A brief recommendation for the fairy tale little torment. Encyclopedia of fairy tale characters: "Little Muk"

Wilhelm Hauff. Its main idea is to instill in children tolerance and empathy for other people, in particular for the main character of the fairy tale. You can start the story on the topic “Gauf“ Little Muk ”: a summary” with the fact that a certain boy from the city of Nicaea, along with his friends, loved to listen to amazing stories. They were told by a very wise old dwarf.

His name was Little Muk. The summary in continuation indicates that then the boy grew up and began to retell the stories of the dwarf, as if he himself was watching what was happening from the side. After all, he met Little Muck as a child, and he was a very funny and awkward person. His body was tiny, but his head was huge, larger than that of ordinary people.

"Little Muk": a summary

He lived completely alone in his big house. He went out very rarely, mostly walking on the flat roof of his mansion.

When they saw him, the children often teased him, pulled on his robe, stepped on his huge shoes. Once our narrator also participated in this unflattering action, for which Little Muck complained to the tomboy's father. Although the boy was punished, he learned the story of the dwarf.

His real name was Mukra. His father was not rich, but respected. They lived in the city of Nicaea. Since Muk was a dwarf, he almost always stayed at home. The father did not love his son because of his ugliness, so he did not teach him anything. When his father died, Muk was 16 years old, all his inheritance - including the house - went into debt. Flour got only the things of his father.

In search of happiness

The summary of the fairy tale "Little Muk" continues its development by the fact that the poor guy went to wander and seek his happiness. It was hard for him, he was tormented by hunger and thirst, and, finally, one day he came to the city, in which he saw an old woman - Mrs. Ahavzi. She invited everyone who wanted to eat to her. But for some reason, only cats and dogs came running to her from all around.

The emaciated dwarf also decided to approach. He told her his sad story, and she left him to take care of her pets, of which the old woman had a lot. But soon the animals became so insolent that as soon as the old woman went about her business, they immediately began to smash everything around. And then they complained that Little Muck did it. The summary tells that the old woman, of course, believed her beloved wards.

Magic trophies

And then one day, when the dwarf was in Mrs. Ahavzi's room, the cat broke the vase there. Muk realized that he couldn’t take off his head and ran away from her house, taking a wand and grandma’s shoes, since his own were already completely worn out. After all, she didn't pay him any money.

As it turned out later, these things were magical. As soon as he turned three times on his heel, he was where he wanted to be. And the cane helped to search for treasures.

Muk-walker

Muk reached the nearest city and became a runner with the king. At first, everyone laughed at him until they saw how he was the first to finish in the competition. Then everyone in the kingdom hated him. And the dwarf decided that he could get their love through money, and began to distribute silver and gold, which he found with his magic wand. But this did not happen, on the contrary, he was accused of theft and put in prison. So that he would not be executed, he told the king his secret about shoes and a wand, then Little Flour was released, but the things were taken away.

Dates

The summary of the story "Little Muk" will further tell us that the poor dwarf went on a journey again. And suddenly he found two date trees with ripened fruits, which he decided to feast on. Having tasted the fruits from one tree, he felt how donkey ears and a huge nose grew; after eating the fruits of another tree, everything was gone for him. Then Muk decided to go back to the city to trade in these funny fruits. The chief cook at the court gathered dates and fed them to all the courtiers along with the king. Everyone liked the great taste of dates, but when they discovered their ugliness, they got scared and began to urgently look for doctors.

Revenge

Little Muk, disguised as a healer, came to the palace and healed one of the depicted servants. Then the king promised a lot of money to him. But he chose shoes and a stick, tore off his beard and disappeared in an instant.

The king saw that it was Little Muk. The summary ends with the fact that he left the king forever a freak. Since then, the wise dwarf has been living in the city where the boys teased him, but after the story was told, they stopped laughing at him, and on the contrary, they began to respect and bow to him when they met.

The tale "Little Muck" by Gauf was written in 1826. This is a book about the amazing adventures of a dwarf - a little man with a big head, who was abandoned by all relatives.

For a reader's diary and preparation for a literature lesson, we recommend reading the online summary of "Little Muk" on our website.

main characters

Little Muck- a dwarf with a small body and a large head, kind, sympathetic, naive.

Other characters

Father Muka- a poor, dry, callous man who did not love his son because of his deformity.

Agavtsi- an old woman, a great lover of cats, for whom Muk worked.

Padishah- a greedy, unjust ruler whom Muku managed to teach a lesson.

Muk was born a dwarf, for which his own father disliked him. He kept his son locked up until the age of seventeen, until he died, leaving Muck in dire poverty. But the young man was not at a loss - he shortened his father's robe for himself, "tucked a dagger into his belt and went to seek his fortune."

Two days later, little Muk reached the big city, where he got a job at the service of the old woman Agavtsi, who simply adored cats. The duties of the dwarf included the most thorough care for the furry pets of the hostess. One day, while cleaning up after the cats, he noticed "one room that was constantly locked". Little Muck really wanted to know what was behind her, and when the old woman went on business, he ventured to look into the forbidden room.

Inside, he found ancient crockery and old clothes. Having accidentally broken a crystal vase and fearing the wrath of the old woman, little Muk decided to run away. With him, he took only "a pair of huge shoes" and a cane. He soon realized that these items were magical: the cane helped to find treasures, and the shoes moved the owner to the right place with lightning speed.

Thanks to the magic shoes, little Muk got a job as the main runner to the padishah. To earn the favor of the servants, he began to find treasures and distribute money to them. But he never managed to buy their love and friendship. Having learned that the runner unexpectedly “got rich and squanders money”, the padishah put him in prison as a thief. To avoid execution, the dwarf was forced to reveal the secret to the padishah, and he took away the magical things.

Muk again went to wander. He came across a date grove and began to feast on the fruits. After eating dates from one tree, little Muk was transformed - he grew donkey ears and a huge nose. Fruit from another tree saved him from this ugliness. Then the dwarf "picked as much fruit from each tree as he could carry", and returned to the city, changing his appearance.

Muk sold the magic fruits to the royal cook, and he fed them to the padishah, who immediately got a huge nose and donkey ears. No one could help him regain his former appearance, and the padishah fell into despair, but then little Muk appeared, dressed as a healer. He convinced the padishah that he could help him in this grief, and he invited him to choose whatever he wanted from the royal treasury. Little Muck took his walking shoes and cane. Then he tore off his false beard and told the padishah that he would forever remain with donkey ears. After these words, little Muk disappeared from sight, and no one else saw him.

Conclusion

Gauf's tale teaches to be kind, merciful, fair towards people, regardless of their appearance and social status. The work also teaches that no amount of money can buy friendship and love.

After reading the brief retelling of "Little Muk", we recommend that you read the tale in its full version.

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Retelling rating

Average rating: 4.3. Total ratings received: 54.

Wilhelm Hauff is a famous German novelist and writer. We know him for his wonderful stories. The history of their creation is interesting: he wrote them when he worked as a tutor in the family of the Minister of Defense. The fairy tale "Little Muk", a summary of which is given here, was included in his collection "Märchen", which he wrote for the minister's children. The author's works quickly became popular in many countries.

