Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge


Snow-White and Rose-Red


Une veuve vivait dans une maison coquette avec ses deux filles qu'elle avait prénommées Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge parce qu'elles ressemblaient aux boutons des deux rosiers sauvages, l'un blanc, l'autre rouge, qui croissaient en son jardin.
Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge étaient des enfants bonnes, sages, travailleuses et vaillantes; elles s'aimaient de tout leur cœur. Quand Blanche-Rose murmurait: " Nous nous aimerons ," Rose-Rouge répondait: " Toute notre vie " et leur mère ajoutait: " Ce que l'une aura, elle le partagera avec l'autre ."
Ensemble, elles allaient au petit bois cueillir des fraises; les animaux de la forêt les connaissaient bien. Le lièvre venait en boule rouler à leurs pieds et grignoter la carotte qu'elles lui avaient apportées. Les cerfs les égayaient de leurs bondissements majestueux et les oiseaux, au faîte des arbres, pépiaient et chantaient à gorge déployée. Quand elles s'attardaient dans la forêt et que la nuit les surprenait, elles couchaient l'une contre l'autre sur la mousse odorante, et s'endormaient jusqu'au matin. Leur mère ne se faisait pas de souci car elle savait qu'elles ne risquaient rien.
Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge aimaient tant leur maison qu'elles la soignaient à longueur de journée. A la saison d'été, Rose-Rouge faisait le ménage et déposait tous les matins, avant que sa mère ne se réveillât, un bouquet de roses blanches et de roses rouges. A la saison d'hiver, c'était Blanche-Rose qui entretenait l'âtre où brillait la marmite de cuivre pendue à la crémaillère.
Or, un soir d'hiver:
- Blanche-Rose, va mettre le verrou, dit la maman.
Puis elles s'assit près de la cheminée, mit ses lunettes et commença un conte. Les fillettes écoutaient en filant. A leurs pieds, un mouton, la tête entre les pattes, se chauffait, et les colombes sur leur perchoir roucoulaient encore un peu avant de mettre la tête sous l'aile.
Tout à coup, on frappa à la porte.
- Va vite ouvrir, Rose-Rouge, dit la mère; un homme, peut-être, veut s'abriter.
Rose-Rouge tira le verrou, et un gros ours brun passa la tête dans l'entrebâillement de la porte. Rose-Rouge affolée, se jeta derrière le fauteuil de sa mère et Blanche-Rose se cacha derrière le lit. Le mouton était paralysé de terreur, et les colombes voletaient de tous les côtés.
- Que craignez-vous? Je ne veux de mal à personne, j'ai surtout si froid ...
- Viens, mon pauvre ours, dit la mère. Viens te coucher près du feu. Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge, sortez de vos cachettes, petites peureuses.
Les deux fillettes, tranquillisées, s'approchèrent. Le moutons et les colombes aussi ...
- Chères enfants, retirez-moi cette neige de ma fourrure.
Avec une brosse, elles lissèrent le pelage épais du gros ours brun qui s'étendit devant l'âtre en grognant de plaisir. Ayant perdu toute peur et toute timidité, elles s'amusèrent à l'envi avec leur nouvel ami. Il était lourd et pataud. Elles lui tiraient les poils, enfonçaient leurs petites mains dans la fourrure chaude comme un nid, ou bien, avec une baguette, le taquinaient. De temps en temps, lorsqu'elles allaient un peu trop fort et partaient d'un grand éclat de rire, il grognait:
- Blanche-Rose, Rose-Rouge, ne tuez pas votre fiancé.
L'heure du coucher sonna à la vieille horloge; les deux enfants s'en allèrent au lit sagement. La man dit à l'ours:
- Reste là si tu veux, près du feu. Il fait trop froid dehors.
A l'aurore, il s'en retourna dans les bois d'où il était venu. Les jours qui suivirent, ponctuellement, l'ours revint au logis. Les fillettes ne fermaient plus la porte avant qu'il ne fût revenu se coucher devant l'âtre où il jouait avec elles des heures durant.
Quand le printemps reverdit toutes les plantes, tous les arbres, l'ours dit adieu à ses amies pour aller vivre tout l'été dans la forêt.
