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diff --git a/old/67180-0.txt b/old/67180-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 477318e..0000000 --- a/old/67180-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5484 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Korean Fairy Tales, by William Elliot -Griffis - -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: Korean Fairy Tales - -Author: William Elliot Griffis - -Release Date: January 16, 2022 [eBook #67180] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed Proofreading - Team at https://www.pgdp.net/ for Project Gutenberg (This - file was produced from images generously made available by - the Library of Congress) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KOREAN FAIRY TALES *** - - - - - KOREAN - FAIRY TALES - - BY - WILLIAM ELLIOT GRIFFIS - - Author of “Korea: Within and Without”; - “Korea: The Hermit Nation” and of Japanese, - Dutch, Belgian, Swiss and Welsh Fairy Tales - - - ILLUSTRATED IN COLOR - - - NEW YORK - THOMAS Y. CROWELL COMPANY - PUBLISHERS - - - - - - - - -A NOTE TO THE FRIENDS OF KOREA - - -Everywhere on earth the fairy world of each country is older and -perhaps more enduring than the one we see and feel and tread upon. So I -tell in this book the folk lore of the Korean people, and of the -behavior of the particular kind of fairies that inhabit the Land of -Morning Splendor. Yet, if I live long enough, I shall write the -wonderful history of the Korean nation and civilization, which once so -enriched Asia, and made possible the modern Japan such as we know -today, of which fact the literature and art of both countries bear -ample witness. - - -W. E. G. - - - - - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - The Unmannerly Tiger 1 - Tokgabi and His Pranks 6 - East Light and the Bridge of Fishes 11 - Prince Sandalwood, the Father of Korea 17 - The Rabbit’s Eyes 24 - Topknots and Crockery Hats 30 - Fancha and the Magpie 38 - The Sneezing Colossus 49 - A Bridegroom for Miss Mole 53 - Old White Whiskers and Mr. Bunny 59 - The King of the Flowers 65 - Tokgabi’s Menagerie 71 - Cat-kin and the Queen Mother 78 - The Magic Peach 89 - The Great Stone Fire Eater 102 - Pigling and Her Proud Sisters 110 - The Mirror that Made Trouble 117 - Old Timber Top 130 - Sir One Long Body and Madame Thousand Feet 147 - The Sky Bridge of Birds 155 - Longka, the Dancing Girl 161 - A Frog for a Husband 167 - Shoes for Hats 179 - The Voice of the Bell 187 - The King of the Sparrows 195 - The Woodman and the Mountain Fairies 204 - - - - - - - - -KOREAN FAIRY TALES - -THE UNMANNERLY TIGER - - -“Mountain Uncle” was the name given by the villagers to a splendid -striped tiger that lived among the highlands of Kang Wen, the long -province which from its cliffs overlooks the Sea of Japan. Hunters -rarely saw him, and among his fellow-tigers the Mountain Uncle boasted -that, though often fired at, he had never been wounded; while as for -traps—he knew all about them and laughed at the devices used by man to -catch him and to strip him of his coveted skin. In summer he kept among -the high hills and lived on fat deer. In winter, when heavy snow, -biting winds, and terrible cold kept human beings within doors, old -Mountain Uncle would sally forth to the villages. There he would prowl -around the stables, the cattle enclosures, or the pig pens, in hopes of -clawing and dragging out a young donkey, a fat calf, or a suckling pig. -Too often he succeeded, so that he was the terror of the country for -leagues around. - -One day in autumn, Mountain Uncle was rambling among the lower hills. -Though far from any village, he kept a sharp lookout for traps and -hunters, but none seemed to be near. He was very hungry and hoped for -game. - -But on coming round a great rock, Mountain Uncle suddenly saw in his -path some feet ahead, as he thought, a big tiger like himself. - -He stopped, twitched his tail most ferociously as a challenge, showed -fight by growling, and got ready to spring. What was his surprise to -see the other tiger doing exactly the same things. Mountain Uncle was -sure there would be a terrible struggle, but this was just what he -wanted, for he expected to win. - -But after a tremendous leap in the air he landed in a pit and all of a -heap, bruised and disappointed. There was no tiger to be seen, but -instead a heavy lid of logs had closed over his head with a crash and -he lay in darkness. Old Mountain Uncle was caught at last. Yes, the -hunter had concealed the pit with sticks and leaves, and on the upright -timbers, covered with vines and brushwood, had hung a looking-glass. -Mountain Uncle had often beheld his own face and body in the water, -when he stooped to drink, but this time not seeing any water he was -deceived into thinking a real tiger wanted to fight him. - -By and by, a Buddhist priest came along, who believed in being kind to -all living creatures. Hearing an animal moaning, he opened the trap and -lifting the lid saw old Mountain Uncle at the bottom licking his -bruised paw. - -“Oh, please, Mr. Man, let me get out. I’m hurt badly,” said the tiger. - -Thereupon the priest lifted up one of the logs and slid it down, until -it rested on the bottom of the pit. Then the tiger climbed up and out. -Old Mountain Uncle expressed his thanks volubly, saying to the shaven -head: - -“I am deeply grateful to you, sir, for helping me out of my trouble. -Nevertheless, as I am very hungry, I must eat you up.” - -The priest, very much surprised and indignant, protested against such -vile ingratitude. To say the least, it was very bad manners and -entirely against the law of the mountains, and he appealed to a big -tree to decide between them. - -The spirit in the tree spoke through the rustling leaves and declared -that the man should go free and that the tiger was both ungrateful and -unmannerly. - -Old Mountain Uncle was not satisfied yet, especially as the priest was -unusually fat and would make a very good dinner. However, he allowed -the man to appeal once more and this time to a big rock. - -“The man is certainly right venerable Mountain Uncle, and you are -wholly wrong,” said the spirit in the rock. “Your master, the Mountain -Spirit, who rides on the green bull and the piebald horse to punish his -enemies, will certainly chastise you if you devour this priest. You -will be no fit messenger of the Mountain Lord if you are so ungrateful -as to eat the man who saved you from starvation or death in the trap. -It is shockingly bad manners even to think of such a thing.” - -The tiger felt ashamed, but his eyes still glared with hunger; so, to -be sure of saving his own skin, the priest proposed to make the toad a -judge. The tiger agreed. - -But the toad, with his gold-rimmed eyes, looked very wise, and instead -of answering quickly, as the tree and rock did, deliberated a long -time. The priest’s heart sank while the tiger moved his jaws as if -anticipating his feast. He felt sure that Old Speckled Back would -decide in his favor. - -“I must go and see the trap before I can make up my mind,” said the -toad, who looked as solemn as a magistrate. So all three leaped, -hopped, or walked to the trap. The tiger, moving fast, was there first, -which was just what the toad, who was a friend of the priest, wanted. -Besides, Old Speckled Back was diligently looking for a crack in the -rocks near by. - -So while the toad and the tiger were studying the matter, the priest -ran off and saved himself within the monastery gates. When at last Old -Speckled Back decided against Mountain Uncle and in favor of the man, -he had no sooner finished his judgment than he hopped into the rock -crevice, and, crawling far inside defied the tiger, calling him an -unmannerly brute and an ungrateful beast, and daring him to do his -worst. - -Old Mountain Uncle was so mad with rage and hunger that his craftiness -seemed turned into stupidity. He clawed at the rock to get at the toad, -but Speckled Back, safe within, only laughed. Unable to do any harm, -the tiger flew into a passion of rage. The hotter his temper grew, the -more he lost his wit. Poking his nose inside the crack he rubbed it so -hard on the rough rock that he soon bled to death. - -When the hunter came along he marveled at what he saw, but he was glad -to get rich by selling the tiger’s fur, bones, and claws; for in Korea -nothing sells so well as a tiger. As for the toad, he told to several -generations of his descendants the story of how he outwitted the old -Mountain Uncle. - - - - - - - - -TOKGABI AND HIS PRANKS - - -Tokgabi is the most mischievous sprite in all Korean fairy-land. He -does not like the sunshine or outdoors, and no one ever saw him on the -streets. - -He lives in the sooty flues that run under the floors along the whole -length of the house, from the kitchen at one end of it to the chimney -hole in the ground at the other end. He delights in the smoke and smut, -and does not mind fire or flame, for he likes to be where it is warm. -He has no lungs, and his skin and eyes are both fire-proof. He is as -black as night and loves nothing that has white in it. He is always -afraid of a bit of silver, even if it be only a hairpin. - -Tokgabi likes most to play at night in the little loft over the -fireplace. To run along the rafters and knock down the dust and cobwebs -is his delight. His favorite game is to make the iron rice-pot lid -dance up and down, so that it tumbles inside the rice kettle and cannot -easily be got out again. Oh, how many times the cook burns, scalds, or -steams her fingers in attempting to fish out that pot lid when Tokgabi -has pushed it in! How she does bless the sooty imp! - -But Tokgabi is not always mischievous, and most of his capers hurt -nobody. He is such a merry fellow that he keeps continually busy, -whether people cry or laugh. He does not mean to give any one trouble, -but he must have fun every minute, especially at night. - -When the fire is out, how he does chase the mice up and down the flues -under the floor, and up in the garret over the rafters! When the -mousies lie dead on their backs, with their toes turned upward, the -street boys take them outdoors and throw them up in the air. Before the -mice fall to the ground, the hawks swoop down and eat them up. Many a -bird of prey gets his breakfast in this way. - -Although Tokgabi plays so many pranks, he is kind to the kitchen maids. -When after a hard day’s work one is so tired out that she falls asleep, -he helps her to do her hard tasks. - -Tokgabi washes their dishes and cleans their tables for good servants; -so when they wake up the girls find their work done for them. Many a -fairy tale is told about this jolly sprite’s doings—how he gives good -things to the really nice people and makes the bad ones mad by -spitefully using them. They do say that the king of all the Tokgabis -has a museum of curiosities and a storehouse full of gold and gems and -fine clothes, and everything sweet to eat for good boys and girls and -for old people that are kind to the birds and dumb animals. For bad -folks he has all sorts of things that are ugly and troublesome. He -punishes stingy people by making them poor and miserable. - -The Tokgabi king has also a menagerie of animals. These he sends to do -his errands rewarding the good and punishing naughty folks. Every year -the little almanac with red and green covers tells in what quarter of -the skies the Tokgabi king lives for that year, so that the farmers and -country people will keep out of his way and not provoke him. In his -menagerie the kind creatures that help human beings are the dragon, -bear, tortoise, frog, dog and rabbit. These are all man’s friends. The -cruel and treacherous creatures in Tokgabi’s menagerie are the tiger, -wild boar, leopard, serpent, toad and cat. These are the messengers of -the Tokgabi king to do his bidding, when he punishes naughty folks. - -The common, every-day Tokgabi plays fewer tricks on the men and boys -and enjoys himself more in bothering the girls and women. This, I -suppose, is because they spend more time in the house than their -fathers or brothers. In the Land of Rat-tat-tat, where the sound of -beating the washed clothes never ceases, Tokgabi loves to get hold of -the women’s laundry sticks which are used for pounding and polishing -the starched clothes. He hides them so that they cannot be found. Then -Daddy makes a fuss because his long white coat has to go without its -usual gloss, but it is all Tokgabi’s fault. - -Tokgabi does not like starch because it is white. He loves to dance on -Daddy’s big black hat case that hangs on the wall. Sometimes he wiggles -the fetich, or household idol, that is suspended from the rafters. But, -most of all, he enjoys dancing a jig among the dishes in the closet -over the fireplace, making them rattle and often tumble down with a -crash. - -Tokgabi likes to bother men sometimes too. If Daddy should get his -topknot caught in a rat hole, or his head should slip off his wooden -pillow at night and he bump his nose, it is all Tokgabi’s fault. When -anything happens to a boy’s long braid of hair, that hangs down his -back and makes him look so much like a girl, Tokgabi is blamed for it. -It is even said that naughty men make compacts with Tokgabi to do bad -things, but the imp only helps the man for the fun of it. Tokgabi cares -nothing about what mortal men call right or wrong. He is only after fun -and is up to mischief all the time, so one must watch out for him. - -The kitchen maids and the men think they know how to circumvent Tokgabi -and spoil his tricks. Knowing that the imp does not like red, a young -man when betrothed wears clothes of this bright color. Tokgabi is -afraid of shining silver, too, so the men fasten their topknots -together, and the girls keep their chignons in shape, with silver -hairpins. The magistrates and government officers have little storks -made of solid silver in their hats, or else these birds are embroidered -with silver thread on their dresses. Every one who can afford them uses -white metal dishes and dresses in snowy garments. Tokgabi likes nothing -white and that is the reason why every Korean likes to put on clothes -that are as dazzling as hoar frost. Tons and mountains of starch are -consumed in blanching and stiffening coats and skirts, sleeves and -stockings. On festival days the people look as if they were dipped in -starch and their garments encrusted in rock candy. In this manner they -protect themselves from the pranks of Tokgabi. - - - - - - - - -EAST LIGHT AND THE BRIDGE OF FISHES - - -Long, long ago, in the region beyond the Everlasting White Mountains of -Northern Korea, there lived a king who was waited on by a handsome -young woman servant. Every day she gladdened her eyes by looking -southward, where the lofty mountain peak which holds the Dragon’s Pool -in its bosom lifts its white head to the sky. When tired out with daily -toil she thought of the river that flows from the Dragon’s Pool down -out of the mountain. She hoped that some time she would have a son that -would rule over the country which the river watered so richly. - -One day while watching the mountain top she saw coming from the east a -tiny bit of shining vapor. Floating like a white cloud in the blue sky -it seemed no bigger than an egg. It came nearer and nearer until it -seemed to go into the bosom of her dress. Very soon she became the -mother of a boy. It was indeed a most beautiful child. - -But the jealous king was angry. He did not like the little stranger. So -he took the baby and threw it down among the pigs in the pen, thinking -that this would be the last of the boy. But no! the sows breathed into -the baby’s nostrils and their warm breath made it live. - -When the king’s servants heard the little fellow crowing, they went out -to see what made the noise, and there they beheld a happy baby not -seeming to mind its odd cradle at all. They wanted to give him food at -once but the angry king ordered the child to be thrown away, and this -time into the stable. So the servants took the boy by the legs and laid -him among the horses, expecting that the animals would tread on him and -he would be thus put out of the way. - -But no, the mares were gentle, and with their warm breath they not only -kept the little fellow from getting cold, but they nourished him with -their milk so that he grew fat and hearty. - -When the king heard of this wonderful behavior of pigs and horses, he -bowed his head toward Heaven. It seemed the will of the Great One in -the Sky that the boy baby should live and grow up to be a man. So he -listened to its mother’s prayers and allowed her to bring her child -into the palace. There he grew up and was trained like one of the -king’s sons. As a sturdy youth, he practiced shooting with bow and -arrows and became skilful in riding horses. He was always kind to -animals. In the king’s dominions any man who was cruel to a horse was -punished. Whoever struck a mare so that the animal died, was himself -put to death. The young man was always merciful to his beasts. - -So the king named the youthful archer and horseman East Light, or -Radiance of the Morning and made him Master of the Royal Stables. East -Light, as the people liked to say his name, became very popular. They -also called him Child of the Sun and Grandson of the Yellow River. - -One day while out on the mountains hunting deer, bears, and tigers, the -king called upon the young archer to show his prowess in shooting -arrows. East Light drew his bow and showed skill such as no one else -could equal. He sent shaft after shaft whistling into the target and -brought down both running deer and flying birds. Then all applauded the -handsome youth. But instead of the king’s commending East Light, the -king became very jealous of him, fearing that he might want to seize -the throne. Nothing that the young man could do seemed now to please -his royal master. - -Fearing he might lose his life if he remained near the king, East Light -with three trusty followers fled southward until he came to a great, -deep river, wide and impassable. How to get across he knew not, for no -boat was at hand and the time was too short to make a raft, for behind -him were his enemies swiftly pursuing. - -In a great strait, he cried out: - -“Alas, shall I, the Child of the Sun and the Grandson of the Yellow -River, be stopped here powerless by this stream?” - -Then as if his father, the Sun, had whispered to him what to do, he -drew his bow and shot many arrows here and there into the water, nearly -emptying his quiver. - -For a few moments nothing happened. To his companions it seemed a waste -of good weapons. What would their leader have left to fight his -pursuers when they appeared, if his quiver were empty? - -But in a moment more the waters appeared to be strangely agitated. Soon -they were flecked and foaming. From up and down the stream, and in -front of them, the fish were swimming toward East Light, poking their -noses out of the water as if they would say: - -“Get on our backs and we’ll save you.” They crowded together in so -dense a mass that on their spines a bridge was soon formed, on which -men could stand. - -“Quick!” shouted East Light to his companions, “let us flee! Behold the -king’s horsemen coming down the hill after us.” - -So over the bridge of fish backs, scaly and full of spiny fins, the -four young men fled. As soon as they gained the opposite shore, the -bridge of fishes dissolved. Yet scarcely had they swum away, when those -who were in pursuit had gained the water’s edge, on the other side. In -vain the king’s soldiers shot their arrows to kill East Light and his -three companions. The shafts fell short and the river was too deep and -wide to swim their horses over. So the four young men escaped safely. - -Marching on farther a few miles, East Light met three strange persons -who seemed to be awaiting his coming. They welcomed him warmly and -invited him to be their king and rule over their city. The first was -dressed in seaweed, the second in hempen garments, and the third in -embroidered robes. These men represented the three classes of society; -first fishermen and hunters; second farmers and artisans; and lastly -rulers of the tribes. - -So in this land named Fuyu, rich in the five grains, wheat, rice, and -millet, bean and sugarcane, the new king was joyfully welcomed by his -new subjects. The men were tall, brave and courteous. Besides being -good archers, they rode horses skilfully. They ate out of bowls with -chop-sticks and used round dishes at their feasts. They wore ornaments -of large pearls and jewels of red jade cut and polished. - -The Fuyu people gave the fairest virgin in their realm to be the bride -of King East Light and she became a gracious queen, greatly beloved of -her subjects and many children were born to them. - -East Light ruled long and happily. Under his reign the people of Fuyu -became civilized and highly prosperous. He taught the proper relations -of ruler and ruled and the laws of marriage, besides better methods of -cooking and house-building. He also showed them how to dress their -hair. He introduced the wearing of the topknot. For thousands of years -topknots were the fashion in Fuyu and in Korea. - -Hundreds of years after East Light died, and all the tribes and states -in the peninsula south of the Everlasting White Mountains wanted to -become one nation and one kingdom, they called their country after East -Light, but in a more poetical form,—Cho-sen, which means Morning -Radiance, or the Land of the Morning Calm. - - - - - - - - -PRINCE SANDALWOOD, THE FATHER OF KOREA - - -Four little folks lived in the home of Mr. Kim, two girls and two boys. -Their names were Peach Blossom and Pearl, Eight-fold Strength and -Dragon. Dragon was the oldest, a boy. Grandma Kim was very fond of -telling them stories about the heroes and fairies of their beautiful -country. - -One evening when Papa Kim came home from his office in the Government -buildings, he carried two little books in his hand, which he handed -over to Grandma. One was a little almanac looking in its bright cover -of red, green and blue as gay as the piles of cakes and confectionery -made when people get married; for every one knows how rich in colors -are pastry and sweets for the bride’s friends at a Korean wedding -party. - -The second little book contained the direction sent out by the Royal -Minister of Ceremonies for the celebration of the festival in honor of -the Ancestor-Prince, Old Sandalwood, the Father of Korea. Twice a year -in Ping Yang City they made offerings of meat and other food in his -honor, but always uncooked. - -“Who was old Sandalwood?” asked Peach Blossom, the older of the little -girls. - -“What did he do?” asked Yongi (Dragon), the older boy. - -“Let me tell you,” said Grandma, as they cuddled together round her on -the oiled-paper carpet over the main flue at the end of the room where -it was warmest; for it was early in December and the wind was roaring -outside. - -“Now I shall tell you, also, why the bear is good and the tiger bad,” -said Grandma. “Well, to begin—— - -“Long, long ago, before there were any refined people in the Land of -Dawn, and no men but rude savages, a bear and a tiger met together. It -was on the southern slope of Old Whitehead Mountain in the forest. -These wild animals were not satisfied with the kind of human beings -already on the earth, and they wanted better ones. They thought that if -they could become human they would be able to improve upon the quality. -So these patriotic beasts, the bear and the tiger, agreed to go before -Hananim, the Great One of Heaven and Earth, and ask him to change at -once their form and nature; or, at least, tell them how it could be -done. - -“But where to find Him—that was the question. So they put their heads -down in token of politeness, stretched out their paws and waited a long -while, hoping to get light on the subject. - -“Then a Voice spoke out saying, ‘Eat a bunch of garlic and stay in a -cave for twenty-one days. If you do, you will become human.’ - -“So into the dark cave they crawled, chewed their garlic and went to -sleep. - -“It was cold and gloomy in the cave and with nothing to hunt or eat, -the tiger got tired. Day after day he moped, snarled, growled and -behaved rudely to his companion. But the bear bore the tiger’s insults. - -“Finally on the eleventh day, the tiger, seeing no signs of losing his -stripes or of shedding his hair, claws or tail, and with no prospect of -fingers or toes in view, concluded to give up trying to become a man. -He bounded out of the cave and at once went hunting in the woods, going -back to his old life. - -“But the bear, patiently sucking her paw, waited till the twenty-one -days had passed. Then her hairy hide and claws dropped off, like an -overcoat. Her nose and ears suddenly shortened and she stood upright—a -perfect woman. - -“Walking out of the cave the new creature sat beside a brook, and in -the pure water beheld how lovely she was. There she waited to see what -would take place next. - -“About this time while these things were going on down in the world -matters of interest were happening in the skies. Whanung, the Son of -the Great One in the Heavens, asked his father to give him an earthly -kingdom to rule over. Pleased with his request, the Lord of Heaven -decided to present his son with the Land of the Dragon’s Back, which -men called Korea. - -“Now as everybody knows, this country of ours, the Everlasting Great -Land of the Dayspring, rose up on the first morning of creation out of -the sea, in the form of a dragon. His spine, loins and tail form the -great range of mountains that makes the backbone of our beautiful -country, while his head rises skyward in the eternal White Mountain in -the North. On its summit amid the snow and ice lies the blue lake of -pure water, from which flow out our boundary rivers.” - -“What is the name of this lake?” asked Yongi the boy. - -“The Dragon’s Pool,” said Grandma Kim, “and during one whole night, -ever so long ago, the dragon breathed hard and long until its breath -filled the heavens with clouds. This was the way that the Great One in -the Skies prepared the way for his son’s coming to earth. - -“People thought there was an earthquake, but when they woke up in the -morning and looked up to the grand mountain, so gloriously white, they -saw the cloud rising far up in the sky. As the bright sun shone upon -it, the cloud turned into pink, red, yellow and the whole eastern sky -looked so lovely that our country then received its name—the Land of -Morning Radiance. - -“Down out of his cloud of many colors, and borne on the wind, Whanung, -the Heavenly Prince, descended first to the mountain top, and then to -the lower earth. When he entered the great forest he found a beautiful -woman sitting by the brookside. It was the bear that had been -transformed into lovely human shape and nature. - -“The Heavenly Prince was delighted. He chose her as his bride and, by -and by, a little baby boy was born. - -“The mother made for her son a cradle of soft moss and reared her child -in the forest. - -“Now the people who dwelt at the foot of the mountain were in those -days very rude and simple. They wore no hats, had no white clothes, -lived in huts, and did not know how to warm their houses with flues -running under the floors, nor had they any books or writings. Their -sacred place was under a sandalwood tree, on a small mountain named -Tabak, in Ping Yang province. - -“They had seen the cloud rising from the Dragon’s Pool so rich in -colors, and as they looked they saw it move southward and nearer to -them, until it stood over the sacred sandalwood tree; when out stepped -a white-robed being, and descending through the air alighted in the -forest and on the tree. - -“Oh, how beautiful this spirit looked against the blue sky! Yet the -tree was far away and long was the journey to it. - -“‘Let us all go to the sacred tree,’ said the leader of the people. So -together they hied over hill and valley until they reached the holy -ground and ranged themselves in circles about it. - -“A lovely sight greeted their eyes. There sat under the tree a youth of -grand appearance, arrayed in princely dress. Though young looking and -rosy in face, his countenance was august and majestic. Despite his -youth, he was wise and venerable. - -“‘I have come from my ancestors in Heaven to rule over you, my -children,’ he said, looking at them most kindly. - -“At once the people fell on their knees and all bent reverently, -shouting: - -“‘Thou art our king, we acknowledge thee, and will loyally obey only -thee.’ - -“Seeing that they wanted to know what he could tell them, he began to -instruct them, even before he gave them laws and rules and taught them -how to improve their houses. He told them stories. The first one -explained to them why it was that the bear is good and the tiger bad. - -“The people wondered at his wisdom, and henceforth the tiger was hated, -while people began to like the bear more and more. - -“‘What name shall we give our King, so that we may properly address -him?’ asked the people of their elders. ‘It is right that we should -call him after the place in which we saw him, under our holy tree. Let -his title, therefore, be the August and Venerable Sandalwood.’ So they -saluted him thus and he accepted the honor. - -“Seeing that the people were rough and unkempt, Prince Sandalwood -showed them how to tie up and dress their hair. He ordained that men -should wear their long locks in the form of a topknot. Boys must braid -their hair and let it hang down over their backs. No boy could be -called a man, until he married a wife. Then he could twist his hair -into a knot, put on a hat, have a head-dress like an adult and wear a -long white coat. - -“As for the women, they must plait their tresses and wear them plainly -at their neck, except at marriage, or on great occasions of ceremony. -Then they might pile up their hair like a pagoda and use long hairpins, -jewels, silk and flowers. - -“Thus our Korean civilization was begun, and to this day the law of the -hat and hair distinguishes us above all people,” said Grandma. “We -still honor the August and Venerable Prince Sandalwood. Now, -good-night, my darlings.” - - - - - - - - -THE RABBIT’S EYES - - -There was trouble down in the fish world under the waves. Indeed, every -creature with fins and a tail was in distress, for the king of the -fishes was suffering with a dreadful pain in his mouth. It had come -about in this way. - -One day while swimming around in the waters outside his palace, the -king of the fishes saw something hanging in the water that looked as if -it were good to eat. So at once His Majesty gulped it down, when, oh -horrors! he found he had barely escaped swallowing a fish hook, which -stuck fast in his gills. It had been baited by some fishermen up in a -boat on the sea top. When the king of the fishes found the dreadful -thing in his mouth, he jerked himself away. The line broke but the hook -remained, giving the king a fever and much pain. - -How to get the iron out and heal His Majesty was now the question. All -the wise creatures in the ocean, from the turtle to the gudgeon and -from the tittleback to the whale, were summoned to the palace to see -what could be done. Many a sage noddle was bent, and eye blinked and -fin wagged, as the marine doctors talked the matter over in the -council. The turtle was considered the most learned and expert of them -all. Many were his feelings of the king’s pulse and his looking down -into his throat, before Dr. Turtle would pronounce what was the real -trouble or write a prescription for his patient. Finally, after -consultation with the other doctors that had fins and tails, or were in -scales and shell, it was decided that nothing less than a poultice made -of rabbits’ eyes would loosen the hook and end His Majesty’s troubles. - -So Dr. Turtle was ordered to go to the seashore and invite a rabbit to -come down into the world under the sea, that they might make a poultice -of his eyes and apply the warm mess to the king’s throat. - -Arriving on the sea beach, at the foot of a high hill, Dr. Turtle, -looking far up, found Mr. Rabbit out of his burrow and taking a -promenade along the edge of the forest. Forthwith Dr. Turtle waddled -across the beach and part way up the hill, climbing hard, until he -began to puff and blow. He had enough breath left, however, to salute -Brother Bunny with a good-morning. Very politely the rabbit returned -the greeting. - -“It’s a hot day,” said Dr. Turtle, as he pulled out his handkerchief, -wiped his horny forehead, and cleaned the sand out of his claws. - -“Yes, but the scenery is so fine, Dr. Turtle, that you must be glad -you’re out of the water to see such lovely mountains. Don’t you think -Korea is a fine country? There is no land in the world so beautiful as -ours. The mountains, the rivers, the seashore, the forests, the -flowers——” - -If Dr. Turtle had let the rabbit run on, praising his own country, he -would have forgotten his errand; but, thinking of His Majesty, the -suffering fish king, with the cruel hook in his mouth, Dr. Turtle -interrupted Bunny, saying: - -“Oh, yes, Brother Bunny, this view of the landscape and country is all -very beautiful, but it can’t compare to the gems and jewels, trees and -flowers, sweet odors and everything lovely down in the world under the -sea.” - -At this, the rabbit pricked up his ears. It was all new to him. He had -never heard that there was anything under the water but common fishes -and seaweed and when these were decayed and washed up along the -seashore—well, he had his ideas about them. They did not smell sweet at -all. Now he heard a different story. His curiosity was roused. “What -you tell me, my friend, is interesting. Go on.” - -Thereupon Dr. Turtle proceeded to tell of most wonderful mountains and -valleys down on the floor of the deep sea, with every kind of rare -water plants, red, orange-color, green, blue, white, with trees of gold -and silver, besides flowers of every color and delightful perfume. - -“You surprise me,” said Brother Bunny, getting more interested. - -“Yes, and all sorts of good things to eat and drink, with music and -dancing, handsome serving maids and everything nice. Come along and be -our guest. Our king has sent me to invite you.” - -“May I go?” asked Brother Bunny, delighted. - -“Yes, at once. Get on my back and I’ll carry you.” - -So the rabbit ran and the turtle waddled to the water’s edge. - -“Now hold fast to my front shell,” said Dr. Turtle; “we’re going under -the water.” - -Down, down below the blue waves they sank until they arrived at the -king’s palace. There the rabbit found everything was true, as told by -the turtle. The colors, the rich gems were as he had said. - -Dr. Turtle introduced Brother Bunny to some of the princes and -princesses of the kingdom and these showed their guest the sights and -treasures of the palace, while Dr. Turtle attended the council of -doctors to announce the success of his errand. - -But while Mr. Rabbit was enjoying himself, thinking this was the most -wonderful place in the world, he overheard them talking. Then he found -out why they had brought him there and shown him such honors. Horrified -at the idea of losing his eyes, he determined to save his sight and -play the tortoise a smart trick. However, of this he told no one. - -So when he was politely informed by the royal executioners that he must -give up his eyes to make the king well, Brother Bunny broke out with -equally polite regrets: - -“Really I am so sorry that His Majesty is ill, and you must excuse me -that I cannot help him immediately, for the eyes I have in my head now -are not real eyes, but only crystal. I was afraid that sea water would -hurt my sight, so I took out my ordinary eyes, buried them in the sand -and put on these crystal ones, which I usually wear in very dusty or -wet weather.” - -At this the faces of the royal officers fell. How could they break the -news to His Majesty and disappoint him? - -Brother Bunny seemed to be really sorry for them and spoke up. - -“Oh! don’t feel bad about it. If you will allow me to return to the -beach, I’ll dig them up and return in time for the poultice-making,” -said the rabbit. - -So, getting on Dr. Turtle’s back, Brother Bunny was soon out of the -water and on land. - -In a jiffy he jumped off, scampered away, and reached the woods, -showing only his cotton tail. Soon he was out of sight. - -Dr. Turtle shed tears and returned to tell how a rabbit had outwitted -him. - - - - - - - - -TOPKNOTS AND CROCKERY HATS - - -Long, long ago in China, even centuries before the great Confucius was -born, there lived a wise and learned man named Kija. He was the chief -counselor at court, and all honored him for his justice and goodness. -He was always kind to boys and girls. - -But when a great war broke out and a new line of rulers came into -power, Kija declined to serve the king of the country and resolved to -emigrate to the far East. There he would teach the savage people -manners and refinement. - -The new king was sorry to have Kija go, for he respected his character -and wisdom. However he allowed five thousand of the best people, most -of them Kija’s followers, to accompany their master among the Eastern -savages. Many of the common folks wept when they saw the emigrants -leave China the flowery country to go into the Eastern wilderness and -journey to an unknown region, full of dark swamps and thick forests. -Kija was going where there were no roads, farms, or houses, and the -woods were full of wild beasts, especially big bears and terrible -tigers that liked to feed on human beings. It was even said that there -were flying serpents that had wings and leopards that stood up holding -lightning in their paws. - -Over the great plains of Manchuria, Kija and his army of people, little -folks and big ones, marched ever toward the rising sun, until they -crossed the Duck Green River, which we call the Yalu. After a few days -more, they came to the Great Eastern River (Ta Tong). There the land -was very beautiful and Kija resolved to settle and build a city. From -the tinted clouds at sunrise, rosy, golden, flushed with every shade of -red, and lovely with changing colors the new country had been named -Cho-sen, or Land of Morning Radiance. As the sun rose and raced toward -the west, where his homeland lay, Kija welcomed the good omen as a -double blessing. He saw in the calm of his first day in his adopted -country a threefold pledge of continued good-will between the new -kingdom and the old empire, Heaven’s favoring sign of his loyalty to -the Chinese Emperor, and the surety of good-will from the spirit of the -Ever White Mountain. - -Having laid out for his colony a city which was to be the capital of -his kingdom, Kija began to build a wall. He named the city Ping Yang, -which means Northern Castle. - -“But now that we have safely arrived as after a voyage, the city shall -be shaped like a boat,” said Kija. “Within its walls no wells shall be -dug, lest this, like boring holes, should make the boat sink. Then -also, on the outside, to the west, shall stand the rock pillar to which -the boat city shall be forever moored.” - -Kija was ably assisted by his wise men, who were skilled in literature, -poetry, music, medicine and philosophy. Together they published eight -great laws for the kingdom: - - - 1. Agriculture for the men. - 2. Weaving for the women. - 3. Punishment of thieves. - 4. Murderers to be beheaded. - 5. All land to be divided into nine squares, the central one - to be tilled in common for the benefit of the State. - 6. Simple life for all. - 7. The law of marriage. - 8. Wicked people to be made slaves. - - -Kija laid out roads, established measures and distances and ordained -the rules of politeness. He taught the savage people how to build good -houses, each with roofs of thatch or tile and a kang, or warming place, -by means of flues running under the floors. There was a fire at one end -and a chimney at the other, so that the smoke came out of the ground -half-way up the house wall. Twice a day, at morning and sunset, the -people fed with fuel the furnaces or cooking place in the kitchen. Then -the flames, heat and smoke passed through the flues, warming the rooms. -Thus the houses were made cozy and comfortable. Every day one can see -the morning and the evening cloud of the kang smoke hanging over the -city. It is in these flues and around the cooking pots that Tokgabi, -the merry scamp, plays his most mischievous tricks. He is a sooty -fellow and loves nothing better than to amuse or plague mortal men. - -The people of the land were very rough and savage in these early times -and being constantly given to hard fighting, murder was common. So Kija -found that he must devise some way to make them peaceable. At first he -tried gentle methods. He saw that the rude fellows wore their hair -long, letting their locks stream out over their backs and that they -were often unkempt and slovenly to the last degree. Besides they hated -combs and did not like to get washed. - -So Kija republished the law of Dan Kun, the spirit of the mountain, who -had two topknots. He ordered that every married man should bind up his -hair into a knot, or chignon, on top of his head. Thus the Korean -topknot was established by law. As for the younger fellows they must -plait their hair and wear it in a braid down their backs. Until a man -got a wife, he was only a boy, and must hold his tongue in presence of -his elders. If caught wearing a topknot before he had a wife, he was -punished severely. - -Nevertheless the rough people mistook the good purposes of Kija. They -used the topknot as a handle to catch hold of when fighting in the -streets. The big, burly fellows pulled the smaller men around most -cruelly. Furthermore, they were accustomed to crack each other’s skulls -with clubs, so that many dead men were found in the streets. To stop -these quarrels and murders, Kija invented a hat that would keep -brawlers at least a yard apart. - -“I’ll settle their quarrels for them, once and forever,” said Kija. -“I’ll make their fun cost each man a pretty rope of cash. Every time -two bullies fight, they shall have a lot of crockery to pay for.” - -So Kija caused big heavy hats to be moulded of clay. These measured -four feet across and were two feet high, weighing many pounds. These he -had baked in ovens until they were hard as stone. They looked like big -porridge bowls turned upside down. - -Every fellow who had a bad temper, or was known to quarrel was -compelled to wear a hat of this heavy earthenware. Whenever a crowd of -men-folks got together they looked like a field of moving mushrooms. - -When men fought they only cracked their crockery. In this way Kija -easily found out who broke the law so that he could punish them. Then -they had to go to the potter’s and buy new hats. This made it quite an -expensive affair, for a good half year’s wages was required to pay for -a hat. - -Kija’s wisdom was justified. The earthenware hats proved to be a good -protection to the sacred topknots and the men liked them. Quarrelsome -fellows stopped pulling hair and smashing heads. It got to be the -custom, instead of punching a man’s face or cracking his skull, to let -off one’s bad temper in scolding and calling names, glaring -frightfully, or rolling one’s eyes,—all of which of course made no -blood flow. The bumpkin who could make the most frightful faces, grind -his teeth most savagely, and look more like a devil than the other -fellow, was reckoned the bravest and the victor. - -Before many months, a street quarrel got to be a perfectly silent -battle of ugly faces and terrible gestures. What at first promised to -be a bloody murder usually became a noiseless duel, or a quarrel -between deaf and dumb folks. This furnished violent exercise for eyes -and teeth only, but it passed off like steam out of a kettle. In time a -gentleness like a great calm settled over the land. - -The crockery hats became all the fashion. They were very popular. Even -the women wanted to wear them, because they were so useful. When turned -over, they served as wash-bowls and many a good housewife borrowed her -husband’s second-best hat to do the family washing in. They were useful -also for feed troughs and drinking basins for the horses and cattle and -for donkeys to eat their beans. - -The women, though not permitted to wear crockery bonnets, were pleased -with the way Kija treated them. He took the clubs of the rough men, -which they no longer needed, and handed them over to the wives and -daughters to use in pounding the clothes on wash days and for ironing. -In this way, the Korean women learned the wonderful art of putting a -fine gloss on the starched clothes of the male members of the family, -especially on the long white coat of the house father. Thus by changing -sticks that had been used as skull-crackers into starch polishers, Kija -changed also ruffians into gentlemen. Ever since, Koreans have been -famous for their politeness. - -Happily also, the men grew more refined in their manners and were kind -to their wives and daughters, because they saw such shining clothes. -When hot weather came and the gentlemen complained of the heat, and -fearing that perspiration might spoil their fine clothes, Kija allowed -them to make inside suits of bamboo sticks, as fine as thread or wire. -Thus the Korean gentleman wore his outer clothes on a frame hung from -his shoulders like a hooped skirt. It seemed like taking off one’s -flesh and sitting in his bones thus to wear bamboo underclothes. - -By and by, as manners improved, finding garments thus made from the -cane-brake so comfortable, the men gave up their heavy crockery hats. -In place of these they wore “bird cages” made of horsehair over their -topknots, and out-of-doors put on “roofs” of straw, reed, basket-ware, -or shining black lacquered paper, according to their rank in society. -Thus it came to pass that Korea is the land of hats. - - - - - - - - -FANCHA AND THE MAGPIE - - -A thousand years ago or more, there was a tribe in the cold and desert -land of the Tartars, north of Korea, which grew to be famous in that -part of the world. The men let their hair grow long and then plaited it -into a long braid that hung down their backs, but they shaved the front -of their heads. These people were called Manchus. - -Almost from babyhood they were trained to ride on horses, and in time -they became such bold horsemen and warriors, that they swooped down in -thousands like clouds from their mountain land into warmer and richer -regions. They had terrible bows and arrows, spears and swords, and they -won many victories, so that other tribes joined them. They captured -great China and invaded Korea. - -As long as they had been wandering tribes in the desert, they were poor -and lived on plain food that the grassy plains and forests could -furnish, such as nuts, herbs, the milk of mares, and mutton. Their -clothes were made of the wool from their own sheep. They were not -proud, except of their strength, and they never asked who their -grandfathers were. - -But it was very different when they came to be rulers of a vast empire, -rich and great like China, which had books and writing and a history of -thousands of years. The elegant Chinese gentlemen and nobles used to -call their conquerors the “horsey Tartars.” So they learned to wash and -perfume themselves, and to care for jade, and tea, and porcelain, and -silk, and other things Chinese. - -Now it came to pass that when these people out of the desert sat on the -thrones, and wore crowns on their heads, and dressed in satin, with -jeweled robes and velvet shoes, they wanted to know who had been their -ancestors long ago, and whence they came. - -It would not do to believe that the fathers and mothers of so mighty a -race were once common folks who in the distant deserts lived on acorns -and pine nuts, with horse meat often, and mutton occasionally, and -mare’s milk for dessert, or that they dressed in sheep skin and tended -horses like stable boys. - -Oh no! If the common folks, whom they now governed and made obey them, -knew that the nobles who now lived in Peking and bullied the Koreans -were once only stable and butcher boys, and had no houses but lived -only in tents, there would surely be trouble. These Koreans and Chinese -might disobey and rebel. They might even cut off their pigtails, which -the Tartars had forced them to wear, and clip their locks, like men in -Europe and America. These white-faced and bearded foreigners they -called “Southern Barbarians,” because their ships came up from the -south by way of India. - -“What shall we do to make the Chinese and Koreans think we are -somebody?” asked the Chinese Emperor of his wise men. - -In the council it was the custom to ask first the younger men to tell -what they thought about it, and for the oldest and wisest to speak -last. They talked over the matter a long time. Finally one graybeard -took off his goggles and made answer. He had on his nose a pair of -horn-rimmed green glasses, bigger than those which anyone else wore. -These it was supposed enabled him to look farther into the past and the -future than his fellows. For the bigger the goggles, the more learned a -man was supposed to be. He looked as wise as a stuffed owl, and was -very fat. He spoke last, after all the younger counselors had been -invited to give their opinions. Behind his back they called him Green -Lamps, because of his goggles and their color. - -Now in Korea and China it is not polite to keep your spectacles on your -nose, when you look into the face of any person to whom you are -talking. So pulling off his goggles old Green Lamps got down on his -knees. Then he performed the kow-tow. That was done by knocking the -matting of the floor with his forehead nine times. Green Lamps nearly -broke his stiff bones in doing it, and then he addressed the Emperor, -whose title was the Son of Heaven, as follows: - -“Sire, the common people will not respect us unless we can show that -our far-off ancestors were not born like plain folks, but came down -from Heaven. There is an old woman, nearly two cycles or one hundred -and seventeen years old, who tells the children about our distant -forebears, who dropped out of the sky. Shall I call her in?” - -“What is her name?” inquired His Imperial Majesty. - -“Mrs. Crinkles, they call her, O Son of Heaven,” answered Green Lamps. - -“Summon her before me instantly,” said the Emperor, and he waved his -lotus-bud sceptre. - -Now Green Lamps was a foxy old fellow. He wanted to get even higher in -the Emperor’s favor and had expected this. So, having the old lady -ready in another room of the palace, he went out and brought her in. -She was all ready to tell her story, with which she had interested the -children for a long time. It was the same story which her grandmother -had told, when around the fire on winter nights young and old gathered -to hear, while the winds howled and the snow covered the land. Once, -Mrs. Crinkles was a rosy maid, but now in Peking she was the oldest -living person among the Tartars. - -The young women called her Mrs. Crinkles because of her face which was -so wrinkled and puckered. Once while the old lady was telling her story -a mischievous maiden started to count how many wrinkles and puckers, -the old lady had in her face, but after reaching seventy-four she -stopped, for fear there might be one pucker for every year; and the -number 117 for some reason was thought to be unlucky. - -In hobbled Mrs. Crinkles. She was already bowed with the weight of -years so that when she bowed still lower the court chamberlain, -remarking that it beat the kow-tow itself, excused her from making the -nine prostrations of her stiff old bones. In fact it was feared that if -she got down, she could never get up again. So she was allowed to sit -and begin her story. - -Her speech was not in the polished Chinese tongue, which for ages since -Confucius has been refined by poets and scholars and literary ladies -and gentlemen, but was in plain Tartar, or Manchu. Yet the general -style of her narrative was very fine. As the old lady told it with -animation and fine gestures all eyes sparkled and the Emperor’s -visage—they called it the Dragon Countenance—beamed with delight. - -This was the narrative: - -On the other side of the Ever White Mountains, which divide Korea from -Manchuria, is the Land of Lakes. On one of these, as in a mirror, the -glorious blue sky and the forms of the snow-covered, majestic mountains -are reflected. At night when the stars come out the waveless mirror is -spangled with jewels. The fame of this crystal clear flood and the -lovely tints which the sunrise and sunset daily made upon it reached -even to the skies. There were three lovely virgins who dwelt in the -Heavenly palaces and they wanted to come down and bathe in the water of -this lake and live on its shores. - -Permission was given them by the Lord of Heaven, and descending to the -earth they were as happy as fairies could be. They never tired of their -enjoyment, seeing their own beautiful faces in the mirror of the lake. -When they rose early in the morning, to see the golden sun rise and -tint the clouds and waters, it seemed like music when song answered -song. When the light breezes rippled the surface of the lake they -clapped their hands with delight and at bedtime they were lulled to -sleep by the waves lapping on the quiet shore. - -They fell in love with the beautiful land and became so charmed with it -that in time they forgot about their old home and never wished to go -back again into the skies. They were very kind to all living things and -especially to the magpies. These feathered creatures were very -plentiful and tame, so the maidens made pets of them and chose the -magpie as their sacred bird. - -Fond of gazing into the blue above and bathing in the liquid blue -beneath, the three sisters went often into the lake. Leaving their -robes on the pebbly beach, the youngest one always stepped last into -the crystal waters. One day they noticed a magpie flying far above them -in the air, which seemed to motion as if it had a message to deliver. -On coming near they saw that it bore in its bill a blood-red fruit. -Descending near where their clothes lay on the beach it poised for a -moment, and then dropped the red fruit on the garment of the youngest -of the sisters. - -Rushing out of the water they sat down to talk over the wonderful -incident. Then they agreed that this gift of the bird, which was sacred -in their eyes, was a happy omen and meant that something good was to -follow, though the magpie, after circling around their heads, flew -away. They divided the fruit, which had a most delicious taste, -enjoying it also as a message from Heaven. - -From this divine token brought by a magpie, the sacred bird, the -youngest of the virgins conceived and bore a son. They named the baby -boy Golden Family Stem, for they felt sure that he would grow up and -become the founder of a dynasty of kings, who should take the name of -Great Bright from the shining water near which he was born. - -The young mother brought up her boy to believe that he was not like -ordinary mortals but was Heaven-born, and therefore should be noble in -all his actions. When he grew up he was to be a prince of peace healing -the quarrels of men, which should bring happiness and prosperity to -them and to all the world. - -So in the shadow of the great mountains, which were so high that they -seemed to touch the sky and were as the shadows of the eternal world -itself, he grew up. Nothing did he love more than to watch the play of -light and shade on these mountain sides and in the valleys, as well as -in the reflections on the fair face of the lake. These were to him as -the smile of the Great Guardian Spirit. - -But by and by his dear mother’s breath ceased and she “entered into the -icy caves of the dead,” and he found himself an orphan with no one near -him; for long since the other two virgins had gone away he knew not -where. - -Left alone instead of staying among the mountains the boy resolved to -take the name of Fancha, or Heaven-born, and to go out into the world -and lead men. - -He at once set about to build a boat and in this, when finished, he -floated down the outlet of the lake into a river. It happened that he -landed at a place where three tribes or clans were at war, each one -with the other. They were rude enough fellows, accustomed to brawls, -and they cared nothing about other common fellows who were like -themselves and no better. - -But when they saw this noble youth alone and unarmed step fearlessly -over the gunwale of the boat and advance to meet them in a friendly -way, they were mightily impressed at his noble appearance and his -courage in coming among them. When he told them the story of his birth, -and that his mother had called him her Heaven-born son, they one and -all shouted “Our chief!” and put on him the signs and tokens of -lordship over them. - -At once the Heaven-born youth became a great leader. At the head of his -brave warriors he was always victorious, but he never provoked war. -Other tribes flocked to his standard and in time he built a city, and -for his wife and queen married a princess in the principal tribe, the -daughter of a great chief, and several sons were born in his home. - -But wars continued, for the custom of fighting was too old to be given -up at once. In one of the battles he and all his sons except one, who -was named Fancha, were killed. This one was chased by the enemy for a -long distance over the open plains; for they hoped to capture him and -make him their prisoner, before he could get into the forest and hide. - -But when Fancha reached a dense dark wood a deliverer came to him in -the form of the sacred bird, the magpie. This creature settled on his -head, and Fancha at once took it to be the token of safety and to have -been sent from Heaven. - -When his pursuers rushed into the forest and began their glances among -the trees looking around for the lad’s hiding place, he stood as still -as a post. They seeing the bird supposed the figure was a piece of -dried wood or the splinter of a tree struck by lightning, and rushed on -and past him. By and by they gave up the hunt: by which time, Fancha -had escaped to a place of safety. - -“The rest of the story Your Majesty knows,” concluded the old lady, -“for Fancha was your ancestor of seventeen generations ago.” - -The great Emperor of all the Chinas was intensely interested and deeply -moved at the story of the aged woman, and he loaded her with presents -and honors, and created for her the office of Chief Story-Teller to the -Imperial children. Besides this he made provision for her comfort as -long as she lived. With a vermilion pencil he wrote with his own hand -the order that when she “ascended to the skies” she should be buried in -a gilded sandal-wood coffin, receive a state funeral, have a marble -tablet over her grave, and be awarded posthumous honors. - -As for old Green Lamps he was raised one degree higher in office, given -the honors of wearing a jade button on his cap, and the right to ride -in his palanquin nearer the Imperial palace door than any other -mandarin, except the prime minister. - - - - - - - - -THE SNEEZING COLOSSUS - - -Mr. Kim, who lived at the foot of the mountains, was a lazy lout. He -had a family to support, but he did not like steady work. He preferred -to smoke his pipe—as long as a yardstick—and to wait for something to -turn up. - -One day, his wife, tired of trying to feed hungry children from empty -dishes, gave her husband a good scolding and bade him begone and get -something for the household. This consisted of father, mother, and four -little folks, whose faces were not often washed, besides a little dog. -This puppy, when danger was near, always ran into the house through a -little square hole cut in the door, and when safely within barked -lustily. - -So Mr. Kim went out to the mountains to find something—a root of -ginseng, a nugget of gold, or some precious stone, perhaps, if he were -lucky. If not, some berries, wild grapes or pears might do. Meanwhile -at home, his wife pounded the grain that was left in the larder for the -children’s dinner. - -Mr. Kim rambled over the rocks a long time without seeing anything -worth carrying away. When it was about noon he came to one of the -mighty mir-yeks, or colossal stone Buddhas, cut out of the solid -mountain. It rose in the air many yards high. Ages ago in the days of -Buddhism, when monasteries covered the land and Buddhist friars and -nuns chanted Sanscrit hymns to the praise of Lord Buddha, devout men, -laboring many months, chiseled this towering colossus into human form. -Its nose stood out three feet, its mouth was four feet wide. On its -flat head was a cap, made of a slab of granite and shaped like a -student’s mortar-board, on which ten men could stand without crowding -one another. - -Long gone and forgotten were the monks, and the monastery had fallen to -ruins. The forest had grown up around the great stone image until it -was nearly hidden by the tall trees surrounding it. In front, from the -ground up, the wild grape-vines had gripped the stone with their -tendrils and spread their matted branches and greenery until they -nearly covered the image up to its neck. - -But out of a crevice in the head of the figure grew a pear tree, sprung -from a seed dropped long ago by the great-grandfather of one of the -birds singing and chirping near by. And, oh joy! at the end of the -outer branch was growing a ripe, luscious pear nearly as big as a man’s -head. What a prize! It would, when cut up, make a dessert for the whole -family. Happy Kim! He blessed his lucky star. - -Seizing hold of the bushes and wild grape-vines, by dint of great -effort Mr. Kim climbed upward and got as far as the chin of the great -stone face. Above him protruded the big nose, the nostrils of which -gaped like caverns. Yet although he was standing with his foot on the -stone lips and holding on to the nose, despite all his exertions, he -could get no further up the granite face. He was at his wit’s end. Far -above hung the delicious looking pear as if to tantalize him. A gentle -breeze was swaying the fruit to and fro, and it seemed to say, “Take me -if you can.” - -But the nose, being polished, was slippery and the ears were too smooth -to climb. What could he take hold of? Surely to shin up any further was -impossible. Must he give up the pear? - -A bright thought entered his head. He would crawl up into the right -nostril and hope for an exit to the top. So, thinking he might find his -way he began like an insect to enter the hole and soon the man Kim -disappeared from sight, as with hands and feet he climbed into the -darkness. - -Wasn’t it dangerous to tickle the nostrils of the great stone man in -this way? - -But whatever Kim may have thought he kept on, determined to get that -pear, come what might. - -Suddenly a blast loud enough to rend the mountain was heard. Hash-ho! -Had an earthquake or tempest taken place? Was this rolling thunder? - -No, the colossus had sneezed. Thus the stone man got rid of the -intruder. The first thing Mr. Kim knew, he was flying through the air, -and he tumbled upon the bushes. His wits were gone. He knew nothing. -This was about one o’clock in the afternoon. - -Mr. Kim lay asleep or unconscious till near sun-down. Then he woke up -and realized what had happened. There was the stone nose beetling over -him far up toward the sky. - -But in sneezing so hard, the colossus had shaken its head also and the -big pear had dropped off. Kim found it lying by his side, and picking -it up went on his way rejoicing. - -At home the little dog looking through the square hole saw him, barked -welcome, and a right merry supper they had over the big pear cut into -slices, as Mr. Kim told the story of his adventures. - - - - - - - - -A BRIDEGROOM FOR MISS MOLE - - -By the river Kingin stands the great stone image, or Miryek, that was -cut out of the solid rock ages ago. Its base lies far beneath the -ground and around its granite cap many feet square the storm-clouds -gather and play as they roll down the mountain. - -Down under the earth near this mighty colossus lived a soft-furred mole -and his wife. One day a daughter was born to them. It was the most -wonderful mole baby that ever was known. The father was so proud of his -lovely offspring that he determined to marry her only to the grandest -thing in the whole universe. Nothing else would satisfy his pride in -the beautiful creature he called his own. - -Father Mole sought long and hard to find out where and what, in all -nature, was