Wilhelm Hauff. "Little Muck". Summary. Introduction

The story of little Muk is told by a man who met him as a child. At that time, the main character was already an old man. He looked ridiculous: a huge head sticks out on a thin neck, the children laughed at him very much, shouting offensive rhymes after him, and stepped on his long shoes. The dwarf lived alone and rarely left the house. Once the narrator offended little Muck. He complained to his father, who, having punished his son, revealed to him the story of the poor dwarf.

William Gauf. "Little Muck". Summary. Development of events

Once Muk was a child and lived with his father, a poor man, but very revered in the city. The dwarf rarely left the house. His father did not love him for his ugliness and did not teach his son anything. When Muk was 16 years old, he was left all alone. His father died leaving nothing to his son. The dwarf took only the clothes of the parent, shortened them to fit his height and went around the world to seek his fortune. He had nothing to eat, and he would certainly have died of hunger and thirst if he had not met an old woman who fed all the cats and dogs in the area. After listening to his sad story, she invited him to stay and work for her. Muk took care of her pets, which soon became very spoiled: as soon as the mistress left the house, the animals began to smash the dwelling. Once, when one of the pets broke an expensive vase in the old woman's room, Muk entered there and found magic shoes and a wand. Since the mistress offended him and did not pay a salary, the dwarf decided to run away, taking with him miracle things.

In a dream, he saw that the shoes could take him anywhere in the world, if he only turned three times on his heel, the wand would help him find the treasure. Where gold is hidden, it will hit the ground three times, and where silver is, twice. Soon, little Muk reached a large city and was hired there to serve as a runner to the king. He carried out all the assignments quickly and well, but the city did not like the dwarf and laughed at him. To earn the respect and sympathy of the people, Mook began to distribute to everyone the gold coins that he found with a stick. Soon he was convicted of stealing the royal treasury and thrown into prison. Little Muk admitted that magic shoes and a wand helped him. He was released, but these things were taken away.

William Gauf. "Little Muck". Summary. ending

The dwarf again went on a long journey and found two trees with dates. After eating the fruits of one of them, he discovered that he had donkey ears, and when he tasted dates from another tree, his ears and nose became the same again. Having collected the fruits from which ears and nose grew, he goes to the city to the market. The royal cook takes all the goods from him and returns to the palace satisfied. Soon, all the subjects and the king grow ugly ears and a big nose. Disguised as a scientist and taking with him the fruits from the second tree, Muk goes to the palace. There he relieves one of the king's associates from deformities. Everyone gasps and begs the dwarf to heal everyone. The king opens his treasury in front of him, offering to choose any treasure, but Muk takes only his shoes and wand. Having done this, he throws off the clothes of a scientist, and everyone recognizes in him the former royal runner. Despite the king's pleas, Muk does not give him dates and leaves, and the king remains a freak. This is the end of the fairy tale "Little Muk".

The summary of the work is unlikely to convey all the unusualness of the protagonist's adventures. The shortcomings of his appearance were more than compensated for by his sharpness and ingenuity. We advise you to read the work in the original. Gauf wrote surprisingly good tales: “Little Muk”, a summary of which is given here, is a work about the triumph of justice, about the fact that evil is always punished.

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Little Muck - Wilhelm Hauff

The tale tells about the life and adventures of a dwarf - a man with small stature and a large head. Everyone called him Little Muck. He was left an orphan early and his relatives drove him out of the house. Little Muk goes around the world in search of shelter and food. First he gets to the old woman who fed all the cats and dogs in the city. When he ran away from the old woman, he had magical things in his hands: shoes and a cane. Thanks to walking shoes, Little Muk serves as a messenger for the king. He has extraordinary adventures. Mind, courage and resourcefulness help him punish the king and retinue for insults and achieve good luck ...

Little Mook read

In the city of Nicaea, in my homeland, there lived a man whose name was Little Muk. Although I was a boy then, I remember him very well, especially since my father once gave me a healthy beating because of him. At that time, Little Muck was already an old man, but he was tiny in stature. He looked rather funny: a huge head stuck out on a small, skinny body, much larger than other people.
Little Muck lived in a big old house all alone. He even cooked his own dinner. Every noon, thick smoke appeared over his house: if it were not for this, the neighbors would not know whether the dwarf was alive or dead. Little Muck went outside only once a month - every first day. But in the evenings, people often saw Little Muck walking on the flat roof of his house. From below, it seemed as if one huge head was moving back and forth across the roof.

My comrades and I were mean boys and liked to tease passers-by. When Little Muck left the house, it was a real holiday for us. On this day, we gathered in a crowd in front of his house and waited for him to come out. The door was carefully opened. A large head in a huge turban protruded from it. The head was followed by the whole body in an old, faded dressing gown and spacious trousers. A dagger dangled from a wide belt, so long that it was difficult to tell whether the dagger was attached to Muk or whether Muk was attached to the dagger.


When Muk finally went out into the street, we greeted him with joyful cries and danced around him as if crazy. Muk nodded his head to us solemnly and walked slowly down the street, his shoes slapping. His shoes were just huge - no one had ever seen them before. And we, the boys, ran after him and shouted: “Little Muk! Little Muck!" We even composed a song about him:

Little Mook, little Mook,

You yourself are small, and the house is a cliff;

You show your nose once a month.

You are a good little dwarf

The head is a little big

Take a quick look around

And catch us, little Muk!

We often made fun of the poor dwarf, and I must confess, though I am ashamed, that I offended him most of all. I always strove to grab Muk by the hem of his dressing gown, and once I even purposely stepped on his shoe so that the poor fellow fell. This seemed very funny to me, but I immediately lost the desire to laugh when I saw that Little Muck, with difficulty getting up, went straight to my father's house. He didn't leave for a long time. I hid behind the door and looked forward to what would happen next.

Finally the door opened and the dwarf stepped out. His father accompanied him to the threshold, holding him respectfully by the arm, and bowed low in farewell. I did not feel very pleasant and for a long time did not dare to return home. Finally hunger overcame my fear, and I timidly slipped through the door, not daring to raise my head.

You, I heard, offend Little Anguish, - my father said sternly to me. “I will tell you his adventures, and you will probably no longer laugh at the poor dwarf. But first you get what you deserve.

And I relied on a good spanking for such things. After counting out the spanks as needed, the father said:

Now listen carefully.

And he told me the story of Little Muck.

Muk's father (in fact, his name was not Muk, but Mukra) lived in Nicaea and was a respectable man, but not rich. Like Muk, he always stayed at home and rarely went outside. He did not like Muk very much because he was a dwarf, and did not teach him anything.

You have been wearing off your children's shoes for a long time, ”he said to the dwarf,“ but you still just play pranks and mess around.

One day Father Muk fell down on the street and hurt himself badly. After that, he fell ill and soon died. Little Muk was left alone, penniless. Father's relatives drove Muk out of the house and said:

Go around the world, maybe you will find your Happiness.

Muk begged for only old pants and a jacket - all that was left after his father. His father was tall and fat, but the dwarf without thinking twice shortened both the jacket and trousers and put them on. True, they were too wide, but there was nothing the dwarf could do about that. Instead of a turban, he wrapped his head in a towel, fastened a dagger to his belt, took a stick in his hand and went where his eyes looked.


Soon he left the city and walked along the high road for two whole days. He was very tired and hungry. He had no food with him, and he chewed the roots that grew in the field. And he had to spend the night right on the bare ground.

