 Introduction to Old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom. Reading by Andy Minter. Old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom. The stories in this book are those that Russian peasants tell their children and each other. In Russia hardly anybody is too old for fairy stories, and I have even heard soldiers on their way to the war talking of very wise and very beautiful princesses as they drank their tea by the side of the road. I think there must be more fairy stories told in Russia than anywhere else in the world. In this book are a few of those I like best. I have taken my own way with them, more or less writing them mostly from memory. They, or versions like them, are to be found in the coloured chat-books in Afanasyev's great collection or in solemn, serious volumes of folklorists writing for the learned. My book is not for the learned or indeed for grown-up people at all. No people who really like fairy stories ever grow up altogether. This is a book written far away in Russia for English children who play in deep lanes with wild roses above them in the high hedges or by the small singing becks that dance down the grey fells at home. Russian fairyland is quite different. Under my windows the wavelets of the Volkov, which has its part in one of the stories, are beating quietly in the dusk. A gold light burns on a timber raft floating down the river. Beyond the river, in the blue mid-summer twilight, are the broad Russian plain and the distant forest. Somewhere in that forest of great trees, a forest so big that the forests of England or little woods beside it, is the hut where old Peter sits at night and tells these stories to his grandchildren. Arthur Ansem. Bergeitsa. The hut in the forest. Outside in the forest there was deep snow. The white snow had crusted the branches of the pine trees and piled itself up them till they bent under its weight. Now and then a snow-laden branch would bend too far and huge lumps of snow fell crashing to the ground under the trees. Then the branch would swing up and the snow covered it again with a cold white burden. Sitting in the hut you could hear the crashing again and again out in the forest as the tired branches flung down their loads of snow. Yes, and now and then there was the howling of wolves far away. Little Marusha heard them and thought of them out there in the dark as they galloped over the snow. She sat closer to Vanya, her brother, and they were both as near as they could get to the door of the stove where they could see the red fire burning busily, keeping the whole hut warm. The stove filled a quarter of the hut, but that was because it was a bed as well. There were blankets on it and in those blankets Vanya and Marusha rolled up and went to sleep at night as warm as little baking cakes. The hut was made of pine logs cut from the forest. You could see the marks of the axe. Old Peter was the grandfather of Marusha and Vanya. He lived alone with them in the hut in the forest because their father and mother were both dead. Marusha and Vanya could hardly remember them, and they were very happy with Old Peter, who was very kind to them, and did all he could to keep them warm and well fed. He let them help him in everything, even in stuffing the windows with moss to keep the cold out when the winter began. The moss kept the light out too, but that did not matter. It would be all the jollier in the spring when the sun came pouring in. Beside Old Peter and Marusha and Vanya, there were Vladimir and Bayan. Vladimir was a cat, a big black cat, as stately as an emperor, and just now he was lying in Vanya's arms fast asleep. Bayan was a dog, a tall grey wolf dog. He could jump over the table with a single bound. When he was in the hut, he usually lay underneath the table, because that was the only place where he could lie without being in the way. And of course at mealtimes he was in the way even then. Just now he was out with Old Peter. I wonder what story it will be to-night, said Marusha. So do I, said Vanya. I wish they'd be quick and come back. Vladimir stirred suddenly in Vanya's lap, and a minute later they heard the scrunch of boots in the snow and the stamping of Old Peter's feet trying to get the snow off his boots. Then the door opened, and Bayan pushed his way in and shook himself, and licked Marusha and Vanya and startled Vladimir, and lay down under the table, and came out again because he was so pleased to be home. An old Peter came in after him with his gun on his back and a hair in his hand. He shook himself just like Bayan, and the snow flew off like spray. He hung up his gun, flung the hair into the corner of the hut, and laughed. You snag in here, little pigeons, he said. Vanya and Marusha had jumped up to welcome him, and when he opened his big sheepskin coat they tumbled into it together and clung to his belt. Then he closed the big woolly coat over the top of them, and they squealed, and he opened it a little way and looked down at them over his beard, and then closed it again for a moment before letting them out. He did this every night, and Bayan always barked when they were shut up inside. Then old Peter took his big coat off, and lifted down the Samovar from the shelf. The Samovar is like a big tea urn, with a red hot fire in the middle of it, keeping the water boiling. It hums like a bee on the tea-table, and the steam rises in a little jet from a tiny hole in the top. The boiling water comes out of a tap at the bottom. Old Peter threw in the lighted sticks and charcoal, and made a draft to draw the heat, and then set the Samovar on the table, with the little fire crackling in its inside. Then he cut some big lumps of black bread. Then he took a great saucepan full of soup that was simmering on the stove, and emptied it into a big wooden bowl. Then he went to the wall, where on three nails hung three wooden spoons, deep like ladles. There were one big spoon for old Peter, and two little spoons, one for Vanya, and one for Marusha. And all the time that old Peter was getting supper ready, he was answering questions and making jokes. Old ones, of course, that he made every day, about how plump the children were, and how fat was better to eat than butter, and what the man in the moon said when he fell out, and what the wolf said who caught his own tail, and ate himself up before he found out his mistake. And Vanya and Marusha danced about the hut and chuckled. Then they had supper, all three dipping their wooden spoons in the big bowl together, and eating a tremendous lot of black bread. And of course there were scraps for Vladimir, and a bone for Bayan. After that they had tea with sugar, but no milk, because they were Russians, and liked it that way. Then came the stories. Old Peter made another glass of tea for himself, not for the children. His throat was old, he said, and took a lot of keeping wet, and they were young, and would not sleep if they drank tea too near bedtime. Then he threw a log of wood into the stove. Then he lit a short little pipe full of very strong tobacco, called Machokka, which has a smell like hot tin. And he puffed, and the smoke got in his eyes, and he wiped them with the back of his big hand. All the time he was doing this, Vanya and Marusha were snuggling together close by the stove, thinking what story they would ask for, and listening to the crashing of the snow as it fell from the trees outside. Now that Old Peter was at home, the noise made them feel comfortable and warm. Before, perhaps, it made them feel a little frightened. Well, little pigeons, little hawks, little bear-cubs, what is it to be? said Old Peter. We don't know, said Marusha. Long hair, short sense, little she-pigeon, said Old Peter, all this time, and not thought of a story. Would you like the tale of the little snow-girl who was not loved so much as a hen? Not to-night, grandfather, said Vanya. We'd like that tale when the snow melts, said Marusha. To-night we'd like a story we've never heard before, said Vanya. Very well, said Old Peter, combing his great grey beard with his fingers, and looking out at them with twinkling eyes from under his big, bushy eyebrows. Have I ever told you the story of the silver saucer and the transparent apple? No, never, cried Vanya and Marusha at once. Old Peter took a last pull at his pipe, and Vanya and Marusha wriggled with excitement. Then he drank a sip of tea, and then he began. End of The Hut in the Forest. The tale of the silver saucer and the transparent apple of Old Peter's Russian tales. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Jenny Lundack. Old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom. The tale of the silver saucer and the transparent apple. There once was an old peasant, and he must have had more brains under his hair than ever I had, for he was a merchant and used to take things every year to sell at the big fair of Ninjni Navgarod. Well, I could never do that. I could never be anything better than an old forester. Never mind, grandfather, said Marusha. God knows best, and he makes some merchants and some foresters and some good and some bad, all in his own way. Anyhow, this one was a merchant, and he had three daughters. They were none of them so bad to look at. But one of them was as pretty as Marusha, and she was the best of them two. The others put all the hard work on her while they did nothing but look at themselves in the looking-glass and complain of what they had to eat. They called the pretty one little stupid, because she was so good and did all their work for them. Oh, they were real bad ones, those two. We wouldn't have them in here for a minute. Well, the time came round for the merchant to pack up and go to the big fair. He called his daughters and said, Little pigeons, just as I say to you, little pigeons, says he, What would you like me to bring you from the fair? says the eldest. I'd like a necklace, but it must be a rich one, says the second. I want a new dress with gold hems. But the youngest, the good one little stupid, said nothing at all. Now, little one, says her father. What is it you want? I must bring something for you, too, says