Part 3

So he sat down upon the threshing machine and thought and thought and thought and thought. Then did he rise up with much determination showing about the edges of his countenance and move rapidly toward the North Pole; for he loved the stars and knew them all by name. He put a great lever against the Pole and heaved away with all his massive power and tipped the Pole over so that it should not all the time point at the same spot in the sky and that the sun should not always shine upon the plains.

Thus it was he had rest one-half the year.

This so amazed the other inhabitants of the earth they were utterly unable to comprehend it and would never have known what had produced the change from one season to four had not Ka In got into an argument with his brother in which he let the cat out of the bag. When he found his brother had told what he had said to his wife he one day caught him out in the field kindling a fire and making an offering to his deity, and caused him to stop breathing for the remainder of his natural life.

_Second Narrative_

The second narration is even more wonderful, and it relates to this same ancestor, who was a man of renowned achievement.

It came about in the manner following: That he was so much put out by the stories which had got afloat through the wife of his brother he froze the earth up solid with the icy glance of his scornful eye. And when the people roundabout made as if to believe this was the best thing that had happened to them for several hundred years he became so heated with his anger and made such violent use of such warm language the fever of his breath melted all the ice suddenly, both that upon the earth—for the waters of the deep were under the ice and carnivals were daily being held to his great displeasure—but in the clouds, which were solid chunks of frozen moisture held rigidly in the sky. And so it was that the air was full of great rain and the earth was flooded thereby, and no one escaped but Fa Kir, who hastened to the North Pole and builded him a house upon it at such a distance from the earth the water did not reach him, the remains of which still exist to this day as proof of this historical account.

_Third Narrative_

Ah! But there were giants in the days of my grandfather, Fa Bel. They towered in the air and shook the ground with their tread. And such eyes. When love kindled in their hearts their eyes shone with such brilliancy and power the objects of their affection would have been consumed but for their artfulness; they instantly fell to weeping and such torrents of water fell there were formed rivulets, so to speak, between their lovers and themselves. This would not have been sufficient to protect them from utter destruction had not the fiery glances changed the water into an impenetrable mist which preserved them.

Others were still more artful—those with cold hearts—and always carried large plates of brass so finely polished as to be perfect reflectors. By means of these they sent the glances back with such increased power (for they were concave) the giants beat a hasty and precipitate retreat.

Each hair of the beards of these giants was of the size of large twine.

Upon one occasion my grandfather, Fa Bel, dropped his false teeth into a well several hundred feet deep. He was in much despair, for they were a new thing in those days and he had become so accustomed to them he would not do without them. My grandmother told him to cut off his beard and she would weave it into a rope by which he could descend into the well and recover his loss. This he agreed to and was soon happy again.

But he was so much improved in appearance by the removal of his beard, had not the other men observed the state of affairs and also cut off their beards, there might have been grievous trouble in all the land; for had these men gone to war their bulk was so great and their voices so strong the shock of conflict would have burst the earth into pieces.

This was the beginning of the custom of shaving the face, which became prevalent in all lands, and also of the cutting of the hair of men.

_Fourth Narrative_

His sons and daughters were so impressed by this story they sought to provide against another such evil day; and they set about it in this wise.

They went upon a great mountain and raised up a marvelous tower which reached into and through the land of the skies. When it was completed there was joy and thanksgiving, which was all quickly turned to sorrow when it was discovered that this pinnacle gave ready vent for the electricity in the clouds, which came down this shaft with such force it not only paralyzed all their tongues but their brains also, and caused them to forget all the words they had ever used. And they ran away, one by one, to hide, and when they came forth they knew not father or mother, brother, or sister, or friend; and so each was compelled to start a new race; but it also caused the great steeple to crumble and fall away and the winds blew it all into the sea.

VIII

Here appears the second of the documents I discovered in the box, and its amazing contents will satisfy the most fastidious, and will, likewise, remove many false impressions as to the origin of certain things, customs, etc., such as the origin of the pigmies and people of the present stature; the cause of the variety of complexion now existing, both in skin and hair; the albinos, volcanoes, mineral springs, and glaciers. Also traces my genealogy from Li Ur to Sto Ry, the writer of the document here given.

SECOND DOCUMENT

STO RY, who was the son of Fik Shun, who was the son of Fay Re Tales, who was the son of Li Ur, speaks as one having large knowledge of many curious and remarkable but truthful and authentic details which have descended to him by and through his fathers, who were men of learning and renown in the countries they inhabited and among the peoples with whom they dealt and had intercourse.

