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+The Project Gutenberg eBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
+most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
+whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
+of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
+www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you
+will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before
+using this eBook.
+
+Title: Mighty Mikko
+       A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+Author: Parker Fillmore
+
+Illustrator: Jay Van Everen
+
+Release Date: November 23, 2011 [eBook #38112]
+[Most recently updated: March 13, 2021]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+Produced by: Suzanne Shell, Wendy J., Sam W. and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lönnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lönnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lönnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lönnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Æsop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediæval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syöjätär, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.
+
+
+
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***
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+<div style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold;'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore</div>
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+<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Mighty Mikko<br />
+A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales</div>
+<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Parker Fillmore</div>
+<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Illustrator: Jay Van Everen</div>
+<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Release Date: November 23, 2011 [eBook #38112]<br />
+[Most recently updated: March 13, 2021]</div>
+<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div>
+<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div>
+<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Suzanne Shell, Wendy J., Sam W. and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team</div>
+<div style='margin-top:2em;margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 409px;">
+<img src="images/cover.jpg" width="409" height="600"
+alt="Front cover of the book" />
+</div>
+
+<h1>MIGHTY MIKKO</h1>
+
+<p class="center lrgfont">A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales</p>
+
+<p class="center padtop"><span class="vsmlfont">BY</span><br />
+<span class="lrgfont">PARKER FILLMORE</span></p>
+
+
+<p class="center padtop"><span class="vsmlfont">WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS<br />
+BY</span><br />
+JAY VAN EVEREN</p>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 169px;">
+<img src="images/mmd01.png" width="169" height="265"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p class="center"><span class="vsmlfont">NEW YORK</span><br />
+HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY</p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center padtop smlfont">Copyright, 1922, by<br />
+PARKER FILLMORE</p>
+
+<p class="center padtop padbase vsmlfont">PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY<br />
+THE QUINN &amp; BODEN COMPANY<br />
+RAHWAY, N J</p>
+
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Other books by the same author">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl"><i>BY PARKER FILLMORE</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES<br />
+THE SHOEMAKER&rsquo;S APRON<br />
+<i>Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE LAUGHING PRINCE<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Jay Van Everen</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE HICKORY LIMB<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Rose Cecil O&rsquo;Neill</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE ROSIE WORLD<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright</i></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;">
+<a name="illo01" id="illo01"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi01.jpg" width="402" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page <a href="#Page_17"><b>17</b></a></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center padtop padbase">To my niece<br />
+<br />
+<span class="smcap">Phyllis</span><br />
+<br />
+<span class="smlfont">These stories of her mother&rsquo;s native land</span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>vii]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd02.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>NOTE</h2>
+
+
+<p>The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small
+peoples of Europe in the early nineteenth century
+touched faraway Finland and started the Finns on
+the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars
+who were also patriots found that the native tongue,
+lost to the educated and the well-to-do, had been preserved
+in the songs and stories which were current
+among the peasants. Elias L&ouml;nnrot spent a long and
+busy life collecting those ancient <i>runos</i> from which he
+succeeded in building up a national epic, the <i>Kalevala</i>.
+This is L&ouml;nnrot&rsquo;s great contribution to his own country
+and to the world. Beside the material for the <i>Kalevala</i>
+L&ouml;nnrot made important collections of lyrics, proverbs,
+and stories.</p>
+
+<p>During his time and since other patriot scholars have
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>viii]</a></span>
+made faithful records of the songs and tales which the
+old Finnish minstrels, the <i>runolaulajat</i>, chanted to the
+strains of the <i>kantele</i>. The mass of such material now
+gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk
+and of great importance to the student of comparative
+folklore.</p>
+
+<p>My own excursions into the Finnish have been made
+possible through the kindness and endless patience of
+my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt J. Rahlson).
+With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present
+volume is the traveler&rsquo;s pack I have brought home
+with me filled with strange treasures which will, I hope,
+seem as lovely to others as they seemed to me when first
+I came upon them.</p>
+
+<p>The stories as I offer them are not translations but
+my own versions. Literal translations from the Finnish
+would make small appeal to the general reader. To
+English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and monotonous.
+One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby&rsquo;s excellent
+translation of the <i>Kalevala</i> to realize the truth of
+this statement. So I make no apology for retelling
+these tales in a manner more likely to prove entertaining
+to the English reader, whether child or adult.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>ix]</a></span>
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may
+be found in the various folklore collections made by Eero
+Salmelainen, one of the patriotic young scholars who
+followed in L&ouml;nnrot&rsquo;s footsteps. His books were sponsored
+by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the
+Finns at a time when Swedish was the official language
+of the country.</p>
+
+<p>Full of local color as these stories are, it would be
+vain to pretend that they are not, for the most part,
+variants of stories told the world over. All that I can
+claim for them is that they are dramatic and picturesque,
+that they are told with a wealth of charming
+detail which is essentially Finnish, and that they are
+certainly new to the generality of English readers.
+<i>The Three Chests</i>, so characteristic in feeling of a country
+famous for its lakes and marshes, is the variant of
+a German story which Grimm gives as <i>Fitcher&rsquo;s Bird</i>.
+Of <i>The Forest Bride</i> I have found variants in the folklore
+of many lands. There are several very beautiful
+ones in the Russian; in other books I myself have retold
+two, one current among the Czechs and one among the
+Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in <i>The
+Three Feathers</i> and <i>The Poor Miller&rsquo;s Boy and the
+Cat</i>; and Madame d&rsquo;Aulnoy has used the same story
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>x]</a></span>
+in her elaborate tale, <i>The White Cat</i>. There is a well-known
+Oriental version of <i>Mighty Mikko</i> in which the
+part of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that
+Mikko&rsquo;s faithful retainer, though neither city-bred nor
+polished, is after all pretty closely related to that most
+debonnaire of Frenchmen, <i>Puss in Boots</i>. Perrault
+probably and Madame d&rsquo;Aulnoy certainly are in turn
+indebted to Straparola. And so it goes.</p>
+
+<p>The little cycle of animal stories included under
+<i>Mikko the Fox</i> will of course instantly invite comparison
+with the Beast Epic of <i>Reynard the Fox</i>. The two
+have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in &AElig;sop and in those books of animal analogues,
+widely read in medi&aelig;val times, <i>Physiologus</i> and
+the <i>Disciplina Clericalis</i> of Petrus Alfonsus. The
+<i>Reynard</i> as we have it is a finished satire on church and
+state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time
+that the animal stories found in Finland were debased
+versions of the <i>Reynard</i> stories, but scholars are now
+of opinion that they antedate <i>Reynard</i> and are similar
+to the earlier simpler stories upon which the <i>Reynard</i>
+cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say
+I do not present them for this reason but because they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xi" id="Page_xi">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xi]</a></span>
+seem to me charming merely as fables. The animals
+here are not the clerics and the judges and the nobles
+that the <i>Reynard</i> animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently
+amusing, and always very human.</p>
+
+<p>I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Sy&ouml;j&auml;t&auml;r, the name of the dread Finnish witch,
+as Suyettar. I have been unwilling to translate by the
+insufficient word, <em>bath-house</em> or <em>vapor bath</em>, that very
+characteristic institution of Finnish family life, the
+<em>sauna</em>, but have retained the Finnish word, <i>sauna</i>, allowing
+the context in each case to indicate the meaning.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">P. F.</p>
+
+<p class="address"><i>New York<br />
+June 19, 1922</i></p>
+
+<div class="figright" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xii" id="Page_xii"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop clearb"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xiii" id="Page_xiii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xiii]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd04.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>CONTENTS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><small>PAGE</small></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_25">25</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_47">47</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_67">67</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_99">99</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who was a Princess</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_121">121</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_141">141</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_155">155</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn&rsquo;t Lose His Temper</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_171">171</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xiv" id="Page_xiv">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xiv]</a></span>THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_193">193</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">FAMILIAR FACES:</td>
+    <td class="tdr">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">I</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Mary, Mary, So Contrary!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_209">209</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">II</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Jane, Jane, Don&rsquo;t Complain!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_215">215</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">III</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Susan Walker, What a Talker!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_221">221</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures</td>
+    <td class="tdr">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">I</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Animals Take a Bite</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_229">229</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">II</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Partners</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_235">235</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">III</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Fox and the Crow</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_243">243</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">IV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Chief Mourner</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_251">251</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">V</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Mirri, the Cat</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_257">257</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Fox&rsquo;s Servant</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_263">263</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Wolf Sings</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_267">267</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VIII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Clever Goat</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_273">273</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">IX</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Harvest</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_279">279</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">X</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Porridge</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_283">283</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Nurse Mikko</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_287">287</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Bear Says <em>North</em></td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_293">293</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XIII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Osmo&rsquo;s Share</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_297">297</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XIV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Reward of Kindness</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_301">301</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Bear and the Mouse</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_307">307</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XVI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Last of Osmo</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_309">309</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xv" id="Page_xv">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xv]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd05.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Ilona came floating up through the waves</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo01"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&nbsp;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><small>PAGE</small></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s arm</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo02">15</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo03">33</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">She fitted the key in the lock</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo04">57</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo05">85</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Suyettar bewitching Kerttu</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo06">111</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">She beckoned to Veikko</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo07">135</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo08">147</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Olli and the Troll&rsquo;s horse</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo09">161</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo10">183</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo11">203</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">When she got to the middle of the stream</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo12">208</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">They were so busy eating and drinking</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo13">214</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">They carried home the treasure on their backs</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo14">220</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: &ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll eat the smallest of us next!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo15">228</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xvi" id="Page_xvi">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xvi]</a></span>&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There&rsquo;s butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo16">239</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!&rdquo; the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo17">249</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo18">253</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo19">259</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it full of pins and needles</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo20">262</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at the top of his voice</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo21">269</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running helter-skelter in all directions</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo22">272</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo23">278</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far and wide and the current carried it off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo24">282</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo25">289</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo26">292</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my turnips and my bread don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo27">296</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to him</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo28">300</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo29">306</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">So that was the End</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo30">315</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>1]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE TRUE BRIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd06.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>3]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE TRUE BRIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd07.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There were once two orphans, a
+brother and a sister, who lived alone in
+the old farmhouse where their fathers
+before them had lived for many generations.
+The brother&rsquo;s name was
+Osmo, the sister&rsquo;s Ilona. Osmo was an
+industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren
+and he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister,&rdquo; he said one day, &ldquo;I think it might be well
+if I went out into the world and found work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do as you think best, brother,&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+sure I can manage on here alone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his
+sister as soon as he could give her a new home. He
+wandered far and wide and at last got employment
+from the King&rsquo;s Son as a shepherd.</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son was about Osmo&rsquo;s age, and often
+when he met Osmo tending his flocks he would stop and
+talk to him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>4]</a></span>
+One day Osmo told the King&rsquo;s Son about his sister,
+Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have wandered far over the face of the earth,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;and never have I seen so beautiful a maiden
+as Ilona.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What does she look like?&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son asked.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the
+King&rsquo;s Son so beautiful that at once he fell in love
+with her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;if you will go home and get your
+sister, I will marry her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route
+by which he had come but straight over the water in
+a boat.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister,&rdquo; he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, &ldquo;you
+must come with me at once for the King&rsquo;s Son wishes
+to marry you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she
+sighed and shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because it grieves me to leave this old house where
+our fathers have lived for so many generations.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared
+to the King&rsquo;s castle where you will live once
+you marry the King&rsquo;s Son!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>5]</a></span>
+But Ilona only shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s no use, brother! I can&rsquo;t bear to leave this old
+house until the grindstone with which our fathers for
+generations ground their meal is worn out.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly
+and broke the old grindstone into small pieces. He
+then put the pieces together so that the stone looked
+the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, sister, you&rsquo;ll come, will you not?&rdquo; Osmo
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>But again Ilona shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s no use, brother. I can&rsquo;t bear to go until the
+old stool where our mothers have sat spinning these
+many generations is worn through.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again Osmo took things into his own hands and
+going secretly to the old spinning stool he broke it and
+when Ilona sat on it again it fell to pieces.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona said she couldn&rsquo;t go until the old mortar
+which had been in use for generations should fall to
+bits at a blow from the pestle. Osmo cracked the mortar
+and the next time Ilona struck it with the pestle
+it broke.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona said she couldn&rsquo;t go until the old worn
+doorsill over which so many of their forefathers had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>6]</a></span>
+walked should fall to splinters at the brush of her
+skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into thin
+slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush
+of her skirts sent the splinters flying.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I see now I must go,&rdquo; Ilona said, &ldquo;for the house
+of our forefathers no longer holds me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and
+skirts in a bright wooden box and, calling her little
+dog Pilka, she stepped into the boat and Osmo rowed
+her off in the direction of the King&rsquo;s castle.</p>
+
+<p>Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the
+end of which stood a woman waving her arms. That
+is she looked like a woman. Really she was Suyettar
+but they, of course, did not know this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take me in your boat!&rdquo; she cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shall we?&rdquo; Osmo asked his sister.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think we ought to,&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t
+know who she is or what she wants and she may be
+evil.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you think we ought to take her?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; Ilona said.</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>7]</a></span>
+such a pitiful outcry demanding what they meant denying
+assistance to a poor woman that Osmo was unable
+longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona&rsquo;s warning he
+rowed to land.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated
+herself in the middle with her face towards Osmo and
+her back towards Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What a fine young man!&rdquo; Suyettar said in whining
+flattering tones. &ldquo;See how strong he is at the oars!
+And what a beautiful girl, too! I daresay the King&rsquo;s
+Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that
+the King&rsquo;s Son had already promised to marry Ilona.
+At that an evil look came into Suyettar&rsquo;s face and
+she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then she
+began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what
+Ilona was saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was
+saying.</p>
+
+<p>At last in the distance the towers of the King&rsquo;s
+castle appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stand up, sister!&rdquo; Osmo said. &ldquo;Shake out your
+skirts and arrange your pretty ribbons! We&rsquo;ll soon be
+landing now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Ilona could see her brother&rsquo;s lips moving but of
+course she could not hear what he was saying.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>8]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What is it, brother?&rdquo; she asked.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar answered for him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No!&rdquo; Ilona cried. &ldquo;He couldn&rsquo;t order anything
+so cruel as that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Presently Osmo said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister, what ails you? Don&rsquo;t you hear me? Shake
+out your skirts and arrange your pretty ribbons for
+we&rsquo;ll soon be landing now.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is it, brother?&rdquo; Ilona asked.</p>
+
+<p>As before Suyettar answered for him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!&rdquo; Ilona
+cried, bursting into tears. &ldquo;Is it for this you made
+me leave the home of my fathers?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A third time Osmo said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and
+arrange your ribbons! We&rsquo;ll soon be landing now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t hear you, brother! What is it you say?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the
+water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If he says I must, I must!&rdquo; poor Ilona sobbed, and
+with that she leapt overboard.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>9]</a></span>
+and with her own arms rowed off and Ilona was left
+to sink.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What will become of me now!&rdquo; Osmo cried. &ldquo;When
+the King&rsquo;s Son finds I have not brought him my sister
+he will surely order my death!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not at all!&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;Do as I say and no
+harm will come to you. Offer me to the King&rsquo;s Son
+and tell him I am your sister. He won&rsquo;t know the
+difference and anyway I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;m just as beautiful
+as Ilona ever was!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that
+held Ilona&rsquo;s clothes and helped herself to skirt and
+bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked herself
+out in these and for a little while she really did succeed
+in looking like a pretty young girl.</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King&rsquo;s Son as
+Ilona, and the King&rsquo;s Son because he had given his
+word married her. But before one day was past, he
+called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What did you mean by telling me your sister was
+beautiful?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t she beautiful?&rdquo; Osmo faltered.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! I thought she was at first but she isn&rsquo;t! She
+is ugly and evil and you shall pay the penalty for
+having deceived me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>10]</a></span>
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a
+place filled with serpents.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you are innocent,&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son said, &ldquo;the
+serpents will not harm you. If you are guilty they will
+devour you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the
+water sank down, down, down, until she reached the
+Sea King&rsquo;s palace. They received her kindly there
+and comforted her and the Sea King&rsquo;s Son, touched
+by her grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But
+Ilona was homesick for the upper world and would
+not listen to him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I want to see my brother again!&rdquo; she wept.</p>
+
+<p>They told her that the King&rsquo;s Son had thrown her
+brother to the serpents and had married Suyettar in
+her stead, but Ilona still begged so pitifully to be
+allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea King
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, then! For three successive nights I will
+allow you to return to the upper world. But after
+that never again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea
+with great strands of pearls about her neck and to
+each of her ankles they attached long silver chains.
+As she rose in the water the sound of the chains was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>11]</a></span>
+like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.</p>
+
+<p>Ilona came to the surface of the water just where
+Osmo had landed. The first thing she saw was his
+boat at the water&rsquo;s edge and curled up asleep in the
+bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pilka!&rdquo; Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with
+a bark of joy and licked Ilona&rsquo;s hand and yelped and
+frisked.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Lift the latch and slip inside!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the watchdog in the yard,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the sleeping men on guard!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Creep in softly as a snake,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Then creep out before they wake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Pilka barked and frisked and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, mistress, yes! I&rsquo;ll do whatever you bid me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of
+gold and silver which she herself had worked down
+in the Sea King&rsquo;s palace.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take this,&rdquo; she said to Pilka, &ldquo;and put it on the
+pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son lies asleep. Perhaps
+when he sees it he will know that it comes from Osmo&rsquo;s
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>12]</a></span>
+true sister and that the frightful creature he has married
+is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before
+the serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful
+Pilka, and come back to me before the dawn.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Pilka raced off to the King&rsquo;s palace carrying the
+square of embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and
+half an hour before sunrise the little dog came panting
+back.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and
+how is my poor love, the King&rsquo;s Son?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo is still with the serpents,&rdquo; Pilka answered,
+&ldquo;but they haven&rsquo;t eaten him yet. I left the embroidered
+square on the pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son&rsquo;s head was
+lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar&rsquo;s awful
+mouth was open and she was snoring horribly. The
+King&rsquo;s Son moved uneasily for he was troubled even
+in his sleep.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And did you go through the castle, Pilka?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, dear mistress.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that
+shamed the King&rsquo;s Son, for Suyettar served bones instead
+of meat, fish heads, turnip tops, and bread burned
+to a cinder.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>13]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Good Pilka!&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;Good little dog! You
+have done well! Now the dawn is coming and I must
+go back to the Sea King&rsquo;s palace. But I shall come
+again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you
+be here waiting for me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea
+to a clanking of chains that sounded like silver bells.
+The King&rsquo;s Son heard them in his sleep and for a
+moment woke and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s what?&rdquo; snarled Suyettar. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re dreaming!
+Go back to sleep!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few hours later when he woke again, he found
+the lovely square of embroidery on his pillow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made this?&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She
+turned on him quickly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made what?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it
+from him, but he held it tight.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I made it, of course!&rdquo; she declared. &ldquo;Who but me
+would sit up all night and work while you lay snoring!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the King&rsquo;s Son, as he folded the embroidery,
+muttered to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t look to me much like your work!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>14]</a></span>
+After he had breakfasted, the King&rsquo;s Son asked for
+news of Osmo. A slave was sent to the place of the
+serpents and when he returned he reported that Osmo
+was sitting amongst them uninjured.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The old king snake has made friends with him,&rdquo;
+he added, &ldquo;and has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s
+arm.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son was amazed at this news and also
+relieved, for the whole affair troubled him sorely and
+he was beginning to suspect a mystery.</p>
+
+<p>He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a
+little hut on the seashore and he decided he would go
+and consult her. So he went to her and told her about
+Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to
+his sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead
+of devouring Osmo had made friends with him and
+last he showed her the square of lovely embroidery he
+had found on his pillow that morning.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There is a mystery somewhere, granny,&rdquo; he said
+in conclusion, &ldquo;and I know not how to solve it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My son,&rdquo; she said at last, &ldquo;that is never Osmo&rsquo;s
+sister that you have married. Take an old woman&rsquo;s
+word&mdash;it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo&rsquo;s sister must be alive
+and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15"><!-- original location of King Snake illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>17]</a></span>
+probably means that she begs you to release her
+brother.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo02" id="illo02"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi02.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s arm</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Suyettar!&rdquo; repeated the King&rsquo;s Son, aghast.</p>
+
+<p>At first he couldn&rsquo;t believe such a horrible thing
+possible and yet that, if it were so, would explain much.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder if you&rsquo;re right,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I must be
+on my guard!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound
+of silver chimes Ilona came floating up through the
+waves and little Pilka, as she appeared, greeted her
+with barks of joy.</p>
+
+<p>As before Ilona sang:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Lift the latch and slip inside!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the watchdog in the yard,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the sleeping men on guard!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Creep in softly as a snake,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Then creep out before they wake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King&rsquo;s Son.
+Beautifully embroidered it was in gold and silver and
+Ilona herself had worked it in the Sea King&rsquo;s
+palace.</p>
+
+<p>Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>18]</a></span>
+pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son could see it as soon as he
+woke. Then Pilka visited the place of the serpents and
+before the first ray of dawn was back at the seashore
+to reassure Ilona of Osmo&rsquo;s safety.</p>
+
+<p>Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves
+to the chime of silver bells, called out to Pilka:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me
+not, dear Pilka, for to-night is the last night that the
+Sea King will allow me to come to the upper world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be here, dear mistress, that I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son that morning, as he opened his eyes,
+saw the embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his
+head. He thought at first he must be dreaming for
+it was more beautiful than any shirt that had ever
+been worked by human fingers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he sighed at last, &ldquo;who made this?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made what?&rdquo; Suyettar demanded rudely.</p>
+
+<p>When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but
+the King&rsquo;s Son held it from her. Then she pretended
+to laugh and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any
+one else in the world would sit up all night and work
+for you while you lie there snoring! And small thanks
+I get for it, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>19]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t look to me like your work!&rdquo; said the
+King&rsquo;s Son significantly.</p>
+
+<p>Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive
+and unhurt by the serpents.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; thought the King&rsquo;s Son.</p>
+
+<p>He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise
+woman another visit.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; she said, when she saw the shirt, &ldquo;now I understand!
+Listen, my Prince: last night at midnight
+I was awakened by the chime of silver bells and I got
+up and looked out the door. Just there at the water&rsquo;s
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight.
+A lovely maiden rose from the waves holding in her
+hands the very shirt that you now have. A little dog
+that was lying in the boat greeted her with barks of
+joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it
+the shirt and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must
+be Ilona. She must be in the Sea King&rsquo;s power and I
+think she is begging you to rescue her and to release
+her brother.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son slowly nodded his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Granny, I&rsquo;m sure what you say is true! Help me
+to rescue Ilona and I shall reward you richly.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night,
+I heard Ilona say, is the last night that the Sea King
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>20]</a></span>
+will allow her to come to the upper world. Go now
+to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide
+you down yonder in the shadow of the boat. At midnight
+when you hear the silver chimes and the maiden
+slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep
+of your scythe, cut the silver chains that are fastened
+to her ankles. But remember, my son, that is not all.
+She is under enchantment and as you try to grasp her
+the Sea King will change her to many things&mdash;a fish,
+a bird, a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form
+she escape you, then all is lost.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At once the King&rsquo;s Son hurried away to the smithy
+and had the smith forge him a strong iron chain and
+a heavy sharp scythe. Then when night fell he hid in
+the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming
+as of silver bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves.
+As she came she began singing:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly the King&rsquo;s Son threw the strong iron chain
+about her and drew her to him. Then with one mighty
+sweep of the scythe he severed the silver chains that
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>21]</a></span>
+were attached to her ankles and the silver chains fell
+chiming into the depths. Another instant and the
+maiden in his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that
+squirmed and wriggled and almost slipped through his
+fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was not a fish
+but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He
+killed the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing
+lizard. And so on through many transformations,
+growing finally small and weak until at last there was
+only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear one,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you are my true bride
+and not Suyettar who pretended she was you! Come,
+we will go at once to the castle and confront her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Ilona cried out at this:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she
+saw me would kill me and devour me! Keep me from
+her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, my dear one,&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son said.
+&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll wait until to-morrow and after to-morrow there
+will be no Suyettar to fear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for that night they took shelter in the old wise
+woman&rsquo;s hut, Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son and faithful
+little Pilka.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning early the King&rsquo;s Son returned to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>22]</a></span>
+the castle and had the <i>sauna</i> heated. Just inside the
+door he had a deep hole dug and filled it with burning
+tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched a brown
+mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was
+ready he went indoors and roused Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where have you been all night?&rdquo; she demanded
+angrily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Forgive me this time,&rdquo; he begged in pretended
+humility, &ldquo;and I promise never again to be parted
+from my own true bride. Come now, my dear, and
+bathe for the <i>sauna</i> is ready.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her
+go to the <i>sauna</i> just as if she were a real human being,
+put on a long bathrobe and clapped her hands. Four
+slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side.
+Slowly she marched out of the castle, across the courtyard,
+and over to the <i>sauna</i>.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They all really think I&rsquo;m a human princess!&rdquo; she
+said to herself, and she was so sure she was beautiful
+and admired that she tossed her head and smirked from
+side to side and took little mincing steps.</p>
+
+<p>When she reached the <i>sauna</i> she was ready to drop
+the bathrobe and jump over the doorsill to the steaming
+shelf, but the King&rsquo;s Son whispered:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>23]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful
+princess and walk over the blue mat!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk
+of her ugly face, Suyettar stepped on the blue mat
+and sank into the hole of burning tar. Then the King&rsquo;s
+Son quickly locked the door of the <i>sauna</i> and left her
+there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the
+only way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last
+hateful thing Suyettar did was to tear out handfuls of
+her hair and scatter them broadcast in the air.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let these,&rdquo; she cried, yelling and cursing, &ldquo;turn into
+mosquitos and worms and moths and trouble mankind
+forever!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether
+and the King&rsquo;s Son knew that it was now safe
+to bring Ilona home. First, however, he had Osmo released
+from the place of the serpents and asked his
+forgiveness for the unjust punishment.</p>
+
+<p>Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the
+old wise woman and there with tears of happiness the
+brother and sister were reunited. The King&rsquo;s Son to
+show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her to
+accompany them to the castle and presently they all
+set forth with Pilka frisking ahead and barking for
+joy.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>24]</a></span>
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at
+the castle and this time it was not bones and fish heads
+and burnt crusts but such food as the King&rsquo;s Son had
+not tasted for many a day.</p>
+
+<p>To celebrate his happy marriage the King&rsquo;s Son made
+Osmo his chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new
+collar.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now at last,&rdquo; Ilona said, &ldquo;I am glad I left the house
+of my forefathers.&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>25]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>MIGHTY MIKKO</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 246px;">
+<img src="images/mmd08.png" width="246" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>27]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">MIGHTY MIKKO</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an old woodsman
+and his wife who had an only son
+named Mikko. As the mother lay
+dying the young man wept bitterly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;When you are gone, my dear
+mother,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;there will be no one
+left to think of me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The poor woman comforted him as best she could
+and said to him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You will still have your father.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Shortly after the woman&rsquo;s death, the old man, too,
+was taken ill.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone,&rdquo;
+Mikko thought, as he sat beside his father&rsquo;s bedside
+and saw him grow weaker and weaker.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My boy,&rdquo; the old man said just before he died, &ldquo;I
+have nothing to leave you but the three snares with
+which these many years I have caught wild animals.
+Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>28]</a></span>
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught
+in any of them, free it gently and bring it home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After his father&rsquo;s death, Mikko remembered the
+snares and went out to the woods to see them. The first
+was empty and also the second, but in the third he
+found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox&rsquo;s feet and then
+carried the little creature home in his arms. He shared
+his supper with it and when he lay down to sleep the
+Fox curled up at his feet. They lived together some
+time until they became close friends.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; said the Fox one day, &ldquo;why are you so
+sad?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because I&rsquo;m lonely.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pooh!&rdquo; said the Fox. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s no way for a young
+man to talk! You ought to get married! Then you
+wouldn&rsquo;t feel lonely!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Married!&rdquo; Mikko repeated. &ldquo;How can I get
+married? I can&rsquo;t marry a poor girl because I&rsquo;m too
+poor myself and a rich girl wouldn&rsquo;t marry me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; said the Fox. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re a fine well set
+up young man and you&rsquo;re kind and gentle. What more
+could a princess ask?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him
+for a husband.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>29]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I mean what I say!&rdquo; the Fox insisted. &ldquo;Take our
+own Princess now. What would you think of marrying
+her?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko laughed louder than before.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have heard,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;that she is the most beautiful
+princess in the world! Any man would be happy
+to marry her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;if you feel that way
+about her then I&rsquo;ll arrange the wedding for you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the
+royal castle and gain audience with the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master sends you greetings,&rdquo; the Fox said,
+&ldquo;and he begs you to loan him your bushel measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My bushel measure!&rdquo; the King repeated in surprise.
+&ldquo;Who is your master and why does he want
+my bushel measure?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ssh!&rdquo; the Fox whispered as though he didn&rsquo;t want
+the courtiers to hear what he was saying. Then slipping
+up quite close to the King he murmured in his ear:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven&rsquo;t you?&mdash;Mighty
+Mikko as he&rsquo;s called.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King had never heard of any Mikko who was
+known as Mighty Mikko but, thinking that perhaps
+he should have heard of him, he shook his head and
+murmured:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>30]</a></span>
+&ldquo;H&rsquo;m! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure!
+Yes, yes, of course!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master is about to start off on a journey and
+he needs a bushel measure for a very particular reason.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I understand! I understand!&rdquo; the King said, although
+he didn&rsquo;t understand at all, and he gave orders
+that the bushel measure which they used in the storeroom
+of the castle be brought in and given to the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the
+woods. Then he scurried about to all sorts of little
+out of the way nooks and crannies where people had
+hidden their savings and he dug up a gold piece here
+and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then
+he went back to the woods and stuck the various coins
+in the cracks of the measure. The next day he returned
+to the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master, Mighty Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;sends you
+thanks, O King, for the use of your bushel measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave
+him the measure he peeped inside to see if by chance it
+contained any trace of what had recently been measured.
+His eye of course at once caught the glint of the gold
+and silver coins lodged in the cracks.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said, thinking Mikko must be a very
+mighty lord indeed to be so careless of his wealth; &ldquo;I
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>31]</a></span>
+should like to meet your master. Won&rsquo;t you and he
+come and visit me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was what the Fox wanted the King to say
+but he pretended to hesitate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;but I fear my master can&rsquo;t accept it just now.
+He wants to get married soon and we are about to
+start off on a long journey to inspect a number of foreign
+princesses.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This made the King all the more anxious to have
+Mikko visit him at once for he thought that if Mikko
+should see his daughter before he saw those foreign
+princesses he might fall in love with her and marry her.
+So he said to the Fox:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master
+to make me a visit before he starts out on his travels!
+You will, won&rsquo;t you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox looked this way and that as if he were
+too embarrassed to speak.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; he said at last, &ldquo;I pray you pardon
+my frankness. The truth is you are not rich enough
+to entertain my master and your castle isn&rsquo;t big enough
+to house the immense retinue that always attends him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko,
+lost his head completely.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>32]</a></span>
+&ldquo;My dear Fox,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll give you anything in
+the world if you prevail upon your master to visit me
+at once! Couldn&rsquo;t you suggest to him to travel with
+a modest retinue this time?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue
+or to go on foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended
+only by me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Couldn&rsquo;t you prevail on him to come to me disguised
+as a poor woodsman?&rdquo; the King begged. &ldquo;Once
+he was here, I could place gorgeous clothes at his
+disposal.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But still the Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I fear Your Majesty&rsquo;s wardrobe doesn&rsquo;t contain the
+kind of clothes my master is accustomed to.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I assure you I&rsquo;ve got some very good clothes,&rdquo; the
+King said. &ldquo;Come along this minute and we&rsquo;ll go
+through them and I&rsquo;m sure you&rsquo;ll find some that your
+master would wear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe
+with hundreds and hundreds of hooks upon which
+were hung hundreds of coats and breeches and embroidered
+shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring
+the costumes down one by one and place them before
+the Fox.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>33]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo03" id="illo03"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi03.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>35]</a></span>
+They began with the plainer clothes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good enough for most people,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;but
+not for my master.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then they took down garments of a finer grade.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m afraid you&rsquo;re going to all this trouble for
+nothing,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;Frankly now, don&rsquo;t you realize
+that my master couldn&rsquo;t possibly put on any of
+these things!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use
+his most gorgeous clothes of all, now ordered these to
+be shown.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically,
+and at last said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear
+these for a few days. They are not what he is accustomed
+to wear but I will say this for him: he is not
+proud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, my dear Fox, I&rsquo;ll have the guest chambers
+put in readiness for your master&rsquo;s visit and I&rsquo;ll
+have all these, my finest clothes, laid out for him. You
+won&rsquo;t disappoint me, will you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do my best,&rdquo; the Fox promised.</p>
+
+<p>With that he bade the King a civil good day and
+ran home to Mikko.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>36]</a></span>
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an
+upper window of the castle, she saw a young woodsman
+approaching accompanied by a Fox. He was a
+fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from
+the presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave
+a long sigh and confided to her serving maid:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I think I could fall in love with that young man
+if he really were only a woodsman!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Later when she saw him arrayed in her father&rsquo;s
+finest clothes&mdash;which looked so well on Mikko that no
+one even recognized them as the King&rsquo;s&mdash;she lost her
+heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl
+might before a handsome young man.</p>
+
+<p>All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko.
+The ladies went into ecstasies over his modest manners,
+his fine figure, and the gorgeousness of his
+clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow!
+In spite of his great wealth see how politely he listens
+to us when we talk!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Fox went privately to the King,
+and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master is a man of few words and quick
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>37]</a></span>
+judgment. He bids me tell you that your daughter, the
+Princess, pleases him mightily and that, with your approval,
+he will make his addresses to her at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was greatly agitated and began:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Fox&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Fox interrupted him to say:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Think the matter over carefully and give me your
+decision to-morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the King consulted with the Princess and with
+his Councilors and in a short time the marriage was
+arranged and the wedding ceremony actually performed!</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t I tell you?&rdquo; the Fox said, when he and
+Mikko were alone after the wedding.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Mikko acknowledged, &ldquo;you did promise that
+I should marry the Princess. But, tell me, now that
+I am married what am I to do? I can&rsquo;t live on here
+forever with my wife.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Put your mind at rest,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve thought
+of everything. Just do as I tell you and you&rsquo;ll have
+nothing to regret. To-night say to the King: &lsquo;It is
+now only fitting that you should visit me and see for
+yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is
+hereafter to be mistress!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Mikko said this to the King, the King was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>38]</a></span>
+overjoyed for now that the marriage had actually
+taken place he was wondering whether he hadn&rsquo;t perhaps
+been a little hasty. Mikko&rsquo;s words reassured him
+and he eagerly accepted the invitation.</p>
+
+<p>On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ll run on ahead and get things ready for
+you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But where are you going?&rdquo; Mikko said, frightened
+at the thought of being deserted by his little friend.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A few days&rsquo; march from here there is a very gorgeous
+castle belonging to a wicked old dragon who is
+known as the Worm. I think the Worm&rsquo;s castle would
+just about suit you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure it would,&rdquo; Mikko agreed. &ldquo;But how are
+we to get it away from the Worm?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Trust me,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;All you need do is this:
+lead the King and his courtiers along the main highway
+until by noon to-morrow you reach a crossroads. Turn
+there to the left and go straight on until you see the
+tower of the Worm&rsquo;s castle. If you meet any men by
+the wayside, shepherds or the like, ask them whose men
+they are and show no surprise at their answer. So now,
+dear master, farewell until we meet again at your beautiful
+castle.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>39]</a></span>
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko
+and the Princess and the King attended by the whole
+Court followed in more leisurely fashion.</p>
+
+<p>The little Fox, when he had left the main highway
+at the crossroads, soon met ten woodsmen with axes
+over their shoulders. They were all dressed in blue
+smocks of the same cut.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Fox said politely. &ldquo;Whose men
+are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Our master is known as the Worm,&rdquo; the woodsmen
+told him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor, poor lads!&rdquo; the Fox said, shaking his head
+sadly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo; the woodsmen asked.</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome
+with emotion to speak. Then he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor lads, don&rsquo;t you know that the King is
+coming with a great force to destroy the Worm and all
+his people?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news
+threw them into great consternation.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Is there no way for us to escape?&rdquo; they asked.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; he said at last, &ldquo;there is one way you might
+escape and that is by telling every one who asks you
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>40]</a></span>
+that you are the Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men. But if you
+value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo; the woodsmen at
+once began repeating over and over. &ldquo;We are Mighty
+Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty
+grooms, dressed in the same blue smocks, who were tending
+a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox talked to
+the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen
+and before he left them they, too, were shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand
+sheep tended by thirty shepherds all dressed in the
+Worm&rsquo;s blue smocks. He stopped and talked to
+them until he had them roaring out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle
+of the Worm. He found the Worm himself inside lolling
+lazily about. He was a huge dragon and had been
+a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and his
+lands and his servants and his possessions had all been
+won in battle. But now for many years no one had
+cared to fight him and he had grown fat and lazy.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Fox said, pretending to be very
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>41]</a></span>
+breathless and frightened. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re the Worm, aren&rsquo;t
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the dragon said, boastfully, &ldquo;I am the great
+Worm!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course
+none of us can expect to live forever. Well, I must
+hurry along. I thought I would just stop and say
+good-by.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Made uneasy by the Fox&rsquo;s words, the Worm cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait just a minute! What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm&rsquo;s
+entreaty he paused and said over his shoulder:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don&rsquo;t you?
+that the King with a great force is coming to destroy
+you and all your people!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green
+with fright. He knew he was fat and helpless and
+could never again fight as in the years gone by.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t go just yet!&rdquo; he begged the Fox. &ldquo;When is
+the King coming?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s on the highway now! That&rsquo;s why I must be
+going! Good-by!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I&rsquo;ll reward
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>42]</a></span>
+you richly! Help me to hide so that the King won&rsquo;t
+find me! What about the shed where the linen is
+stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you
+locked the door from the outside the King could never
+find me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Fox agreed, &ldquo;but we must hurry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was
+kept and the Worm hid himself under the linen. The
+Fox locked the door, then set fire to the shed, and soon
+there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon, the
+Worm, but a handful of ashes.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox now called together the dragon&rsquo;s household
+and talked them over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen
+and the grooms and the shepherds.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering
+the ground over which the Fox had sped so
+quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen in blue
+smocks, the King said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder whose woodsmen those are.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the
+ten of them shouted out at the top of their voices:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court
+were impressed anew with his modesty.</p>
+
+<p>A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>43]</a></span>
+their hundred prancing horses. When the grooms were
+questioned, they answered with a shout:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Fox certainly spoke the truth,&rdquo; the King thought
+to himself, &ldquo;when he told me of Mikko&rsquo;s riches!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A little later the thirty shepherds when they were
+questioned made answer in a chorus that was deafening
+to hear:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his
+son-in-law made the King feel poor and humble in comparison
+and the courtiers whispered among themselves:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be
+a richer, more powerful lord than the King himself!
+In fact it is only a very great lord indeed who could
+be so simple!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At last they reached the castle which from the blue
+smocked soldiers that guarded the gateway they knew
+to be Mikko&rsquo;s. The Fox came out to welcome the
+King&rsquo;s party and behind him in two rows all the
+household servants. These, at a signal from the Fox,
+cried out in one voice:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he
+would have used in his father&rsquo;s mean little hut in the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>44]</a></span>
+woods bade the King and his followers welcome and
+they all entered the castle where they found a great
+feast already prepared and waiting.</p>
+
+<p>The King stayed on for several days and the more
+he saw of Mikko the better pleased he was that he had
+him for a son-in-law.</p>
+
+<p>When he was leaving he said to Mikko:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your castle is so much grander than mine that I
+hesitate ever asking you back for a visit.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your
+castle I thought it was the most beautiful castle in the
+world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered
+among themselves:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How affable of him to say that when he knows
+very well how much grander his own castle is!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the King and his followers were safely gone,
+the little red Fox came to Mikko and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad
+and lonely. You are lord of the most beautiful castle
+in the world and you have for wife a sweet and lovely
+Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>45]</a></span>
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done
+and the little Fox trotted off to the woods.</p>
+
+<p>So you see that Mikko&rsquo;s poor old father, although
+he had no wealth to leave his son, was really the cause
+of all Mikko&rsquo;s good fortune, for it was he who told
+Mikko in the first place to carry home alive anything
+he might find caught in the snares.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>47]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE THREE CHESTS</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd09.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>49]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE THREE CHESTS</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an honest old farmer
+who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake.
+One day as he leaned over the water
+to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen
+reached up from the bottom of the
+lake and clutched him by the beard.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; the farmer cried. &ldquo;Let me go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen only held on more tightly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ll let you go,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but only on this
+condition: that you give me one of your daughters
+for wife!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Give you one of my daughters? Never!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, then I&rsquo;ll never let go!&rdquo; wicked old Wetehinen
+declared and with that he began jerking at the
+beard as if it were a bellrope.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait! Wait!&rdquo; the farmer spluttered.</p>
+
+<p>Now he didn&rsquo;t want to give one of his daughters to
+wicked old Wetehinen&mdash;of course not! But at the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>50]</a></span>
+same time he was in Wetehinen&rsquo;s power and he realized
+that if he didn&rsquo;t do what the old reprobate demanded
+he might lose his life and so leave all three of
+his daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he
+had better sacrifice one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;let me go and I&rsquo;ll send you my
+oldest daughter. I promise.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer
+scrambled to his feet and hurried home.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear,&rdquo; he said to his oldest daughter, &ldquo;I left a
+bit of the harness down at the lake. Like a good girl
+will you run down and get it for me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The eldest daughter went at once and when she
+reached the water&rsquo;s edge, old Wetehinen reached up and
+caught her about the waist and carried her down to
+the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big house.</p>
+
+<p>At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress
+of the house and gave her the keys to all the rooms
+and closets. He went very carefully over the keys and
+pointing to one he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That key you must never use for it opens the door
+to a room which I forbid you to enter.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The eldest daughter began keeping house for old
+Wetehinen and spent her time cooking and cleaning
+and spinning much as she used to at home with her
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>51]</a></span>
+father. The days went by and she grew familiar with
+the house and began to know what was in every room
+and every closet.</p>
+
+<p>At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden
+door. If old Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room,
+well and good. But why in the world had he given her
+the key if he really didn&rsquo;t want her to open the door?
+The more she thought about it the more she wondered.
+Every time she passed the room she stopped a moment
+and stared at the door. It looked just exactly like the
+doors that led into all the other rooms.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder why he doesn&rsquo;t want me to open just that
+door?&rdquo; she kept asking herself.</p>
+
+<p>Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she
+thought:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe it would matter if I opened that
+door just a little crack and peeped in once! No one
+would know the difference!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up
+courage enough to turn the key in the forbidden lock
+and throw open the door.</p>
+
+<p>The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and
+old jars piled up around the wall. That was unexciting
+enough, but in the middle of the floor was something
+that made her start when she saw what it was.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>52]</a></span>
+It was blood&mdash;that&rsquo;s what it was, a pool of dark red
+blood! She was about to slam the door shut when she
+saw something else that made her pause. This was a
+lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she thought to herself, &ldquo;what a beautiful ring!
+If I had it I&rsquo;d wear it on my finger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I&rsquo;m very careful,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;I know I could
+reach over and pick it up without touching the blood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her
+skirts tightly about her legs, knelt down on the floor,
+and stretched her arm over the pool. She picked up
+the ring very carefully but even so she got a few drops
+of blood on her fingers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter!&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;I can wash that off!
+And see the lovely ring!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But later, after she had the door again locked, when
+she tried to wash the blood off, she found she couldn&rsquo;t.
+She tried soap, she tried sand, she tried everything she
+could think of, but without success.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care!&rdquo; she thought to herself. &ldquo;If Wetehinen
+sees the blood, I&rsquo;ll just tell him I cut my finger
+by accident.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and
+pretended nothing was the matter.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>53]</a></span>
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap
+and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me
+drowsy for bed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She began scratching his head as she had many nights
+before but, at the first touch of her fingers, he cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop! You&rsquo;re burning my ear! There must be
+some blood on your fingers! Let me see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He reached up and caught her hand and, when he
+saw the blood stains, he flew into a towering rage.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought so! You&rsquo;ve been in the forbidden
+room!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He jumped up and without allowing her time to say
+a word he just cut off her head then and there with
+no more concern than if she had been a mosquito!
+After that he took the body and the severed head and
+threw them into the forbidden room and locked the
+door.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; he growled, &ldquo;<em>she</em> won&rsquo;t disobey me
+again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was all very well but now he had no one to
+keep house for him and cook and scratch his head in
+the evening and soon he decided he&rsquo;d have to get another
+wife. He remembered that the farmer had two
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>54]</a></span>
+more daughters, so he thought to himself that now
+he&rsquo;d marry the second sister.</p>
+
+<p>He waited his chance and one day when the farmer
+was out in his boat fishing, old Wetehinen came up
+from the bottom of the lake and clutched the boat.
+When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn&rsquo;t make the boat move an inch. He worked
+and worked at the oars and wicked old Wetehinen let
+him struggle until he was exhausted. Then he put his
+head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on
+shore, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s you, is it? I wondered what was holding
+my boat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; wicked old Wetehinen said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s me and I&rsquo;m
+going to hold your boat right here on this spot until
+you promise to give me another of your daughters.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen
+but Wetehinen was firm and the upshot was that
+before the farmer again walked dry land he had promised
+Wetehinen his second daughter.</p>
+
+<p>Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten
+his ax in the boat and sent his second daughter
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>55]</a></span>
+down to the lake to get it. Wicked old Wetehinen
+caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as
+he had the first, making her mistress of the house and
+telling her she might use every key but one. Like her
+sister she, too, after a time gave way to the temptation
+of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw
+the shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she
+wanted it and of course when she reached to get it she
+dabbled her fingers in the blood. So that was the end
+of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when he saw the
+blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her
+body and the severed head into the forbidden room beside
+the body and head of her sister and locked the door.</p>
+
+<p>Time went by and the farmer was living happily
+with his youngest daughter when one day while he was
+out chopping wood he found a pair of fine birch bark
+brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake.
+He tried to stop but he couldn&rsquo;t. He tried to walk in
+another direction but the brogues carried him straight
+down to the water&rsquo;s edge and out into the lake until
+he was in waist deep.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>56]</a></span>
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo, there! What are you doing with my
+brogues?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had
+played that trick to get the farmer into his power again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What do you want this time?&rdquo; the poor farmer cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I want your youngest daughter,&rdquo; Wetehinen said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! My youngest daughter!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I won&rsquo;t give her up!&rdquo; the farmer declared. &ldquo;I
+don&rsquo;t care what you do to me. I won&rsquo;t give her up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, very well!&rdquo; Wetehinen said, and immediately
+the brogues which had been standing still while they
+talked started walking again. They carried the
+farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait&mdash;wait a minute!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, do you promise to give her to me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No!&rdquo; the farmer began. &ldquo;She&rsquo;s my last daughter
+and&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Before he could say more, the brogues walked on
+and the water rose to his nose. In desperation he threw
+up his hands and shouted:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I promise! I promise!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>57]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 422px;">
+<a name="illo04" id="illo04"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi04.png" width="422" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">She fitted the key in the lock</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>59]</a></span>
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest
+daughter whose name was Lisa:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake.
+Like a good girl won&rsquo;t you run and get them for
+me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course
+caught her and carried her down to his house as he
+had her two sisters.</p>
+
+<p>Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen
+made Lisa mistress of the house and gave her keys to
+all the doors and closets with the same prohibition
+against opening the door of the forbidden room.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I am mistress of the house,&rdquo; Lisa said to herself,
+&ldquo;why should I not unlock every door?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away
+from home, then went boldly to the forbidden room,
+fitted the key in the lock, and flung open the door.</p>
+
+<p>There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut
+off. There in the pool of blood sparkled the lovely
+ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wicked old Wetehinen!&rdquo; Lisa cried. &ldquo;I suppose he
+thinks that ring will tempt me but nothing will tempt
+me to touch that awful blood!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests,
+and turning things over. In a dark corner she found
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>60]</a></span>
+two pitchers, one marked <em>Water of Life</em>, the other
+<em>Water of Death</em>.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! This is what I want!&rdquo; she cried, taking the
+pitcher of the <i>Water of Life</i>.</p>
+
+<p>She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and
+then with the magic water brought them back to life.
+She used up all the <i>Water of Life</i>, so she filled the
+pitcher marked <i>Water of Life</i> with the water from the
+other pitcher, the <i>Water of Death</i>. She hid her sisters
+each in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the
+door of the forbidden room, and Wetehinen when he
+came home found her working at her spinning wheel
+as though nothing unusual had happened.</p>
+
+<p>After supper Wetehinen said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for
+bed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did
+it so well that he grunted with satisfaction.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Uh! Uh!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s good! Now just behind
+my right ear! That&rsquo;s it! That&rsquo;s it! You&rsquo;re a
+good girl, you are! You&rsquo;re not like some of them who
+do what they&rsquo;re told not to do! Now behind the other
+ear! Oh, that&rsquo;s fine! Yes, you&rsquo;re a good girl and
+if there&rsquo;s anything you want me to do just tell me what
+it is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>61]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I want to send a chest of things to my poor old
+father,&rdquo; Lisa said. &ldquo;Just a lot of little nothings&mdash;odds
+and ends that I&rsquo;ve picked up about the house. I&rsquo;d be
+ashamed to have you open the chest and see them. I do
+wish you&rsquo;d carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave
+it where my father will find it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right, I will,&rdquo; Wetehinen promised.</p>
+
+<p>He was true to his word. The next morning he
+hoisted one of the chests on his shoulder, the one that
+had in it the eldest sister, he trudged off with it, and
+tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.</p>
+
+<p>Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second
+chest that had in it the second sister. This time Wetehinen
+wasn&rsquo;t so good-natured.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what she can always be sending her
+father!&rdquo; he grumbled. &ldquo;If she sends another chest I&rsquo;ll
+have to look inside and see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered,
+began to plan her own escape. She pulled out
+another empty chest and then one evening after she had
+succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable and
+drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her
+father. He grumbled and protested but finally promised.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>62]</a></span>
+&ldquo;And you won&rsquo;t look inside, will you? Promise me
+you won&rsquo;t!&rdquo; Lisa begged.</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen said he wouldn&rsquo;t, but he intended to just
+the same.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went
+out, Lisa took the churn and dressed it up in some of
+her own clothes. She carried it to the top of the house
+and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a spinning
+wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third
+chest and waited.</p>
+
+<p>When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw
+what he thought was Lisa spinning on the roof.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo!&rdquo; he shouted. &ldquo;What are you doing up
+there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded
+as if it came from the roof:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don&rsquo;t
+forget the chest that you promised to carry to my poor
+old father. It&rsquo;s standing in the kitchen.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he
+hoisted the chest on his shoulder and started off.
+When he had gone a little way he thought to put it
+down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa&rsquo;s voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to look inside!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>63]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not looking inside!&rdquo; Wetehinen called back.
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m only resting a minute!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he thought to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose she&rsquo;s sitting up there so she can watch
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When he had gone some distance farther, he thought
+again to set down the chest and open the lid but instantly
+Lisa&rsquo;s voice, as from a long way off, called out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to look inside!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who&rsquo;s looking inside?&rdquo; he called back, pretending
+again he was only resting.</p>
+
+<p>Every time he thought it would be safe to put down
+the chest and open the lid, Lisa&rsquo;s voice cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy on us!&rdquo; old Wetehinen fumed to himself,
+&ldquo;who would have thought she could see so far!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On the shore of the lake when he threw down the
+chest in disgust he tried one last time to raise the lid.
+Instantly Lisa&rsquo;s voice cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not looking inside!&rdquo; Wetehinen roared, and in
+a fury he left the chest and started back into the
+water.</p>
+
+<p>All the way home he grumbled and growled:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A nice way to treat a man, always making him
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>64]</a></span>
+carry chests! I won&rsquo;t carry another one no matter how
+much she begs me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel
+still on the roof and the figure still seated before it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why haven&rsquo;t you got my dinner ready?&rdquo; he called
+out angrily.</p>
+
+<p>The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter with you?&rdquo; Wetehinen cried.
+&ldquo;Why are you sitting there like a wooden image instead
+of cooking my dinner?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen
+began climbing up the roof. He reached out
+blindly and clutched at Lisa&rsquo;s skirt and jerked it so
+hard that the churn came clattering down on his head.
+It knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way
+to the ground and cracked his wicked old head wide
+open.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; he roared in pain. &ldquo;Just wait till
+I get hold of that Lisa!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over
+himself the water that was in the pitcher marked <i>Water
+of Life</i>. But it wasn&rsquo;t the <i>Water of Life</i> at all, it was
+the <i>Water of Death</i>, and so it didn&rsquo;t help his wicked
+old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse <em>and</em> worse.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>65]</a></span>
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by
+him nor was any one else that lived on the shores of
+that lake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wonder what&rsquo;s become of wicked old Wetehinen?&rdquo;
+people began saying.</p>
+
+<p>Lisa thought she knew but she didn&rsquo;t tell.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd07.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>67]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>LOG</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 254px;">
+<img src="images/mmd11.png" width="254" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>69]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">LOG</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 99px;">
+<img src="images/mmd12.png" width="99" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a poor couple who
+had no children. Their neighbors
+all had boys and girls in plenty but
+for some reason God didn&rsquo;t send them
+even one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I can&rsquo;t have a flesh and blood
+baby,&rdquo; the woman said one day, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to have
+a wooden baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just
+the size of a nice fat baby. She dressed the log in
+baby clothes and put it in a cradle. Then for three
+whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle
+and sang lullabies to the log baby.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of three years one afternoon, when the
+man was out chopping wood and the woman was driving
+the cows home from pasture, the log baby turned
+into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that
+by the time its parents got home it had crawled out of
+the cradle and was sitting on the floor yelling lustily
+for food. It ate and ate and ate and the more it ate
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>70]</a></span>
+the faster it grew. It wasn&rsquo;t any time at all in passing
+from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth,
+and from youth to manhood. From its beginnings it
+was known in the village as Log and never received
+any other name.</p>
+
+<p>Log&rsquo;s parents knew from the first that Log was
+destined to be a great hero. That was why he was so
+strong and so good. There was no one in the village
+as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.</p>
+
+<p>Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the
+world. The Sun and the Moon and the Dawn disappeared
+from the sky and as a result the earth was left
+in darkness.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon
+and the Dawn?&rdquo; the people cried in terror.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Whoever they are,&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;they shall have
+to restore them! Where, O where are the heroes who
+will undertake to find the Sun and the Moon and the
+Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>There were many men willing to offer themselves
+for the great adventure but the King realized that
+something more was needed than willingness.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;who should risk the dangers of so perilous
+an undertaking.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>71]</a></span>
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the
+kingdom and tested them one by one. He had some
+waters of great strength and it was his hope to find
+three heroes the first of whom could drink three bottles
+of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the
+third nine bottles.</p>
+
+<p>Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of
+them all the King found at last two, one of whom was
+able to take three bottles of the strong waters, the other
+six bottles.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But we need three heroes!&rdquo; the King cried. &ldquo;Is
+there no one in all this kingdom strong enough to drink
+nine bottles?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Try Log!&rdquo; some one shouted.</p>
+
+<p>All the youths present instantly took up the cry:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Log! Log! Send for Log!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the King sent for Log and sure enough when
+Log came he was able to drink down nine bottles of the
+strong waters without any trouble at all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here now,&rdquo; the King proclaimed, &ldquo;are the three
+heroes who are to release the Sun and the Moon and
+the Dawn from whoever are holding them in captivity
+and restore them to their places in the sky!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing
+them money and food and drink of the strong
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>72]</a></span>
+waters, each according to his strength. He mounted
+them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.</p>
+
+<p>So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women
+of the kingdom wept to see them go and the men cheered
+and wished that they, too, were going.</p>
+
+<p>They rode on and on for many days that seemed
+like nights until they had crossed the confines of their
+own country and entered the boundaries of an unknown
+kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less dense.
+There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as
+of approaching dawn.</p>
+
+<p>They rode on until they saw looming up before them
+the towers of a mighty castle. They dismounted near
+the castle at the door of a little hut where they found
+an old woman.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day to you, granny!&rdquo; Log called out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, indeed!&rdquo; the old woman said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s
+little enough we see of the day since the Evil One cursed
+the Sun and handed it over to Suyettar&rsquo;s wicked offspring,
+the Nine-Headed Serpent!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Evil One!&rdquo; Log exclaimed. &ldquo;Tell me, granny,
+why did the Evil One curse the Sun?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because he&rsquo;s evil, my son, that&rsquo;s why! He said the
+Sun&rsquo;s rays blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>73]</a></span>
+him over to the Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed
+the Moon, too, because at night when the Moon shone
+he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the Moon
+and handed her over to Suyettar&rsquo;s second offspring,
+the Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn
+because he said he couldn&rsquo;t sleep in the morning because
+of the Dawn. So he cursed the Dawn and gave her
+over to Suyettar&rsquo;s third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tell me, granny,&rdquo; Log said, &ldquo;where do the three
+Serpents keep prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the
+Dawn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go
+far out in the Ocean they carry with them the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn. The Three-Headed Serpent
+stays out there one day and then returns at night.
+The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then
+returns, and the mighty Nine-Headed Monster does
+not return until the third night. As each returns a
+faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log thanked the old woman and then he and his
+companions pushed on towards the castle. As they
+neared it they saw a strange sight which they could not
+understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>74]</a></span>
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was
+weeping as if in grief.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What can this mean?&rdquo; Log cried out. &ldquo;We had
+better ask the old woman before we go on.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went back to the hut and the old woman told
+them all she knew.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging
+over the King&rsquo;s three daughters,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Those
+three evil Monsters are demanding them one by one.
+To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If
+the King refuses to give her up, then Suyettar&rsquo;s evil
+son will devour half the kingdom, half of the castle
+itself, and half the shining stones. O that some hero
+would kill the monster and save the princess and at
+the same time release the Dawn that it might again
+steal over the world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log and his fellows conferred together and the one
+they called Three Bottles, because his strength was
+equal to three bottles of the strong waters, declared
+that it was his task to fight and conquer the Three-Headed
+Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice
+of the oldest princess were going forward. As the
+King sewed the poor girl into a great leather sack, his
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>75]</a></span>
+tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see what he was
+doing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear child,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it should comfort you
+greatly to think that the Monster is going to eat you
+instead of half the kingdom! Not many princesses
+are considered as important as half the kingdom!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess knew that what her father said must be
+true and she did her best to look cheerful as they slipped
+the sack over her head. Once inside, however, she allowed
+herself to cry for she knew that no one could see
+her.</p>
+
+<p>The sack with the princess inside was carried down
+to the beach and put on a high rock near the place
+where Suyettar&rsquo;s sons were wont to come up out of the
+water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be frightened, my daughter!&rdquo; the King called
+out as he and all the Court started back to the castle.
+&ldquo;You won&rsquo;t have long to wait, for it will soon be
+evening.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log and his companions watched the King&rsquo;s party
+disappear and then Three Bottles solemnly drank down
+the three bottles of strong waters with which his own
+King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was
+attached.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>76]</a></span>
+&ldquo;If I need help,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll throw back my shoe
+and do you then release my dog.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted,
+and climbed up the rock where the unfortunate
+princess lay in a sack. With one slash of
+the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the
+princess out. She supposed of course that he was the
+Three-Headed Serpent and at first was so frightened
+that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to look
+at him. She expected every minute to have him take
+a first bite and, when minutes and more minutes and
+more minutes still went by and he didn&rsquo;t, she opened
+her eyes a little crack to see what was the matter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; the princess said.</p>
+
+<p>She was so surprised that for a long time she didn&rsquo;t
+dare to take another peep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent,
+didn&rsquo;t you?&rdquo; a pleasant voice asked. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;m not.
+I&rsquo;m only a young man who has come to rescue
+you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess murmured, &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; again, but this time
+the &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; expressed happy relief.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; repeated the young man, &ldquo;I am the hero who
+has come to rescue you. My comrades call me Three
+Bottles and you, too, may call me that. And while we
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>77]</a></span>
+are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean
+I wish you would scratch my head.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess wasn&rsquo;t in the least surprised at this
+request. Heroes and monsters and fathers alike seemed
+always to want their heads scratched.</p>
+
+<p>So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess&rsquo;
+feet and put his head in her lap. He settled himself
+comfortably and she scratched his head while he gazed
+out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.</p>
+
+<p>At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface
+of the water. They waited and at last far out they saw
+three swirling masses rolling landward.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Quick, my princess!&rdquo; Three Bottles cried. &ldquo;There
+comes the Monster now! Get you down behind the rock
+and hide there while I go meet the creature and chop off
+his ugly heads!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down
+behind the rock and Three Bottles, mounting his horse,
+rode boldly down to the water&rsquo;s edge awaiting the
+Serpent&rsquo;s coming.</p>
+
+<p>It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly
+lifting its three scaly heads one after another.</p>
+
+<p>As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!&rdquo; it muttered in a deep voice,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>78]</a></span>
+repeating the magic rime it had learned from its evil
+mother, Suyettar:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!&rdquo; Three Bottles
+cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ll have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; repeated the Serpent as if in surprise.
+&ldquo;Shall we fight, pretty boy, you and I? Very well!
+Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long level
+platform of red copper whereon we can meet and try
+our strength each with the other!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; answered Three Bottles. &ldquo;Do you blow with
+your evil breath and instead of red copper we shall have
+a platform of black iron.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that
+came of his breath Three Bottles met him in combat.
+Back and forth they raged, Three Bottles striking right
+and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at
+Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>79]</a></span>
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles
+whacked off one scaly head and at last a second one, but
+he was unable to touch the third.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I shall have to have help,&rdquo; he acknowledged to himself
+finally, and reaching down he took one of his shoes
+and threw it over his shoulder back to his comrades who
+were awaiting the outcome of the struggle. Instantly
+they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its
+master&rsquo;s assistance and soon with the dog&rsquo;s help Three
+Bottles was able to dispatch the last head.</p>
+
+<p>He was faint now with weariness and his comrades
+had to help him back to the old woman&rsquo;s hut where he
+soon fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of
+relief and thanksgiving went up from all the earth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Dawn! The Dawn!&rdquo; people cried. &ldquo;God
+bless the man who has released the Dawn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Only at the castle was there sorrow still.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor oldest daughter!&rdquo; the King cried with tears
+in his eyes. &ldquo;It was my sacrifice of her that has released
+the Dawn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to
+gather up his daughter&rsquo;s bones and to bring back the
+leather sack.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We shall need it again to-night,&rdquo; he said. He wiped
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>80]</a></span>
+his eyes and for a moment could say no more. &ldquo;Yes,
+to-night we shall have to sew up my second daughter
+and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that holds
+captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour
+half my kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining
+stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the
+seashore found, not the princess&rsquo; bones, but the princess
+herself, sitting there with her chin in her hand, gazing
+down on the beach which was strewn with the fragments
+of the Three-Headed Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>They led her back to her father and reported the
+marvel they had seen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all
+his heads severed! So huge are the heads that it would
+need three men with derricks to move one of them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!&rdquo;
+the King cried. &ldquo;Would that another might come
+to-night to rescue my second child likewise! But, alas!
+what hero is strong enough to destroy the Six-Headed
+Monster!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when evening came they sewed the second princess
+in the sack and carried her out to the rock.</p>
+
+<p>Log and his companions saw the procession move
+down from the castle and they saw that the castle was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>81]</a></span>
+again disturbed, one half of it laughing and one half
+weeping.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the second princess to-night,&rdquo; the old woman
+told them. &ldquo;Unless her father, the King, gives her to
+the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster will come and
+devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive
+and the hero that slays him will release the Moon.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here is work for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters
+until he had emptied six.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I am ready!&rdquo; he shouted.</p>
+
+<p>He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he
+called to his comrades:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I need help I&rsquo;ll throw back a shoe and do you
+then unleash my dog!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted.
+Then he climbed the rock and released the second
+princess. He told her who he was and as they awaited
+the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess&rsquo; feet and she scratched his head.</p>
+
+<p>This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls
+with six awful heads that reared up one after another.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>82]</a></span>
+In terror the second princess hid behind the rock while
+Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to
+the water&rsquo;s edge.</p>
+
+<p>Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing
+the air hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had
+learned from his mother, wicked Suyettar:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!&rdquo; Six Bottles
+cried. &ldquo;You will have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; repeated the Serpent scornfully. &ldquo;Shall
+we fight, little one, you and I? Very well! Blow then
+with your sweet breath, blow out a long level platform
+of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay!&rdquo; answered Six Bottles. &ldquo;Do you blow, blow
+with your evil breath, and instead of white silver we
+shall have a platform of red copper.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>83]</a></span>
+came of his breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back
+and forth they raged, Six Bottles striking left and right
+with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Six
+Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and belching
+forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles
+whacked off one head, then another, then another. At
+last he had disposed of five heads. He tried hard to
+strike the last, but by this time the Serpent had grown
+wary and Six Bottles&rsquo; own strength was waning. So
+he reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it
+over his shoulder back to his comrades who were awaiting
+the outcome of the struggle. Instantly they loosed
+the dog which bounded forward to its master&rsquo;s assistance
+and soon with the dog&rsquo;s help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.</p>
+
+<p>Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to
+the old woman&rsquo;s hut and soon he fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a
+great cry of relief and thanksgiving went up from all
+the world:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who
+has released the Moon!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King who was awakened by the sound looked out
+the castle window and when he saw the Moon, returned
+to its place in the sky, his eyes overflowed with grief.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>84]</a></span>
+&ldquo;My poor second daughter!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;It was my
+sacrifice of her that has released the Moon! To-morrow
+morning I will send the slaves to gather up her bones
+and to bring back the leather sack into which, alas! I
+must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar&rsquo;s
+third son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai!
+How sad it is to be a father!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But on the morrow when the slaves went to the
+rock they found the second princess sitting there alone
+gazing down upon the scattered fragments of the Six-Headed
+Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here she is, safe and sound!&rdquo; they reported to the
+King as they led the second princess into his presence,
+&ldquo;and, marvel of marvels! on the beach below the rock
+lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to pieces!
+Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with
+derricks could scarcely move one of them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;God be praised!&rdquo; the King cried. &ldquo;Another unknown
+hero has come and saved the life of my second
+child! Would that a third might come to-night and
+rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if
+there be heroes who could dispatch the first two Serpents,
+there is never one who can touch him of the Nine
+Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>85]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 416px;">
+<a name="illo05" id="illo05"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi05.png" width="416" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>87]</a></span>
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing
+could save the life of his youngest child.</p>
+
+<p>When Log and his companions heard of the King&rsquo;s
+grief, Log at once stood forth and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after
+bottle until he had emptied nine.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now let night come as soon as it will!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;I
+am ready for the Monster!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He started forth telling his comrades he would throw
+back a shoe if he needed help from his dog.</p>
+
+<p>So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for
+the third time and released the Youngest Princess who
+was much more beautiful than her sisters. She fell in
+love with the mighty hero on sight and was so thrilled
+with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in
+her lap she hardly knew what to do although her father
+always declared that she scratched his head much better
+than either of her sisters.</p>
+
+<p>They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was
+a glitter with the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was
+coming to shore with the captive Sun in his keeping.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Await me behind the rock!&rdquo; Log cried to the
+Princess as he leapt upon his horse and started forward.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>88]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!&rdquo; the Princess cried
+after him.</p>
+
+<p>Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled
+Monster. One after another of his nine heads rose and
+fell as he approached, and every head sniffed more
+hungrily as it came nearer, and each head rumbled as
+it sniffed:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!&rdquo; Log
+cried. &ldquo;You will have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; roared the awful Monster. &ldquo;Shall we fight,
+poor infant, you and I? Very well! Blow then with
+your sweet breath, blow out a long level platform of
+shining gold whereon we can meet and try our strength
+each with the other!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay!&rdquo; Log answered boldly. &ldquo;Do you blow, blow
+with your evil breath and instead of shining gold we
+shall have a platform of white silver.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>89]</a></span>
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that
+came of his breath Log met him in combat. Back and
+forth they raged, Log striking right and left with his
+mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with all his
+nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from
+all his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after
+head until six lay gaping on the sand. But the last
+three he could not get.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a
+head. Now only two remained, but try as he would
+Log could get neither of them.</p>
+
+<p>Again he tried a subterfuge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they&rsquo;re
+abusing her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Monster looked and Log whacked off another
+head. But one now remained and as usual it was the
+hardest of them all to get. Log felt his strength waning
+while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I shall have to have help,&rdquo; Log thought.</p>
+
+<p>He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at
+once loosed his dog. With the dog&rsquo;s help Log was
+soon able to dispatch the last head. Then Three Bottles
+and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and supported
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>90]</a></span>
+him to the old woman&rsquo;s hut where he soon fell into a
+deep sleep.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper
+time and people all over the world, falling on their knees
+with thanksgiving and weeping with joy, cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has
+released the Sun!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the castle they waked the King with the good news
+but the King only shook his head and murmured in
+grief:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my
+favorite child, my youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and
+presently these returned bringing the Princess herself
+and telling a marvelous tale of the beach littered with
+nine severed heads so huge that it would need nine men
+with derricks to move one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What manner of heroes are these who have rescued
+my daughters!&rdquo; cried the King. &ldquo;Let them come forth
+and I will give them my daughters for wives and half
+my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove themselves
+the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the
+heavy heads of the Monsters they have slain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>91]</a></span>
+with happiness and, strengthening themselves with deep
+draughts of the strong waters, they gathered together
+the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King&rsquo;s feet.</p>
+
+<p>Then Log stepped forward and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters
+in marriage, the oldest to Three Bottles, the second
+to Six Bottles, and the lovely Youngest to Log. Then
+he apportioned them the half of his riches and, after
+much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their
+brides and their riches and bidding the King farewell
+started homewards.</p>
+
+<p>As they rode through a great forest they sighted a
+tiny hut and Log, motioning his comrades to wait for
+him quietly, crept forward to see who was in the hut.
+It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ay,&rdquo; she was saying, &ldquo;they have slain my three
+beautiful sons, my mighty offspring that held captive
+the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn! But I tell you,
+sisters, they will pay the penalty....&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of
+firewood and slipping inside the hut hid himself in the
+woodpile near the stove.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>92]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Ay, they will pay the penalty!&rdquo; Suyettar repeated.
+&ldquo;I shall have my revenge on them! A fine supper
+Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon them with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick their bones and drink their blood!<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar&rsquo;s anger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But sister, sister,&rdquo; the two old hags asked, &ldquo;how
+will you get them?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that
+no one was listening. Then she whispered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is how I shall get them: As they come through
+this forest, the three men with their brides, I shall send
+upon them a terrible hunger. Then they shall come
+suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food. One
+bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay,
+sisters, to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper!
+Nothing can save them unless, before they touch the
+food, some one make the sign of the cross three times
+over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens
+Suyettar shall still get them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How, sister, how?&rdquo; the other two asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst,
+and then put in their pathway a spring of cold sparkling
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>93]</a></span>
+water. One drop of that water and they are in my
+power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me unless,
+before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign
+of the cross three times over the spring. At that the
+spring would disappear and also their thirst. But even
+if they escape the spring, I shall still get them. I shall
+send great heaviness on them and a longing for sleep,
+then let them come upon a row of soft inviting feather
+beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are
+mine, he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save
+but that some one make the sign of the cross three times
+over the beds before they touch them. Oh, sisters, I shall
+get them one way or another for there is no one to warn
+them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn&rsquo;t
+dare tell them what he knows for he would also know
+that if he told them he would himself be turned into a
+blue cross and have to stand forever in the cemetery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened,
+he slipped away from the woodpile and, when he was
+outside, took his own shape and hurried back to his
+comrades.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Away!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;We are in great danger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until
+Three Bottles suddenly cried:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>94]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me, too!&rdquo; cried Six Bottles.</p>
+
+<p>At that instant a great table, laden with delicious
+food, appeared before them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look!&rdquo; cried the one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Food!&rdquo; cried the other.</p>
+
+<p>They flung themselves from their horses and ran
+towards the table. But quick as they were, Log was
+quicker. He reached the table first and, raising his
+hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the
+strange hunger that had but now consumed them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; Three Bottles exclaimed. &ldquo;I thought I
+was hungry, but I&rsquo;m not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought I saw food just now,&rdquo; Six Bottles said.
+&ldquo;I must have been dreaming.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they mounted again and pushed on.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Danger threatens us,&rdquo; said Log. &ldquo;We must hurry
+and not dismount no matter what the temptation.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They agreed but presently one of them cried out and
+then the other:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we
+have water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool
+sparkling water and it was all Log could do to reach it
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>95]</a></span>
+before his fellows. He did get there first and make the
+sign of the cross three times whereat the spring disappeared
+and with it the thirst which had but now
+consumed them all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought I was thirsty,&rdquo; Three Bottles said, &ldquo;but
+I&rsquo;m not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why did we dismount?&rdquo; Six Bottles asked.
+&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no water here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again they mounted and went forward and Log,
+warning them again that danger threatened, begged
+them not to dismount a third time no matter what the
+temptation.</p>
+
+<p>They promised they would not but presently, complaining
+of fatigue, they wanted to. Their brides, too,
+swayed in the saddle, overcome with weariness and sleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Dear Log,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;let us rest for an hour. See,
+our brides are drooping with fatigue! One hour&rsquo;s sleep
+and we shall all be refreshed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw
+three soft white feather beds. Log leaped to the
+ground but before he was able to make the sign of the
+cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.</p>
+
+<p>And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six
+Bottles and their two lovely brides. There was no way
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>96]</a></span>
+now of saving them from Suyettar. She had them in
+her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.</p>
+
+<p>As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and
+rode on they heard an evil voice chanting out in triumph:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem4">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Poor fellows! Poor fellows!&rdquo; Log said, and the
+Princess wept to think of the awful fate that had overtaken
+her two sisters.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Log and his bride reached home without further
+adventure and were received by the King with great
+honors.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I knew my heroes were succeeding,&rdquo; the King said,
+&ldquo;when first the Dawn appeared again, and then the
+Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All hail to you, Log,
+and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where
+are Three Bottles and Six Bottles?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; Log said, &ldquo;Three Bottles and Six
+Bottles were brave men both. By their prowess they
+released the one the Dawn, the other the Moon. Then
+in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You can tell me no more?&rdquo; the King said. &ldquo;Why
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>97]</a></span>
+can you tell me no more? What was the evil adventure
+in which they perished?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for
+I should be turned into a blue cross and stood forever
+in the cemetery!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What nonsense!&rdquo; the King exclaimed. &ldquo;Who would
+turn you into a blue cross and stand you forever in the
+cemetery?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is what I cannot tell you,&rdquo; Log said.</p>
+
+<p>The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but
+the people of the kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted
+on knowing in detail what had happened the other two
+heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread that Log
+himself had done away with them in order that he might
+gather to himself all the glory of the undertaking.</p>
+
+<p>The King was forced at last to send for him again
+and to demand a full account of everything.</p>
+
+<p>Log realized that his end was near. He met it
+bravely. Commending to the King&rsquo;s protection his
+lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log related how
+the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were
+sons of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had
+succeeded in destroying Three Bottles and Six Bottles
+together with their brides. Then he told the fate about
+to overtake himself.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>98]</a></span>
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court
+looked at him, to their amazement he disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;To the cemetery!&rdquo; some one cried.</p>
+
+<p>They all went to the cemetery where at once they
+found a fresh blue cross that had come there nobody
+knew how. There it stands to this day, a reminder of
+the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.</p>
+
+<p>The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such
+a hero. He took Log&rsquo;s bride under his protection and
+he found her so beautiful and so gentle that soon he
+fell in love with her and married her.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>99]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE LITTLE SISTER</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 248px;">
+<img src="images/mmd13.png" width="248" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>101]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE LITTLE SISTER</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 97px;">
+<img src="images/mmd14.png" width="97" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a woman who had
+nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing
+about which they were always complaining.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why haven&rsquo;t we a little sister?&rdquo;
+they kept asking. &ldquo;Do give us a little sister!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the time came that another child was to be
+born, they said to their mother:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If the baby is a boy we are going away and you
+will never see us again, but if it is a little girl then we
+shall stay home and take care of it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she
+would have her husband put a spindle outside on the
+gatepost and, if it were a boy, an ax.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just wait,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and see what your father puts
+on the gatepost and then you will know whether it is
+another brother God has sent you or a little sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was
+overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>102]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Hurry, husband!&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;and put a spindle on
+the gatepost so that our nine sons may know the good
+news!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man did so and then quickly returned to the
+mother and baby. The moment he was gone Suyettar
+slipped up and changed the tokens. She took away
+the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an
+evil grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now we&rsquo;ll see what we&rsquo;ll see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded.
+As soon as the nine sons saw the ax on the
+gatepost they thought their mother had given birth to
+another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.</p>
+
+<p>The poor mother waited for them and waited.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is keeping my sons?&rdquo; she cried at last. &ldquo;Go
+out to the gate, husband, and see if they are coming.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man went out and soon returned bringing back
+word that some one had changed the tokens.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;and in its place is an ax.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried the poor mother, &ldquo;some evil creature
+has done this to spite us! Oh, if we could only get word
+to our sons of the little sister they were so eager to
+have!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>103]</a></span>
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew
+the way they had gone.</p>
+
+<p>In a short time the husband died and the poor woman,
+abandoned by her nine sons, had only her little daughter
+left. She named the child Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear
+little girl and her face was as beautiful as her heart was
+good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone
+she tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she
+wanted to know the cause of her mother&rsquo;s grief. At
+last the mother told her about her nine brothers and how
+they had gone away never to return owing to the trick
+of some evil creature.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor mother!&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;how sorry I am that
+I am the innocent cause of your loss! Let me go out
+into the world and find my brothers! When once they
+hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to care
+for you in your old age!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At first the mother would not consent to this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You are all I have,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and I should indeed
+be miserable and lonely if anything happened you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought
+of her poor brothers driven unnecessarily from home
+and at last the mother, realizing that she would nevermore
+be happy unless she were allowed to go in search
+of them, gave up opposing her.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>104]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God
+go with you and bring you safely back to me. But
+before you go I must prepare you a bag of food for
+the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show
+you the way.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time
+mixed a little round cake with Kerttu&rsquo;s own tears and
+baked it, too. Then she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey
+and here is a magic cake that will lead you to your
+brothers. All you have to do is throw it down in front
+of you and say:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rsquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow
+wherever it rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not
+start out alone. You must have some friend or companion
+to go with you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti,
+that she loved dearly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll take Musti with me!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Musti will
+protect me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>105]</a></span>
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and
+barked with joy at the prospect of going out into the
+world with his mistress.</p>
+
+<p>Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of
+her and sang:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and
+Kerttu and Musti followed it. They walked until they
+were tired. Then Kerttu picked up the little cake and
+they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do
+was throw it down in front of her and say the magic
+rime.</p>
+
+<p>Their first day was without adventure. When night
+came they ate their supper and went to sleep in a field
+under a tree.</p>
+
+<p>The second day they overtook an ugly old woman
+whom Kerttu disliked on sight. But she said to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just
+because she&rsquo;s old and ugly!&rdquo; and she made herself
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>106]</a></span>
+answer the old woman&rsquo;s greetings politely and she made
+Musti stop snarling and growling.</p>
+
+<p>The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where
+she was going and Kerttu told her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; said the old woman, &ldquo;how fortunate that we
+have met each other for our ways lie together!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She smiled and petted Kerttu&rsquo;s arm and Kerttu felt
+like shuddering. But she restrained herself and told
+herself severely:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the
+poor old thing!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer
+growled for Kerttu had told him not to, but he drooped
+his tail between his legs and, pressing up close to Kerttu,
+he trembled with fright. And well he might, too, for
+the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do
+further injury to Kerttu and her brothers.</p>
+
+<p>Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent
+to suspect evil in others. She said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be
+companions.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three
+of them walked on following the little cake. As the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>107]</a></span>
+day advanced the sun grew hotter and hotter and at
+last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments
+and rest.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at
+her skirts and warned her not to.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress!&rdquo; Musti growled softly.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t go in bathing with her! She&rsquo;ll bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Kerttu said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t want to go in bathing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on
+and then when Kerttu wasn&rsquo;t looking she turned around
+and kicked Musti and broke one of the poor little dog&rsquo;s
+legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on three legs.</p>
+
+<p>The next afternoon when they passed another lake,
+Suyettar tried again to tempt Kerttu into the water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The sun is very hot,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and it would refresh
+us both to bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don&rsquo;t refuse
+me this time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But again Musti tugged at Kerttu&rsquo;s skirts and, licking
+her hand, whispered the warning:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>108]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again Kerttu said politely:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t feel like going in bathing. You go in
+alone and I&rsquo;ll wait for you here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said,
+no, she didn&rsquo;t care to go in alone. She was furious, too,
+with Musti and later when Kerttu wasn&rsquo;t looking she
+gave the poor little dog a kick that broke another leg.
+Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.</p>
+
+<p>They slept the third night by the wayside and the
+next day they went on again always following the magic
+cake. In midafternoon they passed a lake and Suyettar
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let
+us both bathe in this cool lake.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs,
+yelped weakly and said to Kerttu:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she&rsquo;ll bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when
+she wasn&rsquo;t looking, Suyettar kicked Musti and broke
+the third of the poor little dog&rsquo;s legs. Thereafter Musti
+hopped on as best he could on only one leg.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they went on and on. When night came they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>109]</a></span>
+slept by the roadside and then next morning they started
+on again. The sun grew hot and by midafternoon
+Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached
+a lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing.
+Kerttu was tempted to agree when poor Musti
+threw himself panting at her feet and whimpered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Kerttu again refused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, dear mistress!&rdquo; Musti panted, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t
+do it! I shall soon be dead, I know, for she hates me,
+but before I die I want to warn you one last time never
+to go in bathing with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that dog saying?&rdquo; Suyettar demanded
+angrily, and without waiting for an answer she picked
+up a heavy piece of wood and struck poor Musti such
+a blow on the head that it killed him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What have you done to my poor little dog?&rdquo; Kerttu
+cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t mind him, my dear,&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;He
+was sick and lame and it was better to put him out of
+his misery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget
+Musti but all afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she
+would never again see her faithful little friend.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>110]</a></span>
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go
+in bathing there was no Musti to warn her against it
+and at last Kerttu allowed herself to be persuaded.
+She was tired from her many days&rsquo; wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed
+her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now splash water in my face!&rdquo; Suyettar cried.</p>
+
+<p>But Kerttu didn&rsquo;t want to splash water into
+Suyettar&rsquo;s face for she supposed Suyettar was an old
+woman and she thought it would be disrespectful to
+splash water into the face of an old woman.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you hear me!&rdquo; screamed Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her
+with such a terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu
+did as she was bidden. She splashed water into
+Suyettar&rsquo;s face and, as the water touched Suyettar&rsquo;s
+eyes, Suyettar cried out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Your bonny looks give up to me<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And you take mine for all to see!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar
+looked young and beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu
+was changed to a hideous old hag. Then too late she
+realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>111]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo06" id="illo06"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi06.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Suyettar bewitching Kerttu</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>113]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, why,&rdquo; Kerttu cried, &ldquo;why didn&rsquo;t I heed poor
+Musti&rsquo;s warning!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come along!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Dress yourself in those
+rags of mine and start that cake a-rolling! We ought
+to reach your brothers&rsquo; house by to-night.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar&rsquo;s
+filthy old garments while Suyettar, looking like a fresh
+young girl, decked herself out in Kerttu&rsquo;s pretty bodice
+and skirt.</p>
+
+<p>Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw
+down the cake and said:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it,
+Kerttu weeping bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with
+ugly laughs. Then suddenly Kerttu forgot to weep for
+Suyettar took from her her memory and her tongue.</p>
+
+<p>The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before
+which it stopped. This was where the nine brothers
+were living. Eight of them were out working in the
+fields but the youngest was at home. He opened the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>114]</a></span>
+door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu,
+his sister, he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome.
