The Story of Little Snow White
LITTLE SNOW-WHITE
ONCE upon a time in the middle of winter, when the flakes of snow were
falling like feathers from the clouds, a Queen sat at her palace window, which
had an ebony black frame, stitching her husband's shirts. While she was thus
engaged and looking out at the snow she pricked her finger, and three drops of
blood fell upon the snow. Now the red looked so well upon the white that she
thought to herself, "Oh, that I had a child as white as this snow, as red
as this blood, and as black as the wood of this frame!" Soon afterwards a
little daughter came to her, who was as white as snow, and with cheeks as red as blood, and with hair as black as ebony, and from this she
was named "Snow-White." And at the same time her mother died.
About a year
afterwards the King married another wife, who was very beautiful, but so proud
and haughty that she could not bear anyone to be better-looking than herself.
She owned a wonderful mirror, and when she stepped before it and said:
it replied:
"The Queen is the fairest of the day."
Then she was pleased,
for she knew that the mirror spoke truly.
Little Snow-White,
however, grew up, and became prettier and prettier, and when she was seven
years old she was as fair as the noonday, and more beautiful than the Queen
herself. When the Queen now asked her mirror:
it replied:
This answer so angered the Queen that she
became quite yellow with envy. From that hour, whenever she saw Snow-White, her
heart was hardened against her, and she hated the little girl. Her envy and
jealousy increased so that she had no rest day or night, and she said to a Huntsman,
"Take the child away into the forest. I will never look upon her again.
You must kill her, and bring me her heart and tongue for a token."
The Huntsman listened
and took the maiden away, but when he drew out his knife to kill her, she began
to cry, saying, "Ah, dear Huntsman, give me my life! I will run into the
wild forest, and never come home again."
This speech softened
the Hunter's heart, and her beauty so touched him that he had pity on her and
said, "Well, run away then, poor child." But he thought to himself,
"The wild beasts will soon devour you." Still he felt as if a stone
had been lifted from his heart, because her death was not by his hand. Just at
that moment a young boar came roaring along to the spot, and as soon as he
clapped eyes upon it the Huntsman caught it, and, killing it, took its tongue
and heart and carried them to the Queen, for a token of
his deed.
But now poor little
Snow-White was left motherless and alone, and overcome with grief, she was
bewildered at the sight of so many trees, and knew not which way to turn. She
ran till her feet refused to go farther, and as it was getting dark, and she
saw a little house near, she entered in to rest. In this cottage everything was
very small, but very neat and elegant. In the middle stood a little table with
a white cloth over it, and seven little plates upon it, each plate having a
spoon and a knife and a fork, and there were also seven little mugs. Against
the wall were seven little beds arranged in a row, each covered with snow-white
sheets.
Little Snow-White,
being both hungry and thirsty, ate a little morsel of porridge out of each
plate, and drank a drop or two of wine out of each mug, for she did not wish to
take away the whole share of anyone. After that, because she was so tired, she
laid herself down on one bed, but it did not suit; she tried another, but that
was too long; a fourth was too short, a fifth too hard. But the seventh was
just the thing; and tucking herself up in it, she went to
sleep, first saying her prayers as usual.
When it became quite dark the owners of the cottage came home, seven Dwarfs, who dug for gold and silver in the mountains. They first lighted seven little lamps, and saw at once—for they lit up the whole room—that somebody had been in, for everything was not in the order in which they had left it.
The first asked,
"Who has been sitting on my chair?" The second, "Who has been
eating off my plate?" The third said, "Who has been nibbling at my
bread?" The fourth, "Who has been at my porridge?" The fifth,
"Who has been meddling with my fork?" The sixth grumbled out,
"Who has been cutting with my knife?" The seventh said, "Who has
been drinking out of my mug?"
Then the first,
looking round, began again, "Who has been lying on my bed?" he asked,
for he saw that the sheets were tumbled. At these words
the others came, and looking at their beds cried out too, "Some one has
been lying in our beds!" But the seventh little man, running up to his,
saw Snow-White sleeping in it; so he called his companions, who shouted with
wonder and held up their seven lamps, so that the light fell upon the little
girl.
"Oh, heavens! oh,
heavens!" said they; "what a beauty she is!" and they were so
much delighted that they would not awaken her, but left her to sleep, and the
seventh Dwarf, in whose bed she was, slept with each of his fellows one hour,
and so passed the night.
