Hinzelmann
From the book: “Der vielförmige Hinzelmann oder umständliche und merkwürdige Erzählung von einem Geist, der sich auf dem Hause Hudemühlen und hernach zu Estrup im Lande Lüneburg unter vielfältigen Gestalten und verwunderlicher Veränderung sehen lassen.” 379 pages in 12. First written down by the priest Feldmann at Eickeloh.964
For a long time, a strange spirit dwelled on the old Hudemühlen Castle,which lies in the Lüneburg territory close to the river Aller and of which only the walls remain. People first heard him in the year 1584, when he revealed himself through causing some ruckus. Afterwards, he started to talk to the servants even during the bright hours of the day. They were initially frightened by the voice which could be heard without seeing any person, but gradually they got used to it and no longer paid any particular attention.
Eventually, he became courageous and started to talk to the lord of the house himself, and had all sorts of conversations at noon and in the evening with those who attended the meals at those times. When their fear dispersed, he became very friendly and close to them, and sang, laughed, and entertained people as long as no one made him angry. His voice was delicate, like that of a boy or a maiden.
When he was asked where he came from and what his business here was, he said that he had come from the mountains of Bohemia. His people were living in the Bohemian Forest, but they did not care for him. Thus, he was forced to leave and dwell far away with good people until his circumstances had improved. His name was Hinzelmann, but he was also called Lüring. He furthermore had a wife whose name was Hille Bingels. Once the time had come, he would show himself in his true form, but he felt not yet comfortable enough to do so. He also stressed that he was a good and honest fellow.
When the lord of the house noticed that the spirit paid him more and more attention, he felt dread and did not know how to get rid of him. On the advice of his friends he finally decided to leave his castle for a while and move to Hannover. On the way there, he noticed a white feather which was flying next to the wagon, but he did not know what this meant.
When the nobleman had reached Hannover, he was missing a valuable golden chain which he had worn around his neck. He expressed suspicions against the servants of his host. But the latter vouched for his people and demanded satisfaction for the accusation which besmirched their honor.
The nobleman, who could not prove anything, sat in his chamber with a sour mood and contemplated how he could get out of this ugly situation when he suddenly heard Hinzelmann’s voice next to him. The latter spoke: “Why are you in such a sad mood? If something repugnant happened to you, then tell me of it, and then perhaps I know how to help. If I were to guess, I would say that you are upset about a lost chain.”
“What are you doing here?”, answered the startled nobleman, “Why did you follow me? Do you know of the chain?”
Hinzelmann said: “Sure, I have followed you and have provided companionship during the journey and was present at all times. Haven’t you noticed anything? I was the white feather that flew next to your wagon. I shall tell you where the chain is: Just search beneath the biggest pillow in your bed, and there it will be.”
Once the chain had been found, the nobleman thought of the spirit as even more dreadful and disturbing, and he harshly questioned him why he had caused him to have strife with his host over the chain, since he had already left his home because of him.
Hinzelmann replied: “Why do you avoid me? I can easily follow you everywhere and be where you are! It is better that you return to your estate and no longer flee from it for my sake. As you can see, if I wanted I could take away everything that is yours, but that is not my intention.” The nobleman then reconsidered and decided to return home, and, trusting in God, no longer tried to get away.
Hinzelmann now acted in a more open manner in Hudemühlen and was diligent in all sorts of labors. He was active in the kitchen at night, and when the cook put down unwashed bowls and plates in a messy heap after a meal, they were then subsequently arranged in good order, well cleaned and shiny like mirrors. Thus, she could rely on him and lie down to rest in the evenings immediately after the meal without worry. Furthermore, nothing was ever lost in the kitchen, or put into the wrong place. For Hinzelmann immediately knew where it was in its hidden corner, found it, and gave it back to its owner.
