{"collection":"folklore-oral-tradition","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_79327/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_79327","id":"gutenberg_79327","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/79327","summary":null,"tags":["Fairy tales -- France -- Translations into English","Folklore -- France"],"text":"[Illustration: _Frontis. See page 159._\n\n    THE YOUNG LORD SAW A CHARMING GIRL SEATED AMONG THE BRANCHES.]\n\n\n\n\n                                FRENCH\n                              FAIRY TALES\n\n                             TRANSLATED BY\n                                M. CARY\n\n                            ILLUSTRATED BY\n                             E. BOYD SMITH\n\n                               NEW YORK\n                       THOMAS Y. CROWELL COMPANY\n                              PUBLISHERS\n\n\n\n\n                     COPYRIGHT, 1887 AND 1903, BY\n                     THOMAS Y. CROWELL AND COMPANY\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTORY NOTE\n\n\nThe young readers into whose hands this book may come, will care little\nfor a preface which only keeps them from the entertainment which they\nhave learned unfailingly to expect from such stories. But their elders\nhave rights which the purveyors of folk-stories are bound to respect;\nfor these popular tales, or old wives\u2019 fables, while losing none of\ntheir popularity in the nursery, have descended thence, and found\na place also in the parlor and the study. They are like the rough\nlittle box which the kind fairy has given to the little brother, and\nat which his elders at first look with disdain, until, when it has\nbeen opened, and fold after fold of rich stuff has tumbled out of it,\nthey value it highly, for all its outward roughness, and even would\ndespoil the youngest of his magic prize. The fairy stories, which had\nhitherto been only food for childish entertainment, became, in the\nhands of the brothers Grimm and the philologians and literary students\nwho succeeded them, the foundation of a science rich in conclusions\nrespecting portions of human history anterior to or unrepresented in\nmore artificial literary memorials.\n\nIt is not possible, in an introductory page or two, to say anything\nof all that the study of such stories and of their transmission has\nadded to the sum of modern learning, nor of the light they throw on\npeasant character; but it is only justice to readers who approach\nthese studies from this point of view, with a more or less scientific\ninterest in studies of folk-lore, to state the sources whence the tales\nin this collection have been translated, and to attest the fidelity of\nthe translation. Of these stories,--derived from the French provinces\nor, in one or two cases, colonies,--the first part, extending to page\n192, have been selected and translated from the pages of the admirable\nFrench folk-lore journal, \u201cM\u00e9lusine,\u201d of which the first volume\nappeared in 1878, the second in 1884 and 1885, the third in 1886 and\n1887; the remaining stories have been selected and translated from\nPaul S\u00e9billot\u2019s \u201cContes des Provinces de la France\u201d (Paris, 1884).\nScrupulous care has been taken to preserve a note of the sources of the\nstories.\n\nNaturally some slight verbal changes have here and there been\nnecessary; but these have been few in number. In all other passages,\na scrupulous fidelity to the original has been aimed at, and has, I\nbelieve, been attained.\n\n  J. F. JAMESON.\n\n\n\n\nContents\n\n\n                                                   PAGE\n\n  THE LEGEND OF THE LAKE OF ISSARL\u00c8S                  1\n\n  THE FAIRIES AND THE TWO HUNCHBACKS                  6\n\n  THE SKILFUL THIEF                                   8\n\n  THE KING\u2019S THREE SONS                              23\n\n  THE HARE, THE BEAR, AND THE FOX                    33\n\n  PAPA TIGER AND PAPA SHEEP                          52\n\n  JOHN BIT-OF-A-MAN                                  60\n\n  LONG TIME                                          65\n\n  SKILFUL JOHN                                       69\n\n  THE TAILOR AND THE HURRICANE                       72\n\n  THE BAKER\u2019S THREE DAUGHTERS                        85\n\n  YOU MUST NOT WORK ON SUNDAY                       102\n\n  DESTINY                                           106\n\n  THE LITTLE ANT THAT WAS GOING TO JERUSALEM,\n  AND THE SNOW                                      110\n\n  THE MOST POWERFUL HUSBAND IN THE WORLD            114\n\n  THE NINE BROTHERS, WHO WERE CHANGED TO SHEEP,\n  AND THEIR SISTER                                  117\n\n  THE KING AND HIS THREE SONS                       127\n\n  FANCH SCOUARNEC                                   130\n\n  THE ROEBUCK HUNT                                  148\n\n  PIERRE AND HELENE                                 153\n\n  THE THREE EGGS                                    166\n\n  THE THREE BROTHERS                                176\n\n  THE COCK\u2019S WIFE                                   189\n\n  THE CASTLE HUNG IN THE AIR                        193\n\n  THE TWO SOLDIERS                                  204\n\n  THE THREE BROTHERS AND THE GIANT                  210\n\n  THE FAIRY AND THE DAUGHTER OF THE EARTH           220\n\n  SISTER AND HALF-SISTER                            232\n\n  THE FAIRIES\u2019 SHIP                                 237\n\n  THE SHEPHERD WHO WON THE KING\u2019S DAUGHTER BY A\n  SINGLE WORD                                       246\n\n  THE ENCHANTED RING                                251\n\n  THE SIREN OF LA FRESNAYE                          259\n\n  THE LITTLE HUNCHBACK                              267\n\n  THE PRINCESS OF TRONKOLAINE                       276\n\n\n\n\nFrench Fairy Tales\n\nTHE LEGEND OF THE LAKE OF ISSARL\u00c8S\n\n\nNorthwest of Ard\u00e8che, on the limits of Haute-Loire and Loz\u00e8re, in the\ncommune of Issarl\u00e8s, may be seen one of the largest lakes formed by the\nvolcanic craters of the Northern C\u00e9vennes. The origin of the lake is\nthus told in a legend heard from an old woman of Sainte Eulalie, the\nnext commune to Issarl\u00e8s.\n\nThere was, in old times, not far from where I live, a large parish with\nhouses scattered far apart in the rural portions, and containing only\none town, named Issarl\u00e8s. One day a poor man came to this parish to\nask for alms. He began in the country. At the first house to which he\ncame, he cried, \u201cGive me something, for I am hungry.\u201d \u201cOh! my friend,\nI have nothing for you,\u201d answered the woman, pityingly. \u201cHave you not\neven a few potatoes in your pot?\u201d said he. \u201cYes,\u201d replied the woman,\n\u201cthere are two, if you want them.\u201d The poor man took one and departed.\nThen he walked on, and came to another house. \u201cGive me something, for\nthe love of God,\u201d he cried. The woman rose, and said, \u201cMy friend, we\nhave no bread, but the dough is in the tray all ready; the oven is\nalmost warm enough; we shall soon bake it, and then we will give you\nsome sweet bread; sit down and wait.\u201d The poor man said, \u201cYour bread\nis baked.\u201d The woman said to her husband, \u201cMy husband, the poor man\nsays that our bread, which is in the tray, is already baked. How can\nthat be? We have not yet put it in the oven.\u201d The husband looked into\nthe tray and saw the bread already baked, and near the large loaves he\nsaw a small sweet loaf. \u201cWhat you have declared is really so,\u201d said he\nto the poor man; \u201cthe bread is baked without having been in the oven.\nIt is God\u2019s doing. Sit down at our table, and eat with us.\u201d The poor\nman refused. \u201cThen take,\u201d said the husband, \u201cthe loaf that my wife\nwished to prepare for you, and which is already baked as well as the\nlarge loaves.\u201d The poor man took the loaf, and before leaving, said to\nthe husband, \u201cIn a little while you will hear a great noise; don\u2019t be\nfrightened.\u201d\n\n[Illustration: THE BOTTOM OF THE LAKES OF ISSARL\u00c9S.]\n\nAt some distance from the house, the poor man met two little children\nplaying by the roadside. \u201cWhat are you doing, my children?\u201d \u201cWe are\nplaying.\u201d \u201cAre you hungry?\u201d \u201cNo.\u201d \u201cIf you want some sweet bread, I\nwill give you some.\u201d \u201cHungry or not, we can eat it very well,\u201d said\nthe children. The poor man divided his sweet loaf, and gave half of it\nto each of the children, who ran off with it to their mother. \u201cMamma,\na poor man gave us each half a sweet loaf,\u201d they cried. Their mother\nscolded them. \u201cNever take bread from beggars,\u201d she said; \u201cit is not\nclean; I forbid your eating it.\u201d \u201cMamma, it is very good; it is better\nthan our bread.\u201d \u201cI forbid your eating it; I do not know the person who\ngave it to you,\u201d and saying this, she took the pieces of bread from the\nchildren\u2019s hands and threw them into the chicken coop.\n\nA few moments after, the poor man appeared at the door of this woman\u2019s\nhouse, which was at the entrance of the town. The children pointed him\nout to their mother, who said, \u201cYou begging! you, who can give bread\nto the children you find on the road! You had better keep your bread;\nit is not fit food for my children. For me, I have nothing to give to\nthose who themselves can give.\u201d The poor man went away; he entered the\ntown, begging from house to house, and everywhere was driven away. He\nwas about to leave the town, when in the suburbs, he saw two little\nhouses, and thought he would make one more attempt, by applying there.\nA woman came out of the first house to which he went, and said, \u201cI have\nno bread, I have only leaven; do you want some? I will give you some.\u201d\n\u201cI cannot eat leaven,\u201d replied the poor man. Now, this woman told a\nlie, for she had bread, but did not wish to give him any.\n\nThe poor man went a few steps further on, and soon came to the second\nhouse. A woman was seated by the wall, milking a goat. \u201cI am very\nthirsty,\u201d said the beggar; \u201cwould you give me a little milk?\u201d \u201cAh! my\nfriend,\u201d she answered, \u201cI will give you all my goat\u2019s milk, if you\nwant it.\u201d \u201cI do not want all the milk of your goat; a little will be\nenough for me.\u201d The woman went to get a glass; filled it with milk,\nand offered it to the beggar, saying, \u201cWill you dip some bread in it?\u201d\n\u201cNo; I am not hungry; I am only thirsty, and I have more than enough\nto drink.\u201d Then he drank, and as the woman continued to milk her goat,\nJesus drew near to her (for the beggar was Jesus), and said: \u201cYou will\nsoon hear a great noise, but no matter how loud it may be, or from what\ndirection it may come, do not move; continue milking your goat.\u201d\n\nAt that very moment, a tremendous noise burst upon them. It was the\ntown of Issarl\u00e8s sinking down into the yawning earth. The woman half\nturned her head to see whence the noise came; she had no sooner done\nso than she was swallowed up with the town. The ruins were immediately\ncovered up by a sheet of water.\n\nOn a clear day one may see to the bottom of the lake the ruins of the\ntown of Issarl\u00e8s, and distinguish clearly by the side of a small house,\nthe last in the town, a woman, who with both her hands is milking a\ngoat. I have seen her many a time when I was passing along the shore.\n\n  VICTOR SMITH.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FAIRIES AND THE TWO HUNCHBACKS\n\nA STORY OF PICARDY\n\n\nOnce there were three fairies who used to amuse themselves by dancing\nround and round, and singing, \u201cSunday, Monday; Sunday, Monday.\u201d One\nday a little hunchback surprised them at this sport, and without\nbeing afraid, he took them by the hand and began to dance with them,\nrepeating also, \u201cSunday, Monday; Sunday, Monday.\u201d He danced so prettily\nthat the fairies were charmed, and to reward him took away his hunch.\nPerfectly happy, he returned home, constantly singing as he went,\n\u201cSunday, Monday; Sunday, Monday.\u201d On the road he met another little\nhunchback whom he knew. The latter was greatly astonished to see his\nfriend relieved of his hunch, and said: \u201cHow did you manage it? Your\nhunch is gone.\u201d \u201cIt is all very easy,\u201d replied the other; \u201cyou have\nonly to go to a certain wood, when you will find some fairies; you must\ndance with them and sing, \u2018Sunday, Monday; Sunday, Monday,\u2019 and they\nwill take away your hunch.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will go, I will go at once,\u201d cried the little hunchback, and\nstarted immediately for the wood to which he had been directed, where,\nsure enough, he found the three fairies. Without hesitating, he took\nthem by the hand and danced with them, repeating, \u201cSunday, Monday.\u201d\nBut unhappily for him, he added, \u201cTuesday, Wednesday.\u201d The fairies,\nindignant, added to his hunch that of the first hunchback, so that he\nwas a fright to behold, so frightful that if you had seen him you would\nhave run away from him. And then?--And then the cock crew, and it was\nday.\n\n Told by Auguste Gourdin, miller, aged 63, at Warloy-Baillon (Somme).\n\nHENRI CARNOY.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SKILFUL THIEF\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nThere was once upon a time a poor man who had two children, a boy and a\ngirl, Efflam and H\u00e9nori.\n\nOne day the father said to Efflam: \u201cMy son, now that you are grown up,\nyou should be able to get your own living and take care of yourself.\nSuppose you go to Paris and seek your fortune.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, father,\u201d said Efflam; \u201cI will go to Paris and seek my\nfortune.\u201d\n\nAnd so the next day Efflam set out for Paris. He traveled and traveled,\nalways on foot. Once night surprised him in the midst of a deep forest.\nHe got up in a tree to wait for the morning, and to keep himself safe\nfrom the wild beasts. Soon three robbers laden with booty stopped\nunder the tree. They lifted a large stone and deposited their booty\nin a cavern whose entrance the stone had concealed. Then they seated\nthemselves under the tree to eat and drink, meanwhile talking of their\nadventures. Efflam listened, and this is what he heard:--\n\n\u201cI,\u201d said one of the robbers, \u201chave a marvelous cloak which carries me\nthrough the air, wherever I wish to go.\u201d\n\n\u201cI,\u201d said the second, \u201chave a hat which renders me invisible, and when\nI have it on my head I can go everywhere without being seen by any one.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd I,\u201d said the third, \u201chave some boots with which I can walk as\nswiftly as the wind blows.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I could have the cloak, the hat, and the boots, or only one of the\nthree,\u201d said Efflam to himself, \u201cthat would easily make my fortune; but\nhow can I manage it?\u201d Then he turned it over in his head, and hit upon\nthis plan: that, by letting himself down through the leafy branches,\nhe would fall into the midst of the robbers and shout, \u201cStop, thief!\u201d\nso as to make them believe that the devil or the police were at their\nheels. No sooner said than done, and the three robbers, seized with\nfright, ran off as fast as they could, leaving on the ground the cloak,\nthe hat, and the boots.\n\nEfflam seized the three talismans, and, having put on the boots, he\nsoon found himself in Paris. As he was walking along the streets,\nastonished at the beautiful things he saw on all sides, he noticed\na jeweler\u2019s shop which seemed finer and richer than the others, and\nwas tempted to take from it a few articles of value. He put on his\nmagic hat, made his way into the shop without being perceived by any\none, and took everything he pleased. Afterward, in order to get ready\nmoney, he sold in another shop the articles he had obtained in this\nway. Meeting a soldier from his own country, he led him a gay life for\nseveral days. When the money was all gone, Efflam was at no loss to\nknow how to get more. One day he saw at a market a vender of earthen\nvases who was doing a good business, and put his money, as he received\nit, into a wooden chest beside him. \u201cI must take away his chest,\u201d said\nEfflam to himself, and putting on his hat, he easily carried off the\nchest, took it where no one could see him, broke it open, took the\nmoney which was in it, and once more lived a gay life while it lasted.\n\nAnother day, as he was taking a walk through one of the squares of\nthe city, he overheard three men talking together about the king\u2019s\ntreasure. They were saying that they thought it a needless piece of\ncaution on the king\u2019s part to place sentinels near the tower which\ncontained his treasure, because, since there were neither doors nor\nwindows to this tower, and the walls were so thick and solid, it was\nimpossible to make the slightest breach in it. \u201cVery good,\u201d said Efflam\nto himself; \u201cnow I know where the king\u2019s treasure is.\u201d Then, addressing\nthe three men, he said, \u201cSo you think it impossible to steal the king\u2019s\ntreasure?\u201d \u201cWhy, yes,\u201d they answered. \u201cWell, I, for one, do not think\nso.\u201d And with that he left them. When night had come, he repaired to\nthe foot of the tower, and having spread his magic cloak on the ground,\nhe seated himself on it, put on his hat, and said, \u201cCloak, do your\nduty, and bear me immediately into the king\u2019s treasure-chamber.\u201d This\nwas immediately done without being perceived by the guards or any one\nelse. He went out in the same manner, with his pockets filled with gold\nand silver. The next night, and the next, and every night after that,\nhe returned to the attack, and always with the same success. Having\nnow become rich in a short time, he bought a palace, and sent for his\nfather and sister. On the day on which they were to arrive he went to\nmeet them with a fine carriage drawn by two horses. When he had got\nabout three miles from the city, seeing his father and sister coming\nalong the road on foot, and poorly clad, he ordered his coachman to\nreturn to his house with one of the horses, and bring him a box which\nhe had forgotten and left on the table in his chamber, and which he\nwanted very much. He would wait for him, he said, in a certain house by\nthe roadside.\n\nThe coachman unhitched one of the horses and set off. Efflam then took\nhis father and sister into the house by the roadside, gave them changes\nof rich garments that he had brought for them in the carriage, and also\nto each of them a purse filled with gold, so that the coachman, on his\nreturn, should not take them for poor peasants, as they really were.\nThe coachman returned, and said to his master, \u201cI did not find the box\nin your chamber.\u201d \u201cOh! I had it with me in my carriage and did not know\nit.\u201d Then they returned to the city.\n\nOne day the father asked his son how he had managed to get so rich, and\nEfflam acknowledged to him that he had stolen the king\u2019s treasure. \u201cIf\nyou wish,\u201d said the old man, \u201cI will go with you, and between us we can\nbring away a larger sum.\u201d \u201cVery well,\u201d said Efflam.\n\nWhen night had come, they both placed themselves on the magic cloak,\nput both their heads in the magic hat, and were transported into the\ntreasure-chamber; then they returned in the same manner, each bearing\nhis load of money.\n\nBut the king perceived that his treasure was being stolen, and was\nvery much astonished at it, for he never trusted any one with the key.\nMoreover, he saw no traces of any attempt to break in. Then he set\ntraps around the vases which contained the silver and the gold, in\norder to catch the thief. And sure enough, the next night the father\nwas caught. Finding he could not get away, and hoping at least to save\nhis son, he said to him, \u201cCut off my head and take it away from here,\nwith my clothes, so that I may not be recognized.\u201d Efflam took his\nadvice, cut off his head, and took it away to bury it in his garden.\nWhen the king came the next day to the treasure-chamber, he cried out\nwith joy, on seeing there the lifeless body: \u201cAha! my thief is taken\nat last. Let us see who he is.\u201d But neither he nor any one else could\nidentify the body without a head, so that he was even more puzzled\nthan ever. Then he published through the city that the thief had been\ncaught, and that his body would be dragged on a hurdle through all the\nstreets of the town. This was accordingly done, and four soldiers, two\nbefore and two behind, accompanied the body, with orders to listen\nattentively, and look well about them to see if any one cried or\ngroaned or appeared distressed as they passed along. Efflam ordered\nhis carriage early in the morning, and before setting out he told his\nneighbors and all in his house, that he was going to take his father\nto his own country, since he wished very much to return. This was to\nexplain the disappearance of the old man. On getting about a mile from\nthe city, he said to his servant as before, \u201cTake one of the horses\nand return with all speed to the city, and bring my father his purse\nwhich he forgot when he came away.\u201d The coachman took one of the\nhorses and departed. Then Efflam saw a postman coming along down the\nroad, and asked him if he was not very tired. \u201cNot yet,\u201d replied the\nman; \u201cbut I shall be before I have made my rounds, for I have a long\nway to go.\u201d \u201cIf you wish,\u201d said Efflam, \u201cI will give you my horse and\ncarriage.\u201d \u201cYou are joking with me, my lord.\u201d \u201cI am not joking with\nyou, and to prove it--here--take them.\u201d Then Efflam got down from his\ncarriage and almost forced the postman to mount, while he returned to\nthe city quietly on foot. When he met his coachman coming again, he\nsaid: \u201cAgain I gave you a useless ride: my father had his purse in his\npocket, and did not know it: at his age memory begins to fail. I have\ngiven him my carriage and horse that he may return to his own country,\nand I am hurrying back, for I have just remembered that I ought to be\nat the house to-day.\u201d Accordingly he mounted the horse the coachman had\nridden, and set off at a gallop. On reaching home he told his sister\nthe whole affair, and advised her not to cry, or groan, or appear sad,\nnor even to remain out of sight, when the mutilated body of her father\nshould pass by on the hurdle; for if she showed the slightest sign of\ngrief, he would be lost, and she too. Soon the crowd was heard crying,\n\u201cHere is the thief who stole the king\u2019s treasure!\u201d All the people ran\nto the doors of the houses, and a great crowd followed the headless\nbody, and no one could say who he was. When they passed by Efflam\u2019s\nhouse, he also was on his doorsteps, with his sister by his side. But\nH\u00e9nori, not being able to endure the sight, uttered a cry and ran into\nthe house. Efflam followed her, and drawing his dagger he wounded her\nhand with it. Two soldiers presented themselves and said, \u201cWe have\nheard cries of grief in this house.\u201d \u201cYes,\u201d said Efflam; \u201cit was my\nsister, who had just cut herself with my knife, and was crying out;\nsee how it is bleeding.\u201d And true enough, there was the poor girl all\nbleeding and crying. The soldiers withdrew.\n\nThis plan not having succeeded, the king thought of another. He had the\nbody of the thief hung up on a nail fixed in the wall of his palace,\nand set guards to watch near by, feeling sure that when night came the\nfriends and relatives of the thief would try to carry off his body.\nWhen Efflam saw this, he disguised himself as a wine merchant, loaded\nan ass with leather bottles of wine mixed with a narcotic, and went\nwith it, accompanied by his sister, along under that side of the palace\nwall where the body of his father was suspended. With a movement of\nhis shoulder, he made the bottles fall off, and one of them, which\nhe had prepared for that purpose, came unstopped. He and his sister\nbegan to cry and call for help. The guards ran to them, helped them\nto reload their ass, and received for reward the bottle which had\nbecome unstopped in falling, but which, nevertheless, was still more\nthan half full. Efflam and his sister then continued on their way. But\nthey retraced their steps about a half-hour later, and found the guards\nstretched upon the ground and sleeping as soundly as if they were\ndead. \u201cAll right,\u201d said they. Then they went to a monastery near by\nand pretended to sell them some excellent wine very cheap. By means of\nthe wine they made the monks all sleep soundly, from the abbot to the\nporter, and took advantage of the opportunity to bury their father\u2019s\nbody in holy ground in the cemetery of the monastery. Then they changed\nthe clothing of the monks and soldiers, so that the monks were dressed\nas soldiers, and the soldiers as monks. Next morning, when the hour\nfor matins came, the monks dragged themselves to the chapel, only half\nawake and not seeing very clearly. The first one who perceived the\nsingular dress of the abbot was at first utterly confounded. He rubbed\nhis eyes, thinking he did not see well. But as he continued to see\nbefore him a soldier and not a monk, he touched his next neighbor with\nhis elbow and said, \u201cDo you see how our abbot is dressed? What does\nit mean?\u201d The monk next him was in turn also greatly astonished, but,\nlooking at those who stood on each side of the abbot, they discovered\nthat they too were dressed like soldiers; then they looked at the\nwhole line of monks opposite them on the other side of the choir; and\nat last they looked at each other, and found that all were in soldiers\u2019\nuniform. What could it mean? It was doubtless the work of the evil\nspirit! Then the chant and prayers ceased, and they began trying to\nunravel the mystery.\n\nOn the other hand, when the captain came in the morning to inspect\nthe soldiers set to guard the body of the thief, he also was greatly\nastonished to find them all sleeping profoundly, and habited as monks.\nWorse still, the body of the thief was gone. He flew into a great\npassion, swore and raged, and kicked the soldiers till they awaked. The\nreport spread rapidly through the city that the body of the thief who\nstole the king\u2019s treasure had been carried off, and that the soldiers\nset to guard it had been found in the morning dead drunk, and disguised\nas monks; while the monks of the neighboring monastery, equally drunk,\nwore the uniform of the soldiers. It was undoubtedly a fresh trick of\nan accomplice of the thief who had been caught. It made a great stir in\nthe city, and every one laughed heartily.\n\n\u201cI am mocked again,\u201d said the king, when he heard what had taken place.\n\u201cIt must be acknowledged that this is a very skilful thief; but all\nthe same, I mean to find out how far his skill goes, for I hope soon\nto foil it.\u201d Then he caused notice to be given through the city that\nhe would the next day exhibit in the public square before his palace a\nbeautiful white goat of which he was very fond, and that if the thief\ncould succeed in taking it away, it should be his.\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s good,\u201d said Efflam to himself when he heard the notice. \u201cThe\nking\u2019s white goat will be mine to-morrow before the sun goes down.\u201d\n\nNext day the white goat was in fact exhibited on the square in front of\nthe king\u2019s palace, and a great crowd gathered, curious to know how the\nthief would manage to take it away in spite of the soldiers who guarded\nit. The king himself was on the balcony with the queen, and surrounded\nby princes, generals, and courtiers.\n\nEfflam put his magic hat on his head, and carried off the goat as\neasily as possible, and without any one\u2019s seeing or knowing anything\nabout it.\n\n\u201cI am mocked again!\u201d cried the king, in vexation, when he saw that the\ngoat had disappeared. \u201cBut who can this man be? He must be a great\nmagician, for there is magic in all this. Never mind; I will not\nacknowledge myself beaten, and I propose to know how far this will go.\u201d\n\nEfflam had killed the king\u2019s goat as soon as he reached home, and told\nhis sister to use it for their own table as long as there was any of\nit, advising her to cook it in the greatest secrecy, and not to give\nthe smallest portion of it to any other person, not even to a beggar.\n\nMeanwhile the king thought of another means of testing the skill and\ncunning of the thief. He sent for a blind beggar, and told him to go\nand ask alms at the door of every house in the city, and to beg at each\ndoor for a bit of meat, which he should taste as soon as he received\nit. If any bit of goat\u2019s flesh was given him, he should, with a piece\nof white chalk, make a cross on the door of the house where he had\nreceived it, and come at once and tell the king.\n\nThe beggar at once began his rounds. When he came to Efflam\u2019s house,\nH\u00e9nori, who had doubtless forgotten her brother\u2019s warning, or had no\nfear of being accused by a blind man who knew neither her nor her\nhouse, gave him a morsel of the king\u2019s goat. The blind man recognized\nit as soon as he had tasted it, and, unknown to the young girl, who had\ngone back into the house as soon as she had ministered to his need, he\nmarked the door with a white cross, and hastened at once to inform the\nking. The latter sent four soldiers to search the house, the door of\nwhich was marked with a white cross in chalk, with orders to bring to\nhim immediately the inmates of the house. But Efflam had noticed the\nwhite cross on his door, and questioned his sister, to see if she had\ndisobeyed him in anything. H\u00e9nori told him she had indeed given the\nremnant of their last meal to an old beggar who had excited her pity,\nbut there was nothing to be feared from him, for he was blind. Efflam,\nwithout waiting to hear another word, got a bit of chalk and went all\nabout the city drawing crosses on all the doors. The soldiers stopped\nat the first door where they saw a cross, exclaiming, \u201cHere it is!\u201d\nThey entered and found two old people, husband and wife, and requested\nthem to accompany them to the king\u2019s palace. \u201cWhat does the king want\nwith us?\u201d they asked, filled with astonishment. \u201cYou have stolen his\ntreasure and his goat.\u201d \u201cHow could we do it,\u201d they cried, overcome with\nfright, \u201cold and feeble as we are? It is more than six months since we\nhave set foot out of our house.\u201d The soldiers, seeing them so old and\nso helpless, looked at each other, and said, \u201cThese are not the right\nones; that is evident: come, let us see if we do not find a cross on\nsome other door.\u201d So they went out, and found with surprise that the\ndoors of all the houses in that quarter of the city were marked with\nsimilar crosses; so they went and told the king.\n\n\u201cWhat a man this thief is!\u201d said the king; and began to devise at once\nsome other means of catching him. The next day he caused notice to be\ngiven throughout the city that he would expose his royal crown on the\npublic square in front of the palace, and that it should belong to the\nperson who could steal it without being caught. When Efflam heard that,\nhe said to himself, \u201cHis crown shall be mine as well as his goat.\u201d\n\nThe royal crown was exhibited at the appointed time and place. A\nconsiderable crowd had assembled on the square, curious to see if the\nthief would succeed in carrying off this also. The king and his court\nwere on the balcony of the palace, and a large number of soldiers\nmounted guard, with drawn swords, around the velvet cushion on which\nthe crown set. But all these precautions were vain; and Efflam, wearing\nhis magic hat, bore off the king\u2019s crown as easily as he had carried\naway the goat. The old monarch, perceiving at last that he had to\ncontend with the most cunning thief in his kingdom, who was evidently\na great magician besides, perceived that it was useless to contend\nagainst him, and that it would be better to win him over and attach him\nto himself, than to persecute him. He then proclaimed that he would\nset his only daughter in the same place in the square where the white\ngoat and the royal crown had been exposed, and that if the thief should\nsucceed equally well in stealing her, he would give her to him for his\nwife.\n\nHe was by this time quite certain that the thief would stand this last\ntest as well as all the others.\n\nAnd true enough, Efflam bore off the princess in the same mysterious\nfashion, without any one knowing what had become of her.\n\nThen when the king had returned to his palace, Efflam repaired thither\nalso, accompanied by the princess, and reminded the old monarch of his\npromise. The latter did not hesitate to keep his word, and the marriage\nof Efflam and the princess was celebrated with pomp and solemnity.\n\nMoreover, the king, who was a widower, took for his wife H\u00e9nori, the\nsister of his son-in-law, and for a whole month there were holidays and\ngames and magnificent banquets every day.\n\n Related in Breton, by Vincent Coat, a workman in a tobacco factory in\n Morlaix, Aug. 20, 1876.\n\n\n\n\nTHE KING\u2019S THREE SONS;\n\nOR,\n\nTHE HUNCHBACK AND HIS TWO BROTHERS\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a king who had three sons, two of whom were\nfine, handsome young men, and the third was a hunchback whose name was\nAlain. This last was not beloved by his father, who sent him off to the\nkitchen with the cooks, while the two older brothers ate with him at\nhis own table and went with him everywhere.\n\nOne day the old king sent for his three sons, and said to them:--\n\n\u201cYou see I am getting old, my children, and I want to spend the rest\nof my days in peace and quiet. I wish to give up my crown, with the\nadministration of my kingdom, to that one of you three who will bring\nme the finest piece of linen. Set out, then, travel far away, and\nreturn in a year and a day.\u201d\n\nThereupon the three brothers started off on three different routes. The\ntwo older brothers had each a fine horse to carry him, and pockets full\nof gold and silver. They went first to see their sweethearts and bid\nthem good-by. But there they forgot their quest, and led gay lives as\nlong as their money lasted.\n\nThe hunchback, who had received from his father only a six-franc\npiece, and no horse, walked and walked bravely on. When he was hungry\nhe gnawed a crust of bread, gathered hazel-nuts, whortleberries, and\nwild mulberries from the bushes along the road, and drank out of the\nhollow of his hand from the wayside springs. One day as he was crossing\na great moor he heard a clear, fresh voice singing an old song. He\nstopped to listen, and said, \u201cI must see who it is that sings like\nthat\u201d; and he followed the sound of the voice.\n\nHe soon came upon a young girl of great beauty, who addressed him\nthus,--\n\n\u201cGood morning, Alain, youngest son of the king of France.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou know me, then?\u201d asked the astonished prince.\n\n\u201cYes, I know you; I even know where you are going and what you seek;\nyour father has told you and your two brothers that he will give up his\ncrown and his kingdom to that one of you three who will bring him the\nfinest piece of linen: is it not so?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is quite true,\u201d replied Alain, more and more astonished.\n\n\u201cWell, your two brothers have gone to see their sweethearts, and are\nhaving a good time with them, without caring anything about the search\nfor the fine linen. You, who have no lady-love, have resolutely set to\nwork, and you deserve to succeed. Come with me to my castle, and I will\ntell you what to do.\u201d\n\nAlain followed her to what she called her castle, but which was only a\nmiserable hut of mud and clay. He remained there some time with her,\nand, before he left, she gave him a little box, not larger than his\nfist, and said to him,--\n\n\u201cIt is time for you to return home; take this little box, and present\nyourself with confidence before your father.\u201d\n\nAlain returned with his box. When he reached the court of his father\u2019s\npalace, he saw his two brothers at the windows, quite happy and content\nwith themselves. They had returned, with their horses laden with fine\npieces of linen.\n\n\u201cSee! Alain has come, too,\u201d they cried; \u201che comes without the smallest\npiece of linen, as ugly and miserable as when he set out, and has not\neven lost his hunch by the way!\u201d\n\nThe two elder brothers then spread out their linens before their\nfather. They were very fine and expensive.\n\n\u201cAnd you, Alain,\u201d said his father, \u201cdo you refuse to compete? for you\nhave brought nothing.\u201d\n\nThen Alain drew the small box from his pocket, and presented it to his\nfather, saying,--\n\n\u201cTake this box, my father, and open it.\u201d\n\nThe old king took the box, opened it, and immediately there fell out\nof it a piece of white linen, smooth to the touch, soft and shining as\nsilk. And for more than an hour, piece after piece fell out, so that\nthe box seemed inexhaustible.\n\n\u201cAlain has won!\u201d said the king. \u201cMy crown is his!\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is sorcery in this,\u201d said the two elder brothers, much put out,\n\u201cand there must be three trials.\u201d\n\n\u201cI agree,\u201d said the king, who was much displeased at the idea of\nleaving his crown to a hunchback.\n\n\u201cGive us another test,\u201d they cried.\n\n\u201cVery well; to him who brings me the finest horse.\u201d\n\nAnd the three brothers set out, each by himself. The two older ones\nwent, as before, to see their lady-loves, and the hunchback took once\nmore the road across the moor, where he had met the beautiful young\ngirl who had gained him his first victory. When, after much trouble,\nhe reached it, he heard the same voice singing its song. \u201cAll\u2019s well,\u201d\nsaid he, comforted and full of hope. And he hastened toward the\nsinger\u2019s clay house.\n\n\u201cGood morning,\u201d said he, as he entered; \u201cI have come to see you again.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood morning, young son of the king,\u201d replied the young girl; \u201cI know\nwhy you have come! Your brothers, beaten in the first contest, have\ndemanded that there shall be three, and the second test is to bring to\nyour father the finest horse.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is true; but how can I get a fine horse without money?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou got the finest linen without money; why should you not also have\nthe finest horse without money? Remain here with me until the time\ncomes to return, and do not be at all uneasy.\u201d\n\nAlain took courage, and remained with the young girl. When the day\narrived, she gave him another box, bidding him be sure not to open it\nuntil he should be in the courtyard of his father\u2019s palace.\n\nThen he departed. But he had not gone far when he yielded to curiosity.\nHe opened his box to see what was in it; and immediately a beautiful\nhorse jumped out,--swift as lightning,--and disappeared in a moment.\nAnd now, our young man began to cry. What should he do now? He resolved\nto return to the young girl, as he had not gotten very far from her\nhouse, and tell her of his misfortune. His kind friend gave him a\nsecond box, bidding him again not to open it until he should be in the\ncourt-yard of his father\u2019s palace, and holding it between his knees.\n\nThis time he did not open it. When he reached the court of the palace,\nhis two brothers had been there already some time, and each of them had\na magnificent horse, of which he was very proud. When they saw Alain\narrive, they cried,--\n\n\u201cHere is the hunchback, at last; but he has no horse!\u201d\n\n\u201cI have a box, as before,\u201d answered Alain, drawing his box from his\npocket.\n\n\u201cYour fine horse is in that, no doubt,\u201d said they.\n\n\u201cPerhaps,\u201d said Alain.\n\n\u201cOpen it, then, that we may see your mouse.\u201d\n\nAlain put his box between his knees, opened it, and immediately he\nfound himself in the saddle on a superb horse with a golden bridle on\nhis head, fiery and spirited, and with sparks flying from his four\nfeet, his nostrils, and his eyes.\n\n\u201cAlain has won it this time, too,\u201d cried the old king, filled with\nastonishment; and his victory was indeed so apparent that his brothers\ndid not dream of disputing it. But they cried out spitefully: \u201cNow for\nthe third trial. What shall it be, father?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the king, \u201cthis time to him who shall bring me the most\nbeautiful princess.\u201d\n\nThen the three brothers set out again at once. The two elder ones\nwent as before to see their fair ladies, and Alain returned to his\nmysterious friend in the great moor.\n\n\u201cGood morning, young son of the king,\u201d said she, seeing him return.\n\u201cYour father has said that his crown shall be given to that one of his\nthree sons who shall bring him the most beautiful princess.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said the prince, \u201cand I do not even know a princess.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat makes no difference; stay here with me until the time comes to\npresent yourself to your father, and have faith in me.\u201d\n\nSo Alain remained again with his friend, and when the time was come,\nshe said to him:--\n\n\u201cHere is a hen with a linen cloth on her back; return with it to your\nfather\u2019s house, and be very sure not to lose the hen and the linen\nalso.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut shall I have no princess, then?\u201d\n\n\u201cGo on with your hen, and trust me for the rest.\u201d\n\nSo Alain set out with the hen. But as he was going through a dark\nforest, she flew away, and then he began to cry. Two princesses, one\nmore beautiful than the other, suddenly appeared beside him. \u201cWhy do\nyou weep thus?\u201d said one of them to him.\n\n\u201cI have lost my hen!\u201d said Alain.\n\n\u201cIf that is all, be comforted; I will find her for you.\u201d\n\nAnd sure enough, the hen came back at a sign from the princess, and she\nstill had her linen on her back. The most beautiful of the princesses\ntouched her with the end of a white wand she had in her hand, and\nimmediately she was changed into a fine gilded carriage drawn by six\nsuperb horses. Alain saw his hunch suddenly disappear, and found\nhimself a very handsome young man, with magnificent princely clothes,\nand seated in the coach by the side of the less beautiful of the two\nprincesses. The other, the more beautiful one, was seated on the\ncoachman\u2019s seat, holding the reins and driving the coach. They repaired\nin this state to the king\u2019s palace. The two elder brothers had already\narrived there, and were waiting for the hunchback at the windows, each\nhaving by his side a beautiful princess of whom he was very proud.\n\nWhen Alain entered the court-yard with his splendid, shining coach and\nhis two companions, it seemed as if the sun himself had driven in there\nin his chariot. The two elder brothers and their princesses, dazzled by\nso much light and beauty, and bursting with envy at seeing the state in\nwhich their youngest brother returned, covered their faces with their\nhands. The old king, formerly so cross and full of pains, brightened\nup again, and slowly descended to the court to receive Alain and his\ntrain.\n\n\u201cMy crown and my kingdom are yours, my son Alain,\u201d he cried.\n\nThen he gave his hand to the princesses to help them alight and led\nthem into the palace. The two elder princes and their princesses hid\nthemselves for shame and envy.\n\nHowever, they had to come to a great feast which the old king ordered\nto be prepared, and to which he invited all the court and the great men\nof his kingdom.\n\nDuring the feast, Alain\u2019s beautiful princess put into her apron a\nbit of each of the dishes served to her; seeing this, his brothers\u2019\nprincesses imitated her. When all arose from the table, she said that\nshe wished to make a little present to each guest, and even to the\nservants. And putting her right hand into her apron, which, with her\nleft she held gathered up to her breast, she drew from it again and\nagain gold rings, pearls, diamonds, and flowers, and distributed them\nfreely, to the great astonishment and satisfaction of all.\n\nThe other two princesses wished to imitate her also in this; but, alas!