Hungarian Folk Tales: The Diligent Girl and the Lazy Girl
Once upon a time there lived an old man and an old woman
and each had a daughter from their previous marriage.
The old woman was always angry with her husband's daughter and did not like her the slightest bit.
Things went from bad to worse until one day the old woman chased the girl away from home
saying that she should seek work with a rich family.
The girl walked and walked and was walking past a pear tree when the tree spoke to her:
Where are you going?
I'm going to find a job as a servant with a rich family – the young girl replied.
Come here and rid me of my dry branches, and I will do you a good deed in return.
Then the young girl walked on her way until she passed a grapevine and the vines spoke to her:
Come here and hoe around my roots and I will do you a good deal in return.
Then the young girl walked on her way until she passed a crumbling oven.
Please come here and make me tidy and clean and I will do you a good deed in return.
Then the young girl walked on her way until she came across a broken-down well.
Where are you going?
I journey to find work.
Please come here, and make me tidy and clean and I will do you a good deed in return.
So the young girl did as she was bid and bailed the stale water out of the well.
And walked on her way until she met a tiny dog.
And the dog said:
Please wash me, brush me and trim me and I will do you a good deal in return.
The young girl cleaned and trimmed the dog
and the dog thanked her and she walked on her way.
Until she saw a beautiful house.
There were fairies living in the house.
The fairies asked the purpose of her journey and so the young girl told them:
Then the fairy said:
Why don't you stay here and become our servant?
There are seven rooms, you have to sweep out six rooms every day
but you must never go to the seventh room.
So the young girl worked for a year in a day and at the end of the year the young girl said:
I would like to leave now and go home to show my parents what I've earned.
You have been a faithful maid – the fairy said.
You did as you were told so now we will tell you what you have earned.
Come here and lie down atop these gold coins, roll over and whatever sticks to you is yours.
And now go and roll over on the silver coins and whatever sticks to you is yours.
The girl did as she was told then stood up and bid farewell to the fairies.
On her way home she came across the little dog again that said:
Come here and take as many pearls as you wish.
The dog was covered in pearls and the young girl took the pearls and hung them around her neck.
She walked on her way until she reached the well again.
Where jugs hung so that people could drink from its sweet water.
The young girl was thirsty and so she took a drink and walked on her way.
When she reached the oven again she noticed it was filled with bread and cake.
And the oven said:
Come here and eat your fill in return for your good deed.
She ate as much as she could, packed more to take home and then walked on her way.
Next she reached the grapevine that hung heavy with ripe fruit.
So here the girl stopped and ate and drank as much as she could.
Then the girl walked on her way again until she came to the pear tree.
And the pear tree said:
I've been waiting for you as all my pears arrived.
As the girl neared home the cockerel crowed to announce her arrival:
Cocka-doodle-dooo! My mistress is coming home covered in silver and gold!
The young girl heard the cockerel squall and ran home to bring joy at last to her old father.
Cocka-doodle-dooo! My mistress is coming home covered in silver and gold.
The old woman shouted: Be quiet, that's not true!
Once again the cockerel said:
Cocka-doodle-dooo! My mistress is coming home covered in silver and gold.
The old woman said:
You've earned very nicely indeed, but now my own daughter will go forth
and work for a rich family and she will earn a great deal more than you've managed.
When the old woman's daughter reach the pear tree it said:
Come here and rid me of my dry branches and I will do you a good deal in return.
The girl said:
I will not ruin my pretty white hands of my lovely tiny feet, no matter what happens.
When the girl reached the grapevine it asked her to how its roots,
and to expect a good deal in return.
But once again the girl refused to do anything that might ruin her pretty white hands
and her lovely tiny feet, no matter what happened.
Next she reached the oven.
The oven asked her to repair it and it would do her a good deed in return.
But the girl said she would not ruin her pretty white hands and her lovely tiny feet
with disgusting mud and clay, no matter what happened.
Next she came to the broken-down well.
Please come here and make me tidy and clean.
But again she refused to dirty her pretty white hands and her lovely tiny feet, no matter what happened.
Then she met the little dog that said:
Come here and trim me!
But she refused to touch the dog because she would not dirty her pretty white hands
and her lovely tiny feet, no matter what happened.
Next she reached the beautiful big house and asked that she be allowed to sleep there for the night.
The fairies living there asked her where she was going and so she told them.
In reply they asked her to stay and work as their maid.
They said:
Here there are six rooms and you must sweep them every day
but you must never enter the seventh room.
The girl did as she was told and swept the six rooms every day and ignored the seventh.
But after a while her curiosity forced her to open the door to the seventh room.
To her horror she saw that it was filled with frogs and snakes, and they bit and stung her so terribly
that by the time she managed to escape, she was covered in blood.
And so she left the fairy's house with no payment at all.
On her way home she met the dog who went up to ask for some pearls.
The dog said:
You refused to help me and now I refuse to help you.
The girl reached the well and was very thirsty but was not allowed to drink.
When she reached the oven it was packed with fresh bread and cakes, but she could not eat any of them
because when she reached inside for some it burned her hands terribly.
When she reached the grapevine she tried to pick a bunch of grapes
and to drink a glass of wine but the grapevine pushed her hand away.
And when she reached the pear tree she could not pick a single pear.
As she neared home the cockerel caught sight of her and flew to the top of the fence
and let it be known to everyone that:
Cocka-doodle-dooo! My mistress is coming all covered in blood.
The old woman went to the fence and said: That's not true, she's covered in gold!
But the cockerel repeated:
Cocka-doodle-dooo! My mistress is coming all covered in blood.
The old woman said: That's not true because she's covered in gold!
The cockerel repeated:
Cocka-doodle-dooo! Here comes my mistress all covered in blood.
That's not true, that's not true! – shouted the old lady.
But the old man said:
Now you can see that my daughter earned more as a maid than yours ever did.
This led to such a quarrel that the old woman and her daughter left the old man's home.
Then the old man and his daughter lived happily ever after.