XXXVII.—CINDERELLA.
Once upon a time, a number of girls were assembled spinning
round a deep rift or chasm in the ground. As they spun
they chattered together and told stories to each other. Up
came a white-bearded old man, who said to them: `Girls!
as you spin and chatter, be circumspect round this rift; or,
if any of you drops her spindle into it, her mother will be
turned into a cow.' Thus saying he departed. The girls
were astonished at his words, and crowded round the rift to
look into it. Unfortunately, one of them, the most beautiful
of all, dropped her spindle into it. Towards evening, when
she went home, she espied a cow—her mother—in front of
the gate, and drove her out with the other cattle to pasture.
After some time the father of the girl married a widow, who
brought a daughter with her into the house. The second
wife had a spite at the man's first daughter, especially
because she was more beautiful and more industrious than
her own, and she allowed her neither to wash herself, nor to
comb her hair, nor to change her clothes. One day she
sent her out with the cattle, gave her a bag full of tow, and
told her: `If you don't spin this tow into yarn to-day, or if
you don't wind it into a ball, you had better not come
home at eventide—I shall kill you.' It was sad for the
poor girl, as she went after the cattle, endeavouring as well
as she could to keep them together. In the afternoon, when
the cattle lay down to chew the cud, she began to look at
the bag to see how to perform her task upon it; but when
she saw that she could not make out what to do with it, she
began to cry. When the cow which was her mother saw
her crying, she asked her why she was crying. She told her
how it was, and what it was. Then said the cow to her:
`Don't be afraid; I will help you. I will take all the tow
into my mouth, and will chew it, and yarn will come up
into my ear. You must take it and reel it into a ball, and
you will finish it in good time.' As she said, so it was.
She began to chew the tow, piece after piece; yarn came up
into her ear, and the girl wound and reeled it, and finished
the task. In the evening she departed and went to her
stepmother, who was amazed at seeing so much work completed.
The next time she gave her as much tow again.
The girl spun till noon, and then in the afternoon, when the
cattle lay down to chew the cud, the cow came up to her
and began to chew the tow; yarn came up into her ear, and
the girl wound and reeled it, and finished in good time. In
the evening she went home and delivered to her stepmother
all the tow spun and wound. She was astonished at seeing
so much work completed. The third time she gave her
still more tow, and sent her own daughter to see who helped
her. The daughter went and concealed herself apart, and
saw how it was and what it was, that the girl completed so
much work in the day; she saw how the cow took the tow
into her mouth, how yarn came up into her ear, and how
the girl wound and reeled it. She went home to tell her
mother. When she heard this from her daughter, she
urged her husband to kill the cow. He endeavoured in
every way to persuade her not to kill the cow, but could not
over-persuade her. At last, when he saw that there was no
escape, he promised to kill it on a certain day. When the
girl heard that they were going to kill the cow she began to
cry, and told the cow secretly that they were going to kill
her. She said to the girl: `Be quiet—don't cry! If they
kill me, you must not eat any of my flesh, but must collect
the bones and bury them behind the cottage. Then if need
come to you, you must go to the grave, and help will come
to you thence.' On hearing this she went away.
One day they killed the cow and boiled her flesh, brought
it into the parlour, and began to eat. The girl alone did
not eat of it, according to the instructions she had received;
but collected the bones, and then, without anybody seeing
her, took them and buried them behind the cottage, where
the cow (her mother) had ordered her so to do. The girl
was named Mary; but at length, when they had put all the
work in the cottage upon her—that is to say, to sweep, to
fetch water, to cook, to wash up the plates—she had become
dirty and begrimed with ashes and cinders from excessive
work at the fireplace; and therefore her stepmother nicknamed
her Cinderella (Pepelezka), and this remained her
name afterwards.
One Sunday her stepmother got ready to go to church
with her daughter, but, before starting, took a wooden dish of
millet, scattered it on the ground in the cottage, and said to
Cinderella: `Here you, Cinderella! if you don't pick up
this millet, and if you don't get dinner ready by the time
that I return from church, don't come before my eyes, or I
shall put you to death.' Then they went away. Poor Cinderella,
when she looked at all the millet, cried out weeping
and wailing: `I will cook, I will sweep, I will attend to
everything, but what poor girl can pick up all this millet?'