\ninstead of gold rings, pearls, diamonds, and lovely, sweet-scented\nflowers, they drew out of their aprons, only what they had put\nthere--meat, sausages, and such eatables. Their fine clothes were all\nsoiled by the grease and gravy which ran out of them. Attracted by the\ngeneral bursts of laughter, the dogs and cats pursued them and tore\ntheir dresses to pieces. They ran away with their lovers, filled with\nrage and confusion, and appeared no more.\n\nSoon afterward the marriage of Alain and his beautiful princess was\ncelebrated, and the holidays and plays and feasts continued for a whole\nmonth.\n\n Told by Marguerite Philippe, July 21, 1871.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE HARE, THE BEAR, AND THE FOX\n\n\nI\n\nThere was a young soldier named Herv\u00e9 Laz-Bleiz. When he returned from\nthe war in far away lands, his father and mother were dead. He had no\nbrother, but he had a young sister named H\u00e9nori. Their parents had left\nthem, for their entire inheritance, a cow and two sheep. Herv\u00e9 said to\nH\u00e9nori,--\n\n\u201cLet us sell the cow and the sheep, and go to seek our fortunes\nsomewhere else, instead of remaining here in poverty.\u201d\n\nThe cow and the sheep were sold; then the brother and sister set out on\ntheir journey, by the grace of God. After having walked a long time and\ngone very, very far, they found themselves one day in a great forest,\nin the midst of which there was an old castle surrounded by high walls.\nThey gained entrance to the court, creeping in under the door, but saw\nno one. The castle door stood open. They entered and found themselves\nin a hall, but no one was there. But they saw on a table meals which\nwere quite hot, and the odor of them was delicious. They were very\nhungry, and they looked at each other out of the corners of their eyes,\nand their mouths watered. They remained silently standing, waiting for\nsome one to come, of whom they might ask hospitality.\n\nBut they waited in vain; no one came, and the castle appeared to be\nabandoned. Seeing this, Herv\u00e9, who was not very timid, said to his\nsister,--\n\n\u201cUpon my word, it is useless to wait longer, and it is a shame to let\nsuch a good dinner get cold; let us seize the opportunity, and eat and\ndrink, and then we shall see what will happen.\u201d\n\nThey seated themselves at the table, and ate and drank with good\nappetites, without any one coming to interrupt them. H\u00e9nori, who was at\nfirst much frightened, became quite brave when she had drank a glass or\ntwo of the excellent wine she had found on the table; and as for Herv\u00e9,\nwho had drank much more, he already dreamed of being master of the\nchateau, and thought it would be a great pity to leave a hotel when he\nwas so comfortable.\n\nOn rising from the table, the brother and sister went through the halls\nand rooms. In the first room, they found heaps of gold and silver; in\nthe second, more gold and silver; in the third, there were guns, and\npieces of linen and stuff, goods, and men\u2019s clothing of all shapes and\nsizes.\n\n\u201cIt is a den of robbers,\u201d said Herv\u00e9, when he saw all this. \u201cThey have\ngone off on some expedition, and will doubtless soon return. But since\nwe are here, and these are good arms, let us take possession of them\nand all the treasure will be ours.\u201d\n\nAnd they began to prepare themselves, as well as possible, to stand a\nsiege. They barricaded the doors and window casements, loaded all the\nguns, and sat down to wait.\n\nAbout two or three o\u2019clock in the morning the robbers returned, laden\nwith booty and all drunk. Herv\u00e9 and H\u00e9nori, each stationed at a window\non the first floor, and having near them a great many guns all loaded,\nbegan immediately to fire on them. The robbers threw themselves against\nthe door, raging and swearing. But they could not break it open, and\nHerv\u00e9 and his sister killed one with each discharge of their guns, so\nthat the number rapidly diminished. At last, seeing that their efforts\nwere in vain, all those who remained still unhurt, retired, leaving the\ncourtyard strewn with dead and wounded.\n\nHerv\u00e9 and H\u00e9nori passed the day in strengthening the barricades of the\ndoors and windows and reloading their guns, for they were sure the\nrobbers had gone to seek reinforcements, and would return to give them\nanother charge. And they were not mistaken, for they returned, having\nmustered up some comrades. It was now broad daylight, so that Herv\u00e9\nand his sister, each stationed at a window on the first floor, could\nsee clearly through the holes they had made in the shutters, and they\nstruck down one at each discharge of their guns. They shot so well that\nthey finally killed them all, except two or three wounded ones, who ran\naway.\n\nThe next day there was a third attack. But this time the robbers were\nall killed, every single one.\n\nAnd now, Herv\u00e9 and H\u00e9nori were in possession of the castle and all the\ntreasure it contained. However, they did not dare go out for several\ndays. But when they saw that no more robbers came to trouble them, they\ngrew bolder, and visited the gardens and all the apartments of the\ncastle, and everywhere they found treasures and provisions of every\nkind. So, seeing that everything needful was provided, they determined\nto take up their abode there.\n\nThe wood which surrounded the castle was full of all sorts of game.\nHerv\u00e9 went hunting there every day, often with his sister and sometimes\nalone. One day when he went out alone, he ran across a fine hare and\naimed at it to kill it, when he was perfectly astonished to hear the\nanimal say to him, as plainly as if it had been a man,--\n\n\u201cDo not kill me, Herv\u00e9.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! do you know me, you poor beast of the good God?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I know you, and I may perhaps be useful to you some day.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well! come with me then.\u201d\n\nAnd he went on, followed by the hare.\n\nFarther on he saw a fox, and aimed at him also, but the fox said, as\nthe hare had done,--\n\n\u201cDo not kill me, Herv\u00e9, and I will pay you back some day.\u201d\n\n\u201cAm I then known to all the beasts of this wood?\u201d said Herv\u00e9, and he\nlowered his gun and told the fox to follow him as well as the hare.\n\nA little farther on he saw a bear and aimed at his jaw. But the bear\nsaid to him, also,--\n\n\u201cDo not kill me, Herv\u00e9, and I will pay you back some day.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood! come on; follow me and let us see what will happen.\u201d\n\nHe continued to hunt until the evening, and killed so much game that,\nnot being able to carry it himself, he put it on the back of the bear.\nThen they started on the road to the castle. On the way, the bear ate\nthe game, and the fox, seeing him, said to Herv\u00e9, \u201cMaster, the bear is\neating your game.\u201d Herv\u00e9 threatened to shoot the bear, who growled and\npromised not to eat any more. When the four had reached the castle\nwalls the hare said to Herv\u00e9, \u201cMaster, do you know that your sister is\nin her room with the chief of the robbers?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can you say so? We killed all the robbers.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo matter, their chief still lives and he comes every day to see your\nsister, while you are out hunting. Look out for them, for they are\nthinking of betraying you and getting rid of you.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy sister loves me, and I do not believe a single word you tell me.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour life is in danger, I assure you; but leave it to me: I will save\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, I leave it to you, and we shall see.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen he knows that you are in the castle, he will hide himself\nsomewhere, so that he may strangle you in the night while you sleep.\nBut as soon as we enter, you, fox, who have such a good nose, you go\nsniff all around to find where he is hid; then when you have found him,\ncome and tell me and we will see about it.\u201d\n\nThey entered the castle. Herv\u00e9 remained in the kitchen with the hare\nand the bear, and the fox went on the search for the chief of the\nrobbers, sniffing and ferreting around everywhere with his pointed\nsnout. He discovered him in an empty cask and came to inform his\ncomrades.\n\n\u201cGo, bear,\u201d said the hare, \u201cgo with the fox, and bring him to us.\u201d\n\nThe bear mounted the stairs, following the fox and growling as he went.\nHe pulled the robber out of the cask, and taking him by one foot, he\ndragged him down the stone stairway, his head falling heavily on each\nstep, and laid him at Herv\u00e9\u2019s feet in the kitchen. When he saw the\nlatter, he ground his teeth and tried to throw himself on him. But the\nbear prevented him and tore him to pieces at his master\u2019s order. Then\nH\u00e9nori was treated in the same manner.\n\nHerv\u00e9 continued to live in the castle with his three animals. Every day\nthey went out hunting and killed all the game they could wish.\n\n\nII\n\nOne day the hare said suddenly,--\n\n\u201cI have just had something whispered in my ear!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d asked Herv\u00e9.\n\n\u201cThe daughter of the king of England is about to be taken to a dragon\nto be devoured by him; shall we go and deliver her?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat would be a very perilous undertaking,\u201d said Herv\u00e9.\n\n\u201cPshaw!\u201d said the bear, \u201cI will undertake it: you will see.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll four of us,\u201d said the fox, \u201ccan surely see it well put through.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us go, then,\u201d said Herv\u00e9.\n\n\u201cLet us go,\u201d they all repeated at once.\n\nSo they all four set out together.\n\nBut the road was long, and Herv\u00e9, overcome with fatigue, could not walk\nany farther. Then the bear took him on his back and they went on. At\nlast they reached England, and when they came to the suburbs of London,\nthey met the procession which was conducting the poor princess. All the\npeople of the land were there, and they were grieved and weeping as\nthough they were at a funeral. When they came to the edge of an immense\nplain, all bare and desolate, all the people turned back and left the\npoor princess to go on her way alone. The cavern of the dragon was in\nthe midst of this plain, and twice a day he threw out fire from his\nseven mouths, and burned up all vegetation for several leagues around.\n\nThe poor princess, abandoned by all the world, went slowly on, sobbing\nand shedding great tears. Herv\u00e9, who was provided with a horse, joined\nher, followed by his three animals, and said to her,--\n\n\u201cCome with me in the croup, dear lady, and I will take you where you\nare going.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas!\u201d she replied, \u201cI shall get there only too soon, and I do not\nwish to run to my death.\u201d\n\n\u201cConfide in me, mount to the croup on my horse, and I will save you\nfrom the monster, with the aid of my three companions whom you see.\u201d\n\nAnd he showed her the three animals who were following him.\n\nThe princess mounted, and immediately Herv\u00e9 put his horse at a gallop,\nfor already the dragon had begun to throw out fire.\n\nThe hare had told each one what to do. He had said to the bear,--\n\n\u201cYou, bear, must drag the monster from his cavern; and you, fox, fill\nyour stomach with water so as to extinguish the fire which he will\nthrow on us, while I shall fight with my good saber.\u201d\n\nWhen they reached the opening of the cavern, the dragon said,--\n\n\u201cHere you are at last, daughter of the king of England! I was getting\nimpatient, and you have done well to come, for I should have reduced\nyour father\u2019s whole kingdom to ashes if you had kept me waiting too\nlong. But I see that you have not come alone; so much the better, for I\nshall eat you all.\u201d\n\nThen, addressing Herv\u00e9:--\n\n\u201cThrow me the princess first.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome take her,\u201d he replied.\n\n\u201cThrow her to me, I tell you, and at once!\u201d\n\n\u201cCome take her, I tell you, if you want her.\u201d\n\n\u201cThrow her to me, or I shall burn you to ashes.\u201d\n\n\u201cPshaw! I am not afraid of you.\u201d\n\nAnd addressing his companions:--\n\n\u201cCome, my friends, do your duty and work hard.\u201d\n\nThen the bear seized the monster and dragged him from his cave.\nImmediately he began to throw fire from his seven mouths; but the fox\nvomited over it torrents of water, and the hare, on his part, made such\nfrequent and terrible thrusts with his sword, that at last they killed\nthe seven heads. \u201cVictory!\u201d then cried Herv\u00e9 and the princess.\n\nThey had conquered, in truth, but not without difficulty, and the\nhare, the fox, and the bear, had their skins all torn and burned, and\nthey were overcome with fatigue. Herv\u00e9, himself, and the princess had\nsuffered somewhat, though they kept at a distance. Moreover, night was\napproaching, and for many reasons they could not think of returning\nto the city. They resolved then to pass the night in the open plain,\nwithout shelter. Herv\u00e9, fearing the effect of a night spent in the open\nair upon the princess, whose constitution appeared delicate, was much\ntroubled. Fortunately there were on the plain great masses of rocks\nto which they repaired, and when the bear had rolled together several\nbowlders so as to form quite a sheltering cavern, they all gathered\nthere to wait for the morning, except the horse, who was fastened\nnear by and slept on the sand. Then the hare served as a pillow for the\nprincess, and the bear slept at her feet to keep them warm. The fox\nwas a little indisposed from having drunk too much water, in spite of\nhaving thrown it all up.\n\n[Illustration: THE BEAR SEIZED THE MONSTER AND DRAGGED HIM FROM HIS\nCAVE.]\n\nBefore going to sleep, though very much fatigued, they talked a little\nover the events of the struggle and their plans for the future. It was\nclearly understood that Herv\u00e9 should marry the princess.\n\nA charcoal-burner, who was passing by, heard a noise and stopped to\nlisten. He drew near the rocks, heard all their conversation, and\nresolved to profit by it. When they were all fast asleep, he took away\nthe rock which closed the entrance to the grotto, entered softly, cut\noff Herv\u00e9\u2019s head, and carried off the princess. The hare, the fox, and\nthe bear were so broken down by fatigue that they heard not a sound.\nWhen they woke next morning, and saw Herv\u00e9 dead, with his head cut off,\nand the princess nowhere to be seen, their astonishment was great.\n\n\u201cHow is it, bear, that you who were at the feet of the princess did not\nwake up?\u201d said the hare.\n\n\u201cI was so weary,\u201d replied the bear, \u201cthat I slept like a rock.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd you, fox, whose ear is so keen?\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd you, yourself, hare, who served as a pillow for the princess?\u201d\nreplied the fox.\n\n\u201cThe first thing to be done,\u201d said the hare, \u201cis to put our master\u2019s\nhead again upon his shoulders and bring him to life; then we will\nsee what has become of the princess. Fortunately I know how to make\nan ointment which will bring the dead to life, but I shall need the\nassistance of you both to do this. You, bear, must find and bring to me\nthe solitary worm which is hidden a thousand feet under the ground; and\nyou, fox, bring me a blackbird and a gray raven to make my ointment.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut that is not easy,\u201d said the bear, \u201ca thousand feet under the\nground.\u201d\n\n\u201cSuppose you go look for them yourself,\u201d said the fox.\n\n\u201cAnd would you know how to make the ointment? You wouldn\u2019t, would you?\u201d\n\n\u201cGo, then, each on your way, work, and do not return without bringing\nme what I have ordered.\u201d\n\nSo the bear went in one direction, growling, and the fox took another\nroad, grumbling.\n\nThe bear went all over the plain, with his nose to the earth, sniffing\neverywhere. He stopped at last and began to dig up the earth. He dug\nand dug till he came to the solitary worm, and he seized it eagerly and\ncarried it to the hare.\n\nThe fox had run to a forest which he had perceived from a distance,\nmounting to it over a mass of rocks. He stretched himself on his back\nin the bottom of a ravine, where there was a little running brook, his\nfour paws in the air and his mouth wide open, as if he were dead. Soon\na blackbird flew down upon him from a tree, hoping to regale himself.\nBut the make-believe snapped it up quickly and strangled it. He hid it\nin a bush, went a little farther, and stretched himself under an old\noak, and pretended to be dead again. After a while a gray raven passed\nby, crying, _Oak! oak!_ and seeing a dead fox, lighted on him, and was\ncaught like the blackbird.\n\nThen the fox also took the fruit of his search to the hare, who\nimmediately set about preparing the ointment. And when it was finished\nhe said to the bear,--\n\n\u201cCome, bear, stand your master on his feet and keep him in that\nposition.\u201d\n\nThe bear stood Herv\u00e9\u2019s body up.\n\n\u201cNow, then, put his head in its place.\u201d\n\nThe bear took his head, and put it on facing the wrong way.\n\n\u201cIdiot! see what you are doing!\u201d\n\nThen the hare himself put it on in the right way, rubbed the wound and\nthe whole body with his ointment, and the head grew again on the neck,\nlife returned little by little to the whole body, Herv\u00e9 opened his\neyes, rubbed them as one does on awaking, and said, \u201cHow well I have\nslept!\u201d Then looking round and seeing only the hare, the fox, and the\nbear,--\n\n\u201cWhere is the princess?\u201d he asked.\n\nThe hare told him all that had happened and he was greatly astonished.\nBut the disappearance of the princess vexed him very much.\n\n\u201cBe comforted,\u201d said the hare to him, \u201cwe will find her again.\u201d\n\nThe charcoal-burner carried her back to her father, the king of\nEngland, and claimed to be her deliverer and the conqueror of the\ndragon. The old king had promised the hand of his daughter to the man\nwho should deliver her from the monster, whoever he might be. But the\nprincess, who knew the treachery of the charcoal-burner, refuses to\ntake him for her husband, and declares it is not he to whom she owes\nher life, although the impostor shows the seven heads of the dragon\nwhich he has cut off and brought with him in a sack. He has the heads,\nbut the heads have no tongues in them, for \u201cI cut them out myself and\nhere they are.\u201d Then he showed them where he had put them in a corner\nof the grotto, adding: \u201cIn spite of the resistance of the princess,\nher father, finding the proofs quite sufficient, and wishing to keep\nhis word, has fixed to-morrow for the wedding. We have then no time\nto lose, and we must set off at once.\u201d So they all four started out\non the road to London. Herv\u00e9 was on horseback, having in the croup\nthe tongues of the dragon in a bag; the hare, the fox, and the bear\nfollowed him.\n\nThey stopped in a small wood near the king\u2019s palace, and the hare said\nto his companions, \u201cYou three remain here, and I will go and see what\nis going on in the king\u2019s palace.\u201d\n\nThen he crept into the palace and went even into the dining-hall,\nwhere they were at table when he arrived. There had been feasting and\nrejoicing every day since the return of the king\u2019s daughter; not only\nat the palace, but in the whole city.\n\nThe charcoal-burner was betrothed to the princess, and although she\nsteadily refused to take him for her husband, the marriage was to take\nplace the next day.\n\n\u201cLook! look! a hare!\u201d cried the guests, astonished.\n\nThe servants went in pursuit of it and tried to catch it. About to be\novertaken, he jumped into the princess\u2019s lap, and said in a low voice,--\n\n\u201cIt is I! Herv\u00e9 is still alive and loves you always!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! is it you, poor animal?\u201d\n\nAnd she embraced him and gave him some sweetmeats.\n\nThe charcoal-burner, seeing this, cried,--\n\n\u201cDrive it away, this ugly beast.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat harm has he done?\u201d said the princess, wrapping the hare in the\nskirt of her gown.\n\n\u201cDrive it away quickly, I tell you; it is an infamous sorcerer.\u201d\n\n\u201cA sorcerer?\u201d cried the old king, much frightened.\n\n\u201cA sorcerer! put him out the door at once!\u201d\n\nAnd the servants, armed with brooms and sticks, set to work to drive\naway the hare.\n\nBut the latter leaped lightly through the window, and rejoined his\ncompanions in the woods.\n\nThe charcoal-burner urged the old king to have the marriage take place\nthe next morning. But the princess cried and implored her father so\nconstantly that the ceremony was deferred to the day after.\n\nThe hare had told Herv\u00e9, as well as the fox and the bear, what was\ngoing on at the palace.\n\n\u201cI, too, will go there to-morrow,\u201d said the fox.\n\n\u201cTake care you are not caught,\u201d said the hare.\n\n\u201cFear nothing, and be sure that I shall not return without having had a\ntaste of the feast and bringing you your share also.\u201d\n\nSo the fox set out the next day, as he had said, at the hour for\ndinner. He also got well into the dining-hall; but as soon as the\ncharcoal-burner saw him he rose and cried out,--\n\n\u201cSee! the wicked sorcerer has come back again. Drive him out at once,\nor something dreadful will happen to us!\u201d\n\nThen all the servants hunted down the poor animal with brooms and\nsticks.\n\nHe leaped on the table, passed near the princess, and said to her,\n\u201cTo-morrow we will all come; Herv\u00e9, the hare, the bear, and I.\u201d Then he\njumped through the window. As he passed through the court he snapped up\na hen and ran off with her to the wood.\n\nThe next day the whole little company, Herv\u00e9, the hare, the fox and the\nbear, went to the palace. The bear marched at the head, carrying Herv\u00e9\non his back. The others followed, and thus made their way into the\nbanquet hall.\n\nEvery one wished to escape from this sight, the charcoal-burner first\nof all. But Herv\u00e9, raising his hand, said,--\n\n\u201cStay! let no one go out for a moment, or he will have to deal with my\nfriend here.\u201d And he pulled the bear\u2019s ear, who growled.\n\n\u201cDo you believe, sire, that it is this ugly, charcoal-burner here, this\nimpostor, who has delivered your daughter from the dragon, and are you\nwilling to give him your daughter\u2019s hand?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am a man of my word,\u201d said the king.\n\n\u201cVery well! the man who delivered your daughter from the monster is\nnot this charcoal-burner; it is I who have done it with the aid of my\nfriends;\u201d and he pointed to his three animals.\n\nThe charcoal-burner was white as the cloth before him.\n\n\u201cHe has given us his proofs,\u201d replied the king; \u201che brought us the\nseven heads of the dragon.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; let me see these heads and I will expose the fraud.\u201d\n\nThe king ordered the dragon\u2019s heads to be brought, and a servant\nemptied them from a bag on the flags of the hall.\n\n\u201cOpen their mouths,\u201d said Herv\u00e9 then, \u201cand see if they have tongues.\u201d\n\nThe same servant opened the jaws of the seven heads, one after the\nother, and not one had a tongue; all had been cut out.\n\n\u201cWhere are the tongues?\u201d said the king.\n\n\u201cHere they are,\u201d said Herv\u00e9, throwing them on the table.\n\n\u201cYes, it is indeed he who is my deliverer, and who shall be my\nhusband!\u201d cried the princess, throwing herself on Herv\u00e9\u2019s neck.\n\nSeeing that everything was going against him, the charcoal-burner\nwanted to go out, but the bear stopped the way.\n\nThen the old king, addressing his servants, said angrily,--\n\n\u201cSeize this impostor and let him be burned!\u201d\n\nAnd they built an enormous pile of fagots, set it on fire, and threw\nthe charcoal-burner into the midst of the flames. Then Herv\u00e9 married\nthe princess and they had holidays and magnificent banquets.\n\n Told by Margaret Philip, of Pluzunet, 1873.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nPAPA TIGER AND PAPA SHEEP\n\nA CREOLE STORY\n\n\nA long, long time ago the sheep was feared by all the animals on the\nsavannas, and in the great forests. When he passed along the road,\nwalking slowly, his face grave and stern, with his long white beard and\nhis curved horns, it was frightful, and the animals who met him saluted\nhim politely, then ran away as fast as their legs could carry them. Had\nhe ever eaten any of his neighbors? The gossips of the country dared\nnot say so positively, but he looked so terrible, that, as they say, it\nis better to believe it than to go to see. By degrees, from hearing it\nsaid that he was to be feared, he finally came to believe it entirely\nhimself. Once when he was stooping over a brook to drink, he saw his\nimage in the stream, and jumped three feet back, frightened at the\nsight of his beard and his horns.\n\nA Tiger, which lived not far from Papa Sheep\u2019s hut, plucked up all his\ncourage one day, and determined to make a formal visit to his neighbor.\nHe took with him his son, a little tiger already able to walk about.\nAs far off as he could see Papa Sheep, he saluted him very humbly, and\nwhen he came near he asked after his family.\n\n\u201cNeighbor, I have come to pay my respects to you, and my wife would\nhave been pleased to pay her compliments to Madam Sheep if she had not\nbeen kept at home by indisposition.\u201d\n\nPapa Sheep invited Papa Tiger to come into his house. While the two\nfathers conversed gravely on the affairs of the country, little Tiger\nwent to play in the garden with little Sheep.\n\n\u201cBe very polite to little Sheep,\u201d said his father to him, \u201cor else he\nwill eat you.\u201d\n\nSo the two children began to play together; after a moment or so little\nTiger jumped on little Sheep and threw him down head over heels. Then\nlittle Sheep laughed.\n\n\u201cBless me! what little teeth you have!\u201d said little Tiger to him.\n\n\u201cIt is so with all my family; Papa\u2019s are all like mine,\u201d said little\nSheep.\n\nThis remark made little Tiger reflect; and when the visit was over, and\nfather and son had left their hosts, little Tiger scarcely waited for\nPapa Sheep to shut the door before he said to his father,--\n\n\u201cPapa, Papa, little Sheep has very small teeth, and he told me that his\nfather\u2019s were no longer than his own.\u201d\n\n\u201cHold your tongue, hold your tongue, you rascal; if Papa Sheep should\nhear us, he would eat us both up.\u201d\n\nPapa Tiger resolved, however, to know the truth of this matter.\nCertainly, Papa Sheep had seemed to him very fat, and only the thought\nof it made him lick his moustaches. But how could he see Papa Sheep\u2019s\nteeth? This was not easy. Papa Sheep scarcely ever opened his mouth to\nspeak, and his beard entirely covered his lower lip and chin. However,\nthe opportunity came to the Tiger as it does to all those who know\nhow to wait. The day that Papa Sheep and his son returned his visit,\nwhile the children were playing outside, he was exceedingly polite to\nSheep, and gave him a bottle of his best wine, then a second, and a\nthird. Papa Sheep became extremely gay, and losing his seriousness, he\nopened his mouth wide so as to enjoy his laugh. Then Papa Tiger saw his\nguest\u2019s little teeth. Without hesitation he jumped on the Sheep and\nthrottled him. Hearing his father scream, little Sheep ran off as fast\nas he could, and reached his home before the Tiger, excited over his\nfirst prey, had thought of following him.\n\nAll day long there were nothing but tears and groanings in the Sheep\u2019s\nhut. Mamma Sheep and her son cried until it was a pity to hear them.\nHearing the noise they made, the Queen of the Birds came flying from\nthe great forest near by, and lighting on the roof of the hut, she\nasked Mamma Sheep the cause of her grief.\n\n\u201cAlas! kind lady, Papa Tiger has eaten up my poor husband! My child and\nI do not dare to go out, for he will come prowling around here to eat\nus also.\u201d\n\nTouched by her grief, the Queen of the Birds consoled her as well\nas she could, and promised her a complete revenge. Then with a few\nflaps of her wings she soon reached the neighboring forest. All the\nbirds of the great forest responded to her appeal; the large Aras,\nwith their brilliant plumage; the Cockatoos, with their white crests;\nthousands of emerald Paroquets, with coral beaks; little scarlet and\ngreen Humming-birds, looking like precious stones, to which God had\ngiven wings. The Queen told them of the death of Papa Sheep. \u201cLet us\nswear to avenge our good neighbor,\u201d cried she. \u201cWe swear it!\u201d squalled,\nwhistled, and screamed the birds, each in his own language.\n\nAt this deafening noise, the Alligators ran to hide themselves in the\nhigh grass, the Boas and Rattlesnakes ran hastily into the hollows of\nthe trees.\n\n\u201cBe confident!\u201d said the Queen of the Birds. \u201cTo-morrow is Sunday; I\nwill give a great feast in the forest. As soon as high mass is over I\nwish all the birds of the forest to assemble. My pretty Paroquets, fly\naround and give the invitations. Get everything ready for the feast;\nbe prompt at the appointed hour, and obey me in everything. I will fly\nover myself and invite Papa Tiger.\u201d\n\nFlattered by the visit of the Queen of the Birds, Papa Tiger promised\nto come to the great ball in the forest. He put on his finest clothes,\ncurled his moustache, and before setting out he kissed his wife on her\nlips, and his son on his two cheeks.\n\nAs soon as they saw him come the Queen of the Birds cried to all her\nsubjects,--\n\n\u201cTake your places quickly, form the quadrilles, and let each one of you\nbegin to dance, hiding his head under his wing. Music, play!\u201d\n\nAnd the orchestra played,--\n\n  \u201cTig, tig, malinboin\n  La chelema che tango\n    Redjoum\n  La chelema che tango!\u201d\n\nThe Queen of the Birds flew down before Papa Tiger, and bade him\nwelcome. How splendid the feast was! Papa Tiger was dazzled by it! Long\nlines of birds with rich plumage placed themselves opposite each other.\n\u201cThe quadrille is beginning now,\u201d said the Queen; \u201cyou shall be my\ncavalier.\u201d Papa Tiger stood up beside his partner, and the orchestra\nplayed,--\n\n  \u201cTig, tig, malinboin\n  La chelema che tango\n    Redjoum\n  La chelema che tango!\u201d\n\nAt once the birds, their heads under their wings, began to dance to\nthe music. The Queen also hid her head, and when Papa Tiger, proud,\nand marching with his head high, was about to make the first turn, she\ncried,--\n\n\u201cBut, Papa Tiger, you don\u2019t understand! It is the custom at my court,\nthat in order to take part in the dance, you must have no head. Look at\nall my invited guests; they would consider they had been wanting in the\nmanners of distinguished society, indeed, in the simplest politeness,\nif they dared raise their heads before their sovereign. So, my friend,\ndo as they do, and you will then be able to move with distinction in\nthe quadrille of the Queen of the Birds.\u201d\n\nPapa Tiger blushed red with shame.\n\n\u201cMy Queen,\u201d he cried, \u201cI beg your pardon humbly for this breach of\netiquette. I am a wild hunter, accustomed to pass entire nights on the\nwatch, and I am ignorant of the customs of courts. Kindly promise me\na quadrille and I will return in a moment in the attitude that you\nrequire.\u201d\n\nWith a few bounds Papa Tiger was at home. He said to his wife,--\n\n\u201cMy wife, in order to have the honor of dancing with the Queen of the\nBirds, it is essential to have no head; I saw all the guests dancing in\nthat condition. It is the etiquette of the court. Take this axe and cut\noff my head.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have lost it already, my poor husband,\u201d said Mamma Tiger. \u201cInstead\nof dancing with Queens, you would do better to stay at home with your\nwife and children. I do not like husbands who leave their wives in the\nlurch and pass the night at balls.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you do not obey me,\u201d growled the Tiger, in a rage at being scolded\nby his wife, \u201cI will strangle you this moment.\u201d\n\nThen Mamma Tiger seized the axe, and with one blow cut off her\nhusband\u2019s head. It killed him outright, as you may imagine.\n\nTwo Paroquets, waiting in ambush, flew off rapidly to carry the news of\nthe Tiger\u2019s death to the Queen of the Birds. Then the birds all took\ntheir heads from under their wings; all the beasts of the forest were\nbrought in; each of them wished in his turn to embrace Mamma Sheep and\nher son. After that, they formed a line to dance and the orchestra\nbegan to play:--\n\n  \u201cTig, tig, malinboin\n  La chelema che tango\n    Redjoum\n  La chelema che tango!\u201d\n\nIt would be impossible to tell you how they leaped, how they fluttered!\nAt last it was necessary to go away, for everything comes to an end in\nthis lower world; but before doing so, they took up a collection and\ngave the money to little Sheep and his mother.\n\nSheep, and you children who hear me, let the death of Papa Sheep be a\nlesson to you; it is better not to open your mouth than to laugh with\npeople you know nothing about.\n\n  LOYS BRUYERE.\n\n\n\n\nJOHN BIT-OF-A-MAN\n\nA STORY OF THE DISTRICT OF METZ\n\n\nOnce there was a woman who had a little son who was extremely small; so\nvery small that she named him John Bit-of-a-man. One day she called him\nto her and said,--\n\n\u201cCome, take this to your father who is working down there in the\nfields, and when you get to him, say: \u2018See, father! here is your\nbuttered roll!\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cI will, mother,\u201d said John Bit-of-a-man; and all along the way he\nrepeated the words so as not to forget them: \u201cSee, father! here is your\nbuttered roll; see, father! here is your buttered roll!\u201d\n\nWhen he reached his father, who was occupied in repairing the ditches,\nhe took up his refrain: \u201cSee, father! here is your buttered roll.\u201d\n\nThe good man, hearing some one speak, looked around him on every side,\nbut saw no one; at last, however, he spied little John Bit-of-a-man in\nthe grass at his feet.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said he, \u201cit is you, is it? What do you want?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have brought you a buttered roll,\u201d said John Bit-of-a-man.\n\n\u201cYou are very good, my child, to bring me this buttered roll;\u201d and\ntaking it in his hands he ate it all up, without offering John\nBit-of-a-man a mite.\n\n\u201cThe glutton! he did not give me any! The glutton! he did not give me\nany!\u201d groaned John Bit-of-a-man.\n\nSome time after that, a lord passed by. He called to the laborer. \u201cYou\nhave a pretty little boy; will you sell him to me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will, gladly.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow much will you take?\u201d\n\n\u201cA hundred crowns.\u201d\n\n\u201cA hundred crowns you shall have.\u201d\n\nThe bargain concluded, the lord put John Bit-of-a-man in his pocket\nand went on his way. At the end of an hour, the child put his head out\nof the pocket and begged his master to put him down on the ground for\na moment as he felt faint. The lord was good enough to listen to him,\nand in a moment John Bit-of-a-man glided under a heap of leaves and his\nmaster could not find him. John Bit-of-a-man, being free once more,\nwent back to his father.\n\nA few days after that, the lord again passed by the laborer, who was\nstill repairing the ditches. \u201cYou have a pretty little boy there,\u201d said\nhe; \u201cwill you sell him to me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will, gladly.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow much will you take?\u201d\n\n\u201cA hundred crowns.\u201d\n\n\u201cA hundred crowns you shall have.\u201d\n\nThe bargain concluded, the lord clapped John Bit-of-a-man into his\npocket. At the end of an hour the child put his head out of the pocket\nand begged his master to put him down on the ground awhile as he felt\ncramped.\n\n\u201cWell, stay in my pocket and be cramped!\u201d said the lord, who remembered\nhow he had been caught before.\n\nWhen he reached his castle, he took John Bit-of-a-man out of his\npocket and put him in a basket which he suspended from the kitchen\nceiling, and told him to watch everything he saw going on, and tell him\nfaithfully all that he saw.\n\nJohn Bit-of-a-man agreed to do this, and each day he told his master\nall that he saw and heard.\n\nOne day our hero leaned his little head over the edge of the basket, so\nhe could see around him, and a servant saw him and said to him,--\n\n\u201cSo it is you who watch us, you little wretch! It is you who tell the\nmaster all that happens! Very well! you shall pay for it!\u201d\n\nAmid the applause of his companions, the servant took down the basket,\nseized the poor little fellow by the hair, and threw him into the\nhorse-trough. That same day an ox went there to drink, and swallowed\nhim whole.\n\nAt the end of a week, the lord had the ox killed for a great feast\nthat he made; the entrails were thrown out into the road. An old woman\npassing by saw the entrails. \u201cOh! what splendid entrails! What a pity\nto throw them away!\u201d and so saying, she clapped them into the basket\nwhich she carried on her back. She had not taken many steps, when she\nheard a noise that came from her basket saying,--\n\n        \u201cToc! toc!\n  The devil\u2019s imp is in your basket!\n        Toc! toc!\n  The devil\u2019s imp is in your basket!\u201d\n\nThe old woman threw down her basket, and ran away frightened.\n\nA hungry wolf came along who seized on the entrails with avidity, and\nJohn Bit-of-a-man was once more swallowed alive.\n\nAs the wolf was crossing the plain, he heard a voice which came from\nthe inside of his body cry out,--\n\n\u201cHelp! shepherd! help! here is the wolf that devours your sheep.\u201d\n\n\u201cBe quiet! you cursed stomach; be quiet! cursed stomach!\u201d said the wolf\nin desperation.\n\n\u201cI will not hold my tongue until you have put me down at my father\u2019s\ndoor,\u201d answered John Bit-of-a-man.\n\n\u201cVery well; I will go there,\u201d said the wolf.\n\nWhen they got there, John Bit-of-a-man got out of the wolf\u2019s stomach,\nand ran quickly into the house, passing by the cat\u2019s hole; at the same\nmoment, seizing the wolf by the tail, he cried, \u201cCome, father, come, I\nhave got the wolf by the tail.\u201d His father ran to him, killed the wolf\nwith one stroke of his axe, and sold his skin.\n\nRestored to his home again, John Bit-of-a-man lived ever after happy\nand peaceful.\n\n Told by Madam Richet, aged 77, at Woippy, near Metz.\n\n  N\u00c9R\u00c9E QUEPAT.\n\n\n\n\nLONG TIME\n\nA STORY OF CARAYAC (QUERCY)\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man who was not rich, but by dint of hard\nwork he had saved up a little sum. Every day when he went to his work,\nhe said to his wife,--\n\n\u201cTake care of this money. It is for the long time.\u201d\n\nThe woman, as soon as he was gone, would take pleasure in counting\nover the crowns and the sous. One day when she was alone in her house,\ncounting her money as usual, a beggar came by and asked her for charity.\n\n\u201cAlas! poor man,\u201d said she, \u201cwe are very poor; I have nothing to give\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat!\u201d said he, \u201cand all those beautiful crowns and those sous that\nyou have there! Could you not give me some of those for charity?\u201d\n\n\u201cI wish I could,\u201d said the woman, \u201cbut we are keeping this for the long\ntime.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe long time?\u201d said the beggar; \u201cI am the long time.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! if you are the long time, that is another thing. Take some, take\nsome.\u201d\n\nThe beggar, not at all ashamed, pocketed the whole sum, leaving not a\nfarthing or a mite, and went away satisfied with his windfall, as you\nmay imagine.\n\nThe husband returned. \u201cLong Time came,\u201d said the wife, \u201cand I gave him\nthe money that we saved for him.\u201d\n\n\u201cLong Time? you miserable baggage!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; a poor man who told me that he was Long Time. I have given him\nall.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! poor dunce! you let him steal the savings from you. Come, there is\nnothing left for us to do, but take a wallet and go out ourselves and\nbeg from village to village. Take your clothes and let us go forth.\u201d\n\nThe husband had nothing but what he had on, the wife not much more. He\nwent in front, she followed.\n\n\u201cShut the door tight,\u201d said the husband.\n\n\u201cDid you say carry it?\u201d\n\n\u201cI said shut it.\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I carry it?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, carry it.\u201d\n\nThe obedient wife took the door off the hinges, put it on her\nshoulders, and followed her husband towards the neighboring wood.\n\n[Illustration: THE OBEDIENT WIFE FOLLOWED.]\n\nNight came on. They heard the noise of a band of robbers, who were\ncoming in their direction. \u201cLet us climb up into a tree to hide,\u201d said\nthe husband.\n\n\u201cWhat shall I do with the door?\u201d asked his wife.\n\n\u201cThe door? Leave it there.\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I take it up?\u201d\n\n\u201cLeave it there.\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I take it up?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, take it up.\u201d\n\nShe climbed up after her husband into a large old spreading oak-tree,\ndragging the door after her. They were scarcely settled in the branches\nwhen the robbers arrived at the foot of the tree, made a halt, opened\ntheir provisions, lighted a fire, prepared their supper, counted the\nbooty they had taken during the day, and then began to eat and drink.\n\nThe wife, from the top branch, said in a low voice to her husband,--\n\n\u201cThe door is going to fall!\u201d\n\n\u201cHold on to it, you miserable baggage, or we are lost.\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I let it go?\u201d\n\n\u201cHold on to it!\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I let it go?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, let it go.\u201d\n\nThe woman let go the door, which tumbled with a great crash from branch\nto branch, and fell into the midst of the robbers and frightened them\nso that they ran away as fast as they could, forgetting all their\nplunder and never looking behind them.\n\nThe husband and wife came down, picked up the jewels, the pieces of\ngold, and all the booty left by the robbers, and returned to their\nhouse, rich for the rest of their lives.\n\n  MARCEL DEVIC.\n\n\n\n\nSKILFUL JOHN\n\nA STORY OF PICARDY\n\n\nOne day a poor man sent his son, Skilful John, to carry some buttered\nrolls to his parents, who lived three miles off, telling him not to\nstop by the way. John sauntered along the road and lost his way. Seeing\na light, he followed it and came to a little hut. He knocked at the\ndoor.\n\n        \u201cTap! tap!\n  Open to a poor lost boy.\n        Tap! tap!\n  God therefor will have great joy.\u201d\n\nThe door opened; an old woman with a grinning face appeared and asked,\n\u201cWho are you?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am Skilful John; will you lodge me for the night?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I lodge you, what will you pay me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will give you a piece of buttered roll.\u201d\n\nThe old woman made him come in; he seated himself in a corner while the\nold woman made him some broth.\n\n\u201cI bet,\u201d said she to him after a few moments, \u201cthat with my old legs\nI can reach my garden wall before you do. If I win, I will eat your\nbuttered roll; and if I lose, you shall keep your roll, and have my\nbroth into the bargain.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the child; and, darting out, he soon reached the\ngarden wall. But the old woman, instead of running, shut and bolted her\ndoor and took possession of the buttered roll that John had left on his\nbench. John knocked in vain; the door was not opened for him a second\ntime; and as it was raining very hard, he got into a bee-hive. In the\nmiddle of the night some thieves came to steal the hives. John heard a\nvoice say,--\n\n\u201cLift the hives, and take away the heaviest.