NURSERY TALES.
The tales we have thus far given, although they may count many young
people among their auditors, are not distinctly children's stories. The
few that follow are, and it is greatly to be regretted that their number
is not larger. That many more exist, cannot be doubted; but collectors
have probably overlooked this interesting class. Even Pitre in his large
collection gives but eleven (Nos. 130-141), and those in the other
collections are mostly parallels to Pitre's.
We will begin with those that are advantages taken of children's love
for stories. The first is from Venice (Bernoni, Punt. II. p. 53) and is
called:
LXXIV. MR. ATTENTIVE.
"Do you want me to tell you the story of Mr. Attentive?"
"Tell me it."
"But you must not say 'tell me it,' for it is
The story of Mr. Attentive,
Which lasts a long time,
Which is never explained:
Do you wish me to tell it, or relate it?"
"Relate it."
"But you must not say 'relate it,' for it is
The story of Mr. Attentive,
Which lasts a long time,
Which is never explained:
Do you wish me to tell it, or relate it?"
"But come! tell me it."
"But you must not say," etc., etc.[1]
* * * * *
The following are intended to soothe restless children, and are so short
that they may be given entire.
LXXV. THE STORY OF THE BARBER.
Once upon a time there was a barber.... Be good and I will tell it to
you again.[2]
* * * * *
The next is from the same source.
Once upon a time there was a king, a pope, and a dwarf.... This king,
this pope, and this dwarf....
(Then the story-teller begins again).
* * * * *
But it is time to give some of the stories that are told to the good
children. The first is from Pitre (No. 130) and is called:
LXXVI. DON FIRRIULIEDDU.
Once upon a time there was a farmer who had a daughter who used to take
his dinner to him in the fields. One day he said to her: "So that you
may find me I will sprinkle bran along the way; you follow the bran, and
you will come to me."
By chance the old ogre passed that way, and seeing the bran, said: "This
means something." So he took the bran and scattered it so that it led to
his own house.
When the daughter set out to take her father his dinner, she followed
the bran until she came to the ogre's house. When the ogre saw the young
girl, he said: "You must be my wife." Then she began to weep. When the
father saw that his daughter did not appear, he went home in the
evening, and began to search for her; and not finding her, he asked God
to give him a son or a daughter.
A year after, he had a son whom they called "_Don Firriulieddu_." When
the child was three days old it spoke, and said: "Have you made me a
cloak? Now give me a little dog and the cloak, for I must look for my
sister." So he set out and went to seek his sister.
After a while he came to a plain where he saw a number of men, and
asked: "Whose cattle are these?" The herdsman replied: "They belong to
the ogre, who fears neither God nor the saints, who fears _Don
Firriulieddu_, who is three days old and is on the way, and gives his
dog bread and says: 'Eat, my dog, and do not bark, for we have fine
things to do.'"
Afterwards he saw a flock of sheep, and asked: "Whose are these sheep?"
and received the same answer as from the herdsman. Then he arrived at
the ogre's house and knocked, and his sister opened the door and saw the
child. "Who are you looking for?" she said. "I am looking for you, for I
am your brother, and you must return to mamma."
When the ogre heard that _Don Firriulieddu_ was there, he went and hid
himself up-stairs. _Don Firriulieddu_ asked his sister: "Where is the
ogre?" "Up-stairs." _Don Firriulieddu_ said to his dog: "Go up-stairs
and bark, and I will follow you." The dog went up and barked, and
_Firriulieddu_ followed him, and killed the ogre. Then he took his
sister and a quantity of money, and they went home to their mother, and
are all contented.
* * * * *
Certain traits in the above story, as the size of the hero and the bran
serving to guide the girl to her father, recall somewhat faintly, it is
true, our own "Tom Thumb." It is only recently that a Tuscan version of
"Tom Thumb" has been found.[3] It is called:
LXXVII. LITTLE CHICK-PEA.[L]
Once upon a time there was a husband and wife who had no children. The
husband was a carpenter, and when he came home from his shop he did
nothing but scold his wife because she had no children, and the poor
woman was constantly weeping and despairing. She was charitable, and
had festivals celebrated in the church; but no children. One day a woman
knocked at her door and asked for alms; but the carpenter's wife
answered: "I will not give you any, for I have given alms and had masses
said, and festivals celebrated for a long time, and have no son." "Give
me alms and you will have children." "Good! in that case I will do all
you wish." "You must give me a whole loaf of bread, and I will give you
something that will bring you children." "If you will, I will give you
two loaves." "No, no! now, I want only one; you can give me the other
when you have the children." So she gave her a loaf, and the woman said:
"Now I will go home and give my children something to eat, and then I
will bring you what will make you have children." "Very well."
[Footnote L: _Cecino_, dim. of _Cece_, chick-pea.]
The woman went home, fed her children, and then took a little bag,
filled it with chick-peas, and carried it to the carpenter's wife, and
said: "This is a bag of peas; put them in the kneading-trough, and
to-morrow they will be as many sons as there are peas." There were a
hundred peas, and the carpenter's wife said: "How can a hundred peas
become a hundred sons?" "You will see to-morrow." The carpenter's wife
said to herself: "I had better say nothing about it to my husband,
because if by any mischance the children should not come, he would give
me a fine scolding."
Her husband returned at night and began to grumble as usual; but his
wife said not a word and went to bed repeating to herself: "To-morrow
you will see!" The next morning the hundred peas had become a hundred
sons. One cried: "Papa, I want to drink." Another said: "Papa, I want to
eat." Another: "Papa, take me up." He, in the midst of all this tumult,
took a stick and went to the trough and began to beat, and killed them
all. One fell out (imagine how small they were!) and ran quickly into
the bedroom and hid himself on the handle of the pitcher. After the
carpenter had gone to his shop his wife said: "What a rascal! he has
grumbled so long about my not having children and now he has killed them
all!" Then the son who had escaped said: "Mamma, has papa gone?" She
said: "Yes, my son. How did you manage to escape? Where are you?" "Hush!
I am in the handle of the pitcher; tell me: has papa gone?" "Yes, yes,
yes, come out!" Then the child who had escaped came out and his mamma
exclaimed: "Oh! how pretty you are! How shall I call you?" The child
answered: "Cecino." "Very well, bravo, my Cecino! Do you know, Cecino,
you must go and carry your papa's dinner to him at the shop." "Yes, you
must put the little basket on my head, and I will go and carry it to
papa."
The carpenter's wife, when it was time, put the basket on Cecino's head
and sent him to carry her husband's dinner to him. When Cecino was near
the shop, he began to cry: "O papa! come and meet me; I am bringing you
your dinner."
The carpenter said to himself: "Oh! did I kill them all, or are there
any left?" He went to meet Cecino and said: "O my good boy! how did you
escape my blows?" "I fell down, ran into the room, and hid myself on the
handle of the pitcher." "Bravo, Cecino! Listen. You must go around among
the country people and hear whether they have anything broken to mend."
"Yes."
So the carpenter put Cecino in his pocket, and while he went along the
way did nothing but chatter; so that every one said he was mad, because
they did not know that he had his son in his pocket. When he saw some
countrymen he asked: "Have you anything to mend?" "Yes, there are some
things about the oxen broken, but we cannot let you mend them, for you
are mad." "What do you mean by calling me mad? I am wiser than you. Why
do you say I am mad?" "Because you do nothing but talk to yourself on
the road." "I was talking with my son." "And where do you keep your
son?" "In my pocket." "That is a pretty place to keep your son." "Very
well, I will show him to you;" and he pulls out Cecino, who was so small
that he stood on one of his father's fingers.
