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A folk-tale, in its primitive plainness of word and entire absence of complexity in thought, is peculiarly sensitive and susceptible to the touch of stranger hands; and he who has been able to acquaint himself with the Norske Folkeeventyr of Asbjörnsen and Moe (from which these stories are selected), has an advantage over the reader of an English rendering. Of this advantage Mr. Kay Nielsen has fully availed himself: and the exquisite bizarrerie of his drawings aptly expresses the innermost significance of the old-world, old-wives' fables. For to term these legends, Nursery Tales, would be to curtail them, by nine-tenths, of their interest. They are the romances of the childhood of Nations: they are the never-failing springs of sentiment, of sensation, of heroic example, from which primeval peoples drank their fill at will. The quaintness, the tenderness, the grotesque yet realistic intermingling of actuality with supernaturalism, by which the original Norske Folkeeventyr are characterised, will make an appeal to all, as represented in the pictures of Kay Nielsen. And these imperishable traditions, whose bases are among the very roots of all antiquity, are here reincarnated in line and colour, to the delight of all who ever knew or now shall know them. Permission to reprint the Stories in this book, which originally appeared in Sir G. W. Dasent's "Popular Tales from the Norse," has been obtained from Messrs. George Routledge & Sons, Ltd. THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN is printed by arrangement with Messrs. David Nutt; and PRINCE LINDWORM is newly translated for this volume. CONTENTS PAGE EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON 9 THE BLUE BELT 29 PRINCE LINDWORM 53 THE LASSIE AND HER GODMOTHER 65 THE HUSBAND WHO WAS TO MIND THE HOUSE 75 THE LAD WHO WENT TO THE NORTH WIND 79 THE THREE PRINCESSES OF WHITELAND 85 SORIA MORIA CASTLE 97 THE GIANT WHO HAD NO HEART IN HIS BODY 117 THE PRINCESS ON THE GLASS HILL 131 THE WIDOW'S SON 149 THE THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF 167 THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN 171 THE CAT ON THE DOVREFELL 200 ONE'S OWN CHILDREN ARE ALWAYS PRETTIEST 203 ILLUSTRATIONS EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON Page "Well, mind and hold tight by my shaggy coat, and then there's nothing to fear," said the Bear, so she rode a long, long way 9 "Tell me the way, then," she said, "and I'll search you out" 16 And then she lay on a little green patch in the midst of the gloomy thick wood 24 The North Wind goes over the sea 32 And flitted away as far as they could from the Castle that lay East of the Sun and West of the Moon 40 THE BLUE BELT The Lad in the Bear's skin, and the King of Arabia's daughter 48 PRINCE LINDWORM She saw the Lindworm for the first time, as he came in and stood by her side 56 THE LASSIE AND HER GODMOTHER She could not help setting the door a little ajar, just to peep in, when--Pop! out flew the Moon 64 Then he coaxed her down and took her home 72 "Here are your children; now you shall have them again. I am the Virgin Mary" 80 He too saw the image in the water; but he looked up at once, and became aware of the lovely Lassie who sate there up in the tree FRONTISPIECE THE THREE PRINCESSES OF WHITELAND "You'll come to three Princesses, whom you will see standing in the earth up to their necks, with only their heads out" 88 So the man gave him a pair of snow shoes 96 The King went into the Castle, and at first his Queen didn't know him, he was so wan and thin, through wandering so far and being so woeful 104 THE GIANT WHO HAD NO HEART IN HIS BODY The six brothers riding out to woo 112 "On that island stands a church; in that church is a well; in that well swims a duck" 120 He took a long, long farewell of the Princess, and when he got out of the Giant's door, there stood the Wolf waiting for him 128 THE WIDOW'S SON When he had walked a day or so, a strange man met him. "Whither away?" asked the man 136 But still the Horse begged him to look behind him 144 And this time she whisked off the wig; and there lay the lad, so lovely, and white and red, just as the Princess had seen him in the morning sun 152 The Lad in the Battle 160 THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN Just as they bent down to take the rose a big dense snowdrift came and carried them away 168 The Troll was quite willing, and before long he fell asleep and began snoring
