Part 4

"But the unexpected thing," said he, "was the appearance of a black knight, clad in armor at all points. Whether he was a fairy or a human being, I cannot tell. He vanquished all the princes and knights, and disappeared in a hurricane after unhorsing me, too."

"Alas!" exclaimed the lad, shaking his head very sadly, as if understanding nothing.

Now let us return to the maiden. She, seeing the golden rat and the golden cat in a golden basin brought to her, was assured that her betrothed had come from the infernal regions up to the world of light.

"I will not marry you," she said to the King, "until you get me a golden hen and a golden weasel playing in a golden basin."

The King sent his order to the goldsmith, who promised to make them, first getting the consent of the bald-headed apprentice. He brought him nuts; and the lad, kissing the magic ring, the two negroes again appeared, who immediately brought the golden hen and the golden weasel playing in a golden basin. The goldsmith took them to the King, who invited him to the second day's tournament. The lad again asked leave to go with his master, and the goldsmith again refused him. Soon after the goldsmith went, however, the lad cast into the fire the hair of the red horse, which immediately made its appearance with a suit of red armor on its back. The lad, changing his clothes, mounted the horse, which immediately ran to the place of the tournament. At once vanquishing all who were there and unhorsing his own master, the lad disappeared, and coming home changed his clothes and was again the bald-headed apprentice. In the evening the goldsmith began to describe the tournament, and the apprentice listened to his story with great surprise and seriousness.

The maiden was now sure that her betrothed had come, for no one else could do these things. On the following day she said to the King:

"I want you to get for me a golden greyhound and a golden fox running a race in a golden basin, else I will not marry you."

The goldsmith was again called, and promised to make them, first consulting with the bald-headed apprentice, to whom he brought the usual quantity of nuts. The lad cracked and ate the nuts till morning. At daybreak he kissed the magic ring, and for the third time the two negroes appeared, bringing in the golden greyhound and the golden fox running a race in a golden basin. The goldsmith at once took them to the King, who invited him to the third day's tournament. The lad cast into the fire, this time, the white horse's hair, which was the third giant's horse; and immediately it stood before him with a suit of white armor on its back. The lad, putting the armor on, was changed to a white knight; and taking the sword of lightning in hand, rushed to the place of the tournament. After vanquishing all, and killing the King and his own unworthy brothers, he stood in the midst of the crowd and told them who he was, what heroic deeds he had done, and what wrongs he had endured. The people being tired of the tyrannical King, immediately hailed the youth as their monarch.

He married his betrothed, and gave the other two maidens in marriage to two of his best friends. Thus he attained his wishes. May Heaven grant that you may attain your wishes!

Three apples fell from Heaven;--one for me, one for the story-teller, and one for him who entertained the company.

THE FAIRY NIGHTINGALE.

A very interesting story was once told me of a King who built a splendid church. It took the architects seven years to finish the building. The King went to dedicate the church and to pray in it, and lo! there was a fog so dense that the King was almost suffocated. In the very midst of the dense fog a monk stood before the King, saying:

"Long live the King! You have built a fine church, but it lacks one thing."

The monk then quickly disappeared. The King came out and ordered his men to take down the building and to put up another one finer than the first. It took them another seven years to finish the second building. The King again went to dedicate the church and pray in it, and lo! again there was a dense fog, and the same monk stood before the King, saying:

"Long live the King! You have built a beautiful church, but it lacks one thing."

Again the monk mysteriously disappeared. The King again ordered his men to take down the building and to put up a new one. It took them another seven years to finish the third building, and it was this time so splendid that there was nothing like it in all the world. The King again went to dedicate it and to pray in it, and lo! again there was a dense fog, and the same monk stood before the King saying:

"Long live the King! You have built a church incomparably beautiful, but it lacks one thing."

The monk was again about to make his exit when the King took hold of his collar, saying:

"Tell me what is the one thing lacking in my church. This is the third time that you compel me to take down my building, upon which so much labor and time have been spent."

