Kari Woodengown

: The Red Fairy Book

THERE was once upon a time a King who had become a widower.

His Queen had left one daughter behind her, and she was so

wise and so pretty that it was impossible for any one to be wiser or

prettier. For a long time the King went sorrowing for his wife, for

he had loved her exceedingly; but at last he grew tired of living

alone, and married a Queen who was a widow, and she also had

a daughter, who was just as ill-favoure and wicked as the other

was good and beautiful. The stepmother and her daughter were

envious of the King's daughter because she was so pretty, but so

long as the King was at home they dared do her no harm, because

his love for her was so great.



Then there came a time when he made war on another King and

went away to fight, and then the new Queen thought that she could

do what she liked; so she both hungered and beat the King's daughter

and chased her about into every corner. At last she thought that

everything was too good for her, and set her to work to look after

the cattle. So she went about with the cattle, and herded them in

the woods and in the fields. Of food she got little or none, and

grew pale and thin, and was nearly always weeping and sad. Among

the herd there was a great blue bull, which always kept itself very

smart and sleek, and often came to the King's daughter and let her

stroke him. So one day, when she was again sitting crying and

sorrowing, the Bull came up to her and asked why she was always

so full of care? She made no answer, but continued to weep.



`Well,' said the Bull, `I know what it is, though you will not tell

me; you are weeping because the Queen is unkind to you, and because

she wants to starve you to death. But you need be under no concern

about food, for in my left ear there lies a cloth, and if you will but

take it and spread it out, you can have as many dishes as you like.'



So she did this, and took the cloth and spread it out upon the

grass, and then it was covered with the daintiest dishes that any one

could desire, and there was wine, and mead, and cake. And now

she became brisk and well again, and grew so rosy, and plump, and

fair that the Queen and her scraggy daughter turned blue and white

with vexation at it. The Queen could not imagine how her step-

daughter could look so well on such bad food, so she ordered one of

her handmaidens to follow her into the wood and watch her, and

see how it was, for she thought that some of the servants must be

giving her food. So the maid followed her into the wood and

watched, and saw how the step-daughter took the cloth out of the

Blue Bull's ear, and spread it out, and how the cloth was then covered

with the most delicate dishes, which the step-daughter ate and

regaled herself with. So the waiting-maid went home and told the Queen.



And now the King came home, and he had conquered the other

King with whom he had been at war. So there was great gladness

in the palace, but no one was more glad than the King's daughter.

The Queen, however, pretended to be ill, and gave the doctor much

money to say that she would never be well again unless she had

some of the flesh of the Blue Bull to eat. Both the King's daughter

and the people in the palace asked the doctor if there were no other

means of saving her, and begged for the Bull's life, for they were all

fond of him, and they all declared that there was no such Bull in the

whole country; but it was all in vain, he was to be killed, and should

be killed, and nothing else would serve. When the King's daughter

heard it she was full of sorrow, and went down to the byre to the

Bull. He too was standing there hanging his head, and looking so

downcast that she fell a-weeping over him.



`What are you weeping for?' said the Bull.



So she told him that the King had come home again, and that

the Queen had pretended to be ill, and that she had made the doctor

say that she could never be well again unless some of the flesh of

the Blue Bull was given her to eat, and that now he was to be

killed.



`When once they have taken my life they will soon kill you

also,' said the Bull. `If you are of the same mind with me, we will

take our departure this very night.'



The King's daughter thought that it was bad to go and leave

her father, but that it was worse still to be in the same house with

the Queen, so she promised the Bull that she would come.



At night, when all the others had gone to bed, the King's daughter

stole softly down to the byre to the Bull, and he took her on his

back and got out of the courtyard as quickly as he could. So at

cock-crow next morning, when the people came to kill the Bull, he

was gone, and when the King got up and asked for his daughter she

was gone too. He sent forth messengers to all parts of the kingdom

to search for them, and published his loss in all the parish churches,

but there was no one who had seen anything of them.



