
Ring now left the King, and was very silent, for he saw he was in a
great difficulty: but, on the other hand, he thought it was excellent
to have such a chance of winning the King’s daughter. Snati noticed
that his master was at a loss, and said to him that he should not
disregard what the King had asked him to do; but he would have to act
upon his advice, otherwise he would get into great difficulties. The
Prince assented to this, and began to prepare for the journey.
After he had taken leave of the King, and was setting out on the
search, Snati said to him, ‘Now you must first of all go about the
neighbourhood, and gather as much salt as ever you can.’ The Prince
did so, and gathered so much salt that he could hardly carry it; but
Snati said, ‘Throw it on my back,’ which he accordingly did, and the
Dog then ran on before the Prince, until they came to the foot of a
steep cliff.
[Illustration]
‘We must go up here,’ said Snati.
‘I don’t think that will be child’s play,’ said the Prince.
‘Hold fast by my tail,’ said Snati; and in this way he pulled Ring up
on the lowest shelf of the rock. The Prince began to get giddy, but up
went Snati on to the second shelf. Ring was nearly swooning by this
time, but Snati made a third effort and reached the top of the cliff,
where the Prince fell down in a faint. After a little, however, he
recovered again, and they went a short distance along a level plain,
until they came to a cave. This was on Christmas Eve. They went up
above the cave, and found a window in it, through which they looked,
and saw four trolls lying asleep beside the fire, over which a large
porridge-pot was hanging.
‘Now you must empty all the salt into the porridge-pot,’ said Snati.
Ring did so, and soon the trolls wakened up. The old hag, who was the
most frightful of them all, went first to taste the porridge.
‘How comes this?’ she said; ‘the porridge is salt! I got the milk by
witchcraft yesterday out of four kingdoms, and now it is salt!’
All the others then came to taste the porridge, and thought it nice,
but after they had finished it the old hag grew so thirsty that she
could stand it no longer, and asked her daughter to go out and bring
her some water from the river that ran near by.
‘I won’t go,’ said she, ‘unless you lend me your bright gold piece.’
‘Though I should die you shan’t have that,’ said the hag.
‘Die, then,’ said the girl.
‘Well, then, take it, you brat,’ said the old hag, ‘and be off with
you, and make haste with the water.’
The girl took the gold and ran out with it, and it was so bright that
it shone all over the plain. As soon as she came to the river she lay
down to take a drink of the water, but meanwhile the two of them had
got down off the roof and thrust her, head first, into the river.
The old hag began now to long for the water, and said that the girl
would be running about with the gold piece all over the plain, so she
asked her son to go and get her a drop of water.
‘I won’t go,’ said he, ‘unless I get the gold cloak.’
‘Though I should die you shan’t have that,’ said the hag.
‘Die, then,’ said the son.
‘Well, then, take it,’ said the old hag, ‘and be off with you, but you
must make haste with the water.’
He put on the cloak, and when he came outside it shone so bright that
he could see to go with it. On reaching the river he went to take a
drink like his sister, but at that moment Ring and Snati sprang upon
him, took the cloak from him, and threw him into the river.
The old hag could stand the thirst no longer, and asked her husband to
go for a drink for her; the brats, she said, were of course running
about and playing themselves, just as she had expected they would,
little wretches that they were.
‘I won’t go,’ said the old troll, ‘unless you lend me the gold
chess-board.’
‘Though I should die you shan’t have that,’ said the hag.
‘I think you may just as well do that,’ said he, ‘since you won’t
grant me such a little favour.’
‘Take it, then, you utter disgrace!’ said the old hag, ‘since you are
just like these two brats.’
[Illustration: Prince Ring & Snati Overthrow the Troll’s Ghost]
The old troll now went out with the gold chess-board, and down to the
river, and was about to take a drink, when Ring and Snati came upon
him, took the chess-board from him, and threw him into the river.
Before they had got back again, however, and up on top of the cave,
they saw the poor old fellow’s ghost come marching up from the river.
