There was once upon a time a merchant, and he had two sons, Dmitry and Ivan. Once the father bade his sons good-night, sent them off to bed, and said to them: "Now, children, whatever you see in your dreams, tell it all to me to-morrow morning, and whichever of you hides his dream from me, no good thing will befall him." In the morning the eldest son came to his father and said: "I dreamed, dear father, that my brother Ivan flew high into the sky on twenty eagles."--"Very good!" said the father; "and what didst thou dream, Vania?" [59]--"Well, such rubbish, father, that it is impossible to tell it."--"What dost thou mean? Speak!"--"No, I'll not!"--"Speak, sir, when I bid thee!"--"No, I won't speak, I won't." The father was very angry with his youngest son, and resolved to punish him for his disobedience, so he sent for his overseers and bade them strip Ivan naked and tie him to a post at the crossways as tightly as possible. No sooner said than done. The overseers seized hold of him, dragged him far, far away from home to the crossways, where seven roads crossed, tied him by the hands and feet to the post, and left him alone to his fate. The poor youth fared very badly. The sun scorched him, the gnats and flies sucked his blood, hunger and thirst tortured him. Fortunately for Ivan, a young Tsarevich happened to be going along one of these seven roads; he saw the merchant's son, had compassion on him, and bade his attendants untie him from the post, dressed him in his own clothes, and saved him from a cruel death. The Tsarevich took Ivan to his court, gave him to eat and drink, and asked him who had tied him to the post. "My own father, who was angry with me."--"And wherefore, pray? Surely thy fault was not small?"--"Well, in fact, I would not obey him; I would not tell him what I saw in my dreams."--"And for such a trifle as that he condemned thee to so cruel a punishment! The villain! But surely he has outgrown his wits! But what then didst thou see in thy dream?"--"I saw what I cannot even tell unto thee, O Tsarevich!"--"What! Not tell? Not tell me? me, the Tsarevich? What! I saved thee from a cruel death, and thou wilt not do this trifle for me in return? Speak immediately, or it will not be well with thee!"--"Nay, Tsarevich! I stick to my word. I haven't told my father, and I'll not tell thee."--The Tsarevich boiled over with unspeakable rage, and shrieked to his servants and attendants, "Hi! my faithful servants, take this good-for-nothing boor, put heavy irons on his hands, weld grievous fetters to his legs, and cast him into my deep dungeon!" The servants did not think twice about their master's commands; they seized Ivan the merchant's son, loaded his hands and feet with fetters, and put him as God's slave in the stone sack. A little and a long time passed by, and the Tsarevich thought of marrying the thrice-wise Helena, the first maiden in the whole earth for beauty and wisdom, so he made ready and went into