Beings of the dwarf race used to swarm on the banks of the Rhine. These gnomes guarded subterranean treasures and on occasion revealed them to mortals.
The Heldenbuch, ancient book of German heroes, says “God gave dwarfs being because the land on the mountains was waste and uncultivated. Silver, gold, pearls and precious stones hid in the mountains to provide strength. God made the dwarfs artful and wise and that they knew good and evil." The stones' strength, known as a "mist-cap," made those who carried them invisible.
A class of dwarfs called Heinzelmannchen, used to live and perform their exploits in Cologne. Like the brownies of Scotland, these house-spirits attached themselves to owners of certain dwellings.
Overnight the little people made as much black and white bread as a baker wanted for his shop. In many houses they would wash and do all the housework. They remained invisible to all.
Curiosity began to torment the tailor’s wife and she wanted to see what the Heizelmannchen looked like. No matter what she did to trap and lure them, she could never see them.
Finally she strewed peas down the stairs so they might fall and she could see them.This so upset the Heizelmannchen that they disappeared from the home.
The little people went out of the town with music playing but people could only hear the music and no one could see the mannikins themselves. They boarded a ship and went where no one knows. They took the good times with them.
The story's moral reveals how the curiosity of people, which drives them to negative action, caused destruction of the necessary and positive in the world.
What deed could the people do to lure the happy workers to return?
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