The Three Little Men in the Wood · page 21 2101The maiden was again quite at a loss what to do; but while she cried the door opened suddenly, as before, and the Dwarf appeared and asked her what she would give him in return for his assistance. "102The ring off my finger," she replied.103The little Man took the ring and began to spin at once, and by morning all the straw was changed to glistening gold.104The King was rejoiced above measure at the sight of this, but still he was not satisfied, but, leading the maiden into another still larger room, full of straw as the others, he said, "This you must spin during the night; but if you accomplish it you shall be my bride." "105For," thought he to himself, "a richer wife thou canst not have in all the world."106When the maiden was left alone, the Dwarf again appeared and asked, for the third time, "What will you give me to do this for you?"107"I have nothing left that I can give you," replied the maiden.108"Then promise me your first-born child if you become Queen," said he.109The Miller's daughter thought, "Who can tell if that will ever happen?" and, ignorant how else to help herself out of her trouble, she promised the Dwarf what he desired; and he immediately set about and finished the spinning.110When morning came, and the King found all he had wished for done, he celebrated his wedding, and the Miller's fair daughter became Queen.111The gay times she had at the King's Court caused her to forget that she had made a very foolish promise.112About a year after the marriage, when she had ceased to think about the little Dwarf, she brought a fine child into the world; and, suddenly, soon after its birth, the very man appeared and demanded what she had promised.113The frightened Queen offered him all the riches of the kingdom if he would leave her her child; but the Dwarf answered, "No; something human is dearer to me than all the wealth of the world."114The Queen began to weep and groan so much that the Dwarf pitied her, and said, "I will leave you three days to consider; if you in that time discover my name you shall keep your child."115All night long the Queen racked her brains for all the names she could think of, and sent a messenger through the country to collect far and wide any new names.116The following morning came the Dwarf, and she began with "Caspar," "Melchior," "Balthassar," and all the odd names she knew; but at each the little Man exclaimed, "That is not my name."117The second day the Queen inquired of all her people for uncommon and curious names, and called the Dwarf "Ribs-of-Beef," "Sheep-shank," "Whalebone," but at each he said, "This is not my name."118The third day the messenger came back and said, "I have not found a single name; but as I came to a high mountain near the edge of a forest, where foxes and hares say good night to each other, I saw there a little house, and before the door a fire was burning, and round this fire a very curious little Man was dancing on one leg, and shouting:119"'To-day I stew, and then I'll bake, To-morrow I shall the Queen's child take; Ah! how famous it is that nobody knows That my name is Rumpelstiltskin.'"120When the Queen heard this she was very glad, for now she knew the name; and soon after came the Dwarf, and asked, "Now, my lady Queen, what is my name?"121First she said, "Are you called Conrade?" "122No."123"Are you called Hal?" "124No."125"Are you called Rumpelstiltskin?"126"A witch has told you! a witch has told you!" shrieked the little Man, and stamped his right foot so hard in the ground with rage that he could not draw it out again.127Then he took hold of his left leg with both his hands, and pulled away so hard that his right came off in the struggle, and he hopped away howling terribly.128And from that day to this the Queen has heard no more of her troublesome visitor.1 2← previousSnow-white and Rose-rednext →Little One-eye, Two-eyes and Three-eyes↑ back to Grimm's Fairy StoriesThis page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg11027/24/page/2/