take a bag with a string around the top and place it with some cheese
in the bushes, and when a hare or a partridge would come and try to
get the piece of cheese--snap! Miss Puss would draw the string and
there was the hare or partridge for Master Jack to eat. One day two
hares happened to rush into the bag at the same time. So the cat,
after giving one to Jack, took the other and went with it to the
King's palace. And when she came outside the palace gate she cried
out, "Miaou."
The sentry at the gate came to see what was the matter. Miss Puss gave
him the hare with a bow and said: "Give this to the King with the
compliments of the Earl of Cattenborough."
The King liked jugged hare very much and was glad to get such a fine
present.
Shortly after this Miss Puss found a gold coin rolling in the dirt.
And she went up to the palace and asked the sentry if he would lend
her a corn measure.
The sentry asked who wanted it. And Puss said: "My Master, the Earl of
Cattenborough."
So the sentry gave her the corn measure. And a little while afterwards
she took it back with the gold coin, which she had found, fixed in a
crack in the corn measure.
So the King was told that the Earl of Cattenborough measured his gold
in a corn measure. When the King heard this he told the sentry that if
such a thing happened again he was to deliver a message asking the
Earl to come and stop at the palace.
Some time after the cat caught two partridges, and took one of them to
the palace. And when she called out, "Miaou," and presented it to the
sentry, in the name of the Earl of Cattenborough, the sentry told her
that the King wished to see the Earl at his palace.
So Puss went back to Jack and said to him: "The King desires to see
the Earl of Cattenborough at his palace."
"What is that to do with me?" said Jack.
"Oh, you can be the Earl of Cattenborough if you like. I'll help you."
"But I have no clothes, and they'll soon find out what I am when I
talk."
"As for that," said Miss Puss, "I'll get you proper clothes if you do
what I tell you; and when you come to the palace I will see that you
do not make any mistakes."
So next day she told Jack to take off his clothes and hide them under
a big stone and dip himself into the river. And while he was doing
this she went up to the palace gate and said: "Miaou, miaou, miaou!"
And when the sentry came to the gate she said: "My Master, the Earl of
Cattenborough, has been robbed of all he possessed, even of his
clothes, and he is hiding in the bramble bush by the side of the
river. What is to be done? What is to be done?"
The sentry went and told the King. And the King gave orders that a
suitable suit of clothes, worthy of an Earl, should be sent to Master
Jack, who soon put them on and went to the King's palace accompanied
by Puss. When they got there they were introduced into the chamber of
the King, who thanked Jack for his kind presents.
Miss Puss stood forward and said: "My Master, the Earl of
Cattenborough, desires to state to your Majesty that there is no need
of any thanks for such trifles."
The King thought it was very grand of Jack not to speak directly to
him, and summoned his lord chamberlain, and from that time onward only
spoke through him. Thus, when they sat down to dinner with the Queen
and the Princess, the King would say to his chamberlain, "Will the
Earl of Cattenborough take a potato?"
Whereupon Miss Puss would bow and say: "The Earl of Cattenborough
thanks his Majesty and would be glad to partake of a potato."
The King was so much struck by Jack's riches and grandeur, and the
Princess was so pleased with his good looks and fine dress that it was
determined that he should marry the Princess.
But the King thought he would try and see if he were really so nobly
born and bred as he seemed. So he told his servants to put a mean
truckle bed in the room in which Jack was to sleep, knowing that no
noble would put up with such a thing.
When Miss Puss saw this bed she at once guessed what was up. And when
Jack began to undress to get into bed, she made him stop, and called
the attendants to say that he could not sleep in such a bed.
So they took him into another bedroom, where there was a fine
four-poster with a dais, and everything worthy of a noble to sleep
upon. Then the King became sure that Jack was a real noble, and
married him soon to his daughter the Princess.
After the wedding feast was over the King told Jack that he and the
Queen and the Princess would come with him to his castle of
Cattenborough, and Jack did not know what to do. But Miss Puss told
him it would be all right if he only didn't speak much while on the
journey. And that suited Jack very well.
So they all set out in a carriage with four horses, and with the
King's life-guards riding around it. But Miss Puss ran on in front of
the carriage, and when she came to a field where men were mowing down
the hay she pointed to the life-guards riding along, and said: "Men,
if you do not say that this field belongs to the Earl of Cattenborough
those soldiers will cut you to pieces with their swords."
