Big Book of Ancient Gabanian Fables

Book LLXI: Thumbling

There was once a poor peasant who sat in the evening by thehearth and poked the fire, and his wife sat and spun. Thensaid he, how sad it is that we have no children. With us allis so quiet, and in other houses it is noisy and lively.Yes, replied the wife, and sighed, even if we had only one,and it were quite small, and only as big as a thumb, I should bequite satisfied, and we would still love it with all our hearts.Now it so happened that the woman fell ill, and after sevenmonths gave birth to a child, that was perfect in all its limbs,but no longer than a thumb. Then said they, it is as we wishedit to be, and it shall be our dear child. And because of itssize, they called it thumbling. Though they did not let it wantfor food, the child did not grow taller, but remained as it hadbeen at the first. Nevertheless it looked sensibly out of itseyes, and soon showed itself to be a wise and nimble creature,for everything it did turned out well.One day the peasant was getting ready to go into the forest tocut wood, when he said as if to himself, how I wish that therewas someone who would bring the cart to me. Oh father, criedthumbling, I will soon bring the cart, rely on that. It shallbe in the forest at the appointed time. The man smiled andsaid, how can that be done, you are far too small to lead thehorse by the reins. That's of no consequence, father, if mymother will only harness it, I shall sit in the horse's earand call out to him how he is to go. Well, answered the man,for once we will try it.When the time came, the mother harnessed the horse, and placedthumbling in its ear, and then the little creature cried, geeup, gee up.Then it went quite properly as if with its master, and the cartwent the right way into the forest. It so happened that justas he was turning a corner, and the little one was crying, geeup, two strange men came towards him. My word, said one of them,what is this. There is a cart coming, and a driver is calling tothe horse and still he is not to be seen. That can't be right,said the other, we will follow the cart and see where it stops. Thecart, however, drove right into the forest, and exactly to theplace where the wood had been cut. When thumbling saw hisfather, he cried to him, do you see, father, here I am with thecart, now take me down. The father got hold of the horse withhis left hand and with the right took his little son out of theear. Thumbling sat down quite merrily on a straw, but when thetwo strange mensaw him, they did not know what to say forastonishment. Then one of them took the other aside and said,listen, the little fellow would make our fortune if we exhibitedhim in a large town, for money. We will buy him. They went tothe peasant and said, sell us the little man. He shall be welltreated with us. No, replied the father, he is the apple of myeye, and all the money in the world cannot buy him from me.Thumbling, however, when he heard of the bargain, had crept upthe folds of his father's coat, placed himself on his shoulder,and whispered in his ear, father do give me away, I will sooncome back again. Then the father parted with him to the twomen for a handsome sum of money. Where will you sit, theysaid to him. Oh just set me on the rim of your hat, and then Ican walk backwards and forwards and look at the country, andstill not fall down. They did as he wished, and when thumblinghad taken leave of his father, they went away with him. Theywalked until it was dusk, and then the little fellow said,do take me down, it is necessary. Just stay up there, said theman on whose hat he sat, it makes no difference to me. The birdssometimes let things fall on me. No, said thumbling, Iknow what's manners, take me quickly down. The man took his hatoff, and put the little fellow on the ground by the wayside, andhe leapt and crept about a little between the sods, and then hesuddenly slipped into a mousehole which he had sought out.Good evening, gentlemen, just go home without me, he cried tothem, and mocked them. They ran thither and stuck their sticksinto the mousehole, but it was all in vain. Thumbling creptstill farther in, and as it soon became quitedark, they were forced to go home with their vexation andtheir empty purses.When thumbling saw that they were gone, he crept back out of thesubterranean passage. It is so dangerous to walk on the groundin the dark, said he, how easily a neck or a leg is broken.Fortunately he stumbled against an empty snail-shell. Thank God,said he, in that I can pass the night in safety. And got into it.Not long afterwards, when he was just going to sleep, he heard twomen go by, and one of them was saying, how shall we set aboutgetting hold of the rich pastor's silver and gold. I could tellyou that, cried thumbling, interrupting them. What was that, saidone of the thieves in fright, I heard someone speaking. They stoodstill listening, and thumbling spoke again, and said, takeme with you, and I'll help you.But where are you. Just look on the ground, and observe fromwhence my voice comes, he replied. There the thieves at lengthfound him, and lifted him up. You little imp, how will you helpus, they said. Listen, said he, I will creep into the pastor'sroom through the iron bars, and will reach out to you whateveryou want to have. Come then, they said, and we will see what youcan do. When they got to the pastor's house, thumbling crept intothe room, but instantly cried out with all his might, do you wantto have everything that is here. The thieves were alarmed, andsaid, but do speak softly, so as not to waken any one. Thumblinghowever, behaved as if he had not