the little one. Could I have a silver saucer and a transparent apple? But never mind if there are none, the old merchant says. Long hair, short sense, just as I say to Marusha. But he promised the little pretty one, who was so good that her sisters called her stupid. That if he could get her a silver saucer and a transparent apple, she should have them. Then they all kissed each other and he cracked his whip, and off he went with the little bells jingling on the horse's harness. The three sisters waited till he came back. The two older ones looked in the looking-glass and thought how fine they would look in the new necklace and the new dress. But the little pretty one took care of her old mother and scrubbed and dusted and swept and cooked, and every day the other two said that the soup was burnt or the bread not properly baked. Then one day there were a jingling of bells and a clattering of horse's hooves, and the old merchant came driving back from the fair. The sisters ran out. Where is the necklace? asked the first. You haven't forgotten the dress, asked the second. But the little one, little stupid, helped her old father off with his coat and asked him if he was tired. Well, little one, says the old merchant, and don't you want your fairing, too? I went from one end of the market to the other before I could get what you wanted. I bought the silver saucer from an old Jew and the transparent apple from a Finnish hag. Oh, thank you, father, says the little one, and what will you do with them, says he. I shall spin the apple in the saucer, says the pretty little one, and at that the old merchant burst out laughing. They don't call you little stupid for nothing, says he. Well, they all had their fairings and the two elder sisters, the bad ones. They ran off and put on the new dress and the new necklace and came out and strutted about, preening themselves like herons, now on one leg and now on the other, to see how they looked. But, little stupid, she just sat herself down beside the stove and took the transparent apple and set it in the silver saucer, and she laughed softly to herself and then she began spinning the apple in the saucer. Round and round the apple spun in the saucer, faster and faster till you couldn't see the apple at all. Nothing but a mist like a little whirlpool in the silver saucer and the little good one looked at it and her eyes shone like yours. Her sisters laughed at her. Spinning an apple in a saucer and staring at it. The little stupid, they said as they strutted about the room, listening to the rustle of the new dress and fingering the bright round stones of the necklace. But the pretty little one did not mind them. She sat in the corner watching the spinning apple and as it spun she talked to it. Spin, spin, apple in the silver saucer. This is what she said. Spin, so that I may see the world. Let me have a peep at the little father Tsar on his high throne. Let me see the rivers and the ships and the great towns far away. And as she looked at the little glass whirlpool in the saucer, there was the Tsar, the little father. God preserve him. Sitting on his high throne, they sailed on the seas their white sails swelling in the wind. There was Moscow with its white stone walls and painted church. Why, there were the market at Ninjni, Navgarod, and the Arab merchants and their camels, and the Chinese with their blue trousers and bamboo staves. And then there was the great river Volga with men on the bank's towing ships against the stream. Yes, and she saw a sturgeon asleep in a deep pool. Oh, oh, says the pretty little one as she saw all these things and the bad ones. They saw how her eyes shone and they came and looked over her shoulder and saw how all the world was there in the spinning apple and the silver saucer and the old father came and looked over her shoulder too and he saw the market at Ninjni, Navgarod. Why, there is the inn where I put up the horses, said he. You haven't done so badly after all, little stupid. And the pretty little one, little stupid, went on staring into the glass whirlpool in the saucer, spinning the apple and seeing all the world she had never seen before. Floating there before her in the saucer, brighter than leaves in the sunlight. The bad ones, the elder sisters, were sick with envy. Little stupid, says the first. If you will give me your silver saucer and your transparent apple, I will give you my fine new necklace. Little stupid, says the second. I will give you my new dress with gold hems if you will give me your transparent apple and your silver saucer. Oh, I couldn't do that, says the little stupid. And she goes on spinning the apple in the saucer and seeing what was happening all over the world. So the bad ones put their wicked heads together and thought of a plan and they took their father's axe and went into the deep forest and hid it under a bush. The next day they waited till afternoon when work was done and the pretty little one was spinning her apple in the saucer. Then they said, Come along, little stupid, we are going to gather berries in the forest. Do you really want me to come too? says the little one. She would rather have played with her apple and saucer. But they said, Why, of course, you don't think we can carry all the berries ourselves. So the little one jumped up and found the baskets and went with them to the forest. But before she started she ran to her father who was counting his money and was not too pleased to be interrupted or figures go quickly out of your head when you have a lot of them to remember. She asked him to take care of the silver saucer and the transparent apple for fear she would lose them in the forest. Very well, little bird, says the old man, and he put the things in a box with a lock and key to it. He was a merchant, you know, and that sort are always careful about things and go clattering about with a lot of keys at their belt. I have nothing to lock up and never had and perhaps it is just as well, for I could never be bothered with keys. So the little one picks up all three baskets and runs off after the others, the bad ones, with black hearts under their necklaces and new dresses. They went deep into the forest, picking berries and the little one picked so fast that she soon had a basketful. She was picking and picking and did not see what the bad ones were doing. They were fetching the axe. The little one stood up to straighten her back which ached after so much stooping and she saw her two sisters standing in front of her, looking at her cruelly. Their baskets lay on the ground quite empty. They had not picked a berry. The eldest had the axe in her hand. The little one was frightened. What is it, sisters, says she, and why do you look at me with cruel eyes and what is the axe for? You are not going to cut berries with an axe. No, little stupid, says the first. We are not going to cut berries with the axe. No, little stupid, says the second. The axe is here for something else. The little one begged them not to frighten her, says the first. Give me your transparent apple, says the second. Give me your silver saucer. If you won't give them up at once, we shall kill you. That is what the bad ones said. The poor little ones begged them. Oh, darling sisters, do not kill me. I haven't got the saucer or the apple with me at all. What a lie, say the bad ones. You never would leave it behind. And one caught her by the hair and the other swung the axe and between them they killed the little pretty one who was called little stupid because she was so good. Then they looked for the saucer and the apple and could not find them. But it was too late now. So they made a hole in the ground and buried the little one under a birch tree. The sun went down. The bad ones came home and they wailed with false voices and rubbed their eyes to make the tears come. They made their eyes red and their noses too and they did not look any prettier for that. What is the matter with you little pigeons? says the old merchant and his wife. I would not say little pigeons to such bad ones. Black-hearted crows is what I would call them. And they wail and lament aloud. We are miserable forever. Our poor little sister is lost. We looked for her everywhere. We heard the wolves howling. They must have eaten her. The old mother and father cried like rivers in springtime because they loved the little pretty one who was called little stupid because she was so good. But before their tears were dry the bad ones began to ask for the silver saucer and the transparent apple. No, no, says the old man. I shall keep them forever in memory of my poor little daughter whom God has taken away. So the bad ones did not gain by killing their little sister. That is one good thing, said Vanya. But is that all, Grandfather? said Marusha. Wait a bit, little pigeons. Too much haste set his shoes on fire. You listen and you will hear what happened, said old Peter. He took a pinch of snuff from a little wooden box and then he went on with his tail. Time did not stop with the death of the little girl. Winter came and the snow with it. Everything was all white just as it is now and the wolves came to the doors of the huts even into the villages and no one stirred farther than he need and then the snow melted and the buds broke on the trees and the birds began singing and the sun shone warmer every day. The old people had almost forgotten the little pretty one who lay dead in the forest. The bad ones had not forgotten because now they had to do the work and they did not like that at all. And then one day some lambs strayed away into the forest and a young shepherd went after them to bring them safely back to their mothers and as he wandered this way and that through the forest following their light tracks he came to a little birch tree bright with new leaves waving over a little mound of earth and there was a reed growing in the mound and that, you know as well as I, is a strange thing. One reed all by itself under a birch tree in the forest but it was no stranger than the flowers for there were flowers round it some red as the sun at dawn and others blue as the summer sky. Well, the shepherd looks