Snati immediately sprang upon him, and Ring assisted in the attack,
and after a hard struggle they mastered him a second time. When they
got back again to the window, they saw that the old hag was moving
towards the door.
‘Now we must go in at once,’ said Snati, ‘and try to master her there,
for if she once gets out we shall have no chance with her. She is the
worst witch that ever lived, and no iron can cut her. One of us must
pour boiling porridge out of the pot on her, and the other punch her
with red-hot iron.’
In they went then, and no sooner did the hag see them than she said,
‘So you have come, Prince Ring; you must have seen to my husband and
children.’
Snati saw that she was about to attack them, and sprang at her with a
red-hot iron from the fire, while Ring kept pouring boiling porridge
on her without stopping, and in this way they at last got her killed.
Then they burned the old troll and her to ashes, and explored the
cave, where they found plenty of gold and treasures. The most valuable
of these they carried with them as far as the cliff, and left them
there. Then they hastened home to the King with his three treasures,
where they arrived late on Christmas night, and Ring handed them over
to him.
The King was beside himself with joy, and was astonished at how clever
a man Ring was in all kinds of feats, so that he esteemed him still
more highly than before, and betrothed his daughter to him; and the
feast for this was to last all through Christmastide. Ring thanked the
King courteously for this and all his other kindnesses, and as soon as
he had finished eating and drinking in the hall went off to sleep in
his own room. Snati, however, asked permission to sleep in the
Prince’s bed for that night, while the Prince should sleep where the
Dog usually lay. Ring said he was welcome to do so, and that he
deserved more from him than that came to. So Snati went up into the
Prince’s bed, but after a time he came back, and told Ring he could go
there himself now, but to take care not to meddle with anything that
was in the bed.
Now the story comes back to Red, who came into the hall and showed the
King his right arm wanting the hand, and said that now he could see
what kind of a man his intended son-in-law was, for he had done this
to him without any cause whatever. The King became very angry, and
said he would soon find out the truth about it, and if Ring had cut
off his hand without good cause he should be hanged; but if it was
otherwise, then Red should die. So the King sent for Ring and asked
him for what reason he had done this. Snati, however, had just told
Ring what had happened during the night, and in reply he asked the
King to go with him and he would show him something. The King went
with him to his sleeping-room, and saw lying on the bed a man’s hand
holding a sword.
‘This hand,’ said Ring, ‘came over the partition during the night, and
was about to run me through in my bed, if I had not defended myself.’
The King answered that in that case he could not blame him for
protecting his own life, and that Red was well worthy of death. So Red
was hanged, and Ring married the King’s daughter.
The first night that they went to bed together Snati asked Ring to
allow him to lie at their feet, and this Ring allowed him to do.
During the night he heard a howling and outcry beside them, struck a
light in a hurry and saw an ugly dog’s skin lying near him, and a
beautiful Prince in the bed. Ring instantly took the skin and burned
it, and then shook the Prince, who was lying unconscious, until he
woke up. The bridegroom then asked his name; he replied that he was
called Ring, and was a King’s son. In his youth he had lost his
mother, and in her place his father had married a witch, who had laid
a spell on him that he should turn into a dog, and never be released
from the spell unless a Prince of the same name as himself allowed him
to sleep at his feet the first night after his marriage. He added
further, ‘As soon as she knew that you were my namesake she tried to
get you destroyed, so that you might not free me from the spell. She
was the hind that you and your companions chased; she was the woman
that you found in the clearing with the barrel, and the old hag that
we just now killed in the cave.’
After the feasting was over the two namesakes, along with other men,
went to the cliff and brought all the treasure home to the Palace.
Then they went to the island and removed all that was valuable from
it. Ring gave to his namesake, whom he had freed from the spell, his
sister Ingiborg and his father’s kingdom to look after, but he himself
stayed with his father-in-law the King, and had half the kingdom while
he lived and the whole of it after his death.
_THE SWINEHERD_
There was once a poor Prince. He possessed a kingdom which, though
small, was yet large enough for him to marry on, and married he wished
to be.
