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The Folktale
Stith Thompson

AT 1651

Whittington's Cat

Part Two

The Folktale from Ireland to India

II – The Complex Tale

9. The higher powers

C. Luck

In the face of so much that remains unexplained in the life of man, of so many rewards that come to the undeserving, and of so much unmerited [p. 142] trouble and disaster, it is no wonder that folktales should concern themselves with the working of luck. Sometimes they are interested in examples of persons pursued by misfortune and sometimes of those whose lucky star saves them from every effort of adversity. In such tales the story-teller usually seems to conceive of Luck as a personal force for good or evil, like the goddess Fortuna and sometimes like the Eumenides. But Luck has not always been treated in a mystical or even serious mood. Taletellers have rejoiced in lucky accidents in which a fool, usually also a rascal, out of mere bravado, chances into unexpected and astonishing success.

The tales of the mysterious ways in which Luck accompanies some men and refuses to follow others consist usually of a single simple anecdote. Such, for example, is the one popular in Estonia and Lithuania, but apparently unknown elsewhere, of The Rich Man's and the Poor Man's Fortune (Type 735). The Fortune of the rich brother gives the poor brother the advice to seek his luck under a bush. The poor man goes there and Fortune tells him to become a merchant. He does so, and gains a fortune.

Deserving of mention here are also two stories, both literary, and belonging to the Arabian Nights and medieval European tradition, and both occasionally told as a folktale in the Baltic countries. The first of these, Luck and Wealth (Type 736), tells of a poor man who gives a fisherman a piece of tin or other valuable which he has acquired by accident. The fisherman agrees to repay him with his first catch of fish. In the net is found a fish with a precious stone in its body. [211] The other tale, sometimes called Hatch-penny (Type 745), relates the unsuccessful attempt of the owner to get rid of a coin. The tale is told in various ways. For example, a miser being told that his hoard is to go to a poor man hides it in a trunk and throws it into the sea. It drifts to the house of the poor man, who tries in vain to restore it. Sometimes the coin is eaten by a cow which the owner happens to buy and slaughter. The center of interest in this story is the succession of unavailing attempts to avoid good fortune which persists in staying with one. This tale has received frequent handling in recent literature.

The capriciousness of luck also appears in a tale current in the Baltic countries and in Iceland, and which has also been reported from the Pochulata of Mexico, obviously from Spanish tradition. In this story, One Beggar Trusts God, the Other the King (Type 841), the two beggars are given loaves of bread by the king, who sees to it that the loaf of the one who trusts him is filled with gold. Ignorant of this, the beggars exchange their loaves and thus show that luck attends the man who trusts God. This tale has [p. 143] hardly a proper place in folklore at all : it was one of the most popular exemplary tales of medieval and Oriental literature. [212] That the oral story-tellers of the Baltic countries frequently use old literary tales is immediately apparent to anyone who investigates their collections. One more good example of such use is found in the tale of The Luck-bringing Shirt (Type 844), best known to the modern world through Hans Christian Andersen's The Shoes of Happiness (Lykkens Galosher). The story appears with some slight variation. The king is to become lucky whenever he puts on a shirt which belongs to a lucky man. The only man who admits that he is lucky is so poor that he has no shirt. The story is sometimes told about shoes and, in the older forms of the tale, the search is made for a person who has never had sorrow. The resemblance between the older tales and the modern is striking in detail, however, and there seems to be little doubt that all the known versions go back for their ultimate source to a legend of Alexander as it appears in the Pseudo-callisthenes. [213] From this Greek legend, not only the medieval Latin stories, but also the literary Oriental tales, seem to have come. The modern versions, however, all appear to depend upon a Renaissance Italian collection of novelle, the Pecorone of Ser Giovanni. The story has appeared frequently in literature, perhaps most recently in Edwin Markham's poem "The Shoes of Happiness."

Disputes similar to those we have just recounted about whether luck comes from God or the king are much enjoyed by tellers of traditional stories. A good example is the tale of Luck and Intelligence (Type 945) in which a test is made as to which of these qualities is most powerful. To carry out the test, a simple gardener is endowed with intelligence. The details of the test vary somewhat. Usually, however, a princess who never breaks silence is offered to the man who can make her speak. [214] The gardener makes up a story which he tells his dog in the presence of the princess about a wood-carver who carves a beautiful wooden doll, a tailor who clothes her, and himself, the gardener, who gives her the power of speech. He asks, "To whom does she belong?" [215] The princess breaks silence, and intelligence would seem to have conquered. But the king refuses to carry out his bargain, and condemns the gardener to death. He is saved by luck.

Though this tale occurs sparingly in the folklore of eastern Europe, it clearly belongs to the Orient. Not only is it in the Panchatantra, an indication that it was known in India by the sixth century after Christ, but it is also [p. 144] known in the folklore of modern India, of Indonesia, and of practically every country in the Near East. Through the Arabs, it has been taken to North Africa. In many of these versions the initial dispute between luck and intelligence is not found, though it is usually implied.

The interest in the tales of luck thus far noticed has been concerned with the principle of Luck itself and its dealings with mankind. But the teller of folktales recognizes well enough that usually Luck may be assisted by clever ness or rascality. Particularly beloved are the adventures of an impostor—a well-meaning and harmless impostor, of course—who meets with an astonishing series of lucky accidents. Perhaps the story that occurs to everyone first is that of The Brave Little Tailor (Type 1640) . It has a wide distribution and occurs in most countries in many variants—over 350 in all—most of them very close in general outline to the well-known version of Grimm. Some of the episodes occur independently or may be omitted from some abbreviated tellings of the tale.

The story is usually told about a tailor, but this feature is by no means necessary, since substitution of trade is very easy to the story-teller. He kills seven flies with a single stroke of his hand and in his pride puts up an inscription "Seven with One Stroke." The audacious placard comes to the attention of the king, who submits the tailor to various tests. [216] By his cleverness and audacity, he always succeeds. The king then orders him to kill two giants: he strikes them from ambush so that they fight and kill each other. He catches a unicorn by tricking it into running its horn into a tree. He also captures a wild boar by driving him into an empty church. When he is married to the princess, he forgets and betrays his calling by asking for thread. But when the soldiers are sent to take him away, he intimidates them with his boasting. Finally he goes to war for the king and when his horse runs away with him, he grasps a cross from the graveyard (or a limb of a tree) and waves it so that the enemy flee in terror.

This form of the story, popular in oral tradition all over Europe and the Near East, and known in many parts of both North and South America, seems to come from a jestbook of Montanus [217] published in 1592, though the tale was mentioned several times in the century preceding. The story is probably of Oriental origin, for a fairly close analogue is found in the Buddhistic literature of China dating from about the third century after Christ. It is probable that the many modern Oriental versions belong to this tradition.

