The Three Little Men in the Wood

A woodcutter's first wife dies, leaving a daughter. He remarries a woman with a daughter of her own. The stepmother, jealous of her stepdaughter's beauty and kindness, sends her into the winter forest to gather snowdrops, knowing she will perish. The stepdaughter, wandering in the frozen wilderness, discovers a small cottage where three little men dwell. Though they are strange and otherworldly, she treats them with respect and courtesy. She sweeps their cottage, prepares their simple meal, and makes their beds without complaint. The three men, recognizing her virtue and courtesy, reward her: the first grants her the gift that from this day forward, she will grow more beautiful with each passing day. The second wishes that gold coins will fall from her mouth with each word she speaks. The third promises that she will become a queen. When she returns home, her beauty has multiplied, and gold spills from her lips. The stepmother, observing this transformation, sends her own daughter into the forest with the same harsh command. But this daughter, lacking courtesy and patience, refuses to serve the little men. In anger at her rudeness, they grant her opposite gifts: she grows uglier each day, and toads fall from her mouth. Personal prudence—the wisdom to treat all creatures with respect, regardless of their station—protects the stepdaughter. Through her careful judgment of her own behavior and her refusal to despise even the strange and small, she achieves both beauty and prosperity.