THE FARMER and THE PIXY
by Katharine Pyle · from Wonder Tales from Many Lands
Adapted Version
Once upon a time, Boggins was a farmer. He lived on a farm far away. He had much work to do.
Farmer Boggins went to his barn. He saw clean grain. This happened three times. He did not know who did it. He was very surprised.
Farmer Boggins hid in the barn. He wanted to see. A very small pixy came. The pixy wore old clothes. He worked very hard. He made the grain clean. He said, "I am hot! I work so much!"
Farmer Boggins was happy. He saw the pixy work. He said, "You work well!" Pixy heard him. It was gone very fast. It did not stay.
Farmer Boggins told his wife. His wife said, "Oh no! You must not speak!" She had an idea. "I will make small clothes," she said. "He will come back."
Farmer Boggins' Wife made tiny clothes. They were for The Pixy. She made a small suit. Farmer Boggins put them in the barn. He put them on the floor.
The Pixy came back. He saw the new clothes. He put them on. He was very happy. He sang, "I am free! I am free! No more work!" He danced from the barn.
Farmer Boggins was upset. The Pixy did not work. He ran after The Pixy. He went to the bridge. He wanted The Pixy to work. He wanted his clothes back.
Farmer Boggins saw many pixies. They were all small. One pixy wore the new clothes. It was his pixy. The other pixies wore no clothes.
Farmer Boggins heard a sound. It was his wife's voice. She cried, "Help me! I will drown!" The sound came from the water. Farmer Boggins felt worried.
Farmer Boggins turned to help. He saw no one there. The water was quiet. He looked back at the bridge. All the pixies were gone. They went away very fast.
Farmer Boggins went home. He felt sad. He had no pixy. He had no clothes. His wife told him, "You were tricked! You must be careful!"
The Pixy never came back. Farmer Boggins worked alone. He missed the helpful pixy. The farmer did all his work.
Original Story
THE FARMER AND THE PIXY
AN ENGLISH FAIRY TALE
FARMER BOGGINS lived on a lonely farm, and there were a great many pixies and other fairies all around.
One morning in threshing-time Farmer Boggins went out to the barn before anyone else, and what was his surprise to find that a great heap of grain had been threshed out in the night. He wondered who had done it. When his labourers came to work he questioned them, but none of them knew anything about it.
The next night the same thing happened; no one went near the barn, but in the morning there was a heap of clean grain on the floor.
The third night the farmer made up his mind to find out who it was that was helping him, so he hid himself behind some hay, and lay there watching. The moon shone in and lighted all the floor, but for a long time the farmer heard and saw nothing.
Then suddenly he heard a sound of threshing, and there was a pixy beating out the grain with a flail. The little man was not a foot high. He was as brown as a nut and had scarce a rag of clothes upon him.
He worked so hard that the sweat poured down his forehead, and now and then he stopped to wipe it away. Then he would cry out proudly, “How I sweat! How I sweat!”
The farmer was filled with admiration, and the third time the little man cried “How I sweat!” the farmer could hold his tongue no longer, but answered him, “That you do!”
No sooner had he spoken, however, than the pixy was gone.
The farmer waited for a while, but the little man did not return. At last Farmer Boggins went back to the house and told his good wife all that had happened.
“You stupid!” she cried, when he had made an end of the story. “You should never have spoken to him. The small folk cannot bear to be spoken to!”
Well, the mischief was done, and now the only thing to do was to think of some way to coax the pixy back again to the work.
Early the next morning the good wife woke her husband.
“Husband,” said she, “did you say the little man had scarce a stitch of clothes upon him?”
“That’s what I said,” answered the farmer.
“Then listen,” said his wife. “To-day I will make a little suit of clothes for him, and you shall take it out and lay it in the barn where he will be likely to see it if he comes back. Maybe then he’ll be so pleased he’ll get over his anger and begin to work for you again.”
“NOT SO FAST, MY FINE LITTLE FELLOW,” HE SAID
Well, that seemed a good plan to the farmer, so his wife set to work, and by evening she had made a complete set of little clothes just the size for a pixy. The farmer took it out to the barn and spread it out in the moonlight and hid himself where he could watch and see what would happen.
For a long time all was still, and Farmer Boggins was beginning to feel sleepy, when suddenly he saw the pixy was there. The little man had a flail in his hands and was going toward a heap of grain. Then he saw the little suit lying there in the moonlight. At first he stood quite still, and then he laid down the flail and took up the clothes. He looked at them all over, and then he put them on.
