Once a poor widow lived alone with her boy, Jack, who was careless and paid no attention to what his mother said. One day Jack saw her in tears, for, she said, “We have nothing now in the world but a cow, which we must sell to get food.” So next morning, taking the cow to market, Jack met a butcher who showed him some wonderful beans, which he offered to give for the cow. Jack gave him the cow for the beans, and ran home very happy, thinking his mother would be happy too over his good fortune. But his mother was so grieved that she threw the beans out of the window, and both of them went supperless to bed that night. Next morning, lo! the beans had grown so tall that the stalks made a ladder reaching far up into the sky. Unseen by his mother, Jack began climbing up, up, up, until he reached the top, where he saw a strange country, and in the distance a great house. This was the castle of a great Giant who had gone on a journey. The Giant’s wife received Jack kindly, giving him something to eat, and when the Giant came home she hid him in the oven. Through a crack Jack peeped and saw the Giant eat his supper and then place a wonderful hen on the table, and every time he said “Lay,” she laid a golden egg. When the Giant fell asleep Jack jumped out of the oven, picked up the hen, ran off with it, and climbed down the bean-stalk. He found his mother crying, but when Jack put the wonderful hen on the table and said “Lay,” his mother’s eyes grew big with surprise, and her tears dried at once. Soon they had as many golden eggs as they wished to live on. But one day a fox ran off with the golden hen. Again, unseen by his mother, Jack climbed the bean-stalk. This time the wife hid him in the lumber closet when the Giant came roaring home. Through a crack Jack peeped and saw the Giant eat his supper and then place on the table big bags of gold and silver, and play with them. When the Giant fell asleep, Jack jumped from the closet, picked up the bags of money, ran off with them, climbed down the bean-stalk like lightning, and ran home. He found his mother again in tears, but when Jack showed her the bags of gold her surprise made her smile again. Not long after that, again unseen by his mother, Jack climbed up the bean-stalk. This time the wife hid him in a large kettle when the Giant came roaring home. Lifting up the lid a little way, Jack peeped out and saw the Giant eat his supper and then take out a magic harp and began to play wonderful music. When he fell asleep Jack jumped out of the kettle, picked up the magic harp, and started off with it. But the magic harp called out “Master! Master!” so loudly that the Giant awoke and began running after Jack. But Jack reached the top of the bean-stalk first. He climbed down it like lightning, picked up his axe, and chopped down the bean-stalk at its roots, making it fall over just as the Giant began to climb down. In a moment the wicked old Giant fell down into the garden, with a loud noise like a falling tree. And that was the end of the Giant and the Bean-stalk. But Jack never again caused his mother any sorrow.
10. JACK, THE GIANT-KILLER
Once a poor farmer had a good son named Jack, who was wide-awake and always ready to help. Far up on the mountain in a great cave lived a wicked Giant named Carmoran, who was so fierce and frightful that everybody was afraid of him. Every time he wanted food he came down the mountain to the valley and carried off oxen on his back, and pigs and sheep tied around his waist. The people were in despair. One day Jack heard the town officers say: “All the treasure the Giant has hidden in his cave shall be given to whoever rids the land of this evil Giant!” Jack laughed and said to them, “I will try!” So he took his horn and pick-axe and shovel and began digging a pit, deep and broad, covering it with sticks and straw. Then he sprinkled earth over it until the place looked like solid ground. Then he stood on the other side of the pit, and just at the peep of day he put his horn to his mouth and blew, “Tan-tivy! Tan-tivy!” The old Giant awoke, rubbed his eyes and rushed out of his cave, and seeing Jack running away, cried, “You villain, I’ll pay you for troubling my sleep! I’ll boil you for breakfast!” Just as he said that down he fell into the pit, and the very foundations of the mountains trembled at his fall. “O Giant,” laughed Jack, “will no other food suit you than sweet Jack?” Jack was not long in killing the wicked old Giant in the pit. Then he went to the cave and brought out all the treasure. When the town officers heard of this good deed Jack, the farmer’s son, had done, they called him
“Jack, the Giant-killer.”
