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The Three Languages
Tales Collected by the Brothers Grimm
An aged count once lived in Switzerland, who had an only son,
but he was stupid, and could learn nothing. Then said the
father, "Hark thee, my son, I can get nothing into
thy head, let me try as I will. Thou must go from hence, I will give thee into the
care of a celebrated master, who shall see what he can do
with thee." The youth was sent into a strange town, and remained a
whole year with the master. At the end of this time, he came
home again, and his father asked, "Now, my son, what hast thou
learnt?" "Father, I have learnt what the dogs say when they bark."
"Lord have mercy on us!" cried the father; "is that all thou hast
learnt? I will send thee into another town, to another master."
The youth was taken thither, and stayed a year with this master
likewise. When he came back the father again asked, "My son,
what hast thou learnt?" He answered, "Father, I have learnt what
the birds say." Then the father fell into a rage and said, "Oh,
thou lost man, thou hast spent the precious time and learnt nothing;
art thou not ashamed to appear before mine eyes? I will send thee
to a third master, but if thou learnest nothing this time also,
I will no longer be thy father." The youth remained a whole year
with the third master also, and when he came home again, and
his father inquired, "My son, what hast thou learnt?" he
answered, "Dear father, I have this year learnt what the frogs
croak." Then the father fell into the most furious anger, sprang
up, called his people thither, and said, "This man is no longer
my son, I drive him forth, and command you to take him out into
the forest, and kill him." They took him forth, but when they
should have killed him, they could not do it for pity, and
let him go, and they cut the eyes and the tongue out of a deer
that they might carry them to the old man as a token.
The youth wandered on, and after some time came to a fortress
where he begged for a night's lodging. "Yes," said the lord of
the castle, "if thou wilt pass the night down there in the old
tower, go thither; but I warn thee, it is at the peril of thy life, for it is full of wild dogs, which
bark and howl without
stopping, and at certain hours a man has to be given to them,
whom they at once devour." The whole district was in sorrow
and dismay because of them, and yet no one could do anything
to stop this. The youth, however, was without fear, and said,
"Just let me go down to the barking dogs, and give me something
that I can throw to them; they will do nothing to harm me." As he himself would have it so, they
gave him some food for
the wild animals, and led him down to the tower. When he went
inside, the dogs did not bark at him, but wagged their tails
quite amicably around him, ate what he set before them, and did
not hurt one hair of his head. Next morning, to the astonishment
of everyone, he came out again safe and unharmed, and said
to the lord of the castle, "The dogs have revealed to me, in
their own language, why they dwell there, and bring evil on
the land. They are bewitched, and are obliged to watch over a
great treasure which is below in the tower, and they can
have no rest until it is taken away, and I have likewise learnt,
from their discourse, how that is to be done." Then all who
heard this rejoiced, and the lord of the castle said he would
adopt him as a son if he accomplished it successfully. He
went down again, and as he knew what he had to do, he did it
thoroughly, and brought a chest full of gold out with him. The howling of the wild dogs was
henceforth heard no more; they had disappeared, and the country was freed from the trouble.
After some time he took it into his head that he would travel to
Rome. On the way he passed by a marsh, in which a number of
frogs were sitting croaking. He listened to them, and when he
became aware of what they were saying, he grew very thoughtful
and sad. At last he arrived in Rome, where the Pope had just died,
and there was great difficulty as to whom they
should appoint as his successor. They at length agreed that
the person should be chosen as pope who should be distinguished
by some divine and miraculous token. And just as that was decided
on, the young count entered into the church, and suddenly two
snow-white doves flew on his shoulders and remained sitting
there. The ecclesiastics recognized therein the token from above,
and asked him on the spot if he would be pope. He was undecided,
and knew not if he were worthy of this, but the doves counselled
him to do it, and at length he said yes. Then was he anointed and
consecrated, and thus was fulfilled what he had heard from the
frogs on his way, which had so affected him, that he was to be
his Holiness the Pope. Then he had to sing a mass, and did not
know one word of it, but the two doves sat continually on his
shoulders, and said it all in his ear.
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