If the household expected guests from outside, the spirit was particularly noticeable, and his labors lasted the entire night: He scrubbed the kettles, washed the bowls, cleaned buckets and tubs. The cook was grateful for this, and not only did she do what he wanted, but volunteered to prepare his sweet milk for breakfast. The spirit furthermore took over supervision of the other servants and maids, paid attention to what they had accomplished, and admonished them with good words to be diligent with their labors. But when someone did not obey, he was also ready to grab a rod and teach them how to behave with it. He often warned the maids about the disapproval of their mistress, and reminded them of some labors which they were supposed to take care of.
The spirit was equally busy in the stables. He took care of the horses and brushed them diligently so that they looked as slick as an eel. They also visibly gained weight like they had never done before, to everyone’s astonishment.
His chamber was in the uppermost floor on the right side, and his furniture consisted of three pieces: Firstly an armchair, which he had woven artfully himself out of straw in all sorts of colors, and which was full of delicate figures and crosses that could not be studied without wonderment. Secondly a small round table, which had been crafted and moved there in response to his many pleas. Thirdly a bed which had been prepared for him which he had also asked for. No one ever had seen any indication that a human rested within it, and they only spotted a small depression as if a cat had been lying there.
Furthermore, the servants — the cook in particular — had to prepare a bowl full of sweet milk with chunks of white bread and put it on his little table, which then was subsequently eaten completely. Occasionally, he appeared at the table of the lord of the house, where a chair and a plate had to be set at a particular place. Whoever was laying out the table put the dish on his plate, and if that was forgotten, the house spirit became enraged. Whatever was put on the plate vanished, and a filled wine glass vanished for a while and then was returned to the same spot empty. But later on, the dishes were found beneath the benches or else in a corner of the room.
Hinzelmann was merry in the company of young people. He then sang and rhymed, and one of the most common ones was:
“If you behave well and let me be, You shall be fortunate; But if you upset me, You shall be unfortunate indeed!”
However, he also repeated the songs and phrases of others as entertainment, or in order to tease them.
Once, when the priest Feldmann had been invited to Hudemühlen as a guest and arrived in front of the door, he heard someone in the great hall sing, cheer, and make a lot of noise. He assumed that guests from elsewhere had arrived the previous evening whose rooms were upstairs and who had a merry time. He thus asked the majordomo who was standing in the yard and chopping wood: “Johann, what kinds of guests do you have upstairs?” The majordomo replied: “No outsiders. It is our Hinzelmann who is acting so merrily, and there won’t be any living humans in the hall otherwise.
When the priest now climbed up to the hall, Hinzelmann sang towards him:
“My thumb, my thumb, My elbows are two!”
The priest was surprised about this unusual singing, and spoke to Hinzelmann: “What kind of music is this supposed to be which you are singing?” “Well,” answered the spirit, “I’ve learned this little song from you. For you have sung it often, and I’ve heard it from you many days ago when you were at a certain place for the baptism of a child.
Hinzelmann liked to tease people, but without doing harm to anyone. He caused fights between servants and laborers when they were drinking in the evening, and then relished watching them. If their heads grew heated from the drink, and if someone dropped something beneath the table and bowed for it, then he gave him a strong slap on the head, but he also pinched his neighbor into the leg. Then the two of them would fight, first with words and then with deeds, and now the others got involved so that everyone would distribute blows, and the next morning everyone would show black eyes and swollen faces as a proof visible to all. Then Hinzelmann was greatly amused at this sight and subsequently related how he had managed to set them against each other. But he always managed to arrange matters so that no one suffered damage to life or health.
At this time, Otto Asche von Mandelsloh, the seneschal and councilor to the court of Braunschweig, lived in the ducal estate at Ahlden, and Hinzelmann occasionally played a prank on him. Once, when guests were visiting him, he caused a fight so that they rose up in anger and wanted to reach for their rapiers. But neither could find their rapiers, and thus they had to limit themselves to a few blows with their bare fists. Hinzelmann was delighted over this prank, and told with much laughter about how he was the cause of this strife. However, he had hidden and removed all lethal weapons in advance. Then he had watched how well his prank had succeeded, and rolled with laughter.