"Oh, what a pretty child! you must sell him to us." "What are you
thinking about! I sell you my son who is so valuable to me!" "Well,
then, don't sell him to us." What does he do then? He takes Cecino and
puts him on the horn of an ox and says: "Stay there, for now I am going
to get the things to mend." "Yes, yes, don't be afraid; I will stay on
my horn." So the carpenter went to get the things to mend.
Meanwhile two thieves passed by, and seeing the oxen, one said: "See
those two oxen there alone. Come, let us go and steal them." When they
drew near, Cecino cried out: "Papa, look out! there are thieves here!
they are stealing your oxen!" "Ah! where does that voice come from?" And
they approached nearer to see; and Cecino, the nearer he saw them come,
the more he called out: "Look out for your oxen, papa; the thieves are
stealing them!"
When the carpenter came the thieves said to him: "Good man, where does
that voice come from?" "It is my son." "If he is not here, where is he?"
"Don't you see? there he is, up on the horn of one of the oxen." When he
showed him to them, they said: "You must sell him to us; we will give
you as much money as you wish." "What are you thinking about! I might
sell him to you, but who knows how much my wife would grumble about it!"
"Do you know what you must tell her? that he died on the way."
They tempted him so much that at last he gave him to them for two sacks
of money. They took their Cecino, put him in one of their pockets, and
went away. On their journey they saw the king's stable. "Let us take a
look at the king's stable and see whether we can steal a pair of
horses." "Very good." They said to Cecino: "Don't betray us." "Don't be
afraid, I will not betray you."
So they went into the stable and stole three horses, which they took
home and put in their own stable.
Afterwards they went and said to Cecino: "Listen. We are so tired! save
us the trouble, go down and give the horses some oats." Cecino went to
do so, but fell asleep on the halter and one of the horses swallowed
him. When he did not return, the thieves said: "He must have fallen
asleep in the stable." So they went there and looked for him and
called: "Cecino, where are you?" "Inside of the black horse." Then they
killed the black horse; but Cecino was not there. "Cecino, where are
you?" "In the bay horse." So they killed the bay horse; but Cecino was
not there. "Cecino, where are you?" But Cecino answered no longer. Then
they said: "What a pity! that child who was so useful to us is lost."
Then they dragged out into the fields the two horses that they had cut
open.
A famished wolf passed that way and saw the dead horses. "Now I will eat
my fill of horse," and he ate and ate until he had finished and had
swallowed Cecino.[M] Then the wolf went off until it became hungry again
and said: "Let us go and eat a goat."
[Footnote M: It appears from this that Cecino had been in one of the
horses all the time, but the thieves had not seen him because he was so
small.]
When Cecino heard the wolf talk about eating a goat, he cried out:
"Goat-herd, the wolf is coming to eat your goats!"
[The wolf supposes that it has swallowed some wind that forms these
words, hits itself against a stone, and after several trials gets rid of
the wind and Cecino, who hides himself under a stone, so that he shall
not be seen.]
Three robbers passed that way with a bag of money. One of them said:
"Now I will count the money, and you others be quiet or I will kill
you!" You can imagine whether they kept still! for they did not want to
die. So he began to count: "One, two, three, four, and five." And
Cecino: "One, two, three, four, and five." (Do you understand? he
repeats the robber's words.) "I hear you! you will not keep still. Well,
I will kill you; we shall see whether you will speak again." He began to
count the money again: "One, two, three, four, and five." Cecino
repeats: "One, two, three, four, and five." "Then you will not keep
quiet! now I will kill you!" and he killed one of them. "Now we shall
see whether you will talk; if you do I will kill you too." He began to
count: "One, two, three, four, and five." Cecino repeats: "One, two,
three, four, and five." "Take care, if I have to tell you again I will
kill you!" "Do you think I want to speak? I don't wish to be killed." He
begins to count: "One, two, three, four, and five." Cecino repeats:
"One, two, three, four, and five." "You will not keep quiet either; now
I will kill you!" and he killed him. "Now I am alone and can count by
myself and no one will repeat it." So he began again to count: "One,
two, three, four, and five." And Cecino: "One, two, three, four, and
five." Then the robber said: "There is some one hidden here; I had
better run away or he will kill me." So he ran away and left behind the
sack of money.
When Cecino perceived that there was no one there, he came out, put the
bag of money on his head, and started for home. When he drew near his
parents' house he cried: "Oh, mamma, come and meet me; I have brought
you a bag of money!"
When his mother heard him she went to meet him and took the money and
said: "Take care you don't drown yourself in these puddles of
rain-water." The mother went home, and turned back to look for Cecino,
but he was not to be seen. She told her husband what Cecino had done,
and they went and searched everywhere for him, and at last found him
drowned in a puddle.[4]
* * * * *
The next story is one that has always enjoyed great popularity over the
whole of Europe, and is a most interesting example of the diffusion of
nursery tales. It is also interesting from the attempt to show that it
is of comparatively late date, and has been borrowed from a people not
of European extraction.[5] The story belongs to the class of what may be
called "accumulative" stories, of which "The House that Jack built" is a
good example. It is a version of the story so well known in English of
the old woman who found a little crooked sixpence, and went to market
and bought a little pig. As she was coming home the pig would not go
over the stile. The old woman calls on a dog to bite pig, but the dog
will not. Then she calls in turn on a stick, fire, water, ox, butcher,
rope, rat, and cat. They all refuse to help her except the cat, which
promises help in exchange for a saucer of milk. "So away went the old
woman to the cow. But the cow said to her: 'If you will go to yonder
hay-stack and fetch me a handful of hay, I'll give you the milk.' So
away went the old woman to the hay-stack; and she brought the hay to the
cow. As soon as the cow had eaten the hay, she gave the old woman the
milk; and away she went with it in a saucer to the cat.
"As soon as the cat had lapped up the milk, the cat began to kill the
rat; the rat to gnaw the rope; the rope began to hang the butcher; the
butcher began to kill the ox; the ox began to drink the water; the water
began to quench the fire; the fire began to burn the stick; the stick
began to beat the dog; the dog began to bite the pig; the little pig in
a fright jumped over the stile, and so the old woman got home that
night."[6]
The Italian versions may be divided into two classes: first, where the
animals and inanimate objects are invoked to punish some human being;
second, where all the actors are animals. The first version of the first
class that we shall give is from Sicily, Pitre, No. 131, and is called:
LXXVIII. PITIDDA.
Once upon a time there was a mother who had a daughter named Pitidda.
