Tradition: Swiss Mythology
Alternative Names: The Dwarfs of the Hasli Valley
Category: Dwarf
The Myth
The dwarfs of the Hasli Valley were a hidden mountain folk who sometimes came down from the cliffs during summer. They would join the people working in the valley, either helping with their work or simply watching them, especially when the haymakers were busy. The dwarfs particularly enjoyed sitting together on the long, sturdy branches of a maple tree, sheltered beneath its thick green leaves.
One day, however, some wicked people decided to play a cruel trick on them. During the night they secretly sawed through one of the maple’s great branches, leaving it barely attached to the trunk. The next morning, unaware of what had been done, the dwarfs climbed onto the branch as they usually did. Suddenly it broke beneath them, sending the little mountain people tumbling to the ground. The wicked people laughed at their misfortune, and the dwarfs were furious. They cried out:
“Oh, how high the sky is
and how great the unfaithfulness!
Here today and nevermore!”
The dwarfs kept their word. From that day onward, they never again appeared among the people of the valley, disappearing forever from the country.
Sources
“Die Zwerge auf dem Baum.” SAGEN.at – Traditionelle Sagen aus Deutschland. Reproduced by SAGEN.at. https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/grimm/zwergeaufdembaum.html