In the meantime the Bull travelled through many lands with the

King's daughter on his back, and one day they came to a great

copper-wood, where the trees, and the branches, and the leaves, and

the flowers, and everything else was of copper.



But before they entered the wood the Bull said to the King's

daughter:



`When we enter into this wood, you must take the greatest care

not to touch a leaf of it, or all will be over both with me and with

you, for a Troll with three heads, who is the owner of the wood,

lives here.'



So she said she would be on her guard, and not touch anything.

And she was very careful, and bent herself out of the way of the

branches, and put them aside with her hands; but it was so thickly

wooded that it was all but impossible to get forward, and do what

she might, she somehow or other tore off a leaf which got into her

hand.



`Oh! oh! What have you done now?' said the Bull. `It will

now cost us a battle for life or death; but do be careful to keep the

leaf.'



Very soon afterwards they came to the end of the wood, and the

Troll with three heads came rushing up to them.



`Who is that who is touching my wood?' said the Troll.



`The wood is just as much mine as yours!' said the Bull.



`We shall have a tussle for that!' shrieked the Troll.



`That may be,' said the Bull.



So they rushed on each other and fought, and as for the Bull

he butted and kicked with all the strength of his body, but the

Troll fought quite as well as he did, and the whole day went by

before the Bull put an end to him, and then he himself was so full

of wounds and so worn out that he was scarcely able to move. So

they had to wait a day, and the Bull told the King's daughter to

take the horn of ointment which hung at the Troll's belt, and rub

him with it; then he was himself again, and the next day they set

off once more. And now they journeyed on for many, many days,

and then after a long, long time they came to a silver wood. The

trees, and the boughs, and the leaves, and the flowers, and everything

else was of silver.



Before the Bull went into the wood, he said to the King's

daughter: `When we enter into this wood you must, for Heaven's

sake, be very careful not to touch anything at all, and not to pluck

off even so much as one leaf, or else all will be over both with you

and with me. A Troll with six heads lives here, who is the owner

of the wood, and I do not think I should be able to overcome him.'



`Yes,' said the King's daughter, `I will take good care not to

touch what you do not wish me to touch.'



But when they got into the wood it was so crowded, and the

trees so close together, that they could scarcely get forward. She

was as careful as she could be, and bent aside to get out of the way of

the branches, and thrust them away from before her with her hands;

but every instant a branch struck against her eyes, and in spite of

all her care, she happened to pull off one leaf.



`Oh! oh! What have you done now?' said the Bull. It will

now cost us a battle for life or death, for this Troll has six heads

and is twice as strong as the other, but do be careful to keep the

leaf.'



Just as he said this came the Troll. `Who is that who is

touching my wood?' he said.



`It is just as much mine as yours!'



`We shall have a tussle for that!' screamed the Troll.



`That may be,' said the Bull, and rushed at the Troll, and gored

out his eyes, and drove his horns right through him so that his

entrails gushed out, but the Troll fought just as well as he did, and

it was three whole days before the Bull got the life out of him. But

the Bull was then so weak and worn out that it was only with pain

and effort that he could move, and so covered with wounds that

the blood streamed from him. So he told the King's daughter to

take the horn of ointment that was hanging at the Troll's belt, and

anoint him with it. She did this, and then he came to himself

again, but they had to stay there and rest for a week before the

Bull was able to go any farther.



At last they set forth on their way again, but the Bull was still

weak, and at first could not go quickly. The King's daughter

wished to spare him, and said that she was so young and light of

foot that she would willingly walk, but he would not give her leave

to do that, and she was forced to seat herself on his back again.