On the third day in the morning, he saw from the top of the hill a large beautiful city, decorated with flags and banners. Little Muk gathered his last strength and went to this city.

“Maybe I will finally find my happiness there,” he said to himself.

Although it seemed that the city was very close, Muk had to walk to it all morning. It was not until noon that he finally reached the city gates.


The city was full of beautiful houses. The wide streets were full of people. Little Muk was very hungry, but no one opened the door for him and invited him to come in and rest.

The dwarf wandered dejectedly through the streets, barely dragging his feet. He was passing by a tall, beautiful house, and suddenly a window in this house was flung open and some old woman, leaning out, shouted:

Here, here -

Food is ready!

The table is covered

So that everyone is full.

Neighbors, here -

Food is ready!

And immediately the doors of the house opened, and dogs and cats began to enter - many, many cats and dogs. Muk thought and thought and also entered. Two kittens entered just before him, and he decided to keep up with them - the kittens must have known where the kitchen was.

Muck went up the stairs and saw that old woman who was screaming from the window.

What do you need? the old woman asked angrily.

You called for dinner, - said Muk, - and I am very hungry. Here I come.

The old woman laughed out loud and said:

Where did you come from boy? Everyone in town knows that I only cook dinner for my cute cats. And so that they would not be bored, I invite neighbors to them.

Feed me at the same time, - asked Muk. He told the old woman how hard it was for him when his father died, and the old woman took pity on him. She fed the dwarf to his fill, and when Little Muck had eaten and rested, she said to him:

You know what, Muk? Stay and serve me. My work is easy, and you will live well.

Muk liked the cat's dinner and agreed. Mrs. Ahavzi (that was the name of the old woman) had two cats and four cats. Every morning, Muk combed their fur and rubbed it with precious ointments. At dinner, he served them food, and in the evening he put them to sleep on a soft feather bed and covered them with a velvet blanket.

In addition to cats, four other dogs lived in the house. The dwarf also had to look after them, but there was less fuss with dogs than with cats. Mrs. Ahavzi loved cats like her own children.

Little Muk was just as bored with the old woman as with his father: apart from cats and dogs, he saw no one.

At first, the dwarf still lived well. There was almost no work, but he was well fed, and the old woman was very pleased with him. But then the cats got spoiled. Only the old woman is out the door - they immediately let's rush through the rooms like crazy. All things will be scattered and even expensive dishes will be killed. But as soon as they heard Ahavzi's footsteps on the stairs, they instantly jumped onto the featherbed, curled up, tucked their tails and lay as if nothing had happened. And the old woman sees that the room is devastated, and, well, scold Little Flour .. Let her make excuses as much as she wants - she trusts her cats more than the servant. It is immediately clear from the cats that they are not to blame for anything.

Poor Muk was very sad and finally decided to leave the old woman. Mrs. Ahavzi promised to pay him a salary, but she did not pay.

“I’ll get a salary from her,” thought Little Muk, “I’ll leave right away. If I knew where her money was hidden, I would have taken myself a long time ago, as much as I should.”

There was a small room in the old woman's house, which was always locked. Muk was very curious about what was hidden in it. And suddenly it occurred to him that in this room, perhaps, the old woman's money was lying. He wanted to go there even more.

One morning, when Ahavzi left the house, one of the little dogs ran up to Muk and grabbed him by the floor (the old woman did not like this little dog very much, and Muk, on the contrary, often stroked and caressed her). The little dog squealed softly and pulled the dwarf along. She led him to the old woman's bedroom and stopped in front of a small door that Muck had never noticed before.

The dog pushed open the door and entered some room; Muk followed her and froze in place in surprise: he found himself in the very room where he had wanted to go for so long.

The whole room was full of old dresses and outlandish antique crockery. Flour especially liked one jug - crystal, with a gold pattern. He took it in his hands and began to examine, and suddenly the lid of the jug - Muk did not notice that the jug was with a lid - fell to the floor and broke.

Poor Muk was seriously frightened. Now there was no need to reason - it was necessary to run: when the old woman returned and saw that he had broken the lid, she would beat him half to death.

Mook looked around the room for the last time, and suddenly he saw shoes in the corner. They were very large and ugly, but his own shoes were completely falling apart. Muk even liked that the shoes were so big - when he puts them on, everyone will see that he is no longer a child.

He quickly kicked off his shoes and put on his shoes. Next to the shoes stood a thin cane with a lion's head.

“That cane is still standing idle here,” Muk thought. “I’ll take a cane by the way.”

He grabbed a cane and ran to his room. In one minute he put on his cloak and turban, put on a dagger and rushed down the stairs, hurrying to leave before the old woman returned.

Leaving the house, he started to run and rushed without looking back until he ran out of the city into the field. Here the dwarf decided to rest a little. And suddenly he felt that he could not stop. His legs ran on their own and dragged him, no matter how hard he tried to stop them. He tried to fall and turn around - nothing helped. Finally he realized that it was all about his new shoes. It was they who pushed him forward and did not let him stop.

Muk was completely exhausted and did not know what to do. In despair, he waved his hands and shouted, as cab drivers shout:

Whoa! Whoa! Stop!

And suddenly the shoes stopped at once, and the poor dwarf fell to the ground with all his might.

He was so tired that he immediately fell asleep. And he had an amazing dream. He saw in a dream that the little dog that led him to the secret room came up to him and said:

“Dear Muk, you don’t know yet what wonderful shoes you have. Once you turn three times on your heel, they will carry you wherever you want. A cane will help you look for treasures. Where gold is buried, it will hit the ground three times, and where silver is buried, it will hit twice.”

When Muk woke up, he immediately wanted to check if the little dog had told the truth. He lifted his left leg and tried to turn on his right heel, but he fell and hit his nose painfully on the ground. He tried again and again and finally learned to spin on one heel and not fall. Then he tightened his belt, quickly turned over three times on one foot and said to the shoes:

Take me to the next town.

And suddenly the shoes lifted him into the air and quickly, like the wind, ran through the clouds. Before Little Muk had time to come to his senses, he found himself in the city, in the bazaar.

He sat down on a mound near some shop and began to think how he could get at least a little money. True, he had a magic cane, but how do you know where the gold or silver is hidden in order to go and find it? At worst, he could show up for money, but he is too proud for that.

And suddenly Little Muck remembered that he now knew how to run fast.

“Maybe my shoes will bring me income,” he thought. “I’ll try to get hired by the king as a runner.”

He asked the owner of the shop how to get into the palace, and after about five minutes he was already approaching the palace gates. The gatekeeper asked him what he needed, and, having learned that the dwarf wanted to enter the service of the king, he took him to the head of the slaves. Muk bowed low to the chief and said to him:

Mr. Chief, I can run faster than any runner. Take me to the king in messengers.

The chief looked contemptuously at the dwarf and said with a loud laugh:

Your legs are thin, like sticks, and you want to enter the fast walkers! Get out, hello. I was not put in charge of the slaves so that every freak would make fun of me!

Chief, said Little Muck, I am not laughing at you. Let's bet that I will overtake your best runner.

The head of the slaves laughed even louder than before. The dwarf seemed to him so funny that he decided not to drive him away and tell the king about him.

Well, all right, - he said, - so be it, I will test you. Get in the kitchen and get ready to compete. You will be fed and watered there.