Oriental also in origin is Doctor Know-All (Type 1641), a story of even greater popularity in all parts of Europe and Asia. It is also found in Africa and among the Negroes of Jamaica and Georgia, and the French of Louisiana. In all, more than four hundred variants are known. A peasant [p. 145] with an extraordinary name, Crab (or Cricket or Rat), buys the clothes of a doctor and puts himself forward as "Doctor Know-All." The king agrees to test the wise man's powers and employs him to detect a theft. Crab demands that first he must be given a feast. At the entrance of the first servant into the dining room, he remarks to his wife, "That is the first one." So, with the second and third. The servants, believing that they have been detected, confess the theft. As a second test of his powers, the wise man is to tell what is in a covered dish which will be served him. When he sees it coming, he realizes that he cannot pass the test. He calls out in despair to himself, "Poor Crab!" It happens that the dish is full of crabs. His third test is to find a lost horse. Sometimes he has previously hidden this horse so that finding it is no difficulty. In other stories the "doctor" gives his host a purgative, and thus brings about the accidental discovery of the horse.

The entire story of Doctor Know-All is found in most of the older literary tale collections of India and it is frequent in the European jestbooks of the Renaissance. Sometimes the separate incidents appear as independent stories, particularly the discovery of something which the rascal has already hidden, the episode with the covered dish, and the accidental discovery by casual remarks like "That is the first." The importance of this witty tale in Oriental and Renaissance literature and its popularity in folklore should make it very interesting for comparative study.

Finally, in this group of tales of lucky accidents, there may be mentioned three so closely related that they can best be considered together. The first of these is the most comprehensive: as a matter of fact, it frequently contains both of the others. This we may call The Three Lucky Brothers (Type 1650). The story usually begins with an account of their inheritance. The eldest brother sometimes inherits a cock, the second a scythe, and the youngest a cat. In other versions the inheritances are respectively a millstone, a musical instrument, and a reel. Two sequels appear, each represented by a tale to be considered presently. (1) The brothers reach countries in which the objects or animals which they have inherited are unknown, and they sell them for a fortune; or (2) the eldest brother lets his millstone fall on robbers who are counting their money (Motif K335.1.1), the second calls wolves together by means of his musical instrument (Type 1652), and the third threatens to draw the lake together with his reel and thus intimidates his master (Motif K1744).

As for this complete tale, it seems to go back to a French collection of Nicolas de Troyes, which appeared in 1535. As an oral tale it is especially popular in the Baltic countries and in France and Belgium, and is occasionally told elsewhere in Europe. The sale of the cat alone, known from its English version as Whittington's Cat (Type 1651), is found as a literary tale as early as the twelfth century. About the year 1600, it was attached to the legend of Sir Richard Whittington, Lord Mayor of London, who lived at the beginning [p. 146] of the fifteenth century. This tale may simply tell the story of how the hero is left a cat as his only inheritance and how he sells it for a fortune in a mouse-infested land where cats are unknown. A peculiar variation in the introduction relates that the hero earns or finds four coins which he tests by throwing them into a stream. Only one of them floats: the rest are counterfeit. With this coin he buys the cat which later brings him fortune.

Another episode of The Three Lucky Brothers which appears independently is that concerning The Wolves in the Stable (Type 1652). Here the youth who has acquired the musical instrument plays music and entices wolves out of a stable and makes them dance. He receives much money from the guardian of the wolves, who has let them out. As an independent tale, this seems to be confined to Finland and Estonia. Whittington's adventures with his cat, on the other hand, are told all over Europe and as far east as Indonesia and well down into Africa.

There are, of course, many other stories of luck in the folklore of Europe and Asia. But, as in the tale of Whittington's cat, many of them are essentially legends, rather than folktales. Such, for example, are the frequent accounts of the discovery of hidden treasure or of the chance acquisition of money. Sometimes tales of luck are mere exaggerations designed to be humorous. Tales of unbelievable success in hunting or fishing are usually meant to inspire laughter rather than wonder. It will be seen, therefore, that the concept of Luck is very broad, that it has many shades of meaning, so that it produces tales of wonder, stories made up of a series of clever accidents, jests, and local legends. As an incidental feature, it enters into many of the stories already considered, especially those having to do with supernatural helpers and with prophecies of future greatness.

[211] Much better known, of course, is the story of the Ring of Polycrates (Motif N211.1) in which a ring is thrown into the sea but is found next day in a fish which has been caught. This story comes from the third book of Herodotus and has been retold in many literary works since. It has been reported from the Gold Coast of Africa and from the Philippines. It also occurs in many versions of the European folktale of grateful animals (Type 554).

[212] See Bolte, Pauli's Schimpf und Ernst, II, 333, No. 326 for an exhaustive listing of these literary versions.

[213] For a discussion of this version, in relation to the whole tradition, see Köhler, Aufsätze übcr Märchen, p. 129.

[214] More usual in folktales is the task to make the sad-faced princess laugh. See Types 559 and 571.

[215] This is like the dispute of The Four Skillful Brothers (Type 653) who have cooperated in rescuing a princess.

[216] Some of these tests will be discussed in other places: see K18.2; K18.3; K71; K72, K1112.

[217] For a discussion of the literary history of this tale, see Bolte-Polívka, I, 164f.

Types:

554, 559, 571, 653, 735, 736, 745, 841, 844, 945, 1640, 1641, 1651, 1652

Motifs

K18.2, K18.3, K71, K72, K335.1.1, K1112, K1744, N211.1

Part Two

The Folktale from Ireland to India

II – The Complex Tale

12. Origin and history of the complex tales

Not every complex tale known to story-tellers of the area we are considering has found a place in the discussion just concluded. But practically all of those omitted are of very limited distribution. [283] With each tale the main facts about its history and its occurrences in oral tradition have been indicated wherever conclusions seemed possible. While discussing each tale, I have had before me a summary of the scholarship which has been devoted to it and a complete list of oral versions insofar as the extensive reference books and regional surveys now available made this possible. Frequently the mere bringing together of this material was sufficient to compel conclusions about the tale which do not seem likely to need revision. But when all tales with such clear-cut histories have been considered, there remain a large number which present problems sufficient to occupy the attention of scholars for many a decade to come.

Of these complex tales, along with a few closely related simple anecdotes, we have examined somewhat over two hundred. The order in which they have been taken up has been determined by their subject matter. And that means that tales about the same kinds of characters or incidents have been brought together, often when there was no organic relationship between them and when they had little if anything in common in their origin and history. When so much remains dark about the beginnings and about the vicissitudes of so large a number of our folktales, no complete account of them can be based upon historical categories.

Nevertheless, in a very tentative way it may be of interest to see which of our tales have a history that can be proclaimed with some confidence, which of them show great probabilities of proper solution, and which of them still present difficult problems.