As soon as morning
dawned Snow-White awoke, and was quite frightened when she saw the seven little
men; but they were very friendly, and asked her what she was called.
"My name is
Snow-White," was her reply.
"Why have you
come into our cottage?" they asked.
Then she told them how
her stepmother would have had her killed, but the Huntsman had spared her life,
and how she had wandered about the Whole day until at last she had found their
house.
When
her tale was finished the Dwarfs said, "Will you look after our
household—be our cook, make the beds, wash, sew, and knit for us, and keep
everything in neat order? If so, we will keep you here, and you shall want for
nothing."
And Snow-White
answered, "Yes, with all my heart and will." And so she remained with
them, and kept their house in order.
In the morning the
Dwarfs went into the mountains and searched for silver and gold, and in the
evening they came home and found their meals ready for them. During the day the
maiden was left alone, and therefore the good Dwarfs warned her and said,
"Be careful of your stepmother, who will soon know of your being here. So
let nobody enter the cottage."
The Queen meanwhile,
supposing that she had eaten the heart and tongue of her stepdaughter, believed
that she was now above all the most beautiful woman in the world. One day she
stepped before her mirror, and said:
This reply surprised
her, but she knew that the mirror spoke the truth. She knew, therefore, that the
Huntsman had deceived her, and that Snow-White was still alive. So she dyed her
face and clothed herself as a pedler woman, so that no one could recognize her,
and in this disguise she went over the seven hills to the house of the seven
Dwarfs. She knocked at the door of the hut, and called out, "Fine goods
for sale! beautiful goods for sale!"
Snow-White peeped out
of the window and said, "Good day, my good woman; what have you to
sell?"
"Fine goods,
beautiful goods!" she replied. "Stays of all colors." And she
held up a pair which were made of many-colored silks.
"I may let in
this honest woman," thought Snow-White; and she unbolted the door and
bargained for one pair of stays.
"You can't think,
my dear, how they become you!" exclaimed the old
woman. "Come, let me lace them up for you."
Snow-White suspected
nothing, and let her do as she wished, but the old woman laced her up so
quickly and so tightly that all her breath went, and she fell down like one
dead. "Now," thought the old woman to herself, hastening away,
"now am I once more the most beautiful of all!"
At eventide, not long
after she had left, the seven Dwarfs came home, and were much frightened at
seeing their dear little maid lying on the ground, and neither moving nor
breathing, as if she were dead. They raised her up, and when they saw that she
was laced too tight they cut the stays to pieces, and presently she began to
breathe again, and little by little she revived. When the
Dwarfs now heard what had taken place, they said, "The old pedler woman
was no other than your wicked stepmother. Take more care of yourself, and let
no one enter when we are not with you."
Meanwhile, the Queen
had reached home, and, going before her mirror, she repeated her usual words:
and it replied as before:
As soon as it had
finished, all her blood rushed to her heart, for she was so angry to hear that
Snow-White was yet living. "But now," thought she to herself,
"will I make something which shall destroy her completely." Thus
saying, she made a poisoned comb by arts which she understood, and then,
disguising herself, she took the form of an old widow. She went over the seven
hills to the house of the seven Dwarfs, and knocking at
the door, called out, "Good wares to sell to-day!"
Snow-White peeped out
and said, "You must go farther, for I dare not let you in."
"But still you
may look," said the old woman, drawing out her poisoned comb and holding
it up. The sight of this pleased the maiden so much that she allowed herself to
be persuaded, and opened the door. As soon as she had bought something the old woman
said, "Now let me for once comb your hair properly," and Snow-White
consented. But scarcely was the comb drawn through the hair when the poison
began to work, and the maiden fell down senseless.
"You
pattern of beauty," cried the wicked Queen, "it is now all over with
you." And so saying, she departed.
Fortunately, evening
soon came, and the seven Dwarfs returned, and as soon as they saw Snow-White
lying, like dead, upon the ground, they suspected the Queen, and discovering
the poisoned comb, they immediately drew it out. Then the maiden very soon
revived and told them all that had happened. So again they warned her against
the wicked stepmother, and bade her open the door to nobody.