At one time, a nobleman had arrived at Hudemühlen who offered to drive the house spirit away. When he now spotted the spirit in a room whose doors and windows were firmly shut everywhere, he made sure that this chamber, along with the entire house, was occupied by armed people. Then he went into this chamber with a drawn rapier, accompanied by several other people. They did not see anything, but they started to swing to the left and right and into all directions so that they would not fail to hit and kill Hinzelmann if he had a tangible body. However, they did not feel that their blades cut through anything other than empty air. When they thought that they had accomplished their task and wanted to go outside when they were tired from all the fencing, they opened the door of the chamber. Then they saw a shape similar to a black marten jump out and heard the words: “Hey, hey! See how well you have caught me!”
Afterwards, Hinzelmann bitterly complained about this insult, and said that he would easily have had the opportunity to avenge himself. However, he did not want to bring grief to the two noblewomen in the house. Soon after, when this nobleman went into an empty chamber within the house, he saw a large, coiled snake on a disorderly bed which immediately vanished. But he heard the words of the spirit: “You nearly had me!”
Another nobleman had heard a lot of tales about Hinzelmann and was eager to witness him for himself. When he then visited Hudemühlen, his wish was fulfilled, and the spirit could be heard in his room in a large cupboard where numerous empty wine jars with long necks had been stored. As the voice was delicate and dainty, and a little hoarse, the nobleman believed that the spirit might be sitting in one of those jars. He rushed towards them, grabbed them, and wanted to plug them in order to capture the spirit in this manner. As he proceeded to do so, Hinzelmann started to laugh very loudly, and spoke: “If I had not previously heard from other people that you are a fool, then I could now observe it for myself. For you think I am sitting in the empty jars, and cover them with your hand as if you had captured me. I don’t think you’re worth the effort, or otherwise I would prank you so that you would have to remember me for some time. But soon, you shall be bathed a bit nevertheless!” Then he was silent, and was not heard from as long as the nobleman was present. There is no report on whether the latter really fell into the water, but it seems likely.
A devil-banner also arrived in order to drive him away. When the banner started his incantation with his magical words, Hinzelmann was initially quiet and nothing could be heard of him. But when the former started to read the most powerful incantations against him, he ripped the book out of his hands, tore it into pieces so that the pages were flying around in the room, and then grabbed the banner himself and squeezed and scratched him so that he ran away out of fear.
He complained about this as well, and spoke: “I am a Christian, like other people, and hope to reach bliss.” When he was asked if he knew kobolds and poltergeists, he answered: “What do these matter to me? Those are the spirits of the Devil, and I am not among those. Nobody receives anything evil from me, only good things. Do not challenge me, and you shall experience fortune everywhere: The cattle will prosper, wealth will multiply, and everything will go well.”
He detested vices of all kinds. He berated one of the inhabitants with hard words because of his miserliness, and told the others that he could not stand him because of this. He also scolded someone else for his snobbery, which he hated deeply.
Once someone told him that if he wanted to be a good Christian, he must invoke God and speak the prayers of the Christians. Then he started to say the Lord’s Prayer and spoke it until the sixth plea, but he merely quietly muttered the words “but deliver us from evil.” He also said the Apostle’s Creed, but in a stumbling and stuttering manner. For when he reached the words: “I believe the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting”, he expelled them with a hoarse and intelligible voice so that it was not possible to clearly hear and understand him.
The preacher at Eickeloh, Dr. Marquard Feldmann, reported that his father had been invited as a guest to Hudemühlen around Pentecost. Then Hinzelmann sang the beautiful song “We now implore the Holy Spirit” to the finish like a maiden or a young boy with a very high and not unpleasant voice. And not just this hymn, as he also sang many other spiritual songs on request, especially if those who asked him were people whom he considered to be his friends and with whom he was comfortable.