considered the most wonderful. He called in his neighbors -and talked over the matter with them. Then he visited the king of the -moles and asked the wise ones in his court to decide for him. One and -all agreed that the Great Blue Sky was above everything else in glory -and greatness. - -So up to the Sky the Mole Father went and offered his daughter to be -the bride of the Great Blue, telling how with his vast azure robe the -Sky had the reputation, both on the earth and under it, of being the -greatest thing in the universe. - -But much to the Mole Father’s surprise, the Sky declined. - -“No, I am not the greatest. I must refer you to the Sun. He controls -me, for he can make it day or night as he pleases. Only when he rises -can I wear my bright colors. When he goes down darkness covers the -world and men do not see me at all, but the stars instead. Better take -your charming daughter to him.” - -So to the Sun went Mr. Mole and though afraid to look directly into his -face, he made his plea. He would have the Sun marry his attractive -daughter. - -But the mighty luminary, that usually seemed so fierce, dazzling men’s -eyesight and able to burn up the grass of the field, seemed suddenly -very modest. Instead of accepting at once the offer, the Sun said to -the father: - -“Alas! I am not master. The Cloud is greater than I, for he is able to -cover me up and make me invisible for days and weeks. I am not as -powerful as you think me to be. Let me advise you to offer your -daughter to the Cloud.” - -Surprised at this, the Mole Father looked quite disappointed. Now he -was in doubt as to what time he had best propose to the Cloud,—when it -was silvery white and glistening in a summer afternoon, or when it was -black and threatening a tempest. However, his ambition to get for his -daughter the mightiest possible bridegroom prompted him to wait until -the lightnings flashed and the thunder rolled. Then appearing before -the terrible dark Cloud that shot out fire, he told of the charms of -his wonderful daughter and offered her as bride. - -“But why do you come to me?” asked the Cloud, its face inky black with -the wrath of a storm and its eyes red with the fires of lightning. - -“Because you are not only the greatest thing in the universe, but you -have proved it by your terrible power,” replied the Father Mole. - -At this the Cloud ceased its rolling, stopped its fire and thunder and -almost laughed. - -“So far from being the greatest thing in the world, I am not even my -own master. See already how the wind is driving me. Soon I shall be -invisible, dissolved in air. Let me commend you to the Wind. The Master -of the Cloud will make a grand son-in-law.” - -Thereupon Papa Mole waited until the Wind calmed down, after blowing -away the clouds. Then telling of his daughter’s accomplishments and -loveliness, he made proffer of his only child as bride to the Wind. - -But the Wind was not half so proud as the Mole Father had expected to -find him. Very modest, almost bashful seemed the Wind, as he confessed -that before Miryek, the colossal stone image, his power was naught. - -“Why, I smite that Great Stone Face and its eyes do not even blink. I -roar in his ears, but he minds it not. I try to make him sneeze, but he -will not. Smite him as I may, he still stands unmoved and smiling. -Alas, no. I am not the grandest thing in the universe, while Miryek -stands. Go to him. He alone is worthy to marry your daughter.” - -By this time the Mole Father was not only footsore and weary, but much -discouraged also. Evidently all appreciated his shining daughter; but -would he be able, after all, to get her a worthy husband? - -He rested himself a while and then proceeded to Miryek, the colossus of -granite as large as a lighthouse, its head far up in the air, but with -ears ready to hear. - -The Mole Father squeaked out compliments to the image as being by -common confession the greatest thing on earth. He presented his request -for a son-in-law and then in detail mentioned the accomplishments of -his daughter, sounding her praise at great length. Indeed, he almost -ruined his case by talking so long. - -With stony patience Miryek listened to the proud father with a twinkle -in his white granite eyes. When his lips moved, he was heard to say: - -“Fond Parent, what you say is true. I am great. I care not for the sky -day or night, for I remain the same in daylight and darkness. I fear -not the sun, that cannot melt me, nor the frost that is not able to -make me crumble. Cold or hot, in summer or in winter time, I remain -unchanged. The clouds come and go, but they cannot move me. Their fire -and noise, lightning and thunder, I fear not. Yes, I am great.” Then -the stone lips closed again. - -“You will make, then, a good bridegroom for my daughter? You will marry -her, I understand?” asked the proud father as his hopes began to rise, -though he was still doubtful. - -“I would gladly do so, if I were greatest. But I am not,” said Miryek. -“Down under my feet is the Mole. He digs with his shovellike hands and -makes burrows day and night. His might I cannot resist. Soon he shall -undermine my base and I shall topple down and lie like common stone -along the earth. Yes! by universal confession, the Mole is the greatest -thing in the universe and to him I yield. Better marry your daughter to -him.” - -So after all his journeying, the father sought no further. Advised on -all sides, and opinion being unanimous, he found out that the Mole was -the greatest thing in the universe. His daughter’s bridegroom was found -at home and of the same family of creatures. He married her to a young -and handsome Mole, and great was the joy and rejoicing at the wedding. -The pair were well-mated and lived happily ever afterward. - - - - - - - - -OLD WHITE WHISKERS AND MR. BUNNY - - -White Whiskers was the name of a huge, tawny tiger that lived in the -mountains of Kang Wen. He was the proudest tiger in the whole peninsula -of Korea. He had the most fiery eyes, the longest tail, the sharpest -claws, and the widest stripes of any animal in the mountains. He could -pull down a cow, fight all the dogs in any village, eat up a man, and -was not afraid of a hunter, unless the man carried a gun. As for calves -and pigs, he considered them mere tidbits. He could claw off the roof -or break the bars of stables where cattle were kept, devour one pig on -the spot, and then, slinging another on his back, could trot off to his -lair miles away, to give his cubs their dinner of fresh pork. - -White Whiskers was especially proud, because he was the retainer of the -great genii of the mountains, that men feared and worshiped and in -whose honor they built shrines. One of these Mountain Spirits, when he -wanted to, could call together all the tigers in his domain, and then, -sitting astride the back of the biggest, he would ride off on the -clouds or to victory over Korea’s enemies. Both tigers and leopards -were his messengers to do his bidding. Only the big and swift and -striped tigers were chosen to carry out the Mountain Spirit’s orders. - -One particular matter of business confided to White Whiskers, the great -striped tiger, was to visit daily the shrines in the hill passes to see -if offerings were continually made. The people who were in terror of -both the Mountain Spirit and his servants the tigers, daily offered -sacrifice out of fear. They piled up stone, rags, bits of metal, or -laid food on dishes for the Mountain Spirit who was very exacting and -tyrannical. The poor folks thought that if they did not thus heap up -their offerings the spirit would be angry and send the tigers at night -to prowl around the village, scratch at their doors, and eat up -donkeys, cows, calves, pigs, and even men, women and children. Then the -hunters would go out with matchlocks to slay the man eaters, but by -this time, in daylight, the tigers were far up into their lairs in the -mountain. - -Indeed, it was so hard to get a shot at a tiger that the Chinese, who -like to make fun of their neighbors in white coats, declared that -during one half of the year the Koreans hunt the tigers, and during the -other half the tigers hunt the Koreans. That is, the men go out with -their guns in summer; but in winter, when men keep within doors, the -hungry wild beasts descend from the mountains for their prey. - -Now Old White Whiskers was both proud and crafty. For many years he had -eaten up pigs, calves, dogs, donkeys and chickens and had twice feasted -on men, besides avoiding all their traps and dodging every one of their -bullets. So he began to think he could laugh at all his enemies. Yet, -proud as he was, he was destined to be outwitted by a creature without -strength or sting, claws or hoofs, as we shall see. - -Mr. Rabbit, who burrowed in a hill near the village, had often heard -the squealing of unfortunate pigs and the kicking of braying donkeys, -as they made dinners for Old White Whiskers. Thus far, however, by -being very cautious, he had kept out of the striped tyrant’s way and -maw. But one cold winter’s day, coming home, tired, weak and hungry, -from having no food since yesterday, just as he was crossing a river on -the ice, he met Old White Whiskers face to face. From behind a rock by -the shore, near Mr. Bunny’s burrow, the big tiger leaped out and tried -to freeze the rabbit with terror, by staring at him with his great -green eyes. Mr. Bunny knew only too well that tigers love to maul and -play with their prey before eating it up, and he thought his last hour -had come. - -Nevertheless Mr. Bunny was perfectly cool. He did not shiver a bit. He -had long expected such a meeting and was ready for Old White Whiskers, -intending to throw him off his guard. - -Fully expecting, in a minute or two, to tear off the little animal’s -fur and grind his bones for a dinner, the tiger said to the rabbit: - -“I’m hungry. I shall eat you up at once.” - -“Oh, why should you bother with me?” said Mr. Bunny. “I’m so little and -skinny as hardly to make a mouthful for Your Majesty. Just listen to me -and I’ll get you a royal dinner. I’ll go up the mountain and drive the -game to your very paws. Only you must do exactly what I tell you.” - -At this prospect of a full dinner, the tiger actually grinned with -delight. The way he yawned, showing his red, cavernous mouth, huge -white teeth, each as big as a spike, and the manner of his rolling out -his long curved tongue, full of rough points like thorns, nearly scared -Mr. Bunny out of his wits. The rabbit had never looked down a tiger’s -mouth before, but he did not let on that he was afraid. It was only the -tiger’s way of showing how happy he was, when his mouth watered, and he -licked his chops in anticipation of a mighty feast. - -“I’ll do just as you say,” said Old White Whiskers to Mr. Bunny, seeing -how grateful the rabbit was to have his own life spared. - -“It is my ambition to serve the lord of the mountains,” said Mr. Bunny. -“So, lie down on the ice here, shut your eyes and do not stir. Now mind -you keep your peepers closed, or the charm will fail. I’ll make a -circle of dry grass and then go round and round you, driving the game -to you. If you hear a noise and even some crackling, don’t open your -eyes till I give you the word. ’Twill take some time.” - -Old White Whiskers, tired of tramping in the forest and prowling around -pig-pens all day but getting nothing, was both hungry and tired. So he -resolved, while waiting, to take a good nap. As quickly as one can blow -out a candle, he was asleep. - -Thereupon Mr. Bunny made himself busy in pulling up all the dry grass -he could find and piling it around and close up to Old White Whiskers. -Delighted to hear the big brute snoring, he kept on until he had a -thick ring of combustibles. Then he set it on fire, waiting till it -blazed up high. Then he scampered off to see the fun. - -Old White Whiskers, awakened by the crackling, yawned and rubbed his -eyes with his paws, wondering what the noise could be. - -“Hold on!” screamed Mr. Bunny, “keep your promise,” and farther he ran -away up the hill. - -“Rascal!” growled the tiger as the red tongues of flame leaped up all -around him. He had to jump high to escape from the flames with his -life. Even as it was, one paw was scorched so that he limped, and his -fur was singed so badly that all his long hair and fine looks were -gone. When he got back home, the other tigers laughed at him. - -Henceforth he had to take second place, for the great Mountain Spirit -no longer trusted such a stupid servant. - - - - - - - - -THE KING OF THE FLOWERS - - -Korea is the land of beautiful scenery and lovely flowers. Snow white -and ruby red are their chief colors. In the spring time when the ice -has melted and the rivers have poured their floods into the sea, the -whole country blushes with the pink bloom of azaleas. The glens are -white with lilies of the valley. The breezes as they sweep the land -come laden with perfume. - -The girls mark the season of the year and the time of the month by the -blossoms even more than by the almanac, for they keep in mind the -calendar of the flowers. Daughters that are especially beloved of their -parents are named from the blossoms, and the Korean house-father, when -affectionate, speaks of his wife as the plum tree. An old song says: -The homesick husband, long away from his dear ones, inquires of a -fellow townsman newly arrived: - - - “‘Have you seen my native land? - Come tell me all you know; - Did just before the old home door - The plum tree blossoms show?’” - - -And the stranger answers promptly: - - - “‘They were in bloom, though pale, ’tis true, - And sad, from waiting long for you.’” - - -This is like the Scotsman who calls his wife his “bonnie briar bush,” -for in the Land of Morning Glow, they have a language of flowers. Each -plant and blossom has a meaning and either delightful or disagreeable -associations. It is a compliment to speak of a girl as a pear blossom, -for the pear is one of the most glorious of trees and its blooms are -lovely to behold. It would hardly do, however, to call her a cinnamon -rose, for this flower has evil associations. The gee-sang, as the -Koreans pronounce the name of the gei-sha, as the Japanese call the -dancing girls, are associated with the cinnamon rose, for did not the -sages tell this story? - -Twelve centuries ago lived the renowned scholar Sul Chong, the greatest -of all the learned men of Korea. His head was as full of knowledge as a -persimmon is of pulp, and his ideas were as numerous as the seeds in a -pomegranate. He taught his countrymen all that was in the books of -China, and in the temple of Confucius his portrait hangs to this day. -He lived in the kingdom of Silla, in the days of its glory, when ships -from Japan and China sailed into its seaports and the Arabs from Bagdad -brought their pretty wares to exchange for gold, ginseng, camphor, -porcelain, cinnamon, ginger and tiger skins, to take to their renowned -Caliph and his turbaned nobles at court, of whom we read in the -“Arabian Nights.” - -When the King of Silla, Sin Mun, was living in luxury and filling his -palace with too many pretty dancing girls, who distracted his mind from -attending properly to the affairs of state, Sul Chong warned his master -against the increasing influence of these women by telling him the -following story: - -Once upon a time, in spring, the Peony, king of the flowers, blossomed -so gorgeously that it became the admiration of all the lovers of beauty -in the whole country. Hundreds of people made long journeys to the -capital of Silla to see the bright blossoms. In the king’s gardens, on -very tall stalks, the many branches were heavily laden with large red -flowers. These were indeed lovely to behold, but the king of the whole -garden was a single peony, grown on one stem, so that all the strength -and nourishment of the plant were concentrated in that unique royal -bloom. All saluted this flower as king. - -When all the other flowers heard of their king’s glory, they came to -pay their respects at the floral court, of which the Peony was -sovereign. All the trees sent their choicest blooms as envoys. In one -glorious procession of perfume and color the Peach, Plum, Pear, Apple, -and Persimmon trooped in, each making its obeisance to the monarch of -all flowers. All these tree blossoms prided themselves on their being -so useful to man as harbingers of the delicious fruits to come. - -Then, among the bright throng appeared sprightly young virgin flowers, -the Tea-Rose, in pearl-tinted frock; the Azalea, in pink; the Lily, in -white; the Strawberry Blossom; and a score of other pretty creatures of -the garden. Last of all appeared the Cinnamon Rose. She tripped nimbly -along in a green skirt and red jacket, with haughty air and breath of -spice. - -One after the other they were presented to King Peony, and gracefully -made their salute. But of them all, the king seemed most to favor Miss -Cinnamon Flower. He let the others pass out from the Court, but -lingered long with the spicy visitor, spending much time in her -society, as if smitten with her charms. By and by he invited Miss -Cinnamon Rose to come and live in the palace, and leaving his ministers -to carry on the government, he spent all his time in her society. She -was installed in a place near His Majesty and seemed always to have his -ear and attention, even when the king’s prime minister had to wait long -for an audience, or even a word. Miss Cinnamon Rose seemed to be the -real ruler instead of the king himself. - -But one day there came to the palace the flower called Old Man. He -looked exactly like an aged beggar dressed in sackcloth and leaning on -a staff. Respectfully bowing, he asked if he might share the -hospitality of the king’s palace. He was welcomed and fed, partaking of -the royal bounty. When at last he was given audience of King Peony, and -was invited to speak, he said: - -“Out along the road, Your Majesty, I heard of your rich feast and good -things to eat. Now I hear that you need medicine. Although you dress in -Chinese silk and none are equal to you in the magnificence of your -robes and the splendor of your Court, yet you are much like me in your -wants, and you need a common knife string, as well as I. Is it not so?” - -“You are quite right, Old Man,” replied the king. “Yet I like this -Cinnamon Rose and want her with me. I cannot do without her.” - -“Yes, Your Majesty. Yet, is it not true that if you keep company with -the wise and prudent, your reign will be long, powerful and glorious? -But if you consort with the foolish your house will fall? Did not three -dynasties of the emperors of Great China fall because of the beautiful -women who tempted their Majesties to forget their duties? If it were so -with the ancients, how much more so is it now?” - -The king blushed, even to a deep crimson. He confessed his faults and -reformed his life. - -It is said the lesson was not lost on the real human king. He dismissed -his harem, sent away the dancing girls and ruled wisely till the day of -his death. - - - - - - - - -TOKGABI’S MENAGERIE - -(Cats and Dogs) - - -There are many dogs, but few cats, in Korea. Nobody loves poor pussy -there. They are not made pets and are rarely seen in the houses of the -people. Even bull calves are more caressed by the children than are -cats, and the puppy dog takes the place of Tabby or Grimalkin. - -Korean cats are not bob-tailed, like their cousins in Japan; nor is -pussy ever used, as the Chinese kitten is, to tell the time of day by -the width of the slits in its green eyes. - -Alas! the cats in Korea are too wild to enjoy the society of human -beings, or human beings theirs! The presence of dogs is especially -hateful to them. Mother cats tell their kittens wonderful stories of -the cruelty of dogs and why cats and dogs do not agree. - -The native roof-scramblers can howl and caterwaul, arch their backs, -blow up their tails, spit and scratch, or purr pleasantly, lick their -fur, and wash their faces with their paws like cats in other countries. -They are highly accomplished as mouse catchers and bird-eaters. Yet -they have a hard time of it, for there are too many dogs to make a -kitty’s life either easy or agreeable. The Korean cat hates to get its -feet wet, yet it is often obliged to wade in the water to get rid of -the dogs that chase it. As for the furry, purry kittens, one wonders -how they ever escape the fierce dogs and grow up at all. - -Yet it all came about because a certain cat-ancestor laughed when it -shouldn’t have done so. Although it was a lot of school-children that -made Kitty laugh, the dog never forgave the cat for its frivolity. And -this is how it happened. - -Long, long ago, one of the mountain fairies had come down into the land -from the high peaks, and being kindly treated by an old man named Tip -Pul, who kept a wine shop, called Tokgabi and bade him reward the old -fellow with a precious stone. - -So, one night, Tokgabi dropped the gem into Tip Pul’s long-necked wine -bottle. Strangely enough, after this, the wine never ceased. The bottle -was always full. Every day Tip Pul sold plenty to his neighbors and it -was good and cheap, so that the shopkeeper was very popular. Yet, -without any refilling, the flask was always ready to overflow. So Tip -Pul had no fear of poverty in extreme old age. Having neither wife nor -children, his only companions were a dog named Su Nap, or Snap, for -short, and a cat named Mee Yow. All three lived happily together in -these times of long ago. - -But one day the bottle was found to be empty, and when Tip Pul shook -it, nothing rattled inside. Somehow the magic stone had disappeared. -Poverty now seemed certain. The old man was nearly paralyzed with grief -and his neighbors all came in to sympathize with him. They knew well -that they could buy no wine anywhere else so good and so cheap as they -had long enjoyed at Tip Pul’s shop by the river. - -Yet this loss of the wonderful stone was the very making of Tip Pul’s -pets. As for the cat, she became the most industrious kitty ever known. -She at once began to ransack every rat’s quarters known, not only in -her master’s home, but in every house in the village, in search of the -missing stone. The racket which that cat kept up at night, among the -rafters and beams under the roof, nearly drove some people crazy. They -declared that Tokgabi had got drunk by tasting Tip Pul’s drams. Yet it -was Mee Yow all the time. The cat knocked over tobacco boxes, scratched -among hat covers hung on the wall, tipped up the hanging shelves and -upset the crockery in the closet over the kitchen stove. In a word, -this four-footed creature played every kind of mischief that people -usually ascribe to Tokgabi, the sooty imp. - -Yet, when any one climbed up to the attic, looked among the rafters, -and peered into the darkness, all he could see was a pair of green eyes -that shone like the moon. Poking the uncanny thing with fishing poles, -or throwing shoes or sticks at it, only caused spitting or snarling. So -they knew it was a cat, and not Tokgabi, and betook themselves to bed -again. Laying their topknots on their wooden pillows and their bodies -on their oiled-paper carpet, they soon fell asleep again. The Koreans -do not swear, but the way some good folks hurled bad words on all the -ancestors of that cat, clear back to the time of Kija, was dreadful to -think of. Indeed, some of their remarks are still preserved in -tradition and proverbs. Nevertheless, with all his pains taken, Mee Yow -could not find the magic wine-stone. As for Tip Pul, he got poorer and -poorer. - -The dog could not climb like Puss among the rafters and the roofs, but -being able to run fast and having a nose that could smell a tiger a -mile off, he made excursions all over the country, even crossing the -ice of the frozen river. Although he fought many another dog, chased -many a rat into its hole, and worried about a hundred cats, even -jumping into wood-sheds and running in and out among the cows and -horses, he found nothing. Once, while in a stall where the pony, tied -up with a belly-band by ropes to the ceiling, was enjoying its supper -of bean soup, the poor dog was nearly kicked to death. The vicious -brute, thinking that Snap was trying to steal some beans from its feed -box, gave the dog a blow with its hoofs that made Snap go on three legs -for a week afterward. - -The long winter passed away and the ice melted, but the river water was -still cold. One day Pussy, while chasing a rat among the rafters of a -house of a Yang-ban or gentleman, brushed its whiskers against a -greenish soapstone box, such as the king often sends as a present to -those whom he likes. Recognizing the smell of something inside as that -of his master’s long-lost gem, he tried hard by tooth and claw to open -it. - -All Pussy’s scratching, biting and clawing, however, were in vain. Nor -could the dog help in the least. So a bargain was struck with the rats -to gnaw open the box and get the magic stone. Both Su Nap and Mee Yow -promised to let all rats and mice entirely alone for six months, if one -of them would agree to gnaw open the box. - -Delighted at the prospect of peace and quiet for half a year, and -especially while the grain should be ripening, both rats and mice -worked together, until out of a hole gnawed in the box, polished and -hard on their teeth as it was, they got the magic stone. Carrying it in -their paws, they dropped it where their former enemies, now so -peaceful, could get it. At once the dog took the gem in his mouth and -ran to the river, Mee Yow following after. - -“Now, Kit,” said Snap, “get on my back and hold tight to my neck-hair -with your claws, while I swim across. As I must breathe hard, put the -gem in your mouth. Mind that you don’t open your jaws, or yawn, or -laugh, till we get across. Do you hear?” - -Mee Yow wagged her tail and took the wine-stone firmly in her mouth in -token of determination to deliver that precious gem safely to her -master. All the time Mee Yow intended to jump ashore and run to her -master, while the dog would be shaking off the water from his hair, and -thus get the credit for first finding where the stone had been. - -It was a long, hard swim and the dog’s strength was nearly used up when -only two-thirds across the river, but the cat was happy, for she had -only to hold on and keep her feet dry. All went well until near the -opposite shore. - -Now it happened just then that a party of children, out of school and -ready for fun, caught sight of the odd pair. They had never seen -anything so funny in all their lives, and at once they laughed -uproariously. Snap was too serious to pay any attention to their glee, -but Mee Yow, already tickled with vanity, became positively frivolous. -She too joined with the children and laughed so hard that Snap’s body -was badly shaken, so that he nearly got his nose under water and -drowned them both. This made the light-headed and conceited cat laugh -all the more. Finally bursting in a guffaw, Mee Yow dropped the gem out -of her mouth, so that it was hopelessly lost in the river and fell to -the bottom. - -That was too much for the dog, to have his labor thus wasted. Thinking -only of his master the faithful and serious Snap dived to the bottom of -the river, tumbling Mee Yow off. You may well believe though, much -scratching and clawing took place before Puss let go and swam ashore. - -Alas! the dog could not find the precious gem, and when once on land he -first shook himself to dry his hair and then rushed at the cat to give -her a good shaking. But Mee Yow climbed up a tree, and though nearly -frozen to death after her icy bath, kept up growling as long as the dog -barked. - -After that, in Korea, the cats and dogs ceased to be friends. Indeed, -they never spoke to each other. Wild, unloved and unpetted, the cat -belongs to the bad animals in Tokgabi’s museum, while the dog is the -faithful friend of man. - - - - - - - - -CAT-KIN AND THE QUEEN MOTHER - - -Korea is called the Land of the Plum Blossom, but in winter the rivers -freeze over. Then the men cut through the ice which is often several -feet thick, to catch with their fishing lines and hooks the fish that -swim in the water beneath. Yet they are very glad to welcome any sign -of the coming spring, and they watch eagerly for the pussy willows to -show themselves. - -Now there was a farmer who lived in Nai-po, which is the grain garden -of the Korean peninsula, who wanted a little daughter, though other -parents cared more for sons. - -One day farmer Pak, for that was his name, discovered a pussy willow -which seemed to him, after the long winter, like a light shining in a -dark place. He plucked it and carried proudly home this branch full of -fuzzy little buds. This was a sign of his happiness at the return of -spring. He was tired of ice and snow and now he knew that soon the -gloomy hills would burst into a glory of bright colors from the -blooming flowers, and look like an army with flags. - -That same day his prayers were answered and a little girl was born into -his home. Giving the pussy willow to his wife, he said: “We shall name -our baby Cat-kin, that is Little Puss.” - -Cat-kin never saw a cradle, for the Korean mothers carry their babies -on their backs. She was soon out of infancy, and then it was not long -before she was standing up and toddling about and playing with her -doggie and pet bull. These little pets on four legs usually take the -place of kittens in a country home in Korea, for the cats are wild and -do not allow children to fondle them. - -Long before she was a dozen years old, Cat-kin became very fond of -fairy stories, of which Korea has a great many, besides thousands of -tales of wonderful people and animals and what happened to them. She -often looked up towards the high hills and distant mountains, where she -thought the fairies, dragons, ogres and tigers lived. Here also dwelt -the sen-nin or mountain spirits, wise and good, of whom the old people -talked and the soldiers painted on their banners when they went to war. - -When about eight years old, Cat-kin wanted very much to walk up towards -the north star, which her father showed her shining in the heavens. He -had once traveled up into one of the Northern provinces, where during -the daytime he could see afar off the great snow-white mass of the Ever -White Mountain rising up to meet the azure sky. There, at the top he -had heard, lay the Dragon Prince’s Pool, out of which flowed the two -rivers that made Korea an island. One was named the Tumen and the other -the Yalu, after the beautiful green and blue sheen on the feathers of a -drake’s back, so richly colored were its shining waters. When her -father told of his travels, Cat-kin also longed to go north to get to -the very top and touch the sky. - -But this she knew she could not do, even if she had had long legs and -were as strong as a man, for the tigers were very numerous and always -roaming about. These yellow and black striped brutes were man-eaters. -They loved nothing better for a good dinner than a young girl. - -So as she did not know any way of getting to the top of the Ever White -Mountain and of seeing the deep blue waters of the Pool, except by -riding on the back of a dragon, which she sometimes dreamed of, she -kept waiting and waiting for one of these flying creatures to come, yet -it never came. - -Cat-kin was bound to have the fairies visit her, if possible. So one -day, sitting under a persimmon tree and reading a story, she held the -book in one hand, while she struck the ground several times, saying -earnestly: - -“Earth-spirit, earth-spirit, come to me; come up and see me.” - -All of a sudden the air seemed heavy with sweet perfume, and a silver -mist like a cloud spread over her house and garden. Then a bright -dazzling light flooded everything and there stood before her a -glistening chariot, made of blue jade with golden wheels. It was drawn -by milk-white horses and on a seat of shining silver sat the Western -Heavenly Queen Mother herself. - -Attendant upon the Mother Queen were thousands of the most beautiful -maidens, who were all dressed in resplendent robes. They wore amber -ornaments, and silver girdles, and necklaces of precious stones and -silken robes with many tassels. Their feet were shod with gold -embroidered velvet slippers, and on their heads were caps of gold -studded with glittering gems. Cat-kin