Страшные сказки / Scary stories

© Матвеев С.А.

© ООО «Издательство, АСТ», 2021

Hansel and Gretel
Brothers Grimm

In a great forest dwelt a poor wood-cutter with his wife and his two children. The boy was called Hansel and the girl Gretel. He had little to eat. Once when great dearth fell on the land, he thought over this by night in his bed, then groaned and said to his wife:

“What will become of us? How will we feed our poor children, when we no longer have anything even for ourselves?”

“I’ll tell you what to do, husband”, answered the woman, “early tomorrow morning we will take the children out into the forest. There we will light a fire for them, and give each of them a piece of bread. Then we will go to our work and leave them alone. They will not find the way home again, and we shall be rid of them[1]”.

“No, wife,’ said the man, ‘I will not do that! How can I leave my children alone in the forest? The wild animals will soon come and tear them to pieces”.

“O, you fool!” said she, “then we must all four die of hunger[2]. You may plane the planks[3] for our coffins!”

She left him no choice and he consented.

“But I feel very sorry for the poor children”, said the man.

The two children did not sleep, and heard what their stepmother said to their father. Gretel wept bitter tears, and said to Hansel:

“Now we will die”.

“Be quiet, Gretel”, said Hansel, “do not distress yourself, I will soon find a way to help us”.

And when the old wood-cutter and his wife fell asleep, Hansel got up, put on his little coat, opened the door below, and crept outside. The moon shone brightly, and the white pebbles in front of the house glittered like real silver pennies. Hansel stooped and stuffed the little pocket of his coat with as many as he could get in. Then he went back and said to Gretel:

“Be comforted[4], dear little sister, and sleep in peace. God will not forsake us”.

Then he lay down again in his bed. When day dawned, the woman came and awoke the two children. She said:

“Get up, you sluggards! We will go into the forest to fetch wood”.

She gave each a little piece of bread, and said:

“There is something for your dinner, but do not eat it fast. You will get nothing else”.

Gretel took the bread under her apron, as Hansel had the pebbles in his pocket. Then they all went together to the forest.

Soon Hansel stood still and peeped back at the house, and did so again and again. His father said: “Hansel, what do you do? Go! Do not forget how to use your legs”.

“Ah, father”, said Hansel, “I look at my little white cat, which is on the roof. The cat wants to say goodbye to me”.

The wife said:

“Fool, that is not your little cat, that is the morning sun on the chimneys”.

Hansel, however, did not look back at the cat, but threw one of the white pebble-stones out of his pocket on the road.

When they reached the middle of the forest, the father said:

“Now, children, pile up some wood, and I will light a fire”.

Hansel and Gretel gathered brushwood together, as high as a little hill. The brushwood was lighted, and when the flames burnt very high, the woman said:

“Now, children, lay yourselves down by the fire and rest, we will go into the forest and cut some wood. When we do it, we will come back and fetch you away”.

Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire, and when noon came, each ate a little piece of bread. As they heard the strokes of the wood-axe, they believed that their father was near. It was not the axe, however, but a branch.

And as they sat a long time, their eyes closed with fatigue, and they fell fast asleep. When at last they awoke, it was already dark night. Gretel began to cry and said:

“How will we get out of the forest?”

But Hansel comforted her and said:

“Just wait a little, until the moon rises. Then we will soon find the way”.

And when the full moon rose, Hansel took his little sister by the hand, and followed the pebbles which shone like silver pieces, and showed them the way.

They walked the whole night long, and by break of day came once more to their father’s house. They knocked at the door, and when the woman opened it and saw that it was Hansel and Gretel, she said:

“You naughty children, why do you sleep so long in the forest? We thought you stayed there for ever!”

The father, however, rejoiced, for he was very sorry for his children.

Not long afterwards, there was once more great dearth throughout the land. The children’s stepmother said at night to their father:

“We have nothing to eat. We have one half loaf left, and that is the end. The children must go, we will take them farther into the wood, so that they will not find their way out again. There is no other means!”

The man’s heart was heavy, and he thought:

“It will be better for you to share the last mouthful with your children”.

The woman, however, did not listen to him, but scolded and reproached him. But he who says A must say B.

The children, however, were still awake and heard the conversation. When the old wood-cutter and his wife were asleep, Hansel again got up, and wanted to go out and pick up pebbles. But the door was locked, and Hansel could not get out. Nevertheless he comforted his little sister, and said:

“Do not cry, Gretel, go to sleep quietly, the good God will help us”.

Early in the morning came the woman, and took the children out of their beds. She gave them their piece of bread, but it was still smaller than the time before. On the way into the forest Hansel crumbled his in his pocket, and often stood still and threw a morsel on the ground.

“Hansel, why do you stop and look round?” said the father, “go on!”

“I want to look back at my little pigeon which is on the roof, and wants to say goodbye to me”.