The spirit became incredibly angry if he was not treated honestly and as a Christian. Once, a nobleman from the Mandelsloh lineage traveled to Hudemühlen. He was held in great regard because of his education, was a canon at Verden, and an ambassador with the Prince-Elector of Brandenburg and the King of Denmark. When he now heard of the house spirit, and that he wanted to be treated as a Christian, he said that he could not believe that this spirit was benevolent. Instead, he must assume that the spirit was the Evil Enemy and the Devil, for God had not created humans of such a nature and form. Meanwhile, angels praised God their Lord and guarded and protected the humans, which did not fit with the ruckus and uproar and the outrageous deeds of the spirit.
While Hinzelmann had not made his presence known so far during the nobleman’s visit, he now made a noise and spoke: “What are you saying, Barthold?” (for that was the noble’s name.) “I am the Evil Enemy? I advise you, don’t say too much, or else I will show you something else and instruct you so that you shall have a better verdict about me in the future.” The man became frightened when he heard a voice speaking without seeing anyone, broke off his speech, and no longer wanted to hear from him but decided to leave the spirit his dignity.
At another time, a nobleman visited. When he sat at the table and saw the chair and the plate for Hinzelmann, he did not want to raise his glass for him. Then the spirit complained and spoke: “I am just as honest and good a fellow as this one, so why does he raise his glass for others and not for me?” Then the nobleman replied: “Begone from here and drink with your infernal fellows. You have no place here!” When Hinzelmann heard this, he became so bitter that he grabbed him by his buckle — which people used to tie their mantle beneath the throat according to the custom of the time — dragged him down to the ground, and strangled and squeezed him so that all present became afraid that he would kill the guest. And the nobleman only recovered several hours after the spirit had let go of him.
Once again, a good friend of the lord of the house traveled past Hudemühlen. But he had concerns about the house spirit about whose mischievousness he had heard a lot, and he sent his servant in order to tell the lord that he would be unable to attend. The lord of the house beseeched him to join him for lunch, but the stranger politely excused himself that he could not tarry. However, he said that it filled him with considerable dread to sit, eat, and drink at the same table as an infernal spirit.
During this discussion outside, Hinzelmann had arrived as well. For after the stranger had refused the invitation, people heard the words: “Just wait, my good fellow, you shall be repaid for this speech!” When the traveler drove onwards and reached the bridge which went across the river Meiße, the horses reared up with their forelegs, got tangled in their harnesses, and he along with the horses and the wagon only narrowly avoided falling into the water. When everything had been restored to its proper order and the wagon had driven a bit further, the wagon was turned around in the sand on level ground between Eickeloh and Hudemühlen, but without any further harm coming to the people sitting within it.
Though Hinzelmann loved to have company and mingle with other people, he nevertheless preferred to spend time with the women, and was very friendly and affable with them. There were two maidens in Hudemühlen, Anna and Katharine, whom he favored most of all. He complained about his woes to them when he had become enraged, and otherwise had all sorts of conversations with them. When they traveled abroad, he did not want to leave them and accompanied them everywhere in the shape of a white feather. When they laid down to bed at night, he rested below their feet on the blanket, and the next morning a small depression was visible there, as if a small dog had lain at the spot.
Neither maiden married, for Hinzelmann scared off all suitors. Sometimes things progressed so far that the engagement ceremony was supposed to take place, but the spirit nevertheless always managed to arrange things so that this was taken back. When one suitor wanted to speak some words to the maiden, Hinzelmann made him addled and confused so that he did not know what he was supposed to say. And he caused such a great fear that he shook and trembled. But most commonly, he made words with large golden letters appear before their eyes on the white wall opposite to them: “Take Maiden Anne and leave me Maiden Katharine.” However, if someone wanted to become popular with maiden Anne and court her, then the golden writing suddenly changed and said conversely: “Take Maiden Katharine and leave me Maiden Anne.”
And if someone ignored this and stuck to his intentions, and then stayed in the house for the night, Hinzelmann tormented him and pranked him in the dark with rumbling, thrown objects, and all sorts of ruckus so that all thoughts of marriage left him and he was glad to escape with his skin intact. He threw many of these suitors off their horses again and again when they were on their way home so that they believed they would break their necks and legs and did not know what was happening to them. Thus, the two maidens remained unmarried, reached an old age, and both died within a span of eight days.
