The Cow-faced Girl

Long ago there lived a farmer who had twelve daughters. The farmer worked very hard all day so that he could support his family but however he was not very successful as it was getting quite difficult for him to feed his wife and children. One fine day the farmer went to the forest to get some wood. On his way to the forest he came across a cave. The farmer went inside the cave which was so dark and gloomy. Suddenly a huge snake appeared before the farmer. The farmer was afraid to see the snake and was about to run when the snake said "Don't be afraid my dear friend as I am not going to hurt you, rather I came here to help you, So please tell me what your problem is?". The farmer replied "I am poor farmer and I have twelve young daughters to take care of. I am unable to take care of them properly because of my poverty". The snake replied "Don't worry my friend, Go and bring your youngest daughter tomorrow. I will take care of your daughter as if she was my own child and bring her up". 

The farmer felt very unhappy after hearing these words from the snake as he felt sure that the snake will harm his daughter and eat her up. At the same time the farmer said to himself "If I refuse to bring my daughter tomorrow the snake will kill me for sure, What am I to do!". The snake said "Make up your mind and bring your daughter tomorrow and if you don't do so then you will face the consequences". With a heavy heart the farmer headed towards his home. When he reached home his wife asked "Dear husband you look so dull, is everything OK". The farmer sat down and narrated the whole story to his wife. He then said "My head is going round like a mill-wheel for I am unable to decide as to what I should do. You know how much I love my youngest daughter Betty and if i don't take her to the snake tomorrow the snake will definitely kill us all. Hearing this the farmer's wife said "Don't worry my dear, God will definitely help us and show us the path. Please do as the snake has said as we are left with no other option".

The next day morning the farmer took his daughter and led her to the cave. The snake was waiting for the farmer and when she saw the farmer and his beautiful daughter she felt very happy. The snake gave a bagful of gold coins to the farmer and said "Take this and go home and take care of your family. Your youngest daughter Betty will stay with me and I will take care of her as her own mother". The farmer went home taking the gold coins. Within a short time everyone in the village came to know that the farmer has become quite rich and so many suitors came forward to marry the farmer's daughters and so in a short time the farmer married them all. Meanwhile Betty grew up like a princesses as the snake took good care of Betty. The snake gave her delicious food, beautiful clothes and a thousand servants were there to wait on her.

One day the king of the country came to the forest for hunting and stayed there till evening. Seeing a light shining in the cave the king ordered his soldiers to go in the direction and check if he could get a night's lodging there. The soldiers approached the cave and knocked the door. The snake suddenly changed herself into a beautiful lady and opened the door and when she heard of the king's request she sent a message that she would be delighted to see him. The king on hearing the invitation went to the cave along with his soldiers. The king was surprised when he went inside the cave as it was no less than a palace. The snake received the king and Betty came and offered wine to the king. The king was so mesmerized by Betty's beauty that he could not take his eyes off her. After dinner the king went to sleep. The next day the king asked Betty's hand in marriage and so the snake mother agreed. Betty was overjoyed to hear this and they got married. Then Betty got ready to go along with the king as she was his wife now. The snake mother was surprised to find that Betty didn't even take the opportunity to thank her and instead was in a hurry to go along with the king. The snake became very angry and she thought of punishing Betty so she turned Betty's face into a Cow's head.

When the King arrived at Betty's room to take her along with him he was surprised to see that his beloved wife Betty has now turned into a cow-faced girl. He cursed himself for taking such a foolish decision of marrying Betty. He was left with no other option than to take Betty along with him as she was his wife now. With a heavy heart the king left for his kingdom along with Betty. When they reached his country the king ordered his servants to provide Betty a chamber in his palace, with a waiting maid. The king gave the waiting maid and Betty ten bundles of flax to spin and ordered that the task should be completed by the end of the week. The maid and Betty stayed together in the chamber from the day on-wards. The maid obedient to the king's commands set at once to work. She combed out the flax, wound it round the spindle and sat spinning at her wheel so carefully that before the end of the week she completed the task given by the king. On the other hand Betty threw the flax from the window and said "What is the king thinking of himself, that I am his servant and will work for him. I am his wife and not his slave. He has no right to treat me like this".