So they travelled for a long time, and through many lands, and

the King's daughter did not at all know where he was taking her,

but after a long, long time they came to a gold wood. It was so

golden that the gold dripped off it, and the trees, and the branches,

and the flowers, and the leaves were all of pure gold. Here all

happened just as it had happened in the copper wood and silver

wood. The Bull told the King's daughter that on no account was

she to touch it, for there was a Troll with nine heads who was the

owner, and that he was much larger and stronger than both the

others put together, and that he did not believe that he could

overcome him. So she said that she would take great care not to

touch anything, and he should see that she did. But when they got

into the wood it was still thicker than the silver wood, and the farther

they got into it the worse it grew. The wood became thicker and

thicker, and closer and closer, and at last she thought there was

no way whatsoever by which they could get forward; she was so

terrified lest she should break anything off, that she sat and twisted,

and turned herself on this side and on that, to get out of the way of

the branches, and pushed them away from her with her hands, but

every moment they struck against her eyes, so that she could not

see what she was clutching at, and before she knew what she was

doing she had a golden apple in her hands. She was now in such

terror that she began to cry, and wanted to throw it away, but the

Bull said that she was to keep it, and take the greatest care of it,

and comforted her as well as he could, but he believed that it would

be a hard struggle, and he doubted whether it would go well with him.



Just then the Troll with nine heads came, and he was so frightful

that the King's daughter scarcely dared to look at him



`Who is this who is breaking my wood?' he screamed



`It is as much mine as yours!' said the Bull.



`We shall have a tussle for that!' screamed the Troll.



`That may be,' said the Bull; so they rushed at each other, and

fought, and it was such a dreadful sight that the King's daughter very

nearly swooned. The Bull gored the Troll's eyes out and ran his

horns right through him, but the Troll fought as well as he did, and

when the Bull had gored one head to death the other heads breathed

life into it again, so it was a whole week before the Bull was able

to kill him. But then he himself was so worn out and weak that he

could not move at all. His body was all one wound, and he could

not even so much as tell the King's daughter to take the horn of

ointment out of the Troll's belt and rub him with it. She did this

without being told; so he came to himself again, but he had to lie

there for three weeks and rest before he was in a state to move.



Then they journeyed onwards by degrees, for the Bull said that

they had still a little farther to go, and in this way they crossed

many high hills and thick woods. This lasted for a while, and

then they came upon the fells.



`Do you see anything?' asked the Bull.



`No, I see nothing but the sky above and the wild fell side,'

said the King's daughter.



Then they climbed up higher, and the fell grew more level, so

that they could see farther around them.



`Do you see anything now?' said the Bull.



`Yes, I see a small castle, far, far away,' said the Princess.



`It is not so very little after all,' said the Bull.



After a long, long time they came to a high hill, where there

was a precipitous wall of rock.



`Do you see nothing now?' said the Bull.



`Yes, now I see the castle quite near, and now it is much, much

larger,' said the King's daughter.



`Thither shall you go,' said the Bull; `immediately below the

castle there is a pig-sty, where you shall dwell. When you get

there, you will find a wooden gown which you are to put on, and

then go to the castle and say that you are called Kari Woodengown,

and that you are seeking a place. But now you must take out your

little knife and cut off my head with it, and then you must flay me

and roll up my hide and put it there under the rock, and beneath

the hide you must lay the copper leaf, and the silver leaf, and the

golden apple. Close beside the rock a stick is standing, and when

you want me for anything you have only to knock at the wall of

rock with that.'



At first she would not do it, but when the Bull said that this

was the only reward that he would have for what he had done for

her, she could do no otherwise. So though she thought it very

cruel, she slaved on and cut at the great animal with the knife till

she had cut off his head and hide, and then she folded up the hide

and laid it beneath the mountain wall, and put the copper leaf, and

the silver leaf, and the golden apple inside it.



When she had done that she went away to the pig-sty, but all the way

as she went she wept, and was very sorrowful. Then she put on the wooden

gown, and walked to the King's palace. When she got there she went into the

kitchen and begged for a place, saying that her name was Kari Woodengown.



The cook told her that she might have a place and leave to stay there at

once and wash up, for the girl who had done that before had just gone

away. `And as soon as you get tired of being here you will take yourself

off too,' said he.



`No,' said she, `that I shall certainly not.'



And then she washed up, and did it very tidily.