"The Fairy Nightingale is the only thing that is lacking in this magnificent church," said the monk, and disappeared in the fog.

The King returned to his palace, and thereafter was very sad. He had three sons, who seeing their father sad, asked:

"Long live the King! What grieves you, father?"

"My sons," said the King, "I am getting old, and the Fairy Nightingale is needed for the church. I do not know how to get it."

"Be of good cheer, father," said the lads; "we will go and bring it."

And they started. After a long journey they came to a place where the road divided into three branches, with a sign on each. The sign of the broad road was,--"He who goes on this road returns safely." The sign on the middle road was,--"He who goes on this road may return or may not return." And the sign on the third narrow road was,--"He who goes on this road never returns." The oldest brother took the broad road; the second brother took the middle road, and the youngest brother took the narrow road. The oldest lad soon came to a large city, at sight of which he said to himself:

"Why should I go farther and be killed? I would better stay in this place." And he became a servant in one of the inns of the city.

The second brother turned toward the other side of the mountain, and came to a green meadow with shady trees here and there, and benches under the trees. He was tired, and at once sat down upon one of the benches. Soon a giant as black as night came along with an iron rod in his hand. He gave the lad one stroke with the rod, and lo! the lad turned into a round stone, and rolled under the bench.

The youngest of the three brothers started on the road along which there could be no return. A dense fog covered him, and lo! the monk who had talked with his father appeared to him, saying:

"God speed thee, son! Whither are you going?"

"I am going to bring the Fairy Nightingale for our new church," said the lad.

"Good," said the monk; "but this way is dangerous; let me advise you. The owner of the Fairy Nightingale is the Fairy Queen, a very beautiful maiden. On your way you will soon come to a river which the Fairy Queen has by her arts changed into a poisoned stream, and she does not drink of it. But you must drink of it, and say: 'O happy! this is the water of immortality.' After crossing the river you will come to a grove which the queen has changed into a jungle of thorns and thistles. You must smell the trees and shrubs, and say: 'O happy! this grove is the flower of Paradise.' Then you will come to a narrow pass on one side of which there is a wolf bound with chains, and on the other side there is a lamb bound with chains. There is a bundle of grass before the wolf, and a piece of meat before the lamb. You must put the grass before the lamb, and the meat before the wolf. You will then come to a large gate with double doors, one open and one closed. You must open the closed door and shut the open one. Entering in you will find the Fairy Queen, owner of the Fairy Nightingale, sleeping in a splendid bedchamber. She sleeps seven days and nights, and is awake seven days and nights. If you can do what I have told you, and reach there at a time when the Queen is asleep, you can bring the Nightingale; if not, you are lost."

The lad started, and came successively to the river, the grove, the lamb and the wolf, and the gate. He did all that the monk had told him, and entering in, saw an exquisite bedchamber where a maiden as beautiful as the sun was sleeping on a purple bed embroidered with gold and jewelry. The Fairy Nightingale came down from its cage, and standing on the Queen's bedside, sang to her a thousand songs with enchanting melody, and lullabied her to sound sleep. The lad, who was watching from behind the arras, seeing the maiden asleep, and that the Nightingale had returned to its cage, crept in slowly, took the Nightingale's cage, pressed a kiss upon the forehead of the sleeping maiden, thus stamping the sign of his lips there, and started back on his way.

The Queen awoke, and seeing the Nightingale had been stolen, exclaimed:

"Doors, catch the thief!"

"God speed him!" said the doors; "he closed the open one of us and opened the closed one of us."

"Wolf and lamb, catch the thief!" exclaimed the Fairy Queen.

"God speed him!" said the wolf and the lamb; "he gave the meat to the wolf, and the grass to the lamb."

"Grove, catch the thief!" exclaimed the Queen.

"God speed him!" said the grove; "you made me thorns and thistles; he made me a flower of Paradise."

"River, catch the thief!" exclaimed the Queen.