When he was dressed he began to hop about and sing:
“How fine I am, how fine I am:
Now I am nobody’s working-man.”
So singing, he danced across the floor and out of the barn and down the hill.
Then the farmer was in a rage. His wife had taken all the trouble to make the clothes, and the little man had taken them and gone off without doing a stroke of work to pay for them. But this should not be the end of the matter.
At the foot of the hill the farm road crossed a stream, and there was a bridge. The farmer went down to the bridge and hid himself beside it, for he thought that if the pixy were really leaving the farm, this was the way he would go.
Sure enough, Boggins had not been hidden there long when he heard a sound of voices, and along came a whole troop of pixies. They all looked exactly like the little man the farmer had seen in the barn, but none of them were dressed. Last of all came a pixy in a little suit of clothes, so the farmer knew he must be the one who had threshed out the grain.
Just as this pixy reached the bridge, Farmer Boggins stepped out in front of him. “Not so fast, my fine little fellow,” he said. “There’s some work owing me in payment for that suit you’re wearing.”
The farmer had scarcely got the words out of his mouth when he heard a great splash in the stream behind him, and a voice that sounded like his wife’s cried, “Husband! Husband! Come quick and help me, or I’ll drown.”
The farmer turned about, and immediately there was a burst of elfin laughter. The stream lay silent and smooth in the moonlight. No one was there, and when the farmer turned back to the bridge again every pixy was gone from it.
Then the farmer knew that he had been tricked, and he had to go home without either the pixy or the suit of clothes. His wife was there though. She had never been out of the house at all, and a fine scolding she gave him for letting himself be tricked that way by the little men.
But the pixy never came back to help him with his grain, or to thank him for the suit of clothes either.
Story DNA
Moral
Do not interfere with the ways of magical beings, and do not expect gratitude for unsolicited gifts.
Plot Summary
Farmer Boggins discovers a pixy secretly threshing his grain each night. When he speaks to the pixy out of admiration, the pixy vanishes. His wife suggests making the ragged pixy a suit of clothes to entice him back, but upon receiving the gift, the pixy declares himself 'nobody’s working-man' and leaves. The farmer attempts to confront the pixy at a bridge but is tricked by a false cry for help, allowing the pixy to escape with the clothes, never to return.
Themes
Emotional Arc
hope to frustration
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
Pixies are a common element in English folklore, often associated with rural areas and known for both helpfulness and trickery. The belief that speaking to them breaks their magic or causes them to leave is a recurring motif.
Plot Beats (12)
- Farmer Boggins finds a heap of threshed grain in his barn for three consecutive mornings.
- The farmer hides in the barn and discovers a tiny, ragged pixy tirelessly threshing grain and exclaiming about his sweat.
- Unable to contain his admiration, the farmer speaks to the pixy, causing it to immediately disappear.
- The farmer's wife scolds him for speaking to the pixy but then suggests making a suit of clothes to entice him back.
- The farmer's wife sews a tiny suit, which the farmer places in the barn.
- The pixy returns, finds the clothes, puts them on, and joyfully sings that he is now 'nobody’s working-man' before dancing away.
- Enraged, the farmer pursues the pixy to a bridge, intending to demand payment for the clothes.
- The farmer confronts the dressed pixy among a troop of other undressed pixies.
- A voice mimicking his wife's cries for help from the stream, distracting the farmer.
- The farmer turns to help, but finds no one, and when he turns back, all the pixies have vanished.
- The farmer returns home, tricked and empty-handed, and is scolded by his wife for his foolishness.
- The pixy never returns to help the farmer again.
Characters
Farmer Boggins ★ protagonist
A sturdy, likely broad-shouldered man, accustomed to physical labor on a farm. His hands would be calloused, and his face weathered from working outdoors. He is of average height and build for an English farmer of the period.
Attire: Practical, durable clothing suitable for farm work in rural England. He would wear a coarse linen or wool shirt, sturdy breeches, and a simple waistcoat. His boots would be heavy leather, well-worn and mud-stained.
Wants: To understand who is helping him, to get work done on his farm, and later, to reclaim what he feels is owed to him.
Flaw: His impulsiveness and tendency to speak or act without fully thinking through the consequences, making him susceptible to tricks.