Now it was certainly a little audacious of him to venture to say to
the Emperor’s daughter, ‘Will you marry me?’ But he did venture to say
so, for his name was known far and wide. There were hundreds of
princesses who would gladly have said ‘Yes,’ but would she say the
same?
Well, we shall see.
On the grave of the Prince’s father grew a rose-tree, a very beautiful
rose-tree. It only bloomed every five years, and then bore but a
single rose, but oh, such a rose! Its scent was so sweet that when you
smelt it you forgot all your cares and troubles. And he had also a
nightingale which could sing as if all the beautiful melodies in the
world were shut up in its little throat. This rose and this
nightingale the Princess was to have, and so they were both put into
silver caskets and sent to her.
The Emperor had them brought to him in the great hall, where the
Princess was playing ‘Here comes a duke a-riding’ with her
ladies-in-waiting. And when she caught sight of the big caskets which
contained the presents, she clapped her hands for joy.
‘If only it were a little pussy-cat!’ she said. But the rose-tree with
the beautiful rose came out.
‘But how prettily it is made!’ said all the ladies-in-waiting.
‘It is more than pretty,’ said the Emperor, ‘it is charming!’
But the Princess felt it, and then she almost began to cry.
‘Ugh! Papa,’ she said, ‘it is not artificial, it is _real!_’
‘Ugh!’ said all the ladies-in-waiting, ‘it is real!’
‘Let us see first what is in the other casket before we begin to be
angry,’ thought the Emperor, and there came out the nightingale. It
sang so beautifully that one could scarcely utter a cross word against
it.
‘_Superbe! charmant!_’ said the ladies-in-waiting, for they all
chattered French, each one worse than the other.
‘How much the bird reminds me of the musical snuff-box of the late
Empress!’ said an old courtier. ‘Ah, yes, it is the same tone, the
same execution!’
‘Yes,’ said the Emperor; and then he wept like a little child.
‘I hope that this, at least, is not real?’ asked the Princess.
‘Yes, it is a real bird,’ said those who had brought it.
‘Then let the bird fly away,’ said the Princess; and she would not on
any account allow the Prince to come.
But he was nothing daunted. He painted his face brown and black, drew
his cap well over his face, and knocked at the door. ‘Good-day,
Emperor,’ he said. ‘Can I get a place here as servant in the castle?’
‘Yes,’ said the Emperor, ‘but there are so many who ask for a place
that I don’t know whether there will be one for you; but, still, I
will think of you. Stay, it has just occurred to me that I want
someone to look after the swine, for I have so very many of them.’
And the Prince got the situation of Imperial Swineherd. He had a
wretched little room close to the pigsties; here he had to stay, but
the whole day he sat working, and when evening was come he had made a
pretty little pot. All round it were little bells, and when the pot
boiled they jingled most beautifully and played the old tune—
‘Where is Augustus dear?
Alas! he’s not here, here, here!’
But the most wonderful thing was, that when one held one’s finger in
the steam of the pot, then at once one could smell what dinner was
ready in any fire-place in the town. That was indeed something quite
different from the rose.
Now the Princess came walking past with all her ladies-in-waiting, and
when she heard the tune she stood still and her face beamed with joy,
for she also could play ‘Where is Augustus dear?’
It was the only tune she knew, but that she could play with one
finger.
[Illustration: The Swineherd Takes the Ten Kisses]
‘Why, that is what I play!’ she said. ‘He must be a most accomplished
Swineherd! Listen! Go down and ask him what the instrument costs.’
And one of the ladies-in-waiting had to go down; but she put on wooden
clogs. ‘What will you take for the pot?’ asked the lady-in-waiting.
‘I will have ten kisses from the Princess,’ answered the Swineherd.
‘Heaven forbid!’ said the lady-in-waiting.
‘Yes, I will sell it for nothing less,’ replied the Swineherd.
‘Well, what does he say?’ asked the Princess.
‘I really hardly like to tell you,’ answered the lady-in-waiting.
‘Oh, then you can whisper it to me.’