A soldier came marching along the road, a knapsack on his back and a sword at his side. He was on his way home from the war.

Along the way, he encountered an old, hideous witch.

“Good evening, soldier,” she said. “What a fine sword and handsome knapsack you have. You are a true soldier! I shall see to it that you get as much money as you could ever want.”

“Thank you, old witch,” 

“Do you see that large tree?” 

The witch asked, pointing to the tree standing beside them. 

“It is completely hollow inside. Climb up to the top, and when you see the hole, slide deep down into the trunk. I will tie a rope around your waist, and when you call out, I will pull you back up.”

“And what am I to do down in the tree?” the soldier asked.

“Fetch money, of course,”

The witch answered. 

“When you reach the very bottom, you will find yourself in a great hall brightly lit by hundreds of lamps. There, you will see three doors.

In the first room, there is a large chest in the middle of the floor. Sitting upon it is a dog with eyes as big as teacups. But do not be afraid. I will give you my blue checkered apron; just spread it out on the floor, set the dog upon it, and open the chest. Then, take as many copper coins as you please.

But if it is silver you desire, go into the second room. There sits a dog with eyes as large as millwheels. Worry not—place him on my apron, and take as much silver as you wish.

However, if you would rather have gold, you must go into the third room. The chest there is full of gold coins. The dog guarding it has eyes as huge as a tower, but never mind him. Just sit him upon my apron, and he will be powerless to harm you. Then you may help yourself to as much gold as you like.”

“An interesting tale,” said the soldier.

“But what must I do for you? Surely you aren’t telling me this for nothing.”

“No,” said the witch.

“I do not want a single penny. All I ask is that you bring me an old tinderbox that my grandmother left behind the last time she was down there.”

“Very well, it’s a deal. Tie the rope around me.”

“There, all done,” the witch said. “And here is my blue apron.”

The moment the rope was secured, the soldier climbed down into the tree. Just as the witch had promised, he found himself in a great hall illuminated by countless lamps.

He stepped into the first room. Sure enough, there sat the dog with eyes as big as teacups.

“Good boy,” the soldier said. 

He lifted the dog, set him on the apron, and pulled handfuls of copper coins from the chest. Then he shut the lid, placed the dog back on top, and moved into the second room.

There sat the dog with eyes as large as millwheels.

The soldier placed this dog on the apron as well and opened the chest. Seeing it brimming with silver, he promptly threw away all his copper coins and stuffed both his pockets and his knapsack full of silver.

Finally, he entered the third room. What a terrifying sight! The creature there was rolling eyes as massive as a tower in its head.

“Hi there,” the soldier said. 

He had never seen a beast so fearsome and felt a pang of terror, but he gathered his courage, lifted the dog onto the apron, and opened the chest. To his amazement, it was filled with an unimaginable fortune in gold!

The soldier immediately dumped out all the silver, replacing it with gold. He packed in so much that he filled not only his pockets and knapsack, but his cap and boots as well. He was incredibly rich now! 

He set the dog back upon the chest, closed the door behind him, and called up through the hollow tree:

“Pull me up, old witch!”

“Do you have the tinderbox?” the witch asked.

“Ah, I completely forgot about it!”

The soldier went back and fetched the tinderbox, and the witch hauled him up. 

Once again, he stood on the road, his pockets, knapsack, cap, and boots practically bursting with gold.

“What are you going to do with this tinderbox?” the soldier asked.

“That is none of your business,” the witch snapped. “You have your money, so hand over the tinderbox.”

“Tell me what you plan to do with it right now,” the soldier warned, “or I will draw my sword and cut off your head.”

“NOOO!”

Without hesitation, the soldier sliced the witch’s head right off. Then he bundled all his gold into her apron, slipped the tinderbox into his pocket, and marched toward the nearest town.

Now a wealthy man, the soldier checked into the finest inn and feasted on luxurious foods. 

The townspeople, seeing him as a rich gentleman, eagerly shared all the local gossip, including tales of the King’s incredibly beautiful daughter, the Princess.

“How can I get a look at her?” the soldier asked.

“No one is allowed to see her,” they told him. “She lives in a great copper castle surrounded by walls and towers. It was prophesied that she would marry a common soldier, and the King is so terrified of this coming true that he forbids anyone from visiting her.”

The soldier longed to see the Princess, but there was simply no way to do so. 

Still, he lived merrily, spending his money freely and having a wonderful time. Everyone wanted to be friends with the wealthy soldier.

However, his fortune did not last.

Because he spent heaps of money every day and earned nothing, he soon grew utterly broke. Forced to move into a shabby little attic, and his friends all vanished.

One dark evening, lacking even a penny to buy a candle, he remembered that a tiny stub of a candle was still tucked inside the old tinderbox he had brought up from the hollow tree.

He took out the tinderbox and struck the flint. The moment the sparks flew, his door swung open, and there stood the dog with eyes as big as teacups, the very same one he had met beneath the tree.