\u201d\n\nAs the hive in which John was, was one of the heaviest, it was taken\naway by the thieves, who put it in a bag.\n\nWhen the thieves came to a wood, they put down their burdens, John took\nhis knife, made a hole in the bag and escaped.\n\nAfter wandering for some time, he met a shepherd who gave him a piece\nof bread, and took him afterwards to sleep in the barn of a farmhouse.\nDuring the night the floor fell in, and John woke up in a stable\nastride of an ox. Just at that moment the thieves were busy unfastening\nthe oxen; seeing John, they took him and carried him away with them\nto the forest. Not wishing to kill him, they shut him up in an old\ncask and abandoned him to his unhappy fate. A pack of wolves came up\nto devour the remains of the thieves\u2019 repast: one of them passed near\nthe cask. John put his hand out of the bung-hole and seized him by his\ntail. The frightened wolf fled through the woods, dragging behind him\nthe cask, which was soon broken into a thousand pieces. John, once more\nset free, went wandering around till he came to a hut. It was the same\nold woman\u2019s hut. Its door was only latched. John entered softly; the\nold woman, who was asleep, did not hear him. He took his buttered roll\nand ate all there was left of the broth, then went out singing as loud\nas he could,--\n\n  \u201cOld woman! old woman!\n  I have eaten your broth.\n  Old woman! old woman!\n  I am sharp enough!\u201d\n\n Told in Picardy by Narcisso Dufaux, aged 48 years, a cap-maker at\n Warloy-Baillon (Somme).\n\n  HENRI CARNOY.\n\n\n\n\nTHE TAILOR AND THE HURRICANE\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nOnce there was a tailor and his wife. Tailors\u2019 wives are generally\nlazy, and this one was like the rest. Her name was Jeanne ar Balc\u2019h and\nher husband\u2019s name was Iann troad scarbet (John Cross-foot). In the\nmorning, as soon as Jean had gone out to his work, Jeanne got back into\nbed, and when she rose again, about eleven or twelve o\u2019clock, she went\nto gossip in the village, and chatted from door to door like a magpie.\nWhen Jean returned in the evening she was always at her spinning-wheel;\nso he thought she had not left it the whole day.\n\nOne morning Jean said to Jeanne,--\n\n\u201cI shall not go out to-day, wife, for a day\u2019s work, and we will both go\ntogether to the market to sell the yarn; for you must have a great deal\nby this time.\u201d\n\nJeanne was greatly embarrassed at this; what should she do? She had not\nthree bobbins of yarn. She went to the house, of a neighboring gossip,\nand told how it was.\n\n\u201cTell your husband,\u201d said the gossip, \u201cthat after having washed your\nthread, you had put it to dry in the oven of the furnace, and that he,\nnot knowing of it, lighted the fire as usual and burned up all the\nthread.\u201d\n\nJeanne returned to her house, and told her husband, word for word, what\nthe gossip said.\n\n\u201cFool!\u201d cried Jean angrily; \u201cyou must have lost the little sense you\nhad, and I shall never be anything but poor with you. Now, to punish\nyou, you shall sow in the garden the half-bushel of flaxseed that we\nhave there; and this evening when I come home, the flax must be ripe,\nreaped, retted, dried, and put in bundles in the barn.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut my poor husband,\u201d said Jeanne, \u201chow can you talk in such a way? No\none in the world can do this; and how can you expect me to do it?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou may manage it as you like,\u201d answered Jean; \u201cbut it must be done\nwhen I come back this evening, or woe to you!\u201d\n\nThen he went away as usual. Jeanne, much disturbed, ran at once to the\nhouse of her gossiping neighbor.\n\n\u201cIf you only knew, neighbor, what my husband has ordered me to do! He\nmust have lost his senses completely.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat has he ordered you to do?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat has he ordered me to do? He says that this evening when he turns\nfrom his day\u2019s work, I must have sown in our garden a half-bushel of\nflaxseed, and that, moreover, the flax must be ripe, reaped, retted,\ndried, and put in bundles in the barn! I should like to know if you do\nnot think he must have lost his senses to ask such an impossible thing\nof me?\u201d And she cried as she said this.\n\n\u201cBe comforted, neighbor,\u201d said the other woman; \u201cwe will find out some\nway of deceiving Jean yet; he thinks himself cunning, but he is only a\nfool. This is what you must do. I have a little flax in my barn from\nlast year. Take two or three bundles of it, and scatter it over the\nfields and meadows around, and hang some on the hedges and bushes, and\nwhen he returns in the evening, you can tell him that you have done\nall that he ordered you, but that a hurricane came while the flax was\ndrying in the meadow, and carried it all away; and as a proof of this\nyou can show him what is left hanging on the trees and bushes.\u201d\n\nThis appeared to Jeanne to be an excellent plan; so she took three\nbundles of her neighbor\u2019s dry flax, and went and scattered it over the\nfields and meadows, and hung it on the bushes and the branches of the\ntrees.\n\nWhen Jean returned in the evening he asked at once,--\n\n\u201cWell, wife, have you done what I told you, this morning?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, I did just exactly what you told me; but we have no luck,\nmy poor husband.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, what has happened?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat has happened? Think of it! The flax, after being taken out of\nthe pond where it had been retted, was drying in the meadow, and I was\ngetting ready to pick it up and bind it in bundles to put it up in the\nbarn, when a hurricane came which has carried it all away.\u201d\n\n\u201cTut, tut, tut! I do not believe any such stories,\u201d said Jean.\n\n\u201cBut, my husband, this is not a story at all; come with me and I will\nshow you that it is the pure truth.\u201d\n\nAnd she led him to the field, where she pretended to have spread her\nflax to dry, and showed it to him, scattered all over the neighboring\nfields and meadows, or hanging on the bushes and branches of the trees.\n\nJean believed her then, and he exclaimed,--\n\n\u201cVery well! since it is the hurricane that has done all this damage, it\nis he that shall pay for it, and I will go this moment and complain to\nthe master of the winds.\u201d\n\nThen he went into his house, took his _pennbaz_, a taste of barley\nbread and some buttered rolls, and started off. He traveled a long\ntime; after going straight ahead, farther and farther off, he came,\none day, to the foot of a hill on which there was seated an old woman\nas large as a giantess. Her white hair floated in the wind, and one\nlong, black tooth, the only one she had left, shook in her mouth.\n\n\u201cGood morning, grandmother!\u201d said Jean.\n\n\u201cGood morning, my son,\u201d answered the old woman; \u201cwhat do you want?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am looking for the dwelling-place of the winds.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, my son, you are at the end of your journey, for this is the\ndwelling-place of the winds, and I am their mother. What do you want\nwith them?\u201d\n\n\u201cI want to complain of the damage they have caused me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat damage have they caused you? Tell me, and I will repay you if it\nis possible.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour son Hurricane has ruined me\u201d; and he told the whole affair to the\nold woman.\n\nShe said to him, \u201cCome into my house, my son, and when my son the\nHurricane returns I will make him repay you.\u201d\n\nAnd she then descended the hill and took Jean to her house, which was\nat the foot of it. It was a hut built of branches and clods of earth,\nand the wind came in and blew through and through it. She gave him\nsomething to eat, and told him not to be afraid of her son, when he\nreturned, although he might threaten to eat him up, for she would know\nvery well how to manage him.\n\nSoon a terrible noise was heard; the trees cracked, small stones flew\nthrough the air, and the wolves howled.\n\n\u201cThat is my son the Hurricane, coming,\u201d said the old woman.\n\nJean was so terribly frightened that he hid himself under the table.\nThe Hurricane came in muttering, sniffing the air, and cried out,--\n\n\u201cI smell the blood of a Christian! There is a Christian here, and I\nmust eat him up!\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not think, my son, that I am going to let you eat up this pretty\nlittle Christian; think rather of repaying him for the damage you have\ndone him,\u201d said the old woman; and, taking Jean by the hand, she made\nhim come out from under the table.\n\nThe Hurricane, as soon as he saw him, opened his enormous mouth, and\nsprang at him to swallow him. But his mother said to him, pointing with\nher finger to a bag which was hanging from one of the beams of the\nhut,--\n\n\u201cDo you want to be put in prison?\u201d And he became calm immediately. Then\nthe tailor grew bold and said to him,--\n\n\u201cGood morning, Mr. Hurricane; you have ruined me.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow is that, my good man?\u201d answered the Hurricane gently.\n\n\u201cYou carried away all my flax from the meadow where my wife had spread\nit to dry.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is not true; and your wife is a liar and a good-for-nothing\ncreature. But as you are an honest man and a good workman, and because\nin spite of all the trouble you take you will always be poor with such\na wife, I will reward you for the trouble you have taken in coming\nhere, and for your confidence in my justice. See! here is a mule, and\nwhen you are in want of silver and gold you have only to spread a white\nnapkin under his mouth and say to him, \u2018Mule, do your duty!\u2019 and he\nwill furnish you with gold and silver as much as you want. But take\ncare not to let him be stolen from you, or you will find yourself poor\nas before.\u201d\n\nThen the Hurricane gave him a mule which was in a corner of a hut,\nand which was not at all different from an ordinary mule. The tailor\nthanked the Hurricane, bade farewell to him and also to his mother, and\nthen went away, taking with him the precious animal.\n\nWhen he had gone a considerable distance, as he was crossing a large\nfield, he wished to assure himself that his mule really possessed the\nvirtue which had been attributed to him. He spread his handkerchief\nunder his mouth and said, \u201cMule, do your duty!\u201d And immediately pieces\nof gold and silver fell in his handkerchief until it would not hold any\nmore. He filled his pockets with them, then he started again on his\nway, singing, laughing, dancing, and jumping for joy, as if he were\nfoolish.\n\nToward sunset he stopped to pass the night in an inn by the roadside.\nAs he left his mule with the stable-boy, he charged him to take special\ncare of it and never to say to it, \u201cDo your duty.\u201d Poor Jean, as we\nhave seen, was none of the sharpest. After having supped comfortably,\neaten and drunk of the best there was in the house, he went to bed and\nslept without anxiety till morning.\n\nThe stable-boy was astonished at Jean\u2019s charging him not to say to\nthe mule, \u201cDo your duty\u201d; no traveler had ever told him such a thing.\n\u201cThere is something back of this,\u201d said he to himself.\n\nThis thought kept him from sleeping: he went to tell his master about\nit. When all the household was asleep, the inn-keeper, his wife, and\nthe stable-boy, went to the stable, and going up to the mule the\nstable-boy said,--\n\n\u201cMule, do your duty!\u201d\n\nAnd pieces of gold and silver fell at once, making a ringing sound.\nThey were overcome with astonishment. After they had all three filled\ntheir pockets, they put another mule in place of the tailor\u2019s and hid\nhis in a room well fastened up, far from the stable.\n\nThe next day, Jean breakfasted well, paid his reckoning, and then set\nout again on his journey, taking with him the mule which the stable-boy\nbrought him, and not dreaming of the trick that had been played on him.\n\nAs he had his pockets filled with gold and silver, he had no need,\nduring the rest of his journey, to say to his mule, \u201cDo your duty.\u201d\n\nWhen he reached his home, his wife and children were ready to die of\nhunger. On seeing him, Jeanne began to heap abuses upon him: \u201cSo here\nyou are at last, wicked, heartless man; you run off, no one knows\nwhere, and leave your wife and children at home to die of hunger.\u201d\n\nAnd she shook her fist at him.\n\n\u201cHold your tongue! wife,\u201d said Jean, quietly, and with the air of a man\nsure of his powers; \u201cyou will never again want for bread or anything\nelse; we are rich now, as you shall see! Take off your apron and spread\nit on the ground under the mule\u2019s mouth.\u201d\n\nJeanne spread her apron on the ground and Jean said,--\n\n\u201cMule, do your duty!\u201d\n\nBut to his astonishment nothing fell in the apron. He said, a second\ntime, louder than before, thinking perhaps he had not heard,--\n\n\u201cMule, do your duty!\u201d\n\nStill nothing; then a third time he cried still louder,--\n\n\u201cMule, do your duty!\u201d\n\nBut neither gold nor silver fell on the apron. Jeanne, now persuaded\nthat her husband was mocking her, seized a stick and darted at him.\nPoor Jean, to get out of her way, ran out, and not daring to go into\nhis house, and not knowing just where his mule had been stolen, he\ndetermined to go again to see the Hurricane.\n\nWhen the latter saw him returning all cast down he said to him,--\n\n\u201cI know why you have come back; you let them steal your mule from you\nat the first inn where you lodged on your way home. Here is a napkin,\nand when you spread it on a table or even on the ground, saying to it,\n\u2018Napkin, do your duty!\u2019 it will furnish you immediately with all you\nwant to eat and drink. But take care not to let this be stolen also.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not be anxious! they shall steal my life first.\u201d\n\nThen he bade farewell to the Hurricane and his mother and set out on\nhis journey. He lodged, the first night, at the same inn as before.\nThere was a wedding feast going on when he arrived. He was heartily\nwelcomed and asked to sit at the table with the newly married pair,\nto which he agreed with pleasure. Finding the repast not much to his\ntaste, or perhaps being anxious to excite the astonishment of the\nguests and to pass for a great scholar or a magician, he drew his\nnapkin from his pocket, spread it on the table, and profoundly uttered\nthe words, \u201cNapkin, do your duty!\u201d\n\nImmediately there was a magnificent repast, delicious meats, such\nas are seen only on the tables of kings, and fine wines from all\ncountries. Intoxicated, as much by the praises as by the wine, Jean let\nthem steal away his napkin also, and the next day he was as poor and\ndestitute as ever.\n\nThis time he dared not show himself before his wife in such a\ncondition, and he thought that the only thing he could do was to go\nagain to the home of the mother of the winds. So he went there again,\nbut this time very much ashamed and cast down.\n\nWhen the Hurricane saw him, he said to him,--\n\n\u201cYou have let them steal away your napkin also, unfortunate man!\u201d\n\n\u201cHave pity on me, Mr. Hurricane,\u201d said the tailor, humbly; \u201cmy wife and\nmy children are dying of hunger at home, and I cannot go back to them\nwithout taking them something.\u201d\n\n\u201cI consent to come to your assistance one last time, for you are\nnot a wicked man\u201d; and handing him a stick--\u201cHere is a stick, and\nwhen whoever has it in his hand says, \u2018Stick, do your duty!\u2019 he will\nimmediately begin to beat his master\u2019s enemies, and nothing can stop it\nuntil he cries, \u2018Enough!\u2019 With this stick, you can recover your mule\nand your napkin.\u201d\n\nJean thanked him and departed. He lodged at the same inn as before.\nThey welcomed him in the heartiest manner, in the hope of stealing\nsome other talisman from him. He invited the inn-keeper and his wife\nand also the stable-boy to supper with him. When the repast was nearly\nover, he said to his stick, which he had held constantly in his hand,\nnot being willing to be separated from it,--\n\n\u201cStick, do your duty!\u201d\n\nAnd immediately the stick was in motion and beat the inn-keeper and his\nwife and the stable-boy with all its might. All their efforts to stop\nit were useless, and in vain they tried to hide themselves under the\ntable and other things; the stick reached them everywhere, and Jean\nlaughed and made a joke of it. \u201cPity! Mercy!\u201d they cried to him, and he\nsaid to them,--\n\n\u201cThat will teach you to steal mules and napkins!\u201d\n\n\u201cPity! We will give them all back to you! You will kill us!\u201d\n\n\u201cEnough!\u201d cried Jean, at the end of half an hour of this exercise;\nand the stick stopped striking, and Jean returned to his home with his\nmule, napkin, and stick. If he has been wise enough to keep them, he\nhas nothing to complain of. For my part I have heard nothing of him\nsince that time.\n\n Told by Barbe Tassel, of Plouaret (C\u00f4tes-du-Nord).\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BAKER\u2019S THREE DAUGHTERS\n\nOR,\n\nTHE DANCING WATER, THE SINGING APPLE, AND THE BIRD OF TRUTH\n\n\nThere was once an old baker who was a widower with three daughters.\nOne evening after supper they sat before the fire talking about their\nloves. \u201cWhom do you love, oldest sister?\u201d asked the youngest.\n\n\u201cThe king\u2019s gardener,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cAnd you?\u201d she asked of the second sister.\n\n\u201cThe king\u2019s waiting-man.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; as for me, I love the king\u2019s son.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe king\u2019s son! you are joking!\u201d cried the other two.\n\n\u201cCertainly not, and I tell you, moreover, that we shall have three\nchildren, the king\u2019s son and I, two boys, each with a gold star on his\nforehead, and a daughter with a silver star.\u201d\n\nThe father, who had gone to bed, and who overheard the conversation of\nhis daughters, said to them then,--\n\n\u201cWhat sort of talk is this? You must be crazy! go to bed at once.\u201d\n\nSo the three girls went to bed.\n\nThe king\u2019s son was taking a walk that evening through the village,\naccompanied by his waiting-man and his gardener. A shower came up,\nand they went under the baker\u2019s shed for shelter and overheard the\nconversation of the three girls. The prince took down the name of the\nbaker, which was on his sign, and the next morning he sent to ask the\noldest daughter to come to the palace to speak to him.\n\n\u201cDo you remember,\u201d said he to her, \u201cwhat you said yesterday evening,\nbeside your fire, in your father\u2019s house?\u201d The young girl was very much\nsurprised and frightened. \u201cDo not be afraid, my girl,\u201d said he, \u201cspeak\nboldly, for I have heard all; do you remember what you said?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cAnd you would be willing to marry my gardener?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, certainly.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; go home and tell your second sister to come and talk with\nme.\u201d\n\nWhen the latter came to the palace, the prince asked of her, as he had\ndone of her elder sister,--\n\n\u201cDo you remember what you said yesterday evening, beside your fire in\nyour father\u2019s house?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sire, certainly,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cAnd you would be willing to take my waiting-man for your husband?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, certainly.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; go home and tell your youngest sister to come also and talk\nwith me.\u201d\n\nThe latter came also in her turn, and the prince asked of her, as of\nthe other two, \u201cDo you remember what you said yesterday evening, by the\nfireside, in your father\u2019s house?\u201d\n\n\u201cI remember, sire,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cAnd you would be willing to marry me?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, with all my heart.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd you would have three children, as you said, two boys, each with a\ngold star on his forehead, and a daughter with a silver star?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, as truly as I have said it, sire.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; then you shall be my wife. Now go home and tell your father\nto come and talk with me.\u201d\n\nThe young girl went home, very happy, and told her father to go to the\npalace and talk with the king\u2019s son.\n\n\u201cWhy?\u201d asked the old man; \u201cI told you so; your foolish talk has come to\nthe prince\u2019s ears, and now he has doubtless sent for me to punish me.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no, my father; go and fear nothing,\u201d said his daughter.\n\nThe old baker went to the palace, sad and sighing, as if he were going\nto his death. But when he heard the son of the king ask his three\ndaughters in marriage, one for his gardener, one for his waiting-man,\nand the third for himself, he was as joyful and happy as before he had\nbeen anxious and afraid.\n\nThe three weddings were celebrated at once, and for a whole month there\nwere feasts every day, dances, and all sorts of amusements.\n\nThe gardener and the waiting-man went to live in the city with their\nwives, and the young prince remained with his, in his father\u2019s palace.\nThe other two were jealous of the youngest sister because she was\na princess, and they tried every day to find some means to destroy\nher. At last they consulted an old fairy. She told them that when the\nprincess\u2019 baby was born they must bribe the old nurse to put a little\ndog in the cradle instead of the baby and send the baby out on the\nriver. Then they recommended a nurse to their sister, who, they said,\nwas the best in the kingdom. The princess asked to see her and welcomed\nher kindly. The baby that was born was a magnificent child, with a gold\nstar in the middle of his forehead. The nurse gave the poor little\ncreature to a man who was waiting at the door, to take it and leave it\non the shore of the Seine, which they tell me flows by Paris. Then she\nput in his place in the cradle, a little dog that she had brought with\nher. When the prince asked to see his child they showed him the little\ndog.\n\n\u201cAh! ah! what is this that you are showing me?\u201d he cried.\n\n\u201cAlas! my prince,\u201d replied the perfidious nurse, \u201cGod does all as it\npleases Him!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! misery for me! But it is useless to complain, since it is the will\nof God. Take care always of this poor creature.\u201d\n\nThe husband of the baker\u2019s oldest daughter, the king\u2019s gardener, had a\nbeautiful garden on the shore of the river, and as he was walking in\nit one day, he saw a basket which was floating on the water. He jumped\ninto his boat, caught the basket, and was very much astonished to find\nin it a beautiful child with a gold star in the middle of his forehead.\n\u201cGod be praised,\u201d said he, \u201cwho sends me such a lovely child, for I\nhave none of my own.\u201d And he carried it to his wife, who received it\nwith great joy, and took as much pleasure in caring for it as if it had\nbeen her own child.\n\nA year after, a second son was born to the princess, having also a gold\nstar in his forehead like the first. The perfidious nurse substituted a\nlittle dog for him also, and the poor baby was put out on the water in\na basket as his brother had been.\n\nThe king (the prince had become king, his father having died) asked to\nsee the new-born son.\n\n\u201cAlas! another dog!\u201d cried he, as soon as he saw it, and he turned away\nhis head and wept. \u201cBut since it is the will of God,\u201d he added, \u201cwhat\nGod does is well done.\u201d\n\nThe gardener, who was fishing with hook and line in his garden, saw a\nbasket floating down the river. He caught it and hastened to carry to\nhis wife the beautiful child he found in it. The latter received it\njoyfully, saying,--\n\n\u201cHow delightful! Now we each have one, my husband and I!\u201d\n\nThey chose a godfather and godmother, and the child was baptized.\n\nA third child was born to the princess, and this time it was a little\ngirl, with a silver star in the middle of her forehead. The perfidious\nnurse put a little dog in her place, too, and the poor thing was\nexposed as her brothers had been. This time the king began to swear and\nstorm like one beside himself, when they showed him another little dog.\n\n\u201cThey will call me,\u201d said he, \u201cthe father of dogs! and not without\nreason. But all this does not come from God; there is some mystery at\nthe bottom of it.\u201d And he had the queen shut up in a tower, with only\nbread and water for food, and a little book to read.\n\nThe gardener found another child floating on the water, and picked it\nup and carried it home, as he had done the others.\n\n\u201cEnough children like that,\u201d said his wife, seeing him come in with the\nbasket. \u201cHow is it that you find so many children?\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, wife, do not worry; be quiet. I will carry the child back\nwhere I found it on the water; but it is a great pity; such a pretty\nlittle girl!\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is a girl, do you say? Show her to me. Oh! the pretty little\nangel, with a silver star in the middle of her forehead. We will keep\nher, husband; we have sufficient means, and since God has given us no\nchildren of our own, we will take these instead.\u201d\n\nMeanwhile the poor queen was in her tower, weeping and moaning night\nand day, and no one came to see her. Her two sisters were happy with\ntheir husbands.\n\nBy and by the gardener and his wife died. The king had their three\nchildren brought to his palace, and as they were handsome children, and\nwell brought up, they pleased him very much. Every Sunday they were\nseen in his pew at church,--at high mass,--having each a bandage round\nhis forehead to hide his star. Every one was astonished to see these\nbandages, and asked, \u201cWhat does it mean?\u201d\n\nOne day, when the king was out hunting, an old woman came to the\nkitchen of the palace, and said, \u201cUgh! Ugh! Ugh! how cold I am!\u201d And\nshe trembled and her teeth chattered.\n\n\u201cCome near the fire, grandmother,\u201d said the young girl with the silver\nstar, who happened to be there.\n\n\u201cBlessings on you, my child. Ah! how beautiful you are! Ah! if you had\nthe dancing water, the singing apple, and the bird of truth, you would\nnot have your equal on the earth!\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, grandmother; but how can I get these marvelous things?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have two brothers here who can get them for you.\u201d\n\nThen she went away without saying anything more.\n\nFrom that moment the young girl could think of nothing but the words\nof the old woman; she dreamed only of the dancing water, the singing\napple, and the bird of truth, and she was very sad.\n\n\u201cWhy are you so sad?\u201d asked her brothers.\n\n\u201cThere is nothing the matter,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cYes, there is something the matter, and you must tell us what it is.\u201d\n\n\u201cAn old woman came to warm herself in the kitchen, and she said to me,\n\u2018My child, if you had the dancing water, the singing apple, and the\nbird of truth, you would not have your equal on the earth!\u2019 And since\nthen I am always dreaming of the dancing water, the singing apple, and\nthe bird of truth. But how can I ever procure such marvelous things?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy little sister, I will find them for you if they are anywhere on\nthis earth,\u201d said the elder brother.\n\n\u201cHow can you do it, my poor brother?\u201d\n\n\u201cLeave it to me, and do not be worried. See! here is a dagger, which\nI give you; draw it from the scabbard several times a day for a whole\nyear and a day; as long as you can draw it out, no harm will have\nhappened to me; but when you cannot pull it out, alas! I shall be dead!\u201d\n\nThen he bade farewell to his sister and brother, and departed.\n\nHis sister often drew the dagger-blade from the scabbard, and it came\nout easily. But alas! one day she could not draw it out, although she\ntried her best. Then she began to cry.\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter, my dear little sister?\u201d said her younger brother.\n\n\u201cAlas! poor brother, our older brother is dead!\u201d And they both began to\ncry.\n\n\u201cI must go and look for him.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, no! do not go, my brother; stay here with me.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I must go, and I never will stop walking till I have found\nmy brother. Here! I give you this necklace; slip the beads around\nconstantly; when you come to one that will not move, then I also shall\nbe dead.\u201d Then he said good-by to his sister and went away.\n\nShe, left all alone, was very sad and full of care. She constantly\nslipped the beads on her necklace around and she saw with pleasure that\nthey moved easily. But alas! one day there was one that would not move.\n\n\u201cMy God!\u201d she cried, \u201cmy second brother is dead, also! What shall I do\nnow? I must go and seek for them, and I will never stop traveling until\nI have found them, dead or alive.\u201d\n\nShe bought a horse, dressed herself as a cavalier, and set out, without\nsaying anything to any one. She continued to go on and on till she\nreached a great plain.\n\nThere she saw in an old hollow tree a little old man with a long white\nbeard.\n\n\u201cGood morning, daughter of the king of France!\u201d said the little old man\nwith the white beard.\n\n\u201cGood morning, grandfather; but you surely take me for some one else,\nfor I am not the daughter of the king of France.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no, I am not mistaken, for I know you well.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut, grandfather, is not that long beard very much in your way?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is, indeed, my child; I have worn it for five hundred years, and it\nhas been very much in my way, I assure you.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you wish it, I will cut it off.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes, do!\u201d\n\nShe took her scissors out of her pocket and cut off the old man\u2019s beard.\n\n\u201cMy blessing on you, daughter of the king of France,\u201d said he, \u201cfor\nyou have delivered me! A great many people have passed by here, during\nthese five hundred years, and no one has had pity on me but you, and\nyou shall never have reason to regret it. I know where you are going;\nyou are going to look for your two brothers. Listen to me well, and do\nexactly what I tell you. Sixty miles from here you will find an inn by\nthe roadside. Alight there, eat, drink, and then leave your horse there\nand say you will pay when you return. Soon after you leave this house,\nyou will come to a high mountain. You will have much difficulty in\nclimbing this mountain, and it will even be necessary sometimes to get\ndown on your hands and feet. A tremendous wind will soon rise; hail,\nsnow, ice, and a bitter cold will assail you; but take care and do not\nlose courage, and continue to climb up as before. On each side of the\nway you will see a great number of stone pillars. These are so many\npersons, who, like you, have attempted to climb this mountain, but have\nlost courage, and have been changed into pillars of stone. When you\nreach the top, you will see a plain with a turf dotted with flowers,\nas if in the month of May. Then you will see a golden seat under an\napple-tree. Sit down on this seat and pretend to be asleep, and you\nwill see a blackbird hop down the apple-tree from branch to branch, and\ngo into a cage which is under the tree. Then shut the cage quickly,\nfor it is the Bird of Truth. Then cut a branch of the apple-tree with\nan apple on it; that will be the Singing Apple. And finally, draw a\nphial full of water from the fountain under the tree, for that is the\nfountain of the Dancing Water. Then you can come away. As you descend\nthe mountain, drop a drop of water from your phial on each pillar of\nstone, and out of each pillar will rise a knight. Your two brothers\nwill rise also, like the others.\u201d\n\nThe young girl thanked the little old man and continued her journey.\nShe did just exactly what she had been told. She ate and drank at the\ninn, left her horse there, and began to climb the mountain. But the\ncold became so intense that her limbs were almost frozen, and she came\nnear stopping and being changed to stone like the others. However, at\nlast she reached the top of the mountain. There the sky was clear,\nand the air mild, as in the middle of summer. She seated herself on\nthe golden seat, under the apple-tree, and pretended to be asleep.\nThe blackbird hopped down the tree, from branch to branch, and went\ninto the cage. Then she got up at once and shut the cage; and the\nblackbird, seeing himself caught, said,--\n\n\u201cYou have caught me, daughter of the king of France! Many others,\nbefore you, have tried to catch me, but none have succeeded. But you\nhave been guided by some one.\u201d\n\nThen she cut a branch of the apple-tree with an apple on it, filled\nher phial with water from the fountain, and departed. As she went down\nthe mountain, she dropped a drop of water on each pillar of stone, and\nout of them came princes, dukes, barons, and knights; her two brothers\narose also, the last two; but they did not recognize their sister; and\nall crowded around her, some saying, \u201cGive me the Dancing Water, young\nknight\u201d; and others,--\u201cGive me the Singing Apple\u201d; and others,--\u201cGive\nme the Bird of Truth.\u201d\n\nBut she went quickly away, taking with her the water, the apple, and\nthe bird. As she passed the inn where she had left her horse, she paid\nher reckoning, then turned quickly homeward and arrived there a long\ntime before her brothers. When the latter arrived, they embraced their\nsister.\n\n\u201cAh! my poor brothers,\u201d said she to them, \u201chow anxious I have been\nabout you. How long your journey has been! But God be praised, since I\nhave you back again!\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas! yes, my poor sister, we were gone a long time, and we have done\nno good by it; it is only by chance that we returned at all.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, have you not brought me the Dancing Water, the Singing Apple, and\nthe Bird of Truth?\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas! no, poor sister; a young knight whom we did not know took them\naway. Ah! what a handsome knight! We wish you could have seen him.\u201d\n\nThe old king, who had no children (as he thought) loved his\nsister-in-law\u2019s children, and was glad to see them back again. He\nordered a great feast, to which he invited many people, princes, dukes,\nmarquises, barons, and generals. When the supper was nearly over the\nyoung girl placed on the table the Dancing Water, the Singing Apple,\nand the Bird of Truth, and told each of them to do his duty. And\nimmediately the water began to dance, the apple to sing, and the bird\nto fly over the table. And all the people, in ecstacy, mouths and eyes\nopen, looked and listened at these wonders. They had never seen nor\nheard anything like it.\n\n\u201cWhose are these wonderful things?\u201d asked the king, when he could speak.\n\n\u201cMine, sire,\u201d said the young girl.\n\n\u201cAnd what are they?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Dancing Water, the Singing Apple, and the Bird of Truth.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd from whom did you get them?\u201d\n\n\u201cI went, myself, to seek for them.\u201d\n\nThen the two brothers knew that it was their sister who had delivered\nthem. As for the king, he was almost beside himself with joy and\nadmiration.\n\n\u201cMy crown and my kingdom,\u201d he said, \u201cfor your wonderful things; and\nyou--you shall be queen.\u201d\n\n\u201cWait a moment, sire, till you have heard my bird speak; the Bird of\nTruth, for he has important matters to reveal to you. Now, my little\nbird, tell the truth.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will indeed,\u201d said the bird, \u201cbut let no one go out of the room.\u201d\n\nSo they shut the doors. The wicked old nurse, and one of the king\u2019s\nsisters-in-law were there, and they were not at all comfortable when\nthey heard these words.\n\n\u201cCome, my bird, tell the truth now.\u201d And this is what the bird said,--\n\n\u201cIt is twenty years now, sire, since your wife was shut up in the\ntower, abandoned by every one, and you have long believed her to be\ndead. But she is not dead; no harm has happened to her, for she was\nunjustly accused and cast into a dreary prison.\u201d\n\nJust here the nurse and the king\u2019s sisters-in-law said they felt sick\nand wanted to go out.\n\n\u201cNo one shall go out yet,\u201d said the king; \u201cgo on telling the truth,\nlittle bird.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have had two sons and a daughter, sire,\u201d continued the bird,\n\u201call three children of your wife, and here they are! Take off their\nbandages, and you will see that each has a star in his forehead.\u201d\n\nThe bandages were taken off, and they saw that each of the two young\nmen had a gold star on his forehead and the young girl had a silver\nstar.\n\n\u201cThe authors of all this wickedness,\u201d continued the bird, \u201care your two\nsisters-in-law and the nurse, that sorceress of the devil. They made\nyou believe that your wife gave birth to dogs, and your poor children\nwere sent, as soon as they were born, to float on the waters of the\nSeine. When the nurse learned that the children had been saved, and\nwere being brought up in your palace, she sought for other means of\ndestroying them. She went into the palace, one day, disguised as a\nbeggar, ready to die of cold and hunger, and inspired the princess with\na desire to possess the Dancing Water, the Singing Apple, and the Bird\nof Truth. Her two brothers went, one after the other, to seek them for\nher, and the sorceress knew very well that they would never return.\nAnd they never would have returned, alas! if their sister had not\nsucceeded, after much trouble, in delivering them, and bringing away\nthe Dancing Water, the Singing Apple, and the Bird of Truth.\u201d\n\nThe king fainted on hearing all this. When he came to himself, he went\nhimself to seek his queen in the tower, and returned to the festive\nhall, leading her by the hand. She had not changed at all; she was\nbeautiful and gracious as ever. She ate and drank a little, then died\nsuddenly in her chair. The king, wild with grief and anger, ordered\nthat a furnace should be heated immediately and his sisters-in-law and\nthe old nurse thrown into it. It was done.\n\nI do not know anything more of the princess and her two brothers. I\nthink they were all happily married. And as for the bird, it is not\ntold whether he continued always to tell the truth, but I presume that\nhe did, as he was not a man.\n\n Told by Barbe Tassel, written down and translated into French by F. M.\n Luzel. Plouaret, December, 1858.\n\n\n\n\nYOU MUST NOT WORK ON SUNDAY\n\nA STORY OF THE DISTRICT OF AMIENS\n\n\nThere was once upon a time a woodcutter and his wife who had an invalid\ndaughter; they had made all the pilgrimages in the neighborhood in\nvain, and had become entirely discouraged. But it happened one evening\nthat Mathias (that was the woodcutter\u2019s name), being belated in the\nforest, came upon a noisy company of dwarfs, who insisted upon his\ndancing with them. The dwarfs were singing,--\n\n  \u201cThe day is for working,\n  The day is for working;\u201d\n\nand they did not know how to sing anything else. Mathias said to\nthem,--\u201cYour song has but little variety; it would be well to add\nsomething to it.\u201d \u201cAdd! add!\u201d cried the dwarfs. And when they began to\nsing again,--\n\n  \u201cThe day is for working,\u201d\n\nthe woodcutter added,--\n\n  \u201cAnd the night is for resting.\u201d\n\nThen there was a great commotion; a little old man, mounted on a colt,\nappeared in the midst of the assembly; when silence was re-established\nhe addressed these words to the woodcutter,--\n\n\u201cYou shall be rewarded for having added something to our song; I will\ngive you the choice between riches for yourself, and beauty, with\nhealth, for your daughter.\u201d\n\nMathias did not hesitate; he preferred the happiness of his child to\nriches; and when he returned to his house, he found that she was in\ngood health and had become marvelously beautiful. This adventure caused\nmuch stir in the country, and the baker\u2019s wife, who had also an invalid\ndaughter, after having heard from the woodcutter, in detail, all that\nhad happened to him, resolved to go and find the dwarfs in the forest.\nThe latter seized her quickly by the petticoats and dragged her round\nand round in their circle. After awhile, the dwarfs, seeing her out of\nbreath, gave her a moment to recover.\n\n\u201cIt is my opinion, my joyous companions,\u201d said she to them, \u201cthat your\nsong is too short.\u201d\n\n\u201cCheerly, woman, cheerly! Round we go!\u201d shouted the dwarfs as they\nagain began their dance, singing,--\n\n  \u201cThe day is for working,\n  And the night is for resting.\u201d\n\nThe baker\u2019s wife added,--\n\n  \u201cAll the whole year long.\u201d\n\nShe was going to go on, but moved her lips in vain; she could not speak\nanother word. At this moment, the ground opened, and out of the opening\ncame a young girl mounted on a goat.\n\n\u201cChoose,\u201d said she, \u201cbetween riches for yourself, and beauty, with\nhealth, for your daughter.\u201d\n\nThe baker\u2019s wife was very avaricious; she chose riches, and when she\nreturned to her house she found her daughter dying. She became envious\nof the happiness of the woodcutter, and as he owed her some money, she\nthreatened to sell his hut and all that he possessed.\n\nIn order to pay their debts, the woodcutter, his wife, and daughter,\nwent to work earnestly together in the forest. While Mathias cut the\nwood, his wife and daughter made fagots of the twigs.\n\nOne Sunday our woodcutter left his wife and daughter at home and went\nto work in the wood; but he was so overcome by fatigue that he fell\nasleep; when he awoke he found himself surrounded by the company of\ndwarfs who were singing,--\n\n  \u201cThe day is for working,\n  And the night is for resting.\n  All the whole year long.\u201d\n\nMathias, who had been forced against his will to join in the dance,\ncried out for spite,--\n\n  \u201cSave Sunday alone,\n  Which God kept for his own.\u201d\n\n[Illustration: EACH DWARF THEN CAME AND PLACED A LARGE SACK AT MATHIAS\u2019\nFEET.]\n\nAt this moment the forest became illuminated; the little old man on the\ncolt appeared, followed by an immense crowd of dwarfs, and said to the\nwoodcutter, \u201cBy finishing our couplet you have broken the charm which\nforced us to impose such hard tests on mankind; for your reward we give\nyou all our riches.\u201d Each dwarf then came and placed a large sack at\nMathias\u2019 feet. He gathered up as many of them as he could and returned\ntriumphantly to his house. But when he opened them he saw that they\ncontained only dry leaves!\n\n\u201cThe dwarfs have mocked thee,\u201d said his wife; \u201cI shall sprinkle the\nsacks with holy water, for one must purify what comes from the evil\none.\u201d\n\nNo sooner said than done; but what was her astonishment to see the dry\nleaves change into bright gold crowns!\n\nThe baker\u2019s wife was paid immediately; she died of vexation a few days\nafter; the woodcutter and his wife lived ever after rich and happy.\n\n Told in the Picard dialect by Fernand Delaunoy, aged 51 years, at\n Warloy-Baillon (Somme).\n\n  HENRI CARNOY.\n\n\n\n\nDESTINY\n\n\nThere was once a rich woman whose son was born when the moon was hung\n(suspended from a cloud by one horn). As the child grew, the mother,\nwho knew he would be hung as soon as he was eighteen years old, became\nsadder day by day, and could not look at him without sighing and\nshedding tears. Seeing this, he wished to know the cause, and one day\nhe asked her,--\n\n\u201cWhy do you weep so much, mother?