+Then he invited her inside and they sat side by side on
+the bench and talked and Suyettar told him all she had
+heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu&rsquo;s birth. The
+youngest brother listened eagerly and Suyettar told her
+story so glibly that of course he supposed that she was
+his own true sister.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And who is the awful looking old hag that has come
+with you?&rdquo; he asked pointing at Kerttu.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That? Oh, that&rsquo;s an old serving woman whom our
+mother sent with me to bear me company. She&rsquo;s dumb
+and foolish but she&rsquo;s a good herd and we can let her
+drive the cow out to pasture every day.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers when they came home were greatly
+pleased to find what they thought was their sister.
+They began to love her at once and to pet her and they
+said that now she must stay with them and keep house
+for them. She told them that was what she wanted to
+do and she said that now she was here the youngest
+brother need no longer stay at home but could go out
+every morning with the rest of them to work in the
+fields.</p>
+
+<p>So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>115]</a></span>
+morning after the brothers were gone Suyettar would
+scold and abuse her. She would bake a cake for her
+dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would
+take Kerttu as far as the gate where she would give her
+back her tongue and her memory and order her roughly
+to drive the cow to pasture and look after it all day
+long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take
+from her her tongue and her memory and then in the
+evening the brothers would see her as a foolish old
+woman who couldn&rsquo;t talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little
+mercy, but far from showing her any mercy Suyettar
+grew more cruel from day to day.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome
+young men took her for a beautiful girl and she felt
+sure they would never find out their mistake for only
+Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was entirely
+in her power.</p>
+
+<p>At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the
+kitchen with her nine brothers laughing and talking
+Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such times of course she
+had no memory. But during the day it was different.
+Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>116]</a></span>
+memory and her tongue and she thought about her poor
+mother at home anxiously awaiting her return and she
+thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of whom might
+now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar.
+These thoughts made her weep with grief and as the
+days went by she put this grief into a song which she
+sang constantly:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But they know me not from stick or stone!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">They leave me here to weep alone,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">While Suyettar sits in my place<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With stolen looks and stolen face!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She snared me first with evil guile<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And now she mocks me all the while:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">By night she takes my tongue away,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">That their own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to
+hear the song and they wondered about it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; they said to one another. &ldquo;Can that be
+the old woman singing? In the evening at home she
+never opens her mouth and our dear sister always says
+that she&rsquo;s dumb and foolish.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One afternoon when Kerttu&rsquo;s song sounded
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>117]</a></span>
+particularly sad, the youngest brother crept close to the
+meadow where Kerttu was sitting in order to hear the
+words. He listened carefully and then hurried back to
+the others and with frightened face told them what he
+had heard.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; the older brothers said. &ldquo;It can&rsquo;t be so!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves
+the words of the strange song, so they all crept near to
+listen.</p>
+
+<p>It looked like an old hag who was singing but the
+voice that came out of the withered mouth was the voice
+of a young girl. As they listened they, too, grew pale:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But they know me not from stick or stone!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">They leave me here to weep alone,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">While Suyettar sits in my place<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With stolen looks and stolen face!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She snared me first with evil guile<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And now she mocks me all the while:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">By night she takes my tongue away,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">That their own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can it be true?&rdquo; they said, whispering together.</p>
+
+<p>They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>118]</a></span>
+and he, when he had heard her story, believed it true.
+Then the other brothers went to her one by one and
+questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is well for us,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;if we do not all fall into
+the power of that awful creature! How, O how can
+we rescue our poor little sister!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I can never get back my own looks,&rdquo; Kerttu said,
+&ldquo;unless Suyettar splashes water into my eyes and unless
+I cry out a magic rime as she does it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The brothers discussed one plan after another and
+at last agreed on one that they thought might deceive
+Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come
+groping home one midday. The brothers, too, were at
+home and as Kerttu came stumbling into the kitchen
+they said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something
+ails her! Her eyes&mdash;they&rsquo;re all red and swollen!
+Get some water and bathe them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;The old hag&rsquo;s well
+enough! Let her be! She doesn&rsquo;t need any attention!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, sister!&rdquo; the youngest brother said, reproachfully,
+&ldquo;is that any way for a human, kindhearted girl
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>119]</a></span>
+like you to talk? If you won&rsquo;t bathe the old creature&rsquo;s
+eyes, I will myself!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think
+that she was a human, kindhearted girl said, no, she
+would bathe them. So she took a basin of water over
+to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu&rsquo;s eyes,
+Kerttu cried out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;My own true looks give back to me<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And take your own for all to see!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag
+though still dressed in Kerttu&rsquo;s pretty bodice and skirt,
+and Kerttu was herself again, young and fresh and
+sweet, though still incased in Suyettar&rsquo;s rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept
+on talking to Suyettar as though they still thought her
+Kerttu. And Suyettar because her eyes were blinded
+with the dust supposed that they were still deceived.</p>
+
+<p>Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister dear, the <i>sauna</i> is all heated and ready.
+Don&rsquo;t you want to bathe?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance
+to wash the dust from her eyes, so she let them lead
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>120]</a></span>
+her to the <i>sauna</i>. Once they got her inside they locked
+the door and set the <i>sauna</i> a-fire. Oh, the noise she
+made then when she found she had been trapped! She
+kicked and screamed and cursed and threatened! But
+Kerttu and the brothers paid no heed to her. They left
+her burning in the <i>sauna</i> while they hurried homewards.</p>
+
+<p>They found their poor old mother seated at the window
+weeping, for she thought that now Kerttu as well
+as her sons was lost forever. As Kerttu and the nine
+handsome young men came in the gate she didn&rsquo;t recognize
+them until Kerttu sang out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I bring at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Then she knew who they were and with thanks to
+God she welcomed them home.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>121]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE FOREST BRIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 253px;">
+<img src="images/mmd15.png" width="253" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>123]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE FOREST BRIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd16.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a farmer who had
+three sons. One day when the boys
+were grown to manhood he said to
+them:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My sons, it is high time that you
+were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But where shall we go?&rdquo; the oldest son asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have thought of that, too,&rdquo; the father said. &ldquo;Do
+each of you chop down a tree and then take the direction
+in which the fallen tree points. I&rsquo;m sure that each of
+you if you go far enough in that direction will find a
+suitable bride.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the next day the three sons chopped down trees.
+The oldest son&rsquo;s tree fell pointing north.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That suits me!&rdquo; he said, for he knew that to the
+north lay a farm where a very pretty girl lived.</p>
+
+<p>The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That suits me!&rdquo; the second son declared thinking of
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>124]</a></span>
+a girl that he had often danced with who lived on a farm
+to the south.</p>
+
+<p>The youngest son&rsquo;s tree&mdash;the youngest son&rsquo;s name
+was Veikko&mdash;when it fell pointed straight to the forest.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; the older brothers laughed. &ldquo;Veikko
+will have to go courting one of the Wolf girls or one of
+the Foxes!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They meant by this that only animals lived in the
+forest and they thought they were making a good joke
+at Veikko&rsquo;s expense. But Veikko said he was perfectly
+willing to take his chances and go where his tree pointed.</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers went gaily off and presented their
+suits to the two farmers whose daughters they admired.
+Veikko, too, started off with brave front but after he
+had gone some distance in the forest his courage began
+to ebb.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How can I find a bride,&rdquo; he asked himself, &ldquo;in a
+place where there are no human creatures at all!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open
+the door and went in. It was empty. To be sure there
+was a little mouse sitting on the table, daintily combing
+her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn&rsquo;t count.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s nobody here!&rdquo; Veikko said aloud.</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards
+him said reproachfully:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>125]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Why, Veikko, I&rsquo;m here!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you don&rsquo;t count. You&rsquo;re only a mouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course I count!&rdquo; the little mouse declared. &ldquo;But
+tell me, what were you hoping to find?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I was hoping to find a sweetheart.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko
+told her the whole story of his brothers and the trees.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily
+enough,&rdquo; Veikko said, &ldquo;but I don&rsquo;t see how I can off
+here in the forest. And it will shame me to have to go
+home and confess that I alone have failed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Veikko,&rdquo; the little mouse said, &ldquo;why don&rsquo;t
+you take me for your sweetheart?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko laughed heartily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you&rsquo;re only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man
+having a mouse for a sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mouse shook her little head solemnly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much
+worse than have me for a sweetheart! Even if I am
+only a mouse I can love you and be true to you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat
+looking up at Veikko with her little paws under her chin
+and her bright little eyes sparkling Veikko liked her
+more and more.</p>
+
+<p>Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>126]</a></span>
+cheered him so much that he forgot his disappointment
+at not finding a human sweetheart and as he left her to
+go home he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, little mouse, I&rsquo;ll take you for my sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and
+she told him that she&rsquo;d be true to him and wait for him
+no matter how long he was in returning.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted
+loudly about their sweethearts.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mine,&rdquo; said the oldest, &ldquo;has the rosiest reddest cheeks
+you ever saw!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And mine,&rdquo; the second announced, &ldquo;has long yellow
+hair!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko said nothing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter, Veikko?&rdquo; the older brothers
+asked him, laughing. &ldquo;Has your sweetheart pretty
+pointed ears or sharp white teeth?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>You see they were still having their little joke about
+foxes and wolves.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You needn&rsquo;t laugh,&rdquo; Veikko said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found a
+sweetheart. She&rsquo;s a gentle dainty little thing gowned
+in velvet.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Gowned in velvet!&rdquo; echoed the oldest brother with a
+frown.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>127]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Just like a princess!&rdquo; the second brother sneered.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Veikko repeated, &ldquo;gowned in velvet like a
+princess. And when she sits up and sings to me I&rsquo;m
+perfectly happy.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh!&rdquo; grunted the older brothers not at all pleased
+that Veikko should have so grand a sweetheart.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the old farmer after a few days, &ldquo;now I
+should like to know what those sweethearts of yours are
+able to do. Have them each bake me a loaf of
+bread so that I can see whether they&rsquo;re good housewives.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mine will be able to bake bread&mdash;I&rsquo;m sure of that!&rdquo;
+the oldest brother declared boastfully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;So will mine!&rdquo; chorused the second brother.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko was silent.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What about the Princess?&rdquo; they said with a laugh.
+&ldquo;Do you think the Princess can bake bread?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; Veikko answered truthfully. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll
+have to ask her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course he had no reason for supposing that the
+little mouse could bake bread and by the time he
+reached the hut in the forest he was feeling sad and
+discouraged.</p>
+
+<p>When he pushed open the door he found the little
+mouse as before seated on the table daintily combing
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>128]</a></span>
+her whiskers. At sight of Veikko she danced about
+with delight.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m so glad to see you!&rdquo; she squeaked. &ldquo;I knew
+you would come back!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked
+him what was the matter. Veikko told her:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake
+him a loaf of bread. If I come home without a loaf
+my brothers will laugh at me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You won&rsquo;t have to go home without a loaf!&rdquo; the
+little mouse said. &ldquo;I can bake bread.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko was much surprised at this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, I can!&rdquo; the little mouse insisted.</p>
+
+<p>With that she began ringing a small silver bell,
+<i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>. Instantly there was the sound
+of hurrying footsteps, tiny scratchy footsteps, and hundreds
+of mice came running into the hut.</p>
+
+<p>The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight
+and dignified said to them:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest
+wheat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned
+one by one, each carrying a grain of the finest
+wheat. After that it was no trick at all for the Princess
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>129]</a></span>
+mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.</p>
+
+<p>The next day the three brothers presented their
+father the loaves of their sweethearts&rsquo; baking. The
+oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very good,&rdquo; the farmer said. &ldquo;For hardworking
+people like us rye bread is good.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The loaf the second son had was made of barley.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Barley bread is also good,&rdquo; the farmer said.</p>
+
+<p>But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful
+wheaten bread, his father cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have
+a sweetheart of wealth!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course!&rdquo; the older brothers sneered. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t he
+tell us she was a Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess
+wants fine white flour, how does she get it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko answered simply:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She rings a little silver bell and when her servants
+come in she tells them to bring her grains of the finest
+wheat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy
+until their father had to reprove them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There! There!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t grudge the boy
+his good luck! Each girl has baked the loaf she knows
+how to make and each in her own way will probably
+make a good wife. But before you bring them home
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>130]</a></span>
+to me I want one further test of their skill in housewifery.
+Let them each send me a sample of their
+weaving.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers were delighted at this for they
+knew that their sweethearts were skilful weavers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll see how her ladyship fares this time!&rdquo; they
+said, sure in their hearts that Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart, whoever
+she was, would not put them to shame with her
+weaving.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse&rsquo;s
+ability at the loom.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?&rdquo; he
+said to himself as he pushed open the door of the
+forest hut.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, there you are at last!&rdquo; the little mouse squeaked
+joyfully.</p>
+
+<p>She reached out her little paws in welcome and then
+in her excitement she began dancing about on the table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?&rdquo; Veikko
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed I am!&rdquo; the mouse declared. &ldquo;Am I not your
+sweetheart? I&rsquo;ve been waiting for you and waiting,
+just wishing that you would return! Does your father
+want something more this time, Veikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>131]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Yes, and it&rsquo;s something I&rsquo;m afraid you can&rsquo;t give
+me, little mouse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a sample of your weaving. I don&rsquo;t believe you
+can weave. I never heard of a mouse that could weave.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tut! Tut!&rdquo; said the mouse. &ldquo;Of course I can
+weave! It would be a strange thing if Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart
+couldn&rsquo;t weave!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She rang the little silver bell, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>,
+and instantly there was the faint <i>scratch-scratch</i> of a
+hundred little feet as mice came running in from all
+directions and sat up on their haunches awaiting their
+Princess&rsquo; orders.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go each of you,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and get me a fiber of
+flax, the finest there is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mice went scurrying off and soon they began
+returning one by one each bringing a fiber of flax.
+When they had spun the flax and carded it, the little
+mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was
+so sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it
+into an empty nutshell.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here, Veikko,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;here in this little box
+is a sample of my weaving. I hope your father will
+like it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>132]</a></span>
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed
+for he was sure that his sweetheart&rsquo;s weaving would
+shame his brothers. So at first he kept the nutshell hidden
+in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a
+sample of her weaving a square of coarse cotton.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not very fine,&rdquo; the farmer said, &ldquo;but good enough.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The second brother&rsquo;s sample was a square of cotton
+and linen mixed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A little better,&rdquo; the farmer said, nodding his head.</p>
+
+<p>Then he turned to Veikko.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given
+you a sample of her weaving?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which
+his brothers burst out laughing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha! Ha!&rdquo; they laughed. &ldquo;Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart
+gives him a nut when he asks for a sample of
+her weaving.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But their laughter died as the farmer opened the
+nutshell and began shaking out a great web of the
+finest linen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Veikko, my boy!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;however did your
+sweetheart get threads for so fine a web?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko answered modestly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>133]</a></span>
+to bring her in fibers of finest flax. They did so and
+after they had spun the flax and carded it, my sweetheart
+wove the web you see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wonderful!&rdquo; gasped the farmer. &ldquo;I have never
+known such a weaver! The other girls will be all right
+for farmers&rsquo; wives but Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart might be
+a Princess! Well,&rdquo; concluded the farmer, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s time
+that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want
+to see them with my own eyes. Suppose you bring
+them to-morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She&rsquo;s a good little mouse and I&rsquo;m very fond of her,&rdquo;
+Veikko thought to himself as he went out to the forest,
+&ldquo;but my brothers will certainly laugh when they find
+she is only a mouse! Well, I don&rsquo;t care if they do
+laugh! She&rsquo;s been a good little sweetheart to me and
+I&rsquo;m not going to be ashamed of her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at
+once that his father wanted to see her.</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse was greatly excited.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must go in proper style!&rdquo; she said.</p>
+
+<p>She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach
+and five. The coach when it came turned out to be an
+empty nutshell and the five prancing steeds that were
+drawing it were five black mice. The little mouse
+seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>134]</a></span>
+the box in front of her and a footman mouse on the box
+behind her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, how my brothers will laugh!&rdquo; thought Veikko.</p>
+
+<p>But he didn&rsquo;t laugh. He walked beside the coach
+and told the little mouse not to be frightened, that he
+would take good care of her. His father, he told her,
+was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.</p>
+
+<p>When they left the forest they came to a river which
+was spanned by a foot bridge. Just as Veikko and
+the nutshell coach had reached the middle of the bridge,
+a man met them coming from the opposite direction.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the man exclaimed as he caught sight
+of the strange little coach that was rolling along beside
+Veikko. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He stooped down and looked and then with a loud
+laugh he put out his foot and pushed the coach, the
+little mouse, her servants, and her five prancing steeds&mdash;all
+off the bridge and into the water below.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What have you done! What have you done!&rdquo;
+Veikko cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve drowned my poor little sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the
+water.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo07" id="illo07"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi07.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">She beckoned to Veikko</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You poor little mouse!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;How sorry I am
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135"><!-- original location of Beckoned illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>137]</a></span>
+that you are drowned! You were a faithful loving
+sweetheart and now that you are gone I know how
+much I loved you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn
+by five glossy horses go up the far bank of the river.
+A coachman in gold lace held the reins and a footman
+in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most beautiful
+girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her
+skin was as red as a berry and as white as snow, her
+long golden hair gleamed with jewels, and she was
+dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko and
+when he came close she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Won&rsquo;t you come sit beside me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me? Me?&rdquo; Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.</p>
+
+<p>The beautiful creature smiled.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart
+when I was a mouse,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and surely now
+that I am a Princess again you won&rsquo;t desert me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A mouse!&rdquo; Veikko gasped. &ldquo;Were you the little
+mouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Princess nodded.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment
+which could never have been broken if you had
+not taken me for a sweetheart and if another human being
+had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>138]</a></span>
+broken forever. So come, we will go to your father
+and after he has given us his blessing we will get married
+and go home to my kingdom.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And that&rsquo;s exactly what they did. They drove at
+once to the farmer&rsquo;s house and when Veikko&rsquo;s father
+and his brothers and his brothers&rsquo; sweethearts saw the
+Princess&rsquo; coach stopping at their gate they all came
+out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk
+could want of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father!&rdquo; Veikko cried, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t you know me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, bless my soul!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s our Veikko!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, father, I&rsquo;m Veikko and this is the Princess
+that I&rsquo;m going to marry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me,
+where did my boy find a Princess?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Out in the forest where my tree pointed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, well, well,&rdquo; the farmer said, &ldquo;where your
+tree pointed! I&rsquo;ve always heard that was a good way
+to find a bride.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and
+muttered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the
+forest we, too, should have found princesses instead of
+plain country wenches!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>139]</a></span>
+But they were wrong: it wasn&rsquo;t because his tree
+pointed to the forest that Veikko got the Princess, it
+was because he was so simple and good that he was
+kind even to a little mouse.</p>
+
+<p>Well, after they had got the farmer&rsquo;s blessing they
+rode home to the Princess&rsquo; kingdom and were married.
+And they were happy as they should have been for
+they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>141]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE ENCHANTED GROUSE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd17.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>143]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE ENCHANTED GROUSE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd18.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an old couple who
+lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son&rsquo;s name was Helli. He
+was a dutiful son but his wife was a
+scold. She was always finding fault
+with the old people and with her husband
+and for that matter with everybody else as well.</p>
+
+<p>One morning when she saw her husband taking out
+his bow and arrows she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where are you going now?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going hunting,&rdquo; he told her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t that just like you!&rdquo; she cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re going
+off to have a good time hunting and you don&rsquo;t give a
+thought to me who have to stay home alone with two
+stupid old people!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I didn&rsquo;t go hunting,&rdquo; Helli said, &ldquo;and shoot
+something, we&rsquo;d have nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner and then you would have reason to scold.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the woman burst into tears.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>144]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens
+it&rsquo;s my fault!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he
+returned his wife would be in a calmer state of mind.
+He had small success with his hunting. He shot arrow
+after arrow but always missed his mark. Then when
+he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing
+in some brushwood so near that there was little likelihood
+of his missing it.</p>
+
+<p>He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli paused, then he shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got to shoot you for we&rsquo;ve nothing to put in
+the pot for dinner.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For the second time Helli paused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to spare you,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but what would my
+wife say if I came home empty-handed?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that Helli dropped his arrow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care what she says! I can&rsquo;t shoot a creature
+that begs so pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>145]</a></span>
+Grouse, I&rsquo;ll do as you say: I&rsquo;ll take you home alive.
+But don&rsquo;t blame me if my wife wrings your neck.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He took the Grouse up in his arms and started
+homewards.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for a year,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll
+reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they reached home and Helli&rsquo;s wife saw the
+Grouse, she cried out petulantly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Is that all you&rsquo;ve got and out hunting all morning!
+That won&rsquo;t be dinner enough for four!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This Grouse isn&rsquo;t to be killed,&rdquo; Helli announced.
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to keep it for a year and feed it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It won&rsquo;t take much to feed a Grouse,&rdquo; the old man
+remarked.</p>
+
+<p>But the wife flew into a passion.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! Feed a useless bird when there isn&rsquo;t enough
+to feed your own flesh and blood!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife
+did not dare to maltreat the Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper
+feather in its tail which it dropped in the dooryard.
+Then it disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; laughed Helli&rsquo;s wife. &ldquo;A copper feather!
+That&rsquo;s your reward for feeding that thankless bird a
+whole year! And now it&rsquo;s escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>146]</a></span>
+But the next day the Grouse returned.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for another year,&rdquo; it said to Helli, &ldquo;and
+I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli
+was firm and for another year he fed and petted the
+Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a
+silver feather in its tail which it dropped in the dooryard.
+Then it disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;One silver feather!&rdquo; Helli&rsquo;s wife cried. &ldquo;So that&rsquo;s
+all you get for feeding that thankless bird a whole
+year! And now it&rsquo;s escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But it hadn&rsquo;t. It returned the very next day.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for another year,&rdquo; it said to Helli, &ldquo;and
+I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden
+feather in its tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard
+the scolding wife hadn&rsquo;t so much to say, for a
+golden feather was after all pretty good pay for a
+few handfuls of grain.</p>
+
+<p>For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when
+it returned it said to Helli:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Get on my back and I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air,
+flew far away. On, on it flew until it reached the broad
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147"><!-- original location of Ocean illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>149]</a></span>
+Ocean. Over the Ocean it flew until Helli could see
+nothing but water in whatever direction he looked.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo08" id="illo08"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi08.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he said to himself with a shudder, &ldquo;I hope
+I can hold on!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him
+and he fell down, down, down. However, before he
+touched water the Grouse swooped under him and
+caught him up again high into the air. He had this
+same terrible experience a second time and a third time
+and each time he thought his last moment had arrived.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; the Grouse told him, &ldquo;you know what my
+feelings were when you threatened three times to shoot
+me with your arrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You have taught me a lesson,&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper
+column.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good!&rdquo; the Grouse said. &ldquo;That is the home of my
+oldest sister. She will be overjoyed to see us and
+when she hears how you have spared my life she will
+want to make you a present and will offer you various
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>150]</a></span>
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only
+thing you want is her little locked box the key to which
+is lost. If she won&rsquo;t give you that, accept nothing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Grouse&rsquo;s oldest sister received them most hospitably
+and when she had heard their story at once
+offered Helli anything he might like from among her
+treasures.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then give me your little locked box the key to which
+is lost,&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>The oldest sister shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My little locked box! Who told you about that?
+I&rsquo;m sorry, but I cannot give you that! Take anything
+else!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; Helli said, &ldquo;that or nothing!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon
+to give away her little locked box, the Grouse had Helli
+mount his back once more and off they flew.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll visit my second sister now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If she
+offers you a present, ask her for her little locked box
+without a key and accept nothing else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On, on they flew until the oldest sister&rsquo;s castle was
+far behind.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look, master,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;look straight ahead
+and tell me what you see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>151]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Far ahead I see something that is like a silver
+cloud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That,&rdquo; said the Grouse, &ldquo;is the silver castle of my
+second sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the silver castle the second sister received them
+with joy and when she heard who Helli was at once declared
+that she wanted to show him her gratitude by
+making him a gift.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ask from me what you will,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and you
+shall have it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But when he asked for her little locked box without
+a key, she cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! Not that! Anything else!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I don&rsquo;t want anything else!&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not
+to be parted from her little locked box, he bade Helli
+mount his back and off they flew again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll go to my youngest sister this time,&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;If she offers you a present, ask for the same
+thing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to
+view.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>152]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a
+cloud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is the golden castle of my youngest sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms
+about the Grouse for she loved him dearly and had not
+seen him for a long time.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, brother!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;And welcome also
+to you, Helli!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked
+for her little locked box without a key she gave it to
+him at once.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is my most precious possession,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;but
+you may have it for you spared my dear brother&rsquo;s life
+when you might have taken it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After they had rested and feasted they bade the
+youngest sister farewell and Helli with his precious box
+held tightly in one hand mounted the Grouse&rsquo;s back
+and off they flew towards home.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Be careful of the box,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;and don&rsquo;t
+let it out of your hands until we reach some beautiful
+spot where you&rsquo;d like always to live.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and
+fertile valleys.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shall we stop here?&rdquo; the Grouse asked. &ldquo;Or here?
+Or here?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>153]</a></span>
+But always Helli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, not here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli
+that now they must part forever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;By sparing my life three times,&rdquo; the Grouse said,
+&ldquo;and then feeding me for three years you have broken
+the enchantment that bound me and now I shall not
+have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and
+when you find the spot where you think you would like
+always to live, drop the box and you will find you have
+a treasure that will more than reward you for your
+kindness to me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where do I want to live always but right here at
+home with my dear old father and mother and my wife
+who is my wife even if she does scold me sometimes!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So there at home after they all had supper together,
+he dropped the box on the floor. It broke and out of
+it arose a beautiful castle with servants and riches and
+everything that Helli had always wanted and never had.
+And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife
+lived in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got
+over her habit of scolding for when you&rsquo;re happy you
+haven&rsquo;t anything to scold about.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>155]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE TERRIBLE OLLI</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd19.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>157]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE TERRIBLE OLLI</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd20.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a wicked rich old
+Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn,
+a farmer, lived on the opposite side
+of the Bay. The farmer had three
+sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I should think it would shame you three strong
+youths that that wicked old Troll over there should
+live on year after year and no one trouble him. We
+work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the
+end of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll
+with all his wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell
+you, if you boys had any real spirit you&rsquo;d take his
+riches from him and drive him away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once
+cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, father, I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the two older sons, offended at Olli&rsquo;s promptness,
+declared:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>158]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;ll do no such thing! Don&rsquo;t forget your place
+in the family! You&rsquo;re the youngest and we&rsquo;re not going
+to let you push us aside. Now, father, we two will
+go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll. Olli
+may come with us if he likes and watch us while we
+do it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli laughed and said: &ldquo;All right!&rdquo; for he was used
+to his brothers treating him like a baby.</p>
+
+<p>So in a few days the three brothers walked around
+the Bay and up the Mountain and presented themselves
+at the Troll&rsquo;s house. The Troll and his old wife were
+both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re the sons of the Finn who lives across the
+Bay, aren&rsquo;t you?&rdquo; the Troll said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve watched you
+boys grow up. I am certainly glad to see you for I
+have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you&rsquo;ll inherit my riches.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old Troll made this offer in order to get the
+young men into his power.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Be careful!&rdquo; Olli whispered.</p>
+
+<p>But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect
+of inheriting the Troll&rsquo;s riches so easily to pay any
+heed to Olli&rsquo;s warning. Instead they accepted the
+Troll&rsquo;s offer at once.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>159]</a></span>
+Well, the old Troll&rsquo;s wife made them a fine supper
+and after supper the Troll sent them to bed with his
+three daughters. But first he put red caps on the
+three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A red cap and a white cap in each bed!&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell
+asleep. Olli, too, pretended to fall asleep and when
+he was sure that none of the Troll girls were still awake
+he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put the
+white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps
+on the Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and
+waited.</p>
+
+<p>Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with
+a long knife in his hand. There was so little light in
+the room that he couldn&rsquo;t see the faces of the sleepers,
+but it was easy enough to distinguish the white caps
+from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off
+the heads under the red caps, thinking of course they
+were the heads of the three Finnish youths. Then he
+went back to bed with the old Troll wife and Olli could
+hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their
+deep regular breathing and their loud snores.</p>
+
+<p>Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>160]</a></span>
+happened and the three of them slipped quietly out of
+the Troll house and hurried home to their father on
+the other side of the Bay.</p>
+
+<p>After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling
+the Troll. They didn&rsquo;t care to try another
+encounter with him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He might have cut our heads off!&rdquo; they said, shuddering
+to think of the awful risk they had run.</p>
+
+<p>Olli laughed at them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come on!&rdquo; he kept saying to them day after day.
+&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s go across the Bay to the Troll&rsquo;s!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll do no such thing!&rdquo; they told him. &ldquo;And you
+wouldn&rsquo;t suggest it either if you weren&rsquo;t so young and
+foolish!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; Olli announced at last, &ldquo;if you won&rsquo;t come
+with me I&rsquo;m going alone. I&rsquo;ve heard that the Troll has
+a horse with hairs of gold and silver. I&rsquo;ve decided I
+want that horse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli,&rdquo; his father said, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe you ought
+to go. You know what your brothers say. That old
+Troll is an awfully sly one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli only laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good-by!&rdquo; he called back as he waved his hand.
+&ldquo;When you see me again I&rsquo;ll be riding the Troll&rsquo;s
+horse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>161]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo09" id="illo09"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi09.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Olli and the Troll&rsquo;s horse</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>163]</a></span>
+The Troll wasn&rsquo;t at home but the old Troll wife was
+there. When she saw Olli she thought to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me, here&rsquo;s that Finnish boy again, the one
+that changed the caps! What shall I do? I must keep
+him here on some pretext or other until the Troll comes
+home!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she pretended to be very glad to see him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Olli,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;is that you? Come right in!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She talked to him as long as she could and when she
+could think of nothing more to say she asked him
+would he take the horse and water it at the Lake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That will keep him busy,&rdquo; she thought to herself,
+&ldquo;and long before he gets back from the Lake the Troll
+will be here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the
+Lake, jumped on its back and galloped away. By the
+time the Troll reached home, he was safely on the
+other side of the Bay.</p>
+
+<p>When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what
+had happened, he went down to the shore and hallooed
+across the Bay:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;m here! What do you want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli, have you got my horse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>164]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your horse but it&rsquo;s my horse now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Olli!&rdquo; his father cried. &ldquo;You mustn&rsquo;t talk
+that way to the Troll! You&rsquo;ll make him angry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with
+gold and silver hairs warned him sourly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will
+get you yet!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli announced:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ll go over and get the Troll&rsquo;s money-bag.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His father tried to dissuade him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you
+had better not go to the Troll&rsquo;s house again.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though
+he hadn&rsquo;t a fear in the world.</p>
+
+<p>Again he found the old Troll wife alone.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; she thought to herself as she saw him
+coming, &ldquo;here is that terrible Olli again! Whatever
+shall I do? I mustn&rsquo;t let him off this time before the
+Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with me
+in the house.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when he came in she pretended that she was tired
+and that her back ached and she asked him would he
+watch the bread in the oven while she rested a few moments
+on the bed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly I will,&rdquo; Olli said.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>165]</a></span>
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli
+sat quietly in front of the oven. The Troll wife really
+was tired and before she knew it she fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Olli, &ldquo;here&rsquo;s my chance!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under
+the bed, pulled out the big money-bag full of silver
+pieces, threw it over his shoulder, and hurried home.</p>
+
+<p>He was measuring the money when he heard the
+Troll hallooing across to him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m here! What do you
+want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli, have you got my money-bag?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your money-bag but it&rsquo;s my money-bag
+now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet
+woven of silk and gold. I think I&rsquo;ll go over and get it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at
+him merrily and went. He took with him an auger and
+a can of water. He hid until it was dark, then climbed
+the roof of the Troll&rsquo;s house and bored a hole right over
+the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep
+he sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their
+faces.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>166]</a></span>
+The Troll woke with a start.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m wet!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and the bed&rsquo;s wet, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The roof must be leaking,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It never
+leaked before. I suppose it was that last wind.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to
+dry and put other covers on the bed.</p>
+
+<p>When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made
+the hole a little bigger, reached in his hand, and got
+the coverlet from the rafters.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m here! What do you
+want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli told him, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got your coverlet but it&rsquo;s
+my coverlet now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s still one thing in the Troll&rsquo;s house that I
+think I ought to get. It&rsquo;s a golden bell. If I get that
+golden bell then there will be nothing left that had
+better belong to an honest Finn.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he went again to the Troll&rsquo;s house taking with
+him a saw and an auger. He hid until night and, when
+the Troll and his wife were asleep, he cut a hole through
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>167]</a></span>
+the side of the house through which he reached in his
+hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of
+bed and grabbed Olli&rsquo;s hand.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got you now and this
+time you won&rsquo;t get away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli didn&rsquo;t try to get away. He made no resistance
+while the Troll dragged him into the house.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll eat him&mdash;that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ll do!&rdquo; the Troll said
+to his wife. &ldquo;Heat the oven at once and we&rsquo;ll roast
+him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;ll make a fine roast!&rdquo; the Troll said, pinching
+Olli&rsquo;s arms and legs. &ldquo;I think we ought to invite the
+other Troll folk to come and help us eat him up. Suppose
+I just go over the Mountain and gather them in.
+You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven
+is well heated just take Olli and slip him in and close
+the door and by the time we come he&rsquo;ll be done.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Troll wife said, &ldquo;but don&rsquo;t be too
+long! He&rsquo;s young and tender and will roast
+quickly!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll
+folk who lived on the other side of the Mountain and
+Olli was left alone with the Troll wife.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>168]</a></span>
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the
+coals and said to Olli:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven
+with your back to the opening and I&rsquo;ll push you in
+nicely.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli pretended he didn&rsquo;t quite understand. He sat
+down first one way and then another, spreading himself
+out so large that he was too big for the oven door.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not that way!&rdquo; the Troll wife kept saying. &ldquo;Hunch
+up little, straight in front of the door!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You show me how,&rdquo; Olli begged.</p>
+
+<p>So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven
+directly in front of the opening, and she hunched herself
+up very compactly with her chin on her knees and
+her arms around her legs.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, that way!&rdquo; Olli said, &ldquo;so that you can just take
+hold of me and push me in and shut the door!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her
+in and slammed the door! And that was the end of
+the old Troll wife!</p>
+
+<p>Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to
+a turn. Then he took her out and put her on the table
+all ready for the feast.</p>
+
+<p>Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack
+up in some of the old Troll wife&rsquo;s clothes. He threw
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>169]</a></span>
+the dressed up sack on the bed and, just to glance at
+it, you&rsquo;d suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.</p>
+
+<p>Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.</p>
+
+<p>Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from
+over the Mountain came trooping in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!&rdquo; they said
+as they got the first whiff from the big roast on the
+table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See!&rdquo; the Troll said, pointing to the bed. &ldquo;The old
+woman&rsquo;s asleep! Well, let her sleep! She&rsquo;s tired!
+We&rsquo;ll just sit down without her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they set to and feasted and feasted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; said the Troll. &ldquo;This is the way to
+serve a troublesome young Finn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then his knife struck something hard and he
+looked down to see what it was.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;if here isn&rsquo;t one of the old
+woman&rsquo;s beads! What can that mean? You don&rsquo;t suppose
+the roast is not Olli after all but the old woman!
+No! No! It can&rsquo;t be!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came
+back shaking his head sadly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My friends,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ve been eating the old
+woman! However, we&rsquo;ve eaten so much of her that I
+suppose we might as well finish her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>170]</a></span>
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.</p>
+
+<p>At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed
+across:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli who was safely home shouted back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;m here! What do you want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Have you got my golden bell?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your golden bell but it&rsquo;s my golden
+bell now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your old woman?&rdquo; Olli echoed. &ldquo;Look! Is that
+she?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up
+behind the Troll.</p>
+
+<p>The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight
+at the sun and then, of course, he burst!</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of him!</p>
+
+<p>Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on
+that side of the Mountain. They were all too afraid of
+the Terrible Olli!</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>171]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd21.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn&rsquo;t Lose His
+Temper</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>173]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a Finnish boy who
+got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers
+who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the
+Devil and got the worst of it. Then
+Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would
+be worsted, but he wasn&rsquo;t. Here is the whole story:</p>
+
+<p>One day the oldest brother said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s time for me to go out into the world and earn
+my living. Do you two younger ones wait here at home
+until you hear how I get on.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest
+brother started out. He was unable to get employment
+until by chance he met the Devil. The Devil at
+once offered him a place but on very strange terms.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come work for me,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;and I promise
+that you&rsquo;ll be comfortably housed and well fed. We&rsquo;ll
+make this bargain: the first of us who loses his temper
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>174]</a></span>
+will forfeit to the other enough of his own hide to sole
+a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may
+exact from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your
+temper first, I&rsquo;ll exact the same from you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at
+once took him home and set him to work.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take this ax,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and go out behind the
+house and chop me some firewood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the
+woodpile.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Chopping wood is easy enough,&rdquo; he thought to
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>But at the first blow he found that the ax had no
+edge. Try as he would he couldn&rsquo;t cut a single log.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d be a fool to stay here and waste my time with
+such an ax!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking
+to escape the Devil and get work somewhere else. But
+the Devil had no intention of letting him escape. He
+ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he
+meant leaving thus without notice.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to work for you!&rdquo; the oldest brother
+cried, petulantly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;but don&rsquo;t lose your
+temper about it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>175]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I will so lose my temper!&rdquo; the oldest brother
+declared. &ldquo;The idea&mdash;expecting me to cut wood with
+such an ax!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; the Devil remarked, &ldquo;since you insist on
+losing your temper, you&rsquo;ll have to forfeit me enough of
+your hide to sole a pair of boots! That was our
+bargain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother howled and protested but to no
+purpose. The Devil was firm. He took out a long
+knife and slit off enough of the oldest brother&rsquo;s hide
+to sole a pair of big boots.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, my boy,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;now you may go.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother went limping home complaining
+bitterly at the hard fate that had befallen him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m tired and sick,&rdquo; he told his brothers, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m
+going to stay home and rest. One of you will have to
+go out and get work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The second brother at once said that he&rsquo;d be delighted
+to try his luck in the world. So he started out and he
+had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+no work, then he met the Devil and the Devil made
+exactly the same bargain with him that he had made
+with the oldest brother. He took the second brother
+home with him, gave him the same dull ax, and sent him
+out to the woodpile. After the first stroke the second
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>176]</a></span>
+brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to run
+off and the Devil, of course, wouldn&rsquo;t let him go until
+he, too, had submitted to the loss of a great patch of
+hide. So it was no time at all before the second brother
+came limping home complaining bitterly at fate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What ails you two?&rdquo; Erkki said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You go out into the cruel world and hunt work,&rdquo;
+they told him, &ldquo;and you&rsquo;ll find out soon enough what
+ails us! And when you do find out you needn&rsquo;t come
+limping home expecting sympathy from us for you
+won&rsquo;t get it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his
+brothers at home nursing their sore backs and their
+injured feelings.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At
+first he could get work nowhere, then later he met the
+Devil and went into his employ on exactly the same
+terms as his brothers.</p>
+
+<p>The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him
+out to the woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that
+the ax had lost its edge and would never cut a single
+log. But instead of being discouraged and losing his
+temper, he only laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose the Devil thinks I&rsquo;ll lose my hide over a
+trifle like this!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Well, I just won&rsquo;t!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>177]</a></span>
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile,
+began pulling it down. Under all the logs he found
+the Devil&rsquo;s cat. It was an evil looking creature with
+a gray head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Erkki, &ldquo;I bet anything you&rsquo;ve got
+something to do with this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the
+evil creature&rsquo;s head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered
+its edge and after that Erkki had no trouble
+at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil wanted.</p>
+
+<p>That night at supper the Devil said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, I&rsquo;ve chopped all that wood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil was surprised.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Really?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then you found something in the woodpile, didn&rsquo;t
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing but an awful looking old cat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil started.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did you do anything to that cat?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I only chopped its head off and threw it away.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Devil cried angrily. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t you know
+that was my cat!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master,&rdquo; Erkki said soothingly, &ldquo;you&rsquo;re
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>178]</a></span>
+not going to lose your temper over a little thing like a
+dead cat, are you? Don&rsquo;t forget our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper but I must say
+that was no way to treat my cat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to
+the forest and bring home some logs on the ox sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My black dog will go with you,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and as
+you come home you&rsquo;re to take exactly the same course
+the dog takes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the
+ox sledge with logs and then drove the oxen home following
+the Devil&rsquo;s black dog. As they reached the
+Devil&rsquo;s house the black dog jumped through a hole in
+the gate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must follow master&rsquo;s orders,&rdquo; Erkki said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them
+through the same hole in the gate; he chopped up the
+logs and pitched them through the hole; and he broke
+up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow the
+oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>That night at supper the Devil said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>179]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, I followed the black dog.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Devil cried. &ldquo;Do you mean to say you
+brought the oxen and the sledge and the logs through
+the hole in the gate?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, that&rsquo;s what I did.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you couldn&rsquo;t!&rdquo; the Devil declared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;just go out and see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil went outside and when he saw the method
+by which Erkki had carried out his orders he was furious.
+But Erkki quieted him by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a trifling matter like this, are you? Remember
+our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;N-n-no,&rdquo; the Devil said, again swallowing his anger,
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper, but I want you to
+understand, Erkki, that I think you&rsquo;ve acted very badly
+in this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about
+Erkki.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to get rid of that boy! That&rsquo;s all there
+is about it!&rdquo; he said to his wife.</p>
+
+<p>Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>180]</a></span>
+tried to smile and look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki
+was gone he went back at once to his grievance. He
+declared emphatically:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no living in peace and comfort with such a
+boy around!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; his wife said, &ldquo;if you feel that way about it,
+why don&rsquo;t you kill him to-night when he&rsquo;s asleep? We
+could throw his body into the lake and no one be the
+wiser.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a fine idea!&rdquo; the Devil said. &ldquo;Wake me up
+some time after midnight and I&rsquo;ll do it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night
+he kept awake. When he knew from their snoring that
+the Devil and his wife were sound asleep, he slipped
+over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil&rsquo;s wife in his
+arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in
+his own bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and
+laid himself down beside the Devil in the wife&rsquo;s place.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he nudged the Devil awake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What do you want?&rdquo; the Devil mumbled.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sst!&rdquo; Erkki whispered. &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t it time we got up
+and killed Erkki?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the Devil answered, &ldquo;it is. Come along.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a
+great sword from the wall. Then they crept over to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>181]</a></span>
+Erkki&rsquo;s bed and the Devil with one blow cut off the
+head of the person who was lying there asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll just carry out the bed and all
+and dump it in the lake.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the
+other and, stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they
+carried it down to the lake and pitched it in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a good job done!&rdquo; the Devil said with a
+laugh.</p>
+
+<p>Then they went back to bed together and the Devil
+fell instantly asleep.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning when he got up for breakfast,
+there was Erkki stirring the porridge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How&mdash;did you get here?&rdquo; the Devil asked. &ldquo;I mean&mdash;I
+mean where is my wife?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your wife? Don&rsquo;t you remember,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;you
+cut off her head last night and then we threw her into
+the lake, bed and all! But no one will be the wiser!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;W-wh-what!&rdquo; the Devil cried, and he was about
+to fly into an awful rage when Erkki restrained him
+by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a little thing like a wife, are you? Remember
+our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>182]</a></span>
+&ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but
+I tell you frankly, Erkki, I don&rsquo;t think that was a nice
+trick for you to play on me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about
+the house, so in a few days he decided to go off wooing
+for a new one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And, Erkki,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I expect you to keep busy
+while I&rsquo;m gone. Here&rsquo;s a keg of red paint. Now get
+to work and have the house all blazing red by the time
+I get back.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All blazing red,&rdquo; Erkki repeated. &ldquo;Very well, master,
+trust me to have it all blazing red by the time you
+get back!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house
+a-fire and in a short time the whole sky was lighted up
+with the red glow of the flames. In great fright the
+Devil hurried back and got there in time to see the
+house one mass of fire.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve done as you
+told me. It looks very pretty, doesn&rsquo;t it? all blazing
+red!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil almost choked with rage.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&mdash;you&mdash;&rdquo; he began, but Erkki restrained him
+by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183"><!-- original location of Three Bridges illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>185]</a></span>
+temper over a little thing like a house a-fire, are you?
+Remember our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 423px;">
+<a name="illo10" id="illo10"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi10.png" width="423" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges</p>
+
+<p>The Devil swallowed hard and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;N&mdash;no, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper, but I
+must say, Erkki, that I&rsquo;m very much annoyed with
+you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again
+and before he started he said to Erkki:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, no nonsense this time! While I&rsquo;m gone
+you&rsquo;re to build three bridges over the lake, but they&rsquo;re
+not to be built of wood or stone or iron or earth. Do
+you understand?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki pretended to be frightened.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a pretty hard task you&rsquo;ve given me, master!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hard or easy, see that you get it done!&rdquo; the Devil
+said.</p>
+
+<p>Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went
+out to the field and slaughtered all the Devil&rsquo;s cattle.
+From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges across
+the lake, using the skulls for one bridge, the ribs for
+another, and the legs and the hoofs for the third. Then
+when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing
+to the bridges said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See, master, there they are, three bridges put together
+without stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>186]</a></span>
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had
+been slaughtered to give bones for the bridges, he was
+ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki quieted him by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a little thing like the slaughter of a few
+cattle, are you? Remember our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper exactly
+but I just want to tell you, Erkki, that I don&rsquo;t
+think you&rsquo;re behaving well!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil&rsquo;s wooing was successful and pretty soon
+he brought home a new wife. The new wife didn&rsquo;t like
+having Erkki about, so the Devil promised her he&rsquo;d
+kill the boy.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do it to-night,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;when he&rsquo;s asleep.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn
+in his bed under the covers, and where his head ordinarily
+would be he put a big round stone. Then he
+himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably
+to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>During the night the Devil took his great sword from
+the wall and went over to Erkki&rsquo;s bed. His first blow
+hit the round stone and nicked the sword. His second
+blow struck sparks.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>187]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the Devil thought, &ldquo;he&rsquo;s got a mighty
+hard head! I better strike lower!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow.
+The hoops flew apart and the churn collapsed.</p>
+
+<p>The Devil went chuckling back to bed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he said boastfully to his wife, &ldquo;I got him that
+time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the next morning when he woke up he didn&rsquo;t
+feel like laughing for there was Erkki as lively as ever
+and pretending that nothing had happened.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; cried the Devil in amazement, &ldquo;didn&rsquo;t you
+feel anything strike you last night while you were
+asleep?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek,&rdquo;
+Erkki said. &ldquo;Nothing else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Steel doesn&rsquo;t touch him!&rdquo; the Devil said to his wife.
+&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ll try fire on him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the
+threshing barn. Erkki carried his cot down to the
+threshing floor and then when it was dark he shifted
+it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all night.</p>
+
+<p>During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing
+barn. In the early dawn Erkki carried his cot back
+to the place of the threshing barn and in the morning
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>188]</a></span>
+when the Devil came out the first thing he saw was
+Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the
+smoking ruins.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me, Erkki!&rdquo; he shouted, shaking him awake,
+&ldquo;have you been asleep all night?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki sat up and yawned.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve had a fine night&rsquo;s sleep. But I did feel
+a little chilly.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Chilly!&rdquo; the Devil gasped.</p>
+
+<p>After that the Devil&rsquo;s one thought was to get rid of
+Erkki.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That boy&rsquo;s getting on my nerves!&rdquo; he told his wife.
+&ldquo;I just can&rsquo;t stand him much longer! What are we
+going to do about him?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They discussed one plan after another and at last
+decided that the only way they&rsquo;d ever get rid of him
+would be to move away and leave him behind.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll send him out to the forest to chop wood all
+day,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;and while he&rsquo;s gone we&rsquo;ll row
+ourselves and all our belongings out to an island and
+when he comes back he won&rsquo;t know where we&rsquo;ve
+gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when
+they were sure he was safely at work in the forest he
+slipped back and hid himself in the bedclothes.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>189]</a></span>
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking
+their things there was Erkki in the bedclothes!</p>
+
+<p>The Devil&rsquo;s new wife complained bitterly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you really loved me,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;d cut off that
+boy&rsquo;s head!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I&rsquo;ve tried to cut it off!&rdquo; the Devil declared,
+&ldquo;and I never can do it! Plague take such a boy! I&rsquo;ve
+always known the Finns were an obstinate lot but I
+must say I&rsquo;ve never met one as bad as Erkki! He&rsquo;s too
+much for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Devil&rsquo;s wife kept on complaining until at
+last the Devil promised that he would try once again
+to cut off Erkki&rsquo;s head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; his wife said, &ldquo;to-night when he&rsquo;s asleep
+I&rsquo;ll wake you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, what with the moving and everything the wife
+herself was tired and as soon as she went to bed she
+fell asleep. That gave Erkki just the very chance he
+needed to try on the new wife the trick he had played
+on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to
+his bed and then laid himself down in her place beside
+the Devil. Then he waked up the Devil and reminded
+him that he had promised to cut off Erkki&rsquo;s head.</p>
+
+<p>The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki&rsquo;s
+bed and of course cut off the head of his new wife.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>190]</a></span>
+The next morning when he had found out what he
+had done, he was perfectly furious.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You get right out of here, Erkki!&rdquo; he roared. &ldquo;I
+never want to see you again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;re not going
+to lose your temper over a little thing like a dead wife,
+are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I am so going to lose my temper!&rdquo; the Devil
+shouted. &ldquo;And what&rsquo;s more it isn&rsquo;t a little thing! I
+liked this wife, I did, and I don&rsquo;t know where I&rsquo;ll get
+another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll go but not until
+you pay me what you owe me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What I owe you!&rdquo; bellowed the Devil. &ldquo;What about
+all you owe me for my house and my cattle and my old
+wife and my dear new wife and everything!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve lost your temper,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;and now
+you&rsquo;ve got to pay me a patch of your hide big enough
+to sole a pair of boots. That was our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm.
+He wouldn&rsquo;t budge a step until the Devil had allowed
+him to slit a great patch of hide off his back.</p>
+
+<p>That piece of the Devil&rsquo;s hide made the finest soles
+that a pair of boots ever had. It wore for years and
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>191]</a></span>
+years and years. In fact Erkki is still tramping around
+on those same soles. The fame of them has spread over
+all the land and it has got so that now people stop
+Erkki on the highway to look at his wonderful boots
+soled with the Devil&rsquo;s hide. Travelers from foreign
+countries are deeply interested when they hear about
+the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tell us,&rdquo; they beg him, &ldquo;how did you get the Devil&rsquo;s
+hide in the first place?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I got it by not losing my temper!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As for the Devil, he&rsquo;s never again made a bargain like
+that with a Finn!</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 99px;">
+<img src="images/mmd12.png" width="99" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>193]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd23.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Young Man Who Respected
+the Dead</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>195]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd24.png" width="100" height="99"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a rich merchant
+who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Matti, my boy, my end is approaching
+and there are two things I want to
+say to you: The first is that I am
+leaving you all my wealth. If you are careful you will
+have enough to suffice you for life. The second thing I
+have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your native
+village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared
+that if ever you left this village you would have
+to marry a woman with horns. Now that I have warned
+you in time it will be your own fault if ever you have
+to meet this fate.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He
+had never before wanted to travel but now that he
+knew of the fate which would overtake him if he did,
+he couldn&rsquo;t bear the thought of remaining forever a
+prisoner in his native village.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>196]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What is the use of riches,&rdquo; he asked himself, &ldquo;if one
+can&rsquo;t travel over the broad world and see wonderful
+sights? Besides, if it&rsquo;s my fate to marry a horned
+woman, I don&rsquo;t see why sitting quietly at home is going
+to save me. No! I&rsquo;m going to take my chances like
+a man and come and go as I like!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he gathered his riches together, closed the old
+house where he had been born, and started out into the
+bright world. He traveled many days, meeting strange
+peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he settled
+down in a large city and became a merchant like his
+father.</p>
+
+<p>One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a
+crowd of men dragging the body of a dead man in the
+gutter. They were kicking and abusing the dead body
+and calling it evil names.</p>
+
+<p>Matti stopped them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is this you are doing?&rdquo; he demanded. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t
+you know that disrespect to the dead is disrespect to
+God? Give over abusing this poor dead body and
+bury it decently or God will punish you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let us alone!&rdquo; the men cried. &ldquo;He deserves the
+abuse we are giving him! When he was alive he borrowed
+money from us all and then he died without
+repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>197]</a></span>
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait!&rdquo; Matti cried. &ldquo;Tell me what the dead man
+owed you and I will pay it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He owed me ten ducats!&rdquo; said one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me a hundred!&rdquo; shouted another.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me five hundred!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me a thousand!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come all of you to my house,&rdquo; Matti said, &ldquo;and I
+will pay you, but only on condition that first you hand
+over the body to me and help me give it a decent burial.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead
+man and then went home with him.</p>
+
+<p>Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him
+and, true to his promise, Matti paid them all.</p>
+
+<p>When he had paid the last man he found that he
+had nothing left for himself but nine silver kopeks. The
+dead man&rsquo;s debts had exhausted all the wealth his father
+had left him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter!&rdquo; Matti thought to himself. &ldquo;My riches
+would have done me no good if I had stood by and
+allowed a poor dead man to be abused. What if I
+have nothing left? I&rsquo;m young and strong and I can
+go out into the world and make my livelihood somehow.
+I&rsquo;ll go home and have one last look at my native village
+and then begin life anew.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>198]</a></span>
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in
+his pockets but the nine silver kopeks, Matti left the
+city where people were beginning to know him as a
+merchant and started back to his native village. He
+was soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully
+and asked to be engaged as his servant.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My servant!&rdquo; Matti repeated with a laugh. &ldquo;My
+dear fellow, I&rsquo;m too poor to have a servant! All I have
+in the world are nine silver kopeks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter, master,&rdquo; the man said. &ldquo;Take me anyhow.
+I will serve you well and I promise you will not
+regret our bargain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The
+sun was hot and by midafternoon Matti was feeling
+faint with hunger and fatigue.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Master,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;I will run ahead to the
+next village and order the landlord at the inn to prepare
+you a fine dinner. Do you come along slowly and by
+the time you arrive the dinner will be ready.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But remember,&rdquo; Matti warned him, &ldquo;I have no
+money to pay for a fine dinner!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Trust me!&rdquo; the Servant said and off he hurried.</p>
+
+<p>At the next village he hunted out the best inn and
+ordered the landlord to prepare his finest dinner without
+delay. He was so particular that everything should be
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>199]</a></span>
+the best that the landlord supposed his master must be
+some great lord.</p>
+
+<p>When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained
+and shabby, the landlord was amazed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s fine lords we have nowadays!&rdquo; he muttered
+scornfully, and he wished he had not been in such
+haste to cook the best food in the house. But it was
+cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.</p>
+
+<p>Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage
+soup and fish and fowl tender and juicy.</p>
+
+<p>It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with
+such good appetites.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!&rdquo;
+he muttered angrily. &ldquo;Well, let them eat while they
+can for they&rsquo;ll lose their appetites once they see the reckoning!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they finished eating, they rested and then called
+for the reckoning. It was much more than it should
+have been but neither Matti nor the Servant objected.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Like a good fellow,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;will you
+please to lend me your half peck measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Like a good fellow, indeed!&rdquo; the landlord muttered
+to himself. &ldquo;Who are you to call me a good fellow I&rsquo;d
+like to know!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>200]</a></span>
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;give me three of
+your nine silver kopeks.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the
+measure, shook the measure three times and lo! it was
+filled to the brim with silver kopeks! The Servant
+counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed the
+rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti
+went on their way leaving the landlord gaping after
+them with open mouth.</p>
+
+<p>Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the
+same way at the various inns where they stopped until
+they reached at last Matti&rsquo;s native village and the old
+house that still belonged to him.</p>
+
+<p>They settled themselves there and one day the Servant
+said to Matti:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master, you know your fate: for having left
+your native village you know you are destined to marry
+a horned woman. You might as well do it at once for
+you&rsquo;ll have to do it sooner or later.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is true,&rdquo; Matti said, &ldquo;and if I knew the whereabouts
+of the horned woman who is my fate I should
+marry her at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;In that case we&rsquo;ll lose no more time,&rdquo; the Servant
+said. &ldquo;The King has three daughters all of whom are
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>201]</a></span>
+horned. This isn&rsquo;t generally known but it is true. Let
+us go to the palace and present your suit. The King
+will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take
+the oldest who has big horns and a hoarse voice. When
+she sees you, she&rsquo;ll whisper: &lsquo;Take me! Take me!&rsquo; But
+do you shake your head and answer: &lsquo;No! Not this
+one!&rsquo; Then the King will send for his second daughter.
+Her horns are not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She,
+too, will whisper you: &lsquo;Take me! Take me!&rsquo; But do
+you again shake your head and answer: &lsquo;No! Not this
+one!&rsquo; Be firm and the King will finally have to send
+for his youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft
+little baby horns and her voice is just a little husky.
+Take her and soon all will be well.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got
+audience with the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master, Matti,&rdquo; the Servant said, addressing
+the King, &ldquo;is desirous of marrying a wife with
+horns.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was interested at once.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;As it happens I have a daughter with horns,&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll have her come in.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she
+appeared. Her horns were long and thick.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>202]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Take me! Take me!&rdquo; she whispered hoarsely as she
+passed Matti.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See what a fine girl she is!&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;and
+what well grown horns she has!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Matti shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, Your Majesty, I don&rsquo;t think I want to marry
+this one.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course you must follow the dictates of your
+heart,&rdquo; the King said drily. &ldquo;However, come to think
+of it, my second daughter also has horns. Maybe you&rsquo;d
+like to consider her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the second daughter was called in. Her horns
+were not so large as her sister&rsquo;s nor was her voice so
+hoarse. But Matti, remembering the Servant&rsquo;s warning,
+refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters
+so glibly, but when he found that Matti was firm
+he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if
+it&rsquo;s horns you&rsquo;re looking for, I don&rsquo;t believe you&rsquo;ll be
+interested in her at all since her horns are so small and
+soft that they are hardly noticeable at all. However,
+as you&rsquo;re here, you might as well see her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo11" id="illo11"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi11.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the youngest princess was sent for and at once
+Matti knew that she was the one he wanted to marry.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203"><!-- original location of Evil Enchantment illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>205]</a></span>
+She wasn&rsquo;t as beautiful as a princess should be but
+she was gentle and modest and when she passed Matti
+her cheeks flushed and she wasn&rsquo;t able to whisper anything.
+But Matti felt very sure that if she had
+whispered her voice would have been scarcely
+husky.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This, O King,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;is my choice! Let me
+marry your youngest daughter and I promise to be a
+faithful husband to her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King would have preferred to marry off the
+older princesses first for their horns were getting to be
+very troublesome, but as they all had horns he was
+afraid to refuse Matti&rsquo;s offer.</p>
+
+<p>So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest
+and in a short time they were married.</p>
+
+<p>After the wedding feast the King led the young
+couple to the bridal chamber and closed the door.</p>
+
+<p>Matti&rsquo;s Servant meantime had gone out to the woods
+and cut some stout switches of birch. When the palace
+was quiet and all were asleep, he crept softly into the
+bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of bed, he
+beat her unmercifully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh! Oh!&rdquo; she cried in pain.</p>
+
+<p>Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped
+out of bed and tried to stop the Servant.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>206]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Wait!&rdquo; the Servant said. &ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment
+and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood.
+Then instantly the horns fell from her head and there
+she stood a beautiful young girl released from the evil
+enchantment that had disfigured her.</p>
+
+<p>The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell
+in love with her on sight and has loved her ever since.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now farewell, Matti,&rdquo; the Servant said. &ldquo;My work
+is done and you will need me no longer. You have
+married a beautiful princess and the King will soon
+make you his heir.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti
+was left alone with his lovely bride.</p>
+
+<p>And that was Matti&rsquo;s reward for having respected
+the dead. God Himself in the form of the Servant had
+come down and taken care of him.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>207]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>FAMILIAR FACES</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd25.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!<br />
+II Jane, Jane, Don&rsquo;t Complain!<br />
+III Susan Walker, What a Talker!</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>208]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo12" id="illo12"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi12.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">When she got to the middle of the stream</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>209]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>I<br />
+<br />
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd26.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a farmer who was
+married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If
+he expected Maya to say, &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; she
+would always say, &ldquo;No,&rdquo; and if he
+expected her to say, &ldquo;No,&rdquo; she would
+always say, &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo; If he said the soup was too hot,
+Maya would instantly insist that it was too cold. She
+would do nothing that he wanted her to do, and she
+always insisted on doing everything that he did not
+want her to do.</p>
+
+<p>Like most contrary people Maya was really very
+stupid and the farmer after he had been married to her
+for a few years knew exactly how to manage her.</p>
+
+<p>For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to
+make a big feast for his friends and neighbors. Did
+he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a few weeks
+beforehand he remarked casually:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>210]</a></span>
+expect us to have fine white bread. But I don&rsquo;t think
+we ought to. It&rsquo;s too expensive. Black bread is good
+enough for us.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Black bread, indeed!&rdquo; cried Maya. &ldquo;Not at all!
+We&rsquo;re going to have white bread and you needn&rsquo;t say
+any more about it! Black bread at Christmas! To
+hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is
+set on it, but I hope you don&rsquo;t expect to make any pies.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect
+to make all the pies I want!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don&rsquo;t think we
+ought to have any wine.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No wine! I like that! Of course we&rsquo;ll have wine
+on Christmas!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending
+to protest, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not
+expect to buy any coffee.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard
+of such a thing! Of course we&rsquo;ll have coffee!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, I&rsquo;m not going to quarrel with you! Get a
+little coffee if you like, but just enough for you and
+me for I don&rsquo;t think we ought to have any guests.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>211]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and
+you&rsquo;re wrong if you think we&rsquo;re not going to have a
+houseful of guests!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to
+grumble, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you have the house full of people, you needn&rsquo;t
+think I&rsquo;m going to sit at the head of the table, for I&rsquo;m
+not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You are, too!&rdquo; screamed his wife. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s exactly
+where you are going to sit!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Maya, Maya, don&rsquo;t get so excited! I will sit there
+if you insist. But if I do you mustn&rsquo;t expect me to
+pour the wine.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And why not? It would be a strange thing if you
+didn&rsquo;t pour the wine at your own table!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right, all right, I&rsquo;ll pour it! But you mustn&rsquo;t
+expect me to taste it beforehand.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course you&rsquo;re going to taste it beforehand!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife
+to say. So you see by pretending to oppose her at every
+turn he was able to have the big Christmas party that
+he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart&rsquo;s content
+with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.</p>
+
+<p>Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary
+if such a thing were possible. Summer came and
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>212]</a></span>
+the haymaking season. They were going to a distant
+meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little
+river on a footbridge made of one slender plank.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to
+his wife:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not
+strong!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I will not walk carefully!&rdquo; the wife declared.</p>
+
+<p>She flung herself on the plank with all her weight
+and when she got to the middle of the stream she
+jumped up and down just to show her husband how
+contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a
+snap, Maya fell into the water, the current carried her
+off, and she was drowned!</p>
+
+<p>Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly
+upstream shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Help! Help!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The haymakers heard him and came running to see
+what was the matter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My wife has fallen into the river!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;and
+the current has carried her body away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What ails you?&rdquo; the haymakers said. &ldquo;Are you
+mad? If the current has carried your wife away, she&rsquo;s
+floating downstream, not upstream!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Any other woman would float downstream,&rdquo; the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>213]</a></span>
+farmer said. &ldquo;Yes! But you know Maya! She&rsquo;s so
+contrary she&rsquo;d float upstream every time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; the haymakers said, &ldquo;she would!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for
+his wife&rsquo;s body but he never found it.</p>
+
+<p>When night came he went home and had a good
+supper of all the things he liked to eat which Maya
+would never let him have.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>214]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 417px;">
+<a name="illo13" id="illo13"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi13.png" width="417" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">They were so busy eating and drinking</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>215]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>II<br />
+<br />
+JANE, JANE, DON&rsquo;T COMPLAIN!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd27.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a man who was poor
+and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny.
+Jenny was so lazy that it was an effort
+for her to lift one foot after the other.
+And in addition to her laziness she was
+an everlasting complainer. &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she used to grunt
+in the morning, &ldquo;I wish we didn&rsquo;t have to get up!&rdquo; and
+&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she used to groan at night, &ldquo;I wish we didn&rsquo;t
+have to take our shoes off before going to bed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One day when they were both out in the forest collecting
+faggots, Jenny said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see why we&rsquo;re not rich! I don&rsquo;t see why
+the King should live at his ease while we have to grub
+for everything we get! I just hate work!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband
+was not that they worked but that they didn&rsquo;t
+work. It was because they didn&rsquo;t that they had so
+much time to think about it.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>216]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Drat it all!&rdquo; Jenny went on, whining, &ldquo;Adam and
+Eve are to blame for all our misfortunes! If they
+hadn&rsquo;t disobeyed God&rsquo;s commandment and eaten that
+apple, we&rsquo;d all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It&rsquo;s all their fault that we have to moil and toil
+and hurry and scurry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the man agreed, &ldquo;it is, especially Eve&rsquo;s. Of
+course Adam was to blame, too, for he should have
+controlled his wife better. But Eve was the more to
+blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn&rsquo;t have allowed
+her to touch the apple in the first place.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that the King who was out hunting
+that day overheard this conversation.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he thought to himself, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve a great mind to
+teach these two people a lesson!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from
+them and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day to you both! I have just heard your
+complaints and I, too, think it very hard that you should
+be poor while others are rich. I tell you what I&rsquo;ll do:
+I&rsquo;ll take you both home with me to the castle and maintain
+you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in
+just one thing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and
+just as they were the King took them home with him to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>217]</a></span>
+the castle. He lodged them in a room with golden
+furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for
+food he had them served the choicest delicacies in the
+world.</p>
+
+<p>As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in
+to them carrying in his hands a covered dish of silver.
+He put the dish down in the center of the table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my friends,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I promised to maintain
+you in this ease and luxury provided you obeyed me in
+one thing. You see this silver dish. I forbid you ever
+to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that moment I
+shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back
+to your poverty and misery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves
+to their hearts&rsquo; content with the delicate foods
+set before them.</p>
+
+<p>They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring
+themselves in their fine clothes, that for the first day
+they didn&rsquo;t give the covered dish a thought. The
+second day the wife noticed it and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the thing we&rsquo;re not to touch. Well, for my
+part I don&rsquo;t want to touch it. I don&rsquo;t want to do anything
+but eat and sleep and try on my pretty new
+clothes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>By the third day they had eaten so much and so
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>218]</a></span>
+steadily that they were no longer hungry and when they
+lay down on the big soft bed they no longer fell instantly
+asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Dear me,&rdquo; Jenny began whining, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know
+what&rsquo;s the matter with this food! It doesn&rsquo;t taste as
+good as it used to! Maybe the cook has grown careless!
+I think we ought to complain to the King. I&rsquo;m
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven&rsquo;t
+any appetite at all! I wonder what&rsquo;s in that covered
+dish. Perhaps it&rsquo;s something to eat, something perfectly
+delicious! I&rsquo;ve half a mind to lift the cover and
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now just you leave that silver dish alone!&rdquo; the man
+growled. He, too, had been eating too much and was
+feeling peevish. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you remember what the King
+said?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pooh!&rdquo; cried Jenny. &ldquo;What do I care what the
+King said! I think he was just poking fun at us telling
+us we mustn&rsquo;t lift the cover of that silver dish.
+After all a dish is a dish and it&rsquo;s no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband
+could stop her she lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly
+a little white mouse hopped out of the silver dish and
+scurried away.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>219]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a
+great clatter.</p>
+
+<p>The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard
+the noise and came in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;So!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you have done the one thing that I
+told you not to do! You haven&rsquo;t been here three days
+and although you&rsquo;ve had everything that heart could
+wish for yet you couldn&rsquo;t obey me in this one little
+matter!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; the man said, &ldquo;it was my wife who
+did it, not I.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter,&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;you, too, are to blame.
+If you had restrained her it wouldn&rsquo;t have happened.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he called his servants and had them strip off
+the fine clothes and dress the couple again in their old
+rags.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he said as he drove them from the castle gates,
+&ldquo;never again blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes
+which you bring upon yourselves!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>220]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 416px;">
+<a name="illo14" id="illo14"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi14.png" width="416" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">They carried home the treasure on their backs</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>221]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>III<br />
+<br />
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd28.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a man whose wife
+was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it
+was to keep a matter quiet, if Susanna
+knew about it, she just had to talk.
+She was always running to the neighbors
+and exclaiming:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set
+nets in the river, he snared birds in the forest, and he
+worked at any odd jobs that came along.</p>
+
+<p>It happened one day while he was out in the forest
+that he found a buried treasure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he thought to himself, &ldquo;now I can buy a little
+farm that will keep me and Susanna comfortable the
+rest of our days!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He started home at once to tell his wife the good
+fortune that had befallen them. He had almost reached
+home when he stopped, suddenly realizing that the first
+thing Susanna would do would be to spread the news
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>222]</a></span>
+broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the
+government would get wind of his find and presently
+officers of the law would come and confiscate the entire
+treasure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That would never do,&rdquo; he told himself. &ldquo;I must
+think out some plan whereby I can let Susanna know
+about the treasure without risking the loss of it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at
+last hit upon something that he thought might prove
+successful.</p>
+
+<p>In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one
+of his snares he had found a grouse. He went back
+now to the river and put the bird in the fishnet, and then
+he went to the woods and put the fish in the snare.
+This done he went home and at once told Susanna
+about the buried treasure which was going to be the
+means of making their old age comfortable.</p>
+
+<p>She flew at once into great excitement.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of
+such luck! Oh, how all the neighbors will envy us
+when they hear about it! I can hardly wait to tell
+them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But they mustn&rsquo;t hear!&rdquo; her husband told her.
+&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t want the officers of the law coming and
+taking it all from us, do you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>223]</a></span>
+&ldquo;That would be a nice how-do-you-do!&rdquo; Susanna
+cried. &ldquo;What! Come and take our treasure that you
+found yourself in the forest?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, my dear, that&rsquo;s exactly what they&rsquo;d do if once
+they heard about it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband,
+not a soul will hear about it from me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many
+times and then tried to slip out of the house on some
+such excuse as needing to borrow a cup of meal from a
+neighbor.</p>
+
+<p>But the man insisted on her staying beside him all
+evening. She kept remembering little errands that
+would take her to the houses of various neighbors but
+each time she attempted to leave her husband called
+her back. At last he got her safely to bed.</p>
+
+<p>Early next morning, before she had been able to talk
+to any one, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help
+me to carry home the treasure. On the way we&rsquo;d better
+see if we&rsquo;ve got anything in the nets and the snares.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They went first to the river and when the man had
+lifted his nets they found a grouse which he made
+Susanna reach over and get. Then in the woods he let
+her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>224]</a></span>
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that
+she hadn&rsquo;t mind enough left to be surprised that a bird
+should be caught in a fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they found the precious treasure and they
+stowed it away in two sacks which they carried home
+on their backs. On the way home Susanna could
+scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby
+some hint of their good fortune. As they passed the
+house of Helmi, her dearest crony, she said to her husband:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, won&rsquo;t you just wait here a moment while I
+run in and get a drink of water?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You mustn&rsquo;t go in just now,&rdquo; her husband said.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you hear what&rsquo;s going on?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping
+in the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Helmi is getting a beating from her husband,&rdquo; the
+man said. &ldquo;Can&rsquo;t you hear her crying? This is no
+time for an outsider to appear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All that day and all that night he kept so close to
+Susanna that the poor woman wasn&rsquo;t able to exchange
+a word with another human being.</p>
+
+<p>Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast
+as her legs could carry her to Helmi&rsquo;s house.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear,&rdquo; she began all out of breath, &ldquo;such a
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>225]</a></span>
+wonderful treasure as we&rsquo;ve found but I&rsquo;ve sworn never
+to whisper a word about it for fear the government
+should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo; cried Helmi&rsquo;s husband who came in
+just then and caught the last words.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the treasure we&rsquo;ve found!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The treasure? What are you talking about?
+Begin at the beginning.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday
+morning and first we went to the river to see if there
+was anything in the nets. We found a grouse&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A grouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went
+to the forest and looked in the snares and in one we
+found a pike.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A pike!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and
+put it in two sacks and you could have seen us yourself
+carrying it home on our backs but you were too busy
+beating poor Helmi.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a
+good one! I was busy beating my wife while you were
+getting birds out of fishnets and fish out of snares! Ho!
+Ho! Ho!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>226]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It&rsquo;s so!&rdquo; Susanna cried. &ldquo;It is so! You were so
+beating Helmi! And you sounded just like two dogs
+fighting! And we did so carry home the treasure!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Helmi&rsquo;s husband only laughed the harder. That
+afternoon when he went to the Inn he was still laughing
+and when the men there asked him what was so funny
+he told them Susanna&rsquo;s story and soon the whole village
+was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in
+fishnets and fish in snares and who thought that two
+yelping dogs were Helmi and her husband fighting.</p>
+
+<p>As for the treasure that wasn&rsquo;t taken any more
+seriously than the grouse and the pike.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried
+home on their backs!&rdquo; the village people decided.</p>
+
+<p>The husband of course said nothing and Susanna,
+too, was soon forced to keep quiet for now whenever
+she tried to explain people only laughed.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>227]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>MIKKO, THE FOX</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 247px;">
+<img src="images/mmd29.png" width="247" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>228]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo15" id="illo15"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi15.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+&ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll
+eat the smallest of us next!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>229]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd30.png" width="400" height="247"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE I<br />
+<br />
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd31.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the
+Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into
+his own pit and was killed.</p>
+
+<p>The Ermine found him there.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;H&rsquo;m,&rdquo; thought the Ermine, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s
+the Farmer himself, isn&rsquo;t it? I better take him before
+any one else gets him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Ermine dragged the Farmer&rsquo;s body out of the
+pit, put it on a sledge, and then, after taking a bite,
+began hauling it away.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>230]</a></span>
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands
+in surprise.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;God bless you, brother!&rdquo; the Squirrel exclaimed,
+&ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you&rsquo;re hauling behind you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer himself,&rdquo; the Ermine explained.
+&ldquo;He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of
+him and then come along and help me pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Squirrel said.</p>
+
+<p>He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine, helping him to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at
+them in amazement, his eyes popping out of his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you two are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer,&rdquo; the Ermine explained. &ldquo;He fell
+into the pit that he digged for us poor forest folk and
+serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Jussi, and
+then come along and help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and
+then marched along beside the Ermine and the Squirrel
+helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Mikko, the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Goodness me!&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you three
+are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>231]</a></span>
+The Ermine again explained:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him, Mikko, and then come along and
+help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare
+helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good gracious!&rdquo; Pekka cried, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you four
+are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Ermine explained:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him, Pekka, and then help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and
+the Fox, helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Osmo, the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good heavens!&rdquo; Osmo rumbled, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you
+five are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer,&rdquo; the Ermine explained. &ldquo;He fell
+into the pit that he had digged for us poor forest folk
+and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Osmo,
+and then help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>232]</a></span>
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the
+Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they
+felt tired or hungry they stopped and took a bite until
+the Farmer was about finished.</p>
+
+<p>Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, brothers, we&rsquo;ve eaten up every bit of the
+Farmer except his beard. What are we going to eat
+now?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll eat the smallest of us
+next!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a
+tree and the Ermine slipped under a stone.</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But the smallest have escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi!
+Let&rsquo;s&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At mention of his name the Hare went loping across
+the field and was soon at a safe distance.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox&rsquo;s
+shoulder.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>233]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s your turn now for you&rsquo;re the
+smallest of us three.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m the smallest. All right,
+brothers, I&rsquo;m ready. But before you eat me I wish
+you&rsquo;d take me to the top of the hill. Down here in
+the valley it&rsquo;s so gloomy.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the others agreed, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll go where you
+say. It is more cheerful there.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the
+Wolf:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it
+be then? Who will be the smallest then?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the Wolf cried, &ldquo;it will be my turn
+then, won&rsquo;t it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The terror of the thought quite took his appetite
+away.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Osmo,&rdquo; he said to the Bear, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think
+it would be right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and
+Mikko ought to be friends and live together in peace.
+Now let&rsquo;s take a vote on the matter and we&rsquo;ll do whatever
+the majority says. I vote that we three be friends.
+What do you say, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>234]</a></span>
+would be much better all around if they three were
+friends.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; grunted Osmo, the Bear, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s no use my
+voting for you two make a majority. But I must say
+I&rsquo;m sorry to have you vote this way for I&rsquo;m hungry.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the
+Fox, agreed henceforward to be friends and planned to
+live near each other in the woods behind the Farm.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>235]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd32.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE II<br />
+<br />
+THE PARTNERS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 96px;">
+<img src="images/mmd33.png" width="96" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox
+made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go
+into partnership.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The first thing we ought to do,&rdquo;
+said Pekka, the Wolf, &ldquo;is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox agreed and the very next day they started
+out to work. Each had a crock with three pats of butter
+for his dinner. They left their crocks in the cool water of a
+little spring in the forest not far from the place where
+they had decided to make a clearing.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>236]</a></span>
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon
+tiring of it, made some sort of excuse to run off. When
+he came back he said to the Wolf:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening
+and have sent me an invitation to attend.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too bad we&rsquo;re so busy to-day,&rdquo; the Wolf said.
+&ldquo;Another day you might have gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I must go,&rdquo; the Fox insisted. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve been
+good neighbors to us and they&rsquo;d be insulted if I refused.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;if you feel that way
+about it you better go. But hurry back for we have a
+lot to do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than
+the spring where the butter crocks were cooling. He
+took the Wolf&rsquo;s crock and licked off the top layer of
+butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Mikko,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;is the christening
+over?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, it&rsquo;s over.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What did they name the child?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They named it Top.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Top? That&rsquo;s a strange name!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>237]</a></span>
+with the announcement that there was to be another
+christening at the Farm and again they wanted him to
+attend.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Another christening!&rdquo; the Wolf exclaimed. &ldquo;How
+can that be?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This time the daughter has a baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re not going, are you, Mikko? You can&rsquo;t
+always be going to christenings.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true, Pekka, that&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; said the Fox, &ldquo;but
+I think I must go this time.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf sighed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You will hurry back, won&rsquo;t you? This work is too
+much for me alone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, Pekka dear,&rdquo; the Fox promised, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll hurry
+back as quickly as I can.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf&rsquo;s
+butter crock. This time he ate the middle pat of the
+Wolf&rsquo;s butter, then slowly sauntered back to the clearing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work,
+&ldquo;what did they name the baby this time?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This one they named Middle.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Middle? That&rsquo;s a strange name to give a baby!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard.
+Then he ran off again. When he came back, he said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>238]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Pekka, do you know they&rsquo;re having another christening
+at the Farm and they say that I just must come.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Another christening! Now, Mikko, that&rsquo;s too
+much! How can they be having another christening?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, this time it&rsquo;s the daughter-in-law that has a
+baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care who it is,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;you just
+can&rsquo;t go. You&rsquo;ve got some work to do, you have!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox agreed:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re right, Pekka, you&rsquo;re right! I&rsquo;m entirely too
+busy to be running off all the time to christenings! I&rsquo;d
+say, &lsquo;No!&rsquo; in a minute if it wasn&rsquo;t that we are new
+settlers and they are our nearest neighbors. As it is
+I&rsquo;m afraid they&rsquo;d think it wasn&rsquo;t neighborly if I didn&rsquo;t
+come. But I&rsquo;ll hurry back, I promise you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little
+spring and this time he licked the Wolf&rsquo;s butter crock
+clean to the bottom. Then he went slowly back to the
+clearing and told the Wolf about the christening and
+the baby.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;ve named this one Bottom,&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Bottom!&rdquo; the Wolf echoed. &ldquo;What funny names
+they give children nowadays!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes,
+then threw himself down exhausted.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>239]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 428px;">
+<a name="illo16" id="illo16"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi16.png" width="428" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka!
+Wake up! There&rsquo;s
+butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>240]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Heigh ho!&rdquo; he said, with a yawn, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m so tired and
+hungry it must be dinner time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf looked at the sun and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks.
+The Wolf found that his had already been licked clean.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;have you been at my butter?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me?&rdquo; the Fox said in a tone of great innocence.
+&ldquo;How could I have been at your butter when you know
+perfectly well that I&rsquo;ve been working right beside you
+all morning except when I was away at the christenings?
+You must have eaten up your butter yourself!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course I haven&rsquo;t eaten it up myself!&rdquo; the Wolf
+declared. &ldquo;I just bet anything you took it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pekka, I won&rsquo;t have you saying such a thing! We
+must get at the bottom of this! I tell you what we&rsquo;ll
+do: we&rsquo;ll both lie down in the sun and the heat of the
+sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now then,
+if butter runs out of my nose then I&rsquo;m the one that
+has eaten your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then
+you&rsquo;ve eaten it yourself. Do you agree to this test?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down
+in the sun. He had been working so hard that he was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>241]</a></span>
+very tired and in a few moments he was sound asleep.
+Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted
+the butter and then, of course, it looked as if it were
+running out of the Wolf&rsquo;s nose.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!&rdquo; the Fox cried.
+&ldquo;There&rsquo;s butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Mikko,&rdquo; he said in surprise, &ldquo;so there is!
+Well, I suppose I must have eaten that butter myself
+but I give you my word for it I don&rsquo;t remember doing
+it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt,
+&ldquo;you shouldn&rsquo;t always suspect me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began
+pulling the brush together to burn it up and the Fox
+slipped away and lay down behind some brushes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko! Mikko!&rdquo; the Wolf called. &ldquo;Aren&rsquo;t you
+going to help me burn the brush?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You set it a-fire,&rdquo; the Fox called back, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll
+stay here to guard against any flying sparks. We don&rsquo;t
+want to burn down the whole forest!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox
+took a pleasant nap.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>242]</a></span>
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich
+wood ashes, the Wolf again called out to the Fox to
+come help him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You do the planting, Pekka,&rdquo; the Fox called back,
+&ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll stay here and frighten off the birds. If I
+don&rsquo;t they&rsquo;ll come and pick up every seed you plant.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor
+Wolf planted the field he had already cleared and
+burned.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>243]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd34.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE III<br />
+<br />
+THE FOX AND THE CROW</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd35.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>In a short time the field that Pekka,
+the Wolf, had planted began to sprout.
+Pekka was delighted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See, Mikko,&rdquo; he said to the Fox,
+&ldquo;our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If we don&rsquo;t get something to eat before that grain
+ripens,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll starve, both of us! While we
+wait for the harvest I think we better go out hunting.
+I&rsquo;m going this minute for I tell you I&rsquo;m hungry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>244]</a></span>
+to the tree where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest.