Then the head of the slaves went to the king and told him about the outlandish dwarf. The king wanted to have fun. He praised the master of the slaves for not letting Little Torment go, and ordered him to arrange a contest in the evening on a large meadow, so that all his servants could come to see.

The princes and princesses heard what an interesting spectacle would be in the evening, and told their servants, who spread the news throughout the palace. And in the evening, everyone who only had legs came to the meadow to see how this braggart dwarf would run.

When the king and queen were seated, Little Muck stepped into the middle of the meadow and bowed low. Loud laughter erupted from all sides. This dwarf was very ridiculous in his wide trousers and long, long shoes. But Little Muck was not at all embarrassed. He proudly leaned on his cane, put his hands on his hips and calmly waited for the runner.

Finally, the runner has arrived. The head of the slaves chose the fastest of the royal runners. After all, Little Muck himself wanted it.

The runner looked contemptuously at Muk and stood next to him, waiting for a sign to start the competition.

One two Three! - shouted Princess Amarza, the eldest daughter of the king, and waved her handkerchief ..

Both runners took off and rushed like an arrow. At first, the runner slightly overtook the dwarf, but soon Muk overtook him and got ahead of him. He had long stood at the goal and fanned himself with the end of his turban, but the royal runner was still far away. Finally, he ran to the end and fell to the ground like a dead man. The king and queen clapped their hands, and all the courtiers shouted with one voice:

Long live the winner - Little Muk! Little Muck was brought before the king. The dwarf bowed low to him and said:

O mighty king! I just showed you part of my art! Take me to your service.

Good, said the king. - I appoint you as my personal runner. You will always be with me and fulfill my orders.

Little Muk was very happy - at last he found his happiness! Now he can live comfortably and calmly.

The king highly appreciated Muk and constantly showed him favors. He sent the dwarf with the most important assignments, and no one knew how to fulfill them better than Muk. But the rest of the royal servants were unhappy. They really didn’t like that some kind of dwarf became closest to the king, who only knows how to run. They kept gossiping about him to the king, but the king would not listen to them. He trusted Muk more and more and soon appointed him as the main runner.

Little Muck was very upset that the courtiers were so envious of him. For a long time he tried to come up with something so that they would love him. And finally he remembered his cane, which he had completely forgotten about.

“If I manage to find the treasure,” he thought, “these proud gentlemen will probably stop hating me. It is said that the old king, the father of the present, buried great wealth in his garden when enemies approached his city. He seems to have died like that, without telling anyone where his treasures were buried.”

Little Muck was only thinking about it. He spent days walking around the garden with a cane in his hand and looking for the gold of the old king.

Once he was walking in a remote corner of the garden, and suddenly the cane in his hands trembled and hit the ground three times. Little Muk was shaking all over with excitement. He ran to the gardener and asked him for a large spade, and then returned to the palace and waited for it to get dark. As soon as evening came, the dwarf went into the garden and began to dig in the place where the wand had struck. The spade turned out to be too heavy for the weak hands of the dwarf, and in an hour he dug a hole some half an arshin deep.

Little Muck labored for a long time, and at last his spade hit something hard. The dwarf leaned over the pit and felt with his hands in the ground some kind of iron cover. He lifted the lid and froze. In the light of the moon, gold glittered before him. In the pit stood a large pot filled to the brim with gold coins.

Little Muk wanted to pull the pot out of the hole, but he couldn't: he didn't have enough strength. Then he stuffed as much gold as possible into his pockets and belt and slowly returned to the palace. He hid the money in his bed under the featherbed and went to bed contented and joyful.

The next morning, Little Muck woke up and thought: "Now everything will change and my enemies will love me."

He began to distribute his gold right and left, but the courtiers only became more envious of him. Head chef Ahuli whispered angrily:

Look, Mook makes counterfeit money. Ahmed, the head of the slaves, said:

He begged them from the king.

And the treasurer Arkhaz, the most evil enemy of the dwarf, who had long secretly put his hand into the royal treasury, shouted to the whole palace:

The dwarf has stolen gold from the royal treasury! In order to find out for sure where Muk got the money from, his enemies conspired among themselves and came up with such a plan.

The king had one favorite servant, Korhuz. He always served food to the king and poured wine into his goblet. And once this Korkhuz came to the king sad and sad. The king immediately noticed this and asked:

What's wrong with you today, Korhuz? Why are you so sad?

I am sad because the king has deprived me of his favor, - answered Korhuz.

What are you talking about, my good Korhuz! - said the king. "Since when did I deprive you of my grace?"

Since then, Your Majesty, how did your chief runner act to you, ”Korhuz answered. - You shower him with gold, but you don't give anything to us, your faithful servants.

And he told the king that Little Muck had a lot of gold from somewhere, and that the dwarf was distributing money without an account to all the courtiers. The king was very surprised and ordered to call Arkhaz, his treasurer, and Ahmed, the head of the slaves. They confirmed that Korhuz was telling the truth. Then the king ordered his detectives to slowly follow and find out where the dwarf gets the money from.

Unfortunately, Little Flour ran out of all the gold that day, and he decided to go to his Treasury. He took the spade and went into the garden. The detectives, of course, followed him, Korhuz and Arkhaz too. At the very moment when Little Muck put on a full robe of gold and wanted to go back, they rushed at him, tied his hands and led him to the king.

And this king really did not like being awakened in the middle of the night. He met his chief runner angry and displeased and asked the detectives:

Where did you cover this dishonorable dwarf? - Your Majesty, - said Arkhaz, - we caught him just at the moment when he was burying this gold in the ground.

Are they telling the truth? the king asked the dwarf. - How do you get so much money?


“Dear King,” the dwarf replied ingenuously, “I am not guilty of anything. When your people seized me and tied my hands, I did not bury this gold in the pit, but, on the contrary, took it out.

The king decided that Little Muck was lying, and became terribly angry.

Unhappy! he shouted. - First you robbed me, and now you want to deceive me with such a stupid lie! Treasurer! Is it true that there is just as much gold here as there is not enough in my treasury?

In your treasury, gracious king, there is not enough much more, - the treasurer answered. “I could swear this gold was stolen from the royal treasury.

Put the dwarf in iron chains and put him in the tower! the king shouted. - And you, treasurer, go to the garden, take all the gold that you find in the pit, and put it back into the treasury.

The treasurer carried out the king's order and brought the pot of gold to the treasury. He began counting the shiny coins and pouring them into sacks. Finally, there was nothing left in the pot. The treasurer looked into the pot for the last time and saw at the bottom of it a piece of paper on which was written:

ENEMIES ATTACKED MY COUNTRY. I BURY PART OF MY TREASURES IN THIS PLACE. LET ANYONE WHO FINDS THIS GOLD KNOW THAT IF HE DOES NOT GIVE IT TO MY SON NOW, HE WILL LOSE HIS KING'S MERCY.

KING SADI

The cunning treasurer tore up the paper and decided not to tell anyone about it.

And Little Muk was sitting in a high palace tower and thinking how to save himself. He knew that he should be executed for stealing the royal money, but he still did not want to tell the king about the magic cane: after all, the king would immediately take it away, and with it, perhaps, shoes. The shoes were still on the dwarf's feet, but they were of no use - Little Muck was chained to the wall with a short iron chain and could not turn on his heel.

