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70

Leskien und Brugman, Litauische Volkslieder und Märchen, aus dem preussischen und dem russischen Litauen. Strassburg, 1882. Pp. 447-450. No. XXV. (Translated from Moravske narodni pohadky a povesti, Sebral a napsal Fr. M. Vrána.)

"VON DEM MADCHEN DAS EINE HEXE ZUR STIEFMUTTER HATTE."

ABSTRACT

Ill-treated heroine (by step-mother)--Menial heroine (minds cows)--Tasks (spinning)--Dead mother help at grave --Task-performing animal (cow) --Spy on heroine. One-eyed step sister and two-eyed step-sister sent to sleep by hairdressing. Three-eyed step-sister sees with third eye--Slaying of helpful animal--Heroine washes paunch finds therein ring, barley-corn, and oat, which she plants. Magic well and magic tree. Only heroine can draw the wine and pick apples for prince, who will wed her. Heroine shut up; witch dresses own daughter for wedding. She cannot wear Shoes prince sends--Mutilated feet--False bride--Animal witness (bird = transformed heroine)-- Happy marriage.

TABULATION

(1) Widow, who is a witch, has three daughters; one with one eye, one with two eyes, one with three eyes. Widow marries widower with one daughter, whom she ill-treats and sends daily to mind the cows.-- (2) She gives her a sackful of flax to spin, weave, bleach, and bring home finished at night. Heroine goes to churchyard, and weeps on mother's grave till her tears bedew it. Mother underground says, "It is not rain, nor is it snow; it is dew falling from the trees." "It is neither rain nor snow, nor is it dew; I am weeping here upon your grave!" Then mother asks why she weeps, and learns about cruel stepmother and the impossible task. "Whets you get to the field with your herd you will find a cow amongst them; put the flax in one of her ears, and you can draw the linen out, all ready spun, woven, and bleached, at the other." Heroine does so, and stepmother marvels to see task accomplished.-- (3) Next morning she gives her more flax, and sends one-eyed daughter to spy. They reach the field, and young witch, seeing sack of flax untouched, says, "Why don't you work? You will never be finished by evening." Heroine offers to search stepsister's head. "No; you work!" But feeling sleepy, and head being irritable, she agrees to have it searched. "Eia popeia, sleep, One-Eye!" says heroine. And she sleeps. Then heroine puts flax in cow's ear, and draws it out spun. She wakes stepsister, and they go home. Stepsister tells mother she fell asleep, and saw nothing.-- (4) Third day heroine has another sackful of flax to spin; two-eyed stepsister is sent to spy, but goes to sleep. On the fourth day three-eyed stepsister accompanies heroine, who sends two of her eyes to sleep during hairdressing. Third eye stays awake and sees everything.-- (5) Stepsister reports to witch, who forthwith kills the cow. Heroine goes again to churchyard and weeps on mother's grave. "Is it rain, is it snow? No, the dew drops from the trees." "It is not rain," etc. Mother asks why she weeps, and hearing that cow is slain, bids her go home, ask them to give her the paunch to wash, and take it to the pond. Whilst washing it she will find inside a ring, a barleycorn, and an oat. These she must take home and plant in the earth beneath the window.-- (6) Heroine does so, and next morning finds at the spot a well full of wine and an apple-tree with ripe apples. King's son passes by, and wants some of the wine and apples. He sends for the witch to give him some; but at her approach the wine sinks deep down, and the apples rise up out of reach. Heroine draws near, and the wine rises again in the well, and the apples bow down to her. She draws wine and picks apples for the prince, who is so delighted that he says he will marry her. Then he departs.-- (7) Witch having overheard, shuts heroine up in a room, intending to substitute one of her own daughters as prince's bride. She accordingly dresses her up for church on the wedding-day, but cannot get on the shoes which prince had given to heroine. Witch hacks a piece off daughter's foot, forces on the shoe, and starts her to church.-- (8) Heroine has to go out and mind the cows again. In the form of a bird she flies to the prince, saying, "Kuku, kuku, the young witch has had her feet pared." Prince looks at the feet of the false bride, sends her off at once, and marries heroine.

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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