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The White Snake
THE WHITE SNAKE
A long time ago there lived a king who was famed for his wisdom
through all the land. Nothing was hidden from him, and it seemed as if
news of the most secret things was brought to him through the air. But
he had a strange custom; every day after dinner, when the table was
cleared, and no one else was present, a trusty servant had to bring
him one more dish. It was covered, however, and even the servant did
not know what was in it, neither did anyone know, for the king never
took off the cover to eat of it until he was quite alone.
This had gone on for a long time, when one day the servant, who took
away the dish, was overcome with such curiosity that he could not help
carrying the dish into his room. When he had carefully locked the
door, he lifted up the cover, and saw a white snake lying on the dish.
But when he saw it he could not deny himself the pleasure of tasting
it, so he cut of a little bit and put it into his mouth. No sooner had
it touched his tongue than he heard a strange whispering of little
voices outside his window. He went and listened, and then noticed that
it was the sparrows who were chattering together, and telling one
another of all kinds of things which they had seen in the fields and
woods. Eating the snake had given him power of understanding the
language of animals.
Now it so happened that on this very day the queen lost her most
beautiful ring, and suspicion of having stolen it fell upon this
trusty servant, who was allowed to go everywhere. The king ordered the
man to be brought before him, and threatened with angry words that
unless he could before the morrow point out the thief, he himself
should be looked upon as guilty and executed. In vain he declared his
innocence; he was dismissed with no better answer.
In his trouble and fear he went down into the courtyard and took
thought how to help himself out of his trouble. Now some ducks were
sitting together quietly by a brook and taking their rest; and, whilst
they were making their feathers smooth with their bills, they were
having a confidential conversation together. The servant stood by and
listened. They were telling one another of all the places where they
had been waddling about all the morning, and what good food they had
found; and one said in a pitiful tone: 'Something lies heavy on my
stomach; as I was eating in haste I swallowed a ring which lay under
the queen's window.' The servant at once seized her by the neck,
carried her to the kitchen, and said to the cook: 'Here is a fine
duck; pray, kill her.' 'Yes,' said the cook, and weighed her in his
hand; 'she has spared no trouble to fatten herself, and has been
waiting to be roasted long enough.' So he cut off her head, and as she
was being dressed for the spit, the queen's ring was found inside her.
The servant could now easily prove his innocence; and the king, to
make amends for the wrong, allowed him to ask a favour, and promised
him the best place in the court that he could wish for. The servant
refused everything, and only asked for a horse and some money for
travelling, as he had a mind to see the world and go about a little.
When his request was granted he set out on his way, and one day came
to a pond, where he saw three fishes caught in the reeds and gasping
for water. Now, though it is said that fishes are dumb, he heard them
lamenting that they must perish so miserably, and, as he had a kind
heart, he got off his horse and put the three prisoners back into the
water. They leapt with delight, put out their heads, and cried to him:
'We will remember you and repay you for saving us!'
He rode on, and after a while it seemed to him that he heard a voice
in the sand at his feet. He listened, and heard an ant-king complain:
'Why cannot folks, with their clumsy beasts, keep off our bodies? That
stupid horse, with his heavy hoofs, has been treading down my people
without mercy!' So he turned on to a side path and the ant-king cried
out to him: 'We will remember you--one good turn deserves another!'
The path led him into a wood, and there he saw two old ravens standing
by their nest, and throwing out their young ones. 'Out with you, you
idle, good-for-nothing creatures!' cried they; 'we cannot find food
for you any longer; you are big enough, and can provide for
yourselves.' But the poor young ravens lay upon the ground, flapping
their wings, and crying: 'Oh, what helpless chicks we are! We must
shift for ourselves, and yet we cannot fly! What can we do, but lie
here and starve?' So the good young fellow alighted and killed his
horse with his sword, and gave it to them for food. Then they came
hopping up to it, satisfied their hunger, and cried: 'We will remember
you--one good turn deserves another!'
And now he had to use his own legs, and when he had walked a long way,
he came to a large city. There was a great noise and crowd in the
streets, and a man rode up on horseback, crying aloud: 'The king's
daughter wants a husband; but whoever seeks her hand must perform a
hard task, and if he does not succeed he will forfeit his life.' Many
had already made the attempt, but in vain; nevertheless when the youth
saw the king's daughter he was so overcome by her great beauty that he
forgot all danger, went before the king, and declared himself a
suitor.
So he was led out to the sea, and a gold ring was thrown into it,
before his eyes; then the king ordered him to fetch this ring up from
the bottom of the sea, and added: 'If you come up again without it you
will be thrown in again and again until you perish amid the waves.'
All the people grieved for the handsome youth; then they went away,
leaving him alone by the sea.
He stood on the shore and considered what he should do, when suddenly
he saw three fishes come swimming towards him, and they were the very
fishes whose lives he had saved. The one in the middle held a mussel
in its mouth, which it laid on the shore at the youth's feet, and when
he had taken it up and opened it, there lay the gold ring in the
shell. Full of joy he took it to the king and expected that he would
grant him the promised reward.
But when the proud princess perceived that he was not her equal in
birth, she scorned him, and required him first to perform another
task. She went down into the garden and strewed with her own hands ten
sacksful of millet-seed on the grass; then she said: 'Tomorrow morning
before sunrise these must be picked up, and not a single grain be
wanting.'
The youth sat down in the garden and considered how it might be
possible to perform this task, but he could think of nothing, and
there he sat sorrowfully awaiting the break of day, when he should be
led to death. But as soon as the first rays of the sun shone into the
garden he saw all the ten sacks standing side by side, quite full, and
not a single grain was missing. The ant-king had come in the night
with thousands and thousands of ants, and the grateful creatures had
by great industry picked up all the millet-seed and gathered them into
the sacks.
Presently the king's daughter herself came down into the garden, and
was amazed to see that the young man had done the task she had given
him. But she could not yet conquer her proud heart, and said:
'Although he has performed both the tasks, he shall not be my husband
until he had brought me an apple from the Tree of Life.' The youth did
not know where the Tree of Life stood, but he set out, and would have
gone on for ever, as long as his legs would carry him, though he had
no hope of finding it. After he had wandered through three kingdoms,
he came one evening to a wood, and lay down under a tree to sleep. But
he heard a rustling in the branches, and a golden apple fell into his
hand. At the same time three ravens flew down to him, perched
themselves upon his knee, and said: 'We are the three young ravens
whom you saved from starving; when we had grown big, and heard that
you were seeking the Golden Apple, we flew over the sea to the end of
the world, where the Tree of Life stands, and have brought you the
apple.' The youth, full of joy, set out homewards, and took the Golden
Apple to the king's beautiful daughter, who had now no more excuses
left to make. They cut the Apple of Life in two and ate it together;
and then her heart became full of love for him, and they lived in
undisturbed happiness to a great age.
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