Russian Fairy Tales (Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library)

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Russian Fairy Tales (Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library) Page 50

by Afanas'Ev, Aleksandr


  He came to his mother-in-law and made his new servant entertain the old woman and her daughters. Shmat Razum regaled them so well that the old woman almost danced with joy, and she ordered three jars of milk a day to be given to the frog for her faithful services. The archer said farewell to his mother-in-law and set out homeward. He walked and walked and got very tired; his nimble feet were worn out, his white arms drooped. “Eh,” he said, “Shmat Razum, if you only knew how exhausted I am! My legs are dropping off me.” “Why did you not say so long ago?” the voice said. “I would have brought you to the place in a trice.” Straightway the archer was seized as by an impetuous breeze and carried in the air so fast that his cap fell off his head. “Hey, Shmat Razum, stop for a moment, my cap has fallen off!” he cried. “Too late, master, your cap is now five thousand versts behind us.” Towns and villages, rivers and forests flashed before his eyes.

  As the archer was flying over a deep sea, Shmat Razum said to him: “Do you want me to make a golden arbor on that sea? You will be able to rest there and acquire a fortune.” “Very well, make it,” said the archer, and he began to descend toward the sea. Where a moment ago only waves surged, a little island appeared, and on the island was a golden arbor. Shmat Razum said to the archer: “Sit in the arbor, take a rest, and look at the sea. Three merchant ships will sail by and moor at the island. Do you invite the merchants to sit with you, feast and regale them, and exchange me for three marvels that the merchants are carrying with them. In due time I shall return to you.”

  The archer looked and saw three merchant ships coming from the west. The sailors saw the island and the golden arbor. “What a marvel!” they said. “How many times have we sailed by here, and there was nothing except water—and now, lo and behold, a golden arbor is there! Let us cast anchor, brothers, and feast our eyes upon it.” They stopped the ships and cast anchor; the three merchants, the masters of the ships, took a light boat and went to the island. “Good day, good man,” they said to the archer. “Good day, foreign merchants! You are welcome here. Have a good time, be merry, and take a rest; this arbor was made expressly for passing guests.” The merchants came into the arbor and sat on a bench. “Hey, Shmat Razum!” cried the archer, “give us food and drink.” A table appeared and on the table wines and viands—whatever one’s heart desired, it was all there in a trice. The merchants gasped in amazement. “Let us make an exchange,” they said. “You give us your servant and take any of our marvels in exchange for him.” “And what marvels do you have?” “Look and you will see.”

  One of the merchants drew a little box out of his pocket and opened it, and instantly a splendid garden, with flowers and paths, was spread all over the island; he closed the box, and the garden disappeared. The second merchant drew an ax from under his garment and began to strike—rap-tap!—and a ship was ready. Rap-tap, and there was another ship! He struck a hundred times, and made a hundred ships, with sails, and guns, and sailors; the ships sailed, the guns boomed, the crews asked the merchants for orders. Having shown his trick, the merchant hid his ax, and the ships disappeared as though they had never been there. The third merchant got out a horn; he blew into one end of it and an army appeared—infantry and cavalry, with muskets and cannon and flags. From all the regiments reports came to the merchant and he gave them orders: the troops marched, the music thundered, the flags waved. Having had his fun, the merchant blew into the other end of the horn, and nothing was there; the whole host had disappeared.

  “Your marvels are good, but I have no use for them,” said the archer. “Armies and fleets are for kings, and I am a simple soldier. If you insist on making an exchange, give me all your three marvels for my one invisible servant.” “Isn’t that asking too much?” “Well, as you wish; but I will not exchange otherwise.” The merchants thought to themselves: “What is the use to us of this garden, this army, and these warships? It will be better to make the exchange; at least we shall live without care, sated and drunk.” They gave the archer their marvels and said: “Eh, Shmat Razum, we shall take you with us; will you serve us in faith and in truth?” “Why not?” the servant’s voice said. “It is all the same to me with whom I live.” The merchants returned to their ships and set about treating their crews to food and drink, crying: “Hey, Shmat Razum, get busy.”

