Q?

https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm044.html

https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0332.html

Godfather Death

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

No. 44

A poor man had twelve children and had to work day and night in order just to feed them. Thus when the thirteenth came into the world, not knowing what to do in his need, he ran out into the highway, intending to ask the first person whom he met to be the godfather.

……….(body too long, Death is chosen as the GODFATHER)

Death, seeing that he had been cheated out of his property for a second time, approached the physician with long strides and said, "You are finished. Now it is your turn."

Then Death seized him so firmly with his ice-cold hand that he could not resist, and led him into an underground cavern. There the physician saw how thousands and thousands of candles were burning in endless rows, some large, others medium-sized, others small. Every instant some died out, and others were relit, so that the little flames seemed to be jumping about in constant change.

"See," said Death, "these are the life-lights of mankind.

The large ones belong to children, the medium-sized ones to married people in their best years, and the little ones to old people. However, even children and young people often have only a tiny candle."

"Show me my life-light," said the physician, thinking that it still would be very large.

Death pointed to a little stump that was just threatening to go out, and said, "See, there it is."

"Oh, dear godfather," said the horrified physician, "light a new one for me. Do it as a favor to me, so that I can enjoy my life, and become king and the husband of the beautiful princess."

"I cannot," answered Death.

"One must go out before a new one is lighted."

"Then set the old one onto a new one that will go on burning

after the old one is finished,"

begged the physician.

Death pretended that he was going to fulfill this wish and took hold of a large new candle, but, desiring revenge, he purposely made a mistake in relighting it, and the little piece fell down and went out. The physician immediately fell to the ground, and he too was now in the hands of Death.

Source: Der Gevatter Tod, Kinder- und Hausmärchen (Children's and Household Tales – Grimms' Fairy Tales), 7th ed. (Berlin, 1857), no. 44.

The Grimms' source: Marie Elisabeth Wild (1794-1867).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godfather_Death

>>4957369

Q?!?

53-47?

https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm053.html

Little Snow-White

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

No.53

Once upon a time in midwinter, when the snowflakes were falling like feathers from heaven, a queen sat sewing at her window, which had a frame of black ebony wood. As she sewed she looked up at the snow and pricked her finger with her needle. Three drops of blood fell into the snow. The red on the white looked so beautiful that she thought to herself, "If only I had a child as white as snow, as red as blood, and as black as the wood in this frame."

Mirror, mirror,

Mirror, mirror, on the wall,

Who in this land is fairest of all?

It answered:

You, my queen, are fair; it is true.

But Snow-White is a thousand times fairer than you.

The queen took fright and turned yellow and green with envy. From that hour on whenever she looked at Snow-White her heart turned over inside her body, so great was her hatred for the girl. The envy and pride grew ever greater, like a weed in her heart, until she had no peace day and night.

Then she summoned a huntsman and said to him, "Take Snow-White out into the woods. I never want to see her again. Kill her, and as proof that she is dead bring her lungs and her liver back to me."…

Because she was so beautiful the huntsman took pity on her, and he said, "Run away, you poor child."

Just then a young boar came running by.

He killed it, cut out its lungs and liver, and took them back to the

queen as proof of Snow-White's death.

The cook had to boil them with salt, and the wicked woman ate

them supposing that she had eaten Snow-White's lungs and liver.

https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm047.html

The Juniper Tree

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

No.47

Long ago, at least two thousand years, there was a rich man who had a beautiful and pious wife, and they loved each other dearly. However, they had no children, though they wished very much to have some, and the woman prayed for them day and night, but they didn't get any, and they didn't get any.

In front of their house there was a courtyard where there stood a juniper tree. One day in winter the woman was standing beneath it, peeling herself an apple, and while she was thus peeling the apple, she cut her finger, and the blood fell into the snow.

"Oh," said the woman. She sighed heavily, looked at the blood before her, and was most unhappy. "If only I had a child as red as blood and as white as snow." And as she said that, she became quite contented, and felt sure that it was going to happen…..

..He had a daughter by his second wife, but the first wife's child was a little son, and he was as red as blood and as white as snow. When the woman looked at her daughter, she loved her very much, but then she looked at the little boy, and it pierced her heart, for she thought that he would always stand in her way, and she was always thinking how she could get the entire inheritance for her daughter. And the Evil One filled her mind with this until she grew very angry with the little boy, and she pushed him from one corner to the other and slapped him here and cuffed him there, until the poor child was always afraid, for when he came home from school there was nowhere he could find any peace…

.."My son, do you want an apple?" And she looked at him fiercely.

"Mother," said the little boy, "how angry you look. Yes, give me an apple."

Then it seemed to her as if she had to persuade him. "Come with me," she said, opening the lid of the chest. "Take out an apple for yourself." And while the little boy was leaning over, the Evil One prompted her, and crash! she slammed down the lid, and his head flew off, falling among the red apples….

…Marlene," said the mother, "what have you done? Be quiet and don't let anyone know about it. It cannot be helped now.

We will cook him into stew."

…

My mother, she killed me,

My father, he ate me,

My sister Marlene,

Gathered all my bones,

Tied them in a silken scarf,

Laid them beneath the juniper tree,

Tweet, tweet, what a beautiful bird am I.