\u201d\n\n\u201cNever mind, my child; do not trouble yourself about it.\u201d\n\nBut he insisted so much, that at last his mother said to him,--\n\n\u201cAlas! my poor child, you were born under a very unfortunate star.\nA monk told me, the moment you came into the world, that you would\nbe hung at the age of eighteen because the moon was hung at the same\nmoment.\u201d\n\n\u201cPshaw! mother,\u201d replied the child; \u201cdo not believe that; and,\u201d he\nadded, \u201cI will leave the country; I will go far away, and if it is the\nwill of God that what the monk told you should happen to me, at least\nyou will not have to blush for me.\u201d\n\nSo he left his country and went far, far away. He came to a beautiful\ncastle and asked if they needed a servant there. He was taken as\nassistant gardener. Day and night he prayed to God to avert his evil\nfate. As he was a handsome young fellow, the young lady of the castle,\nwho saw him as she was walking in the garden, fell in love with him.\nShe passed most of her time in the garden, watching him work and\ntalking with him. At last she made known her feelings to him.\n\n\u201cI do not deserve such honor, my lady,\u201d said the young man; \u201cand\nmoreover, for another reason this cannot be. If you knew how sad my\ndestiny is!\u201d\n\nThen he told the young lady the monk\u2019s prediction. But she only laughed\nat it. Her love increased every day. She decided at last to tell her\nfather about it. The old lord got very angry. \u201cWhat,\u201d said he, \u201cdo you\nwish to dishonor me? Marry a gardener, an adventurer? No one knows\nwhere he comes from, or who he is!\u201d\n\nBut the young lady was so persistent, that the old lord, who had no\nchild but her, and who could refuse her nothing, finally yielded, and\nthere was a grand wedding, with holidays, plays, and rejoicings of\nevery sort.\n\nThe first night after the wedding, the young husband went to sleep\nearly. The new wife did not sleep at all. Towards midnight she was\namazed to see her chamber suddenly illuminated. Then the window opened\nand she saw some men with horrible faces come in, who put up a gallows\nin the middle of the room. When their task was finished, they went\nstraight to the bed and took the newly married man,--who was still\nasleep,--passed a rope around his neck, and fastened him to the gibbet.\nOne of the executioners rested his feet on his shoulders;--then, after\na little while they unfastened him from the gallows, put him back in\nhis bed, and then went away through the window.\n\nThe young woman saw all this, pale and horror-stricken,--she could\nneither move nor speak a single word. Her husband was lying by her\nside, motionless, cold as ice, and with the marks of the rope around\nhis neck.\n\nSuddenly he awoke with a start, and cried out,--\n\n\u201cOh! how my body is bruised! and how sore my throat is!\u201d\n\nThen his wife threw her arms around him and covered him with kisses,\nexclaiming,--\n\n\u201cOh! thank heaven, you are not really dead!\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, indeed, I am not dead, but I am so tired!\u201d\n\n\u201cI thought you were dead. They hung you there, right before my eyes,\nin the middle of the room!\u201d\n\n\u201cReally? ah! God be praised! for my destiny is then accomplished and I\nam released from my terrible fate. A monk told my mother that I should\nbe hung at the age of eighteen,--and I am eighteen years old this very\nnight!\u201d\n\nThey lived together a long time, happy and fearing God, and had many\nchildren.\n\n Told by Marguerite Philippe, of Pluzunet (C\u00f4tes-du-Nord).\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE LITTLE ANT THAT WAS GOING TO JERUSALEM, AND THE SNOW\n\n\nThere was once a little ant that was going to Jerusalem.\n\nShe met the snow and the snow cracked the paw of the little ant that\nwas going to Jerusalem.\n\n\u201cOh! snow, how strong you are, to crack the paw of the little ant that\nis going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the snow replied, \u201cThe sun that melts me is a great deal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! sun, how strong you are, to melt the snow, that cracks the paw of\nthe little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the sun replied, \u201cThe cloud that hides me is a great deal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! cloud, how strong you are, to hide the sun, that melts the snow,\nthat cracks the paw of the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the cloud replied, \u201cThe wind that drives me away is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! wind, how strong you are, to drive away the cloud, that hides the\nsun, that melts the snow, that cracks the paw of the little ant that is\ngoing to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the wind replied, \u201cThe mountain that stops me is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! mountain, how strong you are, to stop the wind, that drives away\nthe cloud, that hides the sun, that melts the snow, that cracks the paw\nof the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the mountain replied, \u201cThe mouse that bores through me is a great\ndeal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! mouse, how strong you are, to bore through the mountain, that\nstops the wind, that drives away the cloud, that hides the sun, that\nmelts the snow, that cracks the paw of the little ant that is going to\nJerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the mouse replied, \u201cThe cat that eats me is a great deal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! cat, how strong you are, to eat the mouse, that bores through the\nmountain, that stops the wind, that drives away the cloud, that hides\nthe sun, that melts the snow, that cracks the paw of the little ant\nthat is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the cat replied, \u201cThe dog that chases me is a great deal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! dog, how strong you are, to chase the cat, that eats the mouse,\nthat bores through the mountain, that stops the wind, that drives away\nthe cloud, that hides the sun, that melts the snow, that cracks the paw\nof the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the dog replied, \u201cThe stick that beats me is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! stick, how strong you are, to beat the dog, that chases the cat,\nthat eats the mouse, that bores through the mountain, that stops the\nwind, that drives away the cloud, that hides the sun, that melts the\nsnow, that cracks the paw of the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the stick replied, \u201cThe fire that burns me is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! fire, how strong you are, to burn the stick, that beats the dog,\nthat chases the cat, that eats the mouse, that bores through the\nmountain, that stops the wind, that drives away the cloud, that hides\nthe sun, that melts the snow, that cracks the paw of the little ant\nthat is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the fire replied, \u201cThe water that puts me out is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! water, how strong you are, to put out the fire, that burns the\nstick, that beats the dog, that chases the cat, that eats the mouse,\nthat bores through the mountain, that stops the wind, that drives away\nthe cloud, that hides the sun that melts the snow, that cracks the paw\nof the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the water replied, \u201cThe cow that drinks me is a great deal\nstronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! cow, how strong you are, to drink the water, that puts out the\nfire, that burns the stick, that beats the dog, that chases the cat,\nthat eats the mouse, that bores through the mountain, that stops the\nwind, that drives away the cloud, that hides the sun, that melts the\nsnow, that cracks the paw of the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the cow replied, \u201cThe man who kills me is a great deal stronger.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! man, how strong you are, to kill the cow, that drinks the water,\nthat puts out the fire, that burns the stick, that beats the dog, that\nchases the cat, that eats the mouse, that bores through the mountain,\nthat stops the wind, that drives away the cloud, that hides the sun,\nthat melts the snow, that cracks the paw of the little ant that is\ngoing to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\nAnd the man replied, \u201cGod is much stronger, who can kill the man, that\nkilled the cow, that drinks the water, that puts out the fire, that\nburns the stick, that beats the dog, that chases the cat, that eats\nthe mouse, that bores through the mountain, that stops the wind, that\ndrives away the cloud, that hides the sun, that melts the snow, that\ncracks the paw of the little ant that is going to Jerusalem!\u201d\n\n Told in 1876, by M. G. de la Landelle, the maritime novelist, who had\n learned it in his childhood, at Montpellier.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE MOST POWERFUL HUSBAND IN THE WORLD\n\nAN ARABIAN STORY\n\n\nIt is said that a monk, whose prayers were always answered, was one\nday seated on the seashore, when he saw a kite fly holding in one of\nits claws a little mouse, which escaped and fell on the monk. Touched\nwith compassion for the mouse, he took it, wrapped it up in a leaf, and\ncarried it home with him.\n\nFearing that his people would not be very eager to care for it, he\nprayed his Lord to change it into a young girl; and immediately it\nbecame a young girl gifted with great beauty. The monk led her to his\nwife, and said to the latter,--\n\n\u201cHere is a girl who belongs to me, and I desire that you shall treat\nher as my own child.\u201d\n\nWhen she had come to the age of womanhood, the monk said to her,--\n\n\u201cMy dear daughter, you are quite grown up, and you absolutely must have\na husband; choose then, one to suit yourself, so that I may unite you\nto him.\u201d\n\n\u201cSince you leave me free to choose,\u201d she replied, \u201cI wish for my\nhusband, he who is the most powerful in the world.\u201d\n\n\u201cPerhaps you would like the sun?\u201d said he; and he went to find the sun,\nand said to it,--\n\n\u201cO! thou who art so essentially great, I have a daughter who desires to\nhave for a husband he who is the most powerful in the world; would you\nbe willing to marry her?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will show you some one who is more powerful than I,\u201d said the\nsun; \u201cit is the cloud which obscures me, and makes my rays pale and\ntarnishes the splendor of my fires.\u201d\n\nThe monk went to the cloud and repeated to him the sun\u2019s words.\n\n\u201cAnd I,\u201d said the cloud, \u201cI will show you some one more powerful than\nI; go find the wind which makes me come and go, which drives me from\neast to west.\u201d\n\nThe monk went to find the wind, and said to him the same things which\nhe had said to the cloud; but the wind said to him also,--\n\n\u201cI will show you some one more powerful than I; it is the mountain that\nI cannot move.\u201d\n\nThen the monk went to speak to the mountain, which made him this\nreply,--\n\n\u201cI will show you some one more powerful than I; it is the rat, against\nwhich I cannot defend myself, when he bores into me and makes his home\nin me.\u201d\n\nAt last the monk went and said to the rat,--\n\n\u201cDo you wish to marry my young daughter?\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd how could I do so?\u201d cried the rat. \u201cMy hole is narrow, and a rat\nonly marries a mouse.\u201d\n\nThe monk then prayed his Lord to change the young girl into a mouse, as\nshe was before, and this to the entire contentment of the young girl.\nImmediately she resumed her original shape, and she ran away with the\nrat.\n\n\n\n\nTHE NINE BROTHERS, WHO WERE CHANGED TO SHEEP, AND THEIR SISTER\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nThere were once nine brothers and their sister, who were left orphans.\nThey were rich also, and lived in an old castle in the midst of a\nforest. The sister, whose name was L\u00e9v\u00e9nez, who was the oldest of the\nten children, undertook the direction of the house, when the old lord\ndied, and her brothers consulted and obeyed her in everything, as if\nshe had been their mother. They often went hunting in the woods, which\nwere full of all sorts of game. One day, following a roe, they came to\na hut built of branches of trees, wattled together with clods of dirt.\nIt was the first time they had seen it. Curious to know who could live\nin it, they entered under pretence of asking for some water to quench\ntheir thirst. They saw only an old woman with teeth as long as one\u2019s\narm, and whose tongue went nine times round her body. Frightened at\nthis sight, they were about to run away, when the old woman said to\nthem,--\n\n\u201cWhat do you want, my children? Come in, and do not be so frightened; I\nlove children very much, especially when they are good and gentle like\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe should like a little water, if you please, grandmother,\u201d said the\noldest, whose name was Goulven.\n\n\u201cCertainly, my children; I will give you some fresh, clear water, which\nI drew this morning, from my fountain. But come in, and do not be\nafraid, my poor dears.\u201d\n\nAnd the old woman gave them some water in a wooden porringer, and while\nthey drank it, she caressed them, stroking the soft curls of their\nblond hair, and when they were ready to go, she said to them, \u201cNow, my\nchildren, you must pay me for the little service I have rendered you.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe have no money with us, grandmother,\u201d replied the children, \u201cbut we\nwill ask our sister for some, and bring it to you to-morrow.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! it is not money I want, my friends; but one of you,--the oldest,\nperhaps, for the others are still very young,--must take me for his\nwife.\u201d\n\nAnd turning to Goulven,--\n\n\u201cWill you, Goulven, take me to be your wife?\u201d\n\nThe poor boy could not reply at once, the request seemed so strange to\nhim.\n\n\u201cCome, answer, will you have me for your little wife?\u201d asked the\nhorrible old woman again, embracing him.\n\n\u201cI do not know,\u201d said Goulven, confounded; \u201cI will ask my sister.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; to-morrow morning I will come myself to the castle, for\nyour answer.\u201d\n\nThe poor children returned to the house, sad and trembling, and\nhastened to tell their sister all that had happened.\n\n\u201cShall I be obliged to marry that horrible old woman, sister?\u201d asked\nGoulven, weeping.\n\n\u201cNo, my brother, you shall not marry her,\u201d replied L\u00e9v\u00e9nez; \u201cI know\nthat we shall all have to suffer for it, but we will endure whatever\ncomes to us, and we will never abandon you.\u201d\n\nThe next day, the sorceress came to the castle as she had promised. She\nfound L\u00e9v\u00e9nez and her brothers in the garden.\n\n\u201cYou know, doubtless, why I have come,\u201d said she to L\u00e9v\u00e9nez.\n\n\u201cYes; my brother has told me everything,\u201d said the young girl.\n\n\u201cAnd you are very willing that I should become your sister-in-law?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; that cannot be.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not? Perhaps you do not know who I am, and what I can do.\u201d\n\n\u201cI know that you can do a great deal of harm to my brothers and me; but\nyou cannot force me to consent to what you ask.\u201d\n\n\u201cThink well of it, and repent quickly of this foolish resolution, while\nthere is yet time, or misery to you!\u201d cried the sorceress, furious, and\nher eyes shone like two burning coals.\n\nL\u00e9v\u00e9nez\u2019s nine brothers trembled all over; but she, calm and resolute,\nreplied to these threats,--\n\n\u201cI have thought of it all, and I shall change nothing of all I have\nsaid.\u201d\n\nThen the horrible old woman turned a wand, which she carried in her\nhand, towards the castle, pronounced a magic sentence, and immediately\nthe castle fell to the ground with a great noise. Not one stone was\nleft upon another. Then turning the wand towards the nine brothers, who\nwere hiding behind their sister in great terror, she pronounced another\nmagic sentence and the nine brothers were immediately changed into nine\nwhite sheep. Then she said to L\u00e9v\u00e9nez, who still retained her natural\nform,--\n\n\u201cNow, you can go and keep your sheep in this plain. And take care never\nto tell any one that they are your brothers, or the same thing will\nhappen to you.\u201d Then she went away, sneering.\n\nThe beautiful gardens of the castle, and the grand wood which\nsurrounded it, had been changed also, instantly, into a great arid and\ndesolate plain.\n\nPoor L\u00e9v\u00e9nez, left alone with her nine white sheep, pastured them on\nthe open plain, and never lost them from her sight a moment. She\nsought for tufts of fresh grass, which they ate from her hand, and she\nplayed with them, caressed them, embraced them, and talked to them as\nif they understood her. And indeed they appeared to understand her.\nOne of them was larger than the others; it was Goulven, the oldest of\nthe brothers. L\u00e9v\u00e9nez had built a shelter, a sort of hut, with stones,\nclods of earth, moss and dry grasses, and at night, or when it rained,\nshe took refuge there with her sheep. But when the weather was fine,\nshe ran and played about in the sun with them, or sang songs, or\nrecited her prayers, to which they listened attentively, all ranged in\na circle around her. She had a very beautiful voice, clear and correct.\n\nOne day a young lord who was hunting in those parts, was astonished\nto hear such a beautiful voice in a place so deserted. He stopped\nto listen; then going in the direction from which it came, he soon\nfound himself in the presence of a lovely young girl, surrounded by\nnine white sheep, who appeared to love her very much. He spoke to her\nand was so struck with her sweetness, her wit, and her beauty, that\nhe wished to take her and her sheep away with him to his castle. She\nrefused to go. But the young lord could think of nothing but the pretty\nshepherdess, and every day, under pretence of hunting, he went to see\nher and talk with her in the great plain. At last he carried her away\nwith him to his castle, and they were married, and there were long\nholidays and great feasting.\n\nThe nine sheep had been installed in the garden of the castle, and\nL\u00e9v\u00e9nez passed almost all her days there, playing with them, caressing\nthem, and talking to them as if they understood her; and they did\nindeed seem to understand all that she said to them. Her husband was\nastonished to see them so intelligent, and he asked himself if it were\npossible that they could be real sheep.\n\nL\u00e9v\u00e9nez had an attendant who was the wife of the castle gardener, and\nwho was also the daughter of the old woman who had changed her brothers\ninto sheep; but of this she knew nothing. One day, when L\u00e9v\u00e9nez was\nleaning over the edge of a well which was in the garden, to see how\ndeep it was, her attendant took her by the feet and threw her down the\nwell. Then she ran to her mistress\u2019 chamber, got into her bed, and drew\nthe curtains close around the bed and at the windows, and pretended\nto be sick. The lord was absent at the moment. But on his return, not\nfinding his wife in the garden among her sheep as usual, he went to her\nchamber.\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter, my sweetheart?\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cI am very sick,\u201d replied the traitress; and when he was about to open\nthe curtains, \u201cDon\u2019t open the curtains, I beg you; I cannot stand the\nlight.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy are you alone? Where is your attendant?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know; I have not seen her the whole day long.\u201d\n\nThe lord looked for her in the castle, and then in the garden, and not\nfinding her, he returned to his wife, and said to her,--\n\n\u201cI do not know what has become of your attendant. I cannot find her\nanywhere. Do you want anything? Perhaps you are hungry?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes! I am very hungry.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat would you like to eat?\u201d\n\n\u201cI must have a bit of that big white sheep in the garden.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat a strange notion! You who love your sheep so much, and this one\nmost of all!\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the only thing that will soothe the frightful pain I suffer.\nBut do not make any mistake; I want a piece of the big white sheep, and\nnot of any other.\u201d\n\nThe husband went to the garden and ordered the gardener to take the big\nwhite sheep and kill it at once and put it on the kitchen spit.\n\nSo the gardener, who was conniving with the attendant, ran after the\nwhite sheep. But it ran so fast round and round the well, bleating so\npitifully all the time, that he could not catch it. The lord, seeing\nthis, wanted to help him, and went up to the well. He was astonished to\nhear moans and groans which seemed to come up from it. He leaned over\nthe opening and called out,--\n\n\u201cWho is there? is there any one down the well?\u201d\n\nAnd a gentle voice that he knew so well, answered him,--\n\n\u201cYes, it is I, your wife, L\u00e9v\u00e9nez.\u201d\n\nThe lord, without waiting to hear more, quickly lowered the bucket into\nthe well and drew up his wife. She was all trembling and terrified.\n\nSoon after this occurrence a child was born to them, a son, as\nbeautiful as the day.\n\nL\u00e9v\u00e9nez said it must be baptized at once.\n\n\u201cYou may choose the godmother, if you wish, but I want my big white\nsheep for the godfather,\u201d said she to her husband.\n\n\u201cWhat! have a sheep for your son\u2019s godfather?\u201d\n\n\u201cI wish it, I tell you; do as I say and do not be uneasy about it.\u201d\n\nNot wishing to cross his young wife, and fearing lest he should make\nher sick, the father consented, though grieved at his heart, that the\nbig white sheep should be his son\u2019s godfather.\n\nThey went to church. The big white sheep, very happy, walked in front\nwith the father and the godmother, a young and beautiful princess. The\nother eight sheep, his brothers, followed him. The whole procession\nentered the church, to the great astonishment of the village people.\nThe father presented the child to the priest. The latter looked at the\ngodmother, but seeing no godfather, he asked,--\n\n\u201cWhere is the godfather?\u201d\n\n\u201cHere he is,\u201d replied the father, pointing to the big white sheep.\n\n\u201cWhat! a sheep?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, it seems so; but do not stop for a matter of form, but go on\nwithout fear with the service.\u201d\n\nThe priest made no more objections, such transformations being,\ndoubtless, common in his day, and proceeded to baptize the child.\n\nThe sheep then raised himself on his two hind legs, took his godson in\nhis two forelegs, with the assistance of the godmother, and all passed\noff very well.\n\nBut as soon as the ceremony was over, the sheep godfather became a\nhandsome young man. He was Goulven, L\u00e9v\u00e9nez\u2019s oldest brother.\n\nHe told how he and his brothers had been changed into sheep by an old\nsorceress because he had refused to marry her. His sister, the child\u2019s\nmother, could not tell of it lest the same fate should befall her; but\nnow the charm was broken, and the sorceress had no longer any power\nover them.\n\n\u201cAre the sheep really your brothers?\u201d asked the priest.\n\n\u201cYes, they are my brothers, and the time has come for them also to\nescape from the power of the sorceress, and return to their human form.\nLay your stole over them, say a prayer, and you will see them become\nmen again, as I have done.\u201d\n\nThe priest followed his advice: he laid his stole on each of the sheep\nsuccessively, recited a prayer each time, and immediately they resumed\ntheir original form.\n\nGoulven then told of the terrible deed which had been done to his\nsister by her attendant, the daughter of the sorceress.\n\nSo they returned to the castle determined to treat each one as she had\ndeserved.\n\nThey sent men to seek for the old sorceress in the wood where she\ndwelt, and when they brought her, she and her daughter and the gardener\nwere torn to pieces by four horses and then thrown into a great fire\nand burned to ashes.\n\nGoulven and L\u00e9v\u00e9nez lived after that peacefully and happily, and were\nblessed, they say, with many children.\n\n Told by Le Noac\u2019h, of Gourin, at Merville, near Lorient, March 10,\n 1874.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE KING AND HIS THREE SONS\n\n\nOnce there was a king who had three sons. He wanted to lay aside his\ncrown. In his kingdom it was the custom to give it to the oldest; but\nas this king loved his three children equally, he could not resolve\nto obey this custom and exclude the youngest in advance. He wished\nthat each of his children should have equal chance to succeed him. He\ndecided that the crown should belong to whoever of his sons should\nbring him the most beautiful flower. He called them together and said\nto them,--\n\n\u201cThe crown shall belong to the one who shall bring me the most\nbeautiful flower; go and search.\u201d\n\nThe three sons started out, each his own way, after having agreed to\nmeet in a field well known to them. The first who reached the field\nwas the oldest. He brought a beautiful flower. The second arrived\nnext, with a flower still more beautiful. The oldest, seeing it, said\nbitterly,--\n\n\u201cI shall not have the crown!\u201d\n\nThe youngest came last. His flower was so beautiful that it eclipsed\nthose of his brothers.\n\n\u201cI shall not have the crown,\u201d said the oldest to himself, angrily; and\nseizing the knife which hung from his girdle, he struck his youngest\nbrother and killed him.\n\nThe father, grieved at not seeing his youngest child return, continued\nto wait for him before resigning his crown. The younger was so much\nafraid of the oldest that he dared not speak.\n\nSeveral years had passed after the murder, when a shepherdess, who was\nkeeping her sheep in the field where the three brothers had had their\nmeeting, found a bone made like a flute.\n\nShe put it to her lips and blew. A voice came out of it which sang,--\n\n  \u201cBlow softly, shepherdess,\n  Blow, blow softly;\n  The knife from the girdle\n  Cruelly killed me.\u201d\n\nThe king heard that the shepherdess had found a bone like a flute which\nmade harmonious sounds. He had it brought to him, put it to his mouth\nand blew. The bone sang,--\n\n  \u201cBlow softly, my father,\n  Blow, blow softly;\n  The knife from the girdle\n  Cruelly killed me.\u201d\n\nThe king called his younger son, handed him the bone and told him to\nblow in it. The son blew; the bone sang,--\n\n  \u201cBlow softly, my brother,\n  Blow, blow softly;\n  The knife from the girdle\n  Cruelly killed me.\u201d\n\nThe king called his oldest son, handed him the bone and told him to\nblow in it. The son blew; the bone sang,--\n\n  \u201cBlow softly, my brother,\n  Blow, blow softly;\n  The knife from thy girdle\n  Cruelly killed me.\u201d\n\nAt these words, \u201cThe knife from thy girdle,\u201d the father understood it\nall. He had his oldest son quartered at once.\n\n Told at Fraisses (Loire) by Jacques Bayon, Aug. 19, 1877.\n\n  V. S.\n\n\n\n\nFANCH SCOUARNEC\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nA rich lord was returning, alone, on horseback, from Brest to Rennes.\nAt Brest, his footman had left him and sailed. He wished to get another\nin his place, and as he went along he had already proposed to more\nthan one; but all had refused; his terms did not suit them. Between\nPlounevez-Mo\u00ebdec and Belle-Isle-en-Terre (doubtless on the bridge of\nSaint-Elo) he saw by the roadside a little hut, the one door and window\nof which stood open. He got down from his horse so as to walk up to it.\nHe went to the hut to ask for a fire to light his pipe. Holding his\nhorse by the bridle, he put his head in at the door, standing with one\nfoot inside and one out. His horse also put his head in through the\nwindow, which, as I have said, was open. A boy of twelve or thirteen\nyears was alone in the hut, seated by the hearth-stone.\n\n\u201cAre you alone, my boy?\u201d asked the traveler.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied Fanch. (His name was Fanch Scouarnec.)\n\n\u201cBut I see no one beside you.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is nevertheless true, that there are in this house at this moment,\na man and a half and the head of a horse.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou love to joke I see, but give me a little fire to light my pipe.\nWhere is your father?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy father has gone hunting, and he will leave what he catches, and\nbring back to the house what he does not catch.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat seems difficult; and where is your mother?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy mother has gone to the oven to bake some bread that has been eaten\u201d\n\n\u201cGood, good, you are a real joker; and your sister?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy sister is crying for the joy of last year.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not understand any of it; but you, what are you doing there?\u201d\n\n\u201cI,--I am watching some leap over others and catching a few.\u201d\n\n\u201cSurely, I have never seen any one so full of joke as you; but will you\nnot explain it all to me?\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is nothing easier,\u201d said Fanch, \u201cand although you are a lord,\nyou are not of the sharpest, it seems to me. My father is like me; he\nnever goes out alone; he is always accompanied by a crowd of little\nanimals who love him so that they would like to eat him up. Once upon\na time, when there were too many of them, he seated himself down there\nin the sun, and went hunting among the little beasts that I spoke of.\nHe left on the spot those he caught and brought to the house those he\ndid not catch. Do you understand me now?\u201d\n\n\u201cPerfectly.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy mother borrowed some bread last month and she has gone to the oven\nto bake some bread to return what she borrowed, so therefore you see\nshe has gone to bake some bread already eaten. My sister had a lover,\nand her greatest happiness was to go walking with him at the hour for\nthe angelus, and dance with him on the new threshing-floors; but after\npromising to marry her, he left her, and went away to France, and that\nis the reason she is crying for the joy she had last year. And as for\nme, I am busy cooking some peas in a pot, and when the pot boils the\npeas leap over each other, and with my spoon I catch some of them and\neat them. Now, my lord, is it not all just as I said?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, upon my word! But you have not explained your first answer.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou asked me if I was alone in the house; and I told you that I was\nnot alone, but that there were here a man and a half and the head of a\nhorse. Now, you see, you have your head, one foot, and half your body\ninside the house, and I am entirely inside, that makes a man and a\nhalf; and the horse\u2019s head is the head of your horse which was in at\nthe window.\u201d\n\n\u201cI see that there are bigger fools than you in the country; but tell me\nnow where this road goes.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat road, my lord, does not go anywhere; I have always seen it there.\u201d\n\n\u201cI want to know to what place it leads; do you hear me?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! that is different; it leads to Belle-Isle, to Louargat, to Br\u00e9, to\nGuingamp, and even to Paris, they say.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well! Would you like to come with me and be my footman?\u201d\n\n\u201cPerhaps, yes, when you have told me your terms.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will give you a hundred crowns, and a bag full of farthings, when\nyou shall have served me for a year and a day; but on condition that\nyou do everything I command you, and that you shall never get angry, no\nmatter what is said to you, or what you are ordered to do; if you get\nangry, you shall have a strip of skin taken off from your neck to your\nheels, and be sent away without a penny.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe sum is tempting, a hundred crowns! but the conditions are hard.\nThe strip of skin makes me shiver. But now about your part, my lord?\nAre you never to get angry either?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the bargain.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you do, your skin shall be stripped off too?\u201d\n\n\u201cJust so; it shall be done to the first one who gets angry.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, it is a bargain; I will go with you, and I will go with you\nnow while my father and mother are away.\u201d\n\nSo they both started off on horseback, for the lord was leading the\nhorse of the footman who had left him at Brest.\n\nAfter traveling several days they came to the lord\u2019s castle. At first\nFanch was set to take care of two children, four or five years old,\nwith the order never to contradict them and to do everything they\nasked, if possible.\n\n\u201cVery well!\u201d said Fanch; \u201cthat is not hard work to begin with.\u201d\n\nThat evening when they were at the table (for Fanch ate with the master\nand mistress of the house, so as to be always with the children), the\ntwo little brats cried out,--\n\n\u201cI want to get down, I want to get down!\u201d\n\n\u201cCome, Fanch, do you not hear?\u201d said the lady.\n\n\u201cYes, yes,\u201d answered Fanch; and he took them away. He had only eaten\nhis soup, and when he came back into the room with the children, the\ntable was cleared away, there was nothing left on it.\n\n\u201cHow is it there is nothing on the table?\u201d asked he, after waiting a\nwhile.\n\n\u201cThere is a rule in my house,\u201d replied the lord, \u201cthat whoever comes\nafter the table has been cleared away shall have nothing.\u201d\n\n\u201cA bad rule!\u201d he muttered.\n\n\u201cAre you not satisfied with it?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! yes! I will not die for the loss of one poor meal; I was used to\nthat at my father\u2019s house.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are not pleased, you can have your skin taken off.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am pleased, I tell you.\u201d\n\nThe next day at supper, Fanch had hardly begun to eat his soup, when\nthe little brats began to cry out,--\n\n\u201cI want to go.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome, Fanch, do you not hear?\u201d\n\nAnd Fanch went to please the children.\n\n\u201cCome, children, make haste and go back!\u201d said he to them.\n\nBut when he returned, there was nothing on the table.\n\n\u201cHow is this,\u201d said he: \u201cmust I go without supper two days together?\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you dissatisfied, Fanch?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not say that; but the children could just as well stay and let\nme eat in peace.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou promised to do everything the children asked, and if you are\ndispleased, you know--\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, yes, I am entirely satisfied.\u201d\n\nAnd Fanch went to bed again without eating anything.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said he, \u201cthis thing cannot go on; I must eat sometime; we will\nsee how it will be to-morrow.\u201d\n\nThe next day the children began their song again.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d cried Fanch, \u201cthis is no way to live; I must put an end to it.\nYou want to go, my little scamps? Very well, go to the devil! I want\nsome supper to-night, I do!\u201d and he threw the two children out of the\nwindow.\n\n\u201cStop!\u201d cried the master and mistress, rising, \u201cthis is too much! To\nthrow our children out of the window! Ah! you shall pay for it!\u201d\n\n\u201cSo then you are angry, master?\u201d said Fanch quickly.\n\n\u201cI am not angry,\u201d he replied, growing a little calmer, \u201cbut that is no\nway to do; it is a mercy if my poor children are not crippled!\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are angry, master, you know our conditions, and I will strip\noff--\u201d\n\n\u201cI tell you I am not angry, but I shall not trust my children with you\nagain.\u201d\n\n\u201cJust as you like; I would rather do anything than mind children like a\nnurse.\u201d\n\nThat evening Fanch could eat comfortably. The next day the lord said,--\n\n\u201cGo to the blacksmith\u2019s and have the horses\u2019 feet shod.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said Fanch; \u201cI like that better than minding children.\u201d\n\nThen he went to the stable, cut off the horses\u2019 feet with a hatchet,\nput them in a wagon, and took them to the blacksmith. That evening when\nhe returned, the lord was in the court-yard of the castle.\n\n\u201cHere are your horses\u2019 feet,\u201d said Fanch; \u201csee if they are well shod.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat have you done, you miserable creature?\u201d\n\n\u201cDid you not tell me to have the horses\u2019 feet shod?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have ruined me, you wretch!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, master, you are angry, it seems to me!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! it is enough to make me,--but you know very well that I do not get\nangry very easily.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are angry, you know--I shall strip off your skin--\u201d\n\n\u201cGo to your supper at once and say nothing of this to your mistress;\nto-morrow I will see how I can employ you.\u201d\n\nThe next day Fanch was sent to watch a great herd of beeves, in a\npasture which was by the side of the high road. A butcher passed along\nthe road. He went into the pasture and began to examine and feel the\nbeeves. \u201cFine beeves,\u201d said he to himself. \u201cThey are fat as moles. I\nhave to furnish the meat at the castle, for the wedding of the young\nlady, which will take place the coming week, and if I can get three or\nfour of these beeves, that will suit me exactly. Eh! boy!\u201d cried he to\nFanch, who was lying under a beech-tree singing.\n\n\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d he asked, without moving.\n\n\u201cCome here, so that I can speak to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome yourself, if you want me.\u201d\n\nThen the butcher went to him, saying to himself,--\n\n\u201cHe does not look like the sharpest kind of a fellow.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you sell me three or four of your beeves?\u201d\n\n\u201cAll, if you wish.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow much do you ask for them?\u201d\n\n\u201cFive hundred crowns, and the tail of one of them!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, for goodness\u2019 sake?\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not bother about that; that is my business.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, agreed! The bargain is made!\u201d\n\nAnd they shook hands with each other.\n\n\u201cAnd the money at once,\u201d added Fanch.\n\nThe butcher, pleased with his bargain, counted the five hundred crowns\nto him, and was about to go off with the beeves, when Fanch called\nout,--\n\n\u201cBut the tail? I must have the tail.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou insist upon that, do you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, certainly, and nothing is concluded without it.\u201d\n\nThen the butcher cut off the tail of one of the beeves and gave it to\nhim.\n\nWhen the butcher was gone with all the beeves, Fanch climbed up into\nan oak-tree, with the tail, and began crying out with all his might,\n\u201cHelp! help! help at once!\u201d\n\nThey heard his cry at the castle, and sent a footman to see what was\nthe matter. Fanch, seeing the footman coming, called to him,--\n\n\u201cRun to the castle and tell the lord to come here as quickly as\npossible, or all of his beeves will be lost.\u201d\n\nSo the footman ran to the castle and said to the lord,--\n\n\u201cCome as fast as you can to the field, master, or all your beeves will\nbe lost.\u201d\n\nThe lord ran to the field, and saw Fanch up in a tree, and apparently\nholding on with all his might to the tail of a beef.\n\n\u201cWhat are you doing there, Fanch, and where are the beeves?\u201d\n\n\u201cCome up here quickly, my poor master, come up quickly, or you will\nlose them all! A terrible whirlwind came suddenly and carried them up\nto the sky, each holding on to the other by the tail! I seized the\ntail of the last one, and have been lifted up here. I am still holding\non, but for goodness\u2019 sake make haste and come to my assistance, or I\nshall have to let go; I cannot hold on any longer.\u201d\n\nSo the lord went up and took hold of the tail also. But as soon as he\ndid so, Fanch let go, and his master fell to the ground, taking the\ntail along.\n\n\u201cAlas! my poor master,\u201d said he then, \u201cwe held on so long that the tail\nis all that is left; the beeves have gone to heaven.\u201d\n\nThe poor lord, all mangled and bleeding, swore and stormed.\n\n\u201cMiserable wretch, accursed rascal! you have almost killed me!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, master, are you angry?\u201d asked Fanch quietly; he was still in the\ntree.\n\n\u201cAnd who would not be angry?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, you know your conditions, and I shall strip off your skin.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I did not say that I was angry, though indeed I think I had good\nright to be. You will ruin me! I shall be thankful if you do not kill\nme.\u201d\n\nThen the lord returned to his house, rubbing his back and trying to\nthink how he could get rid of such a rascal.\n\nThe next day he sent Fanch to take care of his hogs. A hog merchant\npassed by on his way to the fair at Lannion.\n\n\u201cWill you sell me your hogs, my boy?\u201d said he to Fanch.\n\n\u201cI should like nothing better,\u201d he replied.\n\n\u201cHow much will you take?\u201d\n\n\u201cTwo hundred crowns and the tail of one of them.\u201d\n\n\u201cAgreed! It is a bargain!\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd the money on the spot?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, yes, on the spot.\u201d\n\nThen the merchant paid two hundred crowns and went away, taking the\nhogs along.\n\nThere was a pond near by, part of which was all marshy and filled up\nwith grass and branches of trees. Fanch waded in up to his stomach,\nand began to call out as loud as he could. He had stuck the large end\nof the hog\u2019s tail which he had, down in the mud, and was pretending to\npull it up with all his might, crying, \u201cHelp! help! help, quickly!\u201d The\nlord was walking in the wood, not far from the pond, and ran to his\nassistance on hearing his cries.\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter now?\u201d asked he, seeing Fanch in the mud up to his\nstomach.\n\n\u201cCome quickly and help me, my poor master, or we shall lose all of\nthem. An animal unlike any I ever saw before,--a frightful creature,\na real demon, I believe,--came up out of the pond, when I was not\ndreaming of such a thing, and then went back again dragging my hogs\nafter him, all holding on to each other by the tail. I caught the tail\nof the last one, you see! Come help me to pull it up, for if we can\npull this one up, all the others will come after it. Come quickly, for\nI am ready to let go.\u201d\n\nThen the lord went into the pond without hesitation, and began to pull\non the tail with Fanch. But the latter, letting go suddenly, he fell,\nand sinking into the mud, was almost stifled.\n\n\u201cAlas! they are all lost! They are gone below!\u201d cried Fanch.\n\nThe other, after getting out with great difficulty, swore and\nthreatened.\n\n\u201cWhy, master, are you angry?\u201d said Fanch to him, jeeringly.\n\n\u201cLeave me in peace, you villain! I wish you were in purgatory!