Hansel and Grettel

Once upon a time, on the edge of a big forest, there lived a poor woodcutter with his wife and two children. The boy was called Hansel and the girl Grettel. They barely had enough to eat, and one year when there was a great famine in the land, the woodcutter couldn't even give them their daily bread.

One night, as he lay in bed worrying, he sighed and said to his wife, 'What will become of us? How can we feed our poor children when we have nothing left for ourselves?' 'Listen, husband,' answered the woman. 'Tomorrow morning we'll take the children deep into the forest.

We'll light a fire for them and give each a piece of bread. Then we'll go to work and leave them there. They won't find their way home, and we'll be rid of them.' 'No, wife,' said the husband, 'I cannot do that.

How could I leave my children alone in the forest? Wild animals would tear them to pieces.' 'Oh, you fool!' she cried. 'Then we must all four starve to death. You might as well start building our coffins.' She gave him no peace until he agreed.

'But I still feel sorry for the poor children,' he added.

The children had not been able to sleep because they were so hungry, and they had heard what their stepmother said to their father. Grettel wept bitterly and said to Hansel, 'Now we're done for.' 'No, no, Grettel,' said Hansel, 'don't worry.

I'll find a way to escape.' When the old people had fallen asleep, he got up, put on his little coat, opened the back door, and crept outside. The moon was shining brightly, and the white pebbles in front of the house glittered like silver coins.

Hansel bent down and filled his pockets with as many as he could. Then he went back and said, 'Don't worry, dear little sister. Go to sleep. God will help us.' And he lay down again.

At daybreak, even before sunrise, the woman came and woke the children. 'Get up, you lazybones! We're going to the forest to fetch wood.' She gave each a piece of bread and said, 'That's for your lunch.

Don't eat it before, because that's all you'll get.' Grettel put the bread under her apron, and Hansel had the pebbles in his pocket. Then they all set off for the forest. After they had walked a little way, Hansel stopped and looked back at the house.

He did this again and again. His father noticed and said, 'Hansel, what are you looking at? Why do you keep stopping? Watch your step.' 'Oh, Father,' said Hansel, 'I'm looking at my white cat sitting on the roof. She's waving goodbye.' The woman exclaimed, 'You fool! That's not your cat.

It's the morning sun shining on the chimney.' But Hansel wasn't looking at a cat. He was dropping white pebbles from his pocket onto the path, one by one.

When they reached the middle of the forest, the father said, 'Now, children, gather some wood. I'll light a fire so you won't get cold.' Hansel and Grettel piled up brushwood until they had a heap as big as a small hill.

They set it on fire, and when the flames leaped high, the woman said, 'Lie down by the fire and rest. We're going deeper into the forest to cut wood. When we're done, we'll come back for you.' Hansel and Grettel sat by the fire, and at noon they ate their little pieces of bread.

They heard the sound of an axe chopping and thought their father was nearby. But it wasn't an axe. Their father had tied a branch to a dead tree, and the wind was blowing it back and forth. They sat for a long time, growing tired, and soon they fell fast asleep.

When they woke up, it was pitch dark. Grettel cried, 'How will we ever get out of the forest?' But Hansel comforted her. 'Wait until the moon rises, and then we'll find our way.' When the full moon came up, Hansel took his sister's hand and followed the pebbles, which shone like silver coins.

They walked all night and reached their father's house at dawn. They knocked on the door, and when the woman opened it, she exclaimed, 'You naughty children! You slept so long in the forest! We thought you were never coming back.' But the father was glad, because he had felt guilty for leaving them alone.

Not long afterward, there was another famine. The children heard their mother say to their father one night, 'Everything is eaten up. We have only half a loaf. The children must go. This time we'll lead them deeper into the forest so they can't find their way out. It's the only way to save ourselves.' The man's heart ached, and he thought, 'Surely it's better to share the last bite with your children.' But his wife wouldn't listen. She scolded and nagged until he gave in. Once a man gives in, it's hard to say no.

But the children were awake and heard everything. When the old people fell asleep, Hansel tried to go out and gather pebbles again, but the woman had locked the door. He couldn't get out. So he comforted his sister, 'Don't cry, Grettel. Sleep peacefully. God will surely help us.'

Early the next morning, the woman woke the children. They received a piece of bread, even smaller than before. On the way to the forest, Hansel crumbled his bread in his pocket. Every few minutes he stopped and dropped a crumb on the ground.

'Hansel, why are you stopping and looking around?' asked his father. 'I'm looking back at my little dove sitting on the roof, waving goodbye,' answered Hansel. 'Fool!' said the woman. 'That's not a dove. It's the morning sun on the chimney.' But Hansel kept dropping crumbs.

The woman led them deeper into the forest than ever before. Then they lit a big fire, and the mother said, 'Sit here, children. If you're tired, you can sleep. We're going to cut wood.

When we're done, we'll come back for you.' At noon, Grettel shared her bread with Hansel, because he had scattered all his along the path. Then they fell asleep. Evening came, but no one returned. They woke up in pitch darkness. Hansel comforted his sister, 'Wait until the moon rises.

Then we'll see the breadcrumbs I dropped. They'll show us the way home.' But when the moon appeared, they found no crumbs. Thousands of birds in the forest had eaten them all. 'Don't worry,' said Hansel. 'We'll find a way out.' But they didn't.