“Fool!” said the woman, ‘that is not your little pigeon, that is the morning sun on the chimney”. Hansel, however little by little, threw all the crumbs on the path.

The woman led the children still deeper into the forest. Then they made a great fire again, and the stepmother said:

“Just sit there, you children, and when you are tired you may sleep a little. We will go into the forest to cut wood. We will come in the evening and fetch you away”.

When it was noon, Gretel shared her piece of bread with Hansel, who scattered his by the way. Then they fell asleep and evening passed, but no one came to the poor children. They did not awake until it was dark night. Hansel comforted his little sister and said:

“Just wait, Gretel, until the moon rises, and then we shall see the crumbs of bread. They will show us our way home again”.

When the moon came they set out, but they found no crumbs, for the many thousands of birds which fly about in the woods and fields picked them all up. Hansel said to Gretel:

‘We shall soon find the way,’ but they did not find it.

They walked the whole night and all the next day too from morning till evening, but they did not get out of the forest. They were very hungry, for they had nothing to eat but two or three berries, which grew on the ground. And as they were so weary that their legs carried them no longer, they lay down beneath a tree and fell asleep.

They spent three mornings in the wood. They began to walk again, but they always came deeper into the forest. If help doesn’t come soon, they will die of hunger and weariness!

When it was midday, they saw a beautiful snow-white bird on a bough. The bird sang so delightfully that they stood still and listened to it. And when its song was over, it spread its wings and flew away before them. The children followed it until they reached a little house, on the roof of which it alighted. When they approached the little house they saw that it was built of bread and covered with cakes, but that the windows were of clear sugar.

“We will set to work on that[5]”, said Hansel, “and have a good meal. I will eat a bit of the roof, and you Gretel, can eat some of the window, it will taste sweet”.

Hansel reached up above, and broke off a little of the roof to try how it tasted. Gretel leant against the window and nibbled at the panes. Then a soft voice cried from the parlour:

‘Nibble, nibble, gnaw,
Who is at my little house?’

The children answered:

‘The wind, the wind,
The heaven-born wind,’

and continued to eat. Hansel, who liked the taste of the roof, tore down a great piece of it. Gretel pushed out the whole of one round window-pane, sat down, and enjoyed herself with it. Suddenly the door opened, and an old woman, who supported herself on crutches, came out. Hansel and Gretel were so terribly frightened that they let fall[6] what they had in their hands. The old woman, however, nodded her head, and said:

“Oh, you dear children, who brought you here? Come in, and stay with me. No harm will happen to you”.

She took them both by the hand, and led them into her little house. Then she gave them good food, milk and pancakes, with sugar, apples, and nuts. Afterwards she covered two pretty little beds with clean white linen for them. Hansel and Gretel lay down in them, and thought they were in heaven.

But the old woman only pretended to be so kind. She was actually a wicked witch, who lay in wait for[7] children. She only built the little house of bread in order to entice them there. When a child fell into her power, she killed it, cooked and ate it, and that was a feast day with her. Witches have red eyes, and cannot see far, but they have a keen scent like the beasts, and are aware when human beings draw near.

When Hansel and Gretel came into her neighbourhood, she laughed with malice, and said mockingly:

“I got them, they won’t escape me again!”

Early in the morning before the children were awake, she was already up. The children looked so pretty, with their plump and rosy cheeks, that the witch muttered to herself:

“That will be a dainty mouthful!”

Then she seized Hansel with her shriveled hand, carried him into a little stable, and locked him in behind a grated door. He cried and screamed, but it did not help him.

Then the witch went to Gretel, shook her till she awoke, and cried:

“Get up, lazy bones, fetch some water, and cook something good for your brother. He is in the stable outside, and he must be fat. When he is fat, I will eat him”.

Gretel began to weep bitterly, but it was all in vain.

And now the best food was cooked for poor Hansel, but Gretel got nothing but crab-shells. Every morning the woman crept to the little stable, and cried:

“Hansel, stretch out your finger to see whether you are fat enough”.

Hansel, however, stretched out a little bone to her, and the old woman, who had dim eyes, could not see it, and thought it was Hansel’s finger. She was astonished that the boy still was not fat.

When four weeks passed by, and Hansel still remained thin, the witch became impatient and did not want to wait any longer.

“Now, then, Gretel”, she cried to the girl, “bring some water. Fast! Let Hansel be fat or lean, tomorrow I will kill him, and cook him”.

Ah, how the poor little sister lamented when she fetched the water! How her tears flew down her cheeks!

“Dear God, help us!” she cried. “If the wild beasts in the forest devoured us, we at any rate died together”.

“Shut up![8]” said the old woman, “it won’t help you at all”.

Early in the morning, the witch told Gretel to go out and hang up the cauldron with the water, and light the fire.