  All the crews got drunk and fell sound asleep. Meanwhile the archer sat in his golden arbor, grew thoughtful, and said: “Ah, it’s a pity! Where is my faithful servant, Shmat Razum?” “I am here, master!” The archer was overjoyed. He said: “Is it not time for us to go home?” He had no sooner said these words than an impetuous wind seized him and carried him through the air. The merchants awoke and wanted to drink to chase away their drunkenness. “Hey, Shmat Razum,” they cried, “give us a drink!” No one answered, no one served them. No matter how they shouted and commanded, it was of no avail. “Well, gentlemen, this scoundrel has cheated us. Now the devil himself won’t find him; the island has vanished and the golden arbor is gone.” The merchants grieved and grieved, then hoisted their sails and went on their way.

  The archer flew swiftly back to his own country and descended at a deserted place near the blue sea. “Hey, Shmat Razum, can we not build a castle here?” he said. “Why not? It will be ready at once,” the servant’s voice replied. In a trice there was a castle, so magnificent that it cannot be described, twice as good as the royal palace. The archer opened his box and around the castle there appeared a garden with rare trees and flowers. The archer was sitting at the open window, feasting his eyes upon his garden, when suddenly a dove flew in at the window, struck the floor, and turned into his young wife. They embraced, greeted and questioned each other, and told their tales. The archer’s wife said to him: “Since you left home I have been flying in forests and groves as a blue dove.”

  Next morning the king went out on the balcony, looked at the blue sea, and saw a new castle on the seashore; and around the castle there was a green garden. “What insolent man has dared to build a castle on my land without my permission?” he asked. Messengers ran, made inquiries, and reported that the castle had been built by the archer, that he himself was living in it, and that his wife was with him. The king became even more enraged, ordered an army to be assembled and sent to the seashore, the garden to be cut down, the castle to be destroyed, and the archer and his wife to be put to a cruel death. The archer saw that a strong royal army was marching on him; he quickly seized his ax, and—rap-tap!—a ship was ready. He struck a hundred times and made a hundred ships. Then he took out his horn, blew once, and infantry came out; he blew again, and cavalry galloped out. The commanders of the regiments and the captains of the ships ran up to him and took his orders. The archer bade them begin the battle. At once the music thundered, the drums beat, the regiments moved forward; the infantry broke the ranks of the royal soldiers, the cavalry gave them chase and took them captive, and the guns from the ships kept firing at the capital. The king saw that his army was fleeing; he rushed forward to stop his troops, but to no avail. Less than half an hour later he himself was slain. When the battle was over, the people assembled and asked the archer to rule the whole kingdom. He consented, became king, and his wife became the queen.

  THE WISE WIFE

  IN A CERTAIN KINGDOM, in a certain land, in a little village, there lived an old man and his old wife; they had three sons, two clever ones and a simple one. The time came for the old man to die, and he divided his money. He gave the eldest son a hundred rubles and the middle son a hundred rubles, but did not want to give anything to the simpleton, who, he thought, would lose the money anyhow. “But father,” said the simpleton, “all the children are equal, whether they be wise or foolish; give me a share too.” So the old man gave him a hundred rubles too. The father died and his sons buried him. Now the clever brothers set out to buy oxen at the market; the simpleton went there too. The clever ones bought oxen but the simpleton brought back a cat and a dog. Several days later the older brothers harnessed their oxen and m
ade ready to take to the road; seeing them do this, the youngest brother also prepared to go. “What are you doing, simpleton?” they asked. “Why do you want to go? So that people can laugh at you?” “That’s my business!” the simple brother replied. “The roads are open to the wise and they are not closed to the foolish!”

  The simpleton took his dog and his cat, slung a bag over his shoulder, and left the house. He walked and walked, till he came to a big river; he had not a penny to pay at the ferry. The simpleton did not stop to think very long; he gathered dry branches, made a hut on the shore, and started to live in it. His dog began to hunt all around the neighborhood; it stole crusts of bread, took care of itself, and fed its master and the cat as well. One day a ship laden with all kinds of merchandise sailed down the river. The simpleton saw it and cried: “Hey, Mr. Shipmaster! You are sailing to trade; take my merchandise too and share half-and-half with me.” And he threw his cat on board the ship. “What do we need this beast for?” said the shipworkers, laughing. “Come on, boys, let’s drop it into the water.” “Look here, you,” said the shipmaster, “don’t touch that cat! Let it hunt rats and mice aboard ship.” “Why not?” said they. “It’s a bargain!”