at the reed and he looks at those flowers and he thinks I've never seen anything like that before I'll make a whistlepipe of that reed and keep it for a memory till I grow old so he did he cut the reed and he sat himself down on the mound and carved away at the reed with his knife and got the pith out of it by pushing a twig through it and beating it gently till the bark swelled made holes in it and there was his whistlepipe and then he put it to his lips to see what sort of music he could make on it but that he never knew for before his lips touched it the whistlepipe began playing by itself and reciting in a girl's sweet voice this is what it's saying play, play whistlepipe bring happiness to my dear father and to my little mother I was killed yes, my life was taken from me in the deep forest for the sake of a silver saucer for the sake of a transparent apple when he heard that the shepherd went back quickly to the village to show it to the people and all the way the whistlepipe went on playing and reciting singing its little song and everyone who heard it said what a strange song but who is it? who was killed? I know nothing about it says the shepherd and he tells them about the mound and the reed and the flowers and how he cut the reed and made the whistlepipe and how the whistlepipe does its playing by itself and as he was going through the village with all the people crowding about him the old merchant that one who was the father of the two bad ones and of the little pretty one came along and listened with the rest and when he heard the words about the silver saucer and the transparent apple he snatched the whistlepipe from the shepherd boy and still it sang play, play whistlepipe bring happiness to my dear father and to my little mother I was killed yes, my life was taken from me in the deep forest for the sake of a silver saucer for the sake of a transparent apple and the old merchant remembered the little good one and his tears trickled over his cheeks and down his old beard old men love little pigeons you know and he said to the shepherd take me at once to the mound where you say you cut the reed the shepherd led the way and the old man walked beside him crying while the whistlepipe in his hand went on singing and reciting its little song over and over again they came to the mound under the birch tree and there were the flowers shining red and blue and there in the middle of the mound was the stump of the reed which the shepherd had cut the whistlepipe sang on and on well there and then dug up the mound and there was the little girl lying under the dark earth as if she were asleep oh, God of mine says the old merchant this is my daughter my little pretty one whom we called little stupid he began to weep loudly and wring his hands but the whistlepipe playing and reciting changed its song this is what it sang my sisters took me into the forest to look for the red berries in the deep forest they killed poor me for the sake of a silver saucer for the sake of a transparent apple wake me, dear father from the up-bitter dream by fetching water from the well of the Tsar how the people scowled at the two sisters they scowled they cursed them for the bad ones they were and the bad ones the two sisters wept and fell on their knees and confessed everything they were taken and their hands were tied and they were shut up in prison do not kill them beg the old merchant for then I should have no daughters at all and when there are no fish in the river we make shift with craze besides let me go to the Tsar and beg water from his well perhaps my little daughter will wake up as the whistlepipe tells us and the whistlepipe sang again wake me, wake me, dear father from a bitter dream by fetching water from the well of the Tsar till then, dear father a blanket of black earth and the shade of the green birch tree though they covered the little girl with her blanket of earth and the shepherd with his dogs watched the mound night and day he begged for the whistlepipe to keep him company poor lad and all the days and nights he thought of the sweet face of the little pretty one he had seen there under the birch tree the old merchant the merchant harnessed his horse as if he were going to the town and he drove off through the forest along the roads till he came to the palace of the Tsar the little father of all good Russians and then he left his horse and cart and waited on the steps of the palace the Tsar, the little father with rings on his fingers and a gold crown on his head out on the steps in the morning sunshine and as for the merchant he fell on his knees and kissed the feet of the Tsar and begged oh little father, Tsar give me leave to take water just a little drop of water from your holy well and what will you do with it? says the Tsar I will wake my daughter from a bitter dream says the old merchant she was murdered by her sisters killed in the deep forest for the sake of a silver saucer for the sake of a transparent apple a silver saucer says the Tsar a transparent apple tell me about that and the old merchant told the Tsar everything just as I have told it to you and the Tsar, the little father he gave the old merchant a glass of water from his holy well but says he when your daughter can wakes bring her to me and her sisters with her and also the silver saucer and the transparent apple the old man kissed the ground before the Tsar and took the glass of water and drove home with it and I can tell you he was careful not to spill a drop he carried it all the way in one hand as he drove he came to the forest and to the flowering mound under the little birch tree and there was the shepherd watching with his dogs the old merchant and the shepherd took away the blanket of black earth tenderly, tenderly the shepherd used his fingers until the little girl the pretty one the good one lay there as sweet as if she were not dead then the merchant scattered the holy water from the glass over the little girl and his daughter can blushed as she lay there and opened her eyes and passed a hand across them as if she were waking from a dream and then she leapt up crying and laughing and clung about her old father's neck and there they stood the two of them laughing and crying with joy and the shepherd could not take his eyes from her and in his eyes too there were tears but the old father did not forget what he had promised the Tsar he set the little pretty one who had been so good that her wicked sisters had called her stupid to sit beside him on the cart and he brought something from the house in a coffer of wood and kept it under his coat and they brought out the two sisters the bad ones from their dark prison and set them in the cart and the little stupid kissed them and cried over them and wanted to lose their hands but the old merchant would not let her and they all drove together till they came to the palace of the Tsar the shepherd boy could not take his eyes from the little pretty one and he ran all the way behind the cart well, they came to the palace and waited on the steps and the Tsar came out to take the morning air and he saw the old merchant and the two sisters with their hands tied and the little pretty one as lovely as a spring day and the Tsar saw her and could not take his eyes from her he did not see the shepherd boy who hid away among the crowd says the great Tsar to his soldiers pointing to the bad sisters these two are to be put to death at sunset when the sun goes down their heads must come off for they are not fit to see another day then he turns to the little pretty one and he says little sweet pigeon where is your silver saucer and where is your transparent apple the old merchant took the wooden box from under his coat and opened it with a key at his belt and gave it to the little one and she took out the silver saucer and the transparent apple and gave them to the Tsar oh Lord Tsar says she oh little father spin the apple in the saucer and you will see whatever you wish to see your soldiers your high hills your forests your plains your rivers and everything in all Russia and the Tsar the little fathers spun the apple in the saucer till it seemed a little whirlpool of white mist and there he saw glittering towns and regiments of soldiers marching to war and ships and day and night and the clear stars above the trees he looked at these things and thought much of them then the little good one threw herself on her knees before him weeping oh little father Tsar she says take my transparent apple and my silver saucer only forgive my sisters do not kill them because of me if their heads are cut off when the sun goes down it would have been better for me to lie under the blanket of black earth in the shade of the birch tree in the forest the Tsar was pleased with the kind heart of the little pretty one and he forgave the bad ones and their hands were untied and the little pretty one kissed them and they kissed her again and said they were sorry the old merchant looked up at the sun and saw how the time was going well well says he we were getting ready to go home they all fell on their knees before the Tsar and thanked him but the Tsar could not take his eyes from the little pretty one and would not let her go little sweet pigeon says he will you be my Tsaritsa and a kind mother to holy Russia and the little good one did not know what to say she blushed and answered very rightly as my father orders and as my little mother wishes so it shall be the Tsar was pleased with her answer and he sent a messenger on a galloping horse to ask leave from the little pretty ones all the mother and of course the old mother said that she was more than willing so that was all right then there was a wedding such a wedding and every city in Russia sent a silver plate of bread and a golden salt cellar with their good wishes to the Tsar and Tsaritsa only the shepherd boy when he heard that the little pretty one was to marry the Tsar turned sadly away and went off into the forest are you happy little sweet pigeon says the Tsar oh yes says the little stupid who was now Tsaritsa and mother of holy Russia but there is one thing that would make me happier and