\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are angry, you have only to give me my hundred crowns, with the\nbag of farthings, according to our agreement, and I will go whenever\nyou wish; but before I go, you know, I will strip off your skin from\nyour neck--\u201d\n\n\u201cWho said I was angry? Though indeed I had great reason, I think; you\nwill ruin me utterly!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat could I do? I could not prevent the demon\u2019s taking off your\nhogs.\u201d\n\n\u201cTo-morrow I will give you another occupation, and as soon as the year\nis ended you shall go, for you are good for nothing.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs you like; but when will my year be ended?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen the cuckoo sings.\u201d\n\nThe next day the lord said to Fanch,--\n\n\u201cTake this gun and come with me into the woods; the poachers are\ndestroying all my game, and the poor people of the whole country\nprovide themselves with wood at my expense; I want to see after these\nmatters.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said Fanch, \u201cthat suits me.\u201d\n\nAnd he put his gun on his shoulder, and followed his master to the\nwoods. At the edge of it they saw an old woman who had a great load on\nher back.\n\n\u201cFire at her!\u201d said the lord to Fanch.\n\n\u201cMust I do it?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd if I kill her?\u201d\n\n\u201cSo much the worse for her! That will teach her to steal my wood.\u201d\n\nSo Fanch fired, bang! and the old woman rolled over on the ground with\nher load. They went to her.\n\n\u201cShe is dead!\u201d said the lord.\n\n\u201cQuite,\u201d said Fanch, \u201cunfortunately for you, for I should not like to\nbe in your place. This old woman has two sons,--two jolly fellows,\nupon my word, and when they know that you have killed their mother,--\u201d\n\n\u201cBut it was you who killed her.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, but by your order; I am your servant, and I must obey you, but\nyou will have to pay for it.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou frighten me; go quickly to the castle and bring me two shovels,\nso we can bury her in the earth and no one will know anything about\nit. You will find them in the passage near the chamber of my wife\nand daughter. Put them in a bag, so that no one can see, and return\nquickly.\u201d\n\nFanch went to the castle and found the door of the lady\u2019s room open,\nwhere she was sitting with her daughter. He entered and said,--\n\n\u201cMy master has ordered me to put both of you in a bag.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it you say, idiot? You must have lost your senses!\u201d\n\n\u201cYou shall hear him say it himself.\u201d\n\nAnd going to the window, he called out to the lord, who was waiting for\nhim below,--\n\n\u201cBoth of them in a bag, shall I not, my lord?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, both, and make haste.\u201d (He meant the two shovels.)\n\n\u201cDo you hear? I must obey my master.\u201d\n\nAnd he seized upon the mother and daughter, and succeeded, not without\ndifficulty,--for they resisted as well as they could,--in shutting them\nup in a bag. The lord, hearing the noise, and their screams, ran up to\nsee what was going on.\n\n\u201cWhat trick have you played on me now, miserable wretch, demon\nincarnate?\u201d cried he, seeing the bag rolling on the floor, and hearing\nthe screams that came out of it.\n\n\u201cWell, I put them in the bag; did you not tell me to bring you two\nwomen in a bag?\u201d\n\n\u201cTwo women, idiot!\u201d\n\n\u201cBless me! I thought you said two women.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have a good mind to run my sword through your body.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are angry it seems to me, my master.\u201d\n\n\u201cAngry, angry,--and who would not be in my place?\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! then I am going to strip off your skin.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I am not angry at all. I said nothing of the sort; you know very\nwell that I have a good temper, and that I never get angry. But go, run\nquickly to the woods, take two shovels in a bag,--you understand now,\ntwo _shovels_,--and do what I told you.\u201d\n\nThe lord then pulled his wife and daughter out of the bag, and\nconsulted with them upon some means of getting rid of Fanch as soon as\npossible.\n\n\u201cIt was agreed,\u201d said the lady, \u201cthat his year should end when the\ncuckoo began to sing.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, but it is not yet time for the cuckoo to sing.\u201d\n\n\u201cPshaw! that boy is such a fool, he would never know what time of the\nyear the cuckoo ought to sing; to-morrow I will make the cuckoo sing\nmyself.\u201d\n\nThe next day, just as Fanch was going to the wood with his gun on his\nshoulder, he heard, \u201cCuckoo! cuckoo!\u201d from a large oak-tree which was\nnear the gate of the court-yard.\n\n\u201cWhat is this?\u201d said he; \u201cdoes the cuckoo sing in the month of February\nin this country? I will teach you in a moment, how to wait till the\nright time comes to sing, vile bird!\u201d\n\nAnd he fired, bang! and the lady fell dead at his feet.\n\n\u201cWhy, what a singular cuckoo!\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cAh! you demon!\u201d cried the lord, \u201cyou have killed my wife! I will kill\nyou, too, as I would a dog.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! this time you are angry, my master, you are very angry, and I\nshall strip off your skin.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I am not angry, because I never get angry, myself. But from this\nmoment, you shall never have anything to do at the castle but eat,\ndrink, and go walking; for you would bring me to beggary!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! delightful! that is just what I had wished for.\u201d\n\nOne day the cuckoo sang at last in the month of May. They gave Fanch\nhis hundred crowns and his bag of farthings, and bade him farewell. And\nhe returned to his country, without having had his skin stripped off;\nmore fortunate than many others who had been before him at this castle;\nfor there was a room there where you could see a great number of skins\nhung up against the wall.\n\nWith the five hundred crowns that he got for the beeves, the two\nhundred crowns for the hogs, and the hundred crowns and the bag of\nfarthings for his wages, he found himself quite rich. Moreover, he\nmarried one of the richest heiresses in his neighborhood, and for three\nwhole days there were holidays and feasts, to which all the people in\nthe neighborhood were invited, the poor as well as the rich.\n\n Told in Breton by Barbe Tassel, Plouaret, December, 1868.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE ROEBUCK HUNT\n\nAN IROQUOIS STORY\n\n\nAn old man lived in a cabin with his grandson, who was twenty years\nold. They were the last survivors of a nation exterminated by the\nsorceresses.\n\nThe young man was a good hunter, but he had one great trouble: his\ngrandfather forbade his hunting the roebuck, without giving him any\nreason for this interdiction. One day, returning from the hunt sooner\nthan usual, the young man surprised his grandfather making soup of some\nbones. Being questioned very narrowly on the subject, the old man told\nthe following story:--\n\n\u201cThese bones that you have seen are the bones of a roebuck. When you\nwere born, our nation was numerous and powerful. But unfortunately\nthere were some young people who would not obey their chiefs. These\nyoung people became more and more insolent, and were imitated by\nothers. The Lord of life became angry and sent the sorceresses to\ndestroy the cabins: you see that ours is the only one now remaining.\nOur warriors were all killed or made prisoners. You were very small\nthen; I carried you away with me, far away, to a nation allied to\nours--a fortunate journey which saved our lives, or at least spared\nus from slavery. But what do I say? Are we free? Alas! no, for the\nsorceresses allowed us to live only on condition that we should never\nhunt the roebuck, and never eat his flesh. The wolves have devoured a\nroebuck, I gathered up the remains, these few naked bones; I could not\nresist the desire to taste some soup made of the bones and to eat the\nmarrow of them.\u201d\n\nHearing this story, the young man became very angry with the\nsorceresses, and resolved to find them and punish them. His grandfather\nthen said to him.\n\n\u201cSince you are determined to go, listen to me. You will be obliged to\ngo through a forest at the end of which there is a place where there\nare a great many wolves; throw to them the game you kill by the way,\nand you will then be able to catch them. Soon after, you will come to\nthe country of the sorceresses; then, especially, you must be very\ncautious. Take care not to touch a single ear when you come to their\nfield of Indian corn; or else immediately they will surprise you, and\nyou will be lost.\u201d\n\nThe young man took leave of the old man, promising to follow his\ninstructions. All went well till just when he went to the sorceresses\u2019\ncorn-field. The ripe ears made him covetous, and he had just put out\nhis hand when suddenly he heard some one whisper in his ear to go along\nquietly and not touch a single ear. He had only gone a few steps when\nhe saw a skeleton leaning against the enclosure of the field, as if\nput there to scare away the birds. It was one of the victims of the\nsorceresses and the young warrior\u2019s paternal uncle. He recognized his\nnephew and called him by his name.\n\nThe latter coming up to him, his skeleton uncle told him everything\nthat he would have to do when he went into the presence of the\nsorceresses. Furnished with these instructions, he arrived at the\ndwelling of the sorceresses. He was well received, and they contended\nas to who should bring him his pottage. The skeleton had told him this\nbeforehand; \u201cEach sorceress,\u201d he told him, \u201cwill bring you a plate of\ncorn boiled with meat; do not accept it, for if you do you make a fatal\nengagement with them. Only one, the youngest of them, will not invite\nyou to eat out of her plate, and hers is really the corn and meat of\nwhich you must partake: you must put the spoon in boldly; she will give\nyou a sweet smile, and by this you will be married. Meanwhile the other\nsorceresses will wish to kill you, but your young wife will know very\nwell how to take care of you: you have only to follow our counsels.\u201d\n\nEverything happened as he said.\n\nWhen evening came, the young sorceress said to her husband,--\n\n\u201cThe great old woman will come to-night to kill you; but do not be\nafraid, I will waken you in time.\u201d\n\nSure enough, about midnight the great old woman came suddenly to the\nbedside of the newly married pair, but, surprised at finding them\nawake, she went away without having been able to execute her design.\nAt dawn of day the husband and wife arose, and the wife said to her\nhusband,--\n\n\u201cGo find your uncle; he has something to tell you,\u201d and he went to him\nimmediately.\n\n\u201cMy nephew,\u201d said the skeleton to him, \u201cwhat you must do now is to\nseize upon the bag which is in the chamber of the great old woman.\u201d\n\nIt was an enchanted bag which had shut up in it all the secrets of\nsorcery, and he would have been entirely unable to take it away without\nthe aid of his wife, who showed him how to do it, and procured him\nthe assistance of a rat that helped him by cutting the string of the\nbag with its teeth. As soon as this was done, the sorceresses uttered\ncries of rage and despair. What did they see? Roebucks running here\nand there in their cornfield; and ducks, each wearing a heart around\nhis neck. It was all over with the sorceresses; the newly married\nhusband, instructed by his wife, took the hearts, one after the other,\nand broke them. They were the hearts of the sorceresses. The vengeance\nwas complete; but there was one more thing still to be done,--they must\nfree the prisoners. These numerous herds of roebucks wandering about\nthe country are a sign of good fortune.\n\n\u201cDo you see that tree near the lake?\u201d said the wife to her husband;\n\u201cyou must cut it down so that it will fall across the lake and serve as\na bridge.\u201d\n\nNo sooner said than done; thousands of warriors rose up at once and\nthanked their deliverer. Then began a triumphal march to their own\ncountry; the emblem of the nation was erected, the recaptured roebuck\nshould be the family token of the children that should be born to the\nyoung couple.\n\nTen days had scarcely passed since the grandfather and his grandson\nhad parted. Five days, thanks to the skill of the young sorceress,\nwas enough for the journey home. The joy of the old man on seeing his\ngrandson again and hearing the story of his adventures, can scarcely be\nimagined. And the nation arose from its ruins and became more powerful\nthan before.\n\n  J. A. CUOQ.\n\n\n\n\nPIERRE AND H\u00c9L\u00c8NE\n\nA STORY OF LOWER BRITANNY\n\n\nOnce there were two orphans who lived in a village, a brother and a\nsister; the brother\u2019s name was Pierre, and the sister\u2019s H\u00e9l\u00e8ne. Pierre\nwas married. The woman he married was wicked and jealous, and from the\nmoment she entered Pierre\u2019s house she hated her sister-in-law; H\u00e9l\u00e8ne\nwas good.\n\nA year passed, and Pierre became the father of a little girl.\n\n\u201cH\u00e9l\u00e8ne shall be her godmother!\u201d said he.\n\n\u201cAs you like,\u201d said his wife, casting an angry glance upon the poor\ngirl.\n\nLittle H\u00e9l\u00e8ne grew; and when she began to say a few words she was\nalways lisping that of her good godmother. Pierre\u2019s wicked wife was\nvery indignant at it.\n\n\u201cHypocrite!\u201d cried she in a rage, \u201cis she going to deprive me of my\nchild\u2019s affection as she has of my husband\u2019s love? I will find some\nsure means of driving this perfidious creature out of the house.\u201d\n\nOne day she went to her husband. \u201cSee here,\u201d said she, \u201cit is I who do\nall the work; your sister takes her pleasure when your wife is worn out\nwith fatigue; she folds her arms from morning to night while I do her\nwork and mine. Send her away, then, and you will see that everything\nwill go better in our household.\u201d\n\nPierre was very sad at these words, for he loved H\u00e9l\u00e8ne tenderly.\n\n\u201cMy sister,\u201d said he to her the next day, \u201cit is not right that you\nshould eat the bread that others have earned, and be idle yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI milk, I bake the bread, I make the butter,\u201d said H\u00e9l\u00e8ne; \u201cwhat more\ndo you wish me to do?\u201d\n\nBut the wicked woman could not restrain her hatred, and a few days\nafter this she said,--\n\n\u201cI cannot stand it any longer; she must go!\u201d\n\nAnd she ran to the stable and killed an ox.\n\n\u201cPierre, Pierre!\u201d cried she to her husband, \u201csee what your sister\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne has done; she has killed one of your oxen.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy sister, why did you do this?\u201d said Pierre to her, greatly mortified.\n\n\u201cI did not do it, brother,\u201d answered H\u00e9l\u00e8ne sweetly.\n\nThe next day the second ox died.\n\n\u201cPierre, Pierre!\u201d cried the wicked woman, \u201csee; your other ox is dead,\nand it is H\u00e9l\u00e8ne who killed this one also.\u201d\n\n\u201cI shall be ruined if I have no beasts to take into the fields,\u201d said\nPierre to his sister, \u201cand this is the second one of my oxen that you\nhave killed.\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not do it, brother,\u201d answered H\u00e9l\u00e8ne quietly.\n\nThe next day the horse was found dead in the stable.\n\n\u201cPierre, Pierre! see what your sister has done. Next thing she will set\nthe house on fire.\u201d\n\n\u201cSister,\u201d said Pierre, \u201chow could you kill my horse? Do you wish me to\nbe obliged to beg my bread?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not do it, brother,\u201d H\u00e9l\u00e8ne answered sadly.\n\n\u201cPierre, Pierre!\u201d cried the wicked woman, the day after, \u201ccome see\nwhat your demon of a sister has done. Look at our child; I found her\nsmothered in her bed.\u201d\n\nPierre tore out his hair in despair, and sent for H\u00e9l\u00e8ne, who had gone\nout to her work early in the morning.\n\n\u201cSister,\u201d said he angrily, \u201cyou killed my oxen and my horse, and I\npardoned you; but now you have killed my child: you must leave this\nhouse, and receive the punishment for your crimes!\u201d\n\nThen Pierre cut off H\u00e9l\u00e8ne\u2019s two arms; and they prepared to go away.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going to take me?\u201d said H\u00e9l\u00e8ne.\n\n\u201cYou will see,\u201d said Pierre.\n\n\u201cGive me my mass-book, brother, and let my little dog go with me.\u201d\n\nPierre took H\u00e9l\u00e8ne a long distance, and they came at last to a great\nforest; the wind blew through the trees and made the leaves shake.\nSuddenly a large oak-tree fell. Pierre took his sister in his arms and\nplaced her up among the branches; he opened the mass-book and laid it\non her lap, and the little dog played nimbly by his mistress\u2019 side.\n\n\u201cFarewell, my sister!\u201d said Pierre, turning away to wipe his tears.\n\n\u201cFarewell!\u201d answered H\u00e9l\u00e8ne.\n\nAt that moment she saw that Pierre had hurt himself, and that there was\na thorn in his foot.\n\n\u201cGo on, brother,\u201d said she to him; \u201csome day I will come and take it\nout.\u201d\n\nPierre went on his way, and when he returned to his dwelling, he sat\ndown beside his hearth-stone; and suddenly the thorn grew immensely,\nand a great tree sprang up from his foot and went up the chimney. He\nwas thus condemned to remain where he was seated and to wait till his\nsister should come to set him free as she had promised him.\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne continued in the forest, seated in the top of the great tree,\nand the wind turned the leaves of the mass-book she had on her knees.\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne prayed.\n\nAt the hour for meals, twice a day, the oak-tree bent down as if blown\ndown by the wind, and the little dog jumped to the ground and went to\nlook for his mistress\u2019 breakfast.\n\nThere was in the neighborhood a castle where a young lord and his\nmother lived.\n\nEvery day, for some time, the lady of the castle had remarked, on\nsitting down to her table, that several of her dishes had been partly\nconsumed.\n\n\u201cSee here!\u201d said she to her astonished servants, \u201cwho is permitted to\neat of the meats before they are brought to the table? Is it proper\nthat my son and I should eat what our servants leave?\u201d\n\n\u201cMadam,\u201d said the steward, \u201cI placed those meats there only a moment\nago, and I assure you they had not been touched.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said the lady angrily; \u201cfind out as soon as possible who\nthis insolent creature is, who feeds upon our meats before we have\ntasted them ourselves.\u201d\n\nThe next day, at the dinner hour, the steward took his place near the\ntable, which was all served for dinner. Suddenly a little dog leaped\nin at the open window; he held a handkerchief between his teeth.\nWith one bound he was on the table; and seizing several bits of meat,\nsome bread, and a few pieces of fruit, he fled away. The steward was\ncompletely confounded.\n\n\u201cWell?\u201d said the lady as she entered.\n\n\u201cI have seen him!\u201d cried the steward; \u201cI have seen him!\u201d\n\n\u201cWho?\u201d she asked.\n\nAnd he explained all that had passed.\n\n\u201cYou must follow it,\u201d said the lady of the castle.\n\n\u201cI will try, madam.\u201d\n\nThe next day, at the same hour, the steward took his place near the\ntable. The dog came in through the window and took his provision as\nusual; then, seeing they were watching for him, he fled away rapidly.\nThe steward tried to follow him in vain; the little animal disappeared\nin the forest.\n\n\u201cLeave it to me,\u201d said the young lord; \u201cI will find out where this dog\ngoes.\u201d\n\nAnd the next day he took the steward\u2019s place. The window had been left\nopen purposely. At the usual hour the little dog appeared. The lord of\nthe castle did not interfere with him; but when he saw him take the\nfour corners of H\u00e9l\u00e8ne\u2019s handkerchief between his teeth, he darted out\nand ran in pursuit of the thief.\n\nHe followed the dog for several minutes; but soon worn out by the\nuseless chase, he threw himself at the foot of a tree, breathless, but\nnot discouraged.\n\n\u201cTo-morrow,\u201d said he resolutely, \u201cto-morrow I will find out where this\ndog goes.\u201d\n\nSo the next day he had his horse saddled, and, taking his place under\nthe window, he waited. The little dog appeared, jumped on the table,\nchose among the dishes that were served, a breakfast for his mistress;\nbut when he started as usual to return to his retreat, the gallop of a\nhorse resounded behind him.\n\nThe dog stopped suddenly; one of the oak-trees bent down just then,\nand the intelligent little animal took his place near his mistress.\nThe young lord of the castle, looking up, saw a charming young girl\nseated among the branches at the top of the tree. He was struck with\nher beauty. A book was lying on her lap, and the wind turned the leaves\nof it as she read; for oh, strange! the poor child had been deprived of\nboth her arms.\n\nHe questioned H\u00e9l\u00e8ne; and she answered his questions.\n\nThe lord of the castle heard all the young girl\u2019s history. His heart\nwas moved with pity. He came to see her often; and one day he swore he\nwould have no one but her for his wife.\n\nOne day a carriage stopped at the foot of the oak-tree, which bent\ndown; and the young husband received his betrothed in his arms.\n\nWhen the ceremony was over, the old lady of the castle, looking at the\nyoung wife, said to herself,--\n\n\u201cSo this is my son\u2019s wife!\u201d and an expression of hatred came over her\nface. \u201cPatience!\u201d she added, in a low voice, \u201cpatience! the day will\ncome when she shall leave my house forever.\u201d\n\nA few months after, the young husband went away to the war.\n\nOne morning the crabbed old lady of the castle came into the young\nwife\u2019s room. Twin babies had just been born to her; and they were\nresting quietly by her side in a gilded cradle.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d she muttered with disgust, and went out. Her hand trembled with\nanger as she dipped the pen into the ink and wrote the news to her\nson:--\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said she, \u201cyour wife has brought two very ugly little children\ninto the world.\u201d\n\nThe springtime came: but still the lord of the castle had sent no\ntidings of himself.\n\n\u201cYour husband is dead,\u201d said H\u00e9l\u00e8ne\u2019s wicked mother-in-law to her one\nday; \u201cI do not wish you to be any longer under my roof. Go; neither you\nnor your brats shall disgrace this castle any longer.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas, madam!\u201d answered H\u00e9l\u00e8ne, \u201cI can go away very well; but who will\ncarry my dear little ones?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou yourself,\u201d said the horrible woman. \u201cDo you suppose I would put my\nservants at your service? They would refuse to go with a beggar like\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas!\u201d replied H\u00e9l\u00e8ne, \u201cI have no arms, as other mothers have, to\ncarry my poor children.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will manage it,\u201d said the hard-hearted mother-in-law.\n\nAnd the next day H\u00e9l\u00e8ne left the castle, carrying the two innocent\nlittle ones in a cloth which was tied round her waist.\n\nShe wandered a long time in the forest, followed by her little dog; and\nwhen evening came on, weariness overcame her, and she was very thirsty.\nA fountain flowed a few steps from her. H\u00e9l\u00e8ne sighed.\n\n\u201cAlas!\u201d she thought, \u201cif I only had one arm, I could catch some water\nin the palm of my hand and quench my thirst.\u201d\n\nAnd as she uttered the words, a little bird, perched on the edge of the\nfountain, began to twitter. He said, in his language,--\n\n\u201cDo not cry, poor H\u00e9l\u00e8ne.\u201d\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne, astonished, stopped to listen to it; but the little bird\ncontinued to sing. H\u00e9l\u00e8ne approached the fountain, and leaned over the\nwater; she tried to drink.\n\nBut before her lips could reach the water, one of her nurslings fell\ninto the fountain. Poor H\u00e9l\u00e8ne! who would give her little baby back to\nher?\n\nBut the bird went on singing; and in its language it said,--\n\n\u201cDip what there is left of your right arm into the fountain, and fear\nnothing for your child.\u201d\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne obeyed the little bird, and dipped what remained of her arm; and\nat once a strong and active arm and a supple hand grew out in place of\nthe right arm and hand that she had lost.\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne picked up her child with delight; but at the same moment the\nother dropped from the cloth that held it, and fell into the water, as\nhis brother had done. But the little bird kept on singing; and in its\njoyous language it said,--\n\n\u201cDip what remains to you of your left arm into the fountain, and fear\nnothing for your child.\u201d\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne dipped what there was left of her other arm, and immediately she\nhad a new left arm.\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne picked up her other child.\n\nA cabin under the shade of an oak-tree sheltered H\u00e9l\u00e8ne and her\nchildren. One day the two children were playing on the threshold. A\nstranger passed by. He stopped before the two children.\n\n\u201cI, too,\u201d cried he bitterly, \u201cI would one day have been surrounded\nby fair young ones; but H\u00e9l\u00e8ne has fled from my home.\u201d When suddenly\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne appeared at the cabin door.\n\n\u201cIt is she!\u201d cried the stranger.\n\nBut he drew back as if struck by lightning. This woman had two arms,\nand her fingers fondled her children\u2019s hair. His H\u00e9l\u00e8ne had both arms\ncut off.\n\nMeanwhile, she had also recognized the stranger, and sprang towards him.\n\nA few hours after, a magnificent carriage stopped at Pierre\u2019s farm.\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne descended quickly from her carriage, and went into the house.\nPoor Pierre was still seated beside the fire. He suffered terribly, and\nhis wicked wife never consoled him. When she heard the carriage stop,\nand saw her sister-in-law get out of it, she suddenly disappeared.\n\n\u201cWhere is your wife?\u201d asked H\u00e9l\u00e8ne of her brother.\n\n\u201cI do not know,\u201d answered Pierre. \u201cHeaven has punished me for my crime,\nfor I have not had a day of happiness since I left you in the forest;\nand my wife, who caused me to do such a deed, leaves me to my misery.\u201d\n\nAt this moment they heard the voice of the wicked woman. \u201cH\u00e9l\u00e8ne,\u201d said\nshe, coming forward, and speaking in a sweet voice, \u201cI hope you have\npardoned me; Heaven has punished us, and we are, as you see, very\nunhappy. But come,\u201d she added, leading the way to the upper story.\n\n\u201cI cannot,\u201d said H\u00e9l\u00e8ne; \u201cI must cure my brother first.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome up, so that I may show you what Heaven has left me to console me\nin my misfortune.\u201d\n\nH\u00e9l\u00e8ne, thinking her sister-in-law wished to show her a new baby,\nstarted towards the winding stairway.\n\n\u201cGo first,\u201d said Pierre\u2019s wife, with hypocritical respect.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d said H\u00e9l\u00e8ne; \u201cI do not wish to go in front of you. I am always\npoor H\u00e9l\u00e8ne, Pierre\u2019s sister.\u201d\n\nThe sister-in-law then went up first, and suddenly a loud noise was\nheard; two steps of the stairway fell in with a great crash, and the\nwicked woman fell into a pot of boiling water that she had prepared\nfor H\u00e9l\u00e8ne. She thought she had counted the steps, and was sure of the\nsuccess of her treachery; but hatred bewildered her, and made her the\nvictim of her own perfidy. H\u00e9l\u00e8ne turned away her head in horror and\ndescended the stair.\n\n\u201cMy brother,\u201d said she to Pierre, \u201cHeaven has punished the crime; your\nwife is dead: she fell into the snare she set for me. But you see I\nhave come to fulfill my promise. Show me your foot, and I will take\nout the thorn which has caused you so much suffering.\u201d\n\n\u201cAlas, my sister! this thorn is a great tree whose branches already\ncover the roof of my dwelling,\u201d said Pierre.\n\nBut as he spoke, H\u00e9l\u00e8ne touched her brother\u2019s foot, and in a moment the\ntree disappeared up the chimney, and fell with a crash on the other\nside of the house.\n\n  MARGUERITE DE BELZ, \u201cLa Clef des Champs.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE THREE EGGS\n\nA CREOLE STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a negro and his wife who lived in a village\non the shore of the Oyapok. They had a little girl who was much the\nprettiest child that ever was seen. Obedient, intelligent, loving her\nparents with all her soul, she was the joy and pride of her father and\nmother. The whole family lived on the produce of the little field of\ntapioca and potatoes which surrounded their hut.\n\nWhen winter came, the torrents of rain caused the river to overflow,\nand when the waters retired, all the plain, for a great distance, was\nonly a mass of gravel and stones. Poverty desolated the country. In the\nnegro\u2019s hut there was soon scarcely a morsel of cassava; the provision\nof potatoes diminished day by day. After having talked many times in a\nlow voice over their sad condition, after having wept over it, the poor\npeople resolved to go and leave their precious child to be lost in the\nforest.\n\nOne morning they started out. As they went along, the mother and her\ngood man walked slowly, with great tears in their eyes; the little\ngirl went in front gathering berries that she found in the bushes.\nSuddenly, not hearing her parents talking any longer, the child\ncalled,--\n\n\u201cMamma! mamma!\u201d\n\nNo reply. Alas, poor little one! you are lost in this thick forest! The\nmore she tried to find her way, the more she went astray.\n\nNight came; the foliage was so thick that she could not even see the\nmoon or the stars to guide her. The ferocious beasts howled terribly.\nThe child continued to walk on and on; her little feet were bleeding,\nher teeth chattered with fright, she was faint from hunger and fatigue.\nSoon, however, the trees became more scattered; a light shone in the\ndistance. The child went in the direction of the light. At last she saw\na cabin. She knocked at the door. \u201cIn the name of the good Virgin, open\nto me,\u201d she cried.\n\nThe door opened, creaking. An old witch, all wrinkled, appeared on the\nthreshold. \u201cWhat do you want, my child?\u201d said she, in a coarse voice.\n\n\u201cI am a poor little girl who has lost her parents in the great forest\nbelow there; I am afraid of being eaten up by the ferocious beasts; let\nme rest to-night in your house.\u201d\n\nThe coarse voice answered,--\n\n\u201cHere, little one, raise your eyes. Do you see over the door those\nthree large pumpkins? In order to be able to enter my house, you must\ncatch them one by one on your head.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, good mamma! if they fall on my head, surely they will crush me! I\nam so little, they are so big!\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, my child, I will catch them for you.\u201d Then the old witch began\nto sing in a melancholy tone,--\n\n  \u201cFall, fall, big pumpkins!\n  So she can come into my house.\u201d\n\nThen she leaned her poor old head forward and caught the three big\npumpkins on it, one after the other. Each time, her body bent and her\nknees gave way.\n\nAs soon as the child came in, she asked for something to eat.\n\n\u201cOpen this cupboard, little one; you will find two plates. In one there\nis some good meat and some good fish; in the other there are only bones\nand fish-bones. Put them in the fire, and when they are cooked, you can\ngive me whichever one you choose.\u201d\n\nThe little one lighted the fire, warmed the two plates, and gave the\nold witch the plate of meat and fish; she kept for herself the plate of\nbones and fish-bones.\n\nWhen the dinner was over, the old witch put the child to bed.\n\n\u201cTo-morrow,\u201d said she, \u201cwhen you are well rested, we will go and bathe\nin the river.\u201d\n\nBefore going to sleep, the child kneeled down to pray, and thanked the\nlittle Jesus for having rescued her from the dark night and the wicked\nbeasts.\n\nAs soon as it was day, the old witch and the child went to the river.\nWhen they had taken their bath, the old witch said to the child,--\n\n\u201cLittle one, rub me all over my body to make me clean.\u201d\n\nThe child then looked at the witch\u2019s back; it was covered with razors,\nknives, pointed nails, pieces of broken glass. However, she did not\nhesitate to rub the witch\u2019s back and her old limbs as well as she\ncould. Soon her hands were all bloody. When the witch saw that, she\ncried,--\n\n\u201cYou are a good little girl; you have taken pity on a poor old woman;\ngive me your hands.\u201d\n\nThe child held them to her; then she spat in her hands and said to\nher,--\n\n\u201cNow rub yourself.\u201d\n\nImmediately the wounds disappeared.\n\n\u201cNow, my child, you must set out to go back to your parents. Here are\nthree eggs. When you encounter any obstacle along the way, you have\nonly to break an egg, and the obstacle will disappear. I only charge\nyou one thing: do not stop a moment, and if by chance, young people\nmeet you, and pay you compliments, do not listen to them, and continue\nyour journey without paying any attention to their fine speeches.\u201d\n\nThen the little one embraced the old witch, thanked her for her\ngoodness, and departed. After having traveled a long time, she came to\na large river. It was impossible to find a ford where she could cross\nit. Then she broke her first egg. A boat appeared upon the river. She\nbegan to sing,--\n\n  \u201cPut me across, O boatman!\n  Put me across, O boatman!\u201d\n\nThe boatman drew near, made her get into the boat, and put her across\nto the other side of the river.\n\n\u201cThanks, good boatman, for your kindness.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood luck to you, miss.\u201d\n\nShe went on her way. She traveled and traveled, and found herself at\nlast stopped by a great bare mountain.\n\n\u201cMountain, open!\u201d cried she, breaking her second egg.\n\nThe mountain opened; a beautiful road ran through it. Flowering shrubs\nbordered the road; in the green trees, loaded with fruit, birds of a\nthousand colors were singing. Suddenly joyous voices were heard; a\nparty of young people drew near, dancing and laughing.\n\n\u201cOh! what a beautiful little girl that is going along the road! see\nher beautiful hair,\u201d said one. \u201cOh! what pretty little feet!\u201d said\nanother. \u201cCome play with us, young lady; we will take you to our\nhouse; you shall be the absolute mistress of it, you shall do nothing\nall day long; we will work for you. You will only have to look at\nyourself in your mirror, comb your hair, and make yourself beautiful.\u201d\n\nBut the little girl, remembering the counsels of the old witch, did not\neven turn her head.\n\n\u201cLeave me alone,\u201d said she; \u201cI have promised not to stop till I have\nfound my parents again.\u201d\n\nThen she continued her journey and came to a plain. The mountain closed\nup behind her, and became, as before, barren and desolate. After having\ntraveled a long time, the little girl came at last to a village. The\npeople were in a great commotion; the queen had just died. As soon as\nthe inhabitants saw the stranger, they surrounded her, and charmed with\nher beauty and grace, they proposed to her to choose her to replace the\nqueen whom they had just lost. To all their entreaties she replied,--\n\n\u201cI can agree to reign over you only on one condition; that is, that you\nshall take my father and mother for your sovereigns as soon as I have\nfound them. It is not right for the child to be above its parents.\u201d\n\nThe people having accepted the condition, the child broke her third egg.\n\nThe egg was scarcely broken before the old negro and his wife were\nseen to arrive at the end of the village, all covered with tatters,\nthin, emaciated, and bent with grief and poverty. Seeing their\ndaughter, whom they believed lost forever, they shed abundant tears,\nand were about to throw themselves at her feet to ask her pardon for\nhaving abandoned her. But she did not give them time for this, and\nthrowing her arms around their necks, she embraced them tenderly. They\nwere proclaimed sovereigns of the country and lived happily with their\ndaughter ever after. They were good and charitable to the poor people,\nfor they had been poor themselves.\n\nThe news of this adventure was quickly spread around. It reached the\nlittle village where the good little girl formerly lived. All their\nneighbors were delighted; only one negro and his wife became extremely\njealous of them. These people had a wicked, cross-grained daughter, the\nvery image of her mother.\n\n\u201cMy daughter, I want you to be queen also; I will go and lose you in\nthe forest. You are worth much more than that affected little thing;\nand when you are queen, you can send for me and your father also, so\nthat we can pass the rest of our days in sleeping and doing nothing.\u201d\n\nThen they went into the forest and left their daughter there. Night\ncame, and the ferocious beasts began to howl! Ah! truly, the child was\nmuch frightened, but, taking courage in the face of danger, she tried\nto get out of the forest. Then she saw the light in the old witch\u2019s\ncabin. She went in that direction and came to the door.\n\n\u201cOpen to me,\u201d said she, thumping on it with all her might with her feet\nand her fists; \u201cI do not want to spend the night out of doors.\u201d\n\nThe coarse voice answered,--\n\n\u201cDo you see those three enormous pumpkins? In order to enter my house,\nyou must catch them on your head.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, catch them yourself, so I can come in.\u201d\n\nThe witch, without saying anything, sang her song, and caught the\npumpkins on her poor old head.\n\nAs soon as she had come in, the little girl called out,--\n\n\u201cI am hungry; give me something to eat.\u201d\n\nThen the old witch put two dishes on the fire; one of good meat and\ngood fish, the other containing only bones and fish-bones. The child,\nwithout thanking her, took all that was good, and paid no attention as\nto what was left for the old woman.\n\nWhen the morning came, they went to the river, and when she saw the\nwitch\u2019s back, she said,--\n\n\u201cWhat, do you think I am going to rub your old back? It is all full of\nbroken glass and pieces of broken bottles.\u201d\n\nThe witch dressed herself again, and when the time came to go away, she\ngave the child three eggs.\n\n\u201cMy child, take my advice; do not stop on the way until you have found\nyour parents; else some harm will happen. When you see any obstacle, or\nwhen you want anything, break one of the eggs, and you will be quite\nsatisfied.\u201d\n\nWithout even thanking the old witch, who had been so good, the child\nwent on her way.\n\nHaving reached the river, the breaking of the first egg brought the\nboatman to her, and he put her across to the other shore. Then after\nthat the mountain stopped her way; so she broke her second egg, and the\nmountain opened. A beautiful road bordered with flowers showed itself\nto her. She followed it. Then the young people approached.\n\n\u201cBeautiful child, will you come and play with us? You will find in our\nhouse mirrors in which you can see your whole figure. We will be your\nslaves; one who is as pretty as you are should not work, but live to do\nnothing and think of nothing but being amused.\u201d\n\nBlushing with pleasure and vanity, the child sprang towards the young\npeople; but she had scarcely crossed the road bordered with flowers\nwhen the mountain closed up with a great noise and swallowed her up.\n\nShe was pitied by only one person,--the good little girl. Young ladies,\nlet this story be a lesson to you.\n\n  LOYS BRUEYRE.\n\n\n\n\nTHE THREE BROTHERS\n\nOR\n\nTHE CAT, THE COCK, AND THE LADDER\n\nA BRETON STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were three brothers: the oldest was named Yvon;\nthe second Goulven; and the youngest, Guyon. Their mother was dead, and\nthey asked their father to give each of them the portion that would\nfall to him, so that they might go out into the world to seek their\nfortunes.\n\n\u201cI am very willing,\u201d said the old man, \u201cbut you know that we are not\nrich; a cat, a cock, and a ladder--these are all I have to give you.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; let us draw straws,\u201d replied the three brothers, \u201cand see\nwhat will fall to the lot of each of us.\u201d\n\nThey drew straws, and the cat fell to Yvon, the cock to Goulven, and\nthe ladder to Guyon. Each took his property and began to get ready\nto set out. Their father accompanied them to a place near by, where\nfour roads crossed and led in different directions, and then they bade\nfarewell to each other, and took each a different road, after having\nappointed a meeting at the same place at the end of a year and a day.\nThe old man returned alone to his house, by the fourth road.\n\nYvon, to whom the cat had fallen, was led by his road to the seashore.\nHe followed the beach for a long time without coming to any dwelling.\nHe and his companion were obliged to live for several days on\nshell-fish, and principally on mussels and lumpets, which cats love\nabove all things. They came at last to a mill, not far from which rose\nthe walls and towers of a castle high upon the cliff. Yvon entered the\nmill, carrying the cat on his left arm. He saw there four men, in their\nshirt-sleeves, armed with sticks and earnestly engaged in chasing the\nmice which ran about in every direction, so as to hinder them from\ncutting holes in the sacks and eating the flour.\n\n\u201cHow much trouble you take for a small matter!\u201d said he to them.\n\n\u201cHow is it a small matter? Do you not see that if we should let them,\nthese vile beasts would eat both the wheat and the flour and would\nreduce us to die of hunger?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh, well! here is a little animal\u201d (and he showed them his cat) \u201cthat,\nall by himself, in less than an hour, will do more work than you four\nin a whole year; he will very soon get rid of all your mice.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis little animal? You are joking, doubtless; he does not seem at all\ndangerous. What do you call him?\u201d (In that country they had never seen\na cat.)\n\n\u201cHe is called Mr. Cat. Do you wish to see him work?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; let us see something of what he can do.\u201d\n\nYvon let go his cat, which was very hungry. The mice, which were not\nafraid of it, never having seen a cat, made no haste to run into their\nholes, and it made a frightful slaughter of them. The four men watched\nit work, in great astonishment, and in less than an hour the whole\nthreshing-floor of the mill was strewn with dead mice. There were heaps\nof them in every direction. The men with the sticks and the miller\ncould not recover from their astonishment. One of them ran to the\ncastle, and said to the lord,--\n\n\u201cMake haste, my lord, and come to the mill; you will see there what you\nhave never seen before in your life.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d asked the lord.\n\n\u201cA man has arrived from some country, we know not where, bringing with\nhim a little animal that appears to be very mild and gentle, yet which\nin the wink of an eye has killed all the mice against which we have had\nso much trouble to defend your wheat and your flour.\u201d\n\n\u201cI trust this may be true!\u201d cried the lord.\n\nHe hastened to the mill, and seeing the great work of the cat, he stood\nstill, filled with admiration, his eyes and his mouth wide open. Then,\nseeing on Yvon\u2019s arm the author of all this carnage, which, well fed\nand happy, and its eyes half closed, was making a continuous sound like\nthat of a wheel turned by the hand of a spinner, he asked,--\n\n\u201cAnd is it this animal, that looks so gentle and sweet, which has\nworked so bravely?