The Red Fairy Book, Andrew Lang [book club recommendations txt] 📗

wait a day, and the Bull told the King’s daughter to

take the horn of ointment which hung at the Troll’s belt, and rub

him with it; then he was himself again, and the next day they set

off once more. And now they journeyed on for many, many days,

and then after a long, long time they came to a silver wood. The

trees, and the boughs, and the leaves, and the flowers, and everything

else was of silver.

 

Before the Bull went into the wood, he said to the King’s

daughter: `When we enter into this wood you must, for Heaven’s

sake, be very careful not to touch anything at all, and not to pluck

off even so much as one leaf, or else all will be over both with you

and with me. A Troll with six heads lives here, who is the owner

of the wood, and I do not think I should be able to overcome him.’

 

`Yes,’ said the King’s daughter, `I will take good care not to

touch what you do not wish me to touch.’

 

But when they got into the wood it was so crowded, and the

trees so close together, that they could scarcely get forward. She

was as careful as she could be, and bent aside to get out of the way of

the branches, and thrust them away from before her with her hands;

but every instant a branch struck against her eyes, and in spite of

all her care, she happened to pull off one leaf.

 

`Oh! oh! What have you done now?’ said the Bull. It will

now cost us a battle for life or death, for this Troll has six heads

and is twice as strong as the other, but do be careful to keep the

leaf.’

 

Just as he said this came the Troll. `Who is that who is

touching my wood?’ he said.

 

`It is just as much mine as yours!’

 

`We shall have a tussle for that!’ screamed the Troll.

 

`That may be,’ said the Bull, and rushed at the Troll, and gored

out his eyes, and drove his horns right through him so that his

entrails gushed out, but the Troll fought just as well as he did, and

it was three whole days before the Bull got the life out of him. But

the Bull was then so weak and worn out that it was only with pain

and effort that he could move, and so covered with wounds that

the blood streamed from him. So he told the King’s daughter to

take the horn of ointment that was hanging at the Troll’s belt, and

anoint him with it. She did this, and then he came to himself

again, but they had to stay there and rest for a week before the

Bull was able to go any farther.

 

At last they set forth on their way again, but the Bull was still

weak, and at first could not go quickly. The King’s daughter

wished to spare him, and said that she was so young and light of

foot that she would willingly walk, but he would not give her leave

to do that, and she was forced to seat herself on his back again.

So they travelled for a long time, and through many lands, and

the King’s daughter did not at all know where he was taking her,

but after a long, long time they came to a gold wood. It was so

golden that the gold dripped off it, and the trees, and the branches,

and the flowers, and the leaves were all of pure gold. Here all

happened just as it had happened in the copper wood and silver

wood. The Bull told the King’s daughter that on no account was

she to touch it, for there was a Troll with nine heads who was the

owner, and that he was much larger and stronger than both the

others put together, and that he did not believe that he could

overcome him. So she said that she would take great care not to

touch anything, and he should see that she did. But when they got

into the wood it was still thicker than the silver wood, and the farther

they got into it the worse it grew. The wood became thicker and

thicker, and closer and closer, and at last she thought there was

no way whatsoever by which they could get forward; she was so

terrified lest she should break anything off, that she sat and twisted,

and turned herself on this side and on that, to get out of the way of

the branches, and pushed them away from her with her hands, but

every moment they struck against her eyes, so that she could not

see what she was clutching at, and before she knew what she was

doing she had a golden apple in her hands. She was now in such

terror that she began to cry, and wanted to throw it away, but the

Bull said that she was to keep it, and take the greatest care of it,

and comforted her as well as he could, but he believed that it would

be a hard struggle, and he doubted whether it would go well with him.

 

Just then the Troll with nine heads came, and he was so frightful

that the King’s daughter scarcely dared to look at him

 

`Who is this who is breaking my wood?’ he screamed

 

`It is as much mine as yours!’ said the Bull.

 

`We shall have a tussle for that!’ screamed the Troll.

