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18 - Folk Tales Every Child Should Know by Hamilton Wright Mabie · Folk Tales Every Child Should Know

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Speaker 1: Chapter seventeen of Folk Tales Every Child Should Know. This
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Speaker 1: is the LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the
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Speaker 1: public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit
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Speaker 1: LibriVox dot org. Recording by Ellen Prepple. Folk Tales Every
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Speaker 1: Child Should Know by Hamilton Wright maybe chapter seventeen, The
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Speaker 1: Greedy Youngster. Once upon a time there were five women
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Speaker 1: who were in a field reaping corn. None of them
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Speaker 1: had any children, but they were all wishing for a child.
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Speaker 1: All at once they found a big goose egg, almost
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Speaker 1: as big as a man's head. I saw it first,
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Speaker 1: said one. I saw it just as soon as you did,
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Speaker 1: shouted another. But I'll have it, screamed the third. I
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Speaker 1: saw it first of all. Thus they kept on quarreling
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Speaker 1: and fighting about the egg, and they were very near
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Speaker 1: tearing each other's hair. But at last they agreed that
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Speaker 1: it should belong to them all, and that they should
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Speaker 1: sit on it as the geese do, and hatch a gosling.
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Speaker 1: The first woman sat on it for eight days, taking
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Speaker 1: it very comfortably and doing nothing at all, while the
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Speaker 1: others had to work hard, both for their own and
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Speaker 1: her living. One of the women began to make some
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Speaker 1: insinuations to her about this. Well, I suppose you didn't
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Speaker 1: come out of the egg either before you could chirp,
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Speaker 1: said the woman who was on the egg. But I
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Speaker 1: think there is something in this egg, for I fancy
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Speaker 1: I can hear some one inside grumbling every other moment
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Speaker 1: herring and soup, porridge and milk. You can come and
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Speaker 1: sit for eight days now, and then we will sit
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Speaker 1: and work, in turn, all of us. So when the
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Speaker 1: fifth in turn had sat for eight days, she heard
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Speaker 1: plainly some one inside the egg screeching for herrying and soup,
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Speaker 1: porridge and milk. And so she made a hole in it.
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Speaker 1: But instead of a gosling, out came a baby. But
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Speaker 1: it was awfully ugly and had a big head and
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Speaker 1: tiny little body. The first thing it screamed out for
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Speaker 1: as soon as it put its head outside the egg
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Speaker 1: was herring and soup, porridge and milk. And so they
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Speaker 1: called it the greedy youngster. Ugly as he was, they
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Speaker 1: were fond of him at first, but before long he
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Speaker 1: became so greedy that he ate up all the meat
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Speaker 1: they had. When they boiled a dish of soup or
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Speaker 1: a pot of porridge, which they thought would be sufficient
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Speaker 1: for all six. He finished it all by himself, so
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Speaker 1: they would not have him any longer. I have not
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Speaker 1: had a decent meal since this changeling crept out of
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Speaker 1: the egg shell, said one of them. And when the
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Speaker 1: youngster heard that they were all of the same opinion,
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Speaker 1: he said he was quite willing to go his way
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Speaker 1: if they did not want him. He was sure he
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Speaker 1: did not want them, and with that he left the place.
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Speaker 1: After a long time, he came to a farm where
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Speaker 1: the fields were full of stones, and he went in
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Speaker 1: and asked for a situation. They wanted a laborer on
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Speaker 1: the farm, and the farmer put him to pick up
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Speaker 1: stones from the field. Yes, the youngster went to work
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Speaker 1: and picked up the stones, some of which were so
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Speaker 1: big that they would make many cart loads. But whether
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Speaker 1: they were big or small, he put them all into
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Speaker 1: his pocket. It did not take him long to finish
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Speaker 1: that job, so he wanted to know what he should
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Speaker 1: do next. You will have to get all the stones
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Speaker 1: out of the field, said the farmer. I suppose you
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Speaker 1: can't be ready before you've commenced. But the youngster emptied
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Speaker 1: his pockets and threw all the stones in a heap.
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Speaker 1: Then The farmer saw that he had finished the work,
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Speaker 1: and he thought he ought to look well after one
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Speaker 1: who was so strong. He must come in and get
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Speaker 1: something to eat, he said. The youngster thought so too,
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Speaker 1: and he alone ate what was prepared, both for master
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Speaker 1: and servants. And still he was only half satisfied. He
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Speaker 1: is the right sort of man for a laborer. But
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Speaker 1: he is a terrible eater, to be sure, thought the farmer.