“What is your command, my master?”

“Good heavens! This is a magic tinderbox,” the soldier said to the dog. “If it grants whatever I wish, bring me some money!”

The dog vanished instantly, and just a few moments later, it reappeared carrying a large bag of copper coins in its mouth. 

The soldier quickly realized what a magnificent treasure he held.

If he struck the flint once, the dog guarding the copper coins appeared. If he struck it twice, the dog with the silver arrived. And if he struck it three times, he summoned the dog guarding the gold.

Wealthy once again, the soldier moved back into his splendid quarters, and naturally, all his friends returned to him.

One night, his thoughts drifted to the Princess.

‘Everyone says she is so exquisitely beautiful,’ he mused. ‘But what good is that if she’s locked away in a copper castle surrounded by towers? How can I possibly see her? Wait! Where is my tinderbox?’

The soldier struck the flint, and instantly the dog with teacup-sized eyes appeared.

“I want to see the Princess.”

In a flash, the dog returned, carrying the sleeping Princess on its back. She was so breathtakingly lovely that anyone would know at a glance she was a true princess. The soldier could not resist kissing her, after which the dog carried her swiftly back to the castle.

The next morning at breakfast, the Princess told the King and Queen about a strange dream she had had the night before. She dreamt she had ridden on a dog’s back to a soldier, who then kissed her.

“What a highly unusual dream,” the Queen remarked.

To determine if it was merely a dream, an old lady-in-waiting was ordered to keep watch over the Princess’s bed that night.

Desperate to see the Princess one more time, the soldier sent the dog to fetch her again. The lady-in-waiting quickly chased after them and saw the dog disappear into a large house. She drew a cross on the door to mark it, then returned to the castle. Soon after, the dog brought the Princess back to her room.

However, noticing the cross on the soldier’s door, the clever dog drew identical crosses on every single door in the town, ensuring the lady-in-waiting could never trace the right house.

The following morning, the King, the Queen, the lady-in-waiting, and their courtiers set out to find the house the Princess had visited.

“Here it is,” declared the King, stopping at the first door with a cross.

“No, it is here,” said the Queen, pointing to the second door.

“There’s one here! And there’s another over there!” everyone shouted, pointing to the crosses drawn on every house in sight.

But the Queen was exceedingly clever. She took her golden scissors, cut out a square of fine silk, and sewed a small pouch. She filled it with buckwheat flour, tied it around the Princess’s neck, and snipped a tiny hole in the pouch so that the flour would leave a trail wherever the Princess went.

When night fell, the dog came again and carried the Princess to the soldier. He had fallen deeply in love with her and wished with all his heart that he were a prince so he could marry her.

The dog never noticed the trail of flour spilling from the Princess’s pouch all the way from the castle to the soldier’s house. The next morning, it was effortless for the King and Queen to track down the soldier, and they immediately threw him into the dungeon.

Sitting in the dark, filthy cell, the soldier heard the people tell him:

“You are to hang tomorrow.”

It was a dreadful prospect, made worse by the fact that he had left his magic tinderbox behind at his lodgings. He was utterly helpless.

The next morning, looking through the iron bars of his window, the soldier watched the crowds gathering to see his execution. He could hear the beating of drums and see the soldiers marching by. 

Amidst the rush of people hurrying along, an apprentice shoemaker lost his slipper, which flew right up against the bars of the soldier’s cell.

“Hey there, lad! No need to rush,” the soldier called out to the boy. 

“Nothing is going to happen until I arrive anyway. But if you run over to where I was staying and fetch my tinderbox, I’ll give you some pocket money.”

Eager to earn the tip, the shoemaker’s boy darted off, retrieved the tinderbox, and slipped it to the soldier.

And now, let us see what happened next.

Outside the town, a gallows had been built, surrounded by thousands of spectators and soldiers. The King and Queen sat upon magnificent thrones opposite the judges.

At last, the soldier was led up the ladder. Just before the noose was slipped around his neck, he requested one final favor before he died: permission to smoke a single pipe of tobacco. The King granted his request.

So, the soldier took out his tinderbox and struck the flint. One, two, three times!

Suddenly, all three dogs stood before him. The one with eyes like teacups, the one with eyes like millwheels, and the one with eyes as huge as a tower.

“SAVE ME FROM DYING!” the soldier cried.

Instantly, the dogs lunged at the judges.

“DO NOT TOUCH ME,” the King commanded, but the largest dog simply seized the King and Queen and tossed them away.

The soldiers and townspeople, gripped by terror, shouted out,

“GOOD SOLDIER! PLEASE MARRY THE BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS AND BE OUR KING!”

They placed the soldier upon the throne. The three magic dogs barked with joy, the young boys whistled through their fingers, and the soldiers stood at salute. The Princess was absolutely delighted to leave the copper castle and become Queen.

The wedding festivities lasted for an entire week, and the three dogs sat at the banquet table with their huge eyes wide open.

The Tinder Box
by Hans Christian Andersen