East India was besieged by an enemy who demanded six hundred dollars to withdraw. The townsfolk proclaimed that whoever could procure the money would become burgomaster. A poor fisherman, whose son was taken prisoner by the enemy, received the sum as ransom. He gave the money to the town's leaders, the enemy left, and the fisherman became burgomaster. A decree followed: anyone failing to address him as "Mr. Burgomaster" would be hanged.
The son escaped and reached a high mountain with a great forest. The mountain opened, revealing an enchanted castle where everything was draped in black. Three young princesses, dressed entirely in black with a touch of white on their faces, appeared. They assured him he was safe and could deliver them from enchantment. He agreed, and they instructed him: for one full year, he must not speak to them nor look at them; he could ask for anything, and they would answer if they dared. After a long stay, he wished to visit his father. They permitted him to leave for a week, giving him a purse of money and a coat. Instantly, he was transported back to East India.
He could not find his father in their old hut. Upon inquiring about the "poor fisherman," he was warned that such words would lead him to the gallows. He found his father and addressed him as "Fisherman," prompting his father to fear for his life. The son persisted and was taken to the gallows. There, he requested to visit the old fisherman's hut. He changed into his old smock-frock, returned, and proved his identity: "Do you not see? Am I not the son of the poor fisherman? Did I not earn bread for my parents in this dress?"
His father recognized him, begged forgiveness, and took him home. The son recounted his adventure: entering the mountain castle, meeting the three black princesses, and their plea for deliverance. His mother suspected trickery and advised him to take a vessel of holy water and drop boiling water on their faces.
Returning to the castle in fear, he did as his mother suggested while the princesses slept. Their faces turned half-white. They awoke enraged, crying, "Thou accursed dog! Our blood shall cry for vengeance! No man born, or ever to be born, can free us now! We have three brothers bound by seven chains; they shall tear thee to pieces!" A loud shrieking filled the castle. He leaped from a window, broke his leg, and the castle sank into the earth as the mountain closed. No trace of it remained.