The Russian Grandmother's Wonder TalesHoughton, Louise Seymour
General
The Russian Grandmother's Wonder Tales
Houghton, Louise Seymour
Slavs -- Folklore
When morning came he saw that the hair was of gold. Going home, he
told what had happened to him, and declared his intention to go through
the world to seek out that Vila. But the two clever brothers answered,
"What would you be able to find? It is better for us two clever ones
to go and seek her. Something may come of it then."
So the two set out upon their way. The eldest found a shovel and took
it with him, and it did him good service. For when they got to the
Moon they found the door locked. Then they dug under the door and
went in. They found only the Moon-mother at home, and of her they
inquired if such-and-such a Vila lived there.
The Moon-mother answered, "She lives in the Sun. How will you get
there? But see, here is a spider; she shall spin you a chain that
will reach from here to there."
The spider went to work, spun a chain, and fastened it to the lock
of the Sun-door. So the brothers set out upon this bridge; but while
they were on the way the Sun came home, opened the door, and snapped
the chain in two. So the brothers fell off, and very luckily they
tumbled into their god-father's cabbage-garden. So they felt no harm,
but went home and told their adventures.
Then the stupid brother set out. He found an ancient crone and begged
her to show him the way to the Moon. The old crone told him it was
not very hard to go there, and gave him a bucketful of down. So he
seated himself in the bucket and flew up to the Moon.
He entered the house and asked if a certain Vila lived there who
looked so-and-so. The Moon-mother answered, No, she lived in the
Sun. So he flew up to the Sun, arrived there safely, and carefully
hid his bucket in the cellar in the coolest place he could find,
that it might not be melted by the heat.
Meantime the Sun came home and asked, "What is your wish?"
"I seek such-and-such a Vila."
The Sun brought her out and gave her to him, and he seated himself
beside her in the bucket and set out.
When they were half-way home the Sun came out to see how the travellers
were getting on; and he shone on them so scorchingly that all the down
was melted, the bucket lost its balance, and the youth and the Vila
fell down to earth and were caught in a tree. They cannot go down,
for under the tree sits an old wizard sorting out a capful of human
hairs. But the Vila slipped softly down the tree and put the wizard
to sleep. Then the youth clambered down and took the Vila home.
They reached his father's house, where he told all his adventures;
but the Vila was invisible to every one but her rescuer, so that no
one believed his story. Then the Vila began to weep, and the brothers
said, "Good! now we believe that she is here, but just where she is
we do not know."
Meantime the old wizard under the tree awoke, started out,
and came into the room where they were. He greeted the Vila with
"Good-day!" whereupon she became visible to every one as a beautiful
maiden.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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