This is a story of The Elves and the Shoemaker.
A shoemaker, by no fault of his own, had become so poor. At last he had nothing left but leather for one pair of shoes. So in the evening, he cut out the shoes which he wished to begin to make the next morning. As he had a good conscience, he lay down quietly in his bed, commended himself to God, and fell asleep.
In the morning, he said his prayers. He was just going to sit down to work, the two shoes stood quite finished on his table. He was astounded and did not knew what to say to it.
He took the shoes in his hand to examine them more closely. They were so neatly sewn that not a stitch was out of place. They and were as good as the work of a master-hand.
Soon after a purchaser came in, and as he was much pleased with the shoes, he paid more than the ordinary price for them, so that the shoemaker was able to buy leather for two pairs with the money.
He cut them out in the evening, and next day, with fresh courage was about to go to work; but he had no need to, for when he got up, the shoes were finished, and buyers were not lacking. These gave him so much money that he was able to buy leather for four pairs of shoes.
Early next morning he found the four pairs finished, and so it went on; what he cut out at evening was finished in the morning, so that he was soon again in comfortable circumstances, and became a well-to-do man.
The next day the wife said: “The little men have made us rich, and we ought to show our gratitude. They don not have any warm cloths, and must freeze with cold. Now I will make them little shirts, coats, waistcoats, and hose, and will even knit them stout stockings, and you shall make them each a pair of shoes.”
The husband agreed. At evening, when they had everything ready, they laid out the presents on the table. They hid themselves to see how the little men would behave.
At midnight they came skipping in, and were about to set to work; but, instead of the leather ready cut out, they found the charming little clothes, they were at first astonished, and then they showed intense delight. They dressed themselves with the greatest rapidity, putting the pretty clothes on, and singing,
“Now we are boys so fine to see,
Why should we longer cobblers be?”
Then they danced and skipped and leapt over chairs and benches. At last they danced out of doors. From that time forth they came no more, but as long as the shoemaker lived all went well with him, and all his undertakings prospered.
Also read:Three Friends and a Bag of Gold