When Saturday came Betty saw that the waiting maid had completed her task and so she thought that the king will punish her for not obeying his command. So she hurried off to her snake mother and begged her sorry for her mistake and thanked her for everything she gave. The snake mother was pleased to hear this from Betty. She asked Betty the purpose of visiting her and Betty narrated the whole story to her. The snake mother felt pity on Betty and she gave her a sack full of spun flax and advised her to show it to the king. Betty took the sack of flax and without offering her thanks to the snake mother returned to the palace. The snake mother once again got angry over Betty.

That night when the king saw that Betty and the waiting maid have completed the given task he gave them each a little cat and ordered them to look after the pet and train them carefully. The waiting maid bought her cat with great care and treated it almost as if it was her daughter. Betty on the other hand cursed the king and threw the cat from the window in anger. The cat fell on the ground and died. After few months the king sent a message that he wants to see how the cats were getting on. Betty hearing this hurried towards her mother's home for help. When she reached her mother's cave she found and old man sitting there at the door. The old man asked Betty "Who are you and what do you want". Betty became very angry on hearing this and shouted at the old man "How dare you ask me that ! Don't you know who I am?". The old man then shouted at her "I am your peasant father Betty, and you must remember that you are a peasant's daughter. The snake was so kind and good to you and treated you as her own child; and what did you do in return. You were ungrateful and never thanked her for what she had done for you. Therefore you have been punished with a Cow's-head. Throw yourself at the fairy's feet and ask her forgiveness and perhaps, she may take pity on you and forgive you".

Betty realized her mistake and she felt sorry for her conduct. She took her father's advice and went to the snake and asked for forgiveness. The snake was happy to see that Betty had changed and so she gave her back her former face. She blessed Betty and arranged a carriage for her to return to her kingdom. When the king saw Betty he fell in love with her once more and repented for causing her so much suffering.

Betty lived happily ever afterwards, for she loved her husband, honoured the fairy and was grateful to her old father for making her realize her mistake.

Robert and the Dwarf

Once upon a time there lived a poor man in a village named Jacob. He owned nothing but a flock of sheep. Jacob used to sell the milk and wool which he used to get from the sheep to buy his food. Jacob was also a good carpenter and so at times he used to carve wooden spoons from the wood which he used to collect from the forest. Sometimes when he had no wool or milk he used to sell those wooden spoons in the market to earn money. Jacob had a wife and a little girl whose name was Mary. After few years Jacob's wife gave birth to a second child. The new born child was not in good health and so Jacob had to go to the near-by village to fetch for a nurse. 

On his way to the village Jacob met a priest and Jacob told the priest about his child's ill health. The priest asked Jacob to take him to his house as he can cure the child and so Jacob took the priest with him to his home. The priest after spraying some holy water on the child recited few chants and after a while the child seemed to be hale and healthy. Jacob thanked the priest for his help and the priest left after naming the child as "Robert". After few years Jacob and his wife died and Mary and Robert were left alone in the world. They had no money with them and so they started selling the sheep one by one to buy food and after few months they were left only with three sheep. Robert and Mary decided that they will not sell the remaining three sheep, instead they will move to the near-by town to make their fortune. Thinking so they packed all their clothes and while packing Mary found a knife which was gifted by the priest. So she took the knife and gave it to her brother and advised him to keep the knife in his pocket. 

Mary and Robert along with their three sheep started their journey towards the town. After travelling for three days they met a man who too was travelling to the town. The man had three dogs with him and he was taking the dogs to the town to sell them and buy a flock of sheep. He was quite excited to meet Mary and Robert and proposed that they should exchange the animals, he taking the sheep and they taking the dogs. Mary and Robert were pleased to hear this and so they exchanged their animals and parted their ways. After travelling for two more days Mary and Robert came to a great castle. In the castle lived dwarfs who were man eaters and when they saw the brother and sister they fled. So the brother and sister thought that the castle was empty and started living there. Every morning Robert used to go to the near-by forest for hunting with his dogs and bring food for Mary. One day while Robert was away the leader dwarf came inside the castle. When he saw Mary he was terrified, but she told him no to be afraid and by and by they fell in love with each other. Every day when Robert was away Mary would call the dwarf up. One fine day when Robert was away Mary and the dwarf got married. When Mary realized her mistake it was too late and and she was afraid of Robert's wrath when he would come to know about this. 