In the morning the executioner came to the tower and ordered the dwarf to prepare for the execution. Little Muk realized that there was nothing to think about - he had to reveal his secret to the king. After all, it is still better to live without a magic wand and even without walking shoes than to die on a block.

He asked the king to listen to him in private and told him everything. The king did not believe at first and decided that the dwarf had made it all up.

Your Majesty, said Little Muck then, promise me mercy, and I will prove to you that I am telling the truth.

The king was interested in checking whether Muk was deceiving him or not. He ordered to slowly bury some gold coins in his garden and ordered Muk to find them. The dwarf did not have to look long. As soon as he reached the place where the gold was buried, the wand hit the ground three times. The king realized that the treasurer had told him a lie, and ordered him to be executed instead of Muk. And he called the dwarf to him and said:

I promised not to kill you and I will keep my word. But you probably didn't reveal all your secrets to me. You will sit in the tower until you tell me why you run so fast.

The poor dwarf really did not want to return to the dark, cold tower. He told the king about his wonderful shoes, but did not say the most important thing - how to stop them. The king decided to test these shoes himself. He put them on, went out into the garden, and rushed like a madman along the path.

Soon he wanted to stop, but there it was. In vain he clutched at the bushes and trees - the shoes kept dragging and dragging him forward. And the dwarf stood and laughed. He was very pleased to have a little revenge on this cruel king. Finally, the king lost his strength and fell to the ground.

Recovering a little, he, beside himself with rage, attacked the dwarf.

So this is how you treat your king! he shouted. “I promised you life and freedom, but if you are still on my land in twelve hours, I will catch you, and then do not count on mercy. And I'll take the shoes and the cane.

The poor dwarf had no choice but to get out of the palace as soon as possible. Sadly, he wandered around the city. He was just as poor and unhappy as before, and bitterly cursed his fate.

The country of this king was, fortunately, not very large, so after eight hours the dwarf reached the border. Now he was safe, and he wanted to rest. He turned off the road and entered the forest. There he found a good place near the pond, under thick trees, and lay down on the grass.

Little Muk was so tired that he fell asleep almost immediately. He slept for a very long time and when he woke up, he felt that he was hungry. Above his head, on the trees, hung wine berries - ripe, fleshy, juicy. The dwarf climbed up a tree, picked some berries and ate them with pleasure. Then he wanted to drink. He went up to the pond, leaned over the water, and went completely cold: out of the water a huge head with donkey ears and a long, long nose was looking at him.

Little Muk clutched his ears in horror. They really were long, like a donkey's.

So I need it! cried poor Muk. - I had my happiness in my hands, and I, like a donkey, ruined it.

He walked for a long time under the trees, constantly feeling his ears, and finally got hungry again. I had to get back to the wine berries. After all, there was nothing else to eat.

Having eaten his fill, Little Muck, out of habit, raised his hands to his head and cried out with joy: instead of long ears, he again had his own ears. He immediately ran to the pond and looked into the water. His nose is also the same as before.

“How could this happen?” thought the dwarf. And suddenly he immediately understood everything: the first tree from which he ate the berries rewarded him with donkey ears, and from the berries of the second they disappeared.

Little Muck instantly realized how lucky he was again. He picked as many berries from both trees as he could carry, and went back to the country of the cruel king. At that time it was spring, and berries were considered a rarity.

Returning to the city where the king lived, Little Muck changed clothes so that no one could recognize him, filled a whole basket with berries from the first tree and went to the royal palace. It was in the morning, and in front of the gates of the palace there were many merchants with all sorts of supplies. Muk also sat down next to them. Soon the chief cook came out of the palace and began to bypass the merchants and inspect their goods. Having reached Little Muk, the cook saw figs and was very happy.


Aha, he said, here's a proper treat for a king! How much do you want for the whole basket?

Little Muk did not appreciate it, and the chief cook took a basket of berries and left. As soon as he managed to put the berries on a dish, the king demanded breakfast. He ate with great relish and kept praising his cook. And the cook just chuckled in his beard and said:

Wait, Your Majesty, the most delicious meal is yet to come.

Everyone at the table - courtiers, princes and princesses - tried in vain to guess what delicacy the head chef had prepared for them today. And when at last a crystal dish full of ripe berries was brought to the table, everyone exclaimed with one voice.

This is a story about a poor little dwarf Mook, who was all alone and rarely left the walls of his house. Everyone around him mocked and laughed at him. Muk got magic shoes - they could instantly transfer him to any place in the world. But the troubles of the dwarf do not end there ...

Tale Little Muk download:

Fairy tale Little Muk read

It was a long time ago, in my childhood. In the city of Nicaea, in my homeland, there lived a man whose name was Little Muk. Although I was a boy then, I remember him very well, especially since my father once gave me a healthy beating because of him. At that time, Little Muck was already an old man, but he was tiny in stature. He looked rather funny: a huge head stuck out on a small, skinny body, much larger than other people.

Little Muck lived in a big old house all alone. He even cooked his own dinner. Every noon, thick smoke appeared over his house: if it were not for this, the neighbors would not know whether the dwarf was alive or dead. Little Muck went outside only once a month - every first day. But in the evenings, people often saw Little Muck walking on the flat roof of his house. From below, it seemed as if one huge head was moving back and forth across the roof.

My comrades and I were mean boys and liked to tease passers-by. When Little Muck left the house, it was a real holiday for us. On this day, we gathered in a crowd in front of his house and waited for him to come out. The door was carefully opened. A large head in a huge turban protruded from it. The head was followed by the whole body in an old, faded dressing gown and spacious trousers. A dagger dangled from a wide belt, so long that it was difficult to tell whether the dagger was attached to Muk or whether Muk was attached to the dagger.

When Muk finally went out into the street, we greeted him with joyful cries and danced around him as if crazy. Muk nodded his head to us solemnly and walked slowly down the street, his shoes slapping. His shoes were just huge - no one had ever seen them before. And we, the boys, ran after him and shouted: “Little Muk! Little Muck!" We even composed a song about him:

Little Mook, little Mook,

You yourself are small, and the house is a cliff;

You show your nose once a month.

You are a good little dwarf

The head is a little big

Take a quick look around

And catch us, little Muk!

We often made fun of the poor dwarf, and I must confess, though I am ashamed, that I offended him most of all. I always strove to grab Muk by the hem of his dressing gown, and once I even purposely stepped on his shoe so that the poor fellow fell. This seemed very funny to me, but I immediately lost the desire to laugh when I saw that Little Muck, with difficulty getting up, went straight to my father's house. He didn't leave for a long time. I hid behind the door and looked forward to what would happen next.

Finally the door opened and the dwarf stepped out. His father accompanied him to the threshold, holding him respectfully by the arm, and bowed low in farewell. I did not feel very pleasant and for a long time did not dare to return home. Finally hunger overcame my fear, and I timidly slipped through the door, not daring to raise my head.

You, I heard, offend Little Anguish, - my father said sternly to me. “I will tell you his adventures, and you will probably no longer laugh at the poor dwarf. But first you get what you deserve.

And I relied on a good spanking for such things. After counting out the spanks as needed, the father said:

Now listen carefully.

And he told me the story of Little Muck.

Muk's father (in fact, his name was not Muk, but Mukra) lived in Nicaea and was a respectable man, but not rich. Like Muk, he always stayed at home and rarely went outside. He did not like Muk very much because he was a dwarf, and did not teach him anything.

