Fair, Brown, and Trembling - An Irish
Cinderella Story
King Hugh Curucha lived in Tir Conal,
and he had three daughters,
whose names were Fair, Brown, and Trembling. Fair and Brown
had new
dresses, and went to church every Sunday. Trembling was
kept at home
to do the cooking and work. They would not let her go out
of the
house at all; for she was more beautiful than the other
two, and
they were in dread she might marry before themselves.
They carried on in this way for seven years. At the end
of seven
years the son of the king of Emania fell in love with the
eldest
sister.
One Sunday morning, after the other two had gone to church,
the old
henwife came into the kitchen to Trembling, and said: "It's
at
church you ought to be this day, instead of working here
at home."
"How could I go?" said Trembling. "I
have no clothes good enough to
wear at church; and if my sisters were to see me there,
they'd kill
me for going out of the house."
"I'll give you," said the henwife, "a
finer dress than either of
them has ever seen. And now tell me what dress will you
have?"
"I'll have," said Trembling, "a
dress as white as snow, and green
shoes for my feet."
Then the henwife put on the cloak of darkness, clipped
a piece from
the old clothes the young woman had on, and asked for the
whitest
robes in the world and the most beautiful that could be
found, and a
pair of green shoes.
That moment she had the robe and the shoes, and she brought
them to
Trembling, who put them on. When Trembling was dressed
and ready,
the henwife said: "I have a honey-bird here to sit
on your right
shoulder, and a honey-finger to put on your left. At the
door stands
a milk-white mare, with a golden saddle for you to sit
on, and a
golden bridle to hold in your hand."
Trembling sat on the golden saddle; and when she was ready
to start,
the henwife said: "You must not go inside the door
of the church,
and the minute the people rise up at the end of Mass, do
you make
off, and ride home as fast as the mare will carry you."
When Trembling came to the door of the church there was
no one
inside who could get a glimpse of her but was striving
to know who
she was; and when they saw her hurrying away at the end
of Mass,
they ran out to overtake her. But no use in their running;
she was
away before any man could come near her. From the minute
she left
the church till she got home, she overtook the wind before
her, and
outstripped the wind behind.
She came down at the door, went in, and found the henwife
had dinner
ready. She put off the white robes, and had on her old
dress in a
twinkling.
When the two sisters came home
the henwife asked: "Have
you any news
to-day from the church?"
"We have great news," said they. "We
saw a wonderful grand lady at
the church-door. The like of the robes she had we have
never seen on
woman before. It's little that was thought of our dresses
beside
what she had on; and there wasn't a man at the church,
from the king
to the beggar, but was trying to look at her and know who
she was."
The sisters would give no peace till they had two dresses
like the
robes of the strange lady; but honey-birds and honey-fingers
were
not to be found.
Next Sunday the two sisters went to church again, and
left the
youngest at home to cook the dinner.
After they had gone, the henwife
came in and asked: "Will
you go to
church to-day?"
"I would go," said Trembling, "if
I could get the going."
"What robe will you wear?" asked
the henwife.
"The finest black satin
that can be found, and red shoes for my
feet."
"What colour do you want
the mare to be?"
"I want her to be so black
and so glossy that I can see myself in
her body."
The henwife put on the cloak of darkness, and asked for
the robes
and the mare. That moment she had them. When Trembling
was dressed,
the henwife put the honey-bird on her right shoulder and
the honey-
finger on her left. The saddle on the mare was silver,
and so was
the bridle.
When Trembling sat in the saddle and was going away, the
henwife
ordered her strictly not to go inside the door of the church,
but to
rush away as soon as the people rose at the end of Mass,
and hurry
home on the mare before any man could stop her.
That Sunday, the people were more astonished than ever,
and gazed at
her more than the first time; and all they were thinking
of was to
know who she was. But they had no chance; for the moment
the people
rose at the end of Mass she slipped from the church, was
in the
silver saddle, and home before a man could stop her or
talk to her.
The henwife had the dinner ready. Trembling took off her
satin robe,
and had on her old clothes before her sisters got home.
"What news have you to-day?" asked
the henwife of the sisters when
they came from the church.
"Oh, we saw the grand strange
lady again! And it's little that any
man could think of our dresses after looking at the robes
of satin
that she had on! And all at church, from high to low, had
their
mouths open, gazing at her, and no man was looking at us."
The two sisters gave neither rest nor peace till they
got dresses as
nearly like the strange lady's robes as they could find.
Of course
they were not so good; for the like of those robes could
not be
found in Erin.
When the third Sunday came, Fair and Brown went to church
dressed in
black satin. They left Trembling at home to work in the
kitchen, and
told her to be sure and have dinner ready when they came
back.
After they had gone and were out of sight, the henwife
came to the
kitchen and said: "Well, my dear, are you for church
to-day?"
"I would go if I had a new
dress to wear."
"I'll get you any dress
you ask for. What dress would you like?"
asked the henwife.
"A dress red as a rose from
the waist down, and white as snow from
the waist up; a cape of green on my shoulders; and a hat
on my head
with a red, a white, and a green feather in it; and shoes
for my
feet with the toes red, the middle white, and the backs
and heels
green."