He starts as a curious farmer benefiting from mysterious help. He learns that his impulsiveness can have negative consequences, losing both the help and the clothes, but doesn't fully overcome his gullibility.
Observant, curious, appreciative, impulsive, easily tricked, somewhat naive, persistent, prone to anger.
Image Prompt & Upload
A sturdy adult English farmer, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. He has a weathered face, short brown hair, and kind blue eyes. He wears a coarse cream linen shirt, a brown wool waistcoat, sturdy dark green breeches, and heavy leather boots. His hands are calloused. He stands with a slightly stooped but solid posture, a thoughtful expression on his face. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Pixy ◆ supporting
Extremely small, less than a foot high. His skin is described as 'brown as a nut,' suggesting an earthy, tanned complexion. He is wiry and strong for his size, capable of strenuous labor.
Attire: Initially, 'scarce a rag of clothes upon him,' implying a very simple, tattered garment or none at all. Later, he wears a complete, custom-made little suit of clothes, likely in earthy tones like green or brown, made of fine, soft fabric.
Wants: Initially, to work and perhaps take pride in his labor. Later, to enjoy his newfound clothes and freedom from being a 'working-man.'
Flaw: His pride and inability to tolerate being observed or spoken to while working, and his susceptibility to vanity.
Starts as a benevolent, anonymous helper. He is driven away by human interaction, then enticed back by a gift of clothes, which he uses to declare his independence and escape further obligation.
Hard-working, proud, easily offended, playful, mischievous, cunning, independent.
Image Prompt & Upload
A tiny male magical creature, less than a foot tall, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. He has nut-brown skin, sharp elfin features, and bright, quick dark eyes. His dark hair is disheveled. He wears a perfectly fitted little suit of clothes made of soft green fabric, with tiny buttons. He stands with a playful, hopping posture, a mischievous grin on his face. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Farmer Boggins' Wife ◆ supporting
A practical, no-nonsense woman, likely of sturdy build, accustomed to the demands of farm life. Her hands would be capable and skilled from household tasks.
Attire: Practical and durable clothing, such as a long-sleeved linen or wool gown, covered by a sturdy apron. Her attire would be modest and functional, in muted, earthy tones.
Wants: To help her husband solve his problems and ensure the farm runs smoothly, and to correct his mistakes.
Flaw: Her sharp tongue, which can be harsh, though well-intentioned.
She remains consistent throughout the story, acting as the voice of reason and practical solutions, though her advice ultimately leads to an unexpected outcome.
Sensible, sharp-witted, practical, scolding, resourceful, caring.
Image Prompt & Upload
A sensible adult English farm wife, facing forward, full body visible from head to toe. She has a practical, kind face with a firm expression, her brown hair neatly pulled back in a bun. She wears a long-sleeved, dark blue linen gown with a simple white apron tied at the waist. Her posture is upright and purposeful. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Locations
Farmer Boggins' Barn
A rustic, functional barn with a dirt or packed earth floor, where grain is threshed. Moonlight streams in through openings, illuminating heaps of grain and hay bales. The air is likely dusty with chaff.
Mood: Mysterious, industrious, later expectant and then frustrated.
The pixy is discovered threshing grain; the farmer speaks to him; the pixy receives and tries on his new clothes before leaving.
Image Prompt & Upload
A rustic English barn interior at night, illuminated by a bright, cool moonlight filtering through gaps in the weathered timber walls and a large open doorway. The packed earth floor is scattered with golden grain and straw, with a large, neatly threshed pile in the center. Shadows are long and deep, cast by rough-hewn wooden support beams and stacks of hay bales in the background. The air is still and slightly dusty. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Foot of the Hill / Stream and Bridge
The base of a gentle hill leading away from the farm, where a narrow farm road crosses a small, clear stream via a simple stone or wooden bridge. The area is open to the moonlight, with some surrounding foliage.
Mood: Anticipatory, then mischievous and ultimately frustrating.
Farmer Boggins attempts to intercept the pixy and reclaim payment for the clothes, but is tricked by the pixies.
Image Prompt & Upload
A moonlit English countryside scene at the base of a gentle, grassy hill. A narrow, unpaved farm road crosses a small, clear stream via a simple, low stone bridge, its arch reflecting faintly in the still water. Sparse, native English trees and shrubs line the stream banks, their leaves shimmering silver in the cool moonlight. The sky above is clear and dark, with a prominent full moon. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