You have been wearing off your children's shoes for a long time, ”he said to the dwarf,“ but you still just play pranks and mess around.

One day Father Muk fell down on the street and hurt himself badly. After that, he fell ill and soon died. Little Muk was left alone, penniless. Father's relatives drove Muk out of the house and said:

Go around the world, maybe you will find your Happiness.

Muk begged for only old pants and a jacket - all that was left after his father. His father was tall and fat, but the dwarf without thinking twice shortened both the jacket and trousers and put them on. True, they were too wide, but there was nothing the dwarf could do about that. Instead of a turban, he wrapped his head in a towel, fastened a dagger to his belt, took a stick in his hand and went where his eyes looked.

Soon he left the city and walked along the high road for two whole days. He was very tired and hungry. He had no food with him, and he chewed the roots that grew in the field. And he had to spend the night right on the bare ground.

On the third day in the morning, he saw from the top of the hill a large beautiful city, decorated with flags and banners. Little Muk gathered his last strength and went to this city.

“Maybe I will finally find my happiness there,” he said to himself.

Although it seemed that the city was very close, Muk had to walk to it all morning. It was not until noon that he finally reached the city gates. The city was full of beautiful houses. The wide streets were full of people. Little Muk was very hungry, but no one opened the door for him and invited him to come in and rest.

The dwarf wandered dejectedly through the streets, barely dragging his feet. He was passing by a tall, beautiful house, and suddenly a window in this house was flung open and some old woman, leaning out, shouted:

Here, here -

Food is ready!

The table is covered

So that everyone is full.

Neighbors, here -

Food is ready!

And immediately the doors of the house opened, and dogs and cats began to enter - many, many cats and dogs. Muk thought and thought and also entered. Two kittens entered just before him, and he decided to keep up with them - the kittens must have known where the kitchen was.

Muck went up the stairs and saw that old woman who was screaming from the window.

What do you need? the old woman asked angrily.

You called for dinner, - said Muk, - and I am very hungry. Here I come.

The old woman laughed out loud and said:

Where did you come from boy? Everyone in town knows that I only cook dinner for my cute cats. And so that they would not be bored, I invite neighbors to them.

Feed me at the same time, - asked Muk. He told the old woman how hard it was for him when his father died, and the old woman took pity on him. She fed the dwarf to his fill, and when Little Muck had eaten and rested, she said to him:

You know what, Muk? Stay and serve me. My work is easy, and you will live well.

Muk liked the cat's dinner and agreed. Mrs. Ahavzi (that was the name of the old woman) had two cats and four cats. Every morning, Muk combed their fur and rubbed it with precious ointments. At dinner, he served them food, and in the evening he put them to sleep on a soft feather bed and covered them with a velvet blanket.

In addition to cats, four other dogs lived in the house. The dwarf also had to look after them, but there was less fuss with dogs than with cats. Mrs. Ahavzi loved cats like her own children.

Little Muk was just as bored with the old woman as with his father: apart from cats and dogs, he saw no one.

At first, the dwarf still lived well. There was almost no work, but he was well fed, and the old woman was very pleased with him. But then the cats got spoiled. Only the old woman is out the door - they immediately let's rush through the rooms like crazy. All things will be scattered and even expensive dishes will be killed. But as soon as they heard Ahavzi's footsteps on the stairs, they instantly jumped onto the featherbed, curled up, tucked their tails and lay as if nothing had happened. And the old woman sees that the room is devastated, and, well, scold Little Flour .. Let her make excuses as much as she wants - she trusts her cats more than the servant. It is immediately clear from the cats that they are not to blame for anything.

Poor Muk was very sad and finally decided to leave the old woman. Mrs. Ahavzi promised to pay him a salary, but she did not pay.

“I’ll get a salary from her,” thought Little Muk, “I’ll leave right away. If I knew where her money was hidden, I would have taken myself a long time ago, as much as I should.”

There was a small room in the old woman's house, which was always locked. Muk was very curious about what was hidden in it. And suddenly it occurred to him that in this room, perhaps, the old woman's money was lying. He wanted to go there even more.

One morning, when Ahavzi left the house, one of the little dogs ran up to Muk and grabbed him by the floor (the old woman did not like this little dog very much, and Muk, on the contrary, often stroked and caressed her). The little dog squealed softly and pulled the dwarf along. She led him to the old woman's bedroom and stopped in front of a small door that Muck had never noticed before.

The dog pushed open the door and entered some room; Muk followed her and froze in place in surprise: he found himself in the very room where he had wanted to go for so long.

The whole room was full of old dresses and outlandish antique crockery. Flour especially liked one jug - crystal, with a gold pattern. He took it in his hands and began to examine, and suddenly the lid of the jug - Muk did not notice that the jug was with a lid - fell to the floor and broke.

Poor Muk was seriously frightened. Now there was no need to reason - it was necessary to run: when the old woman returned and saw that he had broken the lid, she would beat him half to death.

Mook looked around the room for the last time, and suddenly he saw shoes in the corner. They were very large and ugly, but his own shoes were completely falling apart. Muk even liked that the shoes were so big - when he puts them on, everyone will see that he is no longer a child.

He quickly kicked off his shoes and put on his shoes. Next to the shoes stood a thin cane with a lion's head.

“That cane is still standing idle here,” Muk thought. “I’ll take a cane by the way.”

He grabbed a cane and ran to his room. In one minute he put on his cloak and turban, put on a dagger and rushed down the stairs, hurrying to leave before the old woman returned.

Leaving the house, he started to run and rushed without looking back until he ran out of the city into the field. Here the dwarf decided to rest a little. And suddenly he felt that he could not stop. His legs ran on their own and dragged him, no matter how hard he tried to stop them. He tried to fall and turn around - nothing helped. Finally he realized that it was all about his new shoes. It was they who pushed him forward and did not let him stop.

Muk was completely exhausted and did not know what to do. In despair, he waved his hands and shouted, as cab drivers shout:

Whoa! Whoa! Stop!

And suddenly the shoes stopped at once, and the poor dwarf fell to the ground with all his might.

He was so tired that he immediately fell asleep. And he had an amazing dream. He saw in a dream that the little dog that led him to the secret room came up to him and said:

“Dear Muk, you don’t know yet what wonderful shoes you have. Once you turn three times on your heel, they will carry you wherever you want. A cane will help you look for treasures. Where gold is buried, it will hit the ground three times, and where silver is buried, it will hit twice.”

When Muk woke up, he immediately wanted to check if the little dog had told the truth. He lifted his left leg and tried to turn on his right heel, but he fell and hit his nose painfully on the ground. He tried again and again and finally learned to spin on one heel and not fall. Then he tightened his belt, quickly turned over three times on one foot and said to the shoes:

Take me to the next town.

And suddenly the shoes lifted him into the air and quickly, like the wind, ran through the clouds. Before Little Muk had time to come to his senses, he found himself in the city, in the bazaar.

He sat down on a mound near some shop and began to think how he could get at least a little money. True, he had a magic cane, but how do you know where the gold or silver is hidden in order to go and find it? At worst, he could show up for money, but he is too proud for that.

And suddenly Little Muck remembered that he now knew how to run fast.

“Maybe my shoes will bring me income,” he thought. “I’ll try to get hired by the king as a runner.”

