Chapter III: Part 3

“Mother, it is now time for me to go and seek my own livelihood with my brothers in the forest. But if at any time you should require my assistance, all you have to do is to go to the top of that hill over there, and to throw a handful of my feathers into the air, and call my name three times.”

So saying, he gave the little Mouse a handful of his feathers, and flew away into the jungle.

Presently the Mouse found herself a third time with child, and this time she prayed to the gods that her child might become wise, wealthy and powerful; and when the child appeared she saw that it was a young man child. As the Boy grew up the mother was afraid that he, too, like his brothers, would want to leave his nest and go out into the world to live with his fellow-men. So she told him the story of his two elder brothers, and explained to him that he was a man child, and could not wander away into the jungle like they did, but must stay in the nest. The Boy promised to do so, and every day he used to sit and play about at the mouth of the nest.

Now it happened that in that country there lived a Mussulman, who made his living as a barber and by paring people’s nails. This man, who was very clever at his work, was often employed in the King’s palace, and one day, as he was going to his work in the palace, he passed near to the Mouse’s nest. There he saw the Boy seated on the ground, and, going up to him, he asked him whether he would like his hair cut and his nails pared.

The Boy said, “Yes,” and the Barber proceeded to cut his hair. To the Barber’s astonishment, each hair, as it fell to the ground, immediately turned into diamonds, pearls, and other jewels; and when he proceeded to pare the Boy’s nails, each paring, as it touched the ground, became a beautiful turquoise.

The Barber then went on to the palace, and as he was cutting the King’s hair, he told him about the miraculous child, whose hair and nails turned into jewels. The King, who was a greedy and unscrupulous man, determined to gain possession of so valuable a Boy, so he sent out some of his servants to bring the Boy up to the palace. When the Boy arrived, he was brought before the King, and the King told him that as he had been found trespassing in the royal forests, he intended to kill the mother, and to keep the Boy as a slave, unless the Boy could furnish him at once with four full-grown Tigers to guard the four gates of the palace, in which case he would marry the Boy to his daughter and would give him half his kingdom.

The poor Boy went in great grief to Mother Mouse, and related to her the whole of his interview with the King. The Mouse told him not to vex himself, and she gave him a handful of Tiger’s hair and sent him out into the jungle with full directions as to what he should do.

The Boy went off into the heart of a dense thicket in the jungle, and throwing the Tiger’s hair into the air, he called out at the same time:

“Brother Tiger! Brother Tiger! Brother Tiger!”

Scarcely had the words left his lips when he heard a low, deep growl just beside him, and a great Tiger stalked out of the thicket, licking his chops.

“Here I am, Brother,” said the Tiger. “What do you want?”

“Oh! Brother Tiger,” said the Boy, “the King has said that if I do not immediately provide him with four full-grown Tigers to guard the four gates of his palace he will kill our mother and make me a slave.”

On hearing this the Tiger laughed aloud.

“Is that all?” said he. “That is easily arranged. I can get you a hundred Tigers.”

So saying, he opened his mouth, and gave forth a series of fearful roars; and in a few minutes the whole jungle seemed to be full of Tigers, hastening up from all directions. When they were all ready, the first Tiger told his brother to mount upon his back, and so, with the Boy leading the way, and the other Tigers following in procession, they all went off in a body to the King’s palace.

As they approached the palace great consternation arose; servants ran hither and thither, and the guards were called to arms. And when the King was told what was happening he was greatly alarmed himself, but he seated himself on his throne, and gave orders for the Boy and the Tigers to be admitted.

The Boy rode in on the Tiger’s back to the royal presence, followed by all the other Tigers; and halting a few steps from the throne he said:

“Here, oh King! are a number of the best Tigers I could find in the forest. You can take your pick of any four you like.”

The King was very much astonished at this, and having selected four of the finest Tigers, he allowed the others to go away. But he still hankered after the jewels, and in a few days’ time he again summoned the Boy before him, and told him that unless he at once furnished four Peacocks to sit one on each of the four golden pinnacles of his palace roof, he should kill his mother and keep the Boy as a slave.

The poor Boy was very down-hearted on hearing this, and went sadly back to his mother with the news; but the little Mouse told him that it was all right, and giving him a handful of Peacock’s feathers, she instructed him how to proceed. So the Boy went off to the top of a high hill, and, throwing the feathers into the air, he called aloud:

“Brother Peacock! Brother Peacock! Brother Peacock!”

Immediately a fluttering sound was heard, and a magnificent Peacock dropped to the ground in front of him from the branch of a neighbouring tree.

“Here I am, Brother,” said the Peacock. “What do you want with me?”

“Oh! Brother Peacock,” said the Boy, “the King says that if I cannot at once provide him with four Peacocks to sit on the four golden pinnacles of his palace, he will kill our mother and make me a slave.”

“Never mind,” said the Peacock, “we can easily arrange that.”

