Eunice Fuller

“ Before the throne Thor stopped, and dashed his hammer on the floor. The vast hall resounded and the giants rose to look.
Thor drew himself up. “I am the great god Thor,” he cried, “whose hammer cleaves the clouds and shakes the sky. I come to demand the homage of the giants.”
Like a burst from a hundred volcanoes at once, the giants’ laughter came booming down the hall.
The giant king smiled. “The giants welcome the gods,” he said kindly, “but we can bow only before proofs of greater power than our own.” ”

“ The massive iron resounded through the dark. But when the noise died down, the castle loomed as silent as before. Jack whacked at the bars again, blow after blow, till he could hear the echoes [127] go booming down the hall inside. There was the loud, slow grating of a lock, the opening of a great door, and a light as big and bright as the moon came swinging down the corridor, far above Jack’s head.
As soon as his eyes got through blinking, Jack looked up. The other side of the tall grating towered a man as high and wide as the palace at home; but it was not the giant Riverrath. ”

“ With Thor went the hungry god Loki, and the swift runner Thialfi. All day long they walked together through sunny mists across the bare, green uplands, and just at nightfall they came to a wide moor. As far as they could see, there was not a house, nor a shed, nor any kind of shelter. Not even a tree broke the soft horizon. Thialfi ran ahead; and Loki, who was ravenous, walked furiously. Only Thor did not notice. He was planning how he would put the giants in their place.
It grew darker and darker. The mist which had played about them all day in gentle clouds, rose in a damp, gray fog. ”

“ There was no reply, only a furious burst of cannon balls from the towers. Up into Gargantua’s eyes they flew,—over his head and shoulders in a vicious shower. But they struck the giant as harmlessly as so many grape seeds.
“Stop your pesky shot-guns!” cried Gargantua, annoyed. “Listen to me.”
But the cannon balls came faster and thicker than ever. Gargantua brushed them from his eyes, raised his great tree in a fury, and rode full tilt against the castle. ”

“ The porridge steamed up in a savory, white cloud straight to Grosskopf’s nose. But he did not turn his head. He gazed steadily through it down into the wide abyss that held the stove. It was still dark in there, and for steam and shadow not even Grosskopf’s big eyes could make out the hundreds of pots marshaled at the bottom. It seemed as if the great bowl itself were one steaming pot of porridge. ”

“ As for the bakers, they drove furiously, straight to the palace of their king, Picrochole, and dashed, disheveled and breathless, into the throne room.
“Your Majesty,” they cried, “we have been set upon by the shepherds of old King Grangousier,—our heads broken, our coats torn, our cakes stolen, our trade ruined, and Marquet nearly killed.” And with that, two of them brought in Marquet himself, groaning horribly.
Now, Picrochole was as proud and passionate as any cake-baker of them all.
“What!” he roared, turning purple in the face. “Killing our subjects! Spoiling our trade! ”

“ Our night and day they did not bother about in the least, for their big eyes looked through the dark as well as the light. Sunrise and sunset were no more to them than the revolving of a lighthouse lamp to us. But the minute a half-year was up, the giants’ night began, and giant children felt then very much as ordinary children feel in the evening after eight o’clock has struck.
Mannigfual had not sailed many hundred miles when the giants’ night came on. Mutzen and Putzen knew that it was coming, because their heads and their arms and their legs began to feel so very much in the way. ”

“ Luigi smiled more happily than ever. “What a fine idea!” he cried. “Perhaps one will come, Rosa.”
But Rosa shook her head. “Oh, no, Luigi,” she said sadly. “Don’t be a baby. There aren’t any giants any more, you know.”
Luigi was not convinced. “Why, Rosa,” he argued, “there must still be giants somewhere.” And that night he went to sleep and dreamed about giants so plainly that the next morning he was surer of them than ever.
But usually at night Luigi lay awake and thought. “Suppose a giant should come,” he would say to himself breathlessly ”

“ And every man and woman and child in all Eisenburg climbed the high scaffolding and walked round and round the top of the pot, peering down into the black, slippery abyss inside.
Now, the giants were as generous as they were big; and standing in the streets and gardens behind the square, they looked down benevolently at the merrymaking. Then Grossmund called to Herr Klinkerklanker to hold out his apron, and Grosshand who was a good shot, poured into it a continuous stream of gold-pieces,—for the apprentices and the hammerers and all the good housewives who had kept them in porridge. ”

“ The giants again took up their paddles as big as trees. With a single stroke, they sent the canoe a clean hundred yards through the water. As for the fog, their eyes seemed to bore straight through it, as though it had been so much air.
Then swiftly, with a tremendous grating, the canoe stopped. They had beached it upon a wide sandy shore. One of the giants jumped out, and, taking Pulowech’s canoe in his hand, ran shouting up the bank. There ahead rose three wigwams as high as mountains. And from the largest came the chief to meet them, a giant taller than all the rest. ”

