--- title: Opening, part 26 — Russian Folk-Tales · full text with trees · page 2 description: Opening, part 26, «Russian Folk-Tales» by A. N. Afanas'ev: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: Then the little devil begged him and cried in his ear: “Do let me go, peasant. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/26/page/2/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/) / [Russian Folk-Tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/) / Opening, part 26 # Opening, part 26 · page 2 [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/26/) **2** “What will you do?”[86](../../86/ "tree and pragmatics") “I shall not tell you this time!”[87](../../87/ "tree and pragmatics") “Well, if evil is to be, it will come.”[88](../../88/ "tree and pragmatics") Nicholas thought, and again went to the peasant, told him to buy two tapers, one big and one small, and gave him instructions.[89](../../89/ "tree and pragmatics") Next day Elijah the Prophet and St. Nicholas were out together in the guise of wanderers, and the peasant happened to meet them, carrying two waxen candles—one big one that cost a rouble, and a little one that cost a kopek.[90](../../90/ "tree and pragmatics") “Where are you going to, peasant?”[91](../../91/ "tree and pragmatics") St. Nicholas said.[92](../../92/ "tree and pragmatics") “Oh, I am going to light the rouble taper to the Prophet Elijah; he has been so charitable to me.[93](../../93/ "tree and pragmatics") My field was ravaged by hail, so he intervened, \_bátyushka\_, and gave me a crop twice as good.”[94](../../94/ "tree and pragmatics") “For whom is the farthing dip?”[95](../../95/ "tree and pragmatics") “Oh, for St. Nicholas!” the peasant said, and pursued his way.[96](../../96/ "tree and pragmatics") “There you are, Elijah,” said St. Nicholas: “you said I gave everything away to the peasant; now you see what the truth is.”[97](../../97/ "tree and pragmatics") And with this the dispute was ended: Elijah the Prophet was reconciled, and ceased persecuting the peasant with hail-storms, so that he lived a merry life from that day and honoured both name-days equally.[98](../../98/ "tree and pragmatics") THE PRINCESS TO BE KISSED AT A CHARGE[99](../../99/ "tree and pragmatics") We still say that we are clever, but our elders go and quarrel with us and say, “No, we had more sense than you.”[100](../../100/ "tree and pragmatics") But the tale tells that, even when our grandfathers had not learned their lessons and our great-great-great-great-grandfathers had not been born, in a certain kingdom, in a certain land, once there lived an old man who had taught his three sons reading and writing.[101](../../101/ "tree and pragmatics") “Now, children,” he said to them, “I shall die; do you come and read prayers over my grave.”[102](../../102/ "tree and pragmatics") “Very well, \_bátyushka\_,” the three sons answered.[103](../../103/ "tree and pragmatics") And the two elder brothers were indeed fine lads, and they grew up fine stout fellows; but the youngest, Vanyúshka,\[32\] was under-sized, like a starved duckling, and flat-chested.[104](../../104/ "tree and pragmatics") The old man, their father, died.[105](../../105/ "tree and pragmatics") Just about then a decree was issued by the Tsar that his daughter, Eléna Tsarévna the Fair, had ordered a temple to be built for her, with twelve columns and twelve wreaths.[106](../../106/ "tree and pragmatics") She was going to sit in this temple on a lofty throne, and was going to wait for the bridegroom—the valiant man who should on a flying horse, at a single spring, kiss her on the lips.[107](../../107/ "tree and pragmatics") All the young folks were bustling about, washing themselves clean, combing their hair, and considering to whom should the great honour fall.[108](../../108/ "tree and pragmatics") “Brothers,” Vanyúshka said, “our father is dead: who of us will go and read prayers on his grave?”[109](../../109/ "tree and pragmatics") “Whoever wishes may go,” answered the brothers.[110](../../110/ "tree and pragmatics") So the youngest went.[111](../../111/ "tree and pragmatics") But the elders got ready and mounted their horses, curled their hair, dyed their hair; and all their kinsmen gathered round.[112](../../112/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the second night came: “Brothers, I read the prayers last night,” Ványa said; “it’s your turn; which of you will go?”[113](../../113/ "tree and pragmatics") “Any one who wishes may go; don’t interfere with us.”[114](../../114/ "tree and pragmatics") They gave their hats a knowing tilt, whooped and shouted, flew about, and rushed and galloped abroad on the open fields; and once again Ványa read the prayers; and so, too, on the third night.[115](../../115/ "tree and pragmatics") But the brothers saddled their horses, combed out their whiskers, and got ready on the very morrow to try their prowess in front of the eyes of Eléna the Fair.