 

`That may be,’ said the Bull; so they rushed at each other, and

fought, and it was such a dreadful sight that the King’s daughter very

nearly swooned. The Bull gored the Troll’s eyes out and ran his

horns right through him, but the Troll fought as well as he did, and

when the Bull had gored one head to death the other heads breathed

life into it again, so it was a whole week before the Bull was able

to kill him. But then he himself was so worn out and weak that he

could not move at all. His body was all one wound, and he could

not even so much as tell the King’s daughter to take the horn of

ointment out of the Troll’s belt and rub him with it. She did this

without being told; so he came to himself again, but he had to lie

there for three weeks and rest before he was in a state to move.

 

Then they journeyed onwards by degrees, for the Bull said that

they had still a little farther to go, and in this way they crossed

many high hills and thick woods. This lasted for a while, and

then they came upon the fells.

 

`Do you see anything?’ asked the Bull.

 

`No, I see nothing but the sky above and the wild fell side,’

said the King’s daughter.

 

Then they climbed up higher, and the fell grew more level, so

that they could see farther around them.

 

`Do you see anything now?’ said the Bull.

 

`Yes, I see a small castle, far, far away,’ said the Princess.

 

`It is not so very little after all,’ said the Bull.

 

After a long, long time they came to a high hill, where there

was a precipitous wall of rock.

 

`Do you see nothing now?’ said the Bull.

 

`Yes, now I see the castle quite near, and now it is much, much

larger,’ said the King’s daughter.

 

`Thither shall you go,’ said the Bull; `immediately below the

castle there is a pig-sty, where you shall dwell. When you get

there, you will find a wooden gown which you are to put on, and

then go to the castle and say that you are called Kari Woodengown,

and that you are seeking a place. But now you must take out your

little knife and cut off my head with it, and then you must flay me

and roll up my hide and put it there under the rock, and beneath

the hide you must lay the copper leaf, and the silver leaf, and the

golden apple. Close beside the rock a stick is standing, and when

you want me for anything you have only to knock at the wall of

rock with that.’

 

At first she would not do it, but when the Bull said that this

was the only reward that he would have for what he had done for

her, she could do no otherwise. So though she thought it very

cruel, she slaved on and cut at the great animal with the knife till

she had cut off his head and hide, and then she folded up the hide

and laid it beneath the mountain wall, and put the copper leaf, and

the silver leaf, and the golden apple inside it.

 

When she had done that she went away to the pig-sty, but all the way

as she went she wept, and was very sorrowful. Then she put on the wooden

gown, and walked to the King’s palace. When she got there she went into the

kitchen and begged for a place, saying that her name was Kari Woodengown.

 

The cook told her that she might have a place and leave to stay there at

once and wash up, for the girl who had done that before had just gone

away. `And as soon as you get tired of being here you will take yourself

off too,’ said he.

 

`No,’ said she, `that I shall certainly not.’

 

And then she washed up, and did it very tidily.

 

On Sunday some strangers were coming to the King’s palace,

so Kari begged to have leave to carry up the water for the Prince’s

bath, but the others laughed at her and said, `What do you want there?

Do you think the Prince will ever look at such a fright as you?’

 

She would not give it up, however, but went on begging until at

last she got leave. When she was going upstairs her wooden gown

made such a clatter that the Prince came out and said, `What sort

of a creature may you be?’

 

`I was to take this water to you,’ said Kari.

 

`Do you suppose that I will have any water that you bring?’

said the Prince, and emptied it over her.

 

She had to bear that, but then she asked permission to go to

church. She got that, for the church was very near. But first she

went to the rock and knocked at it with the stick which was standing

there, as the Bull had told her to do. Instantly a man came

forth and asked what she wanted. The King’s daughter said that

she had got leave to go to church and listen to the priest, but that

she had no clothes to go in. So he brought her a gown that was as

bright as the copper wood, and she got a horse and saddle too from

him. When she reached the church she was so pretty and so

splendidly dressed that every one wondered who she could be, and

hardly anyone listened to what the priest was saying, for they

were all looking far too much at her, and the Prince himself liked

her so well that he could not take his eyes off her for an instant.

As she was walking out of church the Prince followed her and

shut the church door after her, and thus he kept one of her

gloves in his hand. Then she went away and mounted her horse

again; the Prince again followed her, and asked her whence she