Little Tom Thumb (Perrault)
Short summary
A poor woodcutter and his wife had seven sons. During a terrible famine, they decided to abandon their children in the forest. The youngest boy overheard their plan and filled his pockets with white pebbles, which he dropped along the path. When the parents left them, he led his brothers home by following the pebbles.
When the parents tried again, the door was locked so he used bread crumbs instead, but birds ate them. Lost in the forest, the boys found an ogre's house. The ogre's wife hid them, but the ogre discovered them and planned to eat them the next day. That night, Little Tom Thumb switched his brothers' caps with the golden crowns worn by the ogre's seven daughters. The ogre woke up and felt for the boys' caps in the dark.
With these words, and without a moment's hesitation, he cut the throats of his seven daughters, and well satisfied with his work went back to bed beside his wife.
The boys escaped. The ogre pursued them wearing his seven-league boots but fell asleep. Little Tom Thumb stole the boots and tricked the ogre's wife into giving him all their wealth, claiming the ogre was held hostage. He returned home and made his family rich.
Detailed summary
Little Tom Thumb
A poor woodcutter and his wife lived with their seven sons, all boys aged between seven and ten years old. The family struggled with extreme poverty, as none of the children could yet earn their own living. The youngest son was exceptionally small, no bigger than a man's thumb at birth, and was called Little Tom Thumb.
The poor child was the scapegoat of the family, and got the blame for everything. All the same, he was the sharpest and shrewdest of the brothers, and if he spoke but little he listened much.
When famine struck, the desperate woodcutter decided to abandon his children in the forest rather than watch them starve. He confided to his wife his terrible plan.
We can no longer feed our children. I cannot see them die of hunger before my eyes, and I have made up my mind to take them tomorrow to the forest and lose them there.
Little Tom Thumb overheard this conversation and prepared by filling his pockets with white pebbles from a brook. The next day, as the family ventured into the dense forest, he secretly dropped the stones along their path. When the parents abandoned the children, Tom Thumb reassured his frightened brothers and led them home by following the trail of pebbles.
Don't be afraid, brothers... our parents have left us here, but I will take you home again. Just follow me.
The family was temporarily saved when the lord of the manor paid a long-overdue debt of ten crowns. However, when the money ran out, the parents again decided to abandon their children, this time taking them deeper into the forest. Tom Thumb attempted the same strategy, but could only use breadcrumbs since the house was locked. Unfortunately, birds ate all the crumbs, leaving the children truly lost.
Lost in the dark forest during a terrible storm, the children spotted a distant light and made their way to a house. A kind woman answered their plea for shelter but warned them that her husband was an ogre who devoured little children.
Alas, my poor little dears! ...you do not know the place you have come to! Have you not heard that this is the house of an ogre who eats little children?
Despite the danger, the woman hid the children under a bed. When the ogre returned, he immediately sensed their presence, declaring that he smelled fresh flesh. He discovered the boys and planned to kill them immediately, but his wife convinced him to wait until morning to fatten them up first.
I smell fresh flesh, I tell you... and there is something going on here which I do not understand.
The ogre had seven daughters who wore golden crowns to bed. During the night, Tom Thumb cleverly switched the crowns with his brothers' caps. When the drunken ogre decided to kill the boys in the darkness, he mistakenly murdered his own daughters instead. Tom Thumb quickly woke his brothers and they escaped into the night.
Upon discovering his terrible mistake, the enraged ogre donned his magical seven-league boots and pursued the children. Exhausted from his search, he sat down to rest on the very rock where the boys were hiding and fell asleep. Tom Thumb carefully removed the boots and put them on himself, as they magically adjusted to fit any wearer.
Using his cunning, Tom Thumb returned to the ogre's house and deceived the ogre's wife. He claimed that her husband had been captured by thieves and demanded all their wealth as ransom.
Your husband is in great danger... You are to give me everything of value which he possesses, without keeping back a thing, otherwise he will be slain without mercy.
The frightened woman gave Tom Thumb all the ogre's treasure. He returned home with the wealth, making his family comfortable and prosperous. Some versions of the story suggest that instead of theft, Tom Thumb used the seven-league boots to work as a royal courier, earning great wealth by carrying messages for the king and court ladies, ultimately providing for his entire family and securing their future.
Moral
The tale's moral emphasized that physical appearance means little compared to inner qualities.
Yet it's Little Thumbling may bring them fortune one fine day!