Once, one of these maidens of Hudemühlen had sent a servant to Rethem to buy assorted things. During his absence, the spirit suddenly started to clatter in the maiden’s chamber like a stork and then spoke: “Maiden Anne, today you might search for your things in the ditch of the mill!” She did not know what this was supposed to mean, but soon after the servant entered and told that he had seen a stork sitting closely before him on the ride home. He had shot at it out of boredom, and it seemed to him as if he had hit it. However, the stork nevertheless remained sitting at the spot, and, after clattering loudly, finally flew off. Now it became evident that Hinzelmann had known this, but soon his prophecy was fulfilled as well. The servant, who was quite drunk, wanted to clean his horse which was covered by sweat and dust, and rode into the mill ditch which was lying in front of the castle. But, in his drunken state, he missed the right spot, ended up in a deep crevice, and fell off and drowned as he was unable to keep himself astride the horse. He had not yet removed the items he had fetched, and thus they needed to be searched for in the waters along with the corpse.
Hinzelmann likewise predicted the future of others and warned them. Once, a colonel came to Hudemühlen who was in particular esteem with King Christian III of Denmark, and who had served bravely in the wars with the city of Lübeck. He was a good marksman and a great lover of hunting, and thus he spent many an hour in the surrounding woods pursuing stags and boars. Just as he was preparing for another hunt, Hinzelmann arrived and spoke: “Thomas (for that was his name), I am warning you to be careful when shooting, or else you will soon have a misfortune.”
The colonel did not pay heed to these words and thought that they did not mean anything. A few days later, when he fired at a doe, the rifle burst apart from the shot and cut off his thumb from the left hand. After this happened, Hinzelmann immediately arrived next to him and spoke: “See, now you suffer from what I have warned you. If you had refrained from shooting during this time, you would not have had this accident!”
Another time, a lord of Falkenberg had arrived at Hudemühlen, and he was a soldier as well. As he had a bold and merry heart, he started to make jokes about Hinzelmann and held all sorts of funny speeches on him. The spirit did not want to suffer this for long, but started to act out and finally exclaimed the words: “Falkenberg, right now you are making fun of me. But when you arrive at Magdeburg, your cap shall be brushed out in a manner that will make you forget your mocking speeches.” The nobleman became afraid, believed that there was more was behind these words, broke off the conversation with Hinzelmann, and traveled away soon after.
Not long after that, the siege of Magdeburg began under the leadership of Elector-Prince Moritz, and this lord of Falkenberg was likewise present under the leadership of a distinguished German duke. The besieged forces bravely defended themselves and fired their arquebuses and other guns day and night. And it occurred that the chin of this Falkenberg was completely torn off by a cannon shot, and he died of this wound three days later under utmost pain.
Once, a man from Hudemühlen was on the fields along with other workers and farmhands, and cut down grains without thinking of any misfortune. Then Hinzelmann came to him on the field and shouted: “Run! Run home in all haste, and help your youngest son, for he just fell into the fire with his face and has burned himself badly!” Startled, the man laid down his scythe and hurried home to see if Hinzelmann had spoken the truth.
But as soon as he had stepped over the threshold, people ran towards him and told him of the entire accident, and he immediately saw that his child had burned his entire face in the most pitiable manner. His little son had sat down on a small chair next to the fire where a cauldron was hanging. When he wanted to reach down into it with a spoon and leaned forward on his chair, he landed in the fire with his face. However, as his mother was nearby, she ran towards him and pulled him out of the flames. In this manner, while he was somewhat burned, he was nevertheless saved from death. Nevertheless, it was strange that the spirit announced the disaster to the father in the field and admonished him to rescue his son in almost the same moment when it occurred.
If the spirit disliked someone, then he plagued them or punished them for their character flaws. He accused the scribe at Hudemühlen for putting on too many airs, mocked him for this reason, and harassed him in many ways during both day and night. Once, he merrily told others that he had given the proud scribe a mighty slap on the ear. When the scribe was asked about this, he replied: “Yes, he spent far too much time with me. He tortured me last night so much that I did not know what to do.”
