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East of the Sun and West of the

once upon a time there was a poor husbandman1 who had many children2 and little to give them in the way either of food or clothing.3 they were all pretty, but the prettiest of all was the youngest daughter,4 who was so beautiful that there were no bounds to her beauty.5

so once -- it was late on a thursday evening6 in autumn,7 and wild weather outside, terribly dark, and raining so heavily and blowing so hard8 that the walls of the cottage shook again -- they were all sitting together by the fireside, each of them busy with something or other, when suddenly some one rapped three times9 against the window- pane1.10 the man went out to see what could be the matter, and when he got out there stood a great big white bear.11

"good-evening to you," said the white bear.12

"good-evening," said the man.

"will you give me your youngest daughter?"13 said the white bear; "if you will, you shall be as rich as you are now poor.

truly the man would have had no objection to be rich, but he thought to himself: "i must first ask my daughter about this,"14 so he went in and told them that there was a great white bear outside who had faithfully promised to make them all rich if he might but have the youngest daughter.

she said no,15 and would not hear of it; so the man went out again, and settled with the white bear that he should come again next thursday evening, and get her answer. then the man persuaded her, and talked so much to her about the wealth16 that they would have, and what a good thing it would be for herself, that at last she made up her mind to go, and washed and mended all her rags, made herself as smart as she could,17 and held herself in readiness to set out. little enough had she to take away with her.

next thursday evening the white bear came to fetch her.18 she seated herself on his back with her bundle,19 and thus they departed. when they had gone a great part of the way, the white bear said: "are you afraid?"20

"no, that i am not," said she.

"keep tight hold of my fur, and then there is no danger,"21 said he.

and thus she rode far, far away,22 until they came to a great mountain.23 then the white bear knocked on it, and a door opened, and they went into a castle24 where there were many brilliantly lighted rooms which shone with gold and silver,25 likewise a large hall in which there was a well-spread table, and it was so magnificent that it would be hard to make anyone understand how splendid it was. the white bear gave her a silver bell, and told her that when she needed anything she had but to ring this bell, and what she wanted would appear.26 so after she had eaten, and night was drawing near, she grew sleepy after her journey, and thought she would like to go to bed.

she rang the bell, and scarcely had she touched it before she found herself in a chamber2 where a bed27 stood ready made for her, which was as pretty as anyone could wish to sleep in. it had pillows of silk, and curtains of silk fringed with gold, and everything that was in the room was of gold or silver, but when she had lain down and put out the light a man came and lay down beside her,28 and behold3 it was the white bear, who cast off the form of a beast29 during the night. she never saw him,30 however, for he always came after she had put out her light, and went away before daylight appeared.

so all went well and happily for a time, but then she began to be very sad and sorrowful, for all day long she had to go about alone; and she did so wish to go home to her father and mother and brothers and sisters.31 then the white bear asked what it was that she wanted, and she told him that it was so dull there in the mountain, and that she had to go about all alone, and that in her parents' house at home there were all her brothers and sisters, and it was because she could not go to them that she was so sorrowful.

"there might be a cure for that," said the white bear, "if you would but promise me never to talk with your mother alone,32 but only when the others are there too; for she will take hold of your hand," he said, "and will want to lead you into a room to talk with you alone; but that you must by no means do, or you will bring great misery4 on both of us."33

so one sunday the white bear came and said that they could now set out to see her father and mother, and they journeyed thither5, she sitting on his back, and they went a long, long way, and it took a long, long time; but at last they came to a large white farmhouse6, and her brothers and sisters were running about outside it, playing, and it was so pretty that it was a pleasure to look at it.

"your parents dwell here now," said the white bear; "but do not forget what i said to you, or you will do much harm both to yourself and me."

"no, indeed," said she, "i shall never forget;" and as soon as she was at home the white bear turned round and went back again.

there were such rejoicings when she went in to her parents that it seemed as if they would never come to an end. everyone thought that he could never be sufficiently7 grateful to her for all she had done for them all. now they had everything that they wanted, and everything was as good as it could be. they all asked her how she was getting on where she was. all was well with her too, she said; and she had everything that she could want. what other answers she gave i cannot say, but i am pretty sure that they did not learn much from her. but in the afternoon, after they had dined at midday, all happened just as the white bear had said. her mother wanted to talk with her alone in her own chamber. but she remembered what the white bear had said, and would on no account go. "what we have to say can be said at any time," she answered. but somehow or other her mother at last persuaded her, and she was forced to tell the whole story. so she told how every night a man came and lay down beside her when the lights were all put out, and how she never saw him, because he always went away before it grew light in the morning, and how she continually went about in sadness, thinking how happy she would be if she could but see him, and how all day long she had to go about alone, and it was so dull and solitary8. "oh!" cried the mother, in horror, "you are very likely sleeping with a troll!34 but i will teach you a way to see him.35 you shall have a bit of one of my candles,36 which you can take away with you hidden in your breast. look at him with that when he is asleep, but take care not to let any tallow37 drop upon him."

so she took the candle, and hid it in her breast, and when evening drew near the white bear came to fetch her away. when they had gone some distance on their way, the white bear asked her if everything had not happened just as he had foretold9, and she could not but own that it had. "then, if you have done what your mother wished," said he, "you have brought great misery on both of us." "no," she said, "i have not done anything at all." so when she had reached home and had gone to bed it was just the same as it had been before, and a man came and lay down beside her, and late at night, when she could hear that he was sleeping, she got up and kindled10 a light, lit her candle, let her light shine on him, and saw him, and he was the handsomest prince38 that eyes had ever beheld11, and she loved him so much that it seemed to her that she must die if she did not kiss him that very moment. so she did kiss him;39 but while she was doing it she let three drops of hot tallow fall upon his shirt, and he awoke.40 "what have you done now?" said he; "you have brought misery on both of us. if you had but held out for the space of one year i should have been free. i have a step-mother who has bewitched me41 so that i am a white bear by day and a man by night; but now all is at an end between you and me, and i must leave you, and go to her. she lives in a castle which lies east of the sun and west of the moon,42 and there too is a princess43 with a nose which is three ells long,44 and she now is the one whom i must marry."45

she wept and lamented12, but all in vain, for go he must. then she asked him if she could not go with him. but no, that could not be. "can you tell me the way then, and i will seek you -- that i may surely be allowed to do!"

"yes, you may do that," said he; "but there is no way thither. it lies east of the sun and west of the moon, and never would you find your way there."

when she awoke in the morning both the prince and the castle were gone, and she was lying on a small green patch in the midst of a dark, thick wood. by her side lay the self-same bundle of rags46 which she had brought with her from her own home. so when she had rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, and wept till she was weary, she set out on her way,47 and thus she walked for many and many a long day, until at last she came to a great mountain. outside it an aged13 woman48 was sitting, playing with a golden apple.49 the girl asked her if she knew the way to the prince who lived with his stepmother in the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon, and who was to marry a princess with a nose which was three ells long. "how do you happen to know about him?" inquired the old woman; "maybe you are she who ought to have had him."50 "yes, indeed, i am," she said. "so it is you, then?" said the old woman; "i know nothing about him but that he dwells in a castle which is east of the sun and west of the moon. you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get to it at all; but you shall have the loan of my horse,51 and then you can ride on it to an old woman who is a neighbor of mine: perhaps she can tell you about him. when you have got there you must just strike the horse beneath the left ear and bid it go home again; but you may take the golden apple with you."

so the girl seated herself on the horse, and rode for a long, long way, and at last she came to the mountain, where an aged woman was sitting outside with a gold carding-comb.52 the girl asked her if she knew the way to the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon; but she said what the first old woman had said: "i know nothing about it, but that it is east of the sun and west of the moon, and that you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get there at all; but you shall have the loan of my horse to an old woman who lives the nearest to me: perhaps she may know where the castle is, and when you have got to her you may just strike the horse beneath the left ear and bid it go home again." then she gave her the gold carding-comb, for it might, perhaps, be of use to her, she said.

so the girl seated herself on the horse, and rode a wearisome long way onward14 again, and after a very long time she came to a great mountain, where an aged woman was sitting, spinning at a golden spinning-wheel.53 of this woman, too, she inquired if she knew the way to the prince, and where to find the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon. but it was only the same thing once again. "maybe it was you who should have had the prince," said the old woman. "yes, indeed, i should have been the one," said the girl. but this old crone knew the way no better than the others -- it was east of the sun and west of the moon, she knew that, "and you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get to it at all," she said; "but you may have the loan of my horse, and i think you had better ride to the east wind,54 and ask him: perhaps he may know where the castle is, and will blow you thither. but when you have got to him you must just strike the horse beneath the left ear, and he will come home again." and then she gave her the golden spinning-wheel, saying: "perhaps you may find that you have a use for it."#p#

the girl had to ride for a great many days, and for a long and wearisome time, before she got there; but at last she did arrive, and then she asked the east wind if he could tell her the way to the prince who dwelt east of the sun and west of the moon. "well," said the east wind, "i have heard tell of the prince, and of his castle, but i do not know the way to it, for i have never blown so far; but, if you like, i will go with you to my brother the west wind: he may know that, for he is much stronger than i am. you may sit on my back, and then i can carry you there." so she seated herself on his back, and they did go so swiftly! when they got there, the east wind went in and said that the girl whom he had brought was the one who ought to have had the prince up at the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon, and that now she was traveling about to find him again, so he had come there with her, and would like to hear if the west wind knew whereabout the castle was. "no," said the west wind; "so far as that have i never blown; but if you like i will go with you to the south wind, for he is much stronger than either of us, and he has roamed far and wide, and perhaps he can tell you what you want to know. you may seat yourself on my back, and then i will carry you to him."

so she did this, and journeyed to the south wind, neither was she very long on the way. when they had got there, the west wind asked him if he could tell her the way to the castle that lay east of the sun and west of the moon, for she was the girl who ought to marry the prince who lived there. "oh, indeed!" said the south wind, "is that she? well," said he, "i have wandered about a great deal in my time, and in all kinds of places, but i have never blown so far as that. if you like, however, i will go with you to my brother, the north wind;55 he is the oldest and strongest of all of us, and if he does not know where it is no one in the whole world will be able to tell you. you may sit upon my back, and then i will carry you there." so she seated herself on his back, and off he went from his house in great haste, and they were not long on the way. when they came near the north wind's dwelling15, he was so wild and frantic16 that they felt cold gusts17 a long while before they got there. "what do you want?" he roared out from afar, and they froze as they heard.

said the south wind: "it is i, and this is she who should have had the prince who lives in the castle which lies east of the sun and west of the moon. and now she wishes to ask you if you have ever been there, and can tell her the way, for she would gladly find him again."