She said to her: "Go sweep the house." "Give me some bread first." "I
cannot," she answered. When her mother saw that she would not sweep the
house, she called the wolf. "Wolf, go kill Pitidda, for Pitidda will not
sweep the house." "I can't," said the wolf. "Dog, go kill the wolf,"
said the mother, "for the wolf will not kill Pitidda, for Pitidda will
not sweep the house." "I can't," said the dog. "Stick, go kill the dog,
for the dog will not kill the wolf, for the wolf won't kill Pitidda, for
Pitidda won't sweep the house." "I can't," said the stick. "Fire, burn
stick, for stick won't kill dog, for dog won't kill wolf, for wolf won't
kill Pitidda, for Pitidda won't sweep the house." "I can't," said the
fire. "Water, quench fire, for fire won't burn stick, for stick won't
kill dog, for dog won't kill wolf, for wolf won't kill Pitidda, for
Pitidda won't sweep the house." "I can't." "Cow, go drink water, for
water won't quench fire, for fire won't burn stick, for stick won't kill
dog, for dog won't kill wolf, for wolf won't kill Pitidda, for Pitidda
won't sweep the house." "I can't," said the cow. "Rope, go choke cow,"
etc.
[Then the mother calls on the mouse to gnaw the rope, the cat to eat the
mouse, and the story ends.]
The cat runs and begins to eat the mouse, the mouse runs and begins to
gnaw the rope, the rope to choke the cow, the cow to drink the water,
the water to quench the fire, the fire to burn the stick, the stick to
kill the dog, the dog to kill the wolf, the wolf to kill Pitidda,
Pitidda to sweep the house, and her mother runs and gives her some
bread.[7]
* * * * *
The Italian story, it will be seen, has a moral. The animals, etc., are
invoked to punish a disobedient child. In the Neapolitan version a
mother sends her son to gather some fodder for the cattle. He does not
wish to go until he has had some macaroni that his mother has just
cooked. She promises to keep him some, and he departs. While he is gone
the mother eats up all the macaroni, except a small bit. When her son
returns, and sees how little is left for him, he begins to cry and
refuses to eat; and his mother calls on stick, fire, water, ox, rope,
mouse, and cat to make her son obey, and eat the macaroni.[8] The
disobedient son is also found in two Tuscan versions, one from Siena,
and one from Florence, which are almost identical.[9]
In the Venetian version, a naughty boy will not go to school, and his
mother invokes dog, stick, fire, water, ox, butcher, and soldier.[10]
The Sicilian story of "The Sexton's Nose" (Pitre, No. 135) will serve as
the connecting link between the two classes above mentioned. Properly
speaking, only the second part of it belongs here; but we will give a
brief analysis of the first also.
LXXIX. THE SEXTON'S NOSE.
A sexton, one day in sweeping the church, found a piece of money (it was
the fifth of a cent) and deliberated with himself as to what he would
buy with it. If he bought nuts or almonds, he was afraid of the mice; so
at last he bought some roasted peas, and ate all but the last pea. This
he took to a bakery near by, and asked the mistress to keep it for him;
she told him to leave it on a bench, and she would take care of it. When
she went to get it, she found that the cock had eaten it. The next day
the sexton came for the roast pea, and when he heard what had become of
it, he said they must either return the roast pea or give him the cock.
This they did, and the sexton, not having any place to keep it, took it
to a miller's wife, who promised to keep it for him. Now she had a pig,
which managed to kill the cock. The next day the sexton came for the
cock, and on finding it dead, demanded the pig, and the woman had to
give it to him. The pig he left with a friend of his, a pastry-cook,
whose daughter was to be married the next day. The woman was mean and
sly, and killed the pig for her daughter's wedding, meaning to tell the
sexton that the pig had run away. The sexton, however, when he heard it,
made a great fuss, and declared that she must give him back his pig or
her daughter. At last she had to give him her daughter, whom he put in a
bag and carried away. He took the bag to a woman who kept a shop, and
asked her to keep for him this bag, which he said contained bran. The
woman by chance kept chickens, and she thought she would take some of
the sexton's bran and feed them. When she opened the bag she found the
young girl, who told her how she came there. The woman took her out of
the sack, and put in her stead a dog. The next day the sexton came for
his bag, and putting it on his shoulder, started for the sea-shore,
intending to throw the young girl in the sea. When he reached the shore,
he opened the bag, and the furious dog flew out and bit his nose. The
sexton was in great agony, and cried out, while the blood ran down his
face in torrents: "Dog, dog, give me a hair to put in my nose, and heal
the bite."[N] The dog answered: "Do you want a hair? give me some
bread." The sexton ran to a bakery, and said to the baker: "Baker, give
me some bread to give the dog; the dog will give a hair; the hair I will
put in my nose, and cure the bite." The baker said: "Do you want bread?
give me some wood." The sexton ran to the woodman. "Woodman, give me
wood to give the baker; the baker will give me bread; the bread I will
give to the dog; the dog will give me a hair; the hair I will put in my
nose, and heal the bite." The woodman said: "Do you want wood? give me a
mattock." The sexton ran to a smith. "Smith, give me a mattock to give
the woodman; the woodman will give me wood; I will carry the wood to the
baker; the baker will give me bread; I will give the bread to the dog;
the dog will give me a hair; the hair I will put in my nose, and heal
the bite." The smith said: "Do you want a mattock? give me some coals."
The sexton ran to the collier. "Collier, give me some coals to give the
smith; the smith will give me a mattock; the mattock I will give the
woodman; the woodman will give me some wood; the wood I will give the
baker; the baker will give me bread; the bread I will give the dog; the
dog will give me a hair; the hair I will put in my nose, and heal the
bite." "Do you want coals? give me a cart." The sexton ran to the
wagon-maker. "Wagon-maker, give me a cart to give the collier; the
collier will give me some coals; the coals I will carry to the smith;
the smith will give me a mattock; the mattock I will give the woodman;
the woodman will give me some wood; the wood I will give the baker; the
baker will give me bread; the bread I will give to the dog; the dog will
give me a hair; the hair I will put in my nose, and heal the bite."
[Footnote N: As with us the hair of a dog is supposed to heal the bite
the same dog has inflicted.]
The wagon-maker, seeing the sexton's great lamentation, is moved to
compassion, and gives him the cart. The sexton, well pleased, takes the
cart and goes away to the collier; the collier gives him the coals; the
coals he takes to the smith; the smith gives him the mattock; the
mattock he takes to the woodman; the woodman gives him wood; the wood he
carries to the baker; the baker gives him bread; the bread he carries to
the dog; the dog gives him a hair; the hair he puts in his nose, and
heals the bite.[11]
* * * * *
The second class contains the versions in which all the actors are
animals or personified inanimate objects. The first example we shall
give is from Avellino in the Principato Ulteriore (Imbriani, p. 239),
and is called:
LXXX. THE COCK AND THE MOUSE.
Once upon a time there was a cock and a mouse. One day the mouse said to
the cock: "Friend Cock, shall we go and eat some nuts on yonder tree?"
"As you like." So they both went under the tree and the mouse climbed up
at once and began to eat. The poor cock began to fly, and flew and flew,
but could not come where the mouse was. When it saw that there was no
hope of getting there, it said: "Friend Mouse, do you know what I want
you to do? Throw me a nut." The mouse went and threw one and hit the
cock on the head. The poor cock, with its head broken and all covered
with blood, went away to an old woman. "Old aunt, give me some rags to
cure my head." "If you will give me two hairs, I will give you the
rags." The cock went away to a dog. "Dog, give me some hairs; the hairs
I will give the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to cure my
head." "If you will give me a little bread," said the dog, "I will give
you the hairs." The cock went away to a baker. "Baker, give me bread; I
will give the bread to the dog; the dog will give hairs; the hairs I
will carry to the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to cure my
head." The baker answered: "I will not give you bread unless you give me
some wood!" The cock went away to the forest. "Forest, give me some
wood; the wood I will carry to the baker; the baker will give me some
bread; the bread I will give to the dog; the dog will give me hairs; the
hairs I will carry to the old woman; the old woman will give me rags to
cure my head." The forest answered: "If you will bring me a little
water, I will give you some wood." The cock went away to a fountain.