"God speed him!" said the river; "you made me a stream of poison; he made me the water of immortality."

When the Queen saw that all her charms were unavailing, she mounted her horse and started in pursuit of the lad.

But let us return to the lad. He passed all the dangerous places and came to the square where the road divided into the three branches. He saw the monk waiting for him.

"Here is the Fairy Nightingale, holy father," said the lad, and seeing that his brothers had not yet come back, he give the cage to the monk and he himself started in search of his brothers. He went first along the broad road, until he came to the inn where his brother was serving. He secretly made himself known to him, and taking him away brought him to the monk. He then took the next road, and went as far as the green meadow and sat down upon one of the benches. Soon the giant appeared with his iron rod and tried to strike the lad. But the lad cleverly avoided the blow, and snatching the rod from the giant's hand, struck him. Immediately the giant fell down and was changed into a huge round black stone.

"My brother must have been lost somewhere in this place," thought the lad, and began to strike with the iron rod the stones scattered here and there upon the meadow, and lo! the stones were changed into men, who began to run away; but his brother was not among them. He saw a stone under the bench, and struck it. It was changed into his brother, and began to run.

"Brother! brother, do not run, it is I," exclaimed the lad.

He stopped and both returned to the monk. All three, taking the Fairy Nightingale, went toward their father's city. On the way they were thirsty, and came to a well.

They lowered the youngest brother to draw water, and as soon as he reached the bottom of the well, the two older brothers said to one another:

"When we go home to our father all praise and glory will be given to that fellow who is now in the well, and we shall be despised. It shall not be; he shall never come up from that well."

They cut the rope, and leaving the hero in the well, took the Nightingale and went to their father, saying:

"Our youngest brother was killed in our attempt to get the Fairy Nightingale, but we two succeeded in bringing it."

They hung the cage in the new church, but the Fairy Nightingale did not warble a single song; it was sad and silent. Soon the Fairy Queen came riding to the King, and said:

"Who is the hero that has brought my Nightingale?"

"We brought it," said the two brothers.

"Well, what did you meet on the way?" inquired the Queen.

"Nothing," said the lads.

"Then it was not you who brought it," said the Queen; "you are thieves." And she caused them to be arrested and cast into prison, saying:

"You shall not be released until the real hero who brought the Fairy Nightingale is presented to me."

Some women who were gleaning barley in the fields happened to pass near the well where the lad was left, and hearing him groan took him out; one of them, who had no children, adopted him as her son. After a few weeks news came from the city to the village to the effect that the King's sons had brought the Fairy Nightingale, but the Fairy Queen, the owner of the Nightingale, also had come after it. One day the lad asked permission of his adopted mother, saying:

"A new church has been built, let me go and see it."

The old woman consented, and he went to the city as a peasant boy. He went to his father's house and heard that his brothers were imprisoned. He went directly to the prison and set them free. The Fairy Queen, hearing this, came and said to the lad:

"I am the Fairy Queen, the owner of the Nightingale; are you not afraid of me?"

"I am he who brought the Fairy Nightingale," said the lad, "I am not afraid of you."

"What did you see on the way?" asked the Queen.

The lad told her what he had seen and what he had done.

"And moreover," said the lad, "I have put a sign upon your forehead with my own lips. Look at your image in yonder pond, and you will see that you are my betrothed."

The Queen looked at her reflected image in the water, and seeing the mark of the lad's kiss, exclaimed:

"Hero, you are worthy of me; I am yours hereafter."

A wedding festival for forty days and forty nights was celebrated. After this the couple went to the church to be married. The Fairy Nightingale began to warble, and sang them a thousand and one songs. It is still singing, and all the world is wondering at its sweet melodies.

Three apples fell from heaven; one for me, one for the story-teller, and one for him who entertained the company.

THE DREAMER.

A father and mother once lived whose son was a dreamer. One morning the lad arose and said to his mother:

"Mother, I dreamed a dream last night, but I will not tell it."

