Folk Tale
The Box With Something Pretty In It
Translated From
Skrinet med det rare i
Author | Asbjørnsen & Moe |
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Book Title | Norske Folkeeventyr |
Publication Date | 1841 |
Language | Norwegian |
Author | George Dasent |
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Book Title | Tales from the Fjeld |
Publication Date | 1908 |
ATU | 2250 |
Language | English |
Origin | Norway |
Once on a time there was a little boy who was out walking on the road, and when he had walked a bit he found a box.
'I am sure there must be something pretty in this box,' he said to himself; but however much he turned it, and however much he twisted it, he was not able to get it open.
But when he had walked a bit farther, he found a little tiny key. Then he got tired and sat down, and all at once he thought what fun it would be if the key fitted the box, for it had a little key-hole in it. So he took the little key out of his pocket, and then he blew first into the pipe of the key, and afterwards into the key-hole, and then he put the key into the key-hole and turned it. 'Snap' it went within the lock; and when he tried the hasp, the box was open.
But can you guess what there was in the box? Why a cow's tail; and if the cow's tail had been longer, this story would have been longer too.
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