The Jezinkas facts for kids

The Jezinkas is a fascinating Bohemian fairy tale from a long time ago. It was first written down by A. H. Wratislaw in his book Sixty Folk-Tales from Exclusively Slavonic Sources. You might also know this story by other names, like Grandfather's Eyes from Parker Filmore's Czechoslovak Fairy Tales, or Johnny and the Witch-Maidens from Ruth Manning-Sanders' books A Book of Witches and A Choice of Magic. It's a tale about courage and outsmarting tricky characters!

The Story of Johnny and the Jezinkas

This exciting story begins with a poor orphan boy named Johnny (or Jeníček). He was looking for work and traveled far and wide. Finally, he met an old man who was blind, meaning he couldn't see. This old man had goats that needed looking after.

The old man hired Johnny to be his goatherd. He gave Johnny a very important warning: "Never take the goats to the hills! Three evil witches, called the Jezinkas (Jeziňky), live there. They will put you to sleep and take your eyes!"

Johnny's Clever Plan

For two days, Johnny listened to his master and kept the goats away from the hills. But on the third day, he thought the grass on the hills looked much better for the goats. He decided to be brave and try to outsmart the Jezinkas.

Before he went, Johnny picked three strong shoots from a bramble bush. He took these with him as he led the goats up the hill.

Soon, a very beautiful young woman appeared. She was dressed in lovely clothes and offered Johnny a shiny apple. Johnny politely refused, saying he had already eaten plenty of apples from his master's trees.

Then, another beautiful woman appeared, holding a sweet-smelling rose. She offered it to Johnny to smell. Again, Johnny said no, explaining he had smelled many roses in his master's garden.

Finally, the third Jezinka appeared. She was the youngest and most beautiful of them all. She didn't offer anything but instead offered to comb Johnny's hair. Johnny didn't say a word. When she came close, he quickly used one of his bramble shoots to trap her!

The other two Jezinka sisters rushed over, trying to free their sister, but they couldn't undo the bramble. Johnny then bravely used his other bramble shoots to tie them up too, even though they cried and protested.

Getting the Master's Eyes Back

Johnny went to get his master. He brought the eldest Jezinka sister to the old man and demanded, "Give my master his eyes back!"

She said she didn't know where they were. Johnny then carried her to the river and threatened to throw her in. Terrified, she led him to a hidden cave filled with many eyes! She quickly gave him two eyes.

His master put the eyes in, but sadly, he could only see owls. Johnny was disappointed and, as he had warned, threw the eldest Jezinka into the river. That was the end of her.

Johnny did the same thing with the middle sister. She also gave his master eyes, but these only allowed him to see wolves. So, Johnny threw her into the river too.

Finally, Johnny brought the youngest Jezinka sister to the river. She gave his master eyes that only saw pike fish. Johnny was about to throw her in as well, but she pleaded with him. She promised to give his master his *real* eyes back.

Johnny agreed, and she kept her promise! She gave the old man his true eyes, and he could see perfectly again. Because she helped him, Johnny let the youngest Jezinka go. She was never seen in the area again.