“We will bake first”, said the old woman, “I heated the oven, and kneaded the dough”.

She pushed poor Gretel out to the oven, from which flames of fire darted.

“Creep in”, said the witch, “and see if it is properly heated, so that we can put the bread in”.

And once Gretel was inside, she intended to shut the oven and bake the girl. Then the witch wanted to eat her, too.

But Gretel understood this, and said:

“I do not know how to do it. How do I get in?”

“Silly goose”, said the old woman. “The door is big enough; just look, I can get in myself!”

And the witch crept up and thrust her head into the oven. Then Gretel pushed the witch far into it, and shut the iron door, and fastened the bolt. Oh! Then the witch began to howl quite horribly, but Gretel ran away and the witch was burnt to death.

Gretel, however, ran like lightning to Hansel, opened his little stable, and cried:

“Hansel, we are saved! The old witch is dead!”

Then Hansel sprang like a bird from its cage when the door is opened. How they rejoiced and embraced each other! How they danced about and kissed each other! And as they had no longer any need to fear her, they went into the witch’s house. In every corner there stood chests full of pearls and jewels.

“These are far better than pebbles!” said Hansel, and thrust the pearls and jewels into his pockets.

Gretel said:

“I, too, will take something home with me”, and filled her pinafore full.

“But now we must go away”, said Hansel, “to get out of the witch’s forest”.

They walked for two hours, and they came to a great stretch of water.

“We cannot cross it”, said Hansel, “I see no plank, and no bridge”.

“And there is also no ferry”, answered Gretel, “but I see a white duck. I ask it, and it will help us”.

Then Gretel cried:

‘Little duck, little duck, do you see,
Hansel and Gretel are here?
There’s not a plank, or bridge in sight,
Take us across on your back so white.’

The duck came to them, and Hansel seated himself on its back, and told his sister to sit by him.

“No”, replied Gretel, “that will be too heavy for the little duck. The duck will take us across, one after the other”.

The good little duck did so, and when they were once safely across and walked for a short time, the forest was more and more familiar to them. At length[9] they saw from afar their father’s house. Then they began to run, rushed into the parlour, and threw themselves round their father’s neck. The man was very happy to see them again. The stepwoman, however, was dead. Gretel emptied her pinafore until pearls and precious stones ran about the room. Hansel threw one handful after another out of his pocket to add to them. Then they lived together in perfect happiness.

The Girl without Hands
Brothers Grimm

A certain miller was very poor, and had nothing but his mill and a large apple-tree behind it. Once when he went into the forest to fetch wood, an old man stepped up to him, and said,

“Why do you plague yourself with this wood? I will make you rich, if you promise me what is behind your mill”.

“What can that be? It’s my apple-tree”, thought the miller, and said, “Yes”.

So he gave a promise to the stranger. The old man, however, laughed mockingly and said,

“When three years pass, I will come and carry away what belongs to me”, and then he went.

When the miller got home, his wife came to meet him and said,

“Tell me, miller, from whence comes this sudden wealth into our house? All at once every box and chest was filled! No one brought it in, and I don’t know how it happened”.

He answered,

“It comes from a stranger who met me in the forest, and promised me great treasure. I, in return, promised him what stands behind the mill. We can very well give him the big apple-tree for it”.

“Ah, husband,” said the terrified wife, “that was the devil! He did not mean the apple-tree, but our daughter, who is behind the mill!”

The miller’s daughter was a beautiful, pious girl, and lived through the three years in the fear of God and without sin. When therefore the time was over, and the day came, she washed herself clean, and made a circle round herself with chalk. The devil appeared quite early, but he could not come near to her. Angrily, he said to the miller,

“Take all water away from her, that she may no longer be able to wash herself. Otherwise I have no power over her”.

The miller was afraid, and did so. The next morning the devil came again, but the girl wept on her hands, and they were quite clean. Again he could not get near her, and furiously said to the miller,

“Cut her hands off, or else I cannot get her!”

The miller was shocked and answered,

“How can I cut off my own child’s hands?”

Then the devil threatened him and said,

“If you do not do it, you are mine, and I will take you instead!”

The father became alarmed, and promised to obey him. So he went to the girl and said,

“My child, if I do not cut off both your hands, the devil will carry me away. In my terror I promised to do it. Help me in my need, and forgive me the harm”.

She replied,

“Dear father, do with me what you will, I am your child”.

Thereupon she laid down both her hands, and her father cut them off. The devil came for the third time, but she wept so long and so much on the stumps, that after all they were quite clean.

Then the devil gave in[10], and lost all power over her.

The miller said to the girl,

“Thanks to you, I received such great wealth. I will keep you most delicately as long as you live”.

But she replied,

“Here I cannot stay, I will go forth, compassionate people will give me as much as I require”.