But the scribe had a love affair with the chambermaid, and once, when he had visited her one night for a confidential conversation and they sat together in the greatest enjoyment, and thought that no one but the four walls could see them, the malicious spirit arrived, drove them apart, and roughly pushed the good scribe out of the door. Indeed, he furthermore took a broomstick and pursued him, so that the scribe hurriedly fled to his own chamber and completely put his love affair out of his mind. Allegedly, Hinzelmann composed a mocking song about the unfortunate lover, frequently sang it as entertainment, and recited it for visitors under much laughter.
One evening, someone at Hudemühlen was suddenly suffering from strong stomach aches, and a maid was sent into the cellar in order to fetch some wine so that the sick person could swallow the medicine with it. When the maid was sitting in front of the barrel and wanted to tap it for the wine, Hinzelmann was next her and spoke:
“You will remember that you had admonished and disparaged me a few days ago, and as a punishment you shall sit in the cellar for this night. There is no use hurrying with the sick person anyway, for in half an hour all his pains will be over, and the wine you would have brought him would have done more harm than good. Just remain sitting here until the cellar will be opened again!”
The sick person waited for a long time, and when the wine did not arrive, another maid was sent down. But she found that the cellar was locked on the outside with a padlock, and the first maid was sitting inside and told her that Hinzelmann had locked her in. While the others wanted to open the cellar and get the maid out, no key could be found for the lock, no matter how diligently they searched. The next morning, the cellar was open and both lock and key were lying in front of the door so that the maid could get out again. And as the spirit had predicted, all pains were gone from the sick person within half an hour.
The spirit never showed himself to the lord of the house at Hudemühlen. Whenever the latter asked the spirit to appear before him so that he could see if he was shaped like a human, he replied that the time for this occasion had not yet arrived, and that he wanted to wait until it was appropriate.
One night, when the lord was lying in bed and unable to sleep, he noticed a noise coming from one side of the chamber, and suspected that the spirit was present. He thus spoke: “Hinzelmann, if this is you, then answer me.” “Yes, it is me,” he replied, “what do you want?” As the chamber was currently well-lit by moonlight, the lord thought that he saw the shadow of a child-like figure at the spot where the sound had come from. When he noticed that the spirit behaved in a friendly and trusting manner, he started a conversation with him and finally spoke: “Please, for this one time, let me see and feel you!” But Hinzelmann did not want to. “Then at least give me your hand so that I can recognize if you have flesh and bone like a human.” “No,” said Hinzelmann, “I do not trust you. You are a trickster, and want to grab me and then won’t let me go!”
However, after long pleading and after he had promised not to grab him, but immediately let him go again, Hinzelmann said: “See, here is my hand!” When the lord reached for it, he thought as if he felt the fingers of the hand of a small child, but the spirit quickly pulled it back. The lord further desired that the spirit should let him touch his face. The spirit finally agreed, and after the lord reached for it, it seemed to him as if he touched teeth or a fleshless skeleton. But the face likewise retreated instantly, so that he was unable to perceive his true shape, and he only noticed that, like the hand, it was cold and without the warmth of a human being.
The cook, who was very close to him, thought that she was allowed to ask him for something which others had to refrain from. And when she had the yearning to see Hinzelmann, whom she heard talking daily and whom she provided with food and drink, she fervently asked him to grant this to her. But he did not want to, said that the time had not yet come, and after a certain period had passed he would appear to everyone. But because of this rejection, her desire only increased, and she pressured him more and more not to deny her request.
He said that she would regret her brazenness if he acceded to her request, but after even this had not changed her mind and she would not let go, he finally spoke: “Come into the cellar tomorrow morning before the sun rises, and carry a bucket full of water in each hand. Then your request shall be fulfilled.” The maid asked: “What is the water for?” “You shall learn it, for without it seeing me will be harmful for you.”