So he fluttered back to the top of a high tree, and called the loud, shrill call of the Peacocks.

In a few moments the air was bright with numbers of fine Peacocks flying in from all directions.

“Now,” said the first Peacock, “come along to the palace.”

So saying, four of the strongest Peacocks seized the Boy in their claws, and they all flew together over the tops of the trees to the King’s palace.

When the courtiers saw the Peacocks coming, they ran to tell the King, and the King seated himself upon his throne in the courtyard all ready to receive them.

The Peacocks placed the Boy upon the ground in front of the King’s throne, and arranged themselves in rows behind him, with their tails spread.

“Here, oh King!” said the Boy, “are all the finest Peacocks I could find in the forest. You can have your pick of any four of them.”

The King was greatly astonished at what had happened, but he selected the four best Peacocks, and sent away the rest.

But the King still hankered in his heart after the jewels. So, a few days later, he sent for the Boy again, and he told him that unless his Mother Mouse could fight single-handed with the King’s state Elephant and destroy it, he would kill the mother and make the Boy a slave.

The Boy was greatly distressed on hearing this, for he did not think it possible that the little Mouse could compete successfully with the King’s great Elephant; so he went home very sadly and told his mother the whole story. But the Mouse told him he was not to be alarmed, and she directed him to smear her body all over with poison, and to tie a long string to her tail. As soon as she was ready the Boy placed her in the sleeve of his coat, and carried her along to the palace.

In the courtyard of the palace everything had been made ready for the fight. Seats had been prepared behind a barrier for the King and his nobles, whilst the roofs and the windows were crowded with hundreds of people who had come to see the show. At one end of the enclosure the King’s great tusker stood ready, still chained by the leg; and the Boy, with the Mouse in his sleeve, took up his stand at the other end of the arena, face to face with the angry Elephant.

At a given signal the Elephant’s chain was loosed, and with a bellow of rage he rushed towards where the Boy was standing. As he came on, holding his trunk high in the air, the little Mouse jumped to the ground and ran to meet him. The Elephant caught sight of this small object, and stopped for a moment to see what it was, and the Mouse hopped on to his foot. The Elephant at once put down his trunk to feel what was there, and in a twinkling the Mouse jumped into the open end of the trunk, and scuttled up it as fast as she could till she reached the head. She soon found herself inside the Elephant’s brain, and there she ran round and round, smearing poison all over the brain of the great beast.

The Elephant, not knowing what had happened, rushed round the arena, bellowing with rage and pain, and smashing everything within reach of his trunk. But presently, the poison taking effect, he fell to the ground stone dead, and the Boy, pulling the string which was attached to the Mouse’s tail, guided her out of the Elephant’s trunk till she reached the open air.

The King could no longer hesitate to fulfil his promise to the Boy, so he gave him his daughter in marriage, and presented him with half his kingdom. And on the King’s death the Boy succeeded to the kingdom, and he and his mother lived happily ever afterwards.

STORY No. XIII.

THE JACKALS AND THE TIGER.

Once upon a time there was a family of Jackals, consisting of a Father, Mother, and five young ones. After living for some time very comfortably near a large village, they found that the dogs of the village were becoming so numerous and so troublesome that they considered it necessary to change their place of abode. So one fine evening they started off and travelled away across the country, keeping a sharp look-out for some desirable spot in which they might settle down.

After a while they came to the edge of a forest, and having travelled for some little distance into the thickest part of the wood, they arrived all of a sudden at a Tiger’s den. The young Jackals were a good deal frightened at the smell of the Tiger’s den, but Father Jackal reassured them, and said that he thoroughly understood Tigers, and knew how to deal with them. So he went forward alone, and, peeping in, he found that the Tiger was out, but that he had left a large quantity of deer’s flesh lying in one corner, which apparently he had not had time to consume. So he called Mrs. Jackal and the children, and told them to go inside and to have a good feed, and to make themselves quite comfortable. After making a good meal himself off the deer’s flesh, he said to Mrs. Jackal:

“You and the children can now go to sleep; I shall go on to the roof of the den and keep a look-out for the Tiger. When I see him coming I shall rap on the roof, and you must at once wake up the children and make them begin to cry, and when I ask you what they are crying about, you must say that they are getting impatient for their supper.”

Accordingly Mr. Jackal went up on the roof, while his family settled down to sleep in the snuggest corner of the Tiger’s den. Shortly after Father Jackal heard a slight crackling amongst the dry leaves of the forest; and in the dim morning light he discerned the form of a great Tiger approaching his den through the tree-stems.

According to the arrangement he had made, he rapped with a loose stone upon the roof of the den, and Mrs. Jackal immediately woke up the young Jackals and made them cry.

“What are those children crying about?” called out Father Jackal.

“They are very hungry, and getting impatient for their supper,” was the reply.

