Read Brick Fairy Tales: Cinderella, Rapunzel, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Hansel and Gretel, and More for Free Online

so kind; she was in reality a wicked witch, who lay in wait for children, and had only built the little house of bread in order to entice them there. When a child fell into her power, she killed it, cooked and ate it, and that was a feast day with her.

    Witches have red eyes, and cannot see far, but they have a keen scent like the beasts, and are aware when human beings draw near. When Hansel and Gretel came into her neighborhood, she laughed maliciously, and said mockingly, “I have them, they shall not escape me again!”

    Early in the morning before the children were awake, she was already up, and when she saw both of them sleeping and looking so pretty, with their plump red cheeks, she muttered to herself, “That will be a dainty mouthful!”

    Then she seized Hansel with her shrivelled hand,

    carried him into a little stable, and shut him in with a grated door.

    He might scream as he liked, that was of no use.

    Then she went to Gretel, shook her till she awoke, and cried, “Get up, lazy thing, fetch some water, and cook something good for thy brother, he is in the stable outside, and is to be made fat. When he is fat, I will eat him.”

    Gretel began to weep bitterly, but it was all in vain, she was forced to do what the wicked witch ordered her.

    And now the best food was cooked for poor Hansel, but Gretel got nothing but crab-shells.

    Every morning the woman crept to the little stable, and cried, “Hansel, stretch out thy finger that I may feel if thou wilt soon be fat.”

    Hansel, however, stretched out a little bone to her, and the old woman, who had dim eyes, could not see it, and thought it was Hansel’s finger, and was astonished that there was no way of fattening him.

    When four weeks had gone by, and Hansel still continued thin, she was seized with impatience and would not wait any longer. “Hola, Gretel,” she cried to the girl, “be active, and bring some water. Let Hansel be fat or lean, to-morrow I will kill him, and cook him.”

    Ah, how the poor little sister did lament when she had to fetch the water, and how her tears did flow down over her cheeks!

    “Dear God, do help us,” she cried. “If the wild beasts in the forest had but devoured us, we should at any rate have died together.”

    “Just keep thy noise to thyself,” said the old woman, “all that won’t help thee at all.”

    Early in the morning, Gretel had to go out and hang up the cauldron with the water, and light the fire.

    “We will bake first,” said the old woman, “I have already heated the oven, and kneaded the dough.”

    She pushed poor Gretel out to the oven, from which flames of fire were already darting. “Creep in,” said the witch, “and see if it is properly heated, so that we can shut the bread in.”

    And when once Gretel was inside, she intended to shut the oven and let her bake in it, and then she would eat her, too.

    But Gretel saw what she had in her mind, and said, “I do not know how I am to do it; how do you get in?”

    “Silly goose,” said the old woman, “The door is big enough; just look, I can get in myself!”

    and she crept up and thrust her head into the oven.

    Then Gretel gave her a push that drove her far into it,

    and shut the iron door, and fastened the bolt. Oh! then she began to howl quite horribly,

    but Gretel ran away, and the godless witch was miserably burnt to death.

    Gretel, however, ran like lightning to Hansel, opened his little stable, and cried, “Hansel, we are saved! The old witch is dead!”

    Then Hansel sprang out like a bird from its cage when the door is opened for it. How they did rejoice and embrace each other, and dance about and kiss each other!

    And as they had no longer any need to fear her, they went into the witch’s house, and in every corner there stood chests full of pearls and jewels. “These are far better than pebbles!” said Hansel, and thrust into his pockets whatever could be got in,

    and Gretel said, “I, too, will take