- Mais pourquoi donc? s'étonna Blanche-Rose.
- Pour empêcher que les méchants nains ne volent mon trésor. L'hiver, la terre est gelée, les nains ne peuvent sortir des profondeurs de leurs grottes. Au printemps, le soleil réchauffe et dégèle le sol. Ils vont sortir, venir me piller, et ce qu'ils dérobent, on ne le retrouve jamais.
Blanche-Rose et Rose-Rouge se résignèrent à leur chagrin. En passant dans l'ouverture de la porte, l'ours accrocha au loquet un morceau de son pelage. Blanche-Rose crut voir briller sous la peau l'éclat de l'or, mais l'ours s'enfuit ...
Quelques semaines après, tandis que les fillettes allaient ramasser du petit bois dans la forêt, elles rencontrèrent, sur un arbre abattu, un nain tout ridé dont la longue barbe blanche était prise dans une fente. Il sautait de droite et de gauche sans pouvoir se tirer de ce mauvais pas.
- Pourquoi me regarder de la sorte? vous feriez mieux de m'aider, lança-t-il aux fillettes.
- Que fais-tu là? répliqua Rose-Rouge.
- Sotte que tu es! Curieuse! En coupant du bois en très petits morceaux, j'ai coincé ma belle barbe. Me voilà bien pris! Je ne peux plus m'en aller! Cela vous fait rire, visages de cire! Fi donc! Comme vous êtes vilaines!
- Je cours chercher de l'aide, s'exclama Rose-Rouge.
- Tête de linotte! grogna le nain. N'êtes-vous pas assez grandes pour me tirer de là?
- Prenez patience, dit Blanche-Rose en fouillant dans ses poches.
Elle exhiba une paire de ciseaux et se mit à couper le bout de la barbe.
A peine libéré, le nain prit le sac caché entre les racines de l'arbre et ronchonna:
- Qu'elles sont stupides! Avoir coupé ma si belle barbe!
Il jeta le sac sur ses épaules et s'en alla sans un mot de remerciement.
A quelque temps de là, les deux fillettes voulurent pêcher des poissons. Elles allaient s'installer près du ruisseau, quand, sur la rive, elles aperçurent, qui sautait dans tous les sens, une sorte de grosse sauterelle. En s'approchant, elles reconnurent le nain. Rose-Rouge, étonnée le questionna:
- Veux-tu sauter dans le ruisseau?
- Sotte, je ne suis pas si bête. Mais voyez ce poisson de malheur ...
Le nain en pêchant avait pris sa barbe dans la ligne; un poisson énorme pris l'hameçon allait entraîner la faible créature qui n'avait pas la force suffisante pour se tirer d'affaire. Il se cramponnait à toutes le tiges, à tous les brins d'osier, mais il ne pouvait plus lutter. Barbe et fil étaient si entremêlés que la seule solution était de couper un peu plus la belle barbe blanche. Libéré, le nain s'écria:
- Mes pauvres filles, vous êtes toujours aussi sottes et laides; me voilà dans un bel état!
Puis, ramassant un sac de perles fines dissimulé dans les roseaux, il disparut derrière une pierre.
Quelques jours passèrent. La maman eut besoin de fil, d'aiguilles, de dentelles et de rubans; elle envoya ses filles à la ville, chez la mercière. Le chemin qu'elles devaient prendre passait par une clairière semée de rochers. Comme elles l'atteignaient, les fillettes virent dans le ciel un grand oiseau qui tournoyait lentement, dans un long vol plané. Soudain, il s'abattit sur le sol. Elles entendirent un cri de douleur.
S'étant approchées, elles reconnurent avec effroi leur vieille rencontre, le nain, qu'un aigle avait saisir dans ses serres et allait emporter. Courageusement, les deux enfants se saisirent d'un bâton et se précipitèrent à son secours. Elles se battirent tant et tant pour arracher le petit homme aux serres de l'oiseau qu'à la fin, elles vainquirent.
Tout juste remis de sa peur, le nain glapit:
- Vous avez déchiré mon bel habit. Vous êtes toujours aussi sottes et maladroites, et toujours aussi laides, tout juste bonnes pour aller au diable!
