The Golden Lads

THE GOLDEN LADS

A poor man and his wife lived in a little cottage, where they supported

themselves by catching fish in the nearest river, and got on as best

they could, living from hand to mouth. One day it happened that when the

fisherman drew in his net he found in it a remarkable fish, for it was

entirely of gold. As he was inspecting it with some surprise, the fish

opened its mouth and said: 'Listen to me, fisher; if you will just throw

me back into the water I'll turn your poor little cottage into a

splendid castle.'

The fisher replied: 'What good, pray, will a castle be to me if I have

nothing to eat in it?'

'Oh,' said the gold fish, 'I'll take care of that. There will be a

cupboard in the castle, in which you will find dishes of every kind of

food you can wish for most.'

'If that's the case,' said the man, 'I've no objection to oblige you.'

'Yes,' observed the fish, 'but there is one condition attached to my

offer, and that is that you are not to reveal to a soul where your good

fortune comes from. If you say a word about it, it will all vanish.'

The man threw the fish back into the water, and went home. But on the

spot where his cottage used to stand he found a spacious castle. He

opened his eyes wide, went in and found his wife dressed out in smart

clothes, sitting in a splendidly furnished drawing-room. She was in high

spirits, and cried out: 'Oh husband! how can this all have happened? I

am so pleased!'

'Yes,' said her husband, 'so am I pleased; but I'm uncommonly hungry,

and I want something to eat at once.'

Said his wife, 'I've got nothing, and I don't know where anything is in

this new house.'

'Never mind,' replied the man. 'I see a big cupboard there. Suppose you

unlock it.'

When the cupboard was opened they found meat, cakes, fruit, and wine,

all spread out in the most tempting fashions. The wife clapped her hands

with joy, and cried: 'Dear heart! what more can one wish for?' and they

sat down and ate and drank.

When they had finished the wife asked, 'But husband, where do all these

riches come from?'

[Illustration]

'Ah!' said he, 'don't ask me. I dare not tell you. If I reveal the

secret to anyone, it will be all up with us.'

'Very well,' she replied, 'if I'm not to be told, of course I don't want

to know anything about it.'

But she was not really in earnest, for her curiosity never left her a

moment's peace by day or night, and she teazed and worried her husband

to such a pitch, that at length he quite lost patience and blurted out

that it all came from a wonderful golden fish which he had caught and

set free again. Hardly were the words well out of his mouth, when

castle, cupboard, and all vanished, and there they were sitting in their

poor little fishing hut once more.

The man had to betake himself to his former trade, and set to fishing

again. As luck would have it, he caught the golden fish a second time.

'Now listen,' said the fish, 'if you'll throw me back into the water,

I'll give you back the castle and the cupboard with all its good things;

but now take care, and don't for your life betray where you got them, or

you'll just lose them again.'

'I'll be very careful,' promised the fisher, and threw the fish back

into the water. When he went home he found all their former splendour

restored, and his wife overjoyed at their good fortune. But her

curiosity still continued to torment her, and after restraining it with

a great effort for a couple of days, she began questioning her husband

again, as to what had happened, and how he had managed.

The man kept silence for some time, but at last she irritated him so

much that he burst out with the secret, and in one moment the castle was

gone, and they sat once more in their wretched old hut.

'There!' exclaimed the man, 'you would have it--now we may just go on

short commons.'

'Ah!' said his wife, 'after all I'd rather not have all the riches in

the world if I can't know where they come from--I shall not have a

moment's peace.'

The man took to his fishing again, and one day fate brought the gold

fish into his net for the third time. 'Well,' said the fish, 'I see that

I am evidently destined to fall into your hands. Now take me home, and

cut me into six pieces. Give two bits to your wife to eat, two to your

horse, and plant the remaining two in your garden, and they will bring

you a blessing.'

The man carried the fish home, and did exactly as he had been told.

After a time, it came to pass that from the two pieces he had planted in

the garden two golden lilies grew up, and that his horse had two golden

foals, whilst his wife gave birth to twin boys who were all golden.

The children grew up both tall and handsome, and the foals and the

lilies grew with them.

One day the children came to their father and said, 'Father, we want to

mount on golden steeds, and ride forth to see the world.'

Their father answered sadly, 'How can I bear it if, when you are far

away, I know nothing about you?' and they said, 'The golden lilies will

tell you all about us if you look at them. If they seem to droop, you

will know we are ill, and if they fall down and fade away, it will be a

sign we are dead.'