  After some time, a long time or a short time, the ship came to a foreign land where no one had ever even seen cats, and there were as many rats and mice running about there as blades of grass in the fields. The shipmaster displayed his merchandise and began to sell it. A merchant became interested, bought the whole cargo, and said to the shipmaster: “Now we must wet our bargain. Come with me, I will treat you.” He brought the guest to his home, got him drunk, and ordered some clerks to take him to the barn, saying: “Let the rats devour him—then we will get all his wealth for nothing.” They took the shipmaster to a dark barn and threw him on the ground. But his cat had followed him all along, having become so fond of him that it would not move a step away from him. It wriggled into the barn and fell to strangling the rats. It strangled a huge number of them. Next morning the host came and saw that the shipmaster was safe and sound and that the cat was finishing the last of the rats. “Sell me your beast,” he said. “Buy it!” They bargained and bargained, and finally the merchant bought the cat for six barrels of gold.

  The shipmaster returned to his own country, found the simpleton, and gave him three barrels of gold. “This is a lot of gold! What shall I do with it?” wondered the simpleton, and went through towns and villages dividing it among the poor. He distributed two barrels, but with the third he bought incense, piled it up in the open field, and lighted it: the sweet smoke went up to God in heaven. Suddenly an angel appeared, saying: “The Lord has commanded me to ask you what you wish.” “I do not know,” answered the simpleton. “Well, go over there. Three peasants are plowing the land; ask them and they will tell you.” The simpleton took his stick and went to where the plowmen were working. He approached the first. “Greetings, old man!” he said. “Greetings, good fellow!” “Tell me what I should ask of the Lord.” “How should I know what you want?” The simpleton did not stop to think very long; he struck the old man with his stick, right on the head, and killed him.

  He approached the second plowman and asked again: “Tell me, old man, what should I ask of the Lord?” “How should I know?” the man said. The simpleton struck him with his stick without even giving him time to gasp. He came to the third plowman and said: “Now you tell me, old man.” The old man answered: “If you should get wealth, you might forget about God; so you had better ask for a wise wife.” The simpleton returned to the angel, who asked: “Well, what have you been told?” “I was told to ask not for wealth, but for a wise wife.” “Very well,” said the angel. “Go to such and such a river, sit on the bridge, and look into the water. All kinds of fish will pass by you, big and small. Among these fish there will be a little perch with a golden ring. Snatch this fish and throw it behind you on the damp earth.”

  The simpleton did as he was told; he came to the river, sat on the bridge, and stared into the water. All kinds of fish swam by him, big and small, and then came the perch with a golden ring on it. He snatched it at once and threw it behind him on the damp earth, and the little fish turned into a lovely maiden. “Good day, dear friend!” she said to him. They took each other by the hand and went on their way; they walked and walked, the sun began to set, and they stopped to spend the night in the open field. The simpleton fell sound asleep, and the lovely maiden cried out in a high voice. Straightway twelve workers appeared. “Build me a rich palace with a golden roof!” the maiden ordered. In a trice the palace was ready, with mirrors and pictures and everything that could be desired. They had gone to sleep in the open field and awoke in splendid chambers. The king himself beheld the palace with the golden roof, was astonished, summoned the simpleton, and said: “Only yesterday this place was empty, and now a palace stands there! You must be a sorcerer!” “No, Your Majesty! Everything was done by God’s command!” “Well, since you could build a palace in one night, you must build a bridge from your palace to my own, with one arch of silver and the other of gold—and if you have not built it by tomorrow, by my sword your head shall fall!”