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Speaker 1: A man like him would eat a poor farmer out
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Speaker 1: of house and home before anybody knew a word about it.
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Speaker 1: He said he had no more work for him than
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Speaker 1: it was best for him to go to the king's palace.
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Speaker 1: The youngster set out for the palace, where he got
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Speaker 1: a place at once. There was plenty of food and
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Speaker 1: plenty of work. He was to be errand boy, and
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Speaker 1: to help the girls, to carry wood and water, and
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Speaker 1: do other odd jobs. So he asked what he was
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Speaker 1: to do first. You had better chop some wood in
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Speaker 1: the meantime, they said yes. He commenced to chop and
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Speaker 1: cut wood till the splinters flew about him. It was
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Speaker 1: not long before he had chopped up everything in the place,
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Speaker 1: both firewood and timber, both rafters and beams, and when
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Speaker 1: he was ready with it, he came in and asked
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Speaker 1: what he was to do. Now, you can finish chopping
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Speaker 1: the wood, they said, there is no more to chob
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Speaker 1: He answered that could not be possible, thought the overlooker,
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Speaker 1: and had a look into the wood shed. But yes,
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Speaker 1: the youngster had chopped up everything. He had even cut
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Speaker 1: up the timber and planks in the place. This was vexatious,
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Speaker 1: the overlooker said, And then he told the youngster that
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Speaker 1: he should not taste food until he had gone into
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Speaker 1: the forest and cut just as much timber as he
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Speaker 1: had chopped up for firewood. The youngster went to the
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Speaker 1: smithy and got the smithy to help him make an
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Speaker 1: axe of five hundredweight of iron. Then he set out
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Speaker 1: for the forest and began to make a regular clearance,
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Speaker 1: not only of the pine and the lofty fir trees,
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Speaker 1: but of everything else which was to be found in
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Speaker 1: the King's forests and in the neighbors as well. He
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Speaker 1: did not stop to cut the branches or the tops off,
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Speaker 1: but he left them lying there as if a hurricane
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Speaker 1: had blown them down. He put a proper load on
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Speaker 1: the sledge and put all the horses to it, but
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Speaker 1: they could not even move it. So he took the
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Speaker 1: horses by the heads to give the sledge a start,
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Speaker 1: but he pulled so hard that the horses heads came off.
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Speaker 1: He then turned the horses out of the shafts and
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Speaker 1: drew the load himself. When he came to the palace,
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Speaker 1: the king and his overlooker were standing in the hall
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Speaker 1: to give him a scolding for having destroyed the forest.
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Speaker 1: The overlooker had been there and seen what he had
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Speaker 1: been doing. But when the King saw the youngster dragging
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Speaker 1: half the forest after him, he got both angry and afraid.
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Speaker 1: But he thought he had better be a little careful
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Speaker 1: with him, since he was so strong. Well, you are
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Speaker 1: a wonderful workman, to be sure, said the king, But
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Speaker 1: how much do you eat at a time, because I
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Speaker 1: suppose you are hungry now. Oh, when he was to
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Speaker 1: have a proper meal of porridge, it would take twelve
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Speaker 1: barrels of meal to make it, thought the youngster. But
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Speaker 1: when he had put that away he could wait awhile,
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Speaker 1: of course, for his next meal. It took some time
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Speaker 1: to boil such a dish of porridge, and meantime he
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Speaker 1: was to bring in a little firewood for the cook.
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Speaker 1: He put a lot of wood on the sledge, but
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Speaker 1: when he was coming through the door with it he
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Speaker 1: was a little rough and careless. Again, the house got
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Speaker 1: almost out of shape, and all the joists creaked, and
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Speaker 1: he was very near dragging down the whole palace. When
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Speaker 1: the porridge was nearly ready, they sent him out to
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Speaker 1: call the people home from the fields. He shouted so
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Speaker 1: that the mountains and hills around rang with echoes, but
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Speaker 1: the people did not come quickly enough for him. He
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Speaker 1: came to blows with them and killed twelve of them.
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Speaker 1: You have killed twelve men, said the king, and you
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Speaker 1: eat for many times twelve. But how many do you
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Speaker 1: work for for many times twelve as well? Answered the youngster.
