The Seven Swabians

Seven Swabians were once together. The first was Master Schulz; the
second, Jackli; the third, Marli; the fourth, Jergli; the fifth,
Michal; the sixth, Hans; the seventh, Veitli: all seven had made up
their minds to travel about the world to seek adventures, and perform
great deeds. But in order that they might go in security and with arms
in their hands, they thought it would be advisable that they should
have one solitary, but very strong, and very long spear made for them.
This spear all seven of them took in their hands at once; in front
walked the boldest and bravest, and that was Master Schulz; all the
others followed in a row, and Veitli was the last. Then it came to pass
one day in the hay-making month (July), when they had walked a long
distance, and still had a long way to go before they reached the
village where they were to pass the night, that as they were in a
meadow in the twilight a great beetle or hornet flew by them from
behind a bush, and hummed in a menacing manner. Master Schulz was so
terrified that he all but dropped the spear, and a cold perspiration
broke out over his whole body. "Hark! hark!" cried he to his comrades,
"Good heavens! I hear a drum." Jackli, who was behind him holding the
spear, and who perceived some kind of a smell, said, "Something is most
certainly going on, for I taste powder and matches." At these words
Master Schulz began to take to flight, and in a trice jumped over a
hedge, but as he just happened to jump on to the teeth of a rake which
had been left lying there after the hay-making, the handle of it struck
against his face and gave him a tremendous blow. "Oh dear! Oh dear!"
screamed Master Schulz. "Take me prisoner; I surrender! I surrender!"
The other six all leapt over, one on the top of the other, crying, "If
you surrender, I surrender too! If you surrender, I surrender too!" At
length, as no enemy was there to bind and take them away, they saw that
they had been mistaken, and in order that the story might not be known,
and they be treated as fools and ridiculed, they all swore to each
other to hold their peace about it until one of them accidentally spoke
of it. Then they journeyed onwards. The second danger which they
survived cannot be compared with the first. Some days afterwards, their
path led them through a fallow-field where a hare was sitting sleeping
in the sun. Her ears were standing straight up, and her great glassy
eyes were wide open. All of them were alarmed at the sight of the
horrible wild beast, and they consulted together as to what it would be
the least dangerous to do. For if they were to run away, they knew that
the monster would pursue and swallow them whole. So they said, "We must
go through a great and dangerous struggle. Boldly ventured, is half
won," and all seven grasped the spear, Master Schulz in front, and
Veitli behind. Master Schulz was always trying to keep the spear back,
but Veitli had become quite brave while behind, and wanted to dash
forward and cried,

"Strike home, in every Swabian's name,
Or else I wish ye may be lame."


But Hans knew how to meet this, and said,

"Thunder and lightning, it's fine to prate,
But for dragon-hunting thou'rt aye too late."


Michal cried,

"Nothing is wanting, not even a hair,
Be sure the Devil himself is there."


Then it was Jergli's turn to speak,

"If it be not, it's at least his mother,
Or else it's the Devil's own step-brother."


And now Marli had a bright thought, and said to Veitli,

"Advance, Veitli, advance, advance,
And I behind will hold the lance."


Veitli, however, did not attend to that, and Jackli said,

"Tis Schulz's place the first to be,
No one deserves that honor but he."


Then Master Schulz plucked up his courage, and said, gravely,

"Then let us boldly advance to the fight,
And thus we shall show our valour and might."


Hereupon they all together set on the dragon. Master Schulz crossed
himself and prayed for God's assistance, but as all this was of no
avail, and he was getting nearer and nearer to the enemy, he screamed
"Oho! oho! ho! ho! ho!" in the greatest anguish. This awakened the
hare, which in great alarm darted swiftly away. When Master Schulz saw
her thus flying from the field of battle, he cried in his joy.

"Quick, Veitli, quick, look there, look there,
The monster's nothing but a hare!"


But the Swabian allies went in search of further adventures, and came
to the Moselle, a mossy, quiet, deep river, over which there are few
bridges, and which in many places people have to cross in boats. As the
seven Swabians did not know this, they called to a man who was working
on the opposite side of the river, to know how people contrived to get
across. The distance and their way of speaking made the man unable to
understand what they wanted, and he said "What? what?" in the way
people speak in the neighborhood of Treves. Master Schulz thought he
was saying, "Wade, wade through the water," and as he was the first,
began to set out and went into the moselle. It was not long before he
sank in the mud and the deep waves which drove against him, but his hat
was blown on the opposite shore by the wind, and a frog sat down beside
it, and croaked "Wat, wat, wat." The other six on the opposite side
heard that, and said, "Oho, comrades, Master Schulz is calling us; if
he can wade across, why cannot we?" So they all jumped into the water
together in a great hurry, and were drowned, and thus one frog took the
lives of all six of them, and not one of the Swabian allies ever
reached home again.