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, my lord, it is indeed,\u201d replied the four men armed with sticks.\n\n\u201cWhat a treasure such an animal must be! Ah! if I could only have it!\nWill you sell it to me?\u201d asked he of Yvon.\n\n\u201cWillingly,\u201d replied Yvon, passing his hand down the back of his cat.\n\n\u201cHow much will you take for it?\u201d\n\n\u201cSix hundred crowns, with lodging for myself and good board in your\ncastle; for my friend, the cat, will not work well if I do not stay\nwith him.\u201d\n\n\u201cAgreed! shake hands.\u201d\n\nAnd they shook hands.\n\nYvon was accordingly installed in the castle, having nothing to do\nevery day but eat, drink, go walking, and from time to time to make a\nvisit to his friend, the cat, at the mill. He had become the friend of\nthe lord, and also of his daughter; for he was a very handsome young\nman. His acquaintance with the young girl became very intimate; and he\ngot from her all the gold and diamonds that he wanted. But the time\ncame when he thought it was most prudent for him to go away; so he\ndisappeared one night without saying anything, taking with him the best\nhorse in the castle stable to carry him, and all that he took away from\nthe old lord.\n\nNow we will follow him no farther, since his fortune is made, but see\nwhat has become of Goulven and his cock.\n\nAfter having walked a long time, and getting farther and farther from\nhome, Goulven at last reached a country where there were no cocks. One\nevening, about sunset, overcome with fatigue, he came to a beautiful\ncastle, and knocked at the door.\n\n\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d asked the porter.\n\n\u201cLodging for the night, if you please, for my little comrade and\nmyself.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome in,\u201d said the porter to him; \u201cyou may lodge here, for my master\nis charitable.\u201d\n\nHe ate in the kitchen with the servants, then went to sleep in the\nstable with the stable-boys and wagoners, taking his cock with him.\n\nIn that country they were obliged to go each morning to look for the\nday. So in the barn where he was with his cock, Goulven heard the\nconversation of the stable-boys and wagoners. They were saying to each\nother,--\n\n\u201cTo-morrow morning we shall have trouble again when we go to look for\nthe day. Let us grease the axle-tree well, so that the wagon will run\nmore easily, and not break down, as it did the other day; for see how\nmany wagons are already broken, and many horses worked to death, and\nthe master is displeased, and says that we shall ruin him.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, grease the axle-tree well before we go to bed.\u201d\n\nGoulven listened, astonished at what he heard; and, as the lord and the\nservants had told him that they had never seen a bird like his cock,\nthe idea struck him that he might make something out of it; so that he\ncried to the stable-boys and the wagoners,--\n\n\u201cDo not be so troubled and anxious, my friends. I will undertake your\ntask.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou will undertake to go yourself, all alone, to look for the day\nto-morrow morning?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; I and my companion.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut, unhappy man, if you do not bring it, or if you are late\nreturning, the master will have you hanged on the spot.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us alone, I tell you, and go to sleep quietly.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, the stable-boys and wagoners went to sleep without\ngreasing the wagon or making any of the usual preparations.\n\nThe cock crowed out from the loft about three o\u2019clock in the morning.\n\n\u201cWhat is that?\u201d cried the wagoners and stable-boys, awakened by this\nsong that they had never heard before.\n\n\u201cIt is nothing,\u201d replied Goulven; \u201cdo not disturb yourselves. My\ncomrade only announces that he is about to go in search of the day.\u201d So\nthey went to sleep again.\n\nAbout four o\u2019clock the cock crowed again, and they woke up as before,\nand cried,--\n\n\u201cWhat is it? what is it?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is my comrade, telling you that he is coming with the day,\u201d replied\nGoulven; \u201cget up and see.\u201d\n\nSo they got up, and saw with astonishment that, sure enough, the day\nhad come without their having been to look for it with so much trouble.\nThey hastened to go and tell their master.\n\n\u201cMaster, if you only knew--\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it? What has happened that you should come to wake me so\nearly?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou know the stranger whom you lodged last night, with his little\nanimal that he called a cock?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, what has he done?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat has he done? Why, this little animal, that does not look as if he\nwere anything in particular, is stronger than all your horses together,\nand will be able to spare you much expense, and us much trouble. Would\nyou believe it? he has brought us the day this morning all by himself,\nwithout horses or wagons, while we slept quietly.\n\n\u201cIt is impossible; you are mocking me!\u201d\n\n\u201cNothing is truer, however; and you have only to assure yourself of it\nby keeping the man and his little animal at the castle and watching\nwith us to-night.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; tell him to remain, so that I can see this thing.\u201d\n\nSo they told the man with the cock to remain with his animal.\n\nWhen evening came, after supper, the servants, the stable-boys, and\nthe wagoners went to sleep as usual, and Goulven climbed again to the\nloft, with his cock, after having told them that they need not disturb\nthemselves at all, and that he would undertake to bring the day back\nagain at the appointed hour.\n\nAbout three o\u2019clock in the morning the lord, who had not gone to bed,\ncame also to the stable to see and hear for himself what took place.\nThe cock crowed the first time on the cock-loft.\n\n\u201cWhat is that?\u201d asked the lord.\n\n\u201cIt is my comrade, just setting out to look for the day,\u201d replied\nGoulven; \u201cdo not be disturbed. Wait quietly; he will not be slow in\nreturning.\u201d\n\nAt four o\u2019clock the cock crowed again.\n\n\u201cWhy has the cock crowed?\u201d asked the lord.\n\n\u201cBecause he has just arrived, bringing the day back to us,\u201d replied\nGoulven. \u201cOpen the door, and go out, and you will see.\u201d\n\nThe lord went out of the stable, and saw that day had really dawned,\nall rosy and bright (it was the month of May), without his horses and\nhis iron-bound wagons having gone to look for it. He was filled with\namazement, and could not understand it. He called Goulven, and said to\nhim,--\n\n\u201cThe wagons that they break for me, the horses they cripple for me,\ngoing every morning to look for the dawn, are ruinous to me; if you\nwill sell me your little animal, you will do me a great service; how\nmuch do you ask for it?\u201d\n\n\u201cA thousand crowns,\u201d replied Goulven, \u201cand to remain with it at the\ncastle, well fed, well clothed, and having nothing to do but to go\nwalking for my pleasure where I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cAgreed,\u201d said the lord.\n\nSo Goulven lived at the castle, the happiest of men, having nothing\nto do every day but eat, drink, sleep, and go out walking. The cock,\nfor his part, never failed to bring the day back at the proper hour,\nand all were very well satisfied with their services. Goulven also\nmade love to the lord\u2019s daughter, who had noticed him because he was\na handsome fellow, and having behaved just as Yvon had done under the\nsame circumstances, he ran away also, when he thought the moment had\ncome, taking with him not only the thousand crowns that he had gotten\nfor the cock, but handsome presents which he had received from the\nyoung lady, and which he bore off on the best horse in the lord\u2019s\nstable.\n\nOf the three brothers, we have already seen two entirely successful;\none with his cat, the other with his cock. Now let us see what became\nof the third, Guyon, the man with the ladder.\n\nAfter having walked a long time, going always straight before him, and\ncarrying his ladder on his shoulder, and having gone a great distance\nfrom his own country, he found himself one day in front of a grand\ncastle, surrounded on all sides by high walls, and brambles and thorns.\nAt the window of one of the towers he saw a young lady of remarkable\nbeauty. He stopped to look at her; she smiled, and they soon began to\ntalk together. The lady told him that her husband, the lord of the\ncastle, was absent. He was a jealous wretch, who kept her a captive in\nthis tower with only a servant for company, and allowed her to receive\nno one else. She had grown very weary of her tower and wished very\nmuch to go out of it; but her lord had taken away the keys, and until\nhis return she was obliged to stay locked up. He was expected to return\nthe next day.\n\n\u201cI can come to you without a key, if you will permit it,\u201d said Guyon.\n\n\u201cHow can you, unless you change yourself to a bird? Into this castle,\nno man but my husband ever enters, and if any other should succeed in\ngetting in, he would never go out alive.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will see about that,\u201d said Guyon.\n\nThen he leaned his ladder against the wall. Alas! it was too short.\nBut the lady and her servant held the curtains out to him, and at\nlast he reached them, to their great joy. The next morning, early, he\ndeparted by the same way by which he had come. As he had greatly amused\nthe young lady and her servant, to whom such good fortune had never\nhappened, they filled his pockets before he left with gold, jewels, and\ndiamonds.\n\nAs Guyon was going quietly along, carrying his ladder on his shoulder,\nhe met the lord returning, who said to him as he passed,--\n\n\u201cYou appear much burdened and very much fatigued, my good man.\u201d\n\n\u201cA little,\u201d replied he; and each went on his way.\n\nAs soon as the lord had entered his castle, his wife, who knew\nnothing, and who had never seen any other man but her husband near\nenough to speak, made haste to tell him everything. To her great\nastonishment, her lord was furious.\n\n\u201cHow could he get into the tower?\u201d\n\n\u201cWith an instrument that he called a ladder. And he amused us very\nmuch; and before he left, to reward him, we filled his pockets with\ngold, jewels, and diamonds.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! miserable woman, what do you say? You have given my gold and my\njewels and diamonds to this creature?\u201d\n\nAnd he was furious, and stamped his feet and pulled out his hair.\n\n\u201cI shall run after him, and if I catch him!--\u201d\n\n\u201cDo him no harm, I beg you,\u201d said the wife, who could not understand\nher husband\u2019s anger.\n\nThe latter took the best horse from his stable and was soon off at\ngreat speed in pursuit of Guyon. But Guyon, who thought he would be\nfollowed, looked behind him, from time to time; and as he saw him just\nas he came near a house covered with slate which was by the roadside,\nhe placed his ladder against the wall, mounted to the roof, and began\nto throw down the slate tiles, as a tiler does when repairing an old\nroof. When the lord arrived in front of the house, he stopped his\nhorse, and addressing Guyon, said,--\n\n\u201cHow now, tiler, have you seen a man go by who carried a ladder on his\nshoulder?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, indeed! my lord; he passed by only a moment ago.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhich way did he go?\u201d\n\n\u201cHe kept on straight along there; hold on, you can see him still from\nhere. Come up, and you will see him.\u201d\n\nThen Guyon descended, and the lord, leaving his horse, climbed upon\nthe roof. But as soon as he had done so, Guyon took away the ladder,\nmounted the horse, taking his ladder with him, and set off at a full\ngallop, leaving the lord swearing and storming on the roof.\n\nAt the end of a year and a day, exactly, the three brothers, mounted on\nfine horses and dressed like lords, met at the cross-roads where they\nhad parted, and found their father waiting for them.\n\nThey had all three made their fortunes with the cat, the cock, and the\nladder; and they married rich women, and built three fine castles, one\nfor each, and a fourth, finer than the others, for their old father.\n\n Told by Marguerite Philippe, September, 1873.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE COCK\u2019S WIFE\n\nA STORY OF THE DISTRICT OF METZ\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a cock\u2019s wife who was scratching with all\nher might in a great heap of rubbish, and seemed deeply absorbed in her\ntask.\n\n\u201cYou are very silly, Cock\u2019s-wife,\u201d said a man who passed by, \u201cto waste\nyour time so, and wear out your feet so uselessly.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are mistaken, my good fellow; I am not wasting my time, for I have\njust found a purse with a hundred crowns.\u201d\n\n\u201cReally?\u201d\n\n\u201cSee here!\u201d\n\n\u201cCome, my good creature, lend me a hundred crowns; I will return them\nin eight days.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; here they are,\u201d said the Cock\u2019s-wife, putting the purse\ninto his hand:--she could never refuse to do a kindness.\n\nAt the end of the week, the Cock\u2019s wife, seeing that her debtor did not\nreturn, began to fear that she had been deceived, and indignant, she\nstarted in the direction of the house where the fellow lived. As she\nwas going along, at a turn in the road she met a ladder.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going, Cock\u2019s-wife?\u201d asked the ladder.\n\n\u201cI am going to a fellow\u2019s house to get back a hundred crowns that I\nlent him. Will you come with me?\u201d\n\n\u201cGladly!\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; get inside of me,\u201d said the Cock\u2019s-wife.\n\nCock\u2019s-wife went on her way, and a little farther on she met a river.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going, Cock\u2019s-wife?\u201d said the river.\n\n\u201cI am going to a fellow\u2019s house to get back a hundred crowns that I\nlent him. Will you come with me?\u201d\n\n\u201cWith pleasure,\u201d replied the river.\n\n\u201cVery well; get inside of me,\u201d said the Cock\u2019s-wife.\n\nThe Cock\u2019s-wife started off again; when in the midst of a wood she came\nacross a wolf.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going, Cock\u2019s-wife?\u201d asked the wolf.\n\n\u201cI am going to a fellow\u2019s house to get back a hundred crowns that I\nlent him. Will you come with me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; get inside of me.\u201d\n\nIn spite of the weight of her three companions, the Cock\u2019s-wife got\nsafely to the end of her journey.\n\n\u201cGood morning, my man, good morning,\u201d said she, as she entered: \u201cI have\ncome to ask you to pay me my hundred crowns.\u201d\n\nThe fellow, who had made up his mind not to pay his debt, fell upon the\nCock\u2019s-wife, seized her by the wings, and threw her into a well near\nthe house. Although stunned by the fall, the poor creature did not lose\nher senses.\n\n  \u201cLadder, ladder, come out of me,\n  Or I am a lost Cock\u2019s-wife,\u201d\n\ncried she.\n\nThe ladder obeyed immediately; and the Cock\u2019s-wife rapidly climbed the\nladder, and jumped out of the well.\n\nThe fellow, who had thought she was drowned, could not control his\nanger when he saw her. He sprang on her again, and threw her into his\noven.\n\nWhen she felt the heat of the flames, she cried in an eager voice,--\n\n  \u201cRiver, river, come out of me,\n  Or I am a lost Cock\u2019s wife.\u201d\n\nThe river flowed out immediately and put out the fire.\n\nThe Cock\u2019s-wife, rejoiced at having so happily escaped so many dangers,\nwas going away unsuspectingly, when she was again seized by the fellow.\n\n\u201cAh! vile beast,\u201d he screamed, \u201cyou thought to escape me, but you\nshall not succeed;\u201d and saying these words, he threw her violently\nbetween the legs of his oxen standing close together in a narrow\nstable, sure that they would certainly trample her.\n\n  \u201cWolf, wolf, come out of me,\n  Or I am a lost Cook\u2019s wife.\u201d\n\nAt this despairing appeal, the wolf jumped out, and in a few moments\nkilled the oxen, and then the man.\n\nThe Cock\u2019s-wife took the hundred crowns, which she found hidden in\nthe fellow\u2019s house, in the bottom of a desk, and after having warmly\nthanked the ladder, the river, and the wolf, she returned to her own\ncountry, where she led ever afterwards a peaceful and honored life.\n\n Told by the widow Madame Richet, aged 77 years, at Woippy, near Metz.\n\n  N\u00c9R\u00c9E QU\u00c9PAT.\n\n\n\n\nTHE CASTLE HUNG IN THE AIR\n\nA SAILOR\u2019S STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a fisherman whose only possessions consisted\nof a little cabin by the seashore, his boat, and his nets. He had a son\nwho went fishing with him, and he was so good-looking that as he passed\nalong every one turned to look at him. He had also three daughters,\nvery nearly of the same age, and all three as beautiful as the day.\n\nThe fisherman, who was old, died; his son became the head of the\nfamily, and at all eventides he went in his boat to fish, so as to get\nsomething to eat for all his household.\n\nOne day as he was setting out to go to the strand, he saw before his\ndoor three handsome lords, who asked his permission to enter his cabin\nto rest themselves there a few moments, as they came from a distance\nand were tired. He consented very willingly, and welcomed them to the\nbest that he had. They seated themselves in the cabin, and were so\nstruck with the beauty of the sisters that they all three fell in love\nwith them. A few days after, they married them, and the next day after\nthe wedding the three nobles, who were the king of Fishes, the king of\nthe Birds, and the king of the Rats and the Mice, wished to take their\nwives away to their own kingdoms. Before leaving their brother-in-law,\nthey each made him a present. Two of them gave him large purses full\nof gold, but the gift of the third was only an old snuff-box. The\nfisherman put it into the pocket of his jacket, without even having a\ndesire to open it, for he thought that his brother-in-law had wished to\nmock him.\n\nThe fisherman grew very lonely after his sisters were gone, and as he\nhad a well-filled purse, he dressed himself as a well-to-do countryman,\nleft his cabin, and went to Paris. For two years he led a gay life\nthere, as he wanted nothing, having his pockets full of money; but\nhe finished all the same by seeing his last crown; and when he had\nnothing left but debts, his friends turned their backs on him, and he\nwas turned out of his house. Then he remembered his village and his\nlittle cabin, and he resolved to return there and once more take up\nhis trade of fisherman. But when he came to the little creek where he\nhad left his boat, he saw it no longer; for the north wind had carried\nit away, and he found only his grapnel and some bits of half-rotten\nground-tackling. He went into his cabin, which had also suffered much\nfrom wind and weather, and began to fumble in the pocket of his jacket\nto see if he could find there some five-franc pieces. But he turned his\npockets in vain, there was not even one poor penny; there was nothing\nthere but the old snuff-box that his brother-in-law had given him. He\nwas on the point of throwing it into a corner, but he thought that\nperhaps it contained some tobacco, and he opened it. As soon as he had\nraised the lid, he heard a small voice, which said to him,--\n\n\u201cMaster, what do you want?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do I want?\u201d murmured the fisherman, much astonished at hearing\na voice, but seeing no one. \u201cThere are a great many things; at this\nmoment I would like a table with a good dinner on it.\u201d\n\nImmediately a table was set before him covered with bread and meats;\nthere were also bottles of wine, and even coffee and brandy were not\nforgotten. The fisherman, who had fasted somewhat for some time, ate\nwith a good appetite; then, when he was no longer hungry, he opened his\nsnuff-box again, and ordered it to transport him to the chamber of the\nking\u2019s daughter. Immediately he rose gently above the clouds as if he\nhad been borne on the wings of the wind, and saw beside him a princess\nas beautiful as the day, and who slept so quietly that one could\nscarcely hear her breathe. In the morning he opened his snuff-box\nagain so as to return to his cabin before the princess was awake. For\nthree days he had himself served with good meals, and for three nights\nhe remained gazing upon the king\u2019s daughter as she slept; but he would\nnot awaken her, lest he should frighten her and give her trouble.\n\nHowever, the princess\u2019 father causes it to be trumpeted throughout his\nkingdom and in the neighboring countries that his daughter was of an\nage to be married, and that he would give her to the one who should\nbring him the greatest quantity of grain; for the harvest had been bad,\nand his subjects were threatened with famine. Wagons were to be seen on\nthe roads coming from every direction, loaded with grain; and in all\nthe ports ships whose holds were filled with wheat. The young fisherman\nwas delighted to hear of the king\u2019s promise, for he thought that,\nthanks to his snuff-box, he should be able to become the husband of the\nprincess who pleased him so much.\n\nHe opened his snuff-box, and immediately he heard the small voice\nsaying,--\n\n\u201cMaster, what do you want?\u201d\n\n\u201cI would like thousands and thousands of wagons loaded with wheat, so\nthat no one could be able to carry as much to the king\u2019s palace as I.\u201d\n\nAccordingly the roads were covered, farther than the eye could reach,\nwith wagons, and the fisherman took them to the king, who found that\nhe alone brought more grain than all the others together. Eight days\nafter, the fisherman married the princess, who was not sorry for it,\nbecause he was a handsome fellow.\n\nThe day after the wedding he opened his snuff-box and asked of it a\nbeautiful castle which should be hung from the sky by four golden\nchains, near the palace of his father-in-law. As soon as he had spoken,\nhe saw the castle in the sky, hanging from the clouds by four golden\nchains. It was so beautiful that nothing had ever been seen equal to\nit, and it shone as if it had been made entirely of gold. When the king\nsaw this beautiful palace which glistened in the sun, he asked his\nson-in-law what it could be.\n\n\u201cSire,\u201d replied the fisherman, \u201cit is my castle that my invisible\nworkmen have built this night above your garden. If you wish to come\nand look over it, you will see that it is perfectly furnished.\u201d\n\nThe king embraced his son-in-law, for he was charmed to see him with\nsuch a beautiful castle; and when he had gone over it from the garret\nto the cellar, he proposed to him to go hunting, and they both started\noff.\n\nMeanwhile one of the princess\u2019s old lovers came to the castle hung\nby the golden chains, and looking over it, he perceived in a corner\nan old worn-out snuff-box. Very much astonished to see it in such\na place, he wished to open it to find out what there was inside;\nimmediately he heard a small voice, which said,--\n\n\u201cMaster, what do you wish for?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do I wish for?\u201d replied the lord. \u201cI wish that this castle may be\ntransported more than four hundred and fifty leagues from here.\u201d\n\nIn a moment he felt the castle move, and he saw it pass over great\nforests and vast seas, which it crossed in the wink of an eye. At last\nhe saw it stop in the midst of a country where, as far as the eye could\nreach, not a living soul could be seen.\n\nReturning from the hunt with his father-in-law, the young fisherman\ncame to a rising ground from whence he thought he should perceive his\ncastle; but was greatly surprised to see it no longer. He felt in his\npockets and found that his snuff-box was not there.\n\nWhen the king learned that the castle where his daughter was had\ndisappeared, he got into a great rage, and swore upon his kingly word\nthat, if his son-in-law did not bring the princess back before two\nmonths had passed, he would have him torn in pieces by four horses.\n\nThe fisherman was very sad at having lost his wife and his castle; but\nhe thought that his brothers-in-law would be able to help him, and he\nset out to go and see them. He first went to find the king of the\nFishes. On entering the palace, he embraced his sister, who was as\nhappy as a princess should be; then he related his misfortune to his\nbrother-in-law, and asked him if he had not heard of a castle hung from\nthe sky by four golden chains.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied the king of the Fishes; \u201cI have not heard of it: but\nwait, I think I can tell you in a moment where it is.\u201d\n\nHe plunged into the sea, and assembled all his subjects from the whale\nto the flea-of-the-sea, and asked them if they had not seen a castle\nhung from the clouds by four golden chains; but they all declared\nthat it was the first time they had heard of it. As the king finished\nquestioning them, he saw an old porpoise come up, who had stood many\nshots and many storms.\n\n\u201cAnd you, porpoise,\u201d asked the king of him, \u201chave you not seen the\ncastle hung in the air by four golden chains?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d he answered, \u201cI have not seen it; but as I was playing on the\nwaves, I met an eagle who told me of a castle hung by four golden\nchains; a marriage was to be celebrated there in eight days, and so\nmany meats were taken there for the guests that the eagle told me he\nhad never seen so many before.\u201d\n\nThe king of the Fishes thanked the old porpoise; then he came out of\nthe sea and went to tell his brother-in-law all he had learned. The\nfisherman was very glad of it, and set out at once to go to see his\nother brother-in-law, the king of the Birds.\n\nWhen he reached his palace, he embraced his sister, then told his\nadventures to the king of the Birds, and asked him if he had not heard\nof a castle hung in the air by four golden chains. The king assembled\nhis subjects, and asked them if they had seen the castle. The eagle\nanswered,--\n\n\u201cYes, I have seen it; it shines like gold, and a marriage is to be\ncelebrated there in seven days. It will be a grand wedding, for already\nthere are so many meats of all sorts that yesterday I could eat as much\nof them as I wanted.\u201d\n\n\u201cCould you,\u201d asked the king, \u201ccarry a man as far as that?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered the eagle; \u201cbut first I must eat a great deal, for the\nway will be long.\u201d\n\nDuring the whole night the eagle was supplied with meats, and he\nfeasted until the break of day. In the morning he took the fisherman\non his back, and flew away to go to the castle hung in the air by four\ngolden chains.\n\nFor several hours the eagle flew over a great sea, so vast that neither\nshores nor islands were to be seen, nothing but the sky and the sea;\nbut his strength began to fail, and he put the fisherman down on a\nrock that the tide had just exposed to view; then he went off at a\nsingle flight for the castle of the four golden chains, so as to fill\nhis stomach again with meats, and be able to take the man upon his back\nagain.\n\nThe fisherman remained alone upon the rock, and the time seemed long\nto him, for the eagle did not return, and he knew that the high tide\nwould cover the rock. Meanwhile the tide rose higher and higher, and in\nvain he looked with all his eyes; he did not see the eagle returning.\nHe stood upon the highest point of the rock; soon the water reached him\nthere; it bathed his feet, then his knees; it rose to his waist, then\nto his shoulders, and still he saw nothing coming. Just at the moment\nwhen the waves reached his chin, the eagle appeared, and having taken\nhim on his back, he put him down in the court-yard of the castle, where\nthe wedding was to be celebrated the next day.\n\nThe fisherman\u2019s wife was at her window; she recognized her husband,\nand was very glad to see him, for she loved him very much, and it was\nagainst her will that she had been taken away. She found an opportunity\nto speak to him secretly, and said to him,--\n\n\u201cThe lord who carried me away never leaves the magic snuff-box, and\nevery evening when he goes to bed, he puts it under his pillow, so it\nis difficult to take it without waking him. The eagle must go and find\nthe husband of your third sister, the one who commands the Rats and the\nMice, and tell him to order some of his subjects to come here. When the\nlord is snoring, a little mouse will go and stuff his tail in his open\nmouth; then he will cough, and while he is sitting up, you will be able\nto secure the snuff-box.\u201d\n\nThe eagle hastened to go to the country of the Rats and Mice, and\nquickly returned, bringing on his back a little mouse, that looked\nwise, as all mice do, and a big rat with a long tail.\n\nThe following night, as soon as the lord, who before going to bed had\nput the magic snuff-box under his pillow, began to snore, the little\nmouse stuffed her tail into his mouth; but it was not long enough to\nreach to his throat, and without waking, the man squeezed it so tightly\nthat she thought he had chopped it off. She began to make a little\nplaintive sound, and he loosened his teeth; then she ran to tell the\nfisherman\u2019s wife that she had not been able to succeed, because her\ntail was too short. Then the lady ordered the big rat to try in his\nturn; he took his aim so well that he stuffed his tail quite down the\nlord\u2019s throat. The latter wakened with a start, half strangled, and sat\nup in bed, coughing and spitting as if he were ready to die.\n\nMeanwhile the fisherman, who was hidden under the bed, had passed his\nhand under the pillow and seized upon the snuff-box. He opened it\nimmediately and heard a small voice, which said,--\n\n\u201cMaster, what do you wish for?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do I wish for? I wish that my castle may be taken back again to\nmy father-in-law\u2019s garden, to the place where it was before this rascal\nstole my snuff-box from me.\u201d\n\nIn a moment he felt that the castle was lifted and borne through the\nair; he saw it cross over vast seas and through great forests in the\nwink of an eye, and soon it stopped still in the king\u2019s garden, in\nfront of the palace.\n\nThe king, who had just wakened, went to his window, and when he saw the\ncastle hung by four golden chains between heaven and earth, he rubbed\nhis eyes, thinking he was losing his sight; but he saw his son-in-law\nand his daughter coming, and they embraced him and told him all that\nhad happened to them.\n\nHe was greatly rejoiced to see them again, and to punish him who had\ncarried off the snuff-box, he caused him to be torn in pieces by four\nhorses. There were great rejoicings in honor of the return of the\nprincess, and the fisherman lived happily with her. But he took care to\ncarry the magic snuff-box always with him.\n\n  PAUL SEBILLOT, \u201cContes Des Marins.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE TWO SOLDIERS\n\nA LORRAINE STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were two soldiers who were about sixty years\nold. Being obliged to leave the service, they determined to return to\ntheir country. As they were journeying along, they said one to the\nother,--\n\n\u201cWhat are we going to do to get our living? We are too old to learn\na trade; if we beg our bread, we shall be told we are not too old to\nwork, and nothing will be given us.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us draw lots,\u201d said one of them, \u201cwho will let his eyes be put\nout, and we will go begging together.\u201d\n\nThe other one thought it a good idea. The lot fell on the one who made\nthe proposition; his comrade put out his eyes, and, one leading the\nother, they went from door to door begging their bread. A great deal\nwas given to them. But the blind man got but little good of it; his\ncompanion kept all that was good for himself, and gave him only the\nbones and crusts of hard bread.\n\n\u201cAlas!\u201d said the unfortunate creature, \u201cis it not enough to be blind?\nMust I be so badly treated also?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you complain again,\u201d said the other, \u201cI will leave you here.\u201d\n\nBut the poor blind man could not help complaining. At last his\ncompanion left him in a forest.\n\nAfter having wandered all about, the blind man stopped at the foot of a\ntree.\n\n\u201cWhat will become of me?\u201d said he to himself, \u201cnight is coming, and the\nwild beasts will devour me.\u201d\n\nHe climbed up into a tree for safety. Towards eleven or twelve o\u2019clock\nfour animals came to the same place,--the fox, the wild boar, the wolf,\nand the roebuck.\n\n\u201cI know something,\u201d said the fox; \u201cbut I will not tell it to any one.\u201d\n\n\u201cI also know something,\u201d said the wolf.\n\n\u201cAnd I also,\u201d said the roebuck.\n\n\u201cPshaw!\u201d said the wild boar, \u201cyou, with your little horns, what do you\nknow?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d remarked the roebuck, \u201cthere is a great deal of wit in my little\nbrain and in my little horns.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the wild boar, \u201clet each one tell what he knows.\u201d\n\nThe fox began,--\n\n\u201cThere is a little river near here whose water will restore the sight\nof the blind. I have had an eye put out several times in my life; I\nbathed in that water, and I was healed.\u201d\n\n\u201cI know that river too,\u201d said the wolf; \u201cI have known it longer than\nyou. The king\u2019s daughter is very sick; she is promised in marriage to\nthe one who will cure her. To give her water of this river would be\nquite sufficient to restore her health.\u201d\n\nThe roebuck said in his turn,--\n\n\u201cThe city of Lyons is in need of water, and they have promised fifteen\nthousand francs to the one who shall be able to get a supply for it.\nNow, if they would dig up the tree of liberty, they would find a\nspring, and they would have an abundance of water.\u201d\n\n\u201cI,\u201d said the wild boar, \u201cI know nothing.\u201d\n\nThereupon the animals separated.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said the blind man to himself, \u201cif I could only find that spring!\u201d\n\nHe got down from the tree, and went groping through the country. At\nlast he came to the river. There he bathed his eyes, and he began to\nsee again; he bathed them again, and his sight was perfectly restored.\n\nThen he went at once to the mayor of Lyons, and told him that if he\nwanted water he had only to pull up the tree of liberty. Sure enough!\nwhen the tree was dug up, they discovered a spring; and the city had as\nmuch water as was necessary. The soldier received the promised fifteen\nthousand francs, and went to see the king.\n\n\u201cSire,\u201d said he to him, \u201cI have heard that your daughter is very sick;\nand I have something that will cure her.\u201d\n\nAnd he told him of the water of the river. The king sent one of his\nfootmen immediately for some of the water. They made the princess drink\nof it, they made her take baths of it, and she was cured.\n\nThe king said to the soldier,--\n\n\u201cAlthough you are a little old, you shall marry my daughter; or else,\nif you prefer it, I will give you some money.\u201d\n\nThe soldier preferred to marry the princess; he knew very well that\nwith the daughter he would have the money also. The marriage took place\nwithout delay.\n\nOne day when the soldier was taking a walk in the garden, he saw a\nman all in rags who was asking charity; he recognized at once his old\ncomrade.\n\n\u201cWere there not two of you begging formerly?\u201d said he to him as he came\nup to him. \u201cWhere is your companion?\u201d\n\n\u201cHe is dead,\u201d answered the beggar.\n\n\u201cTell the truth; you will not repent of it. What has become of him?\u201d\n\n\u201cI abandoned him.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy?\u201d\n\n\u201cHe was always complaining. It was always he who got the good pieces;\nwhen we had bread, I gave him the crumbs, because he had no teeth, and\nI ate the crusts; I gave him the meat, and kept the bones for myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is a lie! you did just the opposite. Would you recognize your\ncompanion?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I am that companion.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut are you not the king?\u201d\n\n\u201cDoubtless; but I am also your old comrade. Come in; I will tell you\nall about it.\u201d\n\nWhen the beggar learned all that had happened to the blind man, he said\nto him,--\n\n\u201cI would like to have the same luck. Take me therefore to that same\ntree; perhaps the animals will come there again.\u201d\n\n\u201cWillingly,\u201d said the other; \u201cI am willing to return you good for evil.\u201d\n\nHe took the beggar to the tree; and the beggar climbed up into it.\n\nAbout eleven or twelve o\u2019clock, the four animals collected there again.\nThe fox said to the others,--\n\n\u201cWhat we said the other night was overheard; the king\u2019s daughter is\ncured, and the city of Lyons has water. Who, then, has revealed our\nsecrets?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not I,\u201d said the wolf.\n\n\u201cNor I,\u201d said the roebuck.\n\n\u201cI am sure that it is the wild boar,\u201d said the fox; \u201che had nothing to\nsay himself, and he went and told what the others said.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not true,\u201d replied the wild boar.\n\n\u201cTake care!\u201d said the fox; \u201cwe shall all three be against you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am not afraid of you,\u201d said the wild boar, showing his teeth; \u201cjust\nyou meddle with me!\u201d\n\nSuddenly raising their eyes, they saw the beggar up in the tree.\n\n\u201cOh! oh!\u201d said they, \u201chere is a man who is spying upon us.\u201d\n\nImmediately they set to work to root up the tree; then they seized upon\nthe man and devoured him.\n\n  EMMANUEL COSQUIN, \u201cContes Populaires Lorrains.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE THREE BROTHERS AND THE GIANT\n\nA STORY OF PICARDY\n\n\nA good woman had three children, all boys: the first was named Jean;\nthe second, Jeannot; and the third, Jeannois. These three children\npassed for the sharpest in the canton, and the good woman was very\nglad of it, as you may imagine. One fine day she went to the wood\nwith them to pick up some dead wood there, and make fagots of it for\nthe approaching winter. The children soon had enough of looking for\npieces of dead wood, and preferring to gather mulberries, nuts, and\ndogberries, they left their mother and plunged into the coppice farther\nand farther, until they did not hear the cries and calls of the good\nwoman, who after awhile, thinking they had returned to the village,\nwent back to her house.\n\nSoon evening came on, and Jean, Jeannot, and Jeannois perceived with\nterror that they were lost in the woods.\n\n\u201cWhat shall we do?\u201d said Jean. \u201cWhat shall we do?\u201d said Jeannot. \u201cWhat\nshall we do?\u201d added Jeannois.\n\nThey did not know what to do, and they began to hear the howling of the\nfoxes and wolves in the depth of the forest. At last Jean, the oldest,\nhad an inspiration. He climbed to the top of a great oak-tree which\ngrew near by, and turned in every direction so that he could observe\nthe neighborhood. He discovered a light which shone in the distance,\nand having well observed the position of it, he came down from the oak\nand walked with his brothers in the direction of the light.\n\nAfter they had gone beyond the wood, they saw a palace before them, and\nwent and knocked at the door.\n\nTap! tap!\n\n\u201cWho is there at this hour?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe are three little children lost in the forest, and we want to pass\nthe night in this beautiful palace. Will you give us lodging here?\u201d\n\nA young woman half opened the door.\n\n\u201cDo you not know that this is the palace of the Giant of the Golden\nBeard? He is out at this moment, but he will be back before long. If\nyou take my advice you will make haste and run away, for he might kill\nyou and eat you as he has done so many persons.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut, madam, we do not know which way to go this dark night. Hide us\nsafely somewhere, and to-morrow, at the break of day, we will go away\nwithout the Giant\u2019s suspecting anything of it.\u201d\n\nThe woman was moved with pity, and let the children come into the\ncastle. She made them go down into the cellar, and gave them good cakes\nto eat. Then, hearing the Giant\u2019s step in the distance, she charged\nthe lost children to hide themselves well behind a big cask, and went\nup-stairs as if nothing had happened.\n\nThe Giant of the Golden Beard had been on a long tramp and was dying of\nthirst. He went down into the cellar to refresh himself, in spite of\nhis wife, who besought him to go to bed.\n\n\u201cI smell fresh meat here,\u201d muttered the Giant as he came near the cask\nbehind which the children were cowering.\n\nAs he was very thirsty, he took out the bung, lifted the cask as if it\nhad been a straw and drank and drank through it. As he set the great\nwine cask down on the ground he hurt little Jeannois, who could not\nhelp uttering a cry.\n\n\u201cAh! ah!\u201d cried the Giant of the Golden Beard, \u201cI was sure I smelt\nfresh meat! It is good! it is good! I shall take you up-stairs and kill\nyou; I shall have an excellent breakfast to-morrow.\u201d\n\nHe took the three unfortunate boys in one hand and brought them up into\nthe kitchen.\n\nBut the wife who had heard what the Giant had just said, had hastened\nto hide his big knife, and her husband looked for it in vain: he could\nnot succeed in finding it.\n\n\u201cVery well! very well! You will lose nothing by waiting! Wife, put\nthese three children in my daughters\u2019 room and give them a bed. I will\nkill them to-morrow. The flesh will be fresher.\u201d\n\nThe woman obeyed tremblingly, and every one went to bed.\n\n\u201cWe are in a very bad place,\u201d thought Jeannot. And he got down from his\nbed to examine the Giant\u2019s daughters, who were sleeping in the bed near\nby.\n\nThe moon had risen, and Jeannot perceived that the young girls wore\na crown of gold on their heads, and that there were, as in their own\ncase, three of them.\n\n\u201cSuppose the Giant should get up and come to wring our necks during the\nnight,\u201d thought Jeannot. \u201cIt is very possible, certainly. I am going to\ntake off the three crowns and put them on my head and my brothers\u2019. The\nGiant will perhaps be deceived.\u201d\n\nSo he did what he had thought of, and went to bed again. He was just in\ntime. The Giant of the Golden Beard had drunk too much wine, and found\nhimself uncomfortable in his bed. To kill time, he determined to get up\nand go and kill the three little boys whom chance had sent to him.\n\nHe went to the bed where the latter were pretending to be asleep and\ntook hold of Jean\u2019s head.\n\n\u201cIdiot!\u201d said he to himself, \u201cI was about to kill my daughters. I have\nmistaken the bed.\u201d And he went to the other bed and wrung the necks of\nhis own children.\n\nThen, satisfied with his work, he went to bed again.\n\nJean, Jeannot, and Jeannois dressed themselves hastily and escaped\nthrough the window.\n\nImagine the anger and dismay of the Giant, when on waking the next\nmorning he saw what he had done during the night. He became more wicked\nthan before, and went about through the country killing the travelers,\nmurdering peasants, and setting at defiance the armies that the king\nsent against him.\n\nAs for Jean, Jeannot, and Jeannois, not knowing which way to go, they\ntook at last a highway, which at the end of two days\u2019 journey brought\nthem to the capital of the kingdom. They asked to speak to the king and\nto tell him their adventures in the palace of the Giant of the Golden\nBeard. The king appointed them to be pages from that day forth.\n\nI told you that the Giant, made furious by the death of his children,\nwent about ravaging the kingdom. This went on for two or three years.