Russian Fable
Texts For Chapbook Illustrations 1885
Russian Literature – Children Books – Russian Poetry – Leo Tolstoy – Fables for Children By Leo Tolstoy – A Fairy-Tale – Contents
VII.
On the next morning his eldest brother, Semén the Warrior, heard of it, and he went to see Iván.
“Reveal to me,” he said, “where did you find those soldiers, and where did you take them to?”
“What is that to you?” he said.
“What a question! With soldiers anything may be done. You can get a kingdom for yourself.”
Iván was surprised.
“Indeed? Why did you not tell me so long ago?” he said. “I will make as many for you as you please. Luckily the girl and I have threshed a lot of straw.”
Iván took his brother to the threshing-floor, and said:
“Look here! I will make them for you, but you take them away, or else, if we have to feed them, they will ruin the village in one day.”
Semén the Warrior promised that he would take the soldiers away, and Iván began to make them. He struck a sheaf against the floor, there was a company; he struck another, there was a second, and he made such a lot of them that they took up the whole field.
“Well, will that do?”
Semén was happy, and said:
“It will do. Thank you, Iván.”
“All right,” he said. “If you need more, come to me, and I will make you more. There is plenty of straw to-day.”
Semén the Warrior at once attended to the army, collected it as was proper, and went forth to fight.
No sooner had Semén the Warrior left, than Tarás the Paunch came. He, too, had heard of the evening’s affair, and he began to beg his brother:
“Reveal to me, where do you get the gold money from? If I had such free money, I would with it gather in all the money of the whole world.”
Iván was surprised.
“Indeed? You ought to have told me so long ago,” he said. “I will rub up for you as much as you want.”
His brother was glad:
“Give me at least three seed-baskets full!”
“All right,” he said, “let us go to the woods! But hitch up the horse, or you will not be able to carry it away.”
They went to the woods, and Iván began to rub the oak leaves. He rubbed up a large heap.
“Will that do, eh?”
Tarás was happy.
“It will do for awhile,” he said. “Thank you, Iván.”
“You are welcome. If you need more, come to me, and I will rub up some more,—there are plenty of leaves left.”
Tarás the Paunch gathered a whole wagon-load of money, and went away to trade with it.
Both brothers left the home. And Semén went out to fight, and Tarás to trade. And Semén the Warrior conquered a whole kingdom for himself, while Tarás the Paunch made a big heap of money by trading.
The brothers met, and they revealed to one another where Semén got the soldiers, and Tarás the money.
Semén the Warrior said to his brother:
“I have conquered a kingdom for myself, and I lead a good life, only I have not enough money to feed my soldiers with.”
And Tarás the Paunch said:
“And I have earned a whole mound of money, but here is the trouble: I have nobody to guard the money.”
So Semén the Warrior said:
“Let us go to our brother! I will tell him to make me more soldiers, and I will give them to you to guard your money; and you tell him to rub me more money with which to feed the soldiers.”
And they went to Iván. When they came to him, Semén said:
“I have not enough soldiers, brother. Make me some more soldiers,—if you have to work over two stacks.”
Iván shook his head.
“I will not make you any soldiers, for nothing in the world.”
“But you promised you would.”
“So I did, but I will not make them for you.”
“Why, you fool, won’t you make them?”
“Because your soldiers have killed a man. The other day I was ploughing in the field, when I saw a woman driving with a coffin in the road, and weeping all the time. I asked her who had died, and she said, ‘Semén’s soldiers have killed my husband in a war.’ I thought that the soldiers would make music, and there they have killed a man. I will give you no more.”
And he stuck to it, and made no soldiers for him.
Then Tarás the Paunch began to beg Iván to make him more gold money. But Iván shook his head.
“I will not rub any, for nothing in the world.”
“But you promised you would.”
“So I did, but I will not do it.”
“Why, you fool, will you not do it?”
“Because your gold coins have taken away Mikháylovna’s cow.”
“How so?”
“They just did. Mikháylovna had a cow, whose milk the children sipped, but the other day the children came to me to ask for some milk. I said to them: ‘Where is your cow?’ And they answered: ‘Tarás the Paunch’s clerk came, and he gave mother three gold pieces, and she gave him the cow, and now we have no milk to sip.’ I thought you wanted to play with the gold pieces, and you take the cow away from the children. I will not give you any more.”
And the fool stuck to it, and did not give him any. So the brothers went away.
They went away, and they wondered how they might mend matters. Then Semén said:
“This is what we shall do. You give me money to feed the soldiers with, and I will give you half my kingdom with the soldiers to guard your money.” Tarás agreed to it. The brothers divided up, and both became kings, and rich men.
Russian Literature – Children Books – Russian Poetry – Leo Tolstoy – Fables for Children By Leo Tolstoy – A Fairy-Tale – Contents
Copyright holders – Public Domain Book
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