+The Fox, cocking his head, paced slowly round and
+round the tree, looking at it from every angle. Harakka,
+the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings
+began to feel nervous.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Say, Mikko,&rdquo; she called down, &ldquo;what are you looking
+at?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought,
+apparently, he nodded his head and murmured:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, the very tree!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What are you looking at, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox started as though he had heard the question
+for the first time.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I
+hope you are well! I hope the children are all well!
+I was so busy looking for the right tree that I didn&rsquo;t
+recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down a
+tree to get wood for a new pair of <i>skis</i>. This tree is
+just the one I want.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, mercy me!&rdquo; the Magpie cried. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t
+cut down this tree! Do you want to kill all my children?
+This is our home!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>245]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I
+am, but I&rsquo;m afraid I do have to cut down this tree. I
+can&rsquo;t find another that suits me as well.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not
+to cut down this tree?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to
+think hard. After a moment he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Harakka, I&rsquo;ll make you this offer: I&rsquo;ll leave
+this tree standing provided you throw me down one
+of your fledglings.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the poor Magpie shrieked. &ldquo;Give you one
+of my babies! I&rsquo;ll never do that! Never! Never!
+<em>Never!</em>&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree
+down I can get them all. But I thought for the sake
+of old times I&rsquo;d ask for only one. However, do as you
+think best.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were
+felled and her fledglings thrown out of the nest they
+would certainly all perish. Perhaps it would be wise
+to sacrifice one to save the rest.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You promise to let the tree stand,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;if I
+give you one of my children?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the rascal promised, &ldquo;just drop me one of your
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>246]</a></span>
+fledglings, a nice plump one, and I won&rsquo;t cut down the
+tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children
+over the edge of the nest. It fluttered to the
+ground and Mikko carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come
+back and begin pacing around the tree again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; he said, pretending to talk to himself, &ldquo;this
+is the best tree I can find. I might as well cut it down
+at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But, Mikko!&rdquo; cried the Magpie, &ldquo;you forget! You
+said you wouldn&rsquo;t cut down this tree if I gave you one
+of my children and I did give you one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I did promise but I thought then
+I could find another tree that would suit me as well as
+this one, but I can&rsquo;t. I&rsquo;ve looked everywhere and I
+can&rsquo;t. I&rsquo;m sorry but I&rsquo;m afraid that I&rsquo;ll just have to
+take this tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;O dear, O dear, O dear!&rdquo; the poor distracted Magpie
+wept. &ldquo;Will nothing make you leave this tree
+stand?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox smacked his lips.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your
+fledglings and I won&rsquo;t disturb the tree. I promise.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>247]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, suit yourself,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;One of your
+fledglings and you can keep the others safe in the nest,
+or I&rsquo;ll cut the tree down.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn&rsquo;t it be
+better to sacrifice another fledgling on the chance of
+saving the rest? Yes, it would! So she pushed another
+out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko,
+the rascal, carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the
+Magpie.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, my dear,&rdquo; she said, looking over the fledglings,
+&ldquo;two of your children are missing! Whatever has
+become of them?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s that rascally Mikko!&rdquo; the Magpie cried, and
+thereupon she told her friend the whole story.</p>
+
+<p>Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you!
+Why, he can&rsquo;t cut down this tree or any other tree for
+that matter! He hasn&rsquo;t even got an ax! Don&rsquo;t let
+him impose on you a third time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the very next day when the Fox came and again
+tried the same little trick, Harakka, the Magpie,
+tossed her head scornfully and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go along, you rascal! You can&rsquo;t fool me again!
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>248]</a></span>
+How can you cut down this tree or any other for that
+matter when you haven&rsquo;t even got an ax!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You didn&rsquo;t think that out yourself, Harakka!&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;Some one&rsquo;s been talking to you! Who was it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It was my dear friend, Varis,&rdquo; the Magpie said.
+&ldquo;She&rsquo;s on to your tricks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!&rdquo;
+the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off.</p>
+
+<p>He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth
+open, pretending to be dead.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure Varis will soon spy me!&rdquo; he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>He was right. Presently the Crow began circling
+above him. She flew nearer and nearer and at last
+alighted on his head. His tongue was lolling out and
+Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave it
+a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught
+her in his paws.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;So you&rsquo;re the one who
+spoiled my little game with Harakka, are you? Well,
+I&rsquo;ll teach you not to interfere with me! As I haven&rsquo;t
+got one of Harakka&rsquo;s fledglings for my dinner, I&rsquo;m
+going to take you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t mean you&rsquo;re going to eat me!&rdquo; cried the
+Crow in terror.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>249]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 423px;">
+<a name="illo17" id="illo17"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi17.png" width="423" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow
+to interfere with my
+affairs!&rdquo; the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>250]</a></span>
+&ldquo;That&rsquo;s exactly what I mean!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no, Mikko! Don&rsquo;t do that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, that&rsquo;s exactly what I&rsquo;m going to do! I&rsquo;m
+going to teach you birds that I&rsquo;m not an animal to be
+played jokes on!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose,&rdquo; the Crow said, sighing, &ldquo;if it must be,
+it must be! But, Mikko, if you really want to use me
+as a warning to the other birds, you oughtn&rsquo;t to eat me
+right down. It would be much better if you dragged
+me along the ground first. Then they&rsquo;d see a wing
+here, a leg there, and a long trail of feathers. That
+really would terrify them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I believe you&rsquo;re right,&rdquo; the Fox said.</p>
+
+<p>He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his
+paw for a moment to change his hold. The Crow
+instantly jerked away and escaped.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; she cawed as she flew off. &ldquo;You were
+clever enough to catch me, Mikko, but you weren&rsquo;t
+clever enough to eat me when you had me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was
+worsted.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>251]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd36.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE IV<br />
+<br />
+THE CHIEF MOURNER</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd37.png" width="100" height="98"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; thought Mikko to himself
+as he watched Varis, the Crow, fly
+away, &ldquo;this is certainly my unlucky
+day! There I had my dinner right in
+my hand and then lost it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Sighing and shaking his head he
+sauntered slowly back to the forest.</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost
+his wife and was out looking for some one to bewail her
+death. The first person he met was Pekka, the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>252]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Pekka,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my wife&rsquo;s dead and I&rsquo;m out looking
+for a good strong mourner. Can you mourn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let
+out a long shivery howl.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe you&rsquo;ll find any
+one that can do any better than that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, Pekka, you won&rsquo;t do. I don&rsquo;t like your mourning
+at all!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Jussi,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Are you any good at
+mourning? Show me what you can do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea
+of mourning the dead.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; Osmo said, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your mourning
+either.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he walked on farther until by chance he met the
+Fox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my wife&rsquo;s dead and I&rsquo;m out looking
+for a good strong mourner. Can you mourn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo18" id="illo18"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi18.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">And Mikko, beginning with
+a little whimpering sound,
+slowly rose to a high heartrending
+cry</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can I? Indeed I can!&rdquo; the Fox declared. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a
+marvel at mourning! I can wail high and low and
+soft and loud and just any way you want! Listen!&rdquo;
+And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253"><!-- original location of Heartrending Cry illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>254]</a></span>
+slowly rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what
+he wailed:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i1">&ldquo;<i>Med! Med! Med!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">The Bear&rsquo;s Wife is dead!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Lax! Lax! Lax!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll spin the flax!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll bake the pies!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Air! Air! Air!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll drive the mare!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">There&rsquo;ll be no more little cakes!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Darth! Darth! Darth!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Throw the pots on the hearth<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">For the Bear&rsquo;s Wife is dead!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Med! Med! Med!</i>&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful! Beautiful!&rdquo; he grunted hoarsely.
+&ldquo;How well you knew her! Come along home with me,
+Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how beautifully you wail!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear
+Wife was laid out on a bench in the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; the Bear said, &ldquo;you begin the wailing
+while I cook the porridge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no, Osmo,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t possibly
+wail in here! The place is full of smoke and my voice
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>255]</a></span>
+would get husky in two minutes! Can&rsquo;t you lay her out
+in the storehouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last
+had his way. So together they dragged the body of the
+old Bear Wife out to the storehouse. The Fox stood
+beside the body ready to begin his wailing and the Bear
+went back to the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the
+rascal, instead of bewailing the old Bear Wife began
+gobbling her up! He just gobbled and gobbled and
+gobbled as fast as he could.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo; the Bear called out after a few
+minutes. &ldquo;Why don&rsquo;t you begin?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard
+as he could.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko! Mikko!&rdquo; the Bear called out again.
+&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter? Why aren&rsquo;t you howling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he
+called back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t bother me! I&rsquo;m busy eating! Yum! Yum!
+Yum! Bear meat is awful good! Just give me a few
+more minutes and I&rsquo;ll be finished!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a
+terrible rage but the Fox was already running off and
+the Bear was unable to catch him. He did hit the end
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>256]</a></span>
+of his tail with the long spoon with which he had been
+measuring the meal, but that was all.</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this
+day his tail shows the white mark of the meal.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>257]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd38.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE V<br />
+<br />
+MIRRI, THE CAT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd39.png" width="100" height="99"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day while the Fox was out
+walking in the forest he met a stranger.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Who are
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I am Mirri,&rdquo; the stranger said, &ldquo;a
+poor unfortunate Cat out of employment.
+I had service in a decent family but I&rsquo;ve had
+to leave them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did they treat you badly?&rdquo; the Fox asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, it wasn&rsquo;t that. They were considerate enough
+but they kept getting poorer and poorer until finally
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>258]</a></span>
+they hadn&rsquo;t food enough to feed us animals. Then I
+overheard the master say that soon they&rsquo;d be forced to
+eat us and that they&rsquo;d begin with me. At that I decided
+it was time for me to run away and here I am.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor Cat,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;ve had a cruel
+experience! Why don&rsquo;t you take service with me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Will I be safe with you?&rdquo; the Cat asked. &ldquo;Will
+you protect me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Will I?&rdquo; the Fox repeated boastfully. &ldquo;My dear
+Mirri, once it becomes known that you are Mikko&rsquo;s
+servant all the animals will show you a wholesome
+respect.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well then, I&rsquo;ll enter your service,&rdquo; the Cat said.</p>
+
+<p>So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began
+to train his new servant.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you
+suddenly met a Bear?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s just one thing I could do, master: I&rsquo;d run
+up a tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You must have more ways than one to meet such
+a situation! Take me now: there are any of a hundred
+things that I could do if I met a Bear!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo19" id="illo19"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi19.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He jerked quickly away and
+fled and the Bear was left
+standing with his mouth wide open</p>
+
+<p>Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind
+the Fox. The Cat saw him and instantly flew up a
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259"><!-- original location of Left Standing illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>260]</a></span>
+tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo clutched him
+firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, master, master!&rdquo; the Cat called down from the
+tree. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s this? I with my one way have escaped
+and you with your hundred are caught!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted
+his head around and looked reproachfully at the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;what
+in the world do you mean taking hold of me so roughly!
+Ouch! You&rsquo;re nipping my shoulder, really you are!
+I don&rsquo;t understand why you&rsquo;re acting this way! Here
+I&rsquo;ve always been such a good friend to you, so faithful,
+so true, so&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; rumbled the Bear. &ldquo;Faithful! True! Oh,
+you&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo&rsquo;s feelings overcame him to such an extent that
+he opened his jaws to roar out freely his denial of the
+Fox&rsquo;s hypocrisy.</p>
+
+<p>That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He
+jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+standing with his mouth wide open.</p>
+
+<p>Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned
+and called the Cat down from the tree.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see, Mirri,&rdquo; he remarked casually, &ldquo;it wasn&rsquo;t
+anything at all for me to get the best of the Bear!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>261]</a></span>
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat,
+so he let the subject drop.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come along, Mirri,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s time for us to
+go home.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>262]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 425px;">
+<a name="illo20" id="illo20"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi20.png" width="425" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">A terrible creature landed
+on his nose and drove it
+full of pins and needles</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>263]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd40.png" width="400" height="251"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VI<br />
+<br />
+THE FOX&rsquo;S SERVANT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 95px;">
+<img src="images/mmd41.png" width="95" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>A day or so later the Fox met Pekka,
+the Wolf. The Fox hadn&rsquo;t seen much
+of Pekka recently for Pekka had been
+having a hard time and had been on
+the verge of starvation. Now he was
+sleek again and well fed for he had
+recently killed an Ox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Pekka,&rdquo; the Fox said in a friendly way.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Mikko. How are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very fine indeed!&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;You see I have
+a new servant. Oh, he&rsquo;s a wonderful servant! He&rsquo;s
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>264]</a></span>
+not big to look at, you know, but he&rsquo;s so strong and
+quick that he&rsquo;d jump on you in a minute and eat you
+up before you knew what was happening!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Really, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, really! You just ought to see him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to see him,&rdquo; the Wolf said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in
+the kitchen. He&rsquo;s at home. But, my dear Pekka, I
+warn you not to let him see you! If he catches sight
+of you, I won&rsquo;t be responsible for the consequences!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He
+crept carefully down to the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen and sniffed
+cautiously at the crack under the door. The Cat inside,
+seeing the tip of the Wolf&rsquo;s nose and thinking it
+was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This
+gave the Wolf a mighty fright and he bolted madly
+off into the forest.</p>
+
+<p>He was still panting when he met the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;have you heard about that awful
+creature that Mikko has for a servant?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related
+to him his own terrifying experience.</p>
+
+<p>The Bear&rsquo;s curiosity was aroused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant,&rdquo;
+he said, ambling off in the direction of the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>265]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll wait for you here,&rdquo; the Wolf called after him,
+&ldquo;and I warn you, Osmo, be careful!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear when he got to the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen quietly
+stuck his nose under the crack of the door and squinted
+inside. He hardly had time for one squint when a
+terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his
+nose, and drove it full of pins and needles.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; the Bear whimpered as he
+hurried back to the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did you see him?&rdquo; the Wolf asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I got just one glimpse of him,&rdquo; the Bear said. &ldquo;He
+had a long spear sticking up over his shoulder and he
+came swooping down through the air just as if he had
+wings!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My! I wish we could really see him!&rdquo; the Wolf
+said. &ldquo;Suppose we ask Mikko to arrange some way
+we can have a good look at him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant
+I think he will come.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ll do.
+I&rsquo;ve still got some of that ox. It will make a fine feast.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ll go get my servant,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;When
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>266]</a></span>
+you hear us coming, you two hide some place where you
+can see us but we can&rsquo;t see you. If my servant once
+sees you I won&rsquo;t be responsible for the consequences!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear
+drew himself up into the branches of a tree.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them
+down to the feast. Now it happened that the Wolf
+was not able to see, so he tried to twist himself around
+into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of
+his tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on
+it. With one terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of
+the bushes and fled into the forest as fast as he could.</p>
+
+<p>In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the
+Bear, of course, supposed that the awful creature now
+was after him. In his frantic efforts to escape he
+tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs. But
+for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.</p>
+
+<p>So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox
+in peace.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>267]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd42.png" width="400" height="249"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VII<br />
+<br />
+THE WOLF SINGS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd43.png" width="100" height="94"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Having sacrificed his ox in order to
+feast the Fox&rsquo;s servant, the Wolf had
+nothing left for himself and was soon
+very hungry. He could find nothing
+to eat in the forest, so he went prowling
+around a farm in hopes of getting
+a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is better than nothing,&rdquo; he thought to himself
+and, taking hold of the Dog, he began dragging it
+off.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>268]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Cousin! Cousin!&rdquo; cried the Dog. &ldquo;Is this any way
+to treat a relation? Let me go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;but I can&rsquo;t let you go.
+I&rsquo;m too hungry.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let me go,&rdquo; the Dog begged, &ldquo;and I tell you what
+I&rsquo;ll do: I&rsquo;ll give you a bottle of vodka.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Promises come easy,&rdquo; the Wolf said. &ldquo;Where will
+you get the vodka?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Under the bench in the kitchen. That&rsquo;s where the
+master keeps his bottle. I&rsquo;ve seen him hide it there.
+Come to-night after the family&rsquo;s asleep and I&rsquo;ll let you
+in and give you the vodka.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so
+he said to the Dog:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, I&rsquo;ll let you go. But see that you keep
+your promise!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Late that night when the family were asleep, the
+Wolf came scratching at the farmhouse door and the
+Dog let him in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, old fellow, you know why I&rsquo;ve come,&rdquo; the
+Wolf said.</p>
+
+<p>At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got
+the master&rsquo;s bottle of vodka.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here, Pekka, here it is!&rdquo; he said, offering the Wolf
+the bottle.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>269]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 430px;">
+<a name="illo21" id="illo21"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi21.png" width="430" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The Wolf went staggering
+around the room howling at
+the top of his voice</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>270]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You drink first,&rdquo; Pekka insisted. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re the
+host.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then
+the Wolf took a deep swallow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said, smacking his lips, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s something
+like!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His stomach was empty and the vodka went through
+his veins like fire. He felt happy and laughed and
+went capering around the room.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I feel like singing!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Pekka,&rdquo; the Dog said, &ldquo;I beg you don&rsquo;t
+sing! You will wake the folks! Sit down quietly and
+we&rsquo;ll talk.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf
+took another deep swallow of the vodka. Again he
+wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble in restraining
+him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet
+now or you can&rsquo;t have any more vodka!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf took another deep drink and after that
+there was no holding him back. He went staggering
+around the room howling at the top of his voice.</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into
+the kitchen with clubs and pokers and whatever they
+could pick up.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>271]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a Wolf!&rdquo; the Farmer cried. &ldquo;The impudent
+scoundrel, coming right into the house! Give him a
+good beating!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>If the door hadn&rsquo;t been open they would have clubbed
+poor Pekka to death. As it was he barely escaped with
+his life.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>272]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo22" id="illo22"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi22.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">In the confusion that
+followed the Wolves stampeded,
+running helter-skelter in all
+directions</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>273]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd44.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VIII<br />
+<br />
+THE CLEVER GOAT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd45.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was
+a pretty stupid fellow always getting
+into some scrape or other. With sore
+ribs and a back aching from the beating
+which the farm folk had given him he
+slunk quietly along the forest ways
+hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he saw
+ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What are they doing hereabouts?&rdquo; he thought to
+himself. &ldquo;This is no place for them and if anything
+happens to them it will be their own fault.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>274]</a></span>
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that
+the forest was no place for them. But where else
+could they go? They had recently been turned loose
+to fend for themselves by their poor old master who
+was no longer able to feed them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This forest rather frightens me,&rdquo; the Ram had said
+to the Goat. &ldquo;Do you suppose we&rsquo;ll be able to keep
+off the Wolves?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a plan.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry
+chips. Then when he shook the sack the chips made a
+hollow rattle. He threw the sack over his shoulder and
+said to the Ram:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you be frightened, Dinas. We&rsquo;ll be able to
+hold our own with the forest creatures.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf,
+appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; said Pekka suspiciously. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s that
+you&rsquo;ve got in that sack? No nonsense now! Answer me
+at once or I&rsquo;ll have to kill you both!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;In this sack?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Oh, only the skulls and
+bones of the Wolves we have eaten. We haven&rsquo;t had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>275]</a></span>
+any Wolf meat now for some time, have we, Dinas? It&rsquo;s
+good you&rsquo;ve come along for we&rsquo;re hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and
+Pekka, the Wolf, too surprised to resist and too stiff
+to run away, cried out wildly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Brothers! Brothers! Don&rsquo;t kill me! I&rsquo;m your
+friend! Spare me and I&rsquo;ll do something for you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Attention, Dinas!&rdquo; the Goat commanded. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t
+kill the Wolf just yet!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he asked Pekka:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What will you do for us if we spare you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll send you twelve Wolves,&rdquo; Pekka promised.
+&ldquo;That will give you more meat than you&rsquo;d have if
+you killed just me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Twelve,&rdquo; the Goat replied. &ldquo;You are right: twelve
+Wolves will give us more meat than one. Very well,
+we&rsquo;ll let you go on condition that you send us twelve.
+But see you keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could
+carry him and assembled twelve of his brothers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve called you together,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;to warn you
+of two terrible creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are
+here in the forest eating up Wolves! Already they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>276]</a></span>
+have a sack full of our unfortunate relations&rsquo; skulls
+and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don&rsquo;t you think
+we ought all of us to flee?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; said the other Wolves, &ldquo;thirteen Wolves
+turn tail on one Goat and one Ram? Never! We&rsquo;ll
+go together and give them battle!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t count me in!&rdquo; Pekka said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to
+see those two again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.</p>
+
+<p>The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The
+Ram followed him but couldn&rsquo;t get very high.</p>
+
+<p>The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing
+in close formation called out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, you two, come on! We&rsquo;re ready for
+you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Attention, Dinas!&rdquo; the Goat commanded. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re
+all here, so lose no more time! Jump down among
+them and kill them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at
+the same time making an awful noise with his sack. He
+gave the Ram a push and the Ram slipped and fell
+right on the backs of the Wolves.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, Dinas! Kill them all!&rdquo; the Goat
+shouted, rattling his sack more furiously than ever.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t let one of them escape!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>277]</a></span>
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+running helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf
+there felt that his own escape was a piece of rare good
+fortune.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Those terrible two!&rdquo; he thought.</p>
+
+<p>Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram,
+lived on in the forest untroubled by the Wolves.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd18.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>278]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo23" id="illo23"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi23.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Here are three of us and
+see, here on the floor is our
+harvest already divided into
+three heaps&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>279]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd46.png" width="400" height="245"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE IX<br />
+<br />
+THE HARVEST</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd47.png" width="100" height="98"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Well, the time came when the field
+of barley which the Fox and the Wolf
+had planted together was ready to harvest.
+So the two friends cut the grain
+and carried the sheaves to the threshing
+barn where they spread them out to dry.
+When it was time to thresh the grain, they asked
+Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly,&rdquo; Osmo said.</p>
+
+<p>At the time agreed the three animals met at the
+threshing barn.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>280]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Now the first thing to decide,&rdquo; Pekka said, &ldquo;is how
+to divide the work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll stay up here,&rdquo; he called down, &ldquo;and support
+the beams and the rafters. In that way there won&rsquo;t
+be any danger of their falling and injuring either of
+you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I&rsquo;ll take care of you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the
+Wolf, winnowed the chaff from the grain. Mikko, the
+rascal, occasionally dropped down upon them a hunk
+of wood.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take care!&rdquo; they&rsquo;d call out. &ldquo;Do you want to kill
+us?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is
+for me to hold up all these rafters!&rdquo; Mikko would say.
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;re very lucky it&rsquo;s only a little piece that drops
+on you now and then! If it weren&rsquo;t for me you&rsquo;d certainly
+be killed, both of you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily.
+When they were finished Mikko, the rascal, leaped
+down from the rafters and stretched himself as though
+he had been working the hardest of them all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad that job of mine is finished!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I
+couldn&rsquo;t have held things up much longer!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>281]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Well now,&rdquo; Pekka asked, &ldquo;how shall we divide this
+our harvest?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll tell you how,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;Here are three
+of us and, see, here on the floor is our harvest already
+divided into three heaps. The biggest heap will naturally
+go to the biggest of us. That&rsquo;s Osmo, the Bear.
+The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I&rsquo;m the
+smallest, so the smallest heap comes to me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed
+to this. So Osmo took the great heap of straw, Pekka
+the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the rascal, got for his
+share the little mound of clean grain.</p>
+
+<p>Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.</p>
+
+<p>As the millstone turned on Mikko&rsquo;s grain, it made
+a rough rasping sound.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange,&rdquo; Osmo said to Pekka, &ldquo;Mikko&rsquo;s grain
+sounds different from ours.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mix some sand with yours,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;then yours
+will make the same sound.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their
+straw and their chaff and sure enough, when they
+turned their millstones again, they, too, got a rough
+rasping sound.</p>
+
+<p>This satisfied them and they went home feeling they
+had just as good a winter&rsquo;s supply of food as Mikko.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>282]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 426px;">
+<a name="illo24" id="illo24"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi24.png" width="426" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He dropped it in the water
+and of course it spread out
+far and wide and the current
+carried it off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>283]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd48.png" width="400" height="247"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE X<br />
+<br />
+THE PORRIDGE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd49.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Well, it was only natural that they
+should all want to see at once what kind
+of porridge their meal would make.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo&rsquo;s came out black and disgusting.
+Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko&rsquo;s house for advice. The
+Fox was stirring his own porridge which was white
+and smooth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter with my porridge?&rdquo; the Bear
+asked. &ldquo;Yours is white and smooth but mine is black
+and horrid.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>284]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Did you wash your meal before you put it into the
+pot?&rdquo; the Fox asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You take it to the river and drop it in the water.
+Then when it&rsquo;s clean you take it out.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear at once went home and got his ground up
+straw and took it to the river. He dropped it in the
+water and of course it spread out far and wide and
+the current carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of Osmo&rsquo;s share of the harvest.</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge.
+Soon he, too, came to Mikko for advice.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what&rsquo;s the matter with me,&rdquo; he said.
+&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t seem to be able to make good porridge. Look
+at yours all white and smooth! I must watch you
+how you make it. Won&rsquo;t you let me hang my pot on
+your crane? Then I&rsquo;ll do just as you do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;Hang your pot on this
+chain and the two pots can then cook side by side.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yours is so white to begin with,&rdquo; Pekka said, &ldquo;and
+mine looks no better than dirt.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung
+over the pot,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;The heat of the fire
+melted the fat in my tail and it dripped down into the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>285]</a></span>
+pot. It&rsquo;s that fat that makes my porridge look so white.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself
+on the chain above his porridge. But he didn&rsquo;t stay
+there long. The flames scorched him and he fell down
+hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him
+to turn and twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of
+burnt hair.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his
+porridge again to see if it was any better. But it wasn&rsquo;t.
+It was as bad as ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see any difference in it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Let me
+taste yours, Mikko.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf&rsquo;s
+porridge and dropped it into his own pot.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Help yourself,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Take some out of that
+spot there. That&rsquo;s good.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The place he pointed to was, of course, the place
+where he had dropped some of the Wolf&rsquo;s own porridge.</p>
+
+<p>So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge
+again when he thought he was tasting Mikko&rsquo;s.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;your porridge doesn&rsquo;t taste good
+to me either. I don&rsquo;t believe anything tastes good to
+me to-day. The truth is I don&rsquo;t believe I like porridge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>286]</a></span>
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the
+rascal, chuckled to himself and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder why Pekka doesn&rsquo;t like porridge. It
+tastes awful good to me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>287]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd50.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XI<br />
+<br />
+NURSE MIKKO</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd51.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The Wolf&rsquo;s wife gave birth to three
+little cubs and then died.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You poor children!&rdquo; Pekka said,
+&ldquo;your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you
+a nurse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he went through the forest hunting some one to
+take care of his motherless cubs. The white Grouse
+offered her services but, when she sang a lullaby to
+show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your voice,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t take you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>288]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You know I&rsquo;m lame,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;so quiet work like
+nursing would suit me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can you sing lullabies?&rdquo; Pekka asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, yes! Listen!&rdquo; and Jussi began squealing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop!&rdquo; Pekka cried. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your voice either.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Pekka,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I hear you&rsquo;re out
+looking for a nurse for your sweet babies.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like the job myself,&rdquo; the Fox said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you can&rsquo;t sing lullabies, can you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Hushabye, sweet little cubs,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Hushabye to sleep!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who best loves you, do you think?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who will give you food and drink?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who on faithful guard will keep?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko! Mikko!<br /></span>
+</div>
+
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Hushabye, sweet little cubs,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko loves you well,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves each little pointed nose,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves your little scratchy toes,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves you more than he can tell&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko! Mikko!&rsquo;&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>289]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo25" id="illo25"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi25.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He ran after Mikko and was about
+to overtake him when Mikko
+slipped into a crevice in the rocks.
+Only one paw stuck out</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>290]</a></span>
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko&rsquo;s lullaby.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful! Beautiful!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I never heard a
+sweeter lullaby! You&rsquo;re the very nurse I want! Come
+home with me at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the
+care of the three little Wolf cubs.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll go off now and get them something to eat,&rdquo;
+Pekka said.</p>
+
+<p>He came back after a while with the hind leg of a
+horse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This will be enough for them to start on,&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m afraid it won&rsquo;t last them very long. They&rsquo;re
+beautiful healthy children with fine appetites.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Poor little dears!&rdquo; Pekka said. &ldquo;Let me see them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not just now!&rdquo; Mikko insisted. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re asleep
+and mustn&rsquo;t be disturbed. Go out hunting again and
+the next time you come home you shall see them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse
+indeed to be so strict. So he went off hunting again
+without seeing his children.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up
+all the horse meat without giving the cubs one bite and
+then, as he was still hungry, he ate one of the cubs. The
+next day he ate another cub, and the day following he
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>291]</a></span>
+ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear
+children! They&rsquo;re well, aren&rsquo;t they?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well!&rdquo; the Fox declared. &ldquo;But they&rsquo;ve grown
+so big under my good care that the house isn&rsquo;t large
+enough now to hold them and you and me at the same
+time. If you&rsquo;re coming in, I must get out first.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and
+scampered away.</p>
+
+<p>Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could
+find of his dear children were their bones.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You faithless, faithless nurse!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to
+overtake him when Mikko slipped into a crevice in the
+rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The Wolf pounced
+on this paw and began gnawing it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?&rdquo; the Fox asked.
+&ldquo;What do you think you&rsquo;re doing biting that old root?
+I hope you don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s one of my paws. I&rsquo;m sitting
+on all four paws.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and,
+quick as a flash, Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.</p>
+
+<p>So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>292]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 430px;">
+<a name="illo26" id="illo26"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi26.png" width="430" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Of course the instant
+he opened his mouth the
+Grouse flew away</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>293]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd52.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XII<br />
+<br />
+THE BEAR SAYS <em>NORTH</em></h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd20.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day while Osmo, the Bear, was
+prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pretty good!&rdquo; he thought to himself.
+&ldquo;Wouldn&rsquo;t the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had
+caught a Grouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the
+world to know of it. So, holding the Grouse carefully
+in his teeth without injuring it, he began parading up
+and down the forest ways.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;ll all certainly envy me this nice plump
+Grouse,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;And they won&rsquo;t be so ready
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>294]</a></span>
+to call me awkward and lumbering after this, either!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw
+at once that Osmo was showing off and he determined
+that the Bear would not get the satisfaction of any admiration
+from him. So he pretended not to see the
+Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards
+and sniffed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um!&rdquo; grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention
+to himself.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; Mikko remarked, casually, &ldquo;is that you, Osmo?
+What way is the wind blowing to-day? Can you tell
+me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening
+his mouth, so he grunted again hoping that Mikko
+would have to notice why he couldn&rsquo;t answer. But the
+Fox didn&rsquo;t glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It seems to me it&rsquo;s from the South,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t
+it from the South, Osmo?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um! Um!&rdquo; the Bear grunted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um!&rdquo; Osmo repeated, growing every moment
+more impatient.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what
+direction is it blowing?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>295]</a></span>
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko&rsquo;s
+interest in the wind when he should have been admiring
+the Grouse that he forgot himself, opened his mouth,
+and roared out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;North!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+flew away.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now see what you&rsquo;ve done!&rdquo; he stormed angrily.
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve made me lose my fine plump Grouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I?&rdquo; Mikko asked. &ldquo;What had I to do with it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You kept asking me about the wind until I opened
+my mouth&mdash;that&rsquo;s what you did!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shrugged his shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why did you open your mouth?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you can&rsquo;t say, &lsquo;North!&rsquo; without opening your
+mouth, can you?&rdquo; the Bear demanded.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox laughed heartily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Osmo, don&rsquo;t blame me. Blame yourself.
+If I had had that Grouse in my mouth and you had
+asked me about the wind, I should never have said,
+&lsquo;North!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What would you have said?&rdquo; the Bear asked.</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then
+he clenched his teeth and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;East!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>296]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 422px;">
+<a name="illo27" id="illo27"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi27.png" width="422" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;my turnips and my bread
+don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>297]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd53.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XIII<br />
+<br />
+OSMO&rsquo;S SHARE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 97px;">
+<img src="images/mmd14.png" width="97" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a
+clearing where a Man was plowing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Bear said. &ldquo;What
+are you doing?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m plowing,&rdquo; the Man answered.
+&ldquo;After I finish plowing I&rsquo;m going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half
+in turnips.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yum! Yum!&rdquo; Osmo thought to himself. &ldquo;Good
+food that&mdash;wheat and turnips!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Aloud he said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>298]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say
+to my helping you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you help me,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll share the harvest
+with you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo set to work and between them they soon
+had the field plowed, harrowed, and planted.</p>
+
+<p>When Autumn came they went to get their crops.</p>
+
+<p>At the turnip field the Man said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now what do you want as your share&mdash;the part
+that grows above the ground or the part that grows
+below?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the
+turnip tops were, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Give me the part that grows above ground.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After they had harvested the turnips, they went on
+to the wheat field where the Man put the same question.</p>
+
+<p>The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo
+looked at them wisely and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This time you better give me the part that grows
+under the ground.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.</p>
+
+<p>One day the following winter the two met and the
+Man invited the Bear to dinner. Osmo who was very
+hungry accepted the invitation gladly.</p>
+
+<p>First they had baked turnips.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>299]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, but these are good!&rdquo; Osmo said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never
+tasted anything better! What are they?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;they&rsquo;re the turnips from that
+field that you and I planted together.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear was greatly surprised.</p>
+
+<p>Then they had some freshly baked bread.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How good! How good!&rdquo; Osmo exclaimed. &ldquo;What
+is it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just plain bread,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;baked from the
+wheat you and I planted together.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo was more surprised than ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my turnips and my
+bread don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered
+why.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd16.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>300]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 429px;">
+<a name="illo28" id="illo28"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi28.png" width="429" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The first person they met
+was an old Horse. They
+put their case to him</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>301]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd54.png" width="400" height="243"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XIV<br />
+<br />
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd26.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after
+day to a field of growing rye and eat
+as much as he wanted. The Farmer
+noticed from the Bear&rsquo;s tracks that he
+always came by the same route.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Bear a lesson!&rdquo; the
+Farmer thought to himself.</p>
+
+<p>So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully
+covered it over with leaves and branches.</p>
+
+<p>That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field,
+got entangled in the net and was unable to escape.</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer when he came and found him securely
+caught was overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>302]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Now, you brute!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got you and I&rsquo;m
+going to kill you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, master, don&rsquo;t do that!&rdquo; the Bear implored.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t kill me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why shouldn&rsquo;t I kill you?&rdquo; the Farmer asked.
+&ldquo;Aren&rsquo;t you destroying my rye?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let me off this time!&rdquo; Osmo begged, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll reward
+you! I swear I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He begged and begged until at last he prevailed
+upon the Farmer to open the net and let him out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; the Farmer said as soon as the Bear
+was freed, &ldquo;how are you going to reward me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer&rsquo;s shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is how I&rsquo;m going to reward you,&rdquo; he said: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+going to eat you up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Farmer exclaimed, &ldquo;is that your idea
+of a reward for kindness?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Exactly!&rdquo; Osmo declared. &ldquo;In this world that is
+the reward kindness always gets! Ask any one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe it! I don&rsquo;t believe it!&rdquo; the Farmer
+cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well. I&rsquo;ll prove to you that I&rsquo;m right. We&rsquo;ll
+ask the first person we meet.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+put their case to him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>303]</a></span>
+&ldquo;The Bear is right,&rdquo; the old Horse said. &ldquo;Look at
+me: For thirty years I gave my master faithful service
+and just this morning I heard him say: &lsquo;It&rsquo;s time we
+killed that old plug! He&rsquo;s no good for work any more
+and he&rsquo;s only eating his head off!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear squinted his little eyes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t see!&rdquo; the Farmer insisted. &ldquo;We must
+ask some one else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They walked on a little farther until they met an
+old Dog. They put their case to him and at once
+the Dog said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a
+life time of faithful service and just this morning I
+overheard him say: &lsquo;It&rsquo;s time we killed that old Dog!&rsquo;
+Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is always so
+rewarded!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor
+him Osmo said that he was willing that they should put
+their case once more to the judgment of an outsider.</p>
+
+<p>The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox.
+Mikko listened carefully and then drawing the Farmer
+aside he whispered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I give judgment in your favor will you let me
+carry off all the chickens in your hen-house?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>304]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Indeed I will!&rdquo; the Farmer promised.</p>
+
+<p>Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;H&rsquo;m! H&rsquo;m! To give fair judgment in this case
+I must go over all the ground. First show me the field
+of rye and the damage Osmo did.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had
+appraised the damage, shook his head seriously.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that
+rye!... Now show me the net.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it
+carefully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I
+want to see just how he did it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo showed just how he had been caught.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Get all the way in,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;I want to make
+sure that you couldn&rsquo;t possibly get out unaided.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and
+proved that he couldn&rsquo;t possibly get out unaided.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said Mikko, the rascal, &ldquo;you deserved to
+get caught the first time and now that you&rsquo;re in there
+again you can just stay there! Come on, Mr. Farmer.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo
+to his fate.</p>
+
+<p>That night the Fox went to the Farmer&rsquo;s hen-house
+to claim his reward. When he came in the chickens,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>305]</a></span>
+of course, set up an awful squawking that aroused the
+family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It sounds to me,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;as if some rascally Fox
+is trying to steal our hens. If you catch him, don&rsquo;t be
+gentle with him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Gentle!&rdquo; repeated the wife significantly.</p>
+
+<p>She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found
+Mikko inside she gave him an awful beating. In fact
+he barely escaped with his life.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said to himself as he limped painfully home,
+&ldquo;to think that this is the reward my kindness has received!
+Oh, what a wicked, wicked world this is!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>306]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 464px;">
+<a name="illo29" id="illo29"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi29.png" width="464" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">With that the Bear lifted his
+paw and the little mouse
+scampered off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>307]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd17.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XV<br />
+<br />
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd49.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>When Osmo, the Bear, was left
+alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted.
+Then he fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>While he slept a host of little Mice
+began playing all over his great body.</p>
+
+<p>Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start.
+The Mice scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught
+under his paw.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tweek! Tweek!&rdquo; the frightened little Mouse cried.
+&ldquo;Let me go! Let me go! Please let me go! If you do
+I&rsquo;ll reward you some day! I promise I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>308]</a></span>
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What, little one? You&rsquo;ll reward me! Ha! Ha!
+That is good! The Mouse will reward the Bear! Well
+now, that is a joke! However, little one, I will let you
+go! You&rsquo;re too weak and insignificant for me to kill
+and too small to eat. So run along!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+Mouse scampered off.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It will reward me for my kindness!&rdquo; Osmo repeated,
+and in spite of the fact that he was fast caught in a
+net he shook again with laughter.</p>
+
+<p>He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned
+with a great army of his fellows. All the host at once
+began gnawing at the ropes of the net and in no time
+at all they had freed the big Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see,&rdquo; the little Mouse said, &ldquo;although we are
+weak and insignificant we can reward a kindness!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice
+on account of their size that all he could say as he
+shambled off into the forest was:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Thanks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>309]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd55.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XVI<br />
+<br />
+THE LAST OF OSMO</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd51.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was a Farmer that used to
+drive his sledge into the forest to cut
+wood. Always as he drove he shouted
+abusively at his Horse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go along, you old plug!&rdquo; he&rsquo;d say.
+&ldquo;What do you think you&rsquo;re good for,
+anyway? If you don&rsquo;t move along more lively I&rsquo;ll give
+you to the Bear for his supper&mdash;that&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ll do
+with you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the
+Farmer was always talking about giving him his Horse,
+so one afternoon while the Farmer was going through
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>310]</a></span>
+his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give
+me my supper.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer was greatly taken back.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t really mean what I was saying,&rdquo; he stammered.
+&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a good Horse but he&rsquo;s a little lazy&mdash;that&rsquo;s
+all.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting
+his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Even if he is lazy he&rsquo;ll taste all right to me. Come
+along, Mr. Farmer, hand him over as you&rsquo;ve promised
+to do this long time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I can&rsquo;t afford to give you my Horse!&rdquo; the
+Farmer cried. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s the only Horse I&rsquo;ve got!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Bear was firm.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter! You have to keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here,&rdquo; the Farmer begged, &ldquo;let me off on giving
+you my Horse and I tell you what I&rsquo;ll do: I&rsquo;ll give you
+my Cow. I can spare the Cow better.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;When will you give me the Cow?&rdquo; the Bear asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;To-morrow,&rdquo; the Farmer promised.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; Osmo said, &ldquo;if you deliver me the Cow
+to-morrow I&rsquo;ll let you off on the Horse. But see you
+keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>311]</a></span>
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited
+his traps. In one he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko,
+the little rascal, begged for his life so piteously that
+the Farmer with a laugh freed him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve done me a good turn,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;and
+some day I&rsquo;ll do something for you. Just wait and
+see if I don&rsquo;t.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on
+the sledge and started off for the forest. On the way
+he met Mikko.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good morning,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;Where are you going
+with your Cow?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain
+with the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;I promised you yesterday
+that some day I&rsquo;d do you a good turn. That day has
+come! I&rsquo;m going to save you your Cow and show you
+how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But
+if I do this, you&rsquo;ll have to give me the Bear&rsquo;s carcass
+after he&rsquo;s dead and gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be glad enough to do that,&rdquo; the Farmer declared.
+&ldquo;Save me my Cow and you may have all of that old Bear
+that you want!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well then,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;go home with the Cow as
+quickly as you can and come back here with ten distaffs.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>312]</a></span>
+My plan is to have you put five of the distaffs around
+my neck and five around my tail. I can make an awful
+noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders
+who I am, do you say to him: &lsquo;Oh! That must be
+my son, the Hunter! Don&rsquo;t you hear the rattle of his
+musket?&rsquo; Then between us we&rsquo;ll finish that old Bear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the
+Cow home and returned to the forest with ten distaffs,
+five of which he fastened about the Fox&rsquo;s neck and five
+about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the place
+where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox,
+crept along quietly behind him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where&rsquo;s my Cow?&rdquo; the Bear demanded as soon as
+the sledge appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve come to talk to you about that,&rdquo; the Farmer
+began.</p>
+
+<p>Just then there was an awful rattle of something in
+the bushes behind the Farmer.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo; the Bear cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; the Farmer said, &ldquo;that must be my son, the
+Hunter! Don&rsquo;t you hear the rattle of his musket?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear shook in terror.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do!
+Oh, Mr. Farmer, save me from the Hunter and I&rsquo;ll forgive
+you the Cow!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>313]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Farmer promised, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do my best!
+Lie down and I&rsquo;ll try to make the Hunter believe
+you&rsquo;re only a log.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly
+quiet.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; called the Fox in a voice that sounded like
+the Hunter&rsquo;s, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that big brown thing lying on the
+ground near you? Is it a Bear?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, son,&rdquo; the Farmer called back, &ldquo;that isn&rsquo;t a Bear.
+It&rsquo;s only a log of wood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If it&rsquo;s a log of wood, father, chop it up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer raised his ax.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t really chop me!&rdquo; the Bear begged in a whisper.
+&ldquo;Just pretend to.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is too good a log to chop up,&rdquo; the Farmer
+said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, father,&rdquo; said the voice from the bushes, &ldquo;if
+it&rsquo;s such a good log you better put it on your sledge and
+take it home.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Lie still,&rdquo; the Farmer whispered, &ldquo;while I put you
+on the sledge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer
+dragged him on to the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; the voice said, &ldquo;you better tie that log down
+to keep it from rolling off.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>314]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t move,&rdquo; the Farmer whispered, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll tie
+you down just as if you were a log.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed
+him securely to the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father, are you sure that log can&rsquo;t roll off?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, son,&rdquo; the Farmer said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure it can&rsquo;t roll
+off now.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log
+and off we&rsquo;ll go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty
+blow buried it in the neck of the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow
+and Mikko, the rascal, feasted on Bear meat for a week.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 95px;">
+<img src="images/mmd41.png" width="95" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>315]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 427px;">
+<a name="illo30" id="illo30"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi30.png" width="427" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">So that was THE END</p>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 397px;">
+<img src="images/endpaper1.jpg" width="397" height="600"
+alt="Decorative endpaper" />
+</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 397px;">
+<img src="images/endpaper2.jpg" width="397" height="600"
+alt="Decorative endpaper" />
+</div>
+
+
+<div class="bbox">
+<p><b>Transcriber's Note</b></p>
+
+<p>Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as printed.</p>
+
+<p>Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.</p>
+
+<p>The following amendments have been made for consistency:</p>
+
+<div class="amends">
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_166">166</a>&mdash;Ollie amended to Olli&mdash;"&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, ..."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_198">198</a>&mdash;Mattie amended to Matti&mdash;"&ldquo;But remember,&rdquo; Matti warned him, ..."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_200">200</a>&mdash;Mattie amended to Matti&mdash;"&ldquo;That is true,&rdquo; Matti said, ..."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The following typographic errors have been repaired:</p>
+
+<div class="amends">
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_230">230</a>&mdash;then amended to them&mdash;"Jussi looked at them in amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_294">294</a>&mdash;satisfacion amended to satisfaction&mdash;"... the Bear would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in the middle
+of a paragraph. Omitted page numbers were either the location of these
+illustrations or blank pages in the original book.</p>
+</div>
+
+<div style='display:block;margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***</div>
+<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This file should be named 38112-h.htm or 38112-h.zip</div>
+<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in https://www.gutenberg.org/3/8/1/1/38112/</div>
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+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #38112 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/38112)
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Mighty Mikko
+       A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+Author: Parker Fillmore
+
+Illustrator: Jay Van Everen
+
+Release Date: November 23, 2011 [EBook #38112]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Suzanne Shell, Wendy J., Sam W. and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lönnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lönnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lönnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lönnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Æsop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediæval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syöjätär, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Mighty Mikko
+       A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+Author: Parker Fillmore
+
+Illustrator: Jay Van Everen
+
+Release Date: November 23, 2011 [EBook #38112]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Suzanne Shell, Wendy J., Sam W. and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lonnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lonnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lonnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lonnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Aesop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediaeval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syojatar, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
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diff --git a/old/38112.zip b/old/38112.zip
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Mighty Mikko
+       A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+Author: Parker Fillmore
+
+Illustrator: Jay Van Everen
+
+Release Date: November 23, 2011 [EBook #38112]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MIGHTY MIKKO ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Suzanne Shell, Wendy J., Sam W. and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lonnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lonnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lonnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lonnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Aesop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediaeval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syojatar, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Mighty Mikko, by Parker Fillmore
+
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diff --git a/old/mikko/mikko-ascii.txt b/old/mikko/mikko-ascii.txt
new file mode 100644
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--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/mikko/mikko-ascii.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,7214 @@
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lonnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lonnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lonnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lonnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Aesop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediaeval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syojatar, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.
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+    .sig {text-align: right; margin-right: 4em;} /* signature aligned right */
+    .address  {margin-left: 4em;} /* address indented */
+
+    .lrgfont {font-size: 120%;}
+    .smlfont {font-size: 90%;}
+    .vsmlfont {font-size: 70%;}
+    .tinyfont {font-size: 50%;}
+
+    .padtop  {padding-top: 3em;}
+    .padbase {padding-bottom: 3em;}
+    .ipadbase {padding-bottom: 2em;}
+
+    .subtitle {text-align: center; font-style: italic; font-size: 120%;}
+    .reptitle {text-align: center; margin-top: 3em; font-size: 120%;}
+
+    </style>
+  </head>
+<body>
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 409px;">
+<img src="images/cover.jpg" width="409" height="600"
+alt="Front cover of the book" />
+</div>
+
+
+
+<h1>MIGHTY MIKKO</h1>
+
+<p class="center lrgfont">A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales</p>
+
+<p class="center padtop"><span class="vsmlfont">BY</span><br />
+<span class="lrgfont">PARKER FILLMORE</span></p>
+
+
+<p class="center padtop"><span class="vsmlfont">WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS<br />
+BY</span><br />
+JAY VAN EVEREN</p>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 169px;">
+<img src="images/mmd01.png" width="169" height="265"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p class="center"><span class="vsmlfont">NEW YORK</span><br />
+HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY</p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center padtop smlfont">Copyright, 1922, by<br />
+PARKER FILLMORE</p>
+
+<p class="center padtop padbase vsmlfont">PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY<br />
+THE QUINN &amp; BODEN COMPANY<br />
+RAHWAY, N J</p>
+
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Other books by the same author">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl"><i>BY PARKER FILLMORE</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES<br />
+THE SHOEMAKER&rsquo;S APRON<br />
+<i>Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE LAUGHING PRINCE<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Jay Van Everen</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE HICKORY LIMB<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Rose Cecil O&rsquo;Neill</i></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdl">THE ROSIE WORLD<br />
+<i>Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright</i></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 402px;">
+<a name="illo01" id="illo01"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi01.jpg" width="402" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page <a href="#Page_17"><b>17</b></a></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center padtop padbase">To my niece<br />
+<br />
+<span class="smcap">Phyllis</span><br />
+<br />
+<span class="smlfont">These stories of her mother&rsquo;s native land</span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>vii]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd02.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>NOTE</h2>
+
+
+<p>The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small
+peoples of Europe in the early nineteenth century
+touched faraway Finland and started the Finns on
+the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars
+who were also patriots found that the native tongue,
+lost to the educated and the well-to-do, had been preserved
+in the songs and stories which were current
+among the peasants. Elias L&ouml;nnrot spent a long and
+busy life collecting those ancient <i>runos</i> from which he
+succeeded in building up a national epic, the <i>Kalevala</i>.
+This is L&ouml;nnrot&rsquo;s great contribution to his own country
+and to the world. Beside the material for the <i>Kalevala</i>
+L&ouml;nnrot made important collections of lyrics, proverbs,
+and stories.</p>
+
+<p>During his time and since other patriot scholars have
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>viii]</a></span>
+made faithful records of the songs and tales which the
+old Finnish minstrels, the <i>runolaulajat</i>, chanted to the
+strains of the <i>kantele</i>. The mass of such material now
+gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk
+and of great importance to the student of comparative
+folklore.</p>
+
+<p>My own excursions into the Finnish have been made
+possible through the kindness and endless patience of
+my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt J. Rahlson).
+With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present
+volume is the traveler&rsquo;s pack I have brought home
+with me filled with strange treasures which will, I hope,
+seem as lovely to others as they seemed to me when first
+I came upon them.</p>
+
+<p>The stories as I offer them are not translations but
+my own versions. Literal translations from the Finnish
+would make small appeal to the general reader. To
+English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and monotonous.
+One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby&rsquo;s excellent
+translation of the <i>Kalevala</i> to realize the truth of
+this statement. So I make no apology for retelling
+these tales in a manner more likely to prove entertaining
+to the English reader, whether child or adult.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>ix]</a></span>
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may
+be found in the various folklore collections made by Eero
+Salmelainen, one of the patriotic young scholars who
+followed in L&ouml;nnrot&rsquo;s footsteps. His books were sponsored
+by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the
+Finns at a time when Swedish was the official language
+of the country.</p>
+
+<p>Full of local color as these stories are, it would be
+vain to pretend that they are not, for the most part,
+variants of stories told the world over. All that I can
+claim for them is that they are dramatic and picturesque,
+that they are told with a wealth of charming
+detail which is essentially Finnish, and that they are
+certainly new to the generality of English readers.
+<i>The Three Chests</i>, so characteristic in feeling of a country
+famous for its lakes and marshes, is the variant of
+a German story which Grimm gives as <i>Fitcher&rsquo;s Bird</i>.
+Of <i>The Forest Bride</i> I have found variants in the folklore
+of many lands. There are several very beautiful
+ones in the Russian; in other books I myself have retold
+two, one current among the Czechs and one among the
+Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in <i>The
+Three Feathers</i> and <i>The Poor Miller&rsquo;s Boy and the
+Cat</i>; and Madame d&rsquo;Aulnoy has used the same story
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>x]</a></span>
+in her elaborate tale, <i>The White Cat</i>. There is a well-known
+Oriental version of <i>Mighty Mikko</i> in which the
+part of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that
+Mikko&rsquo;s faithful retainer, though neither city-bred nor
+polished, is after all pretty closely related to that most
+debonnaire of Frenchmen, <i>Puss in Boots</i>. Perrault
+probably and Madame d&rsquo;Aulnoy certainly are in turn
+indebted to Straparola. And so it goes.</p>
+
+<p>The little cycle of animal stories included under
+<i>Mikko the Fox</i> will of course instantly invite comparison
+with the Beast Epic of <i>Reynard the Fox</i>. The two
+have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in &AElig;sop and in those books of animal analogues,
+widely read in medi&aelig;val times, <i>Physiologus</i> and
+the <i>Disciplina Clericalis</i> of Petrus Alfonsus. The
+<i>Reynard</i> as we have it is a finished satire on church and
+state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time
+that the animal stories found in Finland were debased
+versions of the <i>Reynard</i> stories, but scholars are now
+of opinion that they antedate <i>Reynard</i> and are similar
+to the earlier simpler stories upon which the <i>Reynard</i>
+cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say
+I do not present them for this reason but because they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xi" id="Page_xi">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xi]</a></span>
+seem to me charming merely as fables. The animals
+here are not the clerics and the judges and the nobles
+that the <i>Reynard</i> animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently
+amusing, and always very human.</p>
+
+<p>I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Sy&ouml;j&auml;t&auml;r, the name of the dread Finnish witch,
+as Suyettar. I have been unwilling to translate by the
+insufficient word, <em>bath-house</em> or <em>vapor bath</em>, that very
+characteristic institution of Finnish family life, the
+<em>sauna</em>, but have retained the Finnish word, <i>sauna</i>, allowing
+the context in each case to indicate the meaning.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">P. F.</p>
+
+<p class="address"><i>New York<br />
+June 19, 1922</i></p>
+
+<div class="figright" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xii" id="Page_xii"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop clearb"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xiii" id="Page_xiii">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xiii]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd04.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>CONTENTS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">&nbsp;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><small>PAGE</small></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_25">25</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_47">47</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_67">67</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_99">99</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who was a Princess</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_121">121</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_141">141</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_155">155</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn&rsquo;t Lose His Temper</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_171">171</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xiv" id="Page_xiv">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xiv]</a></span>THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_193">193</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">FAMILIAR FACES:</td>
+    <td class="tdr">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">I</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Mary, Mary, So Contrary!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_209">209</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">II</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Jane, Jane, Don&rsquo;t Complain!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_215">215</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">III</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Susan Walker, What a Talker!</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_221">221</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh" colspan="2">MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures</td>
+    <td class="tdr">&nbsp;</td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">I</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Animals Take a Bite</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_229">229</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">II</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Partners</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_235">235</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">III</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Fox and the Crow</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_243">243</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">IV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Chief Mourner</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_251">251</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">V</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Mirri, the Cat</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_257">257</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Fox&rsquo;s Servant</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_263">263</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Wolf Sings</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_267">267</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">VIII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Clever Goat</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_273">273</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">IX</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Harvest</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_279">279</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">X</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Porridge</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_283">283</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Nurse Mikko</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_287">287</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Bear Says <em>North</em></td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_293">293</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XIII</td>
+    <td class="tdl">Osmo&rsquo;s Share</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_297">297</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XIV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Reward of Kindness</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_301">301</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XV</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Bear and the Mouse</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_307">307</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdrt">XVI</td>
+    <td class="tdl">The Last of Osmo</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_309">309</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xv" id="Page_xv">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xv]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd05.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h2>FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS</h2>
+
+
+<div class="centered">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Table of Contents">
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Ilona came floating up through the waves</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo01"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&nbsp;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><small>PAGE</small></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s arm</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo02">15</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo03">33</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">She fitted the key in the lock</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo04">57</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo05">85</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Suyettar bewitching Kerttu</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo06">111</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">She beckoned to Veikko</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo07">135</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo08">147</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Olli and the Troll&rsquo;s horse</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo09">161</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo10">183</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo11">203</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">When she got to the middle of the stream</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo12">208</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">They were so busy eating and drinking</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo13">214</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">They carried home the treasure on their backs</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo14">220</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: &ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll eat the smallest of us next!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo15">228</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_xvi" id="Page_xvi">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>xvi]</a></span>&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There&rsquo;s butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo16">239</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!&rdquo; the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo17">249</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo18">253</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo19">259</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it full of pins and needles</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo20">262</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at the top of his voice</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo21">269</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running helter-skelter in all directions</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo22">272</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo23">278</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far and wide and the current carried it off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo24">282</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo25">289</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo26">292</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my turnips and my bread don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo27">296</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to him</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo28">300</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo29">306</a></td>
+  </tr>
+  <tr>
+    <td class="tdlh">So that was the End</td>
+    <td class="tdr"><a href="#illo30">315</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>1]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE TRUE BRIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd06.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>3]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE TRUE BRIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd07.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There were once two orphans, a
+brother and a sister, who lived alone in
+the old farmhouse where their fathers
+before them had lived for many generations.
+The brother&rsquo;s name was
+Osmo, the sister&rsquo;s Ilona. Osmo was an
+industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren
+and he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister,&rdquo; he said one day, &ldquo;I think it might be well
+if I went out into the world and found work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do as you think best, brother,&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+sure I can manage on here alone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his
+sister as soon as he could give her a new home. He
+wandered far and wide and at last got employment
+from the King&rsquo;s Son as a shepherd.</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son was about Osmo&rsquo;s age, and often
+when he met Osmo tending his flocks he would stop and
+talk to him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>4]</a></span>
+One day Osmo told the King&rsquo;s Son about his sister,
+Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have wandered far over the face of the earth,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;and never have I seen so beautiful a maiden
+as Ilona.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What does she look like?&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son asked.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the
+King&rsquo;s Son so beautiful that at once he fell in love
+with her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;if you will go home and get your
+sister, I will marry her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route
+by which he had come but straight over the water in
+a boat.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister,&rdquo; he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, &ldquo;you
+must come with me at once for the King&rsquo;s Son wishes
+to marry you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she
+sighed and shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because it grieves me to leave this old house where
+our fathers have lived for so many generations.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared
+to the King&rsquo;s castle where you will live once
+you marry the King&rsquo;s Son!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>5]</a></span>
+But Ilona only shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s no use, brother! I can&rsquo;t bear to leave this old
+house until the grindstone with which our fathers for
+generations ground their meal is worn out.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly
+and broke the old grindstone into small pieces. He
+then put the pieces together so that the stone looked
+the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, sister, you&rsquo;ll come, will you not?&rdquo; Osmo
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>But again Ilona shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s no use, brother. I can&rsquo;t bear to go until the
+old stool where our mothers have sat spinning these
+many generations is worn through.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again Osmo took things into his own hands and
+going secretly to the old spinning stool he broke it and
+when Ilona sat on it again it fell to pieces.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona said she couldn&rsquo;t go until the old mortar
+which had been in use for generations should fall to
+bits at a blow from the pestle. Osmo cracked the mortar
+and the next time Ilona struck it with the pestle
+it broke.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona said she couldn&rsquo;t go until the old worn
+doorsill over which so many of their forefathers had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>6]</a></span>
+walked should fall to splinters at the brush of her
+skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into thin
+slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush
+of her skirts sent the splinters flying.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I see now I must go,&rdquo; Ilona said, &ldquo;for the house
+of our forefathers no longer holds me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and
+skirts in a bright wooden box and, calling her little
+dog Pilka, she stepped into the boat and Osmo rowed
+her off in the direction of the King&rsquo;s castle.</p>
+
+<p>Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the
+end of which stood a woman waving her arms. That
+is she looked like a woman. Really she was Suyettar
+but they, of course, did not know this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take me in your boat!&rdquo; she cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shall we?&rdquo; Osmo asked his sister.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think we ought to,&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t
+know who she is or what she wants and she may be
+evil.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you think we ought to take her?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; Ilona said.</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>7]</a></span>
+such a pitiful outcry demanding what they meant denying
+assistance to a poor woman that Osmo was unable
+longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona&rsquo;s warning he
+rowed to land.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated
+herself in the middle with her face towards Osmo and
+her back towards Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What a fine young man!&rdquo; Suyettar said in whining
+flattering tones. &ldquo;See how strong he is at the oars!
+And what a beautiful girl, too! I daresay the King&rsquo;s
+Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that
+the King&rsquo;s Son had already promised to marry Ilona.
+At that an evil look came into Suyettar&rsquo;s face and
+she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then she
+began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what
+Ilona was saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was
+saying.</p>
+
+<p>At last in the distance the towers of the King&rsquo;s
+castle appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stand up, sister!&rdquo; Osmo said. &ldquo;Shake out your
+skirts and arrange your pretty ribbons! We&rsquo;ll soon be
+landing now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Ilona could see her brother&rsquo;s lips moving but of
+course she could not hear what he was saying.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>8]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What is it, brother?&rdquo; she asked.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar answered for him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No!&rdquo; Ilona cried. &ldquo;He couldn&rsquo;t order anything
+so cruel as that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Presently Osmo said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister, what ails you? Don&rsquo;t you hear me? Shake
+out your skirts and arrange your pretty ribbons for
+we&rsquo;ll soon be landing now.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is it, brother?&rdquo; Ilona asked.</p>
+
+<p>As before Suyettar answered for him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!&rdquo; Ilona
+cried, bursting into tears. &ldquo;Is it for this you made
+me leave the home of my fathers?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A third time Osmo said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and
+arrange your ribbons! We&rsquo;ll soon be landing now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t hear you, brother! What is it you say?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the
+water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If he says I must, I must!&rdquo; poor Ilona sobbed, and
+with that she leapt overboard.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>9]</a></span>
+and with her own arms rowed off and Ilona was left
+to sink.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What will become of me now!&rdquo; Osmo cried. &ldquo;When
+the King&rsquo;s Son finds I have not brought him my sister
+he will surely order my death!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not at all!&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;Do as I say and no
+harm will come to you. Offer me to the King&rsquo;s Son
+and tell him I am your sister. He won&rsquo;t know the
+difference and anyway I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;m just as beautiful
+as Ilona ever was!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that
+held Ilona&rsquo;s clothes and helped herself to skirt and
+bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked herself
+out in these and for a little while she really did succeed
+in looking like a pretty young girl.</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King&rsquo;s Son as
+Ilona, and the King&rsquo;s Son because he had given his
+word married her. But before one day was past, he
+called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What did you mean by telling me your sister was
+beautiful?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t she beautiful?&rdquo; Osmo faltered.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! I thought she was at first but she isn&rsquo;t! She
+is ugly and evil and you shall pay the penalty for
+having deceived me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>10]</a></span>
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a
+place filled with serpents.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you are innocent,&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son said, &ldquo;the
+serpents will not harm you. If you are guilty they will
+devour you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the
+water sank down, down, down, until she reached the
+Sea King&rsquo;s palace. They received her kindly there
+and comforted her and the Sea King&rsquo;s Son, touched
+by her grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But
+Ilona was homesick for the upper world and would
+not listen to him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I want to see my brother again!&rdquo; she wept.</p>
+
+<p>They told her that the King&rsquo;s Son had thrown her
+brother to the serpents and had married Suyettar in
+her stead, but Ilona still begged so pitifully to be
+allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea King
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, then! For three successive nights I will
+allow you to return to the upper world. But after
+that never again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea
+with great strands of pearls about her neck and to
+each of her ankles they attached long silver chains.
+As she rose in the water the sound of the chains was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>11]</a></span>
+like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.</p>
+
+<p>Ilona came to the surface of the water just where
+Osmo had landed. The first thing she saw was his
+boat at the water&rsquo;s edge and curled up asleep in the
+bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pilka!&rdquo; Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with
+a bark of joy and licked Ilona&rsquo;s hand and yelped and
+frisked.</p>
+
+<p>Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Lift the latch and slip inside!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the watchdog in the yard,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the sleeping men on guard!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Creep in softly as a snake,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Then creep out before they wake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Pilka barked and frisked and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, mistress, yes! I&rsquo;ll do whatever you bid me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of
+gold and silver which she herself had worked down
+in the Sea King&rsquo;s palace.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take this,&rdquo; she said to Pilka, &ldquo;and put it on the
+pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son lies asleep. Perhaps
+when he sees it he will know that it comes from Osmo&rsquo;s
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>12]</a></span>
+true sister and that the frightful creature he has married
+is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before
+the serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful
+Pilka, and come back to me before the dawn.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Pilka raced off to the King&rsquo;s palace carrying the
+square of embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and
+half an hour before sunrise the little dog came panting
+back.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and
+how is my poor love, the King&rsquo;s Son?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo is still with the serpents,&rdquo; Pilka answered,
+&ldquo;but they haven&rsquo;t eaten him yet. I left the embroidered
+square on the pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son&rsquo;s head was
+lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar&rsquo;s awful
+mouth was open and she was snoring horribly. The
+King&rsquo;s Son moved uneasily for he was troubled even
+in his sleep.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And did you go through the castle, Pilka?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, dear mistress.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that
+shamed the King&rsquo;s Son, for Suyettar served bones instead
+of meat, fish heads, turnip tops, and bread burned
+to a cinder.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>13]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Good Pilka!&rdquo; Ilona said. &ldquo;Good little dog! You
+have done well! Now the dawn is coming and I must
+go back to the Sea King&rsquo;s palace. But I shall come
+again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you
+be here waiting for me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea
+to a clanking of chains that sounded like silver bells.
+The King&rsquo;s Son heard them in his sleep and for a
+moment woke and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s what?&rdquo; snarled Suyettar. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re dreaming!
+Go back to sleep!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few hours later when he woke again, he found
+the lovely square of embroidery on his pillow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made this?&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She
+turned on him quickly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made what?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it
+from him, but he held it tight.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I made it, of course!&rdquo; she declared. &ldquo;Who but me
+would sit up all night and work while you lay snoring!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the King&rsquo;s Son, as he folded the embroidery,
+muttered to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t look to me much like your work!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>14]</a></span>
+After he had breakfasted, the King&rsquo;s Son asked for
+news of Osmo. A slave was sent to the place of the
+serpents and when he returned he reported that Osmo
+was sitting amongst them uninjured.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The old king snake has made friends with him,&rdquo;
+he added, &ldquo;and has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s
+arm.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son was amazed at this news and also
+relieved, for the whole affair troubled him sorely and
+he was beginning to suspect a mystery.</p>
+
+<p>He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a
+little hut on the seashore and he decided he would go
+and consult her. So he went to her and told her about
+Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to
+his sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead
+of devouring Osmo had made friends with him and
+last he showed her the square of lovely embroidery he
+had found on his pillow that morning.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There is a mystery somewhere, granny,&rdquo; he said
+in conclusion, &ldquo;and I know not how to solve it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My son,&rdquo; she said at last, &ldquo;that is never Osmo&rsquo;s
+sister that you have married. Take an old woman&rsquo;s
+word&mdash;it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo&rsquo;s sister must be alive
+and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15"><!-- original location of King Snake illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>17]</a></span>
+probably means that she begs you to release her
+brother.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo02" id="illo02"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi02.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo&rsquo;s arm</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Suyettar!&rdquo; repeated the King&rsquo;s Son, aghast.</p>
+
+<p>At first he couldn&rsquo;t believe such a horrible thing
+possible and yet that, if it were so, would explain much.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder if you&rsquo;re right,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I must be
+on my guard!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound
+of silver chimes Ilona came floating up through the
+waves and little Pilka, as she appeared, greeted her
+with barks of joy.</p>
+
+<p>As before Ilona sang:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Lift the latch and slip inside!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the watchdog in the yard,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Past the sleeping men on guard!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Creep in softly as a snake,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Then creep out before they wake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Peely, peely, Pilka!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King&rsquo;s Son.
+Beautifully embroidered it was in gold and silver and
+Ilona herself had worked it in the Sea King&rsquo;s
+palace.</p>
+
+<p>Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>18]</a></span>
+pillow where the King&rsquo;s Son could see it as soon as he
+woke. Then Pilka visited the place of the serpents and
+before the first ray of dawn was back at the seashore
+to reassure Ilona of Osmo&rsquo;s safety.</p>
+
+<p>Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves
+to the chime of silver bells, called out to Pilka:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me
+not, dear Pilka, for to-night is the last night that the
+Sea King will allow me to come to the upper world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be here, dear mistress, that I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son that morning, as he opened his eyes,
+saw the embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his
+head. He thought at first he must be dreaming for
+it was more beautiful than any shirt that had ever
+been worked by human fingers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he sighed at last, &ldquo;who made this?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who made what?&rdquo; Suyettar demanded rudely.</p>
+
+<p>When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but
+the King&rsquo;s Son held it from her. Then she pretended
+to laugh and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any
+one else in the world would sit up all night and work
+for you while you lie there snoring! And small thanks
+I get for it, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>19]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t look to me like your work!&rdquo; said the
+King&rsquo;s Son significantly.</p>
+
+<p>Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive
+and unhurt by the serpents.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; thought the King&rsquo;s Son.</p>
+
+<p>He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise
+woman another visit.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; she said, when she saw the shirt, &ldquo;now I understand!
+Listen, my Prince: last night at midnight
+I was awakened by the chime of silver bells and I got
+up and looked out the door. Just there at the water&rsquo;s
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight.
+A lovely maiden rose from the waves holding in her
+hands the very shirt that you now have. A little dog
+that was lying in the boat greeted her with barks of
+joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it
+the shirt and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must
+be Ilona. She must be in the Sea King&rsquo;s power and I
+think she is begging you to rescue her and to release
+her brother.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King&rsquo;s Son slowly nodded his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Granny, I&rsquo;m sure what you say is true! Help me
+to rescue Ilona and I shall reward you richly.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night,
+I heard Ilona say, is the last night that the Sea King
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>20]</a></span>
+will allow her to come to the upper world. Go now
+to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide
+you down yonder in the shadow of the boat. At midnight
+when you hear the silver chimes and the maiden
+slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep
+of your scythe, cut the silver chains that are fastened
+to her ankles. But remember, my son, that is not all.
+She is under enchantment and as you try to grasp her
+the Sea King will change her to many things&mdash;a fish,
+a bird, a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form
+she escape you, then all is lost.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At once the King&rsquo;s Son hurried away to the smithy
+and had the smith forge him a strong iron chain and
+a heavy sharp scythe. Then when night fell he hid in
+the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming
+as of silver bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves.
+As she came she began singing:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Peely, peely, Pilka, pide&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly the King&rsquo;s Son threw the strong iron chain
+about her and drew her to him. Then with one mighty
+sweep of the scythe he severed the silver chains that
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>21]</a></span>
+were attached to her ankles and the silver chains fell
+chiming into the depths. Another instant and the
+maiden in his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that
+squirmed and wriggled and almost slipped through his
+fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was not a fish
+but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He
+killed the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing
+lizard. And so on through many transformations,
+growing finally small and weak until at last there was
+only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, dear one,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you are my true bride
+and not Suyettar who pretended she was you! Come,
+we will go at once to the castle and confront her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Ilona cried out at this:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she
+saw me would kill me and devour me! Keep me from
+her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, my dear one,&rdquo; the King&rsquo;s Son said.
+&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll wait until to-morrow and after to-morrow there
+will be no Suyettar to fear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for that night they took shelter in the old wise
+woman&rsquo;s hut, Ilona and the King&rsquo;s Son and faithful
+little Pilka.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning early the King&rsquo;s Son returned to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>22]</a></span>
+the castle and had the <i>sauna</i> heated. Just inside the
+door he had a deep hole dug and filled it with burning
+tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched a brown
+mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was
+ready he went indoors and roused Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where have you been all night?&rdquo; she demanded
+angrily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Forgive me this time,&rdquo; he begged in pretended
+humility, &ldquo;and I promise never again to be parted
+from my own true bride. Come now, my dear, and
+bathe for the <i>sauna</i> is ready.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her
+go to the <i>sauna</i> just as if she were a real human being,
+put on a long bathrobe and clapped her hands. Four
+slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side.
+Slowly she marched out of the castle, across the courtyard,
+and over to the <i>sauna</i>.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They all really think I&rsquo;m a human princess!&rdquo; she
+said to herself, and she was so sure she was beautiful
+and admired that she tossed her head and smirked from
+side to side and took little mincing steps.</p>
+
+<p>When she reached the <i>sauna</i> she was ready to drop
+the bathrobe and jump over the doorsill to the steaming
+shelf, but the King&rsquo;s Son whispered:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>23]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful
+princess and walk over the blue mat!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk
+of her ugly face, Suyettar stepped on the blue mat
+and sank into the hole of burning tar. Then the King&rsquo;s
+Son quickly locked the door of the <i>sauna</i> and left her
+there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the
+only way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last
+hateful thing Suyettar did was to tear out handfuls of
+her hair and scatter them broadcast in the air.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let these,&rdquo; she cried, yelling and cursing, &ldquo;turn into
+mosquitos and worms and moths and trouble mankind
+forever!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether
+and the King&rsquo;s Son knew that it was now safe
+to bring Ilona home. First, however, he had Osmo released
+from the place of the serpents and asked his
+forgiveness for the unjust punishment.</p>
+
+<p>Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the
+old wise woman and there with tears of happiness the
+brother and sister were reunited. The King&rsquo;s Son to
+show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her to
+accompany them to the castle and presently they all
+set forth with Pilka frisking ahead and barking for
+joy.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>24]</a></span>
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at
+the castle and this time it was not bones and fish heads
+and burnt crusts but such food as the King&rsquo;s Son had
+not tasted for many a day.</p>
+
+<p>To celebrate his happy marriage the King&rsquo;s Son made
+Osmo his chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new
+collar.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now at last,&rdquo; Ilona said, &ldquo;I am glad I left the house
+of my forefathers.&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>25]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>MIGHTY MIKKO</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 246px;">
+<img src="images/mmd08.png" width="246" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>27]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">MIGHTY MIKKO</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an old woodsman
+and his wife who had an only son
+named Mikko. As the mother lay
+dying the young man wept bitterly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;When you are gone, my dear
+mother,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;there will be no one
+left to think of me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The poor woman comforted him as best she could
+and said to him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You will still have your father.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Shortly after the woman&rsquo;s death, the old man, too,
+was taken ill.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone,&rdquo;
+Mikko thought, as he sat beside his father&rsquo;s bedside
+and saw him grow weaker and weaker.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My boy,&rdquo; the old man said just before he died, &ldquo;I
+have nothing to leave you but the three snares with
+which these many years I have caught wild animals.
+Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>28]</a></span>
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught
+in any of them, free it gently and bring it home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After his father&rsquo;s death, Mikko remembered the
+snares and went out to the woods to see them. The first
+was empty and also the second, but in the third he
+found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox&rsquo;s feet and then
+carried the little creature home in his arms. He shared
+his supper with it and when he lay down to sleep the
+Fox curled up at his feet. They lived together some
+time until they became close friends.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; said the Fox one day, &ldquo;why are you so
+sad?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because I&rsquo;m lonely.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pooh!&rdquo; said the Fox. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s no way for a young
+man to talk! You ought to get married! Then you
+wouldn&rsquo;t feel lonely!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Married!&rdquo; Mikko repeated. &ldquo;How can I get
+married? I can&rsquo;t marry a poor girl because I&rsquo;m too
+poor myself and a rich girl wouldn&rsquo;t marry me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; said the Fox. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re a fine well set
+up young man and you&rsquo;re kind and gentle. What more
+could a princess ask?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him
+for a husband.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>29]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I mean what I say!&rdquo; the Fox insisted. &ldquo;Take our
+own Princess now. What would you think of marrying
+her?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko laughed louder than before.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have heard,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;that she is the most beautiful
+princess in the world! Any man would be happy
+to marry her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;if you feel that way
+about her then I&rsquo;ll arrange the wedding for you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the
+royal castle and gain audience with the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master sends you greetings,&rdquo; the Fox said,
+&ldquo;and he begs you to loan him your bushel measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My bushel measure!&rdquo; the King repeated in surprise.
+&ldquo;Who is your master and why does he want
+my bushel measure?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ssh!&rdquo; the Fox whispered as though he didn&rsquo;t want
+the courtiers to hear what he was saying. Then slipping
+up quite close to the King he murmured in his ear:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven&rsquo;t you?&mdash;Mighty
+Mikko as he&rsquo;s called.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King had never heard of any Mikko who was
+known as Mighty Mikko but, thinking that perhaps
+he should have heard of him, he shook his head and
+murmured:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>30]</a></span>
+&ldquo;H&rsquo;m! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure!
+Yes, yes, of course!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master is about to start off on a journey and
+he needs a bushel measure for a very particular reason.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I understand! I understand!&rdquo; the King said, although
+he didn&rsquo;t understand at all, and he gave orders
+that the bushel measure which they used in the storeroom
+of the castle be brought in and given to the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the
+woods. Then he scurried about to all sorts of little
+out of the way nooks and crannies where people had
+hidden their savings and he dug up a gold piece here
+and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then
+he went back to the woods and stuck the various coins
+in the cracks of the measure. The next day he returned
+to the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master, Mighty Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;sends you
+thanks, O King, for the use of your bushel measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave
+him the measure he peeped inside to see if by chance it
+contained any trace of what had recently been measured.
+His eye of course at once caught the glint of the gold
+and silver coins lodged in the cracks.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said, thinking Mikko must be a very
+mighty lord indeed to be so careless of his wealth; &ldquo;I
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>31]</a></span>
+should like to meet your master. Won&rsquo;t you and he
+come and visit me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was what the Fox wanted the King to say
+but he pretended to hesitate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;but I fear my master can&rsquo;t accept it just now.
+He wants to get married soon and we are about to
+start off on a long journey to inspect a number of foreign
+princesses.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This made the King all the more anxious to have
+Mikko visit him at once for he thought that if Mikko
+should see his daughter before he saw those foreign
+princesses he might fall in love with her and marry her.
+So he said to the Fox:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master
+to make me a visit before he starts out on his travels!
+You will, won&rsquo;t you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox looked this way and that as if he were
+too embarrassed to speak.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; he said at last, &ldquo;I pray you pardon
+my frankness. The truth is you are not rich enough
+to entertain my master and your castle isn&rsquo;t big enough
+to house the immense retinue that always attends him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko,
+lost his head completely.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>32]</a></span>
+&ldquo;My dear Fox,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll give you anything in
+the world if you prevail upon your master to visit me
+at once! Couldn&rsquo;t you suggest to him to travel with
+a modest retinue this time?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue
+or to go on foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended
+only by me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Couldn&rsquo;t you prevail on him to come to me disguised
+as a poor woodsman?&rdquo; the King begged. &ldquo;Once
+he was here, I could place gorgeous clothes at his
+disposal.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But still the Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I fear Your Majesty&rsquo;s wardrobe doesn&rsquo;t contain the
+kind of clothes my master is accustomed to.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I assure you I&rsquo;ve got some very good clothes,&rdquo; the
+King said. &ldquo;Come along this minute and we&rsquo;ll go
+through them and I&rsquo;m sure you&rsquo;ll find some that your
+master would wear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe
+with hundreds and hundreds of hooks upon which
+were hung hundreds of coats and breeches and embroidered
+shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring
+the costumes down one by one and place them before
+the Fox.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>33]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo03" id="illo03"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi03.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>35]</a></span>
+They began with the plainer clothes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good enough for most people,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;but
+not for my master.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then they took down garments of a finer grade.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m afraid you&rsquo;re going to all this trouble for
+nothing,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;Frankly now, don&rsquo;t you realize
+that my master couldn&rsquo;t possibly put on any of
+these things!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use
+his most gorgeous clothes of all, now ordered these to
+be shown.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically,
+and at last said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear
+these for a few days. They are not what he is accustomed
+to wear but I will say this for him: he is not
+proud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, my dear Fox, I&rsquo;ll have the guest chambers
+put in readiness for your master&rsquo;s visit and I&rsquo;ll
+have all these, my finest clothes, laid out for him. You
+won&rsquo;t disappoint me, will you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do my best,&rdquo; the Fox promised.</p>
+
+<p>With that he bade the King a civil good day and
+ran home to Mikko.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>36]</a></span>
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an
+upper window of the castle, she saw a young woodsman
+approaching accompanied by a Fox. He was a
+fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from
+the presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave
+a long sigh and confided to her serving maid:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I think I could fall in love with that young man
+if he really were only a woodsman!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Later when she saw him arrayed in her father&rsquo;s
+finest clothes&mdash;which looked so well on Mikko that no
+one even recognized them as the King&rsquo;s&mdash;she lost her
+heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl
+might before a handsome young man.</p>
+
+<p>All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko.
+The ladies went into ecstasies over his modest manners,
+his fine figure, and the gorgeousness of his
+clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow!
+In spite of his great wealth see how politely he listens
+to us when we talk!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Fox went privately to the King,
+and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master is a man of few words and quick
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>37]</a></span>
+judgment. He bids me tell you that your daughter, the
+Princess, pleases him mightily and that, with your approval,
+he will make his addresses to her at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was greatly agitated and began:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Fox&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Fox interrupted him to say:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Think the matter over carefully and give me your
+decision to-morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the King consulted with the Princess and with
+his Councilors and in a short time the marriage was
+arranged and the wedding ceremony actually performed!</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t I tell you?&rdquo; the Fox said, when he and
+Mikko were alone after the wedding.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Mikko acknowledged, &ldquo;you did promise that
+I should marry the Princess. But, tell me, now that
+I am married what am I to do? I can&rsquo;t live on here
+forever with my wife.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Put your mind at rest,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve thought
+of everything. Just do as I tell you and you&rsquo;ll have
+nothing to regret. To-night say to the King: &lsquo;It is
+now only fitting that you should visit me and see for
+yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is
+hereafter to be mistress!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Mikko said this to the King, the King was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>38]</a></span>
+overjoyed for now that the marriage had actually
+taken place he was wondering whether he hadn&rsquo;t perhaps
+been a little hasty. Mikko&rsquo;s words reassured him
+and he eagerly accepted the invitation.</p>
+
+<p>On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ll run on ahead and get things ready for
+you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But where are you going?&rdquo; Mikko said, frightened
+at the thought of being deserted by his little friend.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A few days&rsquo; march from here there is a very gorgeous
+castle belonging to a wicked old dragon who is
+known as the Worm. I think the Worm&rsquo;s castle would
+just about suit you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure it would,&rdquo; Mikko agreed. &ldquo;But how are
+we to get it away from the Worm?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Trust me,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;All you need do is this:
+lead the King and his courtiers along the main highway
+until by noon to-morrow you reach a crossroads. Turn
+there to the left and go straight on until you see the
+tower of the Worm&rsquo;s castle. If you meet any men by
+the wayside, shepherds or the like, ask them whose men
+they are and show no surprise at their answer. So now,
+dear master, farewell until we meet again at your beautiful
+castle.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>39]</a></span>
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko
+and the Princess and the King attended by the whole
+Court followed in more leisurely fashion.</p>
+
+<p>The little Fox, when he had left the main highway
+at the crossroads, soon met ten woodsmen with axes
+over their shoulders. They were all dressed in blue
+smocks of the same cut.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Fox said politely. &ldquo;Whose men
+are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Our master is known as the Worm,&rdquo; the woodsmen
+told him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor, poor lads!&rdquo; the Fox said, shaking his head
+sadly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo; the woodsmen asked.</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome
+with emotion to speak. Then he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor lads, don&rsquo;t you know that the King is
+coming with a great force to destroy the Worm and all
+his people?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news
+threw them into great consternation.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Is there no way for us to escape?&rdquo; they asked.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; he said at last, &ldquo;there is one way you might
+escape and that is by telling every one who asks you
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>40]</a></span>
+that you are the Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men. But if you
+value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo; the woodsmen at
+once began repeating over and over. &ldquo;We are Mighty
+Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty
+grooms, dressed in the same blue smocks, who were tending
+a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox talked to
+the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen
+and before he left them they, too, were shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand
+sheep tended by thirty shepherds all dressed in the
+Worm&rsquo;s blue smocks. He stopped and talked to
+them until he had them roaring out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle
+of the Worm. He found the Worm himself inside lolling
+lazily about. He was a huge dragon and had been
+a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and his
+lands and his servants and his possessions had all been
+won in battle. But now for many years no one had
+cared to fight him and he had grown fat and lazy.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Fox said, pretending to be very
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>41]</a></span>
+breathless and frightened. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re the Worm, aren&rsquo;t
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the dragon said, boastfully, &ldquo;I am the great
+Worm!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course
+none of us can expect to live forever. Well, I must
+hurry along. I thought I would just stop and say
+good-by.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Made uneasy by the Fox&rsquo;s words, the Worm cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait just a minute! What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm&rsquo;s
+entreaty he paused and said over his shoulder:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don&rsquo;t you?