Hear ye, O, my brothers, and harken unto the wise sayings I am about to send forth for thy help and satisfaction. For thus it was I was commanded by my ancestor, through his sons my fathers, to keep with great safety and accuracy this historical account of various and divers exploits by him and by them accomplished, that is to say:

* * * * *

By way of salutation then:

Know ye there was a time when the earth was liquid, and so it ever would have remained but for the following circumstances.

A mighty fish swam in the midst of the waters and his length was so great it was curved half way round the globe; so that by constantly swimming in this manner his backbone had become fixed in a half circle.

About this time there descended from Jupiter a man of mammoth stature, so tall, in fact, when he stood within the ocean his head and shoulders protruded above the surface. He had scarcely taken a hasty survey above the tumultuous waves when this gigantic fish observed him and, being almost famished (for it had eaten up all the other fish many months before), it smacked its huge jaws with such relish and vehemence the attention of this man (who, by the way, was my great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, grandfather) was attracted toward him. But my ancestor took very little care of his adversary, knowing well his power to undo him at the proper time.

And so it happened when this great fish had approached with consummate stealth and was about to seize its prey, grandfather grasped the top of a high mountain and tipped the earth over so that all the water ran off. Then it was the curvature of the fish’s spine was his destruction; for the waters being removed, so great was the weight of his body and so rigid his spine he broke entirely in two and immediately succumbed.

My grandfather at once took from him his skin which he neatly dressed and dried in the sun and ever afterward used as a horn to call his hosts together from the four quarters of the sky; which he immediately did and peopled the earth which was now dry and green and exceedingly fair to behold.

* * * * *

By way of prelude then.

In those old days when the world was peopled with giants there became classes and clans, or tribes, as they were then known, each of which was composed of the descendants of one man, and they were all such a merry lot life was considered a most excellent thing indeed.

One day my grandfather, to whom I have alluded in my salutation, went up to the North Pole. There he learned the cause of the change of seasons, and finding it exceedingly cold conceived a joke he would play upon his tribe. Thereupon he filled his horn full of the northern air and carried it back.

Now it happened the day on which he returned was bath day and the whole tribe was bathing in the lake. When he was within such distance he could put the mouth of the horn to the edge of the lake he did so and blew softly upon it.

The lake was immediately covered by a coat of ice upon which the people at once stood, for the water was becoming so cold they could not stay in it. He continued to blow on the horn and the people got so cold they began to shrivel up, and had he not at last blown all the cold out of this horn they would have shrunken into mere nothing. As it was they were so small he had to look several times to discover where they were, and he put the whole tribe in the pocket of his overcoat and carried them to his tent. He tried hard to warm them up and bring them back to their normal size, but it was impossible.

Thus it came about that this tribe became the forefathers of what are now called Pigmies and Dwarfs, and their mixture with the giants produced the present stature of the people of the earth.

* * * * *

By way of interlude then.

There was a time when the complexion of the people of the earth was red and they had bright red hair and beards; and it would have been so unto this day had not the following occurred:

There was a very warm spring in which certain of the family or tribe loved to sport. How it came about, except that some subterranean stream had broken out immediately beneath the lake, it was never known; but so it was while they were all in bathing and another tribe was looking on, the water became fiercely black and very hot. They hastened to the shore, and when they got up out of the water they were all black as midnight and the tribe on the shore became so transfixed with fear their countenances, hair, and beard changed to an absolute white. All the efforts of the medical force failed to change the first tribe from black or the second tribe from white back to their usual color.

The white tribe held a great caucus and they came in great numbers to debate the occurrence, and thus they came to be called Caucusions or Caucasians.

And so it was there came to be variations not alone in the complexion of the peoples of the earth, but in the hue of their hair and beard.

* * * * *

By way of postlude then.

So it was the mixture of tribes brought about a kind or class of people with eyes so tender and delicate the light of the sun worked them great inconvenience. They were people with pinkish-hued eyes and skin, with hair exceedingly light in color.

Owing to this their affliction they were the ones who were employed to dig wells, as they were thus freed from the attacks of the rays of the sun.

Now it happened one day while they were down a great depth digging a well the auger slipped from their hands and they listened and heard it strike something far down within the earth.