Meanwhile the Queen,
on her arrival home, had again consulted her mirror, and received the same
answer as twice before. This made her tremble and foam with rage and jealousy,
and she swore that Snow-White should die if it cost her her own life. Thereupon
she went into an inner secret chamber where no one could enter, and made an
apple of the most deep and subtle poison. Outwardly it looked nice enough, and
had rosy cheeks which would make the mouth of everyone who looked at it water;
but whoever ate the smallest piece of it would surely die. As soon as the apple
was ready the Queen again dyed her face, and clothed
herself like a peasant's wife, and then over the seven mountains to the house
of the seven Dwarfs she made her way.
She knocked at the
door, and Snow-White stretched out her head and said, "I dare not let
anyone enter; the seven Dwarfs have forbidden me."
"That is hard on
me," said the old woman, "for I must take back my apples; but there
is one which I will give you."
"No,"
answered Snow-White; "no, I dare not take it."
"What! are you
afraid of it?" cried the old woman. "There, see—I will cut the apple
in halves; do you eat the red cheeks, and I will eat the core." (The apple
was so artfully made that the red cheeks alone were poisoned.) Snow-White very
much wished for the beautiful apple, and when she saw the woman eating the core
she could no longer resist, but, stretching out her hand, took the poisoned
part. Scarcely had she placed a piece in her mouth when she fell down dead upon
the ground. Then the Queen, looking at her with glittering eyes, and laughing
bitterly, exclaimed, "White as snow, red as blood, black
as ebony! This time the Dwarfs cannot reawaken you."
When she reached home
and consulted her mirror—
it answered:
"The Queen is fairest of the day."
Then her envious heart
was at rest, as peacefully as an envious heart can rest.
When the little Dwarfs
returned home in the evening they found Snow-White lying on the ground, and
there appeared to be no life in her body; she seemed to be quite dead. They
raised her up, and tried if they could find anything poisonous. They unlaced
her, and even uncombed her hair, and washed her with water and with wine. But
nothing availed: the dear child was really and truly dead.
Then they laid her
upon a bier, and all seven placed themselves around it,
and wept and wept for three days without ceasing. Then they prepared to bury
her. But she looked still fresh and life-like, and even her red cheeks had not
deserted her, so they said to one another, "We cannot bury her in the
black ground." Then they ordered a case to be made of glass. In this they
could see the body on all sides, and the Dwarfs wrote her name with golden
letters upon the glass, saying that she was a King's daughter. Now they placed
the glass case upon the ledge on a rock, and one of them always remained by it
watching. Even the birds bewailed the loss of Snow-White; first came an owl,
then a raven, and last of all a dove.
For a long time
Snow-White lay peacefully in her case, and changed not, but looked as if she
were only asleep, for she was still white as snow, red as blood, and
black-haired as ebony. By and by it happened that a King's son was traveling in
the forest, and came to the Dwarfs' house to pass the night. He soon saw the
glass case upon the rock, and the beautiful maiden lying within, and he read
also the golden inscription.
When
he had examined it, he said to the Dwarfs, "Let me have this case, and I
will pay what you like for it."
But the Dwarfs
replied, "We will not sell it for all the gold in the world."
"Then give it to
me," said the Prince; "for I cannot live without Snow-White. I will
honor and protect her as long as I live."
When the Dwarfs saw
that he was so much in earnest, they pitied him, and at last gave him the case,
and the Prince ordered it to be carried away on the shoulders of his
attendants. Presently it happened that they stumbled over a rut, and with the
shock the piece of poisoned apple which lay in Snow-White's mouth fell out.
Very soon she opened her eyes, and raising the lid of the glass case, she rose
up and asked, "Where am I?"
Full of joy, the
Prince answered, "You are safe with me." And he told to her what she
had suffered, and how he would rather have her than any other for his wife, and
he asked her to accompany him home to the castle of the King his father.
Snow-White consented, and when they arrived there they were married with great
splendor and magnificence.
Snow-White's
stepmother was also invited to the wedding, and when she was dressed in all her
finery to go, she first stepped in front of her mirror and asked:
and it replied:
At these words the
Queen was in a fury, and was so terribly mortified that she knew not what to do
with herself. At first she resolved not to go to the wedding, but she could not
resist the wish to see the Princess. So she went; but as soon as she saw the
bride she recognized Snow-White, and was so terrified with rage and
astonishment that she rushed out of the castle and was never heard of again.
Comments
Post a Comment