“Tell them they won’t have long to wait now,” said Father Jackal; “the Tiger will probably be home very soon, and we shall all be eating hot Tiger’s meat before long.”

On hearing this the Tiger was very much alarmed, and thought to himself:

“What kind of strange animal can this be which has entered my den, and is waiting to cook and eat me on my return; it must certainly be a very fierce and terrible creature.”

So without waiting to investigate the matter any further, he turned tail and ran off as fast as he could through the forest. After running some way, he came across an old Baboon, with a great fringe of white hair all round his face.

“Where are you running to, Uncle Tiger?” asked the Baboon.

“Well,” said the Tiger, “the fact is, that a family of strange animals, who call themselves Jackals, are at this moment in occupation of my den. As I was approaching my den, after a long night’s hunting, one of the creatures was actually sitting on the roof, looking out for me, and as I got close up I heard him tell his young ones that they were to have hot Tiger’s meat for supper. Fortunately for me, he hadn’t seen me, so I thought the best thing I could do was to make off as fast as I could, in order to avoid being eaten.”

On hearing this the Baboon was very much amused, and set to work to laugh very heartily.

“Why,” said he, “what a foolish Tiger you are! Have you never heard of a Jackal before? Don’t you know that it is you should eat the Jackals, and not the Jackals you? You come along with me, and I will soon show you how to deal with people like that.”

The Tiger was somewhat reassured on hearing what the Baboon had to say, but, even so, he was at first very reluctant to return again and to incur the danger of being eaten; but the Monkey encouraged him, and finally they set off together, the Monkey twisting his tail round the Tiger’s, in order to give him a feeling of support and confidence.

As they came nearer to the den, the Tiger grew more and more timorous, and would only advance very slowly, ready to take flight at any moment. However, they went on together, tail-in-tail, until presently Father Jackal on the roof of the den caught sight of the pair, and called out:

“That is right, Brother Monkey, bring him along quickly; we are all half starved. But what do you mean by only bringing one of them? I had expected you would bring us at least two or three.”

On hearing this, the Tiger at once suspected that the Baboon was in the Jackal’s employ, and that he was being led into a trap. Without a moment’s hesitation he turned about and fled precipitately into the depths of the forest. The unfortunate Baboon, whose tail was tightly twisted round the Tiger’s, was unable to free himself, and was dragged and bumped hither and thither in the Tiger’s rush through the thickest and thorniest parts of the jungle. When at length the Tiger paused, many miles away, to take breath, he looked back at his flanks, and all he saw of the Monkey was a bit of its tail which had broken off and was still twisted round his own.

He never again returned to his den, which was occupied henceforth by the Jackals, who lived there for many years in peace and comfort.

STORY No. XIV.

THE STORY OF THE THREE THIEVES.

Once upon a time there lived within the dominions of the Emperor of China three very clever Thieves. These men, owing to their skill and cunning, were quite at the head of their profession, and by sleight of hand and dexterity were able to accomplish feats of trickery which the ordinary thieves could not emulate. The first was so clever that he was able to withdraw eggs from under a sitting hen without in any way disturbing her, and without her being aware that the theft had been accomplished. The second was able to cut the soles off a man’s boots as he walked along the road without the victim knowing that he had been robbed. And the third was able to eat his fill off a man’s plate during dinner without the man who was robbed, or his friend opposite, being able to detect where the victuals had gone to.

Now it happened one day that these three Thieves met together in a country inn, and entering into conversation with one another, began to exchange confidences.

“May I ask what you do for a living?” asked the first Thief of the second.

“Oh, I am a Thief,” answered the man who was addressed.

“Very good,” replied the other men, “we also are Thieves. Can you tell us, please, if there is any particular line in which you excel?”

“Yes,” said the second Thief; “I am able to cut the soles off a man’s boots as he walks across the road without his being aware of what has happened. What can you two do, pray?”

“I,” replied the first Thief, “can withdraw the eggs from under a sitting hen without disturbing her.”

“And I,” said the third, “can steal another man’s dinner from off his plate, and eat my fill as he sits at table, without the victim, or the man sitting opposite, being able to detect me.”

So the three Thieves, having struck up a friendship on the ground of their unusual skill, set off together to the court of the Emperor of China, in order to see whether they could not succeed in making their fortunes there.

On arriving at the court they consulted together and came to the conclusion that in order to make any headway in China it was necessary to attract the attention of the Emperor. So they agreed to separate for twenty-four hours, and to meet next day in the courtyard of the palace, each bringing some gift to the Emperor which would please him, and prove to him that they were men of no usual calibre. Accordingly, they parted in different directions, and the following day at noon, they met together in the courtyard of the palace, and each one proceeded to relate his adventures during the preceding twenty-four hours.