They gave him a sword and belt, and in the belt they wrote:
Here’s to the right valiant Cornishman
Who slew the Giant, Carmoran.
11. ALADDIN AND HIS WONDERFUL LAMP
Once there was a Chinese boy named Aladdin, who was playing in the street, when a strange-looking man called to him, “My boy, I am your uncle! Come with me! I will give you great riches!” He took out of his pocket a beautiful gold ring, which he gave to the boy, who walked away with him. After a long time they came to a great stone which had a ring to lift it up. The man lifted up the stone and showed Aladdin a deep cave, saying to him: “At the other end of this cave there is a door leading to a palace and a garden of fruit trees where you will find a lamp hanging. Bring me this lamp and I will give you great riches.” This man was not Aladdin’s uncle, but a wicked magician, who wanted to use the boy to get this lamp for him, for it had power to make whoever possessed it greater than any prince. Aladdin went down into the cave and found the lamp and everything just as the man had said. When he came back to the mouth of the cave he said, “Uncle, help me up!” “Give me the lamp first,” said the man. “No,” said Aladdin, “I won’t give it to you until you help me out.” That made the magician very angry. So, uttering some magic words, he slammed the stone down over the mouth of the cave, and poor Aladdin was shut up alone in darkness. The disappointed boy sat a long time thinking what to do. But suddenly when he happened to rub the ring that the magician had put on his finger and forgotten, in an instant the Slave of the Ring, a queer, little old man, stood before him saying he was ready to do for him whatever he asked. “Then take me out of this cave,” said Aladdin, and instantly he was out. He ran home and showed his mother the lamp. “I will polish it, mother,” he said, “and then we can sell it for much money.” No sooner had he rubbed it than the Slave of the Lamp, a great strong Giant, stood before him, saying that he was ready to do for him whatever he asked. “Then, bring us plenty to eat,” said Aladdin, and instantly richest food on golden plates stood before him. Every time he rubbed the lamp the Slave of the Lamp came and gave him everything he asked. One day, when he became older, he fell in love with a beautiful Princess, and he asked his mother to take several golden vases full of rich jewels as a present to the King and beg him to let the Princess become his wife. The King laughed at such an idea, but said: “If your son will send me forty golden vases like these, full of the richest jewels, he shall have the Princess.” Aladdin quickly rubbed his lamp and asked the Slave of the Lamp to bring him forty golden vases filled with richer jewels than the former ones. The King was so delighted with them that he gave Aladdin the Princess to be his wife, and Aladdin asked the Slave of the Lamp for a grander palace to live in than the King’s. They lived very happily until one day, when Aladdin was away hunting, a strange-looking man came near the palace calling out, “Lamps! Lamps! Who will change old lamps for new ones?” A servant ran to her mistress and said, “Shall I exchange this ugly old lamp I found in the cupboard for a new one?” Without waiting for an answer she took it and sold it to the old pedler, who was really the wicked magician in disguise. So he got the lamp after all. Quickly he rubbed it, and when the Slave of the Lamp appeared, he said, “Transport Aladdin’s palace and all in it to Africa.” Instantly the palace was gone. When Aladdin returned from hunting, the King ordered the poor fellow’s head to be cut off at once, but Aladdin plead for forty days to find out where his palace and Princess had gone. Then he remembered his gold ring. This he quickly rubbed and asked the Slave of the Ring to transport him to his palace. Instantly Aladdin was transported to Africa, and stood in his palace before his Princess, who was in tears because of the wicked magician. Soon after that the Slave of the Ring helped him to get back his wonderful lamp by killing the wicked magician. Then the Slave of the Lamp transported him back to his home with his palace and the beautiful Princess. But Aladdin never again lost his wonderful lamp.