So when the carriage came along the King called one of the men to the
side of it and said, "Whose is this field?"
And the man said, "It belongs to the Earl of Cattenborough."
And the King turned to his son-in-law and said, "I did not know that
you had estates so near us."
And Jack said, "I had forgotten it myself."
And this only confirmed the King in his idea about Jack's great
wealth.
A little farther on there was another great field in which men were
raking hay. And Miss Puss spoke to them as before. So, when the
carriage came up, they also declared that this field belonged to the
Earl of Cattenborough. And so it went on through the whole drive. Then
the King said, "Let us now go to your castle."
Then Jack looked at Miss Puss, and she said: "If your Majesty will but
wait an hour I will go on before and order the castle to be made ready
for you."
With that she jumped away and went to the castle of a great ogre and
asked to see him. When she came into his presence she said:
"I have come to give you warning. The King with all his army is coming
to the castle and will batter its walls down and kill you if he finds
you here."
"What shall I do? What shall I do?" said the ogre.
"Is there no place where you can hide yourself?"
"I am too big to hide," said the ogre, "but my mother gave me a
powder, and when I take that I can make myself as small as I like."
"Well, why not take it now?" said the cat.
[Illustration: The Cat and the Ogre]
And with that he took the powder and shrunk into a little body no
bigger than a mouse. And thereupon Miss Puss jumped upon him and ate
him all up, and then went down into the great yard of the castle and
told the guards that it now belonged to her Master the Earl of
Cattenborough. Then she ordered them to open the gates and let in the
King's carriage, which came along just then.
The King was delighted to find what a fine castle his son-in-law
possessed, and left his daughter the Princess with him at the castle
while he drove back to his own palace. And Jack and the Princess
lived happily in the castle.
But one day Miss Puss felt very ill and lay down as if dead, and the
chamberlain of the castle went to Jack and said:
"My lord, your cat is dead."
And Jack said: "Well, throw her out on the dunghill."
But Miss Puss, when she heard it, called out: "Had you not better
throw me into the mill stream?"
And Jack remembered where he had come from and was frightened that the
cat would say. So he ordered the physician of the castle to attend to
her, and ever after gave her whatever she wanted.
[Illustration: "Had You not Better Throw me into the Millstream?"]
And when the King died he succeeded him, and that was the end of the
Earl of Cattenborough.
[Illustration: The Child Finds the Feather Dress]
THE SWAN MAIDENS
There was once a hunter who used often to spend the whole night
stalking the deer or setting traps for game. Now it happened one night
that he was watching in a clump of bushes near the lake for some wild
ducks that he wished to trap. Suddenly he heard, high up in the air, a
whirring of wings and thought the ducks were coming; and he strung his
bow and got ready his arrows. But instead of ducks there appeared
seven maidens all clad in robes made of feathers, and they alighted on
the banks of the lake, and taking off their robes plunged into the
waters and bathed and sported in the lake. They were all beautiful,
but of them all the youngest and smallest pleased most the hunter's
eye, and he crept forward from the bushes and seized her dress of
plumage and took it back with him into the bushes.
After the swan maidens had bathed and sported to their heart's
delight, they came back to the bank wishing to put on their feather
robes again; and the six eldest found theirs, but the youngest could
not find hers. They searched and they searched till at last the dawn
began to appear, and the six sisters called out to her:
"We must away; 'tis the dawn; you meet your fate whatever it be." And
with that they donned their robes and flew away, and away, and away.
When the hunter saw them fly away he came forward with the feather
robe in his hand; and the swan maiden begged and begged that he would
give her back her robe. He gave her his cloak but would not give her
her robe, feeling that she would fly away. And he made her promise to
marry him, and took her home, and hid her feather robe where she could
not find it. So they were married and lived happily together and had
two fine children, a boy and a girl, who grew up strong and beautiful;
and their mother loved them with all her heart.
One day her little daughter was playing at hide-and-seek with her
brother, and she went behind the wainscoting to hide herself, and
found there a robe all made of feathers, and took it to her mother. As
soon as she saw it she put it on and said to her daughter:
"Tell father that if he wishes to see me again he must find me in the
Land East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon;" and with that she flew
away.
