In 1761 Banská Bystrica flourished from its copper deposits. Copper was mined at every corner of the town and Bystrica was getting richer and richer. The town was more famous than ever and it was highly valued even by the king. But there was another reason for the town’s fame. Banská Bystrica was home for small creatures called Bonfirerunners. They were small woolly creatures similar to lizards with a long tail and very sharp teeth. They fed on fire and they loved it flavoured with copper, that is why they lived in Banská Bystrica. There was not a furnace without at least one Bonfirerunner living nearby. However, they were not popular with the citizens of Bystrica. Once they smelt burnt copper, nobody could stop them. They were so greedy for the fire that groves, parks or meadows surrounding furnaces often burst into flames. They were never careful with their food. Few sparks and the whole forest was ablaze which caused the town considerable expenses. Still, nobody said a word because Bonfirerunners had very sharp teeth and scared the people to death. One night they caused a big fire which spread over most of the town. It burnt down in less than an hour. Some people were weeping, the others were raging, they could not believe what had just happened. One of the farmers said: ‘We must get rid of those monsters. It is entirely their fault. We always watched them quietly plundering our town, but now we have to stop them.’ So people began to chase Bonfirerunners instead of rebuilding the town. The mayor of the town could not believe his eyes and he called an assembly. He said: ‘I am so disappointed! We should put our heads together to solve this problem. Instead, you are chasing those creatures that are impossible to catch. Didn’t you forget they are as quick as lightning?’ After a while, he spoke again: ‘I know what to do! We should ask them for help and if they refuse, we will force them to leave.’ ‘But how will we manage that?’ people asked. ‘There is no other way but stop mining,’ replied the mayor. People yelled: ‘We can’t do that. It will ruin the town.’ ‘I know, but if they help us, we’ll let them stay in Bystrica and it’ll be the same copper town again,’ the mayor said. Bonfirerunners learned about the mayor’s intention, and because they did not want to leave the town, they decided to help. Every Bonfirerunner took a bundle of copper and spread like wildfire into the whole world. They sold copper all over Europe, Africa and Asia. It was a huge success. The king of Italy was extremely impressed. ‘You’ve made me happy, you creatures. Long I look for copper for Venice houses. Copper in Banská Bystrica is good quality. I now send a bag of money. Grazie!’ The mayor marvelled at the sight of money coming from all over the world. Bystrica could get a new look in less than three months and that was all thanks to Bonfirerunners. ‘Thank you, dear Bonfirerunners. Not only you got the money for the recovery of our town, but now the whole world knows about the copper from Bystrica. You are more than welcome to stay,’ thanked the mayor to Bonfirerunners at the town’s ceremony. The creatures became the town’s heroes
Story from the book What Is Whispered About the Copper City, Primary School Moskovská 2, Banská Bystrica. Author of the story: Barbora Krnáčová, Primary School Moskovská 2, Banská Bystrica.