could hardly count the rich -ornaments, necklaces, breast chains and the jade wands, like sceptres, -which they held in their hands. These were shaped like lotus flowers. -The faces of all these maidens were rosy, their eyes sparkled, and all -had small hands and feet. - -In a voice of great sweetness that sounded like music the Heavenly -Queen Mother looked at Cat-kin and spoke to her, saying: - -“Come forward, little maid, fear not. I shall take you with me to my -palace, in the Island of Gems and give you all you want, besides -showering blessings on your people, if you will come.” - -Cat-kin did not feel at all timid or frightened, but came boldly -forward and knelt at the base of the chariot. - -The Mother Queen first touched her with her milk-white jade wand, that -was carved like a lotus bud, and made the little girl rise. - -In a moment more, a silver chariot, with wheels made of turquoise and -drawn by two young milk-white dragons, wheeled up close to her, and the -attendant lady in golden robes bade her step in. - -The dragons were fierce, powerful, fire-breathing creatures, with wide -spreading wings, and their bodies and tails together were of the length -of whales, while their eyes darted fire. Yet Cat-kin was not at all -afraid, and thought it was great fun. Then up through and far above the -clouds the host of bright beings flew. They followed the Queen Mother’s -chariot until, far away, they poised in mid-sky. Cat-kin was then told -to look over the side of the chariot to the earth and ocean, miles and -miles below. She was asked if she could recognize her father’s cottage, -but she could not. The whole village looked only like a grey mass of -thatched roofs, and she could pick out only the temple. - -There, spread out, was the great sea, as blue as a sapphire, and in -places deep green, like an emerald, but she could see no ships nor any -coast or shores, nor any ranges of mountains, nor signs of the land of -Korea. Nothing but ripples and waves were visible. Yet in the center of -the azure sea was an island. The trees were emeralds and the roofs of -the houses were of gold, and the windows diamonds. These were so full -of light that no lamps were necessary. - -Beautiful beings, all maidens, as lovely in garb and face as those who -filled the train of the Queen Mother, walked or played, or sang in the -gardens. Or swam and sported in the sapphire waves, or rowed and sailed -about in boats that seemed as if made of marble, they were so white. - -At a signal from the Queen the singing ceased. Then there rose up wave -upon wave of sweetest melody from the players on instruments who were -in the gardens below. - -Cat-kin thought she heard at intervals the chorus, sounding out the -words, rising upward like pulses, through the air, “Welcome lovely -mortal! Our Queen invites and we greet thee! Manifold be her gifts to -thee and thine! Come, thou honored among all Korean maidens! Come to us -and join our band and we shall love thee as one of ourselves.” - -In the wink of a falcon’s eye—so short a time it seemed—the Mother -Queen and her host descended. - -As the chariots touched the island, a bevy of radiant maidens came -forward, some to attend the Queen Mother and some to lead Cat-kin into -her own room in the palace. There the most gorgeous robes were put on -her, beside a cap begemmed with glittering, precious stones of various -colors, and a pair of gold-embroidered velvet slippers. - -Cat-kin was surprised when one of the shining maidens set a royal tiara -adorned with five gems upon her brow. - -“For me?” she asked in surprise. - -“Yes for you, whom the Heavenly Mother Queen would honor.” - -“And what do these five gems, jade, crystal, malachite, amber and agate -signify?” asked Cat-kin. - -“Ah, that is not for us to tell you, but the Queen Mother ordered -these. Tomorrow she will explain to you the secret of each gem.” - -Cat-kin walked about freely, enjoying the lovely sights and sounds. She -also ate with keen appetite and to her full of the delicacies set on -the table before her. Yet never once did she feel sleepy, nor see any -beds, nor hear anyone talk of retiring. She wondered what they meant -when they said “tomorrow”; for she could see no sun or moon or -twilight. However, she did not think long about such things, and by and -by forgot all about them. - -When the entire court and all the hosts of the Queen Mother’s -attendants had assembled, Her Majesty’s chamberlain read the -proclamation, which declared that the Queen looked with great favor -upon the Korean people, and had decided to bestow great gifts upon -them. For this purpose, she had selected and brought to her palace the -Korean maid named Cat-kin, to endow them through this, their daughter, -with five precious traits of disposition and character. In token of -gracious thought and tender love, Her Majesty would now present and -explain the meaning of the five precious gems. These were jade, -crystal, malachite, amber, and agate. - -Cat-kin kneeled down before the Queen, who placed in Cat-kin’s hands -the shining gems, while an attendant fairy took them from her opened -palm and placed each one of them on vermilion velvet, edged with gold. -Then five maidens stood by, each with a gem laid on a cushion. - -After the ceremony of presentation was over, the Queen made a speech, -which told the Korean maiden’s fortune and her future. - -Cat-kin would be sent back over the clouds and ocean to the King’s -palace in the capital of her home land, and there be made a princess. -Many nobles and king’s sons from other countries, hearing of her beauty -and her wonderful visit to the Island of Gems would come to pay her -court as suitors. Many would ask for her hand, to be wedded to her; but -she was to marry none but the king’s son, a prince of her own people. - -“Take these gems, fair maiden, and bestow their virtues and what they -mean upon your people,” said the Queen. “A thousand years from now—as -men count time—we together will visit Korea again.” - -Then both the Queen and Cat-kin, stepping into the silver chariot, -drawn by the fire-breathing dragons, plunged on and mounted up into -space. First they sailed above the clouds and then dipped downwards, -steering to Korea and over the mountains, bearing their precious charge -to the capital. They reached the ground in a cloud and the wheels of -the chariot stood still before the palace gate. - -Yet before any mortal eyes could see their full forms, the Queen Mother -and the dragons had disappeared, and Cat-kin stood alone, a resplendent -maiden of dazzling appearance and in the robes given by the Heavenly -Queen Mother, which all recognized at once as coming from the Island of -Gems. - -A throng of court ladies and palace attendants and a long line of -nobles and princes were already waiting for the maiden, who they knew -came gift-laden from the Queen Mother, of whom all had heard from -childhood. The five gems were laid, each in a covered casket of -perfumed wood, encrusted with gold on top and inlaid with -mother-of-pearl. - -Escorted into the throne room by a bevy of princesses, the Heavenly -Mother’s gifts in the five caskets were reverently placed on silken -fans, spread out on a table having on its top the five cushions of -crimson velvet. - -Then, by lot and word of the diviners, the choice of a first drawing -was awarded to a prince of fair face and mien. The other four nobles, -one by one and in turn, approached and each was allowed to choose one -of the caskets, all of which looked alike, and none was to be opened -until the possessor was in his own home. - -Now these were the gifts for body and mind, of which the polished gems -were the tokens. According as each prince chose and received, so with -the trait, which each gem signified, would his children and posterity -be endowed. In the course of centuries, these would become the national -features, of twenty millions of Koreans. - -One by one the caskets were opened by each prince, and therein he -discovered what was a trait in the character of the Korean people. -These were: - -Procrastination—Putting off until tomorrow, or some other time, what -ought to be done today, and keeping back not only one person but the -whole nation. - -Hospitality—Always glad to see friends, to entertain people, even -strangers, and to take care of relations, even to the making of one’s -self poor—a habit carried too far as the years and centuries rolled on. - -Inexactness—The habit of not usually thinking clearly, counting -correctly, or stating facts precisely, and when telling a story of -“blowing a conch;” that is, of exaggerating. - -Love of family—How the mothers and fathers in Korea do love their -children, their kinsfolk and their relatives! - -Sense of humor—A Korean can always see the funny side of things. He -loves to joke and he bears his troubles well, because he likes to -smile. As for the girls, they laugh as easily as the rain falls, or the -flowers bloom. - -And what the Queen Mother predicted came true. Just as five fingers -make up the hand, so the average people among the Koreans are known by -the five traits, for better or for worse. - - - - - - - - -THE MAGIC PEACH - - -Out on the ocean, so far away that no ship ever sailed there, is an -island on which stood the seven storied palace of the royal lady, Su -Wang Moo. In our language, this title means Western Queen Mother. She -is always ready to help good mortals with her gifts and favors. - -On this island thousands of genii wait to obey the commands of the -Queen Mother. She has also chariots of silver and gold drawn by -dragons, by which she sends her messages everywhere. - -The genii and most of the shining maidens stay at home to fulfill the -Queen’s commands. In addition to these servants, she has hundreds of -azure pigeons, which she often despatches to far-off places. In their -bills, or under their wings, they carry some gift or promise to make -people happy. - -In the mind of many a Korean maiden there rises the dream, or there -wells up the hope, that some day the Western Queen Mother will send to -her pretty clothes of silk, with necklaces of jewels, a handsome youth -to wed her, and a silver ring for the marriage ceremony. - -Then she pictures to herself how splendidly she will be arrayed and how -fine she will look in the costume of a bride; how her long black hair -will be done up very high, with flowers and rosettes over the crown of -her head, and ermine-edged slippers will be put on her feet. She -wonders how she will feel when she drinks the cups of sacramental wine -that make her a wife, after which she will go with her husband and bow -to the memorial tablets of his ancestors. - -She goes all over in her mind the happy times she will have in her -husband’s home. What she hopes for most, after all these things, is to -have a kind mother-in-law. Then she will be a queen in her own little -kingdom, with plenty of rice and kimchi, and cakes and goodies. - -So it is that many Korean maidens go out under the blue sky to look up -at the stars, or on moonlight nights scan the heavens to see if the -birds are coming. Hoping to greet the azure pigeons, they put on their -best clothes and watch. Many are their dreams. - -Oh! how many lads also dream of the genii and of the riding on the -dragon’s back, to cross the mountain ranges and the great oceans, and -to visit strange, far-off countries; or, they think of the pink coat -which they will wear. The pink coat shows that the lad is engaged to be -married and will, when grown up, be a husband to the little girl who -may be in her cradle days; for in Korea children and even babies in -arms are engaged to be married to other children. - -Then the boy pictures the day when the long braid of hair, which he now -has to wear down his back, shall be tucked up into a topknot, like a -man’s. No matter how old a bachelor may be, he must wear this boy’s -braid of hair. He must not speak, or talk with his elders, without -first asking permission. He must be “seen and not heard” in company, -and every one treats him as a child. So the boy also waits for the -azure pigeons to come, for to be engaged to be married even when quite -young, or to have a wife when older, means a great deal. - -Then the young husband will wear a wide brimmed hat after school and go -up to the city, with his fellow villagers, to try at the literary -examinations. They will all march together, under a banner tufted at -the top with pheasant feathers. If he passes successfully, he will be -welcomed home with a parade and band of music. By and by, he will -become a magistrate and have a string of amber beads over his ear, and -wear on his breast a square of gold-embroidered velvet. Servants will -carry him in a palanquin and his men will carry wooden paddles to -punish folks who break the laws. Then he can strut about, in starched -white flowing clothes, with the common people all afraid of him. No -wonder that the boy waits for the coming of the blue pigeon! - -Now in the gardens of the Queen’s Palace, on the Island of Gems, there -grow wonderful fruits of a rich, ripe color, brilliant with light and -sheen. These, when served at the banquets and eaten, have the power of -making the guest live very long, even for thousands of years. - -Especially powerful is the celestial peach of longevity, which is -served on little golden tables, its juice makes an old person’s body -new, so that one who eats the peach will live hundreds of years. - -Sometimes the Queen sends one of these fruits to her favorites on the -earth. Yet no one can ever get any of these peaches, unless the Queen -herself gives them, and the peach trees are always jealously guarded by -genii and dragons. None, even of the Queen’s servants, or her waiting -maids, or any of the genii, or dragons, can bestow the peach of -longevity on mortals. - - - -Now it happened that the Queen, hearing of the virtues of a certain -king’s son, despatched one of her lovely maidens, in one of her ten -thousand dragon chariots, inviting him to visit Her Majesty, in the -Island of Gems. She sent a message also to the prince’s parents, -telling them that their son would return before the end of the moon, -which was then in its first quarter. - -His anxious mother, who had a bride already picked out for her son to -wed, warned him against looking too long at the lovely princesses, or -pretty maids in the Queen’s Palace of Gems. In truth she had her -lurking suspicions. She feared for her darling son, that, beneath their -rosy faces and moon-like eyes, they were really sirens, possibly even -sea monsters in female form, and might eat him up. - -She also urged him to be very careful as to etiquette. He must be -especially decorous, because the code of behavior and manners might not -be the same as those among polite people upon the earth. Moreover, he -must notice and hear everything and, when he came back home, tell her -all about it. - -On the other hand, the Queen of the Island of Gems warned the lovely -maiden, a princess whom she sent, to beware lest the prince might fall -in love with her, either on the way, or when at the island. If he tried -to persuade her to marry him and to stay on the earth and not come back -to the Island of Gems, and to her duties to the Queen, the palace maid -would be disgraced and die early. - -Although the Queen laughed when she said it, and quoted the proverb, -“Don’t trust a pigeon to carry grain,” she was really very serious, and -the maiden knew that it would not do to thwart the royal wishes. - -So this discreet princess made a firm resolve to be very careful. She -decided that when she met the prince she would be very cold in her -bearing. When delivering the Queen’s invitation, she would appear to -think it only a matter of business, though very important. She would -not stay more than an hour in the prince’s mansion. - -When the dragon chariot was returning homeward she would be silent. She -would hold no conversation, nor speak a word, nor let the prince sit -beside her, but she would keep in the front seat nearest the dragon, -while he should ride on the great creature’s back. - -So it was a very quiet journey which the prince made, while the chariot -sped over the clouds, with the earth and oceans lying far beneath. Part -of the time he sat on the dragon’s back, as if in a saddle, but after a -while he climbed back into the chariot again, and all the time he was -so thrilled with the speed and the grandeur of it all that, to tell the -truth, he forgot all about the lovely princess who had brought the -Queen’s message, until he found himself at the Queen’s Palace of Gems -and was invited to step out of the chariot. - -Soon he was seated with others, similarly honored, at the table which -was loaded down with dishes of gold and silver which were heaped with -the choicest viands. The guests, all in fine clothes like the prince, -were waited on by shining maidens of exquisite beauty and robed in -golden garments gemmed with glittering jewels of the most precious -workmanship. - -Upon one of these lovely creatures, a maiden who seemed to be about -sixteen, not far away from where he sat, the prince cast his eyes. She -was kneeling on the floor ready to do his bidding. He was so filled -with admiration at her loveliness that he could hardly pay any -attention to the talk at the table. Despite his mother’s warning, he -made several mistakes in propriety. - -Yet his appetite was very good after his long journey and he ate -heartily of the delicious fare. Towards the end of the feast, feeling -in a jolly mood, he picked up one of the peaches. Then he pared and -sliced it, greatly enjoying its juicy nectar. Every morsel of the pulp, -as he put it in his mouth, made him feel as if he were gaining a -century of vigor. He knew he was lengthening his life and increasing -his power to enjoy the pleasures of which he had always been very fond. - -Indeed the prince was far less of a scholar and student than he ought -to have been. Often at home when his teachers were all present and -ready to begin the tasks of the day, the lad was still out at play. His -older sister used to say laughingly of her brother, “He never let his -studies interfere with his education.” - -Yet every moment this maiden kneeling near him seemed to grow more -charming in both face and form, dress and adornment, ease and grace of -motion. Indeed she seemed the very embodiment of all loveliness, and -the prince could not keep his eyes off her. He did not know that this -was the effect of eating the peach of longevity, for the maiden was -really no prettier at the end of the banquet than she had been at the -beginning. The change was in him, not in her. - -So intoxicated was the prince, that he so far forgot himself and what -his mother had told him not to do, that he picked out one of the -finest-looking of the peaches from its golden basket on the table and -tossed it over to the pretty maiden. - -On her part the maid of honor had herself been so wrapped up in -admiration of the young and princely guest, that when he motioned that -he was about to toss a peach to her she broke the rule of the Palace of -Gems. She threw out her hands and caught the peach deftly, as if -playing ball. - -The palace ladies were all horrified. They had been taught that, except -to perform the duties of waiting and serving, they were to pay no -attention to anything the guests might say or do. When heated with wine -the guests might be only making sport of the attendants. They were to -decline any personal attentions and continue in their duty of serving. -But instead of averting her gaze, or bowing low with her face to the -ground, or having her eyes downcast, the maid, actually threw out her -hands, caught the peach and, to the horror of all who saw her, bit into -it and swallowed the morsel. - -What it was that happened the very next moment even the fairies could -not tell or exactly remember; for a golden mist seemed to fall in the -banquet hall, enveloping everything. - - - -It happens that just here in the story a great gap occurs. At such a -pause the Korean story-teller, who sits in his booth in one of the back -streets of Seoul, would stop and send his boy to take up a collection -from the crowd. Nor would he go on, until all had been invited to give -and the coins rattled in the gourd shell. - -When he began again some said it was the same story continued. Others -were sure it was a new story, but that the palace maid and the prince -were the same who had been in the banquet hall of the Western Queen -Mother, in the Island of Gems and that the peach had never lost, since -it never could lose its virtues, because given by the Queen. But such -as it was, this is the way the story ran on: - - - -More than a thousand years afterwards it was known that in the high -mountains of the Ever White range lived a holy man, a hermit, who was -honored, almost worshiped by the people in that region. In the summer -time hundreds of pilgrims visited his hut to hear wise words about how -to live and do good, and then to receive the hermit’s blessing. Even -the wild beasts appeared to be tame in his presence. At any rate, they -never tried to bite or devour one another, or hurt the old man or to -destroy his humble shelter. The tigers, the leopards and the bears -seemed to forget they had claws, or teeth; while their little cubs -played peacefully with each other. - -The dress of this hermit was of the ancient style of a thousand years -before, of the time of the ancient dynasty of Ko. - -One day while out on one of his walks this old, white-bearded hermit -met a woman of fair countenance, who seemed to be quite young, for her -face was unwrinkled and rosy. It appeared that she had travelled far, -yet she walked with the springing step of a maiden who was still in her -teens. Her dress betokened that of ages gone, for it was of the sort -and fashion which are revealed in the cave pictures painted on the -walls of the dolmens, or the colossal stone chambers, in which kings -and mighty men were buried, ten or fifteen centuries ago, which are -very many in Korea. - -The hermit and maid met in the path under the tall pine tree and -exchanged greetings, the lady bowing very low. Then, as she looked up -in his eyes, her face became radiant with joy as if she recognized a -dear friend. - -The sage inquired who she was, and whether she were the wandering lady, -of whom rumor spoke of having been seen during centuries, over all the -nine provinces of Korea, by people who were great grandfathers, as well -as by the children of that day. - -Then she told her story. - -She was the same palace maid, who, in the Western Queen Mother’s palace -on the Island of Gems had waited upon him, once a gay prince and now -the holy hermit. Then again she bowed low. - -For catching and eating the peach which the princely guest had tossed -to her, and thus breaking the rules of the palace, the Queen had -ordered her banishment for a thousand years. - -But during all this time she had been seeking the prince who tossed her -the peach of longevity; for she knew that neither she nor he could die, -till the thousand years had passed. Yet none of the men she met, -however handsome, learned or wealthy, reached her ideal of the youth -she had seen so long ago. Not finding him, she went back to the Island -of Gems, traveling on a dragon’s back, and humbly begged the Queen to -extend her term of life, until she should meet the one she loved so -dearly, even if she found him only after hundreds of years more of -wandering and of hope deferred. - -The Mother Queen listened to her petition and was gracious and extended -the maiden’s life. So on the earth she kept up her wanderings. Now, -having met the holy hermit she was happy, for she felt sure that she -had found the same prince, venerable in appearance though he was, for -she could see his soul. - -The hermit listened with delight to the lady’s story of her life in the -palace and of her wanderings, during a thousand years in search of one -she loved; and, especially, that she had been willing to have the -Mother Queen order her future. - -As for the hermit, his long white beard which swept his breast fell -off, his bald head was in a moment covered with luxuriant black hair, -and he became young again in her presence, with springing step and -bright eyes. He could not be more rosy in countenance, for the pure -life he had led had kept his skin pink. They spent many hours together, -in talking long and joyfully over their experiences in the Island of -Gems. - -Then both agreed that now, since they had met again, they would bow -gladly to the Queen’s decision concerning them both, and do whatever -Her Majesty ordered. - -But already by a flying dragon that was famous for gathering up news -from all parts of the universe, the Queen had been told of the meeting -of the lovers in the mountain path, and of their pious resolve to -commit their future to Her Majesty in the Island of Gems. - -Suddenly the pair of lovers heard near the mountain top a sound of -sweet music, as of some fairy playing on a lute, and at every second -the sounds seemed to come lower and nearer. Soon a great white cloud of -sweet smelling odors, like incense, enveloped them. What was their -surprise to see a golden chariot drawn by two dragons, whose eyes were -like emeralds, come up close to where they stood. Both of them, -prince-hermit and maid were then taken up into the chariot and borne -swiftly over cloud, and mountain and sea, to the Island of Gems. There -the Queen ordered them to be married, and, after a splendid wedding, -they lived happily ever after. - - - - - - - - -THE GREAT STONE FIRE EATER - - -Ages ago, there lived a great Fire Spirit inside of a mountain to the -southwest of Seoul, the capital of Korea. He was always hungry and his -food was anything that would burn. He devoured trees, forests, dry -grass, wood, and whatever he could get hold of. When those were not -within his reach, he ate stones and rocks. He enjoyed the flames, but -threw the hard stuff out of his mouth in the form of lava. - -This Fire Monster spent most of his time in a huge volcano some -distance away, but in sight of the capital. The city people used to -watch the smoke coming out of the crater by day and issuing in red -fire, between sunset and sunrise, until all the heavens seemed in -flames. Then, they said, the Fire Spirit was lighting up his palace. On -cloudy nights the inside of the volcano glowed like a furnace. The -moulten mass inside the crater was reflected on the clouds, so that one -could almost see into the monster’s belly. - -But nothing tasted so good to the Fire Eater as things which men built, -such as houses, stables, fences, and general property. An especial -titbit, that he longed to swallow, was the royal palace. - -Looking out of its crater one day, he saw the king’s palace all silver -bright and brand new, rising in the City of Seoul. Thereupon he -chuckled, and said to himself, for he was very happy: - -“There’s a feast for me! I’ll just walk out of my mountain home and eat -up that dainty morsel. I wonder how the king will like it.” - -But the Fire Spirit was in no hurry. He felt sure of his meal. So he -waited until his friend, the South Wind, was prepared to join him. - -“Let me know when you’re ready,” said the Fire Spirit to the South -Wind, “and we’ll have a splendid blaze. We’ll go up at night and enjoy -a lively dance before they can get a drop of water on us. Don’t let the -rain-clouds know anything about our picnic.” - -The South Wind promised easily, for she was always glad to have a -frolic. - -So when the sun went down and it was dark, the Fire Spirit climbed out -of his rocky home in the volcano and strode toward Seoul. The South -Wind pranced and capered with him until the streets of the capital were -so gusty that no one with a wide-brimmed hat dared go outdoors, lest, -in a lively puff, he might lose his head-gear. As for the men in -mourning, who wear straw hats a yardstick wide and as big and deep as -wash-tubs, they locked themselves up at home and played checkers. By -the time all the palace guards were asleep the Fire Spirit was ready. -He said to the South Wind: - -“Blow, blow, your biggest blast, as I begin to touch the roofs of the -smaller houses. This will whet my appetite for the palace, and then -together we’ll eat them all up.” - -Not till they heard a mighty roar and crackling did the people in Seoul -push back their paper windows to find out what was the matter. Oh, what -a blaze! It seemed to mount to heaven with red tongues that licked the -stars. Those who could see in the direction of the palace supposed the -sun had risen, but soon the crash of falling roofs and mighty columns -of smoke and flame, with clouds of sparks, told the terrible story. By -the time the sun did rise, there was nothing but a level waste of -ashes, where the large buildings had been. Even the smoke had been -driven away by the wind. - -When the king and his people in the palace enclosure, who had saved -their lives by running fast, thought over their loss, they began to -plan how to stop the Fire Monster, when he should take it into his head -to saunter forth on another walk and gobble up the king’s dwelling. - -A council of wise men was called to decide upon the question. Many long -heads were bowed in hard thought over the matter. All the firemen, -stone-cutters, fortune-tellers, dragon tamers, geomancers and people -skilled in preventing conflagrations were invited to give their advice -about the best way to fight the hungry Fire Demon. - -After weeks spent in pondering the problem they all agreed that a -dragon from China should be brought over to Korea. If kept in a swamp -and fed well, he would surely prevent the Fire Imp from rambling too -near Seoul. Besides, the dragon knew how to amuse and persuade the -South Wind not to join in the mischief. - -So, at tremendous cost and trouble, one of China’s biggest dragons, -capable of making rain and of spouting tons of water on its enemies, -was shipped over and kept in a swamp. It was honored with a royal -decoration, allowed to wear a string of amber beads over its ear, given -a horsehair hat, a nobleman’s girdle and fed all the turnips it desired -to eat. In every way it was treated as the king’s favorite. - -But it was all in vain. Money and favor were alike wasted. The petted -dragon made it rain too often, so that the land was soaked. Then when -told not to do this, it grew sulky and neglected its duty. Finally it -became fat and lazy and one night fell asleep when it ought to have -been on guard, for the winds were out on a dance. - -Seeing his jailer thus caught napping, the Fire Imp leaped out of its -volcano prison, rode quickly on the South Wind to Seoul and in a few -hours had again swallowed the royal palace. There was nothing seen next -day except ashes, which the Fire Monster cared no more for than we for -nutshells when the kernels are eaten up. - -With big tears in their eyes, the king and his wise men met together -again to decide on a new scheme to keep off the Fire Imp. They were -ready to drown him, or to see him get eaten up, because he had twice -swallowed up the palace. They sent the Chinese dragon home and this -time, besides the fortune-tellers and the stone-cutters, the -well-diggers were invited also. For many days the wise men studied -maps, talked of geography, looked at mountains, valleys, and the -volcano, and studied air currents. Finally one man, famous for his deep -learning about wood and water, forests and rivers, spoke thus: - -“It is evident that the fire has always come from the southwest and up -this valley,” pointing to a map. - -“True, true,” shouted all the wise men. - -“Well, right in his path let us dig a big pond, a regular artificial -lake and very deep, into which the Fire Monster will tumble. This will -put him out and he can get no further.” - -“Agreed, agreed,” shouted the wise men in chorus. “Why did we not think -of this before?” - -All the skilful diggers of wells and ditches were summoned to the -capital. With shovel and spade they worked for weeks. Then they let in -water from the river until the pond was full. - -So everybody in Seoul went to bed thinking that the king’s palace was -now safe surely. - -But the Fire Imp, seeing the dragon gone and his opportunity come, -climbed out of his volcano and moved out for another meal. This time, -the South Wind was busy elsewhere