The henwife put on the cloak of darkness, wished for all
these
things, and had them. When Trembling was dressed, the henwife
put
the honey-bird on her right shoulder and the honey-finger
on her
left, and, placing the hat on her head, clipped a few hairs
from one
lock and a few from another with her scissors, and that
moment the
most beautiful golden hair was flowing down over the girl's
shoulders. Then the henwife asked what kind of a mare she
would
ride. She said white, with blue and gold-coloured diamond-shaped
spots all over her body, on her back a saddle of gold,
and on her
head a golden bridle.
The mare stood there before the door, and a bird sitting
between her
ears, which began to sing as soon as Trembling was in the
saddle,
and never stopped till she came home from the church.
The fame of the beautiful strange lady had gone out through
the
world, and all the princes and great men that were in it
came to
church that Sunday, each one hoping that it was himself
would have
her home with him after Mass.
The son of the king of Emania forgot all about the eldest
sister,
and remained outside the church, so as to catch the strange
lady
before she could hurry away.
The church was more crowded than ever before, and there
were three
times as many outside. There was such a throng before the
church
that Trembling could only come inside the gate.
As soon as the people were rising at the end of Mass,
the lady
slipped out through the gate, was in the golden saddle
in an
instant, and sweeping away ahead of the wind. But if she
was, the
prince of Emania was at her side, and, seizing her by the
foot, he
ran with the mare for thirty perches, and never let go
of the
beautiful lady till the shoe was pulled from her foot,
and he was
left behind with it in his hand. She came home as fast
as the mare
could carry her, and was thinking all the time that the
henwife
would kill her for losing the shoe.
Seeing her so vexed and so changed in the face, the old
woman asked:
"What's the trouble that's on you now?" "Oh!
I've lost one of the
shoes off my feet," said Trembling.
"Don't mind that; don't be vexed," said the
henwife; "maybe it's the
best thing that ever happened to you."
Then Trembling gave up all the things she had to the henwife,
put on
her old clothes, and went to work in the kitchen. When
the sisters
came home, the henwife asked: "Have you any news from
the church?"
"We have indeed," said they, "for
we saw the grandest sight to-day.
The strange lady came again, in grander array than before.
On
herself and the horse she rode were the finest colours
of the world,
and between the ears of the horse was a bird which never
stopped
singing from the time she came till she went away. The
lady herself
is the most beautiful woman ever seen by man in Erin."
After Trembling had disappeared from the church, the son
of the king
of Emania said to the other kings' sons: "I will have
that lady for
my own."
They all said: "You
didn't win her just by taking the shoe off her
foot; you'll have to win her by the point of the sword;
you'll have
to fight for her with us before you can call her your own."
"Well," said the son of the king of Emania, "when
I find the lady
that shoe will fit, I'll fight for her, never fear, before
I leave
her to any of you."
Then all the kings' sons were uneasy, and anxious to know
who was
she that lost the shoe; and they began to travel all over
Erin to
know could they find her. The prince of Emania and all
the others
went in a great company together, and made the round of
Erin; they
went everywhere,--north, south, east, and west. They visited
every
place where a woman was to be found, and left not a house
in the
kingdom they did not search, to know could they find the
woman the
shoe would fit, not caring whether she was rich or poor,
of high or
low degree.
The prince of Emania always kept the shoe; and when the
young women
saw it, they had great hopes, for it was of proper size,
neither
large nor small, and it would beat any man to know of what
material
it was made. One thought it would fit her if she cut a
little from
her great toe; and another, with too short a foot, put
something in
the tip of her stocking. But no use; they only spoiled
their feet,
and were curing them for months afterwards.
The two sisters, Fair and Brown, heard that the princes
of the world
were looking all over Erin for the woman that could wear
the shoe,
and every day they were talking of trying it on; and one
day
Trembling spoke up and said: "Maybe it's my foot that
the shoe will
fit."
"Oh, the breaking of the
dog's foot on you! Why say so when you were
at home every Sunday?"
They were that way waiting, and scolding the younger sister,
till
the princes were near the place. The day they were to come,
the
sisters put Trembling in a closet, and locked the door
on her. When
the company came to the house, the prince of Emania gave
the shoe to
the sisters. But though they tried and tried, it would
fit neither
of them.
"Is there any other young woman in the house?" asked
the prince.
"There is," said Trembling, speaking up in the
closet; "I'm here."
"Oh! we have her for nothing but to put out the ashes," said
the
sisters.
But the prince and the others wouldn't leave the house
till they had
seen her; so the two sisters had to open the door. When
Trembling
came out, the shoe was given to her, and it fitted exactly.
The prince of Emania looked at
her and said: "You
are the woman the
shoe fits, and you are the woman I took the shoe from."
Then Trembling spoke up, and
said: "Do you stay here
till I return."
Then she went to the henwife's house. The old woman put
on the cloak
of darkness, got everything for her she had the first Sunday
at
church, and put her on the white mare in the same fashion.
