Snow-White and Rose-Red
Two kind sisters, a gentle bear by the fire, and an ungrateful little dwarf
Page 1
A poor but happy widow lived in a little cottage at the edge of a great forest, and before the cottage stood two rose trees — one that bore white roses and one that bore red. The widow had two daughters who were just like those two rose trees: the quiet, gentle one she called Snow-White, and the merry, lively one she called Rose-Red. They were the best and kindest children in the world, and the two sisters loved each other so dearly that they always walked hand in hand. Snow-White liked to stay at home with her mother by the fire, while Rose-Red loved to run through the meadows and the woods — but whatever they did, they did it together, and their little home was full of love.
Page 2
One cold winter's evening, as the family sat snug by the fire, there came a heavy knock at the door. Rose-Red opened it, and gave a cry — for there stood a great brown bear! But the bear spoke gently, asking only to warm himself by their fire, for he was half-frozen in the snow. The kind family took pity on him and let him in, and soon saw there was nothing to fear: the bear was the gentlest, friendliest creature imaginable. The two sisters brushed the snow from his thick fur and made him comfortable by the hearth, and before long they were all the best of friends, laughing and playing together. All that winter the bear came every evening to warm himself and keep them company.
Page 3
When spring came at last and the snow melted away, the bear told the sisters that he must leave them for a while. He had to go away into the forest, he said, to guard his treasure from the wicked dwarfs, who could not steal it so easily in the winter when the ground was frozen hard, but who came out to rob and plunder once the earth grew soft again. The sisters were sad to see their dear friend go, and as he squeezed through the doorway, a corner of his fur caught on the latch, and for just a moment Snow-White thought she glimpsed a gleam of gold beneath it. But the bear hurried away into the woods, and the sisters waved until he was out of sight among the trees.
Page 4
Not long after, the two sisters went into the forest to gather sticks, and there they found a strange sight: a little old dwarf with a long white beard, hopping and tugging and in a terrible temper, for the end of his beard had got caught fast in the split of a fallen tree, and he could not pull it free. The kind sisters tried and tried to help him, but the beard was wedged too tightly — so at last Snow-White took out her little scissors and snipped off just the very tip of it, setting him free. But instead of thanking them, the ungrateful dwarf flew into a rage over his shortened beard, snatched up a sack of gold hidden among the tree roots, and stumped off grumbling without so much as a word of thanks.
Page 5
Some time later, the sisters met the ungrateful dwarf once more — this time he had been fishing by a river, and a great fish had caught his beard on the line and was dragging him toward the water! Again the kind sisters ran to help, and again, to save him, Snow-White had to snip off a little more of his precious beard. And again, instead of thanks, the dwarf shrieked and scolded and called them clumsy fools, then grabbed up a sack of glittering pearls he had hidden in the reeds and scuttled away. The sisters only shook their heads and laughed softly, for they were too good-hearted to be cross with such a silly, bad-tempered little creature, however rudely he treated them.
Page 6
A third time the sisters came upon the ungrateful dwarf, who had spread out a sack of glittering jewels upon a rock to admire them in the sun. Just then a great eagle swept down out of the sky and seized the little dwarf in its talons, lifting him up off the ground! The dwarf screamed and begged for help, and the brave sisters sprang forward, catching hold of him and pulling with all their might until the eagle at last let him go. But was the rude little dwarf grateful? Not a bit! He only scolded them for being so rough with his fine coat as they pulled him free, and gathered up his jewels in a rage, muttering and grumbling as he vanished among the rocks.
Page 7
One evening the two sisters were crossing a lonely dell when they came upon the ungrateful dwarf once more, counting out his heaps of stolen gold and jewels upon the grass, so lost in his greed that he had not heard them coming. But at that very moment, out of the twilight came their old friend the great brown bear, padding straight toward the little thief! The dwarf shrieked in terror and begged the bear to spare him, offering all his treasure, blaming the two innocent sisters, promising anything — but the bear knew exactly who the wicked dwarf was and what he had done. With one swat of his great paw the bear sent the dwarf tumbling, and the little thief's long career of greed and ingratitude came at last to its well-deserved end.
Page 8
The sisters, who had been frightened to see their gentle friend the bear strike anyone, now watched in utter amazement — for the moment the wicked dwarf was gone, a wonderful change came over the bear. The rough brown fur fell away like a cloak, and there, standing before them in the moonlight, was a handsome young prince, dressed all in gold and green! He had been under the dwarf's cruel enchantment all along, he explained — bound in a bear's shape and robbed of his treasure — and only the death of the wicked dwarf who had cursed him could set him free at last. The two sisters could scarcely believe their eyes, and the grateful prince thanked them with all his heart for their kindness to him when he had been only a poor, lonely bear.
Page 9
The prince went home with the sisters to their little cottage and told the whole family his story by the fire, and the widow and her daughters rejoiced to learn that their dear friend the bear had been a prince all along. And there was even more happiness to come: the prince had a brother, just as kind and noble as himself, and in time the two gentle sisters were each married to a prince. The treasure that the wicked dwarf had stolen was all restored, and it was shared out fairly, and the good widow mother came to live with her daughters in happiness and comfort for the rest of her days. And so the two sisters who had always walked hand in hand were never, ever parted.
Page 10
And so, in the end, there were two grand and joyful weddings, and the two gentle sisters who had been as different and as dear as a white rose and a red one each married a kind and noble prince. Snow-White and Rose-Red took with them to the prince's castle the two beloved rose trees from beside their cottage door, and planted them beneath their windows, where every summer thereafter the trees bore the loveliest white and red roses in all the land — a living reminder of two kind-hearted sisters whose goodness to a poor lonely bear had brought them more happiness than all the dwarf's stolen treasure ever could. And they all lived together, loving and beloved, happily to the end of their days.
About this story
- Audience: kids (ages 6–12)
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