" Haensel reached up above, and
broke off a little of the roof to try how it tasted, and Grethel leant
against the window and nibbled at the panes. Then a soft voice cried
from the room--
"Nibble, nibble, gnaw,
Who is nibbling at my little house?"
The children answered--
"The wind, the wind,
The heaven-born wind,"
and went on eating without disturbing themselves.
Haensel, who thought the roof tasted very nice, tore down a
great piece of it, and Grethel pushed out the whole of one round
window-pane, sat down, and enjoyed herself with it. Suddenly the door
opened, and a very, very old woman, who supported herself on crutches,
came creeping out. Haensel and Grethel were so terribly frightened
that they let fall what they had in their hands. The old woman,
however, nodded her head, and said, "Oh, you dear children, who has
brought you here? Do come in, and stay with me. No harm shall happen
to you." She took them both by the hand, and led them into her little
house. Then good food was set before them, milk and pancakes, with
sugar, apples, and nuts. Afterward two pretty little beds were covered
with clean white linen, and Haensel and Grethel lay down in them, and
thought they were in heaven.
The old woman had only pretended to be so kind; she was in reality
a wicked witch, who lay in wait for children, and had only built the
little bread house in order to entice them there.
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