\nMany knights had gone forth to fight against him, and not one of them\nhad returned. The king also trembled in his palace, fearing that some\nday this terrible man would take a fancy to come and attack him in his\ncity.\n\nOne day Jean, the oldest of the three pages, went to the king and asked\nthe hand of his eldest daughter, with the title of knight. The king\nrefused at first; then, on reflection, he said to the page,--\n\n\u201cI grant you what you desire, on condition that you show yourself\nworthy of it. You have not forgotten that famous Giant of the Golden\nBeard, who came near killing both yourself and your brothers. Very\nwell; bring me his golden beard, and I swear to you that I will make\nyou a knight and give you my daughter in marriage.\u201d\n\nJean accepted these terms. The king wanted to give him arms like those\nof the knights, but he refused them. He took the road his brothers and\nhe had taken before, and presented himself at the Giant\u2019s castle. It\nwas broad daylight, and the page sounded the horn.\n\n\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d asked the Man with the Golden Beard.\n\n\u201cI want to fight with you to-morrow morning. I have beaten all the\ngiants I have been able to encounter hitherto, and I want to beat you\nas I have done all the others.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are very young, handsome page; but no matter. Come into my castle,\nand to-morrow we will fight.\u201d\n\nJean did not wait to be persuaded, and entered the palace of the Giant\nof the Golden Beard, who gave him an invitation to dine with him. The\npage accepted, and while the Giant had his back turned, he poured out\nfor him a liquor which possessed the quality of causing sleep for\nseveral days.\n\n\u201cHere is to your health!\u201d\n\n\u201cHere is to your health!\u201d\n\nAnd the page and the Giant emptied their glasses with a single draught.\nAt the same moment the latter fell under the table and began to snore\nso loud that the whole castle shook. Without losing time the young man\ntook the scissors which he had brought, and cut off the Giant\u2019s golden\nbeard. Then he left the palace and set out for the capital, where he\narrived two days after.\n\nThe king was very much astonished; he had promised his daughter to the\npage, and he bestowed her upon him, telling him he would dub him knight\nlater on. A short while after that, Jeannot came also to find the king.\n\n\u201cMy lord the king,\u201d said he, \u201cI love your daughter, Marie, and I think\nshe loves me. Will you make me a knight and bestow her hand upon me?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you have done nothing that I know of to merit such an honor.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am ready to show myself worthy of it. Command, and I will obey you.\u201d\n\nThe king reflected, and then said,--\n\n\u201cWell, you shall have what you ask me for, when you bring me the\nGiant\u2019s broadsword, that you will remember.\u201d\n\nJeannot agreed, and set out for the Giant\u2019s castle, wearing neither\narms nor shield.\n\nHe arrived there at the end of two days and sounded the horn.\n\n\u201cAh! ah!\u201d cried the Giant, \u201canother one who wishes to rob me! Very\nwell; I will see to it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not come for that purpose; but I have been told that you could\ndrink more wine than any one in the world, and I have come to compare\nmyself with you.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs that really true?\u201d\n\n\u201cPerfectly true! But I verily believe that I can beat you. I can drink\nfifty casks of wine without being hurt by it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will see; we will see. Come into the castle. I am ready to have a\nmatch with you. But who will begin first?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou, if you please.\u201d\n\n\u201cAgreed.\u201d\n\nJeannot went down in the Giant\u2019s cellar, and the latter wishing to\ndrink as much as he possibly could, swallowed ever and ever so much\nwine, so that soon he staggered and fell down dead-drunk. Jeannot took\nhis broadsword and carried it to the king, who was more astonished than\nwhen Jean returned with the golden beard.\n\nJeannot married the princess Marie, but the king did not make him\nknight at once.\n\nThere was only Jeannois left.\n\nOne day he came to the king, and said,--\n\n\u201cMy lord the king, I love your youngest daughter; she loves me also,\nand I come to ask you for her hand, and the title of knight.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll that is very well. But you must deserve it.\u201d\n\n\u201cCommand, and I will do whatever you order me to do.\u201d\n\nThe king thought awhile, and at last he said,--\n\n\u201cYour brothers have taken the Giant\u2019s beard and his broadsword. Could\nyou bring him to me in an iron cage?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will try, my lord the king; farewell.\u201d\n\nJeannois had a very large iron carriage made and went to the Giant\u2019s\ncastle. When he got there he sounded the horn.\n\n\u201cWhat do you want? worm of the earth! dust of nothingness!\u201d\n\n\u201cLet me into your castle, and I will tell you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! you are one of those pages who stole my beard and my broadsword. I\nsee what you want, and I am going to kill you.\u201d\n\n\u201cOne moment, if you please. Do not be in a hurry. I have just come\nto find you in order to restore what they stole from you. The two pages\nare alone in a distant castle, and I have brought my carriage so as to\ncarry us there more quickly.\u201d\n\n[Illustration: THE GIANT GOT INTO THE IRON CARRIAGE.]\n\nThe Giant allowed himself to be deceived again, and got into the iron\ncarriage, where he found himself imprisoned. And Jeannois returned\nquickly to the court. The king was very glad, as he well might have\nbeen, at having got rid of the robber, who was burned on an immense\npile built on the great square of the city. Jeannois married the\nprincess whom he loved, and the king made the three brothers knights\nof his kingdom. During the feasts that were given, the mother of\nJean, Jeannot, and Jeannois came to the city, still searching for her\nchildren. Imagine her happiness and that of her sons.\n\n  E. H. CARNOY, \u201cLitterature Orale de la Picardie.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE FAIRY AND THE DAUGHTER OF THE EARTH\n\nA STORY OF THE ISLE OF OUESSANT\n\n\nOnce upon a time,--a very long time ago,--perhaps the time when Saint\nPol came to us from Hibernia in a stone trough,--there was a young\ngirl sixteen or seventeen years old, with fair hair, blue eyes, and\ncheeks as red as two apples, and her name was Mona Kerbile. She was so\nbeautiful that all who saw her stopped to admire her, and said to her\nmother, old Jeanne Kerbile, a poor woman like myself,--\n\n\u201cYou have a very pretty daughter, Jeanne! She is as pretty as a fairy!\nSuch a beautiful girl has never before been seen in the island, and\nthere are even those who say that she must be the child of a fairy.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not believe those who say so,\u201d replied the good woman, \u201cfor I truly\nam her mother, and Fanch Kerbile, my husband, is surely her father.\u201d\n\nMona\u2019s father was a fisherman, and spent almost all of his time on the\nwater, and her mother tended a small spot of ground that she had, as\nall the island people did, or spun in her hut when the weather was\ntoo bad. Mona went, as all the young girls of her age did, to seek for\nlimpets, mussels, periwinkles, and other shell-fish on the shore. It\nseems that the fairies, who were then very numerous in the island, had\nobserved her, and had, themselves also, been struck with her beauty.\nOne day when she was on the shore with her companions as usual, they\nwere talking of their lovers. Each one boasted of the skill of her own\nin catching fish, and steering a boat, and in guiding it among the\nnumerous dangers by which the island was surrounded.\n\n\u201cYou, Mona,\u201d said Mare\u2019harit Ar Fur to her, \u201cyou are wrong to\ndiscourage Fanch Kerdudal as you do, for he is a young fellow of\nexcellent character, clever, and no one comes back in the evening with\nmore fish than he, nor guides his bark better among the difficult\npasses of the Vieille Jument or the point of Stiff.\u201d\n\n\u201cI,\u201d said Mona, scornfully,--for on account of hearing it said that she\nwas beautiful, she had become vain and proud,--\u201cI will never take a\nfisherman for my husband; I am too pretty for that. I am as beautiful\nas a fairy; they tell me so every day, and I shall marry no one but a\nprince, or at least the son of a great lord.\u201d\n\nIt happened that an old fairy, hidden behind a rock or under a tuft\nof sea-wrack, heard her, and jealous at seeing that a daughter of\nthe earth could rival the beauty of the children of the fairies, he\nconceived the design of carrying her off and taking her with him to his\nhome under the water. He dared not try to do it that day, for Mona was\nin the midst of her companions. But the next day about sunset, while\nshe was still catching shell-fish with two other of the village girls,\nand was somewhat apart from her friends, the old fairy suddenly sprang\nout from behind a rock where he was watching her, seized her and took\nher away down to the bottom of the water. She cried loudly, and called\nher friends to her assistance, but alas! they could not come to help\nher; they could only run to the house and tell her mother what they\nhad seen. Old Jeanne was spinning on her doorsteps. She threw down her\ndistaff and her spindle, and ran to the shore, and called her daughter\nloudly, and even went into the water as far as she could at the place\nwhere they told her that Mona had disappeared with the fairy. But it\nwas all in vain, and no voice replied to her cries and her tears.\n\nThe report of the adventure spread quickly over the island, and every\none was of the opinion that what had happened to the beautiful Mona\nwas a punishment for her pride and her vanity; for however beautiful a\nyoung girl may be, she should neither be proud nor vain, for God gives\nbeauty and ugliness, and riches and poverty also, as it pleases him.\n\nThe old fairy was the king of the fairies in those parts, and he took\nthe young Ouessantine with him to the bottom of the sea, to a beautiful\npalace made of shells and coral.\n\nThe old fairy had a son, the handsomest fairy that ever was seen, and\nhe fell in love with Mona and asked his father to let him marry her.\nBut the old king answered that he would never consent to allow him to\ntake for his wife a daughter of man who boasted of being as beautiful\nas the daughter of a fairy. There were plenty of the most beautiful\nfairies, who would be glad to have him for their husband, and he would\nnot withhold his consent when he should have made his choice among them.\n\nOur young fairy was then in despair. He told his father that he would\nnever marry if he was not allowed to have for his wife the daughter of\nman whom he loved. His father seeing him dying of sadness and grief,\ncompelled him to marry a young fairy, the daughter of an old lord among\nthe fairies, and who was celebrated for her beauty. The wedding day\nwas fixed, and a great many people were invited. The betrothed couple\nset out on their way to the church, followed by a rich and numerous\ntrain; for it appears that these people of the sea have their religion\nand their churches as we do, although they are not Christians; they\neven have bishops, we are told, and an old bishop of the sea was to\nperform the ceremony. Poor Mona received an order from the old fairy to\nstay at home and prepare the wedding feast. But they gave her nothing\nthat was needed for all this, absolutely nothing but large pots and\nempty sauce-pans (which were large shells), but they told her that if\neverything was not ready, and if she did not serve them a good feast\nwhen they returned from church she should be put to death immediately.\nImagine her grief and perplexity, poor girl! But the poor young\nbridegroom was not less troubled and disconsolate.\n\nAs the procession was on its way to the church, he suddenly cried out,--\n\n\u201cI have forgotten the wedding ring!\u201d\n\n\u201cTell me where it is, and I will send for it,\u201d said his father to him.\n\n\u201cNo; no; I will go myself, for no one but me could find it where I have\nput it. I will hasten there and will return in a moment.\u201d\n\nAnd he let go the bride\u2019s arm and ran to the house. He found poor Mona\nin the kitchen, weeping and desolate.\n\n\u201cDo not weep,\u201d said he to her; \u201cyour feast will be ready and cooked to\nperfection; so do not be troubled on that account.\u201d\n\nAnd going to the fireplace, he said,--\n\n\u201cGood fire in the fireplace!\u201d\n\nAnd the fire burned up in the fireplace. Then touching with his hand\neach of the pots and saucepans successively, he said,--\n\n\u201cSome beef in this saucepan, veal and mutton in that other one; here a\nmutton on the spit; cider and wine in these pots!\u201d and so on.\n\nAnd the saucepans and pots were filled at once, to the surprise and joy\nof Mona, who was no longer weeping.\n\nThen he hastened to rejoin his bride and his party, and they went to\nthe church, and the ceremony was performed by a bishop of the sea.\nAfter that they returned to the house.\n\nWhen they arrived there, the old fairy hastened the first thing to the\nkitchen, and asked for Mona.\n\n\u201cHere we are; we have come back; is everything ready for the feast?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; everything is ready,\u201d answered Mona quietly.\n\nAnd he uncovered all the saucepans, examined all the pots, and then\nsaid, with a displeased air,--\n\n\u201cYou have been helped; but never mind; I have not finished with you\nyet.\u201d\n\nThe wedding guests seated themselves at the table, and they eat and\ndrank as much as they would; then they sang and danced till night.\n\nAfter the evening\u2019s entertainment, the two young married people retired\nto their chamber, and the old fairy told Mona to go with them, and\nremain there, holding in her hand a burning wax-taper to give them\nlight. When the taper should be burnt down to her hand, she should be\nput to death.\n\nPoor Mona was obliged to obey. The old fairy was in a room near by, and\nfrom time to time he asked,--\n\n\u201cIs the taper consumed?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot yet,\u201d answered Mona.\n\nHe asked this question several times. At last when the wax-taper was\nalmost entirely consumed, the young husband said to the new wife,--\n\n\u201cIt is your turn now to go and hold the wax-taper a while!\u201d\n\nAs she did not know the intentions of her father-in-law, she got up and\ntook the wax-taper from Mona\u2019s hands.\n\nThe old fairy asked again,--\n\n\u201cHas the wax-taper burned down to your hand?\u201d\n\n\u201cTell him yes,\u201d said the bridegroom.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered the young fairy.\n\nAnd immediately the old fairy came into the room, seized upon her who\nheld in her hand the remnant of the wax-taper, and cut off her head.\nThen he went away.\n\nIn the morning, as soon as he had risen, the young fairy went to his\nfather, and spoke thus to him,--\n\n\u201cI have come to ask you to allow me to marry, my father.\u201d\n\n\u201cTo allow you to marry? Were you not married yesterday?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is true; but my wife is dead, father.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour wife is dead? How did it happen? Have you killed her, you\nmiserable creature?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not I who have killed her, father, but you, yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, father; did you not yesterday cut off the head of the woman who\nwas holding the lighted wax-taper near my bed?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; but it was the daughter of the earth.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, my father, it was the young fairy whom I had just married; and if\nyou do not believe me, you can easily be assured of it, for her body is\nstill in my chamber.\u201d\n\nThe old fairy hastened to his son\u2019s chamber, and recognized his\nmistake. His anger was terrible, and a little more and he would have\nkilled his son himself.\n\n\u201cWhom do you wish to take for a wife?\u201d he asked his son the next day\nwhen he was a little pacified.\n\n\u201cThe daughter of the earth, my father.\u201d\n\nThe father found at last that it was useless to seek to cure his son of\nthis love, and he concluded to allow him to marry the daughter of the\nearth.\n\nThe young fairy was very attentive to his wife. He fed her on delicate\nlittle fish, and made for her necklaces and bracelets of fine pearls,\nand gathered for her every day pretty shell-fish and the most beautiful\nand rarest sea-plants. In spite of all this, Mona was weary, and wanted\nto return to the earth to see once more her island, and her father and\nmother in their little hut by the seashore. The fairy would not let her\ngo, for he feared she would never return. Then she became very sad, and\ndid nothing but weep night and day. Seeing this, her husband said to\nher one day,--\n\n\u201cSmile on me a little, and I will take you back to your father\u2019s house.\u201d\n\nMona smiled, and the fairy, who was also a magician, then said,--\n\n\u201cBridge, rise up!\u201d\n\nAnd immediately a beautiful bridge rose up, reaching from the bottom of\nthe sea to the land. The old fairy, seeing this, and feeling sure that\nhis son knew well as he did himself how to use magic, said,--\n\n\u201cI should like to go with you also.\u201d\n\nThe three went together on the bridge, the old man behind, and the\nother two a few steps in advance of him. But as soon as the young fairy\nstepped ashore with his wife, he turned and said,--\n\n\u201cBridge, return!\u201d\n\nAnd immediately the bridge went back again to the bottom of the sea,\nand with it the old fairy, who was still on it.\n\nThe fairy not being able to accompany his wife to her father\u2019s house,\nlet her go alone, giving her the following precautions before leaving\nher:--\n\n\u201cCome back at sunset, and you will find me here waiting for you; but do\nnot let any man embrace you, or even take your hand, or you will make\nme very unhappy.\u201d\n\nMona promised, and hastened to her father\u2019s house, which was not far\noff on the shore. It was the dinner hour, and all the family were\nassembled.\n\n\u201cGood morning, father and mother; good morning, brothers and sisters,\u201d\nsaid she as she entered the poor hut.\n\nThe good people opened their eyes wide, and looked at her, astonished,\nand none of them recognized her for their daughter or their sister. She\nwas so beautiful, so grand, and so well dressed! This grieved her very\nmuch, and tears came into her eyes; then she began to go around the\nhouse, touching each object with her hands, and saying,--\n\n\u201cHere is the little stool on which I sat beside the fire; here is the\nbed where I slept; here is the pitcher with which I brought water from\nthe spring; here is the broom with which I swept the house; here is\nthe wooden porringer from which I ate my soup.\u201d\n\nAt last her brother, hearing all this, recognized her, and threw\nhimself on her neck to embrace her, and her father and mother and\nsisters did the same thing; but from that moment Mona lost entirely all\nrecollection of her husband, the fairy, and his home under the sea. She\nremained with her parents, and soon plenty of lovers came to the house\nto sue for her hand; but she would not listen to any of them, and had\nno desire to marry.\n\nThis family, like the other inhabitants of the island, had a bit of\nground where they planted potatoes and sowed barley, and this, together\nwith the daily supply of fish and shell-fish which they caught out of\nthe sea, was sufficient for them to live simply but contentedly.\n\nThere was a little space before the house containing a stack of barley\nstraw. Often when she was lying in bed, and the winds howled, and the\nwaves dashed and broke against the rocks on the shore, Mona thought she\nheard plaintive moanings near her door; but she believed it to be poor\nshipwrecked souls asking for the prayers of the careless living beings,\nand she recited a \u201cDe profundis;\u201d then she pitied the poor sailors who\nwere in the sea, and went to sleep again.\n\nBut one night she heard distinctly these words, uttered in a sad,\nheart-broken voice:--\n\n\u201cOh, Mona! have you then forgotten your husband, the fairy who loves\nyou so much, who saved you from death, and brought you back from the\ndepths of the sea to see your father and mother, your brothers and\nsisters? You promised me so faithfully to come back again; I have been\nwaiting for you so long and I am so unhappy without you!\u201d\n\nThen Mona recollected everything all at once. She rose up hastily,\nset out and found the fairy, who was lamenting thus near the stack of\nbarley straw. She threw herself into his arms, and since then she has\nnever been seen.\n\n This story is taken from an article entitled \u201cA Voyage to the Island\n of Ouessant,\u201d published in the \u201cRevue de France,\u201d March and April,\n 1874.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL.\n\n\n\n\nSISTER AND HALF-SISTER\n\nA MULHOUSE STORY\n\n\nOnce there was a woman who had two daughters: one was her husband\u2019s\ndaughter by his first marriage, and the other was her own child. One\nday when the half-sister was spinning by the well, her spindle fell\ninto the water and her mother beat her cruelly. She went back to the\nwell and was trying to get her spindle out again, when her hard-hearted\nmother gave her such a push that the poor girl fell into the well.\n\nWhen she reached the bottom she found a large and magnificent garden.\nAs she was walking along, in tears, the pear-tree said to her,--\n\n\u201cYoung girl, why are you crying so?\u201d\n\nThe young girl answered,--\n\n\u201cHave I not good reason to cry? My step-mother gave me such a push that\nI fell into the well.\u201d\n\nThe pear-tree said,--\n\n\u201cYoung girl, hold your apron; I will give you some pears.\u201d And the\nyoung girl received from him the most delicious pears.\n\nAfterwards she came to a plum-tree; the plum-tree said to her,--\n\n\u201cYoung girl, why are you crying so?\u201d\n\nThe young girl answered,--\n\n\u201cHave I not good reason to cry? My step-mother gave me such a push that\nI fell into the well.\u201d\n\nThe plum-tree said to her,--\n\n\u201cHold your apron; I will give you some plums\u201d; and he shook into her\nlap the most beautiful plums. And the good little girl was treated in\nthe same way by the other trees.\n\nAt last she came to a grand castle all of gold, and she was still\nshedding bitter tears. A fair lady was looking out at the window; she\nasked her,--\n\n\u201cYoung girl, why are you crying?\u201d\n\n\u201cHave I not good reason to cry? My step-mother gave me such a push that\nI fell into the well.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome now,\u201d said the lady, \u201cyou can spend the night with me; but first\ntell me, where do you prefer to eat--with the little dog and the little\ncat, or with the gentleman and lady?\u201d\n\nThe young girl answered modestly,--\n\n\u201cWith the little dog and the little cat. I should not like to be in any\none\u2019s way.\u201d\n\nAnd on this account they permitted her to eat with the lady and\ngentleman.\n\nThe lady said to her,--\n\n\u201cWhere do you prefer to sleep--with the little dog and the little cat,\nor with the gentleman and lady?\u201d\n\nThe young girl answered,--\n\n\u201cWith the little dog and the little cat.\u201d\n\nAnd accordingly they permitted her to sleep with the gentleman and lady.\n\nThe next day the lady said to her,--\n\n\u201cHow would you prefer to be driven back to your home?--in a carriage\nsmeared with pitch and resin, or in one all of silver and gold?\u201d\n\nThe young girl answered,--\n\n\u201cIn one smeared with pitch and resin.\u201d\n\nBut she was allowed to return in a carriage of silver and gold.\n\nWhen she arrived at home, her half-sister, who was looking out of the\nwindow, began to clap her hands and cry out,--\n\n  \u201cO! Bidi bidi boum!\n  My half-sister comes,\n  And heavily laden\n  With silver and gold.\n  I must go and help her unload.\n  O! Bidi bidi boum!\u201d\n\nWhen the wicked mother saw that the half-sister had become so\ndistinguished, she said to her own child,--\n\n\u201cCome now, Annette! throw your spindle also into the well and jump in\nafter it! Who knows? Perhaps the same thing will happen to you down\nthere, and you will be able to come back in a golden carriage.\u201d\n\nBut this one was a wicked and obstinate child. Her mother had scarcely\nfinished speaking before the spindle was at the bottom of the well,\nand the little girl leaped after it and came into the large beautiful\ngarden of which I have already spoken. The sun shone with a golden\nbrightness, and the roses and lilies--oh! but it was perfectly splendid!\n\nThe little girl went to the pear-tree and said,--\n\n\u201cCome now, give me some pears also!\u201d\n\nBut she waited a long time, and the pear-tree did not move.\n\nShe went a little farther and came to a plum-tree, and said to it,--\n\n\u201cCome, plum-tree, give me also some plums.\u201d\n\nBut it gave her nothing, that is what the plum-tree did; what the other\ntrees did, it is needless for me to tell you.\n\nThe fair lady was again looking out from her palace at the end of the\ngarden, and said,--\n\n\u201cYoung girl, where are you going? From whence do you come? What does\nyour little heart long for?\u201d\n\n\u201cI wish to come in, I wish to eat, I wish to sleep in a little garden\nbed, and I wish to go back again in a little golden carriage.\u201d\n\nThe lady could scarcely help laughing, but she continued her\nquestions:--\n\n\u201cWith which do you prefer to eat--with dog and cat, or with lord and\nlady?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, with lord and lady, of course.\u201d\n\nAnd consequently she was obliged, as a punishment, to eat with the dog\nand cat.\n\nA little while afterwards the lady asked her again,--\n\n\u201cWith which would you like best to sleep--with the dog and cat, or with\nthe lord and lady?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, with the lord and lady, of course.\u201d\n\nBut who was obliged to sleep with the dog and cat? It was my wicked\nlittle girl.\n\nThe next morning when she got up, the lady said to her,--\n\n\u201cHow would you prefer to go back to your home--in a carriage smeared\nwith pitch and resin, or in a carriage of gold and silver?\u201d\n\n\u201cIn the gold carriage, certainly,\u201d cried she.\n\nBut for punishment, she was obliged to go back again in the carriage\nsmeared with resin.\n\nWhat did her mother say when she saw her child return in the carriage\nsmeared with pitch and resin, disgraced and scoffed at, and what did\nshe look like then? Well, I should like to tell you about it; but my\ngreat-grandmother, who was so good as to tell me the story, was losing\nher memory, and could not remember any more.\n\n  AUGUSTE STOEBER, \u201cElsaessiches Volksb\u00fcchlein.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE FAIRIES\u2019 SHIP\n\nA SAILORS\u2019 STORY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was, at Saint-Cast, a young captain who had no\nship to command. He made application after application. He went to see\nthe ship-owners, and offered his services; but although he was known to\nbe a good sailor, he had no command given him. One day when he had been\nagain at Saint-Malo, without being more successful than at other times,\nhe started out late, and on foot, to return to his village; and when\nnight came on, he was not far from the wood which crossed the main road.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said he, \u201cI should have done better to stay and sleep at\nSaint-Malo; for I shall have to go through the wood of Pontual; and\nthey say that after nightfall one is apt to encounter strange things\nthere.\u201d\n\nHe quickened his pace and entered the wood; when he was in the middle\nof it, he heard a noise, and having stopped to listen, he heard a voice\nwhich cried, \u201cHelp! help! save me!\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d thought he, \u201cit is perhaps some one whom the robbers are trying\nto kill; but it shall never be said that I left any creature to die\nwithout trying to help him.\u201d\n\nHe hastened to the spot from which the cries came, and saw a good woman\nwho was defending herself as well as she could against five men, who\nwere trying to kill her. He took her part, and between them they killed\nthe robbers.\n\nWhen they had gotten out of the wood, the old woman, who was a fairy,\nsaid to him,--\n\n\u201cCaptain, you are brave, and you shall be rewarded for it. If I had\nwished I could easily have killed all five of the robbers, for I have\npower enough for that; but I wanted to see if you were courageous, and\nready to help poor people.\u201d\n\nThen she disappeared; the captain continued his journey, and reached\nSaint-Cast without accident.\n\nThe next day a beautiful lady, whom he did not know, came to his house,\nand said to him,--\n\n\u201cI am the good woman to whose assistance you came yesterday in the\nwood of Pontual. I am a fairy, and I know that you were returning from\nSaint-Malo, where you had vainly applied for the command of a ship. It\nis needless for you to make any more applications. I will give you the\ncommand of a ship--a splendid one; the handsomest that ever was seen.\u201d\n\nThe captain thanked the lady with all his heart; then he invited her to\ndine with him.\n\nWhen the meal was ended, she said to him,--\n\n\u201cNow, you come with me; I am one of the fairies of the Cavern of\nSaint-Briac, and near my grotto you will see your ship.\u201d\n\nThe captain followed the lady; and when they reached the seashore,\nshe took him by the hand, and they walked together over the waves, as\nthough they were on a high-road; the water did not even wet the soles\nof their shoes. They arrived at the cavern, and the fairy showed the\ncaptain the ship she had designed for him. The hull was all of gold,\nthe masts, also, as well as the yards and the pulleys, and the cordage\nwas of twisted threads of gold. It was not yet quite ready; and the\ngoldsmiths of the cavern were busy finishing it.\n\nIt was so dazzling that the captain could scarcely look at it.\n\n\u201cWhen will it be finished, this beautiful ship?\u201d he asked of the fairy\nwho had brought him there.\n\n\u201cWhy do you ask me that question?\u201d\n\n\u201cSo as to have time to get up a crew to man the ship when it is\nfinished.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not be disturbed,\u201d said the fairy; \u201cyour crew is ready, and I am\ngoing to show it to you.\u201d\n\nShe rubbed some salve round his eyes; immediately he saw at least\nthirty little male fairies of tiny size, who were dressed like\nadmirals; and she said to him, pointing to them with her finger,--\n\n\u201cCaptain, these are the little men who will be your sailors. In three\ndays the ship will be ready; you can set out, and they will help you to\nmanage it, for they are good sailors. Meanwhile, come and dine with me\nand the other inhabitants of the cavern.\u201d\n\nThe captain followed the fairy. She led him through a long suite of\napartments bright as gold; and at last they came to a great hall, where\na handsome table was set. Here the fairy women, with their husbands and\nsons, and the tiny male fairies, came to take their meals. The captain\nlooked out of the window, and saw in a court-yard some of the male\nfairies, large and small, drilling with the sword and bayonet.\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d asked he, \u201care they drilling in this way?\u201d\n\n\u201cThey are our soldiers,\u201d answered the fairy, \u201cand they are preparing to\ngo to fight with the fairies of Ch\u00ealin, who have declared war against\nus.\u201d\n\nWhen the fairy men, large and small, had finished drilling, they made\nplayful music with their swords; then every one went into the hall to\ndine. That day there was a great feast at the cavern; for the queen\nof the fairies had just given birth to a boy, and they celebrated his\nbirth.\n\nAfter the feast was over, the captain proposed to go; the fairy who had\nbrought him, and who was named Gladieuse, conducted him as far as the\ndoor of the grotto, and before leaving him, she said to him,--\n\n\u201cHere are some boots which you must put on to cross the sea; as long as\nyou have them on, you will be able to go over land or sea, wherever you\nwish. To-morrow you must return here to take command of your ship.\u201d\n\nThe captain thanked the fairy; then having put on his boots, he\nwalked over the waves of the sea as if on a highway, and arrived at\nSaint-Cast. But when he went into his house he found nothing there; his\nparents, who had seen him cross the sea, believed him to be drowned,\nand they had removed his furniture. He went to ask them for it, but\nthey took him, at first, for a ghost. When he had convinced them that\nhe was a man of flesh and bone, he told them that he had taken command\nof a ship. He made them a present of his furniture; then after having\nembraced his father and mother, he went away.\n\nHe proceeded to the point of the island, and having put on his boots,\nhe crossed the sea without getting wet. His ship was close by the\ncavern, all rigged and ready to set sail. He stepped on board, and the\nfairy Gladieuse, who was on the deck, said to him,--\n\n\u201cThis ship will sail under the water, as well as on it, in the air as\nwell as in the water, just as you wish.\u201d\n\nThen she went back to the land, and the sailors of the cavern came on\nboard; immediately the wind swelled out the sails, and the ship started\noff like lightning.\n\nIt sailed as fast as the wind, which blew always right aft; they never\nhad to tack about, they never had head winds, and there was no need\nof holding the helm nor of hauling in the sails; a fairy man, who was\nunseen, directed everything as he wished. At the end of a fortnight he\nsteered the ship into a port, and the anchor was immediately thrown out.\n\nThe port was in an island where fairy men and women lived, and they\nheartily welcomed the captain and his crew.\n\nThe next day after their arrival in the island, while all the sailors\nwere on shore, and the captain was alone on board, the fairy man\nappeared and said to him,--\n\n\u201cIt is I, who by my will, have brought your ship into this port; it is\nI who guided it here, and you had no trouble in steering it, because\nthe wind was always right aft. Now you are to take on board some fairy\nmen to help us fight the fairies of Ch\u00ealin.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, Mr. Fairy; I shall go ashore at once and take the\npassengers aboard according to your orders.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs soon as they are on board,\u201d said the fairy man, \u201cyou must set sail\nfor Saint-Briac; but I shall leave the ship, which, hereafter, will\nsail only under your own command. Here is a little whistle which I give\nyou; as soon as you reach the shore, you have only to whistle, and\nimmediately your sailors and the fairy men who are to take part in the\nwar will come on board.\u201d\n\nThe captain went ashore on the island, and as soon as he had blown his\nwhistle, five hundred fairy men, and the thirty tiny fairies that he\nhad brought with him, jumped aboard. In less than ten minutes the ship\nspread her sails and went out of the port. During the whole voyage he\nhad a wind right aft, and in less than three weeks from the time he set\nsail he arrived at Saint-Briac.\n\nThe five-hundred fairy men disembarked, and went into the cavern, where\nthey were well received. Three days after they went to war against the\nfairies of Ch\u00ealin; but they were not the stronger, and they asked for\npeace.\n\nThe war was ended, and there were great rejoicings at the cavern and at\nSaint-Briac; the captain carried the fairy men back to their island,\nthen he went to Antwerp to take a load of sea-coal for the fairies.\nThey were very much pleased with him, and when he returned, they paid\nhim a hundred thousand francs for his voyage.\n\nTwo days after, the ship stood out to sea; for three whole years it\nsailed over the seas without touching at any land, and sometimes they\nwere left without provisions; but then the captain made use of the ring\nthat the fairy Gladieuse had given him, and he obtained as much of\neverything as he needed.\n\nAt the end of the third year they came in sight of a little island, and\nthe captain and the tiny fairy sailors went ashore. Among the trees\nthere were fruits of every kind; the brooks were of wine, cider, and\nall sorts of good things to drink, and the ground was covered with\nprecious stones of gold and with diamonds. The tiny fairies tasted\neverything; then they loaded the ship with diamonds and precious stones\nof gold. Just as they were ready to leave they saw an old fellow\ncoming, so old that he looked as if his years numbered a thousand. He\nwas the only inhabitant of the island, and he begged them to take him\non board so that he could go to Saint-Briac.\n\nHe was so very, very ugly that the captain himself was afraid of him;\nand he was right, for it was a demon. As soon as the old fellow came on\nboard he tried to take command of the ship; but the captain resisted\nhim and forced him to obey.\n\nThey set sail again, and when they were on the broad sea they were\nattacked by pirates, who for a long time had been chasing the golden\nship. At least two hundred of them leaped aboard, and the old demon\ntook their side; but the tiny fairies killed them all, and also killed\nthe devil. They threw the dead bodies into the sea; but the pirates who\nwere left on their ship ordered the powder to be set on fire so as to\nblow themselves up with the golden ship. Then the captain said,--\n\n\u201cBy the power of my ring, let my ship sail under the water as it does\non top of it.\u201d\n\nImmediately the ship plunged under the sea, and the pirates could not\ndo it any harm.\n\nSince that time the demon, to whom all the race of fairies was subject,\nand who was coming to Saint-Briac to punish them, having been cut to\npieces by the tiny fairies, dare not command them any longer; and since\nthen neither fairy men nor women belong to him any more.\n\nThe golden ship continued its voyage and returned to the Cavern of\nSaint-Briac. The fairy men and women were so pleased with the load that\nthe captain brought them, that they married him to the fairy Gladieuse,\nand he lived happily with her in the grotto.\n\n I picked up this story at the little port of Saint-Cast\n (C\u00f4tes-du-Nord).\n\n  PAUL SEBILLOT.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SHEPHERD WHO WON THE KING\u2019S DAUGHTER BY A SINGLE WORD\n\nA TALE OF LOWER BRITANNY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a king who never told a single lie in his\nlife. As he heard the people about his court constantly saying to each\nother, \u201cThat is not true! You are a liar,\u201d he was very much displeased;\nso much so that he said one day,--\n\n\u201cI am astonished at you; a stranger who should hear you speak in this\nway would not fail to say that I am the king of liars. I do not wish to\nhear any more such language in my palace. He who hears me say to any\none, no matter who he may be, \u2018You are a liar!\u2019--well, I will give him\nthe hand of my daughter.\u201d\n\nA young shepherd, who was present at the time, having heard these words\nof the king, said to himself, \u201cGood! we will see about this.\u201d\n\nThe old king loved to hear the old Giverziou and the new Soniou sung,\nand marvelous tales told. Often after supper he came into the kitchen,\nand took pleasure in listening to the songs and stories of his footmen.\nEach one sang or related something in turn.\n\n\u201cAnd you, young shepherd, do you know nothing?\u201d said the king one\nevening.\n\n\u201cOh, yes! my king,\u201d answered the shepherd.\n\n\u201cLet us see what you know, then.\u201d\n\nAnd the shepherd told what follows:--\n\n\u201cOne day, as I was going through a wood, I saw an enormous hare coming.\nI had in my hand a ball of wax; I threw it at the hare, and struck it\njust in the middle of the forehead, where it stuck. Then the hare ran\nfaster than ever with the ball of wax on its forehead. He met another\nhare which was coming from an opposite direction; they struck against\neach other\u2019s foreheads and stuck together so that they could not get\napart, and thus I caught them very easily. How do you like that, sire?\u201d\n\n\u201cVery much,\u201d answered the king; \u201cbut go on.\u201d\n\n\u201cBefore coming to your court as a shepherd, sire, I was a miller\u2019s boy\nin my father\u2019s mill, and I went every day with an ass to carry the\nflour to the customers. One day I had such a load on my ass that, upon\nmy word, his spine broke!\u201d\n\n\u201cPoor beast!\u201d said the king.\n\n\u201cThen I went to a hedge nearby, and with my knife I cut a hazel-stick,\nwhich I stuffed into the body of my ass to take the place of its\nspine. Then the animal got up and carried its load gently along to its\ndestination as if no harm had happened to it. What do you say to that,\nsire?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is very good; and what next?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe next morning I was very much astonished (for it was then the month\nof December) to see that branches, leaves, and even hazel-nuts had\ngrown upon the hazel-stick; and when I took my ass out of the stable,\nthe branches continued to grow up so very, very high that they reached\nup to the sky.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is first-rate!\u201d said the king; \u201cbut what happened after that?\u201d\n\n\u201cSeeing that, I began to climb from branch to branch on the hazel-tree,\nso high and so safely that at last I reached the moon.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is first-rate, first-rate! but go on.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere I saw some old women who were winnowing oats from the chaff and\nstraw, and I stopped to look at them. But I soon got tired of looking\nat these old women, and wanted to descend to the earth again. But my\nass had gone away, and I could no longer find the hazel-tree by which I\nhad climbed up. What was to be done? Then I went to work to tie the oat\nstraw together, head to head, so as to make a cord by which I could go\ndown.\u201d\n\n\u201cThis is certainly first-rate!\u201d said the king; \u201cand what next?\u201d\n\n\u201cUnfortunately my cord was not long enough; it was too short by thirty\nor forty feet, so that I fell on a rock head-foremost, and so heavily\nthat my head sank down into the rock as far as my shoulders.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is first-rate, first-rate; and what next?\u201d\n\n\u201cI struggled so vigorously and successfully that my body became\ndetached from my head, which latter remained buried in the rock. I ran\nat once to the mill to find an iron crow-bar, with which to pry my head\nout of the rock.\u201d\n\n\u201cBetter and better!\u201d said the king; \u201cbut what next?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen I returned, there was an enormous wolf that also wished to pull\nmy head out of the rock, in order to eat it! I gave him a blow on the\nback with my crow-bar, but such a very, very heavy one, that a letter\nflew out of him!\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! a better one than that could not be told!\u201d cried the king; \u201cbut\nwhat was written on that letter?\u201d\n\n\u201cOn that letter, my king, with all due respect to you, was written that\nyour father had formerly been mill boy at my grandfather\u2019s mill.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s a lie, you young rascal!\u201d cried the king, immediately rising up,\nfurious.\n\n\u201cHolloa, sire; I have won!\u201d said the shepherd quietly.\n\n\u201cHow is that? What have you won?\u201d\n\n\u201cDid not you say, my king, that you would willingly give the hand of\nthe princess, your daughter, to the first one who would make you say,\n\u2018That is a lie,\u2019 or \u2018You are a liar\u2019?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is true,\u201d replied the king, growing calmer; \u201cI did say so. A king\nshould always keep his word; therefore your betrothal to my only\ndaughter shall be celebrated to-morrow, and the wedding in a week!\u201d\n\nAnd thus it was that the shepherd won the king\u2019s daughter by a single\nword.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL, \u201cArchives des Missions Scientifiques.