hou hast lived a
day!"--"Never mind," said the cherry-tree; "take the first chip that
falls from me, and throw it into the water."--Then they cut down the
cherry-tree; but the girl did as she was bidden, and threw the first
chip from the cherry-tree into the water, and out of it swam a drake
so beautiful that it was a delight to look upon it. Then the Tsar went
a-hunting, and saw it swimming in the water, and it was so close that
he could touch it with his hand. The Tsar took off his clothes and
plunged into the water after it, and it enticed him farther and
farther away from the shore. Then the drake swam toward the spot where
the Tsar had left his clothes, and when it came up to them it changed
into a man and put them on, and behold! the man was Daniel. Then he
called to the Tsar: "Swim hither, swim hither!" The Tsar swam up, but
when he swam ashore Daniel met and killed him, and after that he went
back to court in the Tsar's clothes. Then all the courtiers hailed him
as the Tsar, but he said, "Where is that damsel who was here just
now?"--They brought her instantly before him. "Well," said he to her,
"thou hast been a second mother to me, and now thou shalt be my
second wife!" So he lived with her and was happy, but he caused his
first wife to be tied to the tails of wild horses and torn to pieces
in the endless steppes.

[Illustration: HIS WIFE CARESSED AND WHEEDLED HIM]

THE SPARROW AND THE BUSH

A sparrow once flew down upon a bush and said, "Little bush, give good
little sparrow a swing."--"I won't!" said the little bush. Then the
sparrow was angry, and went to the goat and said, "Goat, goat, nibble
bush, bush won't give good little sparrow a swing."--"I won't!" said
the goat.--Then the sparrow went to the wolf and said, "Wolf, wolf,
eat goat, goat won't nibble bush, bush won't give good little sparrow
a swing."--"I won't!" said the wolf.--Then the sparrow went to the
people and said, "Good people, kill wolf, wolf won't eat goat, goat
won't nibble bush, bush won't give good little sparrow a swing."--"We
won't!" said the people.--Then the sparrow went to the Tartars and
said, "Tartars, Tartars, slay people, people won't kill wolf, wolf
won't eat goat, goat won't nibble bush, bush won't give good little
sparrow a swing."--But the Tartars said, "We won't slay the people!"
and the people said, "We won't kill the wolf!" and the wolf said, "I
won't eat the goat!" and the goat said, "I won't nibble the bush!"