‘Now,’ said the princess—the seeming hostess, but they knew not that she was a princess; only the elder brother knew it—‘oh! if only you would tell me something. Come, you, old wife, what have you seen in your time?’
‘Why, my good lady, I have gone through plenty. When I was at home, my man drank much, ran through my money. When he got drunk, he’d come home, scold and knock me about, smash everything that came to hand, and as for his children, he couldn’t bear the sight of them. He scolded and knocked them about till they didn’t know where they were. At last I said to my children, “My children, since I can’t get on with my man, and he uses us so badly, let us take our few things, and go off into the world.” ’
The hostess listened, brought the old wife a mug of beer, and gave it her. When she had drunk, the hostess said, ‘Speak on.’
‘Well, we set off and journeyed through the great forests, where we must go on and on, two whole days, without ever lighting on town or village. Never a peasant was to be seen, and night,’ she said, ‘came upon us, when we could go no further, and I was so weak that I could not take another step. There, poor soul, I had to bide, lying in the great forest under a great tree. It rained, and we crouched close under so as not to get wet. Forthwith I gathered wood, made a big fire, plucked moss, and made a resting-place for us. It was dark, and my sons said, “We must mind and not be eaten by wild beasts.” And my elder son said to his brother, “I will think what must be done. You, too, have a couple of guns; if anything attacks us, you will shoot.” But he said to his elder brother, “Do you, my brother, sleep first, and when you have had your sleep out, then you will watch again.”[4] As they all slept under that great tree, he [[150]]thought to himself, “I will sling my gun round my neck and climb a tree.” He climbed a tree, reached its top, for he wondered whether he might not see something—a village or a town or a light. As it was, he did see a light. He took the hat from his head, and threw it in the direction of the light.’
Then she said, ‘Ah! hostess, believe him not. Mark you, that is not true,’ said his mother.
But she went and brought them beer, and said, ‘Tell on.’
And he said, ‘I climbed down the tree to look where my hat was.’
‘Ah! believe him not, hostess, believe him not; mark you, that is not true.’
‘Nay, let him go on with his story. What was there?’
‘Twenty-four robbers. There was a bright light that dazzled my eyes. Not far from them was a tree.’ [At this point the story-teller forgot that the elder son is the narrator, so resumed the third person, repeating his former words almost verbatim till he came to the passage where the robbers send the lad into the castle.]