“Bring here the other child.”
Then the lady brought in an infant, and placed him in the arms of the
mother.
“Take him,” said the queen, “he is your own child, that we carried
away, for he was so beautiful; and the boy you have at home is mine,
a little elfish imp. Still, I want him back, and I have sent a man to
bring him here; and you may take your own lovely child home in safety,
for the fairy blessings are on him for good. And the man that beat you
was not your husband at all, but our messenger, that we sent to change
the children. So now go back, and you will find your own true husband
at home in your own place, watching and waiting for you by day and by
night.”
With that the door opened, and the man who had beaten her came in; and
the mother trembled and was afraid. But the man laughed, and told her
not to fear, but to eat what was set before her, and then to go in
peace.
So they brought her to another hall, where was a table covered with
golden dishes and beautiful flowers, and red wine in crystal cups.
“Eat,” they said; “this feast has been prepared for you. As to us, we
cannot touch it, for the food has been sprinkled with salt.”
So she ate, and drank of the red wine, and never in all her life were
so many things set before her that were lovely and good. And, as was
right and proper, after dinner was over, she stood up, and folded her
hands together to give God thanks. But they stopped her, and drew her
down.
“Hush!” they said, “that name is not to be named here.”
There was an angry murmur in the hall. But just then beautiful music
was heard, and singing like the singing of priests, and the poor mother
was so enchanted that she fell on her face as one dead. And when she
came to herself it was noonday, and she was standing by the door of
her own house. And her husband came out and took her by the hand, and
brought her in. And there was her child, more beautiful than ever, as
handsome as a young prince.
“Where have you been all this while?” asked the husband.
“It is only an hour since I went away, to look for my child, that the
fairies stole from me,” she answered.
“An hour!” said the husband; “you have been three years away with
your child! And when you were gone, a poor sickly thing was laid in
the cradle—not as big as a mushroom, and I knew well it was a fairy
changeling. But it so happened that one day, a tailor came by, and
stopped to rest; and when he looked hard at the child, the ugly
misshapen thing sat up quite straight in the cradle, and called out—
“‘Come now, what are you looking at? Give me four straws to play with.’
“And the tailor gave him the straws. And when he got them, the child
played and played such sweet music on them as if they were pipes, that
all the chairs and tables began to dance; and when he grew tired, he
fell back in the cradle and dropped asleep.
“‘Now,’ said the tailor, ‘that child is not right; but I’ll tell you
what to do. Make down a great fire to begin with.’
“So we made the fire. Then the tailor shut the door, and lifted the
unlucky little wretch out of the cradle, and sat it on the fire. And no
sooner had the flames caught it, than it shrieked aloud and flew up the
chimney and disappeared. And when everything was burned that belonged
to it, I knew you would come back to me with our own fine boy. And now
let us name the name of God, and make the sign of the Cross over him,
and ill luck will never again fall on our house—no more for ever.”
So the man and his wife lived happily from that day forth, and the
child grew up and prospered, and was beautiful to look at and happy in
his life; for the fairy blessings were on him of health, wealth, and
prosperity, even as the queen of the fairies had promised to the mother.