A poor woodcutter lived with his wife and three daughters in a little hut on the edge of a lonely forest. One morning, as he was about to go to work, he said to his wife, "Let my dinner be brought into the forest by my eldest daughter, or I shall never get my work done. To help her find the way, I will take a bag of millet and strew the seeds on the path."
When the sun was high, the eldest daughter set out with a bowl of soup. However, the birds of the forest had already eaten all the millet, and she lost her way. She wandered until nightfall, frightened by the rustling trees and hooting owls. In the distance, she saw a light glimmering between the trees and approached a house with lit windows.
She knocked, and a rough voice cried, "Come in." Inside, an old gray-haired man sat at a table, his long white beard reaching the ground. By the stove lay three animals: a hen, a cock, and a brindled cow. The girl begged for shelter. The old man asked the animals:
"Pretty little hen,
Pretty little cock,
And pretty brindled cow,
What say ye to that?"
The animals replied, "Duks," which seemed to mean "We are willing." The old man told the girl she could stay and cook supper. She found plenty of food in the kitchen and prepared a good meal, but she gave no thought to the animals. After eating with the old man, she asked for a bed. The animals answered:
"Thou hast eaten with him,
Thou hast drunk with him,
Thou hast had no thought for us,
So find out for thyself where thou canst pass the night."
The old man told her to go upstairs, make two beds, and he would join her later. She did so but fell asleep in one bed without waiting. Later, the old man came, looked at her, shook his head, and let her down through a trapdoor into the cellar.
The next day, the same thing happened with the second daughter, who was sent with lentils to mark the path. The birds ate the lentils, she got lost, found the same house, ignored the animals, and was also let down into the cellar after falling asleep.
On the third day, the youngest daughter was sent with peas. The wood-pigeons ate the peas, and she too got lost. When she found the house, she begged politely for shelter. Again, the old man consulted the animals, who agreed. This time, however, the girl showed kindness. Before eating, she fed the animals barley and sweet hay and gave them fresh water. She petted them and spoke to them gently. After the old man had eaten, she ate what was left.
When she asked if it was time for bed, the animals replied differently:
"Thou hast eaten with us,
Thou hast drunk with us,
Thou hast had kind thought for all of us,
We wish thee good-night."
She went upstairs, prepared the beds, said her prayers, and fell asleep. At midnight, the house shook with great noise, but she was unharmed. In the morning, she awoke in a magnificent royal hall. The old man was gone, and in his place was a young and handsome prince.
He explained that he was a king's son, bewitched to live as an old man with his three attendants transformed into animals. The spell could only be broken by a girl with a truly kind heart who showed love to both people and animals. Her kindness had broken the spell at midnight, transforming the hut back into a palace. He then sent for her parents for a marriage feast. When the girl asked about her sisters, the prince said they were locked in the cellar and would be sent to work for a charcoal-burner until they learned kindness and compassion.