"Why will you not tell it?" asked the mother.

"I will not," answered the lad.

"The mother beat the lad, who ran to his father, saying:

"Father, I dreamed a dream last night; I did not tell it to mother, and I will not tell it to you."

The father also beat the lad, who was angered and ran away from the house. After a day's journey he met a traveler.

"Good-day!" said the lad.

"Good-day!" replied the traveler.

"I dreamed a dream," said the lad; "I did not tell it to my mother, I did not tell it to my father, and I will not tell it to you."

The lad went on until he came to the Prince's palace. The Prince was sitting at the door. The lad said:

"Prince, I dreamed a dream; I did not tell it to my mother, I did not tell it to my father, I did not tell it to the traveler, and I will not tell it to you."

The Prince was angry, and cast the lad into a prison in the cellar of his palace. The lad dug through the wall of his prison with his dagger and opened a hole into the adjacent room which happened to be the dining-room of the Prince's daughter. The lad finding the maiden's food in the cupboard, ate it all and withdrew to his prison. Soon the maiden came in, and lo! the food was eaten. This was repeated on several days. The maiden was very anxious to know who it was who ate her food, and one day hiding herself in her wardrobe she began to watch. Soon she saw the lad, who lifting a great stone opened a hole in the wall, crept into her room, took the food from the cupboard and began to help himself. She jumped out, and taking hold of the lad, said:

"Who are you, young man?"

"I dreamed a dream," said the lad, "I did not tell it to my mother, I did not tell it to my father, I did not tell it to the traveler, I did not tell it to the Prince; the Prince cast me into prison, and I dug a hole with my dagger and came here. I am at your mercy."

The maiden fell in love with the lad, and thereafter cherished him not only with her food but with her love, and they accepted one another as husband and wife.

One day the King of the East sent messengers to the Prince bearing a stick which had both ends equal, saying:

"Now, tell me which is the bottom and which is the top of this stick. If you solve this, well and good; if not, you must give your daughter in marriage to my son."

The Prince called all his wise men into council, but no one could solve the riddle. The princess told it to the lad. The lad said:

"Go and tell your father to tell them to cast the stick into the pond; the bottom end will sink the deeper in the water."

They did so, and the riddle was solved. On the following day the King of the East sent three horses, all being exactly the same size and having the same appearance, saying:

"Which is the one year old colt, which is the two year old colt, and which is the mother? If you solve this, well and good; if not, you must give your daughter in marriage to my son."

All the learned men of the Prince could not solve this riddle. The princess, in the evening, said to the lad:

"No one could solve the riddle, and they will take me away to-morrow."

"Tell your father," said the lad, "to let them keep the horses in the stable over night. In the morning let them take a bundle of hay, wet and salt it and cast it before the horses outside the stable door. The mother will come out first, the two year old colt after her, and the one year old colt last."

They did as the lad advised, and the riddle was solved. On the following day the King of the East sent to the Prince a steel shield and a steel spear, saying:

"If you can pierce this shield with this spear with one stroke, I will give my daughter to your son in marriage; if you cannot pierce it, you must give your daughter to my son in marriage."

The Prince and all his men tried, and could not pierce the shield. The Prince then said to his daughter:

"Go, send your man; let us see if he can pierce it."

The lad came, and at one stroke pierced the steel shield with the steel spear. Now, the Prince had no son; he therefore adopted the lad, who was already his son-in-law, and made him heir apparent to his throne. Thereupon the lad set out to go and bring the daughter of the King of the East. After a long journey he met a man who was kneeling down with his ear close to the ground.

"What man are you?" asked the lad.

"I lay my ear to the ground," answered the man, "and listen to whatever men say all over the world."

"Aha! what a man!" exclaimed the lad, "he can hear what is said all over the world."

"Man?" said the listener. "A man is he who pierced the steel shield with the steel spear."

"It was I," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the listener, and followed the lad. After another long journey they met a man who was standing with one of his feet upon Mount Ararat and the other upon Mount Taurus.

