Grimms Fairy Tales.pdf

Grimms’ Fairy Tales

By The Brothers Grimm

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THE GOLDEN BIRD

stood a tree which bore golden apples. hese apples

were always counted, and about the time when they began

to grow ripe it was found that every night one of them was

gone. he king became very angry at this, and ordered the

gardener to keep watch all night under the tree. he gar-

dener set his eldest son to watch; but about twelve o’clock

he fell asleep, and in the morning another of the apples was

missing. hen the second son was ordered to watch; and

at midnight he too fell asleep, and in the morning another

apple was gone. hen the third son ofered to keep watch;

but the gardener at irst would not let him, for fear some

harm should come to him: however, at last he consented,

and the young man laid himself under the tree to watch. As

the clock struck twelve he heard a rustling noise in the air,

and a bird came lying that was of pure gold; and as it was

snapping at one of the apples with its beak, the gardener’s

son jumped up and shot an arrow at it. But the arrow did

the bird no harm; only it dropped a golden feather from its

tail, and then lew away. he golden feather was brought to

the king in the morning, and all the council was called to-

gether. Everyone agreed that it was worth more than all the

wealth of the kingdom: but the king said, ‘One feather is of

no use to me, I must have the whole bird.’

Grimms’ Fairy Tales

A certain king had a beautiful garden, and in the garden

hen the gardener’s eldest son set out and thought to ind

the golden bird very easily; and when he had gone but a lit-

tle way, he came to a wood, and by the side of the wood

he saw a fox sitting; so he took his bow and made ready to

shoot at it. hen the fox said, ‘Do not shoot me, for I will

give you good counsel; I know what your business is, and

that you want to ind the golden bird. You will reach a vil-

lage in the evening; and when you get there, you will see

two inns opposite to each other, one of which is very pleas-

ant and beautiful to look at: go not in there, but rest for the

night in the other, though it may appear to you to be very

poor and mean.’ But the son thought to himself, ‘What can

such a beast as this know about the matter?’ So he shot his

arrow at the fox; but he missed it, and it set up its tail above

its back and ran into the wood. hen he went his way, and

in the evening came to the village where the two inns were;

and in one of these were people singing, and dancing, and

feasting; but the other looked very dirty, and poor. ‘I should

be very silly,’ said he, ‘if I went to that shabby house, and

let this charming place’; so he went into the smart house,

and ate and drank at his ease, and forgot the bird, and his

country too.

Time passed on; and as the eldest son did not come back,

and no tidings were heard of him, the second son set out,

and the same thing happened to him. He met the fox, who

gave him the good advice: but when he came to the two

inns, his eldest brother was standing at the window where

the merrymaking was, and called to him to come in; and he

could not withstand the temptation, but went in, and forgot

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the golden bird and his country in the same manner.

Time passed on again, and the youngest son too wished

to set out into the wide world to seek for the golden bird; but

his father would not listen to it for a long while, for he was

very fond of his son, and was afraid that some ill luck might

happen to him also, and prevent his coming back. Howev-

er, at last it was agreed he should go, for he would not rest

at home; and as he came to the wood, he met the fox, and

heard the same good counsel. But he was thankful to the

fox, and did not attempt his life as his brothers had done;

so the fox said, ‘Sit upon my tail, and you will travel faster.’

So he sat down, and the fox began to run, and away they

went over stock and stone so quick that their hair whistled

in the wind.

When they came to the village, the son followed the fox’s

counsel, and without looking about him went to the shabby

inn and rested there all night at his ease. In the morning

came the fox again and met him as he was beginning his

journey, and said, ‘Go straight forward, till you come to a

castle, before which lie a whole troop of soldiers fast asleep

and snoring: take no notice of them, but go into the castle

and pass on and on till you come to a room, where the gold-

en bird sits in a wooden cage; close by it stands a beautiful

golden cage; but do not try to take the bird out of the shab-

by cage and put it into the handsome one, otherwise you

will repent it.’ hen the fox stretched out his tail again, and

the young man sat himself down, and away they went over

stock and stone till their hair whistled in the wind.

Before the castle gate all was as the fox had said: so the

Grimms’ Fairy Tales

son went in and found the chamber where the golden bird

hung in a wooden cage, and below stood the golden cage,

and the three golden apples that had been lost were lying

close by it. hen thought he to himself, ‘It will be a very

droll thing to bring away such a ine bird in this shabby

cage’; so he opened the door and took hold of it and put it

into the golden cage. But the bird set up such a loud scream

that all the soldiers awoke, and they took him prisoner and

carried him before the king. he next morning the court sat

to judge him; and when all was heard, it sentenced him to

die, unless he should bring the king the golden horse which

could run as switly as the wind; and if he did this, he was

to have the golden bird given him for his own.

So he set out once more on his journey, sighing, and in

great despair, when on a sudden his friend the fox met him,

and said, ‘You see now what has happened on account of

your not listening to my counsel. I will still, however, tell

you how to ind the golden horse, if you will do as I bid you.

You must go straight on till you come to the castle where the

horse stands in his stall: by his side will lie the groom fast

asleep and snoring: take away the horse quietly, but be sure

to put the old leathern saddle upon him, and not the golden

one that is close by it.’ hen the son sat down on the fox’s

tail, and away they went over stock and stone till their hair

whistled in the wind.

All went right, and the groom lay snoring with his hand

upon the golden saddle. But when the son looked at the

horse, he thought it a great pity to put the leathern sad-

dle upon it. ‘I will give him the good one,’ said he; ‘I am

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