That many of our European and Asiatic folktales go back to a literary source is as clear as any fact of scholarship can be made. There would thus seem to be no reason to doubt that an Oriental literary text is responsible for the subsequent development of a considerable number of tales which have received oral currency in Europe and sometime in the Orient. In the older Buddhistic sources [284] are found: Death's Messengers (Type 335); Six Go Through the Whole World (Type 513A); The Three Snake Leaves (Type 612); [p. 177] The Two Travelers (Type 613); The Animal Languages (Type 670); "Think Carefully Before You Begin a Task" (Type 910C); The Brave Tailor (Type 1640); and Doctor Know-All (Type 1641). In the Ocean of Story, a Sanskrit collection brought together in the twelfth century but based upon much older material, there appear, as probable originals of the European oral tradition, versions of: Wise Through Experience (Type 910A); The Servant's Good Counsels (Type 910B); and Faithful John (Type 516). From other collections of literary tales originating in India appear to come: The Bridge to the Other World (Type 471); The Four Skillful Brothers (Type 653); The Wise Brothers (Type 655); and One Beggar Trusts God, the Other the King (Type 841). From various literary sources in India the incidents which make up two of our related tales have been taken and unified at some point before they entered into the oral tradition of the west. [285] These two are : The Son of the King and of the Smith (Type 920); and The King and the Peasant's Son (Type 921). Whatever may be the ultimate source of the stories in the Thousand and One Nights, several of our old folktales are found in that work in much the form in which these stories first reached European taletellers. Among these tales appearing in the Arabian Nights are: Siddhi Numan (Type 449*); Aladdin (Type 561); Open Sesame (Type 676); Luck and Wealth (Type 736); Hatch-penny (Type 745); Oft Proved Fidelity (Type 881); The Treasure of the Hanging Man (Type 910D); and The Forty Thieves (Type 954). Finally, of these tales of Oriental origin, may be mentioned one which appears in the Persian collection, The Thousand and One Days. This is The Prophecy (Type 930).

Similarly, an ultimate origin in European literature seems unmistakable for a dozen or more of the stories current today, whether locally or over the complete European-Asiatic area. Three of the tales which we have noticed certainly go back to Greek literature: Oedipus (Type 931) to Sophocles; Rhampsinitus (Type 950) to Herodotus; and The Wolf and the Kids (Type 123) to the Aesop collection. A fourteenth century Latin poem, the Asinarius, is responsible for the very few oral versions of The Ass (Type 430). Folktales have borrowed very freely from saints' legends: certainly Pride Is Punished (Type 836) is a mere oral treatment of the legend of Polycarp. The great collections of illustrative tales which in the Middle Ages went under the name of Exempla contained a considerable number of folktales. Frequently it is impossible to tell whether they may be reworkings of oral tradition, but sometimes it is quite evident that the oral tale is taken directly from the literary collection. This is clearly true of: Friends in Life and Death (Type 470); The Boy Who Learned Many Things (Type 517); The Three Languages (Type 671); The Angel and the Hermit (Type 759); and Who Ate the Lamb's Heart (Type 785). At least two tales seem to have been learned from the work of the German Meistersinger: The Faithful Wife (Type 888); and [p. 178] The Pound of Flesh (Type 890). Of course, both of these tales were used by Shakespeare, and that fact has doubtless been of influence on their subsequent popularity. Many stories have undoubtedly originated among the people of Italy, and it is sometimes difficult to know whether a tale recounted by those great writers of novelle beginning with Boccaccio was learned from the people or was invented by the author. For at least three of our folktales such literary invention by the novella writer seems the most reasonable hypothesis. The Wager on the Wife's Chastity (Type 882) is in Boccaccio's Decameron; The Luck-Bringing Shirt (Type 844) in the Pecorone of Ser Giovanni; and The Taming of the Shrew (Type 901) in the Nights of Straparola. The Pentamerone of Giambattista Basile of the early seventeenth century is almost completely made up of oral folktales, though transformed into an extraordinary literary style. But it is probable that he invented several tales by freely combining traditional material. Such seems to be the situation with The Forsaken Fiancée (Type 884). Finally, at least one tale given currency by the Grimms, The Two Girls, the Bear, and the Dwarf (Type 426), comes directly from a German literary collection of stories which appeared in 1818.

The fact that one may cite a literary form of a story, even a very old version, is by no means proof that we have arrived at the source of the tradition. Nothing is better authenticated in the study of traditional narrative than the fact that the literary telling of a tale may represent merely one of hundreds of examples of the story in question and have for the history of the tradition no more significance than any other one of the hundreds of variants at hand. Apuleius's telling of Cupid and Psyche and the author of Tobit's version of The Grateful Dead Man tale appear both to be rather late and somewhat, aberrant forms of much older oral tales. With this warning in mind, the careful student should be slow in arriving at the conclusion that a stated literary document is the fountainhead of a particular narrative tradition. For those tales which we have just listed, the actual dependence on the literary source has seemed well established. In addition to these, there are a considerable number for which there is a well-known early literary form to which the weight of evidence would point probably, but not quite certainly, as the actual source. Some of these tales have been very popular among story-tellers, and have spread over two or more continents, and some have had only a very limited acceptance among the people. The degree of popularity and the geographical extent of the distribution is a fact which must be taken into consideration with every tale when we are trying to judge the question of its ultimate literary or oral invention. For this reason, in listing the tales with probable literary sources, it is helpful to indicate briefly what type of oral distribution each has.

At least related to the old Greek story of The Cranes of Ibycus is the tale The Sun Brings All to Light (Type 960; oral: Spain to Russia). From saints' [p. 179] legends at least two oral tales appear to have been taken: Hospitality Rewarded (Type750B; oral: scattered thinly over most of Europe); and Christ and the Smith (Type 753; oral: all Europe, especially the Baltic states). Certainly influenced by some of the legends of the popes, if not directly borrowed from them, is The Dream (Type 725; oral: moderately popular in eastern Europe and the Baltic states). In addition to the folktales which we are sure have come from books of Exempla, there are several where such an origin seems likely: The King and the Robber (Type 951A; oral: Germany and the Baltic states, sporadic in Hungary and Russia); The Old Robber Relates Three Adventures (Type 953; oral: thinly scattered, Ireland to Roumania); and "We Three; For Money" (Type 1697; oral: thinly scattered over all Europe). The influence of the chivalric romance in general is seen in The Bride Won in a Tournament (Type 508) which was told in Straparola's Nights and received frequent literary treatment in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, but has been collected orally only in three versions in Lithuania.

The rich prose literature of medieval Iceland has in it many folktale elements, most of which doubtless go back to popular tradition. But this may not have been true in all cases: an Icelandic prose tale of 1339 seems to lie back of the oral tale Godfather Death (Type 332; oral: Iceland to Palestine, especially the Baltic states, but not Russia). A medieval chronicle of 1175 probably forms the beginning of the tradition later carried on through French and German jestbooks and at least one English play, and connected with the name of a famous Lord Mayor of London. This is Whittington's Cat (Type 1651; oral: scattered from western Europe to Indonesia, especially popular in Finland).