"Aha! what a man!" exclaimed the lad. "He strides over the world."

"Man?" exclaimed the colossal strider. "A man is he who pierced the steel shield with the steel spear."

"It was I," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the colossus, and followed the lad.

After a long journey they met a man who was eating all the loaves baked in seven ovens, and still crying, "I am hungry! I am famishing! For heaven's sake, give me something to eat!"

"Aha!" said the lad. "What a man! whom seven ovens continually baking cannot satisfy."

"Man?" exclaimed the glutton. "A man is he who pierced the steel shield with the steel spear."

"I am the man," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the glutton, and followed the lad.

Soon they met a man who was carrying the earth upon his shoulders.

"What a man!" exclaimed the lad.

"Man?" replied the carrier of the earth. "A man is he who has pierced the steel shield with the steel spear."

"I am the man," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the carrier of the earth, and he also followed the lad.

They soon met a man who was lying flat on the bank of the Euphrates, and drinking the river dry, but still crying, "I am thirsty! I am dry; more water, for heaven's sake!"

"Aha! what a man," exclaimed the lad, "the river Euphrates does not satisfy his thirst."

"Man?" exclaimed the river-drinker, "a man is he who pierced the steel shield."

"I am he," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the river-drinker, and followed the lad.

They soon met a shepherd who was blowing his horn, and lo! hills and valleys, plains and forests, men and beasts were dancing.

"Aha! what a man!" exclaimed the lad, "all the world is dancing to his music."

"Man!" returned the shepherd, "a man is he who pierced the steel shield."

"I am he," said the lad.

"Then I am your brother," said the shepherd, and he followed the lad. Now they were seven.

"Brother Steel-shield-steel-spear," said the six adopted brothers to the lad, "where shall we go now?"

"We shall go and bring the daughter of the King of the East," answered the lad.

"You are worthy of her," said his six companions.

Soon they arrived at the city of the King of the East, who seeing them said to his servants secretly:

"These seven fellows have come to take away my daughter. Heaven forbid! They are bashful lads and will hardly eat a bowlful of soup. Now go and bake twenty-one ovens full of bread and make twenty-one cauldrons full of soup and put it all before them. If they can eat all at one sitting, I will give them my daughter; if not, I will not."

The lad and his crew were entertained in an apartment some distance from the King's apartment, where he was giving these instructions to his men. The ground-listener, hearing the King's orders, said to the lad:

"Brother Steel-shield-steel-spear, did you hear what the King said to his men?"

"No, blockhead!" said the lad, "how can I hear him while he is in another apartment far from us?"

The ground-listener said: "They are going to serve us twenty-one horse-loads of bread and twenty-one cauldrons full of soup, and in case we fail to eat all at one meal they will refuse to give us the princess."

"Be of good cheer." said the ravenous eater; "I take the responsibility upon myself."

On the following day all the bread and soup was served to one man, and there was not enough to gratify him. He was still crying, "I am hungry! I am famishing! Give me something to eat!"

"A plague upon these fellows!" said the King to his peers; "we could not satisfy one; what if all the seven should eat! Now I tell you what to do; entertain them in another house; bring quantities of wood and rushes at night and pile them round about the building, and in the middle of the night when they are asleep set fire to the piles. Thus they will perish and we shall get rid of them."

The ground-listener hearing everything, told it to the lad.

"Never mind," said the river-drinker, "I can keep in my stomach water enough to extinguish their fire."

He went and drank the neighboring river dry and came back, and all went to bed. At midnight they saw that the house was on fire. The river-drinker blew upon the flames, and lo! a stream of water began to flow from his mouth. It not only extinguished the flames, but drowned all those who were making the fire. That caused the King to be still more angry, and he said to his peers:

"Let come what may, I will not give up my daughter."

"Now it is my turn," said the earth-carrier, "if he does not give us his daughter I will carry away his whole kingdom."