Thereupon she asked to tie her arms to her back, and by sunrise she set out on her way. She walked the whole day until night fell. Then she came to a royal garden. She saw that trees are covered with beautiful fruits, but she could not enter, for there was much water round about it. And as she was very tired, and hunger tormented her, she thought,

“Ah, I want to find myself[11] inside and eat the fruit! Or I’ll die of hunger!”

Then she knelt down, called on the Lord, and prayed. And suddenly an angel came towards her, who made a dam in the water. The moat became dry and she could walk through it.

She went into the garden and the angel went with her. She saw a tree with beautiful pears. Then she went to them, and ate one with her mouth from the tree. The gardener watched it; but as the angel was nearby, he was afraid and thought the maiden was a spirit, and was silent. He dare not to cry out, or to speak to the spirit.

When the girl ate the pear, she was satisfied. She went and concealed herself among the bushes. The King to whom the garden belonged, came down to it next morning, and counted. He saw that one of the pears was missing[12]. The King asked the gardener about the pear. The gardener answered,

“Last night, a spirit came in, who had no hands, and ate off one of the pears with its mouth”.

The King said,

“How did the spirit get over the water? Where did it go after that?”

The gardener answered,

“Someone came in a snow-white garment from heaven who made a dam, and kept back the water. So the spirit walked through the moat. And as it was an angel, I was afraid, and asked no questions, and did not cry out. When the spirit ate the pear, it went back again”.

The King said,

“If it is so as you say, I will watch with you tonight”.

When it grew dark the King came into the garden and brought a priest with him. All three seated themselves beneath the tree and watched. At midnight the maiden came out of the thicket, went to the tree, and again ate one pear off it with her mouth. Beside her stood the angel in white garments. Then the priest went out to them and said,

“Do you come from heaven or from earth? Are you a spirit, or a human being?”

She replied,

“I am no spirit, but an unhappy girl. Everybody left me”.

The King said,

“I won’t forsake you!”

He took her with him into his royal palace, and as she was so beautiful and good, he loved her with all his heart. He made for her silver hands, and took her to wife[13].

After a year the King went to fight, so he commended his young Queen to the care of his mother and said,

“If she has a baby, nurse her well, and tell me of it at once in a letter”.

Then she gave birth to a fine boy. So the old mother wrote and announced the joyful news to the King. But the messenger rested by a brook on the way, and as he was fatigued by the great distance, he fell asleep. Then came the Devil, who wanted to injure the good Queen, and exchanged the letter for another. That new letter says that the Queen gave birth to a monster. When the King read the letter he was shocked and much troubled. But he ordered to take great care of the Queen and nurse her well until his arrival. The messenger went back with the letter, but rested at the same place and again fell asleep. Then came the Devil once more, and put a different letter in his pocket. That new letter says that they must kill the Queen and her child.

The old mother was terribly shocked when she received the letter, and could not believe it. She wrote back again to the King. But received no other answer, because each time the Devil substituted a false letter. And in every letter there was an order: to kill the Queen. Furthermore: to sent to the King the Queen’s tongue and eyes as a token.

But the old mother brought a hind by night and cut out its tongue and eyes, and kept them. Then she said to the Queen,

“I cannot kill you as the King commands, but here you may stay no longer. Go forth into the wide world with your child, and never come here again”.

The poor woman tied her child on her back, and went away with eyes full of tears. She came into a great wild forest, and then she fell on her knees and prayed to God. The angel of the Lord appeared to her and led her to a little house on which was a sign with the words,

“Here all dwell free”.

A snow-white maiden came out of the little house and said,

“Welcome, Lady Queen,” and conducted her inside.

Then they unbound the little boy from her back, and feed him and laid him in a beautiful little bed. Then the poor girl said,

“From whence do you know that I was a queen?”

The white maiden answered,

“I am a God’s angel. I’ll watch over you and your child”.

The Queen stayed seven years in the little house. By God’s grace, because of her piety, her hands grew once more.

At last the King came home again from the war, and his first wish was to see his wife and the child. Then his old mother began to weep and said,

“You wicked man, why did you write to me to kill those two innocent lives?”

She showed him the letters from the Devil, and then continued,

“I did as you ordered,” and she showed the tokens, the tongue and eyes.

Then the King began to weep for his poor wife and his little son bitterly. His aged mother said,

“Be at peace, she still lives. I secretly killed a hind, and took these tokens from it. Then I bound the child to your wife’s back and sent her away into the wide world. She will never come back here again, because you were so angry with her”.

Then the King spoke,

“I will neither eat nor drink until I find again my dear wife and my child, if they are alive!”

Thereupon the King travelled about for seven long years, and sought her in every cleft of the rocks and in every cave. But he did not find her, and thought she was dead. During the whole of this time he neither ate nor drank, but God supported him.

At length he came into a great forest, and found therein the little house whose sign was,

“Here all dwell free”.

