The Goldspinners [antikvár]

I WANT TO TELL YOU A BEAUTIFUL STORY OF THE BYGONE DAYS, WHICH HAPPENED AT THE TIME WHEN THE LAWNS STILL LISTENED TO THE SPEECHES OF THE QUADRUPED AND THE FEATHERED INHABITANTS OF THE WORLD. Once there lived in the woods, in a hut under shady trees, a lame old woman with her three beautiful daughters. The daughters bloomed like pretty flowers around a withered stem—their mother. The fairest of them was the youngest. In the lonely place of their dwelling there was nobody to admire their beauty, except the sun by day, the moon and the stars by night: Glowing bright like eyes of youth Shone the sun upon their head wreaths Glittered on their coloured ribbons Played on their girlish garments. The old woman was sharp with her daughters, forcing them to work from mom till night. They had to sit behind the spinning-wheel turning golden flax into thread. Even on Thursday and Saturday nights were they not allowed to work for themselves, as was the custom of that country, to add the necessaiy things to their dowry chests; and if they had not taken up their knitting secretly, in the evening twilight or moonlight, their chests would have been empty. The spinning never ended. The threads had to be even and matched in size, and very fine. The spun thread was kept in a secret locked