At first they were much astonished; but being a very inquisitive people they set about investigating the matter. One of them peered through the hole and suddenly rose upon his feet exclaiming he saw daylight. They hastened to the surface and told the people they had dug clear through the earth. But they were not believed, and vast numbers went into the well to look at the other side of the earth, and one philosopher was in high and brilliant feather, for he had maintained most vigorously the earth was flat, though many had told him they had been entirely around it and knew it could not be so. Yet he insisted, because the surface of the other side was likewise diversified, they had been led into a mistake.

Then happened a very astonishing thing. The next day there were gathered in the well as many as could well stand on the bottom of it of this people with the pink eyes, and so great was their excitement they jumped up and down, when the bottom suddenly gave way, and down these people went. They were sure they would be killed or fly out into space and never get back, one and all, but the bottom of the well struck on a soft and yielding soil and they were not harmed in the least.

But those who had not been down in the well at the time were filled with sorrow and despair and made long lines and dropped them down. At last they felt a tugging at a line, and on pulling it up, along with it came one of their fellows to their great joy.

This rescued one told delightful and beautiful stories about a land which had a delicious twilight always; was filled with sweet streams and odorous lakes; where large trees grew bearing excellent fruit; where were flocks of sheep of a peculiar kind, but very tender and juicy, and other animals equally fit to sustain life.

Such effect had these stories, that with one accord all the pink-eyed people descended into this new country.

In course of time it became a custom with them to celebrate their release from torture, and at such times they made great fires at the mouths of winding natural wells which led to the surface of the earth. Now, these fires were so fierce because of the draught they melted the sides of the holes and the suction carried the molten matter out into the air.

So it was volcanoes came to be used as a token of joy, as well as to communicate to the people of the earth above that these people were not only still in existence but exceedingly and gloriously happy.

Occasionally some of these people come up onto the earth on visits and they are termed Albinos.

And these people have a great many drinks which they store in great caverns by air pressure, using great electric engines for the purpose of forcing it to all parts of their realm. Once in a while the people of the earth bore down into one of these reservoirs and there spurts up one of these drinks. They are called mineral springs.

* * * * *

By way of finale then.

I am aware, according to the tradition as remitted to future generations by one of my grandfathers, the different seasons are due to the tipping of the earth by one of our ancestors prying over the North Pole. But there is a tradition which comes down my mother’s side of the family, which is so logical and so true to nature and man it deserves a place in the archives of our history. I will therefore be pardoned for inserting it here. I have had reverence at all times for the veracity of the historical account to which I allude, and I desire it understood at the outset I pass no judgment on it, but leave the matter to the reader’s acumen and discernment to distinguish and decide between them.

One of the great-grandfathers of my wife (in fact, I believe it was her remote ancestor, who of course must have been related to my remote ancestor) made weekly trips into space.

Now it so happened when leaving the earth on such occasions he did so by way of the North Pole—it may have been the south pole, for our language at that date was so meager it is impossible to discover any real distinction between the word which stands for “north” and the word representing “south,” and I am inclined to think at that early date it had not become necessary to make any distinction between the two directions, as the inhabitants were then hardly conscious of direction at all.

But be that as it may, the Pole projected a great distance into space, so that he could run out upon it and use it as a spring-board to gain momentum in starting on his journey.

And so it was one night while on earth in sleep he divulged the fact he had taken to himself another wife in one of the other planets, which knowledge so enraged his wife she went forth in search for a suitable instrument for cracking his skull. While she was gone a servant awoke him and gave him the above information. He, well knowing the capacity of his better half, conceived it a wise plan, a very wise plan indeed, to start on one of his journeys, which he lost no time in doing; but just before he reached the Pole, on glancing over his shoulder he observed his irate spouse coming after him at a tremendous rate, which so accelerated his speed that he made such a terrific spring from the Pole the earth was thrown out of plumb, and it has so remained to this day.

And the narration concludes with the information, which may be safely regarded as remarkably accurate, that his wife was so put out by his escape she vented her spite by hacking viciously at the Pole, which she thumped so heartily she loosened the masses of ice thereabouts, which immediately began to slide toward the middle of the earth, and have so continued to do down to this date, and they are now termed “icebergs,” “glaciers,” and the like.

* * * * *

By way of ending then.

I wish to impress upon him to whom this document shall descend it will always be found in company with a document written and compiled by one of my fathers, and no change must be made in the same, not so much as in a single word, for no one could be possessed of sufficient knowledge so to do properly and might by so doing convey an erroneous impression to future generations.

VIIII

Being the first item of the Third Document, and contains the history of the rapidly growing tree with the golden fruit which undid a king and made another. This document, in its several items, gives many startling details of facts and fables not generally known and heretofore unpublished.