When the hunter came home next morning his little daughter told him
what had happened and what her mother said. So he set out to find his
wife in the Land East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon. And he wandered
for many days till he came across an old man who had fallen on the
ground, and he lifted him up and helped him to a seat and tended him
till he felt better.
Then the old man asked him what he was doing and where he was going.
And he told him all about the swan maidens and his wife, and he asked
the old man if he had heard of the Land East o' the Sun and West o'
the Moon.
And the old man said: "No, but I can ask."
Then he uttered a shrill whistle and soon all the plain in front of
them was filled with all of the beasts of the world, for the old man
was no less than the King of the Beasts.
And he called out to them: "Who is there here that knows where the
Land is East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon?" But none of the beasts
knew.
Then the old man said to the hunter: "You must go seek my brother who
is the King of the Birds," and told him how to find his brother.
And after a time he found the King of the Birds, and told him what he
wanted. So the King of the Birds whistled loud and shrill, and soon
the sky was darkened with all the birds of the air, who came around
him. Then he asked:
"Which of you knows where is the Land East o' the Sun and West o' the
Moon?"
And none answered, and the King of the Birds said:
"Then you must consult my brother the King of the Fishes," and he told
him how to find him.
And the hunter went on, and he went on, and he went on, till he came
to the King of the Fishes, and he told him what he wanted. And the
King of the Fishes went to the shore of the sea and summoned all the
fishes of the sea. And when they came around him he called out:
"Which of you knows where is the Land East o' the Sun and West o' the
Moon?"
And none of them answered, till at last a dolphin that had come late
called out:
"I have heard that at the top of the Crystal Mountain lies the Land
East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon; but how to get there I know not
save that it is near the Wild Forest."
So the hunter thanked the King of the Fishes and went to the Wild
Forest. And as he got near there he found two men quarrelling, and as
he came near they came towards him and asked him to settle their
dispute.
"Now what is it?" said the hunter.
[Illustration: The Dolphin who Came Late]
"Our father has just died and he has left but two things, this cap
which, whenever you wear it, nobody can see you, and these shoon,
which will carry you through the air to whatever place you will. Now I
being the elder claim the right of choice, which of these two I shall
have; and he declares that, as the younger, he has the right to the
shoon. Which do you think is right?"
So the hunter thought and thought, and at last he said:
"It is difficult to decide, but the best thing I can think of is for
you to race from here to that tree yonder, and whoever gets back to me
first I will hand him either the shoes or the cap, whichever he
wishes."
So he took the shoes in one hand and the cap in the other, and waited
till they had started off running towards the tree. And as soon as
they had started running towards the tree he put on the shoes of
swiftness and placed the invisible cap on his head and wished himself
in the Land East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon. And he flew, and he
flew, and he flew, over seven Bends, and seven Glens, and seven
Mountain Moors, till at last he came to the Crystal Mountain. And on
the top of that, as the dolphin had said, there was the Land East o'
the Sun and West o' the Moon.
Now when he got there he took off his invisible cap and shoes of
swiftness and asked who ruled over the Land; and he was told that
there was a King who had seven daughters who dressed in swans'
feathers and flew wherever they wished.
Then the hunter knew that he had come to the Land of his wife. And he
went boldly to the King and said:
"Hail O King, I have come to seek my wife."
And the King said, "Who is she?"
And the hunter said, "Your youngest daughter." Then he told him how he
had won her.
Then the King said: "If you can tell her from her sisters then I know
that what you say is true." And he summoned his seven daughters to
him, and there they all were, dressed in their robes of feathers and
looking each like all the rest.
So the hunter said: "If I may take each of them by the hand I will
surely know my wife"; for when she had dwelt with him she had sewn the
little shifts and dresses of her children, and the forefinger of her
right hand had the marks of the needle.
And when he had taken the hand of each of the swan maidens he soon
found which was his wife and claimed her for his own. Then the King
gave them great gifts and sent them by a sure way down the Crystal
Mountain.
And after a while they reached home, and lived happily together ever
afterwards.