After few days when Robert was away the dwarf came as usual and he told Mary "It's high time now and that we must start living together, you must inform you brother about our marriage." Mary was terrified and said that she cannot do so and so the dwarf said "You must pretend to be ill" and when Robert asks what ails you, you must answer "Berries", and when he asks where these are to be found, you must say "There are some in a garden a day's journey from here." Your brother will go there but will never come back as the Berry tree is guarded by my brothers and they will look after Robert very well. Mary did as she was told to and so the next day Robert started his journey to get the "Berries".

Robert along with his dogs came to the garden after travelling for the whole day. Robert drank some water from the near-by spring and thought of taking rest for a while before picking the berries and so he laid down on the grass and soon fell asleep. Suddenly three monsters appeared from nowhere to eat Robert but the three dogs flung on those monsters and tore them in pieces and then they scratched the ground with their paws to dig a grave and buried the three monsters before Robert was awake. When Robert woke up he was surprised to see the dogs mouth covered with blood and thought that the dogs would have hunted some wild beast to feed themselves. Thinking so he picked the berries and brought then home for his sister. Mary declared that she felt better after eating the berries.

The next day again the dwarf arrived and advised Mary to pretend ill again and this time she should ask for "Cherries" which grew in a garden three day's journey from the castle. Mary did as she was told to and so the next day Robert started his journey to get the "Cherries". He travelled for three days and when he reached the garden he thought of taking some rest as he was tired and soon fell asleep. This time nine monsters came from nowhere to kill Robert. The dogs flung and tore the monsters into pieces and again six monsters arrived and while the dogs were fighting with the monsters Robert woke up by the sounds and was surprised to see the scene. He pulled his knife and killed the rest of the monsters. Suddenly Robert heard some cries from the bushes and went to see there and found a beautiful princess tied with ropes. Robert freed the princesses and she told him that the monsters had captured her and thanked Robert for his help. She asked Robert to marry her but Robert denied saying that he cannot do that and asked the princesses to take care of all the lame and blind who passed by her castle. The princesses promised to do so and gave her ring to Robert. Robert took departure after picking the "Cherries". When Mary ate the "Cherries" she declared that she felt better and thanked her brother.

The next day again the dwarf arrived after Robert was away. He said to Mary "Now we are indeed both lost unless you find out from Robert wherein his strength lies". That night when Robert came home Mary asked him "From where do you get all the strength my dear brother to fight with the monsters?". Robert answered "It lies in my two fingers; and if these are bound together then I will loose all my strength". Mary said "I will not believe this brother until you show me". So Robert asked her to tie both his fingers with a piece of thread and when Mary did so he immediately became powerless. Mary called the dwarf at once and the dwarf came in, tore Robert's eyes and threw his body in a dry well.

It happened that some travellers were on their way to the town and when they passed by the well they were surprised to hear cries coming from the well. They went to see who was there inside in the well. They shouted and asked Robert "Who are you and why are you crying"?. Robert replied "I am a blind man and I was on my way to the town with my servant, and my servant a greedy fellow took all my money and threw me inside the well so please help me get out of here. The travellers felt pity for Robert and let a rope down and drew him up. Robert begged the travellers to take him to the near-by kingdom where the King's daughter takes care of all the blind and lame people who go there for help. The travellers agreed and took Robert to the princesses. She recognized Robert as he had her ring on his finger and took him with her to her chamber. Robert told her the whole story and the princesses immediately ordered her soldiers to kill Mary and the dwarf and get Mary's eyes in return. The soldiers did as they were told and when they bought Mary's eyes The princesses ordered the royal physician to cure Robert by fixing the eyes into his eye socket and so did the physician and soon Robert was able to see as usual. Then the princesses and Robert got married and together they lived happily forever. 

Red-rose and White-rose

Long ago there lived a King who had a wife whose name was Red-rose and a daughter whose name was White-rose. One day Red-rose went to the garden for a walk in the evening. There was a fountain in the garden. Red-rose asked the fountain "Oh! fountain am I not the most beautiful queen in this whole world". The fountain replied "Oh! indeed you are not". Red-rose asked the fountain "If not me who then?". The fountain replied it's White-rose the princesses. Red-rose became very angry and asked the fountain "How can I become the most beautiful women on earth?". The fountain replied "If you can eat the heart and liver of White-rose then you can become the most beautiful women on earth. After hearing this Red-rose went home, blind with rage and plotted to kill White-rose and eat her heart and liver and then become the most beautiful queen on earth.