"Fountain, give me water; water I will carry to the forest; forest will
give wood; wood I will carry to the baker; baker will give bread; bread
I will give dog; dog will give hairs; hairs I will give old woman; old
woman will give rags to cure my head." The fountain gave him water; the
water he carried to the forest; the forest gave him wood; the wood he
carried to the baker; the baker gave him bread; the bread he gave to the
dog; the dog gave him the hairs; the hairs he carried to the old woman;
the old woman gave him the rags; and the cock cured his head.[12]
* * * * *
There are other versions from Florence (_Nov. fior._ p. 551), Bologna
(Coronedi-Berti, X. p. 16), and Venice (Bernoni, Punt. III. p. 74),
which do not call for any detailed notice. In the Florentine version a
cock gives a peck at a mouse's head and the mouse cries out: "Where must
I go to be cured?" Then follow the various objects which are almost
identical with those in the other versions. The mouse, however, is
killed by the ox, to which he goes last. The Venetian version is the
most elaborate; in it the cock and mouse go nutting together, and while
the former flies up into the tree and throws the nuts down, the mouse
eats them all up. When the cock comes down he flies into a passion and
gives the mouse a peck at his head. The mouse runs off in terror, and
the rest of the story is as above until the end. The last person the
mouse calls on is a cooper, to make him a bucket to give to the well, to
get water, etc. The cooper asks for money, which the mouse finds after a
while. He gives the money to the cooper and says: "Take and count it;
meanwhile I am going to drink, for I am dying of thirst." As he is going
to drink he sees Friend Cock coming along. "Ah, poor me," says he to
himself, "I am a dead mouse!" The cock sees him and goes to meet him
and says: "Good day, friend, are you still afraid of me? Come, let us
make peace!" The mouse then takes heart and says: "Oh, yes, yes! let us
make peace!"
So they made peace, and Friend Mouse said to Friend Cock: "Now that you
are here you must do me the favor to hold me by the tail while I hang
over the ditch to drink, and when I say _slapo, slapo_, pull me back."
The cock said: "I will do as you wish."
Then the mouse went to the ditch and Friend Cock held him by the tail.
After the mouse had drunk his fill, he said: "Friend, _slapo, slapo_!"
The cock answered: "Friend, and I let you go by the tail!" And in truth
he did let go his tail, and the poor mouse went to the bottom and was
never seen or heard of more.[13]
The following story from Sicily (Pitre, No. 132) belongs also to a class
of tales very popular and having only animals for its actors. It is
called:
LXXXI. GODMOTHER FOX.[O]
Once upon a time there was Godmother Fox and Godmother Goat.[P] The
former had a little bit of a house adorned with little chairs, cups, and
dishes; in short, it was well furnished. One day Godmother Goat went out
and carried away the little house. Godmother Fox began to lament, when
along came a dog, barking, that said to her: "What are you crying
about?" She answered: "Godmother Goat has carried off my house!" "Be
quiet. I will make her give it back to you." So the dog went and said to
Godmother Goat: "Give the house back to Godmother Fox." The goat
answered: "I am Godmother Goat. I have a sword at my side, and with my
horns I will tear you in pieces." When the dog heard that, he went away.
[Footnote O: _Cummari Vurpidda_ (diminutive of Fox).]
[Footnote P: _Cummari Crapazza_ (diminutive of Goat).]
Then a sheep passed by and said to the little fox: "What are you crying
about?" and she told her the same thing. Then the sheep went to
Godmother Goat and began to reprove her. The goat made the same answer
she had made the dog, and the sheep went away in fright.
In short, all sorts of animals went to the goat, with the same result.
Among others the mouse went and said to the little fox: "What are you
crying about?" "Godmother Goat has carried off my house." "Be still. I
will make her give it back to you." So the mouse went and said to
Godmother Goat: "Give Godmother Fox her house back right away." The goat
answered: "I am Godmother Goat. I have a sword at my side, and with my
fist and with my horns I will smash you!" The mouse answered at once: "I
am Godfather Mouse. By my side I have a spit. I will heat it in the fire
and stick it in your tail."
* * * * *
The inference of course is that Godmother Goat gave back the house. The
story does not say so, but ends with the usual formula:
Story told, story written,
Tell me yours, for mine is said.
Pitre (No. 133) gives another version in which a goat gets under a nun's
bed and she calls on her neighbors, a dog, pig, and cricket, to put the
goat out. The cricket alone succeeds, with a threat similar to that in
the last story.
In the Neapolitan version (Imbriani, _Dodici Conti Pomiglianesi_, p.
273) an old woman, in sweeping the church, found a piece of money and,
like the sexton in the story of "The Sexton's Nose," did not know what
to buy with it. At last she bought some flour and made a hasty-pudding
of it. She left it on the table and went again to church, but forgot to
close the window. While she was gone a herd of goats came along, and one
smelled the pudding, climbed in at the window, and ate it up. When the
old woman came back and tried to open the door, she could not, for the
goat was behind it. Then she began to weep and various animals came
along and tried to enter the house. The goat answered them all: "I am
the goat, with three horns on my head and three in my belly, and if you
don't run away I will eat you up." The mouse at last replied: "I am
Godfather Mouse, with the halter, and if you don't run away, I will tear
your eyes out." The goat ran away and the old woman went in with
Godfather Mouse, whom she married, and they both lived there together.
The Florentine version (_Nov. fior._ p. 556) is called "The Iron Goat."
In it a widow goes out to wash and leaves her son at home, with orders
not to leave the door open so that the Iron Goat, with the iron mouth
and the sword tongue, can enter. The boy after a time wanted to go after
his mother, and when he had gone half way he remembered that he had left
the door open and went back. When he was going to enter he saw there the
Iron Goat. "Who is there?" "It is I; I am the Iron Goat, with the iron
mouth and the sword tongue. If you enter I will slice you like a
turnip." The poor boy sat down on the steps and wept. A little old woman
passed by and asked the cause of his tears; he told her and she said she
would send the goat away for three bushels of grain. The old woman
tried, with the usual result, and finally said to the boy: "Listen, my
child. I don't care for those three bushels of grain; but I really
cannot send the goat away." Then an old man tried his luck, with no
better success. At last a little bird came by and promised for three
bushels of millet to drive the goat away. When the goat made its usual
declaration, the little bird replied: "And I with my beak will peck your
brains out." The goat was frightened and ran away, and the boy had to
pay the little bird three bushels of millet.[14]
The next story affords, like "Pitidda," a curious example of the
diffusion of nursery tales.
Our readers will remember the Grimm story of "The Spider and the Flea."
A spider and a flea dwelt together in one house and brewed their beer in
an egg-shell. One day, when the spider was stirring it up, she fell in
and scalded herself. Thereupon the flea began to scream. And then the
door asked: "Why are you screaming, flea?" "Because Little Spider has
scalded herself in the beer-tub," replied she. Thereupon the door began
to creak as if it were in pain, and a broom, which stood in the corner,
asked: "What are you creaking for, door?"
"May I not creak?" it replied.