“ Wind-and-Weather held out the little men on the palm of his hand.
“They are just what I need,” said Sun-and-Sea, “to keep my threads straight.” So she took the bold pirates Dare-and-Do and Catch-and-Kill, and set them on her loom.
Wind-and-Weather put Fear-and-Fly back into his pocket. “For,” he said, “he can polish my glass for me and keep it bright.”
Whether the giant children ever found another running-place I cannot say. But I fear not. For, years afterward, the great-limbed men who followed the giants in the Up-and-Down Country, were still sailing the seas in search of new lands. ”

“ Grosskopf and Grossmund tore wide, flat boulders out of the mountain [161] and set them up for a forge and an anvil in the market-place. Grosshand came rattling back with all his pots swinging in his hands and strung clattering about his neck.
And then giants, hammerers, apprentices, set up such a clinking and a clanking and a puffing and a blowing as never was heard in all Germany before. All day long the great forge flame swept skywards. All day long the five-and-twenty apprentices swung their sledges while Herr Klinkerklanker shouted orders. ”

“ Rosa sighed in her sleep.
“Hush! Hush, good giant!” cried Luigi anxiously. “You will wake the others.”
Benevaldo stood still again. “Do they believe in giants too?” he asked eagerly.
“Well,—Rosa almost does,” said Luigi loyally.
“But if she doesn’t quite believe,” explained the giant, “she can’t see me or hear me any more than the rest of them.”
Luigi was puzzled. “But can’t everybody see you?” he asked.
The giant shook his great head solemnly. “People don’t seem to believe in us any more,” he said. ”

“ At last the oldest giantess rose in her place, to show that the banquet had come to an end. Amid all the jollity and confusion Costan leaned over and took from the table a giant roll, as big to Ivan as a whole loaf of bread.
“Here!” he whispered, below the scraping of the giant chairs. “Tuck this in your bag, little herdboy, as a reminder of a giant’s promise. And don’t forget Costan in the world up above.”
As he spoke, everything was suddenly lost in a whirl of darkness,—the giants, the hall and the feast, even [17] Costan himself. ”

“ What finally became of Grosshand, Grossmund, and Grosskopf, I cannot tell. For a number of years the Eisenburgers have not seen them. Their pot too seems to have vanished completely. Only the water of the Rhine has never been quite so clear since the giants took to washing out their pot there. And sometimes on a clear evening when the Eisenburgers look up at the mountain and see a trail of smoke against the sunset, they nod wisely, for they know that the faithful fire is still burning, waiting for the giants to come back and cook their porridge. ”

“ The king smiled sadly. “Ah, Offero,” he said, “the mightiest monarch of the earth must fear Satan. For he is more powerful than any king of us all; and only that sign of the cross can save us from him.”
Offero sprang up, his huge shadow darkening the throne.
“Then you are not the greatest king!” he thundered. “Farewell. I go to serve him whom you fear,—King Satan!”
And like a cyclone Offero was gone through the palace gate. ”

“ He felt that he might fall asleep if it were not such fun sitting there on Costan’s shoulder and watching the treetops glide past the moon.
The trees grew fewer and fewer. Ivan swung around, and peered ahead, clinging to Costan’s hair. They were coming to a great open space in the midst of the forest, a meadow thronged with giants and giantesses. There seemed to be hundreds of them, dressed not like Costan in skins but in wonderful shimmering garments that blew about their shoulders like clouds of mist in the moonlight. ”

“ There was not the least way of telling.
“We must ask some one,” said Grossmund.
But there was no one to ask. Every soul was safely locked indoors.
So the giants considered. They thought and thought, and looked and looked here and there among the silent streets of the town. Suddenly Grosshand pointed. Not a step away, a small bright flame shot up between two houses. It seemed to come from an iron table. Grossmund was nearest. He bent down, picked up the iron with his thumb and forefinger and blew out the fire.
Then Grosskopf had a thought. “Herr Klinkerklanker’s forge!” he said. ”

“ But Forgier stood there, waiting and unhappy. “Your Majesty,” he burst out, “you do not know this Picrochole and his bakers. Once get them aroused, and there will have to be fighting before it is done. Picrochole will not give up Rock Clermond for all the cakes in the kingdom.”
Grangousier’s great face, which had been as jolly and round as a dinner plate, grew as solemn and long as a platter. “Can it be?” he asked sadly. “Can it be?” and sank into patient gloom.
Queen Gargamelle rustled anxiously in her chair. “Why not send for Gargantua?” she suggested timidly. ”

“ As they ate, Offero told the hermit of his errand. “I would find this king called Christ,” he said. “For I have vowed to serve the greatest king, who is afraid of no one. My arms are strong. I can fight for him and make him more powerful than before.”
The hermit smiled. “To find Christ,” he said, “you must first serve him. And to serve him you must not kill your fellowmen, but help them.”
“What can I do then?” asked Offero ruefully. “I am strong to fight. How can I help?”
The hermit looked at him. “Good giant,” he said, “your shoulders are broad and sturdy. ”

