Cinderella

There was once a rich man whose wife fell ill, and when she felt that her end was near, she called her only little daughter to her bedside and said, "Dear child, stay good and true, and the dear God will always help you, and I will look down on you from heaven and be near you." Then she closed her eyes and passed away. Every day the girl went out to her mother's grave and wept, and she stayed good and true. When winter came, the snow spread a little white cloth over the grave, and when the spring sun had drawn it off again, the man took another wife.

This woman brought two daughters into the house with her, and they were fair and lovely of face but nasty and black of heart. Now began a hard time for the poor stepchild. "Is the silly goose to sit in the parlor with us?" they said. "Whoever wants to eat bread must earn it. Out with the kitchen-maid!" They took her pretty clothes away, dressed her in an old gray smock, and gave her wooden shoes. "Just look at the proud princess, all dressed up!" they cried, laughing, and they led her into the kitchen. There she had to do heavy work from morning until night, rising before daybreak, carrying water, lighting the fires, cooking, and washing. On top of this, the sisters did her every hurt they could think of. They mocked her and poured her peas and lentils into the ashes, so that she had to sit and pick them out again. In the evening, when she had worked herself weary, there was no bed for her; she had to lie down beside the hearth in the ashes. And because she always looked dusty and dirty, they called her Cinderella.

It happened one day that the father was setting off to the fair, and he asked his two stepdaughters what he should bring them. "Beautiful dresses," said one. "Pearls and jewels," said the second. "And you, Cinderella," he said, "what would you like?" "Father, break off for me the first branch that brushes against your hat on your way home." So he bought beautiful dresses and pearls and jewels for his two stepdaughters, and on his way home, as he rode through a green thicket, a hazel twig brushed against him and knocked off his hat. Then he broke off the branch and took it with him. When he came home, he gave his stepdaughters the things they had wished for, and to Cinderella he gave the branch from the hazel bush. Cinderella thanked him, went to her mother's grave, and planted the branch upon it, and she wept so much that her tears fell down and watered it. And it grew and became a fine tree. Three times a day Cinderella went and sat beneath it, and wept and prayed, and each time a little white bird came to the tree, and whenever she spoke a wish, the bird threw down to her whatever she had wished for.

Now it happened that the King proclaimed a festival, which was to last three days, and to which all the beautiful young girls in the land were invited, so that his son might choose himself a bride. When the two stepsisters heard that they too were to appear among the number, they were delighted, and they called Cinderella and said, "Comb our hair for us, brush our shoes, and fasten our buckles, for we are going to the festival at the King's palace." Cinderella obeyed, but she wept, because she too would gladly have gone along to the dance, and she begged her stepmother to allow it. "You, Cinderella?" she said. "You are covered in dust and dirt, and you want to go to the festival? You have no clothes and no shoes, and yet you want to dance!" But when Cinderella kept on begging, the stepmother said at last, "I have poured a dish of lentils into the ashes for you. If you have picked out the lentils again in two hours, you shall come with us." The girl went out through the back door into the garden and called, "You tame pigeons, you turtle-doves, and all you birds beneath the sky, come and help me pick—

the good ones into the pot, the bad ones into your crop."

Then two white pigeons came in at the kitchen window, and after them the turtle-doves, and at last all the birds beneath the sky came whirring and swarming in, and settled down among the ashes. And the pigeons nodded their little heads and began, peck, peck, peck, peck, and then the others began too, peck, peck, peck, peck, and they gathered all the good grains into the dish. Scarcely an hour had passed before they had finished, and they all flew out again. Then the girl brought the dish to her stepmother, glad, and believing that now she would be allowed to go along to the festival. But the stepmother said, "No, Cinderella, you have no clothes and you cannot dance; you would only be laughed at." And when Cinderella wept at this, the stepmother said, "If you can pick two dishes of lentils clean out of the ashes for me in one hour, you shall come along." And she thought to herself, "She can never do that." When the stepmother had poured the two dishes of lentils into the ashes, the girl went out through the back door into the garden and called, "You tame pigeons, you turtle-doves, and all you birds beneath the sky, come and help me pick—

the good ones into the pot, the bad ones into your crop."

Then two white pigeons came in at the kitchen window, and after them the turtle-doves, and at last all the birds beneath the sky came whirring and swarming in, and settled down among the ashes. And the pigeons nodded their little heads and began, peck, peck, peck, peck, and then the others began too, peck, peck, peck, peck, and they gathered all the good grains into the dishes. And before half an hour had passed they had finished, and they all flew out again. Then the girl carried the dishes to her stepmother, glad, and believing that now she would be allowed to go along to the festival. But the stepmother said, "It is all no use. You are not coming with us, for you have no clothes and cannot dance; we should be ashamed of you." At that she turned her back on Cinderella and hurried away with her two proud daughters.

Now that no one was left at home, Cinderella went to her mother's grave beneath the hazel tree and called,

"Little tree, shiver and shake, gold and silver over me rake."

Then the bird threw down to her a dress of gold and silver, and slippers embroidered with silk and silver. In great haste she put on the dress and went to the festival. But her sisters and stepmother did not know her, and thought she must be some foreign princess, so beautiful did she look in the golden dress. They never once thought of Cinderella, but believed she was sitting at home in the dirt, picking the lentils out of the ashes. The prince came toward her, took her by the hand, and danced with her. He would dance with no one else, and never let go of her hand, and if anyone else came to invite her, he said, "This is my partner."