[Illustration: _East o' the Sun & West o' the Moon_]
[Illustration: Androcles and the Lion]
ANDROCLES AND THE LION
It happened in the old days at Rome that a slave named Androcles
escaped from his master and fled into the forest, and he wandered
there for a long time till he was weary and well nigh spent with
hunger and despair. Just then he heard a lion near him moaning and
groaning and at times roaring terribly. Tired as he was Androcles rose
up and rushed away, as he thought, from the lion; but as he made his
way through the bushes he stumbled over the root of a tree and fell
down lamed, and when he tried to get up there he saw the lion coming
towards him, limping on three feet and holding his fore-paw in front
of him. Poor Androcles was in despair; he had not strength to rise and
run away, and there was the lion coming upon him. But when the great
beast came up to him instead of attacking him it kept on moaning and
groaning and looking at Androcles, who saw that the lion was holding
out his right paw, which was covered with blood and much swollen.
Looking more closely at it Androcles saw a great big thorn pressed
into the paw, which was the cause of all the lion's trouble. Plucking
up courage he seized hold of the thorn and drew it out of the lion's
paw, who roared with pain when the thorn came out, but soon after
found such relief from it that he fawned upon Androcles and showed, in
every way that he knew, to whom he owed the relief. Instead of eating
him up he brought him a young deer that he had slain, and Androcles
managed to make a meal from it. For some time the lion continued to
bring the game he had killed to Androcles, who became quite fond of
the huge beast.
But one day a number of soldiers came marching through the forest and
found Androcles, and as he could not explain what he was doing they
took him prisoner and brought him back to the town from which he had
fled. Here his master soon found him and brought him before the
authorities, and he was condemned to death because he had fled from
his master. Now it used to be the custom to throw murderers and other
criminals to the lions in a huge circus, so that while the criminals
were punished the public could enjoy the spectacle of a combat between
them and the wild beasts. So Androcles was condemned to be thrown to
the lions, and on the appointed day he was led forth into the Arena
and left there alone with only a spear to protect him from the lion.
The Emperor was in the royal box that day and gave the signal for the
lion to come out and attack Androcles. But when it came out of its
cage and got near Androcles, what do you think it did? Instead of
jumping upon him it fawned upon him and stroked him with its paw and
made no attempt to do him any harm. It was of course the lion which
Androcles had met in the forest. The Emperor, surprised at seeing such
a strange behaviour in so cruel a beast, summoned Androcles to him and
asked him how it happened that this particular lion had lost all its
cruelty of disposition. So Androcles told the Emperor all that had
happened to him and how the lion was showing its gratitude for his
having relieved it of the thorn. Thereupon the Emperor pardoned
Androcles and ordered his master to set him free, while the lion was
taken back into the forest and let loose to enjoy liberty once more.
[Illustration: Day-Dreaming]
DAY-DREAMING
Now there was once a man at Bagdad who had seven sons, and when he
died he left to each of them one hundred dirhems; and his fifth son,
called Alnaschar the Babbler, invested all this money in some
glassware, and, putting it in a big tray, from which to show and sell
it, he sat down on a raised bench, at the foot of a wall, against
which he leant back, placing the tray on the ground in front of him.