what is that says the Lord Tsar I cannot bear to lose my old father and my little mother and my dear sisters let them be with me here in the palace as they were in my father's house the Tsar laughed at the little pretty one but he agreed that the little pretty one ran to tell them the good news she said to her sisters let all be forgotten and all be forgiven and may the evil eye fall on the one who first speaks of what has been for a long time the Tsar lived and the little pretty one the Tsaritsa and they had many children and were very happy together and ever since then the Tsars of Russia have kept the silver saucer and the transparent apple so that whenever they wish they can see everything that is going on all over Russia perhaps even now the Tsar, the little father God preserve him is spinning the apple in the saucer and looking at us and thinking it is time that two little pigeons were in bed is that the end? said Vanya that is the end said old Peter poor shepherd boy said Marusha I don't know about that said old Peter you see if he had married the little pretty one and had to have all the family to live with him he would have had them in a hut like ours instead of in a great palace he had room to get away from them and now little pigeons who is going to be the first into bed end of the tale of the silver saucer and the transparent apple recording by Jenny Lundak South Padre Island, Texas chapter 2 of old Peter's Russian Tales this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Jenny Lundak old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom chapter 2 in Navgarod in the old days there was a young man just a boy he was the son of a rich merchant who had lost all his money so Sadko was very poor he had not a copek in the world except what people gave him when he played his dulcimer for their dancing he had blue eyes and curling hair and he was strong and would have been merry but it is dull work playing for other folk to dance and Sadko dared not dance with any young girl for he had no money to marry on to be chased away as a beggar and the young women of Navgarod they never looked at handsome Sadko no they smiled with their bright eyes at the young men who danced with them and if they ever spoke to Sadko it was just to tell him sharply to keep the music going or to play faster so Sadko lived alone with his dulcimer and made do with have a loaf a hole and with a crust when he had no crumb he did not mind so very much what came to him so long as he could play his dulcimer and walk along the banks of the little river Volkov that flows by Navgarod or on the shores of the lake making music for himself and seeing the pale mist rise over the water and the dawn or the sunset across the shining river now I must note the Volkov would be a big river if it were in England and Sadko and old Peter only called it little because they loved it there is no girl in all Navgarod as pretty as my little river he used to say and night after night he would sit by the banks of the river or on the shores of the lake playing the dulcimer and singing to himself sometimes he helped the fisherman on the lake and they would give him a little fish for his supper in payment for his strong young arms and it happened that one evening the fisherman asked him to watch their nets for them on the shore while they went off to take their fish to sell them in the square at Navgarod Sadko sat on the shore on a rock and played his dulcimer and sang very sweetly he sang the lake and the lovely river the little river that he thought prettier than all the girls of Navgarod and while he was singing he saw a whirlpool in the lake little waves flying from it across the water and in the middle a hollow down into the water and in the hollow he saw the head of a great man with blue hair and a gold crown he knew that huge man was the czar of the sea and the man came nearer walking up out of the depths of the lake a huge great man a very giant with blue hair falling to his waist over his broad shoulders the little waves ran from him in all directions as he came striding up out of the water Sadko did not know whether to run or stay but the czar of the sea called out to him in a great voice like wind and water in storm Sadko of Navgarod you have played and sung many days by the side of this lake and on the banks of the little river Volkov my daughters love your music and it has pleased me too throw out a net into the water and try it in and the waters will pay you for your singing and if you are satisfied with the payment you must come and play to us down in the green palace of the sea with that the czar of the sea went down again into the waters of the lake the waves closed over him with a roar and presently the lake was as smooth and calm as it had ever been Sadko thought and said to himself well there is no harm done in casting out a net and so he threw a net out into the lake he sat down again played on his dulcimer and sang and when he had finished his singing the dusk had fallen and the moon shone out over the lake he put down his dulcimer and took hold of the ropes of the net and began to draw it up out of the silver water easily the ropes came and the net dripping and glittering in the moonlight I was dreaming Sadko I was asleep when I saw the czar of the sea and there is nothing in the net at all and then just as the last of the net was coming ashore he saw something in it square and dark he dragged it out and found it was a coffer he opened the coffer and it was full of precious stones green, red, gold gleaming in the light of the moon diamonds shone there like little bundles of sharp knives there can be no harm in taking these stones, says Sadko whether I dreamed or not he took the coffer on his shoulder and bent under the weight of it strong though he was he put it in a safe place all night he sat and watched by the nets and played and sang and planned what he would do in the morning the fisherman came and married after their night in Navgarod and they gave him a little fish for watching the nets and he made a fire on the shore and cooked it and ate it as he used to do and that is my last meal as a poor man, says Sadko ah me who knows if I shall be happier then he set the coffer on his shoulders and tramped away for Navgarod who is that they ask at the gates only Sadko the dulcimer player he replied turned porter said they one trade is as good as another said Sadko and he walked into the city he sold a few of the stones two at a time and with what he got for them he set up a booth in the market small things led to great and he was soon one of the richest traders in Navgarod and now there was not a girl in the town who could look too sweetly at Sadko he has golden hair said one blue eyes like the sea says another he could lift the world on his shoulders says a third a little money you see opens everybody's eyes but Sadko was not changed by his good fortune still he walked and played by the little river Volkov when work was done and the traders gone Sadko would take his dulcimer and play and sing on the banks of the river and still he said there is no girl in all of Navgarod as pretty as my little river every time he came back from his long voyages for he was trading far and near like the greatest of merchants he went at once to the banks of the river to see how his sweetheart fared and always he brought some little present for her and threw it into the waves for twelve years he lived unmarried in Navgarod and every year made voyages buying and selling and always growing richer and richer many were the mothers in Navgarod who would have liked to see him married many were the pillows that were wet with the tears of the young girls as they thought of the blue eyes of Sadko and his golden hair and then in the twelve years since he walked into Navgarod with the coffer on his shoulder he was sailing in a ship on the Caspian Sea far far away for many days the ship sailed on and Sadko sat on the deck and played his dulcimer and sang of Navgarod and of the little river Volkov that flows under the walls of the town blue was the Caspian Sea and the waves were like furrows in the field long lines of white under the steady wind while the sails swelled and the ship shot over the water and suddenly the ship stopped in the middle of the sea from land the ship stopped and trembled in the waves as if she were held by a big hand we are a ground cried the sailors and the captain the great one tells them to take the soundings seventy fathoms by the bow it was and seventy fathoms by the stern we are not the ground as says the captain unless there is a rock sticking up like a needle in the middle of the Caspian Sea there is magic in this say the sailors hoist more sails says the captain and up go the white sails swelling out in the wind while the mass bend and creak but still the ship lay shivering and did not move out there in the middle of the sea hoist more sail yet says the captain and up go the white sails swelling and tugging while the mass creak and groan but still the ship lay there shivering and did not move there is an unlucky one aboard says an old sailor we must draw lots and find him and throw him overboard into the sea the sailors agreed to this and still Sadko sat and played his dulcimar and sang the sailors cut pieces of string all of a length as many as there were souls in the ship and one of those strings they cut in half then they made them into a bundle and each man plucked one string and Sadko stopped his playing for a moment to pluck a string and his was the string that had been cut in half magician sorcerer unclean one shouted the sailors not so said Sadko I remember now an old promise I made and I keep it willingly he took his dulcimar in his hand and leapt from the ship into the blue Caspian sea the waves had scarcely closed over his head before the ship shot forward again and flew over the waves like a swan's feather and came in the end safely into our harbor and what happened to Sadko here little pigeon said old Peter and he took a pinch of snuff and then he went on Sadko dropped into the waves and the waves closed over him down he sank like a pebble