+that the King with a great force is coming to destroy
+you and all your people!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green
+with fright. He knew he was fat and helpless and
+could never again fight as in the years gone by.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t go just yet!&rdquo; he begged the Fox. &ldquo;When is
+the King coming?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s on the highway now! That&rsquo;s why I must be
+going! Good-by!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I&rsquo;ll reward
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>42]</a></span>
+you richly! Help me to hide so that the King won&rsquo;t
+find me! What about the shed where the linen is
+stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you
+locked the door from the outside the King could never
+find me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Fox agreed, &ldquo;but we must hurry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was
+kept and the Worm hid himself under the linen. The
+Fox locked the door, then set fire to the shed, and soon
+there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon, the
+Worm, but a handful of ashes.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox now called together the dragon&rsquo;s household
+and talked them over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen
+and the grooms and the shepherds.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering
+the ground over which the Fox had sped so
+quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen in blue
+smocks, the King said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder whose woodsmen those are.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the
+ten of them shouted out at the top of their voices:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court
+were impressed anew with his modesty.</p>
+
+<p>A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>43]</a></span>
+their hundred prancing horses. When the grooms were
+questioned, they answered with a shout:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Fox certainly spoke the truth,&rdquo; the King thought
+to himself, &ldquo;when he told me of Mikko&rsquo;s riches!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A little later the thirty shepherds when they were
+questioned made answer in a chorus that was deafening
+to hear:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his
+son-in-law made the King feel poor and humble in comparison
+and the courtiers whispered among themselves:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be
+a richer, more powerful lord than the King himself!
+In fact it is only a very great lord indeed who could
+be so simple!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At last they reached the castle which from the blue
+smocked soldiers that guarded the gateway they knew
+to be Mikko&rsquo;s. The Fox came out to welcome the
+King&rsquo;s party and behind him in two rows all the
+household servants. These, at a signal from the Fox,
+cried out in one voice:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We are Mighty Mikko&rsquo;s men!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he
+would have used in his father&rsquo;s mean little hut in the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>44]</a></span>
+woods bade the King and his followers welcome and
+they all entered the castle where they found a great
+feast already prepared and waiting.</p>
+
+<p>The King stayed on for several days and the more
+he saw of Mikko the better pleased he was that he had
+him for a son-in-law.</p>
+
+<p>When he was leaving he said to Mikko:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your castle is so much grander than mine that I
+hesitate ever asking you back for a visit.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your
+castle I thought it was the most beautiful castle in the
+world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered
+among themselves:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How affable of him to say that when he knows
+very well how much grander his own castle is!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the King and his followers were safely gone,
+the little red Fox came to Mikko and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad
+and lonely. You are lord of the most beautiful castle
+in the world and you have for wife a sweet and lovely
+Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>45]</a></span>
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done
+and the little Fox trotted off to the woods.</p>
+
+<p>So you see that Mikko&rsquo;s poor old father, although
+he had no wealth to leave his son, was really the cause
+of all Mikko&rsquo;s good fortune, for it was he who told
+Mikko in the first place to carry home alive anything
+he might find caught in the snares.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd03.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>47]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE THREE CHESTS</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd09.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>49]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE THREE CHESTS</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an honest old farmer
+who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake.
+One day as he leaned over the water
+to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen
+reached up from the bottom of the
+lake and clutched him by the beard.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; the farmer cried. &ldquo;Let me go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen only held on more tightly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ll let you go,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but only on this
+condition: that you give me one of your daughters
+for wife!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Give you one of my daughters? Never!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, then I&rsquo;ll never let go!&rdquo; wicked old Wetehinen
+declared and with that he began jerking at the
+beard as if it were a bellrope.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait! Wait!&rdquo; the farmer spluttered.</p>
+
+<p>Now he didn&rsquo;t want to give one of his daughters to
+wicked old Wetehinen&mdash;of course not! But at the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>50]</a></span>
+same time he was in Wetehinen&rsquo;s power and he realized
+that if he didn&rsquo;t do what the old reprobate demanded
+he might lose his life and so leave all three of
+his daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he
+had better sacrifice one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;let me go and I&rsquo;ll send you my
+oldest daughter. I promise.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer
+scrambled to his feet and hurried home.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear,&rdquo; he said to his oldest daughter, &ldquo;I left a
+bit of the harness down at the lake. Like a good girl
+will you run down and get it for me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The eldest daughter went at once and when she
+reached the water&rsquo;s edge, old Wetehinen reached up and
+caught her about the waist and carried her down to
+the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big house.</p>
+
+<p>At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress
+of the house and gave her the keys to all the rooms
+and closets. He went very carefully over the keys and
+pointing to one he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That key you must never use for it opens the door
+to a room which I forbid you to enter.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The eldest daughter began keeping house for old
+Wetehinen and spent her time cooking and cleaning
+and spinning much as she used to at home with her
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>51]</a></span>
+father. The days went by and she grew familiar with
+the house and began to know what was in every room
+and every closet.</p>
+
+<p>At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden
+door. If old Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room,
+well and good. But why in the world had he given her
+the key if he really didn&rsquo;t want her to open the door?
+The more she thought about it the more she wondered.
+Every time she passed the room she stopped a moment
+and stared at the door. It looked just exactly like the
+doors that led into all the other rooms.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder why he doesn&rsquo;t want me to open just that
+door?&rdquo; she kept asking herself.</p>
+
+<p>Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she
+thought:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe it would matter if I opened that
+door just a little crack and peeped in once! No one
+would know the difference!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up
+courage enough to turn the key in the forbidden lock
+and throw open the door.</p>
+
+<p>The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and
+old jars piled up around the wall. That was unexciting
+enough, but in the middle of the floor was something
+that made her start when she saw what it was.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>52]</a></span>
+It was blood&mdash;that&rsquo;s what it was, a pool of dark red
+blood! She was about to slam the door shut when she
+saw something else that made her pause. This was a
+lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she thought to herself, &ldquo;what a beautiful ring!
+If I had it I&rsquo;d wear it on my finger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I&rsquo;m very careful,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;I know I could
+reach over and pick it up without touching the blood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her
+skirts tightly about her legs, knelt down on the floor,
+and stretched her arm over the pool. She picked up
+the ring very carefully but even so she got a few drops
+of blood on her fingers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter!&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;I can wash that off!
+And see the lovely ring!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But later, after she had the door again locked, when
+she tried to wash the blood off, she found she couldn&rsquo;t.
+She tried soap, she tried sand, she tried everything she
+could think of, but without success.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care!&rdquo; she thought to herself. &ldquo;If Wetehinen
+sees the blood, I&rsquo;ll just tell him I cut my finger
+by accident.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and
+pretended nothing was the matter.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>53]</a></span>
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap
+and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me
+drowsy for bed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She began scratching his head as she had many nights
+before but, at the first touch of her fingers, he cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop! You&rsquo;re burning my ear! There must be
+some blood on your fingers! Let me see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He reached up and caught her hand and, when he
+saw the blood stains, he flew into a towering rage.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought so! You&rsquo;ve been in the forbidden
+room!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He jumped up and without allowing her time to say
+a word he just cut off her head then and there with
+no more concern than if she had been a mosquito!
+After that he took the body and the severed head and
+threw them into the forbidden room and locked the
+door.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; he growled, &ldquo;<em>she</em> won&rsquo;t disobey me
+again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was all very well but now he had no one to
+keep house for him and cook and scratch his head in
+the evening and soon he decided he&rsquo;d have to get another
+wife. He remembered that the farmer had two
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>54]</a></span>
+more daughters, so he thought to himself that now
+he&rsquo;d marry the second sister.</p>
+
+<p>He waited his chance and one day when the farmer
+was out in his boat fishing, old Wetehinen came up
+from the bottom of the lake and clutched the boat.
+When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn&rsquo;t make the boat move an inch. He worked
+and worked at the oars and wicked old Wetehinen let
+him struggle until he was exhausted. Then he put his
+head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on
+shore, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s you, is it? I wondered what was holding
+my boat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; wicked old Wetehinen said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s me and I&rsquo;m
+going to hold your boat right here on this spot until
+you promise to give me another of your daughters.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen
+but Wetehinen was firm and the upshot was that
+before the farmer again walked dry land he had promised
+Wetehinen his second daughter.</p>
+
+<p>Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten
+his ax in the boat and sent his second daughter
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>55]</a></span>
+down to the lake to get it. Wicked old Wetehinen
+caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as
+he had the first, making her mistress of the house and
+telling her she might use every key but one. Like her
+sister she, too, after a time gave way to the temptation
+of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw
+the shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she
+wanted it and of course when she reached to get it she
+dabbled her fingers in the blood. So that was the end
+of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when he saw the
+blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her
+body and the severed head into the forbidden room beside
+the body and head of her sister and locked the door.</p>
+
+<p>Time went by and the farmer was living happily
+with his youngest daughter when one day while he was
+out chopping wood he found a pair of fine birch bark
+brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake.
+He tried to stop but he couldn&rsquo;t. He tried to walk in
+another direction but the brogues carried him straight
+down to the water&rsquo;s edge and out into the lake until
+he was in waist deep.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>56]</a></span>
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo, there! What are you doing with my
+brogues?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had
+played that trick to get the farmer into his power again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What do you want this time?&rdquo; the poor farmer cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I want your youngest daughter,&rdquo; Wetehinen said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! My youngest daughter!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I won&rsquo;t give her up!&rdquo; the farmer declared. &ldquo;I
+don&rsquo;t care what you do to me. I won&rsquo;t give her up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, very well!&rdquo; Wetehinen said, and immediately
+the brogues which had been standing still while they
+talked started walking again. They carried the
+farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait&mdash;wait a minute!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, do you promise to give her to me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No!&rdquo; the farmer began. &ldquo;She&rsquo;s my last daughter
+and&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Before he could say more, the brogues walked on
+and the water rose to his nose. In desperation he threw
+up his hands and shouted:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I promise! I promise!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>57]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 422px;">
+<a name="illo04" id="illo04"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi04.png" width="422" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">She fitted the key in the lock</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>59]</a></span>
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest
+daughter whose name was Lisa:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake.
+Like a good girl won&rsquo;t you run and get them for
+me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course
+caught her and carried her down to his house as he
+had her two sisters.</p>
+
+<p>Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen
+made Lisa mistress of the house and gave her keys to
+all the doors and closets with the same prohibition
+against opening the door of the forbidden room.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I am mistress of the house,&rdquo; Lisa said to herself,
+&ldquo;why should I not unlock every door?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away
+from home, then went boldly to the forbidden room,
+fitted the key in the lock, and flung open the door.</p>
+
+<p>There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut
+off. There in the pool of blood sparkled the lovely
+ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wicked old Wetehinen!&rdquo; Lisa cried. &ldquo;I suppose he
+thinks that ring will tempt me but nothing will tempt
+me to touch that awful blood!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests,
+and turning things over. In a dark corner she found
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>60]</a></span>
+two pitchers, one marked <em>Water of Life</em>, the other
+<em>Water of Death</em>.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! This is what I want!&rdquo; she cried, taking the
+pitcher of the <i>Water of Life</i>.</p>
+
+<p>She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and
+then with the magic water brought them back to life.
+She used up all the <i>Water of Life</i>, so she filled the
+pitcher marked <i>Water of Life</i> with the water from the
+other pitcher, the <i>Water of Death</i>. She hid her sisters
+each in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the
+door of the forbidden room, and Wetehinen when he
+came home found her working at her spinning wheel
+as though nothing unusual had happened.</p>
+
+<p>After supper Wetehinen said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for
+bed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did
+it so well that he grunted with satisfaction.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Uh! Uh!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s good! Now just behind
+my right ear! That&rsquo;s it! That&rsquo;s it! You&rsquo;re a
+good girl, you are! You&rsquo;re not like some of them who
+do what they&rsquo;re told not to do! Now behind the other
+ear! Oh, that&rsquo;s fine! Yes, you&rsquo;re a good girl and
+if there&rsquo;s anything you want me to do just tell me what
+it is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>61]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I want to send a chest of things to my poor old
+father,&rdquo; Lisa said. &ldquo;Just a lot of little nothings&mdash;odds
+and ends that I&rsquo;ve picked up about the house. I&rsquo;d be
+ashamed to have you open the chest and see them. I do
+wish you&rsquo;d carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave
+it where my father will find it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right, I will,&rdquo; Wetehinen promised.</p>
+
+<p>He was true to his word. The next morning he
+hoisted one of the chests on his shoulder, the one that
+had in it the eldest sister, he trudged off with it, and
+tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.</p>
+
+<p>Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second
+chest that had in it the second sister. This time Wetehinen
+wasn&rsquo;t so good-natured.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what she can always be sending her
+father!&rdquo; he grumbled. &ldquo;If she sends another chest I&rsquo;ll
+have to look inside and see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered,
+began to plan her own escape. She pulled out
+another empty chest and then one evening after she had
+succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable and
+drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her
+father. He grumbled and protested but finally promised.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>62]</a></span>
+&ldquo;And you won&rsquo;t look inside, will you? Promise me
+you won&rsquo;t!&rdquo; Lisa begged.</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen said he wouldn&rsquo;t, but he intended to just
+the same.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went
+out, Lisa took the churn and dressed it up in some of
+her own clothes. She carried it to the top of the house
+and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a spinning
+wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third
+chest and waited.</p>
+
+<p>When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw
+what he thought was Lisa spinning on the roof.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hullo!&rdquo; he shouted. &ldquo;What are you doing up
+there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded
+as if it came from the roof:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don&rsquo;t
+forget the chest that you promised to carry to my poor
+old father. It&rsquo;s standing in the kitchen.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he
+hoisted the chest on his shoulder and started off.
+When he had gone a little way he thought to put it
+down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa&rsquo;s voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to look inside!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>63]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not looking inside!&rdquo; Wetehinen called back.
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m only resting a minute!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he thought to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose she&rsquo;s sitting up there so she can watch
+me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When he had gone some distance farther, he thought
+again to set down the chest and open the lid but instantly
+Lisa&rsquo;s voice, as from a long way off, called out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to look inside!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who&rsquo;s looking inside?&rdquo; he called back, pretending
+again he was only resting.</p>
+
+<p>Every time he thought it would be safe to put down
+the chest and open the lid, Lisa&rsquo;s voice cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy on us!&rdquo; old Wetehinen fumed to himself,
+&ldquo;who would have thought she could see so far!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On the shore of the lake when he threw down the
+chest in disgust he tried one last time to raise the lid.
+Instantly Lisa&rsquo;s voice cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! You promised not to!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not looking inside!&rdquo; Wetehinen roared, and in
+a fury he left the chest and started back into the
+water.</p>
+
+<p>All the way home he grumbled and growled:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A nice way to treat a man, always making him
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>64]</a></span>
+carry chests! I won&rsquo;t carry another one no matter how
+much she begs me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel
+still on the roof and the figure still seated before it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why haven&rsquo;t you got my dinner ready?&rdquo; he called
+out angrily.</p>
+
+<p>The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter with you?&rdquo; Wetehinen cried.
+&ldquo;Why are you sitting there like a wooden image instead
+of cooking my dinner?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen
+began climbing up the roof. He reached out
+blindly and clutched at Lisa&rsquo;s skirt and jerked it so
+hard that the churn came clattering down on his head.
+It knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way
+to the ground and cracked his wicked old head wide
+open.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; he roared in pain. &ldquo;Just wait till
+I get hold of that Lisa!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over
+himself the water that was in the pitcher marked <i>Water
+of Life</i>. But it wasn&rsquo;t the <i>Water of Life</i> at all, it was
+the <i>Water of Death</i>, and so it didn&rsquo;t help his wicked
+old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse <em>and</em> worse.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>65]</a></span>
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by
+him nor was any one else that lived on the shores of
+that lake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wonder what&rsquo;s become of wicked old Wetehinen?&rdquo;
+people began saying.</p>
+
+<p>Lisa thought she knew but she didn&rsquo;t tell.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd07.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>67]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>LOG</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 254px;">
+<img src="images/mmd11.png" width="254" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>69]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">LOG</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 99px;">
+<img src="images/mmd12.png" width="99" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a poor couple who
+had no children. Their neighbors
+all had boys and girls in plenty but
+for some reason God didn&rsquo;t send them
+even one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I can&rsquo;t have a flesh and blood
+baby,&rdquo; the woman said one day, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to have
+a wooden baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just
+the size of a nice fat baby. She dressed the log in
+baby clothes and put it in a cradle. Then for three
+whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle
+and sang lullabies to the log baby.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of three years one afternoon, when the
+man was out chopping wood and the woman was driving
+the cows home from pasture, the log baby turned
+into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that
+by the time its parents got home it had crawled out of
+the cradle and was sitting on the floor yelling lustily
+for food. It ate and ate and ate and the more it ate
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>70]</a></span>
+the faster it grew. It wasn&rsquo;t any time at all in passing
+from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth,
+and from youth to manhood. From its beginnings it
+was known in the village as Log and never received
+any other name.</p>
+
+<p>Log&rsquo;s parents knew from the first that Log was
+destined to be a great hero. That was why he was so
+strong and so good. There was no one in the village
+as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.</p>
+
+<p>Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the
+world. The Sun and the Moon and the Dawn disappeared
+from the sky and as a result the earth was left
+in darkness.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon
+and the Dawn?&rdquo; the people cried in terror.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Whoever they are,&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;they shall have
+to restore them! Where, O where are the heroes who
+will undertake to find the Sun and the Moon and the
+Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>There were many men willing to offer themselves
+for the great adventure but the King realized that
+something more was needed than willingness.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance,&rdquo;
+he said, &ldquo;who should risk the dangers of so perilous
+an undertaking.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>71]</a></span>
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the
+kingdom and tested them one by one. He had some
+waters of great strength and it was his hope to find
+three heroes the first of whom could drink three bottles
+of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the
+third nine bottles.</p>
+
+<p>Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of
+them all the King found at last two, one of whom was
+able to take three bottles of the strong waters, the other
+six bottles.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But we need three heroes!&rdquo; the King cried. &ldquo;Is
+there no one in all this kingdom strong enough to drink
+nine bottles?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Try Log!&rdquo; some one shouted.</p>
+
+<p>All the youths present instantly took up the cry:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Log! Log! Send for Log!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the King sent for Log and sure enough when
+Log came he was able to drink down nine bottles of the
+strong waters without any trouble at all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here now,&rdquo; the King proclaimed, &ldquo;are the three
+heroes who are to release the Sun and the Moon and
+the Dawn from whoever are holding them in captivity
+and restore them to their places in the sky!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing
+them money and food and drink of the strong
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>72]</a></span>
+waters, each according to his strength. He mounted
+them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.</p>
+
+<p>So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women
+of the kingdom wept to see them go and the men cheered
+and wished that they, too, were going.</p>
+
+<p>They rode on and on for many days that seemed
+like nights until they had crossed the confines of their
+own country and entered the boundaries of an unknown
+kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less dense.
+There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as
+of approaching dawn.</p>
+
+<p>They rode on until they saw looming up before them
+the towers of a mighty castle. They dismounted near
+the castle at the door of a little hut where they found
+an old woman.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day to you, granny!&rdquo; Log called out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, indeed!&rdquo; the old woman said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s
+little enough we see of the day since the Evil One cursed
+the Sun and handed it over to Suyettar&rsquo;s wicked offspring,
+the Nine-Headed Serpent!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Evil One!&rdquo; Log exclaimed. &ldquo;Tell me, granny,
+why did the Evil One curse the Sun?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Because he&rsquo;s evil, my son, that&rsquo;s why! He said the
+Sun&rsquo;s rays blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>73]</a></span>
+him over to the Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed
+the Moon, too, because at night when the Moon shone
+he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the Moon
+and handed her over to Suyettar&rsquo;s second offspring,
+the Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn
+because he said he couldn&rsquo;t sleep in the morning because
+of the Dawn. So he cursed the Dawn and gave her
+over to Suyettar&rsquo;s third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tell me, granny,&rdquo; Log said, &ldquo;where do the three
+Serpents keep prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the
+Dawn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go
+far out in the Ocean they carry with them the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn. The Three-Headed Serpent
+stays out there one day and then returns at night.
+The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then
+returns, and the mighty Nine-Headed Monster does
+not return until the third night. As each returns a
+faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log thanked the old woman and then he and his
+companions pushed on towards the castle. As they
+neared it they saw a strange sight which they could not
+understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>74]</a></span>
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was
+weeping as if in grief.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What can this mean?&rdquo; Log cried out. &ldquo;We had
+better ask the old woman before we go on.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went back to the hut and the old woman told
+them all she knew.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging
+over the King&rsquo;s three daughters,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Those
+three evil Monsters are demanding them one by one.
+To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If
+the King refuses to give her up, then Suyettar&rsquo;s evil
+son will devour half the kingdom, half of the castle
+itself, and half the shining stones. O that some hero
+would kill the monster and save the princess and at
+the same time release the Dawn that it might again
+steal over the world!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log and his fellows conferred together and the one
+they called Three Bottles, because his strength was
+equal to three bottles of the strong waters, declared
+that it was his task to fight and conquer the Three-Headed
+Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice
+of the oldest princess were going forward. As the
+King sewed the poor girl into a great leather sack, his
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>75]</a></span>
+tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see what he was
+doing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear child,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it should comfort you
+greatly to think that the Monster is going to eat you
+instead of half the kingdom! Not many princesses
+are considered as important as half the kingdom!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess knew that what her father said must be
+true and she did her best to look cheerful as they slipped
+the sack over her head. Once inside, however, she allowed
+herself to cry for she knew that no one could see
+her.</p>
+
+<p>The sack with the princess inside was carried down
+to the beach and put on a high rock near the place
+where Suyettar&rsquo;s sons were wont to come up out of the
+water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be frightened, my daughter!&rdquo; the King called
+out as he and all the Court started back to the castle.
+&ldquo;You won&rsquo;t have long to wait, for it will soon be
+evening.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Log and his companions watched the King&rsquo;s party
+disappear and then Three Bottles solemnly drank down
+the three bottles of strong waters with which his own
+King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was
+attached.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>76]</a></span>
+&ldquo;If I need help,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll throw back my shoe
+and do you then release my dog.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted,
+and climbed up the rock where the unfortunate
+princess lay in a sack. With one slash of
+the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the
+princess out. She supposed of course that he was the
+Three-Headed Serpent and at first was so frightened
+that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to look
+at him. She expected every minute to have him take
+a first bite and, when minutes and more minutes and
+more minutes still went by and he didn&rsquo;t, she opened
+her eyes a little crack to see what was the matter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; the princess said.</p>
+
+<p>She was so surprised that for a long time she didn&rsquo;t
+dare to take another peep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent,
+didn&rsquo;t you?&rdquo; a pleasant voice asked. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;m not.
+I&rsquo;m only a young man who has come to rescue
+you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess murmured, &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; again, but this time
+the &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; expressed happy relief.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; repeated the young man, &ldquo;I am the hero who
+has come to rescue you. My comrades call me Three
+Bottles and you, too, may call me that. And while we
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>77]</a></span>
+are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean
+I wish you would scratch my head.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess wasn&rsquo;t in the least surprised at this
+request. Heroes and monsters and fathers alike seemed
+always to want their heads scratched.</p>
+
+<p>So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess&rsquo;
+feet and put his head in her lap. He settled himself
+comfortably and she scratched his head while he gazed
+out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.</p>
+
+<p>At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface
+of the water. They waited and at last far out they saw
+three swirling masses rolling landward.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Quick, my princess!&rdquo; Three Bottles cried. &ldquo;There
+comes the Monster now! Get you down behind the rock
+and hide there while I go meet the creature and chop off
+his ugly heads!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down
+behind the rock and Three Bottles, mounting his horse,
+rode boldly down to the water&rsquo;s edge awaiting the
+Serpent&rsquo;s coming.</p>
+
+<p>It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly
+lifting its three scaly heads one after another.</p>
+
+<p>As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!&rdquo; it muttered in a deep voice,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>78]</a></span>
+repeating the magic rime it had learned from its evil
+mother, Suyettar:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!&rdquo; Three Bottles
+cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ll have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; repeated the Serpent as if in surprise.
+&ldquo;Shall we fight, pretty boy, you and I? Very well!
+Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long level
+platform of red copper whereon we can meet and try
+our strength each with the other!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; answered Three Bottles. &ldquo;Do you blow with
+your evil breath and instead of red copper we shall have
+a platform of black iron.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that
+came of his breath Three Bottles met him in combat.
+Back and forth they raged, Three Bottles striking right
+and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at
+Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>79]</a></span>
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles
+whacked off one scaly head and at last a second one, but
+he was unable to touch the third.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I shall have to have help,&rdquo; he acknowledged to himself
+finally, and reaching down he took one of his shoes
+and threw it over his shoulder back to his comrades who
+were awaiting the outcome of the struggle. Instantly
+they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its
+master&rsquo;s assistance and soon with the dog&rsquo;s help Three
+Bottles was able to dispatch the last head.</p>
+
+<p>He was faint now with weariness and his comrades
+had to help him back to the old woman&rsquo;s hut where he
+soon fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of
+relief and thanksgiving went up from all the earth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Dawn! The Dawn!&rdquo; people cried. &ldquo;God
+bless the man who has released the Dawn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Only at the castle was there sorrow still.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor oldest daughter!&rdquo; the King cried with tears
+in his eyes. &ldquo;It was my sacrifice of her that has released
+the Dawn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to
+gather up his daughter&rsquo;s bones and to bring back the
+leather sack.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We shall need it again to-night,&rdquo; he said. He wiped
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>80]</a></span>
+his eyes and for a moment could say no more. &ldquo;Yes,
+to-night we shall have to sew up my second daughter
+and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that holds
+captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour
+half my kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining
+stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the
+seashore found, not the princess&rsquo; bones, but the princess
+herself, sitting there with her chin in her hand, gazing
+down on the beach which was strewn with the fragments
+of the Three-Headed Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>They led her back to her father and reported the
+marvel they had seen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all
+his heads severed! So huge are the heads that it would
+need three men with derricks to move one of them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!&rdquo;
+the King cried. &ldquo;Would that another might come
+to-night to rescue my second child likewise! But, alas!
+what hero is strong enough to destroy the Six-Headed
+Monster!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when evening came they sewed the second princess
+in the sack and carried her out to the rock.</p>
+
+<p>Log and his companions saw the procession move
+down from the castle and they saw that the castle was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>81]</a></span>
+again disturbed, one half of it laughing and one half
+weeping.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the second princess to-night,&rdquo; the old woman
+told them. &ldquo;Unless her father, the King, gives her to
+the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster will come and
+devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive
+and the hero that slays him will release the Moon.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried
+out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here is work for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters
+until he had emptied six.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I am ready!&rdquo; he shouted.</p>
+
+<p>He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he
+called to his comrades:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I need help I&rsquo;ll throw back a shoe and do you
+then unleash my dog!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted.
+Then he climbed the rock and released the second
+princess. He told her who he was and as they awaited
+the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess&rsquo; feet and she scratched his head.</p>
+
+<p>This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls
+with six awful heads that reared up one after another.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>82]</a></span>
+In terror the second princess hid behind the rock while
+Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to
+the water&rsquo;s edge.</p>
+
+<p>Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing
+the air hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had
+learned from his mother, wicked Suyettar:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!&rdquo; Six Bottles
+cried. &ldquo;You will have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; repeated the Serpent scornfully. &ldquo;Shall
+we fight, little one, you and I? Very well! Blow then
+with your sweet breath, blow out a long level platform
+of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay!&rdquo; answered Six Bottles. &ldquo;Do you blow, blow
+with your evil breath, and instead of white silver we
+shall have a platform of red copper.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>83]</a></span>
+came of his breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back
+and forth they raged, Six Bottles striking left and right
+with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Six
+Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and belching
+forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles
+whacked off one head, then another, then another. At
+last he had disposed of five heads. He tried hard to
+strike the last, but by this time the Serpent had grown
+wary and Six Bottles&rsquo; own strength was waning. So
+he reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it
+over his shoulder back to his comrades who were awaiting
+the outcome of the struggle. Instantly they loosed
+the dog which bounded forward to its master&rsquo;s assistance
+and soon with the dog&rsquo;s help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.</p>
+
+<p>Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to
+the old woman&rsquo;s hut and soon he fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a
+great cry of relief and thanksgiving went up from all
+the world:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who
+has released the Moon!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King who was awakened by the sound looked out
+the castle window and when he saw the Moon, returned
+to its place in the sky, his eyes overflowed with grief.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>84]</a></span>
+&ldquo;My poor second daughter!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;It was my
+sacrifice of her that has released the Moon! To-morrow
+morning I will send the slaves to gather up her bones
+and to bring back the leather sack into which, alas! I
+must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar&rsquo;s
+third son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai!
+How sad it is to be a father!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But on the morrow when the slaves went to the
+rock they found the second princess sitting there alone
+gazing down upon the scattered fragments of the Six-Headed
+Serpent.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here she is, safe and sound!&rdquo; they reported to the
+King as they led the second princess into his presence,
+&ldquo;and, marvel of marvels! on the beach below the rock
+lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to pieces!
+Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with
+derricks could scarcely move one of them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;God be praised!&rdquo; the King cried. &ldquo;Another unknown
+hero has come and saved the life of my second
+child! Would that a third might come to-night and
+rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if
+there be heroes who could dispatch the first two Serpents,
+there is never one who can touch him of the Nine
+Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>85]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 416px;">
+<a name="illo05" id="illo05"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi05.png" width="416" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>87]</a></span>
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing
+could save the life of his youngest child.</p>
+
+<p>When Log and his companions heard of the King&rsquo;s
+grief, Log at once stood forth and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This last and mightiest battle is for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after
+bottle until he had emptied nine.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now let night come as soon as it will!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;I
+am ready for the Monster!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He started forth telling his comrades he would throw
+back a shoe if he needed help from his dog.</p>
+
+<p>So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for
+the third time and released the Youngest Princess who
+was much more beautiful than her sisters. She fell in
+love with the mighty hero on sight and was so thrilled
+with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in
+her lap she hardly knew what to do although her father
+always declared that she scratched his head much better
+than either of her sisters.</p>
+
+<p>They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was
+a glitter with the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was
+coming to shore with the captive Sun in his keeping.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Await me behind the rock!&rdquo; Log cried to the
+Princess as he leapt upon his horse and started forward.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>88]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!&rdquo; the Princess cried
+after him.</p>
+
+<p>Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled
+Monster. One after another of his nine heads rose and
+fell as he approached, and every head sniffed more
+hungrily as it came nearer, and each head rumbled as
+it sniffed:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon him with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick his bones and drink his blood!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Fee, fi, fo, fum!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Yum! Yum!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!&rdquo; Log
+cried. &ldquo;You will have time enough to boast after you
+fight!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Fight?&rdquo; roared the awful Monster. &ldquo;Shall we fight,
+poor infant, you and I? Very well! Blow then with
+your sweet breath, blow out a long level platform of
+shining gold whereon we can meet and try our strength
+each with the other!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nay!&rdquo; Log answered boldly. &ldquo;Do you blow, blow
+with your evil breath and instead of shining gold we
+shall have a platform of white silver.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>89]</a></span>
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that
+came of his breath Log met him in combat. Back and
+forth they raged, Log striking right and left with his
+mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with all his
+nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from
+all his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after
+head until six lay gaping on the sand. But the last
+three he could not get.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a
+head. Now only two remained, but try as he would
+Log could get neither of them.</p>
+
+<p>Again he tried a subterfuge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they&rsquo;re
+abusing her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Monster looked and Log whacked off another
+head. But one now remained and as usual it was the
+hardest of them all to get. Log felt his strength waning
+while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I shall have to have help,&rdquo; Log thought.</p>
+
+<p>He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at
+once loosed his dog. With the dog&rsquo;s help Log was
+soon able to dispatch the last head. Then Three Bottles
+and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and supported
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>90]</a></span>
+him to the old woman&rsquo;s hut where he soon fell into a
+deep sleep.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper
+time and people all over the world, falling on their knees
+with thanksgiving and weeping with joy, cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has
+released the Sun!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the castle they waked the King with the good news
+but the King only shook his head and murmured in
+grief:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my
+favorite child, my youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and
+presently these returned bringing the Princess herself
+and telling a marvelous tale of the beach littered with
+nine severed heads so huge that it would need nine men
+with derricks to move one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What manner of heroes are these who have rescued
+my daughters!&rdquo; cried the King. &ldquo;Let them come forth
+and I will give them my daughters for wives and half
+my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove themselves
+the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the
+heavy heads of the Monsters they have slain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>91]</a></span>
+with happiness and, strengthening themselves with deep
+draughts of the strong waters, they gathered together
+the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King&rsquo;s feet.</p>
+
+<p>Then Log stepped forward and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters
+in marriage, the oldest to Three Bottles, the second
+to Six Bottles, and the lovely Youngest to Log. Then
+he apportioned them the half of his riches and, after
+much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their
+brides and their riches and bidding the King farewell
+started homewards.</p>
+
+<p>As they rode through a great forest they sighted a
+tiny hut and Log, motioning his comrades to wait for
+him quietly, crept forward to see who was in the hut.
+It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ay,&rdquo; she was saying, &ldquo;they have slain my three
+beautiful sons, my mighty offspring that held captive
+the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn! But I tell you,
+sisters, they will pay the penalty....&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of
+firewood and slipping inside the hut hid himself in the
+woodpile near the stove.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>92]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Ay, they will pay the penalty!&rdquo; Suyettar repeated.
+&ldquo;I shall have my revenge on them! A fine supper
+Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem2">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll fall upon them with a thud!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick their bones and drink their blood!<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar&rsquo;s anger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But sister, sister,&rdquo; the two old hags asked, &ldquo;how
+will you get them?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that
+no one was listening. Then she whispered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is how I shall get them: As they come through
+this forest, the three men with their brides, I shall send
+upon them a terrible hunger. Then they shall come
+suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food. One
+bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay,
+sisters, to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper!
+Nothing can save them unless, before they touch the
+food, some one make the sign of the cross three times
+over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens
+Suyettar shall still get them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How, sister, how?&rdquo; the other two asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst,
+and then put in their pathway a spring of cold sparkling
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>93]</a></span>
+water. One drop of that water and they are in my
+power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me unless,
+before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign
+of the cross three times over the spring. At that the
+spring would disappear and also their thirst. But even
+if they escape the spring, I shall still get them. I shall
+send great heaviness on them and a longing for sleep,
+then let them come upon a row of soft inviting feather
+beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are
+mine, he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save
+but that some one make the sign of the cross three times
+over the beds before they touch them. Oh, sisters, I shall
+get them one way or another for there is no one to warn
+them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn&rsquo;t
+dare tell them what he knows for he would also know
+that if he told them he would himself be turned into a
+blue cross and have to stand forever in the cemetery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened,
+he slipped away from the woodpile and, when he was
+outside, took his own shape and hurried back to his
+comrades.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Away!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;We are in great danger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until
+Three Bottles suddenly cried:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>94]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me, too!&rdquo; cried Six Bottles.</p>
+
+<p>At that instant a great table, laden with delicious
+food, appeared before them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look!&rdquo; cried the one of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Food!&rdquo; cried the other.</p>
+
+<p>They flung themselves from their horses and ran
+towards the table. But quick as they were, Log was
+quicker. He reached the table first and, raising his
+hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the
+strange hunger that had but now consumed them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; Three Bottles exclaimed. &ldquo;I thought I
+was hungry, but I&rsquo;m not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought I saw food just now,&rdquo; Six Bottles said.
+&ldquo;I must have been dreaming.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they mounted again and pushed on.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Danger threatens us,&rdquo; said Log. &ldquo;We must hurry
+and not dismount no matter what the temptation.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They agreed but presently one of them cried out and
+then the other:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we
+have water!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool
+sparkling water and it was all Log could do to reach it
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>95]</a></span>
+before his fellows. He did get there first and make the
+sign of the cross three times whereat the spring disappeared
+and with it the thirst which had but now
+consumed them all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I thought I was thirsty,&rdquo; Three Bottles said, &ldquo;but
+I&rsquo;m not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why did we dismount?&rdquo; Six Bottles asked.
+&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no water here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again they mounted and went forward and Log,
+warning them again that danger threatened, begged
+them not to dismount a third time no matter what the
+temptation.</p>
+
+<p>They promised they would not but presently, complaining
+of fatigue, they wanted to. Their brides, too,
+swayed in the saddle, overcome with weariness and sleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Dear Log,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;let us rest for an hour. See,
+our brides are drooping with fatigue! One hour&rsquo;s sleep
+and we shall all be refreshed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw
+three soft white feather beds. Log leaped to the
+ground but before he was able to make the sign of the
+cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.</p>
+
+<p>And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six
+Bottles and their two lovely brides. There was no way
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>96]</a></span>
+now of saving them from Suyettar. She had them in
+her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.</p>
+
+<p>As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and
+rode on they heard an evil voice chanting out in triumph:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem4">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">I&rsquo;ll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Poor fellows! Poor fellows!&rdquo; Log said, and the
+Princess wept to think of the awful fate that had overtaken
+her two sisters.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Log and his bride reached home without further
+adventure and were received by the King with great
+honors.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I knew my heroes were succeeding,&rdquo; the King said,
+&ldquo;when first the Dawn appeared again, and then the
+Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All hail to you, Log,
+and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where
+are Three Bottles and Six Bottles?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; Log said, &ldquo;Three Bottles and Six
+Bottles were brave men both. By their prowess they
+released the one the Dawn, the other the Moon. Then
+in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You can tell me no more?&rdquo; the King said. &ldquo;Why
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>97]</a></span>
+can you tell me no more? What was the evil adventure
+in which they perished?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for
+I should be turned into a blue cross and stood forever
+in the cemetery!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What nonsense!&rdquo; the King exclaimed. &ldquo;Who would
+turn you into a blue cross and stand you forever in the
+cemetery?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is what I cannot tell you,&rdquo; Log said.</p>
+
+<p>The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but
+the people of the kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted
+on knowing in detail what had happened the other two
+heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread that Log
+himself had done away with them in order that he might
+gather to himself all the glory of the undertaking.</p>
+
+<p>The King was forced at last to send for him again
+and to demand a full account of everything.</p>
+
+<p>Log realized that his end was near. He met it
+bravely. Commending to the King&rsquo;s protection his
+lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log related how
+the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were
+sons of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had
+succeeded in destroying Three Bottles and Six Bottles
+together with their brides. Then he told the fate about
+to overtake himself.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>98]</a></span>
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court
+looked at him, to their amazement he disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;To the cemetery!&rdquo; some one cried.</p>
+
+<p>They all went to the cemetery where at once they
+found a fresh blue cross that had come there nobody
+knew how. There it stands to this day, a reminder of
+the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.</p>
+
+<p>The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such
+a hero. He took Log&rsquo;s bride under his protection and
+he found her so beautiful and so gentle that soon he
+fell in love with her and married her.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>99]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE LITTLE SISTER</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 248px;">
+<img src="images/mmd13.png" width="248" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>101]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE LITTLE SISTER</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 97px;">
+<img src="images/mmd14.png" width="97" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a woman who had
+nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing
+about which they were always complaining.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why haven&rsquo;t we a little sister?&rdquo;
+they kept asking. &ldquo;Do give us a little sister!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the time came that another child was to be
+born, they said to their mother:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If the baby is a boy we are going away and you
+will never see us again, but if it is a little girl then we
+shall stay home and take care of it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she
+would have her husband put a spindle outside on the
+gatepost and, if it were a boy, an ax.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just wait,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and see what your father puts
+on the gatepost and then you will know whether it is
+another brother God has sent you or a little sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was
+overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>102]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Hurry, husband!&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;and put a spindle on
+the gatepost so that our nine sons may know the good
+news!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man did so and then quickly returned to the
+mother and baby. The moment he was gone Suyettar
+slipped up and changed the tokens. She took away
+the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an
+evil grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now we&rsquo;ll see what we&rsquo;ll see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded.
+As soon as the nine sons saw the ax on the
+gatepost they thought their mother had given birth to
+another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.</p>
+
+<p>The poor mother waited for them and waited.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is keeping my sons?&rdquo; she cried at last. &ldquo;Go
+out to the gate, husband, and see if they are coming.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man went out and soon returned bringing back
+word that some one had changed the tokens.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone,&rdquo; he
+said, &ldquo;and in its place is an ax.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; cried the poor mother, &ldquo;some evil creature
+has done this to spite us! Oh, if we could only get word
+to our sons of the little sister they were so eager to
+have!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>103]</a></span>
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew
+the way they had gone.</p>
+
+<p>In a short time the husband died and the poor woman,
+abandoned by her nine sons, had only her little daughter
+left. She named the child Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear
+little girl and her face was as beautiful as her heart was
+good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone
+she tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she
+wanted to know the cause of her mother&rsquo;s grief. At
+last the mother told her about her nine brothers and how
+they had gone away never to return owing to the trick
+of some evil creature.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor mother!&rdquo; she cried, &ldquo;how sorry I am that
+I am the innocent cause of your loss! Let me go out
+into the world and find my brothers! When once they
+hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to care
+for you in your old age!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At first the mother would not consent to this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You are all I have,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and I should indeed
+be miserable and lonely if anything happened you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought
+of her poor brothers driven unnecessarily from home
+and at last the mother, realizing that she would nevermore
+be happy unless she were allowed to go in search
+of them, gave up opposing her.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>104]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God
+go with you and bring you safely back to me. But
+before you go I must prepare you a bag of food for
+the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show
+you the way.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time
+mixed a little round cake with Kerttu&rsquo;s own tears and
+baked it, too. Then she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey
+and here is a magic cake that will lead you to your
+brothers. All you have to do is throw it down in front
+of you and say:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rsquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow
+wherever it rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not
+start out alone. You must have some friend or companion
+to go with you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti,
+that she loved dearly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll take Musti with me!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Musti will
+protect me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>105]</a></span>
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and
+barked with joy at the prospect of going out into the
+world with his mistress.</p>
+
+<p>Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of
+her and sang:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and
+Kerttu and Musti followed it. They walked until they
+were tired. Then Kerttu picked up the little cake and
+they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do
+was throw it down in front of her and say the magic
+rime.</p>
+
+<p>Their first day was without adventure. When night
+came they ate their supper and went to sleep in a field
+under a tree.</p>
+
+<p>The second day they overtook an ugly old woman
+whom Kerttu disliked on sight. But she said to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just
+because she&rsquo;s old and ugly!&rdquo; and she made herself
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>106]</a></span>
+answer the old woman&rsquo;s greetings politely and she made
+Musti stop snarling and growling.</p>
+
+<p>The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where
+she was going and Kerttu told her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; said the old woman, &ldquo;how fortunate that we
+have met each other for our ways lie together!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She smiled and petted Kerttu&rsquo;s arm and Kerttu felt
+like shuddering. But she restrained herself and told
+herself severely:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the
+poor old thing!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer
+growled for Kerttu had told him not to, but he drooped
+his tail between his legs and, pressing up close to Kerttu,
+he trembled with fright. And well he might, too, for
+the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do
+further injury to Kerttu and her brothers.</p>
+
+<p>Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent
+to suspect evil in others. She said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be
+companions.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three
+of them walked on following the little cake. As the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>107]</a></span>
+day advanced the sun grew hotter and hotter and at
+last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments
+and rest.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh
+us.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at
+her skirts and warned her not to.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress!&rdquo; Musti growled softly.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t go in bathing with her! She&rsquo;ll bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Kerttu said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t want to go in bathing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on
+and then when Kerttu wasn&rsquo;t looking she turned around
+and kicked Musti and broke one of the poor little dog&rsquo;s
+legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on three legs.</p>
+
+<p>The next afternoon when they passed another lake,
+Suyettar tried again to tempt Kerttu into the water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The sun is very hot,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and it would refresh
+us both to bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don&rsquo;t refuse
+me this time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But again Musti tugged at Kerttu&rsquo;s skirts and, licking
+her hand, whispered the warning:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>108]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again Kerttu said politely:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t feel like going in bathing. You go in
+alone and I&rsquo;ll wait for you here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said,
+no, she didn&rsquo;t care to go in alone. She was furious, too,
+with Musti and later when Kerttu wasn&rsquo;t looking she
+gave the poor little dog a kick that broke another leg.
+Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.</p>
+
+<p>They slept the third night by the wayside and the
+next day they went on again always following the magic
+cake. In midafternoon they passed a lake and Suyettar
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let
+us both bathe in this cool lake.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs,
+yelped weakly and said to Kerttu:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she&rsquo;ll bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when
+she wasn&rsquo;t looking, Suyettar kicked Musti and broke
+the third of the poor little dog&rsquo;s legs. Thereafter Musti
+hopped on as best he could on only one leg.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they went on and on. When night came they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>109]</a></span>
+slept by the roadside and then next morning they started
+on again. The sun grew hot and by midafternoon
+Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached
+a lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing.
+Kerttu was tempted to agree when poor Musti
+threw himself panting at her feet and whimpered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do it, dear mistress! Don&rsquo;t go in bathing
+with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Kerttu again refused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, dear mistress!&rdquo; Musti panted, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t
+do it! I shall soon be dead, I know, for she hates me,
+but before I die I want to warn you one last time never
+to go in bathing with her or she will bewitch you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that dog saying?&rdquo; Suyettar demanded
+angrily, and without waiting for an answer she picked
+up a heavy piece of wood and struck poor Musti such
+a blow on the head that it killed him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What have you done to my poor little dog?&rdquo; Kerttu
+cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t mind him, my dear,&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;He
+was sick and lame and it was better to put him out of
+his misery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget
+Musti but all afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she
+would never again see her faithful little friend.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>110]</a></span>
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go
+in bathing there was no Musti to warn her against it
+and at last Kerttu allowed herself to be persuaded.
+She was tired from her many days&rsquo; wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed
+her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now splash water in my face!&rdquo; Suyettar cried.</p>
+
+<p>But Kerttu didn&rsquo;t want to splash water into
+Suyettar&rsquo;s face for she supposed Suyettar was an old
+woman and she thought it would be disrespectful to
+splash water into the face of an old woman.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you hear me!&rdquo; screamed Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her
+with such a terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu
+did as she was bidden. She splashed water into
+Suyettar&rsquo;s face and, as the water touched Suyettar&rsquo;s
+eyes, Suyettar cried out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Your bonny looks give up to me<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And you take mine for all to see!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar
+looked young and beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu
+was changed to a hideous old hag. Then too late she
+realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>111]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo06" id="illo06"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi06.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Suyettar bewitching Kerttu</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>113]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, why,&rdquo; Kerttu cried, &ldquo;why didn&rsquo;t I heed poor
+Musti&rsquo;s warning!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come along!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Dress yourself in those
+rags of mine and start that cake a-rolling! We ought
+to reach your brothers&rsquo; house by to-night.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar&rsquo;s
+filthy old garments while Suyettar, looking like a fresh
+young girl, decked herself out in Kerttu&rsquo;s pretty bodice
+and skirt.</p>
+
+<p>Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw
+down the cake and said:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;Roll, roll, my little cake!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Show me the way that I must take<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">To find at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it,
+Kerttu weeping bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with
+ugly laughs. Then suddenly Kerttu forgot to weep for
+Suyettar took from her her memory and her tongue.</p>
+
+<p>The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before
+which it stopped. This was where the nine brothers
+were living. Eight of them were out working in the
+fields but the youngest was at home. He opened the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>114]</a></span>
+door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu,
+his sister, he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome.
+Then he invited her inside and they sat side by side on
+the bench and talked and Suyettar told him all she had
+heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu&rsquo;s birth. The
+youngest brother listened eagerly and Suyettar told her
+story so glibly that of course he supposed that she was
+his own true sister.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And who is the awful looking old hag that has come
+with you?&rdquo; he asked pointing at Kerttu.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That? Oh, that&rsquo;s an old serving woman whom our
+mother sent with me to bear me company. She&rsquo;s dumb
+and foolish but she&rsquo;s a good herd and we can let her
+drive the cow out to pasture every day.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers when they came home were greatly
+pleased to find what they thought was their sister.
+They began to love her at once and to pet her and they
+said that now she must stay with them and keep house
+for them. She told them that was what she wanted to
+do and she said that now she was here the youngest
+brother need no longer stay at home but could go out
+every morning with the rest of them to work in the
+fields.</p>
+
+<p>So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>115]</a></span>
+morning after the brothers were gone Suyettar would
+scold and abuse her. She would bake a cake for her
+dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would
+take Kerttu as far as the gate where she would give her
+back her tongue and her memory and order her roughly
+to drive the cow to pasture and look after it all day
+long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take
+from her her tongue and her memory and then in the
+evening the brothers would see her as a foolish old
+woman who couldn&rsquo;t talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little
+mercy, but far from showing her any mercy Suyettar
+grew more cruel from day to day.</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome
+young men took her for a beautiful girl and she felt
+sure they would never find out their mistake for only
+Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was entirely
+in her power.</p>
+
+<p>At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the
+kitchen with her nine brothers laughing and talking
+Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such times of course she
+had no memory. But during the day it was different.
+Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>116]</a></span>
+memory and her tongue and she thought about her poor
+mother at home anxiously awaiting her return and she
+thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of whom might
+now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar.
+These thoughts made her weep with grief and as the
+days went by she put this grief into a song which she
+sang constantly:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But they know me not from stick or stone!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">They leave me here to weep alone,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">While Suyettar sits in my place<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With stolen looks and stolen face!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She snared me first with evil guile<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And now she mocks me all the while:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">By night she takes my tongue away,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">That their own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to
+hear the song and they wondered about it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange!&rdquo; they said to one another. &ldquo;Can that be
+the old woman singing? In the evening at home she
+never opens her mouth and our dear sister always says
+that she&rsquo;s dumb and foolish.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One afternoon when Kerttu&rsquo;s song sounded
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>117]</a></span>
+particularly sad, the youngest brother crept close to the
+meadow where Kerttu was sitting in order to hear the
+words. He listened carefully and then hurried back to
+the others and with frightened face told them what he
+had heard.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; the older brothers said. &ldquo;It can&rsquo;t be so!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves
+the words of the strange song, so they all crept near to
+listen.</p>
+
+<p>It looked like an old hag who was singing but the
+voice that came out of the withered mouth was the voice
+of a young girl. As they listened they, too, grew pale:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">But they know me not from stick or stone!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">They leave me here to weep alone,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">While Suyettar sits in my place<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">With stolen looks and stolen face!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She snared me first with evil guile<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And now she mocks me all the while:<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">By night she takes my tongue away,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">That their own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can it be true?&rdquo; they said, whispering together.</p>
+
+<p>They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>118]</a></span>
+and he, when he had heard her story, believed it true.
+Then the other brothers went to her one by one and
+questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is well for us,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;if we do not all fall into
+the power of that awful creature! How, O how can
+we rescue our poor little sister!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I can never get back my own looks,&rdquo; Kerttu said,
+&ldquo;unless Suyettar splashes water into my eyes and unless
+I cry out a magic rime as she does it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The brothers discussed one plan after another and
+at last agreed on one that they thought might deceive
+Suyettar.</p>
+
+<p>They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come
+groping home one midday. The brothers, too, were at
+home and as Kerttu came stumbling into the kitchen
+they said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something
+ails her! Her eyes&mdash;they&rsquo;re all red and swollen!
+Get some water and bathe them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; Suyettar said. &ldquo;The old hag&rsquo;s well
+enough! Let her be! She doesn&rsquo;t need any attention!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, sister!&rdquo; the youngest brother said, reproachfully,
+&ldquo;is that any way for a human, kindhearted girl
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>119]</a></span>
+like you to talk? If you won&rsquo;t bathe the old creature&rsquo;s
+eyes, I will myself!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think
+that she was a human, kindhearted girl said, no, she
+would bathe them. So she took a basin of water over
+to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu&rsquo;s eyes,
+Kerttu cried out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;My own true looks give back to me<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">And take your own for all to see!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag
+though still dressed in Kerttu&rsquo;s pretty bodice and skirt,
+and Kerttu was herself again, young and fresh and
+sweet, though still incased in Suyettar&rsquo;s rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept
+on talking to Suyettar as though they still thought her
+Kerttu. And Suyettar because her eyes were blinded
+with the dust supposed that they were still deceived.</p>
+
+<p>Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sister dear, the <i>sauna</i> is all heated and ready.
+Don&rsquo;t you want to bathe?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance
+to wash the dust from her eyes, so she let them lead
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>120]</a></span>
+her to the <i>sauna</i>. Once they got her inside they locked
+the door and set the <i>sauna</i> a-fire. Oh, the noise she
+made then when she found she had been trapped! She
+kicked and screamed and cursed and threatened! But
+Kerttu and the brothers paid no heed to her. They left
+her burning in the <i>sauna</i> while they hurried homewards.</p>
+
+<p>They found their poor old mother seated at the window
+weeping, for she thought that now Kerttu as well
+as her sons was lost forever. As Kerttu and the nine
+handsome young men came in the gate she didn&rsquo;t recognize
+them until Kerttu sang out:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem3">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&ldquo;I bring at last the brothers nine<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Whose own true mother is also mine!&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Then she knew who they were and with thanks to
+God she welcomed them home.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>121]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE FOREST BRIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 253px;">
+<img src="images/mmd15.png" width="253" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>123]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE FOREST BRIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd16.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a farmer who had
+three sons. One day when the boys
+were grown to manhood he said to
+them:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My sons, it is high time that you
+were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But where shall we go?&rdquo; the oldest son asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have thought of that, too,&rdquo; the father said. &ldquo;Do
+each of you chop down a tree and then take the direction
+in which the fallen tree points. I&rsquo;m sure that each of
+you if you go far enough in that direction will find a
+suitable bride.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the next day the three sons chopped down trees.
+The oldest son&rsquo;s tree fell pointing north.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That suits me!&rdquo; he said, for he knew that to the
+north lay a farm where a very pretty girl lived.</p>
+
+<p>The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That suits me!&rdquo; the second son declared thinking of
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>124]</a></span>
+a girl that he had often danced with who lived on a farm
+to the south.</p>
+
+<p>The youngest son&rsquo;s tree&mdash;the youngest son&rsquo;s name
+was Veikko&mdash;when it fell pointed straight to the forest.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; the older brothers laughed. &ldquo;Veikko
+will have to go courting one of the Wolf girls or one of
+the Foxes!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They meant by this that only animals lived in the
+forest and they thought they were making a good joke
+at Veikko&rsquo;s expense. But Veikko said he was perfectly
+willing to take his chances and go where his tree pointed.</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers went gaily off and presented their
+suits to the two farmers whose daughters they admired.
+Veikko, too, started off with brave front but after he
+had gone some distance in the forest his courage began
+to ebb.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How can I find a bride,&rdquo; he asked himself, &ldquo;in a
+place where there are no human creatures at all!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open
+the door and went in. It was empty. To be sure there
+was a little mouse sitting on the table, daintily combing
+her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn&rsquo;t count.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s nobody here!&rdquo; Veikko said aloud.</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards
+him said reproachfully:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>125]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Why, Veikko, I&rsquo;m here!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you don&rsquo;t count. You&rsquo;re only a mouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course I count!&rdquo; the little mouse declared. &ldquo;But
+tell me, what were you hoping to find?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I was hoping to find a sweetheart.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko
+told her the whole story of his brothers and the trees.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily
+enough,&rdquo; Veikko said, &ldquo;but I don&rsquo;t see how I can off
+here in the forest. And it will shame me to have to go
+home and confess that I alone have failed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Veikko,&rdquo; the little mouse said, &ldquo;why don&rsquo;t
+you take me for your sweetheart?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko laughed heartily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you&rsquo;re only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man
+having a mouse for a sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mouse shook her little head solemnly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much
+worse than have me for a sweetheart! Even if I am
+only a mouse I can love you and be true to you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat
+looking up at Veikko with her little paws under her chin
+and her bright little eyes sparkling Veikko liked her
+more and more.</p>
+
+<p>Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>126]</a></span>
+cheered him so much that he forgot his disappointment
+at not finding a human sweetheart and as he left her to
+go home he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, little mouse, I&rsquo;ll take you for my sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and
+she told him that she&rsquo;d be true to him and wait for him
+no matter how long he was in returning.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted
+loudly about their sweethearts.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mine,&rdquo; said the oldest, &ldquo;has the rosiest reddest cheeks
+you ever saw!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And mine,&rdquo; the second announced, &ldquo;has long yellow
+hair!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko said nothing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter, Veikko?&rdquo; the older brothers
+asked him, laughing. &ldquo;Has your sweetheart pretty
+pointed ears or sharp white teeth?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>You see they were still having their little joke about
+foxes and wolves.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You needn&rsquo;t laugh,&rdquo; Veikko said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found a
+sweetheart. She&rsquo;s a gentle dainty little thing gowned
+in velvet.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Gowned in velvet!&rdquo; echoed the oldest brother with a
+frown.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>127]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Just like a princess!&rdquo; the second brother sneered.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Veikko repeated, &ldquo;gowned in velvet like a
+princess. And when she sits up and sings to me I&rsquo;m
+perfectly happy.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh!&rdquo; grunted the older brothers not at all pleased
+that Veikko should have so grand a sweetheart.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the old farmer after a few days, &ldquo;now I
+should like to know what those sweethearts of yours are
+able to do. Have them each bake me a loaf of
+bread so that I can see whether they&rsquo;re good housewives.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mine will be able to bake bread&mdash;I&rsquo;m sure of that!&rdquo;
+the oldest brother declared boastfully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;So will mine!&rdquo; chorused the second brother.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko was silent.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What about the Princess?&rdquo; they said with a laugh.
+&ldquo;Do you think the Princess can bake bread?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; Veikko answered truthfully. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll
+have to ask her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course he had no reason for supposing that the
+little mouse could bake bread and by the time he
+reached the hut in the forest he was feeling sad and
+discouraged.</p>
+
+<p>When he pushed open the door he found the little
+mouse as before seated on the table daintily combing
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>128]</a></span>
+her whiskers. At sight of Veikko she danced about
+with delight.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m so glad to see you!&rdquo; she squeaked. &ldquo;I knew
+you would come back!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked
+him what was the matter. Veikko told her:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake
+him a loaf of bread. If I come home without a loaf
+my brothers will laugh at me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You won&rsquo;t have to go home without a loaf!&rdquo; the
+little mouse said. &ldquo;I can bake bread.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko was much surprised at this.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, I can!&rdquo; the little mouse insisted.</p>
+
+<p>With that she began ringing a small silver bell,
+<i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>. Instantly there was the sound
+of hurrying footsteps, tiny scratchy footsteps, and hundreds
+of mice came running into the hut.</p>
+
+<p>The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight
+and dignified said to them:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest
+wheat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned
+one by one, each carrying a grain of the finest
+wheat. After that it was no trick at all for the Princess
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>129]</a></span>
+mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.</p>
+
+<p>The next day the three brothers presented their
+father the loaves of their sweethearts&rsquo; baking. The
+oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very good,&rdquo; the farmer said. &ldquo;For hardworking
+people like us rye bread is good.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The loaf the second son had was made of barley.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Barley bread is also good,&rdquo; the farmer said.</p>
+
+<p>But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful
+wheaten bread, his father cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have
+a sweetheart of wealth!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course!&rdquo; the older brothers sneered. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t he
+tell us she was a Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess
+wants fine white flour, how does she get it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko answered simply:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She rings a little silver bell and when her servants
+come in she tells them to bring her grains of the finest
+wheat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy
+until their father had to reprove them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There! There!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t grudge the boy
+his good luck! Each girl has baked the loaf she knows
+how to make and each in her own way will probably
+make a good wife. But before you bring them home
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>130]</a></span>
+to me I want one further test of their skill in housewifery.
+Let them each send me a sample of their
+weaving.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers were delighted at this for they
+knew that their sweethearts were skilful weavers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll see how her ladyship fares this time!&rdquo; they
+said, sure in their hearts that Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart, whoever
+she was, would not put them to shame with her
+weaving.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse&rsquo;s
+ability at the loom.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?&rdquo; he
+said to himself as he pushed open the door of the
+forest hut.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, there you are at last!&rdquo; the little mouse squeaked
+joyfully.</p>
+
+<p>She reached out her little paws in welcome and then
+in her excitement she began dancing about on the table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?&rdquo; Veikko
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed I am!&rdquo; the mouse declared. &ldquo;Am I not your
+sweetheart? I&rsquo;ve been waiting for you and waiting,
+just wishing that you would return! Does your father
+want something more this time, Veikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>131]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Yes, and it&rsquo;s something I&rsquo;m afraid you can&rsquo;t give
+me, little mouse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a sample of your weaving. I don&rsquo;t believe you
+can weave. I never heard of a mouse that could weave.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tut! Tut!&rdquo; said the mouse. &ldquo;Of course I can
+weave! It would be a strange thing if Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart
+couldn&rsquo;t weave!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She rang the little silver bell, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>, <i>tinkle</i>,
+and instantly there was the faint <i>scratch-scratch</i> of a
+hundred little feet as mice came running in from all
+directions and sat up on their haunches awaiting their
+Princess&rsquo; orders.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go each of you,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and get me a fiber of
+flax, the finest there is.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The mice went scurrying off and soon they began
+returning one by one each bringing a fiber of flax.
+When they had spun the flax and carded it, the little
+mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was
+so sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it
+into an empty nutshell.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here, Veikko,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;here in this little box
+is a sample of my weaving. I hope your father will
+like it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>132]</a></span>
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed
+for he was sure that his sweetheart&rsquo;s weaving would
+shame his brothers. So at first he kept the nutshell hidden
+in his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a
+sample of her weaving a square of coarse cotton.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not very fine,&rdquo; the farmer said, &ldquo;but good enough.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The second brother&rsquo;s sample was a square of cotton
+and linen mixed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A little better,&rdquo; the farmer said, nodding his head.</p>
+
+<p>Then he turned to Veikko.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given
+you a sample of her weaving?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which
+his brothers burst out laughing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha! Ha!&rdquo; they laughed. &ldquo;Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart
+gives him a nut when he asks for a sample of
+her weaving.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But their laughter died as the farmer opened the
+nutshell and began shaking out a great web of the
+finest linen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Veikko, my boy!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;however did your
+sweetheart get threads for so fine a web?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Veikko answered modestly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>133]</a></span>
+to bring her in fibers of finest flax. They did so and
+after they had spun the flax and carded it, my sweetheart
+wove the web you see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wonderful!&rdquo; gasped the farmer. &ldquo;I have never
+known such a weaver! The other girls will be all right
+for farmers&rsquo; wives but Veikko&rsquo;s sweetheart might be
+a Princess! Well,&rdquo; concluded the farmer, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s time
+that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want
+to see them with my own eyes. Suppose you bring
+them to-morrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;She&rsquo;s a good little mouse and I&rsquo;m very fond of her,&rdquo;
+Veikko thought to himself as he went out to the forest,
+&ldquo;but my brothers will certainly laugh when they find
+she is only a mouse! Well, I don&rsquo;t care if they do
+laugh! She&rsquo;s been a good little sweetheart to me and
+I&rsquo;m not going to be ashamed of her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at
+once that his father wanted to see her.</p>
+
+<p>The little mouse was greatly excited.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must go in proper style!&rdquo; she said.</p>
+
+<p>She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach
+and five. The coach when it came turned out to be an
+empty nutshell and the five prancing steeds that were
+drawing it were five black mice. The little mouse
+seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>134]</a></span>
+the box in front of her and a footman mouse on the box
+behind her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, how my brothers will laugh!&rdquo; thought Veikko.</p>
+
+<p>But he didn&rsquo;t laugh. He walked beside the coach
+and told the little mouse not to be frightened, that he
+would take good care of her. His father, he told her,
+was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.</p>
+
+<p>When they left the forest they came to a river which
+was spanned by a foot bridge. Just as Veikko and
+the nutshell coach had reached the middle of the bridge,
+a man met them coming from the opposite direction.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the man exclaimed as he caught sight
+of the strange little coach that was rolling along beside
+Veikko. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He stooped down and looked and then with a loud
+laugh he put out his foot and pushed the coach, the
+little mouse, her servants, and her five prancing steeds&mdash;all
+off the bridge and into the water below.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What have you done! What have you done!&rdquo;
+Veikko cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve drowned my poor little sweetheart!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.</p>
+
+<p>Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the
+water.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo07" id="illo07"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi07.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">She beckoned to Veikko</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You poor little mouse!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;How sorry I am
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135"><!-- original location of Beckoned illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>137]</a></span>
+that you are drowned! You were a faithful loving
+sweetheart and now that you are gone I know how
+much I loved you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn
+by five glossy horses go up the far bank of the river.
+A coachman in gold lace held the reins and a footman
+in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most beautiful
+girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her
+skin was as red as a berry and as white as snow, her
+long golden hair gleamed with jewels, and she was
+dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko and
+when he came close she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Won&rsquo;t you come sit beside me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me? Me?&rdquo; Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.</p>
+
+<p>The beautiful creature smiled.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart
+when I was a mouse,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and surely now
+that I am a Princess again you won&rsquo;t desert me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A mouse!&rdquo; Veikko gasped. &ldquo;Were you the little
+mouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Princess nodded.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment
+which could never have been broken if you had
+not taken me for a sweetheart and if another human being
+had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>138]</a></span>
+broken forever. So come, we will go to your father
+and after he has given us his blessing we will get married
+and go home to my kingdom.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And that&rsquo;s exactly what they did. They drove at
+once to the farmer&rsquo;s house and when Veikko&rsquo;s father
+and his brothers and his brothers&rsquo; sweethearts saw the
+Princess&rsquo; coach stopping at their gate they all came
+out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk
+could want of them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father!&rdquo; Veikko cried, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t you know me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, bless my soul!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s our Veikko!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, father, I&rsquo;m Veikko and this is the Princess
+that I&rsquo;m going to marry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me,
+where did my boy find a Princess?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Out in the forest where my tree pointed.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, well, well,&rdquo; the farmer said, &ldquo;where your
+tree pointed! I&rsquo;ve always heard that was a good way
+to find a bride.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and
+muttered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the
+forest we, too, should have found princesses instead of
+plain country wenches!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>139]</a></span>
+But they were wrong: it wasn&rsquo;t because his tree
+pointed to the forest that Veikko got the Princess, it
+was because he was so simple and good that he was
+kind even to a little mouse.</p>
+
+<p>Well, after they had got the farmer&rsquo;s blessing they
+rode home to the Princess&rsquo; kingdom and were married.
+And they were happy as they should have been for
+they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>141]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE ENCHANTED GROUSE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd17.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>143]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE ENCHANTED GROUSE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd18.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once an old couple who
+lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son&rsquo;s name was Helli. He
+was a dutiful son but his wife was a
+scold. She was always finding fault
+with the old people and with her husband
+and for that matter with everybody else as well.</p>
+
+<p>One morning when she saw her husband taking out
+his bow and arrows she said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where are you going now?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going hunting,&rdquo; he told her.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t that just like you!&rdquo; she cried. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re going
+off to have a good time hunting and you don&rsquo;t give a
+thought to me who have to stay home alone with two
+stupid old people!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I didn&rsquo;t go hunting,&rdquo; Helli said, &ldquo;and shoot
+something, we&rsquo;d have nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner and then you would have reason to scold.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the woman burst into tears.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>144]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens
+it&rsquo;s my fault!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he
+returned his wife would be in a calmer state of mind.
+He had small success with his hunting. He shot arrow
+after arrow but always missed his mark. Then when
+he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing
+in some brushwood so near that there was little likelihood
+of his missing it.</p>
+
+<p>He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli paused, then he shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got to shoot you for we&rsquo;ve nothing to put in
+the pot for dinner.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For the second time Helli paused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to spare you,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but what would my
+wife say if I came home empty-handed?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t shoot me, brother! Take me home alive.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that Helli dropped his arrow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care what she says! I can&rsquo;t shoot a creature
+that begs so pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>145]</a></span>
+Grouse, I&rsquo;ll do as you say: I&rsquo;ll take you home alive.
+But don&rsquo;t blame me if my wife wrings your neck.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He took the Grouse up in his arms and started
+homewards.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for a year,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll
+reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they reached home and Helli&rsquo;s wife saw the
+Grouse, she cried out petulantly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Is that all you&rsquo;ve got and out hunting all morning!
+That won&rsquo;t be dinner enough for four!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This Grouse isn&rsquo;t to be killed,&rdquo; Helli announced.
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to keep it for a year and feed it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It won&rsquo;t take much to feed a Grouse,&rdquo; the old man
+remarked.</p>
+
+<p>But the wife flew into a passion.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! Feed a useless bird when there isn&rsquo;t enough
+to feed your own flesh and blood!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife
+did not dare to maltreat the Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper
+feather in its tail which it dropped in the dooryard.
+Then it disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; laughed Helli&rsquo;s wife. &ldquo;A copper feather!
+That&rsquo;s your reward for feeding that thankless bird a
+whole year! And now it&rsquo;s escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>146]</a></span>
+But the next day the Grouse returned.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for another year,&rdquo; it said to Helli, &ldquo;and
+I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli
+was firm and for another year he fed and petted the
+Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a
+silver feather in its tail which it dropped in the dooryard.
+Then it disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;One silver feather!&rdquo; Helli&rsquo;s wife cried. &ldquo;So that&rsquo;s
+all you get for feeding that thankless bird a whole
+year! And now it&rsquo;s escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But it hadn&rsquo;t. It returned the very next day.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Feed me for another year,&rdquo; it said to Helli, &ldquo;and
+I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden
+feather in its tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard
+the scolding wife hadn&rsquo;t so much to say, for a
+golden feather was after all pretty good pay for a
+few handfuls of grain.</p>
+
+<p>For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when
+it returned it said to Helli:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Get on my back and I&rsquo;ll reward you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air,
+flew far away. On, on it flew until it reached the broad
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147"><!-- original location of Ocean illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>149]</a></span>
+Ocean. Over the Ocean it flew until Helli could see
+nothing but water in whatever direction he looked.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo08" id="illo08"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi08.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he said to himself with a shudder, &ldquo;I hope
+I can hold on!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him
+and he fell down, down, down. However, before he
+touched water the Grouse swooped under him and
+caught him up again high into the air. He had this
+same terrible experience a second time and a third time
+and each time he thought his last moment had arrived.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; the Grouse told him, &ldquo;you know what my
+feelings were when you threatened three times to shoot
+me with your arrow.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You have taught me a lesson,&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it
+said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper
+column.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good!&rdquo; the Grouse said. &ldquo;That is the home of my
+oldest sister. She will be overjoyed to see us and
+when she hears how you have spared my life she will
+want to make you a present and will offer you various
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>150]</a></span>
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only
+thing you want is her little locked box the key to which
+is lost. If she won&rsquo;t give you that, accept nothing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Grouse&rsquo;s oldest sister received them most hospitably
+and when she had heard their story at once
+offered Helli anything he might like from among her
+treasures.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then give me your little locked box the key to which
+is lost,&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>The oldest sister shook her head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My little locked box! Who told you about that?
+I&rsquo;m sorry, but I cannot give you that! Take anything
+else!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; Helli said, &ldquo;that or nothing!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon
+to give away her little locked box, the Grouse had Helli
+mount his back once more and off they flew.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll visit my second sister now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If she
+offers you a present, ask her for her little locked box
+without a key and accept nothing else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On, on they flew until the oldest sister&rsquo;s castle was
+far behind.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Look, master,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;look straight ahead
+and tell me what you see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>151]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Far ahead I see something that is like a silver
+cloud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That,&rdquo; said the Grouse, &ldquo;is the silver castle of my
+second sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At the silver castle the second sister received them
+with joy and when she heard who Helli was at once declared
+that she wanted to show him her gratitude by
+making him a gift.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ask from me what you will,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and you
+shall have it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But when he asked for her little locked box without
+a key, she cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No! No! Not that! Anything else!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I don&rsquo;t want anything else!&rdquo; Helli said.</p>
+
+<p>When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not
+to be parted from her little locked box, he bade Helli
+mount his back and off they flew again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll go to my youngest sister this time,&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;If she offers you a present, ask for the same
+thing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to
+view.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Helli shaded his eyes and looked.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>152]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a
+cloud.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is the golden castle of my youngest sister.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms
+about the Grouse for she loved him dearly and had not
+seen him for a long time.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Welcome, brother!&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;And welcome also
+to you, Helli!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked
+for her little locked box without a key she gave it to
+him at once.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It is my most precious possession,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;but
+you may have it for you spared my dear brother&rsquo;s life
+when you might have taken it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After they had rested and feasted they bade the
+youngest sister farewell and Helli with his precious box
+held tightly in one hand mounted the Grouse&rsquo;s back
+and off they flew towards home.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Be careful of the box,&rdquo; the Grouse said, &ldquo;and don&rsquo;t
+let it out of your hands until we reach some beautiful
+spot where you&rsquo;d like always to live.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and
+fertile valleys.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Shall we stop here?&rdquo; the Grouse asked. &ldquo;Or here?
+Or here?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>153]</a></span>
+But always Helli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, not here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli
+that now they must part forever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;By sparing my life three times,&rdquo; the Grouse said,
+&ldquo;and then feeding me for three years you have broken
+the enchantment that bound me and now I shall not
+have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and
+when you find the spot where you think you would like
+always to live, drop the box and you will find you have
+a treasure that will more than reward you for your
+kindness to me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where do I want to live always but right here at
+home with my dear old father and mother and my wife
+who is my wife even if she does scold me sometimes!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So there at home after they all had supper together,
+he dropped the box on the floor. It broke and out of
+it arose a beautiful castle with servants and riches and
+everything that Helli had always wanted and never had.
+And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife
+lived in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got
+over her habit of scolding for when you&rsquo;re happy you
+haven&rsquo;t anything to scold about.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>155]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE TERRIBLE OLLI</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd19.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>157]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE TERRIBLE OLLI</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd20.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a wicked rich old
+Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn,
+a farmer, lived on the opposite side
+of the Bay. The farmer had three
+sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I should think it would shame you three strong
+youths that that wicked old Troll over there should
+live on year after year and no one trouble him. We
+work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the
+end of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll
+with all his wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell
+you, if you boys had any real spirit you&rsquo;d take his
+riches from him and drive him away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once
+cried out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, father, I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the two older sons, offended at Olli&rsquo;s promptness,
+declared:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>158]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;ll do no such thing! Don&rsquo;t forget your place
+in the family! You&rsquo;re the youngest and we&rsquo;re not going
+to let you push us aside. Now, father, we two will
+go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll. Olli
+may come with us if he likes and watch us while we
+do it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli laughed and said: &ldquo;All right!&rdquo; for he was used
+to his brothers treating him like a baby.</p>
+
+<p>So in a few days the three brothers walked around
+the Bay and up the Mountain and presented themselves
+at the Troll&rsquo;s house. The Troll and his old wife were
+both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re the sons of the Finn who lives across the
+Bay, aren&rsquo;t you?&rdquo; the Troll said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve watched you
+boys grow up. I am certainly glad to see you for I
+have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you&rsquo;ll inherit my riches.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old Troll made this offer in order to get the
+young men into his power.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Be careful!&rdquo; Olli whispered.</p>
+
+<p>But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect
+of inheriting the Troll&rsquo;s riches so easily to pay any
+heed to Olli&rsquo;s warning. Instead they accepted the
+Troll&rsquo;s offer at once.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>159]</a></span>
+Well, the old Troll&rsquo;s wife made them a fine supper
+and after supper the Troll sent them to bed with his
+three daughters. But first he put red caps on the
+three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A red cap and a white cap in each bed!&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell
+asleep. Olli, too, pretended to fall asleep and when
+he was sure that none of the Troll girls were still awake
+he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put the
+white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps
+on the Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and
+waited.</p>
+
+<p>Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with
+a long knife in his hand. There was so little light in
+the room that he couldn&rsquo;t see the faces of the sleepers,
+but it was easy enough to distinguish the white caps
+from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off
+the heads under the red caps, thinking of course they
+were the heads of the three Finnish youths. Then he
+went back to bed with the old Troll wife and Olli could
+hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their
+deep regular breathing and their loud snores.</p>
+
+<p>Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>160]</a></span>
+happened and the three of them slipped quietly out of
+the Troll house and hurried home to their father on
+the other side of the Bay.</p>
+
+<p>After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling
+the Troll. They didn&rsquo;t care to try another
+encounter with him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He might have cut our heads off!&rdquo; they said, shuddering
+to think of the awful risk they had run.</p>
+
+<p>Olli laughed at them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come on!&rdquo; he kept saying to them day after day.
+&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s go across the Bay to the Troll&rsquo;s!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll do no such thing!&rdquo; they told him. &ldquo;And you
+wouldn&rsquo;t suggest it either if you weren&rsquo;t so young and
+foolish!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; Olli announced at last, &ldquo;if you won&rsquo;t come
+with me I&rsquo;m going alone. I&rsquo;ve heard that the Troll has
+a horse with hairs of gold and silver. I&rsquo;ve decided I
+want that horse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli,&rdquo; his father said, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe you ought
+to go. You know what your brothers say. That old
+Troll is an awfully sly one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli only laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good-by!&rdquo; he called back as he waved his hand.
+&ldquo;When you see me again I&rsquo;ll be riding the Troll&rsquo;s
+horse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>161]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo09" id="illo09"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi09.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Olli and the Troll&rsquo;s horse</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>163]</a></span>
+The Troll wasn&rsquo;t at home but the old Troll wife was
+there. When she saw Olli she thought to herself:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me, here&rsquo;s that Finnish boy again, the one
+that changed the caps! What shall I do? I must keep
+him here on some pretext or other until the Troll comes
+home!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So she pretended to be very glad to see him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Olli,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;is that you? Come right in!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She talked to him as long as she could and when she
+could think of nothing more to say she asked him
+would he take the horse and water it at the Lake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That will keep him busy,&rdquo; she thought to herself,
+&ldquo;and long before he gets back from the Lake the Troll
+will be here.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the
+Lake, jumped on its back and galloped away. By the
+time the Troll reached home, he was safely on the
+other side of the Bay.</p>
+
+<p>When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what
+had happened, he went down to the shore and hallooed
+across the Bay:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;m here! What do you want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli, have you got my horse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>164]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your horse but it&rsquo;s my horse now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Olli!&rdquo; his father cried. &ldquo;You mustn&rsquo;t talk
+that way to the Troll! You&rsquo;ll make him angry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with
+gold and silver hairs warned him sourly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will
+get you yet!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli announced:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ll go over and get the Troll&rsquo;s money-bag.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His father tried to dissuade him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you
+had better not go to the Troll&rsquo;s house again.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though
+he hadn&rsquo;t a fear in the world.</p>
+
+<p>Again he found the old Troll wife alone.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; she thought to herself as she saw him
+coming, &ldquo;here is that terrible Olli again! Whatever
+shall I do? I mustn&rsquo;t let him off this time before the
+Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with me
+in the house.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So when he came in she pretended that she was tired
+and that her back ached and she asked him would he
+watch the bread in the oven while she rested a few moments
+on the bed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly I will,&rdquo; Olli said.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>165]</a></span>
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli
+sat quietly in front of the oven. The Troll wife really
+was tired and before she knew it she fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Olli, &ldquo;here&rsquo;s my chance!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under
+the bed, pulled out the big money-bag full of silver
+pieces, threw it over his shoulder, and hurried home.</p>
+
+<p>He was measuring the money when he heard the
+Troll hallooing across to him:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m here! What do you
+want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli, have you got my money-bag?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your money-bag but it&rsquo;s my money-bag
+now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet
+woven of silk and gold. I think I&rsquo;ll go over and get it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at
+him merrily and went. He took with him an auger and
+a can of water. He hid until it was dark, then climbed
+the roof of the Troll&rsquo;s house and bored a hole right over
+the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep
+he sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their
+faces.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>166]</a></span>
+The Troll woke with a start.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m wet!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and the bed&rsquo;s wet, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The roof must be leaking,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It never
+leaked before. I suppose it was that last wind.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to
+dry and put other covers on the bed.</p>
+
+<p>When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made
+the hole a little bigger, reached in his hand, and got
+the coverlet from the rafters.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m here! What do you
+want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli told him, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got your coverlet but it&rsquo;s
+my coverlet now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>A few days later Olli said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s still one thing in the Troll&rsquo;s house that I
+think I ought to get. It&rsquo;s a golden bell. If I get that
+golden bell then there will be nothing left that had
+better belong to an honest Finn.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he went again to the Troll&rsquo;s house taking with
+him a saw and an auger. He hid until night and, when
+the Troll and his wife were asleep, he cut a hole through
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>167]</a></span>
+the side of the house through which he reached in his
+hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of
+bed and grabbed Olli&rsquo;s hand.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got you now and this
+time you won&rsquo;t get away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli didn&rsquo;t try to get away. He made no resistance
+while the Troll dragged him into the house.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll eat him&mdash;that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ll do!&rdquo; the Troll said
+to his wife. &ldquo;Heat the oven at once and we&rsquo;ll roast
+him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;ll make a fine roast!&rdquo; the Troll said, pinching
+Olli&rsquo;s arms and legs. &ldquo;I think we ought to invite the
+other Troll folk to come and help us eat him up. Suppose
+I just go over the Mountain and gather them in.
+You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven
+is well heated just take Olli and slip him in and close
+the door and by the time we come he&rsquo;ll be done.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Troll wife said, &ldquo;but don&rsquo;t be too
+long! He&rsquo;s young and tender and will roast
+quickly!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll
+folk who lived on the other side of the Mountain and
+Olli was left alone with the Troll wife.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>168]</a></span>
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the
+coals and said to Olli:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven
+with your back to the opening and I&rsquo;ll push you in
+nicely.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli pretended he didn&rsquo;t quite understand. He sat
+down first one way and then another, spreading himself
+out so large that he was too big for the oven door.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not that way!&rdquo; the Troll wife kept saying. &ldquo;Hunch
+up little, straight in front of the door!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You show me how,&rdquo; Olli begged.</p>
+
+<p>So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven
+directly in front of the opening, and she hunched herself
+up very compactly with her chin on her knees and
+her arms around her legs.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, that way!&rdquo; Olli said, &ldquo;so that you can just take
+hold of me and push me in and shut the door!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her
+in and slammed the door! And that was the end of
+the old Troll wife!</p>
+
+<p>Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to
+a turn. Then he took her out and put her on the table
+all ready for the feast.</p>
+
+<p>Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack
+up in some of the old Troll wife&rsquo;s clothes. He threw
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>169]</a></span>
+the dressed up sack on the bed and, just to glance at
+it, you&rsquo;d suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.</p>
+
+<p>Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.</p>
+
+<p>Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from
+over the Mountain came trooping in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!&rdquo; they said
+as they got the first whiff from the big roast on the
+table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See!&rdquo; the Troll said, pointing to the bed. &ldquo;The old
+woman&rsquo;s asleep! Well, let her sleep! She&rsquo;s tired!