Chargeant alors sur son dos un sac de pierres précieuses qui se trouvait derrière un gros rocher, il se faufila dans une crevasse ouverte dans le sol.Les fillettes, habituées à cette ingratitude, ne s'émurent pas outre mesure, et continuèrent leur chemin jusqu'à la ville.
Le soir, en revenant, elles prirent le même sentier qu'au matin; elles surprirent le nain en contemplation devant les pierres précieuses qu'il avait vidées de son sac et qui éclataient de mille feux aux lueurs du couchant. Emerveillées, elles s'arrêtèrent:
-Vous ne savez que bayer aux corneilles, décidément! jeta le nain, tout rouge. Partez d'ici!
Et, tandis qu'il criait sa colère, un grand ours brun sortit pesamment des buissons.
Le nain, fou de terreur, fit un saut en arrière en hurlant:
- Monsieur l'ours, laissez-moi la vie; je vous donne toutes ces pierres précieuses. Je suis tout petit, si chétif. Voyez ces deux fillettes, grasses comme des oies. Elles feront bien mieux votre affaire.
D'un seul coup de patte, sans autre forme de procès, l'ours supprima le méchant nain pour toujours. Les deux sœurs affolées allaient s'enfuir quand l'ours murmura:
- Blanche-Rose, Rose-Rouge, je suis votre ami.
Au son de cette voix connue et aimée, les fillettes se retournèrent. Quel étrange spectacle! La peau de l'ours tombait lentement et, sur le pelage qui faisait un tapis, se dressait un bel homme tout d'or vêtu.
-Je suis fils de roi, expliqua-t-il. Ce maudit nain m'a jeté un sort en volant mes trésors. J'étais condamné à courir les bois sous la forme d'un ours sauvage jusqu'à ce que sa mort me délivrât. Il a reçu le châtiment qu'il méritait ...
Blanche-Rose épousa le prince et Rose-Rouge, le frère du prince. Ils partagèrent l'immense trésor que le nain avait amassé et vécurent ainsi dans l'opulence. Leur maman devenue vieille, fut invitée à venir vivre au milieu de ses enfants et petits-enfants. On transplanta dans le jardin du palais royal les deux rosiers qui avaient vu grandir les fillettes et ils donnèrent des roses plus belles d'année en année.
There was once a poor widow who lived in a lonely cottage. In front of the cottage was a garden wherein stood two rose-trees, one of which bore white and the other red roses. She had two children who were like the two rose-trees, and one was called Snow-white, and the other Rose-red. They were as good and happy, as busy and cheerful as ever two children in the world were, only Snow-white was more quiet and gentle than Rose- red. Rose-red liked better to run about in the meadows and fields seeking flowers and catching butterflies; but Snow-white sat at home with her mother, and helped her with her house-work, or read to her when there was nothing to do.
The two children were so fond of each another that they always held each other by the hand when they went out together, and when Snow-white said, "We will not leave each other," Rose-red answered, "Never so long as we live," and their mother would add, "What one has she must share with the other."
They often ran about the forest alone and gathered red berries, and no beasts did them any harm, but came close to them trustfully. The little hare would eat a cabbage-leaf out of their hands, the roe grazed by their side, the stag leapt merrily by them, and the birds sat still upon the boughs, and sang whatever they knew.
No mishap overtook them; if they had stayed too late in the forest, and night came on, they laid themselves down near one another upon the moss, and slept until morning came, and their mother knew this and had no distress on their account.
Once when they had spent the night in the wood and the dawn had roused them, they saw a beautiful child in a shining white dress sitting near their bed. He got up and looked quite kindly at them, but said nothing and went away into the forest. And when they looked round they found that they had been sleeping quite close to a precipice, and would certainly have fallen into it in the darkness if they had gone only a few paces further. And their mother told them that it must have been the angel who watches over good children.
Snow-white and Rose-red kept their mother's little cottage so neat that it was a pleasure to look inside it. In the summer Rose-red took care of the house, and every morning laid a wreath of flowers by her mother's bed before she awoke, in which was a rose from each tree. In the winter Snow-white lit the fire and hung the kettle on the wrekin. The kettle was of copper and shone like gold, so brightly was it polished. In the evening, when the snowflakes fell, the mother said, "Go, Snow-white, and bolt the door," and then they sat round the hearth, and the mother took her spectacles and read aloud out of a large book, and the two girls listened as they sat and span. And close by them lay a lamb upon the floor, and behind them upon a perch sat a white dove with its head hidden beneath its wings.