THIRD DOCUMENT

STO RY begat An An Ias, who begat Wha Pur, who begat Ala Din, who begat Sin Bad, who begat El Ra Shad, who begat Mun Chau Sen (the elder), who begat Mun Chau Sen the younger (my grandfather), who submits the following Items with knowledge they will be favorably received and conscientiously preserved by his descendants:

_Item First_

My five-great-grandfather was walking in an orchard one day when he discovered a tree laden with a peculiar fruit. He gazed on it with wonder, for but the day before he had planted the sprout which had been sent to him by his grandfather. He could scarcely comprehend he was awake and in his right senses, but such was the case. The fruit seemed of gold, and as he was a poor man his heart immediately yearned for the possession of enough of it that he might buy a cow that his children might have milk; to buy a few bees that they might have honey with which to eat the milk; to buy a horse that he might no longer have to walk to the city; to buy a farm on which to raise food; to buy a few sheep to grow wool for clothing; to buy seed to sow, and to buy material with which to build a house, for they were very, very poor and had lived in a cave and subsisted on roots and things like that.

And he went up to the tree, put forth his hand to take some of the fruit, when lo, the tree grew so rapidly he could not reach the fruit. He became frenzied with the desire for it and he put forth such strength to reach the lowest shining globe his arm was lengthened thereby to a length almost sufficient to reach it, but not quite. So he persevered until his arm had grown so long he had not strength in his body to keep it longer in an upright position and it fell to the ground, from whence he could not raise it, nor did it resume its former length, but remained as it was.

He gazed aloft at the golden fruit, tears streaming down his face.

Then he started off in great haste in search of a ladder, as the tree seemed to have stopped its remarkable growth, and he was forced to drag his arm and hand after him trailing on the ground.

When he had gone a great distance he was suddenly stopped by the king, who was out riding, for the king had not ever seen a man with such an arm. In answer to the king’s question as to how he came by it, he told his story. The king immediately ordered one of his attendants to dismount, and had my forefather put on the horse and directed him to lead the way to this wonder, which they very soon reached.

Thereupon the king commanded one of his attendants (who happened to be one of the ancestors of Sin Bad) to climb the tree and throw down the fruit.

When the man began to climb, the tree began to grow above him; he climbed and climbed and climbed until he was worn out with exhaustion and slid down with such force he lay stunned for several hours.

In the meantime the king ordered his hewer to cut down the tree, which he proceeded to do with a great show of confidence. But, strange though it may seem it is nevertheless in strict accord with veracity, before the chopper could make a second stroke the cut he had made had risen above his reach by reason of the swift growth of the tree; and he was fain to desist after a long and hard struggle to strike the blows quickly enough to get two cuts in the same place.

He was at once beheaded by the order of the king, who was frantic with rage at his defeat.

He then ordered his bridgemaker to tie a chain around the tree, hitch twenty oxen to the chain, and thus pull the tree up by the roots.

Now, this driver of oxen was a vainglorious man and earnestly sought emulation in the sight of his majesty, and it was with exceeding readiness he set about obeying the command. He dextrously switched his oxen into line, and they were lusty ones, and with much adroitness took a lockstitch around the trunk of the tree. Then he reached for his whip, and observed the oxen all dangling in the air above his head, bellowing with fear and liked all to have their necks broken by the phenomenal growth of the tree. Had the chain not broken by the efforts of the oxen to free themselves, they had all surely been done to death by the tree.

But the extreme weight of the oxen thus hanging on one side of the tree had made a kink in the trunk, and a peculiar thing happened—the tree now grew upward in kinks.

The king was simply beside himself with passion and with his own hand cut off the head of the oxen driver; and he then commanded his commander of war engines to knock the tree down with a battering ram.

Now, this commander had had nothing to do for ages, as the king had hitherto been a peaceable man, and he felt the honor of receiving a command from his monarch so keenly he strutted about the work of arranging the ram for decisive action.

This was a ponderous piece of machinery, had cost many talents of gold, but had never been brought into actual use. It had an ugly-looking ram which seemed powerful enough to have knocked down a castle with a single blow. It was worked by electricity, and all the commander had to do was to press the button and it would do the kicking.

When all was ready, he pressed the button. The ram shot forward with enormous velocity, only to come at the tree as one of the kinks removed the trunk from its track. And no matter how rapidly the button was pushed, so it was thought, a kink in which there was no tree was always found in front of the shooting ram. So the commander was beheaded, and the king jumped from his horse and danced up and down in a frightful state.