H7b2. Immortal poverty. (.14.).15.16.

A man named Poverty takes an oath from Death that it will never come to him. Therefore, poverty is inescapable in the world.

(Berbers of Morocco), Spaniards, Portuguese, Aragon, Catalans, Italians (Tuscany, Abruzzo, Apulia), French (Upper Brittany, Picardy, Angoulême, Gascony, Landes), Walloons, Flemings.

( Cf. North Africa. Berbers of Morocco [when Poverty fell ill, the poor came to sympathize with her; she was touched, but asked why the rich did not come; they told her they were too busy; Poverty: in that case I refuse to meet them]: Thay Thay 2001, no. 124: 140).

Southern Europe. Spanish (Castile and Leon; also Asturias, Salamanca, Cordoba, Jaen, Huelva) [Aunt Poverty and her son Hunger (Ambrosio, associated with El Hambre) have a dog named Tarro; boys steal their pears; the aunt is kind to the wanderer; he fulfills her wish that whoever climbs the pear tree cannot get down without her permission; the boys stick to her, the aunt beats them; Death comes with a scythe; the aunt asks him to pick her pears, Death sticks; the old people cannot die, they suffer; they ask Poverty to lift the spell; she lifts it on the condition that Death will not come to her and her son without her permission]: Camarena, Chevalier 1995, no. 330D: 172-175 (translated in Malinovskaya 2002: 167-170); Portuguese {no etiological ending, but the plot is clearly the same} [God walked the earth and knocked at Poverty's door; she gave him water, bread, and straw to lie down on; as a reward he offered to grant her a wish; she wished that anyone who climbed her fig tree would not be able to come down without her permission; when Death came, Poverty asked her to get a fig and told her to stick to the tree; when old people stopped dying, God asked Poverty to free Death; this is a true story: in Sátão they still show that fig tree; everyone there is very poor]: Cardigos, Correia 2015(2), no. 330D: 175; Aragon [a blacksmith gave St. Peter, the Holy Family, etc., a night's lodging; asks as a reward: that no one, having sat on the bench, should get up from it without his permission and should not get down from the pear tree; in this way he caught Death; or it is Aunt Poverty, who let Death go on condition that she promise not to come for her anymore; and so he lives]: González Sanz 1996, no. 330, 330D: 78; Catalans (including Mallorca) [a blacksmith (soldier, gambler) sold his soul to the devil in order to get rich, to become a great master, etc.; when he met the Lord, he was polite and kind; the latter offers to fulfill one of his wishes; he asks that anyone who climbed into a sack would not be able to get out of it, anyone who sat on a bench would not be able to get up, and anyone who climbed onto a pear tree would not be able to get down without his permission; the devil comes three times to take his soul, but, finding himself in a sack, stuck to a bench or to a pear, he is forced each time to grant a reprieve of 10 years; when the hero finally dies, he first goes to hell, but the devils are afraid of him and do not let him in; then he goes to heaven and either stays there or is not let in (for having made a deal with the devil; or heaven is already full; or St. Peter offered to ask for the kingdom of God, but the man did not listen); in other versions, the heroine is Poverty; when Death comes for her, she offers her to climb a pear tree and lets her go on the condition that she will never come for her; that is why poverty exists in the world]: Oriol, Pujol 2008, no. 330: 81-82; Galicians [as in Spanish]: Camarena, Chevalier 1995, no. 330D: 175; Italians(Tuscany) [grandmother Poverty fed Jesus and St. Peter when they came, they promised to grant her three wishes; a bench by the hearth, a fig tree, salvation of the soul; Death comes, cannot get up from the bench, Poverty gets another hundred years of life; also cannot get down from the fig tree; the third time Poverty asks permission to say the Ave Maria, but does not even think of beginning the prayer; therefore Poverty is with us to this day]: Clouston 1887: 395-396; Italians (Abruzzo) [a poor youth named Poverty goes to serve Death, since only she is just; she makes him a rich doctor: if he sees her in the head of the patient, he will die, but if in the feet, he can undertake to treat; when his own death hour comes, he asks permission to say the Ave Maria three times first; Poverty did not finish reading and is still alive]: Del Monte Tammaro 1971, no. [333-d: 24; Italians (Apulia) [in winter, Grandmother Poverty sheltered Jesus and Peter; asked as a reward that anyone who climbed her pear tree could not get down without her permission; Peter was surprised; when Death came, Poverty invited her to climb the tree and she stayed there; that is why Poverty still walks the world]: Kabakova 2006, no. 39: 79-82.

