Saint Nicholas and the Traveling Apprentice

A tailor’s apprentice was once traveling about the world in search of work, and at one point he could find none, and his poverty was so great that he had nothing besides his faithful servant, who was an impressively handsome servant with long, black, thick, full hair. One evening when the sun sunk behind the snow-covered mountains over which they were traveling, they heard the sound of music. It was strange and jolly music, and it was so pleasant that they forgot their weariness and followed the tune.

The full moon had already arisen when they reached a plot on which they saw a crowd of men, women, and elves, all as beautiful as the young servant, who had taken each other’s hands and where dancing with the greatest pleasure and delight. As the apprentice approached, he could hear the song being sung with all delight:

“Grant me my life, A bright sun and moon shall bring it to light, Oh, dear loved one, we bring it to light.”

And the men, women, and elves continued singing as the tailor’s apprentice and his servant approached their quarters.

“Now, we bring it to light All that thou hast Thy word we have kept.”

And finally a group of elves sung emphatically as the two entered the group.

“Now, we bring it to light The light it can let, Oh, dear one, would end in its death!”

Now in the midst of them sat Saint Nicholas, who was rather bigger than the rest. He wore a parti-colored coat, and his iron-grey beard hung down over his pot belly. The apprentice remained full of astonishment, and he watched them dance. The old man looked at the two, and waved them in as if to say they should enter, and the folks opened their circle.

Now the servant, who was brave enough, stepped in, but he felt that the apprentice should feel a little afraid at first, so he motioned to him as if to hold back, but when the servant saw how merry everyone was, he followed in tune. Then the circle closed, and the beautiful elves starting singing and dancing again. Saint Nicholas, however, took out a large knife which hung to his girdle, whetted it, and when it was gleamed and sharp, he took to the strangers. They were terrified, but had not much time to react, for Saint Nicholas seized the servant and with the greatest speed, shaved the hair of his head clean off, and then glared at the tailor’s apprentice.

But somehow their fear left them when, after he had finished his work, he clapped the servant on the shoulder in a friendly manner, as much to say that he had behaved well and let it be done willingly, and without struggle. He then pointed his finger to a heap of coals that lay beside them in a bucket, and gestured to to them that they could fill their pockets with them, if they so pleased.

Both of them took notice, and began to fill their pockets with the coals, and they went on their way to seek shelter for the night. When they had got into the valley, the clock of the neighboring monastery struck twelve, and the distant song ceased. In a moment, all their worries had vanished, and they laid in the moonlight of the hill.

The two covered themselves up in their straw-beds with their coats, but didn’t bother to take the coals out before resting for the night. A heavy weight on their limbs awoke them early in the morning. They felt in their pockets, and could not believe their eyes when they saw that they were not filled with coals, but with pure gold; happily, too, the hair which the servant was so well-known for was again as thick as ever. Even more, two elves, one who resembled the apprentice and one who resembled the servant, laid beside them resting.

They had now become rich folks, but the servant, who, in accordance with his faithfulness shared his gold and elf with his master, suggested that he go out again and find Saint Nicholas in order to bring back still greater treasures. The apprentice refused, but said, “You have given me enough that I am content with parting ways; now I shall be a master, and marry my dear object (for he so called his elf), and I am a happy man. Would you like to take your given sweetheart?” But the servant insisted they would not be parting ways, and that he would come away with still more treasures, and make them even more rich, and this pleased the now master tailor a great deal.

The brave servant set out in the evening with a couple of bags over his shoulders that he might stow coal, and took to the snow-covered mountain. He found, as before, the beautiful men and women and elves singing, and Saint Nicholas once again shaved him clean, and signed him to take the coal away with him. The elves watched as he hastily packed as much into his bags as he could, so much that he covered himself over with black coal. “Even if the gold does weigh heavily,” said he to Saint Nicholas, “I will gladly bear that,” and at last he went on his way and fell asleep with the sweet anticipation of waking up with a new elf and an enormous amount of gold.

When he opened his eyes, he got up to examine his pockets, but he drew nothing out of them but black coals, and howsoever often he put his hands in them there were still more coals. He smote his forehead with his dusty black hand, and then he felt that his whole head remained bald and smooth. Then he recognized the punishment of his greediness, and wept aloud.

The master tailor, who was wakened by his old servant returning in the night, comforted the unhappy fellow as well as he could, and said, “Thou hast been my comrade in my traveling time; thou shalt stay with me and share in my wealth.” He kept his word, but explained that the servant’s elf must have wondered off in the night, for he had not seen her since the night of his beloved wedding when half of his gold turned to coal.