He asked the owner of the shop how to get into the palace, and after about five minutes he was already approaching the palace gates. The gatekeeper asked him what he needed, and, having learned that the dwarf wanted to enter the service of the king, he took him to the head of the slaves. Muk bowed low to the chief and said to him:

Mr. Chief, I can run faster than any runner. Take me to the king in messengers.

The chief looked contemptuously at the dwarf and said with a loud laugh:

Your legs are thin, like sticks, and you want to enter the fast walkers! Get out, hello. I was not put in charge of the slaves so that every freak would make fun of me!

Chief, said Little Muck, I am not laughing at you. Let's bet that I will overtake your best runner.

The head of the slaves laughed even louder than before. The dwarf seemed to him so funny that he decided not to drive him away and tell the king about him.

Well, all right, - he said, - so be it, I will test you. Get in the kitchen and get ready to compete. You will be fed and watered there.

Then the head of the slaves went to the king and told him about the outlandish dwarf. The king wanted to have fun. He praised the master of the slaves for not letting Little Torment go, and ordered him to arrange a contest in the evening on a large meadow, so that all his servants could come to see.

The princes and princesses heard what an interesting spectacle would be in the evening, and told their servants, who spread the news throughout the palace. And in the evening, everyone who only had legs came to the meadow to see how this braggart dwarf would run.

When the king and queen were seated, Little Muck stepped into the middle of the meadow and bowed low. Loud laughter erupted from all sides. This dwarf was very ridiculous in his wide trousers and long, long shoes. But Little Muck was not at all embarrassed. He proudly leaned on his cane, put his hands on his hips and calmly waited for the runner.

Finally, the runner has arrived. The head of the slaves chose the fastest of the royal runners. After all, Little Muck himself wanted it.

The runner looked contemptuously at Muk and stood next to him, waiting for a sign to start the competition.

One two Three! - shouted Princess Amarza, the eldest daughter of the king, and waved her handkerchief ..

Both runners took off and rushed like an arrow. At first, the runner slightly overtook the dwarf, but soon Muk overtook him and got ahead of him. He had long stood at the goal and fanned himself with the end of his turban, but the royal runner was still far away. Finally, he ran to the end and fell to the ground like a dead man. The king and queen clapped their hands, and all the courtiers shouted with one voice:

Long live the winner - Little Muk! Little Muck was brought before the king. The dwarf bowed low to him and said:

O mighty king! I just showed you part of my art! Take me to your service.

Good, said the king. - I appoint you as my personal runner. You will always be with me and fulfill my orders.

Little Muk was very happy - at last he found his happiness! Now he can live comfortably and calmly.

The king highly appreciated Muk and constantly showed him favors. He sent the dwarf with the most important assignments, and no one knew how to fulfill them better than Muk. But the rest of the royal servants were unhappy. They really didn’t like that some kind of dwarf became closest to the king, who only knows how to run. They kept gossiping about him to the king, but the king would not listen to them. He trusted Muk more and more and soon appointed him as the main runner.

Little Muck was very upset that the courtiers were so envious of him. For a long time he tried to come up with something so that they would love him. And finally he remembered his cane, which he had completely forgotten about.

“If I manage to find the treasure,” he thought, “these proud gentlemen will probably stop hating me. It is said that the old king, the father of the present, buried great wealth in his garden when enemies approached his city. He seems to have died like that, without telling anyone where his treasures were buried.”

Little Muck was only thinking about it. He spent days walking around the garden with a cane in his hand and looking for the gold of the old king.

Once he was walking in a remote corner of the garden, and suddenly the cane in his hands trembled and hit the ground three times. Little Muk was shaking all over with excitement. He ran to the gardener and asked him for a large spade, and then returned to the palace and waited for it to get dark. As soon as evening came, the dwarf went into the garden and began to dig in the place where the wand had struck. The spade turned out to be too heavy for the weak hands of the dwarf, and in an hour he dug a hole some half an arshin deep.

Little Muck labored for a long time, and at last his spade hit something hard. The dwarf leaned over the pit and felt with his hands in the ground some kind of iron cover. He lifted the lid and froze. In the light of the moon, gold glittered before him. In the pit stood a large pot filled to the brim with gold coins.

Little Muk wanted to pull the pot out of the hole, but he couldn't: he didn't have enough strength. Then he stuffed as much gold as possible into his pockets and belt and slowly returned to the palace. He hid the money in his bed under the featherbed and went to bed contented and joyful.

The next morning, Little Muck woke up and thought: "Now everything will change and my enemies will love me."

He began to distribute his gold right and left, but the courtiers only became more envious of him. Head chef Ahuli whispered angrily:

Look, Mook makes counterfeit money. Ahmed, the head of the slaves, said:

He begged them from the king.

And the treasurer Arkhaz, the most evil enemy of the dwarf, who had long secretly put his hand into the royal treasury, shouted to the whole palace:

The dwarf has stolen gold from the royal treasury! In order to find out for sure where Muk got the money from, his enemies conspired among themselves and came up with such a plan.

The king had one favorite servant, Korhuz. He always served food to the king and poured wine into his goblet. And once this Korkhuz came to the king sad and sad. The king immediately noticed this and asked:

What's wrong with you today, Korhuz? Why are you so sad?

I am sad because the king has deprived me of his favor, - answered Korhuz.

What are you talking about, my good Korhuz! - said the king. "Since when did I deprive you of my grace?"

Since then, Your Majesty, how did your chief runner act to you, ”Korhuz answered. - You shower him with gold, but you don't give anything to us, your faithful servants.

And he told the king that Little Muck had a lot of gold from somewhere, and that the dwarf was distributing money without an account to all the courtiers. The king was very surprised and ordered to call Arkhaz, his treasurer, and Ahmed, the head of the slaves. They confirmed that Korhuz was telling the truth. Then the king ordered his detectives to slowly follow and find out where the dwarf gets the money from.

Unfortunately, Little Flour ran out of all the gold that day, and he decided to go to his Treasury. He took the spade and went into the garden. The detectives, of course, followed him, Korhuz and Arkhaz too. At the very moment when Little Muck put on a full robe of gold and wanted to go back, they rushed at him, tied his hands and led him to the king.

And this king really did not like being awakened in the middle of the night. He met his chief runner angry and displeased and asked the detectives:

Where did you cover this dishonorable dwarf? - Your Majesty, - said Arkhaz, - we caught him just at the moment when he was burying this gold in the ground.

Are they telling the truth? the king asked the dwarf. - How do you get so much money?

Dear king, the dwarf answered ingenuously, I am not guilty of anything. When your people seized me and tied my hands, I did not bury this gold in the pit, but, on the contrary, took it out.

The king decided that Little Muck was lying, and became terribly angry.

Unhappy! he shouted. - First you robbed me, and now you want to deceive me with such a stupid lie! Treasurer! Is it true that there is just as much gold here as there is not enough in my treasury?

In your treasury, gracious king, there is not enough much more, - the treasurer answered. “I could swear this gold was stolen from the royal treasury.

Put the dwarf in iron chains and put him in the tower! the king shouted. - And you, treasurer, go to the garden, take all the gold that you find in the pit, and put it back into the treasury.