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Speaker 1: When he had finished his porridge, he was to go
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Speaker 1: into the barn to thrash. He took one of the
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Speaker 1: rafters from the roof and made a flail out of it,
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Speaker 1: And when the roof was about to fall in, he
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Speaker 1: took a big pine tree, with branches and all, and
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Speaker 1: put it up instead of the rafter. And so he
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Speaker 1: went on thrashing the grain and the straw and the
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Speaker 1: hay all together. This was doing more damage than good
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Speaker 1: for the corn in the chaff flew about together, and
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Speaker 1: a cloud of dust arose over the whole palace. When
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Speaker 1: he had nearly finished thrashing, enemies came into the country
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Speaker 1: as a war was coming on. So the king told
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Speaker 1: the youngster that he should take men with him and
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Speaker 1: go and meet the enemy and fight them. For the
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Speaker 1: king thought they would surely kill him. No, he would
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Speaker 1: not have any men with him to be cut to pieces.
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Speaker 1: He would fight by himself, answered the youngster. So much
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Speaker 1: the better, thought the king. The sooner I shall get
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Speaker 1: rid of him. But he must have a proper club.
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Speaker 1: They sent for the smith. He forged a club which
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Speaker 1: weighed a hundredweight. A very nice thing to crack nuts with,
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Speaker 1: said the youngster. So the smith made one of three hundredweight.
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Speaker 1: It would be very well for hammering nails into boots,
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Speaker 1: was the answer. Well, the smith could not make a
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Speaker 1: bigger one with the men he had, So the youngster
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Speaker 1: set out for the smith. He himself had made a
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Speaker 1: club that weighed five tons, and it took a hundred
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Speaker 1: men to turn it on the anvil. That one might do.
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Speaker 1: For lack of a better thought the youngster. He wanted
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Speaker 1: next a bag with some provisions. They had to make
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Speaker 1: one out of fifteen ox hides, and they filled it
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Speaker 1: with food and the way he went down the hill
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Speaker 1: with the bag on his back and the club on
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Speaker 1: his shoulder. When he came so far that the enemy's
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Speaker 1: saw him, they sent a soldier to ask him if
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Speaker 1: he was going to fight them. Yes, but wait a
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Speaker 1: little till I have had something to eat, said the youngster.
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Speaker 1: He threw himself down on the grass and began to eat,
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Speaker 1: with a big bag of food in front of him.
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Speaker 1: But the enemy would not wait and commenced to fire
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Speaker 1: at him at once till it rained and hailed around
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Speaker 1: him with bullets. I don't mind these crowberries a bit,
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Speaker 1: said the youngster, and went on eating harder than ever.
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Speaker 1: Neither lead nor iron took any effect upon him, and
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Speaker 1: his bag with food in front of him guarded him
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Speaker 1: against the bullets as if it were a rampart. So
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Speaker 1: they commenced throwing bomb shells and firing cannons at him.
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Speaker 1: He only grinned a little every time he felt them.
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Speaker 1: They don't hurt me a bit, he said, But just
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Speaker 1: then he got a bomb shell right down his windpipe. Fine,
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Speaker 1: he shouted, and spat it out again, But then a
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Speaker 1: chain shot made its way into his butter can, and
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Speaker 1: another carried away the piece of food he held between
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Speaker 1: his fingers. That made him angry. He got up and
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Speaker 1: took his big club and struck the ground with it,
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Speaker 1: asking them if they wanted to take the food out
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Speaker 1: of his mouth, and what they meant by blowing crowberries
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Speaker 1: at him with those pea shooters of theirs. He then
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Speaker 1: struck the ground again till the hills and rocks rattled
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Speaker 1: and shook, and sent the enemy flying in the air
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Speaker 1: like chaff. This finished the war. When he came home
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Speaker 1: again and asked for more work, the king was quite
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Speaker 1: taken aback, for he thought that he should have got
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Speaker 1: rid of him in the war. He knew of nothing
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Speaker 1: else but to send him on a message to the devil.
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Speaker 1: You had better go to the devil and ask him
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Speaker 1: for my ground rent, he said. The youngster took his
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Speaker 1: bag on his back and started at once. He was
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Speaker 1: not long in getting there, but the devil was gone
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Speaker 1: to court, and there was no one at home but
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Speaker 1: his mother, and she said that she had never heard
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Speaker 1: talk of any ground rent. He had better call again
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Speaker 1: another time, Yes, call again, tomorrow is always the cry,
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Speaker 1: he said. But he was not going to be made
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Speaker 1: a fool of. He told her he was there, and
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Speaker 1: there he would remain till he got the ground rent.