"yes," said the north wind, "i know where it is. i once blew an aspen leaf there, but i was so tired that for many days afterward18 i was not able to blow at all. however, if you really are anxious to go there, and are not afraid to go with me, i will take you on my back, and try if i can blow you there."

"get there i must," said she; "and if there is any way of going i will; and i have no fear, no matter how fast you go."

"very well then," said the north wind; "but you must sleep here to-night, for if we are ever to get there we must have the day before us."

the north wind woke her betimes next morning, and puffed19 himself up, and made himself so big and so strong that it was frightful20 to see him, and away they went, high up through the air, as if they would not stop until they had reached the very end of the world. down below there was such a storm! it blew down woods and houses, and when they were above the sea the ships were wrecked21 by hundreds. and thus they tore on and on, and a long time went by, and then yet more time passed, and still they were above the sea, and the north wind grew tired, and more tired, and at last so utterly22 weary that he was scarcely able to blow any longer, and he sank and sank, lower and lower, until at last he went so low that the waves dashed against the heels of the poor girl he was carrying. "art thou afraid?" said the north wind. "i have no fear," said she; and it was true. but they were not very, very far from land, and there was just enough strength left in the north wind to enable him to throw her on to the shore, immediately under the windows of a castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon; but then he was so weary and worn out that he was forced to rest for several days before he could go to his own home again.

next morning she sat down beneath the walls of the castle to play with the golden apple, and the first person she saw was the maiden23 with the long nose, who was to have the prince. "how much do you want for that gold apple of yours, girl?" said she, opening the window. "it can't be bought either for gold or money," answered the girl. "if it cannot be bought either for gold or money, what will buy it? you may say what you please," said the princess.

"well, if i may go to the prince who is here, and be with him to-night, you shall have it,"56 said the girl who had come with the north wind. "you may do that," said the princess, for she had made up her mind what she would do. so the princess got the golden apple, but when the girl went up to the prince's apartment that night he was asleep,57 for the princess had so contrived24 it. the poor girl called to him, and shook him, and between whiles she wept; but she could not wake him.58 in the morning, as soon as day dawned, in came the princess with the long nose, and drove her out again. in the daytime she sat down once more beneath the windows of the castle, and began to card with her golden carding-comb; and then all happened as it had happened before. the princess asked her what she wanted for it, and she replied that it was not for sale, either for gold or money, but that if she could get leave to go to the prince, and be with him during the night, she should have it. but when she went up to the prince's room he was again asleep, and, let her call him, or shake him, or weep as she would, he still slept on, and she could not put any life in him. when daylight came in the morning, the princess with the long nose came too, and once more drove her away. when day had quite come, the girl seated herself under the castle windows, to spin with her golden spinning-wheel, and the princess with the long nose wanted to have that also. so she opened the window, and asked what she would take for it. the girl said what she had said on each of the former occasions -- that it was not for sale either for gold or for money, but if she could get leave to go to the prince who lived there, and be with him during the night, she should have it.

"yes," said the princess, "i will gladly consent to that."

but in that place there were some christian25 folk59 who had been carried off, and they had been sitting in the chamber which was next to that of the prince, and had heard how a woman had been in there who had wept and called on him two nights running, and they told the prince of this. so that evening, when the princess came once more with her sleeping-drink, he pretended to drink, but threw it away behind him, for he suspected that it was a sleeping-drink. so, when the girl went into the prince's room this time he was awake, and she had to tell him how she had come there. "you have come just in time," said the prince, "for i should have been married to-morrow; but i will not have the long-nosed princess, and you alone can save me. i will say that i want to see what my bride can do, and bid her wash the shirt which has the three drops of tallow on it.60 this she will consent to do, for she does not know that it is you who let them fall on it; but no one can wash them out but one born of christian folk: it cannot be done by one of a pack of trolls; and then i will say that no one shall ever be my bride but the woman who can do this,61 and i know that you can." there was great joy and gladness between them all that night, but the next day, when the wedding was to take place, the prince said, "i must see what my bride can do." "that you may do," said the stepmother.

"i have a fine shirt which i want to wear as my wedding shirt, but three drops of tallow have got upon it which i want to have washed off, and i have vowed27 to marry no one but the woman who is able to do it. if she cannot do that, she is not worth having."

well, that was a very small matter, they thought, and agreed to do it. the princess with the long nose began to wash as well as she could, but, the more she washed and rubbed, the larger the spots grew. "ah! you can't wash at all," said the old troll-hag, who was her mother. "give it to me." but she too had not had the shirt very long in her hands before it looked worse still, and, the more she washed it and rubbed it, the larger and blacker grew the spots.

so the other trolls had to come and wash, but, the more they did, the blacker and uglier grew the shirt, until at length it was as black as if it had been up the chimney. "oh," cried the prince, "not one of you is good for anything at all! there is a beggar-girl sitting outside the window, and i'll be bound that she can wash better than any of you! come in, you girl there!" he cried. so she came in. "can you wash this shirt clean?" he cried. "oh! i don't know," she said; "but i will try." and no sooner had she taken the shirt and dipped it in the water than it was white as driven snow, and even whiter than that. "i will marry you," said the prince.

then the old troll-hag flew into such a rage that she burst,62 and the princess with the long nose and all the little trolls must have burst too, for they have never been heard of since. the prince and his bride set free all the christian folk who were imprisoned28 there, and took away with them all the gold and silver that they could carry,63 and moved far away from the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon.

1. poor husbandman: a husbandman is "a person who operates a farm" (wordnet).

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2. many children: in the days before more reliable birth control, birth rates in families were higher. infant mortality was also higher. if many children survived, the ability for a poor family to provide for all of the needs of the househould would be significantly lessened29. before the advent30 of more efficient welfare systems, some poor families would use different methods to feed everyone, including child labor31, child abandonment, and selling children, including into slavery. some of these issues are addressed by fairy tales.

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3. food or clothing: food, clothing, and shelter are the basic needs for survival. these are the needs children rely upon their parents to provide so they can reach adulthood32 and fend33 for themselves. another tale in which parents struggle to provide for their children's basic needs is hansel and gretel.

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4. youngest daughter: fairy tales often contain multiple siblings34 in which the youngest becomes the protagonist35. traditional folklore36 is primarily interested in only children or youngest siblings. either the youngest is the most beautiful and worthy--often female protagonists37--or the youngest is stupid and lucky--often male protagonists. in either scenario38, the youngest achieves good fortune through an adventure and/or magical helper. "it is the modest, the humble39, and often the dispossessed who are elevated to noble rank" (tatar, 2002, 235).

the youngest is the least experienced and perhaps most protected of the children in a family. the youngest is also the child least likely to receive a financial inheritance in the days when the eldest40 son received the bulk of a father's estate. the youngest would consequently find it necessary to know how to fend for themselves in the world by marrying well or choosing a career.

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5. so beautiful that there were no bounds to her beauty: in this tale, the daughter's beauty makes her desirable to a mysterious stranger, an animal bridegroom. this beauty is not a complete blessing41 for the daughter. while she can give herself to the animal bridegroom and thus relieve her family's financial burdens, she is essentially42 forced into an arranged wedding with a stranger on account of her beauty. her beauty is a blessing for her family and somewhat of a curse for herself, at least at this point in the story.

in cupid and psyche43, venus is jealous of psyche's beauty and tries to have her married to the ugliest creature, but her son cupid falls in love with psyche and marries her instead.

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6. thursday evening: fairy tales do not usually provide detailed44 settings of time, such as the day of the week and season, like the one provided in this tale.

thursday is named after the norse god of thunder and the sky, thor. thor, the son of odin, is one of the most popular and powerful gods in norse mythology45. "the norse believed that during a thunderstorm, thor rode through the heavens on his chariot pulled by the goats tanngrisni ("gap-tooth") and tanngnost ("tooth grinder"). lightning flashed whenever he threw his hammer mjollnir." he was the "the protector of both gods and humans against the forces of evil" (lindemans, pantheon.org).

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7. autumn: once again, fairy tales do not usually provide detailed settings of time, such as the day of the week and season, like the one provided in this tale.

autumn is "the third season of the year, or the season between summer and winter, often called ``the fall.'' astronomically46, it begins in the northern temperate47 zone at the autumnal equinox, about september 23, and ends at the winter solstice, about december 23; but in popular language, autumn, in america, comprises september, october, and november" (webster's 1990).

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8. terribly dark, and raining so heavily and blowing so hard: in other words, it was a dark and stormy night, the now cliched setting for a story.

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9. three times: the number and/or pattern of three often appears in fairy tales to provide rhythm and suspense48. the pattern adds drama and suspense while making the story easy to remember and follow. the third event often signals a change and/or ending for the listener/reader.

the reasons and theories behind three's popularity are numerous and spanerse. the number has been considered powerful across history in different cultures and religions, but not all of them. christians49 have the trinity, the chinese have the great triad (man, heaven, earth), and the buddhists50 have the triple jewel (buddha, dharma, sanga). the greeks had the three fates. pythagoras considered three to be the perfect number because it represented everything: the beginning, middle, and end. some cultures have different powerful numbers, often favoring seven, four and twelve.

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10. against the window-pane: why the bear knocks on the window and not the door is a mystery. a polite bear also calls on a family at home, by knocking at the door, in snow white and rose red.

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11. a great big white bear: the bear is often portrayed51 as a polar bear in illustrations for the tale although he is not described as such beyond his white fur. the bear is likely a polar bear since they are native to the arctic circle, including norway where this tale is found.

with winter approaching in the tale, it is important to note that polar bears do not hibernate52. according to the world wildlife federation53, "polar bears are clearly at the top of the food chain, and they've been known to kill and eat seals, walrus54 and even beluga whales. standing55 on its hind26 legs, a male polar bear can look an elephant straight in the eye. the polar bear (ursus maritimus) is the largest terrestrial carnivore. adult males can measure more than nine feet in length and weigh between 770 to 1,430 pounds" (wwf.org). you read more about polar bears on the wwf's polar bear page.

a bear represents bravery, strength, self-restraint, an evil influence, a problem or difficulty, an obstacle, violence, clumsiness, and solitary life (olderr 1986).