+We&rsquo;ll just sit down without her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they set to and feasted and feasted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; said the Troll. &ldquo;This is the way to
+serve a troublesome young Finn!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then his knife struck something hard and he
+looked down to see what it was.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;if here isn&rsquo;t one of the old
+woman&rsquo;s beads! What can that mean? You don&rsquo;t suppose
+the roast is not Olli after all but the old woman!
+No! No! It can&rsquo;t be!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came
+back shaking his head sadly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My friends,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ve been eating the old
+woman! However, we&rsquo;ve eaten so much of her that I
+suppose we might as well finish her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>170]</a></span>
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.</p>
+
+<p>At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed
+across:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli who was safely home shouted back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;m here! What do you want?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Have you got my golden bell?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve got your golden bell but it&rsquo;s my golden
+bell now!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your old woman?&rdquo; Olli echoed. &ldquo;Look! Is that
+she?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up
+behind the Troll.</p>
+
+<p>The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight
+at the sun and then, of course, he burst!</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of him!</p>
+
+<p>Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on
+that side of the Mountain. They were all too afraid of
+the Terrible Olli!</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>171]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd21.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn&rsquo;t Lose His
+Temper</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>173]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE DEVIL&rsquo;S HIDE</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a Finnish boy who
+got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers
+who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the
+Devil and got the worst of it. Then
+Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would
+be worsted, but he wasn&rsquo;t. Here is the whole story:</p>
+
+<p>One day the oldest brother said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s time for me to go out into the world and earn
+my living. Do you two younger ones wait here at home
+until you hear how I get on.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest
+brother started out. He was unable to get employment
+until by chance he met the Devil. The Devil at
+once offered him a place but on very strange terms.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come work for me,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;and I promise
+that you&rsquo;ll be comfortably housed and well fed. We&rsquo;ll
+make this bargain: the first of us who loses his temper
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>174]</a></span>
+will forfeit to the other enough of his own hide to sole
+a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may
+exact from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your
+temper first, I&rsquo;ll exact the same from you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at
+once took him home and set him to work.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take this ax,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and go out behind the
+house and chop me some firewood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the
+woodpile.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Chopping wood is easy enough,&rdquo; he thought to
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>But at the first blow he found that the ax had no
+edge. Try as he would he couldn&rsquo;t cut a single log.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d be a fool to stay here and waste my time with
+such an ax!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking
+to escape the Devil and get work somewhere else. But
+the Devil had no intention of letting him escape. He
+ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he
+meant leaving thus without notice.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to work for you!&rdquo; the oldest brother
+cried, petulantly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;but don&rsquo;t lose your
+temper about it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>175]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I will so lose my temper!&rdquo; the oldest brother
+declared. &ldquo;The idea&mdash;expecting me to cut wood with
+such an ax!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; the Devil remarked, &ldquo;since you insist on
+losing your temper, you&rsquo;ll have to forfeit me enough of
+your hide to sole a pair of boots! That was our
+bargain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother howled and protested but to no
+purpose. The Devil was firm. He took out a long
+knife and slit off enough of the oldest brother&rsquo;s hide
+to sole a pair of big boots.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, my boy,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;now you may go.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The oldest brother went limping home complaining
+bitterly at the hard fate that had befallen him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m tired and sick,&rdquo; he told his brothers, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m
+going to stay home and rest. One of you will have to
+go out and get work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The second brother at once said that he&rsquo;d be delighted
+to try his luck in the world. So he started out and he
+had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+no work, then he met the Devil and the Devil made
+exactly the same bargain with him that he had made
+with the oldest brother. He took the second brother
+home with him, gave him the same dull ax, and sent him
+out to the woodpile. After the first stroke the second
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>176]</a></span>
+brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to run
+off and the Devil, of course, wouldn&rsquo;t let him go until
+he, too, had submitted to the loss of a great patch of
+hide. So it was no time at all before the second brother
+came limping home complaining bitterly at fate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What ails you two?&rdquo; Erkki said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You go out into the cruel world and hunt work,&rdquo;
+they told him, &ldquo;and you&rsquo;ll find out soon enough what
+ails us! And when you do find out you needn&rsquo;t come
+limping home expecting sympathy from us for you
+won&rsquo;t get it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his
+brothers at home nursing their sore backs and their
+injured feelings.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At
+first he could get work nowhere, then later he met the
+Devil and went into his employ on exactly the same
+terms as his brothers.</p>
+
+<p>The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him
+out to the woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that
+the ax had lost its edge and would never cut a single
+log. But instead of being discouraged and losing his
+temper, he only laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose the Devil thinks I&rsquo;ll lose my hide over a
+trifle like this!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Well, I just won&rsquo;t!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>177]</a></span>
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile,
+began pulling it down. Under all the logs he found
+the Devil&rsquo;s cat. It was an evil looking creature with
+a gray head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; thought Erkki, &ldquo;I bet anything you&rsquo;ve got
+something to do with this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the
+evil creature&rsquo;s head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered
+its edge and after that Erkki had no trouble
+at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil wanted.</p>
+
+<p>That night at supper the Devil said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, I&rsquo;ve chopped all that wood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil was surprised.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Really?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then you found something in the woodpile, didn&rsquo;t
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Nothing but an awful looking old cat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil started.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did you do anything to that cat?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I only chopped its head off and threw it away.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Devil cried angrily. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t you know
+that was my cat!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master,&rdquo; Erkki said soothingly, &ldquo;you&rsquo;re
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>178]</a></span>
+not going to lose your temper over a little thing like a
+dead cat, are you? Don&rsquo;t forget our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper but I must say
+that was no way to treat my cat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to
+the forest and bring home some logs on the ox sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My black dog will go with you,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and as
+you come home you&rsquo;re to take exactly the same course
+the dog takes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the
+ox sledge with logs and then drove the oxen home following
+the Devil&rsquo;s black dog. As they reached the
+Devil&rsquo;s house the black dog jumped through a hole in
+the gate.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must follow master&rsquo;s orders,&rdquo; Erkki said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them
+through the same hole in the gate; he chopped up the
+logs and pitched them through the hole; and he broke
+up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow the
+oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole
+himself.</p>
+
+<p>That night at supper the Devil said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>179]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, I followed the black dog.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Devil cried. &ldquo;Do you mean to say you
+brought the oxen and the sledge and the logs through
+the hole in the gate?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, master, that&rsquo;s what I did.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you couldn&rsquo;t!&rdquo; the Devil declared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;just go out and see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil went outside and when he saw the method
+by which Erkki had carried out his orders he was furious.
+But Erkki quieted him by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a trifling matter like this, are you? Remember
+our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;N-n-no,&rdquo; the Devil said, again swallowing his anger,
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper, but I want you to
+understand, Erkki, that I think you&rsquo;ve acted very badly
+in this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about
+Erkki.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to get rid of that boy! That&rsquo;s all there
+is about it!&rdquo; he said to his wife.</p>
+
+<p>Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>180]</a></span>
+tried to smile and look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki
+was gone he went back at once to his grievance. He
+declared emphatically:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no living in peace and comfort with such a
+boy around!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; his wife said, &ldquo;if you feel that way about it,
+why don&rsquo;t you kill him to-night when he&rsquo;s asleep? We
+could throw his body into the lake and no one be the
+wiser.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a fine idea!&rdquo; the Devil said. &ldquo;Wake me up
+some time after midnight and I&rsquo;ll do it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night
+he kept awake. When he knew from their snoring that
+the Devil and his wife were sound asleep, he slipped
+over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil&rsquo;s wife in his
+arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in
+his own bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and
+laid himself down beside the Devil in the wife&rsquo;s place.</p>
+
+<p>Presently he nudged the Devil awake.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What do you want?&rdquo; the Devil mumbled.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sst!&rdquo; Erkki whispered. &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t it time we got up
+and killed Erkki?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the Devil answered, &ldquo;it is. Come along.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a
+great sword from the wall. Then they crept over to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>181]</a></span>
+Erkki&rsquo;s bed and the Devil with one blow cut off the
+head of the person who was lying there asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll just carry out the bed and all
+and dump it in the lake.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the
+other and, stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they
+carried it down to the lake and pitched it in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a good job done!&rdquo; the Devil said with a
+laugh.</p>
+
+<p>Then they went back to bed together and the Devil
+fell instantly asleep.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning when he got up for breakfast,
+there was Erkki stirring the porridge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How&mdash;did you get here?&rdquo; the Devil asked. &ldquo;I mean&mdash;I
+mean where is my wife?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your wife? Don&rsquo;t you remember,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;you
+cut off her head last night and then we threw her into
+the lake, bed and all! But no one will be the wiser!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;W-wh-what!&rdquo; the Devil cried, and he was about
+to fly into an awful rage when Erkki restrained him
+by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a little thing like a wife, are you? Remember
+our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>182]</a></span>
+&ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but
+I tell you frankly, Erkki, I don&rsquo;t think that was a nice
+trick for you to play on me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about
+the house, so in a few days he decided to go off wooing
+for a new one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And, Erkki,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I expect you to keep busy
+while I&rsquo;m gone. Here&rsquo;s a keg of red paint. Now get
+to work and have the house all blazing red by the time
+I get back.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All blazing red,&rdquo; Erkki repeated. &ldquo;Very well, master,
+trust me to have it all blazing red by the time you
+get back!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house
+a-fire and in a short time the whole sky was lighted up
+with the red glow of the flames. In great fright the
+Devil hurried back and got there in time to see the
+house one mass of fire.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve done as you
+told me. It looks very pretty, doesn&rsquo;t it? all blazing
+red!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil almost choked with rage.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&mdash;you&mdash;&rdquo; he began, but Erkki restrained him
+by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183"><!-- original location of Three Bridges illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>185]</a></span>
+temper over a little thing like a house a-fire, are you?
+Remember our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 423px;">
+<a name="illo10" id="illo10"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi10.png" width="423" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges</p>
+
+<p>The Devil swallowed hard and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;N&mdash;no, I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper, but I
+must say, Erkki, that I&rsquo;m very much annoyed with
+you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again
+and before he started he said to Erkki:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, no nonsense this time! While I&rsquo;m gone
+you&rsquo;re to build three bridges over the lake, but they&rsquo;re
+not to be built of wood or stone or iron or earth. Do
+you understand?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki pretended to be frightened.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a pretty hard task you&rsquo;ve given me, master!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Hard or easy, see that you get it done!&rdquo; the Devil
+said.</p>
+
+<p>Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went
+out to the field and slaughtered all the Devil&rsquo;s cattle.
+From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges across
+the lake, using the skulls for one bridge, the ribs for
+another, and the legs and the hoofs for the third. Then
+when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing
+to the bridges said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See, master, there they are, three bridges put together
+without stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>186]</a></span>
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had
+been slaughtered to give bones for the bridges, he was
+ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki quieted him by saying:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master, you&rsquo;re not going to lose your
+temper over a little thing like the slaughter of a few
+cattle, are you? Remember our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not going to lose my temper exactly
+but I just want to tell you, Erkki, that I don&rsquo;t
+think you&rsquo;re behaving well!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil&rsquo;s wooing was successful and pretty soon
+he brought home a new wife. The new wife didn&rsquo;t like
+having Erkki about, so the Devil promised her he&rsquo;d
+kill the boy.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do it to-night,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;when he&rsquo;s asleep.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn
+in his bed under the covers, and where his head ordinarily
+would be he put a big round stone. Then he
+himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably
+to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>During the night the Devil took his great sword from
+the wall and went over to Erkki&rsquo;s bed. His first blow
+hit the round stone and nicked the sword. His second
+blow struck sparks.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>187]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the Devil thought, &ldquo;he&rsquo;s got a mighty
+hard head! I better strike lower!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow.
+The hoops flew apart and the churn collapsed.</p>
+
+<p>The Devil went chuckling back to bed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he said boastfully to his wife, &ldquo;I got him that
+time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the next morning when he woke up he didn&rsquo;t
+feel like laughing for there was Erkki as lively as ever
+and pretending that nothing had happened.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; cried the Devil in amazement, &ldquo;didn&rsquo;t you
+feel anything strike you last night while you were
+asleep?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek,&rdquo;
+Erkki said. &ldquo;Nothing else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Steel doesn&rsquo;t touch him!&rdquo; the Devil said to his wife.
+&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ll try fire on him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the
+threshing barn. Erkki carried his cot down to the
+threshing floor and then when it was dark he shifted
+it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all night.</p>
+
+<p>During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing
+barn. In the early dawn Erkki carried his cot back
+to the place of the threshing barn and in the morning
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>188]</a></span>
+when the Devil came out the first thing he saw was
+Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the
+smoking ruins.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me, Erkki!&rdquo; he shouted, shaking him awake,
+&ldquo;have you been asleep all night?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki sat up and yawned.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I&rsquo;ve had a fine night&rsquo;s sleep. But I did feel
+a little chilly.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Chilly!&rdquo; the Devil gasped.</p>
+
+<p>After that the Devil&rsquo;s one thought was to get rid of
+Erkki.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That boy&rsquo;s getting on my nerves!&rdquo; he told his wife.
+&ldquo;I just can&rsquo;t stand him much longer! What are we
+going to do about him?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They discussed one plan after another and at last
+decided that the only way they&rsquo;d ever get rid of him
+would be to move away and leave him behind.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll send him out to the forest to chop wood all
+day,&rdquo; the Devil said, &ldquo;and while he&rsquo;s gone we&rsquo;ll row
+ourselves and all our belongings out to an island and
+when he comes back he won&rsquo;t know where we&rsquo;ve
+gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when
+they were sure he was safely at work in the forest he
+slipped back and hid himself in the bedclothes.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>189]</a></span>
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking
+their things there was Erkki in the bedclothes!</p>
+
+<p>The Devil&rsquo;s new wife complained bitterly.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you really loved me,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;d cut off that
+boy&rsquo;s head!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I&rsquo;ve tried to cut it off!&rdquo; the Devil declared,
+&ldquo;and I never can do it! Plague take such a boy! I&rsquo;ve
+always known the Finns were an obstinate lot but I
+must say I&rsquo;ve never met one as bad as Erkki! He&rsquo;s too
+much for me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Devil&rsquo;s wife kept on complaining until at
+last the Devil promised that he would try once again
+to cut off Erkki&rsquo;s head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; his wife said, &ldquo;to-night when he&rsquo;s asleep
+I&rsquo;ll wake you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, what with the moving and everything the wife
+herself was tired and as soon as she went to bed she
+fell asleep. That gave Erkki just the very chance he
+needed to try on the new wife the trick he had played
+on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to
+his bed and then laid himself down in her place beside
+the Devil. Then he waked up the Devil and reminded
+him that he had promised to cut off Erkki&rsquo;s head.</p>
+
+<p>The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki&rsquo;s
+bed and of course cut off the head of his new wife.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>190]</a></span>
+The next morning when he had found out what he
+had done, he was perfectly furious.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You get right out of here, Erkki!&rdquo; he roared. &ldquo;I
+never want to see you again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There now, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;re not going
+to lose your temper over a little thing like a dead wife,
+are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I am so going to lose my temper!&rdquo; the Devil
+shouted. &ldquo;And what&rsquo;s more it isn&rsquo;t a little thing! I
+liked this wife, I did, and I don&rsquo;t know where I&rsquo;ll get
+another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, master,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll go but not until
+you pay me what you owe me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What I owe you!&rdquo; bellowed the Devil. &ldquo;What about
+all you owe me for my house and my cattle and my old
+wife and my dear new wife and everything!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve lost your temper,&rdquo; Erkki said, &ldquo;and now
+you&rsquo;ve got to pay me a patch of your hide big enough
+to sole a pair of boots. That was our bargain!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm.
+He wouldn&rsquo;t budge a step until the Devil had allowed
+him to slit a great patch of hide off his back.</p>
+
+<p>That piece of the Devil&rsquo;s hide made the finest soles
+that a pair of boots ever had. It wore for years and
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>191]</a></span>
+years and years. In fact Erkki is still tramping around
+on those same soles. The fame of them has spread over
+all the land and it has got so that now people stop
+Erkki on the highway to look at his wonderful boots
+soled with the Devil&rsquo;s hide. Travelers from foreign
+countries are deeply interested when they hear about
+the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tell us,&rdquo; they beg him, &ldquo;how did you get the Devil&rsquo;s
+hide in the first place?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I got it by not losing my temper!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As for the Devil, he&rsquo;s never again made a bargain like
+that with a Finn!</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 99px;">
+<img src="images/mmd12.png" width="99" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>193]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 252px;">
+<img src="images/mmd23.png" width="252" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">The Story of a Young Man Who Respected
+the Dead</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194"><!-- blank page --></a></span></p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>195]</a></span></p>
+
+<p class="reptitle">THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT</p>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd24.png" width="100" height="99"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a rich merchant
+who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Matti, my boy, my end is approaching
+and there are two things I want to
+say to you: The first is that I am
+leaving you all my wealth. If you are careful you will
+have enough to suffice you for life. The second thing I
+have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your native
+village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared
+that if ever you left this village you would have
+to marry a woman with horns. Now that I have warned
+you in time it will be your own fault if ever you have
+to meet this fate.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He
+had never before wanted to travel but now that he
+knew of the fate which would overtake him if he did,
+he couldn&rsquo;t bear the thought of remaining forever a
+prisoner in his native village.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>196]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What is the use of riches,&rdquo; he asked himself, &ldquo;if one
+can&rsquo;t travel over the broad world and see wonderful
+sights? Besides, if it&rsquo;s my fate to marry a horned
+woman, I don&rsquo;t see why sitting quietly at home is going
+to save me. No! I&rsquo;m going to take my chances like
+a man and come and go as I like!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he gathered his riches together, closed the old
+house where he had been born, and started out into the
+bright world. He traveled many days, meeting strange
+peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he settled
+down in a large city and became a merchant like his
+father.</p>
+
+<p>One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a
+crowd of men dragging the body of a dead man in the
+gutter. They were kicking and abusing the dead body
+and calling it evil names.</p>
+
+<p>Matti stopped them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What is this you are doing?&rdquo; he demanded. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t
+you know that disrespect to the dead is disrespect to
+God? Give over abusing this poor dead body and
+bury it decently or God will punish you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let us alone!&rdquo; the men cried. &ldquo;He deserves the
+abuse we are giving him! When he was alive he borrowed
+money from us all and then he died without
+repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>197]</a></span>
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wait!&rdquo; Matti cried. &ldquo;Tell me what the dead man
+owed you and I will pay it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;He owed me ten ducats!&rdquo; said one.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me a hundred!&rdquo; shouted another.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me five hundred!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And me a thousand!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come all of you to my house,&rdquo; Matti said, &ldquo;and I
+will pay you, but only on condition that first you hand
+over the body to me and help me give it a decent burial.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead
+man and then went home with him.</p>
+
+<p>Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him
+and, true to his promise, Matti paid them all.</p>
+
+<p>When he had paid the last man he found that he
+had nothing left for himself but nine silver kopeks. The
+dead man&rsquo;s debts had exhausted all the wealth his father
+had left him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter!&rdquo; Matti thought to himself. &ldquo;My riches
+would have done me no good if I had stood by and
+allowed a poor dead man to be abused. What if I
+have nothing left? I&rsquo;m young and strong and I can
+go out into the world and make my livelihood somehow.
+I&rsquo;ll go home and have one last look at my native village
+and then begin life anew.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>198]</a></span>
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in
+his pockets but the nine silver kopeks, Matti left the
+city where people were beginning to know him as a
+merchant and started back to his native village. He
+was soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully
+and asked to be engaged as his servant.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My servant!&rdquo; Matti repeated with a laugh. &ldquo;My
+dear fellow, I&rsquo;m too poor to have a servant! All I have
+in the world are nine silver kopeks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter, master,&rdquo; the man said. &ldquo;Take me anyhow.
+I will serve you well and I promise you will not
+regret our bargain.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The
+sun was hot and by midafternoon Matti was feeling
+faint with hunger and fatigue.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Master,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;I will run ahead to the
+next village and order the landlord at the inn to prepare
+you a fine dinner. Do you come along slowly and by
+the time you arrive the dinner will be ready.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But remember,&rdquo; Matti warned him, &ldquo;I have no
+money to pay for a fine dinner!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Trust me!&rdquo; the Servant said and off he hurried.</p>
+
+<p>At the next village he hunted out the best inn and
+ordered the landlord to prepare his finest dinner without
+delay. He was so particular that everything should be
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>199]</a></span>
+the best that the landlord supposed his master must be
+some great lord.</p>
+
+<p>When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained
+and shabby, the landlord was amazed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s fine lords we have nowadays!&rdquo; he muttered
+scornfully, and he wished he had not been in such
+haste to cook the best food in the house. But it was
+cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.</p>
+
+<p>Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage
+soup and fish and fowl tender and juicy.</p>
+
+<p>It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with
+such good appetites.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!&rdquo;
+he muttered angrily. &ldquo;Well, let them eat while they
+can for they&rsquo;ll lose their appetites once they see the reckoning!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they finished eating, they rested and then called
+for the reckoning. It was much more than it should
+have been but neither Matti nor the Servant objected.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Like a good fellow,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;will you
+please to lend me your half peck measure.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Like a good fellow, indeed!&rdquo; the landlord muttered
+to himself. &ldquo;Who are you to call me a good fellow I&rsquo;d
+like to know!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>200]</a></span>
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master,&rdquo; the Servant said, &ldquo;give me three of
+your nine silver kopeks.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the
+measure, shook the measure three times and lo! it was
+filled to the brim with silver kopeks! The Servant
+counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed the
+rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti
+went on their way leaving the landlord gaping after
+them with open mouth.</p>
+
+<p>Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the
+same way at the various inns where they stopped until
+they reached at last Matti&rsquo;s native village and the old
+house that still belonged to him.</p>
+
+<p>They settled themselves there and one day the Servant
+said to Matti:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, master, you know your fate: for having left
+your native village you know you are destined to marry
+a horned woman. You might as well do it at once for
+you&rsquo;ll have to do it sooner or later.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That is true,&rdquo; Matti said, &ldquo;and if I knew the whereabouts
+of the horned woman who is my fate I should
+marry her at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;In that case we&rsquo;ll lose no more time,&rdquo; the Servant
+said. &ldquo;The King has three daughters all of whom are
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>201]</a></span>
+horned. This isn&rsquo;t generally known but it is true. Let
+us go to the palace and present your suit. The King
+will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take
+the oldest who has big horns and a hoarse voice. When
+she sees you, she&rsquo;ll whisper: &lsquo;Take me! Take me!&rsquo; But
+do you shake your head and answer: &lsquo;No! Not this
+one!&rsquo; Then the King will send for his second daughter.
+Her horns are not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She,
+too, will whisper you: &lsquo;Take me! Take me!&rsquo; But do
+you again shake your head and answer: &lsquo;No! Not this
+one!&rsquo; Be firm and the King will finally have to send
+for his youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft
+little baby horns and her voice is just a little husky.
+Take her and soon all will be well.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got
+audience with the King.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My master, Matti,&rdquo; the Servant said, addressing
+the King, &ldquo;is desirous of marrying a wife with
+horns.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King was interested at once.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;As it happens I have a daughter with horns,&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll have her come in.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she
+appeared. Her horns were long and thick.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>202]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Take me! Take me!&rdquo; she whispered hoarsely as she
+passed Matti.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See what a fine girl she is!&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;and
+what well grown horns she has!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Matti shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, Your Majesty, I don&rsquo;t think I want to marry
+this one.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course you must follow the dictates of your
+heart,&rdquo; the King said drily. &ldquo;However, come to think
+of it, my second daughter also has horns. Maybe you&rsquo;d
+like to consider her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the second daughter was called in. Her horns
+were not so large as her sister&rsquo;s nor was her voice so
+hoarse. But Matti, remembering the Servant&rsquo;s warning,
+refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters
+so glibly, but when he found that Matti was firm
+he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if
+it&rsquo;s horns you&rsquo;re looking for, I don&rsquo;t believe you&rsquo;ll be
+interested in her at all since her horns are so small and
+soft that they are hardly noticeable at all. However,
+as you&rsquo;re here, you might as well see her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo11" id="illo11"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi11.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the youngest princess was sent for and at once
+Matti knew that she was the one he wanted to marry.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203"><!-- original location of Evil Enchantment illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204"><!-- blank page --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>205]</a></span>
+She wasn&rsquo;t as beautiful as a princess should be but
+she was gentle and modest and when she passed Matti
+her cheeks flushed and she wasn&rsquo;t able to whisper anything.
+But Matti felt very sure that if she had
+whispered her voice would have been scarcely
+husky.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This, O King,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;is my choice! Let me
+marry your youngest daughter and I promise to be a
+faithful husband to her.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The King would have preferred to marry off the
+older princesses first for their horns were getting to be
+very troublesome, but as they all had horns he was
+afraid to refuse Matti&rsquo;s offer.</p>
+
+<p>So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest
+and in a short time they were married.</p>
+
+<p>After the wedding feast the King led the young
+couple to the bridal chamber and closed the door.</p>
+
+<p>Matti&rsquo;s Servant meantime had gone out to the woods
+and cut some stout switches of birch. When the palace
+was quiet and all were asleep, he crept softly into the
+bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of bed, he
+beat her unmercifully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh! Oh!&rdquo; she cried in pain.</p>
+
+<p>Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped
+out of bed and tried to stop the Servant.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>206]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Wait!&rdquo; the Servant said. &ldquo;She is under an evil enchantment
+and I am delivering her!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood.
+Then instantly the horns fell from her head and there
+she stood a beautiful young girl released from the evil
+enchantment that had disfigured her.</p>
+
+<p>The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell
+in love with her on sight and has loved her ever since.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now farewell, Matti,&rdquo; the Servant said. &ldquo;My work
+is done and you will need me no longer. You have
+married a beautiful princess and the King will soon
+make you his heir.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti
+was left alone with his lovely bride.</p>
+
+<p>And that was Matti&rsquo;s reward for having respected
+the dead. God Himself in the form of the Servant had
+come down and taken care of him.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>207]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>FAMILIAR FACES</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd25.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!<br />
+II Jane, Jane, Don&rsquo;t Complain!<br />
+III Susan Walker, What a Talker!</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>208]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo12" id="illo12"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi12.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">When she got to the middle of the stream</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>209]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>I<br />
+<br />
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd26.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a farmer who was
+married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If
+he expected Maya to say, &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; she
+would always say, &ldquo;No,&rdquo; and if he
+expected her to say, &ldquo;No,&rdquo; she would
+always say, &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo; If he said the soup was too hot,
+Maya would instantly insist that it was too cold. She
+would do nothing that he wanted her to do, and she
+always insisted on doing everything that he did not
+want her to do.</p>
+
+<p>Like most contrary people Maya was really very
+stupid and the farmer after he had been married to her
+for a few years knew exactly how to manage her.</p>
+
+<p>For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to
+make a big feast for his friends and neighbors. Did
+he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a few weeks
+beforehand he remarked casually:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>210]</a></span>
+expect us to have fine white bread. But I don&rsquo;t think
+we ought to. It&rsquo;s too expensive. Black bread is good
+enough for us.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Black bread, indeed!&rdquo; cried Maya. &ldquo;Not at all!
+We&rsquo;re going to have white bread and you needn&rsquo;t say
+any more about it! Black bread at Christmas! To
+hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is
+set on it, but I hope you don&rsquo;t expect to make any pies.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect
+to make all the pies I want!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don&rsquo;t think we
+ought to have any wine.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No wine! I like that! Of course we&rsquo;ll have wine
+on Christmas!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending
+to protest, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not
+expect to buy any coffee.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard
+of such a thing! Of course we&rsquo;ll have coffee!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, I&rsquo;m not going to quarrel with you! Get a
+little coffee if you like, but just enough for you and
+me for I don&rsquo;t think we ought to have any guests.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>211]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and
+you&rsquo;re wrong if you think we&rsquo;re not going to have a
+houseful of guests!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to
+grumble, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you have the house full of people, you needn&rsquo;t
+think I&rsquo;m going to sit at the head of the table, for I&rsquo;m
+not!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You are, too!&rdquo; screamed his wife. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s exactly
+where you are going to sit!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Maya, Maya, don&rsquo;t get so excited! I will sit there
+if you insist. But if I do you mustn&rsquo;t expect me to
+pour the wine.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;And why not? It would be a strange thing if you
+didn&rsquo;t pour the wine at your own table!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right, all right, I&rsquo;ll pour it! But you mustn&rsquo;t
+expect me to taste it beforehand.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course you&rsquo;re going to taste it beforehand!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife
+to say. So you see by pretending to oppose her at every
+turn he was able to have the big Christmas party that
+he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart&rsquo;s content
+with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.</p>
+
+<p>Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary
+if such a thing were possible. Summer came and
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>212]</a></span>
+the haymaking season. They were going to a distant
+meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little
+river on a footbridge made of one slender plank.</p>
+
+<p>The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to
+his wife:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not
+strong!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I will not walk carefully!&rdquo; the wife declared.</p>
+
+<p>She flung herself on the plank with all her weight
+and when she got to the middle of the stream she
+jumped up and down just to show her husband how
+contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a
+snap, Maya fell into the water, the current carried her
+off, and she was drowned!</p>
+
+<p>Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly
+upstream shouting:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Help! Help!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The haymakers heard him and came running to see
+what was the matter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My wife has fallen into the river!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;and
+the current has carried her body away!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What ails you?&rdquo; the haymakers said. &ldquo;Are you
+mad? If the current has carried your wife away, she&rsquo;s
+floating downstream, not upstream!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Any other woman would float downstream,&rdquo; the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>213]</a></span>
+farmer said. &ldquo;Yes! But you know Maya! She&rsquo;s so
+contrary she&rsquo;d float upstream every time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; the haymakers said, &ldquo;she would!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for
+his wife&rsquo;s body but he never found it.</p>
+
+<p>When night came he went home and had a good
+supper of all the things he liked to eat which Maya
+would never let him have.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>214]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 417px;">
+<a name="illo13" id="illo13"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi13.png" width="417" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">They were so busy eating and drinking</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>215]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>II<br />
+<br />
+JANE, JANE, DON&rsquo;T COMPLAIN!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd27.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a man who was poor
+and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny.
+Jenny was so lazy that it was an effort
+for her to lift one foot after the other.
+And in addition to her laziness she was
+an everlasting complainer. &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she used to grunt
+in the morning, &ldquo;I wish we didn&rsquo;t have to get up!&rdquo; and
+&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; she used to groan at night, &ldquo;I wish we didn&rsquo;t
+have to take our shoes off before going to bed!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>One day when they were both out in the forest collecting
+faggots, Jenny said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see why we&rsquo;re not rich! I don&rsquo;t see why
+the King should live at his ease while we have to grub
+for everything we get! I just hate work!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband
+was not that they worked but that they didn&rsquo;t
+work. It was because they didn&rsquo;t that they had so
+much time to think about it.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>216]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Drat it all!&rdquo; Jenny went on, whining, &ldquo;Adam and
+Eve are to blame for all our misfortunes! If they
+hadn&rsquo;t disobeyed God&rsquo;s commandment and eaten that
+apple, we&rsquo;d all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It&rsquo;s all their fault that we have to moil and toil
+and hurry and scurry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the man agreed, &ldquo;it is, especially Eve&rsquo;s. Of
+course Adam was to blame, too, for he should have
+controlled his wife better. But Eve was the more to
+blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn&rsquo;t have allowed
+her to touch the apple in the first place.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that the King who was out hunting
+that day overheard this conversation.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha!&rdquo; he thought to himself, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve a great mind to
+teach these two people a lesson!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from
+them and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day to you both! I have just heard your
+complaints and I, too, think it very hard that you should
+be poor while others are rich. I tell you what I&rsquo;ll do:
+I&rsquo;ll take you both home with me to the castle and maintain
+you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in
+just one thing.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and
+just as they were the King took them home with him to
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>217]</a></span>
+the castle. He lodged them in a room with golden
+furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for
+food he had them served the choicest delicacies in the
+world.</p>
+
+<p>As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in
+to them carrying in his hands a covered dish of silver.
+He put the dish down in the center of the table.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my friends,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I promised to maintain
+you in this ease and luxury provided you obeyed me in
+one thing. You see this silver dish. I forbid you ever
+to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that moment I
+shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back
+to your poverty and misery.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves
+to their hearts&rsquo; content with the delicate foods
+set before them.</p>
+
+<p>They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring
+themselves in their fine clothes, that for the first day
+they didn&rsquo;t give the covered dish a thought. The
+second day the wife noticed it and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the thing we&rsquo;re not to touch. Well, for my
+part I don&rsquo;t want to touch it. I don&rsquo;t want to do anything
+but eat and sleep and try on my pretty new
+clothes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>By the third day they had eaten so much and so
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>218]</a></span>
+steadily that they were no longer hungry and when they
+lay down on the big soft bed they no longer fell instantly
+asleep.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Dear me,&rdquo; Jenny began whining, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know
+what&rsquo;s the matter with this food! It doesn&rsquo;t taste as
+good as it used to! Maybe the cook has grown careless!
+I think we ought to complain to the King. I&rsquo;m
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven&rsquo;t
+any appetite at all! I wonder what&rsquo;s in that covered
+dish. Perhaps it&rsquo;s something to eat, something perfectly
+delicious! I&rsquo;ve half a mind to lift the cover and
+see.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now just you leave that silver dish alone!&rdquo; the man
+growled. He, too, had been eating too much and was
+feeling peevish. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you remember what the King
+said?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pooh!&rdquo; cried Jenny. &ldquo;What do I care what the
+King said! I think he was just poking fun at us telling
+us we mustn&rsquo;t lift the cover of that silver dish.
+After all a dish is a dish and it&rsquo;s no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband
+could stop her she lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly
+a little white mouse hopped out of the silver dish and
+scurried away.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>219]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a
+great clatter.</p>
+
+<p>The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard
+the noise and came in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;So!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;you have done the one thing that I
+told you not to do! You haven&rsquo;t been here three days
+and although you&rsquo;ve had everything that heart could
+wish for yet you couldn&rsquo;t obey me in this one little
+matter!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Your Majesty,&rdquo; the man said, &ldquo;it was my wife who
+did it, not I.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter,&rdquo; the King said, &ldquo;you, too, are to blame.
+If you had restrained her it wouldn&rsquo;t have happened.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he called his servants and had them strip off
+the fine clothes and dress the couple again in their old
+rags.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he said as he drove them from the castle gates,
+&ldquo;never again blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes
+which you bring upon yourselves!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>220]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 416px;">
+<a name="illo14" id="illo14"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi14.png" width="416" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">They carried home the treasure on their backs</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>221]</a></span></p>
+
+<h3>III<br />
+<br />
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd28.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was once a man whose wife
+was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it
+was to keep a matter quiet, if Susanna
+knew about it, she just had to talk.
+She was always running to the neighbors
+and exclaiming:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set
+nets in the river, he snared birds in the forest, and he
+worked at any odd jobs that came along.</p>
+
+<p>It happened one day while he was out in the forest
+that he found a buried treasure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he thought to himself, &ldquo;now I can buy a little
+farm that will keep me and Susanna comfortable the
+rest of our days!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He started home at once to tell his wife the good
+fortune that had befallen them. He had almost reached
+home when he stopped, suddenly realizing that the first
+thing Susanna would do would be to spread the news
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>222]</a></span>
+broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the
+government would get wind of his find and presently
+officers of the law would come and confiscate the entire
+treasure.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That would never do,&rdquo; he told himself. &ldquo;I must
+think out some plan whereby I can let Susanna know
+about the treasure without risking the loss of it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at
+last hit upon something that he thought might prove
+successful.</p>
+
+<p>In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one
+of his snares he had found a grouse. He went back
+now to the river and put the bird in the fishnet, and then
+he went to the woods and put the fish in the snare.
+This done he went home and at once told Susanna
+about the buried treasure which was going to be the
+means of making their old age comfortable.</p>
+
+<p>She flew at once into great excitement.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of
+such luck! Oh, how all the neighbors will envy us
+when they hear about it! I can hardly wait to tell
+them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But they mustn&rsquo;t hear!&rdquo; her husband told her.
+&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t want the officers of the law coming and
+taking it all from us, do you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>223]</a></span>
+&ldquo;That would be a nice how-do-you-do!&rdquo; Susanna
+cried. &ldquo;What! Come and take our treasure that you
+found yourself in the forest?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, my dear, that&rsquo;s exactly what they&rsquo;d do if once
+they heard about it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband,
+not a soul will hear about it from me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many
+times and then tried to slip out of the house on some
+such excuse as needing to borrow a cup of meal from a
+neighbor.</p>
+
+<p>But the man insisted on her staying beside him all
+evening. She kept remembering little errands that
+would take her to the houses of various neighbors but
+each time she attempted to leave her husband called
+her back. At last he got her safely to bed.</p>
+
+<p>Early next morning, before she had been able to talk
+to any one, he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help
+me to carry home the treasure. On the way we&rsquo;d better
+see if we&rsquo;ve got anything in the nets and the snares.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They went first to the river and when the man had
+lifted his nets they found a grouse which he made
+Susanna reach over and get. Then in the woods he let
+her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>224]</a></span>
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that
+she hadn&rsquo;t mind enough left to be surprised that a bird
+should be caught in a fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they found the precious treasure and they
+stowed it away in two sacks which they carried home
+on their backs. On the way home Susanna could
+scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby
+some hint of their good fortune. As they passed the
+house of Helmi, her dearest crony, she said to her husband:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, won&rsquo;t you just wait here a moment while I
+run in and get a drink of water?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You mustn&rsquo;t go in just now,&rdquo; her husband said.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you hear what&rsquo;s going on?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping
+in the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Helmi is getting a beating from her husband,&rdquo; the
+man said. &ldquo;Can&rsquo;t you hear her crying? This is no
+time for an outsider to appear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>All that day and all that night he kept so close to
+Susanna that the poor woman wasn&rsquo;t able to exchange
+a word with another human being.</p>
+
+<p>Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast
+as her legs could carry her to Helmi&rsquo;s house.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear,&rdquo; she began all out of breath, &ldquo;such a
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>225]</a></span>
+wonderful treasure as we&rsquo;ve found but I&rsquo;ve sworn never
+to whisper a word about it for fear the government
+should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo; cried Helmi&rsquo;s husband who came in
+just then and caught the last words.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the treasure we&rsquo;ve found!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The treasure? What are you talking about?
+Begin at the beginning.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday
+morning and first we went to the river to see if there
+was anything in the nets. We found a grouse&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A grouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went
+to the forest and looked in the snares and in one we
+found a pike.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;A pike!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and
+put it in two sacks and you could have seen us yourself
+carrying it home on our backs but you were too busy
+beating poor Helmi.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a
+good one! I was busy beating my wife while you were
+getting birds out of fishnets and fish out of snares! Ho!
+Ho! Ho!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>226]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It&rsquo;s so!&rdquo; Susanna cried. &ldquo;It is so! You were so
+beating Helmi! And you sounded just like two dogs
+fighting! And we did so carry home the treasure!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Helmi&rsquo;s husband only laughed the harder. That
+afternoon when he went to the Inn he was still laughing
+and when the men there asked him what was so funny
+he told them Susanna&rsquo;s story and soon the whole village
+was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in
+fishnets and fish in snares and who thought that two
+yelping dogs were Helmi and her husband fighting.</p>
+
+<p>As for the treasure that wasn&rsquo;t taken any more
+seriously than the grouse and the pike.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried
+home on their backs!&rdquo; the village people decided.</p>
+
+<p>The husband of course said nothing and Susanna,
+too, was soon forced to keep quiet for now whenever
+she tried to explain people only laughed.</p>
+
+
+
+<p class="padtop"><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>227]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>MIKKO, THE FOX</h2>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 247px;">
+<img src="images/mmd29.png" width="247" height="400"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="subtitle">A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>228]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo15" id="illo15"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi15.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+&ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll
+eat the smallest of us next!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>229]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd30.png" width="400" height="247"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE I<br />
+<br />
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd31.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the
+Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into
+his own pit and was killed.</p>
+
+<p>The Ermine found him there.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;H&rsquo;m,&rdquo; thought the Ermine, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s
+the Farmer himself, isn&rsquo;t it? I better take him before
+any one else gets him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Ermine dragged the Farmer&rsquo;s body out of the
+pit, put it on a sledge, and then, after taking a bite,
+began hauling it away.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>230]</a></span>
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands
+in surprise.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;God bless you, brother!&rdquo; the Squirrel exclaimed,
+&ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you&rsquo;re hauling behind you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer himself,&rdquo; the Ermine explained.
+&ldquo;He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of
+him and then come along and help me pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Squirrel said.</p>
+
+<p>He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine, helping him to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at
+them in amazement, his eyes popping out of his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you two are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer,&rdquo; the Ermine explained. &ldquo;He fell
+into the pit that he digged for us poor forest folk and
+serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Jussi, and
+then come along and help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and
+then marched along beside the Ermine and the Squirrel
+helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Mikko, the Fox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Goodness me!&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you three
+are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>231]</a></span>
+The Ermine again explained:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him, Mikko, and then come along and
+help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare
+helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good gracious!&rdquo; Pekka cried, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you four
+are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Ermine explained:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him, Pekka, and then help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and
+the Fox, helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Next they met Osmo, the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good heavens!&rdquo; Osmo rumbled, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that you
+five are hauling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Farmer,&rdquo; the Ermine explained. &ldquo;He fell
+into the pit that he had digged for us poor forest folk
+and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Osmo,
+and then help us pull.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>232]</a></span>
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched
+along beside the Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the
+Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to pull the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they
+felt tired or hungry they stopped and took a bite until
+the Farmer was about finished.</p>
+
+<p>Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, brothers, we&rsquo;ve eaten up every bit of the
+Farmer except his beard. What are we going to eat
+now?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh! That&rsquo;s easy! We&rsquo;ll eat the smallest of us
+next!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a
+tree and the Ermine slipped under a stone.</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But the smallest have escaped!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi!
+Let&rsquo;s&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At mention of his name the Hare went loping across
+the field and was soon at a safe distance.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox&rsquo;s
+shoulder.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>233]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s your turn now for you&rsquo;re the
+smallest of us three.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m the smallest. All right,
+brothers, I&rsquo;m ready. But before you eat me I wish
+you&rsquo;d take me to the top of the hill. Down here in
+the valley it&rsquo;s so gloomy.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the others agreed, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll go where you
+say. It is more cheerful there.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the
+Wolf:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it
+be then? Who will be the smallest then?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; the Wolf cried, &ldquo;it will be my turn
+then, won&rsquo;t it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The terror of the thought quite took his appetite
+away.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Osmo,&rdquo; he said to the Bear, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think
+it would be right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and
+Mikko ought to be friends and live together in peace.
+Now let&rsquo;s take a vote on the matter and we&rsquo;ll do whatever
+the majority says. I vote that we three be friends.
+What do you say, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>234]</a></span>
+would be much better all around if they three were
+friends.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; grunted Osmo, the Bear, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s no use my
+voting for you two make a majority. But I must say
+I&rsquo;m sorry to have you vote this way for I&rsquo;m hungry.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the
+Fox, agreed henceforward to be friends and planned to
+live near each other in the woods behind the Farm.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>235]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd32.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE II<br />
+<br />
+THE PARTNERS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 96px;">
+<img src="images/mmd33.png" width="96" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox
+made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go
+into partnership.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The first thing we ought to do,&rdquo;
+said Pekka, the Wolf, &ldquo;is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox agreed and the very next day they started
+out to work. Each had a crock with three pats of butter
+for his dinner. They left their crocks in the cool water of a
+little spring in the forest not far from the place where
+they had decided to make a clearing.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>236]</a></span>
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon
+tiring of it, made some sort of excuse to run off. When
+he came back he said to the Wolf:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening
+and have sent me an invitation to attend.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too bad we&rsquo;re so busy to-day,&rdquo; the Wolf said.
+&ldquo;Another day you might have gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I must go,&rdquo; the Fox insisted. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve been
+good neighbors to us and they&rsquo;d be insulted if I refused.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;if you feel that way
+about it you better go. But hurry back for we have a
+lot to do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than
+the spring where the butter crocks were cooling. He
+took the Wolf&rsquo;s crock and licked off the top layer of
+butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Mikko,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;is the christening
+over?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, it&rsquo;s over.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What did they name the child?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They named it Top.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Top? That&rsquo;s a strange name!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>237]</a></span>
+with the announcement that there was to be another
+christening at the Farm and again they wanted him to
+attend.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Another christening!&rdquo; the Wolf exclaimed. &ldquo;How
+can that be?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This time the daughter has a baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re not going, are you, Mikko? You can&rsquo;t
+always be going to christenings.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s true, Pekka, that&rsquo;s true,&rdquo; said the Fox, &ldquo;but
+I think I must go this time.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf sighed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You will hurry back, won&rsquo;t you? This work is too
+much for me alone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, Pekka dear,&rdquo; the Fox promised, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll hurry
+back as quickly as I can.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf&rsquo;s
+butter crock. This time he ate the middle pat of the
+Wolf&rsquo;s butter, then slowly sauntered back to the clearing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work,
+&ldquo;what did they name the baby this time?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This one they named Middle.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Middle? That&rsquo;s a strange name to give a baby!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard.
+Then he ran off again. When he came back, he said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>238]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Pekka, do you know they&rsquo;re having another christening
+at the Farm and they say that I just must come.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Another christening! Now, Mikko, that&rsquo;s too
+much! How can they be having another christening?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, this time it&rsquo;s the daughter-in-law that has a
+baby.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care who it is,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;you just
+can&rsquo;t go. You&rsquo;ve got some work to do, you have!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox agreed:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re right, Pekka, you&rsquo;re right! I&rsquo;m entirely too
+busy to be running off all the time to christenings! I&rsquo;d
+say, &lsquo;No!&rsquo; in a minute if it wasn&rsquo;t that we are new
+settlers and they are our nearest neighbors. As it is
+I&rsquo;m afraid they&rsquo;d think it wasn&rsquo;t neighborly if I didn&rsquo;t
+come. But I&rsquo;ll hurry back, I promise you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little
+spring and this time he licked the Wolf&rsquo;s butter crock
+clean to the bottom. Then he went slowly back to the
+clearing and told the Wolf about the christening and
+the baby.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;ve named this one Bottom,&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Bottom!&rdquo; the Wolf echoed. &ldquo;What funny names
+they give children nowadays!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes,
+then threw himself down exhausted.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>239]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 428px;">
+<a name="illo16" id="illo16"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi16.png" width="428" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka!
+Wake up! There&rsquo;s
+butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>240]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Heigh ho!&rdquo; he said, with a yawn, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m so tired and
+hungry it must be dinner time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf looked at the sun and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks.
+The Wolf found that his had already been licked clean.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;have you been at my butter?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me?&rdquo; the Fox said in a tone of great innocence.
+&ldquo;How could I have been at your butter when you know
+perfectly well that I&rsquo;ve been working right beside you
+all morning except when I was away at the christenings?
+You must have eaten up your butter yourself!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Of course I haven&rsquo;t eaten it up myself!&rdquo; the Wolf
+declared. &ldquo;I just bet anything you took it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pekka, I won&rsquo;t have you saying such a thing! We
+must get at the bottom of this! I tell you what we&rsquo;ll
+do: we&rsquo;ll both lie down in the sun and the heat of the
+sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now then,
+if butter runs out of my nose then I&rsquo;m the one that
+has eaten your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then
+you&rsquo;ve eaten it yourself. Do you agree to this test?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down
+in the sun. He had been working so hard that he was
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>241]</a></span>
+very tired and in a few moments he was sound asleep.
+Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted
+the butter and then, of course, it looked as if it were
+running out of the Wolf&rsquo;s nose.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!&rdquo; the Fox cried.
+&ldquo;There&rsquo;s butter running out of your nose!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Mikko,&rdquo; he said in surprise, &ldquo;so there is!
+Well, I suppose I must have eaten that butter myself
+but I give you my word for it I don&rsquo;t remember doing
+it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt,
+&ldquo;you shouldn&rsquo;t always suspect me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began
+pulling the brush together to burn it up and the Fox
+slipped away and lay down behind some brushes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko! Mikko!&rdquo; the Wolf called. &ldquo;Aren&rsquo;t you
+going to help me burn the brush?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You set it a-fire,&rdquo; the Fox called back, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll
+stay here to guard against any flying sparks. We don&rsquo;t
+want to burn down the whole forest!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox
+took a pleasant nap.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>242]</a></span>
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich
+wood ashes, the Wolf again called out to the Fox to
+come help him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You do the planting, Pekka,&rdquo; the Fox called back,
+&ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll stay here and frighten off the birds. If I
+don&rsquo;t they&rsquo;ll come and pick up every seed you plant.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor
+Wolf planted the field he had already cleared and
+burned.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>243]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd34.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE III<br />
+<br />
+THE FOX AND THE CROW</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd35.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>In a short time the field that Pekka,
+the Wolf, had planted began to sprout.
+Pekka was delighted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See, Mikko,&rdquo; he said to the Fox,
+&ldquo;our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If we don&rsquo;t get something to eat before that grain
+ripens,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll starve, both of us! While we
+wait for the harvest I think we better go out hunting.
+I&rsquo;m going this minute for I tell you I&rsquo;m hungry!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>244]</a></span>
+to the tree where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest.
+The Fox, cocking his head, paced slowly round and
+round the tree, looking at it from every angle. Harakka,
+the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings
+began to feel nervous.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Say, Mikko,&rdquo; she called down, &ldquo;what are you looking
+at?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought,
+apparently, he nodded his head and murmured:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, the very tree!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What are you looking at, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox started as though he had heard the question
+for the first time.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I
+hope you are well! I hope the children are all well!
+I was so busy looking for the right tree that I didn&rsquo;t
+recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down a
+tree to get wood for a new pair of <i>skis</i>. This tree is
+just the one I want.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, mercy me!&rdquo; the Magpie cried. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t
+cut down this tree! Do you want to kill all my children?
+This is our home!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>245]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;m awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I
+am, but I&rsquo;m afraid I do have to cut down this tree. I
+can&rsquo;t find another that suits me as well.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not
+to cut down this tree?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to
+think hard. After a moment he said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Harakka, I&rsquo;ll make you this offer: I&rsquo;ll leave
+this tree standing provided you throw me down one
+of your fledglings.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the poor Magpie shrieked. &ldquo;Give you one
+of my babies! I&rsquo;ll never do that! Never! Never!
+<em>Never!</em>&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree
+down I can get them all. But I thought for the sake
+of old times I&rsquo;d ask for only one. However, do as you
+think best.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were
+felled and her fledglings thrown out of the nest they
+would certainly all perish. Perhaps it would be wise
+to sacrifice one to save the rest.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You promise to let the tree stand,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;if I
+give you one of my children?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; the rascal promised, &ldquo;just drop me one of your
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>246]</a></span>
+fledglings, a nice plump one, and I won&rsquo;t cut down the
+tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children
+over the edge of the nest. It fluttered to the
+ground and Mikko carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come
+back and begin pacing around the tree again.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; he said, pretending to talk to himself, &ldquo;this
+is the best tree I can find. I might as well cut it down
+at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But, Mikko!&rdquo; cried the Magpie, &ldquo;you forget! You
+said you wouldn&rsquo;t cut down this tree if I gave you one
+of my children and I did give you one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I did promise but I thought then
+I could find another tree that would suit me as well as
+this one, but I can&rsquo;t. I&rsquo;ve looked everywhere and I
+can&rsquo;t. I&rsquo;m sorry but I&rsquo;m afraid that I&rsquo;ll just have to
+take this tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;O dear, O dear, O dear!&rdquo; the poor distracted Magpie
+wept. &ldquo;Will nothing make you leave this tree
+stand?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox smacked his lips.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your
+fledglings and I won&rsquo;t disturb the tree. I promise.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>247]</a></span>
+&ldquo;What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, suit yourself,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;One of your
+fledglings and you can keep the others safe in the nest,
+or I&rsquo;ll cut the tree down.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn&rsquo;t it be
+better to sacrifice another fledgling on the chance of
+saving the rest? Yes, it would! So she pushed another
+out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko,
+the rascal, carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the
+Magpie.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, my dear,&rdquo; she said, looking over the fledglings,
+&ldquo;two of your children are missing! Whatever has
+become of them?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s that rascally Mikko!&rdquo; the Magpie cried, and
+thereupon she told her friend the whole story.</p>
+
+<p>Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you!
+Why, he can&rsquo;t cut down this tree or any other tree for
+that matter! He hasn&rsquo;t even got an ax! Don&rsquo;t let
+him impose on you a third time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the very next day when the Fox came and again
+tried the same little trick, Harakka, the Magpie,
+tossed her head scornfully and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go along, you rascal! You can&rsquo;t fool me again!
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>248]</a></span>
+How can you cut down this tree or any other for that
+matter when you haven&rsquo;t even got an ax!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You didn&rsquo;t think that out yourself, Harakka!&rdquo; he
+said. &ldquo;Some one&rsquo;s been talking to you! Who was it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It was my dear friend, Varis,&rdquo; the Magpie said.
+&ldquo;She&rsquo;s on to your tricks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!&rdquo;
+the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off.</p>
+
+<p>He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth
+open, pretending to be dead.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure Varis will soon spy me!&rdquo; he said to himself.</p>
+
+<p>He was right. Presently the Crow began circling
+above him. She flew nearer and nearer and at last
+alighted on his head. His tongue was lolling out and
+Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave it
+a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught
+her in his paws.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;So you&rsquo;re the one who
+spoiled my little game with Harakka, are you? Well,
+I&rsquo;ll teach you not to interfere with me! As I haven&rsquo;t
+got one of Harakka&rsquo;s fledglings for my dinner, I&rsquo;m
+going to take you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t mean you&rsquo;re going to eat me!&rdquo; cried the
+Crow in terror.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>249]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 423px;">
+<a name="illo17" id="illo17"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi17.png" width="423" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Crow
+to interfere with my
+affairs!&rdquo; the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>250]</a></span>
+&ldquo;That&rsquo;s exactly what I mean!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no, Mikko! Don&rsquo;t do that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, that&rsquo;s exactly what I&rsquo;m going to do! I&rsquo;m
+going to teach you birds that I&rsquo;m not an animal to be
+played jokes on!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I suppose,&rdquo; the Crow said, sighing, &ldquo;if it must be,
+it must be! But, Mikko, if you really want to use me
+as a warning to the other birds, you oughtn&rsquo;t to eat me
+right down. It would be much better if you dragged
+me along the ground first. Then they&rsquo;d see a wing
+here, a leg there, and a long trail of feathers. That
+really would terrify them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I believe you&rsquo;re right,&rdquo; the Fox said.</p>
+
+<p>He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his
+paw for a moment to change his hold. The Crow
+instantly jerked away and escaped.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; she cawed as she flew off. &ldquo;You were
+clever enough to catch me, Mikko, but you weren&rsquo;t
+clever enough to eat me when you had me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was
+worsted.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>251]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd36.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE IV<br />
+<br />
+THE CHIEF MOURNER</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd37.png" width="100" height="98"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mercy me!&rdquo; thought Mikko to himself
+as he watched Varis, the Crow, fly
+away, &ldquo;this is certainly my unlucky
+day! There I had my dinner right in
+my hand and then lost it!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Sighing and shaking his head he
+sauntered slowly back to the forest.</p>
+
+<p>Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost
+his wife and was out looking for some one to bewail her
+death. The first person he met was Pekka, the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>252]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Pekka,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my wife&rsquo;s dead and I&rsquo;m out looking
+for a good strong mourner. Can you mourn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let
+out a long shivery howl.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe you&rsquo;ll find any
+one that can do any better than that!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, Pekka, you won&rsquo;t do. I don&rsquo;t like your mourning
+at all!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Jussi,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Are you any good at
+mourning? Show me what you can do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea
+of mourning the dead.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no,&rdquo; Osmo said, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your mourning
+either.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he walked on farther until by chance he met the
+Fox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my wife&rsquo;s dead and I&rsquo;m out looking
+for a good strong mourner. Can you mourn?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 418px;">
+<a name="illo18" id="illo18"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi18.png" width="418" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">And Mikko, beginning with
+a little whimpering sound,
+slowly rose to a high heartrending
+cry</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can I? Indeed I can!&rdquo; the Fox declared. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a
+marvel at mourning! I can wail high and low and
+soft and loud and just any way you want! Listen!&rdquo;
+And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253"><!-- original location of Heartrending Cry illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>254]</a></span>
+slowly rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what
+he wailed:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i1">&ldquo;<i>Med! Med! Med!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">The Bear&rsquo;s Wife is dead!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Lax! Lax! Lax!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll spin the flax!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll bake the pies!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Air! Air! Air!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">No more she&rsquo;ll drive the mare!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">There&rsquo;ll be no more little cakes!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Darth! Darth! Darth!</i><br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Throw the pots on the hearth<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">For the Bear&rsquo;s Wife is dead!<br /></span>
+<span class="i1"><i>Med! Med! Med!</i>&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful! Beautiful!&rdquo; he grunted hoarsely.
+&ldquo;How well you knew her! Come along home with me,
+Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how beautifully you wail!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear
+Wife was laid out on a bench in the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; the Bear said, &ldquo;you begin the wailing
+while I cook the porridge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, no, Osmo,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t possibly
+wail in here! The place is full of smoke and my voice
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>255]</a></span>
+would get husky in two minutes! Can&rsquo;t you lay her out
+in the storehouse?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last
+had his way. So together they dragged the body of the
+old Bear Wife out to the storehouse. The Fox stood
+beside the body ready to begin his wailing and the Bear
+went back to the kitchen.</p>
+
+<p>The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the
+rascal, instead of bewailing the old Bear Wife began
+gobbling her up! He just gobbled and gobbled and
+gobbled as fast as he could.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter?&rdquo; the Bear called out after a few
+minutes. &ldquo;Why don&rsquo;t you begin?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard
+as he could.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mikko! Mikko!&rdquo; the Bear called out again.
+&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter? Why aren&rsquo;t you howling?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he
+called back:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t bother me! I&rsquo;m busy eating! Yum! Yum!
+Yum! Bear meat is awful good! Just give me a few
+more minutes and I&rsquo;ll be finished!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a
+terrible rage but the Fox was already running off and
+the Bear was unable to catch him. He did hit the end
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>256]</a></span>
+of his tail with the long spoon with which he had been
+measuring the meal, but that was all.</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this
+day his tail shows the white mark of the meal.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>257]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd38.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE V<br />
+<br />
+MIRRI, THE CAT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd39.png" width="100" height="99"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day while the Fox was out
+walking in the forest he met a stranger.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Who are
+you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I am Mirri,&rdquo; the stranger said, &ldquo;a
+poor unfortunate Cat out of employment.
+I had service in a decent family but I&rsquo;ve had
+to leave them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did they treat you badly?&rdquo; the Fox asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, it wasn&rsquo;t that. They were considerate enough
+but they kept getting poorer and poorer until finally
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>258]</a></span>
+they hadn&rsquo;t food enough to feed us animals. Then I
+overheard the master say that soon they&rsquo;d be forced to
+eat us and that they&rsquo;d begin with me. At that I decided
+it was time for me to run away and here I am.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My poor Cat,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;you&rsquo;ve had a cruel
+experience! Why don&rsquo;t you take service with me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Will I be safe with you?&rdquo; the Cat asked. &ldquo;Will
+you protect me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Will I?&rdquo; the Fox repeated boastfully. &ldquo;My dear
+Mirri, once it becomes known that you are Mikko&rsquo;s
+servant all the animals will show you a wholesome
+respect.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well then, I&rsquo;ll enter your service,&rdquo; the Cat said.</p>
+
+<p>So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began
+to train his new servant.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you
+suddenly met a Bear?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s just one thing I could do, master: I&rsquo;d run
+up a tree.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox laughed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You must have more ways than one to meet such
+a situation! Take me now: there are any of a hundred
+things that I could do if I met a Bear!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo19" id="illo19"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi19.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He jerked quickly away and
+fled and the Bear was left
+standing with his mouth wide open</p>
+
+<p>Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind
+the Fox. The Cat saw him and instantly flew up a
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259"><!-- original location of Left Standing illustration --></a></span>
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>260]</a></span>
+tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo clutched him
+firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, master, master!&rdquo; the Cat called down from the
+tree. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s this? I with my one way have escaped
+and you with your hundred are caught!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted
+his head around and looked reproachfully at the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;what
+in the world do you mean taking hold of me so roughly!
+Ouch! You&rsquo;re nipping my shoulder, really you are!
+I don&rsquo;t understand why you&rsquo;re acting this way! Here
+I&rsquo;ve always been such a good friend to you, so faithful,
+so true, so&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; rumbled the Bear. &ldquo;Faithful! True! Oh,
+you&mdash;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo&rsquo;s feelings overcame him to such an extent that
+he opened his jaws to roar out freely his denial of the
+Fox&rsquo;s hypocrisy.</p>
+
+<p>That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He
+jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+standing with his mouth wide open.</p>
+
+<p>Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned
+and called the Cat down from the tree.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see, Mirri,&rdquo; he remarked casually, &ldquo;it wasn&rsquo;t
+anything at all for me to get the best of the Bear!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>261]</a></span>
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat,
+so he let the subject drop.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Come along, Mirri,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s time for us to
+go home.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd10.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>262]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 425px;">
+<a name="illo20" id="illo20"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi20.png" width="425" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">A terrible creature landed
+on his nose and drove it
+full of pins and needles</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>263]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd40.png" width="400" height="251"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VI<br />
+<br />
+THE FOX&rsquo;S SERVANT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 95px;">
+<img src="images/mmd41.png" width="95" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>A day or so later the Fox met Pekka,
+the Wolf. The Fox hadn&rsquo;t seen much
+of Pekka recently for Pekka had been
+having a hard time and had been on
+the verge of starvation. Now he was
+sleek again and well fed for he had
+recently killed an Ox.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Pekka,&rdquo; the Fox said in a friendly way.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Mikko. How are you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very fine indeed!&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;You see I have
+a new servant. Oh, he&rsquo;s a wonderful servant! He&rsquo;s
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>264]</a></span>
+not big to look at, you know, but he&rsquo;s so strong and
+quick that he&rsquo;d jump on you in a minute and eat you
+up before you knew what was happening!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Really, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, really! You just ought to see him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to see him,&rdquo; the Wolf said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in
+the kitchen. He&rsquo;s at home. But, my dear Pekka, I
+warn you not to let him see you! If he catches sight
+of you, I won&rsquo;t be responsible for the consequences!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He
+crept carefully down to the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen and sniffed
+cautiously at the crack under the door. The Cat inside,
+seeing the tip of the Wolf&rsquo;s nose and thinking it
+was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This
+gave the Wolf a mighty fright and he bolted madly
+off into the forest.</p>
+
+<p>He was still panting when he met the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Osmo,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;have you heard about that awful
+creature that Mikko has for a servant?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related
+to him his own terrifying experience.</p>
+
+<p>The Bear&rsquo;s curiosity was aroused.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant,&rdquo;
+he said, ambling off in the direction of the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>265]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll wait for you here,&rdquo; the Wolf called after him,
+&ldquo;and I warn you, Osmo, be careful!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear when he got to the Fox&rsquo;s kitchen quietly
+stuck his nose under the crack of the door and squinted
+inside. He hardly had time for one squint when a
+terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his
+nose, and drove it full of pins and needles.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!&rdquo; the Bear whimpered as he
+hurried back to the Wolf.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Did you see him?&rdquo; the Wolf asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I got just one glimpse of him,&rdquo; the Bear said. &ldquo;He
+had a long spear sticking up over his shoulder and he
+came swooping down through the air just as if he had
+wings!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My! I wish we could really see him!&rdquo; the Wolf
+said. &ldquo;Suppose we ask Mikko to arrange some way
+we can have a good look at him.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant
+I think he will come.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;All right,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ll do.
+I&rsquo;ve still got some of that ox. It will make a fine feast.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ll go get my servant,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;When
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>266]</a></span>
+you hear us coming, you two hide some place where you
+can see us but we can&rsquo;t see you. If my servant once
+sees you I won&rsquo;t be responsible for the consequences!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear
+drew himself up into the branches of a tree.</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them
+down to the feast. Now it happened that the Wolf
+was not able to see, so he tried to twist himself around
+into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of
+his tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on
+it. With one terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of
+the bushes and fled into the forest as fast as he could.</p>
+
+<p>In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the
+Bear, of course, supposed that the awful creature now
+was after him. In his frantic efforts to escape he
+tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs. But
+for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.</p>
+
+<p>So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox
+in peace.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>267]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd42.png" width="400" height="249"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VII<br />
+<br />
+THE WOLF SINGS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd43.png" width="100" height="94"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Having sacrificed his ox in order to
+feast the Fox&rsquo;s servant, the Wolf had
+nothing left for himself and was soon
+very hungry. He could find nothing
+to eat in the forest, so he went prowling
+around a farm in hopes of getting
+a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is better than nothing,&rdquo; he thought to himself
+and, taking hold of the Dog, he began dragging it
+off.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>268]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Cousin! Cousin!&rdquo; cried the Dog. &ldquo;Is this any way
+to treat a relation? Let me go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry,&rdquo; the Wolf said, &ldquo;but I can&rsquo;t let you go.
+I&rsquo;m too hungry.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let me go,&rdquo; the Dog begged, &ldquo;and I tell you what
+I&rsquo;ll do: I&rsquo;ll give you a bottle of vodka.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Promises come easy,&rdquo; the Wolf said. &ldquo;Where will
+you get the vodka?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Under the bench in the kitchen. That&rsquo;s where the
+master keeps his bottle. I&rsquo;ve seen him hide it there.
+Come to-night after the family&rsquo;s asleep and I&rsquo;ll let you
+in and give you the vodka.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so
+he said to the Dog:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well, I&rsquo;ll let you go. But see that you keep
+your promise!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Late that night when the family were asleep, the
+Wolf came scratching at the farmhouse door and the
+Dog let him in.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, old fellow, you know why I&rsquo;ve come,&rdquo; the
+Wolf said.</p>
+
+<p>At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got
+the master&rsquo;s bottle of vodka.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Here, Pekka, here it is!&rdquo; he said, offering the Wolf
+the bottle.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>269]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 430px;">
+<a name="illo21" id="illo21"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi21.png" width="430" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The Wolf went staggering
+around the room howling at
+the top of his voice</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>270]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You drink first,&rdquo; Pekka insisted. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re the
+host.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then
+the Wolf took a deep swallow.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said, smacking his lips, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s something
+like!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>His stomach was empty and the vodka went through
+his veins like fire. He felt happy and laughed and
+went capering around the room.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I feel like singing!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;My dear Pekka,&rdquo; the Dog said, &ldquo;I beg you don&rsquo;t
+sing! You will wake the folks! Sit down quietly and
+we&rsquo;ll talk.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf
+took another deep swallow of the vodka. Again he
+wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble in restraining
+him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet
+now or you can&rsquo;t have any more vodka!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf took another deep drink and after that
+there was no holding him back. He went staggering
+around the room howling at the top of his voice.</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into
+the kitchen with clubs and pokers and whatever they
+could pick up.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>271]</a></span>
+&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a Wolf!&rdquo; the Farmer cried. &ldquo;The impudent
+scoundrel, coming right into the house! Give him a
+good beating!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>If the door hadn&rsquo;t been open they would have clubbed
+poor Pekka to death. As it was he barely escaped with
+his life.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>272]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo22" id="illo22"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi22.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">In the confusion that
+followed the Wolves stampeded,
+running helter-skelter in all
+directions</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>273]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd44.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE VIII<br />
+<br />
+THE CLEVER GOAT</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd45.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was
+a pretty stupid fellow always getting
+into some scrape or other. With sore
+ribs and a back aching from the beating
+which the farm folk had given him he
+slunk quietly along the forest ways
+hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he saw
+ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What are they doing hereabouts?&rdquo; he thought to
+himself. &ldquo;This is no place for them and if anything
+happens to them it will be their own fault.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>274]</a></span>
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that
+the forest was no place for them. But where else
+could they go? They had recently been turned loose
+to fend for themselves by their poor old master who
+was no longer able to feed them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This forest rather frightens me,&rdquo; the Ram had said
+to the Goat. &ldquo;Do you suppose we&rsquo;ll be able to keep
+off the Wolves?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a plan.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry
+chips. Then when he shook the sack the chips made a
+hollow rattle. He threw the sack over his shoulder and
+said to the Ram:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you be frightened, Dinas. We&rsquo;ll be able to
+hold our own with the forest creatures.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf,
+appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ha! Ha!&rdquo; said Pekka suspiciously. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s that
+you&rsquo;ve got in that sack? No nonsense now! Answer me
+at once or I&rsquo;ll have to kill you both!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;In this sack?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Oh, only the skulls and
+bones of the Wolves we have eaten. We haven&rsquo;t had
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>275]</a></span>
+any Wolf meat now for some time, have we, Dinas? It&rsquo;s
+good you&rsquo;ve come along for we&rsquo;re hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and
+Pekka, the Wolf, too surprised to resist and too stiff
+to run away, cried out wildly:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Brothers! Brothers! Don&rsquo;t kill me! I&rsquo;m your
+friend! Spare me and I&rsquo;ll do something for you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Attention, Dinas!&rdquo; the Goat commanded. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t
+kill the Wolf just yet!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then he asked Pekka:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What will you do for us if we spare you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll send you twelve Wolves,&rdquo; Pekka promised.
+&ldquo;That will give you more meat than you&rsquo;d have if
+you killed just me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Twelve,&rdquo; the Goat replied. &ldquo;You are right: twelve
+Wolves will give us more meat than one. Very well,
+we&rsquo;ll let you go on condition that you send us twelve.
+But see you keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could
+carry him and assembled twelve of his brothers.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve called you together,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;to warn you
+of two terrible creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are
+here in the forest eating up Wolves! Already they
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>276]</a></span>
+have a sack full of our unfortunate relations&rsquo; skulls
+and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don&rsquo;t you think
+we ought all of us to flee?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; said the other Wolves, &ldquo;thirteen Wolves
+turn tail on one Goat and one Ram? Never! We&rsquo;ll
+go together and give them battle!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t count me in!&rdquo; Pekka said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to
+see those two again!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.</p>
+
+<p>The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The
+Ram followed him but couldn&rsquo;t get very high.</p>
+
+<p>The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing
+in close formation called out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then, you two, come on! We&rsquo;re ready for
+you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Attention, Dinas!&rdquo; the Goat commanded. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re
+all here, so lose no more time! Jump down among
+them and kill them!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at
+the same time making an awful noise with his sack. He
+gave the Ram a push and the Ram slipped and fell
+right on the backs of the Wolves.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s right, Dinas! Kill them all!&rdquo; the Goat
+shouted, rattling his sack more furiously than ever.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t let one of them escape!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>277]</a></span>
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+running helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf
+there felt that his own escape was a piece of rare good
+fortune.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Those terrible two!&rdquo; he thought.</p>
+
+<p>Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram,
+lived on in the forest untroubled by the Wolves.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd18.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>278]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 420px;">
+<a name="illo23" id="illo23"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi23.png" width="420" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Here are three of us and
+see, here on the floor is our
+harvest already divided into
+three heaps&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>279]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd46.png" width="400" height="245"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE IX<br />
+<br />
+THE HARVEST</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd47.png" width="100" height="98"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Well, the time came when the field
+of barley which the Fox and the Wolf
+had planted together was ready to harvest.
+So the two friends cut the grain
+and carried the sheaves to the threshing
+barn where they spread them out to dry.
+When it was time to thresh the grain, they asked
+Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly,&rdquo; Osmo said.</p>
+
+<p>At the time agreed the three animals met at the
+threshing barn.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>280]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Now the first thing to decide,&rdquo; Pekka said, &ldquo;is how
+to divide the work.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll stay up here,&rdquo; he called down, &ldquo;and support
+the beams and the rafters. In that way there won&rsquo;t
+be any danger of their falling and injuring either of
+you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I&rsquo;ll take care of you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the
+Wolf, winnowed the chaff from the grain. Mikko, the
+rascal, occasionally dropped down upon them a hunk
+of wood.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Take care!&rdquo; they&rsquo;d call out. &ldquo;Do you want to kill
+us?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is
+for me to hold up all these rafters!&rdquo; Mikko would say.
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;re very lucky it&rsquo;s only a little piece that drops
+on you now and then! If it weren&rsquo;t for me you&rsquo;d certainly
+be killed, both of you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily.
+When they were finished Mikko, the rascal, leaped
+down from the rafters and stretched himself as though
+he had been working the hardest of them all.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad that job of mine is finished!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I
+couldn&rsquo;t have held things up much longer!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>281]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Well now,&rdquo; Pekka asked, &ldquo;how shall we divide this
+our harvest?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll tell you how,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;Here are three
+of us and, see, here on the floor is our harvest already
+divided into three heaps. The biggest heap will naturally
+go to the biggest of us. That&rsquo;s Osmo, the Bear.
+The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I&rsquo;m the
+smallest, so the smallest heap comes to me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed
+to this. So Osmo took the great heap of straw, Pekka
+the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the rascal, got for his
+share the little mound of clean grain.</p>
+
+<p>Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.</p>
+
+<p>As the millstone turned on Mikko&rsquo;s grain, it made
+a rough rasping sound.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange,&rdquo; Osmo said to Pekka, &ldquo;Mikko&rsquo;s grain
+sounds different from ours.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Mix some sand with yours,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;then yours
+will make the same sound.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their
+straw and their chaff and sure enough, when they
+turned their millstones again, they, too, got a rough
+rasping sound.</p>
+
+<p>This satisfied them and they went home feeling they
+had just as good a winter&rsquo;s supply of food as Mikko.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>282]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 426px;">
+<a name="illo24" id="illo24"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi24.png" width="426" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He dropped it in the water
+and of course it spread out
+far and wide and the current
+carried it off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>283]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd48.png" width="400" height="247"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE X<br />
+<br />
+THE PORRIDGE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd49.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Well, it was only natural that they
+should all want to see at once what kind
+of porridge their meal would make.</p>
+
+<p>Osmo&rsquo;s came out black and disgusting.
+Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko&rsquo;s house for advice. The
+Fox was stirring his own porridge which was white
+and smooth.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter with my porridge?&rdquo; the Bear
+asked. &ldquo;Yours is white and smooth but mine is black
+and horrid.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>284]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Did you wash your meal before you put it into the
+pot?&rdquo; the Fox asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You take it to the river and drop it in the water.
+Then when it&rsquo;s clean you take it out.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear at once went home and got his ground up
+straw and took it to the river. He dropped it in the
+water and of course it spread out far and wide and
+the current carried it off.</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of Osmo&rsquo;s share of the harvest.</p>
+
+<p>Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge.
+Soon he, too, came to Mikko for advice.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what&rsquo;s the matter with me,&rdquo; he said.
+&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t seem to be able to make good porridge. Look
+at yours all white and smooth! I must watch you
+how you make it. Won&rsquo;t you let me hang my pot on
+your crane? Then I&rsquo;ll do just as you do.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Certainly,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;Hang your pot on this
+chain and the two pots can then cook side by side.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yours is so white to begin with,&rdquo; Pekka said, &ldquo;and
+mine looks no better than dirt.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung
+over the pot,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;The heat of the fire
+melted the fat in my tail and it dripped down into the
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>285]</a></span>
+pot. It&rsquo;s that fat that makes my porridge look so white.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself
+on the chain above his porridge. But he didn&rsquo;t stay
+there long. The flames scorched him and he fell down
+hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him
+to turn and twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of
+burnt hair.</p>
+
+<p>Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his
+porridge again to see if it was any better. But it wasn&rsquo;t.
+It was as bad as ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see any difference in it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Let me
+taste yours, Mikko.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf&rsquo;s
+porridge and dropped it into his own pot.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Help yourself,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Take some out of that
+spot there. That&rsquo;s good.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The place he pointed to was, of course, the place
+where he had dropped some of the Wolf&rsquo;s own porridge.</p>
+
+<p>So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge
+again when he thought he was tasting Mikko&rsquo;s.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Strange,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;your porridge doesn&rsquo;t taste good
+to me either. I don&rsquo;t believe anything tastes good to
+me to-day. The truth is I don&rsquo;t believe I like porridge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>286]</a></span>
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the
+rascal, chuckled to himself and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I wonder why Pekka doesn&rsquo;t like porridge. It
+tastes awful good to me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>287]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd50.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XI<br />
+<br />
+NURSE MIKKO</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd51.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>The Wolf&rsquo;s wife gave birth to three
+little cubs and then died.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You poor children!&rdquo; Pekka said,
+&ldquo;your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you
+a nurse.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So he went through the forest hunting some one to
+take care of his motherless cubs. The white Grouse
+offered her services but, when she sang a lullaby to
+show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your voice,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t take you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>288]</a></span>
+&ldquo;You know I&rsquo;m lame,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;so quiet work like
+nursing would suit me.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Can you sing lullabies?&rdquo; Pekka asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, yes! Listen!&rdquo; and Jussi began squealing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Stop!&rdquo; Pekka cried. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like your voice either.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day, Pekka,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I hear you&rsquo;re out
+looking for a nurse for your sweet babies.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like the job myself,&rdquo; the Fox said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You, Mikko?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But you can&rsquo;t sing lullabies, can you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:</p>
+
+<div class="cpoem1">
+<div class="poem">
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Hushabye, sweet little cubs,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Hushabye to sleep!<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who best loves you, do you think?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who will give you food and drink?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Who on faithful guard will keep?<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko! Mikko!<br /></span>
+</div>
+
+<div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">&lsquo;Hushabye, sweet little cubs,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko loves you well,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves each little pointed nose,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves your little scratchy toes,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Loves you more than he can tell&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Mikko! Mikko!&rsquo;&rdquo;<br /></span>
+</div>
+</div>
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>289]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 424px;">
+<a name="illo25" id="illo25"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi25.png" width="424" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">He ran after Mikko and was about
+to overtake him when Mikko
+slipped into a crevice in the rocks.
+Only one paw stuck out</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>290]</a></span>
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko&rsquo;s lullaby.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Beautiful! Beautiful!&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I never heard a
+sweeter lullaby! You&rsquo;re the very nurse I want! Come
+home with me at once.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the
+care of the three little Wolf cubs.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll go off now and get them something to eat,&rdquo;
+Pekka said.</p>
+
+<p>He came back after a while with the hind leg of a
+horse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This will be enough for them to start on,&rdquo; he said.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shook his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m afraid it won&rsquo;t last them very long. They&rsquo;re
+beautiful healthy children with fine appetites.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Poor little dears!&rdquo; Pekka said. &ldquo;Let me see them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Not just now!&rdquo; Mikko insisted. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re asleep
+and mustn&rsquo;t be disturbed. Go out hunting again and
+the next time you come home you shall see them.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse
+indeed to be so strict. So he went off hunting again
+without seeing his children.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up
+all the horse meat without giving the cubs one bite and
+then, as he was still hungry, he ate one of the cubs. The
+next day he ate another cub, and the day following he
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>291]</a></span>
+ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear
+children! They&rsquo;re well, aren&rsquo;t they?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well!&rdquo; the Fox declared. &ldquo;But they&rsquo;ve grown
+so big under my good care that the house isn&rsquo;t large
+enough now to hold them and you and me at the same
+time. If you&rsquo;re coming in, I must get out first.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and
+scampered away.</p>
+
+<p>Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could
+find of his dear children were their bones.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You faithless, faithless nurse!&rdquo; he cried.</p>
+
+<p>In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to
+overtake him when Mikko slipped into a crevice in the
+rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The Wolf pounced
+on this paw and began gnawing it.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?&rdquo; the Fox asked.
+&ldquo;What do you think you&rsquo;re doing biting that old root?
+I hope you don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s one of my paws. I&rsquo;m sitting
+on all four paws.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and,
+quick as a flash, Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.</p>
+
+<p>So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>292]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 430px;">
+<a name="illo26" id="illo26"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi26.png" width="430" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">Of course the instant
+he opened his mouth the
+Grouse flew away</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>293]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd52.png" width="400" height="250"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XII<br />
+<br />
+THE BEAR SAYS <em>NORTH</em></h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd20.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day while Osmo, the Bear, was
+prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Pretty good!&rdquo; he thought to himself.
+&ldquo;Wouldn&rsquo;t the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had
+caught a Grouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the
+world to know of it. So, holding the Grouse carefully
+in his teeth without injuring it, he began parading up
+and down the forest ways.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;ll all certainly envy me this nice plump
+Grouse,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;And they won&rsquo;t be so ready
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>294]</a></span>
+to call me awkward and lumbering after this, either!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw
+at once that Osmo was showing off and he determined
+that the Bear would not get the satisfaction of any admiration
+from him. So he pretended not to see the
+Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards
+and sniffed.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um!&rdquo; grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention
+to himself.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; Mikko remarked, casually, &ldquo;is that you, Osmo?
+What way is the wind blowing to-day? Can you tell
+me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening
+his mouth, so he grunted again hoping that Mikko
+would have to notice why he couldn&rsquo;t answer. But the
+Fox didn&rsquo;t glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It seems to me it&rsquo;s from the South,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t
+it from the South, Osmo?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um! Um!&rdquo; the Bear grunted.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Um! Um!&rdquo; Osmo repeated, growing every moment
+more impatient.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what
+direction is it blowing?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>295]</a></span>
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko&rsquo;s
+interest in the wind when he should have been admiring
+the Grouse that he forgot himself, opened his mouth,
+and roared out:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;North!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+flew away.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now see what you&rsquo;ve done!&rdquo; he stormed angrily.
+&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve made me lose my fine plump Grouse!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I?&rdquo; Mikko asked. &ldquo;What had I to do with it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You kept asking me about the wind until I opened
+my mouth&mdash;that&rsquo;s what you did!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Fox shrugged his shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why did you open your mouth?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, you can&rsquo;t say, &lsquo;North!&rsquo; without opening your
+mouth, can you?&rdquo; the Bear demanded.</p>
+
+<p>The Fox laughed heartily.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here, Osmo, don&rsquo;t blame me. Blame yourself.
+If I had had that Grouse in my mouth and you had
+asked me about the wind, I should never have said,
+&lsquo;North!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What would you have said?&rdquo; the Bear asked.</p>
+
+<p>Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then
+he clenched his teeth and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;East!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>296]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 422px;">
+<a name="illo27" id="illo27"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi27.png" width="422" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said,
+&ldquo;my turnips and my bread
+don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>297]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd53.png" width="400" height="252"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XIII<br />
+<br />
+OSMO&rsquo;S SHARE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 97px;">
+<img src="images/mmd14.png" width="97" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a
+clearing where a Man was plowing.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good day,&rdquo; the Bear said. &ldquo;What
+are you doing?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m plowing,&rdquo; the Man answered.