The jestbooks of the Renaissance contain a number of folktales. In many cases, these were taken from older literary collections, or indeed from oral tradition. But occasionally they seem to have served as a real source for tales which now belong to the folk. Such would seem to be true of The Wishes (Type 750A; oral: popular throughout Europe, sporadic in China); The Tailor in Heaven (Type 800; oral: scattered thinly over Europe, sporadic among Buryat of Siberia); The Devil as Advocate (Type 821; oral: all Europe, especially Baltic, moderately popular); Sleeping Beauty (Type 410; oral: scattered thinly over Europe, one-third of versions Italian, based on Basile); and The Three Brothers (Type 654; oral: confined to Europe).

A German literary tale of the thirteenth century may well be the beginning of The Frog King (Type 440; oral: Germany to Russia only). The habit of writing literary folktales was carried on into the eighteenth century, both in France and in Germany. Many of these tales never assumed any oral popularity. On the other hand, The Girls Who Married Animals (Type 552), although concocted by Musäus at the end of the eighteenth century of authentic oral material, combined with an analogous tale in Basile, has since entered into the stream of oral tradition in the form he then designed. Its [p. 180] oral distribution shows the greatest inconsistency and indicates frequent direct use of the literary source.

For all the tales mentioned thus far in this summary there seems a strong probability of ultimate literary origin. But it cannot be too frequently repeated that the fact of the appearance of a tale in some literary document is no proof that it did not originate among the people. Oral tales have been a very fruitful source For literary story-tellers everywhere. It thus happens that frequently the literary appearance of a story only represents one of many hundreds of versions and is, of course, less important in the history of the tale than the oral variant from which the story was borrowed. It is not always easy to tell when a story belongs primarily to oral tradition and frequently the problem of priority is quite unsolvable. But a very considerable number of tales appearing in literary collections show such a preponderance of oral variants, as well as other indications of popular origin, that their literary appearance would seem to be purely incidental. There can be little doubt that they are all essentially oral, both in origin and in history.

Several such oral tales have found a place in Oriental literary collections. In the Hindu fable collection, the Panchatantra, occurs a good part of the tale of Luck and Intelligence (Type 945); it also occurs in recent literary form in India, but has a vigorous life in popular tradition of India and the Near East, and sporadically as far afield as Germany and the Philippines. In the Ocean of Story, as well as in the Thousand and One Nights, occur fragments of Devils Fight over Magic Objects (Type 518; oral: all Europe, western Asia, and North Africa) and of The Prince's Wings (Type 575; oral: sparingly over north and eastern Europe). In the Ocean of Story, likewise, there is an analogue of The Girl as Helper in the Hero's Flight (Type 313). This story does not otherwise appear in central Asia but is one of the most popular of all oral folktales in Europe and America; it is no wonder that it has been retold by such story-tellers as Straparola and Basile. Two tales popular in the tradition of the Near East appear in the Persian Tuti Nameh: The Grateful Animals (Type 554; oral: Europe and Asia, especially Baltic countries) and The Magic Bird-heart (Type 567; oral: eastern and southern Europe, and Persia; origin probably in Persian tradition). In an Arabic history of the ninth century appears an abbreviated version of The King and the Abbot (Type 922), though Walter Anderson has shown that the tradition is certainly oral, in spite of frequent literary treatments in Europe. Likewise, the occurrence of the story of The Monster in the Bridal Chamber (Type 507B) in the apocryphal Book of Tobit does not carry the implication that this version is the source of the tradition: it is obviously a late and considerably modified form of the story, which appears to have developed orally in the Near East.

Much more frequently have oral tales found a place in one or more European collections of literary stories. In another place more specific mention [p. 181] is made of popular tales embedded in the Greek or Latin classics. [286] Sometimes these retellings represent rather faithfully what must have been the plot of one of our oral tales at the time and place it was heard, though there may be radical adaptation to literary form or fashion. Such is true of the retelling of the tale of Polyphemus (Type 1137) by Homer, of Cupid and Psyche (Type 425) by Apuleius, and of Perseus and Andromeda (a version of Type 300? ) by various writers of myths.

It is sometimes difficult to tell whether such a classical story as that of Perseus is really a version of a folktale now current in Europe. There is little doubt, however, that the appearance of the story of The Dragon-Slayer (Type 300) in connection with that of The Two Brothers (Type 303) in Icelandic saga does represent an actual version of an oral tale, apparently originating in France, and now known by almost every taleteller in the world. In Icelandic saga there also appears a version of The Clever Peasant Girl (Type 875), though this does not represent its source, which is certainly oral and central European. The learning of animal speech by eating the flesh of a serpent occurs in a German and Baltic oral tale (Type 673) and also in the Siegfried story, but this is the only parallel, and the resemblance may not indicate actual relationship.

In other literary forms of the Middle Ages there occasionally appear oral tales. Geoffrey of Monmouth, in telling the story of King Lear, includes the incident of Love Like Salt (Type 923), widely known, not only through Shakespeare's treatment, but also as a part of the Cinderella cycle (Type 510). The chivalric romances, likewise, contain much that must have been taken directly from the people. Marie de France thus tells the tale of The Prince as Bird (Type 432), which, though certainly oral, has been frequently retold by both medieval and Renaissance writers. In some versions of the Tristram story occur elements of The Clever Horse (Type 531; oral: western Europe to the Philippines, origin probably India), and in an Icelandic saga of the fourteenth century there is a much clearer version. In the Fortunatus romance, which occurs in many forms, there is found a version of The Three Magic Objects and the Wonderful Fruits (Type 566), essentially west European folk tradition. The Gesta Romanorum, and later, Hans Sachs, have versions of The Three Doctors (Type 660), a tradition well known from Ireland to Russia. Despite the fact that the French and German fabliaux are usually literary in content, at least two oral tales are used in such collections: The Hero Catches the Princess with Her Own Words (Type 853) and King Thrushbeard (Type 900).

Though the jestbooks which were in vogue during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries normally consist of very simple anecdotes, occasionally they included a complex folk story, like Hansel and Gretel (Type 327A); Master Pfriem (Type 801); One-Eye, Two-Eyes, Three-Eyes (Type 511); The [p. 182] Student from Paradise (Type 1540); or The Three Lucky Brothers (Type 1650). The latter story also appears in a collection of novelle. These prose tale collections, beginning as early as Boccaccio's Decameron, sometimes contain stories which the author had heard, though they are usually much changed in style from what must have been the oral original. Such is true of The Smith Outwits the Devil (Type 330), and of Six Go Through the Whole World (Type 513). The latter tale appears in many other literary collections, both Oriental and European.