\u201d\n\n[Illustration: \u201cI GAVE HIM A BLOW ON THE BACK WITH MY CROW-BAR.\u201d]\n\n\n\n\nTHE ENCHANTED RING\n\nA CORSICAN STORY\n\n\nBefore the invasion of the Saracens there were six brothers and their\nsister who were very, very poor; their parents were sick and not able\nto work. One day when they had been hunting for chestnuts in the\nneighboring wood and had scarcely been able to find any, the smallest\nsaid to his brothers,--\n\n\u201cI want to go out into the world to see if I can make a fortune. At the\nend of the week I will come back to tell you what has happened to me.\u201d\n\nAnd the little brother went away. He traveled for several days, and at\nlast he saw a small house in the midst of a forest.\n\n\u201cAt last,\u201d said he to himself, \u201cI shall be able to rest myself a few\nmoments and eat a piece of bread.\u201d\n\nTap! tap!\n\n\u201cWho is there?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is I.\u201d\n\nSeeing it was a man, the mistress of the house, who was a fairy,\ndropped her ring as if by mistake.\n\nThe little brother saw it and put it on his finger, saying,--\n\n\u201cAh! what a beautiful ring!\u201d\n\nBut immediately his body was covered with hairs, two horns grew out\nfrom him, his ears became long, and his two hands were changed into the\nfeet of a goat.\n\nIn fact, he was altogether changed into a goat.\n\n\u201cBaa! baa! baa!\u201d said the little brother; but nothing could bring him\nback to his original shape.\n\nThe fairy tied him, put him down in the cellar; and gave him some very\nfresh grass.\n\nSeeing that their brother did not come back, the other five wished to\ngo and look for him.\n\nThey started out one after the other; but when they reached the fairy\u2019s\nhouse, they each put on the ring that she threw to them, and all shared\ntheir youngest brother\u2019s fate.\n\nThe sister wanted to go too.\n\nShe was beautiful and well formed, with blue eyes and black hair; her\nname was Milia.\n\nAs she was going along, the little sister came upon a large bird caught\nin a bush; it could not get out in spite of all its efforts.\n\nThe young girl took her knife, cut off the briers and set free the\nbird, which flew away, saying,--\n\n\u201cThanks, thanks, Milia; thanks, thanks, Milia.\u201d\n\nThe latter continued her journey; as night came on, she sat down under\na tree to eat a piece of bread.\n\nAs she was making her frugal meal, she saw a poor old woman coming, who\ncould scarcely drag herself along.\n\nMilia ran to meet her, saying to her,--\n\n\u201cMy good mother, lean on me; come rest yourself a moment and have part\nof the small quantity of bread that I have left.\u201d\n\nMilia had scarcely uttered these words when she was completely dazzled.\nThe old woman was changed suddenly into a beautiful fairy, adorned with\na lovely necklace of fine pearls, and dressed in a magnificent robe of\nblue and rose-color, all embroidered with gold.\n\n\u201cWhat do you wish for? I am powerful; ask, and it shall be granted you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI wish to know where my brothers are; are they dead or alive?\u201d\n\n\u201cYour brothers are living, but it will be very difficult for you to\nrecognize them. To find them you have only to go on straight before\nyou. They are shut up in the first house that you will find on your\nway.\u201d\n\n\u201cThanks, good fairy.\u201d\n\nAnd Milia set out.\n\nAfter having walked hours and hours, the little sister saw a house.\n\n\u201cThis is where they are, doubtless,\u201d she thought, and she walked more\nrapidly.\n\nMilia was not more than fifty paces from it when the wicked fairy saw\nher.\n\nShe threw out her ring quickly.\n\nBut a large bird flew by and carried it off in its beak.\n\nIt was the bird that the young girl had set free.\n\nTap! tap!\n\n\u201cCome in.\u201d\n\nMilia entered.\n\n\u201cSit down a moment, while I go to find you something to eat; you must\nbe tired,\u201d said the old woman to her; then she went out.\n\nThen the bird came and tapped at the window.\n\n\u201cMilia, take nothing from that wicked old woman, or you will be turned\nto stone. Your brothers, changed to goats, are shut up in the cellar.\u201d\n\nThe old fairy came in at that moment.\n\n\u201cHere, eat a piece of this cake and drink a little of this exquisite\nwine.\u201d\n\n\u201cThanks, madam; I am neither hungry nor thirsty.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat, after such a long journey?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not want anything; if you wish to please me, let me sleep quietly\nin this corner.\u201d\n\n\u201cMake yourself comfortable, my poor child.\u201d\n\nHowever, the fairy thought,--\n\n\u201cThis little one must not escape me; I wish to have her at all hazards.\u201d\n\nAnd she went for a necklace of gold and robes changeable as the sky.\n\n\u201cSince you will not accept anything to eat, take these things, at\nleast; for it must not be said that any one rests at my house without\ntaking away some token of my good will.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you wish a poor girl to do with all these wonderful things?\nRobes and necklace would soon be torn up among the bushes through which\nI must pass.\u201d\n\nSeeing that all her designs were baffled, the perfidious fairy\nstretched herself on her bed, and slept soundly.\n\nThe bird came again and tapped at the window.\n\n\u201cMilia, wake up! wake up, Milia!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d\n\n\u201cKill that wicked fairy, or she will soon find means to destroy you.\nThen take the chemise that she wears, put it on yourself, and you will\npossess her magic power.\u201d\n\nMilia got up softly, and taking a knife which was on the table, killed\nthe wicked old woman; then she undressed her, took her chemise and put\nit on herself.\n\nHer mind was enlightened in a moment. A number of things which she had\nthought impenetrable mysteries were now explained to her.\n\nBefore trying her power, Milia went over the whole house. In a hall\nwere a number of statues, two of which were in a niche. They were a\nking and queen laid under a spell by the magician.\n\nThen Milia went down into the cellar. There she saw six goats,\nextremely emaciated, though they had an abundance of food.\n\n\u201cAh, poor beasts! and to think they are my brothers!\u201d\n\nAnd Milia, good sister that she was, began to cry. She would have\nrestored them to their original shape at that moment, but she did not\nknow how to manage it.\n\nHappily, she remembered that on the fairy\u2019s chemise was written,--\n\n  \u201cChemise, chemise, until death,\n  Obey me in everything.\u201d\n\nMilia repeated these words, then thought,--\n\n\u201cChemise, chemise, cause these goats to become men again as they were\nbefore!\u201d\n\nAnd immediately the goats lost their hair, their horns fell off, and\ntheir feet were changed into the two hands and feet of a man.\n\nImagine Milia\u2019s joy! She threw herself on her brothers\u2019 necks, for\nshe knew them at once; and for a long time they embraced each other\njoyfully.\n\n\u201cWhere is the old fairy who changed us to beasts?\u201d\n\n\u201cShe is dead; and I have all her power.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow did it happen? In what does this power reside?\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot tell you my secret. I am going now to set free all those who\nare in the castle.\u201d\n\nThis was quickly done.\n\nThe king and the queen and all the other persons thanked Milia very\nmuch, as you may suppose. They wished to bestow castles and villas on\nher; but she refused them all. Had she not the fairy\u2019s chemise to put\nher in possession of all that she desired?\n\nBy means of her magic power the young girl made handsome carriages come\nup out of the ground, and distributed them among all those who were\nthere, so that they could return to their homes.\n\nShe bestowed one of them upon herself, and harnessed to it two\nbeautiful horses as fleet as the wind.\n\nThus she went back to the home of her parents, who were amazed to see\nher with her brothers in such an equipage.\n\n\u201cAh! our daughter has a fortune,\u201d said they to themselves.\n\nAnd they were happy.\n\nUnfortunately, the chemise became so very, very dirty that one day\nMilia wanted to have it washed.\n\nIt was spread in the sun to dry.\n\nA tramp saw it, seized upon it, and ran away.\n\nThey sought for it a long time in vain; they could never find it.\n\nMilia died in despair at having lost the precious chemise from which\nshe derived all her power.\n\nAs for her brothers, who went in search of the thief, nothing more was\nheard of them. If I learn anything about them, you may be sure I will\ntell you of it.\n\n  ORTOLI, \u201cContes de l\u2019ile de Corse.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE SIREN OF LA FRESNAYE\n\nA STORY OF UPPER BRITANNY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was in the woods of the isle of Aval, in the\nparish of Saint-Cast, a wooden-shoe maker, who lived with his wife and\ntwo children in a poor little mud hut which he had built himself by the\nseashore, just at the end of the valley. There are those who say that\nthe ruins of it may still be seen; but that is hardly credible, for it\nis a long time since then, and usually the cabins of wooden-shoe makers\ndo not last very long.\n\nThey were not rich; for they had only their work to live on; and you\nknow wooden-shoe makers rarely buy small farms. The husband dug out the\nwooden shoes, his wife helped him as well as she could, and the little\nboy and girl, who were not large enough to work in the wood, went every\nday to fish along the shore.\n\nOne day when the little boy was fishing among the rocks, he heard\nsuddenly a sweet, musical song, and looking in the direction from which\nit seemed to come, he saw the Siren, who was singing as she swam among\nthe waves; and around her the sea was so brilliant that it dazzled you\nto look at it.\n\nHe ran very quickly to the cabin where his father was working.\n\n\u201cAh, papa!\u201d said he to him, \u201cdo come and see! there is a fish in the\nbay of Port-au-Moulin more beautiful than any I have ever seen; it\nsings, and it shines like gold!\u201d\n\n\u201cLike fire, papa,\u201d added the little girl, who had seen it also.\n\nThe wooden-shoe maker and his wife hastened to follow their children;\nbut when they reached the shore, the Siren had disappeared; they saw\nnothing on the sea and heard no singing.\n\n\u201cIt was nothing,\u201d said the mother; \u201cthe children dreamed it all.\u201d\n\nBut the wooden-shoe maker was not so incredulous as his wife. The next\nmorning he said to the children,--\n\n\u201cGo back again to the edge of the water, and watch attentively to see\nif the beautiful singing fish will show herself again.\u201d\n\nThe little boy went out; but as soon as he had gone a few steps from\nthe cabin he ran back, crying out,--\n\n\u201cAh, papa! the beautiful fish has returned; you can hear it sing from\nhere.\u201d\n\nWhen they went outside, they heard a delicious music in the distance;\nand they hastened to go to the seashore, where they saw the Siren, who\nsang as she played about on the waves, and leaped sometimes more than\nthree feet above the water.\n\n\u201cIt is not an ordinary fish,\u201d said the wooden-shoe maker; \u201cit looks\nlike a human being.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said his wife, \u201cwe must get the lines; perhaps you can catch it.\nI should like very much to see it close by.\u201d\n\nThey all went to work to get the lines ready: and when the sea was\nhigh, they set them; but in vain. They put the choicest bait on the\nhook; the singing fish did not come to take it, although they saw it\nevery day.\n\nThe wooden-shoe maker thought often of the wonderful fish, and devised\nmeans to possess himself of it. One day as he was walking on the shore,\nhe saw the Siren, who, cradled by the waves, and fast asleep, was\nfloating at a short distance from the shore. He went into the water\nwithout making any noise, and slipped a large basket that he had, under\nher, and carried her off in it to the land without waking her.\n\nShe was about the size of a child of eight years. She had golden hair\non her head, and her white and polished body resembled that of a woman;\nbut instead of feet she had fins, and her body ended with the tail of a\nfish.\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said the wooden-shoe maker, as he looked at her, \u201cmy little brats\ndid not lie; it is really the most curious thing that ever was seen.\nIt is doubtless a siren; for it is half woman and half fish.\u201d\n\nHe made these reflections on his way back to his cabin, and he had\nalmost reached it when the Siren awoke and said to him,--\n\n\u201cAh, wooden-shoe maker! you surprised me while I was asleep; I beg you\nto take me back to the water, now that you have seen me close, and I\nwill protect you, you and all your family, as long as you live.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d answered the wooden-shoe maker; \u201cI will not put you back into the\nsea; I have watched for you for a long time, and so have my wife and\nchildren. I am going to take you to the house so that they can see you;\nbut when you have sung a song, if my wife wishes, I will carry you back\nto the place from which I took you.\u201d\n\nHe called his wife, who was named Ol\u00e9rie, and cried to her,--\n\n\u201cOl\u00e9rie, come here and see, and bring the children; I have the singer\nin my basket.\u201d\n\nThe good woman ran, full of joy, followed by the little boy and girl,\nand began to examine the Siren.\n\n\u201cShe asks to be taken back to the water,\u201d said the wooden-shoe maker;\n\u201cshe will sing you a song first. Do you agree to that?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d she answered; \u201cit is too beautiful a fish; I have never seen one\nlike it; we must eat it.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh!\u201d said the Siren, \u201cif you feed upon my flesh, if you feast upon\nmy fish, you will never eat anything else in this world, for you will\nperish. I am not a fish like the others; I am the Siren of Fresnaye,\nand your husband surprised me while I was sleeping. Ask of me what\nyou will, and I will grant it, for I have the power of a fairy. But\nmake haste to carry me back to the sea, and do not lose any time; I am\nalready growing weak and I shall soon die.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you say about it?\u201d asked Ol\u00e9rie of her husband.\n\n\u201cIf you consent to it, I am very willing to put her back into the sea;\nit would be a shame to kill her, she is so pretty and has never done\nany harm to any one.\u201d\n\nThey each took hold of one end of the basket, and carried the Siren\ngently to the sea, and let her plunge into it again without thinking of\nasking anything of her.\n\nWhen she felt the freshness of the water, she shouted with laughter,\nfor joy that she was no longer in captivity, and she said to the\nwooden-shoe maker,--\n\n\u201cWhat do you ask of me now?\u201d\n\n\u201cI ask,\u201d said he, \u201cfor some bread, some fish, and clothing for my wife\nand my children.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou shall have all that in twenty-four hours,\u201d said the Siren.\n\n\u201cI should like very well also,\u201d added he, \u201cif it is in your power, to\nhave a little money to pay my master, for I am not at all rich.\u201d\n\nThe Siren did not make any reply, but she begun to flap the water with\nher fins, and each time that she struck the waves they flashed up in\nlittle drops, and all that went up in the air became gold which fell\ndown at the feet of the wooden-shoe maker. The shore was soon covered\nwith it; then she became still and said to the wooden-shoe maker and\nhis wife,--\n\n\u201cAll that is for you, good people; you can pick it up.\u201d\n\nThey thanked the Siren, who went off singing; then they filled their\npockets with gold and returned to their cabin very happy.\n\nWhen the twenty-four hours had passed, Ol\u00e9rie and her husband returned\nto the seashore to look for the clothing that the Siren had promised\nthem. They heard her singing in the distance, and soon they saw her\nglide over the waves and come near them, always singing her sweet and\nmelodious song. She flapped the water with her fins; a large wave\nbroke into foam on the strand, and rolled back, leaving at the feet of\nthe wooden-shoe maker a very large and tightly closed chest. Then the\nSiren leaped three times out of the water and said to the wooden-shoe\nmaker,--\n\n\u201cYou will find in this chest what I promised you; good-by, till I see\nyou again, you who have been so good to me! When you want some fish, do\nnot forget this shore.\u201d\n\nThey took the chest away with them to their house; it contained good\nclothing made to fit them; and every time that they or their children\nwanted to catch fish, they went to the seashore, and in a few moments\nthey caught an abundance.\n\nFor a whole year they did not see the Siren; their purse grew lighter\nmeanwhile, and the lighter it grew, the more they thought of the Siren.\nThey often went to the seashore, listening and hoping to hear her voice.\n\nOne day they heard her singing in the distance; they ran at once to the\nshore, and were very glad to see her gliding over the waves; all along\nwhere she had passed, the sea gleamed like a pathway of fire.\n\nWhen she came within a little distance, the wooden-shoe maker said to\nher,--\n\n\u201cMy Siren, I am very glad to see you again; if you will, you can do me\na great service, for I have no longer either bread or money.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will give you,\u201d said the Siren, \u201cenough to fill your purse again.\u201d\n\nAfter saying these words, she unfolded her fins, and beating the water\naround her, she sent to the shore a wave of gold and silver.\n\n\u201cWith that,\u201d said she, \u201cyou can buy all you need; but if you wish to\nkeep it, use it well. Hereafter you will see me no more; I am going to\nleave this country and go to India.\u201d\n\nThe Siren went away after having said this; since then no one has ever\nseen her, or heard her sing in the bay of Fresnaye.\n\n  PAUL SEBILLOT, \u201cContes des Paysans et des P\u00eacheurs.\u201d\n\n[Illustration: ALL THAT WENT UP IN THE AIR BECAME GOLD.]\n\n\n\n\nTHE LITTLE HUNCHBACK\n\nA LORRAINE STORY\n\n\nOnce there was a king who had three sons; but he treated only the first\ntwo as his sons: the youngest was a hunchback; only his mother loved\nhim.\n\nOne day the king called the oldest to him and said to him,--\n\n\u201cMy son, I should like to have the water which restores youth.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy father, I will go after it.\u201d\n\nThe king gave him a beautiful carriage drawn by four horses, and as\nmuch gold and silver as he wanted, and the young man started on his\njourney.\n\nHe had gone two hundred leagues on the way, when he met a shepherd, who\nsaid to him,--\n\n\u201cPrince, my handsome prince, would you help me to set free one of my\nsheep which is caught in a thicket?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou should not have let it go there,\u201d replied the prince; \u201cI have no\ntime to lose.\u201d\n\nWhen he arrived at Pekin, he went to a fine hotel, had his horses taken\nout, and ordered a good dinner. He soon made friends, and thought no\nmore of continuing his journey.\n\nAt the end of six months the king, seeing that he did not return,\ncalled his second son, and asked him to go and seek for the water that\nrestored youth. He gave him a handsome carriage drawn by four horses,\ncovered with pearls and diamonds. The young man got into it and started\noff. After having gone two hundred leagues, he met the shepherd, who\nsaid to him,--\n\n\u201cPrince, my handsome prince, would you help me to set free one of my\nsheep which is caught in a thicket?\u201d\n\n\u201cFor whom do you take me?\u201d answered the prince. \u201cYou should not have\nlet it go there.\u201d\n\nHe arrived at Pekin, where he lodged in the same hotel as his brother.\nHe also soon made friends and did not think of going any farther. The\nking waited a year, and seeing that he did not return, he said to\nhimself: \u201cI have no more children! Who, then, will wear my crown?\u201d He\nthought no more of the little hunchback than if he had not been in the\nworld.\n\nMeanwhile the latter fell sick. They sent for a physician; the young\nprince told him that he was ill of grief seeing that his father did\nnot love him, and that he wished very much to travel. The physician\nrepeated these words to the king, who came to see his son.\n\n\u201cMy father,\u201d said the little hunchback to him, \u201cI would like to go\nafter the water that restores youth, and I will not do as my brothers\ndid; I will bring it back with me.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou can go if you wish,\u201d said the king.\n\nHe gave him an old carriage that had only three wheels, an old horse\nthat had only three legs, very little money,--though the queen added\nsomething to that,--and the prince set out.\n\nAfter having gone two hundred leagues, he met the shepherd, who said to\nhim,--\n\n\u201cPrince, my handsome prince, would you help me to set free one of my\nsheep which is caught in a thicket?\u201d\n\n\u201cWillingly,\u201d said the prince.\n\nAnd he helped the shepherd to set free his sheep. When he had gone\naway, the shepherd, remembering that he had given him nothing for his\ntrouble, called him back and said to him,--\n\n\u201cPrince, I forgot to reward you. Here, take these arrows; all that\nthese arrows pierce will be well pierced. Here is a flageolet; all who\nhear it will dance.\u201d\n\nThe prince went on his way and arrived at Pekin. When he passed by the\nhotel where his brothers lodged, the latter, who were on the steps,\nwere ashamed of him and went into the house. The poor little hunchback\nalighted at a miserable inn, where he unhitched his horse himself;\nthen he took with him a guide to show him the city. As he was walking\nalong he saw a dead man who had been left unburied.\n\n\u201cWhy do they not bury this man?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cBecause he had a great many creditors and could not pay them.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf they were paid for him, would they have him buried?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, certainly.\u201d\n\nThe prince sent for the creditors, paid the dead man\u2019s debts, and gave\nthe money to have him buried. After that he continued his journey. One\nday a good old woman received him in her little house and gave him\nsomething to eat and drink; he paid her generously and then went on\nfarther.\n\nWhen he had gone two hundred leagues more, he found that all his money\nwas gone and he had no longer anything to eat. His horse was more\nfortunate than himself; he could browse a little on the grass along\nthe road. A fox passed by; the prince was about to let fly one of his\narrows at him, when the fox cried to him,--\n\n\u201cWretch! what are you going to do? would you kill me?\u201d\n\nThe prince, seized with fright, put his arrow back into the quiver.\nThen the fox gave him a napkin in which he found something to eat and\ndrink, and said to him,--\n\n\u201cYou are looking for the water that restores youth? It is in that\ncastle very far below there. The castle is guarded by an ogre, by\ntigers, and by lions. To reach it, it is necessary to cross a river;\non this river you will see a boat, which the same man has steered\nfor eighteen hundred years. Be very careful to enter the boat feet\nforemost; for if you should get in backwards, you would take the man\u2019s\nplace forever. When you reach the castle, do not allow yourself to be\ncharmed by the magnificence that you will find there. You will see in\nthe stables mules adorned with plates of gold: take the ugliest one:\nyou will see also two green birds: take the ugliest one.\u201d\n\nThe prince was careful to enter the boat feet foremost, and arrived at\nthe castle; he was just going to take the mule and the bird when the\nogre came in.\n\n\u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d said the ogre to him.\n\nThe prince excused himself, bowed to him, and asked his pardon. The\nogre said to him,--\n\n\u201cI will not eat you; you are too thin.\u201d\n\nHe gave him something to eat and to drink, and the prince remained\nat the castle, where he had everything he wanted. The ogre sent him\nto fight his enemies, beasts like himself; the prince, thanks to his\narrows, won the fight and brought back the skins. He fought five or six\ntimes and was always conqueror.\n\nNow there was in the castle a princess whom the ogre wished to marry,\nbut who did not want him. One day, when the prince had won a great\nfight, he took a notion to play a tune on his flageolet. The princess\nwas at table with the ogre; as they heard the marvelous flageolet, they\nbegan to dance together, without knowing at first whence the music\ncame. When the ogre saw that it was the prince who was playing, he made\nhim come to the table, and said to him,--\n\n\u201cAsk me what you will; I will grant it.\u201d\n\nHe thought surely that the prince would ask of him permission to go\naway.\n\n\u201cI ask,\u201d said the prince, \u201cfor what is most beautiful here, and for\npermission to go over the castle three times.\u201d\n\nThe ogre consented to it. There was so much gold in the castle that\nthey did not know what to do with it; but the prince did not touch it:\nhe took the uglier of the two green birds, and the ugliest mule, which\nstepped seven leagues at a time, and did not forget a vial of the water\nwhich restores youth; then he put the princess, who was a party to the\nwhole thing, on the mule. Instead of going over the castle three times,\nhe only went twice and ran off with the princess. As soon as the ogre\nfound it out, he went in pursuit of them, but he could not catch them.\n\nThe young man met the fox the second time; and the fox said to him,--\n\n\u201cIf you see any one in trouble, be sure not to help them out.\u201d\n\nA little farther on, he was very kindly received by the good old woman\nin her little house. At last he arrived at Pekin with the princess. On\none of the squares there was a gallows erected.\n\n\u201cFor whom is that gallows?\u201d asked the prince.\n\nHe was told that it was for two young strangers who were to be hung\nthat day. At that moment the condemned men were brought out; he\nrecognized his brothers. He asked what their crime was.\n\nHe was told that they had contracted debts which they were not able to\npay.\n\nThe young man assembled the creditors, paid them, and set his brothers\nfree; then they set out together on the road to their father\u2019s kingdom.\nThe little hunchback had given the mule to his oldest brother; to the\nother, the green bird; and the water which restores youth, he kept\nfor himself and the princess. Still his brothers were not satisfied;\ntogether they sought out opportunities to get rid of him, and the\nprincess, who saw their jealousy, was distressed on account of it.\n\nOne day as they were passing by a well which was three hundred feet\ndeep, the two elder brothers said to the youngest,--\n\n\u201cLook at that beautiful well!\u201d\n\nAnd as he leaned over to look, they pushed him in and carried off the\nprincess, the mule, and the bird. When they arrived at the castle,\nthe princess was in a fainting condition; the mule and the bird were\ndejected. They put the mule in an old stable, the bird in an old cage.\nThe water could not restore the king\u2019s youth: they put it in a corner\namong the old rugs.\n\nMeanwhile the poor prince sent up loud cries from the bottom of the\nwell; the fox hastened to him and went down into the well.\n\n\u201cI charged you especially not to help any one out of trouble. However,\nI am going to help you to get out of this place; hold fast to my tail.\u201d\n\nThe young man did as he was told, and the fox climbed up; he had almost\nreached the top when his tail broke, and the young man fell back to the\nbottom of the well. The fox tied his tail on again, rubbing it with\ngrease, and took the prince on his back. Once more in the open air,\nhe straightened him up, and the young man; disburdened of his hunch,\nbecame an elegant prince.\n\nHe went to the castle of the king, his father, and had himself\nannounced as a great physician, saying that he could cure the king\nand the princess. At first he went into the stable; at once the mule\ntook on a handsome hide and began to neigh: he approached the bird; it\nresumed its beautiful plumage and began to sing. He gave his father\nsome of the water which restores youth; the king became young again\nimmediately and got up out of his sick-bed. The princess was restored\nto health as soon as she saw the young man. Then the prince made\nhimself known to his father and told him what had happened; then the\nbird spoke in its turn and told the whole story over again.\n\nThe elder sons of the king were out hunting. The king had their young\nbrother concealed behind the door; and when they came in, he said to\nthem,--\n\n\u201cI have just heard of a strange adventure which took place in one of\nthe cities of my kingdom. Three young men were walking together on the\nshore of the lake; two of them threw their companion into the lake.\nGive Solomon\u2019s judgment; what punishment do these men deserve?\u201d\n\n\u201cThey deserve death.\u201d\n\n\u201cMiserable creatures! then you also deserve it. You shall not be thrown\ninto the water, but you shall be burned.\u201d\n\nThe sentence was executed. Afterwards they made a great feast, and the\nyoung prince married the princess.\n\n  EMMANUEL COSQUIN, \u201cContes Populaires Lorrains.\u201d\n\n\n\n\nTHE PRINCESS OF TRONKOLAINE\n\nA STORY OF LOWER BRITANNY\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a poor coal-man who had already had\ntwenty-five children baptized. God sent him the twenty-sixth, and he\nset out to look for a godfather and godmother for it. He saw the king\npass in his carriage, and knelt down in the mud to greet him. The king\nthrew him a piece of gold.\n\n\u201cThis is not what I am in search of at this moment, although I am in\ngreat need of it,\u201d said the coal-man; \u201cI want a godfather for the\ntwenty-sixth child that my wife has just presented me.\u201d\n\n\u201cTwenty-six children, my poor man!\u201d exclaimed the king. \u201cAh! well! come\nto the church to-morrow with your child and a godmother, and I will be\nthe godfather, myself.\u201d\n\nThe coal-man was promptly at the appointed place; he took with him the\ngodmother, and the king arrived also at the hour agreed upon.\n\nThe child was baptized, and named Louis. The godfather gave the father\na purse full of gold and told him to send his son to school when he\nwas ten years old. He gave him also half of a platine, keeping the\nother half himself, and charging him to give it to his son when he\nshould have reached the age of eighteen, to bring it back to him at his\ncourt at Paris. He would recognize him by this sign. Then he went away.\n\nThe child was put to school when he was ten years old, and as he was\nintelligent, he made rapid progress. When he was eighteen, his father\ngave him the half-platine, and told him to go and take it to his\ngodfather, the king of France, at his palace in Paris. Until then he\nhad concealed from him who his godfather was. He gave him also one of\nhis horses, a jade used for hauling coal, and the young man set out.\n\nAs he was going along a long and narrow street, he met a little old\nwoman, bending over her stick, who said to him,--\n\n\u201cGood morning, Louis, godson of the king of France.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood morning, grandmother,\u201d answered Louis, astonished at being known\nto the old woman.\n\n\u201cAlmost immediately, my child,\u201d said the latter, \u201cyou will come to a\nspring by the roadside, and you will see some one there who will invite\nyou to get down from your horse and quench your thirst; do not listen\nto him, but go on your way.\u201d\n\n\u201cThanks, grandmother,\u201d answered the young man. And he passed along.\n\nSure enough, a moment after, he came to a spring near which there was a\nperson of disagreeable countenance, who cried to him,--\n\n\u201cCome, Louis! stop a moment, and get down from your horse.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have not time,\u201d answered Louis; \u201cI am in a hurry.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome, I tell you, quench your thirst at this spring,--the water is\ndelicious,--and converse a little; you do not recognize me, then--one\nof your schoolmates?\u201d\n\nLouis, hearing these last words, got down from his horse; but he did\nnot recognize the pretended schoolmate. Nevertheless, he started\nto drink from the spring, and as he was leaning over the water to\ndrink out of the hollow of his hand, the other, with one hunch of\nhis shoulder, threw him into it; then he took away his half-platine,\nmounted his horse and departed. Poor Louis got out of the water as\nwell as he could and began to run after the thief. The horse was old\nand foundered, so that at last he overtook him, and they entered the\ncourtyard of the king\u2019s palace together. The king, at sight of the\nhalf-platine, had no doubt that the bearer of it was his godson, and\nwelcomed him heartily, although he thought him ill-looking. He asked\nhim also, who the young man was who accompanied him.\n\n\u201cThat is a young countryman, godfather,\u201d replied he, \u201cwho followed me,\nhoping to find employment at your court.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d answered the king; \u201coccupation shall be found for him.\u201d\n\nHe was, in fact, employed as a stable-boy, while the other followed the\nking everywhere, dressed like a prince, and had nothing to do every day\nbut eat, drink, and go out walking.\n\nVery soon the pretended godson, wishing to get rid of Louis, the sight\nof whom annoyed him, said to the king one day,--\n\n\u201cIf you could only know, godfather, what the stable-boy from my country\nboasts that he will do!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat does he boast that he will do?\u201d asked the king.\n\n\u201cThat he will go and ask the sun why he is red when he rises in the\nmorning.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed? Very well; let him go, for I am really very curious to know\nwhy.\u201d\n\nAnd poor Louis was obliged to start off to go to see the sun, although\nhe declared that he had never said anything of the sort.\n\nAs he was going sadly along by the seashore, he met a venerable old\nman, who asked him,--\n\n\u201cWhere are you going, my son?\u201d\n\n\u201cTruly, grandfather,\u201d he replied, \u201cI do not know at all. I was told\nthat, under pain of death, I should find out from the sun why he is so\nred when he rises in the morning, and I do not know where to find the\nsun.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell! my son, I will help you to find him.\u201d And showing him a wooden\nhorse, he said,--\n\n\u201cJump on this horse, which will rise in the air, at your command, and\ncarry you to the foot of a mountain on the summit of which is the\ncastle of the sun. Leave the horse at the foot of the mountain, where\nyou will find it again on your return, and go alone to the castle.\u201d\n\nLouis mounted the wooden horse, which rose at once into the air and put\nhim down at the foot of a high mountain. He climbed the mountain with\ndifficulty, and when at last he reached the summit, he saw a place so\nfine, so resplendent, that he was dazzled by it. It was the palace of\nthe sun. He knocked at the door. An old woman came and opened it for\nhim.\n\n\u201cIs my lord the sun at home?\u201d asked he.\n\n\u201cNo, my child; but he will soon return,\u201d answered the old woman.\n\n\u201cI will wait for him, then.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut, my poor child, my son will be very hungry when he comes; he might\nvery likely eat you up.\u201d\n\n\u201cI beg you, madam, do not let him eat me, for I must speak to him.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well! come in at any rate, my boy, and I will try to manage it.\u201d\n\nAnd he went in. The sun arrived a little while after, calling out,--\n\n\u201cI am hungry, I am very hungry, mother!\u201d Then having sniffed the air;\n\u201cI smell the smell of a Christian. There is a Christian here, and I am\ngoing to eat him.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh, yes,\u201d said his mother; \u201cit\u2019s very likely that I should give you\n_this_ poor, pretty child to eat. _There_ is your supper all ready; eat\nit quickly and keep silent, or look out for my stick!\u201d\n\nThe sun hung his head, at this threat, like a timid child, and began to\neat in silence. When he had finished, Louis, emboldened by seeing him\nso gentle, put this question to him,--\n\n\u201cI should like very much to know, my lord the sun, why you are so red,\nso handsome, when you rise in the morning.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you willingly,\u201d answered the sun; \u201cit is because the\ncastle of the princess of Tronkolaine is near here, and she is so\nbeautiful that I have to show myself in all my splendor so as not to be\nsurpassed by her.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am very much obliged, my lord, the sun,\u201d answered Louis.\n\nAnd he bowed low and went away. He went down the mountain again,\nmounted his wooden horse, which was waiting for him, and quickly\nreturned to the king\u2019s court.\n\n\u201cWell?\u201d said the latter to him, \u201chave you really been all the way to\nthe sun, and can you tell me now why he is red when he rises in the\nmorning?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sire; I can tell you why.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us hear it, then.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is in order not to be eclipsed by the Princess Tronkolaine, whose\ncastle is near his own, and who is the most wonderful beauty in\nexistence.\u201d The king appeared satisfied with the explanation.\n\nBut some time after that the false godson said again,--\n\n\u201cIf you could know, godfather, how this stable-boy still brags!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat does he brag about?\u201d asked the king.\n\n\u201cOf being able to bring the Princess Tronkolaine herself to your court\nso that you can marry her.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed! has he boasted of that? Very well! he must do it, or death is\nhis only portion.\u201d\n\nAnd poor Louis was obliged to attempt this adventure, in spite of all\nhis protestations of never having said any such thing. Fortunately for\nhim, he met again on the road the unknown old man, who said to him,--\n\n\u201cGo back to the king, and tell him that in order to accomplish your\nenterprise you must have a ship loaded with wheat, bacon, and beef,\nthat you may distribute these provisions among the kings of the ants,\nthe sparrow-hawks, and the lions which you will meet on your way, and\nwhich, if you feast them well, will be useful to you later.\u201d\n\nHe obtained the ship loaded with provisions. Then the old man gave him\nbesides a white stick, by means of which he could obtain a favorable\nwind from whatever direction he should turn it toward. He set sail,\npassed by the kingdoms of the ants, the sparrow-hawks, and the lions,\nand regaled all these animals as well as he could, and they all\npromised to come to his help as soon as he called them.\n\nThen he landed on an island. In the middle of the island there was\na magnificent castle. It was there that the princess of Tronkolaine\ndwelt. He saw her, beside a fountain, combing her blond hair with a\ngolden comb, and a large-toothed comb of ivory. He plucked an orange\nfrom an orange-tree near by and threw it into the fountain. The\nprincess turned, saw him, smiled at him, and told him to come forward.\nThen she led him to her castle, feasted him on exquisite meats and\ndelicious fruits, and invited him to remain with her. At the end of a\nfortnight\u2019s stay at the castle Louis asked the princess if she would\nagree to follow him to the court of France.\n\n\u201cWillingly,\u201d she answered, \u201cwhen you shall have done all the work there\nis to do here.\u201d\n\n\u201cTell me, princess, what you wish me to do, and if it is possible, I\nwill do it.\u201d\n\nThe next morning the princess took him to the barn of the castle, and\nshowed him a great heap of mixed grain.\n\n\u201cThere,\u201d said she, \u201cis a heap of mixed grain,--wheat, rye, and barley.\nYou must put each kind of grain in a pile by itself, without making a\nmistake in a single grain, and it must be done by sunset.\u201d Then she\nwent away.\n\nLouis called the ant to his assistance, and the sorting was done\nperfectly by the appointed hour. So when the princess came at sunset,\nshe was very much astonished. She examined carefully, and not finding a\nsingle grain of a different sort in any one of the three piles,--\n\n\u201cIt is very well done,\u201d said she.\n\n\u201cWill you come with me now, princess?\u201d asked Louis of her again.\n\n\u201cNot yet; I have something else to ask of you first.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, the next morning, she gave him a wooden axe, and having\nled him into the great avenue of the castle, she said to him, showing\nhim the great oaks,--\n\n\u201cYou must cut down all these trees before sunset, with your wooden\naxe.\u201d Then she went away.\n\nAs soon as the princess was gone, Louis called the lions to his\nassistance, and when she returned at sunset, there was not a single\ntree left standing in the avenue. Her astonishment was greater than\nbefore.\n\n\u201cWill you follow me now, princess?\u201d asked Louis.\n\n\u201cI have still another task--a last test to give you,\u201d she answered;\n\u201cand if you get through it as successfully as the others, nothing shall\nthen prevent me from following you.\u201d\n\nThe next morning the princess led him to the foot of a high mountain,\nand said to him,--\n\n\u201cHere is a mountain which obscures my palace and prevents my seeing at\na distance, and I desire that it shall disappear by the setting of the\nsun.\u201d And she went away again.\n\nThis time Louis called the sparrow-hawks to his assistance, and they\nwere so numerous that with their beaks and claws they soon made the\nmountain disappear, and leveled down the earth. When the princess\nreturned at sunset,--\n\n\u201cWell, princess, are you satisfied?\u201d said Louis.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d she replied, \u201cyou have not your equal on the earth; and now I\nwill follow you where you will.\u201d\n\nThen she gave him a kiss. They went towards the sea after that. The\nship in which Louis had come to the island was there waiting for him.\nThey went aboard of her and reached the continent without hindrance.\nDuring the voyage, the princess let the key of her castle fall into the\nsea, without saying anything of it to Louis.\n\nThe old man was waiting for them on the other side of the water.\n\n\u201cWell, my son,\u201d said he to Louis, \u201cdid you succeed?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, grandfather, thanks to you, and may God bless you.\u201d\n\nWhen the princess arrived at the court, the old king was so charmed\nwith her beauty, that he wished to marry her immediately.\n\n\u201cHolloa!\u201d said she then, \u201cI did not come here for an old gray-beard\nlike you, nor for this other creature,\u201d and she pointed to the\npretended godson, \u201cwhom you believe to be your godson, and who is\nonly a demon! Here is your real godson, and it is he who shall be my\nhusband.\u201d And she pointed to Louis. \u201cNow, have the furnace heated, and\nlet this demon be thrown into it.\u201d\n\nNo sooner said than done. And as the demon, otherwise the pretended\ngodson, uttered fearful cries, and tried to get out of the furnace,\nthey sent for a young woman with her first child, and with her wedding\nring, which she presented to him at the opening of the furnace when he\ntried to get out, she forced him to stay inside. Then he cried out,--\n\n\u201cIf I had remained at the court only a year, I should have reduced the\nkingdom to a hopeless condition.\u201d\n\nThen Louis married the Princess Tronkolaine, and he succeeded to the\nthrone of the old king, his godfather, who had no children. He brought\nhis old father and mother to the court, and also his brothers and his\nsisters, whom he established very magnificently.\n\n  F. M. LUZEL,\n  \u201cCinqui\u00e8me Rapport sur une Mission en Bretagne.\u201d\n\n\nTHE END\n\n\n\n\n  Transcriber's Notes:\n\n  Italics are shown thus: _sloping_.\n\n  Variations in spelling and hyphenation are retained.\n\n  Perceived typographical errors have been changed.","title":"French fairy tales","tradition":"folklore-oral-tradition","translated_text":null,"word_count":61425}