Once upon a time there lived three poor little dwarfs in a tumble-down
house by a roadside, and each dwarf owned a china mug.
One little dwarf was stingy. He did his mug up in tissue paper and
cotton batting and kept it locked up in his third bureau drawer. "I
will keep it safe," said he, "where nobody can ever use it. It is my
mug. My mug shall never get broken, and when I need a mug to drink
from, I can use one that belongs to some one else."
The second little dwarf was selfish. He carried his mug in his pocket.
"I am going to keep this mug to drink from myself. It belongs to me.
If others need a mug to drink from, let them look out for themselves,"
he said.
The third little dwarf was generous. "I'm so glad that I own a pretty
mug!" he chuckled to himself. "Every one can use it. It is the very
thing to offer a thirsty traveller who stops at our tumble-down house
to ask for a drink of water. My brothers can use it, too. I am sure
they will both be quite as careful of it as if it belonged to them.
We need only the one mug, for we share alike, because we love one
another."
Now one day there came a traveller over the dusty highroad. He was
thirsty and tired. He saw the well, and he went up to the door of the
tumble-down house and knocked, rat-tat-tat!
The stingy little dwarf was yawning in the parlor, because he never
did any work--he let the others do it. When he heard the rat-tat-tat
he kept very quiet.
The selfish little dwarf was in the dining-room, pretending to
sweep--but he was only sweeping the crumbs under the mat, for he did
not like to clean. He heard the rat-tat-tat! but he pretended that he
was too busy to answer it.
The third little dwarf was in the kitchen, scrubbing the hearth with a
mop. His sleeves were rolled up, and he had overalls on, but he could
not bear to keep a tired traveller waiting at the door. "I must go at
once," he thought. And he went.
"Come right round to the well," he said. "I will get a mug and give
you a drink of our nice cold water. You must be tired, for the highway
is warm, and dusty." He set the best chair for the traveller, and gave
him a fan.
He went to fetch his mug. But what do you think! When he found it at
last, it was soiled--and the stingy dwarf had carelessly broken the
handle off, and the selfish dwarf had dropped it on the floor and
nicked the rim! "Oh! Oh! It's not fit for company use!" cried the
generous little dwarf. "I must have something better!"
He asked Stingy to let him take his mug.
"No. You can't take mine," said Stingy. "Nobody can ever use it. It is
all put away. It's mine, and I won't lend it to anybody."
Then he asked Selfish to let him take his mug.
"No," said Selfish. "I can't let you take my mug. Give him yours. What
do you care if it is nicked, and the handle is off--it is good enough
for a beggar, I should think!"
So there was nothing for the generous little dwarf to do except to
take his own broken mug to the stranger. But he cut some slices of
bread and put them on the prettiest plate that he could find.
"I'm sorry I haven't a better mug to offer you," he said, "but the
others were all put away. They belong to my brothers. Oh, I wish that
they would come out to see you,--they are so nice,--but they said they
were busy at present. Stingy is dusting the parlor, and Selfish is
brushing up the dining-room. Their mugs are nicer than mine, because
they always know just how to take care of their things. Wouldn't you
like some more bread? I am sorry we haven't butter to offer you--but
we never buy it."
The traveller thanked Generous for all he had done. He said, "I am so
grateful to you that I should like to do something for you before I
go. I should like to give you something to remember me by. Let me take
your mug again, little dwarf. Have you a big pail that I can use?"
"Oh, yes," returned the generous little dwarf. "I have one." And he
ran to the kitchen and rinsed out the one that he had been using.
The stranger took the broken mug that had lost its handle and had a
chipped rim, and he began to dip water from the bucket into the pail.
At the first dip, the handle came back on the mug, and the mug became
quite whole and new. At the second dip, the mop-pail turned into gold.
At the third dip, the tumble-down house became new and splendid. At
the fourth dip, the cupboards became filled with pots, kettles, and
good things to eat. At the fifth dip, Stingy and Selfish came running
out of the house, and they were changed. They were not stingy or
selfish any longer, but were like their brother, generous, and good,
and loving. They carried their mugs and gave them to the stranger.
And they kissed the generous little brother dwarf. The one who had
been stingy said he was sorry that he had never helped with the work.
And the one who had been selfish said that he was sorry, too, and that
he never would sweep crumbs under the mat again--for it only made work
for other people to do. And at the seventh dip, the pail was filled
full of gold.
Then the stranger bade them good-bye, and went on his way.
Who was he? A good fairy, no doubt. He may have heard of the generous
little dwarf, and wanted to help him. If that were so, he probably
wanted to help Stingy and Selfish, too, and make them into Good and
Happy. At any rate, they all lived happily ever after, and the mug
that belonged to the generous little dwarf was kept at the wellside
for travellers to use.