1812
GRIMM'S FAIRY TALES
THE YOUNG GIANT
by Jacob Ludwig Grimm and Wilhelm Carl Grimm
Electronically Enhanced Text (c) Copyright 1996, World Library(R)
THE YOUNG GIANT
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A LONG TIME ago a countryman had a son who was as big as a thumb,
and did not become any bigger, and during several years did not grow
one hair's breadth. Once when the father was going out to plough,
the little one said, "Father, I will go out with thee." "Thou
wouldst go out with me?" said the father. "Stay here, thou wilt be
of no use out there, besides thou mightst get lost!" Then Thumbling
began to cry, and for the sake of peace his father put him in his
pocket, and took him with him.
When he was outside in the field, he took him out again, and set him
in a freshly-cut furrow.
While he was there, a great giant came over the hill. "Dost thou see
that great monster?" said the father, for he wanted to frighten the
little fellow to make him good. "He is coming to fetch thee." The
giant, however, had scarcely taken two steps with his long legs before
he was in the furrow. He took up little Thumbling carefully with two
fingers, examined him, and without saying one word went away with him.
His father stood by, but could not utter a sound for terror, and he
thought nothing else but that his child was lost, and that as long
as he lived he should never set eyes on him again.
The giant, however, carried him home, suckled him, and Thumbling
grew and became tall and strong after the manner of giants. When two
years had passed, the old giant took him into the forest, wanted to
try him, and said, "Pull up a stick for thyself." Then the boy was
already so strong that he tore up a young tree out of the earth by the
roots. But the giant thought, "We must do better than that," took
him back again, and suckled him two years longer.
When he tried him, his strength had increased so much that he
could tear an old tree out of the ground. That was still not enough
for the giant; he again suckled him for two years, and when he then
went with him into the forest and said, "Now, just tear up a proper
stick for me," the boy tore up the strongest oak tree from the
earth, so that it split, and that was a mere trifle to him. "Now
that will do," said the giant, "thou art perfect," and took him back
to the field from whence he had brought him. His father was there
following the plough. The young giant went up to him, and said,
"Does my father see what a fine man his son has grown into?"
The farmer was alarmed, and said, "No, thou art not my son; I
don't want thee- leave me!" "Truly I am your son; allow me to do
your work, I can plough as well as you, nay better." "No, no, thou art
not my son, and thou canst not plough- go away!" However, as he was
afraid of this great man, he left hold of the plough, stepped back and
stood at one side of the piece of land. Then the youth took the
plough, and just pressed it with one hand, but his grasp was so strong
that the plough went deep into the earth. The farmer could not bear to
see that, and called to him, "If thou art determined to plough, thou
must not press so hard on it, that makes bad work." The youth,
however, unharnessed the horses, and drew the plough himself,
saying, "Just go home, father, and bid my mother make ready a large
dish of food, and in the meantime I will go over the field." Then
the farmer went home, and ordered his wife to prepare the food; but
the youth ploughed the field, which was two acres large, quite
alone, and then he harnessed himself to the harrow, and harrowed the
whole of the land, using two harrows at once. When he had done it,
he went into the forest, and pulled up two oak trees, laid them across
his shoulders, and hung one harrow on them behind and one before,
and also one horse behind and one before, and carried all as if it had
been a bundle of straw, to his parents' house.
When he entered the yard, his mother did not recognize him, and
asked, "Who is that horrible tall man?" The farmer said, "That is
our son." She said, "No, that cannot be our son, we never had such a
tall one, ours was a little thing." She called to him, "Go away, we do
not want thee!" The youth was silent, but led his horses to the
stable, gave them oats and hay, and all that they wanted. When he
had done this, he went into the parlor, sat down on the bench and
said, "Mother, now I should like something to eat, will it soon be
ready?" Then she said, "Yes," and brought in two immense dishes full
of food, which would have been enough to satisfy herself and her
husband for a week. The youth, however, ate the whole of it himself,
and asked if she had nothing more to set before him. "No," she
replied, "that is all we have." "But that was only a taste, I must
have more."
She did not dare to oppose him, and went and put a huge caldron full
of food on the fire, and when it was ready, carried it in. "At
length come a few crumbs," said he, and ate all there was, but it
was still not sufficient to appease his hunger. Then said he, "Father,
I see well that with thee I shall never have food enough; if thou will
get me an iron staff which is strong, and which I cannot break against
my knees, I will go out into the world."