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12. "good-evening to you," said the white bear: the bear is the first fantasical or magical element to appear in the story. many scholars do not consider a tale to be a fairy tale unless it has magical elements in it. a talking bear qualifies this story to be a fairy tale.

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13. will you give me your youngest daughter?: here we have one of the first motifs57 which make this tale very similar to beauty and the beast. a beast asks for the youngest, beautiful daughter. the implication is that he wants to marry her, although a wedding ceremony is usually not acknowledged or detailed until the end of the tale once the enchantment58 has been broken.

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14. i must first ask my daughter about this: in a feminist59 analysis of the tale, it is surprising that the father asks the daughter if she will go with the bear. in times past, parents had the right to arrange a daughter's marriage without her consent, usually for financial gain either for themselves, their daughter, or both. in fairy tales, it is necessary for the heroine to willingly go to live with the animal bridegroom, thus showing her willingness to sacrifice her desires for her family, a sign of virtue60. in beauty and the beast, the beast stipulates61 that beauty must come to live with him willingly.

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15. she said no: in some inaccurate62 translations, the father refuses the offer first and then the daughter herself decides to go in order to benefit the family without any pressure.

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16. talked so much to her about the wealth: according to maria tatar, "the father's callous63 alacrity64 to marry his daughter to a monster reveals the degree to which marriage is connected to economic opportunity in many of the old tales. but it is also the event that sets in motion a plot with a happily-ever-after ending" (tatar 2002, 188).

in from the beast to the blonde, marina warner theorizes that many fairy tales were created to comfort daughters who faced arranged marriages and leaving their homes to live in the unknown household of their in-laws. while the daughter is reluctant to leave, she is ultimately rewarded with a happy marriage through her honor of her parents and the initial sacrifice of her desires.

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17. washed and mended all her rags, made herself as smart as she could: most brides would have a dowry of clothing and household items, including linens65, to take with them. that the daughter only has rags--not even described as clothing--shows her family's poverty and desperation. the daughter's pride and strength is shown in her personal preparation and care of her few meagre possessions.

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18. came to fetch her: here the animal bridegroom carries the daughter away from her home to a location unknown by her family. in beauty and the beast, beauty goes to the beast's castle with her father. in that tale, unlike this one, there is some comfort that the father knows where she is.

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19. she seated herself on his back with her bundle: the image of the daughter riding the bear to her new home is popular with illustrators and is often the iconic representation of this tale. to see several illustrators' visions of the tale, visit the illustrations of east of the sun and west of the moon page.

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20. are you afraid?: once she has made her decision, the heroine faces her betrothed66 and her future without fear. she is asked several times throughout the tale if she is afraid, but she never is.

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21. keep tight hold of my fur, and then there is no danger: the daughter is encouraged to literally67 cling to her spouse68 who will protect her in her journey away from her childhood and into adulthood.

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22. far, far away: throughout the story, the heroine travels great distances. she travels a great distance, both in her odyssey69 to her future home and in her quest for love. in cupid and psyche, psyche is first carried to cupid's palace by zephyrus, the wind. later in this tale, the four winds will provide the heroine with transportation on her quest.

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23. mountain: the difference in landscape in scandinavian tales such as this one from the landscapes found in the grimms' tales reflects the geographical70 difference between the two countries. in this tale we have mountains, hills and rivers while in the grimms' tales we have forests and wooded areas. both have imposing71 auras of mystery and power with their natural grandeur72.

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24. a castle: the enchanted73 animal bridegroom lives in a castle, similar to the beast in beauty and the beast. maria tatar states: "that the castle is in a mountain suggests a kinship between this story and tales about men trapped in wilderness74 caves and mountain caverns75. kingdoms are often concealed76 in mountains in myths and folktales. venus was said to lure77 her suitors into a palace hidden in a mountain, and peer gynt spends time in the hall of the mountain king" (tatar 2002, 188).

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25. brilliantly lighted rooms which shone with gold and silver: bright light, gold, silver, and food shows the opulence78 and wealth of the white bear's home. lighting79 was meager80 and expensive before the harnessing of electricity for power. only the wealthy could afford bright lighting, which still might be magically enhanced, as well as gold and silver, precious metals limited to households of the higher classes.

gold represents virtue, intelligence, superiority, heaven, worldly wealth, idolatry, revealed truth, marriage, and fruitfulness (olderr 1986).

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26. ring this bell, and what she wanted would appear: the magical castle, with its invisible servants, appears in cupid and psyche as well as beauty and the beast. psyche receives the omnipresent service since she is in the home of a god, cupid, with the spanine powers associated with a mythological81 god. the other heroines live in a home of enchantment where every physical desire is met. they have moved from poverty to complete luxury. supposedly they should be content and feel no more want, but they also know there is more to life than physical luxury.

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27. a bed: in some inaccurate translations of the tale, there are two beds in the room, one for the woman and one for her mysterious visitor. since no marriage ceremony has been described, two beds were more acceptable by a larger audience, especially during victorian times and the first half of the 20th century in which married couples on television slept in separate beds. cupid and psyche are described as married at this point in the story, while this tale is less exact on this point.

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28. put out the light a man came and lay down beside her: note that the heroine is not asked to sleep with a beast, but a man. while animal bridegroom stories are abundant around the world, the maiden often finds herself sleeping with a human male in her marriage bed.

many analysts82 believe animal bridegroom tales are intended to alleviate83 a maiden's fears of the marriage bed. while her husband may appear to be a beast before their marriage, she will learn that he is simply a caring man once the marriage is consummated84.

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29. cast off the form of a beast: shapeshifting is a common motif56 in folklore and found in almost every culture around the world, often attributed to gods and mythical85 creatures, but sometimes practiced by humans. the change can either be voluntary or imposed through enchantment, as it is here. the most common types of shapeshifting for humans usually involves changing into a bear or wolf, especially for men. shapeshifting is often instigated86 by the rising or setting of the sun or moon.

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30. never saw him: the only stipulation87 for this heroine (and psyche, her counterpart) to retain all of her new wealth and luxury is that she cannot look upon her spouse. this tale, like bluebeard, has often been interpreted as a warning against feminine curiosity.

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31. she did so wish to go home to her father and mother and brothers and sisters: homesickness for family is usually the catalyst88 for the next events in the story. the heroine's inability to be happy in her new home and let go of her old one causes the lovers to be separated and nearly causes the destruction of her lover.

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32. promise me never to talk with your mother alone: promises, while important today, were more powerful in the past when honor was a great motivator. also, before the time of literacy among the masses and written contracts, verbal promises were given greater weight. a promise was a contract and actionable by law if broken. folklore emphasizes the importance of a promise by meting89 punishment upon those who do not keep their promises.

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33. you will bring great misery on both of us: in each of these tales, the bridegroom emphasizes the inherent danger of the bride's family visit, but each loves his bride enough to want her to have all of her desires met. in beauty and the beast, the beasts says, "i cannot refuse you anything you ask, even though it should cost me my life."

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34. troll: trolls originated in scandinavian folklore. they are large and powerful monsters, enemies to humans. some protagonists in folklore seek the treasures hidden by trolls in their castles or simply to rescue another human captured by a troll. they are similar to ogres in that they have low intelligence and can often be defeated through a battle of wits. they travel at night and live in darkness since their greatest weakness is sunlight. direct sunlight will cause them to either burst or turn to stone (jones 1995). trolls also appear on this site in the three billy goats gruff.

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35. i will teach you a way to see him: in cupid and psyche, the heroine's sisters encourage her to look at her husband in his sleep. the sisters are jealous and hope to replace their sister. the mother appears to be genuinely concerned about her daughter's welfare. while the mother's intentions might be good, the heroine's fault lies in listening to her mother and/or sisters instead of her new husband's counsel, always a danger in marriages.

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36. a bit of one of my candles: candles have been a source of light for centuries, taking on different forms and derived90 from various materials. the real question here is why the heroine didn't think to use a candle before now to relieve her curiosity. perhaps, as some modern interpretations91 of the tale have suggested, all of the candles in the castle were enchanted and prevented her from using them for this purpose.

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37. tallow: tallow is "obtained from suet [hard fat around the kidneys and loins in beef and mutton] and used in making soap, candles and lubricants" (wordnet). tallow can be made by rendering92 other types of animal fat, too. because of tallow's offensive odor, beeswax or other waxes derived from plants was preferred although more expensive to produce in times past. tallow became virtually obsolete93 in the 19th century with the advent of paraffin.

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38. the handsomest prince: princes are as handsome as the princesses are beautiful in fairy tales. often, the ugliness or fierceness of the animal bridegroom balances the beauty of the disenchanted prince. the two extremes make one person, the bridegroom.

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39. she did kiss him: here we have the heroine waking the prince with a kiss, but with disasterous results. the prince in sleeping beauty, however, wakens the sleeping princess with positive results.

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40. she let three drops of hot tallow fall upon his shirt, and he awoke: the bear, like cupid in cupid and psyche, is literally burned by the love and curiosity of psyche. this event is not a surprise. the heroine has failed to heed94 each of the admonitions she has received. now the true suspense comes in wondering what price she will pay for her disobedience.

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41. i have a step-mother who has bewitched me: very few of the animal bridegroom tales explain the reason for the bridegroom's enchantment.

the image of the evil stepmother occurs frequently in fairy tales. she is associated with jealousy96 and cruelty (olderr 1986). "in masculine psychology97, the stepmother is a symbol of the unconscious in a destructive role" (von franz 1970). the stepmother figure is actually two sided, in that while she has destructive intentions, her actions often lead the protagonist into situations that identify and strengthen his or her best qualities.

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42. east of the sun and west of the moon: the title of the tale, obviously derived from the place where the heroine must find her beloved, has a mysterious, otherworldly sound since it is virtually impossible to reach. the phrase has been used in song and verse, as well as literature to convey a far away, romantic location and occasionally everywhere.

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43. a princess: note the bridegroom's apparent desire to marry for love, not the requirements of station. since his betrothed proved unfaithful, he is required to marry a princess who matches his rank, however undesirable98 she may be.

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44. three ells long: an ell is a unit of measure for cloth, now rarely used. it is of different lengths in different countries; the english ell being 45 inches, the dutch or flemish ell is 27 inches, and the scotch99 about 37 inches. in england that would make her nose 135 inches long (webster's 1990).

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45. she now is the one whom i must marry: in the beauty and the beast subcategory of animal bridegroom tales, the enchantment is broken once beauty realizes she loves the beast and declares her love for him. then she learns that he is actually a man under an enchantment. in the tales more closely related to cupid and psyche, however, the heroine needs to wait over a given time period for the enchantment to end. her impatience100 to see the true figure of her husband causes the curse to separate them. the husband must go and marry another with his first marriage virtually annulled101 by his wife's indiscretion.