and could not go with him. So he went -alone, but coming to the pond, tumbled and wet himself so badly that he -was chilled and nearly put out when he got to the palace, which was -only half burned. So he went home growling and hungry. - -Again the wise men were called and the first thing they did was to -thank the boss well-digger, who had made the pond. The king summoned -him into his presence to confer rank upon him and his children. He was -presented with four rolls of silk, forty pounds of white ginseng, a -tiger-skin robe, sixty dried chestnuts and forty-four strings of copper -cash. Loaded with such Korean wealth and honors, the man fell on his -hands and knees and thanked His Majesty profusely. - -Then they called the master stone-cutter or chief of the guild and -asked him if he could chisel out the figure of a beast that could eat -flames and be ugly enough to scare away the Fire Imp. - -The master had long hoped that he would be invited to rear this bit of -sculpture, but hitherto the king and Court had feared it might cost too -much. - -So the order was given, and out of the heart of the mountains, a mighty -block of white granite was loosed and brought to Seoul on rollers, -pushed, pulled, and hoisted by thousands of laborers. Then, hidden -behind canvas, to keep the matter secret, lest the Fire Imp should find -it out, the workmen toiled. Hammers and chisels clinked, until on a -certain day the Great Stone Flame Eater was ready to take his permanent -seat in front of the palace gate, as guardian of the royal buildings -and treasures. - -The Fire Imp laughed when the South Wind told him of what the Koreans -in the capital were doing, even though she warned him of the danger of -his being eaten up. - -“I shall walk out and see for myself anyhow,” said the Fire Imp. - -One night he crept out quietly and moved toward the city. He was nearly -drowned in the pond, but plucking up courage, he went on until he was -near the king’s dwelling. Hearing the Fire Imp coming, the Great Flame -Eater turned his head and licked his chops in anticipation of -swallowing the Fire Imp whole, as a toad does a fly. - -But one sight of the hideous stony monster was enough for the Fire Imp. -There, before him, on a high pedestal was something never before seen -in heaven or on earth. It had enormous fire-proof scales like a -salamander, with curly hair like asbestos and its mouth was full of big -fangs. It was altogether hideous enough to give even a Volcano Spirit a -chill. - -“Just think of those jaws snapping on me,” said the Fire Imp to -himself, as he looked at them and the fangs. “I do believe that -creature is half alligator and half water-tortoise. I had better go -home. No dinner this time!” - -So by his freezing glance alone, the Great Flame Eater frightened away -the Fire Imp, so that he never came again and the royal palace was not -once burned. To-day the ugly brute still keeps watch. You have only to -look at him to enjoy this story. - - - - - - - - -PIGLING AND HER PROUD SISTER - - -Pear Blossom had been the name of a little Korean maid who was suddenly -left motherless. When her father, Kang Wa, who was a magistrate high in -office, married again, he took for his wife a proud widow whose -daughter, born to Kang Wa, was named Violet. Mother and daughter hated -housework and made Pear Blossom clean the rice, cook the food and -attend to the fire in the kitchen. They were hateful in their treatment -of Pear Blossom, and, besides never speaking a kind word, called her -Pigling, or Little Pig, which made the girl weep often. - -It did no good to complain to her father, for he was always busy. He -smoked his yard-long pipe and played checkers hour by hour, apparently -caring more about having his great white coat properly starched and -lustred than for his daughter to be happy. His linen had to be beaten -with a laundry club until it glistened like hoar frost, and, except his -wide-brimmed black horsehair hat, he looked immaculately white when he -went out of the house to the Government office. - -Poor Pigling had to perform this task of washing, starching and -glossing, in addition to the kitchen work and the rat-tat-tat of her -laundry stick was often heard in the outer room till after midnight, -when her heartless stepsister and mother had long been asleep. - -There was to be a great festival in the city and for many days -preparations were made in the house to get the father ready in his best -robe and hat, and the women in their finery, to go out and see the king -and the royal procession. - -Poor Pigling wanted very much to have a look at the pageant, but the -cruel stepmother, setting before her a huge straw bag of unhulled rice -and a big cracked water jar, told her she must husk all the rice, and, -drawing water from the well, fill the crock to the brim before she -dared to go out on the street. - -What a task to hull with her fingers three bushels of rice and fill up -a leaky vessel! Pigling wept bitterly. How could it ever be done? - -While she was brooding thus and opening the straw bag to begin -spreading the rice out on mats, she heard a whir and a rush of wings -and down came a flock of pigeons. They first lighted on her head and -shoulders, and then hopping to the floor began diligently, with beak -and claw, and in a few minutes the rice lay in a heap, clean, white, -and glistening, while with their pink toes they pulled away the hulls -and put these in a separate pile. - -Then, after a great chattering and cooing, the flock was off and away. - -Pigling was so amazed at this wonderful work of the birds that she -scarcely knew how to be thankful enough. But, alas, there was still the -cracked crock to be filled. Just as she took hold of the bucket to -begin there crawled out of the fire hole a sooty black imp, named -Tokgabi. - -“Don’t cry,” he squeaked out. “I’ll mend the broken part and fill the -big jar for you.” Forthwith, he stopped up the crack with clay, and -pouring a dozen buckets of water from the well into the crock, it was -filled to brimming and the water spilled over on all sides. Then -Tokgabi the imp bowed and crawled into the flues again, before the -astonished girl could thank her helper. - -So Pigling had time to dress in her plain but clean clothes that were -snow-white. She went off and saw the royal banners and the king’s grand -procession of thousands of loyal men. - -The next time, the stepmother and her favorite daughter planned a -picnic on the mountain. So the refreshments were prepared and Pigling -had to work hard in starching the dresses to be worn—jackets, long -skirts, belts, sashes, and what not, until she nearly dropped with -fatigue. Yet instead of thanking and cheering her, the cruel stepmother -told Pigling she must not go out until she had hoed all the weeds out -of the garden and pulled up all the grass between the stones of the -walk. - -Again the poor girl’s face was wet with tears. She was left at home -alone, while the others went off in fine clothes, with plenty to eat -and drink, for a day of merrymaking. - -While weeping thus, a huge black cow came along and out of its great -liquid eyes seemed to beam compassion upon the kitchen slave. Then, in -ten mouthfuls, the animal ate up the weeds, and, between its hoof and -lips, soon made an end of the grass in the stone pathway. - -With her tears dried Pigling followed this wonderful brute out over the -meadows into the woods, where she found the most delicious fruit her -eyes ever rested upon. She tasted and enjoyed, feasting to the full and -then returned home. - -When the jealous stepsister heard of the astonishing doings of the -black cow, she determined to enjoy a feast in the forest also. So on -the next gala-day she stayed home and let the kitchen drudge go to see -the royal parade. Pigling could not understand why she was excused, -even for a few hours, from the pots and kettles, but she was still more -surprised by the gift from her stepmother of a rope of cash to spend -for dainties. Gratefully thanking the woman, she put on her best -clothes and was soon on the main street of the city enjoying the gay -sights and looking at the happy people. There were tight rope dancing, -music with drum and flute by bands of strolling players, tricks by -conjurers and mountebanks, with mimicking and castanets, posturing by -the singing girls and fun of all sorts. Boys peddling honey candy, -barley sugar and sweetmeats were out by the dozen. At the eating-house, -Pigling had a good dinner of fried fish, boiled rice with red peppers, -turnips, dried persimmons, roasted chestnuts and candied orange, and -felt as happy as a queen. - -The selfish stepsister had stayed home, not to relieve Pigling of work, -but to see the wonderful cow. So, when the black animal appeared and -found its friend gone and with nothing to do, it went off into the -forest. - -The stepsister at once followed in the tracks of the cow but the animal -took it into its head to go very fast, and into unpleasant places. Soon -the girl found herself in a swamp, wet, miry and full of brambles. -Still hoping for wonderful fruit, she kept on until she was tired out -and the cow was no longer to be seen. Then, muddy and bedraggled, she -tried to go back, but the thorny bushes tore her clothes, spoiled her -hands and so scratched her face that when at last, nearly dead, she got -home, she was in rags and her beauty was gone. - -But Pigling, rosy and round, looked so lovely that a young man from the -south, of good family and at that time visiting the capital, was struck -with her beauty. And as he wanted a wife, he immediately sought to find -out where she lived. Then he secured a go-between who visited both -families and made all the arrangements for the betrothal and marriage. - -Grand was the wedding. The groom, Su-wen, was dressed in white and -black silk robes, with a rich horsehair cap and head-dress denoting his -rank as a Yang-ban, or gentleman. On his breast, crossed by a -silver-studded girdle, was a golden square embroidered with flying -cranes rising above the waves—the symbols of civil office. He was tall, -handsome, richly cultured, and quite famous as a writer of verses, -besides being well read in the classics. - -Charming, indeed, looked Pear Blossom as she was now called again, in -her robe of brocade, and long undersleeves which extended from her -inner dress of snow-white silk. Dainty were her red kid shoes curved -upward at the toes. With a baldric of open-worked silver, a -high-waisted long skirt, with several linings of her inner silk robes -showing prettily at the neck, and the silver bridal ring on her finger, -she looked as lovely as a princess. - -Besides her bridal dower, her father asked Pear Blossom what she -preferred as a special present. When she told him, he laughed heartily. -Nevertheless he fulfilled her wishes and to this day, in the boudoir of -Pear Blossom, now Mrs. Su-wen, there stands an earthen figure of a -black cow moulded and baked from the clay of her home province, while -the pigeons like to hover about a pear tree that bursts into bloom -every spring time and sheds on the ground a snowy shower of fragrant -petals. - - - - - - - - -THE MIRROR THAT MADE TROUBLE - - -The city of Seoul lies near the Han river, which flows all the way -across Korea from the high mountains to the level sea. To most Korean -people, in the old days when no one traveled abroad, Seoul was the -center of the universe. - -All roads in the kingdom led to this wonderful city, in which there -were big shops and stores, and gay streets full of lively people in -rich clothing. The gentlemen in their stiffly starched and glistening -white clothes walked very proudly with their heads up in the air. When -they straddled the little Korean ponies, which are not much bigger than -Newfoundland dogs, it seemed as if elephants were trying to ride on -donkeys. - -From morning to night the avenues were full of traffic and business. -All the wonderful things brought by the Arabs from India, and by the -merchants from Japan and China, could be bought in the Korean capital. - -A thousand bulls loaded with dry grass and fire-wood came through the -city gates into Seoul every day. They could be seen passing along, but -not much besides legs, tail and horns were visible. At breakfast and -supper time clouds of blue smoke rose up from ten thousand low, and -often underground chimneys, carrying the heat and fire from the -kitchens, where good things to eat were cooked. The cartloads of bags -of rice, millet, barley, fruits and vegetables, goodies and cookies, -jars and crockery, seen in the shops, would make a mountain. - -Palaces, pagodas, temples and mansions of the nobles and wealthy people -made the place in which the king lived very beautiful, while out beyond -were the high stone city walls, white or covered with vines. - -When the sun dipped below the mountains the gates were shut, and after -that no one could enter until morning. At every closing and opening of -the gates the musicians played lively tunes and the great bell tolled -out the time of sunrise and sunset. In the band were drums, fifes, -trumpets and stringed instruments. - -At night from inside the house and wineshops, one could hear the sounds -of revelry, music, song, dancing and feasting, which often lasted till -morning. - -Out on the Great South Mountain, a mighty fire burned and the flames -shot high up in the air. This was the welcome message that all was -peaceful throughout the whole kingdom. On hilltop and mountain, from -the snowy peaks of the Ever White Mountain to the islands out in the -Southern Sea, and from the east to the west coast, these signal fires -blaze. Flame answering flame made a telegraph announcing that all was -well. - -But at nine o’clock Seoul outdoors was a woman’s city. All boys and men -must be off the streets. Any male person caught by the police would be -taken to the magistrate’s office and there receive a severe beating -with wooden paddles by the public spankers. Then the women and grown-up -girls, old and young, went outdoors, breathed the air, took their -walks, made their visits, and had a delightful time with play and chat -and gossip. But by midnight every one must be indoors. - -It was no wonder then that in the country the farmers and the village -folk thought that Seoul, the capital, was the most splendid city on -earth. If they ever heard of London and Paris and New York, they -supposed that these places on the map were only villages. How was it -possible that any city could equal or surpass Seoul? Why, the very idea -was nonsense! - -In every hamlet even the children hoped some day to see the city. Often -they dreamed of riding through the air on a dragon’s back in order to -get there. It was thought that anything which a mortal man or even the -insatiable Tokgabi should require, could be bought in Seoul. - -Now in a village up north, which in English we should call -Cucumberville, lived a miller, Mr. Kim and his wife Cho. The man had -worked hard for many years and heaped up piles of iron and brass cash, -which he kept hidden under a rafter beneath the roof. He had long -intended to see the royal city, and his wife encouraged him, for she -wanted a new dress, and a comb and a pair of shoes, such as city people -wear. His daughters said they would like to have girdles, -ermine-trimmed slippers and silver hair pins. Kim felt that he must -surely go, to please both himself and his family. - -So one fine May morning he started off to walk to Seoul and see the -sights. His wife and daughters, bowing down with their faces to the -paper carpet, begged him to bring them the pretty things they talked -about so much, and also whatever might please himself. - -His faithful spouse bade him beware of thieves and robbers and not to -let his money lie around loose in the inns by the way. When in Seoul he -must not go into the wineshops, or to see the dancing girls called -ge-sang (or geisha), or to spend his cash foolishly. There were many -wicked men about and she had heard that beside the polite people there -were boors even in the capital. This she thought must surely be the -fact, for there was a proverb that said so. - -On his part Kim cautioned his wife, since it was still chilly weather, -to keep the kitchen fires burning, so as to have the house warm and not -let the girls take cold. She must beware also of robbers. These bad men -had the habit of coming after midnight, when the fire was out, and of -quietly loosening the stones of the foundations under the floor and -getting inside, and also into the rooms through the flues. The house -must be well locked up and the door barricaded at night, so that no -prowling leopard or tiger roaming around should get in. If she heard -any scratching or clawing on the roof, she was to strike the gong. This -would alarm the villagers, and then the men would rush out with torches -and drive off the beasts of prey. If she should hear the pigs squealing -out in the pen, she must sound the alarm for the tigers loved Korean -pork even more than Korean people. - -Now Kim was a first-rate fellow. When at home he was pretty sharp at a -bargain while buying beans, millet or rice, and was skilful in grinding -barley or chopping up straw for the donkeys. But when he was once -inside the walls of the big city, one would think “he carried his head -under his armpits,” as the Koreans say. - -For amid so many strange sights and sounds he was dazed. Like a great -gawk he stood on the main street, with his mouth open. As the crowds -went by, he wondered where all the people came from, and how they all -got a living. - -He found the saying true that “There are rude people, even in Seoul,” -for one fellow shouted at him asking him whether he intended to swallow -the moon. Some of the boys laughed at him and one said his mouth was -like a bird box, and something might fly in. - -Kim looked at many things in the shops, but when he asked how much they -cost he nearly fainted. He was truly scared at the price, and walked -on. However, he bought some pretty things for his wife and daughters, -such as a fan, a roll of silk for a dress, a box of hairpins, some -amber beads, and a silver ring, so that when his oldest daughter, who -was soon to marry, became a bride, she would have everything ready. - -While in the silk shop the clerk who sold him the goods saw that Kim -was from the country and thought he would have a little fun. So he told -Kim about the fairies, and pointed out a shop across the way. There, if -he looked at the round thing which the shop man would gladly show him, -he would see and feel as he never felt or saw before. - -At once Kim went across the street and over to the shop, where they -made metal things, bright, shining, polished and silvery. There he -stood in front of a round thing like the moon. In it was a man’s face. -It was the face of some one he thought he knew. It was a man about his -own age he fancied, yet he could not tell just who it was or call him -by name, but he was sure he had seen the person before. When he turned -around suddenly, hoping to surprise a friend, and perhaps a neighbor, -from his home town, there was nobody near. He looked again. There it -was! Had his friend hid himself and then come back? - -When Kim dodged he lost sight of the face, but when standing in front -of this round thing, there was the same man again in the mirror, for -that is what the shining metal was. - -When Kim laughed the fellow laughed too. When he made a wry face or -grimaces, the other person, whoever he was, did the same. No matter how -quickly Kim might turn around to catch him, he was gone. - -Now Kim had never before seen a mirror and did not know what it might -be. Yet thinking it was almost like fairy magic, he bought the metal -disc and took it back with him. - -When he arrived home he must first of all unpack the boxes containing -the pretty things for the women of his family, for the girls were -impatient to see what their father had brought them. - -They were so absorbed in their gifts that they did not notice what Mr. -Kim had bought for himself. So he laid the case containing the mirror -on the table and put some other purchases away in the big cabinet, -inlaid with mother-of-pearl, that stood in the best room. Then he went -out to look after his mill, and the pigs, the donkey, and the bull. - -No sooner had the girls opened the mirror case, than terrible things -happened. The mother, who was behind the daughter, saw the face of a -young woman and was startled at beholding a stranger, as she thought, -in her house. Instantly she broke out in a fit of jealous passion. - -“Your father has brought home another woman, a ge-sang, from Seoul, to -take my place. What does he mean?” - -At the same time the daughter, seeing a face in the polished metal, -cried out, “No mother, we won’t have any strange woman in your place. -Besides she’s too young and will be a tyrant to us.” - -Hearing the loud voices and crying, the grandmother hobbled in and -asked what was the matter. - -“Look, see for yourself, what our daddy has brought home to us to make -us miserable.” - -Seeing the mirror, Granny looked into it for a moment. Then she too -burst into a passion, and cried out, “I won’t have this old woman in -our house. It’s enough for my son to support me and his family. Oh, why -did he go to Seoul?” - -By this time there was such a racket with four women, young, -middle-aged, and old, crying so lustily, that each one quickly used up -three paper handkerchiefs apiece, before they could dry their tears. - -While still crying out, “ugo, ugo!” very loudly, grandfather came in, -shaking his stick and ordering them to be quiet. Then, looking at their -streaming faces and dropping tears, he demanded to know the cause of -the trouble. - -“See for yourself,” said his wife. Then she handed him the metal -trouble-maker, such as had never before been seen in the village. - -At once the old man turned almost purple with rage. - -“What,” cried he in his cracked voice, “is my son so unfilial as to -bring another old man into the house? How can he support two fathers? -Where will he get the kimchi and millet for the old fellow to eat?” -Then he threw the mirror into its box and slammed down the lid tight. - -All this time while jealousy was eating up these angry people and -threatening to disrupt the family, the noise increased so greatly, that -the husband left his pigs and his mill, and rushed in to see what was -the matter. - -At once his wife, who was a very strong woman, flew at him, and seizing -his topknot, pulled him and dragged him over the floor and outdoors, -and along into the street, never stopping till she reached the house of -the judge to tell her troubles. There she made out a terrible story. - -Once in the presence of the great man who wore a mighty hat and had a -string of amber beads hung over his ear, she told the story of what her -husband had brought from Seoul, to destroy the peace of his family. -Surely, he meant to go back to the capital and have a young wife! In -her anger her tongue never stopped a moment. - -She charged her husband with all the crimes known in the codes. Yet all -that she could prove against him was that he had brought something -round, made of metal, into the house. She assured the judge that it was -as full of evil magic as Tokgabi and all his imps. - -Now the other members of the family joined in accusation of the miller. -Besides supporting the wife’s story, they all declared that it was true -in every detail; because the five witnesses all agreed in their story. - -When the flood of talk had subsided somewhat, the judge, who meanwhile -had kept on smoking a brass-bowled pipe, the stem of which was a yard -long, while the bowl was only as big as a chestnut, asked, - -“In what form did you say this evil magic came?” - -At this, the miller’s old father produced the box, opened it, and -handed the metal mirror to the judge, who had never before seen -anything like it. In fact, he had never been out of his district except -once, when he went to the examinations, years before, in Seoul. Even -then he was so much with his fellow students and so long shut up in his -little cell writing out his essays that he saw hardly anything of the -city. - -When he held up the mirror before his eyes he suddenly became like a -demon in his rage, and behaved just like the other people in the -court-room. - -On the face of the round thing which he held in his hand he saw a man -in official robes, such as only men of eminence wear. He had on his -head a high round hat, like those which only magistrates ever put on, -while on his right ear hung a string of twenty-eight big round amber -beads. - -When he held the mirror down in front of him he discerned also the -embroidered breastpiece, and the little silver stork, that served to -hold together the folds of a judge’s coat of office, while around his -waist was a decorated girdle. - -All this made him almost choke with anger, at the idea that another -magistrate should come into the village of Cucumberville, to take his -place. - -What should he himself do for a salary? If he lost his position how -would he support his old parents and his twenty-five poor relations? He -saw himself a pauper in his old age. - -Speechless with rage there was silence in the court-room for at least -half a minute. Even the women’s tongues did not wag. All looked at each -other to see what would come next. - -But the peace lasted no longer than thirty seconds, for the storm broke -out again in full force when the jealous wife seized her husband by his -topknot to drag him home. She feared that the magistrate was himself so -angry and jealous, that he might adjourn the court. - -Just when the hullaballoo was at its height, a messenger rushed into -the court-room, to announce that the royal inspector direct from the -king was on his travels of observation in the province. Within five -minutes he would be at the gate of the court house. - -Instantly the jealous wife let go her husband’s topknot. The magistrate -called for order and posted his under officers in their places, -according to the etiquette of welcoming the king’s agents. Then the -magistrate adjusting his hat and topknot which had been badly tumbled -in his passion went out to greet his worship, the Royal Inspector. -Salutations over, he waved his hand to his superior to take to the -chief seat of honor. - -As soon as all formalities were over, the high officer inquired into -the cause of the troubles and into the merits of the case. - -The local magistrate put the mirror on a silken cushion and handed both -to his highness, the inspector, saying: - -“Please, your worship, it is this that has turned us all into devils of -jealousy. What is it?” - -Then this gentleman from the capital, who was every day accustomed to -the comforts and conveniences of the great city and the splendor of the -palace, explained what a mirror was. He gave them all a mild scolding -for their folly and dismissed them, telling them that whenever he or -she felt angry, or jealous, to go out and pull the tops off five -turnips; or, to drink slowly a cup of rice water before speaking an -angry word. - -Thereupon, the miller’s wife fell on her face and begged pardon of her -husband. Then, all the family, young and old, while walking home, -laughed heartily at their mistakes. - -When a Korean begins to laugh, it is sometimes hard for him to stop; -but after half an hour, all was quiet again. After that, nearly every -one who could afford it bought a mirror. All the girls in the village, -sooner or later, possessed one. - -They used to look into its face so often to see their own, that the -oiled-paper carpet fronting the mirror was, in many houses, soon worn -out. - -In Seoul, the mirror-makers wondered what had happened in -Cucumberville, the village, so long famous only for its cucumbers, but -they slapped their thighs for joy and grew rich. - - - - - - - - -OLD TIMBER TOP - - -The fairies in the Korean province of Kang Wen, which means River -Meadow, were having great fun, when one of their number told how they -played a trick on an ox-driver whom they called Old Timber Top. How he -got such a strange name this story will tell. - -This driver was a rich and stingy fellow who had made a fortune in -lumber. He used to buy up all the trees he could. Then he would have -them cut down and sawed up into logs and boards. His men would haul -them away in their rough carts, drawn by stout bulls, to his lumber -yard. In winter time sleds were used, but whether it was the season of -snow and ice, or of tree blossoms and flowers, the animal used to draw -sleds or carts was always a bull. - -For in Korea, horses or donkeys do not know how to pull anything. The -ponies and donkeys are too small. Not being used to the work, if -harnessed they would kick the wagon all to pieces. - -They can carry loads on their backs, but the bulls can do this also, so -the creature with horns is considered to be the most valuable of beasts -of burden. Besides, he fills the purse and makes good dinners when his -owner is through with him. - -You can see these patient carriers loaded with brushwood or sticks -piled so high they seem to be carrying small mountains of twigs, grass -and leaves for kindlings, or with heavy logs of wood for fuel. Yet when -the bull is very young, a mere baby, he has a happier time than a colt -or little donkey, for he lives in the house and is the children’s pet. - -Old Timber Top sold his logs and boards at such high prices that the -poor suffered. This was because they were cold and could not afford to -pay so many strings of cash for fuel. The people used to say that the -old fellow would skin a mosquito for his hide and tallow. So sometimes -they gave him the nickname of Skin-flay. - -Not many of the villagers were able to buy planks of wood thick and -heavy and strong enough to keep their pigs from the tigers, which came -down from the mountains and prowled about at night in the villages. -These long-haired and black-striped beasts got to be so fond of pork, -that even in the snow they would, without fearing the cold or the guns -of the hunters, claw up the tops of the pens and get down among the -squealing prey. They might get a baby pig at once or perhaps drag out -and carry off enough of a big pork to feed their cubs for a week. All -the stables and cow-houses had to be made very strong, for the tigers, -when they had gone a good while without food, seemed to be hungry -enough to eat a horse with all his harness on, and even a grown-up cow -or ox. Yet as a rule, no tiger cared to taste either beef or horse -meat, if he could get young pork or veal. - -Old Timber Top was not satisfied to make money at his lumber yard only. -It is the custom in Korea to plant the most beautiful trees around -tombs or in the cemeteries. When this skin-flint heard of a family -which had become so poor that they must needs sell the splendid trees -which had been planted around their ancestors’ graves he sent his -agents to buy the timber. These fellows would load up a horse with long -ropes, of copper and iron cash, coins that had a square hole in the -middle and were strung together with twine made of twisted straw. It -was a heavy horse load to carry twenty dollars’ worth of coin. Arrived -on the spot, after beating the owner down to the lowest price possible, -Old Timber Top’s men would go out, chop down and saw up the grand -trees, leaving only the sawdust on the graves, while the people wept to -lose what they loved. - -In this way the landscape was spoiled and this made many villagers very -angry at such a man, for the Koreans love natural scenery and almost -worship fine trees, which had made the country beautiful for centuries. - -But what cared Old Timber Top, provided he could pile up his strings of -cash and jingle his silver? - -In time, this hard old fellow could think of nothing else but how to -get richer out of the wants and sufferings of other people. The -wealthier he became, the more he wanted. Yet he did not get any -happier. Nobody loved him, while many hated him. - -At last he thought he would make a trip to Seoul, the great capital -city, which every Korean hopes to see sometime. There he expected to -receive honor and appointment to rank and office. Timber Top had a -relative who was high in the king’s service, who, he thought, would -assist him; for all Koreans are kind and helpful to each