The treasurer carried out the king's order and brought the pot of gold to the treasury. He began counting the shiny coins and pouring them into sacks. Finally, there was nothing left in the pot. The treasurer looked into the pot for the last time and saw at the bottom of it a piece of paper on which was written:

ENEMIES ATTACKED MY COUNTRY. I BURY PART OF MY TREASURES IN THIS PLACE. LET ANYONE WHO FINDS THIS GOLD KNOW THAT IF HE DOES NOT GIVE IT TO MY SON NOW, HE WILL LOSE HIS KING'S MERCY.

KING SADI

The cunning treasurer tore up the paper and decided not to tell anyone about it.

And Little Muk was sitting in a high palace tower and thinking how to save himself. He knew that he should be executed for stealing the royal money, but he still did not want to tell the king about the magic cane: after all, the king would immediately take it away, and with it, perhaps, shoes. The shoes were still on the dwarf's feet, but they were of no use - Little Muck was chained to the wall with a short iron chain and could not turn on his heel.

In the morning the executioner came to the tower and ordered the dwarf to prepare for the execution. Little Muk realized that there was nothing to think about - he had to reveal his secret to the king. After all, it is still better to live without a magic wand and even without walking shoes than to die on a block.

He asked the king to listen to him in private and told him everything. The king did not believe at first and decided that the dwarf had made it all up.

Your Majesty, said Little Muck then, promise me mercy, and I will prove to you that I am telling the truth.

The king was interested in checking whether Muk was deceiving him or not. He ordered to slowly bury some gold coins in his garden and ordered Muk to find them. The dwarf did not have to look long. As soon as he reached the place where the gold was buried, the wand hit the ground three times. The king realized that the treasurer had told him a lie, and ordered him to be executed instead of Muk. And he called the dwarf to him and said:

I promised not to kill you and I will keep my word. But you probably didn't reveal all your secrets to me. You will sit in the tower until you tell me why you run so fast.

The poor dwarf really did not want to return to the dark, cold tower. He told the king about his wonderful shoes, but did not say the most important thing - how to stop them. The king decided to test these shoes himself. He put them on, went out into the garden, and rushed like a madman along the path. Soon he wanted to stop, but there it was. In vain he clutched at the bushes and trees - the shoes kept dragging and dragging him forward. And the dwarf stood and laughed. He was very pleased to have a little revenge on this cruel king. Finally, the king lost his strength and fell to the ground.

Recovering a little, he, beside himself with rage, attacked the dwarf.

So this is how you treat your king! he shouted. “I promised you life and freedom, but if you are still on my land in twelve hours, I will catch you, and then do not count on mercy. And I'll take the shoes and the cane.

The poor dwarf had no choice but to get out of the palace as soon as possible. Sadly, he wandered around the city. He was just as poor and unhappy as before, and bitterly cursed his fate.

The country of this king was, fortunately, not very large, so after eight hours the dwarf reached the border. Now he was safe, and he wanted to rest. He turned off the road and entered the forest. There he found a good place near the pond, under thick trees, and lay down on the grass.

Little Muk was so tired that he fell asleep almost immediately. He slept for a very long time and when he woke up, he felt that he was hungry. Above his head, on the trees, hung wine berries - ripe, fleshy, juicy. The dwarf climbed up a tree, picked some berries and ate them with pleasure. Then he wanted to drink. He went up to the pond, leaned over the water, and went completely cold: out of the water a huge head with donkey ears and a long, long nose was looking at him.

Little Muk clutched his ears in horror. They really were long, like a donkey's.

So I need it! cried poor Muk. - I had my happiness in my hands, and I, like a donkey, ruined it.

He walked for a long time under the trees, constantly feeling his ears, and finally got hungry again. I had to get back to the wine berries. After all, there was nothing else to eat.

Having eaten his fill, Little Muck, out of habit, raised his hands to his head and cried out with joy: instead of long ears, he again had his own ears. He immediately ran to the pond and looked into the water. His nose is also the same as before.

“How could this happen?” thought the dwarf. And suddenly he immediately understood everything: the first tree from which he ate the berries rewarded him with donkey ears, and from the berries of the second they disappeared.

Little Muck instantly realized how lucky he was again. He picked as many berries from both trees as he could carry, and went back to the country of the cruel king. At that time it was spring, and berries were considered a rarity.

Returning to the city where the king lived, Little Muck changed clothes so that no one could recognize him, filled a whole basket with berries from the first tree and went to the royal palace. It was in the morning, and in front of the gates of the palace there were many merchants with all sorts of supplies. Muk also sat down next to them. Soon the chief cook came out of the palace and began to bypass the merchants and inspect their goods. Having reached Little Muk, the cook saw figs and was very happy.

Aha, he said, here's a proper treat for a king! How much do you want for the whole basket?

Little Muk did not appreciate it, and the chief cook took a basket of berries and left. As soon as he managed to put the berries on a dish, the king demanded breakfast. He ate with great relish and kept praising his cook. And the cook just chuckled in his beard and said:

Wait, Your Majesty, the most delicious meal is yet to come.

Everyone at the table - courtiers, princes and princesses - tried in vain to guess what delicacy the head chef had prepared for them today. And when at last a crystal dish full of ripe berries was brought to the table, everyone exclaimed with one voice:

"Oh!" - and even clapped their hands.

The king himself undertook to divide the berries. The princes and princesses got two pieces each, the courtiers got one each, and the king kept the rest for himself - he was very greedy and loved sweets. The king put the berries on a plate and began to eat them with pleasure.

Father, father,” Princess Amarza suddenly cried out, “what has become of your ears?

The king touched his ears with his hands and cried out in horror. His ears are long, like those of a donkey. The nose, too, suddenly stretched out to the very chin. The princes, princesses, and courtiers were little better looking: each had the same decoration on his head.

Doctors, doctors soon! the king shouted. Now they sent for the doctors. There was a whole crowd of them. They prescribed various medicines for the king, but the medicines did not help. One prince even underwent surgery - his ears were cut off, but they grew back.

After two days, Little Muck decided it was time to act. With the money he received from the wine berries, he bought himself a large black cloak and a tall pointed cap. So that he would not be recognized at all, he tied himself a long white beard. Taking with him a basket of berries from the second tree, the dwarf came to the palace and said that he could cure the king. At first, no one believed him. Then Muk suggested that one prince try his treatment. The prince ate some berries, and his long nose and donkey ears were gone. At this point, the courtiers rushed in a crowd to the wonderful doctor. But the king was ahead of everyone. He silently took the dwarf by the hand, led him to his treasury and said:

Here before you are all my riches. Take what you want, just cure me of this terrible disease.

Little Muck immediately noticed his magic cane and walking shoes in the corner of the room. He began pacing back and forth as if he were looking at the royal treasures, and quietly approached the shoes. In an instant he put them on his feet, grabbed a cane and plucked his beard from his chin. The king almost fell over in surprise at the familiar face of his chief runner.

Evil king! shouted Little Mook. Is this how you repay me for my faithful service? Remain a long-eared freak all your life and remember Little Torment!

He quickly turned three times on his heel, and before the king could say a word, he was already far away ...

Since then, Little Muk has been living in our city. You see how much he has experienced. He needs to be respected, even though he looks funny.

This is the story my father told me. I passed it on to the other boys, and neither of us ever laughed at the dwarf again. On the contrary, we respected him very much and bowed to him so low in the street, as if he were the head of the city or the chief judge.