Lights in the Moor and other stories

Carpenter and Alderman

In a small village once lived a carpenter who was famous and appreciated far beyond the borders of his home for his craftsmanship. In his small workshop he built everything out of wood that the inhabitants from the village and from outside needed. He made cabinets, tables, chairs and chests of all kinds, but he also made doors and shutters, and when necessary he came to his customers to repair floors and windows. His work was of such high quality and beauty that people would wait for weeks for his services and were willing to pay any price. But because he was a modest and decent man, he never took more money than he and his family needed. He also lived modestly in a small dwelling above his workshop, together with his partner, their two children and the old cat Mina. Their life was simple, but happy and without deprivation.

The carpenter's good reputation had spread far and wide in the country, so one day a rich alderman from a big city came to the village. The alderman, together with his servant, went directly to the carpenter and said to him, "My daughter is to be married next week, and one of my gifts to her is to be a splendid chest of drawers with carving and splendid inlay work. This box of gold here I will give you today, and another in ten days, when the chest of drawers shall be ready."

The carpenter looked at the alderman sorrowfully, and after a moment's thought said, "Sir, your order honors me, but my order books are full. I could start your order in a month at the earliest, because I gave my word to others that ordered cabinets and other furniture would be made at the agreed time. Therefore, I am sorry to have to decline your request."

The alderman tried everything to change the carpenter's mind, first offering him more gold, then trying threats, and when that didn't work he pleaded on his knees. But all this did not help, the carpenter stuck to his polite refusal.

Disappointed and angry, the alderman left the workshop with his servant, and as they both made their way home, the alderman said, "The carpenter will pay for simply rejecting me! I will take revenge and his damage shall be my pleasure!"

On his way home, the alderman had plenty of time to plan his revenge, and after returning to the city, he immediately sent for an old sorcerer. He was known in the city for his greed for money and his knowledge of black magic. When the old sorcerer arrived, the alderman said to him: "I want revenge on a carpenter who has denied my wishes. Invent a way to harm him, and the box of gold that the carpenter refused shall be yours!"

It did not take the old sorcerer long to devise a plan and set it in motion. That very evening he stood in his shabby study, uttered several incantations, and then a small box-shaped table clock stood before him. He wrapped it in paper, affixed a dedication, and that very night had a messenger take the clock to the carpenter's workshop. Full of malice, the old sorcerer rubbed his hands; the gold was as good as safe.

The next morning, as he did every day, the carpenter descended the wooden outside stairs to his workshop. He was about to unlock the door when he discovered the package lying just outside his workshop door. He picked it up, and read the dedication on the card, "Take this small gift as a tribute to your craftsmanship, from a quiet admirer."

Inside, he unwrapped the package, and when he saw the clock, he delighted in it. He wound it up, adjusted it after glancing out the window at the tower clock, and placed it on a shelf above his workbench. Elated, he took up his work, and nothing else happened that day. With one exception. Late in the afternoon, Mina, the old cat, came to the workshop. Mina rarely paid attention to the other members of the family, and only sometimes allowed one of the children to pet her or play with her. But still, everyone liked the old cat, and in her own way, Mina probably liked the family, too. So Mina came to the workshop, as she often did, but when she came near the clock, her behavior changed. She arched her back, her fur bristled, and she hissed excitedly in the direction of the clock. This seemed strange to the carpenter, but he shooed Mina out of the workshop to work in peace.