SALT – GLASS MOUNTAIN (A Polish-like Fairy tale) http://www.behindthename.com/names/usage/polish http://www.behindthename.com/namesakes/list/polish-rulers/alpha https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rivers_of_Poland
Once upon the time there was a small kingdom. It was called the Jan's kingdom but some people often called it the River Kingdom because it was situated between two rivers, the river Nistula and the river Nisloka. The rivers were very important for the local people thanks to the rivers there were lots of wells in the towns and villages with good drinking water, the rivers were full of fish and salt, which was mined nearby, was taken on boats to other kingdoms and sold there. Because of the salt, some people also called the kingdom the Salt Kingdom. Salt was precious at that time and so you might think that it was a rich kingdom and that there were no poor people and beggars, but unfortunately it was not true - most of the inhabitants were very poor and it was difficult for them to feed their children.
The thing was, that king Jan was not a good king. His father died early and so he became a king very young. He loved tournaments and feasts and they cost a lot of money so all the profit from the salt mine was spent on it. Moreover, all the inhabitants have to pay high taxes and if they did not, they lost their little fields and houses or they were even put in prison. Maciej was an elderly man living in the Jan´s kingdom and he was a shoemaker and rope maker. He worked hard but he did not earn enough to buy enough bread for his big family. Ola was the oldest of his 12 children and together with her younger siblings she helped their mum growing corn in their little field and vegetables in their little garden. Life was difficult for them but in spite of that she was merry and kind to all people in the neighbourhood.
Once it happened that Ola was working in their little garden when the young king was passing by. As he was thirsty, he jumped down his horse, called her and asked her to bring him something to drink. Ola took a mug, filled it with fresh water from their well and handed it to the king. Without saying thank you, he sipped some of it and spit it out. Angrily he shouted at her: “How do you dare too offer me just plain water! I am the king and I drink only wine!� But they were a poor family and they did not have any wine. The king left in anger. However, Ola was not cross with him - she knew that bad-tempered people were often unhappy and lonely people. Soon after, the young king went hunting together with his cohort. In the middle of the forest he saw a beautiful huge bald eagle
and started hunting it. As his horse was faster than the others, soon he was on his own. His horse was fast but the eagle was even faster and so the king lost it. He got down his horse, took out his leather bag with wine and started to drink. All of the sudden, an old and short man appeared and asked him for some wine. The young king got angry and shouted at him: “How do you dare to ask me for wine! I am the king of this country and you are just a beggar!� However, the old thin man was not a beggar; he was a wizard. When he heard the king, he got furious, took out his magic wand and said a spell. At that moment, the Salt Mountain that was in sight from there, all covered with a thick lawyer of salt that looked like glass and the young king found himself on its top.
On the mountain, there was nothing but a half-dry tree and a small old shabby hut with a simple bed and a table. On the table there was a mug of plain water, a slice of bread and binoculars. Every day, the huge bald eagle, brought him some new fresh water and some bread. The mountain was very tall, steep and now also extremely slippery, so there was no chance to get down safe and sound and so the young king had to stay there. He was very unhappy, he had a lot of time to remember the good times and think about his previous life. Besides that, he spent a lot of time using the binoculars and watching the poor people living below the mountain. He could see that life was difficult for them but he could also see that they were kind to each other and helped each other when they could.
You might think now that the inhabitants of the kingdom did not miss him at all. But it was not true. Even if the salt mines were closed now, the king from the neighbouring kingdom thought it was a rich country and wanted to conquer it, take the treasures and slave the people. His army was gathering close to the borders and the inhabitants of Jan´s kingdom were scared. Ola's family worried too. Ola remembered her meeting with the young king and there was a rumour that he was punished for his behaviour and was kept on the top of the Salt Mountain, now covered with slippery salt surface and completely inaccessible. She felt sorry for him and she also thought that if someone helped him get down, he could gather his soldiers and face the enemy.
She started thinking about how she could rescue him. She noticed that a huge bald eagle filled a leather bag with spring water from their well every morning and then it flew to the top of the mountain. She tried to tame it by giving it some fish and talking to it. She explained that she wanted to help the young king and his people. Day after day the eagle was getting more used to her and it looked like it understood her. So one day she summoned the courage, she came close to it and she bound a very long cannabis ladder to its claw with her handkerchief. She had made the ladder from her father´s ropes.
The eagle took off and flew to the top of the mountain as usual and it sat down of the roof of the hut. When the young king saw the rope ladder, he attached it to the tree standing in front of the hut. Then he threw the rest of the ladder down and started climbing down the mountain. It was a hard job and took him hours; all the time the huge bald eagle was following him and watching him but it did not attack him. In the end he got down safe and sound. And when he was down and could feel real soil under his feet, all the salt glassy surface from the Salt Mountain was gone.
The eagle led him the small cottage where Ola and her family lived. King Jan, who had changed and was very happy that he escaped from the mountain, was eager to know who had sent him the ladder. So when he came to the cottage, he knocked the door and asked who made the rope ladder for him. Ola´s father Maciej told him that Ola made it all by herself. Not only the young king was thankful, he also liked the pretty girl and so he proposed to her. When the king from the neighbouring country found out that king Jan was back, he and his army packed and moved on. And King Jan married kind and pretty Ola and they lived ever after.