“As soon as I left you yesterday,” began the first Thief, “I went into the royal farm adjoining the palace, and there I found one of the Emperor’s pea-hens sitting upon her nest, and hatching a clutch of eggs, which was calculated to produce a breed of the very finest peacocks. By the Emperor’s orders this nest was watched by an attendant night and day, in order that no one should interfere with the eggs, and the pea-hen herself was so cross that she would not allow anyone to approach her except the man who fed her. But such obstacles as these were nothing to me, and I had no difficulty in evading the watchers and abstracting the eggs from under the hen, without even disturbing her, or her being aware of the loss. Now here they are in my wallet, and when the loss is discovered presently, as it is sure to be, and a reward offered for their discovery, I propose to present them to the Emperor.”

The other two Thieves applauded their comrade for his skill and ingenuity, and the second Thief then proceeded to relate his story as follows:

“When we separated yesterday, I at once entered the Emperor’s antechamber, and mingled with the nobles and officials who were awaiting an audience with His Majesty, and amongst the others I soon noticed the Prime Minister. He was a very stout man, dressed in his finest robes, and with a new pair of boots on his feet. As he passed to and fro in the crowd, I succeeded in cutting the soles off his new boots without his having any idea of what had happened. Shortly afterwards he was summoned to the Emperor’s presence, and when he knelt down to kow-tow before His Majesty, it was observed that he had no soles to his boots. The Emperor, thinking that the Minister had committed this serious breach of etiquette on purpose, fell into a violent passion, and ordered him to be imprisoned at once. It was no use for the wretched man to protest his innocence or to plead for mercy. The Emperor’s orders are that, unless a satisfactory explanation is given to him before six o’clock this evening and the missing soles produced, the Minister is to be beheaded. Here are the soles of the Prime Minister’s boots in my wallet, and I propose to present them to His Majesty this afternoon during his public audience. I shall thus earn the gratitude of the Prime Minister and appease the wrath of the Emperor.”

The other two Thieves, on hearing this story, congratulated their comrade on his successful manœuvre, and the third Thief proceeded to relate his adventures as follows:

“When we parted yesterday,” said he, “I entered the palace, and after wandering about for some time I found myself in the chamber where the Emperor’s dinner was being prepared, and where all the chief officials of the palace were assembled to superintend the arrangements for the royal meal. There were the Head Chamberlain and the Under Chamberlains, the Head Usher and the Under Ushers, the Head Waiter and the Under Waiters, and many other officials of minor degree. I mingled with the servants, who were standing about, without attracting any attention, and remained in the room until the Emperor himself entered and seated himself with great ceremony to partake of his mid-day meal. The Chief Cook and the Chief Chamberlain placed themselves in front of the Emperor, in order to see that the service of his food was properly conducted, whilst the other high officials took their stand on either side of his chair and assisted in bringing in the dishes. In spite of all these precautions, however, I was able by my skill to take the food from each dish as it was placed upon the table, before the Emperor had time to partake of more than a very few mouthfuls. As the meal proceeded the Emperor grew more and more annoyed, and complained of the insufficiency of the food which had been prepared for him. Such a thing as this had never occurred before in the palace. The Head Cook and all the Under Cooks, the Head Chamberlain and all the Under Chamberlains, the Head Usher and all the Under Ushers, and all the officials of lower degree, were thrown into a dreadful state of confusion and alarm at the event. They rushed hither and thither, between the kitchens and dining-halls, upbraiding the scullions and other domestics for their carelessness, and preparing the most elaborate and copious dishes for the Emperor’s table. But after some time the Emperor, wearied by the confusion, and unable, in spite of everything, to make a satisfactory meal, gave orders that the whole of the Cooks and other attendants responsible for his table-service should be imprisoned, and that unless a satisfactory explanation of their negligence could be given before this evening they should be beheaded. I have here, in my wallet, the whole of the viands which yesterday were placed before the Emperor for his consumption, and I propose at the audience to present them to him, and inform him what really happened. He will undoubtedly pardon me when he hears the story, and I shall earn the undying gratitude of all the disgraced officials by procuring their release.”

The other two Thieves, on hearing this story, congratulated their comrade warmly upon his daring and success, and the three entered the Emperor’s antechamber together, and awaited the time for public audience.

A few minutes later the great doors leading to the audience chamber were thrown open, and a herald appearing upon the threshold proclaimed “Silence.” He then gave notice that, on the previous day, the eggs had all been stolen from under the Emperor’s favourite pea-hen, and that any person who could find the eggs or give any information concerning their loss should receive a reward; secondly, that for a breach of etiquette the Prime Minister had been imprisoned, and that unless he could explain his offence before six o’clock that evening he was to be beheaded, and that any person who could offer assistance in the matter would be well paid and otherwise rewarded by the Emperor; thirdly, that owing to bad attendance during the Emperor’s repast the previous day, all the domestic officials of the palace had been imprisoned, and would be beheaded at six o’clock that evening unless they could give a satisfactory explanation; and that any person who could assist in the matter would be well rewarded for his pains.