One evening, as they were thus sitting comfortably together, some one knocked at the door as if he wished to be let in. The mother said, "Quick, Rose-red, open the door, it must be a traveller who is seeking shelter." Rose-red went and pushed back the bolt, thinking that it was a poor man, but it was not; it was a bear that stretched his broad, black head within the door.
Rose-red screamed and sprang back, the lamb bleated, the dove fluttered, and Snow-white hid herself behind her mother's bed. But the bear began to speak and said, "Do not be afraid, I will do you no harm! I am half-frozen, and only want to warm myself a little beside you."
"Poor bear," said the mother, "lie down by the fire, only take care that you do not burn your coat." Then she cried, "Snow-white, Rose-red, come out, the bear will do you no harm, he means well." So they both came out, and by-and-by the lamb and dove came nearer, and were not afraid of him. The bear said, "Here, children, knock the snow out of my coat a little;" so they brought the broom and swept the bear's hide clean; and he stretched himself by the fire and growled contentedly and comfortably. It was not long before they grew quite at home, and played tricks with their clumsy guest. They tugged his hair with their hands, put their feet upon his back and rolled him about, or they took a hazel-switch and beat him, and when he growled they laughed. But the bear took it all in good part, only when they were too rough he called out, "Leave me alive, children,
"Snowy-white, Rosy-red,
Will you beat your lover dead?"
When it was bed-time, and the others went to bed, the mother said to the bear, "You can lie there by the hearth, and then you will be safe from the cold and the bad weather." As soon as day dawned the two children let him out, and he trotted across the snow into the forest.
Henceforth the bear came every evening at the same time, laid himself down by the hearth, and let the children amuse themselves with him as much as they liked; and they got so used to him that the doors were never fastened until their black friend had arrived.
When spring had come and all outside was green, the bear said one morning to Snow-white, "Now I must go away, and cannot come back for the whole summer." - "Where are you going, then, dear bear?" asked Snow-white. "I must go into the forest and guard my treasures from the wicked dwarfs. In the winter, when the earth is frozen hard, they are obliged to stay below and cannot work their way through; but now, when the sun has thawed and warmed the earth, they break through it, and come out to pry and steal; and what once gets into their hands, and in their caves, does not easily see daylight again."
Snow-white was quite sorry for his going away, and as she unbolted the door for him, and the bear was hurrying out, he caught against the bolt and a piece of his hairy coat was torn off, and it seemed to Snow-white as if she had seen gold shining through it, but she was not sure about it. The bear ran away quickly, and was soon out of sight behind the trees.
A short time afterwards the mother sent her children into the forest to get fire-wood. There they found a big tree which lay felled on the ground, and close by the trunk something was jumping backwards and forwards in the grass, but they could not make out what it was. When they came nearer they saw a dwarf with an old withered face and a snow-white beard a yard long. The end of the beard was caught in a crevice of the tree, and the little fellow was jumping backwards and forwards like a dog tied to a rope, and did not know what to do.
He glared at the girls with his fiery red eyes and cried, "Why do you stand there? Can you not come here and help me?" - "What are you about there, little man?" asked Rose-red. "You stupid, prying goose!" answered the dwarf; "I was going to split the tree to get a little wood for cooking. The little bit of food that one of us wants gets burnt up directly with thick logs; we do not swallow so much as you coarse, greedy folk. I had just driven the wedge safely in, and everything was going as I wished; but the wretched wood was too smooth and suddenly sprang asunder, and the tree closed so quickly that I could not pull out my beautiful white beard; so now it is tight in and I cannot get away, and the silly, sleek, milk-faced things laugh! Ugh! how odious you are!"
The children tried very hard, but they could not pull the beard out, it was caught too fast. "I will run and fetch some one," said Rose-red. "You senseless goose!" snarled the dwarf; why should you fetch some one? You are already two too many for me; can you not think of something better?" - "Don't be impatient," said Snow-white, "I will help you," and she pulled her scissors out of her pocket, and cut off the end of the beard.
