The White Snake

Long ago there lived a king whose wisdom was famous throughout the land. Nothing remained unknown to him, and it was as if news of the most hidden things were brought to him through the air. But he had a strange custom. Every noon, when the table was empty and no one was present, a trusted servant had to bring another bowl. But it was covered, and the servant himself did not know what was in it, and no one knew, because the king did not uncover it or eat from it until he was all alone. This had been going on for a long time, when one day curiosity overcame the servant who was carrying the bowl away again, so that he could not resist, but took the bowl to his chamber. When he had carefully closed the door, he lifted the lid and there he saw that a white snake was lying inside. At the sight of it he could not restrain the desire to taste it; he cut off a piece of it and put it in his mouth. But no sooner had it touched his tongue than he heard a strange whispering of fine voices outside his window. He went and listened, then he realized that it was the sparrows talking to each other and telling each other all sorts of things they had seen in the field and forest. The pleasure of the snake had given him the ability to understand the language of the animals.

It happened that on this very day the queen lost her most beautiful ring and the suspicion fell on the trusted servant, who had access everywhere, that he had stolen it. The king had him brought before him and threatened him with severe scolding that if he did not know who had stolen it by tomorrow, he would be looked upon and judged. It did not help that he protested his innocence, he was released with no better notice. In his anxiety and fear he went down to the courtyard and considered how he could help himself out of his distress. There the ducks were sitting peacefully next to each other by a flowing water, resting, preening each other with their beaks and holding a confidential conversation. The servant stopped and listened to them. They told each other where they had wiggled around this morning and what good food they had found, then one of them said peevishly, "I have something heavy in my stomach, I swallowed a ring that was lying under the queen's window in the haste." Then the servant immediately grabbed her by the collar, carried her into the kitchen and said to the cook "butcher this one, she is well fed." "Yes," said the cook, weighing her in his hand, "she has spared no pains to fatten herself, and has long been waiting to be roasted." He cut her neck, and when she was gutted, the queen's ring was found in her stomach. The servant could now easily prove his innocence before the king, and since the latter wished to right his wrong, he allowed him to beg a pardon and promised him the greatest position of honor he could wish for at his court.