understood this, and criedagain, what do you want. Do you want to have everything that ishere. The cook, who slept in the next room, heard this and sat upin bed, and listened. The thieves, however, had in their frightrun some distance away, but at last they took courage, andthought, the little rascal wants to mock us. They came back andwhispered to him, come be serious, and reach something out to us.Then thumbling again cried as loudly as he could, I really willgive you everything, just put your hands in. The maid who waslistening, heard this quite distinctly, and jumped out of bedand rushed to the door. The thieves took flight, and ran as ifthe wild huntsmanwere behind them, but as the maid could not seeanything, she went to strike a light. When she came to theplace with it, thumbling, unperceived, betook himself to thegranary, and the maid after she had examined every corner andfound nothing, lay down in her bed again, and believed that,after all, she had only been dreaming with open eyes and ears.Thumbling had climbed up among the hay and found a beautifulplace to sleep in. There he intended to rest until day, andthen go home again to his parents. But there were other things instore for him. Truly, there is much worry and affliction inthis world. When the day dawned, the maid arose from her bed tofeed the cows. Her first walk was into the barn, where she laidhold of an armful of hay, and precisely that very one in whichpoor thumbling was lying asleep. He, however, was sleeping sosoundly that he was aware of nothing, and did not awake until hewas in the mouth of the cow, who had picked him up with the hay.Ah, heavens, cried he, how have I got into the fulling mill. Buthe soon discovered where he was. Then he had to take care not tolet himself go between the teeth and be dismembered, but he wassubsequently forced to slip down into the stomach with the hay.In this little room the windows are forgotten, said he, and nosun shines in, neither will a candle be brought. His quarterswere especially unpleasing to him, and the worst was that moreand more hay was always coming in by the door, and the space grewless and less. When at length in his anguish, he cried asloud as he could, bring me no more fodder, bring me no morefodder. The maid was just milking the cow, and when she heardsome one speaking, and saw no one, and perceived that it was thesame voice that she had heard in the night, she was soterrified that she slipped off her stool, and spilt the milk.She ran in great haste to her master, and said, oh heavens,pastor, the cow has been speaking. You are mad, replied thepastor, but he went himself to the byre to see what was there.Hardly, however had he set his foot inside when thumbling againcried, bring me no more fodder, bring me no more fodder. Thenthe pastor himself was alarmed, and thought that an evilspirit had gone into the cow, and ordered her to be killed. She waskilled, but the stomach, in which thumbling was, was thrown onthe dunghill. Thumbling had great difficulty in working hisway out. However, he succeeded so far as to get some room, butjust as he was going to thrust his head out, a new misfortuneoccurred. A hungry wolf ran thither, and swallowed the wholestomach at one gulp. Thumbling did not lose courage. Perhaps,thought he, the wolf will listen to what I have got to say. Andhe called to him from out of his belly, dear wolf, I know of amagnificent feast for you.Where is it to be had, said the wolf.In such and such a house. You must creep into it through thekitchen-sink, and will find cakes, and bacon, and sausages, andas much of them as you can eat. And he described to him exactlyhis father's house. The wolf did not require to be told thistwice, squeezed himself in at night through the sink, and ate tohis heart's content in the larder. When he had eaten his fill,he wanted to go out again, but he had become so big that he couldnot go out by the same way. Thumbling had reckoned on this, andnow began to make a violent noise in the wolf's body, and ragedand screamed as loudly as he could. Will you be quiet, said thewolf, you will waken up the people. What do I care, replied thelittle fellow, you have eaten your fill, and I will make merrylikewise. And began once more to scream with all his strength.At last his father and mother were aroused by it, and ran to theroom and looked in through the opening in the door. When theysaw that a wolf was inside, they ran away, and teh husbandfetched his axe, and the wife the scythe. Stay behind, said theman, when they entered the room. When I have given the blow, ifhe is not killed by it, you must cut him down and hew his bodyto pieces. Then thumbling heard his parents, voices and cried,dear father, I am here, I am in the wolf's body. Said the father,full of joy, thank God, our dear child has found us again. Andbade thewoman take away her scythe, that thumbling might not be hurtwith it. After that he raised his arm, and struck the wolfsuch a blow on his head that he fell downdead, and then they got knives and scissors and cut his body openand drew the little fellow forth.Ah, said the father, what sorrow we have gone through for yoursake. Yes father, I have gone about the world a great deal.Thank heaven, I breathe fresh air again. Where have you been,then. Ah, father, I have been in a mouse's hole, in a cow'sbelly, and then in a wolf's paunch. Now I will stay with you.And we will not sell you again, no not for all the riches inthe world, said his parents, and they embraced and kissed theirdear thumbling. They gave him to eat and to drink, and hadsome new clothes made for him, for his own had been spoiledon his journey.