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Title: Grimm's Fairy Tales: The Crows and the Soldier
Date of first publication: 1930
Author: Jacob Grimm (1785-1863)
Author: Wilhelm Grimm (1786-1859)
Illustrator: Noel Pocock (1880-1955)
Date first posted: October 3 2012
Date last updated: October 3 2012
Faded Page eBook #20121001

This ebook was produced by: David Edwards, Delphine Lettau
& the Online Distributed Proofreading Canada Team at http://www.pgdpcanada.net

(This file was produced from images generously made available by
The Internet Archive/American Libraries).




The Crows and the Soldier


A worthy soldier had saved a good deal of money out of his pay; for he
worked hard, and did not spend all he earned in eating and drinking,
as many others do. Now he had two comrades who were great rogues, and
wanted to rob him of his money, but behaved outwardly towards him in a
friendly way. "Comrade," said they to him one day, "why should we stay
here shut up in this town like prisoners, when you at any rate have
earned enough to live upon for the rest of your days in peace and plenty
at home by your own fireside?" They talked so often to him in this
manner, that he at last said he would go and try his luck with them; but
they all the time thought of nothing but how they should manage to steal
his money from him.

When they had gone a little way, the two rogues said, "We must go by
the right-hand road, for that will take us quickest into another country
where we shall be safe." Now they knew all the while that what they were
saying was untrue; and as soon as the soldier said, "No, that will take
us straight back into the town we came from; we must keep on the left
hand;" they picked a quarrel with him, and said, "What do you give
yourself airs for? you know nothing about it;" and then they fell upon
him and knocked him down, and beat him over the head till he was blind.
Then they took all the money out of his pockets and dragged him to a
gallows-tree that stood hard by, bound him fast down at the foot of it,
and went back into the town with the money; but the poor blind man did
not know where he was; and he felt all around him, and finding that he
was bound to a large beam of wood, thought it was a cross, and said,
"After all, they have done kindly in leaving me under a cross; now
Heaven will guard me;" so he raised himself up and began to pray.

When night came on, he heard something fluttering over his head. It
turned out to be three crows, who flew round and round, and at last
perched upon the tree. By and by they began to talk together, and he
heard one of them say, "Sister, what is the best news with you to-day?"
"Oh, if men knew what we know!" said the other; "the princess is ill,
and the king has vowed to marry her to any one who will cure her; but
this none can do, for she will not be well until yonder flower is burnt
to ashes and swallowed by her." "Oh, indeed," said the other crow, "if
men did but know what we know! to-night will fall from heaven a dew of
such healing power, that even the blind man who washes his eyes with it
will see again;" and the third spoke, and said, "Oh, if men knew what we
know! the flower is wanted but for one, the dew is wanted but for few;
but there is a great dearth of water in the town; all the wells are
dried up; and no one knows that they must take away the large square
stone out of the market-place, and dig underneath it, and that then the
finest water will spring up."

When the three crows had done talking, he heard them fluttering round
again, and at last away they flew. Greatly wondering at what he had
heard, and overjoyed at the thoughts of getting his sight, he tried with
all his strength to break loose from his bonds; at last he found himself
free, and plucked some of the grass that grew beneath him and washed his
eyes with the dew that had fallen upon it. At once his eyesight came to
him again, and he saw by the light of the moon and the stars that he
was beneath the gallows-tree, and not the cross, as he had thought. Then
he gathered together in a bottle as much of the dew as he could to take
away with him, and looked around till he saw the flower that grew close
by; and when he had burned it he gathered up the ashes, and set out on
his way towards the king's court.

When he reached the palace, he told the king he was come to cure the
princess; and when she had taken of the ashes and been made well, he
claimed her for his wife, as the reward that was to be given; but the
king looking upon him and seeing that his clothes were so shabby, would
not keep his word, and thought to get rid of him by saying, "Whoever
wants to have the princess for his wife, must find enough water for the
use of the town, where there is this summer a great dearth." Then the
soldier went out and told the people to take up the square stone in the
market-place and dig for water underneath; and when they had done so
there came up a fine spring, that gave enough water for the whole town.
So the king could no longer get off giving him his daughter, and they
were married and lived happily together.

Some time after, as he was walking one day through a field, he met his
two wicked comrades who had treated him so basely. Though they did not
know him, he knew them at once, and went up to them and said, "Look
upon me, I am your old comrade whom you beat and robbed and left blind;
Heaven has defeated your wicked wishes, and turned all the mischief
which you brought upon me into good luck." When they heard this they
fell at his feet and begged for pardon, and he had a kind and good
heart, so he forgave them, and took them to his palace and gave them
food and clothes. And he told them all that had happened to him, and how
he had reached these honours. After they had heard the whole story they
said to themselves, "Why should not we go and sit some night under the
gallows? we may hear something that will bring us good luck too."

Next night they stole away; and, when they had sat under the tree a
little while, they heard a fluttering noise over their heads; and the
three crows came and perched upon it. "Sisters," said one of them,
"some one must have overheard us, for all the world is talking of the
wonderful things that have happened: the princess is well; the flower
has been plucked and burnt; a blind man's sight has been given him
again, and they have dug a fresh well that gives water to the whole
town: let us look about, perhaps we may find some one near; if we do he
shall rue the day." Then they began to flutter about, and soon found out
the two men below, and flew at them in a rage, beating and pecking them
in the face with their wings and beaks till they were quite blind, and
lay nearly dead upon the ground under the gallows. The next day passed
over and they did not return to the palace; and their old comrade began
to wonder where they had been, and went out the following morning in
search of them, and at last found them where they lay, dreadfully repaid
for all their folly and baseness.


[The end of _Grimm's Fairy Tales: The Crows and the Soldier_
by the Brothers Grimm]