So saying the Herald retired, and the public audience began. When the three Thieves were admitted to the Emperor’s presence, they went in together and made a simultaneous obeisance before the Emperor’s throne.

“Who are you three men?” asked the Emperor, “and what do you want from me?”

“May it please Your Majesty,” replied the first Thief, “I have ventured to bring a small gift for you.”

And so saying he took from his wallet the pea-hen’s eggs, and laid them on the throne.

When the Emperor heard that these were his pea-hen’s eggs he was very much pleased, and gave orders that they should at once be taken back to the nest, and the hatching continued; and telling the first Thief to stand back, he enquired of the second what he wished to say.

“May it please Your Majesty,” replied the second Thief, “I also have a small gift to make to you.”

And so saying he took the soles of the Prime Minister’s boots out of his wallet and laid them on the steps of the throne.

When the Emperor found that these were the soles of his Prime Minister’s boots, and how they had been removed, he was very much amused, and laughed heartily. He at once sent orders for his Prime Minister to be released, and handed over to him the soles of his boots, and told him to watch them more carefully for the future. The Prime Minister was delighted at being reinstated in the royal favour, and expressed his gratitude to the Thief for his services in the matter.

When the third Thief was asked what he had to say he replied:

“I, too, have a small gift for Your Majesty.”

And so saying he produced a plate from his wallet, and laid upon it the various viands which had been cooked for the Emperor’s dinner the previous day.

When the Emperor understood that this was the dinner which had been prepared for him, and which he ought to have eaten, he was greatly astonished; but seeing that it was no fault of his Cooks, Chamberlains, or other servants, he ordered them all to be released, and to resume their former functions.

Having issued these various commands, the Emperor again summoned the three Thieves before him, and addressed them as follows:

“Although,” said he, “I am very pleased at finding such a satisfactory explanation for the disappearance of the eggs, the misdemeanour of my Prime Minister, and the insufficiency of my dinner, I cannot overlook the fact that you three men have behaved in a very unusual manner. So before rewarding you in accordance with my promise, I desire to put your skill to a further test. If you succeed in this trial to my satisfaction you shall all three be well rewarded, and receive rank and lands in my country; but if you fail, you must take the consequences of your rashness, and you shall all three be put to death.”

When the three Thieves heard these words they were greatly frightened, and bowing down before the Emperor they awaited his commands.

“The test which I have in store for you,” continued the Emperor, “is as follows: you must know that in my Treasury I have a great number of jewels and precious objects of all kinds; and the Treasury is enclosed within a treble wall ten fathoms in height, closed by iron gates, and is guarded night and day by companies of my most faithful soldiers. If you can produce, before six o’clock to-morrow evening, three of the pearls from my Treasury, you shall be pardoned and rewarded; but if you fail to do so, you shall all three be put to death.”

On hearing these words the three thieves consulted together for a few moments, and replied as follows:

“We will do our best to carry out Your Majesty’s commands and to succeed in this test which you have given us, but we would call your royal attention to one matter; it is this: supposing we produce before to-morrow evening three pearls as you command, how shall we be able to satisfy you that they come from the Royal Treasury? All pearls look very much alike, and it would be impossible for us to prove to you whence they came. We would, therefore, venture to suggest that, before putting us to this test, you should have a complete enumeration made of all the jewels in your Treasury; then, when we produce the three pearls in question, it will be easy to ascertain whether there are in the Treasury three pearls less than there were when the enumeration was made.”

The Emperor, seeing that this was a reasonable request, agreed to act as the Thieves had suggested. So summoning his Treasurer before him, he gave orders that a complete enumeration of all the jewels and other precious objects in his Treasury should be made before nightfall that evening; and having issued his commands he dismissed the audience.

The Chief Treasurer was much perturbed on receiving these orders, for owing to the enormous quantity of jewels and other objects in the Treasury, he foresaw that it would be a difficult matter to have the enumeration complete before evening. The only way in which it could be done was to call in the assistance of all the officials of the palace, and having allotted a section of the Treasure Chamber to each, to order them to make a complete inventory each of his own part. Accordingly, he called together all the officials of the palace to the number of many hundreds, and they proceeded in a body to the Royal Treasury. The three Thieves, who had anticipated this action on the part of the Treasurer, meanwhile dressed themselves up in the complete robes which are proper for a palace official, and mingling unnoticed in the crowd, they followed the Treasurer to the gates of the Royal Treasury. By the Treasurer’s orders, the gates were at once thrown open, and the officials, entering the treasury, began the enumeration. The three thieves, in common with the rest, were allotted each a section of the Treasury Chamber, of which they were to make a complete inventory, and whilst so employed they had no difficulty in each one secreting a large pearl after first placing it upon their list. By nightfall the enumeration was complete, the lists were all handed over to the Chief Treasurer, and the Treasury was left locked and guarded as before.