On Sunday some strangers were coming to the King's palace,

so Kari begged to have leave to carry up the water for the Prince's

bath, but the others laughed at her and said, `What do you want there?

Do you think the Prince will ever look at such a fright as you?'



She would not give it up, however, but went on begging until at

last she got leave. When she was going upstairs her wooden gown

made such a clatter that the Prince came out and said, `What sort

of a creature may you be?'



`I was to take this water to you,' said Kari.



`Do you suppose that I will have any water that you bring?'

said the Prince, and emptied it over her.



She had to bear that, but then she asked permission to go to

church. She got that, for the church was very near. But first she

went to the rock and knocked at it with the stick which was standing

there, as the Bull had told her to do. Instantly a man came

forth and asked what she wanted. The King's daughter said that

she had got leave to go to church and listen to the priest, but that

she had no clothes to go in. So he brought her a gown that was as

bright as the copper wood, and she got a horse and saddle too from

him. When she reached the church she was so pretty and so

splendidly dressed that every one wondered who she could be, and

hardly anyone listened to what the priest was saying, for they

were all looking far too much at her, and the Prince himself liked

her so well that he could not take his eyes off her for an instant.

As she was walking out of church the Prince followed her and

shut the church door after her, and thus he kept one of her

gloves in his hand. Then she went away and mounted her horse

again; the Prince again followed her, and asked her whence she

came.



`Oh! I am from Bathland,' said Kari. And when the Prince

took out the glove and wanted to give it back to her, she said:



`Darkness behind me, but light on my way,

That the Prince may not see where I'm going to-day!'





The Prince had never seen the equal of that glove, and he went

far and wide, asking after the country which the proud lady, who

rode away without her glove, had said that she came from, but

there was no one who could tell him where it lay.



Next Sunday some one had to take up a towel to the Prince.



`Ah! may I have leave to go up with that?' said Kari.



`What would be the use of that?' said the others who were in

the kitchen; `you saw what happened last time.'



Kari would not give in, but went on begging for leave till she

got it, and then she ran up the stairs so that her wooden gown

clattered again. Out came the Prince, and when he saw that it

was Kari, he snatched the towel from her and flung it right in her

eyes.



`Be off at once, you ugly Troll,' said he; `do you think that I

will have a towel that has been touched by your dirty fingers?'



After that the Prince went to church, and Kari also asked leave

to go. They all asked how she could want to go to church when

she had nothing to wear but that wooden gown, which was so

black and hideous. But Kari said she thought the priest was such

a good man at preaching that she got so much benefit from what

he said, and at last she got leave.



She went to the rock and knocked, whereupon out came the

man and gave her a gown which was much more magnificent than

the first. It was embroidered with silver all over it, and it shone

like the silver wood, and he gave her also a most beautiful horse,

with housings embroidered with silver, and a bridle of silver too.



When the King's daughter got to church all the people were

standing outside upon the hillside, and all of them wondered who

on earth she could be, and the Prince was on the alert in a moment,

and came and wanted to hold her horse while she alighted. But

she jumped off and said that there was no need for that, for the

horse was so well broken in that it stood still when she bade it

and came when she called it. So they all went into the church

together, but there was scarcely any one who listened to what the

priest was saying, for they were all looking far too much at her,

and the Prince fell much more deeply in love with her than he had

been before.



When the sermon was over and she went out of the church, and

was just going to mount her horse, the Prince again came and

asked her where she came from.



`I am from Towelland,' said the King's daughter, and as she

spoke she dropped her riding-whip, and while the Prince was

stooping to pick it up she said:





`Darkness behind me, but light on my way,

That the Prince may not see where I'm going to-day!'





And she was gone again, neither could the Prince see what had

become of her. He went far and wide to inquire for that country

from whence she had said that she came, but there was no one who

could tell him where it lay, so he was forced to have patience once

more.



Next Sunday some one had to go to the Prince with a comb.