other, -especially when they are related. - -To be an officer Timber Top knew would permit him, even to wear a -gorgeously shining mandarin’s hat with wide flaps or wings on it and a -long white silk coat with a big square on the breast of velvet or -satin, embroidered with storks or dragons, clouds and waves. When he -went out on the streets he could strut about, as if he were the lord of -the universe; for he would then wear a hat so high and with such a -round wide brim, that he would not dare to go out during a high wind, -for fear of being blown away, like a ship in a tempest. In such a -costume he would be saluted by servants and the common people, who -would bow down before him, because they would think him a great man. - -But how could he win such a position and gain the glory of it? - -He was not a scholar, learned in books, or in law, or a doctor of -medicine. Not being a soldier, either, he knew nothing of war. He could -not ride on a monocycle, as a general did, drawn or pushed by four men -and dressed in a long red coat studded all over with shining metal with -a brass helmet on his head, on the top of which was a little dragon. He -feared, even if he were appointed, he might fall off the one-wheeled -vehicle and show what a fool he was. - -Nevertheless this old fellow was so vain and full of conceit that he -followed what was once the common custom in Korea. He took his journey -to Seoul, leaving his family behind him to live on the cheapest kind of -kimchi, with turnips and millet. - -Now the Koreans are all famous for giving welcome and showing -hospitality to their poor relations, and often they do this even to -tramps and lazy people. When a man becomes rich or holds a high office, -he usually has around him many hangers on. Some, we should even say, -were loafers. - -So on arriving in Seoul, Old Timber Top took up his quarters in one -part of his relative’s big house. There he lived a long time and was -treated decently, for he always was saying soft things and making -flattering speeches to his host. In fact, he bowed down like a slave -when in presence of his august master. Yet, in truth, he was despised -even by the servants and work people. - -In order not to wear his welcome entirely out he had to make from time -to time a handsome present to his patron. This steadily reduced both -his income and his fortune, and while these were shrinking his family -at home suffered, so that, by and by, he received notice by letter that -his business had dried up and soon no more money could be sent to him -in Seoul. While he lingered news from home grew worse and worse. His -wife was obliged to sell their house to pay debts. The next item was -that she and her daughter were living in a wretched shanty at the end -of the village and were no longer in society. - -All this time those in Seoul who knew that the foolish fellow was as -ambitious as ever to wear the fine white clothes of a scholar, or the -gay colors of a soldier, declared that Old Timber Top had no brains. -They even jested about a pumpkin set on shoulders, or they laughed when -they declared that the wood, which he had sold so long, had gone to his -head. They debated in the wine shops whether, if his skull were opened, -pumpkin seeds or timber would be found inside of it. - -So they, also, called him “Old Timber Top,” meaning that inside his -skull was a wooden head and no better than that of an idol carved out -of persimmon wood, such as were so plentiful in the Buddhist temples. -Others declared that he had a real head of bone and brains, but “he -carried it under his arm pits,” as the saying was. - -When the fairies heard all this, they unanimously resolved to reform -the old fellow, even if they had to make an ox of him. - -Timber Top, now poor and bankrupt, knew he must leave Seoul and go home -and work for a living. When he made his final call on his rich Seoul -relative and told him he must, to his great regret, take his leave and -go back to his native village, he was not well received. Being too poor -to buy a present to give to his host, on whose bounty he had lived so -long, he was answered coldly and told to go and do as he liked. - -And this, after years of fawning and gift-making! Not a word of thanks -or appreciation! Poor Timber Top was down in the mouth and his heart -was cold in his bosom. He knocked on his head with his fists, to find -out whether, after all, it had really turned into timber. - -On his way back, a big storm came on and when he came to a village inn, -cold, wet and hungry, he begged for shelter over night. The woman who -kept it was the wife of a butcher, who was then away from home. This -was an awful blow to Timber Top’s pride, for butchers were held to be -the lowest of people, and they were not even allowed to wear hats, like -the rest of the men in Korea. - -The woman was kind to the traveler. She gave him a hot supper and let -him sleep in that room of the house which had the best stone floor, -under which the flues from the kitchen fire ran. So he warmed himself -and baked his clothes, which were sopping wet, until they were dry. He -was so tired that he kept on sleeping till very late next morning, and -nearly to the noon hour. He was altogether so comfortable that to him -it seemed as if he were a great man in the capital, thus to receive -such kind treatment. - -Waking up from one of his naps, he heard what he thought was the big -butcher, who had come home, asking of his wife in a gruff tone of -voice, “Where is that ox? I must sell him this morning, for it is -market day,” he said. - -In less than a minute more, the man and his wife entered the room with -four sticks which the fairies had put there, a halter, and a rope, made -of twisted rice straw, besides a thick iron ring, such as they put into -bulls’ noses, to make them obey their masters. Throwing down the iron -ring and rope on the floor, in a trice they had thrust the stick under -Old Timber Top’s back. In a moment more, he felt horns growing out of -his head, and his lips becoming thick as sausages. His mouth was as -wide as a saucer and had big teeth growing on the upper jaw. A tail -sprouted at his other end and the four sticks became four legs. - -Before he could quite understand just what was going on, or what the -matter could be, Old Timber Top was standing on four legs and the -butcher was slipping the ring through his nose. Oh how it did hurt! - -It was an awkward job to get the animal out of the room and through the -narrow door, and some of the paper on the walls and the furniture -suffered. But finally when out in the open air the bull, that was no -other than what had been the man Timber Top, went quietly along to the -market place. Any attempt to pull his head away, or to stop or run off, -or in any way to misbehave, hurt his nose so dreadfully, that he -quickly quit. The butcher needed to give only a slight jerk of the rope -when the bull changed his gait and was as quiet as a lamb, even though -as an animal he was big enough to gore the man and toss him on its -horns, or crush him by trampling on him with his hoofs, if once he got -angry. - -One would have supposed that Timber Top would be a fighting bull, but -no! In the market place he stood patiently and quietly for hours, -hardly even stamping, when the flies began to bite. - -“Oh that I had been as diligent and kept on at my honest occupation in -my native village, as that fly!” mused the bull, that still had a man’s -memory. - -At last there came a man with money to buy. He was a drover, who -unloaded his pony and paid down many strings, or about twenty pounds, -of copper and iron cash. The owner put the halter in the buyer’s hand, -and the new master then led off Timber Top to be sold to a butcher who -lived up in his home town in the north. This fellow intended first to -fatten the animal and then turn him into steaks and stewing meat. - -But on his way the new owner thought that, because he had made a good -bargain, he must stop at a wine shop and have a drink. So he tied -Timber Top’s nose with the rope to the low wall, which enclosed a -turnip field, and went inside the shop. - -But while the drover’s wine went in his wits went out, and he fell -asleep and stayed in the shop a long time. In fact, it was as the old -song said: - - - “First the man takes a dram, - Then the dram takes another dram; - Then the dram takes the man.” - - -Meanwhile Timber Top looked over the low wall, and, yielding to -temptation, pulled up with his teeth some of the plants by the roots, -first chewing the green leaves and then grinding the turnips and -swallowing them. - -Presto! The horns drew in and shrivelled up. The ring dropped out of -his nose and fell with a crash on the stones of the village path. His -two forelegs turned into arms, the hair and hoofs became human legs and -Old Timber Top was a man, and himself once again. To make sure of it he -felt himself all over; pulled his own nose, felt around his back to see -if he had a tail, and rubbed his head for horns. None there! He looked -down and found he had only two legs. Then he swung his arms with -delight, at being once more a man. - -“Well named, Turn-up thou,” he mused, “thou green plant with a -mustard-like taste. Thou hast turned me inside out. Or, have the -fairies been busy?” - -He had hardly got these ideas through his half wooden head, that he was -on two legs and a man once more and could think like one, than he -started on the road home. Just then the drover rushed out of the wine -shop and accosted him, saying: - -“Have you seen a stray bull anywhere near this place?” - -Of course Timber Top using fine language, like a yang ban, said there -was no bull in the neighborhood that he could see or knew of, and he -had heard none bellowing. Then he gave the drover a look of contempt -for being so stupid, and for asking of him, a gentleman, so foolish a -question. - -Yet after he was out of sight of the drover he slapped his thighs, as -Koreans do when they are amused at their own smartness, and went on -joyfully. He kept on repeating to himself, “sticks and turnips, turnips -and sticks.” - -Then a big idea struck him, as if it were a tap on a wooden drum, such -as one sees in Buddhist temples. It hit his brain so hard and so -swelled his head, that his big Korean hat nearly toppled off. -Immediately he put this idea into action. - -He returned hastily to the inn and into the room in which he had been -turned into a bull and stole the butcher’s four fairy sticks, which -stood in a corner, then he hied at once over the roads towards the -capital. - -Reaching Seoul, he went to the house of his rich relative, where he had -waited ten years for the fortune and the favor which did not come. -Going into his host’s bedroom, he tapped the high lord of the house -with the fairy sticks, not hard, but only lightly. - -Forthwith the man’s head became horns at the top, with muzzle of thick -lips in front. His hands turned into front hoofs and his legs into the -hind quarters of a bull. Yet he was not entirely an ox, but only half -animal and half man. - -Old Timber Top stopped tapping and then went away, to await events, -leaving the creature half man and half ox. He knew that soon he would -be called in. - -When the family of wife, many sons, several daughters, servants, -retainers, hangers-on, and what not, saw their master half man and half -ox, with horns and hoofs, they were distracted. Each one had his own -notion of how to get him back into human form and like his former self. -Each one ran all over town and into the adjoining villages to get and -call in the mudangs. - -These mudangs were the people, mostly women, whose business it was to -drive out the imps and bad fairies, such as had, in this case, done the -mischief. The kitchen maids stoutly declared that Tokgabi had wrought -the change upon their master. They felt quite sure of it; but the men -thought that the gods of the mountains were punishing him for his sins. -On the other hand, the mudang woman said she would find out and get him -back into his human skin, if they paid her enough money. - -With drums and dancing and songs, screams, yells, and every sort of -noise, the mudangs kept up such a terrible racket that it almost -deafened the family. There were several of them called in, and they -knew that they would all be well paid. - -Meanwhile the doctors also kept on with their awful medicines, besides -rubbing, pounding, blowing, and sticking needles into the bull and -burning moxa, or little balls of cottony mugwort, on its hide. - -Yet not a hoof or horn, not even a hair changed. - -The mudangs declared that the imps had got inside the man and they must -get them out. One fellow carried a big bottle to trap the imps and cork -them in. Another insisted that they would have to use scissors and snip -the skin in about a hundred places, thus making small holes to let the -evil creatures out. Then they must bottle them up, lest they should get -out and overrun the house and infest the whole town. - -There seemed not so many chances of getting well as “one hair among -nine oxen”; but the wife pleaded that they would put off using the -scissors until all other means had failed. She did not want to see her -dear husband’s skin made into a colander, or sieve, if it could be -helped. - -At this point, when the din and the despair were worst and had come to -a climax, Old Timber Top appeared. As some of the family had collapsed -and lay helpless on the floor, and as all were too tired to ask -questions, they at once made way for him. After looking at the patient -with a face as wise as an owl’s, Old Timber Top solemnly announced that -only one thing could save him and that was a rare and wonderful drug, -of which only he knew the secret, but which he could speedily procure. -Of course the wife, sons and daughters instantly promised to give up -their all, to see their husband and father himself again. - -So while Timber Top went out to get the famous medicine, they all fell -asleep, tired out, while the ox-man lay over on his side resting his -horns and hoofs on the floor bed; for in Korea they do not have -bedsteads, that is, beds raised up from the floor. - -As for Old Timber Top, when once out on the street, he immediately -began saying to himself, over and over again, “Turnips and sticks, -sticks and turnips.” - -Going to a vegetable shop, he bought a fine large turnip, or -turnip-radish, of the kind that grows in Korea, silvery white and about -four feet long. He first peeled, then sliced, and finally pounded it -into a sauce very fine. Then entering the house in triumph, he woke up -the doctors, kicked the servants awake, and announced that the potent -drug would soon restore their master. He solemnly bade them all watch -and see him do it. - -Pulling and hauling all together, five or six fellows were able to get -the man-bull on his two hoofs and two feet and then Timber Top put a -spoonful of the sauce on the big tongue. - -At once a most marvellous change took place! - -The horns shortened until they disappeared, the lips thinned, the mouth -became smaller. Hoofs, hair, and hide departed into empty air. In the -wagging of a dog’s tail, the mighty man of the house had become himself -again. - -All the doctors, jugglers, and mudangs packed up their imp-bottles and -medicines, and with their drums, flutes, bags, boxes and wares slunk -away, while the family loaded Old Timber Top with grateful thanks and -compliments. - -As for the master, he declared Timber Top the greatest physician the -world ever knew. He invited him to make the house his permanent home -and showered upon him many gifts, with plenty to eat, and white clothes -starched as white as snow. The hats with which he presented Timber Top -were so big around and had a brim so wide, that he used them when -covered with oiled paper covers as umbrellas in rainy weather, but he -never went out doors when the wind was blowing, for fear he would be -whirled down the street. Besides this, he feared there was still much -wood in his head, which might turn into a top and spin round, if he -were not careful. - -Old Timber Top set up a medicine office, practiced among the nobility -and became physician to the king. When he visited the palace, he used a -red visiting card, a foot long. He had a plastron, or square of velvet -embroidery on his breast. He wore a string of amber beads as big as -walnuts over his ears. He soon became fat with a double chin and plump -fingers, showing that he reeked with prosperity. He lived to a good old -age, his family were made comfortable, his sons and daughters married -well, and he had seventeen grandchildren before he died. - -Yet all the time, the fairies claimed that they did it all. They made -the sticks work one way, and the turnips another, and they still play -their tricks on the Koreans, especially those with more or less wood in -their heads. - - - - - - - - -SIR ONE LONG BODY AND MADAM THOUSAND FEET - - -In the land of Morning Radiance, where the family names have only one -syllable, such as Kim, Yi, Pil, Wun, Hap, etc., they wear shoes, but -these are not made of black leather. The people neither stand up on -wooden clogs as in Japan, nor case their feet in straight soled -gaiters, without heels, as in China. The gentlemen put on white socks -with tough hide soles, and the ladies don dainty slippers with the -pointed toes turned up. Common folks’ sandals are made chiefly of straw -and twine and it takes a good deal of cordage to complete a pair. - -Now there once lived under an old stone below a persimmon tree a fair -young creature named Miss Thousand Feet. She wore lead-colored clothes -and had so many toes to take care of that any one who tried to count -them soon got tired; so he stopped and called the whole amount a -thousand, which was a number as round as herself. She was as proud of -each one of her many little feet as a Chinese lady, who has only two of -them. Miss Thousand Feet was very modest, however, and if any one -stepped on her toes, or touched her, she curled up, first into a ring -and then into a ball, so that men, by a pun on her family name, called -her “a pill millipede,” for she belonged to the Pil family, one of the -most famous in all Korea. - -Miss Thousand Feet was very happy living under a damp stone in the cool -earth and she played a good deal. But by and by, when she grew up, her -parents told her it was time for her to get married. So they looked -around, to see if any gentleman in the whole creation was worthy of -her, not only to make a suitable husband, but also a good match. - -Now in another village lived a rich, fat, young and promising male -creature, named Mr. Long Body, of the Wum family. His business was to -eat his way through the ground, and pile up little curled heaps of mud -on the surface, and at this work he was kept very busy. He had to look -out for the birds, for they enjoyed eating folks like him, he was so -soft and sweet. Constant exercise in moving through the ground kept his -body shining, so that altogether, as earthworms go, he was quite -handsome and considered a good catch for Miss Thousand Feet. -Furthermore, as he had no feet and she had so many, while his body was -long and hers quite short, it was supposed that one would make up where -the other lacked and that both would be happy together as husband and -wife. - -Mr. Long Body, when he heard of the charms of Miss Thousand Feet, was -of the same opinion. All his friends were pairing off, the males -bringing home their brides to their fathers’ houses and setting up -housekeeping. As he had come of age, he also determined to marry. - -So he sent letters and opened the business, according to Korean -etiquette, through a “go-between,” as the lady who arranges marriages -is called. This person goes to see each of the two families, praising -to one the beauty and graces of the promised bride and to the other the -strength and wealth of the future husband. Indeed, she gives both of -them a very good character. Finally the “six proprieties,” or “half -dozen rules,” had been completed and the engagement of Mr. Wum and Miss -Pil was announced. - -What a clatter of gossip was at once heard in both villages! No one -ever thought that such a handsome fellow as Mr. Long Body Wum would -ever marry into the Pil family. Some jealous folks hinted that Mr. Long -Body, if he took a wife with a thousand feet, would never be able to -pay his shoemaker. On the other hand, so long as his bride would be -content with plain twine shoes all might go well; but for extra -occasions, or if his wife were extravagant and wanted lady’s turned up -house foot-gear made of red morocco such as only the rich folks -wear,—well there would be trouble in the household. How could he keep -her in shoes? Other persons, however, who knew that the Pils were -famous people, wondered how Mr. Wum ever managed to get such a prize as -Miss Pil. - -In the other village, the tongues of the gossips ran on in much the -same way. What did she see to admire in that fellow without legs? When -the honeymoon would be over and it came to making gentleman’s clothes -for her husband, had she any skill with the needle? Could she make a -long coat and one trouser leg big enough to fit him? And think of the -many days of work necessary to cut and sew the garment, to say nothing -of weary hours to be spent in washing, starching and giving a gloss to -such clothes. The idea! Why, she would have to be nothing but a slave. - -As her husband’s semptress, tailor, and laundress she would get no -rest. Think of washing, starching, and beating to a fine gloss the -one-legged trousers, which Mr. Wum would often have to change; for he -lived in the dirt! - -Now, Mr. Long Body Wum was so busy with his work of excavating the -ground that he had no time to pay attention to the village -chatterboxes. Miss Pil, however, couldn’t help hearing what the women -and others said about her, and especially the talk concerning the -terribly hard duties that awaited her if she took a husband. While Mr. -Wum kept digging at the tunnel three yards long, which he was -excavating underground, so as to save up and be ready for his wedding, -Miss Pil brooded over what the gossips talked about and over those -awfully long coats and one-legged trousers she would be obliged to sit -up at nights to make, wash, starch and gloss. Already she imagined her -arms tired in anticipation of starching and beating on the Korean -lustre, without which no gentleman in the Land of Morning Calm ever -goes outdoors. If his coat didn’t have that fashionable shine which -long beating gives, the women would notice it immediately and pretty -soon the men also. - -Miss Pil’s broodings night and day over the matter did not help -affairs, and finally wore upon her nerves. She refused to prepare her -own trousseau, and despite all her friends told her in praise of Mr. -Long Body Wum, she decided to write a letter to him, telling him that -on account of his long trunk without limbs, and the great labor -necessary to make him proper clothing and of starching and glossing it, -to say nothing of keeping it in order, she felt unable to hold to the -marriage engagement and must break it off. - -But before she had dropped the water on the ink stone and begun to rub -up the ink, or taken brush-pen and paper in hand, Mr. Long Body had got -wind of her complaining and it worried him. Why should he marry one who -didn’t want him? - -Then, as he thought it over, being a very thrifty and economical -bachelor, be began to doubt whether he could buy shoes enough to fit -all the feet of his betrothed. He had not looked on her face or figure -yet. Indeed it was hardly Korean etiquette that he should—openly at -least. So far, he had not seen her tiny feet to count them up, but he -suspected that, since she belonged to the Pil family, she must have a -thousand feet according to her reputation. When he came to calculate -what it would cost him, even in cheap twine sandals, he was startled. -When he figured out what ladies’ turned up kids would come to he was so -alarmed that he nearly fainted. At the sight of five hundred pairs of -shoes, however tiny, his breath almost failed him and he saw himself -ruined. What should he do? - -And when she took off her foot-gear at night, where should he stow it -away? Then, what a noise she would make, if she put on rough-soled -shoes, while at her work around the house and yard. It was horrible for -a quiet bachelor even to think of the clatter she would make. Already -he felt deafness coming on. Should he break off the engagement? Yet how -could any one of the Wum family honorably do such a thing? What would -the neighbors say? Could he, if prone to breaking his word, get another -bride of a family so respectable as that of the Pil? - -However he would sleep over it, as there were some days before the -wedding. But next morning the matter cleared up, and he was able to -crawl into his hole and out of sight with comfort. He sent a letter to -Miss Pil, setting forth the facts, and asking for a release from the -engagement to marry. The substance of what he wrote was this; that -owing to his small fortune he would be unable to buy her all the shoes, -and of the kind which a lady of her quality and tastes required. He -therefore could not think of asking her to share his poverty, but -begged her to secure another husband who could do so. - -Now it happened that the letters crossed on the road. Each had a -refusal before the ink was dry; so neither could complain. - -So there was no wedding, nor any frolic among the young folks, or -feasting of relatives, and to this day Miss Pil remains single and Mr. -Wum has no wife. They were very severe on the girl. All the gossips say -that it served the thousand-footed hussy right. Folks had better look -on the good points in a person’s character and not dwell upon his -faults and defects. On the other hand, in Mr. Wum’s village, all -declare with one voice that bachelors should count up all the expense -in getting married. Miss Pil still goes shoeless hiding from light -under a stone, and Mr. Wum keeps out of sight underground, for he has -nothing to wear. - - - - - - - - -THE SKY BRIDGE OF BIRDS - - -No bird is more common in Korea than the magpie. They are numbered by -millions. Every day in the year, except the seventh day of the seventh -month, the air is full of them. On that date, however, they have a -standing engagement every year. They are all expected to be away from -streets and houses, for every well-bred magpie is then far up in the -sky building a bridge across the River of Stars, called the Milky Way. -With their wings for the cables, and their heads to form the floor of -the bridge, they make a pathway for lovers on either side of the Silver -Stream. - -Boys and girls are usually very kind to the magpies, but if a single -one be found about the houses, on the roofs, or in the streets on the -seventh of August, woe betide it! Every dirty-faced brat throws sticks -or stones at the poor creature, for not being about its business of -bridge-building across the Starry River. By evening time the magpies -return to their usual places, for they are then supposed to have -attended to their tasks and built the bridge. - -To prove beyond a doubt that the bridge was made and walked over, you -have only to look at the bare heads of the magpies at this time. Their -feathers have been entirely worn off by the tramping of the crowd of -retainers who follow the Prince of Star Land across the bridge to meet -his bride. - -If it be wet weather on the morning of this day of the Weaver Maiden -and the Cattle Prince, the rain-drops are the tears of joy shed by the -lovers at their first meeting. If showers fall in the afternoon, they -are the tears of sadness at saying farewell, when the prince and -princess leave each other. If any thunder is heard, every boy and girl -knows that this comes from the rumble of the wagons which carry the -baggage of the prince and princess, as they move away, each from the -other, homeward. - -Now, this is the story which the Korean mothers tell to their children -of the Bridge of Birds. - -Long, long ago, in the Kingdom of the Stars, a king reigned who had a -lovely daughter. Besides being the most beautiful to behold, she was a -skilful weaver. There was no good thing to be done in the palace, but -she could do it. She was not only highly accomplished, but of sweet -temper and very willing. Being a model of all diligence, she was very -greatly beloved of her parents and her influence over her father was -very great. He would do almost anything to please his darling daughter. - -In due time a young and very handsome prince, who lived in Star Land, -came to her father’s court and fell in love with the pretty princess. -Her parents consenting, the wedding was celebrated with great splendor. - -Now that she was a wife and had a home of her own to care for, she -became all the more a model of lovely womanhood and an example to all -the maidens of Korea forever. Besides showing diligence in the care of -clothes and food and in setting her servants a good example of thrift, -she thought much of their happiness. Her service to her husband was -unremitting. Her chief ambition was to make his life one of constant -joy. - -But the prince, instead of following his bride’s good example, and of -appreciating what his beautiful and unselfish bride was doing for his -happiness, gave himself up to waste and extravagance. He became lazy -and dissipated. Neglecting his duties, he wasted his own fortune and -his wife’s dowry. He sold all his oxen and calves to get money only to -lose it in gambling. He borrowed many and long ropes of coin from any -one who would lend him the brass and iron money. Finally he was so -scandalously poor, being on his last string of cash, that he was in -danger of being degraded from his rank as prince, and of having his -name spoken with contempt. - -The King of the Stars, having seen his son-in-law on the downward way, -had more than once threatened to disinherit, or banish him, especially -after the prince had parted with his cattle. Yet when his daughter, the -young wife, interceded and begged pardon for her husband, the king -relented, paid his son-in-law’s debts and gave him another chance to do -better. When, however, the worthless fellow fell back into his old -ways, and grew worse and worse, the king resolved to separate the pair, -one from the other. He banished the prince, far, far away, six months’ -distance from the north side of the River of Heaven, and exiled the -princess a half year’s measure of space from the south side of the -Starry Stream. - -Although the king in his wrath had hardened his heart, even against his -own beloved child, and had driven her from court and palace, because of -her worthless husband, yet, as a signal proof of his compassion, he -ordained that on one night of the year, on the seventh night of the -seventh moon, they might meet for a few hours. - -The young people parted and took their sad journey to the edge of the -starry heavens, but they loved each other so dearly that, as soon as -they arrived at their place of banishment, they turned round to meet -each other on August 7th. - -So when the day came, after six months’ weary journeying, they had -reached the edge of the Starry River, and there they stood, catching -glimpses and waving their hands, but unable to get closer to each -other. There one may see them on summer nights shining on opposite -sides of the broad Stream of Stars, loving each other but unable to -cross. - -Feeling that the great gulf of space could not be spanned, the loving -couple burst into tears. The flood from their eyes, making the river -overflow, deluged the earth below, threatening to float everything, -houses, people, animals away. What could be done? - -The four-footed creatures, fish and fowls, held a convention, but it -was agreed that only those birds with strong wings and able to fly high -could do anything. So the magpies, with many flattering speeches, were -commended to the enterprise. - -When these noisy and chattering creatures, that are nevertheless so -kind and friendly to the sparrows, heard of the lovers’ troubles aloft, -they resolved to help the sorrowing pair over the River of Stars. Out -of their big, ugly nests they flew gladly to the convention that voted -to build the bridge. Sending out word all over the world, millions of -magpies assembled