The Twin Brothers

The Twin Brothers

Once there was a fisherman who had plenty of money but no children.

One day an old woman came to his wife and said: ‘What use is all your

prosperity to you when you have no children?’

‘It is God’s will,’ answered the fisherman’s wife.

‘Nay, my child, it is not God’s will, but the fault of your husband;

for if he would but catch the little gold-fish you would surely have

children. To-night, when he comes home, tell him he must go back and

catch the little fish. He must then cut it in six pieces--one of these

you must eat, and your husband the second, and soon after you will have

two children. The third piece you must give to the dog, and she will

have two puppies. The fourth piece give to the mare, and she will have

two foals. The fifth piece bury on the right of the house door, and the

sixth on the left, and two cypress trees will spring up there.’

When the fisherman came home at evening his wife told him all that

the old woman had advised, and he promised to bring home the little

gold-fish. Next morning, therefore, he went very early to the water, and

caught the little fish. Then they did as the old woman had ordered, and

in due time the fisherman’s wife had two sons, so like each other that

no one could tell the difference. The dog had two puppies exactly alike,

the mare had two foals, and on each side of the front door there sprang

up two cypress trees precisely similar.

When the two boys were grown up, they were not content to remain at

home, though they had wealth in plenty; but they wished to go out into

the world, and make a name for themselves. Their father would not allow

them both to go at once, as they were the only children he had. He said:

‘First one shall travel, and when he is come back then the other may

go.’

So the one took his horse and his dog, and went, saying to his brother:

‘So long as the cypress trees are green, that is a sign that I am alive

and well; but if one begins to wither, then make haste and come to me.’

So he went forth into the world.

One day he stopped at the house of an old woman, and as at evening he

sat before the door, he perceived in front of him a castle standing on

a hill. He asked the old woman to whom it belonged, and her answer was:

‘My son, it is the castle of the Fairest in the Land!’

‘And I am come here to woo her!’

‘That, my son, many have sought to do, and have lost their lives in the

attempt; for she has cut off their heads and stuck them on the post you

see standing there.’

‘And the same will she do to me, or else I shall be victor, for

to-morrow I go there to court her.’

Then he took his zither and played upon it so beautifully that no one in

all that land had ever heard the like, and the princess herself came to

the window to listen.

The next morning the Fairest in the Land sent for the old woman and

asked her, ‘Who is it that lives with you, and plays the zither so

well?’

‘It is a stranger, princess, who arrived yesterday evening,’ answered

the old woman.

And the princess then commanded that the stranger should be brought to

her.

When he appeared before the princess she questioned him about his home

and his family, and about this and that; and confessed at length that

his zither-playing gave her great pleasure, and that she would take him

for her husband. The stranger replied that it was with that intent he

had come.

The princess then said: ‘You must now go to my father, and tell him you

desire to have me to wife, and when he has put the three problems before

you, then come back and tell me.’

The stranger then went straight to the king, and told him that he wished

to wed his daughter.

And the king answered: ‘I shall be well pleased, provided you can do

what I impose upon you; if not you will lose your head. Now, listen; out

there on the ground, there lies a thick log, which measures more than

two fathoms; if you can cleave it in two with one stroke of your sword,

I will give you my daughter to wife. If you fail, then it will cost you

your head.’

Then the stranger withdrew, and returned to the house of the old woman

sore distressed, for he could believe nothing but that next day he must

atone to the king with his head. And so full was he of the idea of how

to set about cleaving the log that he forgot even his zither.

In the evening came the princess to the window to listen to his playing,

and behold all was still. Then she called to him: ‘Why are you so cast

down this evening, that you do not play on your zither?’

And he told her his trouble.

But she laughed at it, and called to him: ‘And you grieve over that?

Bring quickly your zither, and play something for my amusement, and

early to-morrow come to me.’

Then the stranger took his zither and played the whole evening for the

amusement of the princess.

Next morning she took a hair from her locks and gave it to him, saying:

‘Take this hair, and wind it round your sword, then you will be able to

cleave the log in two.’

Then the stranger went forth, and with one blow cleft the log in two.

But the king said: ‘I will impose another task upon you, before you can

wed my daughter.’

‘Speak on,’ said the stranger.

‘Listen, then,’ answered the king; ‘you must mount a horse and ride

three miles at full gallop, holding in each hand a goblet full of water.

If you spill no drop then I shall give you my daughter to wife, but

should you not succeed then I will take your life.’

Then the stranger returned to the house of the old woman, and again he

was so troubled as to forget his zither.

In the evening the princess came to the window as before to listen to

the music, but again all was still; and she called to him: ‘What is the

matter that you do not play on your zither?’

Then he related all that the king had ordered him to do, and the

princess answered: ‘Do not let yourself be disturbed, only play now, and

come to me to-morrow morning.’

Then next morning he went to her, and she gave him her ring, saying:

‘Throw this ring into the water and it will immediately freeze, so that

you will not spill any.’

The stranger did as the princess bade him, and carried the water all the

way.

Then the king said: ‘Now I will give you a third task, and this shall be

the last. I have a negro who will fight with you to-morrow, and if you

are the conqueror you shall wed my daughter.’

The stranger returned, full of joy, to the house of the old woman, and

that evening was so merry that the princess called to him; ‘You seem

very cheerful this evening; what has my father told you that makes you

so glad?’

He answered: ‘Your father has told me that to-morrow I must fight with

his negro. He is only another man like myself, and I hope to subdue him,

and to gain the contest.’