Western Europe. The French (Picardy) [a poor blacksmith was nicknamed Misfortune, his dog was named Poverty; the Lord asked him to shoe a donkey, Z. did not take anything from him, the Lord asked him what he wanted; St. Peter suggested that he ask for a place in heaven, but Z. asked that no one be able to get up from a chair, climb down from a walnut tree, or climb out of a purse without his permission; Z. makes a pact with the devil, who gives him money; the first time he seats him in a chair and beats him, then asks the Devil and his little devils to gather nuts, beats him too, the third time he suggests that the Devil show his power by climbing into the purse; when Z. died, St. Peter did not let him into heaven, but he was also thrown out of hell; Z. and N. still live on earth]: Lopyreva 1959, no. 46: 209-214; Walloons : Laport 1932, no. *330C [a poor man named Poverty has a pear tree; St. Peter and the Lord are traveling, the poor man takes them in, they promise to fulfill a wish; Poverty asks that no one get down from his pear tree without his permission; Death comes; she is sent away, promising that she will never come for Poverty], *330D [a fairy has a pear tree from which no one can get down without her permission; a young man named Luck climbs the tree to eat pears; Poverty comes up, asks for a pear, Luck refuses to give it to her; Poverty asks the fairy to leave Luck on the pear tree forever; therefore Luck only throws her fruits (to people) from time to time, and Poverty continues to beg everywhere]: 49, 50; French (Upper Brittany) [a poor blacksmith named Poverty had a little dog named Poverty; the Lord and St. Peter came, the Lord asked him to shoe his donkey; the blacksmith made a horseshoe of silver, for he had no iron; the Lord promised to grant him three wishes; that whoever gets into my snuffbox would not leave without my permission; (Peter whispers: ask for paradise, but the blacksmith: do not disturb me); that no one would get up from this chair; that no one would come down from this walnut tree without permission; once sold the devil his soul for 20 years of life; after 20 years he offered the devil to sit in the chair; so he received another 20 years; when 4 devils came, the blacksmith offered them to climb for nuts; after another 20 years the chief devil came; the blacksmith said that he wanted to make sure: devils can become ants and climb into the snuffbox; for a long time there were no quarrels or wars, but the judges had nothing to do and they persuaded the authorities to force the blacksmith to release the devils; the blacksmith released them, having received a promise not to come to him; when the blacksmith finally died, St. Peter did not let him into heaven; the devils did not let him into hell; therefore poverty and hunger live on earth]: Sébillot 1994, no. 24: 148-153; French (old sources, apparently without indication of the place of recording, p. 350; Angoulême, p. 357; Landes, p. 359) [publications containing the motif of Poverty (C), C2 (Poverty) as the heroine/hero of the story and/or B9 (therefore Poverty lives on earth)]: Delarue, Tenèze 1964: 350-362; French(Gascony) [an old man named Poverty kindly allowed St. Peter to pick oranges from his tree; the latter promised to grant his wish; N. wished that whoever climbed the tree could not come down without his permission; when Death came, he asked her to pick the last orange for him; told her to stick to the tree; let her go on her promise not to come to him again; therefore there will always be poverty in the world]: Dardy 1891, no. 25: 89-91; Flemings [boys steal the pears of a poor woman named Poverty; one day an old man comes, the woman shares her last bread with him; he offers to fulfill her request, she wants that whoever climbs her pear tree could not come down without her permission; the marauders immediately stuck, she let them go a year later; when Death came, Poverty offered her to climb the pear tree; [She released him after 10 years on his promise not to come for her; and so he lives among people]: Van den Berg 2000, No. 22: 30-33.