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46. self-same bundle of rags: since her commitment was been broken, all of the riches and luxuries she received have been revoked102. she is returned to the same state in which she began the story.

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47. she set out on her way: note that the daughter, like her predecessor103 psyche in cupid and psyche, is "brought to happiness by obedience95 and trial; hers are outer obstacles while beauty's are inner conflicts resolved by free will" (hearne 1989, 19). this is perhaps the most significant difference between the stories, making beauty and the beast the preferred story with our modern sensibilities.

in the cupid and psyche tale as recorded by apuleius, psyche is pregnant throughout her search for the missing cupid. the baby, named pleasure, is born after she is reunited with cupid. later versions of the tale, such as the one by thomas bulfinch, omit this detail.

folklore heros, and occasionally heroines, are often given quests and/or tasks to achieve a reward. here the heroine must search for her husband to prove her worthiness104 and dedication105 after her indiscretion. the most famous quest in folklore is perhaps that of king arthur's knights106 and their search for the holy grail.

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48. an aged woman: the heroine will meet three aged women, see the note about the pattern of three above, who will give her guidance and gifts to help her with her quest. old crones are often sources of wisdom and advice in fairy tales, as well as gifts to help younger characters on quests. sometimes the old women are gods, fairies, or angels in disguise.

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49. a golden apple: according to maria tatar, "heroines of folklore are often the recipients107 of domestic items made out of gold, tokens of the way in which the ordinary can take on the quality of the extraordinary" (tatar 2002, 193). in contrast, snow white is given a poisonous apple by an old crone in snow white and the seven dwarfs108.

in times past, offering an apple was a symbol of love and affection (philip 1997). the apple was sacred to aphrodite and represented knowledge, especially sexual knowledge, fertility and love.

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50. she who ought to have had him: the aged women appear to give the heroine help since she is the first and true bride of the prince, not for any of her own virtues109. in this way, the tale upholds the sanctity of marriage.

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51. loan of my horse: horses are intelligent, strong animals highly valued and sometimes worshipped in numerous cultures. the lending of a horse is a sign of trust and faith. horses are often considered lucky in folklore.

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52. a gold carding-comb: again, the heroine receives a golden example of a domestic item, this time a carding-comb. a carding-comb is "a toothed instrument used for separating and cleansing110 wool, flax, hair, etc." (webster's 1990). it is used in clothing production, a traditionally feminine domestic chore.

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53. a golden spinning-wheel: spinning wheels have long been important in folklore, especially in tales like sleeping beauty and rumpelstiltskin. a spinning wheel is "a small domestic spinning machine with a single spindle that is driven by hand or foot" (wordnet). it is used to produce flax for cloth production, a traditionally feminine domestic chore.

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54. east wind: the heroine will now receive help from the four winds, figuratively traveling to the four corners of the earth in search of her lover. while the winds are often portrayed in conflict with each other, in this tale they work together to help the heroine achieve her goal.

in european folklore, each of the four winds has a different personality. the gentle east wind brings warmth and rain. the vigorous west wind brings dry weather. the south wind brings heat and drought. the north wind is the strongest of the four and brings winter and bitter cold to northern europe. (jobes 1961, 1682-1683). the genders111 of the winds are malleable112 and often not designated as they are in this tale.

in greek mythology, notus is the god of the south wind, eurus is the god of the east wind, zephyrus is the god of the west wind, and boreas is the god of the north wind (lindemans, pantheon.org).

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55. north wind: in the arctic circle, where norway and this tale is found, the north wind would be considered especially cold and fierce, the strongest and most dreaded113 of the four winds.

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56. if i may go to the prince who is here, and be with him to-night, you shall have it: according to maria tatar: "the 'true bride' often tricks the 'false bride' into letting her spend the night with the prince, or, as in this tale, she bribes114 her. the imposter bride is always eager to take possession of an object and will sacrifice the prince's welfare for material gain" (tatar 2002, 198). for a different type of tale with a false bride and a true bride, read the goose girl.

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57. he was asleep: sleeping potions are common in fairy tales, such as in the twelve dancing princesses in which suitors are drugged to keep them from learning a secret.

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58. she could not wake him: here we irony115. the heroine lost her husband by accidentally waking him. now she cannot wake him to get him back.

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59. christian folk: asbjornsen and moe included the reference to christian folk in the original danish. this was not a translator's choice of words. as christianity spread across europe, christian messages and icons116 were added to the traditional folklore. the grimms in germany added many christian themes and images to their recordings117 of german folktales. it is not certain if the christian reference was added by the asbjornsen and moe or was included in their original source material.

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60. wash the shirt which has the three drops of tallow on it: here the washing came take on several meanings. first the maiden's ability to clean the garment would mark her as skilled at domestic arts and thus a suitable bride.

second, the heroine is accomplishing a difficult task, removing a settled stain from clothing. psyche, in cupid and psyche, has to perform three impossible tasks to prove her devotion to cupid.

third, the endeavour emphasizes the christian themes of forgiveness and purity. the maiden is washed clean of her sins when she cleans the shirt--which becomes as white as driven snow--since she is now shown to be of the christian faith. in many religions, brides go through ritualistic cleansing before their marriage. the pagan creatures--the trolls--only make the shirt dirtier and blacker as they attempt to clean it. their failed attempts to remove the spot is reminiscent of lady macbeth's inability to remove the vision of blood from her hands in shakespeare's macbeth.

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61. no one shall ever be my bride but the woman who can do this: in folklore, bride tests are often centered around domestic duties such as cleaning, cooking or sewing. the woman who best completes the domestic tasks is chosen as bride for the prince or suitor.

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62. flew into such a rage that she burst: trolls are supposed to burst when exposed to sunlight. see more about trolls in the note above. the troll's self-destruction is reminiscent of rumpelstiltskin's self-destructive rage.

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63. took away with them all the gold and silver that they could carry: carrying away the treasures of the defeated antagonist118 is common in fairy tales, including jack119 and the beanstalk and hansel and gretel. while supporting the ideals of love, honor, and virtue, fairy tales are very practical, supporting the idea that heros need some degree of material wealth and security to live happily ever after.

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---

East of the Sun and West of the

once upon a time...

there was a poor husbandman who had many children and little to give them in the way either of food or clothing. they were all pretty, but the prettiest of all was the youngest daughter, who was so beautiful that there were no bounds to her beauty.

so once--it was late on a thursday evening in autumn, and wild weather outside, terribly dark, and raining so heavily and blowing so hard that the walls of the cottage shook again--they were all sitting together by the fireside, each of them busy with something or other, when suddenly some one rapped three times against the window- pane1. the man went out to see what could be the matter, and when he got out there stood a great big white bear.

"good-evening to you," said the white bear.

"good-evening," said the man.

"will you give me your youngest daughter?" said the white bear; "if you will, you shall be as rich as you are now poor.

truly the man would have had no objection to be rich, but he thought to himself: "i must first ask my daughter about this," so he went in and told them that there was a great white bear outside who had faithfully promised to make them all rich if he might but have the youngest daughter.

she said no, and would not hear of it; so the man went out again, and settled with the white bear that he should come again next thursday evening, and get her answer. then the man persuaded her, and talked so much to her about the wealth that they would have, and what a good thing it would be for herself, that at last she made up her mind to go, and washed and mended all her rags, made herself as smart as she could, and held herself in readiness to set out. little enough had she to take away with her.

next thursday evening the white bear came to fetch her. she seated herself on his back with her bundle, and thus they departed. when they had gone a great part of the way, the white bear said: "are you afraid?"

"no, that i am not," said she.

" keep tight hold of my fur, and then there is no danger," said he.

and thus she rode far, far away, until they came to a great mountain. then the white bear knocked on it, and a door opened, and they went into a castle where there were many brilliantly lighted rooms which shone with gold and silver, likewise a large hall in which there was a well-spread table, and it was so magnificent that it would be hard to make anyone understand how splendid it was. the white bear gave her a silver bell, and told her that when she needed anything she had but to ring this bell, and what she wanted would appear. so after she had eaten, and night was drawing near, she grew sleepy after her journey, and thought she would like to go to bed. she rang the bell, and scarcely had she touched it before she found herself in a chamber2 where a bed stood ready made for her, which was as pretty as anyone could wish to sleep in. it had pillows of silk, and curtains of silk fringed with gold, and everything that was in the room was of gold or silver, but when she had lain down and put out the light a man came and lay down beside her, and behold3 it was the white bear, who cast off the form of a beast during the night. she never saw him, however, for he always came after she had put out her light, and went away before daylight appeared.

so all went well and happily for a time, but then she began to be very sad and sorrowful, for all day long she had to go about alone; and she did so wish to go home to her father and mother and brothers and sisters. then the white bear asked what it was that she wanted, and she told him that it was so dull there in the mountain, and that she had to go about all alone, and that in her parents' house at home there were all her brothers and sisters, and it was because she could not go to them that she was so sorrowful.

"there might be a cure for that," said the white bear, "if you would but promise me never to talk with your mother alone, but only when the others are there too; for she will take hold of your hand," he said, "and will want to lead you into a room to talk with you alone; but that you must by no means do, or you will bring great misery4 on both of us."

so one sunday the white bear came and said that they could now set out to see her father and mother, and they journeyed thither5, she sitting on his back, and they went a long, long way, and it took a long, long time; but at last they came to a large white farmhouse6, and her brothers and sisters were running about outside it, playing, and it was so pretty that it was a pleasure to look at it.

"your parents dwell here now," said the white bear; "but do not forget what i said to you, or you will do much harm both to yourself and me."

