There was once a wonderful musician, who went quite alone through a forest and thought of all manner of things, and when nothing was left for him to think about, he said to himself, “Time is beginning to pass heavily with me here in the forest, I will fetch hither a good companion for myself.”…

A certain cat had made the acquaintance of a mouse, and had said so much to her about the great love and friendship she felt for her, that at length the mouse agreed that they should live and keep house together. “But we must make a provision for winter, or else we shall suffer from…

There was once a girl who was idle and would not spin, andlet her mother say what she would, she could not bring herto it. At last the mother was once so overcome with angerand impatience, that she beat her, at which the girl beganto weep loudly. Now at this very moment the queen drove…

There was once a man whose wife died, and a woman whose husbanddied, and the man had a daughter, and the woman also had adaughter. The girls were acquainted with each other, and wentout walking together, and afterwards came to the woman in herhouse. Then said she to the man’s daughter, listen, tell yourfather that…

In a large town there was an old woman who sat in the evening alone in her room thinking howshe had lost first her husband, then both her children, then one by one all her relations, and atlength, that very day, her last friend, and now she was quite alone and desolate. She was very…

A poor peasant-boy one day heard the priest say in church that whosoever desired to enter into the kingdom of heaven must always go straight onward. So he set out, and walked continually straight onward over hill and valley without ever turning aside. At length his way led him into a great town, and into…

One afternoon the Christ-child had laid himself in his cradle-bed and had fallen asleep. Then his mother came to him, looked at him full of gladness, and said, “Hast thou laid thyself down tosleep, my child?” Sleep sweetly, and in the meantime I will go into the wood, and fetch thee ahandful of strawberries, for…

Hans had served his master for seven years, so he said to him, “Master, my time is up; now I should be glad to go back home to my mother; give me my wages.” The master answered, “You have served me faithfully and honestly; as the service was so shall the reward be;” and he…

There was once a peasant who had driven his cow to the fair, and sold her for seven talers. On the way home he had to pass a pond, and already from afar he heard the frogs crying, aik, aik, aik, aik. Well, said he to himself, they are talking without rhyme or reason, it…

There were once upon a time two brothers, one rich and the other poor. The rich one was a goldsmith and evil-hearted. The poor one supported himself by making brooms, and was good and honourable. The poor one had two children, who were twin brothers and as like each other as two drops of water.…

A certain father had two sons, the elder of whom was smart and sensible, and could do everything, but the younger was stupid and could neither learn nor understand anything, and when people saw him they said there”s a fellow who will give his father some trouble.” When anything had to be done, it was…

Little brother took his little sister by the hand and said, since our mother died we have had no happiness. Our step-mother beats us every day, and if we come near her she kicks us away with her foot. Our meals are the hard crusts of bread that are left over. And the little dog…

There was once upon a time an old king who was ill and thought to himself I am lying on what must be my deathbed. Then said he tell faithful John to come to me. Faithful John was his favorite servant, and was so called, because he had for his whole life long been so…

There was once upon a time an old goat who had seven little kids, and loved them with all the love of a mother for her children. One day she wanted to go into the forest and fetch some food. So she called all seven to her and said, dear children, I have to go…

In old times when wishing still helped one, there lived a king whose daughters were all beautiful, but the youngest was so beautiful that the sun itself, which has seen so much, was astonished whenever it shone in her face. Close by the King’s castle lay a great dark forest, and under an old lime-tree…

Hard by a great forest dwelt a wood-cutter with his wife, who had an only child, a little girl three years old. They were so poor, however, that they no longer had daily bread, and did not know how to get food for her. One morning the wood-cutter went out sorrowfully to his work in…