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German title: Des Herrn und des Teufels Gethier
English title: The Lord's Animals and the Devil's
English title: The Animals of the Lord and the Devil
Story position: Volume 2, Number 62
Story designation: KHM 148 ("Kinder- und Hausmärchen")

Quick history: There were seven editions of the Grimm's Fairy Tales published in the Grimm Brothers' lifetime. Each edition was presented in two volumes. Volume 1 of the first edition appeared in 1812; Volume 2 of the first edition appeared in 1815. Both volumes of the seventh (7th) and final edition appeared in 1857.

(Take me directly to the detailed comparison in the original German.)

Here are the nontrivial differences between the first and final versions of The Lord's Animals and the Devil's using the English translation by Margaret Hunt (1884). We disregard spelling, punctuation, and grammar updates, and minor shuffling of words.

In the difference spots, "1:" indicates the first edition (1815), and "7:" indicates the seventh and final edition (1857). Naturally, Hunt worked with the final edition, so all of the words in the common passages and the lines labeled "7:" are hers. Think of the lines labeled "1:" as what she would have produced if she had translated the 1st edition. Highlighted words direct your attention to the added, deleted, or changed wording. Click on "1:" to see the difference spot in the original German.

THE Lord God had created all animals, and had chosen out the wolf to be his dog, but he had forgotten the goat. Then the Devil made ready and began to create also, and created goats with fine long tails. Now when they went to pasture, they generally remained caught in the hedges by their tails, then the Devil had to go there and disentangle them, with a great deal of trouble. This enraged him at last, and he went and bit off the tail of every goat, as may be seen to this day by the stump. Then he let them go to pasture alone, but it came to pass that the Lord God perceived how at one time they gnawed away at a fruitful tree, at another injured the noble vines, or destroyed other tender plants. This distressed him, so that in his goodness and mercy he summoned his wolves, who soon tore in pieces the goats that went there. When the devil observed this, he went

1:   directly

7:  

before the lord and said, "Thy creatures have destroyed mine." The Lord answered, "Why didst thou create things to do harm?" The Devil said, "I was compelled to do it: inasmuch as my thoughts run on evil, what I create can have no other nature, and thou must pay me heavy damages." "I will pay thee as soon as the oak leaves fall; come then, thy money will then be ready counted out." When the oak- leaves had fallen, the Devil came and demanded what was due to him. But the Lord said, "In the church of Constantinople stands a tall oak-tree which still has all its leaves." With raging and curses, the Devil departed, and went to seek the oak, wandered in the wilderness for six months before he found it, and when he returned, all the oaks had in the meantime covered themselves again with green leaves. Then he had to forfeit his indemnity, and in his rage he put out the eyes of all the remaining goats, and put his own in instead.

This is why all goats have devil's eyes, and their tails bitten off, and why he likes to assume their shape.

To identify the differences, I did a word-by-word comparison of the first and final versions in the original German. I used texts provided on the fine "Kinder- und Hausmärchen der Brüder Grimm" site (khm.li). In the comparisons below, as above, "1:" indicates the first version (1815), and "7:" indicates the seventh and final version (1857).

Und nun, auf Deutsch, mit aller Unterschieden zwischen die erste und letzte Ausgaben . . .

Gott der Herr hatte alle Thiere erschaffen und sich die Wölfe zu seinen Hunden

1: auserwählet; blos den
7: auserwählet: blos der

Geis hatte er

1: vergessen, da
7: vergessen. Da

richtete sich der Teufel an, wollte auch

1: schaffen,
7: schaffen

und machte die

1: Geise, mit feinen,
7: Geise mit feinen

langen Schwänzen. Wenn sie nun zur Weide

1: gingen,
7: giengen,

blieben sie gewöhnlich mit ihren Schwänzen in den Dornhecken hängen, da mußte der Teufel hineingehen und sie mit vieler Mühe

1: losknüpfen;
7: losknüpfen. Das

verdroß ihn zuletzt, war her und biß jeder Geis den Schwanz ab, wie noch

1: heut’
7: heut

des Tags an den Stümpfen zu sehen ist. Nun ließ er sie zwar allein weiden, aber es geschah, daß Gott der Herr

1: zusah,
7: zusah

wie sie bald einen fruchtbaren Baum benagten, bald die

1: edlen Reben schädigten,
7: edeln Reben beschädigten,

bald andere zarte Pflanzen verderbten.

1: Deß
7: Das

jammerte ihn, so daß er aus Güte und Gnaden seine Wölfe dran hetzte,

1: die denn die Geise, so da gingen,
7: welche die Geise, die da giengen,

bald zerrissen. Wie der Teufel das vernahm, trat er

1: bald
7:

vor den Herrn und

1: sprach:
7: sprach

»dein Geschöpf hat mir das meine zerrissen.« Der Herr

1: antwortete:
7: antwortete

»was hattest du es zu Schaden

1: erschaffen?« der Teufel sagte: »ich mußte das;
7: erschaffen!« Der Teufel sagte »ich mußte das:

gleichwie selbst mein Sinn auf Schaden geht,

1: konnte, was ich erschaffen, keine andre
7: konnte was ich erschaffen keine andere

Natur haben, und mußt

1: mir’s theuer zahlen.« – »Ich zahl’ dir’s,
7: mirs theuer zahlen.« »Ich zahl dirs

sobald das Eichenlaub abfällt, dann komm, dein Geld ist schon gezählt.« Als das Eichenlaub abgefallen war, kam der Teufel und forderte seine Schuld. Der Herr aber

1: sprach: »In
7: sprach »in

der Kirche zu Constantinopel steht eine hohe Eiche, die hat noch alles ihr

1: Laub!«
7: Laub.«

Mit Toben und Fluchen entwich der Teufel und wollte die Eiche suchen, irrte sechs Monate in der Wüstenei,

1: eh’
7: ehe

er sie befand, und als er wieder kam, waren derweil wieder alle andere Eichen voll grüner Blätter. Da mußte er seine Schuld fahren

1: lassen
7: lassen,

stach im Zorn allen übrigen Geisen die Augen aus und setzte ihnen seine

1: eigene
7: eigenen

ein. Darum haben alle Geise Teufelsaugen und

1: abgebißne Schwänz
7: abgebissene Schwänze,

und er nimmt gern ihre Gestalt an.

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