The Russian Grandmother's Wonder TalesHoughton, Louise Seymour
General
The Russian Grandmother's Wonder Tales
Houghton, Louise Seymour
Slavs -- Folklore
He answered, "I have a skirt of marble, a bodice of dew, a head-dress
of threads made from the sun's rays, with a clasp of the moon and
stars; then I have shoes of pure gold which were neither sewed
nor made by a smith. So, tell me, do you wish to buy these things
or not? You have but to command, and I will bring them to you, but
only on one condition. When you try these things on, piece by piece,
there shall be no one present but only us two. If they fit we shall
soon come to terms; if not, I will never offer them to another soul,
but will lay them aside and keep them for my own bride."
The Princess agreed to this condition and gave him the order to bring
the garments. And, really, he brought them to her. God only knows
where he found them and how he came to possess them; it is enough
for us to know that he kept his word.
They shut themselves up in a room, and first she tried on the skirt,
while he watched narrowly to see if by chance he could discover the
mole. To his joy he saw it under her right knee--a little golden star;
but not the slightest change in his face betrayed his discovery. He
only thought in his heart, "It is well for me to-day and for all time!"
Then the Princess tried on the bodice and all the other things, and
they fitted her as if she had been poured into them. They agreed as to
the price; she paid it on the spot; he packed up his gold and departed.
After a few days, having dressed himself in the finest suit that could
be bought for money, he came back to sue for the hand of the Emperor's
daughter. When he appeared before the Emperor he said, "Worthy Emperor,
I come to woo your daughter. Make no objections; give her to me!"
"Good!" answered the Emperor; "but do you know how my daughter's hand
is won? Take good care, for if you do not guess the mole you are lost;
but if you do guess it she will be yours, and the half of my empire
into the bargain."
The youth bowed to the Emperor and said, "My greetings, O Emperor and
father-in-law! If that is the case she is mine. She has a little star
under the right knee."
The Emperor was not a little surprised that he could know this, but
there was nothing for it but to yield, and so the youth was married
to the Princess.
When the Emperor proceeded to give him the half of his empire the
new-made son-in-law said to him, "I willingly leave this half of your
empire to you if you are ready to restore these poor souls to their
former condition."
The Emperor answered that this was no longer in his power, but lay
in the hands of his daughter, "who now," he added, "is your wife."
So he turned to his wife with this request, and she answered:
"Cut the vein under the famous mole. Let every lamb touch the end of
its tongue to the blood and moisten its underlip with it, and they
will all be changed to men and live as before."
He did as she directed, and when the lambs had all assumed the forms
of men again they were invited as wedding-guests.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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