Whether it is a long time ago or a short time ago I cannot say, but
I know that once upon a time, in a certain village, dwelt a peasant
who was headstrong and hot-tempered, and his name was Demyan. He was
austere and hard and stern, always seeking an occasion to quarrel,
and dealing hardly with whom-soever he fell out. Whatever any one said
or did to him, he was always ready with his fists. He would invite
a neighbour to be his guest, for instance, and force him to eat,
and if the neighbour hung back a bit for bashfulness or courtesy,
our peasant would pitch into him at once and cry, "In a strange house
obey thy host!"
Now this is what happened one day. A smart, sturdy young fellow came
to little Demyan as a guest, and our peasant regaled him finely,
and filled the table with meat and drink. The young fellow pulled
everything towards himself, dish after dish, and munched away in
silence with both cheeks crammed full. Our peasant stared and stared,
and at last he took off his cloak and said, "Take off thy blouse, and
put on my cloak!" But he thought to himself, "He is sure to refuse,
and then I'll show him something!" But the youth put on the cloak,
tied it round with his girdle, bowed low and said, "Well, little
father! I thank thee for thy gift. I dare not refuse, for in a strange
house one must obey the host."
The host was furious; he wanted to pick a quarrel with him now at any
price, so he ran into the stable, got out his best horse, and said to
the youth, "Nothing is too good for thee! Here, mount my horse, and
take it away as thine own!" But he thought, "He'll be sure to refuse,
and then I'll teach him a lesson." But the youth again said, "In a
strange house we must always obey the host!" Only when he was fairly
mounted did he turn round to the peasant Demyan and cry, "Farewell,
mine host! Nobody pushed thee, but thou didst fall into the ditch of
thine own self!" and he trotted out of the courtyard right away.
But the host looked after him, shook his head, and said, "The scythe
has struck upon a stone!" [51]