+&ldquo;After I finish plowing I&rsquo;m going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half
+in turnips.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yum! Yum!&rdquo; Osmo thought to himself. &ldquo;Good
+food that&mdash;wheat and turnips!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Aloud he said:</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>298]</a></span>
+&ldquo;I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say
+to my helping you?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If you help me,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll share the harvest
+with you.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Osmo set to work and between them they soon
+had the field plowed, harrowed, and planted.</p>
+
+<p>When Autumn came they went to get their crops.</p>
+
+<p>At the turnip field the Man said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now what do you want as your share&mdash;the part
+that grows above the ground or the part that grows
+below?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the
+turnip tops were, said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Give me the part that grows above ground.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>After they had harvested the turnips, they went on
+to the wheat field where the Man put the same question.</p>
+
+<p>The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo
+looked at them wisely and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This time you better give me the part that grows
+under the ground.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.</p>
+
+<p>One day the following winter the two met and the
+Man invited the Bear to dinner. Osmo who was very
+hungry accepted the invitation gladly.</p>
+
+<p>First they had baked turnips.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>299]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Oh, but these are good!&rdquo; Osmo said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never
+tasted anything better! What are they?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;they&rsquo;re the turnips from that
+field that you and I planted together.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear was greatly surprised.</p>
+
+<p>Then they had some freshly baked bread.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;How good! How good!&rdquo; Osmo exclaimed. &ldquo;What
+is it?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Just plain bread,&rdquo; the Man said, &ldquo;baked from the
+wheat you and I planted together.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo was more surprised than ever.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why, do you know,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;my turnips and my
+bread don&rsquo;t taste a bit like this!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered
+why.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd16.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>300]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 429px;">
+<a name="illo28" id="illo28"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi28.png" width="429" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">The first person they met
+was an old Horse. They
+put their case to him</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>301]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd54.png" width="400" height="243"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XIV<br />
+<br />
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd26.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after
+day to a field of growing rye and eat
+as much as he wanted. The Farmer
+noticed from the Bear&rsquo;s tracks that he
+always came by the same route.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll teach that Bear a lesson!&rdquo; the
+Farmer thought to himself.</p>
+
+<p>So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully
+covered it over with leaves and branches.</p>
+
+<p>That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field,
+got entangled in the net and was unable to escape.</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer when he came and found him securely
+caught was overjoyed.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>302]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Now, you brute!&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got you and I&rsquo;m
+going to kill you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh, master, don&rsquo;t do that!&rdquo; the Bear implored.
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t kill me!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Why shouldn&rsquo;t I kill you?&rdquo; the Farmer asked.
+&ldquo;Aren&rsquo;t you destroying my rye?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Let me off this time!&rdquo; Osmo begged, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll reward
+you! I swear I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>He begged and begged until at last he prevailed
+upon the Farmer to open the net and let him out.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Now then,&rdquo; the Farmer said as soon as the Bear
+was freed, &ldquo;how are you going to reward me?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer&rsquo;s shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is how I&rsquo;m going to reward you,&rdquo; he said: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+going to eat you up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What!&rdquo; the Farmer exclaimed, &ldquo;is that your idea
+of a reward for kindness?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Exactly!&rdquo; Osmo declared. &ldquo;In this world that is
+the reward kindness always gets! Ask any one!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe it! I don&rsquo;t believe it!&rdquo; the Farmer
+cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well. I&rsquo;ll prove to you that I&rsquo;m right. We&rsquo;ll
+ask the first person we meet.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+put their case to him.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>303]</a></span>
+&ldquo;The Bear is right,&rdquo; the old Horse said. &ldquo;Look at
+me: For thirty years I gave my master faithful service
+and just this morning I heard him say: &lsquo;It&rsquo;s time we
+killed that old plug! He&rsquo;s no good for work any more
+and he&rsquo;s only eating his head off!&rsquo;&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear squinted his little eyes.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, I don&rsquo;t see!&rdquo; the Farmer insisted. &ldquo;We must
+ask some one else.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>They walked on a little farther until they met an
+old Dog. They put their case to him and at once
+the Dog said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a
+life time of faithful service and just this morning I
+overheard him say: &lsquo;It&rsquo;s time we killed that old Dog!&rsquo;
+Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is always so
+rewarded!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor
+him Osmo said that he was willing that they should put
+their case once more to the judgment of an outsider.</p>
+
+<p>The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox.
+Mikko listened carefully and then drawing the Farmer
+aside he whispered:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If I give judgment in your favor will you let me
+carry off all the chickens in your hen-house?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>304]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Indeed I will!&rdquo; the Farmer promised.</p>
+
+<p>Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;H&rsquo;m! H&rsquo;m! To give fair judgment in this case
+I must go over all the ground. First show me the field
+of rye and the damage Osmo did.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had
+appraised the damage, shook his head seriously.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that
+rye!... Now show me the net.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it
+carefully.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I
+want to see just how he did it.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo showed just how he had been caught.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Get all the way in,&rdquo; the Fox said. &ldquo;I want to make
+sure that you couldn&rsquo;t possibly get out unaided.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and
+proved that he couldn&rsquo;t possibly get out unaided.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said Mikko, the rascal, &ldquo;you deserved to
+get caught the first time and now that you&rsquo;re in there
+again you can just stay there! Come on, Mr. Farmer.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo
+to his fate.</p>
+
+<p>That night the Fox went to the Farmer&rsquo;s hen-house
+to claim his reward. When he came in the chickens,
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>305]</a></span>
+of course, set up an awful squawking that aroused the
+family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It sounds to me,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;as if some rascally Fox
+is trying to steal our hens. If you catch him, don&rsquo;t be
+gentle with him!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Gentle!&rdquo; repeated the wife significantly.</p>
+
+<p>She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found
+Mikko inside she gave him an awful beating. In fact
+he barely escaped with his life.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he said to himself as he limped painfully home,
+&ldquo;to think that this is the reward my kindness has received!
+Oh, what a wicked, wicked world this is!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd22.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>306]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 464px;">
+<a name="illo29" id="illo29"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi29.png" width="464" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">With that the Bear lifted his
+paw and the little mouse
+scampered off</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>307]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd17.png" width="400" height="248"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XV<br />
+<br />
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 98px;">
+<img src="images/mmd49.png" width="98" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>When Osmo, the Bear, was left
+alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted.
+Then he fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>While he slept a host of little Mice
+began playing all over his great body.</p>
+
+<p>Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start.
+The Mice scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught
+under his paw.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Tweek! Tweek!&rdquo; the frightened little Mouse cried.
+&ldquo;Let me go! Let me go! Please let me go! If you do
+I&rsquo;ll reward you some day! I promise I will!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>308]</a></span>
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What, little one? You&rsquo;ll reward me! Ha! Ha!
+That is good! The Mouse will reward the Bear! Well
+now, that is a joke! However, little one, I will let you
+go! You&rsquo;re too weak and insignificant for me to kill
+and too small to eat. So run along!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+Mouse scampered off.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;It will reward me for my kindness!&rdquo; Osmo repeated,
+and in spite of the fact that he was fast caught in a
+net he shook again with laughter.</p>
+
+<p>He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned
+with a great army of his fellows. All the host at once
+began gnawing at the ropes of the net and in no time
+at all they had freed the big Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You see,&rdquo; the little Mouse said, &ldquo;although we are
+weak and insignificant we can reward a kindness!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice
+on account of their size that all he could say as he
+shambled off into the forest was:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Thanks!&rdquo;</p>
+
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>309]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 400px;">
+<img src="images/mmd55.png" width="400" height="246"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<h3>ADVENTURE XVI<br />
+<br />
+THE LAST OF OSMO</h3>
+
+<div class="figleft" style="width: 100px;">
+<img src="images/mmd51.png" width="100" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p>There was a Farmer that used to
+drive his sledge into the forest to cut
+wood. Always as he drove he shouted
+abusively at his Horse.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Go along, you old plug!&rdquo; he&rsquo;d say.
+&ldquo;What do you think you&rsquo;re good for,
+anyway? If you don&rsquo;t move along more lively I&rsquo;ll give
+you to the Bear for his supper&mdash;that&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ll do
+with you!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the
+Farmer was always talking about giving him his Horse,
+so one afternoon while the Farmer was going through
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>310]</a></span>
+his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give
+me my supper.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer was greatly taken back.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t really mean what I was saying,&rdquo; he stammered.
+&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a good Horse but he&rsquo;s a little lazy&mdash;that&rsquo;s
+all.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting
+his head.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Even if he is lazy he&rsquo;ll taste all right to me. Come
+along, Mr. Farmer, hand him over as you&rsquo;ve promised
+to do this long time!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;But I can&rsquo;t afford to give you my Horse!&rdquo; the
+Farmer cried. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s the only Horse I&rsquo;ve got!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>But the Bear was firm.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No matter! You have to keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here,&rdquo; the Farmer begged, &ldquo;let me off on giving
+you my Horse and I tell you what I&rsquo;ll do: I&rsquo;ll give you
+my Cow. I can spare the Cow better.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;When will you give me the Cow?&rdquo; the Bear asked.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;To-morrow,&rdquo; the Farmer promised.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; Osmo said, &ldquo;if you deliver me the Cow
+to-morrow I&rsquo;ll let you off on the Horse. But see you
+keep your word!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>311]</a></span>
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited
+his traps. In one he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko,
+the little rascal, begged for his life so piteously that
+the Farmer with a laugh freed him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve done me a good turn,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;and
+some day I&rsquo;ll do something for you. Just wait and
+see if I don&rsquo;t.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on
+the sledge and started off for the forest. On the way
+he met Mikko.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Good morning,&rdquo; Mikko said. &ldquo;Where are you going
+with your Cow?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain
+with the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;See here,&rdquo; the Fox said, &ldquo;I promised you yesterday
+that some day I&rsquo;d do you a good turn. That day has
+come! I&rsquo;m going to save you your Cow and show you
+how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But
+if I do this, you&rsquo;ll have to give me the Bear&rsquo;s carcass
+after he&rsquo;s dead and gone.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be glad enough to do that,&rdquo; the Farmer declared.
+&ldquo;Save me my Cow and you may have all of that old Bear
+that you want!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well then,&rdquo; Mikko said, &ldquo;go home with the Cow as
+quickly as you can and come back here with ten distaffs.
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>312]</a></span>
+My plan is to have you put five of the distaffs around
+my neck and five around my tail. I can make an awful
+noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders
+who I am, do you say to him: &lsquo;Oh! That must be
+my son, the Hunter! Don&rsquo;t you hear the rattle of his
+musket?&rsquo; Then between us we&rsquo;ll finish that old Bear.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the
+Cow home and returned to the forest with ten distaffs,
+five of which he fastened about the Fox&rsquo;s neck and five
+about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the place
+where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox,
+crept along quietly behind him.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Where&rsquo;s my Cow?&rdquo; the Bear demanded as soon as
+the sledge appeared.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve come to talk to you about that,&rdquo; the Farmer
+began.</p>
+
+<p>Just then there was an awful rattle of something in
+the bushes behind the Farmer.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s that?&rdquo; the Bear cried.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; the Farmer said, &ldquo;that must be my son, the
+Hunter! Don&rsquo;t you hear the rattle of his musket?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Bear shook in terror.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do!
+Oh, Mr. Farmer, save me from the Hunter and I&rsquo;ll forgive
+you the Cow!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>313]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; the Farmer promised, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll do my best!
+Lie down and I&rsquo;ll try to make the Hunter believe
+you&rsquo;re only a log.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly
+quiet.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; called the Fox in a voice that sounded like
+the Hunter&rsquo;s, &ldquo;what&rsquo;s that big brown thing lying on the
+ground near you? Is it a Bear?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;No, son,&rdquo; the Farmer called back, &ldquo;that isn&rsquo;t a Bear.
+It&rsquo;s only a log of wood.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;If it&rsquo;s a log of wood, father, chop it up!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer raised his ax.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t really chop me!&rdquo; the Bear begged in a whisper.
+&ldquo;Just pretend to.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;This is too good a log to chop up,&rdquo; the Farmer
+said.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Well, father,&rdquo; said the voice from the bushes, &ldquo;if
+it&rsquo;s such a good log you better put it on your sledge and
+take it home.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Lie still,&rdquo; the Farmer whispered, &ldquo;while I put you
+on the sledge.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer
+dragged him on to the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father,&rdquo; the voice said, &ldquo;you better tie that log down
+to keep it from rolling off.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>314]</a></span>
+&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t move,&rdquo; the Farmer whispered, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;ll tie
+you down just as if you were a log.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed
+him securely to the sledge.</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Father, are you sure that log can&rsquo;t roll off?&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Yes, son,&rdquo; the Farmer said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure it can&rsquo;t roll
+off now.&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>&ldquo;Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log
+and off we&rsquo;ll go!&rdquo;</p>
+
+<p>At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty
+blow buried it in the neck of the Bear.</p>
+
+<p>So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!</p>
+
+<p>The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow
+and Mikko, the rascal, feasted on Bear meat for a week.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 95px;">
+<img src="images/mmd41.png" width="95" height="100"
+alt="Decoration" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[<span class="hidden">Pg </span>315]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 427px;">
+<a name="illo30" id="illo30"></a>
+<img src="images/mmi30.png" width="427" height="600"
+alt="" />
+</div>
+
+<p class="caption">So that was THE END</p>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 397px;">
+<img src="images/endpaper1.jpg" width="397" height="600"
+alt="Decorative endpaper" />
+</div>
+
+<div class="figcenter ipadbase" style="width: 397px;">
+<img src="images/endpaper2.jpg" width="397" height="600"
+alt="Decorative endpaper" />
+</div>
+
+
+<div class="bbox">
+<p><b>Transcriber's Note</b></p>
+
+<p>Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as printed.</p>
+
+<p>Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.</p>
+
+<p>The following amendments have been made for consistency:</p>
+
+<div class="amends">
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_166">166</a>&mdash;Ollie amended to Olli&mdash;"&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Olli shouted back, ..."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_198">198</a>&mdash;Mattie amended to Matti&mdash;"&ldquo;But remember,&rdquo; Matti warned him, ..."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_200">200</a>&mdash;Mattie amended to Matti&mdash;"&ldquo;That is true,&rdquo; Matti said, ..."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>The following typographic errors have been repaired:</p>
+
+<div class="amends">
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_230">230</a>&mdash;then amended to them&mdash;"Jussi looked at them in amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."</p>
+
+<p>Page <a href="#Page_294">294</a>&mdash;satisfacion amended to satisfaction&mdash;"... the Bear would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."</p>
+</div>
+
+<p>Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in the middle
+of a paragraph. Omitted page numbers were either the location of these
+illustrations or blank pages in the original book.</p>
+</div>
+
+</body>
+</html>
diff --git a/old/mikko/mikko.txt b/old/mikko/mikko.txt
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+++ b/old/mikko/mikko.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,7214 @@
+
+
+
+
+                  MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+  A Book of Finnish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales
+
+                       BY
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+
+       WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND DECORATIONS
+                       BY
+                 JAY VAN EVEREN
+
+
+                  [Decoration]
+
+
+                    NEW YORK
+          HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+              Copyright, 1922, by
+                PARKER FILLMORE
+
+           PRINTED IN THE U. S. A. BY
+           THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY
+                  RAHWAY, N J
+
+
+
+
+  _BY PARKER FILLMORE_
+
+  CZECHOSLOVAK FAIRY TALES
+  THE SHOEMAKER'S APRON
+    _Both Illustrated by Jan Matulka_
+
+  THE LAUGHING PRINCE
+    _Illustrated by Jay Van Everen_
+
+  THE HICKORY LIMB
+    _Illustrated by Rose Cecil O'Neill_
+
+  THE ROSIE WORLD
+    _Illustrated by Maginal Wright Enright_
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Ilona came floating up through the waves. Page 17_]
+
+
+
+
+                 To my niece
+
+                   Phyllis
+
+  These stories of her mother's native land
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+NOTE
+
+
+The spirit of nationalism that swept over the small peoples of Europe
+in the early nineteenth century touched faraway Finland and started
+the Finns on the quest of the Finnish. There as elsewhere scholars who
+were also patriots found that the native tongue, lost to the educated
+and the well-to-do, had been preserved in the songs and stories which
+were current among the peasants. Elias Lönnrot spent a long and busy
+life collecting those ancient _runos_ from which he succeeded in
+building up a national epic, the _Kalevala_. This is Lönnrot's great
+contribution to his own country and to the world. Beside the material
+for the _Kalevala_ Lönnrot made important collections of lyrics,
+proverbs, and stories.
+
+During his time and since other patriot scholars have made faithful
+records of the songs and tales which the old Finnish minstrels, the
+_runolaulajat_, chanted to the strains of the _kantele_. The mass of
+such material now gathered together in the archives of the Society of
+Finnish Literature at Helsingfors is imposing in bulk and of great
+importance to the student of comparative folklore.
+
+My own excursions into the Finnish have been made possible through the
+kindness and endless patience of my friend, Lydia Tulonen (Mrs. Kurt
+J. Rahlson). With her as a native guide I have been wandering some
+time through the byways of Finnish folklore. The present volume is the
+traveler's pack I have brought home with me filled with strange
+treasures which will, I hope, seem as lovely to others as they seemed
+to me when first I came upon them.
+
+The stories as I offer them are not translations but my own versions.
+Literal translations from the Finnish would make small appeal to the
+general reader. To English ears the Finnish is stiff, bald, and
+monotonous. One has only to read or attempt to read Kirby's excellent
+translation of the _Kalevala_ to realize the truth of this statement.
+So I make no apology for retelling these tales in a manner more likely
+to prove entertaining to the English reader, whether child or adult.
+
+In some form or other all the tales in this book may be found in the
+various folklore collections made by Eero Salmelainen, one of the
+patriotic young scholars who followed in Lönnrot's footsteps. His
+books were sponsored by the Society of Finnish Literature and used in
+its campaign to bring back the Finnish language to the Finns at a time
+when Swedish was the official language of the country.
+
+Full of local color as these stories are, it would be vain to pretend
+that they are not, for the most part, variants of stories told the
+world over. All that I can claim for them is that they are dramatic
+and picturesque, that they are told with a wealth of charming detail
+which is essentially Finnish, and that they are certainly new to the
+generality of English readers. _The Three Chests_, so characteristic
+in feeling of a country famous for its lakes and marshes, is the
+variant of a German story which Grimm gives as _Fitcher's Bird_. Of
+_The Forest Bride_ I have found variants in the folklore of many
+lands. There are several very beautiful ones in the Russian; in other
+books I myself have retold two, one current among the Czechs and one
+among the Serbians; Grimm has two different versions in _The Three
+Feathers_ and _The Poor Miller's Boy and the Cat_; and Madame d'Aulnoy
+has used the same story in her elaborate tale, _The White Cat_. There
+is a well-known Oriental version of _Mighty Mikko_ in which the part
+of the fox is played by a jackal and I am sure that Mikko's faithful
+retainer, though neither city-bred nor polished, is after all pretty
+closely related to that most debonnaire of Frenchmen, _Puss in Boots_.
+Perrault probably and Madame d'Aulnoy certainly are in turn indebted
+to Straparola. And so it goes.
+
+The little cycle of animal stories included under _Mikko the Fox_ will
+of course instantly invite comparison with the Beast Epic of _Reynard
+the Fox_. The two have many episodes in common and both have episodes
+to be found in Æsop and in those books of animal analogues, widely
+read in mediæval times, _Physiologus_ and the _Disciplina Clericalis_
+of Petrus Alfonsus. The _Reynard_ as we have it is a finished satire
+on church and state and in its present form has been current in Europe
+since the twelfth century. It was thought at one time that the animal
+stories found in Finland were debased versions of the _Reynard_
+stories, but scholars are now of opinion that they antedate _Reynard_
+and are similar to the earlier simpler stories upon which the
+_Reynard_ cycle was originally built. This makes the little Finnish
+tales of great interest to the student. Needless to say I do not
+present them for this reason but because they seem to me charming
+merely as fables. The animals here are not the clerics and the judges
+and the nobles that the _Reynard_ animals are, but plain downright
+Finnish peasants, sometimes stupid, often dull, frequently amusing,
+and always very human.
+
+I have taken one liberty with spelling. I have transliterated
+Syöjätär, the name of the dread Finnish witch, as Suyettar. I have
+been unwilling to translate by the insufficient word, _bath-house_ or
+_vapor bath_, that very characteristic institution of Finnish family
+life, the _sauna_, but have retained the Finnish word, _sauna_,
+allowing the context in each case to indicate the meaning.
+
+                                                       P. F.
+
+    _New York_
+    _June 19, 1922_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    THE TRUE BRIDE: The Story of Ilona and the King's Son        1
+
+    MIGHTY MIKKO: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a
+      Grateful Fox                                              25
+
+    THE THREE CHESTS: The Story of the Wicked Old Man
+      of the Sea                                                47
+
+    LOG: The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun             67
+
+    THE LITTLE SISTER: The Story of Suyettar and the
+      Nine Brothers                                             99
+
+    THE FOREST BRIDE: The Story of a Little Mouse Who
+      was a Princess                                           121
+
+    THE ENCHANTED GROUSE: The Story of Helli and
+      the Little Locked Box                                    141
+
+    THE TERRIBLE OLLI: The Story of an Honest Finn and
+      a Wicked Troll                                           155
+
+    THE DEVIL'S HIDE: The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't
+      Lose His Temper                                          171
+
+    THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT: The Story of a Young Man Who
+      Respected the Dead                                       193
+
+    FAMILIAR FACES:
+
+         I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!                            209
+
+        II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!                         215
+
+       III Susan Walker, What a Talker!                        221
+
+    MIKKO THE FOX: A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures
+
+         I The Animals Take a Bite                             229
+
+        II The Partners                                        235
+
+       III The Fox and the Crow                                243
+
+        IV The Chief Mourner                                   251
+
+         V Mirri, the Cat                                      257
+
+        VI The Fox's Servant                                   263
+
+       VII The Wolf Sings                                      267
+
+      VIII The Clever Goat                                     273
+
+        IX The Harvest                                         279
+
+         X The Porridge                                        283
+
+        XI Nurse Mikko                                         287
+
+       XII The Bear Says _North_                               293
+
+      XIII Osmo's Share                                        297
+
+       XIV The Reward of Kindness                              301
+
+        XV The Bear and the Mouse                              307
+
+       XVI The Last of Osmo                                    309
+
+
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+    Ilona came floating up through the waves        _Frontispiece_
+
+                                                              PAGE
+    The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+      arm                                                       15
+
+    The King thought that if Mikko should see his daughter      33
+
+    She fitted the key in the lock                              57
+
+    "This last and mightiest battle is for me!"                 85
+
+    Suyettar bewitching Kerttu                                 111
+
+    She beckoned to Veikko                                     135
+
+    On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean                147
+
+    Olli and the Troll's horse                                 161
+
+    From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges         183
+
+    "She is under an evil enchantment and I am delivering
+      her!"                                                    203
+
+    When she got to the middle of the stream                   208
+
+    They were so busy eating and drinking                      214
+
+    They carried home the treasure on their backs              220
+
+    Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy! We'll
+      eat the smallest of us next!"                            228
+
+    "Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running out
+      of your nose!"                                           239
+
+    "I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+      the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off            249
+
+    And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound,
+      slowly rose to a high heartrending cry                   253
+
+    He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was left
+      standing with his mouth wide open                        259
+
+    A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+      full of pins and needles                                 262
+
+    The Wolf went staggering around the room howling at
+      the top of his voice                                     269
+
+    In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+      running helter-skelter in all directions                 272
+
+    "Here are three of us and, see, here on the floor is
+      our harvest already divided into three heaps"            278
+
+    He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out
+      far and wide and the current carried it off              282
+
+    He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+      Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one
+      paw stuck out                                            289
+
+    Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse
+      flew away                                                292
+
+    "Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread
+      don't taste a bit like this!"                            296
+
+    The first person they met was an old Horse. They put
+      their case to him                                        300
+
+    With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse
+      scampered off                                            306
+
+    So that was the End                                        315
+
+
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Ilona and the King's Son_
+
+
+THE TRUE BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There were once two orphans, a brother and a sister, who lived alone
+in the old farmhouse where their fathers before them had lived for
+many generations. The brother's name was Osmo, the sister's Ilona.
+Osmo was an industrious youth, but the farm was small and barren and
+he was hard put to it to make a livelihood.
+
+"Sister," he said one day, "I think it might be well if I went out
+into the world and found work."
+
+"Do as you think best, brother," Ilona said. "I'm sure I can manage on
+here alone."
+
+So Osmo started off, promising to come back for his sister as soon as
+he could give her a new home. He wandered far and wide and at last got
+employment from the King's Son as a shepherd.
+
+The King's Son was about Osmo's age, and often when he met Osmo
+tending his flocks he would stop and talk to him.
+
+One day Osmo told the King's Son about his sister, Ilona.
+
+"I have wandered far over the face of the earth," he said, "and never
+have I seen so beautiful a maiden as Ilona."
+
+"What does she look like?" the King's Son asked.
+
+Osmo drew a picture of her and she seemed to the King's Son so
+beautiful that at once he fell in love with her.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "if you will go home and get your sister, I will
+marry her."
+
+So Osmo hurried home not by the long land route by which he had come
+but straight over the water in a boat.
+
+"Sister," he cried, as soon as he saw Ilona, "you must come with me at
+once for the King's Son wishes to marry you!"
+
+He thought Ilona would be overjoyed, but she sighed and shook her
+head.
+
+"What is it, sister? Why do you sigh?"
+
+"Because it grieves me to leave this old house where our fathers have
+lived for so many generations."
+
+"Nonsense, Ilona! What is this little old house compared to the King's
+castle where you will live once you marry the King's Son!"
+
+But Ilona only shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother! I can't bear to leave this old house until the
+grindstone with which our fathers for generations ground their meal is
+worn out."
+
+When Osmo found she was firm, he went secretly and broke the old
+grindstone into small pieces. He then put the pieces together so that
+the stone looked the same as before. But of course the next time Ilona
+touched it, it fell apart.
+
+"Now, sister, you'll come, will you not?" Osmo asked.
+
+But again Ilona shook her head.
+
+"It's no use, brother. I can't bear to go until the old stool where
+our mothers have sat spinning these many generations is worn through."
+
+So again Osmo took things into his own hands and going secretly to the
+old spinning stool he broke it and when Ilona sat on it again it fell
+to pieces.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old mortar which had been in
+use for generations should fall to bits at a blow from the pestle.
+Osmo cracked the mortar and the next time Ilona struck it with the
+pestle it broke.
+
+Then Ilona said she couldn't go until the old worn doorsill over which
+so many of their forefathers had walked should fall to splinters at
+the brush of her skirts. So Osmo secretly split the old doorsill into
+thin slivers and, when next Ilona stepped over it, the brush of her
+skirts sent the splinters flying.
+
+"I see now I must go," Ilona said, "for the house of our forefathers
+no longer holds me."
+
+So she packed all her ribbons and her bodices and skirts in a bright
+wooden box and, calling her little dog Pilka, she stepped into the
+boat and Osmo rowed her off in the direction of the King's castle.
+
+Soon they passed a long narrow spit of land at the end of which stood
+a woman waving her arms. That is she looked like a woman. Really she
+was Suyettar but they, of course, did not know this.
+
+"Take me in your boat!" she cried.
+
+"Shall we?" Osmo asked his sister.
+
+"I don't think we ought to," Ilona said. "We don't know who she is or
+what she wants and she may be evil."
+
+So Osmo rowed on. But the woman kept shouting:
+
+"Hi, there! Take me in your boat! Take me!"
+
+A second time Osmo paused and asked his sister:
+
+"Don't you think we ought to take her?"
+
+"No," Ilona said.
+
+So Osmo rowed on again. At this the creature raised such a pitiful
+outcry demanding what they meant denying assistance to a poor woman
+that Osmo was unable longer to refuse and in spite of Ilona's warning
+he rowed to land.
+
+Suyettar instantly jumped into the boat and seated herself in the
+middle with her face towards Osmo and her back towards Ilona.
+
+"What a fine young man!" Suyettar said in whining flattering tones.
+"See how strong he is at the oars! And what a beautiful girl, too! I
+daresay the King's Son would fall in love with her if ever he saw
+her!"
+
+Thereupon Osmo very foolishly told Suyettar that the King's Son had
+already promised to marry Ilona. At that an evil look came into
+Suyettar's face and she sat silent for a time biting her fingers. Then
+she began mumbling a spell that made Osmo deaf to what Ilona was
+saying and Ilona deaf to what Osmo was saying.
+
+At last in the distance the towers of the King's castle appeared.
+
+"Stand up, sister!" Osmo said. "Shake out your skirts and arrange your
+pretty ribbons! We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+Ilona could see her brother's lips moving but of course she could not
+hear what he was saying.
+
+"What is it, brother?" she asked.
+
+Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"No! No!" Ilona cried. "He couldn't order anything so cruel as that!"
+
+Presently Osmo said:
+
+"Sister, what ails you? Don't you hear me? Shake out your skirts and
+arrange your pretty ribbons for we'll soon be landing now."
+
+"What is it, brother?" Ilona asked.
+
+As before Suyettar answered for him:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"Brother, how can you order so cruel a thing!" Ilona cried, bursting
+into tears. "Is it for this you made me leave the home of my fathers?"
+
+A third time Osmo said:
+
+"Stand up, sister, and shake out your skirts and arrange your ribbons!
+We'll soon be landing now!"
+
+"I can't hear you, brother! What is it you say?"
+
+Suyettar turned on her fiercely and screamed:
+
+"Osmo orders you to jump headlong into the water!"
+
+"If he says I must, I must!" poor Ilona sobbed, and with that she
+leapt overboard.
+
+Osmo tried to save her but Suyettar held him back and with her own
+arms rowed off and Ilona was left to sink.
+
+"What will become of me now!" Osmo cried. "When the King's Son finds I
+have not brought him my sister he will surely order my death!"
+
+"Not at all!" Suyettar said. "Do as I say and no harm will come to
+you. Offer me to the King's Son and tell him I am your sister. He
+won't know the difference and anyway I'm sure I'm just as beautiful as
+Ilona ever was!"
+
+With that Suyettar opened the wooden box that held Ilona's clothes and
+helped herself to skirt and bodice and gay colored ribbons. She decked
+herself out in these and for a little while she really did succeed in
+looking like a pretty young girl.
+
+So Osmo presented Suyettar to the King's Son as Ilona, and the King's
+Son because he had given his word married her. But before one day was
+past, he called Osmo to him and asked him angrily:
+
+"What did you mean by telling me your sister was beautiful?"
+
+"Isn't she beautiful?" Osmo faltered.
+
+"No! I thought she was at first but she isn't! She is ugly and evil
+and you shall pay the penalty for having deceived me!"
+
+Thereupon he ordered that Osmo be shut up in a place filled with
+serpents.
+
+"If you are innocent," the King's Son said, "the serpents will not
+harm you. If you are guilty they will devour you!"
+
+Meanwhile poor Ilona when she jumped into the water sank down, down,
+down, until she reached the Sea King's palace. They received her
+kindly there and comforted her and the Sea King's Son, touched by her
+grief and beauty, offered to marry her. But Ilona was homesick for the
+upper world and would not listen to him.
+
+"I want to see my brother again!" she wept.
+
+They told her that the King's Son had thrown her brother to the
+serpents and had married Suyettar in her stead, but Ilona still begged
+so pitifully to be allowed to return to earth that at last the Sea
+King said:
+
+"Very well, then! For three successive nights I will allow you to
+return to the upper world. But after that never again!"
+
+So they decked Ilona in the lovely jewels of the sea with great
+strands of pearls about her neck and to each of her ankles they
+attached long silver chains. As she rose in the water the sound of the
+chains was like the chiming of silver bells and could be heard for
+five miles.
+
+Ilona came to the surface of the water just where Osmo had landed. The
+first thing she saw was his boat at the water's edge and curled up
+asleep in the bottom of the boat her own little dog, Pilka.
+
+"Pilka!" Ilona cried, and the little dog woke with a bark of joy and
+licked Ilona's hand and yelped and frisked.
+
+Then Ilona sang this magic song to Pilka:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+Pilka barked and frisked and said:
+
+"Yes, mistress, yes! I'll do whatever you bid me!"
+
+Ilona gave the little dog an embroidered square of gold and silver
+which she herself had worked down in the Sea King's palace.
+
+"Take this," she said to Pilka, "and put it on the pillow where the
+King's Son lies asleep. Perhaps when he sees it he will know that it
+comes from Osmo's true sister and that the frightful creature he has
+married is Suyettar. Then perhaps he will release Osmo before the
+serpents devour him. Go now, my faithful Pilka, and come back to me
+before the dawn."
+
+So Pilka raced off to the King's palace carrying the square of
+embroidery in her teeth. Ilona waited and half an hour before sunrise
+the little dog came panting back.
+
+"What news, Pilka? How fares my brother and how is my poor love, the
+King's Son?"
+
+"Osmo is still with the serpents," Pilka answered, "but they haven't
+eaten him yet. I left the embroidered square on the pillow where the
+King's Son's head was lying. Suyettar was asleep on the bed beside him
+where you should be, dear mistress. Suyettar's awful mouth was open
+and she was snoring horribly. The King's Son moved uneasily for he was
+troubled even in his sleep."
+
+"And did you go through the castle, Pilka?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress."
+
+"And did you see the remains of the wedding feast?"
+
+"Yes, dear mistress, the remains of a feast that shamed the King's
+Son, for Suyettar served bones instead of meat, fish heads, turnip
+tops, and bread burned to a cinder."
+
+"Good Pilka!" Ilona said. "Good little dog! You have done well! Now
+the dawn is coming and I must go back to the Sea King's palace. But I
+shall come again to-night and also to-morrow night and do you be here
+waiting for me."
+
+Pilka promised and Ilona sank down into the sea to a clanking of
+chains that sounded like silver bells. The King's Son heard them in
+his sleep and for a moment woke and said:
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"What's what?" snarled Suyettar. "You're dreaming! Go back to sleep!"
+
+A few hours later when he woke again, he found the lovely square of
+embroidery on his pillow.
+
+"Who made this?" he cried.
+
+Suyettar was busy combing her snaky locks. She turned on him quickly.
+
+"Who made what?"
+
+When she saw the embroidery she tried to snatch it from him, but he
+held it tight.
+
+"I made it, of course!" she declared. "Who but me would sit up all
+night and work while you lay snoring!"
+
+But the King's Son, as he folded the embroidery, muttered to himself:
+
+"It doesn't look to me much like your work!"
+
+After he had breakfasted, the King's Son asked for news of Osmo. A
+slave was sent to the place of the serpents and when he returned he
+reported that Osmo was sitting amongst them uninjured.
+
+"The old king snake has made friends with him," he added, "and has
+wound himself around Osmo's arm."
+
+The King's Son was amazed at this news and also relieved, for the
+whole affair troubled him sorely and he was beginning to suspect a
+mystery.
+
+He knew an old wise woman who lived alone in a little hut on the
+seashore and he decided he would go and consult her. So he went to her
+and told her about Osmo and how Osmo had deceived him in regard to his
+sister. Then he told her how the serpents instead of devouring Osmo
+had made friends with him and last he showed her the square of lovely
+embroidery he had found on his pillow that morning.
+
+"There is a mystery somewhere, granny," he said in conclusion, "and I
+know not how to solve it."
+
+The old woman looked at him thoughtfully.
+
+"My son," she said at last, "that is never Osmo's sister that you have
+married. Take an old woman's word--it is Suyettar! Yet Osmo's sister
+must be alive and the embroidery must be a token from her. It
+probably means that she begs you to release her brother."
+
+  [Illustration: _The old king snake has wound himself around Osmo's
+    arm_]
+
+"Suyettar!" repeated the King's Son, aghast.
+
+At first he couldn't believe such a horrible thing possible and yet
+that, if it were so, would explain much.
+
+"I wonder if you're right," he said. "I must be on my guard!"
+
+That night on the stroke of midnight to the sound of silver chimes
+Ilona came floating up through the waves and little Pilka, as she
+appeared, greeted her with barks of joy.
+
+As before Ilona sang:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Lift the latch and slip inside!
+    Past the watchdog in the yard,
+    Past the sleeping men on guard!
+    Creep in softly as a snake,
+    Then creep out before they wake!
+    Peely, peely, Pilka, pide,
+    Peely, peely, Pilka!"
+
+This time Ilona gave Pilka a shirt for the King's Son. Beautifully
+embroidered it was in gold and silver and Ilona herself had worked it
+in the Sea King's palace.
+
+Pilka carried it safely to the castle and left it on the pillow where
+the King's Son could see it as soon as he woke. Then Pilka visited the
+place of the serpents and before the first ray of dawn was back at the
+seashore to reassure Ilona of Osmo's safety.
+
+Then dawn came and Ilona, as she sank in the waves to the chime of
+silver bells, called out to Pilka:
+
+"Meet me here to-night at the same hour! Fail me not, dear Pilka, for
+to-night is the last night that the Sea King will allow me to come to
+the upper world!"
+
+Pilka, howling with grief, made promise:
+
+"I'll be here, dear mistress, that I will!"
+
+The King's Son that morning, as he opened his eyes, saw the
+embroidered shirt lying on the pillow at his head. He thought at first
+he must be dreaming for it was more beautiful than any shirt that had
+ever been worked by human fingers.
+
+"Ah!" he sighed at last, "who made this?"
+
+"Who made what?" Suyettar demanded rudely.
+
+When she saw the shirt she tried to snatch it, but the King's Son held
+it from her. Then she pretended to laugh and said:
+
+"Oh, that! I made it, of course! Do you think any one else in the
+world would sit up all night and work for you while you lie there
+snoring! And small thanks I get for it, too!"
+
+"It doesn't look to me like your work!" said the King's Son
+significantly.
+
+Again the slave reported to him that Osmo was alive and unhurt by the
+serpents.
+
+"Strange!" thought the King's Son.
+
+He took the embroidered shirt and made the old wise woman another
+visit.
+
+"Ah!" she said, when she saw the shirt, "now I understand! Listen, my
+Prince: last night at midnight I was awakened by the chime of silver
+bells and I got up and looked out the door. Just there at the water's
+edge, close to that little boat, I saw a strange sight. A lovely
+maiden rose from the waves holding in her hands the very shirt that
+you now have. A little dog that was lying in the boat greeted her with
+barks of joy. She sang a magic rime to the dog and gave it the shirt
+and off it ran. That maid, my Prince, must be Ilona. She must be in
+the Sea King's power and I think she is begging you to rescue her and
+to release her brother."
+
+The King's Son slowly nodded his head.
+
+"Granny, I'm sure what you say is true! Help me to rescue Ilona and I
+shall reward you richly."
+
+"Then, my son, you must act at once, for to-night, I heard Ilona say,
+is the last night that the Sea King will allow her to come to the
+upper world. Go now to the smith and have him forge you a strong iron
+chain and a great strong scythe. Then to-night hide you down yonder in
+the shadow of the boat. At midnight when you hear the silver chimes
+and the maiden slowly rises from the waves, throw the iron chain about
+her and quickly draw her to you. Then, with one sweep of your scythe,
+cut the silver chains that are fastened to her ankles. But remember,
+my son, that is not all. She is under enchantment and as you try to
+grasp her the Sea King will change her to many things--a fish, a bird,
+a fly, and I know not what, and if in any form she escape you, then
+all is lost."
+
+At once the King's Son hurried away to the smithy and had the smith
+forge him a strong iron chain and a heavy sharp scythe. Then when
+night fell he hid in the shadow of the boat and waited. Pilka snuggled
+up beside him. Midnight came and to the sweet chiming as of silver
+bells Ilona slowly rose from the waves. As she came she began singing:
+
+    "Peely, peely, Pilka, pide----"
+
+Instantly the King's Son threw the strong iron chain about her and
+drew her to him. Then with one mighty sweep of the scythe he severed
+the silver chains that were attached to her ankles and the silver
+chains fell chiming into the depths. Another instant and the maiden in
+his arms was no maiden but a slimy fish that squirmed and wriggled and
+almost slipped through his fingers. He killed the fish and, lo! it was
+not a fish but a frightened bird that struggled to escape. He killed
+the bird and, lo! it was not a bird but a writhing lizard. And so on
+through many transformations, growing finally small and weak until at
+last there was only a mosquito. He crushed this and in his arms he
+found again the lovely Ilona.
+
+"Ah, dear one," he said, "you are my true bride and not Suyettar who
+pretended she was you! Come, we will go at once to the castle and
+confront her!"
+
+But Ilona cried out at this:
+
+"Not there, my Prince, not there! Suyettar if she saw me would kill me
+and devour me! Keep me from her!"
+
+"Very well, my dear one," the King's Son said. "We'll wait until
+to-morrow and after to-morrow there will be no Suyettar to fear."
+
+So for that night they took shelter in the old wise woman's hut, Ilona
+and the King's Son and faithful little Pilka.
+
+The next morning early the King's Son returned to the castle and had
+the _sauna_ heated. Just inside the door he had a deep hole dug and
+filled it with burning tar. Then over the top of the hole he stretched
+a brown mat and on the brown mat a blue mat. When all was ready he
+went indoors and roused Suyettar.
+
+"Where have you been all night?" she demanded angrily.
+
+"Forgive me this time," he begged in pretended humility, "and I
+promise never again to be parted from my own true bride. Come now, my
+dear, and bathe for the _sauna_ is ready."
+
+Then Suyettar, who loved to have people see her go to the _sauna_ just
+as if she were a real human being, put on a long bathrobe and clapped
+her hands. Four slaves appeared. Two took up the train of her bathrobe
+and the two others supported her on either side. Slowly she marched
+out of the castle, across the courtyard, and over to the _sauna_.
+
+"They all really think I'm a human princess!" she said to herself, and
+she was so sure she was beautiful and admired that she tossed her head
+and smirked from side to side and took little mincing steps.
+
+When she reached the _sauna_ she was ready to drop the bathrobe and
+jump over the doorsill to the steaming shelf, but the King's Son
+whispered:
+
+"Nay! Nay! Remember your dignity as a beautiful princess and walk
+over the blue mat!"
+
+So with one more toss of her head, one more smirk of her ugly face,
+Suyettar stepped on the blue mat and sank into the hole of burning
+tar. Then the King's Son quickly locked the door of the _sauna_ and
+left her there to burn in the tar, for burning, you know, is the only
+way to destroy Suyettar. As she burned the last hateful thing Suyettar
+did was to tear out handfuls of her hair and scatter them broadcast in
+the air.
+
+"Let these," she cried, yelling and cursing, "turn into mosquitos and
+worms and moths and trouble mankind forever!"
+
+Then her yells grew fainter and at last ceased altogether and the
+King's Son knew that it was now safe to bring Ilona home. First,
+however, he had Osmo released from the place of the serpents and asked
+his forgiveness for the unjust punishment.
+
+Then he and Osmo together went to the hut of the old wise woman and
+there with tears of happiness the brother and sister were reunited.
+The King's Son to show his gratitude to the old wise woman begged her
+to accompany them to the castle and presently they all set forth with
+Pilka frisking ahead and barking for joy.
+
+That day there was a new wedding feast spread at the castle and this
+time it was not bones and fish heads and burnt crusts but such food as
+the King's Son had not tasted for many a day.
+
+To celebrate his happy marriage the King's Son made Osmo his
+chamberlain and gave Pilka a beautiful new collar.
+
+"Now at last," Ilona said, "I am glad I left the house of my
+forefathers."
+
+
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox_
+
+
+MIGHTY MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old woodsman and his wife who had an only son named
+Mikko. As the mother lay dying the young man wept bitterly.
+
+"When you are gone, my dear mother," he said, "there will be no one
+left to think of me."
+
+The poor woman comforted him as best she could and said to him:
+
+"You will still have your father."
+
+Shortly after the woman's death, the old man, too, was taken ill.
+
+"Now, indeed, I shall be left desolate and alone," Mikko thought, as
+he sat beside his father's bedside and saw him grow weaker and weaker.
+
+"My boy," the old man said just before he died, "I have nothing to
+leave you but the three snares with which these many years I have
+caught wild animals. Those snares now belong to you. When I am dead,
+go into the woods and if you find a wild creature caught in any of
+them, free it gently and bring it home alive."
+
+After his father's death, Mikko remembered the snares and went out to
+the woods to see them. The first was empty and also the second, but in
+the third he found a little red Fox. He carefully lifted the spring
+that had shut down on one of the Fox's feet and then carried the
+little creature home in his arms. He shared his supper with it and
+when he lay down to sleep the Fox curled up at his feet. They lived
+together some time until they became close friends.
+
+"Mikko," said the Fox one day, "why are you so sad?"
+
+"Because I'm lonely."
+
+"Pooh!" said the Fox. "That's no way for a young man to talk! You
+ought to get married! Then you wouldn't feel lonely!"
+
+"Married!" Mikko repeated. "How can I get married? I can't marry a
+poor girl because I'm too poor myself and a rich girl wouldn't marry
+me."
+
+"Nonsense!" said the Fox. "You're a fine well set up young man and
+you're kind and gentle. What more could a princess ask?"
+
+Mikko laughed to think of a princess wanting him for a husband.
+
+"I mean what I say!" the Fox insisted. "Take our own Princess now.
+What would you think of marrying her?"
+
+Mikko laughed louder than before.
+
+"I have heard," he said, "that she is the most beautiful princess in
+the world! Any man would be happy to marry her!"
+
+"Very well," the Fox said, "if you feel that way about her then I'll
+arrange the wedding for you."
+
+With that the little Fox actually did trot off to the royal castle and
+gain audience with the King.
+
+"My master sends you greetings," the Fox said, "and he begs you to
+loan him your bushel measure."
+
+"My bushel measure!" the King repeated in surprise. "Who is your
+master and why does he want my bushel measure?"
+
+"Ssh!" the Fox whispered as though he didn't want the courtiers to
+hear what he was saying. Then slipping up quite close to the King he
+murmured in his ear:
+
+"Surely you have heard of Mikko, haven't you?--Mighty Mikko as he's
+called."
+
+The King had never heard of any Mikko who was known as Mighty Mikko
+but, thinking that perhaps he should have heard of him, he shook his
+head and murmured:
+
+"H'm! Mikko! Mighty Mikko! Oh, to be sure! Yes, yes, of course!"
+
+"My master is about to start off on a journey and he needs a bushel
+measure for a very particular reason."
+
+"I understand! I understand!" the King said, although he didn't
+understand at all, and he gave orders that the bushel measure which
+they used in the storeroom of the castle be brought in and given to
+the Fox.
+
+The Fox carried off the measure and hid it in the woods. Then he
+scurried about to all sorts of little out of the way nooks and
+crannies where people had hidden their savings and he dug up a gold
+piece here and a silver piece there until he had a handful. Then he
+went back to the woods and stuck the various coins in the cracks of
+the measure. The next day he returned to the King.
+
+"My master, Mighty Mikko," he said, "sends you thanks, O King, for the
+use of your bushel measure."
+
+The King held out his hand and when the Fox gave him the measure he
+peeped inside to see if by chance it contained any trace of what had
+recently been measured. His eye of course at once caught the glint of
+the gold and silver coins lodged in the cracks.
+
+"Ah!" he said, thinking Mikko must be a very mighty lord indeed to be
+so careless of his wealth; "I should like to meet your master. Won't
+you and he come and visit me?"
+
+This was what the Fox wanted the King to say but he pretended to
+hesitate.
+
+"I thank your Majesty for the kind invitation," he said, "but I fear
+my master can't accept it just now. He wants to get married soon and
+we are about to start off on a long journey to inspect a number of
+foreign princesses."
+
+This made the King all the more anxious to have Mikko visit him at
+once for he thought that if Mikko should see his daughter before he
+saw those foreign princesses he might fall in love with her and marry
+her. So he said to the Fox:
+
+"My dear fellow, you must prevail on your master to make me a visit
+before he starts out on his travels! You will, won't you?"
+
+The Fox looked this way and that as if he were too embarrassed to
+speak.
+
+"Your Majesty," he said at last, "I pray you pardon my frankness. The
+truth is you are not rich enough to entertain my master and your
+castle isn't big enough to house the immense retinue that always
+attends him."
+
+The King, who by this time was frantic to see Mikko, lost his head
+completely.
+
+"My dear Fox," he said, "I'll give you anything in the world if you
+prevail upon your master to visit me at once! Couldn't you suggest to
+him to travel with a modest retinue this time?"
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"No. His rule is either to travel with a great retinue or to go on
+foot disguised as a poor woodsman attended only by me."
+
+"Couldn't you prevail on him to come to me disguised as a poor
+woodsman?" the King begged. "Once he was here, I could place gorgeous
+clothes at his disposal."
+
+But still the Fox shook his head.
+
+"I fear Your Majesty's wardrobe doesn't contain the kind of clothes my
+master is accustomed to."
+
+"I assure you I've got some very good clothes," the King said. "Come
+along this minute and we'll go through them and I'm sure you'll find
+some that your master would wear."
+
+So they went to a room which was like a big wardrobe with hundreds and
+hundreds of hooks upon which were hung hundreds of coats and breeches
+and embroidered shirts. The King ordered his attendants to bring the
+costumes down one by one and place them before the Fox.
+
+  [Illustration: _The King thought that if Mikko should see his
+    daughter_]
+
+They began with the plainer clothes.
+
+"Good enough for most people," the Fox said, "but not for my master."
+
+Then they took down garments of a finer grade.
+
+"I'm afraid you're going to all this trouble for nothing," the Fox
+said. "Frankly now, don't you realize that my master couldn't possibly
+put on any of these things!"
+
+The King, who had hoped to keep for his own use his most gorgeous
+clothes of all, now ordered these to be shown.
+
+The Fox looked at them sideways, sniffed them critically, and at last
+said:
+
+"Well, perhaps my master would consent to wear these for a few days.
+They are not what he is accustomed to wear but I will say this for
+him: he is not proud."
+
+The King was overjoyed.
+
+"Very well, my dear Fox, I'll have the guest chambers put in readiness
+for your master's visit and I'll have all these, my finest clothes,
+laid out for him. You won't disappoint me, will you?"
+
+"I'll do my best," the Fox promised.
+
+With that he bade the King a civil good day and ran home to Mikko.
+
+The next day as the Princess was peeping out of an upper window of
+the castle, she saw a young woodsman approaching accompanied by a Fox.
+He was a fine stalwart youth and the Princess, who knew from the
+presence of the Fox that he must be Mikko, gave a long sigh and
+confided to her serving maid:
+
+"I think I could fall in love with that young man if he really were
+only a woodsman!"
+
+Later when she saw him arrayed in her father's finest clothes--which
+looked so well on Mikko that no one even recognized them as the
+King's--she lost her heart completely and when Mikko was presented to
+her she blushed and trembled just as any ordinary girl might before a
+handsome young man.
+
+All the Court was equally delighted with Mikko. The ladies went into
+ecstasies over his modest manners, his fine figure, and the
+gorgeousness of his clothes, and the old graybeard Councilors, nodding
+their heads in approval, said to each other:
+
+"Nothing of the coxcomb about this young fellow! In spite of his great
+wealth see how politely he listens to us when we talk!"
+
+The next day the Fox went privately to the King, and said:
+
+"My master is a man of few words and quick judgment. He bids me tell
+you that your daughter, the Princess, pleases him mightily and that,
+with your approval, he will make his addresses to her at once."
+
+The King was greatly agitated and began:
+
+"My dear Fox--"
+
+But the Fox interrupted him to say:
+
+"Think the matter over carefully and give me your decision to-morrow."
+
+So the King consulted with the Princess and with his Councilors and in
+a short time the marriage was arranged and the wedding ceremony
+actually performed!
+
+"Didn't I tell you?" the Fox said, when he and Mikko were alone after
+the wedding.
+
+"Yes," Mikko acknowledged, "you did promise that I should marry the
+Princess. But, tell me, now that I am married what am I to do? I can't
+live on here forever with my wife."
+
+"Put your mind at rest," the Fox said. "I've thought of everything.
+Just do as I tell you and you'll have nothing to regret. To-night say
+to the King: 'It is now only fitting that you should visit me and see
+for yourself the sort of castle over which your daughter is hereafter
+to be mistress!'"
+
+When Mikko said this to the King, the King was overjoyed for now that
+the marriage had actually taken place he was wondering whether he
+hadn't perhaps been a little hasty. Mikko's words reassured him and he
+eagerly accepted the invitation.
+
+On the morrow the Fox said to Mikko:
+
+"Now I'll run on ahead and get things ready for you."
+
+"But where are you going?" Mikko said, frightened at the thought of
+being deserted by his little friend.
+
+The Fox drew Mikko aside and whispered softly:
+
+"A few days' march from here there is a very gorgeous castle belonging
+to a wicked old dragon who is known as the Worm. I think the Worm's
+castle would just about suit you."
+
+"I'm sure it would," Mikko agreed. "But how are we to get it away from
+the Worm?"
+
+"Trust me," the Fox said. "All you need do is this: lead the King and
+his courtiers along the main highway until by noon to-morrow you reach
+a crossroads. Turn there to the left and go straight on until you see
+the tower of the Worm's castle. If you meet any men by the wayside,
+shepherds or the like, ask them whose men they are and show no
+surprise at their answer. So now, dear master, farewell until we meet
+again at your beautiful castle."
+
+The little Fox trotted off at a smart pace and Mikko and the Princess
+and the King attended by the whole Court followed in more leisurely
+fashion.
+
+The little Fox, when he had left the main highway at the crossroads,
+soon met ten woodsmen with axes over their shoulders. They were all
+dressed in blue smocks of the same cut.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said politely. "Whose men are you?"
+
+"Our master is known as the Worm," the woodsmen told him.
+
+"My poor, poor lads!" the Fox said, shaking his head sadly.
+
+"What's the matter?" the woodsmen asked.
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to be too overcome with emotion to
+speak. Then he said:
+
+"My poor lads, don't you know that the King is coming with a great
+force to destroy the Worm and all his people?"
+
+The woodsmen were simple fellows and this news threw them into great
+consternation.
+
+"Is there no way for us to escape?" they asked.
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and thought.
+
+"Well," he said at last, "there is one way you might escape and that
+is by telling every one who asks you that you are the Mighty Mikko's
+men. But if you value your lives never again say that your master is
+the Worm."
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!" the woodsmen at once began repeating over
+and over. "We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+A little farther on the road the Fox met twenty grooms, dressed in the
+same blue smocks, who were tending a hundred beautiful horses. The Fox
+talked to the twenty grooms as he had talked to the woodsmen and
+before he left them they, too, were shouting:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Next the Fox came to a huge flock of a thousand sheep tended by thirty
+shepherds all dressed in the Worm's blue smocks. He stopped and talked
+to them until he had them roaring out:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then the Fox trotted on until he reached the castle of the Worm. He
+found the Worm himself inside lolling lazily about. He was a huge
+dragon and had been a great warrior in his day. In fact his castle and
+his lands and his servants and his possessions had all been won in
+battle. But now for many years no one had cared to fight him and he
+had grown fat and lazy.
+
+"Good day," the Fox said, pretending to be very breathless and
+frightened. "You're the Worm, aren't you?"
+
+"Yes," the dragon said, boastfully, "I am the great Worm!"
+
+The Fox pretended to grow more agitated.
+
+"My poor fellow, I am sorry for you! But of course none of us can
+expect to live forever. Well, I must hurry along. I thought I would
+just stop and say good-by."
+
+Made uneasy by the Fox's words, the Worm cried out:
+
+"Wait just a minute! What's the matter?"
+
+The Fox was already at the door but at the Worm's entreaty he paused
+and said over his shoulder:
+
+"Why, my poor fellow, you surely know, don't you? that the King with a
+great force is coming to destroy you and all your people!"
+
+"What!" the Worm gasped, turning a sickly green with fright. He knew
+he was fat and helpless and could never again fight as in the years
+gone by.
+
+"Don't go just yet!" he begged the Fox. "When is the King coming?"
+
+"He's on the highway now! That's why I must be going! Good-by!"
+
+"My dear Fox, stay just a moment and I'll reward you richly! Help me
+to hide so that the King won't find me! What about the shed where the
+linen is stored? I could crawl under the linen and then if you locked
+the door from the outside the King could never find me."
+
+"Very well," the Fox agreed, "but we must hurry!"
+
+So they ran outside to the shed where the linen was kept and the Worm
+hid himself under the linen. The Fox locked the door, then set fire to
+the shed, and soon there was nothing left of that wicked old dragon,
+the Worm, but a handful of ashes.
+
+The Fox now called together the dragon's household and talked them
+over to Mikko as he had the woodsmen and the grooms and the shepherds.
+
+Meanwhile the King and his party were slowly covering the ground over
+which the Fox had sped so quickly. When they came to the ten woodsmen
+in blue smocks, the King said:
+
+"I wonder whose woodsmen those are."
+
+One of his attendants asked the woodsmen and the ten of them shouted
+out at the top of their voices:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Mikko said nothing and the King and all the Court were impressed anew
+with his modesty.
+
+A little farther on they met the twenty grooms with their hundred
+prancing horses. When the grooms were questioned, they answered with a
+shout:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+"The Fox certainly spoke the truth," the King thought to himself,
+"when he told me of Mikko's riches!"
+
+A little later the thirty shepherds when they were questioned made
+answer in a chorus that was deafening to hear:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+The sight of the thousand sheep that belonged to his son-in-law made
+the King feel poor and humble in comparison and the courtiers
+whispered among themselves:
+
+"For all his simple manner, Mighty Mikko must be a richer, more
+powerful lord than the King himself! In fact it is only a very great
+lord indeed who could be so simple!"
+
+At last they reached the castle which from the blue smocked soldiers
+that guarded the gateway they knew to be Mikko's. The Fox came out to
+welcome the King's party and behind him in two rows all the household
+servants. These, at a signal from the Fox, cried out in one voice:
+
+"We are Mighty Mikko's men!"
+
+Then Mikko in the same simple manner that he would have used in his
+father's mean little hut in the woods bade the King and his followers
+welcome and they all entered the castle where they found a great feast
+already prepared and waiting.
+
+The King stayed on for several days and the more he saw of Mikko the
+better pleased he was that he had him for a son-in-law.
+
+When he was leaving he said to Mikko:
+
+"Your castle is so much grander than mine that I hesitate ever asking
+you back for a visit."
+
+But Mikko reassured the King by saying earnestly:
+
+"My dear father-in-law, when first I entered your castle I thought it
+was the most beautiful castle in the world!"
+
+The King was flattered and the courtiers whispered among themselves:
+
+"How affable of him to say that when he knows very well how much
+grander his own castle is!"
+
+When the King and his followers were safely gone, the little red Fox
+came to Mikko and said:
+
+"Now, my master, you have no reason to feel sad and lonely. You are
+lord of the most beautiful castle in the world and you have for wife a
+sweet and lovely Princess. You have no longer any need of me, so I am
+going to bid you farewell."
+
+Mikko thanked the little Fox for all he had done and the little Fox
+trotted off to the woods.
+
+So you see that Mikko's poor old father, although he had no wealth to
+leave his son, was really the cause of all Mikko's good fortune, for
+it was he who told Mikko in the first place to carry home alive
+anything he might find caught in the snares.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Wicked Old Man of the Sea_
+
+
+THE THREE CHESTS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an honest old farmer who had three daughters. His farm
+ran down to the shores of a deep lake. One day as he leaned over the
+water to take a drink, wicked old Wetehinen reached up from the bottom
+of the lake and clutched him by the beard.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" the farmer cried. "Let me go!"
+
+Wetehinen only held on more tightly.
+
+"Yes, I'll let you go," he said, "but only on this condition: that you
+give me one of your daughters for wife!"
+
+"Give you one of my daughters? Never!"
+
+"Very well, then I'll never let go!" wicked old Wetehinen declared and
+with that he began jerking at the beard as if it were a bellrope.
+
+"Wait! Wait!" the farmer spluttered.
+
+Now he didn't want to give one of his daughters to wicked old
+Wetehinen--of course not! But at the same time he was in Wetehinen's
+power and he realized that if he didn't do what the old reprobate
+demanded he might lose his life and so leave all three of his
+daughters orphans. Perhaps for the good of all he had better sacrifice
+one of them.
+
+"All right," he said, "let me go and I'll send you my oldest daughter.
+I promise."
+
+So Wetehinen let go his beard and the farmer scrambled to his feet and
+hurried home.
+
+"My dear," he said to his oldest daughter, "I left a bit of the
+harness down at the lake. Like a good girl will you run down and get
+it for me."
+
+The eldest daughter went at once and when she reached the water's
+edge, old Wetehinen reached up and caught her about the waist and
+carried her down to the bottom of the lake where he lived in a big
+house.
+
+At first he was kind to her. He made her mistress of the house and
+gave her the keys to all the rooms and closets. He went very carefully
+over the keys and pointing to one he said:
+
+"That key you must never use for it opens the door to a room which I
+forbid you to enter."
+
+The eldest daughter began keeping house for old Wetehinen and spent
+her time cooking and cleaning and spinning much as she used to at home
+with her father. The days went by and she grew familiar with the
+house and began to know what was in every room and every closet.
+
+At first she felt no temptation to open the forbidden door. If old
+Wetehinen wanted to have a secret room, well and good. But why in the
+world had he given her the key if he really didn't want her to open
+the door? The more she thought about it the more she wondered. Every
+time she passed the room she stopped a moment and stared at the door.
+It looked just exactly like the doors that led into all the other
+rooms.
+
+"I wonder why he doesn't want me to open just that door?" she kept
+asking herself.
+
+Finally one day when old Wetehinen was away she thought:
+
+"I don't believe it would matter if I opened that door just a little
+crack and peeped in once! No one would know the difference!"
+
+For a few moments she hesitated, then mustered up courage enough to
+turn the key in the forbidden lock and throw open the door.
+
+The room was a storeroom with boxes and chests and old jars piled up
+around the wall. That was unexciting enough, but in the middle of the
+floor was something that made her start when she saw what it was. It
+was blood--that's what it was, a pool of dark red blood! She was about
+to slam the door shut when she saw something else that made her pause.
+This was a lovely shining ring that lay in the midst of the pool.
+
+"Oh!" she thought to herself, "what a beautiful ring! If I had it I'd
+wear it on my finger!"
+
+The longer she looked at it, the more she wanted it.
+
+"If I'm very careful," she said, "I know I could reach over and pick
+it up without touching the blood."
+
+She tiptoed cautiously into the room, wrapped her skirts tightly about
+her legs, knelt down on the floor, and stretched her arm over the
+pool. She picked up the ring very carefully but even so she got a few
+drops of blood on her fingers.
+
+"No matter!" she thought, "I can wash that off! And see the lovely
+ring!"
+
+But later, after she had the door again locked, when she tried to wash
+the blood off, she found she couldn't. She tried soap, she tried sand,
+she tried everything she could think of, but without success.
+
+"I don't care!" she thought to herself. "If Wetehinen sees the blood,
+I'll just tell him I cut my finger by accident."
+
+So when Wetehinen came home, she hid the ring and pretended nothing
+was the matter.
+
+After supper Wetehinen put his head in her lap and said:
+
+"Now, my dear, scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+She began scratching his head as she had many nights before but, at
+the first touch of her fingers, he cried out:
+
+"Stop! You're burning my ear! There must be some blood on your
+fingers! Let me see!"
+
+He reached up and caught her hand and, when he saw the blood stains,
+he flew into a towering rage.
+
+"I thought so! You've been in the forbidden room!"
+
+He jumped up and without allowing her time to say a word he just cut
+off her head then and there with no more concern than if she had been
+a mosquito! After that he took the body and the severed head and threw
+them into the forbidden room and locked the door.
+
+"Now then," he growled, "_she_ won't disobey me again!"
+
+This was all very well but now he had no one to keep house for him and
+cook and scratch his head in the evening and soon he decided he'd have
+to get another wife. He remembered that the farmer had two more
+daughters, so he thought to himself that now he'd marry the second
+sister.
+
+He waited his chance and one day when the farmer was out in his boat
+fishing, old Wetehinen came up from the bottom of the lake and
+clutched the boat. When the poor old farmer tried to row back to shore
+he couldn't make the boat move an inch. He worked and worked at the
+oars and wicked old Wetehinen let him struggle until he was exhausted.
+Then he put his head up out of the water and over the side of the boat
+and as though nothing were the matter he said:
+
+"Hullo!"
+
+"Oh!" the farmer cried, wishing he were safe on shore, "it's you, is
+it? I wondered what was holding my boat."
+
+"Yes," wicked old Wetehinen said, "it's me and I'm going to hold your
+boat right here on this spot until you promise to give me another of
+your daughters."
+
+What could the farmer do? He pleaded with Wetehinen but Wetehinen was
+firm and the upshot was that before the farmer again walked dry land
+he had promised Wetehinen his second daughter.
+
+Well, when he got home, he pretended he had forgotten his ax in the
+boat and sent his second daughter down to the lake to get it. Wicked
+old Wetehinen caught her as he had caught her sister and carried her
+home with him to his house at the bottom of the lake.
+
+Wetehinen treated the second sister just exactly as he had the first,
+making her mistress of the house and telling her she might use every
+key but one. Like her sister she, too, after a time gave way to the
+temptation of looking into the forbidden room and when she saw the
+shining ring lying in the pool of blood of course she wanted it and of
+course when she reached to get it she dabbled her fingers in the
+blood. So that was the end of her, too, for wicked old Wetehinen when
+he saw the blood stains just cut her head right off and threw her body
+and the severed head into the forbidden room beside the body and head
+of her sister and locked the door.
+
+Time went by and the farmer was living happily with his youngest
+daughter when one day while he was out chopping wood he found a pair
+of fine birch bark brogues. He put them on and instantly found himself
+walking away from the woods and down to the lake. He tried to stop but
+he couldn't. He tried to walk in another direction but the brogues
+carried him straight down to the water's edge and out into the lake
+until he was in waist deep.
+
+Then he heard a gruff voice saying:
+
+"Hullo, there! What are you doing with my brogues?"
+
+Of course it was wicked old Wetehinen who had played that trick to get
+the farmer into his power again.
+
+"What do you want this time?" the poor farmer cried.
+
+"I want your youngest daughter," Wetehinen said.
+
+"What! My youngest daughter!"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"I won't give her up!" the farmer declared. "I don't care what you do
+to me. I won't give her up!"
+
+"Oh, very well!" Wetehinen said, and immediately the brogues which had
+been standing still while they talked started walking again. They
+carried the farmer out into the lake farther and farther until the
+water was up to his chin.
+
+"Wait--wait a minute!" he cried.
+
+The brogues stopped walking and Wetehinen said:
+
+"Well, do you promise to give her to me?"
+
+"No!" the farmer began. "She's my last daughter and--"
+
+Before he could say more, the brogues walked on and the water rose to
+his nose. In desperation he threw up his hands and shouted:
+
+"I promise! I promise!"
+
+  [Illustration: _She fitted the key in the lock_]
+
+So when he got home that day he said to his youngest daughter whose
+name was Lisa:
+
+"Lisa, my dear, I forgot my brogues at the lake. Like a good girl
+won't you run and get them for me?"
+
+So Lisa went to the lake and Wetehinen of course caught her and
+carried her down to his house as he had her two sisters.
+
+Then the same old story was repeated. Wetehinen made Lisa mistress of
+the house and gave her keys to all the doors and closets with the same
+prohibition against opening the door of the forbidden room.
+
+"If I am mistress of the house," Lisa said to herself, "why should I
+not unlock every door?"
+
+She waited until one day when Wetehinen was away from home, then went
+boldly to the forbidden room, fitted the key in the lock, and flung
+open the door.
+
+There lay her two poor sisters with their heads cut off. There in the
+pool of blood sparkled the lovely ring, but Lisa paid no heed to it.
+
+"Wicked old Wetehinen!" Lisa cried. "I suppose he thinks that ring
+will tempt me but nothing will tempt me to touch that awful blood!"
+
+Then she rummaged about, opening boxes and chests, and turning things
+over. In a dark corner she found two pitchers, one marked _Water of
+Life_, the other _Water of Death_.
+
+"Ha! This is what I want!" she cried, taking the pitcher of the _Water
+of Life_.
+
+She set the severed heads of her sisters in place and then with the
+magic water brought them back to life. She used up all the _Water of
+Life_, so she filled the pitcher marked _Water of Life_ with the water
+from the other pitcher, the _Water of Death_. She hid her sisters each
+in a big wooden chest, she shut and locked the door of the forbidden
+room, and Wetehinen when he came home found her working at her
+spinning wheel as though nothing unusual had happened.
+
+After supper Wetehinen said:
+
+"Now scratch my head and make me drowsy for bed."
+
+So Lisa scratched his wicked old head and she did it so well that he
+grunted with satisfaction.
+
+"Uh! Uh!" he said. "That's good! Now just behind my right ear! That's
+it! That's it! You're a good girl, you are! You're not like some of
+them who do what they're told not to do! Now behind the other ear! Oh,
+that's fine! Yes, you're a good girl and if there's anything you want
+me to do just tell me what it is."
+
+"I want to send a chest of things to my poor old father," Lisa said.
+"Just a lot of little nothings--odds and ends that I've picked up
+about the house. I'd be ashamed to have you open the chest and see
+them. I do wish you'd carry the chest ashore to-morrow and leave it
+where my father will find it."
+
+"All right, I will," Wetehinen promised.
+
+He was true to his word. The next morning he hoisted one of the chests
+on his shoulder, the one that had in it the eldest sister, he trudged
+off with it, and tossed it up on shore at a place where he was sure
+the farmer would find it.
+
+Lisa then wheedled him into carrying up the second chest that had in
+it the second sister. This time Wetehinen wasn't so good-natured.
+
+"I don't know what she can always be sending her father!" he grumbled.
+"If she sends another chest I'll have to look inside and see."
+
+Now Lisa, when the second sister was safely delivered, began to plan
+her own escape. She pulled out another empty chest and then one
+evening after she had succeeded in making old Wetehinen comfortable
+and drowsy she begged him to carry this also to her father. He
+grumbled and protested but finally promised.
+
+"And you won't look inside, will you? Promise me you won't!" Lisa
+begged.
+
+Wetehinen said he wouldn't, but he intended to just the same.
+
+Well, the next morning as soon as Wetehinen went out, Lisa took the
+churn and dressed it up in some of her own clothes. She carried it to
+the top of the house and perched it on the ridge of the roof before a
+spinning wheel. Then she herself crept inside the third chest and
+waited.
+
+When Wetehinen came home he looked up and saw what he thought was Lisa
+spinning on the roof.
+
+"Hullo!" he shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
+
+Lisa, in the chest, answered in a voice that sounded as if it came
+from the roof:
+
+"I'm spinning. And you, Wetehinen, my dear, don't forget the chest
+that you promised to carry to my poor old father. It's standing in the
+kitchen."
+
+Wetehinen grumbled but because of his promise he hoisted the chest on
+his shoulder and started off. When he had gone a little way he thought
+to put it down and take a peep inside. Instantly Lisa's voice,
+sounding as if it came from the roof, cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen called back. "I'm only resting a
+minute!"
+
+Then he thought to himself:
+
+"I suppose she's sitting up there so she can watch me!"
+
+When he had gone some distance farther, he thought again to set down
+the chest and open the lid but instantly Lisa's voice, as from a long
+way off, called out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to look inside!"
+
+"Who's looking inside?" he called back, pretending again he was only
+resting.
+
+Every time he thought it would be safe to put down the chest and open
+the lid, Lisa's voice cried out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"Mercy on us!" old Wetehinen fumed to himself, "who would have thought
+she could see so far!"
+
+On the shore of the lake when he threw down the chest in disgust he
+tried one last time to raise the lid. Instantly Lisa's voice cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! You promised not to!"
+
+"I'm not looking inside!" Wetehinen roared, and in a fury he left the
+chest and started back into the water.
+
+All the way home he grumbled and growled:
+
+"A nice way to treat a man, always making him carry chests! I won't
+carry another one no matter how much she begs me!"
+
+When he came near home he saw the spinning wheel still on the roof and
+the figure still seated before it.
+
+"Why haven't you got my dinner ready?" he called out angrily.
+
+The figure at the spinning wheel made no answer.
+
+"What's the matter with you?" Wetehinen cried. "Why are you sitting
+there like a wooden image instead of cooking my dinner?"
+
+Still the figure made no answer and in a rage Wetehinen began climbing
+up the roof. He reached out blindly and clutched at Lisa's skirt and
+jerked it so hard that the churn came clattering down on his head. It
+knocked him off the roof and he fell all the way to the ground and
+cracked his wicked old head wide open.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch!" he roared in pain. "Just wait till I get hold of that
+Lisa!"
+
+He crawled to the forbidden room and poured over himself the water
+that was in the pitcher marked _Water of Life_. But it wasn't the
+_Water of Life_ at all, it was the _Water of Death_, and so it didn't
+help his wicked old cracked head at all. In fact it just made it worse
+and worse _and_ worse.
+
+Lisa and her sisters were never again troubled by him nor was any one
+else that lived on the shores of that lake.
+
+"Wonder what's become of wicked old Wetehinen?" people began saying.
+
+Lisa thought she knew but she didn't tell.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Hero Who Released the Sun_
+
+
+LOG
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a poor couple who had no children. Their neighbors all
+had boys and girls in plenty but for some reason God didn't send them
+even one.
+
+"If I can't have a flesh and blood baby," the woman said one day, "I'm
+going to have a wooden baby."
+
+She went to the woods and cut a log of alder just the size of a nice
+fat baby. She dressed the log in baby clothes and put it in a cradle.
+Then for three whole years she and her husband rocked the cradle and
+sang lullabies to the log baby.
+
+At the end of three years one afternoon, when the man was out chopping
+wood and the woman was driving the cows home from pasture, the log
+baby turned into a real baby! It was so strong and hearty that by the
+time its parents got home it had crawled out of the cradle and was
+sitting on the floor yelling lustily for food. It ate and ate and ate
+and the more it ate the faster it grew. It wasn't any time at all in
+passing from babyhood to childhood, from childhood to youth, and from
+youth to manhood. From its beginnings it was known in the village as
+Log and never received any other name.
+
+Log's parents knew from the first that Log was destined to be a great
+hero. That was why he was so strong and so good. There was no one in
+the village as strong as he nor any one as kind and gentle.
+
+Now just at this time a great calamity overtook the world. The Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn disappeared from the sky and as a result the
+earth was left in darkness.
+
+"Who have taken from us the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?" the people
+cried in terror.
+
+"Whoever they are," the King said, "they shall have to restore them!
+Where, O where are the heroes who will undertake to find the Sun and
+the Moon and the Dawn and return them to their places in the sky?"
+
+There were many men willing to offer themselves for the great
+adventure but the King realized that something more was needed than
+willingness.
+
+"It is only heroes of exceptional strength and endurance," he said,
+"who should risk the dangers of so perilous an undertaking."
+
+So he called together all the valiant youths of the kingdom and
+tested them one by one. He had some waters of great strength and it
+was his hope to find three heroes the first of whom could drink three
+bottles of the strong waters, the second six bottles, and the third
+nine bottles.
+
+Hundreds of youths presented themselves and out of them all the King
+found at last two, one of whom was able to take three bottles of the
+strong waters, the other six bottles.
+
+"But we need three heroes!" the King cried. "Is there no one in all
+this kingdom strong enough to drink nine bottles?"
+
+"Try Log!" some one shouted.
+
+All the youths present instantly took up the cry:
+
+"Log! Log! Send for Log!"
+
+So the King sent for Log and sure enough when Log came he was able to
+drink down nine bottles of the strong waters without any trouble at
+all.
+
+"Here now," the King proclaimed, "are the three heroes who are to
+release the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn from whoever are holding
+them in captivity and restore them to their places in the sky!"
+
+He equipped the three heroes for a long journey furnishing them money
+and food and drink of the strong waters, each according to his
+strength. He mounted them each on a mighty horse with sword and arrow
+and dog.
+
+So the three heroes rode off in the dark and the women of the kingdom
+wept to see them go and the men cheered and wished that they, too,
+were going.
+
+They rode on and on for many days that seemed like nights until they
+had crossed the confines of their own country and entered the
+boundaries of an unknown kingdom beyond. Here the darkness was less
+dense. There was no actual daylight but a faint grayness as of
+approaching dawn.
+
+They rode on until they saw looming up before them the towers of a
+mighty castle. They dismounted near the castle at the door of a little
+hut where they found an old woman.
+
+"Good day to you, granny!" Log called out.
+
+"Good day, indeed!" the old woman said. "It's little enough we see of
+the day since the Evil One cursed the Sun and handed it over to
+Suyettar's wicked offspring, the Nine-Headed Serpent!"
+
+"The Evil One!" Log exclaimed. "Tell me, granny, why did the Evil One
+curse the Sun?"
+
+"Because he's evil, my son, that's why! He said the Sun's rays
+blistered him, so he cursed the Sun and gave him over to the
+Nine-Headed Serpent. And he cursed the Moon, too, because at night
+when the Moon shone he could not steal. Yes, my son, he cursed the
+Moon and handed her over to Suyettar's second offspring, the
+Six-Headed Serpent. Then he cursed the Dawn because he said he
+couldn't sleep in the morning because of the Dawn. So he cursed the
+Dawn and gave her over to Suyettar's third offspring, the Three-Headed
+Serpent."
+
+"Tell me, granny," Log said, "where do the three Serpents keep
+prisoner the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn?"
+
+"Listen, my son, and I will tell you: When they go far out in the
+Ocean they carry with them the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. The
+Three-Headed Serpent stays out there one day and then returns at
+night. The Six-Headed Serpent stays two days and then returns, and the
+mighty Nine-Headed Monster does not return until the third night. As
+each returns a faint glow spreads over the land. That is why we are
+not in utter darkness."
+
+Log thanked the old woman and then he and his companions pushed on
+towards the castle. As they neared it they saw a strange sight which
+they could not understand. One half of the great castle was laughing
+and rocking as if in merriment and the other half was weeping as if in
+grief.
+
+"What can this mean?" Log cried out. "We had better ask the old woman
+before we go on."
+
+So they went back to the hut and the old woman told them all she knew.
+
+"It is on account of the dreadful fate that is hanging over the King's
+three daughters," she said. "Those three evil Monsters are demanding
+them one by one. To-night when the Three-Headed Serpent comes back
+from the Ocean he expects to devour the eldest. If the King refuses to
+give her up, then Suyettar's evil son will devour half the kingdom,
+half of the castle itself, and half the shining stones. O that some
+hero would kill the monster and save the princess and at the same time
+release the Dawn that it might again steal over the world!"
+
+Log and his fellows conferred together and the one they called Three
+Bottles, because his strength was equal to three bottles of the strong
+waters, declared that it was his task to fight and conquer the
+Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+In the castle meanwhile preparations for the sacrifice of the oldest
+princess were going forward. As the King sewed the poor girl into a
+great leather sack, his tears fell so fast that he could scarcely see
+what he was doing.
+
+"My dear child," he said, "it should comfort you greatly to think that
+the Monster is going to eat you instead of half the kingdom! Not many
+princesses are considered as important as half the kingdom!"
+
+The princess knew that what her father said must be true and she did
+her best to look cheerful as they slipped the sack over her head. Once
+inside, however, she allowed herself to cry for she knew that no one
+could see her.
+
+The sack with the princess inside was carried down to the beach and
+put on a high rock near the place where Suyettar's sons were wont to
+come up out of the water.
+
+"Don't be frightened, my daughter!" the King called out as he and all
+the Court started back to the castle. "You won't have long to wait,
+for it will soon be evening."
+
+Log and his companions watched the King's party disappear and then
+Three Bottles solemnly drank down the three bottles of strong waters
+with which his own King had equipped him. As he was ready to mount his
+horse, he handed Log the leash to which his dog was attached.
+
+"If I need help," he said, "I'll throw back my shoe and do you then
+release my dog."
+
+With that he rode boldly down to the beach, dismounted, and climbed up
+the rock where the unfortunate princess lay in a sack. With one slash
+of the sword he ripped open the sack and dragged the princess out. She
+supposed of course that he was the Three-Headed Serpent and at first
+was so frightened that she kept her eyes tightly shut not daring to
+look at him. She expected every minute to have him take a first bite
+and, when minutes and more minutes and more minutes still went by and
+he didn't, she opened her eyes a little crack to see what was the
+matter.
+
+"Oh!" the princess said.
+
+She was so surprised that for a long time she didn't dare to take
+another peep.
+
+"You thought I was the Three-Headed Serpent, didn't you?" a pleasant
+voice asked. "But I'm not. I'm only a young man who has come to rescue
+you."
+
+The princess murmured, "Oh!" again, but this time the "Oh!" expressed
+happy relief.
+
+"Yes," repeated the young man, "I am the hero who has come to rescue
+you. My comrades call me Three Bottles and you, too, may call me that.
+And while we are waiting for the Serpent to come in from the Ocean I
+wish you would scratch my head."
+
+The princess wasn't in the least surprised at this request. Heroes and
+monsters and fathers alike seemed always to want their heads
+scratched.
+
+So Three Bottles stretched himself at the princess' feet and put his
+head in her lap. He settled himself comfortably and she scratched his
+head while he gazed out over the dark Ocean waiting for the Serpent to
+appear.
+
+At first there was nothing to break the glassy surface of the water.
+They waited and at last far out they saw three swirling masses rolling
+landward.
+
+"Quick, my princess!" Three Bottles cried. "There comes the Monster
+now! Get you down behind the rock and hide there while I go meet the
+creature and chop off his ugly heads!"
+
+The princess, quivering with fright, crouched down behind the rock and
+Three Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly down to the water's
+edge awaiting the Serpent's coming.
+
+It came nearer and nearer in long easy swirls, slowly lifting its
+three scaly heads one after another.
+
+As it approached shore it sniffed the air hungrily.
+
+"Fee, fi, fo, fum!" it muttered in a deep voice, repeating the magic
+rime it had learned from its evil mother, Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of Suyettar!" Three Bottles cried. "You'll have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent as if in surprise. "Shall we fight,
+pretty boy, you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath,
+blow out a long level platform of red copper whereon we can meet and
+try our strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay," answered Three Bottles. "Do you blow with your evil breath and
+instead of red copper we shall have a platform of black iron."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the iron platform that came of his breath
+Three Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Three
+Bottles striking right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Three Bottles with all his scaly heads and belching forth
+fire and smoke from all his mouths. Three Bottles whacked off one
+scaly head and at last a second one, but he was unable to touch the
+third.
+
+"I shall have to have help," he acknowledged to himself finally, and
+reaching down he took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Three Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+He was faint now with weariness and his comrades had to help him back
+to the old woman's hut where he soon fell asleep.
+
+Night passed and Dawn appeared. A great cry of relief and thanksgiving
+went up from all the earth.
+
+"The Dawn! The Dawn!" people cried. "God bless the man who has
+released the Dawn!"
+
+Only at the castle was there sorrow still.
+
+"My poor oldest daughter!" the King cried with tears in his eyes. "It
+was my sacrifice of her that has released the Dawn!"
+
+Then he called his slaves and gave them orders to gather up his
+daughter's bones and to bring back the leather sack.
+
+"We shall need it again to-night," he said. He wiped his eyes and for
+a moment could say no more. "Yes, to-night we shall have to sew up my
+second daughter and offer her to the Six-Headed Serpent, him that
+holds captive the Moon. Otherwise the monster will devour half my
+kingdom, half the castle, and half the shining stones. Ai! Ai! Ai!"
+
+But the slaves when they went to the high rock on the seashore found,
+not the princess' bones, but the princess herself, sitting there with
+her chin in her hand, gazing down on the beach which was strewn with
+the fragments of the Three-Headed Serpent.
+
+They led her back to her father and reported the marvel they had seen.
+
+"There, O King, lies the monster on the sand with all his heads
+severed! So huge are the heads that it would need three men with
+derricks to move one of them!"
+
+"Some unknown hero has rescued my oldest daughter!" the King cried.
+"Would that another might come to-night to rescue my second child
+likewise! But, alas! what hero is strong enough to destroy the
+Six-Headed Monster!"