Early the next morning, the cook was ready, took a bucket full of water in each hand, and descended into the cellar. She looked around without seeing anything, but when she directed her eyes to the ground, she beheld a depression in which a naked child was lying which, based on its size, would have been about three years old. Two knives were stuck in its heart, crosswise above each other, and its whole body was covered with blood.
The maid was so frightened by this view that she became bereft of her senses and dropped to the ground unconscious. Afterwards, the spirit took the water which she had brought, and poured it over the head, which caused her to regain consciousness. She looked around for the depression, but everything had vanished, and she only heard the voice of Hinzelmann who spoke to her: “Do you see how useful the water has been? If it had not been present, you would have died here in the cellar. I hope that your hot desire to see mee has now cooled down.” He often mocked the cook over this prank later on, and told of it to visitors under much laughter.
The preacher Feldmann of Eickeloh wrote in a letter from the 14th of December 1597 that Hinzelmann had often shown a small hand, similar to that of a boy or a maiden, but otherwise nothing could be seen of him.
He always showed himself to innocent, playing children. The priest Feldmann could remember that, when he was 14 to 15 years old and did not pay much attention to him, he had seen the spirit rapidly climbing the stairs in the shape of a small boy. When children gathered around the House of Hudemühlen and played with each other, he joined them and played with them in the shape of a small, beautiful child in such a way that all other children clearly saw him. Then, at home, they told their parents how an unknown child had come to them when they were playing and had entertained them. A maid confirmed this, for once she had stepped into a chamber where four or six children had played with each other. Among them she had seen an unknown child with a beautiful face and yellow, curly hairs which hung over the shoulders. The child was dressed in a red velvet skirt. When she wanted to get a closer look at the child, he disappeared from the mob and vanished.
Hinzelmann likewise let himself be seen by a jester named Claus who was also spending time there, and they entertained each other in all sorts of ways. When the jester could not be found, and people later asked him where he had been for such a long time, he replied: “I was with the little man, and played with him.” If he was further asked how tall the little man had been, he showed a height with his hand which was roughly that of a four year old child.
When the time arrived at which the house spirit wanted to move away again, he went to the lord and spoke: “Behold, I want to give you something to keep in honor. Take care of it, and always think of me when doing so.” With these words, he firstly handed a small cross to him (it is not clear from the words of the author if it was made from silk or strings), and it had been woven with great skill. It was about the length of a finger, hollow inside, and if you shook it, it made a noise. Secondly he gave him a straw hat which he had likewise made himself, and very artful figures and images were visible through the colorful straw. Thirdly he gave him a leather glove that was adorned with pearls which formed marvelous figures.
Then the spirit added the prophecy: “As long as these items remain together and are well-kept in your house, your bloodline will flower and its fortunes will rise ever higher. But if these gifts are split apart, lost, or sold off, then your bloodline will wane and fall.” And when he noticed that the lord did not not seem to value these gifts particularly highly, he further spoke: “I fear that you won’t hold these items in high esteem and allow them to be lost. Therefore I advise you to hand them to your two sisters Anne and Katharine for safekeeping, for they shall take better care of them.”
Then the lord of the house gave these gifts to his sisters, who accepted them and kept them safe and only showed them as a sign of a particularly strong friendship. After their deaths, they were returned to the brother, who received them and they stayed with him as long as he lived. He once showed them to the priest Feldmann during a confidential conversation when the latter asked to see them.
When this lord died as well, they went to his lone daughter Adelheid, who was married to L. v. H., along with other heirlooms and stayed in her possession for a while.
The son of the priest Feldmann asked around in many places where the gifts of the house spirit had ended up, and learned that the straw hat had been gifted to Emperor Ferdinand II, who considered it to be particularly marvelous. The leather glove was in the possession of a nobleman during his lifetime. It was short and did not cover more than the hand itself. A snail had been stitched on the upper side with pearls. It remained unknown where the small cross ended up.
The spirit left out of his own choice after he had stayed at Hudemühlen for four years, from the year 1584 until 1588. Before he left, he said that he shall return one day when the lineage was declining, and then it shall flower and rise again.