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Speaker 1: He had plenty of time to wait, but when he
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Speaker 1: had finished all the food in his bag, the time
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Speaker 1: hung heavy on his hands. And then he asked the
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Speaker 1: old lady for the ground rent again. She had better
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Speaker 1: pay it now, he said, No, she was going to
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Speaker 1: do nothing of the sort, she said. Her words were
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Speaker 1: as firm as the old fir tree just outside the gates,
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Speaker 1: which was so big that fifteen men could scarcely span it.
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Speaker 1: But the youngster climbed right up in the top of
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Speaker 1: it and twisted and turned it as if it was
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Speaker 1: a willow. And then he asked her if she was
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Speaker 1: going to pay the ground rent now. Yes, she dared
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Speaker 1: not do anything else, and scraped together as much money
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Speaker 1: as he thought he could carry in his bag. He
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Speaker 1: then set out for home with the ground rent. But
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Speaker 1: as soon as he was gone, the devil came home.
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Speaker 1: When he heard that the youngster had gone off with
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Speaker 1: his bag full of money, he first of all gave
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Speaker 1: his mother a hiding, and then he started after him,
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Speaker 1: thinking he would soon overtake him. He soon came up
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Speaker 1: to him, for he had nothing to carry, and now
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Speaker 1: and then he used his wings. But the youngster had,
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Speaker 1: of course to keep to the ground with his heavy bag.
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Speaker 1: Just as the devil was at his heels, he began
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Speaker 1: to jump and run as fast as he could. He
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Speaker 1: kept his club behind him to keep the devil off.
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Speaker 1: And thus they went along, the youngster holding the handle,
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Speaker 1: and the devil trying to catch hold of the other
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Speaker 1: end of it, till they came to a deep valley.
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Speaker 1: There the youngster made a jump across from the top
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Speaker 1: of one hill to the other, and the devil was
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Speaker 1: in such a hurry to follow him that he ran
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Speaker 1: his head against the club and fell down into the
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Speaker 1: valley and broke his leg, and there he lay. There
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Speaker 1: is the ground rent, said the youngster, when he came
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Speaker 1: to the palace, and threw the bag with the money
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Speaker 1: to the king with such a crash that she could
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Speaker 1: hear it all over the hall. The king thanked him,
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Speaker 1: it appeared to be well pleased, and promised him good
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Speaker 1: pay and leave of absence if he wished. But the
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Speaker 1: youngster wanted only more work. What shall I do now?
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Speaker 1: He said. As soon as the king had had time
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Speaker 1: to consider, he told him that he must go to
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Speaker 1: the hill troll who had taken his grandfather's sword. The
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Speaker 1: troll had a castle by the sea, where no one
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Speaker 1: dared to go. The youngster put some cart loads of
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Speaker 1: food into his bag and set out again. He traveled
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Speaker 1: both long and far, over woods and hills and wild moors,
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Speaker 1: till he came to the big mountains where the troll
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Speaker 1: who had taken the sword of the king's grandfather was living.
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Speaker 1: But the troll seldom came out in the open air,
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Speaker 1: and the mountain was well closed, so the youngster was
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Speaker 1: not man enough to get inside. So he joined a
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Speaker 1: gang of quarrymen who were living at a farm on
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Speaker 1: top of the hill, and who were quarrying stones in
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Speaker 1: the hills about there. They had never had such help before,
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Speaker 1: for he broke and hammered away at the rocks till
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Speaker 1: the mountain cracked, and big stones the size of a
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Speaker 1: house rolled down the hill. But when he rested to
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Speaker 1: get his dinner, for which he was going to have
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Speaker 1: one of the cartloads in his bag, he found it
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Speaker 1: was all eaten up. I have generally a good appetite myself,
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Speaker 1: said the youngster. But the one who has been here
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Speaker 1: can do a trifle more than I, for he has
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Speaker 1: eaten all the bones as well. Thus the first day
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Speaker 1: passed and he fared no better the second. On the
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Speaker 1: third day he set out to break stones again, taking
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Speaker 1: with him the third load of food. But he lay
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Speaker 1: down behind the bag and pretended to be asleep. All
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Speaker 1: of a sudden a troll with seven heads came out
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Speaker 1: of the mountain and began to eat his food. It's
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Speaker 1: all ready for me here, and I will eat, said
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Speaker 1: the troll. We will see about that, said the youngster,
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Speaker 1: and hit the troll with his clubs of the heads
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Speaker 1: rolled down the hill. So he went into the mountain
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Speaker 1: which the troll had come out of, and in there
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Speaker 1: stood a horse eating out of a barrel of glowing cinders,
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Speaker 1: and behind it stood a barrel of oats. Why don't
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Speaker 1: you eat out of the barrel of oats, asked the youngster,
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Speaker 1: Because I cannot turn round, said the horse. But I
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Speaker 1: will soon turn you round, said the youngster. Rather cut
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Speaker 1: my head off, said the horse. So he cut its
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Speaker 1: head off, and the horse turned into a fine, handsome fellow.