+
+So when evening came they sewed the second princess in the sack and
+carried her out to the rock.
+
+Log and his companions saw the procession move down from the castle
+and they saw that the castle was again disturbed, one half of it
+laughing and one half weeping.
+
+"It's the second princess to-night," the old woman told them. "Unless
+her father, the King, gives her to the Six-Headed Serpent, the Monster
+will come and devour half the kingdom, half the castle, and half the
+shining stones. He it is that holds the Moon captive and the hero that
+slays him will release the Moon."
+
+Then he whom his comrades called Six Bottles cried out:
+
+"Here is work for me!"
+
+He drank bottle after bottle of the strong waters until he had emptied
+six.
+
+"Now I am ready!" he shouted.
+
+He mounted his mighty horse and as he rode off he called to his
+comrades:
+
+"If I need help I'll throw back a shoe and do you then unleash my
+dog!"
+
+He rode to the rock on the shore and dismounted. Then he climbed the
+rock and released the second princess. He told her who he was and as
+they awaited the arrival of the Six-Headed Serpent he lay at the
+princess' feet and she scratched his head.
+
+This time the Serpent came in six mighty swirls with six awful heads
+that reared up one after another. In terror the second princess hid
+behind the rock while Six Bottles, mounting his horse, rode boldly
+down to the water's edge.
+
+Like his brother Serpent this one, too, came sniffing the air
+hungrily, muttering the magic rime he had learned from his mother,
+wicked Suyettar:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, son of an evil mother!" Six Bottles cried. "You will
+have time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" repeated the Serpent scornfully. "Shall we fight, little one,
+you and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a
+long level platform of white silver whereon we can meet and try our
+strength one with the other."
+
+"Nay!" answered Six Bottles. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath,
+and instead of white silver we shall have a platform of red copper."
+
+So the Serpent blew and on the copper platform that came of his
+breath Six Bottles met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Six
+Bottles striking left and right with his mighty sword, the Serpent
+hitting at Six Bottles with every one of his six scaly heads and
+belching forth fire and smoke from all his mouths. Six Bottles whacked
+off one head, then another, then another. At last he had disposed of
+five heads. He tried hard to strike the last, but by this time the
+Serpent had grown wary and Six Bottles' own strength was waning. So he
+reached down and took one of his shoes and threw it over his shoulder
+back to his comrades who were awaiting the outcome of the struggle.
+Instantly they loosed the dog which bounded forward to its master's
+assistance and soon with the dog's help Six Bottles was able to
+dispatch the last head.
+
+Then his comrades led him, weary from the fight, to the old woman's
+hut and soon he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept the Moon appeared in the sky and a great cry of relief
+and thanksgiving went up from all the world:
+
+"The Moon! The Moon! God bless the man who has released the Moon!"
+
+The King who was awakened by the sound looked out the castle window
+and when he saw the Moon, returned to its place in the sky, his eyes
+overflowed with grief.
+
+"My poor second daughter!" he cried. "It was my sacrifice of her that
+has released the Moon! To-morrow morning I will send the slaves to
+gather up her bones and to bring back the leather sack into which,
+alas! I must then sew my youngest daughter for evil Suyettar's third
+son, the Nine-Headed Serpent. Ai! Ai! Ai! How sad it is to be a
+father!"
+
+But on the morrow when the slaves went to the rock they found the
+second princess sitting there alone gazing down upon the scattered
+fragments of the Six-Headed Serpent.
+
+"Here she is, safe and sound!" they reported to the King as they led
+the second princess into his presence, "and, marvel of marvels! on the
+beach below the rock lies the body of the Six-Headed Serpent torn to
+pieces! Its heads, O King, are so monstrous that six men with derricks
+could scarcely move one of them!"
+
+"God be praised!" the King cried. "Another unknown hero has come and
+saved the life of my second child! Would that a third might come
+to-night and rescue the life of my youngest child! Alas, she is dearer
+to me than both the others, but I fear me that even if there be heroes
+who could dispatch the first two Serpents, there is never one who can
+touch him of the Nine Heads that holds the mighty Sun a captive!"
+
+  [Illustration: _"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"_]
+
+And the poor King wept, so sure was he that nothing could save the
+life of his youngest child.
+
+When Log and his companions heard of the King's grief, Log at once
+stood forth and said:
+
+"This last and mightiest battle is for me!"
+
+He opened the strong waters and drank bottle after bottle until he had
+emptied nine.
+
+"Now let night come as soon as it will!" he cried. "I am ready for the
+Monster!"
+
+He started forth telling his comrades he would throw back a shoe if he
+needed help from his dog.
+
+So it was Log himself who slashed open the sack for the third time and
+released the Youngest Princess who was much more beautiful than her
+sisters. She fell in love with the mighty hero on sight and was so
+thrilled with his godlike beauty that when he put his head in her lap
+she hardly knew what to do although her father always declared that
+she scratched his head much better than either of her sisters.
+
+They had not long to wait for soon all the Ocean was a glitter with
+the swirls of the ninefold Monster who was coming to shore with the
+captive Sun in his keeping.
+
+"Await me behind the rock!" Log cried to the Princess as he leapt upon
+his horse and started forward.
+
+"Oh, Log, my hero, be careful!" the Princess cried after him.
+
+Nearer and nearer came the swirls of the nine-coiled Monster. One
+after another of his nine heads rose and fell as he approached, and
+every head sniffed more hungrily as it came nearer, and each head
+rumbled as it sniffed:
+
+    "Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    I smell a Finn! Yum! Yum!
+    I'll fall upon him with a thud!
+    I'll pick his bones and drink his blood!
+    Fee, fi, fo, fum!
+    Yum! Yum!"
+
+"Stop boasting, evil son of an evil mother!" Log cried. "You will have
+time enough to boast after you fight!"
+
+"Fight?" roared the awful Monster. "Shall we fight, poor infant, you
+and I? Very well! Blow then with your sweet breath, blow out a long
+level platform of shining gold whereon we can meet and try our
+strength each with the other!"
+
+"Nay!" Log answered boldly. "Do you blow, blow with your evil breath
+and instead of shining gold we shall have a platform of white silver."
+
+So the Monster blew and on the silver platform that came of his
+breath Log met him in combat. Back and forth they raged, Log striking
+right and left with his mighty sword, the Serpent hitting at Log with
+all his nine scaly heads and belching forth fire and smoke from all
+his nine mouths. Log whacked off head after head until six lay gaping
+on the sand. But the last three he could not get.
+
+Suddenly he pointed behind the Serpent and cried:
+
+"Quick! Quick! The Sun! It is escaping!"
+
+The Serpent looked around and Log whacked off a head. Now only two
+remained, but try as he would Log could get neither of them.
+
+Again he tried a subterfuge.
+
+"Your wife, O Son of Suyettar! See, yonder, they're abusing her!"
+
+The Monster looked and Log whacked off another head. But one now
+remained and as usual it was the hardest of them all to get. Log felt
+his strength waning while the Monster seemed more nimble than ever.
+
+"I shall have to have help," Log thought.
+
+He threw back his shoe to his comrades and they at once loosed his
+dog. With the dog's help Log was soon able to dispatch the last head.
+Then Three Bottles and Six Bottles helped him off his horse and
+supported him to the old woman's hut where he soon fell into a deep
+sleep.
+
+The next morning the blessed Sun rose at his proper time and people
+all over the world, falling on their knees with thanksgiving and
+weeping with joy, cried out:
+
+"The Sun! The Sun! God bless the man who has released the Sun!"
+
+At the castle they waked the King with the good news but the King only
+shook his head and murmured in grief:
+
+"Yes, the Sun is released but what care I since my favorite child, my
+youngest daughter, has been sacrificed!"
+
+He dispatched the slaves to gather up her bones and presently these
+returned bringing the Princess herself and telling a marvelous tale of
+the beach littered with nine severed heads so huge that it would need
+nine men with derricks to move one of them.
+
+"What manner of heroes are these who have rescued my daughters!" cried
+the King. "Let them come forth and I will give them my daughters for
+wives and half my riches for dowry! But they will have to prove
+themselves the actual heroes by bringing to the castle the heavy heads
+of the Monsters they have slain."
+
+When Log and his fellows heard this they laughed with happiness and,
+strengthening themselves with deep draughts of the strong waters, they
+gathered together the many heads of the mighty Serpents, bore them to
+the castle, and piled them up at the King's feet.
+
+Then Log stepped forward and said:
+
+"Here we are, O King, come to claim our reward!"
+
+The King, true to his promise, gave them his daughters in marriage,
+the oldest to Three Bottles, the second to Six Bottles, and the lovely
+Youngest to Log. Then he apportioned them the half of his riches and,
+after much feasting and merrymaking, the heroes took their brides and
+their riches and bidding the King farewell started homewards.
+
+As they rode through a great forest they sighted a tiny hut and Log,
+motioning his comrades to wait for him quietly, crept forward to see
+who was in the hut. It was well he was cautious for inside the hut was
+Suyettar herself talking to two other old hags.
+
+"Ay," she was saying, "they have slain my three beautiful sons, my
+mighty offspring that held captive the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn!
+But I tell you, sisters, they will pay the penalty...."
+
+To hear better Log changed himself into a piece of firewood and
+slipping inside the hut hid himself in the woodpile near the stove.
+
+"Ay, they will pay the penalty!" Suyettar repeated. "I shall have my
+revenge on them! A fine supper Suyettar shall soon have, yum, yum!
+
+    I'll fall upon them with a thud!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood!
+
+Fools, fools, to think they can escape Suyettar's anger!"
+
+"But sister, sister," the two old hags asked, "how will you get them?"
+
+Suyettar looked this way and that to make sure that no one was
+listening. Then she whispered:
+
+"This is how I shall get them: As they come through this forest, the
+three men with their brides, I shall send upon them a terrible hunger.
+Then they shall come suddenly upon a table spread with tempting food.
+One bite of that food and they are in my power, he-he! Ay, sisters,
+to-night Suyettar will have a fine supper! Nothing can save them
+unless, before they touch the food, some one make the sign of the
+cross three times over the table. Then table and food would disappear
+and also the ravening hunger. But even if that happens Suyettar shall
+still get them!"
+
+"How, sister, how?" the other two asked.
+
+"Presently I should send upon them consuming thirst, and then put in
+their pathway a spring of cold sparkling water. One drop of that
+water and they are in my power, he-he! Nothing can save them from me
+unless, before their lips touch the water, some one make the sign of
+the cross three times over the spring. At that the spring would
+disappear and also their thirst. But even if they escape the spring, I
+shall still get them. I shall send great heaviness on them and a
+longing for sleep, then let them come upon a row of soft inviting
+feather beds. If they cast themselves upon the beds, they are mine,
+he-he! to feast upon as I will! Nothing can save but that some one
+make the sign of the cross three times over the beds before they touch
+them. Oh, sisters, I shall get them one way or another for there is no
+one to warn them. If there was any one to warn them, he wouldn't dare
+tell them what he knows for he would also know that if he told them he
+would himself be turned into a blue cross and have to stand forever in
+the cemetery."
+
+As Log knew now all the dangers that threatened, he slipped away from
+the woodpile and, when he was outside, took his own shape and hurried
+back to his comrades.
+
+"Away!" he cried. "We are in great danger!"
+
+They all spurred their horses and rode swiftly on until Three Bottles
+suddenly cried:
+
+"Hold, comrades, hold! I am faint with hunger!"
+
+"Me, too!" cried Six Bottles.
+
+At that instant a great table, laden with delicious food, appeared
+before them.
+
+"Look!" cried the one of them.
+
+"Food!" cried the other.
+
+They flung themselves from their horses and ran towards the table. But
+quick as they were, Log was quicker. He reached the table first and,
+raising his hand, made the sign of the cross three times. The table
+disappeared as suddenly as it had come and with it the strange hunger
+that had but now consumed them.
+
+"Strange!" Three Bottles exclaimed. "I thought I was hungry, but I'm
+not!"
+
+"I thought I saw food just now," Six Bottles said. "I must have been
+dreaming."
+
+So they mounted again and pushed on.
+
+"Danger threatens us," said Log. "We must hurry and not dismount no
+matter what the temptation."
+
+They agreed but presently one of them cried out and then the other:
+
+"Water! Water! We shall soon perish unless we have water!"
+
+Instantly by the wayside appeared a spring of cool sparkling water and
+it was all Log could do to reach it before his fellows. He did get
+there first and make the sign of the cross three times whereat the
+spring disappeared and with it the thirst which had but now consumed
+them all.
+
+"I thought I was thirsty," Three Bottles said, "but I'm not!"
+
+"Why did we dismount?" Six Bottles asked. "There's no water here."
+
+So again they mounted and went forward and Log, warning them again
+that danger threatened, begged them not to dismount a third time no
+matter what the temptation.
+
+They promised they would not but presently, complaining of fatigue,
+they wanted to. Their brides, too, swayed in the saddle, overcome with
+weariness and sleep.
+
+"Dear Log," they said, "let us rest for an hour. See, our brides are
+drooping with fatigue! One hour's sleep and we shall all be
+refreshed!"
+
+Instantly beside them on the forest floor they saw three soft white
+feather beds. Log leaped to the ground but before he was able to make
+the sign of the cross over more than one of the beds, his comrades and
+their brides had fallen headlong on the other two.
+
+And that was the end of poor Three Bottles and Six Bottles and their
+two lovely brides. There was no way now of saving them from Suyettar.
+She had them in her power and nothing would induce her to give them
+up.
+
+As Log and his bride sadly mounted their horse and rode on they heard
+an evil voice chanting out in triumph:
+
+    "I'll fall upon them with a thud, he-he!
+    I'll pick their bones and drink their blood, he-he!"
+
+"Poor fellows! Poor fellows!" Log said, and the Princess wept to think
+of the awful fate that had overtaken her two sisters.
+
+Well, Log and his bride reached home without further adventure and
+were received by the King with great honors.
+
+"I knew my heroes were succeeding," the King said, "when first the
+Dawn appeared again, and then the Moon, and last the mighty Sun. All
+hail to you, Log, and to your two comrades! But, by the way, where are
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles?"
+
+"Your Majesty," Log said, "Three Bottles and Six Bottles were brave
+men both. By their prowess they released the one the Dawn, the other
+the Moon. Then in an evil adventure on the way home they perished. I
+can tell you no more."
+
+"You can tell me no more?" the King said. "Why can you tell me no
+more? What was the evil adventure in which they perished?"
+
+"If I told you, O King, then I, too, should perish, for I should be
+turned into a blue cross and stood forever in the cemetery!"
+
+"What nonsense!" the King exclaimed. "Who would turn you into a blue
+cross and stand you forever in the cemetery?"
+
+"That is what I cannot tell you," Log said.
+
+The King laughed and pressed Log no further, but the people of the
+kingdom, scenting a mystery, insisted on knowing in detail what had
+happened the other two heroes. Presently the rumor began to spread
+that Log himself had done away with them in order that he might gather
+to himself all the glory of the undertaking.
+
+The King was forced at last to send for him again and to demand a full
+account of everything.
+
+Log realized that his end was near. He met it bravely. Commending to
+the King's protection his lovely bride, the Youngest Princess, Log
+related how the three mighty Serpents whom they had killed were sons
+of Suyettar, and how in revenge Suyettar had succeeded in destroying
+Three Bottles and Six Bottles together with their brides. Then he told
+the fate about to overtake himself.
+
+He finished speaking and as the King and the Court looked at him, to
+their amazement he disappeared.
+
+"To the cemetery!" some one cried.
+
+They all went to the cemetery where at once they found a fresh blue
+cross that had come there nobody knew how. There it stands to this
+day, a reminder of the life and deeds of the mighty hero, Log.
+
+The King was overcome with sorrow at losing such a hero. He took Log's
+bride under his protection and he found her so beautiful and so gentle
+that soon he fell in love with her and married her.
+
+
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Suyettar and the Nine Brothers_
+
+
+THE LITTLE SISTER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a woman who had nine sons. They were good boys and
+loved her dearly but there was one thing about which they were always
+complaining.
+
+"Why haven't we a little sister?" they kept asking. "Do give us a
+little sister!"
+
+When the time came that another child was to be born, they said to
+their mother:
+
+"If the baby is a boy we are going away and you will never see us
+again, but if it is a little girl then we shall stay home and take
+care of it."
+
+The mother agreed that if the child were a girl she would have her
+husband put a spindle outside on the gatepost and, if it were a boy,
+an ax.
+
+"Just wait," she said, "and see what your father puts on the gatepost
+and then you will know whether it is another brother God has sent you
+or a little sister."
+
+The baby turned out to be a girl and the mother was overjoyed.
+
+"Hurry, husband!" she cried, "and put a spindle on the gatepost so
+that our nine sons may know the good news!"
+
+The man did so and then quickly returned to the mother and baby. The
+moment he was gone Suyettar slipped up and changed the tokens. She
+took away the spindle and put in its place an ax. Then with an evil
+grin she hurried off mumbling to herself:
+
+"Now we'll see what we'll see!"
+
+She hoped to bring trouble and grief and she succeeded. As soon as the
+nine sons saw the ax on the gatepost they thought their mother had
+given birth to another son and at once they left home vowing never to
+return.
+
+The poor mother waited for them and waited.
+
+"What is keeping my sons?" she cried at last. "Go out to the gate,
+husband, and see if they are coming."
+
+The man went out and soon returned bringing back word that some one
+had changed the tokens.
+
+"The spindle that I put on the gatepost is gone," he said, "and in its
+place is an ax."
+
+"Alas!" cried the poor mother, "some evil creature has done this to
+spite us! Oh, if we could only get word to our sons of the little
+sister they were so eager to have!"
+
+But there was no way to reach them for no one knew the way they had
+gone.
+
+In a short time the husband died and the poor woman, abandoned by her
+nine sons, had only her little daughter left. She named the child
+Kerttu. Kerttu was a dear little girl and her face was as beautiful as
+her heart was good. Whenever she found her mother weeping alone she
+tried to comfort her and, as she grew older, she wanted to know the
+cause of her mother's grief. At last the mother told her about her
+nine brothers and how they had gone away never to return owing to the
+trick of some evil creature.
+
+"My poor mother!" she cried, "how sorry I am that I am the innocent
+cause of your loss! Let me go out into the world and find my brothers!
+When once they hear the truth they will gladly come home to you to
+care for you in your old age!"
+
+At first the mother would not consent to this.
+
+"You are all I have," she said, "and I should indeed be miserable and
+lonely if anything happened you!"
+
+But Kerttu continued to weep every time she thought of her poor
+brothers driven unnecessarily from home and at last the mother,
+realizing that she would nevermore be happy unless she were allowed to
+go in search of them, gave up opposing her.
+
+"Very well, my daughter, you may go and may God go with you and bring
+you safely back to me. But before you go I must prepare you a bag of
+food for the journey and bake you a magic cake that will show you the
+way."
+
+So she baked a batch of bread and at the same time mixed a little
+round cake with Kerttu's own tears and baked it, too. Then she said:
+
+"Here now, my child, are provisions for the journey and here is a
+magic cake that will lead you to your brothers. All you have to do is
+throw it down in front of you and say:
+
+    'Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!'
+
+Then the little cake will start rolling and do you follow wherever it
+rolls. But, Kerttu, my child, you must not start out alone. You must
+have some friend or companion to go with you."
+
+Now it happened that Kerttu had a little dog, Musti, that she loved
+dearly.
+
+"I'll take Musti with me!" she said. "Musti will protect me!"
+
+So she called Musti and Musti wagged his tail and barked with joy at
+the prospect of going out into the world with his mistress.
+
+Then Kerttu threw down the magic cake in front of her and sang:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+At once the cake rolled off like a little wheel and Kerttu and Musti
+followed it. They walked until they were tired. Then Kerttu picked up
+the little cake and they rested by the wayside. When they were ready
+again to start the cake a-rolling, all Kerttu had to do was throw it
+down in front of her and say the magic rime.
+
+Their first day was without adventure. When night came they ate their
+supper and went to sleep in a field under a tree.
+
+The second day they overtook an ugly old woman whom Kerttu disliked on
+sight. But she said to herself:
+
+"Shame on you, Kerttu, not liking this woman just because she's old
+and ugly!" and she made herself answer the old woman's greetings
+politely and she made Musti stop snarling and growling.
+
+The old hag asked Kerttu who she was and where she was going and
+Kerttu told her.
+
+"Ah!" said the old woman, "how fortunate that we have met each other
+for our ways lie together!"
+
+She smiled and petted Kerttu's arm and Kerttu felt like shuddering.
+But she restrained herself and told herself severely:
+
+"You're a wicked girl not to feel more friendly to the poor old
+thing!"
+
+Musti felt much as Kerttu did. He no longer growled for Kerttu had
+told him not to, but he drooped his tail between his legs and,
+pressing up close to Kerttu, he trembled with fright. And well he
+might, too, for the old hag was none other than Suyettar who had been
+waiting all these years just for this very chance to do further injury
+to Kerttu and her brothers.
+
+Kerttu, poor child, was, alas! too good and innocent to suspect evil
+in others. She said to Suyettar:
+
+"Very well, if our ways lie together then we can be companions."
+
+So Suyettar joined Kerttu and Musti and the three of them walked on
+following the little cake. As the day advanced the sun grew hotter
+and hotter and at last when they reached a lake Suyettar said:
+
+"My dear, let us sit down here for a few moments and rest."
+
+They all sat down and presently Suyettar said:
+
+"Let us go bathing in the lake. That will refresh us."
+
+Kerttu would have agreed if Musti had not tugged at her skirts and
+warned her not to.
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress!" Musti growled softly. "Don't go in
+bathing with her! She'll bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu said:
+
+"No, I don't want to go in bathing."
+
+Suyettar waited until they were again journeying on and then when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she turned around and kicked Musti and broke one
+of the poor little dog's legs. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on
+three legs.
+
+The next afternoon when they passed another lake, Suyettar tried again
+to tempt Kerttu into the water.
+
+"The sun is very hot," she said, "and it would refresh us both to
+bathe. Come, Kerttu, my dear, don't refuse me this time!"
+
+But again Musti tugged at Kerttu's skirts and, licking her hand,
+whispered the warning:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So again Kerttu said politely:
+
+"No, I don't feel like going in bathing. You go in alone and I'll wait
+for you here."
+
+But this was not what Suyettar wanted and she said, no, she didn't
+care to go in alone. She was furious, too, with Musti and later when
+Kerttu wasn't looking she gave the poor little dog a kick that broke
+another leg. Thereafter Musti had to hop along on two legs.
+
+They slept the third night by the wayside and the next day they went
+on again always following the magic cake. In midafternoon they passed
+a lake and Suyettar said:
+
+"Surely, my dear, you must be tired and hot. Let us both bathe in this
+cool lake."
+
+But Musti, hopping painfully along on two legs, yelped weakly and said
+to Kerttu:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she'll
+bewitch you!"
+
+So for a third time Kerttu refused and later, when she wasn't looking,
+Suyettar kicked Musti and broke the third of the poor little dog's
+legs. Thereafter Musti hopped on as best he could on only one leg.
+
+Well, they went on and on. When night came they slept by the roadside
+and then next morning they started on again. The sun grew hot and by
+midafternoon Kerttu was tired and ready to rest. When they reached a
+lake Suyettar again begged that they both go in bathing. Kerttu was
+tempted to agree when poor Musti threw himself panting at her feet and
+whimpered:
+
+"Don't do it, dear mistress! Don't go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+So Kerttu again refused.
+
+"That's right, dear mistress!" Musti panted, "don't do it! I shall
+soon be dead, I know, for she hates me, but before I die I want to
+warn you one last time never to go in bathing with her or she will
+bewitch you!"
+
+"What's that dog saying?" Suyettar demanded angrily, and without
+waiting for an answer she picked up a heavy piece of wood and struck
+poor Musti such a blow on the head that it killed him.
+
+"What have you done to my poor little dog?" Kerttu cried.
+
+"Don't mind him, my dear," Suyettar said. "He was sick and lame and it
+was better to put him out of his misery."
+
+Suyettar tried to soothe Kerttu and make her forget Musti but all
+afternoon Kerttu wept to think that she would never again see her
+faithful little friend.
+
+The next afternoon when Suyettar begged her to go in bathing there
+was no Musti to warn her against it and at last Kerttu allowed herself
+to be persuaded. She was tired from her many days' wandering and it
+was true that the first touch of the cool water refreshed her.
+
+"Now splash water in my face!" Suyettar cried.
+
+But Kerttu didn't want to splash water into Suyettar's face for she
+supposed Suyettar was an old woman and she thought it would be
+disrespectful to splash water into the face of an old woman.
+
+"Do you hear me!" screamed Suyettar.
+
+When Kerttu still hesitated, Suyettar looked at her with such a
+terrible, threatening expression that Kerttu did as she was bidden.
+She splashed water into Suyettar's face and, as the water touched
+Suyettar's eyes, Suyettar cried out:
+
+    "Your bonny looks give up to me
+    And you take mine for all to see!"
+
+Instantly they two changed appearance: Suyettar looked young and
+beautiful like Kerttu, and Kerttu was changed to a hideous old hag.
+Then too late she realized that the awful old woman to whom she had
+been so polite was Suyettar.
+
+  [Illustration: _Suyettar bewitching Kerttu_]
+
+"Oh, why," Kerttu cried, "why didn't I heed poor Musti's warning!"
+
+Suyettar dragged her roughly out of the water.
+
+"Come along!" she said. "Dress yourself in those rags of mine and
+start that cake a-rolling! We ought to reach your brothers' house by
+to-night."
+
+So poor Kerttu had to dress herself in Suyettar's filthy old garments
+while Suyettar, looking like a fresh young girl, decked herself out in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt.
+
+Unwillingly now and with a heavy heart Kerttu threw down the cake and
+said:
+
+    "Roll, roll, my little cake!
+    Show me the way that I must take
+    To find at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Off rolled the little cake and they two followed it, Kerttu weeping
+bitterly and Suyettar taunting her with ugly laughs. Then suddenly
+Kerttu forgot to weep for Suyettar took from her her memory and her
+tongue.
+
+The little cake led them at last to a farmhouse before which it
+stopped. This was where the nine brothers were living. Eight of them
+were out working in the fields but the youngest was at home. He opened
+the door and when Suyettar told him that she was Kerttu, his sister,
+he kissed her tenderly and made her welcome. Then he invited her
+inside and they sat side by side on the bench and talked and Suyettar
+told him all she had heard from Kerttu about his mother and about the
+tokens which had been changed at Kerttu's birth. The youngest brother
+listened eagerly and Suyettar told her story so glibly that of course
+he supposed that she was his own true sister.
+
+"And who is the awful looking old hag that has come with you?" he
+asked pointing at Kerttu.
+
+"That? Oh, that's an old serving woman whom our mother sent with me to
+bear me company. She's dumb and foolish but she's a good herd and we
+can let her drive the cow out to pasture every day."
+
+The older brothers when they came home were greatly pleased to find
+what they thought was their sister. They began to love her at once and
+to pet her and they said that now she must stay with them and keep
+house for them. She told them that was what she wanted to do and she
+said that now she was here the youngest brother need no longer stay at
+home but could go out every morning with the rest of them to work in
+the fields.
+
+So now began a new life for poor Kerttu. In the morning after the
+brothers were gone Suyettar would scold and abuse her. She would bake
+a cake for her dinner to be eaten in the fields and she would fill the
+cake with stones and sticks and filth. Then she would take Kerttu as
+far as the gate where she would give her back her tongue and her
+memory and order her roughly to drive the cow to pasture and look
+after it all day long. In the late afternoon when Kerttu drove home
+the cow, Suyettar would meet her at the gate and take from her her
+tongue and her memory and then in the evening the brothers would see
+her as a foolish old woman who couldn't talk. Every morning and every
+evening Kerttu begged Suyettar to show her a little mercy, but far
+from showing her any mercy Suyettar grew more cruel from day to day.
+
+Suyettar was very proud to think that nine handsome young men took her
+for a beautiful girl and she felt sure they would never find out their
+mistake for only Kerttu knew who she really was and Kerttu was
+entirely in her power.
+
+At night seated in the shadow in a far corner of the kitchen with her
+nine brothers laughing and talking Kerttu felt no sorrow for at such
+times of course she had no memory. But during the day it was
+different. Then when she was alone in the meadow she had her memory
+and her tongue and she thought about her poor mother at home anxiously
+awaiting her return and she thought of her nine sturdy brothers all of
+whom might now through her mistake fall victims to Suyettar. These
+thoughts made her weep with grief and as the days went by she put this
+grief into a song which she sang constantly:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+The brothers as they worked in nearby fields used to hear the song and
+they wondered about it.
+
+"Strange!" they said to one another. "Can that be the old woman
+singing? In the evening at home she never opens her mouth and our dear
+sister always says that she's dumb and foolish."
+
+One afternoon when Kerttu's song sounded particularly sad, the
+youngest brother crept close to the meadow where Kerttu was sitting in
+order to hear the words. He listened carefully and then hurried back
+to the others and with frightened face told them what he had heard.
+
+"Nonsense!" the older brothers said. "It can't be so!"
+
+However, they, too, wanted to hear for themselves the words of the
+strange song, so they all crept near to listen.
+
+It looked like an old hag who was singing but the voice that came out
+of the withered mouth was the voice of a young girl. As they listened
+they, too, grew pale:
+
+    "I've found at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine,
+    But they know me not from stick or stone!
+    They leave me here to weep alone,
+    While Suyettar sits in my place
+    With stolen looks and stolen face!
+    She snared me first with evil guile
+    And now she mocks me all the while:
+    By night she takes my tongue away,
+    She feeds me sticks and stones by day!...
+    Oh, little they guess, the brothers nine,
+    That their own true mother is also mine!"
+
+"Can it be true?" they said, whispering together.
+
+They sent the youngest brother to question Kerttu and he, when he had
+heard her story, believed it true. Then the other brothers went to her
+one by one and questioned her and finally they were all convinced of
+the truth of her story.
+
+"It is well for us," they said, "if we do not all fall into the power
+of that awful creature! How, O how can we rescue our poor little
+sister!"
+
+"I can never get back my own looks," Kerttu said, "unless Suyettar
+splashes water into my eyes and unless I cry out a magic rime as she
+does it."
+
+The brothers discussed one plan after another and at last agreed on
+one that they thought might deceive Suyettar.
+
+They had Kerttu inflame her eyes with dust and come groping home one
+midday. The brothers, too, were at home and as Kerttu came stumbling
+into the kitchen they said to Suyettar:
+
+"Oh, sister, sister, see the poor old woman! Something ails her! Her
+eyes--they're all red and swollen! Get some water and bathe them!"
+
+"Nonsense!" Suyettar said. "The old hag's well enough! Let her be! She
+doesn't need any attention!"
+
+"Oh, sister!" the youngest brother said, reproachfully, "is that any
+way for a human, kindhearted girl like you to talk? If you won't
+bathe the old creature's eyes, I will myself!"
+
+Then Suyettar who of course wanted them to think that she was a human,
+kindhearted girl said, no, she would bathe them. So she took a basin
+of water over to Kerttu and told her to lean down her head. As she
+splashed the first drop of water into Kerttu's eyes, Kerttu cried out:
+
+    "My own true looks give back to me
+    And take your own for all to see!"
+
+Instantly Suyettar was again a hideous old hag though still dressed in
+Kerttu's pretty bodice and skirt, and Kerttu was herself again, young
+and fresh and sweet, though still incased in Suyettar's rags. But the
+brothers pretended that they saw no difference and kept on talking to
+Suyettar as though they still thought her Kerttu. And Suyettar because
+her eyes were blinded with the dust supposed that they were still
+deceived.
+
+Then one of the brothers said to Suyettar:
+
+"Sister dear, the _sauna_ is all heated and ready. Don't you want to
+bathe?"
+
+Suyettar thought that this would be a fine chance to wash the dust
+from her eyes, so she let them lead her to the _sauna_. Once they got
+her inside they locked the door and set the _sauna_ a-fire. Oh, the
+noise she made then when she found she had been trapped! She kicked
+and screamed and cursed and threatened! But Kerttu and the brothers
+paid no heed to her. They left her burning in the _sauna_ while they
+hurried homewards.
+
+They found their poor old mother seated at the window weeping, for she
+thought that now Kerttu as well as her sons was lost forever. As
+Kerttu and the nine handsome young men came in the gate she didn't
+recognize them until Kerttu sang out:
+
+    "I bring at last the brothers nine
+    Whose own true mother is also mine!"
+
+Then she knew who they were and with thanks to God she welcomed them
+home.
+
+
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Little Mouse Who Was a Princess_
+
+
+THE FOREST BRIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who had three sons. One day when the boys were
+grown to manhood he said to them:
+
+"My sons, it is high time that you were all married. To-morrow I wish
+you to go out in search of brides."
+
+"But where shall we go?" the oldest son asked.
+
+"I have thought of that, too," the father said. "Do each of you chop
+down a tree and then take the direction in which the fallen tree
+points. I'm sure that each of you if you go far enough in that
+direction will find a suitable bride."
+
+So the next day the three sons chopped down trees. The oldest son's
+tree fell pointing north.
+
+"That suits me!" he said, for he knew that to the north lay a farm
+where a very pretty girl lived.
+
+The tree of the second son when it fell pointed south.
+
+"That suits me!" the second son declared thinking of a girl that he
+had often danced with who lived on a farm to the south.
+
+The youngest son's tree--the youngest son's name was Veikko--when it
+fell pointed straight to the forest.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" the older brothers laughed. "Veikko will have to go courting
+one of the Wolf girls or one of the Foxes!"
+
+They meant by this that only animals lived in the forest and they
+thought they were making a good joke at Veikko's expense. But Veikko
+said he was perfectly willing to take his chances and go where his
+tree pointed.
+
+The older brothers went gaily off and presented their suits to the two
+farmers whose daughters they admired. Veikko, too, started off with
+brave front but after he had gone some distance in the forest his
+courage began to ebb.
+
+"How can I find a bride," he asked himself, "in a place where there
+are no human creatures at all!"
+
+Just then he came to a little hut. He pushed open the door and went
+in. It was empty. To be sure there was a little mouse sitting on the
+table, daintily combing her whiskers, but a mouse of course doesn't
+count.
+
+"There's nobody here!" Veikko said aloud.
+
+The little mouse paused in her toilet and turning towards him said
+reproachfully:
+
+"Why, Veikko, I'm here!"
+
+"But you don't count. You're only a mouse!"
+
+"Of course I count!" the little mouse declared. "But tell me, what
+were you hoping to find?"
+
+"I was hoping to find a sweetheart."
+
+The little mouse questioned him further and Veikko told her the whole
+story of his brothers and the trees.
+
+"The two older ones are finding sweethearts easily enough," Veikko
+said, "but I don't see how I can off here in the forest. And it will
+shame me to have to go home and confess that I alone have failed."
+
+"See here, Veikko," the little mouse said, "why don't you take me for
+your sweetheart?"
+
+Veikko laughed heartily.
+
+"But you're only a mouse! Whoever heard of a man having a mouse for a
+sweetheart!"
+
+The mouse shook her little head solemnly.
+
+"Take my word for it, Veikko, you could do much worse than have me for
+a sweetheart! Even if I am only a mouse I can love you and be true to
+you."
+
+She was a dear dainty little mouse and as she sat looking up at Veikko
+with her little paws under her chin and her bright little eyes
+sparkling Veikko liked her more and more.
+
+Then she sang Veikko a pretty little song and the song cheered him so
+much that he forgot his disappointment at not finding a human
+sweetheart and as he left her to go home he said:
+
+"Very well, little mouse, I'll take you for my sweetheart!"
+
+At that the mouse made little squeaks of delight and she told him that
+she'd be true to him and wait for him no matter how long he was in
+returning.
+
+Well, the older brothers when they got home boasted loudly about their
+sweethearts.
+
+"Mine," said the oldest, "has the rosiest reddest cheeks you ever
+saw!"
+
+"And mine," the second announced, "has long yellow hair!"
+
+Veikko said nothing.
+
+"What's the matter, Veikko?" the older brothers asked him, laughing.
+"Has your sweetheart pretty pointed ears or sharp white teeth?"
+
+You see they were still having their little joke about foxes and
+wolves.
+
+"You needn't laugh," Veikko said. "I've found a sweetheart. She's a
+gentle dainty little thing gowned in velvet."
+
+"Gowned in velvet!" echoed the oldest brother with a frown.
+
+"Just like a princess!" the second brother sneered.
+
+"Yes," Veikko repeated, "gowned in velvet like a princess. And when
+she sits up and sings to me I'm perfectly happy."
+
+"Huh!" grunted the older brothers not at all pleased that Veikko
+should have so grand a sweetheart.
+
+"Well," said the old farmer after a few days, "now I should like to
+know what those sweethearts of yours are able to do. Have them each
+bake me a loaf of bread so that I can see whether they're good
+housewives."
+
+"Mine will be able to bake bread--I'm sure of that!" the oldest
+brother declared boastfully.
+
+"So will mine!" chorused the second brother.
+
+Veikko was silent.
+
+"What about the Princess?" they said with a laugh. "Do you think the
+Princess can bake bread?"
+
+"I don't know," Veikko answered truthfully. "I'll have to ask her."
+
+Of course he had no reason for supposing that the little mouse could
+bake bread and by the time he reached the hut in the forest he was
+feeling sad and discouraged.
+
+When he pushed open the door he found the little mouse as before
+seated on the table daintily combing her whiskers. At sight of Veikko
+she danced about with delight.
+
+"I'm so glad to see you!" she squeaked. "I knew you would come back!"
+
+Then when she noticed that he was silent she asked him what was the
+matter. Veikko told her:
+
+"My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake him a loaf of bread.
+If I come home without a loaf my brothers will laugh at me."
+
+"You won't have to go home without a loaf!" the little mouse said. "I
+can bake bread."
+
+Veikko was much surprised at this.
+
+"I never heard of a mouse that could bake bread!"
+
+"Well, I can!" the little mouse insisted.
+
+With that she began ringing a small silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_,
+_tinkle_. Instantly there was the sound of hurrying footsteps, tiny
+scratchy footsteps, and hundreds of mice came running into the hut.
+
+The little Princess mouse sitting up very straight and dignified said
+to them:
+
+"Each of you go fetch me a grain of the finest wheat."
+
+All the mice scampered quickly away and soon returned one by one, each
+carrying a grain of the finest wheat. After that it was no trick at
+all for the Princess mouse to bake a beautiful loaf of wheaten bread.
+
+The next day the three brothers presented their father the loaves of
+their sweethearts' baking. The oldest one had a loaf of rye bread.
+
+"Very good," the farmer said. "For hardworking people like us rye
+bread is good."
+
+The loaf the second son had was made of barley.
+
+"Barley bread is also good," the farmer said.
+
+But when Veikko presented his loaf of beautiful wheaten bread, his
+father cried out:
+
+"What! White bread! Ah, Veikko now must have a sweetheart of wealth!"
+
+"Of course!" the older brothers sneered. "Didn't he tell us she was a
+Princess? Say, Veikko, when a Princess wants fine white flour, how
+does she get it?"
+
+Veikko answered simply:
+
+"She rings a little silver bell and when her servants come in she
+tells them to bring her grains of the finest wheat."
+
+At this the older brothers nearly exploded with envy until their
+father had to reprove them.
+
+"There! There!" he said. "Don't grudge the boy his good luck! Each
+girl has baked the loaf she knows how to make and each in her own way
+will probably make a good wife. But before you bring them home to me
+I want one further test of their skill in housewifery. Let them each
+send me a sample of their weaving."
+
+The older brothers were delighted at this for they knew that their
+sweethearts were skilful weavers.
+
+"We'll see how her ladyship fares this time!" they said, sure in their
+hearts that Veikko's sweetheart, whoever she was, would not put them
+to shame with her weaving.
+
+Veikko, too, had serious doubts of the little mouse's ability at the
+loom.
+
+"Whoever heard of a mouse that could weave?" he said to himself as he
+pushed open the door of the forest hut.
+
+"Oh, there you are at last!" the little mouse squeaked joyfully.
+
+She reached out her little paws in welcome and then in her excitement
+she began dancing about on the table.
+
+"Are you really glad to see me, little mouse?" Veikko asked.
+
+"Indeed I am!" the mouse declared. "Am I not your sweetheart? I've
+been waiting for you and waiting, just wishing that you would return!
+Does your father want something more this time, Veikko?"
+
+"Yes, and it's something I'm afraid you can't give me, little mouse."
+
+"Perhaps I can. Tell me what it is."
+
+"It's a sample of your weaving. I don't believe you can weave. I never
+heard of a mouse that could weave."
+
+"Tut! Tut!" said the mouse. "Of course I can weave! It would be a
+strange thing if Veikko's sweetheart couldn't weave!"
+
+She rang the little silver bell, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, _tinkle_, and
+instantly there was the faint _scratch-scratch_ of a hundred little
+feet as mice came running in from all directions and sat up on their
+haunches awaiting their Princess' orders.
+
+"Go each of you," she said, "and get me a fiber of flax, the finest
+there is."
+
+The mice went scurrying off and soon they began returning one by one
+each bringing a fiber of flax. When they had spun the flax and carded
+it, the little mouse wove a beautiful piece of fine linen. It was so
+sheer that she was able when she folded it to put it into an empty
+nutshell.
+
+"Here, Veikko," she said, "here in this little box is a sample of my
+weaving. I hope your father will like it."
+
+Veikko when he got home felt almost embarrassed for he was sure that
+his sweetheart's weaving would shame his brothers. So at first he kept
+the nutshell hidden in his pocket.
+
+The sweetheart of the oldest brother had sent as a sample of her
+weaving a square of coarse cotton.
+
+"Not very fine," the farmer said, "but good enough."
+
+The second brother's sample was a square of cotton and linen mixed.
+
+"A little better," the farmer said, nodding his head.
+
+Then he turned to Veikko.
+
+"And you, Veikko, has your sweetheart not given you a sample of her
+weaving?"
+
+Veikko handed his father a nutshell at sight of which his brothers
+burst out laughing.
+
+"Ha! Ha! Ha!" they laughed. "Veikko's sweetheart gives him a nut when
+he asks for a sample of her weaving."
+
+But their laughter died as the farmer opened the nutshell and began
+shaking out a great web of the finest linen.
+
+"Why, Veikko, my boy!" he cried, "however did your sweetheart get
+threads for so fine a web?"
+
+Veikko answered modestly:
+
+"She rang a little silver bell and ordered her servants to bring her
+in fibers of finest flax. They did so and after they had spun the flax
+and carded it, my sweetheart wove the web you see."
+
+"Wonderful!" gasped the farmer. "I have never known such a weaver! The
+other girls will be all right for farmers' wives but Veikko's
+sweetheart might be a Princess! Well," concluded the farmer, "it's
+time that you all brought your sweethearts home. I want to see them
+with my own eyes. Suppose you bring them to-morrow."
+
+"She's a good little mouse and I'm very fond of her," Veikko thought
+to himself as he went out to the forest, "but my brothers will
+certainly laugh when they find she is only a mouse! Well, I don't care
+if they do laugh! She's been a good little sweetheart to me and I'm
+not going to be ashamed of her!"
+
+So when he got to the hut he told the little mouse at once that his
+father wanted to see her.
+
+The little mouse was greatly excited.
+
+"I must go in proper style!" she said.
+
+She rang the little silver bell and ordered her coach and five. The
+coach when it came turned out to be an empty nutshell and the five
+prancing steeds that were drawing it were five black mice. The little
+mouse seated herself in the coach with a coachman mouse on the box in
+front of her and a footman mouse on the box behind her.
+
+"Oh, how my brothers will laugh!" thought Veikko.
+
+But he didn't laugh. He walked beside the coach and told the little
+mouse not to be frightened, that he would take good care of her. His
+father, he told her, was a gentle old man and would be kind to her.
+
+When they left the forest they came to a river which was spanned by a
+foot bridge. Just as Veikko and the nutshell coach had reached the
+middle of the bridge, a man met them coming from the opposite
+direction.
+
+"Mercy me!" the man exclaimed as he caught sight of the strange little
+coach that was rolling along beside Veikko. "What's that?"
+
+He stooped down and looked and then with a loud laugh he put out his
+foot and pushed the coach, the little mouse, her servants, and her
+five prancing steeds--all off the bridge and into the water below.
+
+"What have you done! What have you done!" Veikko cried. "You've
+drowned my poor little sweetheart!"
+
+The man thinking Veikko was crazy hurried away.
+
+Veikko with tears in his eyes looked down into the water.
+
+  [Illustration: _She beckoned to Veikko_]
+
+"You poor little mouse!" he said. "How sorry I am that you are
+drowned! You were a faithful loving sweetheart and now that you are
+gone I know how much I loved you!"
+
+As he spoke he saw a beautiful coach of gold drawn by five glossy
+horses go up the far bank of the river. A coachman in gold lace held
+the reins and a footman in pointed cap sat up stiffly behind. The most
+beautiful girl in the world was seated in the coach. Her skin was as
+red as a berry and as white as snow, her long golden hair gleamed with
+jewels, and she was dressed in pearly velvet. She beckoned to Veikko
+and when he came close she said:
+
+"Won't you come sit beside me?"
+
+"Me? Me?" Veikko stammered, too dazed to think.
+
+The beautiful creature smiled.
+
+"You were not ashamed to have me for a sweetheart when I was a mouse,"
+she said, "and surely now that I am a Princess again you won't desert
+me!"
+
+"A mouse!" Veikko gasped. "Were you the little mouse?"
+
+The Princess nodded.
+
+"Yes, I was the little mouse under an evil enchantment which could
+never have been broken if you had not taken me for a sweetheart and if
+another human being had not drowned me. Now the enchantment is broken
+forever. So come, we will go to your father and after he has given us
+his blessing we will get married and go home to my kingdom."
+
+And that's exactly what they did. They drove at once to the farmer's
+house and when Veikko's father and his brothers and his brothers'
+sweethearts saw the Princess' coach stopping at their gate they all
+came out bowing and scraping to see what such grand folk could want of
+them.
+
+"Father!" Veikko cried, "don't you know me?"
+
+The farmer stopped bowing long enough to look up.
+
+"Why, bless my soul!" he cried, "it's our Veikko!"
+
+"Yes, father, I'm Veikko and this is the Princess that I'm going to
+marry!"
+
+"A Princess, did you say, Veikko? Mercy me, where did my boy find a
+Princess?"
+
+"Out in the forest where my tree pointed."
+
+"Well, well, well," the farmer said, "where your tree pointed! I've
+always heard that was a good way to find a bride."
+
+The older brothers shook their heads gloomily and muttered:
+
+"Just our luck! If only our trees had pointed to the forest we, too,
+should have found princesses instead of plain country wenches!"
+
+But they were wrong: it wasn't because his tree pointed to the forest
+that Veikko got the Princess, it was because he was so simple and good
+that he was kind even to a little mouse.
+
+Well, after they had got the farmer's blessing they rode home to the
+Princess' kingdom and were married. And they were happy as they should
+have been for they were good and true to each other and they loved
+each other dearly.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of Helli and the Little Locked Box_
+
+
+THE ENCHANTED GROUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once an old couple who lived with their married son and his
+wife. The son's name was Helli. He was a dutiful son but his wife was
+a scold. She was always finding fault with the old people and with her
+husband and for that matter with everybody else as well.
+
+One morning when she saw her husband taking out his bow and arrows she
+said:
+
+"Where are you going now?"
+
+"I'm going hunting," he told her.
+
+"Isn't that just like you!" she cried. "You're going off to have a
+good time hunting and you don't give a thought to me who have to stay
+home alone with two stupid old people!"
+
+"If I didn't go hunting," Helli said, "and shoot something, we'd have
+nothing to put in the pot for dinner and then you would have reason to
+scold."
+
+At that the woman burst into tears.
+
+"Of course, as usual blame me! Whatever happens it's my fault!"
+
+Poor Helli hurried off, hoping that by the time he returned his wife
+would be in a calmer state of mind. He had small success with his
+hunting. He shot arrow after arrow but always missed his mark. Then
+when he had only one arrow left he saw a Grouse standing in some
+brushwood so near that there was little likelihood of his missing it.
+
+He took good aim but before he could fire the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+Helli paused, then he shook his head.
+
+"I've got to shoot you for we've nothing to put in the pot for
+dinner."
+
+Again he aimed his arrow and again the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+For the second time Helli paused.
+
+"I'd like to spare you," he said, "but what would my wife say if I
+came home empty-handed?"
+
+He took aim again and a third time the Grouse said:
+
+"Don't shoot me, brother! Take me home alive."
+
+At that Helli dropped his arrow.
+
+"I don't care what she says! I can't shoot a creature that begs so
+pitifully for its life! Very well, Mr. Grouse, I'll do as you say:
+I'll take you home alive. But don't blame me if my wife wrings your
+neck."
+
+He took the Grouse up in his arms and started homewards.
+
+"Feed me for a year," the Grouse said, "and I'll reward you."
+
+When they reached home and Helli's wife saw the Grouse, she cried out
+petulantly:
+
+"Is that all you've got and out hunting all morning! That won't be
+dinner enough for four!"
+
+"This Grouse isn't to be killed," Helli announced. "I'm going to keep
+it for a year and feed it."
+
+"It won't take much to feed a Grouse," the old man remarked.
+
+But the wife flew into a passion.
+
+"What! Feed a useless bird when there isn't enough to feed your own
+flesh and blood!"
+
+But Helli was firm and despite her threats his wife did not dare to
+maltreat the Grouse.
+
+At the end of a year the Grouse grew a copper feather in its tail
+which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"Ha!" laughed Helli's wife. "A copper feather! That's your reward for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But the next day the Grouse returned.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+His wife raised an awful to-do over this, but Helli was firm and for
+another year he fed and petted the Grouse.
+
+At the end of the second year the Grouse grew a silver feather in its
+tail which it dropped in the dooryard. Then it disappeared.
+
+"One silver feather!" Helli's wife cried. "So that's all you get for
+feeding that thankless bird a whole year! And now it's escaped!"
+
+But it hadn't. It returned the very next day.
+
+"Feed me for another year," it said to Helli, "and I'll reward you."
+
+At the end of the third year the Grouse grew a golden feather in its
+tail and when it dropped that in the dooryard the scolding wife hadn't
+so much to say, for a golden feather was after all pretty good pay for
+a few handfuls of grain.
+
+For a day the Grouse disappeared and then when it returned it said to
+Helli:
+
+"Get on my back and I'll reward you."
+
+Helli did so and the Grouse, rising high in the air, flew far away.
+On, on it flew until it reached the broad Ocean. Over the Ocean it
+flew until Helli could see nothing but water in whatever direction he
+looked.
+
+  [Illustration: _On it flew until it reached the broad Ocean_]
+
+"Ha!" he said to himself with a shudder, "I hope I can hold on!"
+
+As he spoke, the Grouse slipped from beneath him and he fell down,
+down, down. However, before he touched water the Grouse swooped under
+him and caught him up again high into the air. He had this same
+terrible experience a second time and a third time and each time he
+thought his last moment had arrived.
+
+"Now," the Grouse told him, "you know what my feelings were when you
+threatened three times to shoot me with your arrow."
+
+"You have taught me a lesson," Helli said.
+
+After that the Grouse flew on and on. At last it said:
+
+"Look straight ahead, master, and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far, far ahead I see what looks like a copper column."
+
+"Good!" the Grouse said. "That is the home of my oldest sister. She
+will be overjoyed to see us and when she hears how you have spared my
+life she will want to make you a present and will offer you various
+things. Take my advice and tell her that the only thing you want is
+her little locked box the key to which is lost. If she won't give you
+that, accept nothing."
+
+The Grouse's oldest sister received them most hospitably and when she
+had heard their story at once offered Helli anything he might like
+from among her treasures.
+
+"Then give me your little locked box the key to which is lost," Helli
+said.
+
+The oldest sister shook her head.
+
+"My little locked box! Who told you about that? I'm sorry, but I
+cannot give you that! Take anything else!"
+
+"No," Helli said, "that or nothing!"
+
+When the oldest sister could not be prevailed upon to give away her
+little locked box, the Grouse had Helli mount his back once more and
+off they flew.
+
+"We'll visit my second sister now," he said. "If she offers you a
+present, ask her for her little locked box without a key and accept
+nothing else."
+
+On, on they flew until the oldest sister's castle was far behind.
+
+"Look, master," the Grouse said, "look straight ahead and tell me what
+you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"Far ahead I see something that is like a silver cloud."
+
+"That," said the Grouse, "is the silver castle of my second sister."
+
+At the silver castle the second sister received them with joy and when
+she heard who Helli was at once declared that she wanted to show him
+her gratitude by making him a gift.
+
+"Ask from me what you will," she said, "and you shall have it."
+
+But when he asked for her little locked box without a key, she cried
+out:
+
+"No! No! Not that! Anything else!"
+
+"But I don't want anything else!" Helli said.
+
+When the Grouse saw that his second sister was not to be parted from
+her little locked box, he bade Helli mount his back and off they flew
+again.
+
+"We'll go to my youngest sister this time," he said. "If she offers
+you a present, ask for the same thing."
+
+On, on they flew until the silver castle was lost to view.
+
+"Now, master, look ahead and tell me what you see."
+
+Helli shaded his eyes and looked.
+
+"I seem to see a golden haze like the sun behind a cloud."
+
+"That is the golden castle of my youngest sister."
+
+They arrived and the youngest sister threw her arms about the Grouse
+for she loved him dearly and had not seen him for a long time.
+
+"Welcome, brother!" she said. "And welcome also to you, Helli!"
+
+Then she offered Helli a present and when he asked for her little
+locked box without a key she gave it to him at once.
+
+"It is my most precious possession," she said, "but you may have it
+for you spared my dear brother's life when you might have taken it."
+
+After they had rested and feasted they bade the youngest sister
+farewell and Helli with his precious box held tightly in one hand
+mounted the Grouse's back and off they flew towards home.
+
+"Be careful of the box," the Grouse said, "and don't let it out of
+your hands until we reach some beautiful spot where you'd like always
+to live."
+
+They passed high mountains and wooded lakes and fertile valleys.
+
+"Shall we stop here?" the Grouse asked. "Or here? Or here?"
+
+But always Helli said:
+
+"No, not here."
+
+At last they reached home and the Grouse told Helli that now they must
+part forever.
+
+"By sparing my life three times," the Grouse said, "and then feeding
+me for three years you have broken the enchantment that bound me and
+now I shall not have to go about any longer as a grouse but shall be
+able to resume my natural shape. Farewell, Helli, and when you find
+the spot where you think you would like always to live, drop the box
+and you will find you have a treasure that will more than reward you
+for your kindness to me."
+
+The Grouse disappeared and Helli said to himself:
+
+"Where do I want to live always but right here at home with my dear
+old father and mother and my wife who is my wife even if she does
+scold me sometimes!"
+
+So there at home after they all had supper together, he dropped the
+box on the floor. It broke and out of it arose a beautiful castle with
+servants and riches and everything that Helli had always wanted and
+never had. And Helli and his old father and mother and his wife lived
+in it and were happy. And gradually his wife got over her habit of
+scolding for when you're happy you haven't anything to scold about.
+
+
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of an Honest Finn and a Wicked Troll_
+
+
+THE TERRIBLE OLLI
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a wicked rich old Troll who lived on a Mountain that
+sloped down to a Bay. A decent Finn, a farmer, lived on the opposite
+side of the Bay. The farmer had three sons. When the boys had reached
+manhood he said to them one day:
+
+"I should think it would shame you three strong youths that that
+wicked old Troll over there should live on year after year and no one
+trouble him. We work hard like honest Finns and are as poor at the end
+of the year as at the beginning. That old Troll with all his
+wickedness grows richer and richer. I tell you, if you boys had any
+real spirit you'd take his riches from him and drive him away!"
+
+His youngest son, whose name was Olli, at once cried out:
+
+"Very well, father, I will!"
+
+But the two older sons, offended at Olli's promptness, declared:
+
+"You'll do no such thing! Don't forget your place in the family!
+You're the youngest and we're not going to let you push us aside. Now,
+father, we two will go across the Bay and rout out that old Troll.
+Olli may come with us if he likes and watch us while we do it."
+
+Olli laughed and said: "All right!" for he was used to his brothers
+treating him like a baby.
+
+So in a few days the three brothers walked around the Bay and up the
+Mountain and presented themselves at the Troll's house. The Troll and
+his old wife were both at home. They received the brothers with great
+civility.
+
+"You're the sons of the Finn who lives across the Bay, aren't you?"
+the Troll said. "I've watched you boys grow up. I am certainly glad to
+see you for I have three daughters who need husbands. Marry my
+daughters and you'll inherit my riches."
+
+The old Troll made this offer in order to get the young men into his
+power.
+
+"Be careful!" Olli whispered.
+
+But the brothers were too delighted at the prospect of inheriting the
+Troll's riches so easily to pay any heed to Olli's warning. Instead
+they accepted the Troll's offer at once.
+
+Well, the old Troll's wife made them a fine supper and after supper
+the Troll sent them to bed with his three daughters. But first he put
+red caps on the three youths and white caps on the three Troll girls.
+He made a joke about the caps.
+
+"A red cap and a white cap in each bed!" he said.
+
+The older brothers suspected nothing and soon fell asleep. Olli, too,
+pretended to fall asleep and when he was sure that none of the Troll
+girls were still awake he got up and quietly changed the caps. He put
+the white caps on himself and his brothers and the red caps on the
+Troll girls. Then he crept back to bed and waited.
+
+Presently the old Troll came over to the beds with a long knife in his
+hand. There was so little light in the room that he couldn't see the
+faces of the sleepers, but it was easy enough to distinguish the white
+caps from the red caps. With three swift blows he cut off the heads
+under the red caps, thinking of course they were the heads of the
+three Finnish youths. Then he went back to bed with the old Troll wife
+and Olli could hear them both chuckling and laughing. After a time
+they went soundly to sleep as Olli could tell from their deep regular
+breathing and their loud snores.
+
+Olli now roused his brothers and told them what had happened and the
+three of them slipped quietly out of the Troll house and hurried home
+to their father on the other side of the Bay.
+
+After that the older brothers no longer talked of despoiling the
+Troll. They didn't care to try another encounter with him.
+
+"He might have cut our heads off!" they said, shuddering to think of
+the awful risk they had run.
+
+Olli laughed at them.
+
+"Come on!" he kept saying to them day after day. "Let's go across the
+Bay to the Troll's!"
+
+"We'll do no such thing!" they told him. "And you wouldn't suggest it
+either if you weren't so young and foolish!"
+
+"Well," Olli announced at last, "if you won't come with me I'm going
+alone. I've heard that the Troll has a horse with hairs of gold and
+silver. I've decided I want that horse."
+
+"Olli," his father said, "I don't believe you ought to go. You know
+what your brothers say. That old Troll is an awfully sly one!"
+
+But Olli only laughed.
+
+"Good-by!" he called back as he waved his hand. "When you see me again
+I'll be riding the Troll's horse!"
+
+  [Illustration: _Olli and the Troll's horse_]
+
+The Troll wasn't at home but the old Troll wife was there. When she
+saw Olli she thought to herself:
+
+"Mercy me, here's that Finnish boy again, the one that changed the
+caps! What shall I do? I must keep him here on some pretext or other
+until the Troll comes home!"
+
+So she pretended to be very glad to see him.
+
+"Why, Olli," she said, "is that you? Come right in!"
+
+She talked to him as long as she could and when she could think of
+nothing more to say she asked him would he take the horse and water it
+at the Lake.
+
+"That will keep him busy," she thought to herself, "and long before he
+gets back from the Lake the Troll will be here."
+
+But Olli, instead of leading the horse down to the Lake, jumped on its
+back and galloped away. By the time the Troll reached home, he was
+safely on the other side of the Bay.
+
+When the Troll heard from the old Troll wife what had happened, he
+went down to the shore and hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli made a trumpet of his hands and called back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my horse?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your horse but it's my horse now!"
+
+"Olli! Olli!" his father cried. "You mustn't talk that way to the
+Troll! You'll make him angry!"
+
+And his brothers looking with envy at the horse with gold and silver
+hairs warned him sourly:
+
+"You better be careful, young man, or the Troll will get you yet!"
+
+A few days later Olli announced:
+
+"I think I'll go over and get the Troll's money-bag."
+
+His father tried to dissuade him.
+
+"Don't be foolhardy, Olli! Your brothers say you had better not go to
+the Troll's house again."
+
+But Olli only laughed and started gaily off as though he hadn't a fear
+in the world.
+
+Again he found the old Troll wife alone.
+
+"Mercy me!" she thought to herself as she saw him coming, "here is
+that terrible Olli again! Whatever shall I do? I mustn't let him off
+this time before the Troll gets back! I must keep him right here with
+me in the house."
+
+So when he came in she pretended that she was tired and that her back
+ached and she asked him would he watch the bread in the oven while she
+rested a few moments on the bed.
+
+"Certainly I will," Olli said.
+
+So the old Troll wife lay down on the bed and Olli sat quietly in
+front of the oven. The Troll wife really was tired and before she knew
+it she fell asleep.
+
+"Ha!" thought Olli, "here's my chance!"
+
+Without disturbing the Troll wife he reached under the bed, pulled out
+the big money-bag full of silver pieces, threw it over his shoulder,
+and hurried home.
+
+He was measuring the money when he heard the Troll hallooing across to
+him:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Olli, have you got my money-bag?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your money-bag but it's my money-bag now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"Do you know, the Troll has a beautiful coverlet woven of silk and
+gold. I think I'll go over and get it."
+
+His father as usual protested but Olli laughed at him merrily and
+went. He took with him an auger and a can of water. He hid until it
+was dark, then climbed the roof of the Troll's house and bored a hole
+right over the bed. When the Troll and his wife went to sleep he
+sprinkled some water on the coverlet and on their faces.
+
+The Troll woke with a start.
+
+"I'm wet!" he said, "and the bed's wet, too!"
+
+The old Troll wife got up to change the covers.
+
+"The roof must be leaking," she said. "It never leaked before. I
+suppose it was that last wind."
+
+She threw the wet coverlet up over the rafters to dry and put other
+covers on the bed.
+
+When she and the Troll were again asleep, Olli made the hole a little
+bigger, reached in his hand, and got the coverlet from the rafters.
+
+The next morning the Troll hallooed across the Bay:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+"Yes," Olli shouted back, "I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my coverlet woven of silk and gold?"
+
+"Yes," Olli told him, "I've got your coverlet but it's my coverlet
+now!"
+
+A few days later Olli said:
+
+"There's still one thing in the Troll's house that I think I ought to
+get. It's a golden bell. If I get that golden bell then there will be
+nothing left that had better belong to an honest Finn."
+
+So he went again to the Troll's house taking with him a saw and an
+auger. He hid until night and, when the Troll and his wife were
+asleep, he cut a hole through the side of the house through which he
+reached in his hand to get the bell. At the touch of his hand the bell
+tinkled and woke the Troll. The Troll jumped out of bed and grabbed
+Olli's hand.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "I've got you now and this time you won't get
+away!"
+
+Olli didn't try to get away. He made no resistance while the Troll
+dragged him into the house.
+
+"We'll eat him--that's what we'll do!" the Troll said to his wife.
+"Heat the oven at once and we'll roast him!"
+
+So the Troll wife built a roaring fire in the oven.
+
+"He'll make a fine roast!" the Troll said, pinching Olli's arms and
+legs. "I think we ought to invite the other Troll folk to come and
+help us eat him up. Suppose I just go over the Mountain and gather
+them in. You can manage here without me. As soon as the oven is well
+heated just take Olli and slip him in and close the door and by the
+time we come he'll be done."
+
+"Very well," the Troll wife said, "but don't be too long! He's young
+and tender and will roast quickly!"
+
+So the Troll went out to invite to the feast the Troll folk who lived
+on the other side of the Mountain and Olli was left alone with the
+Troll wife.
+
+When the oven was well heated she raked out the coals and said to
+Olli:
+
+"Now then, my boy, sit down in front of the oven with your back to the
+opening and I'll push you in nicely."
+
+Olli pretended he didn't quite understand. He sat down first one way
+and then another, spreading himself out so large that he was too big
+for the oven door.
+
+"Not that way!" the Troll wife kept saying. "Hunch up little, straight
+in front of the door!"
+
+"You show me how," Olli begged.
+
+So the old Troll wife sat down before the oven directly in front of
+the opening, and she hunched herself up very compactly with her chin
+on her knees and her arms around her legs.
+
+"Oh, that way!" Olli said, "so that you can just take hold of me and
+push me in and shut the door!"
+
+And as he spoke he took hold of her and pushed her in and slammed the
+door! And that was the end of the old Troll wife!
+
+Olli let her roast in the oven until she was done to a turn. Then he
+took her out and put her on the table all ready for the feast.
+
+Then he filled a sack with straw and dressed the sack up in some of
+the old Troll wife's clothes. He threw the dressed up sack on the bed
+and, just to glance at it, you'd suppose it was the Troll wife asleep.
+
+Then Olli took the golden bell and went home.
+
+Well, presently the Troll and all the Troll folk from over the
+Mountain came trooping in.
+
+"Yum! Yum! It certainly smells good!" they said as they got the first
+whiff from the big roast on the table.
+
+"See!" the Troll said, pointing to the bed. "The old woman's asleep!
+Well, let her sleep! She's tired! We'll just sit down without her!"
+
+So they set to and feasted and feasted.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said the Troll. "This is the way to serve a troublesome
+young Finn!"
+
+Just then his knife struck something hard and he looked down to see
+what it was.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "if here isn't one of the old woman's beads!
+What can that mean? You don't suppose the roast is not Olli after all
+but the old woman! No! No! It can't be!"
+
+He got up and went over to the bed. Then he came back shaking his head
+sadly.
+
+"My friends," he said, "we've been eating the old woman! However,
+we've eaten so much of her that I suppose we might as well finish
+her!"
+
+So the Troll folk sat all night feasting and drinking.
+
+At dawn the Troll went down to the water and hallooed across:
+
+"Olli! Oh, Olli, are you there?"
+
+Olli who was safely home shouted back:
+
+"Yes, I'm here! What do you want?"
+
+"Have you got my golden bell?"
+
+"Yes, I've got your golden bell but it's my golden bell now!"
+
+"One thing more, Olli: did you roast my old woman?"
+
+"Your old woman?" Olli echoed. "Look! Is that she?"
+
+Olli pointed at the rising sun which was coming up behind the Troll.
+
+The Troll turned and looked. He looked straight at the sun and then,
+of course, he burst!
+
+So that was the end of him!
+
+Well, after that no other Troll ever dared settle on that side of the
+Mountain. They were all too afraid of the Terrible Olli!
+
+
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of the Boy Who Wouldn't Lose His Temper_
+
+
+THE DEVIL'S HIDE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a Finnish boy who got the best of the Devil. His name
+was Erkki. Erkki had two brothers who were, of course, older than he.
+They both tried their luck with the Devil and got the worst of it.
+Then Erkki tried his luck. They were sure Erkki, too, would be
+worsted, but he wasn't. Here is the whole story:
+
+One day the oldest brother said:
+
+"It's time for me to go out into the world and earn my living. Do you
+two younger ones wait here at home until you hear how I get on."
+
+The younger boys agreed to this and the oldest brother started out. He
+was unable to get employment until by chance he met the Devil. The
+Devil at once offered him a place but on very strange terms.
+
+"Come work for me," the Devil said, "and I promise that you'll be
+comfortably housed and well fed. We'll make this bargain: the first of
+us who loses his temper will forfeit to the other enough of his own
+hide to sole a pair of boots. If I lose my temper first, you may exact
+from me a big patch of my hide. If you lose your temper first, I'll
+exact the same from you."
+
+The oldest brother agreed to this and the Devil at once took him home
+and set him to work.
+
+"Take this ax," he said, "and go out behind the house and chop me some
+firewood."
+
+The oldest brother took the ax and went out to the woodpile.
+
+"Chopping wood is easy enough," he thought to himself.
+
+But at the first blow he found that the ax had no edge. Try as he
+would he couldn't cut a single log.
+
+"I'd be a fool to stay here and waste my time with such an ax!" he
+cried.
+
+So he threw down the ax and ran away thinking to escape the Devil and
+get work somewhere else. But the Devil had no intention of letting him
+escape. He ran after him, overtook him, and asked him what he meant
+leaving thus without notice.
+
+"I don't want to work for you!" the oldest brother cried, petulantly.
+
+"Very well," the Devil said, "but don't lose your temper about it."
+
+"I will so lose my temper!" the oldest brother declared. "The
+idea--expecting me to cut wood with such an ax!"
+
+"Well," the Devil remarked, "since you insist on losing your temper,
+you'll have to forfeit me enough of your hide to sole a pair of boots!
+That was our bargain."
+
+The oldest brother howled and protested but to no purpose. The Devil
+was firm. He took out a long knife and slit off enough of the oldest
+brother's hide to sole a pair of big boots.
+
+"Now then, my boy," he said, "now you may go."
+
+The oldest brother went limping home complaining bitterly at the hard
+fate that had befallen him.
+
+"I'm tired and sick," he told his brothers, "and I'm going to stay
+home and rest. One of you will have to go out and get work."
+
+The second brother at once said that he'd be delighted to try his luck
+in the world. So he started out and he had exactly the same
+experience. At first he could get no work, then he met the Devil and
+the Devil made exactly the same bargain with him that he had made with
+the oldest brother. He took the second brother home with him, gave him
+the same dull ax, and sent him out to the woodpile. After the first
+stroke the second brother threw down the ax in disgust and tried to
+run off and the Devil, of course, wouldn't let him go until he, too,
+had submitted to the loss of a great patch of hide. So it was no time
+at all before the second brother came limping home complaining
+bitterly at fate.
+
+"What ails you two?" Erkki said.
+
+"You go out into the cruel world and hunt work," they told him, "and
+you'll find out soon enough what ails us! And when you do find out you
+needn't come limping home expecting sympathy from us for you won't get
+it!"
+
+So the very next day Erkki started out, leaving his brothers at home
+nursing their sore backs and their injured feelings.
+
+Well, Erkki had exactly the same experience. At first he could get
+work nowhere, then later he met the Devil and went into his employ on
+exactly the same terms as his brothers.
+
+The Devil handed him the same dull ax and sent him out to the
+woodpile. At the first blow Erkki knew that the ax had lost its edge
+and would never cut a single log. But instead of being discouraged and
+losing his temper, he only laughed.
+
+"I suppose the Devil thinks I'll lose my hide over a trifle like
+this!" he said. "Well, I just won't!"
+
+He dropped the ax and, going over to the woodpile, began pulling it
+down. Under all the logs he found the Devil's cat. It was an evil
+looking creature with a gray head.
+
+"Ha!" thought Erkki, "I bet anything you've got something to do with
+this!"
+
+He raised the dull ax and with one blow cut off the evil creature's
+head. Sure enough the ax instantly recovered its edge and after that
+Erkki had no trouble at all in chopping as much firewood as the Devil
+wanted.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you finish the work I gave you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I've chopped all that wood."
+
+The Devil was surprised.
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Yes, master. You can go out and see for yourself."
+
+"Then you found something in the woodpile, didn't you?"
+
+"Nothing but an awful looking old cat."
+
+The Devil started.
+
+"Did you do anything to that cat?"
+
+"I only chopped its head off and threw it away."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried angrily. "Didn't you know that was my cat!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said soothingly, "you're not going to lose
+your temper over a little thing like a dead cat, are you? Don't forget
+our bargain!"
+
+The Devil swallowed his anger and murmured:
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper but I must say that was no way to
+treat my cat."
+
+The next day the Devil ordered Erkki to go out to the forest and bring
+home some logs on the ox sledge.
+
+"My black dog will go with you," he said, "and as you come home you're
+to take exactly the same course the dog takes."
+
+Well, Erkki went out to the forest and loaded the ox sledge with logs
+and then drove the oxen home following the Devil's black dog. As they
+reached the Devil's house the black dog jumped through a hole in the
+gate.
+
+"I must follow master's orders," Erkki said to himself.
+
+So he cut up the oxen into small pieces and put them through the same
+hole in the gate; he chopped up the logs and pitched them through the
+hole; and he broke up the sledge into pieces small enough to follow
+the oxen and the logs. Then he crept through the hole himself.
+
+That night at supper the Devil said:
+
+"Well, Erkki, did you come home the way I told you?"
+
+"Yes, master, I followed the black dog."
+
+"What!" the Devil cried. "Do you mean to say you brought the oxen and
+the sledge and the logs through the hole in the gate?"
+
+"Yes, master, that's what I did."
+
+"But you couldn't!" the Devil declared.
+
+"Well, master," Erkki said, "just go out and see."
+
+The Devil went outside and when he saw the method by which Erkki had
+carried out his orders he was furious. But Erkki quieted him by
+saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+trifling matter like this, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+"N-n-no," the Devil said, again swallowing his anger, "I'm not going
+to lose my temper, but I want you to understand, Erkki, that I think
+you've acted very badly in this!"
+
+All that evening the Devil fumed and fussed about Erkki.
+
+"We've got to get rid of that boy! That's all there is about it!" he
+said to his wife.
+
+Of course whenever Erkki was in sight the Devil tried to smile and
+look pleasant, but as soon as Erkki was gone he went back at once to
+his grievance. He declared emphatically:
+
+"There's no living in peace and comfort with such a boy around!"
+
+"Well," his wife said, "if you feel that way about it, why don't you
+kill him to-night when he's asleep? We could throw his body into the
+lake and no one be the wiser."
+
+"That's a fine idea!" the Devil said. "Wake me up some time after
+midnight and I'll do it!"
+
+Now Erkki overheard this little plan, so that night he kept awake.
+When he knew from their snoring that the Devil and his wife were sound
+asleep, he slipped over to their bed, quietly lifted the Devil's wife
+in his arms, and without awakening her placed her gently in his own
+bed. Then he put on some of her clothes and laid himself down beside
+the Devil in the wife's place.
+
+Presently he nudged the Devil awake.
+
+"What do you want?" the Devil mumbled.
+
+"Sst!" Erkki whispered. "Isn't it time we got up and killed Erkki?"
+
+"Yes," the Devil answered, "it is. Come along."
+
+They got up quietly and the Devil reached down a great sword from the
+wall. Then they crept over to Erkki's bed and the Devil with one blow
+cut off the head of the person who was lying there asleep.
+
+"Now," he said, "we'll just carry out the bed and all and dump it in
+the lake."
+
+So Erkki took one end of the bed and the Devil the other and,
+stumbling and slipping in the darkness, they carried it down to the
+lake and pitched it in.
+
+"That's a good job done!" the Devil said with a laugh.
+
+Then they went back to bed together and the Devil fell instantly
+asleep.
+
+The next morning when he got up for breakfast, there was Erkki
+stirring the porridge.
+
+"How--did you get here?" the Devil asked. "I mean--I mean where is my
+wife?"
+
+"Your wife? Don't you remember," Erkki said, "you cut off her head
+last night and then we threw her into the lake, bed and all! But no
+one will be the wiser!"
+
+"W-wh-what!" the Devil cried, and he was about to fly into an awful
+rage when Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like a wife, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+So the Devil was forced again to swallow his anger.
+
+"No, I'm not going to lose my temper," he said, "but I tell you
+frankly, Erkki, I don't think that was a nice trick for you to play on
+me!"
+
+Well, the Devil felt lonely not having a wife about the house, so in a
+few days he decided to go off wooing for a new one.
+
+"And, Erkki," he said, "I expect you to keep busy while I'm gone.
+Here's a keg of red paint. Now get to work and have the house all
+blazing red by the time I get back."
+
+"All blazing red," Erkki repeated. "Very well, master, trust me to
+have it all blazing red by the time you get back!"
+
+As soon as the Devil was gone, Erkki set the house a-fire and in a
+short time the whole sky was lighted up with the red glow of the
+flames. In great fright the Devil hurried back and got there in time
+to see the house one mass of fire.
+
+"You see, master," Erkki said, "I've done as you told me. It looks
+very pretty, doesn't it? all blazing red!"
+
+The Devil almost choked with rage.
+
+"You--you--" he began, but Erkki restrained him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a
+little thing like a house a-fire, are you? Remember our bargain!"
+
+  [Illustration: _From the bones of the cattle he laid three bridges_]
+
+The Devil swallowed hard and said:
+
+"N--no, I'm not going to lose my temper, but I must say, Erkki, that
+I'm very much annoyed with you!"
+
+The next day the Devil wanted to go a-wooing again and before he
+started he said to Erkki:
+
+"Now, no nonsense this time! While I'm gone you're to build three
+bridges over the lake, but they're not to be built of wood or stone or
+iron or earth. Do you understand?"
+
+Erkki pretended to be frightened.
+
+"That's a pretty hard task you've given me, master!"
+
+"Hard or easy, see that you get it done!" the Devil said.
+
+Erkki waited until the Devil was gone, then he went out to the field
+and slaughtered all the Devil's cattle. From the bones of the cattle
+he laid three bridges across the lake, using the skulls for one
+bridge, the ribs for another, and the legs and the hoofs for the
+third. Then when the Devil got back, Erkki met him and pointing to the
+bridges said:
+
+"See, master, there they are, three bridges put together without
+stick, stone, iron, or bit of earth!"
+
+When the Devil found out that all his cattle had been slaughtered to
+give bones for the bridges, he was ready to kill Erkki, but Erkki
+quieted him by saying:
+
+"There now, master, you're not going to lose your temper over a little
+thing like the slaughter of a few cattle, are you? Remember our
+bargain!"
+
+So again the Devil had to swallow his anger.
+
+"No," he said, "I'm not going to lose my temper exactly but I just
+want to tell you, Erkki, that I don't think you're behaving well!"
+
+The Devil's wooing was successful and pretty soon he brought home a
+new wife. The new wife didn't like having Erkki about, so the Devil
+promised her he'd kill the boy.
+
+"I'll do it to-night," he said, "when he's asleep."
+
+Erkki overheard this and that night he put the churn in his bed under
+the covers, and where his head ordinarily would be he put a big round
+stone. Then he himself curled up on the stove and went comfortably to
+sleep.
+
+During the night the Devil took his great sword from the wall and went
+over to Erkki's bed. His first blow hit the round stone and nicked the
+sword. His second blow struck sparks.
+
+"Mercy me!" the Devil thought, "he's got a mighty hard head! I better
+strike lower!"
+
+With the third stroke he hit the churn a mighty blow. The hoops flew
+apart and the churn collapsed.
+
+The Devil went chuckling back to bed.
+
+"Ha!" he said boastfully to his wife, "I got him that time!"
+
+But the next morning when he woke up he didn't feel like laughing for
+there was Erkki as lively as ever and pretending that nothing had
+happened.
+
+"What!" cried the Devil in amazement, "didn't you feel anything strike
+you last night while you were asleep?"
+
+"Oh, I did feel a few mosquitoes brushing my cheek," Erkki said.
+"Nothing else."
+
+"Steel doesn't touch him!" the Devil said to his wife. "I think I'll
+try fire on him."
+
+So that night the Devil told Erkki to sleep in the threshing barn.
+Erkki carried his cot down to the threshing floor and then when it was
+dark he shifted it into the hay barn where he slept comfortably all
+night.
+
+During the night the Devil set fire to the threshing barn. In the
+early dawn Erkki carried his cot back to the place of the threshing
+barn and in the morning when the Devil came out the first thing he
+saw was Erkki unharmed and peacefully sleeping among the smoking
+ruins.
+
+"Mercy me, Erkki!" he shouted, shaking him awake, "have you been
+asleep all night?"
+
+Erkki sat up and yawned.
+
+"Yes, I've had a fine night's sleep. But I did feel a little chilly."
+
+"Chilly!" the Devil gasped.
+
+After that the Devil's one thought was to get rid of Erkki.
+
+"That boy's getting on my nerves!" he told his wife. "I just can't
+stand him much longer! What are we going to do about him?"
+
+They discussed one plan after another and at last decided that the
+only way they'd ever get rid of him would be to move away and leave
+him behind.
+
+"I'll send him out to the forest to chop wood all day," the Devil
+said, "and while he's gone we'll row ourselves and all our belongings
+out to an island and when he comes back he won't know where we've
+gone."
+
+Erkki overheard this plan and the next day when they were sure he was
+safely at work in the forest he slipped back and hid himself in the
+bedclothes.
+
+Well, when they got to the island and began unpacking their things
+there was Erkki in the bedclothes!
+
+The Devil's new wife complained bitterly.
+
+"If you really loved me," she said, "you'd cut off that boy's head!"
+
+"But I've tried to cut it off!" the Devil declared, "and I never can
+do it! Plague take such a boy! I've always known the Finns were an
+obstinate lot but I must say I've never met one as bad as Erkki! He's
+too much for me!"
+
+But the Devil's wife kept on complaining until at last the Devil
+promised that he would try once again to cut off Erkki's head.
+
+"Very well," his wife said, "to-night when he's asleep I'll wake you."
+
+Well, what with the moving and everything the wife herself was tired
+and as soon as she went to bed she fell asleep. That gave Erkki just
+the very chance he needed to try on the new wife the trick he had
+played on the old one. Without waking her he carried her to his bed
+and then laid himself down in her place beside the Devil. Then he
+waked up the Devil and reminded him that he had promised to cut off
+Erkki's head.
+
+The poor old Devil got up and went over to Erkki's bed and of course
+cut off the head of his new wife.
+
+The next morning when he had found out what he had done, he was
+perfectly furious.
+
+"You get right out of here, Erkki!" he roared. "I never want to see
+you again!"
+
+"There now, master," Erkki said, "you're not going to lose your temper
+over a little thing like a dead wife, are you?"
+
+"I am so going to lose my temper!" the Devil shouted. "And what's more
+it isn't a little thing! I liked this wife, I did, and I don't know
+where I'll get another one I like as well! So you just clear out of
+here and be quick about it, too!"
+
+"Very well, master," Erkki said, "I'll go but not until you pay me
+what you owe me."
+
+"What I owe you!" bellowed the Devil. "What about all you owe me for
+my house and my cattle and my old wife and my dear new wife and
+everything!"
+
+"You've lost your temper," Erkki said, "and now you've got to pay me a
+patch of your hide big enough to sole a pair of boots. That was our
+bargain!"
+
+The Devil roared and blustered but Erkki was firm. He wouldn't budge a
+step until the Devil had allowed him to slit a great patch of hide off
+his back.
+
+That piece of the Devil's hide made the finest soles that a pair of
+boots ever had. It wore for years and years and years. In fact Erkki
+is still tramping around on those same soles. The fame of them has
+spread over all the land and it has got so that now people stop Erkki
+on the highway to look at his wonderful boots soled with the Devil's
+hide. Travelers from foreign countries are deeply interested when they
+hear about the boots and when they meet Erkki they question him
+closely.
+
+"Tell us," they beg him, "how did you get the Devil's hide in the
+first place?"
+
+Erkki always laughs and makes the same answer:
+
+"I got it by not losing my temper!"
+
+As for the Devil, he's never again made a bargain like that with a
+Finn!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_The Story of a Young Man Who Respected the Dead_
+
+
+THE MYSTERIOUS SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a rich merchant who had an only son. As he lay dying,
+he said:
+
+"Matti, my boy, my end is approaching and there are two things I want
+to say to you: The first is that I am leaving you all my wealth. If
+you are careful you will have enough to suffice you for life. The
+second thing I have to say is to beg you never to leave this, your
+native village. At your birth there was a prophecy which declared that
+if ever you left this village you would have to marry a woman with
+horns. Now that I have warned you in time it will be your own fault if
+ever you have to meet this fate."
+
+The merchant died and Matti was left alone. He had never before wanted
+to travel but now that he knew of the fate which would overtake him if
+he did, he couldn't bear the thought of remaining forever a prisoner
+in his native village.
