Once upon a time there lived an old man and his wife in a dirty, tumble-down cottage, not very far from the splendid palace where the king and queen dwelt. In spite of the wretched state of the hut, which many people declared was too bad even for a pig to live in, the old […]
Continue ReadingThe Tale of a Youth Who Set Out to Learn What Fear Was
A father had two sons, of whom the eldest was clever and bright, and always knew what he was about; but the youngest was stupid, and couldn’t learn or understand anything. So much so that those who saw him exclaimed: “What a burden he’ll be to his father!” Now when there was anything to be […]
Continue ReadingThe King of Waterfalls
When the young king of Easaidh Ruadh came into his kingdom, the first thing he thought of was how he could amuse himself best. The sports that all his life had pleased him best suddenly seemed to have grown dull, and he wanted to do something he had never done before. At last his face […]
Continue ReadingOdds and Ends
There was once on a time a maiden who was pretty, but idle and negligent. When she had to spin she was so out of temper that if there was a little knot in the flax, she at once pulled out a whole heap of it, and strewed it about on the ground beside her. […]
Continue ReadingSanta Claus Does Not Forget
Bertie was a very good boy. He was kind, obedient, truthful, and unselfish. He had, however, one great fault,—he always forgot. No matter how important the errand, his answer always was, “I forgot.” When he was sent with a note to the dress-maker his mother would find the note in his pocket at night. If […]
Continue ReadingThe Daughter of the King of Naples
The Story of a Prince’s Quest There was once a king who had an only son. The years passed by and he did not marry, so one day his father called him before him and said: “The time has come when you should marry, my son. You are now at the age when you should […]
Continue ReadingThe Children of Loki
The children of Loki and the witch Angerboda were not as the children of men: they were formless as water, or air, or fire is formless, but it was given to each of them to take on the form that was most like to their own greed. Now the Dwellers in Asgard knew that these […]
Continue ReadingThe Maiden with the Wooden Helmet
In a little village in the country of Japan there lived long, long ago a man and his wife. For many years they were happy and prosperous, but bad times came, and at last nothing was left them but their daughter, who was as beautiful as the morning. The neighbours were very kind, and would […]
Continue ReadingClematis
Of course fashions change, and no one need be surprised to find that crimson kilts were soon “out,” while the Piccaninny girls were to be seen walking about in pretty little white, frilly petticoats made out of clematis blossoms, and sun hats of the same flowers. The hats were rather silly, because the Piccaninnies lived […]
Continue ReadingThe Lion, Jupiter and the Elephant
The Lion, for all his size and strength, and his sharp teeth and claws, is a coward in one thing: he can’t bear the sound of a cock crowing, and runs away whenever he hears it. He complained bitterly to Jupiter for making him like that; but Jupiter said it wasn’t his fault: he had […]
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