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Tale Summary

Once upon a time there was a witch who, every night, broke the windows of a certain village church in the form of a hawk. Three brothers who lived there were determined to kill this hawk, but when the eldest two went to guard the place with their guns, they fell asleep and again the windows were broken. The youngest took his turn, but placed thorns under his chin to prevent him from dozing off. He heard a noise and immediately felt tired, but his plan worked and he resisted the urge to sleep. The hawk swooped down but the youth shot it in the right wing, and where it fell an abyss opened up in the stone. He fetched his brothers and together they let down a rope which the youngest one used to climb down. At the bottom was a flowered meadow and a huge stone castle with its iron gates wide open. He entered and saw that everything was made of copper and the only inhabitant was a lovely girl combing her golden hair. Every hair which fell to the ground rang out like metal. He fell in love on the spot, and she gladly accepted his marriage proposal but told him that she could not go above ground until her witch mother was killed. The only thing that could kill her was a sword within the castle, which was so heavy that no one could lift it. He then entered another room made up of silver and found the girl’s sister who combed her own silver hair, with each strand ringing out like metal when it fell. A third sister came and gave him some liquid to give him strength, and after three drops he was able to lift the sword. While he hid in the castle, the witch returned and swooped on a big apple tree and shook some golden apples to the ground. When she jumped down, she transformed from her hawk form into that of a woman, and in an instant the youth cut her head off. He gave a signal to his brothers and they pulled up the treasures and the maidens. The brother was suspicious, and so when it was his turn to be pulled up he fastened a large stone to the rope instead. Halfway up, the brothers let it down suddenly and it was smashed, and the youth’s suspicions were confirmed. He cried over the girl with the golden hair, and wandered for a long time until he met a magician, whom he told his troubles to. He explained to the youth that there was another magician who lived above land and always ate the underground magician’s children, and so he hid them below earth. They were locked in the palace, hidden in the golden apple-tree, and if the young man protected them the magician would bring him back to the surface. He spent the night in the tree, and at midnight a huge serpent climbed up searching for the children, who trembled with fear. The young man used his sword to cut off the creature’s head, and then chopped the body to bits and strewed them to the winds. The magician was delighted at the death of his enemy and carried the hero back to the surface. He burst into his brother’s house, but no one recognized him except for his bride, who was serving as a cook to her sisters. His brothers gave him all of their treasures and fled, but the youth forgave them and divided the riches amongst them. He then built himself a big castle and lived happily with his wife.

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