  The simpleton went away weeping. His wife met him at their door. “Why do you weep?” she asked. “How can I help weeping? The king has commanded me to build a bridge, with one arch of gold and the other of silver; and if it is not ready by tomorrow, he will cut off my head!” “Do not worry, my soul! Go to sleep; the morning is wiser than the evening!” The simpleton lay down and fell asleep. When he arose the next morning, everything was done; the bridge was so beautiful that you could not feast your eyes enough on it! The king summoned the simpleton and said: “You have done well! Now, in one night, make apple trees grow on both sides of the bridge, and make ripe apples hang on them, and let birds of paradise sing in them and strange kittens from foreign lands mew underneath them; and if all is not ready tomorrow, by my sword your head shall fall!”

  The simpleton went away weeping; his wife met him at their door. “Why do you weep, my soul?” she asked. “How can I help weeping? The king has commanded me to make apple trees grow on both sides of the bridge, with ripe apples hanging on them, birds of paradise singing in them, and strange kittens mewing beneath them; if all this is not done by tomorrow, he will cut off my head.” “Do not worry, go to sleep; the morning is wiser than the evening.” Next morning, when the simpleton arose, everything was done: the apples were ripe, the birds were singing, and the kittens were mewing. The simpleton picked some of the apples and brought them to the king on a dish. The king ate one apple, then another, and said: “You deserve praise! I have never yet tasted such sweetness! Well, brother, since you are so clever, go to the other world, find my deceased father, and ask him where his money is hidden. And if you do not find him, remember this—by my sword, your head shall fall!”

  Again the simpleton went away weeping. “Why do you shed tears, simpleton?” his wife asked him. “How can I help weeping? The king has bidden me go to the other world to ask his dead father where his money is hidden.” “This is not yet a misfortune! Go to the king and ask him to send with you as companions the proud men who give him such evil counsel.” The king named two boyars as the simpleton’s companions. His wife fetched a ball of thread. “Take this,” she said. “Go boldly wherever the ball rolls.”

  The ball rolled and rolled, straight into the sea; the sea parted and a way was opened; the simpleton took a few steps, and he and his companions found themselves in the other world. He looked around and saw that devils had harnessed a load of wood to the king’s dead father and were prodding him with iron rods. “Stop!” cried the simpleton. The devils raised their horned heads and asked: “And what do you want?” “I must have a word or two with that dead man whom you have harnessed to a load of wood.” “What an idea! As though there were time to talk! The fire in our hell might go out!” “Fear not, you will get there on time; take these two boyars in his place, they will move the wood even faster!” The de
vils quickly unharnessed the dead king, harnessed the two boyars in his place, and drove them to hell with the wood. The simpleton said to the king’s father: “Your son, our sovereign, sent me to ask Your Grace where the old treasure is hidden.” “The treasure lies in deep cellars behind the stone wall; but virtue is not in them. Tell my son this: if he rules the kingdom with as little truth as I did, the same thing will happen to him as happened to me! You can see for yourself how the devils have tormented me, how they have whipped my back and sides to the very bone. Take this ring and give it to my son for added proof.” Just as the king said these words, the devils came back. “Ho-ho!” they said. “This is a fine pair! Let us drive them once more!” The boyars cried to the simpleton: “Have pity on us, do not give us over to the devils, take us back while we are still alive!” The devils unharnessed them and the boyars returned with the simpleton to the white world.

  They came to the king. He beheld the boyars and was horrified by their appearance: their faces were hollow, their eyes were staring, and iron rods protruded from their sides. “What happened to you?” the king asked. The simpleton answered: “We were in the other world; I saw that the devils had harnessed your deceased father to a load of wood, so I stopped them and gave them these two boyars to replace him. While I spoke with your father, the devils used them to cart wood.” “And what is my father’s message?” “He told me to say that if Your Majesty rules the kingdom with as little truth as he did, the same thing will happen to you as happened to him. And he sent you this ring for an added proof.” “This is not what I want to know! Where is the treasure hidden?” “The treasure is in deep cellars behind the stone wall.” Straightway a whole company of soldiers was called and they began to break down the stone wall; they broke it, and behind the wall they found barrels of silver and gold—a treasure beyond counting! “Thank you, brother, for your service,” said the king to the simpleton. “Only do not be angry with me. Since you were able to go to the other world, get for me the self-playing gusla; and if you do not get it, by my sword your head shall fall!”

 

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