The Taffy Puller
by Val Pop
Kalamazoo Valley Community College
Spring 2007

Hilde Spielberger is the local Confectioner in the town of Hamelin. Ever since being widowed due to her husband Ernsts involvement in the first Crusades, she has taken on the venture of managing the only candy shop in the town, started by her husband 5 years ago. Hilde is only 20 years old, 6 years younger than her husband, yet has no children. The confectionery is located on the bottom floor of their two-story, wood and plastered gypsum house, which itself is positioned between the tailor and vicars residence, easily accessible by taking the west footpath.

Hilde is a deeply pious woman up to her husbands death. Her never ending faith in Catholicism eventually reaches a breakpoint when Ernsts death completely reverses her belief in God, especially since she always assumed that God would protect anyone fighting for a religious cause, yet her husbands death disapproves the idea she previously believed in. However, the limited extent of womens rights in 1284 prevents her from even being free to disclose information about her sour views, at the risk of her being beaten or tortured. Hilde finds relief from her torturous opposing views, in her knowledge of candy making, and is well known in Hamelin and even beyond, for her superb taffy and sugar candies. Her skills, friendly nature, and confectioner reputation keep her clientele just above the break-even level, enabling her to keep her sanity, and livelihood without having to marry again.

One day before the mass kidnapping, a gentleman dressed in many gaily colors of middle age and mid stature enters her store, and boldly inquires about the house delicacy. Due to the rarity of such more expensive purchases, Hilde is initially surprised at the gentleman, but quickly gives the man the price he is looking for: A melted sugar core and vanilla covered hard candy, costs four pfennings, four times as much as an average item in the store. This is a very expensive price for one item, considering skilled male masons during the same period were being paid 12 pfennings per day. The conversation progresses as follows:

"Would you like serve yourself now, or would you like me to wrap it for later" asked Hilde.

"Of course not! Who said I was buying just one?" exclaimed the gentleman in a rather agitated tone.

"How many would you like to buy then?"

"200 pieces" he said.

Hilde, struck with awe at the potential of making her largest sale ever since owning the business, takes a moment to breathe, before apologizing to the gentleman, telling him that she does not have enough reserve to meet his demand. However, she will gladly make them by tomorrow, if the customer is willing to wait one day and come back on Sunday. The man, impatient at first, eventually agrees, leaving the store in a haste uncommon to most of her customers

"800 pfennings" said Hilde, speaking as if she did not believe the gentleman would ever have that much money available to pay for the services.

After she does end up receiving the money, she hands the man four large tins for the packaged candies, and after which he is well on his way. Still incredulous to the fact that she is holding so much money in her hand, Hilde manages to thank the gentleman for his business, urging him to return again as often as he desires. That is the last time she sees of him.

Weary from exhaustion from staying up all night to meet her customers order, Hilde immediately retires for a long daytime sleep after her customer leaves. When she wakes up, it is late afternoon, and the entire town is in a frenzy of disbelief. Most of the towns children are nowhere to be found.

Within 5 hours of searching for the children, two of her tins of candy, one opened and one unopened, are found thrown away in the window ledge of a house closest to the edge of the Hamelin border. Exactly 70 pieces of Hilde's delicacies bought by that particular gentleman are found discarded and untouched. The search continues, but the children are never found.

Questions for thought:
Why do you think Pop used a ploy of having 70 candies discarded?
If one tin is unopened, one tin seems to be empty where are the other two tins? Did the man take them away with him? Was the candy a bribe for the children?

Why would 70 pieces of candy be discarded?