Then forth came the white maiden, took him by the hand, led him in, and said,

“Welcome, King,” and asked him from whence he came.

He answered, “I seek my wife and her child, but cannot find them”.

The angel offered him meat and drink, but he did not take anything, and only wished to rest a little. Then he lay down to sleep, and put a handkerchief over his face.

Thereupon the angel went into the chamber where the Queen sat with her son, whom she usually called “Sorrowful,” and said to her,

“Go out with your child, your husband is here”.

So the Queen went to the place where he lay, and the handkerchief fell from his face. Then she said,

“Sorrowful, pick up your father’s handkerchief, and cover his face again”.

The child picked it up, and put it over his face again. The King in his sleep heard what passed, and threw the handkerchief away once more. But the child grew impatient, and said,

“Dear mother, how can I cover my father’s face when I have no father in this world? I only know the prayer, ‘Our Father, which is in Heaven’. My father is in Heaven, and is the good God. How can I know a wild man like this? He is not my father!”

When the King heard that, he got up, and asked who they were.

Then said she, “I am your wife, and that is thy son, Sorrowful”.

And he saw her hands, and said,

“My wife had silver hands”.

She answered,

“The good God gave me new hands”.

The angel went into the room, and brought the silver hands, and showed them to him. Hereupon he knew for a certainty that it was his dear wife and his dear child, and he kissed them.

Then the angel of God gave them one meal with her, and after that they went home to the

King’s old mother. The King and Queen were married again, and lived contentedly to their happy end.

Bluebeard
Charles Perrault

There was once a man who had fine houses, both in town and country, silver and gold plates, nice furniture, and coaches gilded all over with gold. But this man was very unlucky because he had a blue beard, which made him so frightfully ugly that all the women and girls ran away from him.

One of his neighbors, a lady of quality[14], had two daughters who were very beautiful. He desired to marry one of them. Neither of them wanted to marry him, and they sent him backwards and forwards from one to the other. They did want to have a husband with a blue beard. Furthermore, he was already married to several wives, and nobody knew what became of them.

Blue Beard invited these girls, with their mother and three or four other ladies, with other young people of the neighborhood, to one of his country houses, where they stayed a whole week.

The time was filled with parties, hunting, fishing, dancing, mirth, and feasting. Everything succeeded so well that the youngest daughter began to think that the man’s beard was not so very blue after all, and that he was a gentleman.

As soon as they returned home, the marriage was concluded. About a month afterwards, Blue Beard told his wife that he was obliged to take a country journey for six weeks at least. He desired her to divert herself in his absence, to send for her friends and acquaintances, to take them into the country, if she pleased, and to do whatever she wanted.

“Here”, said he, “are the keys to the two great wardrobes, wherein I have my best furniture. These are to my silver and gold plates. These open my strongboxes, which hold my money, both gold and silver; these my caskets of jewels. And this is the master key to all my apartments. But look at this little key. It is the key to the closet at the end of the great hall on the ground floor. Open them all; go into each and every one of them, except that little closet, which I forbid you. If you open it, you will expect my anger and resentment”.

She promised to observe, very exactly, his orders. Then he embraced her, got into his coach and proceeded on his journey.

Soon her neighbors and good friends arrived. They were impatient to see all the rich furniture of her house. They did not come while her husband was there, because of his blue beard, which frightened them. They ran through all the rooms, closets, and wardrobes, which were all fine and very rich indeed.

After that, they went up into the two great rooms, which contained the best and richest furniture. They admired the number and beauty of the tapestry, beds, couches, cabinets, stands, tables, and looking glasses, in which they could see themselves from head to foot.

They extolled and envied the happiness of their friend, who in the meantime in no way diverted herself. She was impatient to go and open the closet on the ground floor. She was so much pressed by her curiosity that she went down a little back staircase, and with such haste that she nearly fell and broke her neck.

She came to the closet door, made a stop for some time, thought about her husband’s orders, and considered to be a little disobedient. The temptation was so strong that she could not overcome it. She then took the little key, and opened it. At first she could not see anything plainly, because the windows were shut. After some moments she began to perceive that the floor was all covered over with blood, on which lay the bodies of several dead women. These were all the wives whom Blue Beard married and murdered, one after another. She was very afraid, and the key fell out of her hand.

She picked up the key, locked the door, and went upstairs into her chamber. But she was frightened very much. She observed that the key to the closet was stained with blood. She tried two or three times to wipe it off; but the blood did not come out. She washed the key in vain, and even rubbed it with soap and sand. The blood still remained, for the key was magical and she could never make it clean. When the blood was gone off from one side, it came again on the other.

Blue Beard returned from his journey the same evening. His wife tried to convince him that she was extremely happy about his return.

The next morning he asked her for the keys, which she gave him. He easily guessed what happened.

“What!” said he, “is not the key of my closet among the rest?”