thrown into a pool down and down first the water was blue then green and strange fish with goggle eyes and golden fins swam around him he sank he came at last to the bottom of the sea and there on the bottom of the sea was a palace built of green wood yes all the timbers of all the ships that have been wrecked in all the seas of the world are in that palace and they are all green and cunningly fit together so that the palace is worth a ten days journey only to see it and in front of the palace Sadko saw two big cobbly sturgeons each 150 feet long lashing their tails and guarding the gates now sturgeons are the oldest of all fish and these were the oldest of all sturgeons Sadko walked between the sturgeons and the gates of the palace inside there was a great hall and the czar of the sea lay resting in the hall with his gold crown upon his head and his blue hair floating around him in the water and his great body covered with scales lying along the hall the czar of the sea filled the hall and there is room in that hall for a village this way and that in and out of the windows ah, Sadko says the czar of the sea you took what the sea gave you but you have been a long time in coming to sing in the palaces of the sea twelve years I have lain here waiting for you oh great czar forgive says Sadko sing now says the czar of the sea and his voice was like the beating of waves and Sadko played on his dulcimer and sang he sang of Navgarod and of the little river which he loved it was in his song that none of the girls of Navgarod were as pretty as the little river and there was the sound of wind over the lake in his song the sound of ripples under the prowl of a boat the sound of ripples on the shore the sound of the river flowing past the tall reeds the whispering sound of the river at night and all the time he played cunningly on the dulcimer the girls of Navgarod had never danced to so sweet a tune when in the old days Sadko played his dulcimer to earn copex and crusts of bread never had the czar of the sea heard such music I would dance said the czar of the sea and he stood up like a tall tree in the hall play on said the czar of the sea and he strode through the gates the sturgeons guarding the gates stirred the water with their tails and if the czar of the sea was huge in the hall he was huge or still when he stood outside on the bottom of the sea he grew taller and taller towering like a mountain his feet were like small hills his blue hair hung down to his waist and he was covered with green scales and he began to dance on the bottom of the sea great was that dancing the sea boiled the ships went down the waves rolled as big as houses the sea overflowed its shores the whole towns were underwater as the czar danced mightily on the bottom of the sea hither and thither rushed the waves and the very earth shook at the dancing of that tremendous czar he danced till he was tired and then he came back to the palace of the green wood and passed the sturgeons and shrank into himself and came through the gates into the hall and played on his dulcimer and sang you have played well and given me pleasure says the czar of the sea I have thirty daughters and you shall choose one and marry her and be a prince of the sea better than all maidens I love my little river says czar call and the czar of the sea laughed and threw his head back all over the hall and then there came in the thirty daughters of the czar of the sea beautiful they were lovely and graceful but twenty-nine of them passed by and czar call fingered his dulcimer and thought of his little river there came in the third and czar call cried out aloud here is the only maiden in the world as pretty as my little river says he and she looked at him with eyes that shone like stars reflected in the river her hair was dark like the river at night she laughed and her voice was like the flowing of the river and what is the name of your little river says the czar it is the little river Volkov that flows by Navgorod says czar call but your daughter is as fair as the little river I will gladly marry her if she would have me it is the strangest thing says the czar but Volkov is the name of my youngest daughter he put Sadko's hand in the hand of his youngest daughter and they kissed each other and as they kissed Sadko saw a necklace round her neck and knew it for the one he had thrown into the river as a present for his sweetheart well then come says she and she took him away to a palace of her own and showed him a coffer and in that coffer were bracelets and rings and earrings all the gifts that he had thrown into the river and Sadko laughed for joy and kissed the youngest daughter of the czar of the sea and she kissed him back oh my little river says he there is no girl in all the world but thou as pretty as my little river well they were married and the czar of the sea laughed at the wedding feast till the palace shook and the fish swam off in all directions and after the feast Sadko and his bride went off together to her palace and before they slept she kissed him very tenderly and she said oh Sadko you will not forget me you will play to me sometimes and sing I shall never lose sight of you my pretty one says he and as for music I will sing and play all the day long that says maybe says she and they fell asleep and in the middle of the night Sadko happened to turn in bed and he touched the princess with his left foot cold cold as ice in January and with that touch of cold he woke and he was lying under the walls of Nagarod with his dulcimer in his hand and one of his feet was in the little river and the moon was shining oh grandfather what happened to him after that asked Marusha there are many tales says old Peter some say he went into the town and lived on alone until he died but I think with those who say that he took his dulcimer and swam out into the middle of the river and sank under Wathur again looking for his little princess they say he found her and lives still in the green palaces of the bottom of the sea and when there is a big storm you may know that Sadko is playing on his dulcimer and singing and that the czar of the sea is dancing his tremendous dance down there on the bottom under the waves yes I expect that's what happens said Ivan he'd have found it very dull in Nagarod even though it is a big town and of Sadko recording by Jenny Lundack South Padre Island, Texas Chapter 3 Frost of Old Peter's Russian Tales this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Joan Freeman Old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom Frost the children in their little sheepskin coats and high felt boots and fur hats trudged along the forest path in the snow Vanya went first then Marusia and then Old Peter the ground was white and the snow was hard and crisp and all over the forest could be heard the crackling of the frost and as they walked Old Peter told them the story of the old woman who wanted frost to marry her daughters once upon a time there was an old man and an old woman now the old woman was the old man's second wife his first wife had died and had left him with a little daughter Martha she was called then he married again and God gave him a cross wife and with her two more daughters and they were very different from the first the old woman loved her own daughters and gave them red kissle jelly and honey too as much as they could put into their greedy little mouths but poor little Martha the eldest she got only what the others left when they were crossed they threw away what they left and then she got nothing at all the children grew older and the stepmother made Martha do all the work of the house she had to fetch the wood for the stove and light it and keep it burning she had to draw the water and wash their hands in she had to make the clothes and wash them and mend them she had to cook the dinner and clean the dishes after the others had done before having a bite for herself for all that the stepmother was never satisfied and was forever shouting at her look the kettle is in the wrong place there is dust on the floor there's a spot on that tablecloth or the spoons are not clean you stupid ugly idle hussy but Martha was not idle she worked all day long and got up before the sun while her sisters never stirred from their beds till it was time for dinner and she was not stupid she always had a song on her lips except when her stepmother had beaten her and as for being ugly she was the prettiest little girl in the village her father saw all this but he could not do anything for the old woman was mistress at home and he was terribly afraid of her and as for the daughters they saw how their mother treated Martha and they did the same they were always complaining and getting her into trouble it was a pleasure to them to see the tears on her pretty cheeks well time went on and the little girl grew up and the daughters of the stepmother their eyes were always cross and their mouths were always complaining their mother saw that no one would want to marry either of them while there was Martha about the house with her bright eyes and her songs and her kindness to everybody so she thought of a way to get rid of her stepdaughter and a cruel way it was see here old man says she it is high time Martha was married the bridegroom in mind for her tomorrow morning you must harness the old mare to the sledge and put a bit of food together and be ready to start early as I'd like to see you back before night to Martha she said tomorrow you must pack your things in a box and put on your best dress to show yourself to your betrothed who is he asked Martha with red cheeks you will know him when you see him all that night Martha hardly slept she could hardly believe that she was really going to escape from the old woman at last all that night Martha hardly slept she could hardly believe that she was really going to escape from the old woman at last and have a hut of her own where there would be no one to scold her she wondered who the young man was she hoped he was Fedor Ivanovich who had such kind eyes and such nimble fingers on the balalaika and such a merry way of flinging out his heels when he