"no, indeed," said she, "i shall never forget;" and as soon as she was at home the white bear turned round and went back again.

there were such rejoicings when she went in to her parents that it seemed as if they would never come to an end. everyone thought that he could never be sufficiently7 grateful to her for all she had done for them all. now they had everything that they wanted, and everything was as good as it could be. they all asked her how she was getting on where she was. all was well with her too, she said; and she had everything that she could want. what other answers she gave i cannot say, but i am pretty sure that they did not learn much from her. but in the afternoon, after they had dined at midday, all happened just as the white bear had said. her mother wanted to talk with her alone in her own chamber. but she remembered what the white bear had said, and would on no account go. "what we have to say can be said at any time," she answered. but somehow or other her mother at last persuaded her, and she was forced to tell the whole story. so she told how every night a man came and lay down beside her when the lights were all put out, and how she never saw him, because he always went away before it grew light in the morning, and how she continually went about in sadness, thinking how happy she would be if she could but see him, and how all day long she had to go about alone, and it was so dull and solitary8. "oh!" cried the mother, in horror, "you are very likely sleeping with a troll! but i will teach you a way to see him. you shall have a bit of one of my candles, which you can take away with you hidden in your breast. look at him with that when he is asleep, but take care not to let any tallow drop upon him."

so she took the candle, and hid it in her breast, and when evening drew near the white bear came to fetch her away. when they had gone some distance on their way, the white bear asked her if everything had not happened just as he had foretold9, and she could not but own that it had. "then, if you have done what your mother wished," said he, "you have brought great misery on both of us." "no," she said, "i have not done anything at all." so when she had reached home and had gone to bed it was just the same as it had been before, and a man came and lay down beside her, and late at night, when she could hear that he was sleeping, she got up and kindled10 a light, lit her candle, let her light shine on him, and saw him, and he was the handsomest prince that eyes had ever beheld11, and she loved him so much that it seemed to her that she must die if she did not kiss him that very moment. so she did kiss him; but while she was doing it she let three drops of hot tallow fall upon his shirt, and he awoke. "what have you done now?" said he; "you have brought misery on both of us. if you had but held out for the space of one year i should have been free. i have a step- mother who has bewitched me so that i am a white bear by day and a man by night; but now all is at an end between you and me, and i must leave you, and go to her. she lives in a castle which lies east of the sun and west of the moon, and there too is a princess with a nose which is three ells long, and she now is the one whom i must marry."

she wept and lamented12, but all in vain, for go he must. then she asked him if she could not go with him. but no, that could not be. "can you tell me the way then, and i will seek you--that i may surely be allowed to do!"

"yes, you may do that," said he; "but there is no way thither. it lies east of the sun and west of the moon, and never would you find your way there."

when she awoke in the morning both the prince and the castle were gone, and she was lying on a small green patch in the midst of a dark, thick wood. by her side lay the self-same bundle of rags which she had brought with her from her own home. so when she had rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, and wept till she was weary, she set out on her way, and thus she walked for many and many a long day, until at last she came to a great mountain. outside it an aged13 woman was sitting, playing with a golden apple. the girl asked her if she knew the way to the prince who lived with his stepmother in the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon, and who was to marry a princess with a nose which was three ells long. "how do you happen to know about him?" inquired the old woman; "maybe you are she who ought to have had him." "yes, indeed, i am," she said. "so it is you, then?" said the old woman; "i know nothing about him but that he dwells in a castle which is east of the sun and west of the moon. you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get to it at all; but you shall have the loan of my horse, and then you can ride on it to an old woman who is a neighbour of mine: perhaps she can tell you about him. when you have got there you must just strike the horse beneath the left ear and bid it go home again; but you may take the golden apple with you."

so the girl seated herself on the horse, and rode for a long, long way, and at last she came to the mountain, where an aged woman was sitting outside with a gold carding- comb. the girl asked her if she knew the way to the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon; but she said what the first old woman had said: "i know nothing about it, but that it is east of the sun and west of the moon, and that you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get there at all; but you shall have the loan of my horse to an old woman who lives the nearest to me: perhaps she may know where the castle is, and when you have got to her you may just strike the horse beneath the left ear and bid it go home again." then she gave her the gold carding-comb, for it might, perhaps, be of use to her, she said.

so the girl seated herself on the horse, and rode a wearisome long way onward14 again, and after a very long time she came to a great mountain, where an aged woman was sitting, spinning at a golden spinning-wheel. of this woman, too, she inquired if she knew the way to the prince, and where to find the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon. but it was only the same thing once again. "maybe it was you who should have had the prince," said the old woman. "yes, indeed, i should have been the one," said the girl. but this old crone knew the way no better than the others--it was east of the sun and west of the moon, she knew that, "and you will be a long time in getting to it, if ever you get to it at all," she said; "but you may have the loan of my horse, and i think you had better ride to the east wind, and ask him: perhaps he may know where the castle is, and will blow you thither. but when you have got to him you must just strike the horse beneath the left ear, and he will come home again." and then she gave her the golden spinning-wheel, saying: "perhaps you may find that you have a use for it."

the girl had to ride for a great many days, and for a long and wearisome time, before she got there; but at last she did arrive, and then she asked the east wind if he could tell her the way to the prince who dwelt east of the sun and west of the moon. "well," said the east wind, "i have heard tell of the prince, and of his castle, but i do not know the way to it, for i have never blown so far; but, if you like, i will go with you to my brother the west wind: he may know that, for he is much stronger than i am. you may sit on my back, and then i can carry you there." so she seated herself on his back, and they did go so swiftly! when they got there, the east wind went in and said that the girl whom he had brought was the one who ought to have had the prince up at the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon, and that now she was travelling about to find him again, so he had come there with her, and would like to hear if the west wind knew whereabouts the castle was. "no," said the west wind; "so far as that have i never blown; but if you like i will go with you to the south wind, for he is much stronger than either of us, and he has roamed far and wide, and perhaps he can tell you what you want to know. you may seat yourself on my back, and then i will carry you to him.".

so she did this, and journeyed to the south wind, neither was she very long on the way. when they had got there, the west wind asked him if he could tell her the way to the castle that lay east of the sun and west of the moon, for she was the girl who ought to marry the prince who lived there. "oh, indeed!" said the south wind, "is that she? well," said he, "i have wandered about a great deal in my time, and in all kinds of places, but i have never blown so far as that. if you like, however, i will go with you to my brother, the north wind; he is the oldest and strongest of all of us, and if he does not know where it is no one in the whole world will be able to tell you. you may sit upon my back, and then i will carry you there." so she seated herself on his back, and off he went from his house in great haste, and they were not long on the way. when they came near the north wind's dwelling15, he was so wild and frantic16 that they felt cold gusts17 a long while before they got there. "what do you want?" he roared out from afar, and they froze as they heard. said the south wind: "it is i, and this is she who should have had the prince who lives in the castle which lies east of the sun and west of the moon. and now she wishes to ask you if you have ever been there, and can tell her the way, for she would gladly find him again."

"yes," said the north wind, "i know where it is. i once blew an aspen leaf there, but i was so tired that for many days afterward18 i was not able to blow at all. however, if you really are anxious to go there, and are not afraid to go with me, i will take you on my back, and try if i can blow you there."

"get there i must," said she; "and if there is any way of going i will; and i have no fear, no matter how fast you go."

"very well then," said the north wind; "but you must sleep here to-night, for if we are ever to get there we must have the day before us."

the north wind woke her betimes next morning, and puffed19 himself up, and made himself so big and so strong that it was frightful20 to see him, and away they went, high up through the air, as if they would not stop until they had reached the very end of the world. down below there was such a storm! it blew down woods and houses, and when they were above the sea the ships were wrecked21 by hundreds. and thus they tore on and on, and a long time went by, and then yet more time passed, and still they were above the sea, and the north wind grew tired, and more tired, and at last so utterly22 weary that he was scarcely able to blow any longer, and he sank and sank, lower and lower, until at last he went so low that the waves dashed against the heels of the poor girl he was carrying. "art thou afraid?" said the north wind. "i have no fear," said she; and it was true. but they were not very, very far from land, and there was just enough strength left in the north wind to enable him to throw her on to the shore, immediately under the windows of a castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon; but then he was so weary and worn out that he was forced to rest for several days before he could go to his own home again.

next morning she sat down beneath the walls of the castle to play with the golden apple, and the first person she saw was the maiden23 with the long nose, who was to have the prince. "how much do you want for that gold apple of yours, girl?" said she, opening the window. "it can't be bought either for gold or money," answered the girl. "if it cannot be bought either for gold or money, what will buy it? you may say what you please," said the princess.

"well, if i may go to the prince who is here, and be with him to-night, you shall have it," said the girl who had come with the north wind. "you may do that," said the princess, for she had made up her mind what she would do. so the princess got the golden apple, but when the girl went up to the prince's apartment that night he was asleep, for the princess had so contrived24 it. the poor girl called to him, and shook him, and between whiles she wept; but she could not wake him. in the morning, as soon as day dawned, in came the princess with the long nose, and drove her out again. in the daytime she sat down once more beneath the windows of the castle, and began to card with her golden carding-comb; and then all happened as it had happened before. the princess asked her what she wanted for it, and she replied that it was not for sale, either for gold or money, but that if she could get leave to go to the prince, and be with him during the night, she should have it. but when she went up to the prince's room he was again asleep, and, let her call him, or shake him, or weep as she would, he still slept on, and she could not put any life in him. when daylight came in the morning, the princess with the long nose came too, and once more drove her away. when day had quite come, the girl seated herself under the castle windows, to spin with her golden spinning-wheel, and the princess with the long nose wanted to have that also. so she opened the window, and asked what she would take for it. the girl said what she had said on each of the former occasions--that it was not for sale either for gold or for money, but if she could get leave to go to the prince who lived there, and be with him during the night, she should have it.

"yes," said the princess, "i will gladly consent to that."

but in that place there were some christian25 folk who had been carried off, and they had been sitting in the chamber which was next to that of the prince, and had heard how a woman had been in there who had wept and called on him two nights running, and they told the prince of this. so that evening, when the princess came once more with her sleeping-drink, he pretended to drink, but threw it away behind him, for he suspected that it was a sleeping-drink. so, when the girl went into the prince's room this time he was awake, and she had to tell him how she had come there. "you have come just in time," said the prince, "for i should have been married to-morrow; but i will not have the long-nosed princess, and you alone can save me. i will say that i want to see what my bride can do, and bid her wash the shirt which has the three drops of tallow on it. this she will consent to do, for she does not know that it is you who let them fall on it; but no one can wash them out but one born of christian folk: it cannot be done by one of a pack of trolls; and then i will say that no one shall ever be my bride but the woman who can do this, and i know that you can." there was great joy and gladness between them all that night, but the next day, when the wedding was to take place, the prince said, "i must see what my bride can do." "that you may do," said the stepmother.

