Page:Lays and Legends of Germany (1834).djvu/236

 must be looked upon as indubitable evidence of their alliance with the arch-fiend. That their ‘black carriages’ was connected with the ‘death coaches’ of popular tradition, is also sufficiently obvious.





Once upon a time a glazier who was travelling across the mountains, feeling very tired from the heavy load of glass which he was carrying, began to look about for a place where he might rest it. Rubezahl, who had been watching for some time, no sooner saw this, than he changed himself into a round heap, which the glazier not long afterwards found by the road side, and on which, well pleased with the discovery, he proposed to seat himself. But his joy was not of long continuance, for he had not sat there many minutes, before the heap vanished from under him so rapidly, that the poor glazier fell to the ground with his glass, which was by the fall smashed into a thousand pieces.

The poor fellow arose from the ground, looked around him, but the mound of earth on which he had before seated himself, was no longer visible. Then he began bitterly to lament, and to sigh with heartfelt sorrow over his untoward fate; and started forth once more on his journey. Upon this, Rubezahl, assuming the appearance of a traveller, accosted him, and enquired ‘Why he so lamented,