danced the Russian dance but although he always smiled at her when they met she felt she hardly dared to hope that it was he early in the morning she got up and said her prayers to God put the whole hut in order and packed her things into a little box that was easy because she had such few things was the other daughters who had new dresses any old thing was good enough for Martha but she put on her best blue dress and there she was as pretty a little maid as ever walked under the birch trees in spring the old man harnessed the mare to the sledge and brought it to the door the snow was very deep and frozen hard and the wind peeled the skin from his ears before he covered them with the flaps of his fur hat sit down at the table and have a bite before you go says the old woman the old man sat down and his daughter with him and drank a glass of tea and ate some black bread and the old woman put some cabbage soup left from the day before in a saucer and said to Martha eat this my little pigeon and get ready for the road but when she said my little pigeon she did not smile with her eyes but only with her cruel mouth and Martha was afraid the old woman whispered to the old man have a word for you old fellow you will take Martha to her betrothed and I'll tell you the way you go straight along and then take the road to the right into the forest you know straight to the big fir tree that stands on a hillock and there you will give Martha to her betrothed and leave her he will be waiting for her and his name is Frost the old man stared opened his mouth and stopped eating the little maid who had heard the last words began to cry now what are you whimpering about scream the old woman Frost is a rich bridegroom and a handsome one see how much he owns all the pines and furs are his and the birch trees anyone would envy his possessions himself is a very bogey tear a man of strength and power the old man trembled and said nothing in reply and Martha went on crying quietly though she tried to stop her tears the old man packed up what was left of the black bread told Martha to put on her sheepskin coat set her in the sledge and climbed in and drove off along the white frozen road the road was long and the country open and the wind grew colder and colder while the frozen snow blew up from under the hoofs of the mare and spattered the sledge with white patches the tale is soon told but it takes time to happen and the sledge was white all over long before they turned off into the forest they came in the end deep into the forest and left the road and over the deep snow through the trees to the great fur the old man stopped told his daughter to get out of the sledge set her little box under the fur and said wait here for your bridegroom and when he comes be sure to receive him with kind words then he turned the mare round and drove home with the tears running from his eyes and freezing on his cheeks before they had had time to reach his beard the little maid sat and trembled her sheepskin coat was worn through and in her blue bridal dress she sat while fits of shivering shook her whole body she wanted to run away but she had not strength to move or even to keep her little white teeth from chattering between her frozen lips suddenly not far away she heard frost crackling among the fur trees just as he is crackling now he was leaping from tree to tree crackling as he came he leapt at the last into the great fur tree under which the little maid was sitting he crackled in the top of the tree and then called down out of the top most branches are you warm little maid warm warm little father frost frost laughed and came a little lower in the tree and crackled and crackled louder than before are you still warm little maid are you warm little red cheeks the little maid could hardly speak she was nearly dead but she answered warm dear frost warm little father frost climbed lower in the tree and crackled louder than ever and asked are you still warm little maid are you warm little red cheeks are you warm little paws the little maid was benumbed all over but she whispered so that frost could just hear her warm little pigeon warm dear frost and frost was sorry for her leapt down with a tremendous crackle and a scattering of frozen snow wrapped the little maid up in rich furs and covered her with warm blankets in the morning the old woman said to her husband drive off now to the forest and wake the young couple the old man wept when he thought of his little daughter for he was sure that he would find her dead he harnessed the mare and drove off through the snow he came to the tree and heard his little daughter singing merrily while frost crackled and laughed there she was alive and warm with a good fur cloak about her shoulders a rich veil costly blankets around her feet and a box full of splendid presents the old man did not say word he was too surprised he just sat in the sledge staring while the little maid lifted her box and the box of presents set them in the sledge climbed in and sat down beside him they came home and the little maid Martha fell at the feet of her stepmother the old woman nearly went off her head with rage when she saw her alive with her fur cloak and rich veil and the box of splendid presents fit for the daughter of a prince ah you slut she cried you won't get round me like that and she would not say another word to the little maid but went about all day long biting her nails and thinking what to do at night she said to the old man you must take my daughters too to that bridegroom in the forest he will give them better gifts than these things take time to happen but the tale is quickly told early next morning the old woman woke her daughters fed them with good food dressed them like brides hustled the old man made him put clean hay in the sledge and warm blankets off to the forest the old man did as he was bid drove to the big fir tree set the boxes under the tree lifted out the step daughters and set them on the boxes side by side and drove back home they were warmly dressed these two and well fed and at first as they sat there they did not think about the cold I can't think what put it into mother's head to marry us both at once said the first married as if there were not enough young men in the village who can tell what sort of fellas we shall meet here then they began to quarrel well says one of them I'm beginning to get the cold shivers if our fated ones do not come soon we shall perish of cold it's a flat lie to say that bridegrooms get ready early it's already dinner time what if only one comes you'll have to come another time you think he'll look at you well he won't take you anyhow of course he'll take me take you first it's enough to make anyone laugh they began to fight and scratch each other so that their cloaks fell open and the cold entered their bosoms frost crackling among the trees laughing to himself froze the hands of the two quarreling girls and they hid their hands in the sleeves of their fur coats and shivered and went on scolding and jeering at each other oh you ugly mug dirty nose what sort of housekeeper will you make and what about you boasting one you know nothing but how to gad about and lick your own face we'll soon see which of us he'll take and the two girls went on wrangling and wrangling till they began to freeze in good earnest suddenly they cried out together devil take these bride rooms for being so long and coming you have turned blue all over and together they replied shivering no bluer than yourself tooth-chatterer and frost not so far away crackled and laughed and leapt from fir tree to fir tree crackling as he came the girls heard that someone was coming through the forest someone coming yes and with bells on his sledge shut up you slut I can't hear and the frost is taking the skin off me they began blowing on their fingers and frost came nearer and nearer crackling laughing talking to himself just as he is doing today nearer and nearer he came leaping from tree-top to tree-top till at last he leapt into the great fir under which the two girls were sitting and quarreling he leaned down looking through the branches and asked are you warm maidens are you warm little red cheeks are you warm little pigeons all frost the cold is hurting us we are frozen we are waiting for our bridegrooms but the cursed fellows have not turned up frost came a little lower in the tree and crackled louder and swifter are you warm maidens are you warm my little red cheeks go to the devil they cried out find our eyes and feet are frozen frost came still closer in the branches and cracked and crackled louder than ever are you warm maidens he asked into the pit with you with all the fiends the girls screamed at him you ugly wretched fellow and as they were cursing at him their bad words died on their lips for the two girls the cross children of the cruel stepmother were frozen stiff where they sat frost hung from the lowest branches of the tree swaying and crackling while he looked at the anger frozen on their faces then he climbed swiftly up again and crackling and cracking chuckling to himself he went off leaping from fir tree to fir tree this way and that way through the white frozen forest in the morning the old woman says to her husband now then old man harness the mare to the sledge and put new hay in the sledge to be warm for my little ones and lay fresh rushes on the hay to be soft for them and take warm rugs with you for maybe they will be cold even in their furs and look sharp about it and don't keep them waiting the frost is hard this morning and it was harder in the night the old man had not time to eat even a mouthful of black bread before she had driven him out into the snow he put hay in rushes and soft blankets in the sledge and harness the mare and went off to the forest he came to the great fir and found the two girls sitting under it dead with their anger still to be seen on their frozen ugly faces he picked them up first one and then the other and put them in the rushes and the warm hay covered them with the blankets and drove home the old woman saw him coming far away over the shining snow she ran to meet him