"i have a fine shirt which i want to wear as my wedding shirt, but three drops of tallow have got upon it which i want to have washed off, and i have vowed26 to marry no one but the woman who is able to do it. if she cannot do that, she is not worth having."

well, that was a very small matter, they thought, and agreed to do it. the princess with the long nose began to wash as well as she could, but, the more she washed and rubbed, the larger the spots grew. "ah! you can't wash at all," said the old troll-hag, who was her mother. "give it to me." but she too had not had the shirt very long in her hands before it looked worse still, and, the more she washed it and rubbed it, the larger and blacker grew the spots.

so the other trolls had to come and wash, but, the more they did, the blacker and uglier grew the shirt, until at length it was as black as if it had been up the chimney. "oh," cried the prince, "not one of you is good for anything at all! there is a beggar-girl sitting outside the window, and i'll be bound that she can wash better than any of you! come in, you girl there!" he cried. so she came in. "can you wash this shirt clean?" he cried. "oh! i don't know," she said; "but i will try." and no sooner had she taken the shirt and dipped it in the water than it was white as driven snow, and even whiter than that. "i will marry you," said the prince.

then the old troll-hag flew into such a rage that she burst, and the princess with the long nose and all the little trolls must have burst too, for they have never been heard of since. the prince and his bride set free all the christian folk who were imprisoned27 there, and took away with them all the gold and silver that they could carry, and moved far away from the castle which lay east of the sun and west of the moon.

---

The Tale of the Sun

a long, long time ago, the earth was in complete darkness. there was no sun, only the moon and some stars. this was before people, when giant animals roamed1 the earth. they were much bigger than animals today. dinewan the emu and bralagah the brolga were two such animals.

one day, they were arguing and fighting over some silly little thing. bralagah got angry and grabbed2 one of dinewan's large eggs and hurled3 it into the sky. it landed on a pile of firewood4 where the yellow yolk5 burst6 into flames. the flames were so bright, that the world was lit up.

one of the good spirits who lived in the sky was watching this and saw how bright and beautiful the world looked. maybe if a fire was lit everyday, there would always be light.

so the good spirit collected wood every night. when the pile was big enough, his friend, the morning star, would come out to let everyone know that the fire was about to start. but what about anyone sleeping? how would they know that the fire was lit? the good spirit thought about this. then, somewhere in the distance, came a loud laugh.

gugurrgaagaa, gugurrgaagaa

the sound of the cackling kookaburra rang out across the earth.

'that's it, that's the noise i want,' the good spirit was jumping up and down with excitement. at last he had found a way to wake the world.

so now, every morning, just as the dawn is breaking, the laugh of gugurrgaagaa the kookaburra can be heard all across australia, bringing in the new day.

---

The Death of the Sun-Hero

once upon a time...

many, many thousand years ago there lived a mighty1 king whom heaven had blessed with a clever and beautiful son. when he was only ten years old the boy was cleverer than all the king's counsellors put together, and when he was twenty he was the greatest hero in the whole kingdom. his father could not make enough of his son, and always had him clothed in golden garments which shone and sparkled like the sun; and his mother gave him a white horse, which never slept, and which flew like the wind. all the people in the land loved him dearly, and called him the sun-hero, for they did not think his like existed under the sun. now it happened one night that both his parents had the same extraordinary dream. they dreamt that a girl all dressed in red had come to them and said: 'if you wish that your son should really become the sun-hero in deed and not only in name, let him go out into the world and search for the tree of the sun, and when he has found it, let him pluck a golden apple from it and bring it home.'

when the king and queen had each related their dreams to the other, they were much amazed that they should both have dreamt exactly the same about their son, and the king said to his wife, 'this is clearly a sign from heaven that we should send our son out into the world in order that he may come home the great sun-hero, as the red girl said, not only in name but in deed.'

the queen consented with many tears, and the king at once bade his son set forth2 in search of the tree of the sun, from which he was to pluck a golden apple. the prince was delighted at the prospect3, and set out on his travels that very day.

for a long time he wandered all through the world, and it was not till the ninety-ninth day after he started that he found an old man who was able to tell him where the tree of the sun grew. he followed his directions, and rode on his way, and after another ninety-nine days he arrived at a golden castle, which stood in the middle of a vast wilderness4. he knocked at the door, which was opened noiselessly and by invisible hands. finding no one about, the prince rode on, and came to a great meadow, where the sun-tree grew. when he reached the tree he put out his hand to pick a golden apple; but all of a sudden the tree grew higher, so that he could not reach its fruit. then he heard some one behind him laughing. turning round, he saw the girl in red walking towards him, who addressed him in these words:

'do you really imagine, brave son of the earth, that you can pluck an apple so easily from the tree of the sun? before you can do that, you have a difficult task before you. you must guard the tree for nine days and nine nights from the ravages5 of two wild black wolves, who will try to harm it. do you think you can undertake this?'

'yes,' answered the sun-hero, 'i will guard the tree of the sun nine days and nine nights.'

then the girl continued: 'remember, though, if you do not succeed the sun will kill you. now begin your watch.'

with these words the red girl went back into the golden castle. she had hardly left him when the two black wolves appeared: but the sun-hero beat them off with his sword, and they retired6, only, however, to reappear in a very short time. the sun-hero chased them away once more, but he had hardly sat down to rest when the two black wolves were on the scene again. this went on for seven days and nights, when the white horse, who had never done such a thing before, turned to the sun-hero and said in a human voice: 'listen to what i am going to say. a fairy gave me to your mother in order that i might be of service to you; so let me tell you, that if you go to sleep and let the wolves harm the tree, the sun will surely kill you. the fairy, foreseeing this, put everyone in the world under a spell, which prevents their obeying the sun's command to take your life. but all the same, she has forgotten one person, who will certainly kill you if you fall asleep and let the wolves damage the tree. so watch and keep the wolves away.'

then the sun-hero strove with all his might and kept the black wolves at bay, and conquered his desire to sleep; but on the eighth night his strength failed him, and he fell fast asleep. when he awoke a woman in black stood beside him, who said: 'you have fulfilled your task very badly, for you have let the two black wolves damage the tree of the sun. i am the mother of the sun, and i command you to ride away from here at once, and i pronounce sentence of death upon you, for you proudly let yourself be called the sun-hero without having done anything to deserve the name.'

the youth mounted his horse sadly, and rode home. the people all thronged7 round him on his return, anxious to hear his adventures, but he told them nothing, and only to his mother did he confide8 what had befallen him. but the old queen laughed, and said to her son: 'don't worry, my child; you see, the fairy has protected you so far, and the sun has found no one to kill you. so cheer up and be happy.'

after a time the prince forgot all about his adventure, and married a beautiful princess, with whom he lived very happily for some time. but one day when he was out hunting he felt very thirsty, and coming to a stream he stooped down to drink from it, and this caused his death, for a crab9 came swimming up, and with its claws tore out his tongue. he was carried home in a dying condition, and as he lay on his death-bed the black woman appeared and said: 'so the sun has, after all, found someone, who was not under the fairy's spell, who has caused your death. and a similar fate will overtake everyone under the sun who wrongfully assumes a title to which he has no right.'

---

The Story of the Husband and the

a good man had a beautiful wife, whom he loved passionately1, and never left if possible. one day, when he was obliged by important business to go away from her, he went to a place where all kinds of birds are sold and bought a parrot. this parrot not only spoke2 well, but it had the gift of telling all that had been done before it. he brought it home in a cage, and asked his wife to put it in her room, and take great care of it while he was away. then he departed. on his return he asked the parrot what had happened during his absence, and the parrot told him some things which made him scold his wife.

she thought that one of her slaves must have been telling tales of her, but they told her it was the parrot, and she resolved to revenge（报仇） herself on him.

when her husband next went away for one day, she told on slave to turn under the bird's cage a hand-mill; another to throw water down from above the cage, and a third to take a mirror and turn it in front of its eyes, from left to right by the light of a candle. the slaves did this for part of the night, and did it very well.

the next day when the husband came back he asked the parrot what he had seen. the bird replied, "my good master, the lightning, thunder and rain disturbed me so much all night long, that i cannot tell you what i have suffered."

the husband, who knew that it had neither rained nor thundered in the night, was convinced that the parrot was not speaking the truth, so he took him out of the cage and threw him so roughly on the ground that he killed him. nevertheless he was sorry afterwards, for he found that the parrot had spoken the truth.

"when the greek king," said the fisherman to the genius, "had finished the story of the parrot, he added to the vizir, "and so, vizir, i shall not listen to you, and i shall take care of the physician, in case i repent3 as the husband did when he had killed the parrot." but the vizir（元首，高官） was determined4. "sire," he replied, "the death of the parrot was nothing. but when it is a question of the life of a king it is better to sacrifice the innocent than save the guilty. it is no uncertain thing, however. the physician, douban, wishes to assassinate5 you. my zeal6 prompts me to disclose this to your majesty7. if i am wrong, i deserve to be punished as a vizir was once punished." "what had the vizir done," said the greek king, "to merit（值得） the punishment?" "i will tell your majesty, if you will do me the honour to listen," answered the vizir."

---

The War of the Wolf and the Fox

once upon a time...

there was once upon a time a man and his wife who had an old cat and an old dog. one day the man, whose name was simon, said to his wife, whose name was susan, 'why should we keep our old cat any longer? she never catches any mice now-a-days, and is so useless that i have made up my mind to drown her.'

but his wife replied, 'don't do that, for i'm sure she could still catch mice.'

'rubbish,' said simon. 'the mice might dance on her and she would never catch one. i've quite made up my mind that the next time i see her, i shall put her in the water.'

susan was very unhappy when she heard this, and so was the cat, who had been listening to the conversation behind the stove. when simon went off to his work, the poor cat miawed so pitifully, and looked up so pathetically into susan's face, that the woman quickly opened the door and said, 'fly for your life, my poor little beast, and get well away from here before your master returns.'

the cat took her advice, and ran as quickly as her poor old legs would carry her into the wood, and when simon came home, his wife told him that the cat had vanished.

'so much the better for her,' said simon. 'and now we have got rid of her, we must consider what we are to do with the old dog. he is quite deaf and blind, and invariably barks when there is no need, and makes no sound when there is. i think the best thing i can do with him is to hang him.'

but soft-hearted susan replied, 'please don't do so; he's surely not so useless as all that.'

'don't be foolish,' said her husband. 'the courtyard might be full of thieves and he'd never discover it. no, the first time i see him, it's all up with him, i can tell you.'

susan was very unhappy at his words, and so was the dog, who was lying in the corner of the room and had heard everything. as soon as simon had gone to his work, he stood up and howled so touchingly1 that susan quickly opened the door, and said 'fly for your life, poor beast, before your master gets home.' and the dog ran into the wood with his tail between his legs.

when her husband returned, his wife told him that the dog had disappeared.

