a great retinue followed after him. They went on and on
till they came to where a naked man was sitting. Then the prince said
to one of his servants, "Go and see what manner of man that is!"

So the servant went up to the man, and said, "Hail!"

"Hail to thee!"

"Who art thou, prythee?"

"I am Ivan Golik.[29] Who art thou?"

[29] Naked.

"We are from such and such a land, and we are going with our prince to
seek him a bride."

"Go, tell thy prince that he must take me with him, for he'll make no
good match without me."

So the messenger returned to the prince and told him. Then the prince
bade his servants open his trunk and take out a shirt and pantaloons
and all manner of raiment, whereupon the naked man went into the water
and washed, and after that he dressed himself. Then they brought him
to the prince, and he said to him, "If you take me with you, you must
all obey me. If you listen to me, you shall remain in the land of
Russia; but if not, you shall all perish."

"Be it so!" said the prince, and he bade all his suite obey him.

They went on and on till they overtook the hosts of the mice. The
prince wanted to go hunting after the mice, but Ivan Golik said, "Nay,
step aside and give place to the mice, so that not a single one of
them lose a single hair!"

So they turned aside, and the mice swept by in their hosts, but the
hindmost mouse turned round and said, "Thanks to thee, Ivan Golik,
thou hast saved my host from perishing; I will save thine also."

Then they went on farther, and lo! the gnat was marching with his
host, and so vast was it that no eye could take it all in. Then the
lieutenant-general of the gnats came flying up and said, "Oh, Ivan
Golik! let my host drink of thy blood. If thou dost consent, 'twill be
to thy profit; but if thou dost not consent, thou shalt not remain in
the land of Russia."

Then he stripped off his shirt and bade them tie him up so that he
could not beat off a single gnat, and the gnats drank their fill of
him and flew off again.

After that they went along by the seashore till they came to a man who
had caught two pike. Then Ivan Golik said to the prince, "Buy those
two pike of the man, and let them go into the sea again."

"But wherefore?"

"Ask not wherefore, but buy them!"

So they bought the pike, and let them go into the sea again. But as
they swam away, the pike turned round and said, "We thank thee, Ivan
Golik, that thou hast not let us perish, a