Rumpelstiltskin

Brothers Grimm

Once there was a miller who was poor, but three times round, and the second was full too.
who had a beautiful daughter. Now it And so it went on until the morning, when all
happened that he had to go and speak to the the straw was spun, and all the reels were full
king, and in order to make himself appear of gold.
important he said to him, "I have a daughter
who can spin straw into gold." By daybreak the king was already there,
and when he saw the gold he was astonished
The king said to the miller, "That is an art and delighted, but his heart became only more
which pleases me well, if your daughter is as greedy. He had the miller's daughter taken into
clever as you say, bring her to-morrow to my another room full of straw, which was much
palace, and I will put her to the test." larger, and commanded her to spin that also in
one night if she valued her life. The girl knew
And when the girl was brought to him he not how to help herself, and was crying, when
took her into a room which was quite full of the door opened again, and the little man
straw, gave her a spinning-wheel and a reel, appeared, and said, "What will you give me if
and said, "Now set to work, and if by to- I spin that straw into gold for you?"
morrow morning early you have not spun this
straw into gold during the night, you must "The ring on my finger," answered the girl.
die."
The little man took the ring, again began to
Thereupon he himself locked up the room, turn the wheel, and by morning had spun all
and left her in it alone. So there sat the poor the straw into glittering gold.
miller's daughter, and for the life of her could
not tell what to do, she had no idea how straw The king rejoiced beyond measure at the
could be spun into gold, and she grew more sight, but still he had not gold enough, and he
and more frightened, until at last she began to had the miller's daughter taken into a still
weep. larger room full of straw, and said, "You must
spin this, too, in the course of this night, but if
But all at once the door opened, and in you succeed, you shall be my wife."
came a little man, and said, "Good evening,
mistress miller, why are you crying so?" Even if she be a miller's daughter, thought
he, I could not find a richer wife in the whole
"Alas," answered the girl, "I have to spin world.
straw into gold, and I do not know how to do
it." When the girl was alone the manikin came
again for the third time, and said, "What will
"What will you give me," said the manikin, you give me if I spin the straw for you this
"if I do it for you?" time also?"

"My necklace," said the girl. "I have nothing left that I could give,"
answered the girl.
The little man took the necklace, seated
himself in front of the wheel, and whirr, whirr, "Then promise me, if you should become
whirr, three turns, and the reel was full, then queen, to give me your first child."
he put another on, and whirr, whirr, whirr,
 Who knows whether that will ever happen, mountain at the end of the forest, where the
thought the miller's daughter, and, not fox and the hare bid each other good night,
knowing how else to help herself in this strait, there I saw a little house, and before the house
she promised the manikin what he wanted, and a fire was burning, and round about the fire
for that he once more spun the straw into gold. quite a ridiculous little man was jumping, he
hopped upon one leg, and shouted -
And when the king came in the morning,
and found all as he had wished, he took her in 'To-day I bake, to-morrow brew,
marriage, and the pretty miller's daughter
became a queen. the next I'll have the young queen's child.

A year after, she brought a beautiful child Ha, glad am I that no one knew
into the world, and she never gave a thought to
the manikin. But suddenly he came into her that Rumpelstiltskin I am styled.'"
room, and said, "Now give me what you
promised." You may imagine how glad the queen was
when she heard the name. And when soon
The queen was horror-struck, and offered afterwards the little man came in, and asked,
the manikin all the riches of the kingdom if he "Now, mistress queen, what is my name?"
would leave her the child. But the manikin
said, "No, something alive is dearer to me than At first she said, "Is your name Conrad?"
all the treasures in the world."
"No."
Then the queen began to lament and cry, so
that the manikin pitied her. "Is your name Harry?"

"I will give you three days, time," said he, "No."
"if by that time you find out my name, then
shall you keep your child." "Perhaps your name is Rumpelstiltskin?"

So the queen thought the whole night of all "The devil has told you that! The devil has
the names that she had ever heard, and she sent told you that," cried the little man, and in his
a messenger over the country to inquire, far anger he plunged his right foot so deep into the
and wide, for any other names that there might earth that his whole leg went in, and then in
be. When the manikin came the next day, she rage he pulled at his left leg so hard with both
began with Caspar, Melchior, Balthazar, and hands that he tore himself in two.
said all the names she knew, one after another,
but to every one the little man said, "That is
not my name."

On the second day she had inquiries made

On the third day the messenger came back