'that's lucky for him,' said simon, but susan sighed, for she had been very fond of the poor creature.

now it happened that the cat and dog met each other on their travels, and though they had not been the best of friends at home, they were quite glad to meet among strangers. they sat down under a holly2 tree and both poured forth3 their woes4.

presently a fox passed by, and seeing the pair sitting together in a disconsolate5 fashion, he asked them why they sat there, and what they were grumbling6 about.

the cat replied, 'i have caught many a mouse in my day, but now that i am old and past work, my master wants to drown me.'

and the dog said, 'many a night have i watched and guarded my master's house, and now that i am old and deaf, he wants to hang me.'

the fox answered, 'that's the way of the world. but i'll help you to get back into your master's favour, only you must first help me in my own troubles.'

they promised to do their best, and the fox continued, 'the wolf has declared war against me, and is at this moment marching to meet me in company with the bear and the wild boar, and to-morrow there will be a fierce battle between us.'

'all right,' said the dog and the cat, 'we will stand by you, and if we are killed, it is at any rate better to die on the field of battle than to perish ignobly7 at home,' and they shook paws and concluded the bargain. the fox sent word to the wolf to meet him at a certain place, and the three set forth to encounter him and his friends.

the wolf, the bear, and the wild boar arrived on the spot first, and when they had waited some time for the fox, the dog, and the cat, the bear said, 'i'll climb up into the oak tree, and look if i can see them coming.'

the first time he looked round he said, 'i can see nothing,' and the second time he looked round he said, 'i can still see nothing.' but the third time he said, 'i see a mighty8 army in the distance, and one of the warriors9 has the biggest lance you ever saw!'

this was the cat, who was marching along with her tail erect10.

and so they laughed and jeered11, and it was so hot that the bear said, 'the enemy won't be here at this rate for many hours to come, so i'll just curl myself up in the fork of the tree and have a little sleep.'

and the wolf lay down under the oak, and the wild boar buried himself in some straw, so that nothing was seen of him but one ear.

and while they were lying there, the fox, the cat and the dog arrived. when the cat saw the wild boar's ear, she pounced12 upon it, thinking it was a mouse in the straw.

the wild boar got up in a dreadful fright, gave one loud grunt13 and disappeared into the wood. but the cat was even more startled than the boar, and, spitting with terror, she scrambled14 up into the fork of the tree, and as it happened right into the bear's face. now it was the bear's turn to be alarmed, and with a mighty growl15 he jumped down from the oak and fell right on the top of the wolf and killed him as dead as a stone.

on their way home from the war the fox caught score of mice, and when they reached simon's cottage he put them all on the stove and said to the cat, 'now go and fetch one mouse after the other, and lay them down before your master.'

'all right,' said the cat, and did exactly as the fox told her.

when susan saw this she said to her husband, 'just look, here is our old cat back again, and see what a lot of mice she has caught.'

'wonders will never cease,' cried simon. 'i certainly never thought the old cat would ever catch another mouse.'

but susan answered, 'there, you see, i always said our cat was a most excellent creature--but you men always think you know best.'

in the meantime the fox said to the dog, 'our friend simon has just killed a pig; when it gets a little darker, you must go into the courtyard and bark with all your might.'

'all right,' said the dog, and as soon as it grew dusk he began to bark loudly.

susan, who heard him first, said to her husband, 'our dog must have come back, for i hear him barking lustily. do go out and see what's the matter; perhaps thieves may be stealing our sausages.'

but simon answered, 'the foolish brute16 is as deaf as a post and is always barking at nothing,' and he refused to get up.

the next morning susan got up early to go to church at the neighbouring town, and she thought she would take some sausages to her aunt who lived there. but when she went to her larder17, she found all the sausages gone, and a great hole in the floor. she called out to her husband, 'i was perfectly18 right. thieves have been here last night, and they have not left a single sausage. oh! if you had only got up when i asked you to!'

then simon scratched his head and said, 'i can't understand it at all. i certainly never believed the old dog was so quick at hearing.'

but susan replied, 'i always told you our old dog was the best dog in the world--but as usual you thought you knew so much better. men are the same all the world over.'

and the fox scored a point too, for he had carried away the sausages himself!

---

The Image of Mercury and the Car

a very poor man, a carpenter by trade, had a wooden image of

mercury, before which he made offerings day by day, and begged

the idol1 to make him rich, but in spite of his entreaties2 he

became poorer and poorer. at last, being very angry, he took his

image down from its pedestal and dashed it against the wall.

when its head was knocked off, out came a stream of gold, which

the carpenter quickly picked up and said, "well, i think thou art

altogether contradictory3 and unreasonable4; for when i paid you

honor, i reaped no benefits: but now that i maltreat you i am

loaded with an abundance of riches."

---

The Story of the Greek King and

in the country of zouman, in persia, there lived a greek king. this king was a leper（麻风病患者）, and all his doctors had been unable to cure him, when a very clever physician came to his court.

he was very learned in all languages, and knew a great deal about herbs and medicines.

as soon as he was told of the king's illness he put on his best robe and presented himself before the king. "sire," said he, "i know that no physician has been able to cure your majesty1, but if you will follow my instructions, i will promise to cure you without any medicines or outward application."

the king listened to this proposal.

"if you are clever enough to do this," he said, "i promise to make you and your descendants rich for ever."

the physician went to his house and made a polo club, the handle of which he hollowed out（挖空）, and put in it the drug he wished to use. then he made a ball, and with these things he went the next day to the king.

he told him that he wished him to play at polo. accordingly the king mounted his horse and went into the place where he played. there the physician approached him with the bat he had made, saying, "take this, sire, and strike the ball till you feel your hand and whole body in a glow. when the remedy that is in the handle of the club is warmed by your hand it will penetrate2 throughout your body. the you must return to your palace, bathe, and go to sleep, and when you awake to-morrow morning you will be cured."

the king took the club and urged his horse after the ball which he had thrown. he struck it, and then it was hit back by the courtiers who were playing with him. when he felt very hot he stopped playing, and went back to the palace, went into the bath, and did all that the physician had said. the next day when he arose he found, to his great joy and astonishment3, that he was completely cured. when he entered his audience-chamber all his courtiers, who were eager to see if the wonderful cure had been effected, were overwhelmed with joy.

the physician douban entered the hall and bowed low to the ground. the king, seeing him, called him, made him sit by his side, and showed him every mark of honour.

that evening he gave him a long and rich robe of state, and presented him with two thousand sequins（亮片）. the following day he continued to load him with favours.

now the king had a grand-vizir who was avaricious4, and envious5, and a very bad man. he grew extremely jealous of the physician, and determined6 to bring about his ruin.

in order to do this he asked to speak in private with the king, saying that he had a most important communication to make.

"what is it?" asked the king.

"sire," answered the grand-vizir, "it is most dangerous for a monarch7 to confide8 in a man whose faithfulness is not proved, you do not know that this physician is not a traitor9 come here to assassinate10 you."

"i am sure," said the king, "that this man is the most faithful and virtuous11 of men. if he wished to take my life, why did he cure me? cease to speak against him. i see what it is, you are jealous of him; but do not think that i can be turned against him. i remember well what a vizir said to king sindbad, his master, to prevent him from putting the prince, his son, to death."

what the greek king said excited the vizir's curiousity, and he said to him, "sire, i beg your majesty to have the condescension12 to tell me what the vizir said to king sindbad."

"this vizir," he replied, "told king sindbad that one ought not believe everything that a mother-in-law says, and told him this story."

---

The Story of the Fisherman and h

once upon a time...

there was once a fisherman and his wife who lived together in a little hut close to the sea, and the fisherman used to go down every day to fish; and he would fish and fish. so he used to sit with his rod and gaze into the shining water; and he would gaze and gaze.

now, once the line was pulled deep under the water, and when he hauled it up he hauled a large flounder with it. the flounder said to him, 'listen, fisherman. i pray you to let me go; i am not a real flounder, i am an enchanted1 prince. what good will it do you if you kill me--i shall not taste nice? put me back into the water and let me swim away.'

'well,' said the man, 'you need not make so much noise about it; i am sure i had much better let a flounder that can talk swim away.' with these words he put him back again into the shining water, and the flounder sank to the bottom, leaving a long streak2 of blood behind. then the fisherman got up, and went home to his wife in the hut.

'husband,' said his wife, 'have you caught nothing to-day?'

'no,' said the man. 'i caught a flounder who said he was an enchanted prince, so i let him swim away again.'

'did you wish nothing from him?' said his wife.

'no,' said the man; 'what should i have wished from him?'

'ah!' said the woman, 'it's dreadful to have to live all one's life in this hut that is so small and dirty; you ought to have wished for a cottage. go now and call him; say to him that we choose to have a cottage, and he will certainly give it you.'

'alas3!' said the man, 'why should i go down there again?'

'why,' said his wife, 'you caught him, and then let him go again, so he is sure to give you what you ask. go down quickly.'

the man did not like going at all, but as his wife was not to be persuaded, he went down to the sea.

when he came there the sea was quite green and yellow, and was no longer shining. so he stood on the shore and said:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

then the flounder came swimming up and said, 'well, what does she want?'

'alas!' said the man, 'my wife says i ought to have kept you and wished something from you. she does not want to live any longer in the hut; she would like a cottage.'

'go home, then,' said the flounder; 'she has it.'

so the man went home, and there was his wife no longer in the hut, but in its place was a beautiful cottage, and his wife was sitting in front of the door on a bench. she took him by the hand and said to him, 'come inside, and see if this is not much better.' they went in, and inside the cottage was a tiny hall, and a beautiful sitting-room4, and a bedroom in which stood a bed, a kitchen and a dining-room all furnished with the best of everything, and fitted up with every kind of tin and copper5 utensil6. and outside was a little yard in which were chickens and ducks, and also a little garden with vegetables and fruit trees.

'see,' said the wife, 'isn't this nice?'

'yes,' answered her husband; 'here we shall remain and live very happily.'

'we will think about that,' said his wife.

with these words they had their supper and went to bed. all went well for a week or a fortnight, then the wife said:

'listen, husband; the cottage is much too small, and so is the yard and the garden; the flounder might just as well have sent us a larger house. i should like to live in a great stone castle. go down to the flounder, and tell him to send us a castle.'

'ah, wife!' said the fisherman, 'the cottage is quite good enough; why do we choose to live in a castle?'

