Stranica 285 [285]
RUMPELSTILTSKIN. 229
the wheel, and whirr, whirr, whirr ! three times round and the
‘bobbin was full ; thén he took up another, and whirr, whirr,
whirr! three times round, and that was full; and so he went
on till the morning, when all the straw had been spun, and all
the bobbins were full of gold. At sunrise came the king, and
when he saw the gold he was astonished and very much re¬
-joiced, for he was very avaricious. He had the miller’s
daughter taken into another room filled with straw, much
bigger than the last, and told her that as she valued her life
she must spin it all in one night. The girl did not know
what to do, so she began to cry, and then the door opened,
‘“ What will you give me if I spin all this straw into gold ?”
“The ring from my finger,” answered the girl.
So the little man took the ring, and began again to send
enough of gold, he had the miller’s daughter taken into a still
larger room full of straw, and said,
“This, too, must be spun in one night, and if you accom¬
. plish it you shall be my wife." For he thought, " Although
. she is but a millers daughter, I am not likely to find any one
As soon as the girl was left alone, the little man appeared
“What will you give me if I spin the straw for you this
time ?”
“T have nothing left to give,” answered the girl.
“Then you must promise me the first child you have after
. you are queen,” said the little man.
“ But who knows whether that will happen?” thought the girl ;
but as she did not know what else to do in her necessity, she
: promised the little man what he desired, upon which he began
ing the king came and found all done according to his wish,
he caused the wedding to be held at once, and the miller’s
In a year’s time she brought a fine child into the world,