in the air. Under the direction of their wisest -chiefs, they began their work of making, with a mass of wings, a flying -bridge that would reach from shore to shore of the Starry Stream. -First, they put their heads together to furnish a floor, and, so -closely, that the bridge looked as if it were paved with white granite. -Then with their pinions they held up the great arch and highway, over -which the prince crossed to his bride with all his baggage and train of -followers. The tables were soon spread and the two royal lovers enjoyed -a feast, with many tender words and caresses. - -Every year, for ages past, on the seventh day of the seventh month, the -magpies have done this. Indeed, although the star lovers meet only once -a year, yet as they live on forever the wife has her husband and the -husband his wife much longer than mortal couples who live on earth. It -is law in the magpie kingdom that no bird can shirk this work. - -Any magpie that tries to get out of the task and that is too bad or -lazy to do its part in bridge building, is chased away by the Korean -children, who want no such truant around. For does not every girl hope -to be as diligent and accomplished as the Star Princess, so that when -she grows up she may make as good a wife as the lovely lady that every -year stands by the Starry River to meet her lord? As for the boys, it -is hoped that they will become as faithful husbands as the penitent -bridegroom, who every year, on the night of August 7th, awaits his -bride on the shining shore of the River of Stars. - - - - - - - - -LONGKA, THE DANCING GIRL - - -After the islanders in the Eastern Ocean had found out how rich Korea -was, they were not satisfied with their own land. They seemed to have -eyes like dragon flies, that wanted everything they saw. They kept on -borrowing until they got many of the plants and animals which they now -possess, which as everybody knows came from the Land of Morning Glory. - -Even the neko, or Korean cat, was carried over to the islands; though -in some way it lost its tail on the voyage or else had it bobbed. This -is the reason why poor pussy in these islands seems to carry around -with her something like a corkscrew, instead of a tail. Moreover, when -the Korean puss, that had so long been accustomed to scrambling over -the roofs and back alleys at home, was introduced into the islands, it -was thought to be a wild animal, and for a long time was treated as a -fox or badger would be. However, because it kept down the rats and the -mice this bob-tailed puss was highly valued. - -Yet not content with borrowing so many things, the greedy islemen -thought they might as well have all Korea and everything in it, and -then go further and overrun China. - -So they sent a great army in a mighty fleet of ships to invade the -Koreans’ country. They took horses with them, but as their soldiers -were fed chiefly on rice, salt fish and pickles, they did not need any -wagons. They had only oxen to draw their carts, for they had never -trained horses to pull anything, but only to be pack and saddle -animals. - -This army of islanders marched to the capital, in which were palaces, -and pagodas. Then they sent one of their armies along the sea front and -another along the west coast. They expected to march into China, but -two things happened to prevent this. So, after they had wasted and -tarried in the country for five years, they gave it up and were sent -home flying. - -From the north a Chinese army came to the help of the Koreans and drove -the islemen to the coast. But when they got there they found their -ships were gone. A clever Korean admiral had invented an iron-clad ship -that rammed and sunk their war junks. So their army had to wait till a -new fleet of ships had been built and then came over to take them back. - -But before the islanders left Korea they smashed statues and monuments, -broke up images and even the observatories for the study of the stars. -They took marble pagodas apart to load on their ships and carry away. -They enticed, or forced to go with them, hundreds of the Korean -potters, artists, and craftsmen. - -For, by this time, the islanders had given up living in huts of straw -and roving about like Arabs or gypsies. They had cities with paved -streets, like as in Korea, though they had none of the beautiful marble -pagodas and images and temples, for everything was of wood, while -thousands of large buildings and images in Korea were of stone, -chiseled into beautiful forms. - -Now in Korea there were some beautiful daughters of the land and many -noblemen and men of courage, who determined not to be carried away from -their dearly beloved country. Of this, in southern Korea, the Rock of -the Fallen Flower is to this day the witness. - -Over three hundred years ago, when “the terrible fighting dwarfs,” as -the Koreans called their enemies, came, they encamped in a town where -lived a beautiful dancing girl named Longka. Being a ge-sang, (gei-sha) -or accomplished young lady, she could sing beautifully. The islanders -took this lovely damsel prisoner and made her a waitress in the -general’s tent. - -One night a great banquet was given in a famous pleasure hall named the -Cliff House, because it was built on the high bank overlooking a deep -river. All the chief captains were invited and the large room was -illuminated with a thousand wax lights. These were tall and square -candles, moulded into a beautiful shape, and each one was painted and -decorated with figures of flowers, birds and pet animals. Very odd and -ornamental is a Korean candle. - -O how charming was the dancer, and what a beautiful sight to behold, -was her graceful posing! For, Korean dances tell stories of birds and -flowers, of summer, and of lovely snow-covered landscapes in winter, of -a boat in a storm, of a tiger in a trap, of a brave soldier in battle, -or a sad lady in the palace, or of the fairy tales of the Western Queen -Mother and many others. Those who watch the dance and know the manners -and customs, the dancer’s gestures and poses, the motions of her fan -and sleeves, besides the games of the children, the sports of the -people, the harvest songs and the fun at the festivals, can read, -because they see, the story of each told in most graceful motions. -There are several languages, besides words which are spoken, and these -appeal to the eye, instead of the ear. - -The pretty dancer was robed in pure white, with ermine-edged slippers, -and jeweled girdle, and her shining hair was done up like a queen’s. -Loud was the applause among the spectators at the end of every dance. - -After the dinner was over, the general of the islanders grew very -lively, because he had drunk much wine, and was not satisfied to see -the dances of the lovely girl. Some of the rude soldiers also wanted to -waltz with the beautiful maiden. But it was not the custom for Korean -virgins to dance, or waltz, with male partners; for in this Country of -Gentle Manners, dancing is by the sexes apart. - -Yet the rough islanders insisted and forced her so hard, that she felt -that both her own modesty and her country were outraged. She thought of -the thousands of her countrymen, brothers, fathers and friends, who had -died on the battle field, in defending their beloved land. Why should -not she? So, pretending to yield to her country’s enemies, she drew the -general out of the banqueting hall and down toward the river, close to -the edge of the rock. - -Before he knew her purpose she seized his hands and leaped out, -dragging her enemy with her over the cliff, and both passed into the -other world. - -She died for her country. To this day, the Rock of the Falling Flower -is pointed out, and the story is told that here was exhibited a woman’s -devotion to her country. Around this rock poets have entwined their -verses, while romantic associations cluster like the azalea flowers, -that cover the hills of Korea with a riot of color, making their land -seem to the natives the most beautiful on earth. - - - - - - - - -A FROG FOR A HUSBAND - - -Off in a valley among very stony mountains, lived an old farmer named -Pak We and his wife. His land was poor and he had to toil from sunrise -to sunset and often in the night, when the moon was shining, to get -food. No child had ever come to his home and he was in too great -straits of poverty to adopt a son. So he took his amusement in fishing -in the pond higher up on the hills, that fed the stream which watered -his millet and rice fields. Being very skilful he often caught a good -string of fish and these he sold in the village near by to get for -himself and his wife the few comforts they needed. Thus the old couple -kept themselves happy, despite their cheerless life, though they often -wondered what would become of them when they got too old to work. - -But one summer Pak noticed that there were fewer fish in the pond and -that every day they seemed to be less in number. Where he used to catch -a stringful in an hour, he could hardly get half that many during a -whole day. - -What was the matter? Was he getting less skilful? Was the bait poor? - -Not at all! His worms were as fat, his hooks and lines in as good -order, and his eyesight was as keen as ever. - -When Pak noticed also that the water was getting shallower, he was -startled. Could it be that the pond was drying up? - -Things grew worse day by day until at last there were no fish. - -Where once sparkled the wavelets of a pond was now an arid waste of -earth and stones, over which trickled hardly more than a narrow rill, -which he could jump over. No fish and no pond meant no water for his -rice fields. In horror at the idea of starving, or having to move away -from his old home and become a pauper, Pak looked down from what had -been the banks of the pond to find the cause of all this trouble. There -in the mud among the pebbles he saw a bullfrog, nearly as big as an -elephant, blinking at him with its huge round eyes. - -In a rage the farmer Pak burst out, charging the frog with cruelty in -eating up all the fish and drinking up all the water, threatening -starvation to man and wife. Then Pak proceeded to curse the whole line -of the frog’s ancestors and relatives, especially in the female line, -for eight generations back, as Koreans usually do. - -But instead of being sorry, or showing any anger at such a scolding, -the bullfrog only blinked and bowed, saying: - -“Don’t worry, Farmer Pak. You’ll be glad of it, by and by. Besides, I -want to go home with you and live in your house. - -“What! Occupy my home, you clammy reptile! No you won’t,” said Pak. - -“Oh! but I have news to tell you and you won’t be sorry, for you see -what I can do. Better take me in.” - -Old Pak thought it over. How should he face his wife with such a guest? -But then, the frog had news to tell and that might please the old lady, -who was fond of gossip. Since her husband was not very talkative, she -might be willing to harbor so strange a guest. - -So they started down the valley. Pak shuffled along as fast as his old -shins could move, but the bullfrog covered the distance in a few leaps, -for his hind legs were three feet long. - -Arrived at his door, Mrs. Pak was horrified at the prospect of boarding -such a guest. But when the husband told her that Froggie knew all about -everybody and could chat interestingly by the hour, she changed her -manner and bade him welcome. Indeed, she so warmed in friendliness that -she gave him one of her best rooms. All the leaves, grass and brushwood -that had been gathered in the wood-shed to supply the kitchen fire and -house flues, was carried into the room. There it was doused with tubs -of water to make a nice soft place such as bullfrogs like. After this -he was fed all the worms he wanted. - -Then after his dinner and a nap, Mrs. Pak and Mr. Pak donned their best -clothes and went in to make a formal call on their guest. - -Mr. Bullfrog was so affable and charming in conversation, besides -telling so many good stories and serving up so many dainty bits of -gossip, that Mrs. Pak was delighted beyond expression. Indeed, she felt -almost like adopting Froggie as her son. - -The night passed quietly away, but when the first rays of light -appeared, Froggie was out on the porch singing a most melodious tune to -the rising sun. When Mr. and Mrs. Pak rose up to greet their guest and -to hear his song, they were amazed to find that the music was bringing -them blessings. Everything they had wished for, during their whole -lives, seemed now at hand, with more undreamed of coming in troops. In -the yard stood oxen, donkeys and horses loaded with every kind of box, -bale and bundle waiting to be unloaded and more were coming; stout men -porters appeared and began to unpack, while troops of lovely girls in -shining white took from the men’s hands beautiful things made of jade, -gold and silver. There were fine clothes and hats for Mr. Pak, -jade-tipped hairpins, tortoise-shell and ivory combs, silk gowns, -embroidered and jeweled girdles and every sort of frocks and woman’s -garments for Mrs. Pak, besides inlaid cabinets, clothes-racks and -wardrobes. Above all, was a polished metal mirror that looked like the -full autumn moon, over which Mrs. Pak was now tempted to spend every -minute of her time. - -Four or five of the prettiest maidens they had ever seen in all their -lives danced, sang and played sweetest music. The unpacking of boxes, -bales and bundles continued. Tables of jade and finest sandalwood were -spread with the richest foods and wines. Soon, under the skilful hands -of carpenters and decorators, instead of oiled paper on the floors, -covering old bricks and broken flat stones set over the flues, and -smoky rafters and mud walls poorly papered, there rose a new house. It -had elegant wide halls, and large rooms with partitions made of -choicest joiner work. It was furnished with growing flowers, game -boards for chess and had everything in it like a palace. As for the -riches of the larder and the good things to eat daily laid on the -table, no pen but a Korean’s can tell of them all. In the new -storehouse were piles of dried fish, edible seaweed, bags of rice, bins -of millet, tubs of kim-chi made of various sorts of the pepper-hash and -Korean hot pickle in which the natives delight, to say nothing of -peaches, pears, persimmons, chestnuts, honey, barley, sugar, candy, -cake and pastry, all arranged in high piles and in gay colors. - -The old couple seemed able to eat and enjoy twice as big dinners as -formerly, for all the while the adopted Bullfrog was very entertaining. -Mr. and Mrs. Pak laughed continually, declaring they had never heard -such good stories as he told. The good wife was, however, quite equal -to her guest in retailing gossip. One of her favorite subjects, of -which she never tired, was the beauty and charm of Miss Peach. She was -the accomplished daughter of the big Yang-ban, or nobleman, Mr. Poom, -who lived in a great house, with a host of servants and retainers in -the next village, and Mrs. Pak insisted there was no young woman in the -world like her. It was noticed that Mr. Bullfrog was particularly -interested when Miss Peach Poom was the subject of the old lady’s -praises. - -After a week of such luxury, during which Mr. and Mrs. Pak seemed to -dwell in the Nirvana, or Paradise, which the good priests often talked -about, Mr. Pak’s full cup of joy was dashed to earth when the Bullfrog -informed him that he intended to marry, and that Mr. Pak must get him a -wife. Still worse than that, Pak was informed by the Frog that he would -have no one but Miss Peach, the daughter of Poom, so renowned for her -beauty and graces. - -At this, old Pak went nearly wild. He begged to be excused from the -task, but the Bullfrog was inexorable. So, after inprecating his wife’s -tongue, for her ever putting it into the frog’s head to marry Miss -Peach, he donned his fine clothes and set out to see Mr. Poom. He -expected to be beaten to death for his brazen effrontery in asking a -noble lady to marry a frog. - -Now this Mr. Poom had long been the magistrate of a district, who had -squeezed much money wrongly from the poor people over whom he ruled, -and having won great wealth, had retired and come back to his native -place to live. This man had two daughters married, but the third, the -youngest and most beautiful, Miss Peach, was now eighteen years old. - -Arriving at the Pooms’ grand mansion, Mr. Pak told of the suitor’s -wealth, power and fame, high position and promise, and how he had made -the old couple happy. - -Old Poom had pricked up his ears from the first mention of riches and -power, and became highly interested as Pak went on sounding the praises -of his prospective son-in-law. - -“And what is his name?” asked Mr. Poom. - -Here Pak was in a quandary. He knew that the frog family was the oldest -and most numerous in the world and was famous for fine voices. He fell -into a brown study for a few minutes. Then, looking up he declared that -he had so long thought of the suitor’s graces and accomplishments, that -he had forgotten his name and could not then recall it. - -So Mr. Poom, in order to help Pak out, ran over the list of famous -families in Korea, reciting the names of the Kims, Sims, Mins, the Hos, -Chos, Kos, Quongs and Hongs, etc., etc., for Mr. Poom was an authority -on the Korean peerage. - -“It is none of these,” said Pak. “I deeply regret that I cannot recall -the name.” - -“Strange,” said Mr. Poom. “I have named all the families of any -standing in the kingdom. What is his office or rank and where do his -relations live?” - -Pak was pressed so hard by Mr. Poom’s searching questions that at last -he had to confess that the suitor for the beautiful maiden was not a -man but a frog. - -“What! do you want me to marry my daughter to a pond-croaker? You shall -suffer for thus insulting me in my own house. Slaves, bring the -cross-bench and give this wretch twenty blows.” - -Forthwith, while four men brought out the whipping bench, three others -seized poor Pak, stripped off his coat, and bound him with feet and -arms stretched out to the bench. Then a tall, stalwart fellow raised -the huge paddle of wood to let fall with all his might on the bare -flesh of the old man. - -But all this while the sky was darkening, and, before the first blow -was given, the lightning flashed, the thunder rolled, and floods of -rain fell that threatened to overwhelm house, garden, and all in a -deluge. The hail, which began to pelt the cattle, was first the size of -an egg and then of stones, like cannon-balls. - -“Hold,” cried the frightened Mr. Poom. “I’ll wait and ask further.” - -Thereupon the lightning and thunder ceased, the sun burst out in -splendor. - -Mightily impressed by this, Mr. Poom at last agreed to let his daughter -become the bride of the frog, not telling her who her husband was to -be. Within an hour, while she was getting ready, a string of fine -horses and donkeys with palanquins loaded with presents for the bride -and her family appeared. Besides boxes of silk dresses and perfumes, -head-gear and articles for a lady’s boudoir, there were troops of -maidens to wait on the bride. Arraying Miss Peach in the loveliest of -robes, they also dressed her hair, until, what with satin puffs and -frame, jade-tipped silver hairpins, rosettes and flowers, her head-gear -stood over a foot high above her forehead, on which was the bride’s red -round spot. Then when the happy maiden had sufficiently admired herself -in the metal mirror and heard the praises of her attendant virgins, she -entered the bridal palanquin—a gorgeous mass of splendor. According to -custom, her eyes were sealed shut and covered with wax, for a Korean -bride sees nothing of her husband until the end of the feast, when she -meets him in the bridal chamber. - -So to his house she was carried in great pomp and with gay attendance -of brilliantly arrayed maidens. The marriage ceremony and the grand -supper were happy affairs for all the guests, even though the bride, -according to Korean etiquette, was as if blind, quietly and patiently -waiting sightless throughout the whole joyful occasion. The actual -ceremony was witnessed only by the foster-parents and the bridegroom. - -When in the bridal chamber, the bride having unsealed her eyes, and her -vision being clear, she looked up at the one she had married and found -not a man, but a frog, she was furiously angry. She burst out into a -protest against having such a bridegroom. - -Gently and in tenderest tones the bridegroom attempted first to comfort -her. Then, handing her a pair of scissors, he begged her to rip open -the skin along his back from shoulder to thigh, for it was very tight -and he was suffering pain from it. - -In her bitter disappointment at being married to a frog, she seized the -scissors and almost viciously began to cut from nape to waist. Her -surprise was great to find what seemed to be silk underneath the -speckled skin. When she had slit down two yards or so, her husband the -frog stood upon his hind legs. He twisted himself about as if in a -convulsion, pulled his whole speckled hide hard with his front paws, -and then jumping out of his skin, stood before his bride a prince. -Fair, tall, of superb figure, and gorgeously arrayed, he was the ideal -of her dreams. A jeweled baldric bound his waist, embroidery of golden -dragons on his shoulders and breast told of his rank, while on his head -was the cap of royalty with a sparkling diamond in the center. Yet no -clothes, handsome as they were, could compare in beauty with his -glorious manhood. Never had she seen so fair a mortal. - -Happy was the bride whose feelings were thus changed in a moment from -repulsion and horror to warmest affection and strongest veneration. The -next morning when, to the amazement of his foster-father and mother, -Mr. and Mrs. Pak, the prince presented himself and his bride at -breakfast, he told the story of his life. As son of the King of the -Stars he had committed some offense, in punishment for which his father -condemned him to live upon the earth in the form of a frog. Furthermore -he had laid upon his son the duty of performing three tasks. These must -be done before he should be allowed to come back and live in Star Land. -These were, to drink up all the water in the lake, to eat all the fish, -and to win a human bride, the handsomest woman in the world. - -All the precious things which he had presented to Pak and his wife to -make their old days comfortable, and the gifts sent to the bride’s -house before her wedding-day, had come by power from the skies. Now, -leaving his foster-parents on earth to enjoy their gifts, he must -return home to his father, taking his bride with him. Scarcely had he -spoken these words than a chariot and horses, silver bright, appeared -at the door of the house. Bowing low to his foster-parents, and -stepping in with his bride, the pair disappeared beyond the clouds. - -From this time forth a new double star was seen in the sky. - - - - - - - - -SHOES FOR HATS - - -Many centuries ago when Korea was named Chosen, or the Land of Morning -Splendor, the island-kingdom out in the eastern sea, where the sun -rises, was called The Land of the Dragon-Fly; which some foolish people -call “the Devil’s Darning Needle,” because its body is so slender, its -wings so wide and its eyes so big. The Koreans called these islanders -“dwarfs,” because they were not tall of stature, though they were very -warlike and brave. The isle men had no books or letters, and were very -rude in their manners. - -Therefore, many kind teachers, filled with the spirit of Great Buddha, -crossed the sea, from Everlasting Great Korea, to teach these islanders -politeness, and how to read and write, and to build pagodas, and -temples and schools. - -This is the reason why these islanders, who had no story books or -writing before the coming of the Korean teachers, have no ancient -history of what happened long, long ago when Korea was a great country. -So the grandmothers in the islands used to tell their children the good -old fairy tales, which many elderly people know by heart, and can -relate without reading, thinking that the kings and queens they talked -about were real people, when they were only dreams. - -The islanders call their country The Land Where the Day Begins, and -there are many fairies in these islands, some good, some bad. - -So today, these island people make pictures in books and plays on the -stage, and “movies” about these Koreans. They get up tableaux and -pageants to tell how first the fairies and the King’s servants from -these far off islands, long ago came to Korea. They wanted to learn -politeness, how to make and wear the proper kind of clothes, and how to -draw and paint, how to make pictures, how to build houses, how to dance -and sing, and make music and play on instruments, how to teach and have -schools. For the good fairies always like to do pretty things. - -Yet instead of being grateful for what they had received from Korea, -there was one of these island people, a famous woman, who was envious -because she lived in a poor land while the Koreans had a rich and -beautiful country. Instead of swamps and grassy plains, with plenty of -wild beasts and birds, and only a few people, poor and miserable, Korea -was rich in rice fields and orchards full of fruit. Flowers grew in -plenty. Birds, deer, and rabbits were numerous in the mountains and the -scenery was beautiful. - -In the warm waters millions of fat fish swam and were easily caught. So -the people had plenty of food to eat. Down along the bottom of the sea -were most lovely water plants of rich colors, yellow, purple, green and -white, with sea weeds, corals and sponges. In some of the sea caves -lurked the giant crabs, cuttle-fish and every sort of marine monster. - -Still further down, below, deeper than any line could fathom, dwelt the -Dragon King of the World Under the Sea and his Queen, with genii and -dragons, and all her attendant maidens. These made sweet music, and -here amid the mermaids the fairies had a happy time. - -These islanders had priests who went down by the seaside when the tide -was low. There they called on the spirits of the deep to grant them a -safe voyage, good luck, victory over the Koreans, and safe return. -There they stood and watched the rippling waves as the breezes blew -over the sea. - -The first living thing that poked its nose above the waters was the -guardian of the seashore and the tides, called the Salt Water Giant. He -came up with his head all covered with clam and oyster shells, sea -weed, shrimps and whatever grows in the sand or bottom of the ocean. He -had to push aside hundreds of white jelly fish that bumped against him, -as the clumsy old chap made his way up to the surface and then waded to -the shore. - -Now this giant fairy was a grumpy sort of a fellow, and seeing the -Queen and her soldiers he growled out: “What do you want?” - -Very politely the Queen’s messenger made a soft answer to the big -fellow and begged him to announce to his master, the Dragon King of the -World Under the Sea, that the Queen wished him to help her. - -Would he please order all the great fish and every sea monster to go -ahead and pull her ship forward? - -Would he also present her with the two sparkling tide-jewels, which -govern the ebb and the flood tides? If he would do so, then, in the one -case her enemies might be overwhelmed. In the other case, the ships of -the Koreans would be left high and dry on the shore. Then she could -march through the country and get all the gold and gems, and furs and -jewels, and clothes and nice things to eat, and bring them back to her -own country. - -With the tide jewels in her hand she could certainly conquer. - -“And if you please, one thing more,” added the messenger. - -“What else do you want?” growled the Salt Water Giant. - -“Have your master, the Dragon King, give our queen power to capture -many hundreds of the Korean artists, craftsmen, teachers, and men of -books and letters. We shall make these men prisoners and bring them to -our country and be civilized.” - -“And what will you do in return to me and my master for all this?” -roared the Salt Water Giant. His voice was like a booming cannon for he -was as mad as fire. - -“As soon as we get back safely to these shores, our Queen will build a -temple in honor of the Dragon King. We shall burn incense to him, and -our people will pay him our devotions.” - -“Well then, what else?” roared the Salt Water Giant. - -“There will be a shrine also dedicated to you, my lord, and we’ll get -the best Korean artists to decorate it it in wave patterns, with drops -of foam.” - -The Salt Water Giant bowed and disappeared with a tremendous splash. -Down, down, down, he went to report to his master, the Dragon King of -the World Under the Sea. - -It was necessary for the dignity of His Majesty, that the Queen and her -soldiers should wait until flood tide; for the Dragon King never -appeared except at high water. So the Queen’s servant launched her ship -and waited out on the waves for the answer they hoped to get. - -No sooner did the tide mark on the sea beach show that the waves had -reached the highest point of flood tide, than the sea opened. The white -foam curled round the Queen’s ship while all on board held their -breath, to see what was coming. They knew they would soon behold a -sight to make them shiver, for the great deep was mightily stirred. - -First rose into view a terrible dragon’s head, on the helmet of the -King. It had eyes that seemed to flash fire. Then His Majesty appeared. -In a great sea shell, as big as a bushel and held in both hands, he had -the two tide jewels. - -These he presented to the Queen and then quickly disappeared beneath -the waves. The last thing they saw was the dragon’s head, which, -besides the two eyes like lightning, had teeth that could bite a boat -in half, even when full of men. This monster could swallow down the -whole crew in his mouth, that was as wide as a man-eating shark’s. His -enormously long black moustaches were as stout as ships’ cables. - -Immediately after receiving the tide jewels, the Queen of the -barbarians landed on the southern coast of Korea. After a few weeks, -having fought many battles with the Koreans, she made them bring to her -their gold, jewels, furs, fans, rice and pretty things. - -She and her people cared nothing about slaves, or common prisoners, but -whenever and wherever they could find a painter, an artist, a costumer, -a maker of pottery, or a man of books, or a priest, they seized and -took him along. They carried over with them, to the island, a great -treasure of gems, gold, ornaments and pretty clothes. They also took -away many seeds of flowers and fruit trees, such as lemons, oranges, -apples and pears. - -In the islands to which they came, these smart men of skill and -knowledge from Korea taught the islanders, who had lived like gypsies -or Indians, how to build houses, palaces, and temples, to make fine -clothes, to paint pictures, and to be like the Koreans and Chinese who -knew all about these things. So the islands became rich in fruit, rice, -grain, pagodas and temples. After this the island people wore lovely -clothes, and had fine manners. - -Now the islanders were great borrowers. They invented very few things -themselves, but depended on their neighbors for much of what they had. -So they filled both their heads and pockets from what they had brought -from Korea. But they often made funny mistakes. When they wanted to -learn about fine manners and fine clothes, they asked what, on solemn -occasions, and in time of ceremony, they should put on their heads. - -The Koreans were greatly offended at these savages from over the sea -for invading their country and taking away their artists and craftsmen. -So they now resolved to play a trick on the islanders. - -So when men from the isles in the ocean sent a company of men to Korea -and asked for caps to put on their heads, and be shown how do to things -properly, the Koreans in contempt gave them their old shoes, which had -strings on them to tie over their feet. - -But the islanders, who loved to go about with little clothing on their -backs, and usually went barefoot, did not know what these shoes were. -They thought these were some kind of head-gear, hats or bonnets. - -So they put them on their heads like skull caps and