For the history of the folktale, two collections in the novella tradition are especially important. Insofar as they contain folktales, they are either purely oral stories or else tales of literary origin which had already become a part of the folklore of Italy. Many of these oral tales have their first literary appearance in these collections. In the Pleasant Nights of Straparola in the sixteenth century are versions of: The Magician and His Pupil (Type 325; apparently of oral origin in India); The Youth Who Wanted to Learn What Fear Is (Type 326); The Youth Transformed to a Horse (Type 314; one of the most popular of oral tales); Cap o' Rushes (Type 510B); The Three Golden Sons (Type 707); Our Lady's Child (Type 710); The Cat Castle (Type 545A); Puss in Boots (Type 545B); and The Lazy Boy (Type 675).

An even longer list of oral tales is found for the first time in the Pentamerone of Basile, 1634-36. Among them are: The Maiden in the Tower (Type 310); The Black and the White Bride (Type 403); The Three Oranges (Type 408); Little Brother and Little Sister (Type 450); The Maiden Who Seeks her Brothers (Type 451); The Spinning-Woman by the Spring (Type 480); The Three Old Women Helpers (Type 501); Dung-beetle (Type 559); The Magic Ring (Type 560); The Louse-Skin (Type 621); The Carnation (Type 652); Snow-White (Type 709); and The Good Bargain (Type 1642).

The folktale collection of Charles Perrault which appeared in 1697 is hardly to be considered as literary at all, but rather as a group of fairly faithful versions of oral tales. The later French collections of Madame D'Aulnoy, on the other hand, were definitely literary, and seldom contained any real folktales which had not already appeared in writers like Straparola or Basile. Exceptions are The Mouse as Bride (Type 402) and The Shift of Sex (Type 514).

Such are the principal collections of literary tales which have given us versions of oral stories. To complete the list, one would have to make several miscellaneous additions. The King and the Abbot (Type 922) appears in a German poem of the thirteenth century and frequently thereafter; the oral tradition of how Peter's Mother Falls from Heaven (Type 804) is given in a fifteenth century German poem; The Monster's Bride (Type 507A) appears in a sixteenth century English comedy; Bearskin (Type 361) is [p. 183] retold by Grimmelshausen in 1670; and Demi-coq (Type 715) is given a French name because of his appearance in a French story written in 1759.

Such is the list of those tales which, although they have appeared in one or more literary collections, seem quite certainly to be oral, both in origin and in history. Sometimes their subsequent popularity has been greatly increased by the fact that they have been charmingly retold by Basile or Perrault. Otherwise, their history is in no essential respect different from that large group of stories to which we shall now turn. These belong to the folklore of Europe and Asia, and have never had the fortune to appeal to any literary story teller. We know them only in oral form and can therefore speak with almost complete certainty of their origin among the people. Here belong some of the most interesting of all folktales.

Most of the European stories which originated in the Orient either go back to literary sources in the East or else, in spite of their origin in popular Oriental tradition, have received literary treatment in Asia or in Europe. Such tales, of literary origin or handling, have just been discussed. There remain a few which seem to have developed orally in Asia and to have reached Europe entirely by word of mouth. Such is true of Three Hairs from the Devil's Beard (Type 461), very often told in connection with the tale of The Prophecy (Type 930). The latter story is Oriental, but is found in early Buddhistic material. [287] The widely diffused tale of The Little Red Bull (Type 511*), while showing relation to several well-known European stories, probably comes from Oriental folk tradition.

By far the largest number of purely oral European and Asiatic tales seem quite certainly to have developed in Europe. The great majority of these are confined to the European continent, but some of them are worldwide in their distribution. Examples of the latter are The Dragon-Slayer (Type 300), John the Bear (Type 301), and The Two Brothers (Type 303). [288] Some European oral tales have traveled far into the Orient: Bluebeard (Type 311); The Journey to God to Receive Reward (Type 460A); The Journey in Search of Fortune (Type 460B); The Wild Man (Type 502); The Speaking Horsehead (Type 533); and The Profitable Exchange (Type 1655). Others have gone no further than the Near East: The Princess Transformed into Deer (Type 401); The Princess on the Glass Mountain (Type 530); Strong John (Type 650); The Juniper Tree (Type 720); and The Greater Sinner (Type 756C).

A considerable number of oral stories have received very wide distribution over the entire European continent but, except for purely sporadic occurrences, they do not appear elsewhere. To this list belong: The Hunter (Type 304); [p. 184] The Dwarf and the Giant (Type 327B); Hiding from the Devil (Type 329); The House in the Wood (Type 431); The Water of Life (Type 551); The Fisher and His Wife (Type 555); The Rabbit-herd (Type 570); The Self-righteous Hermit (Type 756A); The Devil's Contract (Type 756B); The Singing Bone (Type 780); The Peasant in Heaven (Type 802); The Birthmarks of the Princess (Type 850); The Golden Ram (Type 854); The King and the Soldier (Type 952); The Robber Bridegroom (Type 955) and The Clever Maiden Alone at Home Kills the Robbers (Type 956B).

The stories just listed are well represented in all parts of Europe, so that without special investigation it is not easy to say just where the story has developed. With a large number of tales, however, we find that, in spite of occurrences over the entire continent, their area of great popularity is clearly limited, sometimes to a single country, more often to a group of neighboring peoples. Such tales with occurrences primarily in eastern Europe are: The Princess in the Shroud (Type 307); The Faithless Sister (Type 315); and The Prince and the Arm Bands (Type 590). These last two are closely related and seem to have their center in Roumania.

General European tales most popular in eastern and northern Europe are: The Danced-Out Shoes (Type 306); Lenore (Type 365); The Helpful Horse (Type 532); and The Snares of the Evil One (Type 810).

Especially characteristic of Scandinavia and the Baltic states are: The Boy Steals the Giant's Treasure (Type 328, the English story of Jack the Giant Killer); Bear-skin (Type 361); The Man as Heater of Hell's Kettle (Type 475); The King is Betrayed (Type 505); The Spirit in the Blue Light (Type 562—popularly influenced by H. C. Andersen's treatment); The Greedy Peasant Woman (Type 751); Sin and Honor (Type 755; also very popular in Ireland); The Devil's Riddle (Type 812); The Hero Forces the Princess to Say "That is a Lie" (Type 852); The Youth Cheated in Selling Oxen (Type 1538); The Clever Boy (Type 1542); and The Man Who got a Night's Lodging (Type 1544).

Rather widespread traditions having their focus definitely in Scandinavia are: The Man from the Gallows (Type 366); The Princess Rescued from Robbers (Type 506B); The Wonder Child (Type 708); The Princess Confined in the Mound (Type 870); and The Little Goose-Girl (Type 870A).