'why?' said the wife. 'you go down; the flounder can quite well do that.'

'no, wife,' said the man; 'the flounder gave us the cottage. i do not like to go to him again; he might take it amiss.'

'go,' said his wife. 'he can certainly give it us, and ought to do so willingly. go at once.'

the fisherman's heart was very heavy, and he did not like going. he said to himself, 'it is not right.' still, he went down.

when he came to the sea, the water was all violet and dark-blue, and dull and thick, and no longer green and yellow, but it was still smooth.

so he stood there and said:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

'what does she want now?' said the flounder.

'ah!' said the fisherman, half-ashamed, 'she wants to live in a great stone castle.'

'go home; she is standing7 before the door,' said the flounder.

the fisherman went home and thought he would find no house. when he came near, there stood a great stone palace, and his wife was standing on the steps, about to enter. she took him by the hand and said, 'come inside.'

then he went with her, and inside the castle was a large hall with a marble floor, and there were heaps of servants who threw open the great doors, and the walls were covered with beautiful tapestry8, and in the apartments were gilded9 chairs and tables, and crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and all the rooms were beautifully carpeted. the best of food and drink also was set before them when they wished to dine. and outside the house was a large courtyard with horse and cow stables and a coach-house--all fine buildings; and a splendid garden with most beautiful flowers and fruit, and in a park quite a league long were deer and roe10 and hares, and everything one could wish for.

'now,' said the wife, 'isn't this beautiful?'

'yes, indeed,' said the fisherman. 'now we will stay here and live in this beautiful castle, and be very happy.'

'we will consider the matter,' said his wife, and they went to bed.

the next morning the wife woke up first at daybreak, and looked out of the bed at the beautiful country stretched before her. her husband was still sleeping, so she dug her elbows into his side and said:

'husband, get up and look out of the window. could we not become the king of all this land? go down to the flounder and tell him we choose to be king.'

'ah, wife!' replied her husband, 'why should we be king? i don't want to be king.'

'well,' said his wife, 'if you don't want to be king, i will be king. go down to the flounder; i will be king.'

'alas! wife,' said the fisherman, 'why do you want to be king? i can't ask him that.'

'and why not?' said his wife. 'go down at once. i must be king.'

so the fisherman went, though much vexed11 that his wife wanted to be king. 'it is not right! it is not right,' he thought. he did not wish to go, yet he went.

when he came to the sea, the water was a dark-grey colour, and it was heaving against the shore. so he stood and said:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

'what does she want now?' asked the flounder.

'alas!' said the fisherman, 'she wants to be king.'

'go home; she is that already,' said the flounder.

the fisherman went home, and when he came near the palace he saw that it had become much larger, and that it had great towers and splendid ornamental12 carving13 on it. a sentinel was standing before the gate, and there were numbers of soldiers with kettledrums and trumpets14. and when he went into the palace, he found everything was of pure marble and gold, and the curtains of damask with tassels15 of gold. then the doors of the hall flew open, and there stood the whole court round his wife, who was sitting on a high throne of gold and diamonds; she wore a great golden crown, and had a sceptre of gold and precious stones in her hand, and by her on either side stood six pages in a row, each one a head taller than the other. then he went before her and said:

'ah, wife! are you king now?'

'yes,' said his wife; 'now i am king.'

he stood looking at her, and when he had looked for some time, he said:

'let that be enough, wife, now that you are king! now we have nothing more to wish for.'

'nay16, husband,' said his wife restlessly, 'my wishing powers are boundless17; i cannot restrain them any longer. go down to the flounder; king i am, now i must be emperor.'

'alas! wife,' said the fisherman, 'why do you want to be emperor?'

'husband,' said she, 'go to the flounder; i will be emperor.'

'ah, wife,' he said, 'he cannot make you emperor; i don't like to ask him that. there is only one emperor in the kingdom. indeed and indeed he cannot make you emperor.'

'what!' said his wife. 'i am king, and you are my husband. will you go at once? go! if he can make king he can make emperor, and emperor i must and will be. go!'

so he had to go. but as he went, he felt quite frightened, and he thought to himself, 'this can't be right; to be emperor is too ambitious; the flounder will be tired out at last.'

thinking this he came to the shore. the sea was quite black and thick, and it was breaking high on the beach; the foam18 was flying about, and the wind was blowing; everything looked bleak19. the fisherman was chilled with fear. he stood and said:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

'what does she want now?' asked flounder.

'alas! flounder,' he said, 'my wife wants to be emperor.'

'go home,' said the flounder; 'she is that already.'

so the fisherman went home, and when he came there he saw the whole castle was made of polished marble, ornamented20 with alabaster21 statues and gold. before the gate soldiers were marching, blowing trumpets and beating drums. inside the palace were walking barons22, counts, and dukes, acting23 as servants; they opened the door, which was of beaten gold. and when he entered, he saw his wife upon a throne which was made out of a single block of gold, and which was quite six cubits high. she had on a great golden crown which was three yards high and set with brilliants and sparkling gems24. in one hand she held a sceptre, and in the other the imperial globe, and on either side of her stood two rows of halberdiers, each smaller than the other, from a seven-foot giant to the tiniest little dwarf25 no higher than my little finger. many princes and dukes were standing before her. the fisherman went up to her quietly and said:

'wife, are you emperor now?'

'yes,' she said, 'i am emperor.'

he stood looking at her magnificence, and when he had watched her for some time, said:

'ah, wife, let that be enough, now that you are emperor.'

'husband,' said she, 'why are you standing there? i am emperor now, and i want to be pope too; go down to the flounder.'

'alas! wife,' said the fisherman, 'what more do you want? you cannot be pope; there is only one pope in christendom, and he cannot make you that.'

'husband,' she said, 'i will be pope. go down quickly; i must be pope to-day.'

'no, wife,' said the fisherman; 'i can't ask him that. it is not right; it is too much. the flounder cannot make you pope.'

'husband, what nonsense!' said his wife. 'if he can make emperor, he can make, pope too. go down this instant; i am emperor and you are my husband. will you be off at once?'

so he was frightened and went out; but he felt quite faint, and trembled and shook, and his knees and legs began to give way under him. the wind was blowing fiercely across the land, and the clouds flying across the sky looked as gloomy as if it were night; the leaves were being blown from the trees; the water was foaming26 and seething27 and dashing upon the shore, and in the distance he saw the ships in great distress28, dancing and tossing on the waves. still the sky was very blue in the middle, although at the sides it was an angry red as in a great storm. so he stood shuddering29 in anxiety, and said:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

'well, what does she want now?' asked the flounder.

'alas!' said the fisherman, 'she wants to be pope.'

'go home, then; she is that already,' said the flounder.

then he went home, and when he came there he saw, as it were, a large church surrounded by palaces. he pushed his way through the people. the interior was lit up with thousands and thousands of candles, and his wife was dressed in cloth of gold and was sitting on a much higher throne, and she wore three great golden crowns. round her were numbers of church dignitaries, and on either side were standing two rows of tapers31, the largest of them as tall as a steeple, and the smallest as tiny as a christmas-tree candle. all the emperors and kings were on their knees before her, and were kissing her foot.

'wife,' said the fisherman looking at her, 'are you pope now?'

'yes,' said she; 'i am pope.'

so he stood staring at her, and it was as if he were looking at the bright sun. when he had watched her for some time he said:

'ah, wife, let it be enough now that you are pope.'

but she sat as straight as a tree, and did not move or bend the least bit. he said again:

'wife, be content now that you are pope. you cannot become anything more.'

'we will think about that,' said his wife.

with these words they went to bed. but the woman was not content; her greed would not allow her to sleep, and she kept on thinking and thinking what she could still become. the fisherman slept well and soundly, for he had done a great deal that day, but his wife could not sleep at all, and turned from one side to another the whole night long, and thought, till she could think no longer, what more she could become. then the sun began to rise, and when she saw the red dawn she went to the end of the bed and looked at it, and as she was watching the sun rise, out of the window, she thought, 'ha! could i not make the sun and man rise?'

'husband,' said she, poking32 him in the ribs33 with her elbows, 'wake up. go down to the flounder; i will be a god.'

the fisherman was still half asleep, yet he was so frightened that he fell out of bed. he thought he had not heard aright, and opened his eyes wide and said:

'what did you say, wife?'

'husband,' she said, 'if i cannot make the sun and man rise when i appear i cannot rest. i shall never have a quiet moment till i can make the sun and man rise.'

he looked at her in horror, and a shudder30 ran over him.

'go down at once; i will be a god.'

'alas! wife,' said the fisherman, falling on his knees before her, 'the flounder cannot do that. emperor and pope he can make you. i implore34 you, be content and remain pope.'

then she flew into a passion, her hair hung wildly about her face, she pushed him with her foot and screamed:

'i am not contented35, and i shall not be contented! will you go?'

so he hurried on his clothes as fast as possible, and ran away as if he were mad.

but the storm was raging so fiercely that he could scarcely stand. houses and trees were being blown down, the mountains were being shaken, and pieces of rock were rolling in the sea. the sky was as black as ink, it was thundering and lightening, and the sea was tossing in great waves as high as church towers and mountains, and each had a white crest36 of foam.

so he shouted, not able to hear his own voice:

'once a prince, but changed you be into a flounder in the sea. come! for my wife, ilsebel, wishes what i dare not tell.'

'well, what does she want now?' asked the flounder.

'alas!' said he, 'she wants to be a god.'

'go home, then; she is sitting again in the hut.'

and there they are sitting to this day.

---

The Bitter and Happiness of Stud

before i went to school, i felt so excited, because i was so curious about the campus life. now i have been in middle school, after seven years' study, i feel the bitter and happiness. the bitter is that there are always exams, sometimes i can't do well. every time when i get the low mark, i will be afraid of disappointing my parents. the happy thing is that i make many friends here. we play andstudy together. they are just like the brothers and sisters to me. this is the process of growing up, which mix pain and happiness. i am so lucky to have these friends in my life, they mean so much to me.

在我上学前，我很兴奋，因为对校园生活很好奇。如今我已经读初中了，经过了七年的学习，我体会到了苦和乐。苦的是经常会有考试，有时候我考不好。每次我拿到低分的时候，我会担心让父母失望。高兴的是在这里我交到了很多朋友。我们一起玩耍和学习。他们就像是我的兄弟和姐妹。这就是成长的过程，参杂着痛苦和快乐。我很幸运，这些朋友出现在我的生命中，他们对我来说很重要。