The Blue Light

Once upon a time, there was a soldier who had served the King faithfully for many years. When the war ended, he could not serve anymore because of the many wounds he had received. The King said to him, "You may return home.

I no longer need you, and you will not receive any more money. Only those who serve me get paid." The soldier did not know how to earn a living. He went away very troubled and walked the whole day until he entered a forest at evening.

When darkness fell, he saw a light. He walked toward it and came to a house where a witch lived. "Please give me a night's lodging and a little food and drink," he said to her, "or I will starve." "Aha!" she answered, "Who gives anything to a runaway soldier?

But I will be kind and take you in, if you do what I ask." "What do you ask?" said the soldier. "You must dig my whole garden for me tomorrow." The soldier agreed, and the next day he worked with all his strength, but he could not finish by evening.

"I see well enough," said the witch, "that you can do no more today. I will keep you another night. In return, you must chop a load of wood and split it into small pieces tomorrow." The soldier spent the whole day doing that.

In the evening, the witch suggested he stay one more night. "Tomorrow you shall only do a very small job. Behind my house there is an old dry well. My light has fallen into it. It burns blue and never goes out.

You shall bring it up for me." The next day, the old woman took him to the well and lowered him in a basket. He found the blue light and signaled her to pull him up.

She pulled him up, but when he came near the edge, she reached down her hand and wanted to take the blue light away from him. "No," he said, seeing her evil intention, "I will not give you the light until I am standing on the ground with both feet." The witch became furious, let him fall back into the well, and went away.

The poor soldier fell without injury on the damp ground. The blue light continued burning, but of what use was that to him? He saw clearly that he could not escape death. He sat sadly for a while, then suddenly felt in his pocket and found his tobacco pipe, still half full.

"This shall be my last pleasure," he thought. He pulled it out, lit it at the blue light, and began to smoke. When the smoke swirled around the cavern, a little black dwarf suddenly stood before him and said, "Master, what are your commands?" "What commands do I have to give you?" replied the soldier, quite astonished.

"I must do everything you order me," said the little man. "Good," said the soldier, "then first help me out of this well." The little man took him by the hand and led him through an underground passage, but he did not forget to take the blue light with him.

Along the way, the dwarf showed him the treasures the witch had collected and hidden there, and the soldier took as much gold as he could carry. When he was above ground, he said to the little man, "Now go and bind the old witch and bring her before the judge." Shortly afterward, with dreadful screams, she came riding by as fast as the wind on a wild tomcat.

Not long after, the little man returned. "It is all done," he said. "The witch is already hanging on the gallows. What further commands has my master?" asked the dwarf. "At this moment, none," answered the soldier.

"You can go home, but be ready to appear immediately when I summon you." "All you need to do is light your pipe at the blue light, and I will appear before you at once." Then he vanished from sight. The soldier returned to the town he had come from.

He went to the best inn, ordered handsome clothes, and told the landlord to furnish him a room as grand as possible. When it was ready and the soldier had settled in, he summoned the little black dwarf and said, "I served the King faithfully, but he dismissed me and left me to hunger.

Now I want revenge." "What am I to do?" asked the little man. "Late at night, when the King's daughter is in bed, bring her here in her sleep. She shall do servant work for me." The dwarf said, "That is easy for me to do, but it is very dangerous for you.

If it is discovered, you will be in trouble." At midnight, the door flew open, and the dwarf carried in the princess. "Aha! Are you there?" cried the soldier. "Get to work at once! Fetch the broom and sweep the room." When she had done that, he ordered her to come to his chair, then stretched out his feet and said, "Pull off my boots." Then he threw them in her face and made her pick them up again and clean and polish them.

She did everything he ordered without complaint, silently and with half-closed eyes. When the first rooster crowed, the dwarf carried her back to the royal palace and laid her in her bed. The next morning, when the princess got up, she went to her father and told him she had had a very strange dream.

"I was carried through the streets like lightning," she said, "and taken into a soldier's room. I had to wait on him like a servant, sweep his room, clean his boots, and do all kinds of menial work.

It was only a dream, but I am as tired as if I had really done everything." "The dream may have been real," said the King. "I will give you some advice. Fill your pocket with peas and make a small hole in it.

If you are carried away again, the peas will fall out and leave a trail in the streets." But unseen by the King, the dwarf was standing beside him when he said that and heard everything.

That night, when the sleeping princess was again carried through the streets, some peas did fall from her pocket, but they left no trail, for the clever dwarf had scattered peas in every street beforehand. Again the princess had to do servant work until the rooster crowed.

The next morning, the King sent his people to look for the trail, but in vain. In every street, poor children were sitting picking up peas, saying, "It must have rained peas last night." "We must think of something else," said the King. "Keep your shoes on when you go to bed.

Before you come back from where you are taken, hide one of your shoes there. I will soon find it." The black dwarf heard this plan. That night, when the soldier again ordered him to bring the princess, the dwarf revealed the King's plot and said he knew no way to stop it.

If the shoe were found in the soldier's house, it would go badly for him. "Do as I tell you," replied the soldier. So the third night the princess had to work like a servant again, but before she left, she hid her shoe under the bed.

The next morning, the King had the entire town searched for his daughter's shoe. It was found at the soldier's house. The soldier himself, who at the dwarf's urging had gone outside the gate, was soon brought back and thrown into prison.

In his haste, he had forgotten his most valuable possessions—the blue light and the gold—and had only one gold coin in his pocket. Now, loaded with chains, he stood at the window of his cell. By chance, he saw one of his comrades passing by. The soldier tapped on the windowpane.

When the man came up, he said, "Be so kind as to fetch me the small bundle I left at the inn. I will give you a gold coin for it." His comrade ran and brought what he wanted.

As soon as the soldier was alone again, he lit his pipe and summoned the black dwarf. "Have no fear," said the dwarf to his master. "Go wherever they take you, and let them do what they will.

Just take the blue light with you." The next day, the soldier was put on trial. Although he had done nothing evil, the judge condemned him to death. When he was led out to die, he begged a last favor from the King. "What is it?" asked the King.

"That I may smoke one more pipe on the way." "You may smoke three," answered the King, "but do not think I will spare your life." Then the soldier pulled out his pipe and lit it at the blue light.

As soon as a few wisps of smoke rose, the dwarf appeared with a small club in his hand and said, "What does my master command?" "Strike down that false judge and his constable, and do not spare the King who has treated me so badly." Then the dwarf fell upon them like lightning, dashing this way and that.

Whoever was touched by his club fell to the ground and dared not move again. The King was terrified. He threw himself on the soldier's mercy and, just to be allowed to live, gave him the kingdom for his own and the princess as his wife.