Once upon a time there was a poor man and a poor woman, both widows, and both of them had a daughter, but the man's daughter was beautiful, and the woman's was uglier than the back.
Once, a man wanted to bake, but he had no mixing pan. He says to his daughter:
- Go over here, my daughter, to the neighbour's, and ask her for a kneading-trough, while we knead in it.
The girl went next door.
- My dear neighbour, my dear father sent me to tell you not to be sorry to give you a kneading-trough, I'll bring it back in a moment, we'll just knead you in it.
- Surely I will not, my sweet daughter, tell your sweet father to marry me, and you will have a fat widow.
The girl went home and told her father what the neighbour had said. So they made a big fuss, and heated the furnace, but they had no coal-grinder to clean the bottom of the furnace.
The man says to his daughter:
- Go over here, my daughter, next door, ask for a coal train, and tell them you'll bring it right back.
The girl went over to the widow again.
- Neighbour, my sweet father sent me to ask you to spare me a coal-hauler while we clean the bottom of the furnace.
- Surely I will not, my sweet daughter; tell your sweet father to marry me, and you will have a kneading-machine and a coal-hauler.
The girl went home, told what the neighbour had said, and with great difficulty they prepared the oven and the dough, and all they had to do was to sow it, but they had no seeders. The poor man says to his daughter:
- Go over once more, my daughter, and try that woman, if she will give you a sowing-sheet, tell her not to be so sorry, that no harm will come to her here, we will not eat it, you will take it back this way.
The girl went over a third time, told him what she was doing, what her father had done, but the widow said that she would not give him anything.
- Tell your father to marry me, and you'll have a kneading machine, a coal-hauler and a shovel.
The girl went home and told the widow what had happened; and the poor man thought it would be a good thing to marry the woman, for then he would have a kneading-trough, a coal-hauler, and a sowing-sheaf; and he thought about it so much that the last thing he did was to marry the widow.
But it did not turn out as the poor man had thought, for no sooner had they married than she was master of the house, in command of everything, and my husband's place was behind the door. The poor girl was always beaten and beaten by the wife, and the uglier than ugly daughter was always being teased and bathed in milk and butter, and she regretted even the food she ate. The daughter could not bear this bitter life, so she went to her father.
- Well, my dear lord, I'll no longer be a pawn in any man's footsteps, I'm treated here as if I had been blown here by the wind, I'll go to the world without a world, I'll find service somewhere.
The poor man did not mind much either, for he saw that he himself was at the end of his tether, or at least had very little honour in the house, so the girl set off. Her stepmother baked her a cinder-cake.
- At least don't tell me I didn't bake you a token.
The poor girl walked and walked, found a little house, went in, for she was tired, but inside she found nothing but a little white cat. She sat down on the bench and began to eat her ash cake. The little white cat came to her.
- Auntie, auntie, give me some bread, I'll give you some advice!
The girl gave it to him; the little cat ate it, then asked for more, until all the scones were gone, and then he curled up on the girl's lap and spun there quietly. Suddenly there was a knock at the door from outside.
- My plate, my lax tail, my fair maiden, open the door!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Open it for him.
The girl opened it, and in rolled a big, ugly devil.
- My saucer feet, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, make a fire!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, put it on him.
The girl built a fire.
- My saucer, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, cook me a meal!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- So cook for him.
The girl cooked and served.
- My plate, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, come and eat!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, eat it.
The girl ate well, for she was hungry too.
- My saucer-feet, my lax tail, my fair maiden, make my bed!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, open it for him.
The girl dismantled it.
- My saucer feet, my lanky cock, my fair maiden, lie down beside me!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- So lie down next to him.
The girl lay down beside him.
- My saucer-feet, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, reach into my left ear!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- So get to it.
The girl reached in, something caught in her hand, she started pulling it out, what was it? Nothing but a lot of gold and silver, but so much that she could hardly pull it out.
The devil has spoken again:
- My saucer-feet, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, reach into my right ear!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- So get to it.
The girl reached in, what did she pull out? I might not have believed you if I hadn't told you - nothing but a beautiful, lovely carriage, with six fancy, frilly horses. All these the devil gave to the girl, and all this gold and silver he put in the carriage, and himself got into it, and drove home.
At home, the household was in a state of public chaos, no one could imagine how she had come by all this treasure, and the girl told no one, only her father, but she took it to his heart not to pass it on.
Then the ugly girl was filled with envy that her stepbrother had become so rich, and the last time she was so distressed that she could not stay at home, she told her mother that she too was going to seek service: 'You see, mother, the dog was only there three days, and yet he has become rich, and I will try it, and see if I can get some luck.' And his mother agreed, "The biscuit will do," and baked him scones for the journey, not of ashes, but of the pure wheat flour that the pigeon brings in.
So the girl went, she went, she walked, she came to the little house, she went in, she found no one there, she sat down on the bench to wait for the master. Soon she remembered that she had a scone, so she took it out and began to eat it. The little white cat came to him.
- Auntie, auntie, give me some bread, I'll give you some advice!
But the girl didn't give it to him, the little cat asked again, but the girl didn't give it to him either, she laughed at him:
- Oh, poor little cat with the pince-nez eyes, what can you advise me on, being so useless?
The poor little cat cowered, sat down in the hut, and the girl ate on the bench. As she was eating there, as she was eating there, suddenly there was a knock at the door.
- My plate, my lax tail, my fair maiden, open the door!
Then the girl ran to the little cat.
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, don't let him in.
The girl didn't let him in, the devil kicked the door down, and when he was inside, he cried out again:
- My saucer, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, cook me a meal!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, don't cook for him.
The girl did not cook, the devil said nothing for her, but only when she had cooked and served herself did he speak:
- My plate, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, come and eat!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, don't eat it.
The girl didn't eat, the devil ate all the food himself, then he started the song again:
- My saucer-feet, my lax tail, my fair maiden, make my bed!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, don't break it.
The girl did not break it, but had to make her bed for the devil himself.
He made his bed, he lay in it, and then he started again:
- My saucer feet, my lanky cock, my fair maiden, lie down beside me!
- Oh, my kitten, my kitten, what shall I do?!
- Well, don't lie next to it.
The girl did not lie down beside him, she just stood at the head of his bed, but the devil started again:
- My saucer-feet, my lanky tail, my fair maiden, reach into my left ear!
The girl, seeing that the devil had not harmed her so far, nor said a bad word to her, took courage and cried out in anger:
- I'm going in your dirty ear!
The devil said nothing, but quietly reached into her right ear, and pulled out an iron carriage and four fire-brands, the carriage had a chimney, and the devil put fire in it, and locked the girl in the carriage; and with that he struck the four horses, and they flew like a kite, and the carriage was more and more on fire, and at last it was like a flame, and the maiden was burnt to a cinder.
And the fair maiden became very rich at home from all the treasure the devil gave her, and was soon married by a rich gentleman, I will not say whether he was a count or a baron, a prince or a prince, but certainly one of the four.
(László Arany: Hungarian folk tales)
