English Original
A little brother and sister were playing by a well when they both fell in.
A water-nix lived below. "Now I have you!" she said. "You shall work hard for me!" She took them away. The girl had to spin dirty, tangled flax and fetch water with a leaky bucket. The boy had to chop down a tree with a blunt axe. They were fed only dumplings as hard as stones.
Finally, the children grew impatient. One Sunday, while the nix was at church, they ran away. After church, the nix saw they were gone and followed them with great strides.
Seeing her from afar, the girl threw a brush behind her. It turned into a huge hill of bristles with thousands of spikes. The nix scrambled over it with great difficulty but succeeded.
Seeing this, the boy threw a comb behind him. It formed a vast hill of combs with countless teeth. The nix steadied herself and crossed it.
Then the girl threw a mirror behind her. It created a slippery hill of mirrors, impossible for the nix to cross. "I'll fetch my axe and cut this glass hill in half!" she thought.
However, long before she returned and could cut through the glass, the children had escaped far away. The water-nix was forced to return to her well.
中文翻译
一对小兄妹在井边玩耍时，不小心掉了进去。
井底住着一个水妖。"现在我抓到你们了！"她说，"你们得为我辛苦干活！"她把他们带走了。女孩必须纺又脏又乱的亚麻，还要用漏桶打水。男孩必须用钝斧头砍倒一棵树。他们只能吃到硬如石头的饺子。
终于，孩子们忍无可忍。一个周日，趁水妖去教堂时，他们逃跑了。礼拜结束后，水妖发现他们不见了，便大步追赶。
孩子们远远看见她，女孩朝身后扔了一把刷子。刷子变成了一座布满数千根尖刺的巨大鬃毛山。水妖艰难地爬了过去。
见此情景，男孩朝身后扔了一把梳子。梳子变成了一座有着无数梳齿的梳子山。水妖稳住身子，也越了过去。
接着，女孩朝身后扔了一面镜子。镜子变成了一座光滑的镜子山，水妖根本无法通过。"我要回家拿斧头，把这玻璃山劈成两半！"她想。
然而，在她返回并劈开玻璃山之前，孩子们早已逃到了远方。水妖只好回到了她的井里。