Once upon a time, there was a poor woman, and she had a very lethargic daughter, who never swung anything around the house, but just sat on the bench in front of the house, or walked back and forth through the village. Her mother used to beat and beat her, but it did no good.
One day, just as the prince was walking by, the prince called to him:
- Come, poor woman, why does kend hit that girl so hard?
- Oh, sire, how can I not, when he has woven gold thread on every thing he finds from the front to the back of the house, and now, while I was in town looking for bread, he has woven gold thread on all my beds, and now there is none to lay our heads on.
This struck a great blow into the king's head, "Oh, what a brave girl, I would like that!"
Another time the prince walked by, and again the poor woman beat her daughter. The prince asks:
- Why does kend, poor woman, beat that girl again?
- Oh, sire prince, how could I not, when even the hedge is all braided with golden thread.
It was an even bigger nail in the prince's head.
The third time she had made her way there on purpose, and there again the poor woman had tortured her daughter.
At that moment, the prince could no longer stand by without a word:
- Gee, made by a dog! Why does he beat that poor girl?
- How can I not, sire, when all the roofs of the house are spun with gold thread, and I have no need of it?
- But never let him say that he is such a good spinner; I will take him, and I will have gold thread to spin.
The poor woman was very glad to be rid of the bad girl; the prince was glad too, because she was beautiful, but he also thought that if he could make gold thread out of the hedge, what could he weave out of the precious linen?
They didn't even delay, they swore an oath, and they had a feast so big that the yellow juice flowed from Hencida to Boncida.
A week after the wedding, the prince says to his wife:
- Well, my sweet wife, you may be tired of not being able to spin, but don't worry, I'll bring it downstairs. Tomorrow there's a fair in the next town, and I'll buy a cart or two there.
The prince bought so much that eight oxen could hardly get home.
- Well, my wife, you can spin now.
The poor queen did not dare to say that she could not spin; she locked herself in a room and there she wept for three days and three nights. On the third night, as she was crying there, at midnight, someone rattled the window.
- Open your window, Queen!
The queen opened it, a little man jumped in. He was three cheeks long, his moustache was two ears long, and his beard was a cubit long. He addressed the queen:
- I know what your problem is, Your Majesty, but I can help you. In three days I can weave all that down there into gold thread, you guess my name, if you guess it you can stay at home, if you don't guess it I'll take you with me.
The Queen wondered what to do? At last she decided to give him the down. Either way, she would die.
The little man took a lot down. Now the queen was even sadder, because she couldn't think of the little man's name.
The next day the prince sent out his hunters into the forest. In the evening, when they came home, he found them asking him:
- What's up, guys?
- "Oh, sire," begins one of them, "I would know something, but perhaps your Majesty will not believe it!
- Why wouldn't I think so? I believe you, just tell me!
- Well, sire King, as evening fell upon us, the others built a fire and began to dance, and I, being very sleepy, left them and went into the woods to find a good mossy place to lie down. As I wandered back and forth, a flickering fire caught my eye. I turned the pole of my cart to see what it was. Well, I see a tiny little fire, a tiny little man, three arches long, two mustaches, a singleton beard, always shouting, "I am Pancimanci, no one knows my name, I'll bake, I'll cook, I'll bring a beautiful bride the day after tomorrow." I left there with the idea of showing the freak to my mates, but when we went back we found him cold.
Everyone was amazed at this oddity, only the Queen was pleased, because she knew it was her man. In the evening she was sitting in her room, with her window open, when a little man came in.
- Well, my queen, three days have passed; I have brought home all the precious golden threads; have you guessed my name?
- Shut up, Pancimanci, of course I found it!
Poor Pancimânci's jaw dropped. Without a word, he carried all the golden threads into the chamber.
The next morning, the queen takes her lord by the arm into the chamber and shows him the many golden threads.
- Look, my good lord, sire, but I have woven many fine golden threads.
The king was then blinded by the great brightness, so much so that he had to turn away. He kissed his wife all over.
On the third day, there was a fair in the town where the prince lived, and the prince went out and bought everything downstairs that was in the fair. Meanwhile the queen was crying at home, not knowing what to do with all the linen again.
One day he remembered that there were three beggar women living near there, one of whom had her back stamped, another whose lips came down to her breasts, and the third whose tongue was beating her belly. The queen called them to her, and commanded them, when the king was at home, to go and beg; and if the king asked them what made them so miserable, they said, from all the spinning.
And so it was. The king went home, had lunch, and in the afternoon went for a walk in the courtyard. As he was walking there, the little door creaked, the king looked at it, saw that a poor woman, with a hunchback, could hardly get through it, and went to the king and asked him: in the name of God, don't be sorry to give her something. The king gave her a gold piece, but he asked her:
- Come now, poor woman, what is the matter with the kend's back being so flattened, or has it always been like this?
- Oh, sire King! She was not so fair a maiden as I in this city, but I was very busy, always weaving, day and night, and sitting so much made my back aching.
The king wondered if his wife might be so bruised; but he kept on walking. After a little while the little door opened again, and in came a beggar-woman again, with her lips beating her breast. To her also the king gave a gold piece, And asked her why her lips grew so big.
- 'O, sire King,' said the beggar woman, 'there was no maiden so fair as I in a great piece of land. But I have weighed much, I have chewed much hemp, and my lips have grown so for the last time.
Here the king was already thinking of telling his wife to weave less, he started to go into the house, but the dogs started barking, so he just looked to see who was coming.
None other than the third beggar woman went in, her tongue hanging down to her belly.
- How did the kend's tongue get so big? - the king asks him.
- Oh, sire King, this is from all the spinning. One must spit much when one spins, for it is grown so.
The king ran to his wife and told her what he had seen and heard, and what the three beggar women were like.
- But I won't let you spin any more, not even an inch of yarn!
The queen pretended to be the one who regretted it the most, and started to cry, but it did no good. - The king burnt all the many down below, even had his ashes carried out of his court.
From that day on, the Queen had no problems. They still live happily ever after.
(László Arany: Hungarian Folktales)
