She had, however, run into her little den, had quickly taken off her
dress, made her face and hands black again, put on the fur-mantle, and
again was Allerleirauh. And now when she went into the kitchen, and was
about to get to her work and sweep up the ashes, the cook said, “Leave
that alone till morning, and make me the soup for the King; I, too,
will go upstairs awhile, and take a look; but let no hairs fall in, or
in future thou shalt have nothing to eat.” So the cook went away, and
Allerleirauh made the soup for the king, and made bread soup and the
best she could, and when it was ready she fetched her golden ring from
her little den, and put it in the bowl in which the soup was served.
When the dancing was over, the King had his soup brought and ate it,
and he liked it so much that it seemed to him he had never tasted
better. But when he came to the bottom of the bowl, he saw a golden
ring lying, and could not conceive how it could have got there. Then he
ordered the cook to appear before him. The cook was terrified when he
heard the order, and said to Allerleirauh, “Thou hast certainly let a
hair fall into the soup, and if thou hast, thou shalt be beaten for
it.” When he came before the King the latter asked who had made the
soup? The cook replied, “I made it.” But the King said, “That is not
true, for it was much better than usual, and cooked differently.” He
answered, “I must acknowledge that I did not make it, it was made by
the rough animal.” The King said, “Go and bid it come up here.”
When Allerleirauh came, the King said, “Who art thou?” “I am a poor
girl who no longer has any father or mother.” He asked further, “Of
what use art thou in my palace?” She answered, “I am good for nothing
but to have boots thrown at my head.” He continued, “Where didst thou
get the ring which was in the soup?” She answered, “I know nothing
about the ring.” So the King could learn nothing, and had to send her
away again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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