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Speaker 1: He said he had been bewitched and taken into the
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Speaker 1: mountain and turned into a horse by the troll. He
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Speaker 1: then helped the youngster to find the sword, which the
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Speaker 1: troll had hidden at the bottom of the bed. And
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Speaker 1: in the bed lay the old mother of the troll,
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Speaker 1: asleep and snoring hard. So they set out for home
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Speaker 1: by water. But when they had got some distance out
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Speaker 1: to see, the old mother came after them. As she
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Speaker 1: could not overtake them, she lay down and began to
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Speaker 1: drink the sea, and she till the water fell. But
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Speaker 1: she could not drink the sea dry, and so she burst.
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Speaker 1: When they came to land, the youngster sent word that
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Speaker 1: the king must come and fetch the sword. He sent
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Speaker 1: four horses, but no, they could not move it. He
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Speaker 1: sent eight, and he sent twelve, but the sword remained
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Speaker 1: where it was. They were not able to stir it
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Speaker 1: from the spot. But the youngster took it and carried
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Speaker 1: it up to the palace alone. The king could not
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Speaker 1: believe his eyes when he saw the youngster back again.
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Speaker 1: He appeared, however, to be pleased to see him, and
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Speaker 1: promised him land and riches. When the youngster wanted more work,
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Speaker 1: the king said he might set out for an enchanted
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Speaker 1: castle he had where no one dared to live, and
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Speaker 1: he would have to stop there till he had built
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Speaker 1: a bridge over the sound so that people could get
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Speaker 1: across to the castle. If he was able to do this,
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Speaker 1: he would reward him handsomely. Yes, he would even give
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Speaker 1: him his daughter in marriage, said he. Well, I think
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Speaker 1: I can do it, said the youngster. No one had
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Speaker 1: ever got away alive. Those who had got as far
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Speaker 1: as the castle lay there, killed and torn to piece
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Speaker 1: as small as barley. And the king thought he should
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Speaker 1: never see him any more if he would go thither.
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Speaker 1: But the youngster started on his expedition. He took with
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Speaker 1: him a bag of food, a crooked, twisted block of
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Speaker 1: a fir tree, an axe, a wedge, and some chips
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Speaker 1: of the fur root, and the small pauper boy at
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Speaker 1: the palace. When he came to the sound, he found
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Speaker 1: the river full of ice, and the current ran as
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Speaker 1: strong as a waterfall. But he stuck his legs to
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Speaker 1: the bottom of the river and waited until he got
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Speaker 1: safe across. When he had warmed himself and had something
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Speaker 1: to eat, he wanted to go to sleep, But before
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Speaker 1: long he heard such a terrible noise as if they
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Speaker 1: were turning the castle upside down. The door burst wide open,
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Speaker 1: and he saw nothing but a gaping jaw extending from
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Speaker 1: the threshold up to the lintel. There is a mouthful
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Speaker 1: for you, said the youngster, and threw the pauper boy
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Speaker 1: into the swallow taste that. But let me see now
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Speaker 1: who you are. Perhaps you are an old acquaintance, And
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Speaker 1: so it was it was the devil who was about again.
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Speaker 1: They began to play cards, for the devil wanted to
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Speaker 1: try and win back some of the ground red which
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Speaker 1: the youngster had got out of his mother by threats
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Speaker 1: when he was sent by the king to collect it.
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Speaker 1: But the youngster was always the fortunate one, for he
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Speaker 1: put a cross on the back of all the good cards.
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Speaker 1: And when he had won all the money which the
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Speaker 1: devil had upon him, the devil had to pay him
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Speaker 1: out of the golden silver which was in the castle.