But the princess answered: ‘This is the hardest of all. I myself am

the black man, for I swallow a drink that changes me into a negro of

unconquerable strength. Go to-morrow morning to the market, buy twelve

buffalo hides and wrap them round your horse; fasten this cloth round

you, and when I am let loose upon you to-morrow show it to me, that I

may hold myself back and may not kill you. Then when you fight me you

must try to hit my horse between the eyes, for when you have killed it

you have conquered me.’

Next morning, therefore, he went to the market and bought the twelve

buffalo hides which he wrapped round his horse. Then he began to fight

with the black man, and when the combat had already lasted a long time,

and eleven hides were torn, then the stranger hit the negro’s horse

between the eyes, so that it fell dead, and the black man was defeated.

Then said the king: ‘Because you have solved the three problems I take

you for my son-in-law.’

But the stranger answered: ‘I have some business to conclude first; in

fourteen days I will return and bring the bride home.’

So he arose and went into another country, where he came to a great

town, and alighted at the house of an old woman. When he had had supper

he begged of her some water to drink, but she answered: ‘My son, I have

no water; a giant has taken possession of the spring, and only lets us

draw from it once a year, when we bring him a maiden. He eats her up,

and then he lets us draw water; just now it is the lot of the king’s

daughter, and to-morrow she will be led forth.’

The next day accordingly the princess was led forth to the spring, and

bound there with a golden chain. After that all the people went away and

she was left alone.

When they had gone the stranger went to the maiden and asked her what

ailed her that she lamented so much, and she answered that the reason

was because the giant would come and eat her up. And the stranger

promised that he would set her free if she would take him for her

husband, and the princess joyfully consented.

When the giant appeared the stranger set his dog at him, and it took him

by the throat and throttled him till he died; so the princess was set

free.

Now when the king heard of it he gladly consented to the marriage, and

the wedding took place with great rejoicings. The young bridegroom abode

in the palace one hundred and one weeks. Then he began to find it

too dull, and he desired to go out hunting. The king would fain have

prevented it, but in this he could not succeed. Then he begged his

son-in-law at least to take sufficient escort with him, but this, too,

the young man evaded, and took only his horse and his dog.

He had ridden already a long way, when he saw in the distance a hut, and

rode straight towards it in order to get some water to drink. There

he found an old woman from whom he begged the water. She answered that

first he should allow her to beat his dog with her little wand, that it

might not bite her while she fetched the water. The hunter consented;

and as soon as she had touched the dog with her wand it immediately

turned to stone. Thereupon she touched the hunter and also his horse,

and both turned to stone. As soon as that had happened, the cypress

trees in front of his father’s house began to wither. And when the other

brother saw this, he immediately set out in search of his twin. He came

first to the town where his brother had slain the giant, and there fate

led him to the same old woman where his brother had lodged. When she saw

him she took him for his twin brother, and said to him: ‘Do not take

it amiss of me, my son, that I did not come to wish you joy on your

marriage with the king’s daughter.’

The stranger perceived what mistake she had made, but only said: ‘That

does not matter, old woman,’ and rode on, without further speech, to

the king’s palace, where the king and the princess both took him for

his twin brother, and called out: ‘Why have you tarried so long away? We

thought something evil had befallen you.’

When night came and he slept with the princess, who still believed him

to be her husband, he laid his sword between them, and when morning came

he rose early and went out to hunt. Fate led him by the same way which

his brother had taken, and from a distance he saw him and knew that he

was turned to stone. Then he entered the hut and ordered the old woman

to disenchant his brother. But she answered: ‘Let me first touch your

dog with my wand, and then I will free your brother.’

He ordered the dog, however, to take hold of her, and bite her up to

the knee, till she cried out: ‘Tell your dog to let me go and I will set

your brother free!’

But he only answered: ‘Tell me the magic words that I may disenchant him

myself;’ and as she would not, he ordered his dog to bite her up to the

hip.

Then the old woman cried out: ‘I have two wands, with the green one I

turn to stone, and with the red one I bring to life again.’

So the hunter took the red wand and disenchanted his brother, also his

brother’s horse, and his dog, and ordered his own dog to eat the old

woman up altogether.

While the brothers went on their way back to the castle of the king, the

one brother related to the other how the cypress tree had all at once

dried up and withered, how he had immediately set out in search of his

twin, and how he had come to the castle of his father-in-law, and had

claimed the princess as his wife. But the other brother became furious

on hearing this, and smote him over the forehead till he died, and

returned alone to the house of his father-in-law.

When night came and he was in bed the princess asked him: ‘What was the

matter with you last night, that you never spoke a word to me?’

Then he cried out: ‘That was not me, but my brother, and I have slain

him, because he told me by the way that he had claimed you for his

wife!’

‘Do you know the place where you slew him?’ asked the princess, ‘and can

you find the body?’

‘I know the place exactly.’

‘Then to-morrow we shall ride thither,’ said the princess. Next morning

accordingly they set out together, and when they had come to the place,

the princess drew forth a small bottle that she had brought with her,

and sprinkled the body with some drops of the water so that immediately

he became alive again.

When he stood up, his brother said to him: ‘Forgive me, dear brother,

that I slew you in my anger.’ Then they embraced and went together to

the Fairest in the Land, whom the unmarried brother took to wife.

Then the brothers brought their parents to live with them, and all dwelt

together in joy and happiness.