Oral tales distributed over all Europe, but especially characteristic of the western countries, are: The Giantkiller and his Dog (Bluebeard) (Type 312); The Nix of the Mill-pond (Type 316); Little Red Riding Hood (Type 333); Bargain of the Three Brothers with the Devil (Type 360); The Healing Fruits (Type 610); and The Presents (Type 620).

Finally, at least two tales seem to be especially characteristic of British tradition: Tom-Tit-Tot (Type 500) and Out-riddling the Judge (Type 927). The special form of Type 328 known as Jack the Giant Killer and that known as Jack and the Beanstalk represent peculiar British developments. [p. 185]

There has been no attempt in this book to give notice to all folktales known in Europe and Asia, especially to the hundreds of oral stories which are told in only a single locality or which have never traveled far from their original home. A considerable number of such stories local to Roumania, Hungary, Wallonia, and Russia may be examined in the excellent folktale surveys of these countries. [289] Of such of them as appear in the Aarne-Thompson Types of the Folk-Tale, it will be noticed that a large number of the local tales are characteristic of the Baltic area. It must be borne in mind that very exhaustive lists have been made of the Finnish and Estonian tales, [290] so that these large numbers are no cause for wonder. Of these oral tales in the main part of the Aarne-Thompson index, the following seem to be confined to the Baltic states: a version of The Black and the White Bride (Type 403C); The Girl in the Form of a Wolf (Type 409); Punishment of a Bad Woman (Type 473); "Iron is More Precious than Gold" (Type 677); The Rich Man's and the Poor Man's Fortune (Type 735); The Cruel Rich Man as the Devil's Horse (Type 761); The Princess who Murdered her Child (Type 781); Solomon binds the Devil in Chains in Hell (Type 803); The Deceased Rich Man and the Devils in the Church (Type 815); The Devil as Substitute for Day Laborer at Mowing (Type 820); The Boastful Deer-slayer (Type 830); The Dishonest Priest (Type 831); The Disappointed Fisher (Type 832); How the Wicked Lord was Punished (Type 837); and The Wolves in the Stable (Type 1652).

Local to the Baltic and Scandinavian countries are: [291] a version of The Children and the Ogre (Type 327C); The Vampire (Type 363); The Prince as Serpent (Type 433); The Raven Helper (Type 553); The Magic Providing Purse (Type 564); The Magic Mill (Type 565; sporadic in Ireland, Greece, and France); Beloved of Women (Type 580); The Thieving Pot (Type 591); Fiddevav (Type 593); The Gifts of the Dwarfs (Type 611); The Beautiful and the Ugly Twin (Type 711); The Mother who Wants to Kill her Children (Type 765); the Prodigal's Return (Type 935); and At the Robbers' House (Type 956A).

A much smaller group are limited to the Baltic states and Russia: The Strong Woman as Bride (Type 519); The Man Who Flew like a Bird and Swam like a Fish (Type 665; also in Bohemia); The Punishment of Men (Type 840); The Bank Robbery (Type 951B); and Cleverness and Gullibility (Type 1539; 253 versions in Finland alone, sporadic in Greece, Turkey, and America).

Though the groups of peoples just noticed are represented by a large number [p. 186] of local stories, some tales of limited dissemination occur almost everywhere. Thus The Faithless Wife (Type 315B*) belongs to the Baltic and Balkan states and Russia. Hans my Hedgehog (Type 441) is known from Norway to Hungary, but depends entirely upon the Grimm version. Born from a Fish (Type 705) seems purely Scandinavian, and four tales apparently are known only in Norway: The Animal Sons-in-law and their Magic Food (Type 552B); The King's Tasks (Type 577); The Children of the King (Type 892); and Like Wind in the Hot Sun (Type 923A). Confined to south eastern Europe is The Serpent Maiden (Type 507C). Primarily Italian, but also known in Russia, is The Wolf (Type 428). Central European, primarily German, are the three varieties of The Serpent's Crown (Types 672A, B, and C). And two tales, except for occasional appearances of the Grimm version in other countries, seem to be limited to German tradition: Jorinde and Joringel (Type 405) and The Girl as Flower (Type 407).

In the rapid summary just completed it seems clear that for most of the complex tales of the European and Asiatic areas some generalizations are safe. Though we may not be able to say just when or just where a tale originated, or whether it was first an oral story or a literary creation, the general probabilities are such as we have indicated. Many questions of detail within the limits of these probabilities will engage the efforts of future scholars.

There still remain a considerable number of these complex tales where the evidence at present available is either insufficient to lead to general conclusions or else is so overwhelming in amount that it has never yet been properly utilized for systematic investigation.

For some tales, when the data are all assembled, the question as to whether they are essentially literary or oral seems quite unsolvable without much further study. Among such tales are: The Gifts of the Little People (Type 503); The Princess Rescued from Slavery (Type 506A); The Jew Among Thorns (Type 592); Tom Thumb (Type 700); The Maiden Without Hands (Type 706); Christ and Peter in the Barn (Type 752A); The Forgotten Wind (Type 752B) ; The Saviour and Peter in Night-Lodgings (Type 791); The Lazy Boy and the Industrious Girl (Type 822); The Princess who Cannot Solve the Riddle (Type 851); and The Parson's Stupid Wife (Type 1750).

In another group the question as to whether the tale is essentially Oriental or European is still not satisfactorily solved: The Ogre's (Devil's) Heart in the Egg (Type 302); The Spirit in the Bottle (Type 331); The Prince as Bird (Type 432); The Man Persecuted because of his Beautiful Wife (Type 465); The Table, the Ass, and the Stick (Type 563); and "All Stick Together" (Type 571).

Finally, a half dozen stories well known over the entire world present major problems of investigation, because of the great mass of materials at [p. 187] hand, much of unorganized. Each of them offers a challenge to scholarship. These six tales The Man on a Quest for his Lost Wife (Type 400); Cinderella (Type 510A); The Bird, the Horse, and the Princess (Type 550); The Knapsack, the Hat, and the Horn (Type 569); The Master Thief (Type 1525); and the Rich and the Poor Peasant (Type 1535). [p. 188]

[283] An exhaustive treatment would include a considerable number of such tales of purely local development for Lithuania, for Roumania, for Russia, and for India. The material for the first three of these countries may be examined in the surveys of Balys, Schullerus, and Andrejev, respectively (see references on pp. 420f.). No adequate survey of the material for India has yet been made. I have been working upon one for some years and have reasonable hopes of completing it.

[284] These are best represented by (1) Cowell, The Jātaka; (2) Chavannts, 500 Contes.

[285] For a discussion of this point, see p. 160, above.

[286] See pp. 278ff., below.

[287] See pp. I39f., above.

[288] The other tales which are distributed over the world and have received literary treatment have already been discussed.

