--- title: Opening, part 21 — The Jade Story Book; Stories from the Orient · full text with trees description: Opening, part 21, «The Jade Story Book; Stories from the Orient» by Penrhyn Wingfield Coussens: the whole chapter, every sentence with its dependency tree and pragmatics. It begins: “Fair Prince, on the charger so gray, Turn thee back! --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/21/) [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/) / [The Jade Story Book; Stories from the…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/) / Opening, part 21 # Opening, part 21 Opening, part 21 of «The Jade Story Book; Stories from the Orient» by Penrhyn Wingfield Coussens: the whole text, 121 sentences and 2541 words. The small number after every sentence leads to its own page with its syntax tree and pragmatics, parsed by Mova itself. **1** [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/21/page/2/) “Fair Prince, on the charger so gray, Turn thee back\![1](1/ "tree and pragmatics") Turn thee back\![2](2/ "tree and pragmatics") Or lower thy lance for the fray; Thy head will be forfeit to-day\![3](3/ "tree and pragmatics") Dost love life?[4](4/ "tree and pragmatics") Then, stranger, I pray, Turn thee back\![5](5/ "tree and pragmatics") Turn thee back!”[6](6/ "tree and pragmatics") But he, smiling at the maiden, answered lightly:[7](7/ "tree and pragmatics") “Fair maiden, I come from afar, Sworn conqueror in love and in war\![8](8/ "tree and pragmatics") King Sarkap my coming will rue, His head in four pieces I’ll hew; Then forth as a bridegroom I’ll ride, With you, little maid, as my bride!”[9](9/ "tree and pragmatics") Now when Rasalu replied so gallantly, the maiden looked in his face, and seeing how fair he was, and how brave and strong, she straightway fell in love with him, and would gladly have followed him through the world.[10](10/ "tree and pragmatics") But the other sixty-nine maidens, being jealous, laughed scornfully at her, saying: “Not so fast, oh gallant warrior\![11](11/ "tree and pragmatics") If you would marry our sister you must first do our bidding, for you will be our younger brother.”[12](12/ "tree and pragmatics") “Fair sisters!” quoth Rasalu gayly, “give me my task and I will perform it.”[13](13/ "tree and pragmatics") So the sixty-nine maidens mixed a hundred-weight of millet seed with a hundred-weight of sand, and giving it to Rasalu, bade him separate the seed from the sand.[14](14/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he bethought him of the cricket, and drawing the feeler from his pocket, thrust it into the fire.[15](15/ "tree and pragmatics") And immediately there was a whirring noise in the air, and a great flight of crickets alighted beside him, and amongst them the cricket whose life he had saved.[16](16/ "tree and pragmatics") Then Rasalu said, “Separate the millet seed from the sand.”[17](17/ "tree and pragmatics") “Is that all?” quoth the cricket.[18](18/ "tree and pragmatics") “Had I known how small a job you wanted me to do, I would not have assembled so many of my brethren.”[19](19/ "tree and pragmatics") With that the flight of crickets set to work, and in one night they separated the seed from the sand.[20](20/ "tree and pragmatics") Now when the sixty-nine fair maidens, daughters of the king, saw that Rasalu had performed his task, they set him another, bidding him swing them all, one by one, in their swings, until they were tired.[21](21/ "tree and pragmatics") Whereupon he laughed, saying, “There are seventy of you, counting my little bride yonder, and I am not going to spend my life swinging girls\![22](22/ "tree and pragmatics") Why, by the time I have given each of you a swing, the first will be wanting another\![23](23/ "tree and pragmatics") No\![24](24/ "tree and pragmatics") If you want a swing, get in, all seventy of you, and then I’ll see what can be done.”[25](25/ "tree and pragmatics") So the seventy maidens climbed into one swing, and Rajah Rasalu, standing in his shining armor, fastened the ropes to his mighty bow, and drew it up to its fullest bent.[26](26/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he let go, and like an arrow the swing shot into the air, with its burden of seventy fair maidens, merry and careless, full of smiles and laughter.[27](27/ "tree and pragmatics") But as it swung back again, Rasalu, standing there in his shining armor, drew his sharp sword and severed the ropes.[28](28/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the seventy fair maidens fell to the ground headlong; and some were bruised and some were broken, but the only one who escaped unhurt was the maiden who loved Rasalu, for she fell out last, on the top of the others, and so came to no harm.[29](29/ "tree and pragmatics") After this, Rasalu strode on fifteen paces, till he came to the seventy drums, that everyone who came to play chaupur with the king had to beat in turn; and he beat them so loudly that he broke them all.