“I left it”, said she, “upstairs upon the table”.

“Bring it to me!” said Blue Beard, “At once!”

She went backwards and forwards, and finally brought him the key. Blue Beard looked at it very attentively and said to his wife,

“Why is there blood on the key?”

“I do not know”, cried the poor woman, paler than death.

“You do not know!” replied Blue Beard. “I very well know. You went into the closet, did you not? Very well, madam; you’ll go back, and take your place among the ladies you saw there”.

Upon this she begged his pardon with all the signs of a true repentance. She promised him to be obedient. She was beautiful and sorrowful; but Blue Beard had a heart harder than any rock!

“You must die, madam”, said he, “at once”.

“Since I must die”, answered she, “give me some time to say my prayers”.

“I give you”, replied Blue Beard, “seven minutes, but not one moment more”.

When she was alone she called out to her sister, and said to her,

“Sister Anne, go up, I beg you, to the top of the tower, and tell me: are there my brothers on the way? They promised me to come today, and if you see them, give them a sign to make haste”.

Her sister Anne went up to the top of the tower, and the poor wife cried out from time to time,

“Anne, sister Anne, do you see anyone?”

And sister Anne said,

“I see nothing but a cloud of dust in the sun, and the green grass”.

In the meanwhile Blue Beard took a great saber, and cried out,

“Come down instantly, or I shall come up to you”.

“One moment longer, if you please”, said his wife; and then she cried out very softly, “Anne, sister Anne, do you see anybody on the road?”

And sister Anne answered,

“I see nothing but a cloud of dust in the sun, and the green grass”.

“Come down quickly!” cried Blue Beard, “or I shall come up to you!”

“One moment”, answered his wife; and then she cried, “Anne, sister Anne, do you not see anybody on the road?”

“I see”, replied sister Anne, “a great cloud of dust”.

“Are they my brothers?”

“Alas, no my dear sister, I see a flock of sheep”.

“Will you not come down?” cried Blue Beard.

“One moment longer”, said his wife, and then she cried out, “Anne, sister Anne, do you see anybody on the road?”

“I see”, said she, “two horsemen, but they are still far away”.

“God be praised![15]” replied the poor wife joyfully. “They are my brothers. I will make them a sign to make haste”.

Then Blue Beard bawled out so loud that he the whole house trembled. The distressed wife came down, and threw herself at his feet, all in tears, with her hair about her shoulders.

“This means nothing”, said Blue Beard. “You must die!”

Then he took her hair with one hand, and lifted up the sword with the other. He prepared to strike off her head. The poor lady turned about to him, and looked at him sorrowfully.

At this instant there was such a loud knocking at the gate that Blue Beard made a sudden stop. The gate was opened, and two horsemen entered. They drew their swords, and ran directly to Blue Beard. He knew them: they were his wife’s brothers, one a dragoon, the other a musketeer. Blue Beard he ran away immediately to save himself; but the two brothers pursued and overtook him. Then they ran their swords through his body and killed him. The poor wife was almost as dead as her husband, and had not strength enough to rise and welcome her brothers.

Blue Beard had no heirs, and so his wife became mistress of all his estate. She gave one part of it to her sister Anne; another part to buy captains’ commissions[16] for her brothers, and the rest to marry herself to a very worthy gentleman. She wanted to forget the ill time with Blue Beard.

The Death of the Little Hen
Brothers Grimm

Once upon a time the little hen went with the little cock to the nut-hill[17]. They made an agreement. Which of them finds a kernel of a nut will share it with the other.

Then the hen found a large, large nut, but said nothing about it. She intended to eat the kernel herself. The kernel, however, was so large that she could not swallow it. So it remained sticking[18] in her throat. The hen was alarmed. Then she cried,

“Cock, please run fast and fetch me some water, or I shall choke!”

The little cock ran as fast as he could to the spring, and said,

“Stream, give me some water; the little hen is on the nut-hill. She will choke!”

The well answered,

“First run to the bride, and ask her to give you some red silk”.

The little cock ran to the bride and said,

“Bride, give me some red silk! I want to give red silk to the well, the well will give me some water. I’ll take the water to the little hen who is on the nut-hill. She will choke!”

The bride answered,

“First run and bring me my little wreath which hangs on a willow”.

So the little cock ran to the willow, and drew the wreath from the branch and took it to the bride. The bride gave him some water for it. Then the little cock took the water to the hen. But the hen choked in the meantime, and lay there dead and motionless. Then the cock was so distressed that he cried aloud. Every animal came to lament the little hen. Six mice built a little carriage to carry her to her grave. When the carriage was ready they harnessed themselves to it, and the cock drove. On the way, however, they met the fox, who said,

“Where do you go, little cock?”

“I go to bury my little hen”.

“May I drive with you?”

“Yes, but seat thyself at the back of the carriage, for in the front my little horses could not drag you”.