She danced until it was evening, and then she wanted to go home. But the King's son said, "I will come with you and see you there," for he wanted to see whose daughter the beautiful girl was. But she slipped away from him and sprang into the pigeon house. The King's son waited until her father came, and told him that the strange girl had leapt into the pigeon house. The old man thought, "Could it be Cinderella?" and they had to bring him an axe and a pick so that he could break the pigeon house to pieces; but no one was inside. And when they came into the house, Cinderella was lying in her dirty clothes among the ashes, with a dim little oil lamp burning in the chimney; for Cinderella had jumped quickly down from the back of the pigeon house and run to the little hazel tree. There she had taken off her beautiful clothes and laid them on the grave, and the bird had carried them away again, and then she had settled herself in her little gray smock in the kitchen among the ashes.

The next day, when the festival began afresh and her parents and stepsisters had gone off once more, Cinderella went to the hazel tree and said,

"Little tree, shiver and shake, gold and silver over me rake."

Then the bird threw down a dress far more splendid than the day before. And when Cinderella appeared at the festival in this dress, everyone was astonished at her beauty. The King's son had waited for her to come, and at once he took her by the hand and danced with no one but her. When others came and invited her, he said, "This is my partner." When evening came, she wished to leave, and the King's son followed her, wanting to see which house she went into. But she sprang away from him and into the garden behind the house. There stood a beautiful tall tree, hung with the most magnificent pears. She clambered up between the branches, as nimble as a squirrel, and the King's son did not know where she had gone. He waited until her father came and said to him, "The strange girl has slipped away from me, and I believe she has climbed up the pear tree." The father thought, "Could it be Cinderella?" and he had an axe brought and chopped the tree down, but no one was in it. And when they came into the kitchen, Cinderella was lying there among the ashes, as usual, for she had jumped down the other side of the tree, had carried the beautiful clothes back to the bird on the little hazel tree, and had put on her little gray smock.

On the third day, when her parents and sisters had gone off, Cinderella went once more to her mother's grave and said to the little tree,

"Little tree, shiver and shake, gold and silver over me rake."

And now the bird threw down to her a dress so splendid and shining that she had never had its like, and the slippers were all of gold. And when she came to the festival in this dress, no one knew what to say for wonder. The King's son danced with her alone, and if anyone else invited her, he said, "This is my partner."

When evening came, Cinderella wished to leave, and the King's son wanted to go with her, but she sprang away from him so quickly that he could not follow. The King's son, however, had used a clever trick: he had had the whole staircase smeared with pitch, and as she ran down, the girl's left slipper stuck fast there. The King's son picked it up, and it was small and dainty and all of gold. The next morning he went with it to the father and said, "No one shall be my wife but she whose foot this golden shoe fits." Then the two sisters were glad, for they had pretty feet. The eldest took the shoe into her room to try it on, and her mother stood by. But she could not get her big toe in, and the shoe was too small for her. Then her mother handed her a knife and said, "Cut off the toe. When you are Queen, you will have no more need to go on foot." The girl cut off her toe, forced her foot into the shoe, choked down the pain, and went out to the King's son. Then he took her onto his horse as his bride and rode away with her. But they had to pass by the grave, and there on the hazel tree sat the two pigeons, and they cried,

"Coo and look, coo and look— blood is in the shoe. The shoe is far too small for her; the true bride waits for you."

Then he looked down at her foot and saw how the blood was streaming out. He turned his horse around and brought the false bride home again, and said she was not the right one, and that the other sister should put on the shoe. So she went into her room and got her toes into the shoe well enough, but her heel was too large. Then her mother handed her a knife and said, "Cut a bit off your heel. When you are Queen, you will have no more need to go on foot." The girl cut a bit off her heel, forced her foot into the shoe, choked down the pain, and went out to the King's son. He took her onto his horse as his bride and rode away with her, but when they passed the hazel tree, the two little pigeons sat on it and cried,

"Coo and look, coo and look— blood is in the shoe. The shoe is far too small for her; the true bride waits for you."

He looked down at her foot and saw how the blood was running out of her shoe and had stained her white stocking all red. Then he turned his horse and brought the false bride home again. "This is not the right one either," he said. "Have you no other daughter?" "No," said the man. "There is only a stunted little Cinderella that my late wife left behind, but she could never be the bride." The King's son said he should send her up to him, but the mother answered, "Oh no, she is far too dirty; she cannot let herself be seen." But he absolutely insisted, and Cinderella had to be called. First she washed her hands and face clean, then she came and bowed before the King's son, who held out the golden shoe to her. Then she sat down on a stool, drew her foot out of the heavy wooden shoe, and slipped it into the slipper, and it fitted like a glove. And when she stood up and the King's son looked into her face, he recognized the beautiful girl who had danced with him, and cried, "That is the true bride!" The stepmother and the two sisters were horrified and turned pale with rage; but he took Cinderella onto his horse and rode away with her. As they passed the hazel tree, the two white doves cried,

"Coo and look, coo and look— no blood is in the shoe. The shoe is not too small for her; the true bride rides with you."

And when they had cried this, they both came flying down and settled on Cinderella's shoulders, one on the right and one on the left, and there they stayed.

When the wedding with the King's son was to be held, the false sisters came, wanting to worm their way into her favor and share in her good fortune. As the wedding pair walked to the church, the eldest was on the right side and the youngest on the left, and the pigeons pecked out one eye from each of them. Afterward, as they came out, the eldest was on the left and the youngest on the right, and the pigeons pecked out the other eye from each. And so, for their wickedness and falseness, they were punished with blindness for the rest of their days.