That night Red-rose pretended to be severely ill and asked her servants to call the king immediately. The king came rushing and asked her what was wrong with her. Red-rose replied "Oh! king I am terribly ill and there is only one thing which can heal me but you must promise me that you will get that for me". The king after hearing this said "I can do anything for you my beloved wife. Tell me what is that thing that can heal you". The queen replied "If I get the liver and heart of White-rose my daughter, to eat, I shall be well." The king was shocked to hear this and asked for two days of time to think about it and left. He was deeply shocked and called his minister who was a very wise man to discuss the issue. When the minister came the king told him the whole story. The minister thought for a while and proposed an idea. He said "Oh king! the son of a great king has come from abroad to ask for marrying White-rose. Please agree for the marriage and send White-rose with him and don't inform anyone about this. After White-rose is gone we can give the heart and liver of a deer to the queen and lie her that this is the heart and liver of White-rose and so everything will get settled. The King was pleased to hear this and did exactly as the minister had advised him to do.

The Third day he went to his wife and gave her the heart and liver of the deer to eat; and she rose well and healthy thinking that White-rose was dead. After one year the queen went to the garden and asked the fountain "Oh! fountain am I not the most beautiful queen in this whole world". The fountain replied "Oh! indeed you are not". Red-rose asked the fountain "If not me who then?". The fountain replied it's White-rose your daughter.  Red-rose laughed and said "Oh! fountain, it is long since she was living. It is a year since I ate her heart and liver". The fountain replied "Oh queen! she is not dead. She is married to a great prince abroad.

Red-rose went to the King and said "Oh king! I feel ashamed for what I had done. I want myself to be poisoned for I had committed the sin of killing my own daughter". The King was glad to hear this for he thought Red-rose has realized her mistake and so he narrated the whole story to her. Red-rose now begged the king and said " I want to see my daughter for it is so long since I have seen her. Please take me to her". The king agreed and so Red-rose and the king went on a journey to visit their daughter. Meanwhile White-rose was informed that her parents were coming to visit her. "Oh! said she to her mother in law, my mother is coming and she will kill me". The prince too is not present as he went to the jungle for hunting for few days.

Her mother in law said "She shall not kill you for I will lock you in a room where she cannot get near you. White-rose was then locked in a room and when Red-rose came she shouted "Where are you my sweet princesses? Come to meet me". White-rose replied from inside that she cannot come out as she was locked in the room, and that she could not get out of it. Red-rose then said "Don't worry dear! Please put your little finger through the key-hole so that I can kiss it". White-rose put out her little finger and Red-rose put a poisoned stab in it, and White-rose fell dead.

The prince came home, the evening and found White-rose dead. He was in a great sorrow. He decided not to bury White-rose and so locked her in a room where nobody would get near her. The prince always kept the keys of the room with him and every night he went to the room to see White-rose. One day he forgot to take the key with him, and so the mother of the prince took the keys and got into the room. She began to turn and try to wake White-rose and while doing so she noticed the poisoned stab in her finger. She took the stab out and White-rose soon turned alive, as beautiful as ever. When the prince came home his mother said "I have a gift for you my son, that could make your life happier". The prince replied "Oh! indeed nothing could make me happier except White-rose were to come alive again". The queen replied "Well, you will find White-rose alive down there in her room".

The prince went to the room and saw White-rose was alive and he made great rejoicings, and began to kiss and hug her. The prince and White-rose lived happily. One fine day Red-rose went to the garden. She asked the fountain "Oh! fountain am I not the most beautiful queen in this whole world". The fountain replied "Oh! indeed you are not". Red-rose asked the fountain "If not me who then?". The fountain replied it's White-rose your daughter. Red-rose laughed and said "Oh! fountain, it is long since she was living for I have put the poisoned stab into her finger. The fountain replied "Oh queen! she is not dead. 

The King was away from the kingdom on a voyage so Red-rose ordered the servants to take her to White-rose's palace. She went the palace and shouted "Come down White-rose! your mother has come to see you and ask forgiveness for I came to know that you are alive. White-rose came to see her trembling with fear. Red-rose said "I am sorry for all my sins and so please forgive me. I have come to you with a precious drink". The prince who knew about the intentions of his wicked mother in law came and said "It is a custom in this country that the person who offers a drink takes a sip of it first". So White-rose put her mouth to it, and the prince struck it so that some of it went down her throat, and Red-rose fell dead. The prince and White-rose lived happily and peacefully forever.