Then the fox seated himself at the back, and after that the wolf, the bear, the stag, the lion, and all the beasts of the forest did the same. Then the procession went onwards, and they reached the stream.

“How will we get over?” said the little cock.

A straw was by the stream, and it said,

“I will lay myself across, and you will drive over me”.

But when the six mice came to the bridge, the straw slipped and fell into the water. The six mice all fell in and were drowned.

Then they were again in difficulty, and a coal came and said,

“I am large enough. I will lay myself across and you will drive over me”.

So the coal also laid itself across the water, but unhappily just touched it, on which the coal hissed, was extinguished and died.

When a stone saw that, it took pity on the little cock, wished to help him, and laid itself over the water. Then the cock drew the carriage himself, but when he got it over and reached the other shore with the dead hen, and was about to draw over the others, there were too many of them. The carriage ran back, and they all fell into the water together, and were drowned.

Then the little cock was left alone with the dead hen, and dug a grave for her and laid her in it. He made a mound above it, on which he sat down and fretted until he died too, and then every one was dead.

The Red Shoes
Hans Christian Andersen

There was once a little girl, very nice and very pretty, but so poor that she went barefooted all summer. And in winter she wore thick wooden shoes that chafed her ankles until they were red.

In the middle of the village lived Old Mother Shoemaker. She took some old scraps of red cloth and made them into a little pair of shoes. They were a bit clumsy, but she intended to give them to the little girl. Karen was the little girl’s name.

The first time Karen wore her new red shoes was on the very day when her mother was buried. Of course, they were not right for mourning, but they were all she had. So she put them on and walked barelegged after the plain wicker coffin.

Just then a large old carriage came by, with a large old lady inside it. She looked at the little girl and took pity upon her[19]. And she went to the parson and said:

“Give the little girl to me, and I shall take good care of her[20]”.

Karen was sure that this happened because she wore red shoes. But the old lady said the shoes were hideous, and burned them. She gave Karen new clothes. She taught Karen to read and to sew. People said she was pretty, but her mirror told her,

“You are more than pretty. You are beautiful”.

It happened that the Queen travelled through the country with her little daughter, who was a Princess. Karen went with all the people to see them at the castle. The little Princess was dressed in white. She came to the window. She didn’t wear a train[21], and she didn’t wear a gold crown. But she wore a pair of splendid red morocco shoes. Of course, they were much nicer than the ones Old Mother Shoemaker made for little Karen. There’s nothing in the world like a pair of red shoes!

When Karen was old enough, they made new clothes for her. She got new shoes. They went to the house of a thriving shoemaker, to take the measure of her little feet. In his shop were big glass cases, filled with the prettiest shoes and the shiniest boots. They looked most attractive but, the old lady did not see very well, and they did not attract her. Among the shoes there was a pair of red leather ones which were just like those the Princess had worn. How perfect they were! The shoemaker made them for the daughter of a count, but they did not quite fit her.

“They shine so brightly!” said the old lady.

“Yes, indeed they shine”, said Karen.

As the shoes fitted Karen, the old lady bought them. But she had no idea they were red.

They went to the church. Everyone looked at her feet. When she walked up the aisle to the chancel of the church, it seemed to her as if even those portraits of bygone ministers and their wives, in starched ruffs and long black gowns fixed their eyes upon her red shoes. She could think of nothing else, even when the pastor laid his hands upon her head and spoke of God and her duty as a Christian. The solemn organ rolled, the children sang sweetly, and the old choir leader sang too. But Karen thought of nothing except her red shoes.

Before the afternoon was over, the old lady heard from everyone in the parish that the shoes were red. She told Karen it was naughty to wear red shoes to church. Highly improper! In the future she will always wear black shoes to church, even though they were her old ones.

Next Sunday there was holy communion. Karen looked at her black shoes. She looked at her red ones. She looked at her red ones again – and she put them on.

It was a fair, sunny day. Karen and the old lady took the path through the cornfield, where it was rather dusty. At the church door they met an old soldier. He stood with a crutch and wore a long, curious beard. It was more reddish than white. In fact it was quite red. He bowed down to the ground, and asked the old lady to dust her shoes. Karen put out her little foot too.

“Oh, what beautiful shoes for dancing”, the soldier said. “Never come off when you dance”, he told the shoes, as he tapped the sole of each of them with his hand.

The old lady gave the soldier a penny, and went on into the church with Karen. All the people there stared at Karen’s red shoes, and all the portraits stared too. When Karen knelt at the altar rail, and even when the chalice came to her lips, she could think only of her red shoes. She forgot to sing the psalm. She forgot to say the Lord’s Prayer.

Then church was over, and the old lady got into her carriage. Karen lifted her foot to step in after her when the old soldier said,

“Oh, what beautiful shoes for dancing!”

