“Stay, where are you going? Come and stay the night with me.” “No, brother, do not ask me: it is no good. I have business at home to-morrow and must be there early.” “Well, good-bye.” “But why should you go on foot? Better come on my horse, and he will gallop along gaily.” “Thank you very much.” So he sat on the horse, and the horse galloped away like a whirlwind. Suddenly the cock crowed: it was a very terrible sight! Graves all around, and under the wayfarer a gravestone! A TALE OF THE DEAD They had discharged the soldier home, and he was going on his road, it may be far, it may be a short way, and he at last was nearing his village. Not far from his village there lived a miller in his mill: in past times the soldier had been great friends with him. Why should he not go and see his friend? So he went. And the miller met him, greeted him kindly, brought a glass of wine, and they began speaking of all they had lived through and seen. This was towards the evening, and whilst the soldier was the miller’s guest it had become dark. So the soldier got ready to go into the village. But the miller said to him, “Soldier, stay the night with me: it is late and you might come by some mishap.” “What?” “A terrible sorcerer has died, and at night he rises out of the grave, ranges about the village and terrifies the boldest: why, he might give you trouble.” What was the use of it? Why, the soldier was a State servant, and a soldier cannot be drowned in the sea, nor be burned in the fire! So he answered, “I will go, for I should like to see my relatives as soon as I can.” So he set out; and the road crossed a grave-yard. As he looked he saw a glow on one grave. “What is it?” he said; “I must look at this.” So he went up, and beside a fire there sat the sorcerer, sewing shoes. “Hail, brother!” said the soldier. So the wizard looked, and asked, “What are you doing here?” “I only wanted to see what you are up to.” So the wizard threw down his work, and he invited the soldier to a wedding. “Let us go, brother, let us have a walk: there is a wedding now going on in the village.” “Very well,” said the soldier. So they went to the wedding, and were royally feasted and given to eat and drink. The wizard drank and drank, walked about and walked about, and grew angry, drove all the guests and the family out of the _izbá_,[2] scattered all the wedding guests, took out two bladders and an awl, pricked the hands of the bride and bridegroom and drew their blood, filling the bladders with the blood. He did this and said to the soldier, “Now we will leave the house.” On the road the soldier asked him, “Tell me, why did you fill the bladders with the blood?” “So that the bride and bridegroom might die. To-morrow nobody will be able to wake them up: I only know one means of reviving them.” “What is that?”