[289] For Roumania, Hungary, and Wallonia, see FF Communications Nos. 78, 81, and 101 respectively. For the Russian, see Andrejev, Ukazatel' Skazočnich Siuzhetov.

[290] The number of purely Baltic tales would be greatly increased by inclusion of all those listed in Balys' Motif Index, which appeared after the Aarne-Thompson Index, and also by citing many of the "Types not Included" from the Aarne-Thompson Index.

[291] Single sporadic occurrences elsewhere are disregarded.

Types:

123, 300, 301, 302, 303, 304, 306, 307, 310, 311, 312, 313, 314, 315, 315B*, 316, 325, 326, 327A, 327B, 327C, 328, 329, 330, 331, 332, 333, 335, 360, 361, 363, 365, 366, 400, 401, 402, 403, 403C, 405, 407, 408, 409, 410, 425, 426, 428, 430, 431, 432, 433, 440, 441, 449*, 450, 451, 460A, 460B, 461, 465, 470, 471, 473, 475, 480, 500, 501, 502, 503, 505, 506A, 506B, 507A, 507B, 507C, 508, 510, 510A, 510B, 511, 511*, 513, 513A, 514, 516, 517, 518, 519, 530, 531, 532, 533, 545A, 545B, 550, 551, 552, 552B, 553, 554, 555, 559, 560, 561, 562, 563, 564, 565, 566, 567, 569, 570, 571, 575, 577, 580, 590, 591, 592, 593, 610, 611, 612, 613, 620, 621, 650, 652, 653, 654, 655, 660, 665, 670, 671, 672A, 672B, 672C, 673, 675, 677, 700, 705, 706, 707, 708, 709, 710, 711, 715, 720, 725, 735, 736, 745, 750A, 750B, 751, 752A, 752B, 753, 755, 756A, 756B, 756C, 759, 761, 765, 780, 781, 785, 791, 800, 801, 802, 803, 804, 810, 812, 815, 820, 821, 822, 830, 831, 832, 836, 837, 840, 841, 844, 850, 851, 852, 853, 854, 870, 870A, 875, 881, 882, 884, 888, 890, 892, 900, 901, 910A, 910B, 910C, 910D, 920, 921, 922, 923, 923A, 927, 930, 931, 935, 945, 950, 951A, 951B, 952. 953, 954, 956A, 956B, 960, 1137, 1525, 1535, 1538, 1539, 1540, 1542, 1544, 1640, 1641, 1642, 1650, 1651, 1652, 1655, 1697, 1750

Number of Borrowing of European-Asiatic Tales by Indonesians, African, and American Indians

Type

Indonesianx

Africanx

Americanx

Indianx

 

1. The Theft of Fish

5

7

2. Tail-Fisher

3

13

4. Carrying the Sham-Sick Trickster

5

5. Biting the Foot

13

16

6. Inquiring about the Wind

2

7. Calling of Three Tree Names

1

8. The Painting

2

7

9A. The Unjust Partner: Bear Threshes

7

9B. The Unjust Partner: Corn and Chaff

2

15. Theft of Butter (Honey) by Playing Godfather

13

2

21. Eating His Own Entrails

1

1

30. Fox Tricks Wolf into Falling into a Pit

1

31. Fox Climbs from Pit on Wolf's Back

15

33. Fox Plays Dead and is Thrown out of Pit and Escape

20

5

36. Fox in Disguise Violates the She-Bear

1

37. Fox as Nursemaid for Bear

7

30

38. Claw in Split Tree

11

2

47A. Fox Hangs by Teeth to Horse's Tail

2

1

49. Bear and the Honey

2

50. Sick Lion

1

55. Animals Build a Road

18

1

56. Fox Steals Young Magpies

7

60. Fox and Crane

3

62. Peace Among Animals

1

72. Rabbit Rides Fox a-Courting

1

6

7

73. Blinding the Guard

2

2

100. Wolf as Dog's Guest Sings

1

101. Old Dog as Rescuer of Child

1

104. Cowardly Duelers

3

105. Cat's Only Trick

2

111. Cat and Mouse Converse

3

122A. Wolf Seeks Breakfast

2

122B. Cat Washes Face before Eating

5

123. Wolf and Kids

1

125. Wolf Flees from Wolf-Head

12

130. Animals in Night Quarters

1

154. "Bear-Food"

6

1

155. Ungrateful Serpent Returned to Captivity

12

156. Splinter in Bear's Paw

1

157. Learning to Fear Men

1

1

175. Tarbaby and Rabbit

2

39

23

210. Cock, Hen, etc. on Journey

10

221. Election of Bird King

2

222. War of Birds and Quadrupeds

4

225. Crane Teaches Fox to Fly

4

3

43?

228. Titmouse Tries to be Big as Bear

1

8

235. Jay Borrows Cuckoo's Skin

3

248. Dog and Sparrow

1

249. Ant and Cricket

3

275. Race of Fox and Crayfish

26

1

295. Bean, Straw, and Coal

3

300. Dragon-Slayer

1

14

301. Three Stolen Princesses

16

302. Ogre's Heart in Egg

2

1

303. Twins or Blood-Brothers

3

3

307. Princess in the Shroud

2

311. Rescue by Sister (Girls in Sacks)

5

1

313. Girl as Helper in Hero's Flight

2

33

314. Youth Transformed to Horse (Goldener)

24

4

15

325. Magician and Pupil

1

326. Learning What Fear Is

2

327A. Hansel and Gretel

6

8

10

327B. Dwarf and Giant

3

327C. Devil Carries Hero in Sack

9

6?

328. Boy Steals Giant's Treasure

6

331. Spirit in Bottle

1

333. Red Ridinghood; Six Little Goats

16

400. Quest for Lost Wife

37

11

29

401. Princess Transformed into Deer

1

402. Mouse (Cat, etc.) as Bride

1

403. Black and White Bride

1

15

6

408. Three Oranges

1

425. Search for Lost Husband (Cupid and Psyche)

5

5

1

432. Prince as Bird

1

450. Little Brother and Little Sister

3

451. Maiden Who Seeks her Brothers

1

461. Three Hairs from Devil's Beard

17

1

1

471. Bridge to Other World

1

1

1

480. Spinning Woman by the Spring

6

3

506. Rescued Princess: Grateful Dead

6

1

507. Monster's Bride: Grateful Dead

1

510A. Cinderella

2

3

4

510B. Cap o' Rushes

2

1

511. One-Eye, Two-Eyes, Three-Eyes

3

513. The Helpers (Extraordinary Companions)

2

3

514. Shift of Sex

1

516. Faithful John

1

518. Devils Fight over Magic Objects

2

531. Clever Horse

3

2

533. Speaking Horse-head

6

545. Cat as Helper (Puss in Boots)

2

10

550. Bird, Horse, and Princess

4

4

551. Sons on Quest for Remedy

4

552A. Three Animal Brothers-in-Law

1

554. Grateful Animals

11

555. Fisher and His Wife

5

559. Dungbeetle

1

4

560. Magic Ring

36

8

2

561. Aladdin

1

2

563. Table, Ass, and Stick

7

14

4

566. Three Magic Objects and Wonderful Fruits

2

1

567. Magic Bird-heart

13

1

1

569. Knapsack, Hat, and Horn

5

5

570. Rabbit-herd

1

1

571. "All Stick Together"