When she had wept and spoken, immediately there came into
her mind what the cow had told her, to go to the grave, and
there help would be given her in trouble. Cinderella went
off to the grave. When there, what did she see? On the
grave stood an open box, filled with all manner of rich
clothes, and on the lid were two pigeons, white as snow.
They said to her: `Mary! take the clothes out, put them
on, and go to church, and we will pick up the millet and get
the dinner ready.' She put out her hands and took the upper
ones, which were of pure silk and satin, put them on, and went
to church. In the church people great and small marvelled
at her beauty and her dress, especially because no one
recognised her or knew who or what she was. Most of all
did the emperor's son marvel at her, and never took his eyes
off her. When service was ended, she stole away and ran
quickly home, undressed immediately, and put the clothes
in the box, and the box immediately vanished from sight.
She went to the fireplace, and what did she see there? The
millet picked up, dinner ready—in one word, everything
attended to! Soon afterwards, lo! her stepmother came
with her daughter from church, saw everything in proper
order, and was astounded.
Next Sunday, when she was about to go to church, taking
a larger dish of millet and scattering it on the ground, she
threatened Cinderella that she would kill her if she didn't
pick it up and get dinner ready. The stepmother went off
with her daughter to church, and Cinderella betook herself
to the grave of the cow. On the grave she found the two
pigeons and the box with the dresses in it open. They told
her to dress herself and go to church, and they would pick
up the millet and get dinner ready. Taking a dress of
pure silver, she dressed herself and went off to church.
Now everybody, small and great, marvelled at her more than
before, and the emperor's son did not take his eyes off her
for a moment. Service ended, she stole off amidst the
multitude and got away home. There she undressed, and
put the clothes in the box, and the box disappeared from
sight. Soon afterwards, lo! her stepmother came and
looked about; the millet was picked up, dinner was ready,
and Cinderella was at the fireplace. She was astonished at
seeing so much work completed.
The third time her stepmother got ready to go to church,
and before she started, taking a dish of millet thrice as
large, and scattering it on the ground, she said to Cinderella:
`Cinderella, if you don't pick up all this millet before
we return from church, and if you don't get dinner ready, go
and hide yourself; don't come before my eyes—I shall kill
you.' Then she went off to church. After this Cinderella
went to the grave of the cow, and found there the box open
and the two pigeons upon it. They told her to dress herself
and go to church; they would pick up the millet and get
the dinner ready. Taking a dress of pure gold, she dressed
herself and went to church. There, when the people saw
her, they marvelled, but no one knew who or what she was.
The emperor's son never took his eyes off her, and planned,
when service was over, to follow her closely, to see whither
she betook herself. Service ended, she stole off amidst the
crowd, hastening to get away before her stepmother; but as
she was pushing through the crowd, she lost one of her
shoes, and the emperor's son took it up. She escaped from
among them with one shoe, undressed very quickly, put the
clothes in the box, and the box vanished. She went home
and looked in the cottage; the millet was picked up, dinner
was ready, and everything attended to. She sat down at the
fireplace, and, lo! her stepmother came and looked about the
cottage; everything was in order, the millet picked up,
dinner ready; she had nothing to find fault with her or
scold her about.
The emperor's son left the people, disguised himself, took
the shoe, and went from cottage to cottage to try it on, to
find out whose it was; and wherever he went he made inquiries,
and tried it on the foot of every girl, but it did not
fit one. For some it was too large, and for others too
small; for some too narrow, for others too broad. At last
he came to Cinderella's cottage. As soon as her stepmother
saw him, she concealed Cinderella under a trough. He
asked whether there was any girl in the house. She replied
that there was, and brought her daughter to him. He tried
the shoe on her, but it wouldn't even allow her toes to go
in. He then asked whether there wasn't another girl there,
and she told him that there wasn't. The cock had flown on
to the trough, and when she told the emperor's son that
there was no other girl there, he crowed: `Cock-a-doodledoo!
pretty girl under trough!' The stepmother shrieked
out: `Shoo! eagles have brought you!'[1]
But the emperor's
son, on hearing the cock say this, went up and took the
trough off; and there was, indeed, the girl that he had seen
in the church with those beautiful dresses, only on one foot
she had no shoe. He tried the shoe on her; it went on,
and was exactly the same as that on the other foot. Then
the emperor's son took her by the hand, conducted her to
his court, married her, and punished her stepmother for her
evil heart.