[30](30/ "tree and pragmatics") Then he came to the seventy gongs, all in a row, and he hammered them so hard that they cracked to pieces.[31](31/ "tree and pragmatics") Seeing this, the youngest Princess, who was the only one who could run, fled to her father, the king, in a great fright, saying:[32](32/ "tree and pragmatics") “A mighty Prince, Sarkap! making havoc rides along, He swung us, seventy maidens fair, and threw us out headlong; He broke the drums you placed there, and the gongs, too, in his pride, Sure, he will kill thee, father mine, and take me for his bride!”[33](33/ "tree and pragmatics") But King Sarkap replied scornfully:[34](34/ "tree and pragmatics") “Silly maiden, thy words make a lot Of a very small matter; For fear of my valor, I wot, His armor will clatter.[35](35/ "tree and pragmatics") As soon as I’ve eaten my bread I’ll go forth and cut off his head!”[36](36/ "tree and pragmatics") Notwithstanding these brave and boastful words he was in reality very much afraid, having heard of Rasalu’s renown.[37](37/ "tree and pragmatics") And learning that he was stopping at the house of an old woman in the city, till the hour of playing chaupur arrived, Sarkap sent slaves to him with trays of sweetmeats and fruit, as to an honored guest.[38](38/ "tree and pragmatics") But the food was poisoned.[39](39/ "tree and pragmatics") Now, when the slaves brought the trays to Rajah Rasalu, he rose up haughtily, saying: “Go tell your master I have naught to do with him in friendship.[40](40/ "tree and pragmatics") I am his sworn enemy, and I eat not of his salt!”[41](41/ "tree and pragmatics") So saying, he threw the sweetmeats to Rajah Sarkap’s dog, which had followed the slaves, and lo! the dog died.[42](42/ "tree and pragmatics") Then Rasalu was very wroth, and said bitterly, “Go back to Sarkap, slaves.[43](43/ "tree and pragmatics") And tell him that Rasalu deems it no act of bravery to kill even an enemy by treachery.”[44](44/ "tree and pragmatics") Now, when evening came, Rajah Rasalu went forth to play chaupur with King Sarkap, and as he passed some potters’ kilns he saw a cat wandering about restlessly; so he asked what ailed her, that she never stood still, and she replied: “My kittens are in an unbaked pot in the kiln yonder.[45](45/ "tree and pragmatics") It has just been set alight, and my children will be baked alive; therefore I cannot rest!”[46](46/ "tree and pragmatics") Her words moved the heart of Rajah Rasalu, and going to the potter, he asked him to sell the kiln as it was; but the potter replied that he could not settle a fair price till the pots were burned, as he could not tell how many would come out whole.[47](47/ "tree and pragmatics") Nevertheless, after some bargaining, he consented at last to sell the kiln, and Rasalu, having searched all the pots, restored the kittens to their mother, and she in gratitude for his mercy, gave him one of them, saying, “Put it in your pocket, for it will help you when you are in difficulties.”[48](48/ "tree and pragmatics") So Rajah Rasalu put the kitten in his pocket, and went to play chaupur with the king.[49](49/ "tree and pragmatics") Now, before they sat down to play, Rajah Sarkap fixed his stakes—on the first game, his kingdom; on the second, the wealth of the whole world, and on the third, his own head.[50](50/ "tree and pragmatics") So, likewise, Rajah Rasalu fixed his stakes—on the first game, his arms; on the second, his horse, and on the third, his own head.[51](51/ "tree and pragmatics") Then they began to play, and it fell to Rasalu’s lot to make the first move.[52](52/ "tree and pragmatics") Now he, forgetful of the dead man’s warning, played with the dice given him by Rajah Sarkap, besides which, Sarkap let loose his famous rat, Dhol Rajah, and it ran about the board, upsetting the chaupur pieces on the sly, so that Rasalu lost the first game, and gave up his shining armor.[53](53/ "tree and pragmatics") Then the second game began, and once more Dhol Rajah, the rat, upset the pieces; and Rasalu, losing the game, gave up his faithful steed.[54](54/ "tree and pragmatics") Then Bhanur, the Arab steed, who stood by, found voice, and cried to his master:[55](55/ "tree and pragmatics") “Sea-born am I, bought with much gold; Dear Prince\![56](56/ "tree and pragmatics") Trust me now as of old.[57](57/ "tree and pragmatics") I’ll carry you far from these wiles— My flight, all unspurr’d, will be swift as a bird, For thousands and thousands of miles\![58](58/ "tree and pragmatics") Or if needs you must stay; ere the next game you play Place your hand in your pocket, I pray!”[59](59/ "tree and pragmatics") **1** [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/21/page/2/) - ← previous: [Opening, part 20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/20/) - next →: [page 2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/21/page/2/) - ↑ back to [The Jade Story Book; Stories from the Orient](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg65965/)