and shouted out where are the little ones in the sledge she snatched off the blankets and pulled aside the rushes and found the bodies of her two cross daughters instantly she flew with the old man in a storm of rage what have you done to my children my little red cherries my little pigeons I will break your head with the poker the old man listened till she was out of breath and could not say another word that, my dears, is the only wise thing to do when a woman is in a scolding rage and as soon as she had no breath left with which to answer him he said my little daughter got riches for soft words but yours were always rough of the tongue and it's not my fault anyhow, for you yourself sent them into the forest well, at last the old woman got her breath again and scolded away till she was tired out but in the end she made her peace with the old man and they lived together as quietly as could be expected as for Martha Fedor Ivanovich sought her in marriage as he had meant to do all along yes, and married her and pretty she looked in the furs that Frost had given her I was at the feast and drank beer and mead with the rest and she had the prettiest children that ever were seen yes, and the best behaved for if ever they thought of being naughty the old grandfather told them the story of crackling Frost and how kind words won kindness and cross words cold treatment and now listen to Frost hear how he crackles away and mind, if ever he asks you if you are warm, be as polite to him as you can and to do that the best way is to be good always like little Martha then it comes easy the children listened and laughed quietly because they knew they were good away in the forest they heard Frost and thought of him crackling and leaping from one tree to another and just then they came home early in winter and a little way through the trees before them they saw the lamp of their hut glittering on the snow the big dog barked and ran forward and the children with him the soup was warm on the stove and in a few minutes they were sitting at the table Vanya, Marusia and old Peter blowing at their steaming spoons and of Frost the fool of the world and the flying ship of old Peter's Russian Tales this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org recording by Jenny Lundak old Peter's Russian Tales by Arthur Ransom the fool of the world and the flying ship there were once upon a time an old peasant and his wife and they had three sons two of them were clever young men who could borrow money without being cheated but the third was the fool of the world and he was as simple as a child simpler than some children and he never did anyone a harm in his life well it always happens like that the father and mother thought a lot of the two smart young men but the fool of the world was lucky if he got enough to eat because they always forgot him unless they happened to be looking at him and sometimes even then however it was with his father and mother this is a story that shows that God loves simple folk and turns things to their advantage in the end for it happened that the Tsar of that country sent out messengers along the high roads and rivers even to the huts in the forest like ours to say that he would give his daughter in marriage to anyone who could bring him a flying ship a ship with wings that should sail this way and that through the blue sky like a ship sailing on the sea this is a chance for us said the two clever brothers and that same day they set off together to see if one of them could not build the flying ship and marry the Tsar's daughter and so be a great man indeed and their father blessed them and gave them finer clothes than ever he wore himself and their mother made them up hampers of food for the road soft white rolls and several kinds of cooked meats and bottles of corn brandy she went with them as far as the high road and waved her hand to them till they were out of sight and so the two clever brothers set merrily off on their adventure to see what could be done with their cleverness and what happened to them I do not know for they were never heard of again the fool of the world saw them set off with their fine parcels of food and their fine clothes and their bottles of corn brandy I'd like to go too says he and eat good meat with soft white rolls and drink corn brandy and marry the Tsar's daughter stupid fellow says his mother what's the good of your going why if you were to stir from the house to the arms of a bear and if not that then the wolves would eat you before you had finished staring at them but the fool of the world would not be held back by words I am going says he I am going I am going he went on saying this over and over again till the old woman his mother nothing to be done and was glad to get him out of the house so as to be quit of the sound of his voice so she put some food in a bag for him to eat by the way she put in the bag some crusts of dry black bread and a flask of water she did not even bother to go as far as the footpath to see him on his way she saw the last of him at the door of the hut and he had not taken two steps before she had gone back into the hut to see to more important business no matter the fool of the world set off with his bag over his shoulder singing as he went for he was off to seek his fortune and marry the Tsar's daughter he was sorry his mother had not given him any corn brandy but he sang merrily for all that he would have liked white rolls instead of dry black crusts but after all the main thing on a journey is to have something to eat so he trudged merrily along the road and sang because the trees were green and there was a blue sky overhead he had not gone very far when he met an ancient old man with a bent back and a long beard and eyes hidden under his bushy eyebrows good day young fellow says the ancient old man good day grandfather says the fool of the world and where are you off to says the ancient old man what says the fool haven't you heard the Tsar is going to give his daughter to anyone who can bring him a flying ship and you can really make a flying ship says the ancient old man no i do not know how then what are you going to do god knows says the fool of the world well says the ancient if things are like that sit you down here we will rest together and have a bite of food bring out what you have in your bag i am ashamed to offer you what i have here it is good enough for me but it is not the sort of meal to which one can ask guests never mind that with it let us eat what god has given the fool of the world opened his bag and could hardly believe his eyes instead of black crusts he saw fresh white rolls and cooked meats he handed them out to the ancient who said you see how god loves simple folk although your mother does not love you you have not been done out of your share of the good things let us have a sip at the corn brandy the fool of the world opened his flask and instead of water there came out corn brandy and that of the best so the fool and the ancient made merry eating and drinking and when they had done and sung a song two together the ancient says to the fool listen to me off with you into the forest go up to the first big tree you see make the sacred sign of the cross three times before it strike it a blow with your little hatchet fall backwards on the ground and lie there full length on your back until somebody wakes you up then you will find the ship made all ready to fly sit you down in it and fly off wither you want to go but be sure on the way to give a lift to everyone you meet the fool of the world thanked the ancient old man said goodbye to him and went off to the forest he walked up to a tree the first big tree he saw made the sign of the cross three times before it swung his hatchet round his head struck a mighty blow on the trunk of the tree instantly fell backwards flat on the ground closed his eyes and went to sleep a little time went by and it seemed to the fool as he slept that somebody was jogging his elbow he woke up and opened his eyes his hatchet lay beside him the big tree was gone and in it's place there stood a little ship ready and finished the fool did not stop to think he jumped into the ship seized the tiller and sat down instantly the ship leapt up into the air and sailed away over the tops of the trees the little ship answered the tiller as readily as if she were sailing in the water and the fool steered for the high road and sailed along above it before he was afraid of losing his way if he tried to steer a course across the open country he flew on and on and looked down and saw a man lying in the road below him with his ear on the damp ground good day to you uncle cried the fool good day to you sky fellow cried the man what are you doing down there says the fool I am listening to all that is being done in the world take your place in the ship with me the man was willing enough and sat down in the ship with the fool and they flew on together singing songs they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man on one leg with his ear tied up to his head good day uncle says the fool bringing the ship to the ground why are you hopping along on one foot if I were to untie the other I should move too fast I should be stepping across the world in a single stride sit down with us says the fool the man sat down with them in the ship and they flew on together singing songs they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man with a gun and he was taking aim but what he was aiming at they could not see good health to you uncle says the fool but what are you shooting at there isn't the bird to be seen what if there were a bird that you could see I should not shoot at it a bird or a beast a thousand versed away that's the sort of mark for me take your seat with us says the fool the man sat down with them in the ship and they flew on together louder and louder rose their songs they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man carrying a sack full of bread on his back good health to you uncle says the fool sailing down and where are you off to I am going to get bread for my dinner but you've got a full sack on your back