it; and if he growled they only laughed. The bear submitted to
everything with the best possible good-nature, only when they went too
far he cried: "Oh! children, spare my life!

"Snow-white and Rose-red,
Don't beat your lover dead."

When it was time to retire for the night, and the others went to bed,
the mother said to the bear: "You can lie there on the hearth, in
heaven's name; it will be shelter for you from the cold and wet." As
soon as day dawned the children led him out, and he trotted over the
snow into the wood. From this time on the bear came every evening at
the same hour, and lay down by the hearth and let the children play what
pranks they liked with him; and they got so accustomed to him that the
door was never shut till their black friend had made his appearance.

When spring came, and all outside was green, the bear said one morning
to Snow-white: "Now I must go away, and not return again the whole
summer." "Where are you going to, dear bear?" asked Snow-white. "I
must go to the wood and protect my treasure from the wicked dwarfs.
In winter, when the earth is frozen hard, they are obliged to remain
underground, for they can't work their way through; but now, when the
sun has thawed and warmed the ground, they break through and come up
above to spy the land and steal what they can; what once falls into
their hands and into their caves is not easily brought back to light."
Snow-white was quite sad over their friend's departure, and when she
unbarred the door for him, the bear, stepping out, caught a piece of
his fur in the door-knocker, and Snow-white thought she caught sight of
glittering gold beneath it, but she couldn't be certain of it; and the
bear ran hastily away, and soon disappeared behind the trees.

A short time after this the mother sent the children into the wood to
collect fagots. They came in their wanderings upon a big tree which lay
felled on the ground, and on the trunk among the long grass they
noticed something jumping up and down, but what it was they couldn't
distinguish. When they approached nearer they perceived a dwarf with a
wizened face and a beard a yard long. The end of the beard was jammed
into a cleft of the tree, and the little man sprang about like a dog
on a chain, and didn't seem to know what he was to do. He glared at the
girls with his fiery red eyes, and screamed out: "What are you standing
there for? Can't you come and help me?" "What were you doing, little