28 Little Red Riding Hood (European Folk Tale)
Once upon a time there lived a little country girl, the prettiest creature ever seen. Her mother was very fond of her, and her grandmother doted on her still more. This good woman had made a little red riding hood for her, which became the girl so well that everybody called her Little Red Riding Hood.
One day her mother said to her, “Go, my dear, and see how your grandmamma is, for I hear she has been very ill.Carry her a custard and this little pot of butter.”Little Red Riding Hood set out immediately to go to her grandmother who lived in another village. As she was going through the woods, she met Gaffer[1] Wolf, who had a very great mind to eat her up, but he dared not, because some faggot makers were hard by[2] in the forest. He asked her whither[3] she was going. The poor child, who did not know it was dangerous to stay and hear a wolf talk, told him.
“Well,”said the wolf, “I’ll go and see her too. I will go this way and you go that, and we shall see who will be there soonest.”
Then the wolf began to run as fast as he could, taking the nearest way, and the little girl went by that farthest about,diverting herself in gathering nuts, running after butterflies,and making nosegays of such little flowers as she found. It was not long before the wolf reached the old woman’s house.He knocked at the door—tap, tap.
“Who is there?”
“Your grandchild, Little Red Riding Hood,”replied the wolf, imitating her voice.
The good grandmother, who was in bed because she was ill, cried out, “Pull the bobbin, and the latch will go up.”The wolf pulled the bobbin, and the door opened. Then he fell upon the good woman and ate her up in a moment. He then shut the door and went into the grandmother’s bed, expecting Little Red Riding Hood, who came sometime afterward and knocked at the door—tap, tap.
“Who is there?”Little Red Riding Hood, hearing the big voice of the wolf, was at first afraid; but believing her grandmother had a cold and was hoarse, answered: “’Tis your grandchild, Little Red Riding Hood.”
The wolf cried out to her, softening his voice as much as he could, “Pull the bobbin, and the latch will go up.”Little Red Riding Hood pulled the bobbin, and the door opened.The wolf, seeing her come in, said to her, hiding himself under the bedclothes: “Come and lie down with me.”
Little Red Riding Hood climbed into the bed and where,being greatly amazed to see how her grandmother looked in her nightclothes, she said to her:
“Grandmamma, what great arms you have!”
“That is the better to hug you, my dear.”
“Grandmamma, what great legs you have!”
“That is to run the better, my child.”
“Grandmamma, what great ears you have!”
“That is to hear the better, my child.”
“Grandmamma, what great eyes you have!”
“It is to see the better, my child.”
“Grandmamma, what great teeth you have!”
“That is to eat you up.”And saying these words, this wicked wolf fell upon Little Red Riding Hood, and ate her up, too.
Then the wolf got back into bed, fell asleep, and began to snore very very loud. A faggot maker was just passing and hearing the snore, he stepped into the house and saw the wolf was in it. “You old sinner!”he said, “I’ve found you at last. It’s been a long time.”
He leveled his muster and was just about to fire when it occurred to him that the wolf might have swallowed the grandmother and that there might still be a chance of saving her. So he took a pair of scissors and started cutting the sleeping wolf’s belly open. After two snips, he saw the little red cap, and after another few snips the little girl jumped out, crying: “Oh, I’ve been so afraid! It was so dark inside the wolf!”And then the old grandmother came out, and she too was still alive, though she could hardly breathe.
Little Red Riding Hood ran outside and brought big stones, and they filled the wolf’s belly with them. When he woke up, he wanted to run away, but the stones were so heavy that his legs wouldn’t carry him and he fell dead.
—retold by F. A. Steel
[1] Gaffer：老漢，鄉下老頭兒。
[2] hard by：在近處。
[3] whither：﹝古﹞= where。