“ No self-respecting giant would any more think of threatening a little boy, or of grinding up people’s bones to make flour, than would a good fairy godmother. Giants’ dispositions are in proportion to the size of their bodies, and so when they are good, as most of them are, they are the kindest-hearted folk in the world, and like nothing better than helping human beings out of scrapes. ”

“ For she is Old Age, whom no one has ever withstood.
“But strong as you are, do not boast again, my tiny gods. For remember, the giants’ magic is as great as the giants themselves, and can never be conquered.”
Overcome with rage, Thor raised his hammer to shatter the giant and his palace forever. But a sudden mist blinded his eyes. When it cleared, he found himself, with Loki and Thialfi, alone on a wide moor glowing in the sunrise. ”

“ Oonagh tucked him in.
“Fold up your knees under your chin,” cautioned she. “Not a move now, or you’ll burst the cradle! Close up your eyes; put your thumb in your mouth like an innocent babe fast asleep. Quiet now, and leave Cucullin to me.”
[97]
Oonagh smoothed out her apron and patted her hair. Down on the doorstep she sat and began to knit, as cool and airy as the dawn on Knockmany.
Up the hill in three leaps came Cucullin. Such a giant Oonagh had never seen. Half again as tall as Fin he was, with muscles that stood out like small hills. But Oonagh was not one to let herself be surprised. ”

“ And now, little herdboy, I will show you how a giant keeps his word. If you are not afraid to sit upon my shoulder, I will take you where no little creature has ever been: to see a giants’ merrymaking. ”

“ Grangousier’s poor shepherds and farmers, hearing the bleats and the bellowings mingled with the songs and shouts of the soldiers, took to the woods; but many were captured nevertheless.
“Alas!” they cried, “we have always been good neighbors to you. We are unarmed and at peace, and you come on us like this! Spare us! Spare us!”
“Humph!” said Picrochole’s men grimly. “You are learning to eat our cakes.”
So that night, just as he had planned, Picrochole surprised and took the town of Rock Clermond, and Earl Swashbuckler quartered his army in the castle at the Ford of Vede. ”

“ And as he spoke, the sky brightened, the storming of the wind and river ceased, and the rain fell in gentle, shining drops.
“My burden,” said the child gravely, “is the greatest any man has ever borne. For I have taken on my shoulders all the sins and sorrows of the world.”
Offero fell back, dumb with wonder. For before him [231] stood no longer the child, but a stately figure, serene, triumphant, with a crowning light about his head.
“For I,” said the kind, deep voice, “am Christ, the king whom you have served. ”

“ So they set out, Oscoon ahead, carrying his little people in their canoe in one hand, and in the other a tiny, sharp-nosed gray dog. All the giants followed in a great procession, leaping up and down and singing, as though it were a very gala occasion indeed. When they came to the shore, Oscoon gently slipped the canoe into the water, and gave Pulowech the little gray dog. ”

“ Down the center, around a long table sat the giants, all in their natural shapes again.
Costan slipped into the huge seat that was left for him, and the banquet went merrily on. To Ivan, who never in all his life had had anything but bread and cheese, with a little fruit sometimes and a sugar cake at Christmas, it seemed an impossible dream. There were grapes as big as the oranges above ground, pheasants [16] the size of eagles, and cakes and tarts and puddings as big around as the towers of the King’s palace. ”

“ So the giant and the eagle went into the castle, and left Jack with all the other birds outside. One by one, they flew away, and Jack was there alone. After a while he heard the giant’s steps again coming up the stairs.
“Now, Jack,” said the giant, “I’ve found out from the eagle about the ends of the earth, and they’re farther than I thought. You never could get there by walking. The only way will be for the eagle to take you. But if he knows it’s you he’s carrying, I’m afraid he might get hungry and eat you. So here’s a bag to put you in, so that he won’t see you at all.” ”

“ He was lying on the hillside near his sheep, and the mountain across the valley glowed red in the sunrise.
“And so,” thought Ivan sadly, “it was a dream after all,—the giants, the fountain, the banquet, and dear Costan as well.”
He reached for his crook, and started back in amazement. For though he could feel the handle tightly grasped in his fingers, it seemed to his startled eyes that the crook suddenly rose up of itself and stood clearly outlined against the morning sky. As he stepped back, the crook sprang after him. When he walked forward, the crook bobbed along by his side. ”

“ Herr Klinkerklanker stepped out and bowed to the giants. “Friends,” he said, “if you will wash your pot clean, it will always be the same size.”
And with that hammerers and housewives, apprentices and children broke into a peal of laughter. As for the giants, they were so much relieved, and so good-natured at any rate, that they liked nothing better than a joke on themselves. Grosskopf capered, Grossmund shouted, and Grosshand let fall such a shower of gold-pieces that the Eisenburgers were still scrambling for them a week later. ”