The farmer was glad, put his two horses in his cart, and fetched
from the smith a staff so large and thick that the two horses could
only just bring it away. The youth laid it across his knees, and snap!
he broke it in two in the middle like a beanstick, and threw it away.
The father then harnessed four horses, and brought a bar which was
so long and thick, that the four horses could only just drag it. The
son snapped this also in twain against his knees, threw it away, and
said, "Father, this can be of no use to me, thou must harness more
horses, and bring a stronger staff." So the father harnessed eight
horses, and brought one which was so long and thick, that the eight
horses could only just carry it. When the son took it in his hand,
he broke a bit from the top of it also, and said, "Father, I see
that thou wilt not be able to procure me any such staff as I want, I
will remain no longer with thee."
So he went away, and gave out that he was a smith's apprentice. He
arrived at a village, wherein lived a smith who was a greedy fellow,
who never did a kindness to any one, but wanted everything for
himself. The youth went into the smithy to him, and asked if he needed
a journeyman. "Yes," said the smith, and looked at him, and thought,
"That is a strong fellow who will strike out well, and earn his
bread." So he asked, "How much wages dost thou want" "I don't want any
at all," he replied, "only every fortnight, when the other
journeymen are paid, I will give thee two blows, and thou must bear
them." The miser was heartily satisfied, and thought he would thus
save much money.
Next morning, the strange journeyman was to begin to work, but
when the master brought the glowing bar, and the youth struck his
first blow, the iron flew asunder, and the anvil sank so deep into the
earth, that there was no bringing it out again. Then the miser grew
angry, and said, "Oh, but I can't make any use of thee, thou
strikest far too powerfully; what wilt thou have for the one blow?"
Then said he, "I will only give thee quite a small blow, that's
all." And he raised his foot, and gave him such a kick that he flew
away over four loads of hay. Then he sought out the thickest iron
bar in the smithy for himself, took it as a stick in his hand, and
went onwards.
When he had walked for some time, he came to a small farm, and asked
the bailiff if he did not require a head-servant. "Yes," said the
bailiff, "I can make use of one; you look a strong fellow who can do
something, how much a year do you want as wages?" He again replied
that he wanted no wages at all, but that every year he would give
him three blows, which he must bear. Then the bailiff was satisfied,
for he, too, was a covetous fellow. Next morning all the servants were
to go into the wood, and the others were already up, but the
head-servant was still in bed. Then one of them called to him, "Get
up, it is time; we are going into the wood, and thou must go with us."
"Ah," said he quite roughly and surlily, "you may just go, then; I
shall be back again before any of you."
Then the others went to the bailiff, and told him that the
head-man was still lying in bed, and would not go into the wood with
them. The bailiff said they were to awake him again, and tell him to
harness the horses. The head-man, however, said as before, "Just go
there, I shall be back again before any of you." And then he stayed in
bed two hours longer. At length he arose from the feathers, but
first he got himself two bushels of peas from the loft, made himself
some broth with them, ate it at his leisure, and when that was done,
went and harnessed the horses, and drove into the wood.
Not far from the wood was a ravine through which he had to pass,
so he first drove the horses on, and then stopped them, and went
behind the cart, took trees and brushwood, and made a great barricade,
so that no horse could get through. When he was entering the wood, the
others were just driving out of it with their loaded carts to go home;
then said he to them, "Drive on, I will still get home before you do."
He did not drive far into the wood, but at once tore two of the very
largest trees of all out of the earth, threw them on his cart, and
turned round. When he came to the barricade, the others were still
standing there, not able to get through. "Don't you see," said he,
"that if you had stayed with me, you would have got home just as
quickly, and would have had another hour's sleep?"
He now wanted to drive on, but his horses could not work their way
through, so he unharnessed them, laid them at the top of the cart,
took the shafts in his own hands, and drew it over, and he did this
just as easily as if it had been laden with feathers. When he was
over, he said to the others, "There, you see, I have got over
quicker than you," and drove on, and the others had to stay where they
were. In the yard, however, he took a tree in his hand, showed it to
the bailiff, and said, "Isn't that a fine bundle of wood?" Then said
the bailiff to his wife, "The servant is a good one, if he does
sleep long, he is still home before the others."