[116](../../116/ "tree and pragmatics") “What about our youngest brother?” they thought.[117](../../117/ "tree and pragmatics") “Never mind about him; he will only disgrace us and make people smile: let us go by ourselves.”[118](../../118/ "tree and pragmatics") So they started.[119](../../119/ "tree and pragmatics") But Ványa also very much wanted to look at Princess Eléna the Fair, and so he wept sorely, and he went to his father’s grave, and his father heard him in his last home, and he came up to him, shook off the grey earth from his forehead, and said, “Do not grieve, Vanyúshka; I will aid you in your sorrow.”[120](../../120/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the old man got up, whistled and halloed with a young man’s voice, with a nightingale’s trill; and from some source or other a horse ran up, and the earth trembled, and from his nostrils and from his ears flames issued forth.[121](../../121/ "tree and pragmatics") He breathed smoke, and stood in front of the old man as though he were rooted to the ground, and asked him, “What do you wish?”[122](../../122/ "tree and pragmatics") Ványa mounted the horse by one ear, dismounted it by the other, and turned into so fine a youth as no tale can tell and no pen can write.[123](../../123/ "tree and pragmatics") He sat on the horse, bent over sideways; and he flew like your hawk over there, straight to the palace of Eléna the Fair Tsarévna.[124](../../124/ "tree and pragmatics") He stretched out, leaped on, and he did not reach two of the crowns.[125](../../125/ "tree and pragmatics") He again made an effort, flew up, jumped; there was only one wreath left.[126](../../126/ "tree and pragmatics") He made one more effort, turned round once more, and, as fire leaps to the eyes, he instantly kissed and smacked Eléna the Fair on the lips.[127](../../127/ "tree and pragmatics") “Who is it\![128](../../128/ "tree and pragmatics") Who is it\![129](../../129/ "tree and pragmatics") Catch him!”[130](../../130/ "tree and pragmatics") For his very trace had vanished.[131](../../131/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he leapt back to his father’s grave, and he let his horse free into the open field; and he then bowed down to the earth and asked advice of his father, and the old man gave him advice.[132](../../132/ "tree and pragmatics") Ványa went back home as though he had never been there; and the brothers told him where they had been, what they had done and seen; and he listened as though he had never heard of it before.[133](../../133/ "tree and pragmatics") There was another bout next day, and you could never see an end of the \_boyárs\_ and the lords seated at the royal palace.[134](../../134/ "tree and pragmatics") The elder brothers started out, and the younger brother set out on foot secretly and quietly, just as though he had never kissed the Tsarévna, and he stopped in his distant corner.[135](../../135/ "tree and pragmatics") Eléna Tsarévna was asking for her bridegroom; Eléna Tsarévna was wishing to show him to the whole world, desiring to give him the half of her kingdom; but never a bridegroom appeared.[136](../../136/ "tree and pragmatics") They were looking for him in the midst of the \_boyárs\_, in the midst of the generals; and they went to them all, but they could not find him.[137](../../137/ "tree and pragmatics") But Ványa looked on and smiled, and waited until his bride came to him.[138](../../138/ "tree and pragmatics") For he said, “I won her like a knight; now she is to love me in my \_kaftán\_.”[139](../../139/ "tree and pragmatics") So she got up, looked out of the open windows, glanced through them all, and then she saw and recognised her bridegroom, took him to herself, and soon the betrothal took place.[140](../../140/ "tree and pragmatics") And oh, what a fine young man he was—so sensible, brave, and so handsome\![141](../../141/ "tree and pragmatics") He used to sit on his flying horse, undo his cap, put his arms a-kimbo; and he seemed like a king, like the reigning king; and you looked on, and you would never have imagined that at one time he could ever have been poor Vanyúshka.[142](../../142/ "tree and pragmatics") THE WOOD SPRITE[143](../../143/ "tree and pragmatics") One day the daughter of a pope, without asking leave of her mother or her father, went for a walk into the wood, and utterly lost her way.[144](../../144/ "tree and pragmatics") Three years went by.[145](../../145/ "tree and pragmatics") Now, in this wood, in which her mother and father lived, there was a bold hunter.[146](../../146/ "tree and pragmatics") On every holy day he used to go hunting with his gun and his dog in the dreamy forest.[147](../../147/ "tree and pragmatics") [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/26/) **2** - ← previous: [page 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/26/) - next →: [Opening, part 27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/27/) - ↑ back to [Russian Folk-Tales](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg62509/)