"The little spider scalded herself,
And the flea weeps."
So a broom sweeps, a little cart runs, ashes burn furiously, a tree
shakes off its leaves, a maiden breaks her pitcher, and a streamlet
begins to flow until it swallows up the little girl, the little tree,
the ashes, the cart, the broom, the door, the flea, and, last of all,
the spider, all together.[15]
The first Italian version of this story which we shall mention is from
Sicily (Pitre, No. 134), and is called:
LXXXII. THE CAT AND THE MOUSE.
Once upon a time there was a cat that wanted to get married. So she
stood on a corner, and every one who passed by said: "Little Cat, what's
the matter?" "What's the matter? I want to marry." A dog passed by and
said: "Do you want me?" "When I see how you can sing." The dog said:
"Bow, wow!" "Fy! What horrid singing! I don't want you." A pig passed.
"Do you want me, Little Cat?" "When I see how you sing." "Uh! uh!" "Fy!
You are horrid! Go away! I don't want you." A calf passed and said:
"Little Cat, will you take me?" "When I see how you sing." "Uhm!" "Go
away, for you are horrid! What do you want of me?" A mouse passed by:
"Little Cat, what are you doing?" "I am going to get married." "Will you
take me?" "And how can you sing?" "Ziu, ziu!" The cat accepted him, and
said: "Let us go and be married, for you please me." So they were
married.
One day the cat went to buy some pastry, and left the mouse at home.
"Don't stir out, for I am going to buy some pastry." The mouse went into
the kitchen, saw the pot on the fire, and crept into it, for he wanted
to eat the beans. But he did not; for the pot began to boil, and the
mouse stayed there. The cat came back and began to cry; but the mouse
did not appear. So the cat put the pastry in the pot for dinner. When it
was ready the cat ate, and put some on a plate for the mouse, also. When
she took out the pastry she saw the mouse stuck fast in it. "Ah! my
little mouse! ah! my little mouse!" so she went and sat behind the door,
lamenting the mouse.
"What is the matter," said the door, "that you are scratching yourself
so and tearing out your hair?"
The cat said: "What is the matter? My mouse is dead, and so I tear my
hair."
The door answered: "And I, as door, will slam."
In the door was a window, which said: "What's the matter, door, that you
are slamming?"
"The mouse died, the cat is tearing her hair, and I am slamming."
The window answered: "And I, as window, will open and shut."
In the window was a tree, that said: "Window, why do you open and shut?"
The window answered: "The mouse died, the cat tears her hair, the door
slams, and I open and shut." The tree answered and said: "And I, as
tree, will throw myself down."
A bird happened to alight in this tree, and said: "Tree, why did you
throw yourself down?" The tree replied: "The mouse died, the cat tears
her hair, the door slams, the window opens and shuts, and I, as tree,
threw myself down." "And I, as bird, will pull out my feathers." The
bird went and alighted on a fountain, which said: "Bird, why are you
plucking out your feathers so?" The bird answered as the others had
done, and the fountain said: "And I, as fountain, will dry up." A cuckoo
went to drink at the fountain, and asked: "Fountain, why have you dried
up?" And the fountain told him all that had happened. "And I, as cuckoo,
will put my tail in the fire." A monk of St. Nicholas passed by, and
said: "Cuckoo, why is your tail in the fire?" When the monk heard the
answer he said: "And I, as monk of St. Nicholas, will go and say mass
without my robes." Then came the queen, who, when she heard what the
matter was, said: "And I, as queen, will go and sift the meal." At last
the king came by, and asked: "O Queen! why are you sifting the meal?"
When the queen had told him everything, he said: "And I, as king, am
going to take my coffee."
* * * * *
And thus the story abruptly ends. In one of Pitre's variants a sausage
takes the place of the mouse; in another, a tortoise.
In the version from Pomigliano d'Arco (Imbriani, p. 244), an old woman,
who finds a coin in sweeping a church, hesitates in regard to what she
will spend it for, as in the stories above mentioned. She finally
concludes to buy some paint for her face. After she has put it on, she
stations herself at the window. A donkey passes, and asks what she
wants. She answers that she wishes to marry. "Will you take me?" asks
the donkey. "Let me hear what kind of a voice you have." "_Ingo! Ingo!
Ingo!_" "Away! away! you would frighten me in the night!" Then a goat
comes along, with the same result. Then follows a cat, and all the
animals in the world; but none pleases the old woman. At last a little
mouse passes by, and says: "Old Aunt, what are you doing there?" "I want
to marry." "Will you take me?" "Let me hear your voice." "_Zivuzi!
zivuzi! zivuzi! zivuzi!_" "Come up, for you please me." So the mouse
went up to the old woman, and stayed with her. One day the old woman
went to mass, and left the pot near the fire and told the mouse to be
careful not to fall in it. When she came home she could not find the
mouse anywhere. At last she went to take the soup from the pot, and
there she found the mouse dead. She began to lament, and the ashes on
the hearth began to scatter, and the window asked what was the matter.
The ashes answered: "Ah! you know nothing. Friend Mouse is in the pot;
the old woman is weeping, weeping; and I, the ashes, have wished to
scatter." Then the window opens and shuts, the stairs fall down, the
bird plucks out its feathers, the laurel shakes off its leaves, the
servant girl who goes to the well breaks her pitcher, the mistress who
was making bread throws the flour over the balcony, and finally the
master comes home, and after he hears the story, exclaims: "And I, who
am master, will break the bones of both of you!" And therewith he takes
a stick and gives the servant and her mistress a sound beating.[16]
There is a curious class of versions of the above story, in which the
principal actors are a mouse and a sausage, reminding one of the Grimm
story of "The Little Mouse, the Little Bird, and the Sausage." In the
Venetian version (Bernoni, Punt. III. p. 81), the beginning is as
follows: Once upon a time there was a mouse and a sausage, and one day
the mouse said to the sausage: "I am going to mass; meanwhile get ready
the dinner." "Yes, yes," answered the sausage. Then the mouse went to
mass, and when he returned he found everything ready. The next day the
sausage went to mass and the mouse prepared the dinner. He put on the
pot, threw in the rice, and then went to taste if it was well salted.
But he fell in and died. The sausage returned home, knocked at the
door,--for there was no bell,--and no one answered. She called: "Mouse!
mouse!" But he does not answer. Then the sausage went to a smith and had
the door broken in, and called again: "Mouse, where are you?" And the
mouse did not answer. "Now I will pour out the rice, and meanwhile he
will come." So she went and poured out the rice, and found the mouse
dead in the pot. "Ah! poor mouse! Oh! my mouse! What shall I do now? Oh!
poor me!" And she began to utter a loud lamentation. Then the table
began to go around the room, the sideboard to throw down the plates, the
door to lock and unlock itself, the fountain to dry up, the mistress to
drag herself along the ground, and the master threw himself from the
balcony and broke his neck. "And all this arose from the death of this
mouse."
The version from the Marches (Gianandrea, p. 11) resembles the above
very closely; the conclusion is as follows: "The mouse, the master of
this castle, is dead; the sausage weeps, the broom sweeps, the door
opens and shuts, the cart runs, the tree throws off its leaves, the bird
plucks out its feathers, the servant breaks her pitcher," etc.