As he sat he began day-dreaming and said to himself: "I have laid out
a hundred dirhems on this glass. Now I will surely sell it for two
hundred, and with it I will buy more glass and sell that for four
hundred; nor will I cease to buy and sell till I become master of
much wealth. With this I will buy all kinds of merchandise and jewels
and perfumes and gain great profit on them till, God willing, I will
make my capital a hundred thousand dinars or two million dirhems. Then
I will buy a handsome house, together with slaves and horses and
trappings of gold, and eat and drink, nor will there be a singing girl
in the city but I will have her to sing to me." This he said looking
at the tray before him with glassware worth a hundred dirhems. Then he
continued: "When I have amassed a hundred thousand dinars I will send
out marriage-brokers to demand for me in marriage the hand of the
Vizier's daughter, for I hear that she is perfect in beauty and of
surpassing grace. I will give her a dowry of a thousand dinars, and if
her father consent, 'tis well; if not, I will take her by force, in
spite of him. When I return home, I will buy ten little slaves and
clothes for myself such as are worn by kings and sultans and get a
saddle of gold, set thick with precious jewels. Then I will mount and
parade the city, with slaves before and behind me, while the people
will salute me and call down blessings upon me: after which I will go
to the Vizier, the girl's father, with slaves behind and before me, as
well as on either hand. When the Vizier sees me, he will rise and
seating me in his own place, sit down below me, because I am his
son-in-law. Now I will have with me two slaves with purses, in each a
thousand dinars, and I will give him the thousand dinars of the dowry
and make him a present of another thousand dinars so that he may
recognize my nobility and generosity and greatness of mind and the
littleness of the world in my eyes; and for every ten words he will
say to me, I will answer him only two. Then I will return to my house,
and if any one come to me on the bride's part, I will make him a
present of money and clothe him in a robe of honour; but if he bring
me a present I will return it to him and will not accept it so that
they may know how great of soul I am." After a while Alnaschar
continued: "Then I will command them to bring the Vizier's daughter to
me in state and will get ready my house in fine condition to receive
her. When the time of the unveiling of the bride is come, I will put
on my richest clothes and sit down on a couch of brocaded silk,
leaning on a cushion and turning my eyes neither to the right nor to
the left, to show the haughtiness of my mind and the seriousness of my
character. My bride shall stand before me like the full moon, in her
robes and ornaments, and I, out of my pride and my disdain, will not
look at her, till all who are present shall say to me: 'O my lord, thy
wife and thy handmaid stands before thee; deign to look upon her, for
standing is irksome to her.' And they will kiss the earth before me
many times, whereupon I will lift my eyes and give one glance at her,
then bend down my head again. Then they will carry her to the
bride-chamber, and meanwhile I will rise and change my clothes for a
richer suit. When they bring in the bride for the second time, I will
not look at her till they have implored me several times, when I will
glance at her and bow down my head; nor will I cease doing thus, till
they have made an end of parading and displaying her. Then I will
order one of my slaves to fetch a purse, and, giving it to the
tire-women, command them to lead her to the bride-chamber. When they
leave me alone with the bride, I will not look at her or speak to her,
but will sit by her with averted face, that she may say I am high of
soul. Presently her mother will come to me and kiss my head and hands
and say to me: 'O my lord, look on thy handmaid, for she longs for thy
favour, and heal her spirit,' But I will give her no answer; and when
she sees this, she will come and kiss my feet and say, 'O my lord,
verily my daughter is a beautiful girl, who has never seen man; and if
thou show her this aversion, her heart will break; so do thou be
gracious to her and speak to her.' Then she will rise and fetch a cup
of wine, and her daughter will take it and come to me; but I will
leave her standing before me, while I recline upon a cushion of cloth
of gold, and will not look at her to show the haughtiness of my heart,
so that she will think me to be a Sultan of exceeding dignity and will
say to me: 'O my lord, for God's sake, do not refuse to take the cup
from thy servant's hand, for indeed I am thy handmaid.' But I will not
speak to her, and she will press me, saying: 'Needs must thou drink
it,' and put it to my lips. Then I will shake my fist in her face and
spurn her with my foot thus." So saying, he gave a kick with his foot
and knocked over the tray of glass, which fell over to the ground, and
all that was in it was broken.
KEEP COOL
There was once a man and he had three sons, and when he died they all
had to go out to seek a living. So the eldest went out first, leaving
his two brothers at home, and went to a neighbouring farmer to try and
get work from him.
"Well, well, my man," said the farmer, "I can give you work but on
only one condition."
"What is that?"
"I cannot abear any high talk on my farm. You must keep cool and not
lose your temper."
"Oh, never bother about that," said the youngster, "I never lose my
temper, or scarcely ever."
"Ah, but if you do," said the farmer, "I make it a condition that I
shall tear a strip of your skin from your nape to your waist; that
will make a pretty ribbon to tie around the throat of my dog there."
"That doesn't suit me," was the reply. "So fare thee well, master, I
must try another place."
"Keep cool, keep cool," said the farmer. "I am a just man; what's good
for the man I consider good for the master. So if I should lose my
temper I am quite willing that you should take the ribbon of flesh
from my back."
"Oh, if that's so," said the youngster, "I'll agree to stay. But we
must have it in black and white."