Next day, at six o’clock, the Emperor seated himself in his Hall of Audience, and summoned the three Thieves before him.

“Well,” said he, “have you been able to fulfil the conditions which I set you? If you can now produce three pearls from my Treasury, you shall be rewarded in accordance with my promise; but if you are unable to do so, you shall all three be put to death.”

The Thieves bowed themselves humbly before the Emperor, and without making any reply each one produced a pearl and laid it on the steps of the throne. When the Emperor saw these pearls he was much astonished; but in order to make certain that they came from his own Treasury, he summoned his Chief Treasurer before him, and ordered him to compare the jewels in the Treasury with the inventory which had been made on the previous evening. The Treasurer hurried off to do so, and after a short while he reappeared, and informed the Emperor that, having carefully counted all the jewels, and having compared the numbers in the Treasury with the numbers on the inventory, he found that three pearls were indeed missing.

On hearing this the Emperor no longer hesitated in fulfilling his promise to the three Thieves. He raised them at once to high rank, and presented them with lands and money sufficient to uphold their new status, and they lived happily ever afterwards, enjoying the confidence of the Emperor and the friendship of the numerous officials whom they had saved from imprisonment and death.

STORY No. XV.

THE STORY OF THE BOY WITH THE DEFORMED HEAD.

Once upon a time there lived a poor man and his wife who had only one child, and this Boy, as it happened, was born with a deformed head, which projected in front and behind, and gave him a very ugly appearance. The parents, although much grieved at their son’s deformity, were, nevertheless, very fond of him and brought him up very carefully. Every day, when he grew big enough, he used to drive the cows out to pasture, and all day long he sat about on the hillsides watching the cattle graze. And so he passed his life very happily until, when he reached the age of fifteen, he began to think he should like to marry a wife as other young men did, but he feared that owing to his deformity no girl would ever look at him.

One day it chanced that he drove his cows to graze on the rich pasture on the edge of a small lake, and as he was sitting near the shore of the lake all of a sudden he saw a large white Drake descend from the sky, and light upon the surface of the water. As soon as it was seated upon the water it swam round the lake three times to the right and then three times to the left, and having done so it flew away again and disappeared into the sky.

The Boy watched the behaviour of this Drake with some interest. He had never before seen so large and beautiful a bird, nor one that behaved so strangely. So next day he again sat down in the same place, and kept a sharp look-out for the bird. At the same hour as on the previous day the Drake again appeared in the sky, and descending upon the lake, acted in precisely the same manner as before. And it continued to do so for several days, the Boy always watching its behaviour with increased interest.

At last he determined that he would try to catch this Drake for himself, so he wove himself a long rope of yaks’ hair, big enough to completely encircle the lake, and he laid this upon the shore in a loop extending right round the lake; and at short intervals along the rope he fastened loops made of the finest horse hair, the loose ends of which he left floating in the water.

Next day the Drake came as usual and began to swim round the lake to the right. It had not gone very far when it put its foot into one of the loops and was caught. The Boy at once ran down to the shore of the lake, and taking the Drake in his hands, he tied its wings and legs together, and set it down on the grass beside him.

“Now,” thought he to himself, “what shall I do with this fine white Drake? I will take him home and kill him, and he will make a nice dinner for father and mother and me.”

Just as he was thinking this, to his intense surprise, the Drake spoke to him as follows:

“I beg of you not to kill me, my good boy,” said he, “for you must know I am not in reality a Drake as I appear to be, but I am a fairy King just come from the region of the gods. It is my habit every day to descend to this lake in the form of a white Drake, and to amuse myself by swimming round and round. If you will now consent to let me go I will reward you liberally. You shall have gold and silver and jewels and coral, as much as you wish, and sumptuous food every day for the rest of your life.”

On hearing this the Boy laughed, and replied:

“You should not tell me such stories as these. How am I to know that you are really a fairy? It seems to me that all you are in a position to give me is your feathers.”

“I hope you will not disbelieve my word,” replied the Drake very earnestly; “I assure you I can do all this, and even more, if you will release me.”

“Well,” said the Boy, “if that is really so I will make a bargain with you. I do not care at all for your gold or your jewels, but what I really want is a wife. If you can promise to supply me with a wife I will let you go.”

“Well,” said the Drake, “that, too, can be arranged. I have three daughters living in my kingdom in the skies, and I will give you as wife any one of them whom you desire. Would you prefer the eldest, or the youngest, or the middle one?”

The Boy was greatly pleased on hearing this offer of the Drake’s, and he thought to himself:

“I will not take the eldest girl, for fear she should be too old, nor the youngest, for fear she should be too young. I will select the middle one.”

So he told the Drake that he would like his middle daughter.