+
+"What is the use of riches," he asked himself, "if one can't travel
+over the broad world and see wonderful sights? Besides, if it's my
+fate to marry a horned woman, I don't see why sitting quietly at home
+is going to save me. No! I'm going to take my chances like a man and
+come and go as I like!"
+
+So he gathered his riches together, closed the old house where he had
+been born, and started out into the bright world. He traveled many
+days, meeting strange peoples and seeing strange sights. At last he
+settled down in a large city and became a merchant like his father.
+
+One afternoon as he was out walking, he saw a crowd of men dragging
+the body of a dead man in the gutter. They were kicking and abusing
+the dead body and calling it evil names.
+
+Matti stopped them.
+
+"What is this you are doing?" he demanded. "Don't you know that
+disrespect to the dead is disrespect to God? Give over abusing this
+poor dead body and bury it decently or God will punish you!"
+
+"Let us alone!" the men cried. "He deserves the abuse we are giving
+him! When he was alive he borrowed money from us all and then he died
+without repaying us. Are we to have no satisfaction at all?"
+
+With that they resumed their abuse of the dead body.
+
+"Wait!" Matti cried. "Tell me what the dead man owed you and I will
+pay it!"
+
+"He owed me ten ducats!" said one.
+
+"And me a hundred!" shouted another.
+
+"And me five hundred!"
+
+"And me a thousand!"
+
+"Come all of you to my house," Matti said, "and I will pay you, but
+only on condition that first you hand over the body to me and help me
+give it a decent burial."
+
+The men agreed. They helped Matti bury the dead man and then went home
+with him.
+
+Each told Matti the amount the dead man owed him and, true to his
+promise, Matti paid them all.
+
+When he had paid the last man he found that he had nothing left for
+himself but nine silver kopeks. The dead man's debts had exhausted all
+the wealth his father had left him.
+
+"No matter!" Matti thought to himself. "My riches would have done me
+no good if I had stood by and allowed a poor dead man to be abused.
+What if I have nothing left? I'm young and strong and I can go out
+into the world and make my livelihood somehow. I'll go home and have
+one last look at my native village and then begin life anew."
+
+So, dressed in shabby old clothes with nothing in his pockets but the
+nine silver kopeks, Matti left the city where people were beginning to
+know him as a merchant and started back to his native village. He was
+soon met by a man who addressed him respectfully and asked to be
+engaged as his servant.
+
+"My servant!" Matti repeated with a laugh. "My dear fellow, I'm too
+poor to have a servant! All I have in the world are nine silver
+kopeks!"
+
+"No matter, master," the man said. "Take me anyhow. I will serve you
+well and I promise you will not regret our bargain."
+
+So Matti agreed and they walked on together. The sun was hot and by
+midafternoon Matti was feeling faint with hunger and fatigue.
+
+"Master," the Servant said, "I will run ahead to the next village and
+order the landlord at the inn to prepare you a fine dinner. Do you
+come along slowly and by the time you arrive the dinner will be
+ready."
+
+"But remember," Matti warned him, "I have no money to pay for a fine
+dinner!"
+
+"Trust me!" the Servant said and off he hurried.
+
+At the next village he hunted out the best inn and ordered the
+landlord to prepare his finest dinner without delay. He was so
+particular that everything should be the best that the landlord
+supposed his master must be some great lord.
+
+When Matti arrived on foot, tired and travel-stained and shabby, the
+landlord was amazed.
+
+"It's fine lords we have nowadays!" he muttered scornfully, and he
+wished he had not been in such haste to cook the best food in the
+house. But it was cooked and ready to serve and so, with an ill grace,
+he served it.
+
+Matti and his man ate their fill of good cabbage soup and fish and
+fowl tender and juicy.
+
+It quite enraged the landlord to see poor men with such good
+appetites.
+
+"They eat as if their pockets were lined with gold!" he muttered
+angrily. "Well, let them eat while they can for they'll lose their
+appetites once they see the reckoning!"
+
+When they finished eating, they rested and then called for the
+reckoning. It was much more than it should have been but neither Matti
+nor the Servant objected.
+
+"Like a good fellow," the Servant said, "will you please to lend me
+your half peck measure."
+
+"Like a good fellow, indeed!" the landlord muttered to himself. "Who
+are you to call me a good fellow I'd like to know!"
+
+Nevertheless he went out and got the measure.
+
+"Now, master," the Servant said, "give me three of your nine silver
+kopeks."
+
+The Servant threw the three silver kopeks into the measure, shook the
+measure three times and lo! it was filled to the brim with silver
+kopeks! The Servant counted out the amount of the reckoning and handed
+the rest of the money to his master. Then he and Matti went on their
+way leaving the landlord gaping after them with open mouth.
+
+Day after day the Servant paid the reckoning in the same way at the
+various inns where they stopped until they reached at last Matti's
+native village and the old house that still belonged to him.
+
+They settled themselves there and one day the Servant said to Matti:
+
+"Now, master, you know your fate: for having left your native village
+you know you are destined to marry a horned woman. You might as well
+do it at once for you'll have to do it sooner or later."
+
+"That is true," Matti said, "and if I knew the whereabouts of the
+horned woman who is my fate I should marry her at once."
+
+"In that case we'll lose no more time," the Servant said. "The King
+has three daughters all of whom are horned. This isn't generally
+known but it is true. Let us go to the palace and present your suit.
+The King will give friendly ear for there are not many suitors for
+daughters with horns. He will try to make you take the oldest who has
+big horns and a hoarse voice. When she sees you, she'll whisper: 'Take
+me! Take me!' But do you shake your head and answer: 'No! Not this
+one!' Then the King will send for his second daughter. Her horns are
+not so big nor is her voice so hoarse. She, too, will whisper you:
+'Take me! Take me!' But do you again shake your head and answer: 'No!
+Not this one!' Be firm and the King will finally have to send for his
+youngest daughter. Her horns are just soft little baby horns and her
+voice is just a little husky. Take her and soon all will be well."
+
+So Matti and the Servant went to the palace and got audience with the
+King.
+
+"My master, Matti," the Servant said, addressing the King, "is
+desirous of marrying a wife with horns."
+
+The King was interested at once.
+
+"As it happens I have a daughter with horns," he said. "I'll have her
+come in."
+
+He sent for his oldest daughter and presently she appeared. Her horns
+were long and thick.
+
+"Take me! Take me!" she whispered hoarsely as she passed Matti.
+
+"See what a fine girl she is!" the King said, "and what well grown
+horns she has!"
+
+But Matti shook his head.
+
+"No, Your Majesty, I don't think I want to marry this one."
+
+"Of course you must follow the dictates of your heart," the King said
+drily. "However, come to think of it, my second daughter also has
+horns. Maybe you'd like to consider her."
+
+So the second daughter was called in. Her horns were not so large as
+her sister's nor was her voice so hoarse. But Matti, remembering the
+Servant's warning, refused her, too. The King seemed surprised and
+even annoyed that Matti should refuse his daughters so glibly, but
+when he found that Matti was firm he said:
+
+"I have got another daughter, my youngest, but, if it's horns you're
+looking for, I don't believe you'll be interested in her at all since
+her horns are so small and soft that they are hardly noticeable at
+all. However, as you're here, you might as well see her."
+
+  [Illustration: _"She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+    delivering her!"_]
+
+So the youngest princess was sent for and at once Matti knew that she
+was the one he wanted to marry. She wasn't as beautiful as a
+princess should be but she was gentle and modest and when she passed
+Matti her cheeks flushed and she wasn't able to whisper anything. But
+Matti felt very sure that if she had whispered her voice would have
+been scarcely husky.
+
+"This, O King," he said, "is my choice! Let me marry your youngest
+daughter and I promise to be a faithful husband to her."
+
+The King would have preferred to marry off the older princesses first
+for their horns were getting to be very troublesome, but as they all
+had horns he was afraid to refuse Matti's offer.
+
+So after a little talk he gave Matti the youngest and in a short time
+they were married.
+
+After the wedding feast the King led the young couple to the bridal
+chamber and closed the door.
+
+Matti's Servant meantime had gone out to the woods and cut some stout
+switches of birch. When the palace was quiet and all were asleep, he
+crept softly into the bridal chamber and, dragging the bride out of
+bed, he beat her unmercifully.
+
+"Oh! Oh!" she cried in pain.
+
+Her screams woke Matti and in fright he jumped out of bed and tried to
+stop the Servant.
+
+"Wait!" the Servant said. "She is under an evil enchantment and I am
+delivering her!"
+
+So he kept on beating her until he had drawn blood. Then instantly the
+horns fell from her head and there she stood a beautiful young girl
+released from the evil enchantment that had disfigured her.
+
+The Servant handed her over to her husband who fell in love with her
+on sight and has loved her ever since.
+
+"Now farewell, Matti," the Servant said. "My work is done and you will
+need me no longer. You have married a beautiful princess and the King
+will soon make you his heir."
+
+With these words the Servant disappeared and Matti was left alone with
+his lovely bride.
+
+And that was Matti's reward for having respected the dead. God Himself
+in the form of the Servant had come down and taken care of him.
+
+
+
+
+FAMILIAR FACES
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_I Mary, Mary, So Contrary!_
+
+_II Jane, Jane, Don't Complain!_
+
+_III Susan Walker, What a Talker!_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _When she got to the middle of the stream_]
+
+I
+
+MARY, MARY, SO CONTRARY!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a farmer who was married to the most contrary wife in
+the world. Her name was Maya. If he expected Maya to say, "Yes," she
+would always say, "No," and if he expected her to say, "No," she would
+always say, "Yes." If he said the soup was too hot, Maya would
+instantly insist that it was too cold. She would do nothing that he
+wanted her to do, and she always insisted on doing everything that he
+did not want her to do.
+
+Like most contrary people Maya was really very stupid and the farmer
+after he had been married to her for a few years knew exactly how to
+manage her.
+
+For instance at Christmas one year he wanted to make a big feast for
+his friends and neighbors. Did he tell his wife so? Not he! Instead, a
+few weeks beforehand he remarked casually:
+
+"Christmas is coming and I suppose every one will expect us to have
+fine white bread. But I don't think we ought to. It's too expensive.
+Black bread is good enough for us."
+
+"Black bread, indeed!" cried Maya. "Not at all! We're going to have
+white bread and you needn't say any more about it! Black bread at
+Christmas! To hear you talk people would suppose we are beggars!"
+
+The farmer pretended to be grieved and he said:
+
+"Well, my dear, have white bread if your heart is set on it, but I
+hope you don't expect to make any pies."
+
+"Not make any pies! Just let me tell you I expect to make all the pies
+I want!"
+
+"Well, now, Maya, if we have pies I don't think we ought to have any
+wine."
+
+"No wine! I like that! Of course we'll have wine on Christmas!"
+
+The farmer was much pleased but, still pretending to protest, he said:
+
+"Well, if we spend money on wine, we better not expect to buy any
+coffee."
+
+"What! No coffee on Christmas! Who ever heard of such a thing! Of
+course we'll have coffee!"
+
+"Well, I'm not going to quarrel with you! Get a little coffee if you
+like, but just enough for you and me for I don't think we ought to
+have any guests."
+
+"What! No guests on Christmas! Indeed and you're wrong if you think
+we're not going to have a houseful of guests!"
+
+The farmer was overjoyed but, still pretending to grumble, he said:
+
+"If you have the house full of people, you needn't think I'm going to
+sit at the head of the table, for I'm not!"
+
+"You are, too!" screamed his wife. "That's exactly where you are going
+to sit!"
+
+"Maya, Maya, don't get so excited! I will sit there if you insist. But
+if I do you mustn't expect me to pour the wine."
+
+"And why not? It would be a strange thing if you didn't pour the wine
+at your own table!"
+
+"All right, all right, I'll pour it! But you mustn't expect me to
+taste it beforehand."
+
+"Of course you're going to taste it beforehand!"
+
+This was exactly what the farmer wanted his wife to say. So you see by
+pretending to oppose her at every turn he was able to have the big
+Christmas party that he wanted and he was able to feast to his heart's
+content with all his friends and relatives and neighbors.
+
+Time went by and Maya grew more and more contrary if such a thing were
+possible. Summer came and the haymaking season. They were going to a
+distant meadow to toss hay and had to cross an angry little river on a
+footbridge made of one slender plank.
+
+The farmer crossed in safety, then he called back to his wife:
+
+"Walk very carefully, Maya, for the plank is not strong!"
+
+"I will not walk carefully!" the wife declared.
+
+She flung herself on the plank with all her weight and when she got to
+the middle of the stream she jumped up and down just to show her
+husband how contrary she could be. Well, the plank broke with a snap,
+Maya fell into the water, the current carried her off, and she was
+drowned!
+
+Her husband, seeing what had happened, ran madly upstream shouting:
+
+"Help! Help!"
+
+The haymakers heard him and came running to see what was the matter.
+
+"My wife has fallen into the river!" he cried, "and the current has
+carried her body away!"
+
+"What ails you?" the haymakers said. "Are you mad? If the current has
+carried your wife away, she's floating downstream, not upstream!"
+
+"Any other woman would float downstream," the farmer said. "Yes! But
+you know Maya! She's so contrary she'd float upstream every time!"
+
+"That's true," the haymakers said, "she would!"
+
+So all afternoon the farmer searched upstream for his wife's body but
+he never found it.
+
+When night came he went home and had a good supper of all the things
+he liked to eat which Maya would never let him have.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They were so busy eating and drinking_]
+
+II
+
+JANE, JANE, DON'T COMPLAIN!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man who was poor and lazy and he had a wife who was
+even worse. Her name was Jenny. Jenny was so lazy that it was an
+effort for her to lift one foot after the other. And in addition to
+her laziness she was an everlasting complainer. "Oh!" she used to
+grunt in the morning, "I wish we didn't have to get up!" and "Oh!" she
+used to groan at night, "I wish we didn't have to take our shoes off
+before going to bed!"
+
+One day when they were both out in the forest collecting faggots,
+Jenny said:
+
+"I don't see why we're not rich! I don't see why the King should live
+at his ease while we have to grub for everything we get! I just hate
+work!"
+
+Of course the trouble both with Jenny and her husband was not that
+they worked but that they didn't work. It was because they didn't that
+they had so much time to think about it.
+
+"Drat it all!" Jenny went on, whining, "Adam and Eve are to blame for
+all our misfortunes! If they hadn't disobeyed God's commandment and
+eaten that apple, we'd all be living in the Garden of Eden to this
+day! It's all their fault that we have to moil and toil and hurry and
+scurry!"
+
+"Yes," the man agreed, "it is, especially Eve's. Of course Adam was to
+blame, too, for he should have controlled his wife better. But Eve was
+the more to blame. If I had been Adam I shouldn't have allowed her to
+touch the apple in the first place."
+
+Now it happened that the King who was out hunting that day overheard
+this conversation.
+
+"Ha!" he thought to himself, "I've a great mind to teach these two
+people a lesson!"
+
+He pushed aside the bushes that had hidden him from them and said:
+
+"Good day to you both! I have just heard your complaints and I, too,
+think it very hard that you should be poor while others are rich. I
+tell you what I'll do: I'll take you both home with me to the castle
+and maintain you in ease and luxury provided you obey me in just one
+thing."
+
+Jenny and her husband agreed to this eagerly and just as they were the
+King took them home with him to the castle. He lodged them in a room
+with golden furniture, he gave them fine clothes to wear, and for food
+he had them served the choicest delicacies in the world.
+
+As they sat eating their first royal meal, he came in to them carrying
+in his hands a covered dish of silver. He put the dish down in the
+center of the table.
+
+"Now, my friends," he said, "I promised to maintain you in this ease
+and luxury provided you obeyed me in one thing. You see this silver
+dish. I forbid you ever to lift the cover. If you disobey me, that
+moment I shall take from you your fine clothes and send you back to
+your poverty and misery."
+
+With that the King left them and they stuffed themselves to their
+hearts' content with the delicate foods set before them.
+
+They were so busy, eating and drinking and admiring themselves in
+their fine clothes, that for the first day they didn't give the
+covered dish a thought. The second day the wife noticed it and said:
+
+"That's the thing we're not to touch. Well, for my part I don't want
+to touch it. I don't want to do anything but eat and sleep and try on
+my pretty new clothes."
+
+By the third day they had eaten so much and so steadily that they
+were no longer hungry and when they lay down on the big soft bed they
+no longer fell instantly asleep.
+
+"Dear me," Jenny began whining, "I don't know what's the matter with
+this food! It doesn't taste as good as it used to! Maybe the cook has
+grown careless! I think we ought to complain to the King. I'm
+beginning to feel very uncomfortable and I haven't any appetite at
+all! I wonder what's in that covered dish. Perhaps it's something to
+eat, something perfectly delicious! I've half a mind to lift the cover
+and see."
+
+"Now just you leave that silver dish alone!" the man growled. He, too,
+had been eating too much and was feeling peevish. "Don't you remember
+what the King said?"
+
+"Pooh!" cried Jenny. "What do I care what the King said! I think he
+was just poking fun at us telling us we mustn't lift the cover of that
+silver dish. After all a dish is a dish and it's no crime to lift a
+cover even if it is made of silver!"
+
+With that Jenny jumped up and before her husband could stop her she
+lifted the forbidden cover. Instantly a little white mouse hopped out
+of the silver dish and scurried away.
+
+"Oh!" Jenny screamed, dropping the cover with a great clatter.
+
+The King who was in an adjoining chamber heard the noise and came in.
+
+"So!" he said, "you have done the one thing that I told you not to do!
+You haven't been here three days and although you've had everything
+that heart could wish for yet you couldn't obey me in this one little
+matter!"
+
+"Your Majesty," the man said, "it was my wife who did it, not I."
+
+"No matter," the King said, "you, too, are to blame. If you had
+restrained her it wouldn't have happened."
+
+Then he called his servants and had them strip off the fine clothes
+and dress the couple again in their old rags.
+
+"Now," he said as he drove them from the castle gates, "never again
+blame Adam and Eve for the misfortunes which you bring upon
+yourselves!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _They carried home the treasure on their backs_]
+
+III
+
+SUSAN WALKER, WHAT A TALKER!
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was once a man whose wife was an awful talker. Her name was
+Susanna. No matter how important it was to keep a matter quiet, if
+Susanna knew about it, she just had to talk. She was always running to
+the neighbors and exclaiming:
+
+"Oh, my dear, have you heard so and so?"
+
+Her husband was an industrious fellow. He set nets in the river, he
+snared birds in the forest, and he worked at any odd jobs that came
+along.
+
+It happened one day while he was out in the forest that he found a
+buried treasure.
+
+"Ah!" he thought to himself, "now I can buy a little farm that will
+keep me and Susanna comfortable the rest of our days!"
+
+He started home at once to tell his wife the good fortune that had
+befallen them. He had almost reached home when he stopped, suddenly
+realizing that the first thing Susanna would do would be to spread the
+news broadcast throughout the village. Then of course the government
+would get wind of his find and presently officers of the law would
+come and confiscate the entire treasure.
+
+"That would never do," he told himself. "I must think out some plan
+whereby I can let Susanna know about the treasure without risking the
+loss of it."
+
+He puzzled over the matter for a long time and at last hit upon
+something that he thought might prove successful.
+
+In his nets that day he had caught a pike and in one of his snares he
+had found a grouse. He went back now to the river and put the bird in
+the fishnet, and then he went to the woods and put the fish in the
+snare. This done he went home and at once told Susanna about the
+buried treasure which was going to be the means of making their old
+age comfortable.
+
+She flew at once into great excitement.
+
+"La! La! A buried treasure! Whoever heard of such luck! Oh, how all
+the neighbors will envy us when they hear about it! I can hardly wait
+to tell them!"
+
+"But they mustn't hear!" her husband told her. "You don't want the
+officers of the law coming and taking it all from us, do you?"
+
+"That would be a nice how-do-you-do!" Susanna cried. "What! Come and
+take our treasure that you found yourself in the forest?"
+
+"Yes, my dear, that's exactly what they'd do if once they heard about
+it."
+
+"Well, you can depend upon it, my dear husband, not a soul will hear
+about it from me!"
+
+She shook her head vigorously and repeated this many times and then
+tried to slip out of the house on some such excuse as needing to
+borrow a cup of meal from a neighbor.
+
+But the man insisted on her staying beside him all evening. She kept
+remembering little errands that would take her to the houses of
+various neighbors but each time she attempted to leave her husband
+called her back. At last he got her safely to bed.
+
+Early next morning, before she had been able to talk to any one, he
+said:
+
+"Now, my dear, come with me to the forest and help me to carry home
+the treasure. On the way we'd better see if we've got anything in the
+nets and the snares."
+
+They went first to the river and when the man had lifted his nets they
+found a grouse which he made Susanna reach over and get. Then in the
+woods he let her make the discovery of a pike in one of the snares.
+She was all the while so excited about the treasure that she hadn't
+mind enough left to be surprised that a bird should be caught in a
+fishnet and a fish in a birdsnare.
+
+Well, they found the precious treasure and they stowed it away in two
+sacks which they carried home on their backs. On the way home Susanna
+could scarcely refrain from calling out to every passerby some hint of
+their good fortune. As they passed the house of Helmi, her dearest
+crony, she said to her husband:
+
+"My dear, won't you just wait here a moment while I run in and get a
+drink of water?"
+
+"You mustn't go in just now," her husband said. "Don't you hear what's
+going on?"
+
+There was the sound of two dogs fighting and yelping in the kitchen.
+
+"Helmi is getting a beating from her husband," the man said. "Can't
+you hear her crying? This is no time for an outsider to appear."
+
+All that day and all that night he kept so close to Susanna that the
+poor woman wasn't able to exchange a word with another human being.
+
+Early next morning she escaped him and ran as fast as her legs could
+carry her to Helmi's house.
+
+"My dear," she began all out of breath, "such a wonderful treasure as
+we've found but I've sworn never to whisper a word about it for fear
+the government should hear of it! I should have stopped and told you
+yesterday but your husband was beating you--"
+
+"What's that?" cried Helmi's husband who came in just then and caught
+the last words.
+
+"It's the treasure we've found!"
+
+"The treasure? What are you talking about? Begin at the beginning."
+
+"Well, my old man and me we started out yesterday morning and first we
+went to the river to see if there was anything in the nets. We found a
+grouse--"
+
+"A grouse?"
+
+"Yes, we found a grouse in the nets. Then we went to the forest and
+looked in the snares and in one we found a pike."
+
+"A pike!"
+
+"Yes. Then we went and dug up the treasure and put it in two sacks and
+you could have seen us yourself carrying it home on our backs but you
+were too busy beating poor Helmi."
+
+"I beating poor Helmi! Ho! Ho! Ho! That is a good one! I was busy
+beating my wife while you were getting birds out of fishnets and fish
+out of snares! Ho! Ho! Ho!"
+
+"It's so!" Susanna cried. "It is so! You were so beating Helmi! And
+you sounded just like two dogs fighting! And we did so carry home the
+treasure!"
+
+But Helmi's husband only laughed the harder. That afternoon when he
+went to the Inn he was still laughing and when the men there asked him
+what was so funny he told them Susanna's story and soon the whole
+village was laughing at the foolish woman who found birds in fishnets
+and fish in snares and who thought that two yelping dogs were Helmi
+and her husband fighting.
+
+As for the treasure that wasn't taken any more seriously than the
+grouse and the pike.
+
+"It must have been two sacks of turnips they carried home on their
+backs!" the village people decided.
+
+The husband of course said nothing and Susanna, too, was soon forced
+to keep quiet for now whenever she tried to explain people only
+laughed.
+
+
+
+
+MIKKO, THE FOX
+
+[Decoration]
+
+_A Nursery Epic in Sixteen Adventures_
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Osmo, the Bear, grunted out: "Huh! That's easy!
+    We'll eat the smallest of us next!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE I
+
+THE ANIMALS TAKE A BITE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A Farmer once dug a pit to trap the Animals that had been stealing his
+grain. By a strange chance he fell into his own pit and was killed.
+
+The Ermine found him there.
+
+"H'm," thought the Ermine, "that's the Farmer himself, isn't it? I
+better take him before any one else gets him."
+
+So the Ermine dragged the Farmer's body out of the pit, put it on a
+sledge, and then, after taking a bite, began hauling it away.
+
+Presently he met the Squirrel who clapped his hands in surprise.
+
+"God bless you, brother!" the Squirrel exclaimed, "what's that you're
+hauling behind you?"
+
+"It's the Farmer himself," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit
+that he had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too!
+Take a bite of him and then come along and help me pull."
+
+"Very well," the Squirrel said.
+
+He took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along beside the Ermine,
+helping him to pull the sledge.
+
+Presently they met Jussi, the Hare. Jussi looked at them in amazement,
+his eyes popping out of his head.
+
+"Mercy me!" he cried, "what's that you two are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite
+of him, Jussi, and then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Jussi, the Hare, took a bite of the Farmer and then marched along
+beside the Ermine and the Squirrel helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Mikko, the Fox.
+
+"Goodness me!" Mikko said, "what's that you three are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine again explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Mikko, and
+then come along and help us pull."
+
+So Mikko, the Fox, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine and the Squirrel and the Hare helping them to pull the sledge.
+
+Next they met Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Good gracious!" Pekka cried, "what's that you four are hauling?"
+
+The Ermine explained:
+
+"It's the Farmer. He fell into the pit that he had digged for us poor
+forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a bite of him, Pekka, and
+then help us pull."
+
+So Pekka, the Wolf, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, and the Fox, helping them to pull the
+sledge.
+
+Next they met Osmo, the Bear.
+
+"Good heavens!" Osmo rumbled, "what's that you five are hauling?"
+
+"It's the Farmer," the Ermine explained. "He fell into the pit that he
+had digged for us poor forest folk and serve him right, too! Take a
+bite of him, Osmo, and then help us pull."
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, took a bite and then marched along beside the
+Ermine, the Squirrel, the Hare, the Fox, and the Wolf, helping them to
+pull the sledge.
+
+Well, they pulled and they pulled and whenever they felt tired or
+hungry they stopped and took a bite until the Farmer was about
+finished.
+
+Then Pekka, the Wolf, said:
+
+"See here, brothers, we've eaten up every bit of the Farmer except his
+beard. What are we going to eat now?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted out:
+
+"Huh! That's easy! We'll eat the smallest of us next!"
+
+He had no sooner spoken than the Squirrel ran up a tree and the Ermine
+slipped under a stone.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf said:
+
+"But the smallest have escaped!"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, grunted again:
+
+"Huh! The smallest now is that pop-eyed Jussi! Let's--"
+
+At mention of his name the Hare went loping across the field and was
+soon at a safe distance.
+
+Osmo, the Bear, put his heavy paw on the Fox's shoulder.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "it's your turn now for you're the smallest of us
+three."
+
+Mikko, the Fox, pretended not to be at all afraid.
+
+"That's true," he said, "I'm the smallest. All right, brothers, I'm
+ready. But before you eat me I wish you'd take me to the top of the
+hill. Down here in the valley it's so gloomy."
+
+"Very well," the others agreed, "we'll go where you say. It is more
+cheerful there."
+
+As they climbed the hill the Fox whispered to the Wolf:
+
+"Sst! Pekka! When you eat me whose turn will it be then? Who will be
+the smallest then?"
+
+"Mercy me!" the Wolf cried, "it will be my turn then, won't it?"
+
+The terror of the thought quite took his appetite away.
+
+"See here, Osmo," he said to the Bear, "I don't think it would be
+right for us to eat Mikko. You and I and Mikko ought to be friends and
+live together in peace. Now let's take a vote on the matter and we'll
+do whatever the majority says. I vote that we three be friends. What
+do you say, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox said that he agreed with the Wolf. It would be much better
+all around if they three were friends.
+
+"Well," grunted Osmo, the Bear, "it's no use my voting for you two
+make a majority. But I must say I'm sorry to have you vote this way
+for I'm hungry."
+
+So the three animals, the Bear, the Wolf, and the Fox, agreed
+henceforward to be friends and planned to live near each other in the
+woods behind the Farm.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE II
+
+THE PARTNERS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Bear and the Wolf and the Fox made houses quite close together and
+the Wolf and the Fox decided to go into partnership.
+
+"The first thing we ought to do," said Pekka, the Wolf, "is make a
+clearing in the forest and plant some crops."
+
+The Fox agreed and the very next day they started out to work. Each
+had a crock with three pats of butter for his dinner. They left their
+crocks in the cool water of a little spring in the forest not far from
+the place where they had decided to make a clearing.
+
+It was hard work felling trees and the Fox, soon tiring of it, made
+some sort of excuse to run off. When he came back he said to the Wolf:
+
+"Pekka, the folks at the Farm are having a christening and have sent
+me an invitation to attend."
+
+"It's too bad we're so busy to-day," the Wolf said. "Another day you
+might have gone."
+
+"But I must go," the Fox insisted. "They've been good neighbors to us
+and they'd be insulted if I refused."
+
+"Very well," the Wolf said, "if you feel that way about it you better
+go. But hurry back for we have a lot to do."
+
+So the Fox trotted off but he got no farther than the spring where the
+butter crocks were cooling. He took the Wolf's crock and licked off
+the top layer of butter. Then after a while he went back to the
+clearing.
+
+"Well, Mikko," the Wolf said, "is the christening over?"
+
+"Yes, it's over."
+
+"What did they name the child?"
+
+"They named it Top."
+
+"Top? That's a strange name!"
+
+In a few moments the Fox again ran off and returned with the
+announcement that there was to be another christening at the Farm and
+again they wanted him to attend.
+
+"Another christening!" the Wolf exclaimed. "How can that be?"
+
+"This time the daughter has a baby."
+
+"You're not going, are you, Mikko? You can't always be going to
+christenings."
+
+"That's true, Pekka, that's true," said the Fox, "but I think I must
+go this time."
+
+The Wolf sighed.
+
+"You will hurry back, won't you? This work is too much for me alone."
+
+"Yes, Pekka dear," the Fox promised, "I'll hurry back as quickly as I
+can."
+
+So he trotted off again to the spring and the Wolf's butter crock.
+This time he ate the middle pat of the Wolf's butter, then slowly
+sauntered back to the clearing.
+
+"Well," said the Wolf, pausing a moment in his work, "what did they
+name the baby this time?"
+
+"This one they named Middle."
+
+"Middle? That's a strange name to give a baby!"
+
+For a few moments the Fox pretended to work hard. Then he ran off
+again. When he came back, he said:
+
+"Pekka, do you know they're having another christening at the Farm
+and they say that I just must come."
+
+"Another christening! Now, Mikko, that's too much! How can they be
+having another christening?"
+
+"Well, this time it's the daughter-in-law that has a baby."
+
+"I don't care who it is," the Wolf said, "you just can't go. You've
+got some work to do, you have!"
+
+The Fox agreed:
+
+"You're right, Pekka, you're right! I'm entirely too busy to be
+running off all the time to christenings! I'd say, 'No!' in a minute
+if it wasn't that we are new settlers and they are our nearest
+neighbors. As it is I'm afraid they'd think it wasn't neighborly if I
+didn't come. But I'll hurry back, I promise you!"
+
+So for the third time the Fox trotted off to the little spring and
+this time he licked the Wolf's butter crock clean to the bottom. Then
+he went slowly back to the clearing and told the Wolf about the
+christening and the baby.
+
+"They've named this one Bottom," he said.
+
+"Bottom!" the Wolf echoed. "What funny names they give children
+nowadays!"
+
+The Fox pretended to work hard for a few minutes, then threw himself
+down exhausted.
+
+  [Illustration: _"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up! There's butter running
+    out of your nose!"_]
+
+"Heigh ho!" he said, with a yawn, "I'm so tired and hungry it must be
+dinner time!"
+
+The Wolf looked at the sun and said:
+
+"Yes, I think we had better rest now and eat."
+
+So they went to the spring and got their butter crocks. The Wolf found
+that his had already been licked clean.
+
+"Mikko!" he cried, "have you been at my butter?"
+
+"Me?" the Fox said in a tone of great innocence. "How could I have
+been at your butter when you know perfectly well that I've been
+working right beside you all morning except when I was away at the
+christenings? You must have eaten up your butter yourself!"
+
+"Of course I haven't eaten it up myself!" the Wolf declared. "I just
+bet anything you took it!"
+
+The Fox pretended to be much aggrieved.
+
+"Pekka, I won't have you saying such a thing! We must get at the
+bottom of this! I tell you what we'll do: we'll both lie down in the
+sun and the heat of the sun will melt the butter and make it run. Now
+then, if butter runs out of my nose then I'm the one that has eaten
+your butter; if it runs out of your nose, then you've eaten it
+yourself. Do you agree to this test?"
+
+The Wolf said, yes, he agreed, and at once lay down in the sun. He had
+been working so hard that he was very tired and in a few moments he
+was sound asleep. Thereupon the Fox slipped over and daubed a little
+lump of butter on the end of his nose. The sun melted the butter and
+then, of course, it looked as if it were running out of the Wolf's
+nose.
+
+"Wake up, Pekka! Wake up!" the Fox cried. "There's butter running out
+of your nose!"
+
+The Wolf awoke and felt his nose with his tongue.
+
+"Why, Mikko," he said in surprise, "so there is! Well, I suppose I
+must have eaten that butter myself but I give you my word for it I
+don't remember doing it!"
+
+"Well," said the Fox, pretending still to feel hurt, "you shouldn't
+always suspect me."
+
+When they went back to the clearing, the Wolf began pulling the brush
+together to burn it up and the Fox slipped away and lay down behind
+some brushes.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Wolf called. "Aren't you going to help me burn the
+brush?"
+
+"You set it a-fire," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here to guard
+against any flying sparks. We don't want to burn down the whole
+forest!"
+
+So the Wolf burned up all the brush while the Fox took a pleasant nap.
+
+Then when he was ready to plant the seed in the rich wood ashes, the
+Wolf again called out to the Fox to come help him.
+
+"You do the planting, Pekka," the Fox called back, "and I'll stay here
+and frighten off the birds. If I don't they'll come and pick up every
+seed you plant."
+
+So Mikko, the rascal, took another nap while the poor Wolf planted the
+field he had already cleared and burned.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE III
+
+THE FOX AND THE CROW
+
+[Decoration]
+
+In a short time the field that Pekka, the Wolf, had planted began to
+sprout. Pekka was delighted.
+
+"See, Mikko," he said to the Fox, "our grain is growing and we shall
+soon be harvesting it!"
+
+The Fox turned up his nose indifferently.
+
+"If we don't get something to eat before that grain ripens," he said,
+"we'll starve, both of us! While we wait for the harvest I think we
+better go out hunting. I'm going this minute for I tell you I'm
+hungry!"
+
+The Fox went sniffing into the forest and finally came to the tree
+where Harakka, the Magpie, had her nest. The Fox, cocking his head,
+paced slowly round and round the tree, looking at it from every angle.
+Harakka, the Magpie, sitting on her nest among her fledglings began to
+feel nervous.
+
+"Say, Mikko," she called down, "what are you looking at?"
+
+At first the Fox made no answer. Deep in thought, apparently, he
+nodded his head and murmured:
+
+"Yes, the very tree!"
+
+Harakka, the Magpie, again called down:
+
+"What are you looking at, Mikko?"
+
+The Fox started as though he had heard the question for the first
+time.
+
+"Ah, Harakka, is that you? Good day to you! I hope you are well! I
+hope the children are all well! I was so busy looking for the right
+tree that I didn't recognize you at first. You see I have to cut down
+a tree to get wood for a new pair of _skis_. This tree is just the one
+I want."
+
+"Oh, mercy me!" the Magpie cried. "You can't cut down this tree! Do
+you want to kill all my children? This is our home!"
+
+Mikko, the rascal, pretended to be very sympathetic.
+
+"I'm awfully sorry to have to disturb you, truly I am, but I'm afraid
+I do have to cut down this tree. I can't find another that suits me as
+well."
+
+The Magpie flapped her wings in despair.
+
+"You hard-hearted wretch! What will you take not to cut down this
+tree?"
+
+The Fox put his paw to his head and pretended to think hard. After a
+moment he said:
+
+"Well, Harakka, I'll make you this offer: I'll leave this tree
+standing provided you throw me down one of your fledglings."
+
+"What!" the poor Magpie shrieked. "Give you one of my babies! I'll
+never do that! Never! Never! _Never!_"
+
+"Oh, very well! Just as you like! If I cut the tree down I can get
+them all. But I thought for the sake of old times I'd ask for only
+one. However, do as you think best."
+
+What could the poor Magpie say? If the tree were felled and her
+fledglings thrown out of the nest they would certainly all perish.
+Perhaps it would be wise to sacrifice one to save the rest.
+
+"You promise to let the tree stand," she said, "if I give you one of
+my children?"
+
+"Yes," the rascal promised, "just drop me one of your fledglings, a
+nice plump one, and I won't cut down the tree."
+
+With shaking claw Harakka pushed one of her children over the edge of
+the nest. It fluttered to the ground and Mikko carried it off.
+
+Well, the next day what did that Fox do but come back and begin pacing
+around the tree again.
+
+"Yes," he said, pretending to talk to himself, "this is the best tree
+I can find. I might as well cut it down at once."
+
+"But, Mikko!" cried the Magpie, "you forget! You said you wouldn't cut
+down this tree if I gave you one of my children and I did give you
+one!"
+
+The Fox flipped his tail indifferently.
+
+"I know," he said, "I did promise but I thought then I could find
+another tree that would suit me as well as this one, but I can't. I've
+looked everywhere and I can't. I'm sorry but I'm afraid that I'll just
+have to take this tree."
+
+"O dear, O dear, O dear!" the poor distracted Magpie wept. "Will
+nothing make you leave this tree stand?"
+
+The Fox smacked his lips.
+
+"Well, Harakka, drop me down another of your fledglings and I won't
+disturb the tree. I promise."
+
+"What! Another of my babies! Oh, you wretch!"
+
+"Well, suit yourself," Mikko said. "One of your fledglings and you can
+keep the others safe in the nest, or I'll cut the tree down."
+
+What could the poor Magpie do? Wouldn't it be better to sacrifice
+another fledgling on the chance of saving the rest? Yes, it would! So
+she pushed another out of the nest. It fluttered to the ground and
+Mikko, the rascal, carried it off.
+
+That afternoon Varis, the Crow, came to call on the Magpie.
+
+"Why, my dear," she said, looking over the fledglings, "two of your
+children are missing! Whatever has become of them?"
+
+"It's that rascally Mikko!" the Magpie cried, and thereupon she told
+her friend the whole story.
+
+Varis, the Crow, listened carefully and then said:
+
+"My dear, that miserable Fox has been fooling you! Why, he can't cut
+down this tree or any other tree for that matter! He hasn't even got
+an ax! Don't let him impose on you a third time!"
+
+So the very next day when the Fox came and again tried the same little
+trick, Harakka, the Magpie, tossed her head scornfully and said:
+
+"Go along, you rascal! You can't fool me again! How can you cut down
+this tree or any other for that matter when you haven't even got an
+ax!"
+
+The Fox was furious at being cheated of his dinner.
+
+"You didn't think that out yourself, Harakka!" he said. "Some one's
+been talking to you! Who was it?"
+
+"It was my dear friend, Varis," the Magpie said. "She's on to your
+tricks!"
+
+"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!" the Fox muttered
+to himself as he trotted off.
+
+He went to an open field and lay down with his mouth open, pretending
+to be dead.
+
+"I'm sure Varis will soon spy me!" he said to himself.
+
+He was right. Presently the Crow began circling above him. She flew
+nearer and nearer and at last alighted on his head. His tongue was
+lolling out and Varis decided to have her first bite there. She gave
+it a sharp peck at which the Fox jumped up and caught her in his paws.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" he cried. "So you're the one who spoiled my little game with
+Harakka, are you? Well, I'll teach you not to interfere with me! As I
+haven't got one of Harakka's fledglings for my dinner, I'm going to
+take you!"
+
+"You don't mean you're going to eat me!" cried the Crow in terror.
+
+  [Illustration: _"I'll teach that Crow to interfere with my affairs!"
+    the Fox muttered to himself as he trotted off_]
+
+"That's exactly what I mean!"
+
+"No, no, Mikko! Don't do that!"
+
+"Yes, that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm going to teach you
+birds that I'm not an animal to be played jokes on!"
+
+"I suppose," the Crow said, sighing, "if it must be, it must be! But,
+Mikko, if you really want to use me as a warning to the other birds,
+you oughtn't to eat me right down. It would be much better if you
+dragged me along the ground first. Then they'd see a wing here, a leg
+there, and a long trail of feathers. That really would terrify them."
+
+"I believe you're right," the Fox said.
+
+He put the Crow down on the ground and lifted his paw for a moment to
+change his hold. The Crow instantly jerked away and escaped.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" she cawed as she flew off. "You were clever enough to catch
+me, Mikko, but you weren't clever enough to eat me when you had me!"
+
+So this was one time when Mikko, the Fox, was worsted.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IV
+
+THE CHIEF MOURNER
+
+[Decoration]
+
+"Mercy me!" thought Mikko to himself as he watched Varis, the Crow,
+fly away, "this is certainly my unlucky day! There I had my dinner
+right in my hand and then lost it!"
+
+Sighing and shaking his head he sauntered slowly back to the forest.
+
+Now it happened that Osmo, the Bear, had just lost his wife and was
+out looking for some one to bewail her death. The first person he met
+was Pekka, the Wolf.
+
+"Pekka," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+"Me? Indeed I can! Just listen!"
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, pointed his nose to the sky and let out a long
+shivery howl.
+
+"There!" he said. "I don't believe you'll find any one that can do any
+better than that!"
+
+But Osmo, the Bear, shook his head.
+
+"No, Pekka, you won't do. I don't like your mourning at all!"
+
+The Bear ambled on and presently he met the Hare.
+
+"Good day, Jussi," he said. "Are you any good at mourning? Show me
+what you can do."
+
+The Hare gave some frightened squeaks as his idea of mourning the
+dead.
+
+"No, no," Osmo said, "I don't like your mourning either."
+
+So he walked on farther until by chance he met the Fox.
+
+"Mikko," he said, "my wife's dead and I'm out looking for a good
+strong mourner. Can you mourn?"
+
+  [Illustration: _And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering
+    sound, slowly rose to a high heartrending cry_]
+
+"Can I? Indeed I can!" the Fox declared. "I'm a marvel at mourning! I
+can wail high and low and soft and loud and just any way you want!
+Listen!" And Mikko, beginning with a little whimpering sound, slowly
+rose to a high heartrending cry. This is what he wailed:
+
+      "_Med! Med! Med!_
+    The Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Lax! Lax! Lax!_
+    No more she'll spin the flax!
+      _Eyes! Eyes! Eyes!_
+    No more she'll bake the pies!
+      _Air! Air! Air!_
+    No more she'll drive the mare!
+      _Shakes! Shakes! Shakes!_
+    There'll be no more little cakes!
+      _Darth! Darth! Darth!_
+    Throw the pots on the hearth
+    For the Bear's Wife is dead!
+      _Med! Med! Med!_"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, was deeply moved.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he grunted hoarsely. "How well you knew her!
+Come along home with me, Mikko, and start right in! Oh, how
+beautifully you wail!"
+
+So Mikko went home with the Bear. The old Bear Wife was laid out on a
+bench in the kitchen.
+
+"Now then," the Bear said, "you begin the wailing while I cook the
+porridge."
+
+"No, no, Osmo," the Fox said, "I couldn't possibly wail in here! The
+place is full of smoke and my voice would get husky in two minutes!
+Can't you lay her out in the storehouse?"
+
+The Bear demurred but the Fox insisted and at last had his way. So
+together they dragged the body of the old Bear Wife out to the
+storehouse. The Fox stood beside the body ready to begin his wailing
+and the Bear went back to the kitchen.
+
+The moment the Bear was out of sight Mikko, the rascal, instead of
+bewailing the old Bear Wife began gobbling her up! He just gobbled and
+gobbled and gobbled as fast as he could.
+
+"What's the matter?" the Bear called out after a few minutes. "Why
+don't you begin?"
+
+The Fox made no reply but kept on gobbling as hard as he could.
+
+"Mikko! Mikko!" the Bear called out again. "What's the matter? Why
+aren't you howling?"
+
+By this time the Fox had made a good dinner, so he called back:
+
+"Don't bother me! I'm busy eating! Yum! Yum! Yum! Bear meat is awful
+good! Just give me a few more minutes and I'll be finished!"
+
+At that the Bear rushed out of the kitchen in a terrible rage but the
+Fox was already running off and the Bear was unable to catch him. He
+did hit the end of his tail with the long spoon with which he had
+been measuring the meal, but that was all.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, got safely away. However, to this day his tail
+shows the white mark of the meal.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE V
+
+MIRRI, THE CAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while the Fox was out walking in the forest he met a stranger.
+
+"Good day," he said. "Who are you?"
+
+"I am Mirri," the stranger said, "a poor unfortunate Cat out of
+employment. I had service in a decent family but I've had to leave
+them."
+
+"Did they treat you badly?" the Fox asked.
+
+"No, it wasn't that. They were considerate enough but they kept
+getting poorer and poorer until finally they hadn't food enough to
+feed us animals. Then I overheard the master say that soon they'd be
+forced to eat us and that they'd begin with me. At that I decided it
+was time for me to run away and here I am."
+
+"My poor Cat," Mikko said, "you've had a cruel experience! Why don't
+you take service with me?"
+
+"Will I be safe with you?" the Cat asked. "Will you protect me?"
+
+"Will I?" the Fox repeated boastfully. "My dear Mirri, once it becomes
+known that you are Mikko's servant all the animals will show you a
+wholesome respect."
+
+"Well then, I'll enter your service," the Cat said.
+
+So the bargain was struck and the Fox at once began to train his new
+servant.
+
+"Now, Mirri, tell me: what would you do if you suddenly met a Bear?"
+
+"There's just one thing I could do, master: I'd run up a tree."
+
+The Fox laughed.
+
+"You must have more ways than one to meet such a situation! Take me
+now: there are any of a hundred things that I could do if I met a
+Bear!"
+
+  [Illustration: _He jerked quickly away and fled and the Bear was
+    left standing with his mouth wide open_]
+
+Just then Osmo, the Bear, ambled softly up behind the Fox. The Cat saw
+him and instantly flew up a tree. Before the Fox could move Osmo
+clutched him firmly on the shoulder with his teeth.
+
+"Oh, master, master!" the Cat called down from the tree. "What's this?
+I with my one way have escaped and you with your hundred are caught!"
+
+But the Fox paid no heed to the Cat. He twisted his head around and
+looked reproachfully at the Bear.
+
+"Why, Osmo, my dear old friend!" he said, "what in the world do you
+mean taking hold of me so roughly! Ouch! You're nipping my shoulder,
+really you are! I don't understand why you're acting this way! Here
+I've always been such a good friend to you, so faithful, so true,
+so--"
+
+"What!" rumbled the Bear. "Faithful! True! Oh, you--"
+
+Osmo's feelings overcame him to such an extent that he opened his jaws
+to roar out freely his denial of the Fox's hypocrisy.
+
+That gave the Fox just the chance he wanted. He jerked quickly away
+and fled and the Bear was left standing with his mouth wide open.
+
+Later when the Bear had ambled off the Fox returned and called the Cat
+down from the tree.
+
+"You see, Mirri," he remarked casually, "it wasn't anything at all for
+me to get the best of the Bear!"
+
+He could see that he had vastly impressed the Cat, so he let the
+subject drop.
+
+"Come along, Mirri," he said, "it's time for us to go home."
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _A terrible creature landed on his nose and drove it
+    full of pins and needles_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VI
+
+THE FOX'S SERVANT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+A day or so later the Fox met Pekka, the Wolf. The Fox hadn't seen
+much of Pekka recently for Pekka had been having a hard time and had
+been on the verge of starvation. Now he was sleek again and well fed
+for he had recently killed an Ox.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," the Fox said in a friendly way.
+
+"Good day, Mikko. How are you?"
+
+"Very fine indeed!" the Fox said. "You see I have a new servant. Oh,
+he's a wonderful servant! He's not big to look at, you know, but he's
+so strong and quick that he'd jump on you in a minute and eat you up
+before you knew what was happening!"
+
+"Really, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes, really! You just ought to see him!"
+
+"I'd like to see him," the Wolf said.
+
+"Well, you might slip down now and take a peep in the kitchen. He's at
+home. But, my dear Pekka, I warn you not to let him see you! If he
+catches sight of you, I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+The Wolf was deeply impressed with all this. He crept carefully down
+to the Fox's kitchen and sniffed cautiously at the crack under the
+door. The Cat inside, seeing the tip of the Wolf's nose and thinking
+it was a Mouse, pounced on it with all his claws. This gave the Wolf a
+mighty fright and he bolted madly off into the forest.
+
+He was still panting when he met the Bear.
+
+"Osmo," he said, "have you heard about that awful creature that Mikko
+has for a servant?"
+
+The Bear had heard nothing, so the Wolf related to him his own
+terrifying experience.
+
+The Bear's curiosity was aroused.
+
+"I must have a glimpse of this wonderful servant," he said, ambling
+off in the direction of the Fox's kitchen.
+
+"I'll wait for you here," the Wolf called after him, "and I warn you,
+Osmo, be careful!"
+
+The Bear when he got to the Fox's kitchen quietly stuck his nose under
+the crack of the door and squinted inside. He hardly had time for one
+squint when a terrible creature with a straight tail that looked like
+a spear came flying through the air, landed on his nose, and drove it
+full of pins and needles.
+
+"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" the Bear whimpered as he hurried back to the Wolf.
+
+"Did you see him?" the Wolf asked.
+
+"I got just one glimpse of him," the Bear said. "He had a long spear
+sticking up over his shoulder and he came swooping down through the
+air just as if he had wings!"
+
+"My! I wish we could really see him!" the Wolf said. "Suppose we ask
+Mikko to arrange some way we can have a good look at him."
+
+So they went to the Fox and Mikko, the rascal, said:
+
+"Well, now, if you make a feast and invite my servant I think he will
+come."
+
+"All right," the Wolf said, "that's what we'll do. I've still got some
+of that ox. It will make a fine feast."
+
+So they roasted the remains of the ox and set it out.
+
+"Now I'll go get my servant," the Fox said. "When you hear us coming,
+you two hide some place where you can see us but we can't see you. If
+my servant once sees you I won't be responsible for the consequences!"
+
+So the Wolf hid in some bushes nearby and the Bear drew himself up
+into the branches of a tree.
+
+Well, the Fox and the Cat arrived and sat them down to the feast. Now
+it happened that the Wolf was not able to see, so he tried to twist
+himself around into a better position. The Cat caught a glimpse of his
+tail moving in the bushes and instantly pounced on it. With one
+terrified yelp, the Wolf jumped out of the bushes and fled into the
+forest as fast as he could.
+
+In fright the Cat scampered up the tree and the Bear, of course,
+supposed that the awful creature now was after him. In his frantic
+efforts to escape he tumbled down out of the tree and broke two ribs.
+But for all that he made off, too terrified to look back.
+
+So the Fox and the Cat were left to finish the ox in peace.
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VII
+
+THE WOLF SINGS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Having sacrificed his ox in order to feast the Fox's servant, the Wolf
+had nothing left for himself and was soon very hungry. He could find
+nothing to eat in the forest, so he went prowling around a farm in
+hopes of getting a pig or a chicken. The only living creature he came
+upon was a thin old Dog asleep in the sun.
+
+"This is better than nothing," he thought to himself and, taking hold
+of the Dog, he began dragging it off.
+
+"Cousin! Cousin!" cried the Dog. "Is this any way to treat a
+relation? Let me go!"
+
+"I'm sorry," the Wolf said, "but I can't let you go. I'm too hungry."
+
+"Let me go," the Dog begged, "and I tell you what I'll do: I'll give
+you a bottle of vodka."
+
+"Promises come easy," the Wolf said. "Where will you get the vodka?"
+
+"Under the bench in the kitchen. That's where the master keeps his
+bottle. I've seen him hide it there. Come to-night after the family's
+asleep and I'll let you in and give you the vodka."
+
+Now Pekka, the Wolf, was very fond of vodka, so he said to the Dog:
+
+"Very well, I'll let you go. But see that you keep your promise!"
+
+Late that night when the family were asleep, the Wolf came scratching
+at the farmhouse door and the Dog let him in.
+
+"Well, old fellow, you know why I've come," the Wolf said.
+
+At once the Dog crawled under the bench and got the master's bottle of
+vodka.
+
+"Here, Pekka, here it is!" he said, offering the Wolf the bottle.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Wolf went staggering around the room howling
+    at the top of his voice_]
+
+"You drink first," Pekka insisted. "You're the host."
+
+The Dog raised the bottle and took a little sip. Then the Wolf took a
+deep swallow.
+
+"Ah!" he said, smacking his lips, "that's something like!"
+
+His stomach was empty and the vodka went through his veins like fire.
+He felt happy and laughed and went capering around the room.
+
+"I feel like singing!" he cried.
+
+"My dear Pekka," the Dog said, "I beg you don't sing! You will wake
+the folks! Sit down quietly and we'll talk."
+
+So they sat awhile and talked and then the Wolf took another deep
+swallow of the vodka. Again he wanted to sing and the Dog had trouble
+in restraining him.
+
+"Do you want to wake the family, Pekka? Be quiet now or you can't have
+any more vodka!"
+
+The Wolf took another deep drink and after that there was no holding
+him back. He went staggering around the room howling at the top of his
+voice.
+
+The Farmer and all his family came hurrying into the kitchen with
+clubs and pokers and whatever they could pick up.
+
+"It's a Wolf!" the Farmer cried. "The impudent scoundrel, coming
+right into the house! Give him a good beating!"
+
+If the door hadn't been open they would have clubbed poor Pekka to
+death. As it was he barely escaped with his life.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded,
+    running helter-skelter in all directions_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE VIII
+
+THE CLEVER GOAT
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The truth is Pekka, the Wolf, was a pretty stupid fellow always
+getting into some scrape or other. With sore ribs and a back aching
+from the beating which the farm folk had given him he slunk quietly
+along the forest ways hoping to come upon some easy prey. Suddenly he
+saw ahead of him a Goat and a Ram.
+
+"What are they doing hereabouts?" he thought to himself. "This is no
+place for them and if anything happens to them it will be their own
+fault."
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, both knew that the forest was no
+place for them. But where else could they go? They had recently been
+turned loose to fend for themselves by their poor old master who was
+no longer able to feed them.
+
+"This forest rather frightens me," the Ram had said to the Goat. "Do
+you suppose we'll be able to keep off the Wolves?"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, flirted his whiskers and said:
+
+"I've got a plan."
+
+Thereupon he took a sack and half filled it with dry chips. Then when
+he shook the sack the chips made a hollow rattle. He threw the sack
+over his shoulder and said to the Ram:
+
+"Don't you be frightened, Dinas. We'll be able to hold our own with
+the forest creatures."
+
+It was just at this moment that Pekka, the Wolf, appeared.
+
+"Ha! Ha!" said Pekka suspiciously. "What's that you've got in that
+sack? No nonsense now! Answer me at once or I'll have to kill you
+both!"
+
+Vuhi, the Goat, gave the sack a little rattle.
+
+"In this sack?" he said. "Oh, only the skulls and bones of the Wolves
+we have eaten. We haven't had any Wolf meat now for some time, have
+we, Dinas? It's good you've come along for we're hungry.... Attention,
+Dinas! Kill the Wolf!"
+
+The Ram lowered his horns ready for attack and Pekka, the Wolf, too
+surprised to resist and too stiff to run away, cried out wildly:
+
+"Brothers! Brothers! Don't kill me! I'm your friend! Spare me and I'll
+do something for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "Don't kill the Wolf just
+yet!"
+
+Then he asked Pekka:
+
+"What will you do for us if we spare you?"
+
+"I'll send you twelve Wolves," Pekka promised. "That will give you
+more meat than you'd have if you killed just me!"
+
+"Twelve," the Goat replied. "You are right: twelve Wolves will give us
+more meat than one. Very well, we'll let you go on condition that you
+send us twelve. But see you keep your word!"
+
+So the Wolf went off as fast as his stiff legs could carry him and
+assembled twelve of his brothers.
+
+"I've called you together," he said, "to warn you of two terrible
+creatures, a Goat and a Ram, who are here in the forest eating up
+Wolves! Already they have a sack full of our unfortunate relations'
+skulls and bones! I saw the sack myself! Don't you think we ought all
+of us to flee?"
+
+"What!" said the other Wolves, "thirteen Wolves turn tail on one Goat
+and one Ram? Never! We'll go together and give them battle!"
+
+"Don't count me in!" Pekka said. "I don't want to see those two
+again!"
+
+So the twelve Wolves marched off without Pekka.
+
+The Goat as he saw them coming ran up a tree. The Ram followed him but
+couldn't get very high.
+
+The twelve Wolves came under the tree and standing in close formation
+called out:
+
+"Now then, you two, come on! We're ready for you!"
+
+"Attention, Dinas!" the Goat commanded. "They're all here, so lose no
+more time! Jump down among them and kill them!"
+
+The Goat himself began climbing down the tree, at the same time making
+an awful noise with his sack. He gave the Ram a push and the Ram
+slipped and fell right on the backs of the Wolves.
+
+"That's right, Dinas! Kill them all!" the Goat shouted, rattling his
+sack more furiously than ever. "Don't let one of them escape!"
+
+In the confusion that followed the Wolves stampeded, running
+helter-skelter in all directions. Every Wolf there felt that his own
+escape was a piece of rare good fortune.
+
+"Those terrible two!" he thought.
+
+Thereafter Vuhi, the Goat, and Dinas, the Ram, lived on in the forest
+untroubled by the Wolves.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Here are three of us and see, here on the floor is
+    our harvest already divided into three heaps"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE IX
+
+THE HARVEST
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, the time came when the field of barley which the Fox and the
+Wolf had planted together was ready to harvest. So the two friends cut
+the grain and carried the sheaves to the threshing barn where they
+spread them out to dry. When it was time to thresh the grain, they
+asked Osmo, the Bear, to come and help them.
+
+"Certainly," Osmo said.
+
+At the time agreed the three animals met at the threshing barn.
+
+"Now the first thing to decide," Pekka said, "is how to divide the
+work."
+
+The Fox climbed nimbly up to the rafters.
+
+"I'll stay up here," he called down, "and support the beams and the
+rafters. In that way there won't be any danger of their falling and
+injuring either of you. You two work down there without any concern.
+Trust me! I'll take care of you!"
+
+So Osmo, the Bear, used the flail, and Pekka, the Wolf, winnowed the
+chaff from the grain. Mikko, the rascal, occasionally dropped down
+upon them a hunk of wood.
+
+"Take care!" they'd call out. "Do you want to kill us?"
+
+"Indeed, brothers, you have no idea how hard it is for me to hold up
+all these rafters!" Mikko would say. "You're very lucky it's only a
+little piece that drops on you now and then! If it weren't for me
+you'd certainly be killed, both of you!"
+
+Well, the Bear and the Wolf worked steadily. When they were finished
+Mikko, the rascal, leaped down from the rafters and stretched himself
+as though he had been working the hardest of them all.
+
+"I'm glad that job of mine is finished!" he said. "I couldn't have
+held things up much longer!"
+
+"Well now," Pekka asked, "how shall we divide this our harvest?"
+
+"I'll tell you how," Mikko said. "Here are three of us and, see, here
+on the floor is our harvest already divided into three heaps. The
+biggest heap will naturally go to the biggest of us. That's Osmo, the
+Bear. The middle sized heap will go to you, Pekka. I'm the smallest,
+so the smallest heap comes to me."
+
+The Bear and the Wolf, stupid old things, agreed to this. So Osmo took
+the great heap of straw, Pekka the pile of chaff, and Mikko, the
+rascal, got for his share the little mound of clean grain.
+
+Together they all went to the mill to grind their meal.
+
+As the millstone turned on Mikko's grain, it made a rough rasping
+sound.
+
+"Strange," Osmo said to Pekka, "Mikko's grain sounds different from
+ours."
+
+"Mix some sand with yours," Mikko said, "then yours will make the same
+sound."
+
+So the Bear and the Wolf poured some sand in their straw and their
+chaff and sure enough, when they turned their millstones again, they,
+too, got a rough rasping sound.
+
+This satisfied them and they went home feeling they had just as good a
+winter's supply of food as Mikko.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _He dropped it in the water and of course it spread
+    out far and wide and the current carried it off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE X
+
+THE PORRIDGE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Well, it was only natural that they should all want to see at once
+what kind of porridge their meal would make.
+
+Osmo's came out black and disgusting. Greatly disturbed he ambled over
+to Mikko's house for advice. The Fox was stirring his own porridge
+which was white and smooth.
+
+"What's the matter with my porridge?" the Bear asked. "Yours is white
+and smooth but mine is black and horrid."
+
+"Did you wash your meal before you put it into the pot?" the Fox
+asked.
+
+"Wash it? No! How do you wash meal?"
+
+"You take it to the river and drop it in the water. Then when it's
+clean you take it out."
+
+The Bear at once went home and got his ground up straw and took it to
+the river. He dropped it in the water and of course it spread out far
+and wide and the current carried it off.
+
+So that was the end of Osmo's share of the harvest.
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, had as little luck with his porridge. Soon he, too,
+came to Mikko for advice.
+
+"I don't know what's the matter with me," he said. "I don't seem to be
+able to make good porridge. Look at yours all white and smooth! I must
+watch you how you make it. Won't you let me hang my pot on your crane?
+Then I'll do just as you do."
+
+"Certainly," the Fox said. "Hang your pot on this chain and the two
+pots can then cook side by side."
+
+"Yours is so white to begin with," Pekka said, "and mine looks no
+better than dirt."
+
+"Before you came I climbed up the chain and hung over the pot," the
+Fox said. "The heat of the fire melted the fat in my tail and it
+dripped down into the pot. It's that fat that makes my porridge look
+so white."
+
+Poor gullible Pekka immediately suspended himself on the chain above
+his porridge. But he didn't stay there long. The flames scorched him
+and he fell down hurting his side. If you notice, to this day any Wolf
+that you meet has stiff sides that make it hard for him to turn and
+twist, and to this day all Wolves smell of burnt hair.
+
+Well, Pekka, after he had got his breath, tasted his porridge again to
+see if it was any better. But it wasn't. It was as bad as ever.
+
+"I don't see any difference in it," he said. "Let me taste yours,
+Mikko."
+
+The Fox artfully scooped up a spoonful of the Wolf's porridge and
+dropped it into his own pot.
+
+"Help yourself," he said. "Take some out of that spot there. That's
+good."
+
+The place he pointed to was, of course, the place where he had dropped
+some of the Wolf's own porridge.
+
+So poor old stupid Pekka only sampled his own porridge again when he
+thought he was tasting Mikko's.
+
+"Strange," he said, "your porridge doesn't taste good to me either. I
+don't believe anything tastes good to me to-day. The truth is I don't
+believe I like porridge."
+
+He went home sad and discouraged while Mikko, the rascal, chuckled to
+himself and said:
+
+"I wonder why Pekka doesn't like porridge. It tastes awful good to
+me!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XI
+
+NURSE MIKKO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+The Wolf's wife gave birth to three little cubs and then died.
+
+"You poor children!" Pekka said, "your mother is dead and there is no
+one to take her place. I must get you a nurse."
+
+So he went through the forest hunting some one to take care of his
+motherless cubs. The white Grouse offered her services but, when she
+sang a lullaby to show what a good nurse she could be, Pekka shook his
+head.
+
+"I don't like your voice," he said. "I can't take you."
+
+Then Jussi, the Hare, applied for the position.
+
+"You know I'm lame," he said, "so quiet work like nursing would suit
+me."
+
+"Can you sing lullabies?" Pekka asked.
+
+"Oh, yes! Listen!" and Jussi began squealing.
+
+"Stop!" Pekka cried. "I don't like your voice either."
+
+Just then Mikko, the Fox, came running up.
+
+"Good day, Pekka," he said. "I hear you're out looking for a nurse for
+your sweet babies."
+
+"Yes, Mikko, I am. Can you recommend one?"
+
+"I'd like the job myself," the Fox said.
+
+"You, Mikko?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"But you can't sing lullabies, can you?"
+
+"Oh, yes! I sing them very beautifully. Listen:
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Hushabye to sleep!
+    Who best loves you, do you think?
+    Who will give you food and drink?
+    Who on faithful guard will keep?
+    Mikko! Mikko!
+
+    'Hushabye, sweet little cubs,
+    Mikko loves you well,
+    Loves each little pointed nose,
+    Loves your little scratchy toes,
+    Loves you more than he can tell--
+    Mikko! Mikko!'"
+
+  [Illustration: _He ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+    Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out_]
+
+Pekka, the Wolf, was charmed with Mikko's lullaby.
+
+"Beautiful! Beautiful!" he said. "I never heard a sweeter lullaby!
+You're the very nurse I want! Come home with me at once."
+
+So Mikko went home with Pekka and took over the care of the three
+little Wolf cubs.
+
+"I'll go off now and get them something to eat," Pekka said.
+
+He came back after a while with the hind leg of a horse.
+
+"This will be enough for them to start on," he said.
+
+The Fox shook his head.
+
+"I'm afraid it won't last them very long. They're beautiful healthy
+children with fine appetites."
+
+"Poor little dears!" Pekka said. "Let me see them."
+
+"Not just now!" Mikko insisted. "They're asleep and mustn't be
+disturbed. Go out hunting again and the next time you come home you
+shall see them."
+
+Pekka felt that the Fox must be a very good nurse indeed to be so
+strict. So he went off hunting again without seeing his children.
+
+As soon as he was gone Mikko, the rascal, ate up all the horse meat
+without giving the cubs one bite and then, as he was still hungry, he
+ate one of the cubs. The next day he ate another cub, and the day
+following he ate the last of them. He was just finishing that last
+cub when the Wolf came home and called in at the door:
+
+"Now, nurse, here I am come home to see my dear children! They're
+well, aren't they?"
+
+"Very well!" the Fox declared. "But they've grown so big under my good
+care that the house isn't large enough now to hold them and you and me
+at the same time. If you're coming in, I must get out first."
+
+So the Wolf stood aside as the Fox came out and scampered away.
+
+Then the Wolf went in and of course all he could find of his dear
+children were their bones.
+
+"You faithless, faithless nurse!" he cried.
+
+In awful rage he ran after Mikko and was about to overtake him when
+Mikko slipped into a crevice in the rocks. Only one paw stuck out. The
+Wolf pounced on this paw and began gnawing it.
+
+"Say, Pekka, have you gone crazy?" the Fox asked. "What do you think
+you're doing biting that old root? I hope you don't think it's one of
+my paws. I'm sitting on all four paws."
+
+The Wolf looked up to see whether this was true and, quick as a flash,
+Mikko, the rascal, drew in his paw.
+
+So the poor old Wolf, fooled again, went sadly home.
+
+
+  [Illustration: _Of course the instant he opened his mouth the Grouse
+    flew away_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XII
+
+THE BEAR SAYS _NORTH_
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day while Osmo, the Bear, was prowling about the woods he caught a
+Grouse.
+
+"Pretty good!" he thought to himself. "Wouldn't the other animals be
+surprised if they knew old Osmo had caught a Grouse!"
+
+He was so proud of his feat that he wanted all the world to know of
+it. So, holding the Grouse carefully in his teeth without injuring it,
+he began parading up and down the forest ways.
+
+"They'll all certainly envy me this nice plump Grouse," he thought.
+"And they won't be so ready to call me awkward and lumbering after
+this, either!"
+
+Presently Mikko, the Fox, sauntered by. He saw at once that Osmo was
+showing off and he determined that the Bear would not get the
+satisfaction of any admiration from him. So he pretended not to see
+the Grouse at all. Instead he pointed his nose upwards and sniffed.
+
+"Um! Um!" grunted Osmo, trying to attract attention to himself.
+
+"Ah," Mikko remarked, casually, "is that you, Osmo? What way is the
+wind blowing to-day? Can you tell me?"
+
+Osmo, of course, could not answer without opening his mouth, so he
+grunted again hoping that Mikko would have to notice why he couldn't
+answer. But the Fox didn't glance at him at all. With his nose still
+pointed upwards he kept sniffing the air.
+
+"It seems to me it's from the South," he said. "Isn't it from the
+South, Osmo?"
+
+"Um! Um! Um!" the Bear grunted.
+
+"You say it is from the South, Osmo? Are you sure?"
+
+"Um! Um!" Osmo repeated, growing every moment more impatient.
+
+"Oh, not from the South, you say. Then from what direction is it
+blowing?"
+
+By this time the Bear was so exasperated by Mikko's interest in the
+wind when he should have been admiring the Grouse that he forgot
+himself, opened his mouth, and roared out:
+
+"North!"
+
+Of course the instant he opened his mouth, the Grouse flew away.
+
+"Now see what you've done!" he stormed angrily. "You've made me lose
+my fine plump Grouse!"
+
+"I?" Mikko asked. "What had I to do with it?"
+
+"You kept asking me about the wind until I opened my mouth--that's
+what you did!"
+
+The Fox shrugged his shoulders.
+
+"Why did you open your mouth?"
+
+"Well, you can't say, 'North!' without opening your mouth, can you?"
+the Bear demanded.
+
+The Fox laughed heartily.
+
+"See here, Osmo, don't blame me. Blame yourself. If I had had that
+Grouse in my mouth and you had asked me about the wind, I should never
+have said, 'North!'"
+
+"What would you have said?" the Bear asked.
+
+Mikko, the rascal, laughed harder than ever. Then he clenched his
+teeth and said:
+
+"East!"
+
+
+  [Illustration: _"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my
+    bread don't taste a bit like this!"_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIII
+
+OSMO'S SHARE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+One day Osmo, the Bear, came to a clearing where a Man was plowing.
+
+"Good day," the Bear said. "What are you doing?"
+
+"I'm plowing," the Man answered. "After I finish plowing I'm going to
+harrow and then plant the field, half in wheat and half in turnips."
+
+"Yum! Yum!" Osmo thought to himself. "Good food that--wheat and
+turnips!"
+
+Aloud he said:
+
+"I know how to plow and harrow. What do you say to my helping you?"
+
+"If you help me," the Man said, "I'll share the harvest with you."
+
+So Osmo set to work and between them they soon had the field plowed,
+harrowed, and planted.
+
+When Autumn came they went to get their crops.
+
+At the turnip field the Man said:
+
+"Now what do you want as your share--the part that grows above the
+ground or the part that grows below?"
+
+Osmo, the Bear, seeing how green and luxuriant the turnip tops were,
+said:
+
+"Give me the part that grows above ground."
+
+After they had harvested the turnips, they went on to the wheat field
+where the Man put the same question.
+
+The wheat stocks were all dry and shriveled. Osmo looked at them
+wisely and said:
+
+"This time you better give me the part that grows under the ground."
+
+The Man laughed in his sleeve and agreed.
+
+One day the following winter the two met and the Man invited the Bear
+to dinner. Osmo who was very hungry accepted the invitation gladly.
+
+First they had baked turnips.
+
+"Oh, but these are good!" Osmo said. "I've never tasted anything
+better! What are they?"
+
+"Why," the Man said, "they're the turnips from that field that you and
+I planted together."
+
+The Bear was greatly surprised.
+
+Then they had some freshly baked bread.
+
+"How good! How good!" Osmo exclaimed. "What is it?"
+
+"Just plain bread," the Man said, "baked from the wheat you and I
+planted together."
+
+Osmo was more surprised than ever.
+
+"Why, do you know," he said, "my turnips and my bread don't taste a
+bit like this!"
+
+The Man burst out laughing and Osmo wondered why.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _The first person they met was an old Horse. They
+    put their case to him_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XIV
+
+THE REWARD OF KINDNESS
+
+[Decoration]
+
+Osmo, the Bear, used to go day after day to a field of growing rye and
+eat as much as he wanted. The Farmer noticed from the Bear's tracks
+that he always came by the same route.
+
+"I'll teach that Bear a lesson!" the Farmer thought to himself.
+
+So he set a snare made of a strong net and carefully covered it over
+with leaves and branches.
+
+That day Osmo, when he came as usual to the field, got entangled in
+the net and was unable to escape.
+
+The Farmer when he came and found him securely caught was overjoyed.
+
+"Now, you brute!" he said, "I've got you and I'm going to kill you!"
+
+"Oh, master, don't do that!" the Bear implored. "Don't kill me!"
+
+"Why shouldn't I kill you?" the Farmer asked. "Aren't you destroying
+my rye?"
+
+"Let me off this time!" Osmo begged, "and I'll reward you! I swear I
+will!"
+
+He begged and begged until at last he prevailed upon the Farmer to
+open the net and let him out.
+
+"Now then," the Farmer said as soon as the Bear was freed, "how are
+you going to reward me?"
+
+Osmo put a heavy paw on the Farmer's shoulder.
+
+"This is how I'm going to reward you," he said: "I'm going to eat you
+up!"
+
+"What!" the Farmer exclaimed, "is that your idea of a reward for
+kindness?"
+
+"Exactly!" Osmo declared. "In this world that is the reward kindness
+always gets! Ask any one!"
+
+"I don't believe it! I don't believe it!" the Farmer cried.
+
+"Very well. I'll prove to you that I'm right. We'll ask the first
+person we meet."
+
+The first person they met was an old Horse. They put their case to
+him.
+
+"The Bear is right," the old Horse said. "Look at me: For thirty
+years I gave my master faithful service and just this morning I heard
+him say: 'It's time we killed that old plug! He's no good for work any
+more and he's only eating his head off!'"
+
+The Bear squinted his little eyes.
+
+"You see!"
+
+"No, I don't see!" the Farmer insisted. "We must ask some one else."
+
+They walked on a little farther until they met an old Dog. They put
+their case to him and at once the Dog said:
+
+"The Bear is right! Look at me: I gave my master a life time of
+faithful service and just this morning I overheard him say: 'It's time
+we killed that old Dog!' Alas, alas, in this wicked world goodness is
+always so rewarded!"
+
+But still the Farmer was unsatisfied and to humor him Osmo said that
+he was willing that they should put their case once more to the
+judgment of an outsider.
+
+The next person they met was Mikko, the Fox. Mikko listened carefully
+and then drawing the Farmer aside he whispered:
+
+"If I give judgment in your favor will you let me carry off all the
+chickens in your hen-house?"
+
+"Indeed I will!" the Farmer promised.
+
+Then Mikko cleared his throat importantly and said:
+
+"H'm! H'm! To give fair judgment in this case I must go over all the
+ground. First show me the field of rye and the damage Osmo did."
+
+So they went to the field and the Fox, after he had appraised the
+damage, shook his head seriously.
+
+"It was certainly wicked of Osmo eating all that rye!... Now show me
+the net."
+
+So they went to the snare and the Fox examined it carefully.
+
+"You say the Bear got entangled in this snare. I want to see just how
+he did it."
+
+Osmo showed just how he had been caught.
+
+"Get all the way in," the Fox said. "I want to make sure that you
+couldn't possibly get out unaided."
+
+So the Bear entangled himself again in the net and proved that he
+couldn't possibly get out unaided.
+
+"Well," said Mikko, the rascal, "you deserved to get caught the first
+time and now that you're in there again you can just stay there! Come
+on, Mr. Farmer."
+
+So Mikko and the Farmer went off leaving Osmo to his fate.
+
+That night the Fox went to the Farmer's hen-house to claim his reward.
+When he came in the chickens, of course, set up an awful squawking
+that aroused the family. The Farmer stayed in bed but he sent his wife
+out with a stout club.
+
+"It sounds to me," he said, "as if some rascally Fox is trying to
+steal our hens. If you catch him, don't be gentle with him!"
+
+"Gentle!" repeated the wife significantly.
+
+She hurried out to the hen-house and when she found Mikko inside she
+gave him an awful beating. In fact he barely escaped with his life.
+
+"Ah!" he said to himself as he limped painfully home, "to think that
+this is the reward my kindness has received! Oh, what a wicked, wicked
+world this is!"
+
+[Decoration]
+
+
+  [Illustration: _With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little
+    mouse scampered off_]
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XV
+
+THE BEAR AND THE MOUSE
+
+[Decoration]
+
+When Osmo, the Bear, was left alone in the net, he thrashed about this
+way and that until he was exhausted. Then he fell asleep.
+
+While he slept a host of little Mice began playing all over his great
+body.
+
+Their tiny feet tickled him and he woke with a start. The Mice
+scampered off, all but one that Osmo caught under his paw.
+
+"Tweek! Tweek!" the frightened little Mouse cried. "Let me go! Let me
+go! Please let me go! If you do I'll reward you some day! I promise I
+will!"
+
+Osmo let out a great roar of laughter.
+
+"What, little one? You'll reward me! Ha! Ha! That is good! The Mouse
+will reward the Bear! Well now, that is a joke! However, little one, I
+will let you go! You're too weak and insignificant for me to kill and
+too small to eat. So run along!"
+
+With that the Bear lifted his paw and the little Mouse scampered off.
+
+"It will reward me for my kindness!" Osmo repeated, and in spite of
+the fact that he was fast caught in a net he shook again with
+laughter.
+
+He was still laughing when the little Mouse returned with a great army
+of his fellows. All the host at once began gnawing at the ropes of the
+net and in no time at all they had freed the big Bear.
+
+"You see," the little Mouse said, "although we are weak and
+insignificant we can reward a kindness!"
+
+Osmo was so ashamed for having laughed at the Mice on account of their
+size that all he could say as he shambled off into the forest was:
+
+"Thanks!"
+
+
+[Decoration]
+
+ADVENTURE XVI
+
+THE LAST OF OSMO
+
+[Decoration]
+
+There was a Farmer that used to drive his sledge into the forest to
+cut wood. Always as he drove he shouted abusively at his Horse.
+
+"Go along, you old plug!" he'd say. "What do you think you're good
+for, anyway? If you don't move along more lively I'll give you to the
+Bear for his supper--that's what I'll do with you!"
+
+Now Osmo, the Bear, heard about this, how the Farmer was always
+talking about giving him his Horse, so one afternoon while the Farmer
+was going through his usual tirade Osmo suddenly stepped out of the
+bushes and said:
+
+"Well, Mr. Farmer, here I am! Suppose you give me my supper."
+
+The Farmer was greatly taken back.
+
+"I didn't really mean what I was saying," he stammered. "He's a good
+Horse but he's a little lazy--that's all."
+
+Osmo stood there swaying his shoulders and twisting his head.
+
+"Even if he is lazy he'll taste all right to me. Come along, Mr.
+Farmer, hand him over as you've promised to do this long time!"
+
+"But I can't afford to give you my Horse!" the Farmer cried. "He's the
+only Horse I've got!"
+
+But the Bear was firm.
+
+"No matter! You have to keep your word!"
+
+"See here," the Farmer begged, "let me off on giving you my Horse and
+I tell you what I'll do: I'll give you my Cow. I can spare the Cow
+better."
+
+"When will you give me the Cow?" the Bear asked.
+
+"To-morrow," the Farmer promised.
+
+"Very well," Osmo said, "if you deliver me the Cow to-morrow I'll let
+you off on the Horse. But see you keep your word!"
+
+On his way home that afternoon the Farmer visited his traps. In one
+he found Mikko, the Fox. Mikko, the little rascal, begged for his life
+so piteously that the Farmer with a laugh freed him.
+
+"You've done me a good turn," Mikko said, "and some day I'll do
+something for you. Just wait and see if I don't."
+
+Well, early next morning the Farmer put his Cow on the sledge and
+started off for the forest. On the way he met Mikko.
+
+"Good morning," Mikko said. "Where are you going with your Cow?"
+
+The Farmer stopped and told Mikko about his bargain with the Bear.
+
+"See here," the Fox said, "I promised you yesterday that some day I'd
+do you a good turn. That day has come! I'm going to save you your Cow
+and show you how you can kill that old Bear once and for all. But if I
+do this, you'll have to give me the Bear's carcass after he's dead and
+gone."
+
+"I'll be glad enough to do that," the Farmer declared. "Save me my Cow
+and you may have all of that old Bear that you want!"
+
+"Well then," Mikko said, "go home with the Cow as quickly as you can
+and come back here with ten distaffs. My plan is to have you put five
+of the distaffs around my neck and five around my tail. I can make an
+awful noise rattling them. When the Bear hears me and wonders who I
+am, do you say to him: 'Oh! That must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?' Then between us we'll finish that old
+Bear."
+
+The Farmer did as the Fox directed. He drove the Cow home and returned
+to the forest with ten distaffs, five of which he fastened about the
+Fox's neck and five about his tail. Then he drove the sledge on to the
+place where he was to meet the Bear and Mikko, the Fox, crept along
+quietly behind him.
+
+"Where's my Cow?" the Bear demanded as soon as the sledge appeared.
+
+"I've come to talk to you about that," the Farmer began.
+
+Just then there was an awful rattle of something in the bushes behind
+the Farmer.
+
+"What's that?" the Bear cried.
+
+"Oh," the Farmer said, "that must be my son, the Hunter! Don't you
+hear the rattle of his musket?"
+
+The Bear shook in terror.
+
+"The Hunter, you say! Mercy me, what shall I do! Oh, Mr. Farmer, save
+me from the Hunter and I'll forgive you the Cow!"
+
+"Very well," the Farmer promised, "I'll do my best! Lie down and I'll
+try to make the Hunter believe you're only a log."
+
+So the Bear lay down on the ground and stayed perfectly quiet.
+
+"Father," called the Fox in a voice that sounded like the Hunter's,
+"what's that big brown thing lying on the ground near you? Is it a
+Bear?"
+
+"No, son," the Farmer called back, "that isn't a Bear. It's only a log
+of wood."
+
+"If it's a log of wood, father, chop it up!"
+
+The Farmer raised his ax.
+
+"Don't really chop me!" the Bear begged in a whisper. "Just pretend
+to."
+
+"This is too good a log to chop up," the Farmer said.
+
+"Well, father," said the voice from the bushes, "if it's such a good
+log you better put it on your sledge and take it home."
+
+"Lie still," the Farmer whispered, "while I put you on the sledge."
+
+So the Bear lay stiff and quiet and the Farmer dragged him on to the
+sledge.
+
+"Father," the voice said, "you better tie that log down to keep it
+from rolling off."
+
+"Don't move," the Farmer whispered, "and I'll tie you down just as if
+you were a log."
+
+So the Bear lay perfectly still while the Farmer lashed him securely
+to the sledge.
+
+"Father, are you sure that log can't roll off?"
+
+"Yes, son," the Farmer said, "I'm sure it can't roll off now."
+
+"Then, father, drive your ax into the end of the log and off we'll
+go!"
+
+At that the Farmer raised his ax and with one mighty blow buried it in
+the neck of the Bear.
+
+So that was the end of poor old lumbering Osmo!
+
+The Farmer was saved both his Horse and his Cow and Mikko, the rascal,
+feasted on Bear meat for a week.
+
+[Decoration]
+
+  [Illustration: _So that was THE END_]
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Note
+
+Archaic and variable spelling and grammar usage is preserved as
+printed.
+
+Minor punctuation errors have been repaired.
+
+The following amendments have been made for consistency:
+
+    Page 166--Ollie amended to Olli--""Yes," Olli shouted back,
+    ..."
+
+    Page 198--Mattie amended to Matti--""But remember," Matti
+    warned him, ..."
+
+    Page 200--Mattie amended to Matti--""That is true," Matti
+    said, ..."
+
+The following typographic errors have been repaired:
+
+    Page 230--then amended to them--"Jussi looked at them in
+    amazement, his eyes popping out of his head."
+
+    Page 294--satisfacion amended to satisfaction--"... the Bear
+    would not get the satisfaction of any admiration from him."
+
+Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they were not in
+the middle of a paragraph.