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21

Biblioteca de las tradiciones populares Espanolas, tom. i, p. 114. (Collected by Senor Dom. Th. H. Moore of Santa Juana, in Chile.)

"MARIA LA CENICIENTA."

ABSTRACT

Ill-treated heroine (by step-mother) -- Slaying of helpful animal (calf)--Magic wand for heroine in entrails of calf, which whilst she washes them, are carried away by stream--Heroine taken to hut, which she tidies for old woman, then cooks dinner. Then old woman sends her to sleep, restores calf's entrails, and gives her star on brow--Step-mother covers star with rag-- Envious step-sister wants to get same, but refuses to tidy hut, and is punished with turkey-cock's crest on brow. Step-mother covers it with silk kerchief--Magic dresses and equipage produced by means of wand--Meeting-place (ball)--Flight--Lost shoe--Shoe marriage test--Heroine hidden under kneading witness (dog)--Happy marriage.

TABULATION

(1) Man has daughter named Maria, who goes daily to neighbour's house for fire. Neighbour is kind to heroine, gives her honey-sops, and induces her to persuade father to marry her.-- (2) Then stepmother, who has daughter of her own, also named Maria, ill-treats heroine, clothes her in rags, thrusts her into kitchen, and nicknames her Cinder-wench.-- (3) Heroine has a pet cow; stepmother makes husband give her daughter one too; then insists that heroine's cow shall be slain because she is always playing with it.-- (4) Cow comforts heroine; bids her, after its death, wash entrails in the river. Inside she will find magic wand, which she must keep hidden, and tied round her waist. Heroine does as bidden, and finds wand, but entrails get carried away by the stream.-- (5) She weeps thereat, fearing stepmother's anger. Old woman dressed in blue appears, sends her to hut on river-bank, and bids her go to sleep. Before sleeping, heroine tidies hut, lights fire, and cooks dinner. Meanwhile old woman restores tray of entrails, leaving them at door of hut.-- (6) Heroine returns home with star on her brow, which cannot be removed by stepmother's scrubbing. She must hide it with a rag.-- (7) Stepsister, wishing to get the same, has her cow slain, and goes to wash entrails. She pushes tray down stream, and pretends to weep.-- (8) Old woman in blue appears, sends her to hut to sleep, promising meanwhile to recover tray. Step sister is disgusted with squalor of hut; won't condescend to sleep in it.-- (9) Presently she finds tray at the door, and returns home with turkey-cock's crest on her forehead. Her mother covers it with silk kerchief.--(10) There is a ball at court; by means of magic wand, heroine appears at it with gorgeous dress and equipage.-- (11) She dances with prince, and afterwards, in her haste to escape from him, drops one of her glass slippers.-- (12) Next day prince sends servants from house to house to find owner of slipper; for he intends to marry whomsoever it hits.-- (13) Stepmother makes own daughter bind up her feet in tight bandages. Hides heroine under kneading trough.-- (14) When servants arrive to try shoe, stepsister's little dog cries out:

"Bow-wow, wow!
Turkey-crest is on the dais now.
'Neath the bread-trough is
Star-on-brow."

Heroine is brought forth; the shoe fits her. She produces the fellow, and unbandages her forehead.-- (15) She is at once recognised as the ball beauty, and prince marries her.

Cox, Marian Roalfe. Cinderella: Three Hundred and Forty-five Variants of Cinderella, Catskin, and Cap O' Rushes, abstracted and tabulated. London: David Nutt for the Folklore Society, 1893.

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