They wandered all night and the next day from morning till night, but couldn't find a path. They were very hungry and ate only a few berries they found on the ground. At last they were so tired that their legs wouldn't carry them anymore.

They lay down under a tree and fell fast asleep.

On the third morning, they set out again, but only got deeper into the forest. They felt they would soon die if help didn't come. At noon, they saw a beautiful snow-white bird sitting on a branch. It sang so sweetly that they stopped to listen.

When the song ended, the bird flapped its wings and flew in front of them. They followed it until they came to a little house. The bird perched on the roof. When they came closer, they saw that the cottage was made of bread, roofed with cake, and the windows were made of clear sugar.

'Now we'll eat!' said Hansel. 'I'll have a bit of the roof, and you, Grettel, can eat some of the window. It's sweet.' Hansel reached up and broke off a piece of roof to taste it. Grettel went to the window and began to nibble. Then a shrill voice called from inside:

'Nibble, nibble, little mouse, who's nibbling my house?'

The children answered:

'Tis Heaven's own child, the tempest wild.'

And they kept eating, not bothering about the voice. Hansel tore down a big piece of roof, and Grettel pushed out a whole round windowpane and sat down to enjoy it. Suddenly the door opened, and an old woman leaning on a stick hobbled out.

Hansel and Grettel were so frightened that they dropped their food. But the old woman shook her head and said, 'Oh, you dear children! Who brought you here? Come inside. No harm will come to you.' She took them by the hand and led them into the house.

She set a wonderful meal before them: milk and sugared pancakes, apples and nuts. After they had eaten, two beautiful little white beds were prepared for them. When Hansel and Grettel lay down, they felt as if they were in heaven.

But the old woman was not kind. She was a wicked witch who had built the bread house to lure children. When anyone fell into her power, she killed them, cooked them, and ate them.

Witches have red eyes and can't see far, but they have a keen sense of smell, like animals. When Hansel and Grettel came to her, she laughed wickedly. 'I've got them now! They won't escape me.' Early in the morning, before the children were awake, she got up.

When she saw them sleeping peacefully with their round rosy cheeks, she muttered, 'That will be a tasty bite.' She grabbed Hansel with her bony hand and carried him to a little stable. She locked the door. He could scream all he wanted, but it did no good.

Then she went to Grettel, shook her awake, and cried, 'Get up, lazybones! Fetch water and cook something for your brother. When he's fat, I'll eat him.' Grettel cried bitterly, but she had to do what the witch said.

So the best food was cooked for Hansel, but Grettel got only crab shells. Every morning the old woman hobbled to the stable and called, 'Hansel, stick out your finger so I can feel if you're getting fat.' But Hansel always poked out a bone.

The old witch's eyes were dim, so she couldn't see. She thought it was Hansel's finger and wondered why he didn't get fat. After four weeks, Hansel was still thin. The witch lost patience. 'Hey, Grettel,' she called. 'Be quick and fetch water.

Hansel may be fat or thin, but tomorrow I'm going to kill him and cook him.' Oh, how the poor little sister sobbed as she carried the water! Tears rolled down her cheeks. 'Dear God, help us!' she cried.

'If only the wild animals had eaten us, at least we would have died together.' 'Quiet!' said the witch. 'It won't help you.'

Early in the morning, Grettel had to hang up the kettle and light the fire. 'First we'll bake,' said the old woman. 'I've heated the oven and kneaded the dough.' She pushed Grettel toward the oven, which was shooting flames.

'Creep in,' said the witch, 'and see if it's hot enough for the bread.' She planned to shut the oven once Grettel was inside and bake her too. But Grettel saw what she intended. 'I don't know how to get in,' she said. 'The opening is big enough,' snapped the witch.

'See, I could get in myself.' She crawled up to the oven and stuck her head in. Then Grettel gave her a push that sent her right in. She slammed the iron door and bolted it. The witch screamed horribly, but Grettel ran away.

Grettel flew straight to Hansel, opened the stable door, and cried, 'Hansel, we're free! The old witch is dead!' Hansel sprang out like a bird from a cage. They hugged each other, jumped for joy, and kissed. No longer afraid, they went into the witch's house.

In every corner, they found boxes of pearls and precious stones. 'These are even better than pebbles,' said Hansel, filling his pockets. 'I'll take some too,' said Grettel, and filled her apron. 'Now let's get away from the witch's forest,' said Hansel.

They wandered for hours until they came to a big lake. 'We can't cross,' said Hansel. 'There's no bridge.' 'No, and no boat either,' answered Grettel. 'But look, a white duck is swimming. If I ask, she'll help us over.' She called out:

'Here are two children, mournful very, seeing neither bridge nor ferry. Take us upon your white back, and row us over, quack, quack!'

The duck swam toward them. Hansel climbed onto her back and told Grettel to sit beside him. 'No,' said Grettel, 'we'd be too heavy. She'll carry us one at a time.' The duck did that. When they were safely on the other side, they walked on.

Soon the forest became familiar, and in the distance they saw their father's house. They ran and bounded into the room, throwing their arms around their father's neck. The man had not had a happy hour since he left them in the forest, but the woman had died.

Grettel shook her apron, and pearls and jewels rolled across the floor. Hansel threw handful after handful from his pockets. So all their troubles ended, and they lived happily ever after.