Early in the morning, before the sun had risen, the woodman’s wife came and awoke them. “Get up, children,” said she, “we are going into the wood; there is a piece of bread for each of you, but take care of it, and keep some for the afternoon.” Grethel took the bread, and carried it in her apron, because Hansel had his pocket full of stones; and they made their way into the wood.
After they had walked on for a time, Hansel stood still and looked towards home; and after a while he turned again, and so on several times. Then his father said, “Hansel, why do you keep turning and lagging about so? Move on a little faster.” “Ah, father,” answered Hansel, “I am stopping to look at my white cat, that sits on the roof, and wants to say good-bye to me.” “You little fool!” said his mother, “that is not your cat; it is the morning sun shining on the chimney-top.” Now Hansel had not been looking at the cat, but had all the while been lingering behind, to drop from his pocket one white pebble after another along the road.
When they came into the midst of the wood the woodman said, “Run about, children, and pick up some wood, and I will make a fire to keep us all warm.” So they piled up a little heap of brushwood, and set it on fire; and as the flames burnt bright, the mother said, “Now set yourselves by the fire, and go to sleep, while we go and cut wood in the forest; be sure you wait till we come again and fetch you.” Hansel and Grethel sat by the fireside till the afternoon, and then each of them ate their piece of bread. They fancied the woodman was still in the wood, because they thought they heard the blows of his axe; but it was a bough, which he had cunningly hung upon a tree, in such a way that the wind blew it backwards and forwards against the other boughs: and so it sounded as the axe does in cutting. Thus they waited till evening: but the woodman and his wife kept away, and no one came to fetch them.
When it was quite dark Grethel began to cry; but then Hansel said, “Wait awhile till the moon rises.” And when the moon rose he took her by the hand, and there lay the pebbles along the ground, glittering like new pieces of money, and marking out the way. Towards morning they came again to the woodman’s house, and he was glad in his heart when he saw the children again, for he had grieved at leaving them alone. His wife also seemed to be glad; but in her heart she was angry at it.
Not long afterwards there was again no bread in the house, and Hansel and Grethel heard the wife say to her husband, “The children found their way back once, and I took it in good part; but now there is only half a loaf of bread left for them in the house; to-morrow you must take them deeper into the wood, that they may not find their way out, or we shall all be starved.” It grieved the husband in his heart to do as his selfish wife wished, and he thought it would be better to share their last morsel with the children; but as he had done as she said once, he did not dare now to say no. When the children heard all their plan, Hansel got up, and wanted to pick up pebbles as before; but when he came to the door, he found his mother had locked it. Still he comforted Grethel, and said, “Sleep in peace, dear Grethel! God is very kind, and will help us.”
Early in the morning, a piece of bread was given to each of them, but still smaller than the one they had before. Upon the road Hansel crumbled his in his pocket and often stood still, and threw a crumb upon the ground. “Why do you lag so behind, Hansel?” said the woodman; “go your ways on before.” “I am looking at my little dove that is sitting upon the roof, and wants to say good-bye to me.” “You silly boy!” said the wife, “that is not your little dove; it is the morning sun, that shines on the chimney-top.” But Hansel still went on crumbling his bread, and throwing it on the ground. And thus they went on still further into the wood, where they had never been before in all their life.
There they were again told to sit down by a large fire, and go to sleep; and the woodman and his wife said they would come in the evening and fetch them away. In the afternoon Hansel shared Grethel’s bread, because he had strewed all his upon the road; but the day passed away, and evening passed away too, and no one came to the poor children. Still Hansel comforted Grethel, and said, “Wait till the moon rises; and then I shall be able to see the crumbs of bread which I have strewed, and they will show us the way home.”
The moon rose; but when Hansel looked for the crumbs they were gone, for hundreds of little birds in the wood had found them and picked them up. Hansel, however, set out to try and find his way home; but they soon lost themselves in the wilderness, and went on through the night and all the next day, till at last they laid down and fell asleep for weariness. Another day they went on as before, but still did not come to the end of the wood; and they were as hungry as could be, for they had had nothing to eat.
In the afternoon of the third day they came to a strange little hut, made of bread, with a roof of cake, and windows of barley-sugar. “Now we will sit down and eat till we have had enough,” said Hansel; “I will eat off the roof for my share; do you eat the windows, Grethel, they will be nice and sweet for you.” Whilst Grethel, however, was picking at the barley-sugar, a pretty voice called softly from within,