THE ELVES AND THE SHOEMAKER

Once upon a time there was a shoemaker and his wife. The shoemaker worked hard but he was very poor and each day he and his wife became poorer and poorer. It was not very long before the shoemaker could only afford one piece of leather to make one pair of shoes.

That evening he cut out the pair of shoes in the leather and left them on his bench to stitch the next morning. The shoemaker and his wife were very sad for they knew that they would soon be penniless.

Early the next morning the shoemaker went into his workshop to stitch the leather that he had cut. To his surprise however there on the bench was a pair of shoes already made and perfectly stitched. The shoemaker picked them up and ran to show his wife who said, “Who has made such a perfect pair of shoes?” But neither he nor his wife had any idea who had made them.

The very same day the shoemaker sold the shoes to a lady. She was so overjoyed with their quality that she paid the shoemaker twice the usual price. With this money the shoemaker was able to buy enough leather for two pairs of shoes which he cut out that night all ready for him to stitch in the morning.

Early the next morning the shoemaker went into his workshop to stitch the leather that he had cut. But on the bench were two pairs of shoes beautifully made with not a stitch out of place. The same day a man came to the shop to try on some shoes. When he saw those two perfect pairs of shoes he was so pleased that he bought them immediately and paid the shoemaker twice the usual price. And so it went on: four pairs, eight pairs, sixteen pairs, all perfectly made whilst the shoemaker and his wife were asleep.

The shoemaker soon became famous for his beautiful shoes. And he and his wife grew to be very rich. Yet they still had no idea who had made the shoes for them. So one evening after the shoemaker had finished cutting the shoes he and his wife decided to stay up and see who it was who helped them. They hid themselves in a corner of the workshop behind a long curtain, lit a candle and then waited quietly to see what would happen. Just as the clock struck twelve the door of the shop opened with a creak, and in came two tiny elves. They were dressed in old tarty clothes and their feet were bare. They were unaware that they were being watched by the shoemaker and his wife. The elves began making the shoes that were cut out. They worked so hard and so quickly that they had soon finished. Then they ran quickly away.

The next morning the shoemaker asked his wife, “How can we thank these little elves for helping us to be so rich and happy?”

“Why don’t we make some clothes for them?” said his wife. “Their clothes are old and they haven’t any shoes”.

The shoemaker and his wife both agreed that this was a good idea. And in the evening that followed they began to make the elves some new clothes. The shoemaker chose the softest leather that he could find to make them little shoes whilst his wife made two little white shirts, two green jackets, and two pairs of trousers to match. As a final thought she also made two little caps and knitted two pairs of white socks.

It was Christmas Eve when the clothes were finished. The shoemaker and his wife laid the clothes out on a work bench and then hid themselves as they had done before and waited for the elves to come. As usual on the stoke of twelve the door opened with a creak and in ran the little elves ready to begin their work. But there were no shoes to make for there were only the beautiful little clothes laid out on the bench. The elves couldn’t believe their luck. They chatted and laughed as they quickly changed into their new clothes. And before long they were ready. They joined hands and danced around the room finally dancing happily out of the door.

The shoemaker and his wife never saw the elves again. But they remained rich and happy and never forgot those little cobblers who brought them such fortune.