The version from Milan (_Nov. fior._ p. 552) resembles the one from
Venice. Instead of the mouse and the sausage we have the big mouse and
the little mouse. In the version from Leghorn (Papanti, p. 19) called
"Vezzino and Lady Sausage,"[Q] the actors are Lady Sausage and her son
Vezzino, who falls into the pot on the fire while his mother is at mass.
The rest of the story does not differ materially from the above
versions.
[Footnote Q: _Vezzino e Madonna Salciccia. Vezzino_ is the dim. of
_vezzo_, delight, pastime.]
In the Grimm story of the "Golden Goose," the goose has the power of
causing anything that touches it to stick fast. This same idea is
reproduced in several Italian stories. The best is from Venice (Bernoni,
_Fiabe_, p. 21) and is called:
LXXXIII. A FEAST DAY.
Once upon a time there was a husband and wife; the husband was a
boatman. One feast day the boatman took it into his head to buy a fowl,
which he carried home and said: "See here, wife, to-day is a feast day;
I want a good dinner; cook it well, for my friend Tony is coming to dine
with us and has said that he would bring a tart." "Very well," she said,
"I will prepare the fowl at once." So she cleaned it, washed it, put it
on the fire, and said: "While it is boiling I will go and hear a mass."
She shut the kitchen door and left the dog and the cat inside. Scarcely
had she closed the door when the dog went to the hearth and perceived
that there was a good odor there and said: "Oh, what a good smell!" He
called the cat, also, and said: "Cat, you come here, too; smell what a
good odor there is! see if you can push off the cover with your paws."
The cat went and scratched and scratched and down went the cover.
"Now," said the dog, "see if you can catch it with your claws." Then the
cat seized the fowl and dragged it to the middle of the kitchen. The dog
said: "Shall we eat half of it?" The cat said: "Let us eat it all." So
they ate it all and stuffed themselves like pigs. When they had eaten it
they said: "Alas for us! What shall we do when the mistress comes home?
She will surely beat us both." So they both ran all over the house, here
and there, but could find no place in which to hide. They were going to
hide under the bed. "No," they said, "for she will see us." They were
going under the sofa; but that would not do, for she would see them
there. Finally the cat looked up and saw under the beams a cobweb. He
gave a leap and jumped into it. The dog looked at him and said: "Run
away! you are mad! you can be seen, for your tail sticks out! come down,
come down!" "I cannot, I cannot, for I am stuck fast!" "Wait, I will
come and pull you out." He gave a spring to catch him by the tail and
pull him down. Instead of that he, too, stuck fast to the cat's tail. He
made every effort to loosen himself, but he could not and there he had
to stay.
Meanwhile the mistress does not wait until the priest finishes the mass,
but runs quickly home. She runs and opens the door and is going to skim
the pot, when she discovers that the fowl is no longer there, and in the
middle of the kitchen she sees the bones all gnawed. "Ah, poor me! the
cat and the dog have eaten the fowl. Now I will give them both a
beating." So she takes a stick and then goes to find them. She looks
here, she looks there, but does not find them anywhere. In despair she
comes back to the kitchen, but does not find them there. "Where the
deuce have they hidden?" Just then she raises her eyes and sees them
both stuck fast under the beams. "Ah, are you there? now just wait!" and
she climbs on a table and is going to pull them down, when she sticks
fast to the dog's tail. She tries to free herself, but cannot.
Her husband knocked at the door. "Here, open!" "I cannot, I am fast."
"Loosen yourself and open the door! where the deuce are you fastened?"
"I cannot, I tell you." "Open! it is noon." "I cannot, for I am fast."
"But where are you fast?" "To the dog's tail." "I will give you the
dog's tail, you silly woman!" He gave the door two or three kicks, broke
it in, went into the kitchen, and saw cat, dog, and mistress all fast.
"Ah, you are all fast, are you? just wait, I will loosen you." He went
to loosen them, but stuck fast himself. Friend Tony comes and knocks.
"Friend? Open! I have the tart here." "I cannot; my friend, I am fast!"
"Bad luck to you! Are you fast at this time? You knew I was coming and
got fast? Come, loosen yourself and open the door!" He said again: "I
cannot come and open, for I am fast." Finally the friend became angry,
kicked in the door, went into the kitchen, and saw all those souls stuck
fast and laughed heartily. "Just wait, for I will loosen you now." So he
gave a great pull, the cat's tail was loosened, the cat fell into the
dog's mouth, the dog into his mistress' mouth, the mistress into her
husband's, her husband into his friend's, and his friend into the mouth
of the blockheads who are listening to me.[17]
* * * * *
The following nonsense story from Venice (Bernoni, Punt. I. p. 18) will
give a good idea of a class that is not very well represented in Italy.
It is called:
LXXXIV. THE THREE BROTHERS.
Once upon a time there were three brothers: two had no clothes and one
no shirt. The weather was very bad and they make up their minds to go
shooting. So they took down three guns,--two were broken and one had no
barrel,--and walked and walked until they came at last to a meadow,
where they saw a hare. They began to fire at it, but could not catch it.
"What shall we do?" said one of them. They remembered that near by a
godmother of theirs lived; so they went and knocked at her door and
asked her to lend them a pot to cook the hare they had not caught. The
godmother was not at home, but nevertheless she answered: "My children,
go in the kitchen and there you will find three pots, two broken and one
with no bottom; take whichever you wish." "Thanks, Godmother!" They went
into the kitchen and chose the one without a bottom and put the hare in
it to cook. While the hare was cooking, one said: "Let us ask our
godmother whether she has anything in her garden." So they asked her and
she said: "Yes, yes, my children, I have three walnut-trees; two are
dead and one has never borne any nuts; knock off as many as you wish."
One went and shook the tree that had never borne nuts, and a little nut
fell on his hat and broke his heel. Thereupon they picked up the nuts
and went to get the hare, which meanwhile was cooked, and said: "What
shall we do with so much stuff?" So they went to a village where there
were many ill, and they put up a notice in the street that whoever
wished might, at such and such a place, get broth given him in charity.
Every one went to get some, and they took it in the salad-basket, and it
was given to them with a skimmer. One who did not belong to the village,
drank so much of this broth that he was at the point of death. Then they
sent for three physicians: one was blind, one deaf, and one dumb. The
blind man went in and said: "Let me look at your tongue." The deaf man
asked: "How are you?" The dumb said: "Give me some paper, pen and ink."
They gave them to him and he said:
"Go to the apothecary,
For he knows the business;
Buy two cents' worth of I know not what,
Put it wherever you wish.
He will get well I know not when,
I will leave and commend him to you."[18]
One of the most popular of Italian tales, as the collector tells us, is
one of which we give the version from Leghorn (Papanti, p. 25). It is
called:
LXXXV. BUCHETTINO.
Once upon a time there was a child whose name was Buchettino. One
morning his mamma called him and said: "Buchettino, will you do me a
favor? Go and sweep the stairs." Buchettino, who was very obedient, did
not wait to be told a second time, but went at once to sweep the stairs.
All at once he heard a noise, and after looking all around, he found a
penny. Then he said to himself: "What shall I do with this penny? I have
half a mind to buy some dates... but no! for I should have to throw away
the stones. I will buy some apples... no! I will not, for I should have
to throw away the core. I will buy some nuts... but no, for I should
have to throw away the shells! What shall I buy, then? I will buy--I
will buy--enough; I will buy a pennyworth of figs." No sooner said than
done: he bought a pennyworth of figs, and went to eat them in a tree.