So off they rode, and came to an inn where were a number of people who,

as soon as they saw the two golden lads, began to laugh and jeer at

them. When one of them heard this, his heart failed him, and he thought

he would go no further into the world, so he turned back and rode home

to his father, but his brother rode on till he reached the outskirts of

a huge forest. Here he was told, 'It will never do for you to ride

through the forest, it is full of robbers, and you're sure to come to

grief, especially when they see that you and your horse are golden. They

will certainly fall on you and kill you.' However, he was not to be

intimidated, but said, 'I must and will ride on.'

So he procured some bears' skins, and covered himself and his horse with

them, so that not a particle of gold could be seen, and then rode

bravely on into the heart of the forest.

When he had got some way he heard a rustling through the bushes and

presently a sound of voices. Someone whispered on one side of him:

'There goes someone,' and was answered from the other side: 'Oh, let him

pass. He's only a bear-keeper, and as poor as any church mouse.' So

golden lad rode through the forest and no harm befell him.

One day he came to a village, where he saw a girl who struck him as

being the loveliest creature in the whole world, and as he felt a great

love for her, he went up to her and said: 'I love you with all my heart;

will you be my wife?' And the girl liked him so much that she put her

hand in his and replied: 'Yes, I will be your wife, and will be true to

you as long as I live.'

So they were married, and in the middle of all the festivities and

rejoicings the bride's father came home and was not a little surprised

at finding his daughter celebrating her wedding. He enquired: 'And who

is the bridegroom?'

Then someone pointed out to him the golden lad, who was still wrapped up

in the bear's skin, and the father exclaimed angrily: 'Never shall a

mere bear-keeper have my daughter,' and tried to rush at him and kill

him. But the bride did all she could to pacify him, and begged hard,

saying: 'After all he is my husband, and I love him with all my heart,'

so that at length he gave in.

[Illustration]

However, he could not dismiss the thought from his mind, and next

morning he rose very early, for he felt he must go and look at his

daughter's husband and see whether he really was nothing better than a

mere ragged beggar. So he went to his son-in-law's room, and who should

he see lying in the bed but a splendid golden man, and the rough

bearskin thrown on the ground close by. Then he slipped quietly away,

and thought to himself, 'How lucky that I managed to control my rage! I

should certainly have committed a great crime.'

Meantime the golden lad dreamt that he was out hunting and was giving

chase to a noble stag, and when he woke he said to his bride: 'I must go

off and hunt.' She felt very anxious, and begged he would stay at home,

adding: 'Some mishap might so easily befall you,' but he answered, 'I

must and will go.'

So he went off into the forest, and before long a fine stag, such as he

had seen in his dream, stopped just in front of him. He took aim, and

was about to fire when the stag bounded away. Then he started off in

pursuit, making his way through bushes and briars, and never stopped all

day; but in the evening the stag entirely disappeared, and when golden

lad came to look about him he found himself just opposite a hut in which

lived a witch. He knocked at the door, which was opened by a little old

woman who asked, 'What do you want at this late hour in the midst of

this great forest?'

He said, 'Haven't you seen a stag about here?'

'Yes,' said she, 'I know the stag well,' and as she spoke a little dog

ran out of the house and began barking and snapping at the stranger.

'Be quiet, you little toad,' he cried, 'or I'll shoot you dead.'

Then the witch flew into a great rage, and screamed out, 'What! you'll

kill my dog, will you?' and the next moment he was turned to stone and

lay there immovable, whilst his bride waited for him in vain and thought

to herself, 'Alas! no doubt the evil I feared, and which has made my

heart so heavy, has befallen him.'

Meantime, the other brother was standing near the golden lilies at home,

when suddenly one of them bent over and fell to the ground. 'Good

heavens!' cried he, 'some great misfortune has befallen my brother. I

must set off at once; perhaps I may still be in time to save him.'

His father entreated him, 'Stay at home. If I should lose you too, what

would become of me?'

But his son replied, 'I must and will go.'

Then he mounted his golden horse, and rode off till he reached the

forest where his brother lay transformed to stone. The old witch came

out of her house and called to him, for she would gladly have cast her

spells on him too, but he took care not to go near her, and called out:

'Restore my brother to life at once, or I'll shoot you down on the

spot.'

Reluctantly she touched the stone with her finger, and in a moment it

resumed its human shape. The two golden lads fell into each other's arms

and kissed each other with joy, and then rode off together to the edge

of the forest, where they parted, one to return to his old father, and

the other to his bride.

When the former got home his father said, 'I knew you had delivered your

brother, for all of a sudden the golden lily reared itself up and burst

into blossom.'

Then they all lived happily to their lives' ends, and all things went

well with them.

Grimm.