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Speaker 1: Suddenly the fire went out, so they could not tell
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Speaker 1: the one card from the other. We must chop some wood, now,
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Speaker 1: said the youngster, who drove the axe into the fur
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Speaker 1: block and forced the wedge in. But the twisted, knotty
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Speaker 1: block would not split. Although the youngster worked as hard
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Speaker 1: as he could with the axe. They say you're strong,
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Speaker 1: he said to the devil. Just spit on your hands,
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Speaker 1: stick your claws in, and tear away, and let me
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Speaker 1: see what you were made of. The devil did so,
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Speaker 1: and put both his fists into the split and pulled
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Speaker 1: as hard as he could. When the youngster suddenly struck
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Speaker 1: the wedge out, and the devil stuck fast in the block,
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Speaker 1: and the youngster let him also have a taste of
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Speaker 1: the butt end of his axe on his back. The
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Speaker 1: devil begged and prayed so nicely to be let loose,
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Speaker 1: but the youngster would not listen to anything of the
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Speaker 1: kind unless he promised that he would never come there
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Speaker 1: any more and create any disturbance. He also had to
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Speaker 1: promise that he would build a bridge over the sound
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Speaker 1: so that people could pass over it all times of
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Speaker 1: the year, and it should be ready when the ice
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Speaker 1: was gone. They are very hard conditions, said the devil,
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Speaker 1: that there was no other way out of it. If
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Speaker 1: the devil wanted to be set free, he would have
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Speaker 1: to promise it. He bargained, however, that he should have
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Speaker 1: the first soul that went across the bridge that was
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Speaker 1: to be the toll. Yes, he should have that, said
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Speaker 1: the youngster. So the devil was let loose and he
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Speaker 1: started home. But the youngster lay down to sleep and
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Speaker 1: slept till far into the day. When the King came
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Speaker 1: to see if he was cut and chopped into small pieces.
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Speaker 1: He had to wade through all the money before he
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Speaker 1: came to his bedside. There was the money in heaps
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Speaker 1: and bags which reached far up the wall, and the
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Speaker 1: youngster lay in bed, asleep and snoring hard. Lord help
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Speaker 1: me and my daughter, said the king, when he saw
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Speaker 1: that the youngster was alive. Well, all was good and
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Speaker 1: well done that no one could deny. But there was
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Speaker 1: no hurry talking of the wedding before the bridge was ready.
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Speaker 1: One day the bridge stood ready, and the devil was
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Speaker 1: there waiting for the toll, which he had bargained for.
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Speaker 1: The youngster wanted the king to go with him and
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Speaker 1: try the bridge, but the King had no mind to
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Speaker 1: do it. So he mounted a horse himself and put
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Speaker 1: the fat dairy made in the palace on the pommel
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Speaker 1: in front of him. She looked almost like a big
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Speaker 1: fur block, and so he rode over the bridge, which
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Speaker 1: thundered under the horse's feet. Where is the toll? Where
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Speaker 1: have you got the soul, cried the devil. Why inside
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Speaker 1: this fur block, said the youngster. If you want it,
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Speaker 1: you will have to spit in your hands and take it.
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Speaker 1: No many thanks. If she does not come to me,
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Speaker 1: I am sure I shan't take her, said the devil.
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Speaker 1: You got me once into a pinch, and I'll take
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Speaker 1: care you don't get me into another. And with that
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Speaker 1: he flew straight home to his old mother, and since
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Speaker 1: that time he has never been heard or seen thereabouts.
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Speaker 1: The youngster went home to the palace and asked for
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Speaker 1: the reward the king had promised him. And when the
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Speaker 1: king wanted to get out of it and would not
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Speaker 1: stick to what he had promised, the youngster said it
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Speaker 1: was best he got a good bag of food ready
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Speaker 1: for him, and he would take his reward himself. Yes,
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Speaker 1: the King would see to that, and when the bag
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Speaker 1: was ready, the youngster asked the king to come outside
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Speaker 1: the door. The youngster then gave the king such a
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Speaker 1: kick which sent him flying up in the air. The
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Speaker 1: bag he threw after him, that he might not be
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Speaker 1: without food, And if he has not come down again
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Speaker 1: by this time, he is floating about with his bag
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Speaker 1: between heaven and Earth to this very day. End of
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Speaker 1: chapter seventeen,