that little scrap why that's not enough for a single mouthful take your seat with us says the fool the eater sat down with them in the ship and they flew on together singing louder than ever they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man walking round and round the lake good health to you uncle says the fool what are you looking for I want a drink and I can't find any water but there's a whole lake in front of your eyes why can't you take a drink from that that little drop says the man way there's not enough water there to wet the back of my throat if I were to drink it at one gulp take your seat with us says the fool the drinker sat down with them and again they flew on singing in chorus they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man walking toward the forest with a faggot of wood on his shoulders good day to you uncle says the fool why are you taking wood to the forest this isn't simple wood says the man what is it then says the fool if it is scattered about a whole army of soldiers it keeps up out of the ground there is a place for you with us says the fool the man sat down with them and the ship rose up into the air and flew on carrying its singing crew they flew on and on and looked down and there was a man carrying a sack of straw good day to you uncle says the fool and where are you taking your straw to the village why are they short of straw in your village no but this is such straw that if you scatter it abroad in the very hottest of the summer instantly the weather turns cold and there is snow and frost there is a place here for you too says the fool very kind of you says the man and steps in and sits down and away they all sail together singing like to burst their lungs they did not meet anyone else and presently came flying up to the palace of the czar they flew down and cast anchor in the courtyard just then the czar was eating his dinner he heard their loud singing and looked out of the window and saw the ship come sailing down into his courtyard he sent his servant out to ask who was the great prince who had brought him the flying ship and had come sailing down with such a merry noise of singing the servant came up to the ship and saw the fool of the world and his companions sitting there cracking jokes he saw they were all moujiks simple peasants sitting in the ship so he did not stop to ask questions but came back quietly and told the czar that there were no gentlemen in the ship at all but only a lot of dirty peasants now the czar was not at all pleased with the idea of giving his only daughter in marriage to a simple peasant and he began to think how he could get out of his bargain thinks he to himself I'll set them such tasks that they will not be able to perform and they'll be glad to get off with their lives and I shall get the ship for nothing so he told his servant to go to the fool and tell him that before the czar had finished his dinner the fool was to bring him some of the magical water of life now while the czar was giving this order to his servant the listener the first of the fool's companions was listening and heard the words of the czar and repeated them to the fool what am I to do now says the fool stopping short in his jokes in a year in a whole century I could never find that water once it before he has finished his dinner don't you worry about that says the swift goer I'll deal with that for you the servant came and announced the czar's command tell him he shall have it says the fool his companion the swift goer untied his foot from beside his head put it to the ground wriggled it a little to get the stiffness out of it ran off and was out of sight almost before he had stepped from the ship quicker than I can tell it to you in words he had come to the water of life and put some of it in a bottle I shall have plenty of time to get back, thinks he and down he sits under a windmill and goes off to sleep the royal dinner was coming to an end and there wasn't a sign of him there were no songs and no jokes in the flying ship everybody was watching for the swift goer and thinking he would not be in time the listener jumped out and laid his right ear to the damp ground listened a moment and said ah what a fellow he has gone to sleep under the windmill I can hear him snoring and there is a fly using with its wings perched on the windmill close above his head this is my affair says the far shooter and he picked up his gun from between his knees aimed at the fly on the windmill and woke the swift goer with the thud of the bullet on the wood of the mill close by his head the swift goer leapt up and ran and in less than a second had brought the magic water of life and given it to the fool the fool gave it to the servant who took it to the czar the czar had not yet left the table so that his command had been fulfilled as exactly as ever could be what fellows these peasants are thought the czar there is nothing for it but to set them another task so the czar said to his servant go to the captain the captain of the flying ship and give him this message if you are such a cunning fellow you must have a good appetite let you and your companions eat at a single meal twelve oxen roasted whole and as much bread as can be baked in forty ovens the listener heard the message and told the fool what was coming the fool was terrified and said I can't get through even a single loaf at a sitting don't worry about that said the eater it won't be more than a mouthful for me and I shall be glad to have a little snack in place of my dinner the servant came and announced the czar's command good says the fool send the food along and we'll know what to do with it so they brought twelve oxen roasted whole and as much bread as could be baked in forty ovens and the companions had scarcely sat down to the meal before the eater had finished the lot why said the eater what a little they might have given us a decent meal while they were about it the czar told his servant to tell the fool that he and his companions were to drink forty barrels of wine with forty bucketfuls in every barrel the listener told the fool what message was coming why says the fool I never in my life drank more than one bucket at a time don't worry says the drinker I am thirsty it'll be nothing of a drink for me they brought the forty barrels of wine and tapped them and the drinker tossed them down one after another one gulp for each barrel little enough says he why I am thirsty still very good says the czar to his servant when he heard that they had eaten all the food all the wine tell the fellow to get ready for the wedding and let him go and bathe himself in the bath house but let the bath house be made so hot that the man will stifle and frizzle as soon as he sets foot inside it is an iron bath house let it be made red hot the listener heard all this and told the fool to go north with his mouth open in the middle of a joke don't you worry says the muzik with the straw well they made the bath house red hot and called the fool and the fool went along to the bath house to wash himself and with him went the muzik with the straw they shut them both into the bath house and thought that that was the end of them the muzik scattered his straw before them as they went in and it became so cold in there that the fool of the world had scarcely time to wash himself before the water in the cauldrons froze to solid ice they lay down on the very stove itself and spent the night there shivering in the morning the servants opened the bath house and there were the fool of the world and the muzik alive and well lying on the stove and singing songs they told the czar and the czar raged with anger there is no getting rid of this fellow says he but go and tell him that I send him this message if you are to marry my daughter you must show that you are able to defend her let me see that you have at least a regiment of soldiers makes he to himself how can a simple peasant raise a troop he will find it hard enough to raise a single soldier the listener told the fool of the world and the fool began to lament this time says he I am done indeed you my brothers have saved me from misfortune more than once but this time alas there is nothing to be done oh what a fellow you are says the peasant with the faggot of wood I suppose you have forgotten about me remember that I am the man for this little affair and don't you worry about it at all the czar's servant came along and gave his message very good says the fool but tell the czar that if after this I have again I'll make war on his country and take the princess by force and then as the servant went back with the message the whole crew on the flying ship set to their singing again and sang and laughed and made jokes as if they had not a care in the world during the night while the others slept the peasant with the faggot of wood went hither and thither scattering his sticks instantly where they fell there appeared a gigantic army nobody could count the number of soldiers in it cavalry food soldiers yes and guns and all the guns knew and bright and the men in the finest uniforms that ever were seen in the morning as the czar walked and looked from the windows of the palace he found himself surrounded by troops upon troops of soldiers and generals with cocked hats bowing in the courtyard and taking orders from the fool of the world who sat there joking with his companions in the flying ship now it was the czar's turn to be afraid as quickly as he could to the servants to the fool with presence of rich jewels and fine clothes invited him to come to the palace and begged him to marry the princess the fool of the world put on the fine clothes and stood there as handsome a young man as a princess could wish for a husband he presented himself before the czar fell in love with the princess and she with him married her the same day received with her a rich dowry and became so clever that all the court repeated everything he said the czar and the czarica liked him very much and as for the princess she loved him too distraction end of the fool of the world and the flying ship recording by Jenny Lundack South Padre Island, Texas