While he was eating, the ogre passed by, and seeing Buchettino eating
figs in the tree, said:
"Buchettino,
My dear Buchettino,
Give me a little fig
With your dear little hand,
If not I will eat you!"
Buchettino threw him one, but it fell in the dirt. Then the ogre
repeated:
"Buchettino,
My dear Buchettino,
Give me a little fig
With your dear little hand,
If not I will eat you!"
Then Buchettino threw him another, which also fell in the dirt. The ogre
said again:
"Buchettino,
My dear Buchettino,
Give me a little fig
With your dear little hand,
If not I will eat you!"
Poor Buchettino, who did not see the trick, and did not know that the
ogre was doing everything to get him into his net and eat him up, what
does he do? he leans down and foolishly gives him a fig with his little
hand. The ogre, who wanted nothing better, suddenly seized him by the
arm and put him in his bag; then he took him on his back and started for
home, crying with all his lungs:
"Wife, my wife,
Put the kettle on the fire,
For I have caught Buchettino!
Wife, my wife,
Put the kettle on the fire,
For I have caught Buchettino!"
When the ogre was near his house he put the bag on the ground, and went
off to attend to something else. Buchettino, with a knife that he had in
his pocket, cut the bag open in a trice, filled it with large stones,
and then:
"My legs, it is no shame
To run away when there is need."
When the rascal of an ogre returned he picked up the bag, and scarcely
had he arrived home when he said to his wife: "Tell me, my wife, have
you put the kettle on the fire?" She answered at once: "Yes." "Then,"
said the ogre, "we will cook Buchettino; come here, help me!" And both
taking the bag, they carried it to the hearth and were going to throw
poor Buchettino into the kettle, but instead they found only the stones.
Imagine how cheated the ogre was. He was so angry that he bit his hands.
He could not swallow the trick played on him by Buchettino and swore to
find him again and be revenged. So the next day he began to go all about
the city and to look into all the hiding places. At last he happened to
raise his eyes and saw Buchettino on a roof, ridiculing him and laughing
so hard that his mouth extended from ear to ear. The ogre thought he
should burst with rage, but he pretended not to see it and in a very
sweet tone he said: "O Buchettino; just tell me, how did you manage to
climb up there?" Buchettino answered: "Do you really want to know? Then
listen. I put dishes upon dishes, glasses upon glasses, pans upon pans,
kettles upon kettles; afterwards I climbed up on them and here I am."
"Ah! is that so?" said the ogre; "wait a bit!" And quickly he took so
many dishes, so many glasses, pans, kettles, and made a great mountain
of them; then he began to climb up, to go and catch Buchettino. But when
he was on the top--_brututum_--everything fell down; and that rascal of
an ogre fell down on the stones and was cheated again.
Then Buchettino, well pleased, ran to his mamma, who put a piece of
candy in his little mouth--See whether there is any more![19]
* * * * *
We will end this chapter with two stories in which the chief actors are
animals. One of these stories will doubtless be very familiar to our
readers. The first is from Venice (Bernoni, Punt. III. p. 65).
LXXXVI. THE THREE GOSLINGS.
Once upon a time there were three goslings who were greatly afraid of
the wolf; for if he found them he would eat them. One day the largest
said to the other two: "Do you know what I think? I think we had better
build a little house, so that the wolf shall not eat us, and meanwhile
let us go and look for something to build the house with." Then the
other two said: "Yes, yes, yes... good! let us go!" So they went and
found a man who had a load of straw and said to him: "Good man, do us
the favor to give us a little of that straw to make a house of, so that
the wolf shall not eat us." The man said: "Take it, take it!" and he
gave them as much as they wanted. The goslings thanked the man and took
the straw and went away to a meadow, and there they built a lovely
little house, with a door, and balconies, and kitchen, with everything,
in short. When it was finished the largest gosling said: "Now I want to
see whether one is comfortable in this house." So she went in and said:
"Oh! how comfortable it is in this house! just wait!" She went and
locked the door with a padlock, and went out on the balcony and said to
the other two goslings: "I am very comfortable alone here; go away, for
I want nothing to do with you."
The two poor little goslings began to cry and beg their sister to open
the door and let them in; if she did not, the wolf would eat them. But
she would not listen to them. Then the two goslings went away and found
a man who had a load of hay. They said to him: "Good man, do us the
kindness to give us a little of that hay to build a house with, so that
the wolf shall not eat us!" "Yes, yes, yes, take some, take some!" And
he gave them as much as they wanted. The goslings, well pleased, thanked
the man and carried the hay to a meadow and built a very pretty little
house, prettier than the other. The middle-sized gosling said to the
smallest: "Listen. I am going now to see whether one is comfortable in
this house; but I will not act like our sister, you know!" She entered
the house and said to herself: "Oh! how comfortable it is here! I don't
want my sister! I am very comfortable here alone." So she went and
fastened the door with a padlock, and went out on the balcony and said
to her sister: "Oh! how comfortable it is in this house! I don't want
you here! go away, go away!" The poor gosling began to weep and beg her
sister to open to her, for she was alone, and did not know where to go,
and if the wolf found her he would eat her; but it did no good: she shut
the balcony and stayed in the house.
Then the gosling, full of fear, went away and found a man who had a load
of iron and stones and said to him: "Good man, do me the favor to give
me a few of those stones and a little of that iron to build me a house
with, so that the wolf shall not eat me!" The man pitied the gosling so
much that he said: "Yes, yes, good gosling, or rather I will build your
house for you." Then they went away to a meadow, and the man built a
very pretty house, with a garden and everything necessary, and very
strong, for it was lined with iron, and the balcony and door of iron
also. The gosling, well pleased, thanked the man and went into the house
and remained there.
Now let us go to the wolf.
The wolf looked everywhere for these goslings, but could not find them.
After a time he learned that they had built three houses. "Good, good!"
he said; "wait until I find you!" Then he started out and journeyed and
journeyed until he came to the meadow where the first house was. He
knocked at the door and the gosling said: "Who is knocking at the door?"
