Now, when the teeny-tiny woman got home to her teeny-tiny house, she was a teeny-tiny bit tired. So she went up her teeny-tiny stairs to her teeny-tiny bed and put the teeny-tiny bone into a teeny-tiny cupboard. And when this teeny-tiny woman was teeny-tiny sleeping, she was awakened[41] by a teeny-tiny voice from the teeny-tiny cupboard which said, “Give me my bone!”
And this teeny-tiny woman was a teeny-tiny frightened, so she hid her teeny-tiny head under the teeny-tiny clothes and went to sleep again. And when she was again teeny-tiny sleeping, the teeny-tiny voice again cried out from the teeny-tiny cupboard a teeny-tiny louder, “Give me my bone!”
The teeny-tiny woman was a teeny-tiny bit more frightened, so she hid her teeny-tiny head a teeny-tiny further under the teeny-tiny clothes. And when she was again teeny-tiny sleeping, the teeny-tiny voice from the teeny-tiny cupboard said again a teeny-tiny louder, “Give me my bone!”
And this teeny-tiny woman was a teeny-tiny bit more frightened, but she put her teeny-tiny head out[42] of the teeny-tiny clothes and said in her loudest teeny-tiny voice, “TAKE IT!”
The Glass Ball
There was once a woman who had two daughters. She gave each of them a beautiful glass ball, and they liked them very much.
One day, they were playing together, and one of the girls tossed her ball over the wall into the next garden. The house in that garden belonged to a fox who never talked to his neighbours.
The girl that tossed her ball over the wall was afraid of this fox, but she liked the glass ball very much, so she said to herself, “I must not lose my ball and I’ll get it back.[43]”
So she bravely walked to the fox’s house, but she knocked at the door very timidly. The fox opened the door, and the girl told him how she lost her glass ball in his garden.
“You can have your ball,” said the fox, “if you become my housekeeper for a year.”
The girl agreed to live in the fox’s house for a year. She did not see the fox very often because he went out early every morning and came back late at night.
Now, before the fox went out as usual[44] one morning, he called the girl to him and said to her, “I am going away for a little time[45]. While I am away,[46] there are five things you must not do: you must not wash up the dishes or sweep the floor or dust the chairs or look into the cupboard, and you must not look under my bed.”
And the fox went away. But the girl decided to disobey him, and she said to herself, “I will see what happens if I don’t do as he tells me.”
So first of all, she washed up the dishes. Suddenly, a great bag full of copper fell down before her.
“Very good,” said the girl.
Next, she swept the floor. This time[47], a great bag full of silver fell down before her.
“Better still[48],” said the girl.
Next, she dusted the chairs when a great bag full of gold fell down before her.
“That’s just what I want,” said the girl.
Next, she looked into the cupboard, and there was her glass ball!
“Oh, you don’t know how glad I am,” she said and clapped her hands.
Finally, she went upstairs and looked under the bed, and there was the fox! She was awfully frightened and ran downstairs, through the garden and up the town street. She came to a lane, and at the top of the lane she met a horse and said to the horse:
“Horse of mine, horse of thine[49],
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the horse neighed and said, “I will not.”
A little further she met a cow and said:
“Cow of mine, cow of thine,
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the cow mooed and said, “I will not.”
A little further she met a mule and said:
“Mule of mine, mule of thine,
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the mule brayed and said, “I will not.”
A little further she met a dog and said:
“Dog of mine, dog of thine,
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the dog barked and said, “I will not.”
A little further on she met a cat and said:
“Cat of mine, cat of thine,
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the cat mewed and said, “I will not.”
Finally, she met an owl and said:
“Owl of mine, owl of thine,
If you meet a fox today,
Do not tell I passed this way.”
And the owl hooted and said, “I will not.”
The fox followed the girl, and now he came to the same lane where he met the horse and sang to him with such a lovely voice:
“Horse of mine, horse of thine,
Did you meet a maid of mine?”
And the horse said, “She passed me by.[50]”
Next he met the same cow and sang to her:
“Cow of mine, cow of thine,
Did you meet a maid of mine?”
And the cow said, “She passed me by.”
A little further on he met the same mule and sang:
“Mule of mine, mule of thine,
Did you meet a maid of mine?”
And the mule said, “She passed me by.”
A little further he met the same dog and sang:
“Dog of mine, dog of thine,
Did you meet a maid of mine?”
And the dog said, “She passed me by.”
A little further he met the same cat and sang:
“Cat of mine, cat of thine,
Did you meet a maid of mine?”
And the cat said, “She passed me by.”
Finally, he met the owl and sang:
“Owl of mine, owl of thine,
Did you