1

590. Prince and Arm Bands

1

592. Jew Among Thorns

1

612. Three Snake-Leaves

2

613. Two Travelers

5

1

621. Louse-Skin

3

650. Strong John

27

3

4

653. Four Skillful Brothers

8

12

655. Wise Brothers

1

2

670. Animal Languages

6

23

671. Three Languages

2

675. Lazy Boy

2

676. Open Sesame

1

9

700. Tom Thumb

5

1

706. Maiden Without Hands

6

2

707. Three Golden Sons

8

1

709. Snow White

6

750. The Wishes: Hospitality Rewarded

1

1

3

780. Singing Bone

8

781. Princess Who Murdered her Child

12

785. Who Ate the Lamb's Heart?

1

851. Princess who Cannot Solve Riddle

3

2

852. Princess Forced to Say, "That is a Lie."

1

2

853. Princess Caught with her own Words

2

854. Golden Ram

1

875. Clever Peasant Girl

3

3

882. Wager on Wife's Chastity

2

900. King Thrushbeard

1?

901. Taming of the Shrew

1

910. The Good Precepts

2

921. King and Peasant's Son

1

2

922. King and Abbot

1

923. Love Like Salt

1

930. Prophecy for Poor Boy

1

1

931. Oedipus

1

935. Prodigal's Return

1

945. Luck and Intelligence

8

1

950. Rhampsinitus

1

1000. Anger Bargain

5

2

1004. Hogs in Mud, Sheep in Air

2

3

4

1012. Cleaning the Child

1

1015. Whetting the Knife

2

1030. Crop Division

1

1031. Roof as Threshing Flail

2

1060. Squeezing the Stone

1

1

1

1061. Biting the Stone

1

1

1062. Throwing the Stone

1

1

1063. Throwing Contest with Golden Club

1

1074. Race with Relatives in Line

6

38

12

1085. Pushing Hole in a Tree

1

1088. Eating Contest: Food in Bag

20

1115. Attempted Murder with Hatchet

10

1119. Ogre Kills Own Children: Substitutes in Bed

14

5

1149. Children Desire Ogre's Flesh

10

4

1157. Gun as Tobacco Pipe

1

1200. Sowing of Salt

1

1250. Bringing Water from Well: Human Chain

1

2

1260. Porridge in Ice Hole

1

1276. Rowing without Going Forward

4

1278. Bell Falls into Sea: Mark on Boat

2

1310. Crayfish as Tailor: Drowned

18

22

31

1319. Pumpkin as Ass's Egg, Rabbit as Colt

1

1350. Loving Wife: Man Feigns Death

1?

1360C. Old Hildebrand

1

1380. Faithless Wife: Husband Feigns Blindness

1

1384. Quest for Person Stupid as Wife

2

1386. Meat as Food for Cabbage

7

1415. Lucky Hans

2

1

1430. Man and Wife Build Air Castles

7

1

1525. Master Thief

2

6

1528. Holding Down the Hat

2

1

1530. Holding up the Rock

11

3

1535. Rich and Poor Peasant

10

16

11

1537. Corpse Killed Five Times

3

2

1539. Cleverness and Gullibility

7

3

1540. Student from Paradise (Paris)

3

1541. For the Long Winter

2

1542. The Clever Boy: Fooling-Sticks

8

1563. "Both?"

3

1585. Lawyer's Mad Client

1

1590. Trespasser's Defense

1

1610. To Divide Presents and Strokes

2

1611. Contest in Climbing Mast

1

1612. Contest in Swimming

1

1640. Brave Tailor

3

4

1641. Doctor Know-All

21

3

1642. The Good Bargain: Money to Frogs

4

1651. Whittington's Cat

2

2

1653. Robbers under Tree

2

1

5

1655. Eaten Grain and Cock as Damages

10

1

1685. Foolish Bridegroom

6

1

1696. "What Should I Have Said?"

6

4

2

1698A. Search for Lost Animal: Deaf Person

1

1698B. Travelers Ask the Way: Deaf Peasant

1

1730. Three Suitors Visit Chaste Wife

2

3

1737. Parson in Sack to Heaven

1

1775. Hungry Parson

3

1920A. Lying Contest: "Sea Burns"

1

1930. Schlaraffenland

3

2028. Troll (Wolf) Cut Open

1

2030. Old Woman and Pig

2

4

2031. Frost-bitten Foot

4

3

2033. Nut Hits Cock's Head

3

2034C. Lending and Repaying, Progressive Bargains

22

2035. House that Jack Built

4

2400. Ground Measured with Horse's Skin

1

 

Types:

1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9A, 9B, 15, 21, 30, 31, 33, 36, 37, 38, 47A, 49, 50, 55, 56, 60, 62, 72, 73, 100, 101, 104, 105, 111, 122A, 122B, 123, 125, 130, 154, 155, 156, 157, 175, 210. 221, 222, 225, 228, 235, 248, 249, 275, 295, 300, 301, 302, 303, 307, 311, 313, 314, 325, 326, 327A, 327B, 327C, 328, 331, 333, 400, 401, 402, 403, 408, 425, 432, 450, 451, 461, 471, 480, 506, 507, 510A, 510B, 511, 513, 514, 516, 518, 531, 533, 545, 550, 551, 552A, 554, 555, 559, 560, 561, 563, 566, 567, 569, 570, 571, 590, 592, 612, 613, 621, 650, 653, 655, 670, 671, 675, 676, 700, 706, 707, 709, 750, 780, 781, 785, 851, 852, 853. 854. 875, 882, 900, 901, 910, 921, 922, 923, 930, 931, 935, 945, 950, 1000, 1004, 1012, 1015, 1030, 1031, 1060, 1061, 1062, 1063, 1074, 1085, 1088, 1115, 1119, 1149, 1157, 1200, 1250, 1260, 1276, 1278, 1310, 1319, 1350, 1360C, 1380, 1384, 1386, 1415, 1430, 1525, 1528, 1530, 1535, 1537, 1539, 1540, 1541, 1542, 1563, 1585, 1590, 1610, 1611, 1612, 1640, 1641, 1642, 1651, 1653, 1655, 1685, 1696, 1698A, 1698B, 1730, 1737, 1775, 1920A, 1930, 2028, 2030, 2031, 2033, 2034C, 2035, 2400