The Genre of Trolls - Doria

Kaptejnin fréga’ to, om dem int’ hár naun katt. He vist’ dem int’ ’va’ he va’ fy’ e jiur. Kattnamne’
ha’ dem aldri höst. “Ja’ hár in kajiutpojk, som hár e lislat jiur, som hejter kattun,
hun tager nåok bost mössin” tykt’ kaptejnin. Kattun vast et’stjikka’. To kattun kom, so
tåo’ hun in hejl håop me’ möss, o skremd’ bost ti áder. Tem tsjöft’ nö hun di kattun óv
kajiutpojtsjin, o han fi in ståor siumu me’ pängar fy’ ’in. So vast ’an rík jinom kattun, fast
’an kasta’ i sjön ’va’ ’an fi’ erv. (R II 131)
12) The Errand Boy and His Cat
Once upon a time there was a poor, defenceless boy who happened to inherit a sum of
money from rich relatives who had no direct heirs. When he got the money, he went
down to the lake and threw everything in it, saying: the unjustly [gained] could sink and
the justly [gained] should float. Everything sank down so that just a two-penny coin floated.
The boy took the coin and went to a rich manor and stayed there as an errand boy.
When he had been there for some time, they sent a ship abroad. Every sailor could bring
something to sell in the country they were sailing to. All of them said the errand boy
should take something too[.] “I don’t have anything to take with me,” the boy answered.
“Well, take the cat with you!,” the captain said. He did so. When they arrived at the foreign
country, they came to a castle to declare their cargo. When the captain went there,
an awful lot of mice ran there. The captain asked if they had no cat. They didn’t know
what kind of animal that was. They had never heard of the cat. “I have a cabin boy who
has a small animal called the cat, she’ll take away the mice,” the captain thought. The cat
was sent for. When the cat came, it took a whole lot of mice, and scared off the others.
They bought the cat from the cabin boy, and he got a big sum of money for it. Thus, he
got rich through the cat, even though he threw what he’d inherited in the lake.
13) Resan till konungariket Midnattssol
He va’ ejngang in ejnstaka’ bundgål, som há’ in å’sidis åkerjälu, som vext’ brá ’valit år, men
vast ’valenda messomasnatt nedertrampa’, o int’ vist’ dem ’vem som jåol’ e. I han di sama
gålin va trí söner, o tem kom’ sliutligen överens, he dem sku’ vakt’ ejn i gangun ’var messomasnatt.
Tan föst messomasnattin so ji’ tan gamblast sonin til’ hun di jälun o vakt’ o
tåo’ bössun me’ se. To ’an kom tíd o sku’ byr’ vakt’, so vast ’an sömnu, o somna’. To ’an
vakna’ opp, so va’ jälun nedertrampa’, o int’ vist dem ’vem som ha’ jåost e. To tan annan
messomasnattin kom, so tåo’ tan millast sonin bössun óv veddjin o ji’ ti’ hun di sama jälun
o vakt’, men he ji’ int’ beter fy’ han än fy’ bråodrin: han vast sömnu’ o somna’, o to ’an
vakna’ opp va’ jälun nedertrampa’. Når sidan åter e år ha’ ga’ o tan tredi’ messomasnattin
kom, so tåo’ tan tredi’ bråodrin bössun óv veddjin o ji’ ti’ hun di å’sides jälun o vakt. Fy’
han ji’ e beter än fy’ ti’ áder två; han somna’ int’, annan va’ vetsjin. To e vast midt i nattin,
so kom klokkun tolv in hejl håop me’ gåsor o byra’ tramp’ neder jälun. Pojtsjin stjeöt to e
skot, o ejn lemna’. Som ’an stjeöt so vast’ tem di gåsuna ti mamselder o fåor’ sin väg. Hun
di, som ’an stjeöt, hun vast bara blasära’. To pojtsjin kom tíd o sí, o ’un va’ i líve’, so fréga’
’an ’vadan ’un va’. Hun svara: från “konunga ríket Mídnattssól” Han tåo ’un to ti’ gålin
me’ se’, o to ’un vast frísk, so byra’ ’an frí’ ti’ ’un. Ti sliut so jifta’ dem se’. To ’un sidan ha
vari’ najn tíd i gålin, so byra’ ’un få drygt o lejsamt o vila’ ti’bak’ ti’ konungaríket Mídnattssól.
Gubbin hennas vila int’ slepp ’un, men to ’un int’ gáv se’, so sá’ ’an, he ’un sku’ få fa’,
men han sku’ kom’ me’, men he vila’ ’un int’. Ti sliut motta’ ’an let ’in fa’ ’emsend. To ’un
sku’ fá’, so breöjt ’un vígningsrin’jin sin som ha’ hennas o hans namn i se’ i två bitar o gáv
312
Select Narratives of Johan Alén