Then
Trembling rode along the highway to the front of the house.
All who
saw her the first time said: "This is the lady we
saw at church."
Then she went away a second time, and a second time came
back on the
black mare in the second dress which the henwife gave her.
All who
saw her the second Sunday said: "That is the lady
we saw at church."
A third time she asked for a short absence, and soon came
back on
the third mare and in the third dress. All who saw her
the third
time said: "That is the lady we saw at church." Every
man was
satisfied, and knew that she was the woman.
Then all the princes and great men spoke up, and said
to the son of
the king of Emania: "You'll have to fight now for
her before we let
her go with you."
"I'm here before you, ready for combat," answered
the prince.
Then the son of the king of Lochlin stepped forth. The
struggle
began, and a terrible struggle it was. They fought for
nine hours;
and then the son of the king of Lochlin stopped, gave up
his claim,
and left the field. Next day the son of the king of Spain
fought six
hours, and yielded his claim. On the third day the son
of the king
of Nyerfói fought eight hours, and stopped. The
fourth day the son
of the king of Greece fought six hours, and stopped. On
the fifth
day no more strange princes wanted to fight; and all the
sons of
kings in Erin said they would not fight with a man of their
own
land, that the strangers had had their chance, and, as
no others
came to claim the woman, she belonged of right to the son
of the
king of Emania.
The marriage-day was fixed, and the invitations were sent
out. The
wedding lasted for a year and a day. When the wedding was
over, the
king's son brought home the bride, and when the time came
a son was
born. The young woman sent for her eldest sister, Fair,
to be with
her and care for her. One day, when Trembling was well,
and when her
husband was away hunting, the two sisters went out to walk;
and when
they came to the seaside, the eldest pushed the youngest
sister in.
A great whale came and swallowed her.
The eldest sister came home alone,
and the husband asked, "Where
is
your sister?"
"She has gone home to her
father in Ballyshannon; now that I am
well, I don't need her."
"Well," said the husband, looking at her, "I'm
in dread it's my wife
that has gone."
"Oh! no," said she; "it's
my sister Fair that's gone."
Since the sisters were very much alike, the prince was
in doubt.
That night he put his sword between them, and said: "If
you are my
wife, this sword will get warm; if not, it will stay cold."
In the morning when he rose up, the sword was as cold
as when he put
it there.
It happened, when the two sisters were walking by the
seashore, that
a little cowboy was down by the water minding cattle, and
saw Fair
push Trembling into the sea; and next day, when the tide
came in, he
saw the whale swim up and throw her out on the sand. When
she was on
the sand she said to the cowboy: "When you go home
in the evening
with the cows, tell the master that my sister Fair pushed
me into
the sea yesterday; that a whale swallowed me, and then
threw me out,
but will come again and swallow me with the coming of the
next tide;
then he'll go out with the tide, and come again with to-morrow's
tide, and throw me again on the strand. The whale will
cast me out
three times. I'm under the enchantment of this whale, and
cannot
leave the beach or escape myself. Unless my husband saves
me before
I'm swallowed the fourth time, I shall be lost. He must
come and
shoot the whale with a silver bullet when he turns on the
broad of
his back. Under the breast-fin of the whale is a reddish-brown
spot.
My husband must hit him in that spot, for it is the only
place in
which he can be killed."
When the cowboy got home, the eldest sister gave him a
draught of
oblivion, and he did not tell.
Next day he went again to the sea. The whale came and
cast Trembling
on shore again. She asked the boy "Did you tell the
master what I
told you to tell him?"
"I did not," said he; "I
forgot."
"How did you forget?" asked
she.
"The woman of the house
gave me a drink that made me forget."
"Well, don't forget telling
him this night; and if she gives you a
drink, don't take it from her."
As soon as the cowboy came home, the eldest sister offered
him a
drink. He refused to take it till he had delivered his
message and
told all to the master. The third day the prince went down
with his
gun and a silver bullet in it. He was not long down when
the whale
came and threw Trembling upon the beach as the two days
before. She
had no power to speak to her husband till he had killed
the whale.
Then the whale went out, turned over once on the broad
of his back,
and showed the spot for a moment only. That moment the
prince fired.
He had but the one chance, and a short one at that; but
he took it,
and hit the spot, and the whale, mad with pain, made the
sea all
around red with blood, and died.
That minute Trembling was able to speak, and went home
with her
husband, who sent word to her father what the eldest sister
had
done. The father came, and told him any death he chose
to give her
to give it. The prince told the father he would leave her
life and
death with himself. The father had her put out then on
the sea in a
barrel, with provisions in it for seven years.
In time Trembling had a second child, a daughter. The
prince and she
sent the cowboy to school, and trained him up as one of
their own
children, and said: "If the little girl that is born
to us now
lives, no other man in the world will get her but him."
The cowboy and the prince's daughter lived on till they
were
married. The mother said to her husband "You could
not have saved me
from the whale but for the little cowboy; on that account
I don't
grudge him my daughter."
The son of the king of Emania and Trembling had fourteen
children,
and they lived happily till the two died of old age.
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