“Very well,” said the Drake, “I will arrange the matter accordingly, and I will meet you here to-morrow with my middle daughter. But there is one condition which always attaches to the marriage of a mortal with a fairy, and that is that she can only live with you for nine years. At the conclusion of that time she is bound to return to her home in the heavens.”

The Boy agreed to this condition, and when all the details had been satisfactorily arranged he cut the cords which bound the Drake and let him go. The bird spread his wings and flew up into the sky; and after circling for a few minutes he flew straight upwards and disappeared from sight, whilst the Boy went home to his father and mother.

The Drake flew far up into the blue sky until he arrived at the country of the gods, where he changed at once into the form and raiment of the King of the Fairies. Seating himself upon his throne, he summoned his three daughters before him and informed them of what had occurred; and he gave orders to his middle daughter to prepare herself forthwith to go and marry a mortal. The girl wept bitterly on hearing this, but nevertheless she prepared to carry out her father’s orders, and got ready a large stock of beautiful clothes and much gold and silver and jewels to take with her.

Next day, at the appointed hour, the Boy went down to the lake as usual, and seated himself in his usual place; and not long afterwards he saw the white Drake and a white Duck flying towards him from the sky. They descended swiftly until they touched the ground, where they were at once transformed into the Fairy King and his beautiful daughter. The boy was overcome with joy when he saw the lovely wife that had been brought to him; but the girl was horrified at his ugly appearance, and begged her father to take her back to her abode in the skies. The Fairy King, however, insisted upon her carrying out her share of the bargain, so leaving his daughter with the Boy, he again turned himself into a Drake and, flying up into the sky, he disappeared from view.

The Boy now led his bride home to his father and mother, and next day the marriage was duly completed. The Fairy wife, by means of her magic, was able to erect a magnificent palace, and to furnish it in the most luxurious manner with everything necessary for comfort; and she supplied, moreover, horses and servants, and everything else that a married couple could desire. So the two took up their abode in this fine house and, together with the old father and mother, they lived there happily for several years; and as time passed away the fairy wife became accustomed to her husband’s forbidding appearance, and year by year became more and more attached to him.

So the time slipped by and at last the nine years of the Fairy wife’s abode upon earth came to an end. The young Man, however, had become so accustomed to her presence that he could hardly believe that the Fairy King’s words would come true and that he should really be deprived of his wife when the appointed time arrived. So on the last night of the ninth year he went to bed as usual in his magnificent chamber, clothed in rich silks, and surrounded by all the evidences of wealth and luxury.

He slept soundly all night, and when he awoke in the morning and sat up and looked about him, what was his astonishment and horror to discover that, instead of lying upon his fine couch in his magnificent palace, with troops of servants ready to wait upon him, he was reposing upon the bare ground under the open sky, on a bleak hillside near to the spot where he had first conversed with the Fairy King. His palace, his servants, his horses, his furniture, and, worst of all, his beautiful wife, had all disappeared utterly and completely, and nothing remained of them but a memory. Half distracted with grief and chagrin, the young Man ran frantically across the country, thinking to find some trace of his lost happiness.

For some days he wandered on and on, scarcely conscious of what he was doing, and at length, having passed beyond the part of the country which he knew, he arrived one day about noon on the shores of a vast expanse of water which stretched before him as far as he could see. By the side of this lake there arose a jagged cliff, and about half-way up the cliff on a broad ledge he noticed an immense nest, in which appeared some young birds of unusual size. At first he was unable to detect what sort of birds these were, but after examining them attentively for some time he saw that they were three young Gryphons, whose parents apparently had gone off in search of food.

As he stood upon the beach watching the young birds they suddenly began to manifest every sign of terror and confusion, chattering and squealing wildly to one another, and flapping their puny wings; and on turning towards the lake in order to ascertain what was the cause of their alarm, he perceived an immense Dragon—whose head, at the end of its long neck, towered high above the water—making its way rapidly across the lake, with the evident intention of devouring the young Gryphons. The young Man, who was of a courageous and kindly disposition, determined to save the young Gryphons from the maw of this monster; so, drawing his sword, he waited till the Dragon had set foot upon dry land, and then, attacking him fiercely, he engaged single-handed in a desperate conflict. For some time the issue was doubtful, but the young man at length succeeded with one well-delivered blow in severing the Dragon’s head from its neck, and the monster fell dead upon the beach.

Scarcely had the Dragon breathed its last when the air was darkened by the wings of some great creature passing overhead, and, looking up, he observed, flying just above him, the forms of the two parent Gryphons now returning to their nest. As soon as they had arrived the young Gryphons proceeded to relate to them at full length the terrible danger they had just escaped, and the gallant conduct of the young Man in slaying their would-be destroyer. The parent Gryphons were very pleased when they heard this story, and, looking towards the young Man with some curiosity, they began to remark upon his appearance.

“Have you ever, Mother Gryphon,” asked the male bird, “seen any creature of that description before?”