So he served the bailiff a year, and when that was over, and the
other servants were getting their wages, he said it was time for him
to have his too. The bailiff, however, was afraid of the blows which
he was to receive, and earnestly entreated him to excuse him from
having them; for rather than that, he himself would be head-servant,
and the youth should be bailiff. "No," said he, "I will not be a
bailiff, I am head-servant, and will remain so, but I will
administer that which we agreed on." The bailiff was willing to give
him whatsoever he demanded, but it was of no use, the head-servant
said no to everything.
Then the bailiff did not know what to do, and begged for a
fortnight's delay, for he wanted to find some way to escape. The
head-servant consented to this delay. The bailiff summoned all his
clerks together, and they were to think the matter over, and give
him advice. The clerks pondered for a long time, but at last they said
that no one was sure of his life with the head-servant, for he could
kill a man as easily as a midge, and that the bailiff ought to make
him get into the well and clean it, and when he was down below, they
would roll up one of the mill-stones which was lying there, and
throw it on his head; and then he would never return to daylight.
The advice pleased the bailiff, and the head-servant was quite
willing to go down the well. When he was standing down below at the
bottom, they rolled down the largest mill-stone and thought they had
broken his skull, but he cried, "Chase away those hens from the
well, they are scratching in the sand up there, and throwing the
grains into my eyes, so that I can't see." So the bailiff cried,
"Sh-sh"- and pretended to frighten the hens away.
When the head-servant had finished his work, he climbed up and said,
"Just look what a beautiful necktie I have on," and behold it was
the mill-stone which he was wearing round his neck. The head-servant
now wanted to take his reward, but the bailiff again begged for a
fortnight's delay. The clerks met together and advised him to send the
head-servant to the haunted mill to grind corn by night, for from
thence as yet no man had ever returned in the morning alive. The
proposal pleased the bailiff, he called the head-servant that very
evening, and ordered him to take eight bushels of corn to the mill,
and grind it that night, for it was wanted.
So the head-servant went to the loft, and put two bushels in his
right pocket, and two in his left, and took four in a wallet, half
on his back, and half on his breast, and thus laden went to the
haunted mill. The miller told him that he could grind there very
well by day, but not by night, for the mill was haunted, and that up
to the present time whosoever had gone into it at night had been found
in the morning, lying dead inside. He said, "I will manage it, just
you go away to bed." Then he went into the mill, and poured out the
corn.
About eleven o'clock he went into the miller's room, and sat down on
the bench. When he had sat there a while, a door suddenly opened,
and a large table came in, and on the table, wine and roasted meats
placed themselves, and much good food besides, but everything came
of itself, for no one was there to carry it. After this the chairs
pushed themselves up, but no people came, until all at once he
beheld fingers, which handled knives and forks, and laid food on the
plates, but with this exception he saw nothing. As he was hungry,
and saw the food, he, too, placed himself at the table, ate with those
who were eating, and enjoyed it.
When he had had enough, and the others also had quite emptied
their dishes, he distinctly heard all the candles being suddenly
snuffed out, and as it was now pitch dark, he felt something like a
box on the ear. Then he said, "If anything of that kind comes again, I
shall strike out in return." And when he had received a second box
on the ear, he, too, struck out. And so it continued the whole
night, he took nothing without returning it, but repaid everything
with interest, and did not lay about him in vain.
At daybreak, however, everything ceased. When the miller had got up,
he wanted to look after him, and wondered if he were still alive. Then
the youth said, "I have eaten my fill, have received some boxes on the
ear, but I have given some in return." The miller rejoiced, and said
that the mill was now released from the spell, and wanted to give
him much money as a reward. But he said, "Money, I will not have, I
have enough of it." So he took his meal on his back, went home, and
told the bailiff that he had done what he had been told to do, and
would now have the reward agreed on.
When the bailiff heard that, he was seriously alarmed and quite
beside himself; he walked backwards and forwards in the room, and
drops of perspiration ran down from his forehead. Then he opened the
window to get some fresh air, but before he was aware the head-servant
had given him such a kick that he flew through the window out into the
air, and so far away that no one ever saw him again. Then said the
head-servant to the bailiff's wife, "If he does not come back, thou
must take the other blow." She cried, "No, no, I cannot bear it,"
and opened the other window, because drops of perspiration were
running down her forehead. Then he gave her such a kick that she, too,
flew out, and as she was lighter she went much higher than her
husband. Her husband cried, "Do come to me," but she replied, "Come
thou to me, I cannot come to thee."
They hovered about there in the air, and could not get to each
other, and whether they are still hovering about or not, I do not
know, but the young giant took up his iron bar, and went on his way.
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THE END
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