Kari begged for leave to go with it, but the others reminded her of

what had happened last time, and scolded her for wanting to let the

Prince see her when she was so black and so ugly in her wooden

gown, but she would not give up asking until they gave her leave

to go up to the Prince with the comb. When she went clattering

up the stairs again, out came the Prince and took the comb and

flung it at her, and ordered her to be off as fast as she could. After

that the Prince went to church, and Kari also begged for leave to

go. Again they all asked what she would do there, she who was so

black and ugly, and had no clothes that she could be seen in by

other people. The Prince or some one else might very easily catch

sight of her, they said, and then both she and they would suffer for

it; but Kari said that they had something else to do than to look

at her, and she never ceased begging until she got leave to go.



And now all happened just as it had happened twice already.

She went away to the rock and knocked at it with the stick, and

then the man came out and gave her a gown which was very much

more magnificent than either of the others. It was almost entirely

made of pure gold and diamonds, and she also got a noble horse

with housings embroidered with gold, and a golden bridle.



When the King's daughter came to the church the priest and people

were all standing on the hillside waiting for her, and the Prince ran

up and wanted to hold the horse, but she jumped off, saying:



`No, thank you, there is no need; my horse is so well broken in

that it will stand still when I bid it.'



So they all hastened into the church together and the priest got

into the pulpit, but no one listened to what he said, for they were

looking far too much at her and wondering whence she came; and

the Prince was far more in love than he had been on either of the

former occasions, and he was mindful of nothing but of looking at her.



When the sermon was over and the King's daughter was about

to leave the church, the Prince had caused a firkin of tar to be

emptied out in the porch in order that he might go to help her over

it; she, however, did not trouble herself in the least about the tar,

but set her foot down in the middle of it and jumped over it, and

thus one of her gold shoes was left sticking in it. When she had

seated herself on the horse the Prince came running out of the

church and asked her whence she came.



`From Combland,' said Kari. But when the Prince wanted to

reach her her gold shoe, she said:





`Darkness behind me, but light on my way,

That the Prince may not see where I'm going to-day!'





The Prince did not know what had become of her, so he travelled

for a long and wearisome time all over the world, asking where

Combland was; but when no one could tell him where that country

was, he caused it to be made known everywhere that he would

marry any woman who could put on the gold shoe. So fair maidens

and ugly maidens came thither from all regions, but there was none

who had a foot so small that she could put on the gold shoe. After

a long, long while came Kari Woodengown's wicked stepmother,

with her daughter too, and the shoe fitted her. But she was so

ugly and looked so loathsome that the Prince was very unwilling

to do what he had promised. Nevertheless all was got ready for

the wedding, and she was decked out as a bride, but as they were

riding to church a little bird sat upon a tree and sang:



`A slice off her heel

And a slice off her toes,

Kari Woodengown's shoe

Fills with blood as she goes!'



And when they looked to it the bird had spoken the truth, for blood

was trickling out of the shoe. So all the waiting-maids, and all the

womenkind in the castle had to come and try on the shoe, but

there was not one whom it would fit.



`But where is Kari Woodengown, then?' asked the Prince,

when all the others had tried on the shoe, for he understood the

song of birds and it came to his mind what the bird had said.



`Oh! that creature!' said the others; `it's not the least use for

her to come here, for she has feet like a horse!'



`That may be,' said the Prince, `but as all the others have tried

it, Kari may try it too.'



`Kari!' he called out through the door, and Kari came upstairs,

and her wooden gown clattered as if a whole regiment of dragoons

were coming up.



`Now, you are to try on the gold shoe and be a Princess,' said

the other servants, and they laughed at her and mocked her. Kari

took up the shoe, put her foot into it as easily as possible, and then

threw off her wooden gown, and there she stood in the golden gown

which flashed like rays of sunshine, and on her other foot she had

the fellow to the gold shoe. The Prince knew her in a moment,

and was so glad that he ran and took her in his arms and kissed

her, and when he heard that she was a King's daughter he was

gladder still, and then they had the wedding.[14]



[14] From P. C. Asbjornsen.