tied them with the -white strings down under their chins. These were like tapes and held -the caps on around their necks. - -So to this day the islanders, when making offerings to the fairies, -wear this head-gear and think their shoe-caps are very fine. - - - - - - - - -THE VOICE OF THE BELL - - -When Tai Jo, the great general and first King of Korea, founded a new -dynasty, he moved the capital near the great river Han and resolved to -build a mighty city called Han Yang, or the Castle on the Han. It was -to have a high wall around it and lofty gates on each side. However, -the people commonly called the city Seoul, or Capital. All the roads in -the kingdom lead to it. - -Happy was he when the workmen, in digging for the foundations of the -East Gate, came upon a bell. It was a lucky omen and they carried it at -once to the king. He had it suspended over the entrance to his palace -and there it still hangs. - -But such a bell could only tinkle, while King Tai Jo wanted one that -would boom loud and long. He was especially anxious about this, for in -Silla, once a rival state, there had hung for centuries one of the -biggest bells in the world and Tai Jo wanted one that excelled even -that famed striker of the hours. He would have even a larger bell to -hang in the central square in the heart of Seoul, that could be heard -by every man, woman and child in the city. After that, it must be able -to flood miles of hill and valley with its melody. By this sound the -people would know when to get up, cook their breakfast, sit down to -supper, or go to bed. On special occasions his subjects would know when -a king’s procession was passing, or a royal prince or princess was -being married. It would sound out a dirge when, His Majesty being dead, -all the land must mourn and the people wear white clothes for three -years and Korea becomes the land of mourners. The guardian spirit of -the city would have its home in the bell. - -Word was sent out by messengers who rode on big horses, little ponies, -donkeys and bulls to all the provinces, publishing the king’s command -to all governors, magistrates and village-heads to collect the copper -and tin to make the bronze metal. The bell was to stand ten feet above -the ground and be eight feet across; that is, as high and wide as a -Korean bedroom. On the top, forming the framework, by which the bell -was to be hung, were to be two terrible looking dragons. Weighing so -many tons that it would balance five hundred fat men on a seesaw, only -heavy beams made of whole tree-trunks could hold it in the belfry, -which must be strong enough to stand the shaking when the monster was -rung. It had no clapper inside, but without, swung by heavy ropes from -pulleys above, was a long log. This, men pulled back and then let fly, -striking the boss on the bell’s surface. This awoke the music of the -bell, making it toll, boom, rumble, growl, hum, croak, or roll sweet -melody, according as the old bellman desired. - -So the procession of bullock carts on the roads to Seoul creaked with -the ingots of copper. Many a donkey had swallowed gallons of bean soup -at the inn stables before he dropped his load of metal in the city, -while hundreds of bulls bellowed under their weight of the brushwood -and timber piled on their backs to feed the furnaces, which were to -melt the alloy for the casting of the mighty bell. - -Deep was the pit dug to hold the core and mould, and hundreds of -fire-clay pots and ladles were made ready for use when the red-hot -stream should be ready to flow. All the boys in Seoul were waiting to -watch the fire kindle, the smoke rise, the bellows roar, the metal run, -and the foreman give the signal to tap. - -When the fire-imp in the volcano heard of what was going on, he was -awfully jealous, not thinking ever that common men could handle so much -metal, direct properly such roaring flames, and cast so big a bell. He -snorted at the idea that King Tai Jo’s men could beat the bells that -hung in China’s mighty temples or in Silla’s pagodas. - -But when there was not yet enough and the copper collectors were still -at their work, one of them came to a certain village and called at a -house where lived an old woman carrying a baby boy strapped to her -back. She had no coin, cash, metal, or fuel to give, but was quite -ready to offer either herself or the baby. In a tone that showed her -willingness, she said: - -“May I give you this boy?” - -The collector paid no attention to her, but passed on, taking nothing -from the old woman. When in Seoul, however, he told the story. Thus it -came to pass that many heard of the matter and remembered it later. - -So when all was ready, the fire-clay crucibles were set on the -white-hot coals. The blast roared until the bronze metal turned to -liquid. Then, at the word of the master, the hissing, molten stream ran -out and filled the mould. Patiently waiting till the metal cooled, -alas! they found the bell cracked. - -The casting was raised by means of heavy tackle, erected at great -expense on the spot, and the bell was broken up into bits by stalwart -blacksmiths, wielding heavy hammers. Then a second casting was made, -but again, when cool, it was found to be cracked. - -Three separate times this happened, until the price of a palace had -been paid for work, fuel, and wages, and yet there was no bell. King -Tai Jo was in despair. Yet, instead of crying, or pulling his topknot, -or berating the artisans, who had done the best they could, he offered -a large reward to any one who could point out where the trouble lay, or -show what was lacking, and thus secure a perfect casting. Thereupon out -stepped a workman from the company, who told the story of the old woman -and said that the bell would crack after every cooling unless her -proposal was accepted. Anyway, he said, the hag was a sorceress, and if -the child were not a real human being no harm could be done. - -So the baby boy was sent for and, when the liquid metal had half filled -the pit, was thrown into the mass. There was some feeling about -“feeding a child to the fire demon,” but when they hoisted the cooled -bell up from the mould, lo, the casting was a perfect success and every -one apparently forgot about the human life that had entered the bell. -Soon with file and chisel, the great work was finished. The hanging -ceremonies were very impressive when the bell was put in place on the -city’s central square, where the broad streets from the South Gate and -those looking to sunrise and sunset met together. Suspended by heavy -iron links from the staple on a stout timber frame, the bell’s mouth -was exactly a foot above ground. Then, around and over it, was built -the belfry. The names of the chief artisans who cast the bell and of -the royal officers who superintended the hanging ceremonies were -engraved on the metal. It was decided, however, not to strike the bell -until it was fully housed and the sounder or suspended log of wood, as -thick as the mast of a ship, was made ready to send forth the initial -boom. - -Meanwhile tens of thousands of people waited to hear the first music of -the bell. Every one believed it to be good luck and that they would -live the longer for it. The boys and girls could hardly go to bed for -listening, and some were afraid they might be asleep when it boomed. -The little folks, whose eyes were usually fast shut at sunset, begged -hard to stay up that night until they could hear the bell, but some -fell asleep, because they could not help it, and their eyes closed -before they knew it. - -“What shall the name of the bell be, your Majesty?” asked a wise -counselor. - -“Call it In Jung,” said King Tai Jo. “That means ‘Man Decides,’ for -every night, at nine o’clock, let every man or boy decide to go to bed. -Except magistrates, let not one male person be found in the street on -pain of being paddled. From that hour until midnight the women shall -have the streets to themselves to walk in.” The royal law was -proclaimed by trumpeters and it was ordained also that every morning -and evening, at sunrise and sunset, the band of music should play at -the opening and shutting of the city gates. - -So In Jung, or “Masculine Decision,” is the bell’s name to this day. - -But as yet the bell was silent. It had not spoken. When it did sound, -the Seoul people discovered that it was the most wonderful bell ever -cast. It had a memory and a voice. It could wail, as well as sing. In -fact, some to this day declare it can cry; for, whether in childhood, -youth, middle or old age, in joy or gladness, the bell expresses their -own feelings by its change of note, lively or gay, in warning or -congratulation. - -At nine o’clock in the first night of the seventh moon—the month of the -Star Maiden of the Loom and the Ox-boy with his train of attendants, -who stand on opposite sides of the River of Heaven and cross over on -the bridge of birds, the great bell of Seoul was to be sounded. All the -men were in their rooms ready to undress and go to bed at once, while -all the women, fully clothed in their best, were on the door-steps -ready, each with her lantern in hand, for their promenade outdoors. - -Four strong men seized the rope, pulled back the striking log a whole -yard’s distance and then let fly. Back bounded the timber and out -gushed a flood of melody that rolled across the city in every -direction, and over the hills, filling leagues of space with sweet -sound. The children clapped their hands and danced with joy. They knew -they would live long, for they had heard the sweet bell’s first music. -The old people smiled with joy. - -But what was the surprise of the adult folks to hear that the bell -could talk. Yes, its sounds actually made a sentence. - -“Mu-u-u-ma-ma-ma-la-la-la-la-la-la——” until it ended like a baby’s cry. -Yes! There was no mistake about it. This is what it said: - -“My mother’s fault. My mother’s fault.” - -And to this day the mothers in Seoul, as they clasp their darlings to -their bosoms, resolve that it shall be no fault of theirs if these lack -love or care. They delight in their little ones more, and lavish on -them a tenderer affection because they hear the great bell talk, -warning parents to guard what Heaven has committed to their care. - - - - - - - - -THE KING OF THE SPARROWS - - -The Korean children are awakened every morning by the twittering of the -sparrows. These little birds build their nests among the vines on the -roof and along the eaves. The people plant melon, gourd, and mock -orange seeds along the sunny sides of their houses in spring time. All -through the summer, and until late in autumn, the walls and roofs are -covered with the thick green leaves. Here, in these sheltered places, -the sparrow mother lays her eggs and the father sparrow finds worms and -feeds her, until the hungry birdies open their little mouths for -something to eat. After this, both parents are kept busy in raising -their brood and teaching them to fly. - -The greatest dangers to the birdlings come from cruel snakes that live -on the roof and eat up the young sparrows. Sometimes, to help them -against their enemy, the parent sparrows call in the aid of larger -birds that are not afraid of the reptiles. These peck at the snake -until they drive him away. There is always a lively chattering over the -victory. - -One day, a young sparrow that had hardly learned to fly was almost -seized, and might have been devoured by the roof-snake, but was saved -by a big, brave bird that flew at the reptile. Although escaped from -the snake’s jaws, the sparrow in falling caught its legs in the curtain -made of split bamboo, which hung before the verandah of the house, and -its limb was put out of joint. There it lay helpless between the -splints. - -The owner of the house was a kind man, who loved the birds. Taking pity -on the poor sparrow, he carefully lifted it up, smoothed its feathers, -and quieted the little creature, while its heart kept beating so fast. -Then setting its leg in place, he put some moist clay around the broken -part, until it should be all right again. Meanwhile, he kept it warm, -feeding the birdie until it was strong again. One day he took it in his -hand and out-of-doors letting it fly away. Soon it came back and -perched on the edge of the roof, twittering thanks to its kind friend. -Then it spread its wings to fly to the King of the Sparrows, who lived -in the city of Sparrow Capital, where it at once informed His Majesty -about the good man who healed and befriended birds when they were in -trouble and who had saved the young sparrow’s life. - -The King of Sparrow Land and all his wise counselors heard the story -with great interest. Then they held a meeting and voted to reward -richly so good a friend of all sparrows. So they went into the -storehouse where were kept beautiful treasures which human beings love. -From the collection they chose what they thought would please most -their good friend, such as gold, jade, brocade, cups and saucers, rice, -horses to ride on, oxen to bear heavy loads and pretty maids to wait on -him, besides silk and cotton clothes of all sorts, with delicious -things to eat and drink. By some magic process, they packed these into -a seed and then gave it to the sparrow in its bill to carry to the good -man. They charged the bird on no account to lose it and be sure to give -it to no one but the right person. - -So the sparrow flew out of Sparrow Land and down to the house of its -kind friend. Carefully laying down the seed, it kept near the paper -window-frame and made a great twittering, until the man came out to see -what was the matter. Recognizing his old acquaintance, he put out his -open hand and the sparrow laid the seed in his palm, meanwhile -chattering in a lively way and looking in his face as if to tell him -how precious the treasure was. - -But the good fellow only took it in to his wife and told her how he got -it, laughed over the matter and was going to throw it away, thinking it -only sparrow fun. - -The wife, who was a wise woman, begged her husband to keep it and on a -warm day in spring she planted it. It grew to be a luxuriant vine that -clothed all one side of the house with its leaves. When one unusually -fine large handsome gourd was nearly ripe, the man thought of plucking -it for food; but, taking his wife’s advice, he waited until full autumn -had come. By this time the gourd, having absorbed the sunshine all -summer, was fully ripe. - -Then they took a saw to open it properly, and lo! a store of riches -came out of that gourd, such as neither the man nor his wife had ever -dreamed of. - -First issued something which spread itself out before them. It was a -table of costly jade, such as an Emperor ever eats from. Next rolled -forth a silver bottle of delicious wine and then the daintiest cups, -that set themselves on the jade table. Soon a gold tea-caddy appeared -filled with the fragrant leaf. Then rolls of silk, fine muslin, satin -brocade, and a store of rich clothes, hats, shoes, girdles, and socks -enough to last a lifetime appeared before their eyes. After these were -rice and cooked food of all sorts ready for a feast. Looking out into -the yard, they saw strong horses and fat oxen waiting to do their -master’s bidding. Last of all, some lovely young girls, as fair as the -moon, stepped out of the gourd and proceeded to serve the good things -of the feast, as if they had been used to waiting on ladies and -gentlemen all their lives. Following the feast, they danced, made music -and gave no end of entertainment and service to the man and his wife, -who were now as happy as king and queen. - -In their once humble home, now made over new, with all the store of -good things and plenty of loyal servants and strong animals to serve -them, the old couple lived without care and traveled where they -pleased. - -But when a wicked man, that hated all sparrows and had often driven -them away from his house, because he thought them too troublesome, -heard of his neighbor’s good fortune, he was envious, and wanted to get -riches in the same way. So he watched his opportunity and, when a -sparrow came near, he threw a stick at the bird and broke its leg. Then -he bound up the limb with clay and a bit of rag. He kept the poor -sparrow until its leg was well, but dreadfully crooked, and then let it -fly away. - -In the capital of Sparrow Land, the poor bird told about the bad man’s -doings. The Sparrow King at once handed out a seed to be given to the -enemy of the sparrows. When the naughty man saw the little bird with -the crooked legs, he ran out, got the seed and planted it at once. He -could hardly wait for the gourd to ripen. Wonderful to relate, however, -the vine was most luxurious, covering the whole side of the house and -all the thatched roofs of the three dwellings in one, which made up his -home. Finally in the autumn he plucked the fruit. Then, sitting down -before the pile, with knife and saw, he began to open them. - -But instead of good things, and lovely people, and the treasures that -make men rich and happy, such as his kind neighbor had received, there -came out, one after another, the twelve curses of Korea. - -First leaped forth a party of rope dancers, who put out their hands and -demanded money. They threatened to live with him and eat at his table -unless they got their pay. - -There was no help for it. So the cruel man had to give each dancer a -long string of cash before he could get rid of the party. - -No sooner had he opened the second gourd than out stepped a line of -Buddhist priests, who at once began begging for the temples. He was -only too glad to buy off these shaven pates. - -The saw had no sooner let the light into another gourd, than forth came -a band of hired mourners carrying a corpse. They began weeping, wailing -and crying out loud enough to waken the dead. It required another rope -of cash to get rid of these pests. By this time the cruel man was -beginning to feel very poor. - -Almost afraid to touch the other gourds, but still greedily hoping for -riches, he sawed them open; but one after the other yielded only what -took his money and threatened to make him a beggar. From the fourth -gourd issued a bevy of dancing girls, who refused to leave the house -until he had paid them five thousand cash. From another gourd a pair of -acrobats leaped out and began a performance. But knowing that they -would charge the more for their tricks, if they were allowed to finish -their program, the man bought them off as he had done the others. - -Getting poorer and poorer, with no sign of wealth coming from the -gourds, he yet felt he must open more, but the result was the same. The -strangest people, men and women, such as loafers from the government -offices, fortune-tellers, jugglers, and blind folks appeared. These -last had sticks in their hands to find the way, and bells at their -belts to collect alms. Finally, of all living things, a giant stood -forth, that threatened to eat up both the man and his wife. - -By this time there was not a coin or a cash left, and, besides being as -poor as a rat, the man was hungry. When the twelfth gourd was opened it -seemed to have in it all the smells of Korea. Holding their noses, the -man and his wife ran out of their house. Happily for them that they did -so, for just then a gale of wind blew down the house, and the thatch -and timbers burst into flames from the fire that had heated the flues. - -Thus stripped of all their possessions, because of the man’s cruelty to -the birds, the wicked fellow and his wife would have starved, except -for the kindness of the good man who treated the sparrows kindly. For -the rest of their days the old couple lived on their neighbor’s -charity. - - - - - - - - -THE WOODMAN AND THE MOUNTAIN FAIRIES - - -Over a half thousand years ago there lived in a northern village, near -Ping Yang, a wood-cutter named Keel Wee. - -He owned a sturdy bull that carried on its back the fuel which he daily -cut on the mountains and sold on the main street of his village, at the -fair, which was held every fifth day. The docile brute could carry a -load of faggots and brushwood piled many feet high over his head and -tied down with ropes, so that at a distance nothing but his legs were -visible. This beast, although so huge, was the gentlest creature -imaginable. The children were all very fond of the big fellow and were -accustomed to play with him as if he were one of them, or at least like -a pet dog. The reason of this was that when but a week old the -bull-calf had been taken from his cow-mother and brought up in the -family with the girls and boys. Only the puppy dog, that also occupied -the house with the young folks, was a great favorite. - -On a fine summer morning, Keel Wee, leaving his beast behind, went up -on the mountain and cut enough wood to load up and bring down on -another day. - -His wife, as she shouted good-bye, told him to be sure and be home in -time for supper, for their eldest son had gone a-fishing and a good -string of perch was expected. - -Shouldering his axe, he started up the mountain path. He had to go -pretty far, for near towns or cities in Korea all the timber had long -since been cut away. Every year the woodmen have to search farther -afield to find fuel. - -Arriving in the woods where there was a clearing, Keel Wee prepared to -wield his trusty axe. He was about to take off his big hat and outer -coat and lay about him, when he spied, at some distance off, two -fairy-like beings. They had long hair, looked very wise and were -dressed in costume of the Chow dynasty of two thousand years ago. They -sat on stones and played the game of go-ban. - -Coming near, the woodman took a respectful attitude, and, looking on, -soon became interested in the moves of the players. So far from being -at all disconcerted at the presence of a stranger, the two fairies -seemed by eye-winks to invite him to look on. Feeling quite proud to be -thus honored, Keel Wee, leaning his chin upon the handle of his axe, -became absorbed in the game and by and by grew quite excited. -Forgetting himself and his manners, he stretched forth his right hand -to move one of the pieces. At once the fairy nearest to him gave him a -crack on the fingers for his impudence, and jerked Keel Wee’s arm away. -Then without saying a word, he took out from his wallet something that -looked like a persimmon seed and put in the woodman’s mouth. After this -all three were perfectly quiet. - -Hour after hour the game proceeded and the players grew more intensely -interested. As for Keel Wee, his eyes never winked, so hard did he look -at the yellow board covered with the black and white pieces. Several -times, when he thought he saw how the fairy on his right could beat in -the game, or the one on his left make a better move, he felt like -telling one or the other so. When, however, he tried to move his -tongue, he found he could not speak, or utter a cry. Somehow he felt as -if he were in a dream. - -Yet all the time he became more and more wrapped up in the game, so -that he determined to see the end of it and know which player had -beaten. He forgot that with mountain spirits there is no night or -morning, or passing of the hours, nor do they care anything about -clocks or bells, because in fairy-land there is no time. - -All the while Keel Wee was leaning with his chin on the stout -axe-handle, holding it with both hands under his neck. He took no note -of the sun or stars, daylight or darkness and he felt no hunger. - -Suddenly the timber of his axe seemed to turn to dust and his chin -fell. The next thing he knew he had lost his support. Down went his -head, and forward fell his body as he tumbled over, upsetting the -checker-board, breaking up the game and scattering the round pieces -hither and yon over the ground. - -Awaking as out of a sleep, and thoroughly ashamed of himself for his -impoliteness, he tried to pick himself up and humbly apologize for the -accident which he had caused by his own rudeness. He expected and was -ready for a good scolding. But when he looked up, the fairies were -gone. Nothing whatever was seen of them or of the playboard and -checkers, nor any signs of their having been there, except that when he -put his hand on the flat stones, which they had used as seats, he found -them warm to his touch. - -But where was his axe-handle and what had happened? When he had left -home, he had come straight from the barber shop, with his face smooth -and clean shaven. Now he put his hand to his breast and found that he -had grown a long white beard. As for the iron axe-head, it was there, -but rusty and half buried in the ground. He had worn one of the big -farmer’s hats, which, when turned upside down, might hold a bushel or -two of turnips, and when fastened to his head spread over his shoulders -like a roof. Where could it be? He looked about him to find it, but saw -only the bits of the slats inside the frame and a few scraps of what -remained, for the rest had long ago rotted away. Meanwhile he had -discovered that his joints were stiff, and he felt like an old man. His -clothes were a mass of rags, his hemp sandals were no more, and, on -both fingers and toes, had grown long nails like bird’s claws. His hair -had burst its topknot string and hung down his back like a woman’s, -only it was grayish-white. - -Wondering what it all meant, Keel Wee hobbled down the mountain and -found the road that ran into the main street of his village. Rocks and -hills, rivers and rills were there, but what a change! Instead of the -two grinning idol posts, of male and female faces, carved out of trunks -and trees, with sawed-out teeth painted white, and artificial ear flaps -of wood nailed on, such as had stood before every Korean hamlet since -the days of Kija, there was a line of high thick poles, with iron wire -stretching from one to the other and for miles in the distance. These, -he found out afterward, were called “lightning-thread-trees” (telegraph -poles). In place of the rambling and sprawling three-sided thatched -houses and yards, divided off with mats hung from sticks, there was a -well-built but odd-looking office of painted wood, with openings -through which he saw Korean young men sitting. They were dressed in -strange clothes and were fingering outlandish-looking clicking -instruments. - -His curiosity prompted him to go up and look more closely, when -something bumped against his nose and nearly knocked him over. When he -tried again to get closer, his face was flattened, his nose nearly -broken, and his lips knocked against his teeth so that they swelled. -Feeling with his hands to solve the mystery, he touched something hard, -which he could yet see through. Just then he heard a young man inside -shout to him in Korean: - -“Here, you mountain daddy, let that glass alone.” - -“Glass? Glass?” thought Keel Wee. “What is that?” Yet he could not -speak. - -He had hardly drawn a long breath when, looking down along two lines of -shining iron in the street, he saw a house on wheels coming right at -him. There was no horse, no donkey, no bull, no man pulling or pushing -it, but overhead was a long pole, at the end of which, where it touched -a string, as he thought, though it was an iron wire, was something that -looked like a squirrel. It was going round and round as if turning -somersaults and seemed to be pushing the moving house along. Inside, -near the same stuff which he had already heard was glass, sat a dozen -or so Koreans. The whole thing, wheels and all, nearly ran over him as -it thundered by, and his mouth opened in wonder, while a man on the end -shouted rudely: - -“Hello, old goblin, where did you get your pumpkin mouth? Look out or -you’ll swallow the moon. Get out of the way of the trolley.” - -Thus did the man they called conductor, or guard, make fun of the poor -old fellow, for indeed he did look like one of the mummers, who on New -Year’s Eve amuse or scare the children by putting on their shoulders -the huge round devil heads and false faces that represent the -aborigines of Korea and the goblins that once lived in the mountains. -These masks are usually shaped like a melon and are cut with eyes, nose -and mouth, like those which American boys have fun with on All Hallow -Eve. - -This was just the trouble. The woodman in tatters, with no topknot, -long hair down his back and a white beard floating over his breast, -leaning on a long white stick as he hobbled down the street, looked -just like one of the ancient aborigines that had long ago been driven -into the mountains. Nurses and old women frightened naughty children by -simply mentioning their names. When one of these mountain men, odd -creatures that were half savage in dress and ways, came into the town, -all the children laughed and the big dogs barked, while the little ones -ran away, for the sight was so unusual. Even the bulls bellowed, the -donkeys balked, and the pigs squeaked, as Keel Wee came near. No wonder -he was taken for a mountain granddaddy, or a bumpkin dressed up like -one, for few of the city or village folks had really ever seen one of -the mountain aborigines, any more than they had seen tigers, that are -plentiful farther away, but which only the hunters ever caught sight -of. - -More and more bewildered, Keel Wee wended his way further into the -town. He saw that the men no longer wore topknots, or chignons, nor did -the lads have on the long braid down their back, which showed that they -were youths, but not married yet. Just then some rough boys, supposing -that maybe some rustic gawk had mistaken the time of year, jeered at -him and cried: - -“Hello, hermit, do you think it’s New Year’s Eve?” - -Keel Wee thought he had better ask some questions. So catching sight of -a dignified looking gentleman, in black broad-brimmed hat and flowing -white clothes, who was coming down the street and toward him, Keel Wee -bowed his head low, almost to the ground. As he did so, the stone put -in his mouth by the fairies dropped out, and his tongue was loosed. He -inquired as follows: - -“Exalted sir, can you tell me where may be the wretched hut of my -miserable wife and children? She was the daughter of Gee Kim, and your -contemptible slave is Keel Wee.” - -The gentleman, whose dress showed that he was a scholar and person of -rank, looked long and hard at the questioner, to satisfy himself that -he was not being mocked, or imposed upon by a jester, rope-dancer, -sorcerer, or some such disreputable person, and then cried: - -“Heavens! man, are you a beggar-spirit of the mountains? Your speech -sounds like the dialect spoken in these parts five hundred years ago. -In that time such a family lived here, but the head of it, a -wood-cutter and fuel-seller, is reported to have gone up into the -mountains and was eaten up by a tiger. Yonder in the graveyard are -buried ten or more generations of his descendants.” - -“Tell me, kind sir, what has happened here since King Wang died. It was -under his reign that I was born and lived in this village.” - -Still eyeing the questioner, as if expecting to see him jump out of his -rags and declare himself a mummer and the whole affair a joke, the -kindly gentleman proceeded to give in outline the history of Korea -during the previous five hundred years. There had been many kings. The -Tartars first, and then the Japanese had invaded the land. A great war -between the Mikado’s men and the Chinese had taken place. It was just -over and now people rode in cars, talked hundreds of miles over wires, -and traveled over iron rails as fast as a dragon could fly, drawn by a -steel horse that drank water and fed on wood and black stones that -burned. In a word, Korea was in an “era of civilization.” - -This was too much for Keel Wee. He now realized that he had lived ten -times longer than the average man. So, hobbling over to the graveyard, -he stumbled among the mounds until he found that one of his clan where -the bones of his wife and children lay. Next morning, all that was seen -of Keel Wee was a mass of dust, rags, some bones, and much long white -hair. Yet, when they buried him, there sprang up around and on his -grave strange flowers that no one had ever seen in city or village, but -which bloomed only on the high mountains. - - - - - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KOREAN FAIRY TALES *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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