Karen took a few dancing steps, and once her feet began to dance. It was as if the shoes controlled her. She danced round the corner of the church, she simply could not stop. The coachman ran after her, caught her, and lifted her into the carriage. But even there her feet danced so that they kicked the old lady terribly. Only when she took her shoes off her legs became still. When they got home Karen put away the shoes in a cupboard, but she often came and looked at them.

Shortly afterwards the old lady got ill. She required constant care and faithful nursing, and for this she depended on Karen. But a great ball was in the town, and Karen was invited. She looked at the old lady. The old lady will die soon in any case. Karen looked at the red shoes. She put them on. And then she went to the ball and began to dance. When she tried to turn to the right, the shoes turned to the left. When she wanted to dance up the ballroom, her shoes danced down. They danced down the stairs, into the street, and out through the gate of the town. So Karen danced everywhere, even in the wood!

Suddenly something shone through the trees, and she thought it was the moon. But it was the red-bearded soldier. He nodded and said,

“Oh, what beautiful shoes for dancing”.

She was terribly frightened, and tried to take off her shoes. She tore off her stockings, but the shoes were on her feet. And she danced over fields and valleys, in the rain and in the sun, by day and night. It was most dreadful by night. She danced over an unfenced graveyard, but the dead did not join her dance. They had better things to do. She tried to sit on a pauper’s grave, where the bitter fennel grew. But there was no rest or peace for her there. And then she danced toward the open doors of the church. She saw an angel with long white robes and wings that reached from his shoulders down to the ground. His face was grave and stern, and in his hand he held a broad, shining sword.

“You will dance!” he told her. “You will dance in your red shoes until you are pale and cold, and your flesh shrivels down to the skeleton. You will dance from door to door, and wherever there are children proud and vain you must knock at the door till they hear you, and are afraid of you. You will dance. You will dance always!”

“Have mercy upon me![22]” screamed Karen.

But she did not hear the angel’s answer. Her shoes swept her out through the gate, and across the fields, along highways and byways. She danced and danced all the time!

One morning she danced by a door she knew well. There was the sound of a hymn, and they carried out a coffin which was covered with flowers. Then she knew the old lady was dead. She was all alone in the world now, and cursed by the angel of God.

She danced and danced all the time, through the dark night. Her shoes took her through thorn and briar that scratched her until she bled. She danced across the wastelands until she came to a lonely little house. She knew that this was where the executioner lived, and she tapped with her finger on his window pane.

“Come out!” she called. “Come out! I can’t come in, for I dance all the time”.

The executioner said,

“Do you know who I am? I strike off the heads of bad people, and my ax quivers”.

“Don’t strike off my head, for then I could not repent of my sins”, said Karen. “But strike off my feet with the red shoes on them”.

She confessed her sin, and the executioner struck off her feet with the red shoes on them. The shoes danced away with her little feet, over the fields into the deep forest. But he made wooden feet and a pair of crutches for her. He taught her a hymn that prisoners sing when they are sorry for their deeds. She kissed his hand that held the ax, and went back across the wasteland.

“I suffered enough”, she said. “I shall go to the church again”.

She hobbled to church as fast as she could, but when she got there the red shoes danced in front of her, and she was frightened and turned back.

All week long she was sorry, and cried many bitter tears. But when Sunday came again she said,

“Now I think I am as good as many who sit in church and hold their heads high”.

She started out, but the moment she came to the church gate she saw her red shoes before her. More frightened than ever, she turned away, and with all her heart she really repented.

She went to the pastor’s house, and begged him to give her work as a servant. She promised to work hard, and do all that she could. Wages did not matter, if only she could have a roof over her head and be with good people. The pastor’s wife took pity on her, and gave her work at the parsonage. Karen was faithful and serious. She sat quietly in the evening, and listened to every word when the pastor read the Bible aloud. The children were devoted to her, but when they spoke of frills and furbelows, and of the beautiful queen, she shook her head.

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Примечания

1

we shall be rid of them – мы избавимся от них

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2

die of hunger – умереть от голода

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3

plane the planks – строгать доски

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4

be comforted – успокойся

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5

will set to work on that – примемся за это

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6

let fall – уронили

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7

lay in wait for – подстерегала

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8

Shut up! – Заткнись!

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9

at length – наконец

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10

gave in – отступил

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11

to find myself – оказаться

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12

was missing – отсутствовала

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13

took her to wife – взял её в жёны

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14

a lady of quality – знатная дама

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15

God be praised! – Слава Богу!

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16

to buy captains’ commissions – купить капитанские чины

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17

nut-hill – орешниковая гора

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18

remained sticking – застрял

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19

took pity upon her – сжалилась над ней

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20

I shall take good care of her – я о ней позабочусь

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21

didn’t wear a train – не носила шлейфа

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22

Have mercy upon me! – Смилуйся надо мной!

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