"Come, come," said the wolf; "open, for it is I." The gosling said: "I
will not open for you, because you will eat me." "Open, open! I will not
eat you, be not afraid. Very well," said the wolf, "if you will not open
the door I will blow down your house." And indeed he did blow down the
house and ate up the gosling. "Now that I have eaten one," he said, "I
will eat the others too." Then he went away and came at last to the
house of the second gosling, and everything happened as to the first,
the wolf blew down the house and ate the gosling. Then he went in search
of the third and when he found her he knocked at the door, but she would
not let him in. Then he tried to blow the house down, but could not;
then he climbed on the roof and tried to trample the house down, but in
vain. "Very well," he said to himself, "in one way or another I will eat
you." Then he came down from the roof and said to the gosling: "Listen,
gosling. Do you wish us to make peace? I don't want to quarrel with you
who are so good, and I have thought that to-morrow we will cook some
macaroni and I will bring the butter and cheese and you will furnish the
flour." "Very good," said the gosling, "bring them then." The wolf, well
satisfied, saluted the gosling and went away. The next day the gosling
got up early and went and bought the meal and then returned home and
shut the house. A little later the wolf came and knocked at the door and
said: "Come, gosling, open the door, for I have brought you the butter
and cheese!" "Very well, give it to me here by the balcony." "No indeed,
open the door!" "I will open when all is ready." Then the wolf gave her
the things by the balcony and went away. While he was gone the gosling
prepared the macaroni, and put it on the fire to cook in a kettle full
of water. When it was two o'clock the wolf came and said: "Come,
gosling, open the door." "No, I will not open, for when I am busy I
don't want any one in the way; when it is cooked, I will open and you
may come in and eat it." A little while after, the gosling said to the
wolf: "Would you like to try a bit of macaroni to see whether it is well
cooked?" "Open the door! that is the better way." "No, no; don't think
you are coming in; put your mouth to the hole in the shelf and I will
pour the macaroni down." The wolf, all greedy as he was, put his mouth
to the hole and then the gosling took the kettle of boiling water and
poured the boiling water instead of the macaroni through the hole into
the wolf's mouth; and the wolf was scalded and killed. Then the gosling
took a knife and cut open the wolf's stomach, and out jumped the other
goslings, who were still alive, for the wolf was so greedy that he had
swallowed them whole. Then these goslings begged their sister's pardon
for the mean way in which they had treated her, and she, because she was
kind-hearted, forgave them and took them into her house, and there they
ate their macaroni and lived together happy and contented.[20]
* * * * *
A curious variant of the above story is found in the same collection (p.
69) under the title:
LXXXVII. THE COCK.
Once upon a time there was a cock, and this cock flew here and flew
there, and flew on an arbor, and there he found a letter. He opened the
letter and saw: "Cock, steward,"----and that he was invited to Rome by
the Pope.
The cock started on his journey, and after a time met the hen: "Where
are you going, Friend Cock?" said the hen. "I flew," said he, "upon an
arbor and found a letter, and this letter said that I was invited to
Rome by the Pope." "Just see, friend," said the hen, "whether I am there
too." "Wait a bit." Then he turned the letter, and saw written there:
"Cock, steward; Hen, stewardess." "Come, friend, for you are there too."
"Very well!"
Then the two started off, and soon met the goose, who said: "Where are
you going, Friend Cock and Friend Hen?" "I flew," said the cock, "upon
an arbor, and I found a letter, and this letter said that we were
invited to Rome by the Pope." "Just look, friend, whether I am there
too." Then the cock opened the letter, read it, and saw that there was
written: "Cock, steward; Hen, stewardess; Goose, abbess." "Come, come,
friend; you are there too." So they took her along, and all three went
their way.
[After a time they found the duck, and the cock saw written in the
letter: "Cock, steward; Hen, stewardess; Goose, abbess; Duck, countess."
They next met a little bird, and found he was down in the letter as
"little man-servant." Finally they came across the wood-louse, whom they
found mentioned in the letter as "maid-servant." On their journey they
came to a forest, and saw a wolf at a distance. The cock, hen, goose,
and duck plucked out their feathers and built houses to shelter
themselves from the wolf. The poor bug, that had no feathers, dug a hole
in the ground and crept into it. The wolf came, and as in the last
story, blew down the four houses and devoured their occupants. Then he
tried to get at the bug in the same way; but blew so hard that he burst,
and out came the cock, hen, goose, and duck, safe and sound, and began
to make a great noise. The bug heard it and came out of her hole, and
after they had rejoiced together, they separated and each returned home
and thought no more of going to Rome to the Pope.]
* * * * *
There is a version from the Marches (Gianandrea, p. 21), called, "The
Marriage of Thirteen." The animals are the same as in the last story. On
their journey they meet the wolf, who accompanies them, although his
name is not in the letter. After a time the wolf becomes hungry, and
exclaims: "I am hungry." The cock answers: "I have nothing to give you."
"Very well; then I will eat you;" and he swallows him whole. And so he
devours one after the other, until the bird only remains. The bird flies
from tree to tree and bush to bush, and around the wolf's head, until he
drives him wild with anger. At last along comes a woman with a basket on
her head, carrying food to the reapers. The bird says to the wolf that
if he will spare his life he will get him something to eat from the
basket. The wolf promises, and the bird alights near the woman, who
tries to catch him; the bird flies on a little way, and the woman puts
down her basket and runs after him. Meanwhile the wolf draws near the
basket and begins eating its contents. When the woman sees that, she
cries: "Help!" and the reapers run up with sticks and scythes, and kill
the wolf, and the animals that he had devoured all came out of his
stomach, safe and sound.[21]
There are two Sicilian versions of the story of "The Cock." One (Pitre,
No. 279), "The Wolf and the Finch," opens like the Venetian. The animals
are: Cock, king; Hen, queen; Viper, chambermaid; Wolf, Pope; and Finch,
keeper of the castle. The wolf then proceeds to confess the others, and
eats them in turn until he comes to the finch, which plays a joke on him
and flies away. The conclusion of the story is disfigured, nothing being
said of the wolf's punishment or the recovery of the other animals.
The other Sicilian version is in Gonzenbach (No. 66). We give it,
however, for completeness and because it recalls a familiar story in
Grimm.[22] It is entitled:
LXXXVIII. THE COCK THAT WISHED TO BECOME POPE.
It occurred once to the cock to go to Rome and have himself elected
Pope. So he started out, and on the way found a letter, which he took
with him. The hen met him, and asked: "Mr. Cock, where are you going?"
"I am going to Rome, to be Pope." "Will you take me with you?" she
asked. "First I must look in my letter," said the cock, and looked at
his letter. "Come along; if I become Pope, you can be the Popess." So
Mr. Cock and Mrs. Hen continued their journey and met a cat, who said:
"Mr. Cock and Mrs. Hen, where are you going?" "We are going to Rome, and
wish to be Pope and Popess." "Will you take me with you?" "Wait until I
look in my letter," said the cock, and glanced at it. "Very well; come
along; you can be our lady's-maid." After a while they met a weasel, who
asked: "Where are you going, Mr. Cock, Mrs. Hen, and Mrs. Cat?" "We are
going to Rome, where I intend to become Pope," answered the cock. "Will
you take me with you?" "Wait until I look in my letter," said he. When
the cock looked in his letter, he said: "Very well; come along."
So the three animals continued their journey together towards Rome. At
night-fall they came to a little house where lived an old witch, who had
just gone out. So each animal chose a place to suit him. The weasel sat
himself in the cupboard, the cat on the hearth in the warm ashes, and
the cock and the hen flew up on the beam over the door.
When the old witch came home she wanted to get a light out of the
cupboard, and the weasel struck her in the face with his tail. Then she
wanted to light the candle, and went to the hearth. She took the bright
eyes of the cat for live coals and tried to light the match by them, and
hit the cat in the eyes. The cat jumped in her face and scratched her
frightfully. When the cock heard all the noise he began to crow loudly.
Then the witch saw that they were no ghosts, but harmless domestic
animals, and took a stick and drove all four out of the house.
The cat and the weasel had no longer any desire to prolong their
journey; but the cock and hen continued their way.
When they reached Rome they entered an open church, and the cock said
to the sexton: "Have all the bells rung, for now I will be Pope."
"Good!" answered the sexton; "that may be, but just come in here." Then
he led the cock and the hen into the sacristry, shut the door, and
caught them both. After he had caught them he twisted their necks and
put them in the pot. Then he invited his friends, and they ate with
great glee Mr. Cock and Mrs. Hen.