“No, Father Gryphon, I never have,” she replied; “but it seems to be both brave and well-intentioned. I observe, moreover, that it has neither beak nor claws, so I propose that we invite it into the nest, and receive it hospitably in return for a good service which it has rendered to our children.”

Father Gryphon agreed to this proposal, and he at once flew down to the beach, and addressing the young Man he invited him to enter the nest. The youth accepted the invitation, and having explained that he was unable to fly, he mounted upon the Gryphon’s back and was speedily carried up the cliff, and deposited with the young Gryphons in the nest. After making a good dinner off the food which the parent Gryphons had just provided for their young ones, the young Man related to the family all his various adventures since the time when he had first made the acquaintance of the Fairy King.

“Yours,” said Father Gryphon, “is a very sad story, and in my opinion you have not been treated at all well; but if you desire it, I may perhaps be of some assistance to you. What I propose is that you should mount upon my back, and I will then carry you through the air to the kingdom of the gods, where you can represent your case to the King of the Fairies in person, and where you will, at any rate, have the opportunity of persuading your wife to accompany you back to earth.”

The young Man gladly assented to this proposition, and mounted on the Gryphon’s back; and the great bird, spreading his wings, soared upwards straight into the blue sky, carrying the youth with him. Up and up they flew, whilst the earth seemed to recede into the distance and to grow smaller and smaller, until at length it disappeared from view altogether. Still they flew on until, towards nightfall, they arrived at the country of the gods. The Gryphon, with the young Man upon his back, flew straight in through the great golden gates, and deposited the youth in the centre of a vast courtyard round which were sitting numbers of gods, fairies and other denizens of the sky.

When the gods saw that a human being had been deposited in their midst they rose in great wrath, and began bitterly to reproach the Gryphon for what he had done.

“How is it,” said they, “that you have dared, unordered, to bring into our presence an inhabitant of the human world? Do you not know that human beings are of a coarser essence than ourselves and are repugnant and abhorrent to us? How dare you so defile the sacred country of the gods?”

But the Gryphon was not at all frightened at their anger, and he answered them boldly and firmly:

“This young man,” said he, “is a valiant and kind-hearted youth. He saved my young ones from destruction by attacking, single-handed, and killing a Dragon who was on the point of devouring them. He then related to me his story of how, after nine years of happiness, he was deprived by the King of the Fairies of his wife, his house, his wealth, and everything which he had possessed. I consider, therefore, that he has been treated in a shameful and unjustifiable manner, and so I have brought him here to plead his cause in person and to claim redress.”

While this conversation was in progress the young man’s Fairy wife had been hiding in a corner, too nervous to show herself before her husband and all the assembly of the gods. But she could now contain herself no longer, and, rushing forward, she threw herself into her husband’s arms, crying out that she loved him and would return with him to earth.

When her father heard this he did not know how to act, but it was decided that a conclave should be held, and the matter debated at length. So the celestial powers met together in a great council, and, having discussed the matter in all its bearings, they decided that, as the Fairy Princess desired to return to earth of her own free will, they would not stand in her way; but that if she did so, she must take the consequence of her own action, and that as the result of mating with an unclean creature like a human being she must herself become mortal and lose her Fairy nature.

On hearing this decision the girl joyfully agreed. So she and her husband mounted together upon the broad back of the Gryphon, and the great beast, spreading his wings, sailed through the golden gates of the palace and swept downwards through the blue heavens to the earth below. He soon deposited the youth and his wife on the ground near their old home, where he bade them farewell and returned to his own nest. And henceforward, although the Fairy had lost her magic powers, the two lived happily together, and grew to a good old age in prosperous and comfortable circumstances.

STORY No. XVI.

THE PRINCE AND THE OGRE’S CASTLE.

Once upon a time there lived an old King and Queen, who, although they had been married for many years, had no children to brighten their old age or to inherit their kingdom; and in the King’s possession, as it happened, were a favourite mare and dog, who also had no offspring. Now both the King and the Queen were very anxious to have children of their own, and also to perpetuate the fine breed represented by the mare and the dog; so the King posted a notice all over his kingdom, offering a very large reward to any Lama or other holy personage who could secure to him and to his horse and dog the birth of children.

In response to this notice many Lamas and recluses presented themselves at the palace, and by means of prayers and religious ceremonies they endeavoured to obtain from the gods what the King and Queen desired; but all their efforts were in vain, and the years passed by without any offspring being born.

Now it chanced that in a neighbouring country there lived a terrible Ogre, who was an expert in magic and all the black arts; and it came to his ears that this King had offered a large reward if anyone could secure to him the birth of children for himself, his horse and his dog. So he disguised himself as a holy Lama, and coming up to the palace one day on foot, he asked for an interview with the King. The King, who had almost lost faith in Lamas of any kind, received him courteously, and asked him what he could do to help in the matter.