As soon as the dwarf felt himself free he laid hold of a bag which lay amongst the roots of the tree, and which was full of gold, and lifted it up, grumbling to himself, "Uncouth people, to cut off a piece of my fine beard. Bad luck to you!" and then he swung the bag upon his back, and went off without even once looking at the children.
Some time after that Snow-white and Rose-red went to catch a dish of fish. As they came near the brook they saw something like a large grasshopper jumping towards the water, as if it were going to leap in. They ran to it and found it was the dwarf. "Where are you going?" said Rose-red; "you surely don't want to go into the water?" - "I am not such a fool!" cried the dwarf; don't you see that the accursed fish wants to pull me in?" The little man had been sitting there fishing, and unluckily the wind had twisted his beard with the fishing-line; just then a big fish bit, and the feeble creature had not strength to pull it out; the fish kept the upper hand and pulled the dwarf towards him. He held on to all the reeds and rushes, but it was of little good, he was forced to follow the movements of the fish, and was in urgent danger of being dragged into the water.
The girls came just in time; they held him fast and tried to free his beard from the line, but all in vain, beard and line were entangled fast together. Nothing was left but to bring out the scissors and cut the beard, whereby a small part of it was lost. When the dwarf saw that he screamed out, "Is that civil, you toad-stool, to disfigure one's face? Was it not enough to clip off the end of my beard? Now you have cut off the best part of it. I cannot let myself be seen by my people. I wish you had been made to run the soles off your shoes!" Then he took out a sack of pearls which lay in the rushes, and without saying a word more he dragged it away and disappeared behind a stone.
It happened that soon afterwards the mother sent the two children to the town to buy needles and thread, and laces and ribbons. The road led them across a heath upon which huge pieces of rock lay strewn here and there. Now they noticed a large bird hovering in the air, flying slowly round and round above them; it sank lower and lower, and at last settled near a rock not far off. Directly afterwards they heard a loud, piteous cry. They ran up and saw with horror that the eagle had seized their old acquaintance the dwarf, and was going to carry him off.
The children, full of pity, at once took tight hold of the little man, and pulled against the eagle so long that at last he let his booty go. As soon as the dwarf had recovered from his first fright he cried with his shrill voice, "Could you not have done it more carefully! You dragged at my brown coat so that it is all torn and full of holes, you helpless clumsy creatures!" Then he took up a sack full of precious stones, and slipped away again under the rock into his hole. The girls, who by this time were used to his thanklessness, went on their way and did their business in the town.
As they crossed the heath again on their way home they surprised the dwarf, who had emptied out his bag of precious stones in a clean spot, and had not thought that anyone would come there so late. The evening sun shone upon the brilliant stones; they glittered and sparkled with all colors so beautifully that the children stood still and looked at them. "Why do you stand gaping there?" cried the dwarf, and his ashen-gray face became copper-red with rage. He was going on with his bad words when a loud growling was heard, and a black bear came trotting towards them out of the forest. The dwarf sprang up in a fright, but he could not get to his cave, for the bear was already close. Then in the dread of his heart he cried, "Dear Mr. Bear, spare me, I will give you all my treasures; look, the beautiful jewels lying there! Grant me my life; what do you want with such a slender little fellow as I? you would not feel me between your teeth. Come, take these two wicked girls, they are tender morsels for you, fat as young quails; for mercy's sake eat them!" The bear took no heed of his words, but gave the wicked creature a single blow with his paw, and he did not move again.
The girls had run away, but the bear called to them, "Snow-white and Rose-red, do not be afraid; wait, I will come with you." Then they knew his voice and waited, and when he came up to them suddenly his bearskin fell off, and he stood there, a handsome man, clothed all in gold. "I am a King's son," he said, "and I was bewitched by that wicked dwarf, who had stolen my treasures; I have had to run about the forest as a savage bear until I was freed by his death. Now he has got his well-deserved punishment."
Snow-white was married to him, and Rose-red to his brother, and they divided between them the great treasure which the dwarf had gathered together in his cave. The old mother lived peacefully and happily with her children for many years. She took the two rose-trees with her, and they stood before her window, and every year bore the most beautiful roses, white and red.