gift, but he seized her
by the hand, pulled her into the cart, and called to the blind
man, who ran off with it at such a pace that no one could catch
him, even on horseback. The merchant sent people in pursuit--but
no, they could not come up with him.

The heroes brought the merchant's daughter into their forest
hut, and said to her:

"Be in the place of a sister to us, live here and keep house
for us; otherwise we poor sufferers will have no one to cook
our meals or wash our shirts. God won't desert you if you do
that!"

The merchant's daughter remained with them. The heroes
respected her, loved her, acknowledged her as a sister. They
used to be out hunting all day, but their adopted sister was
always at home. She looked after all the housekeeping, prepared
the meals, washed the linen.

But after a time a Baba Yaga took to haunting their hut and
sucking the breasts of the merchant's daughter. No sooner
have the heroes gone off to the chase, than the Baba Yaga is there
in a moment. Before long the fair maiden's face began to fall
away, and she grew weak and thin. The blind man could see
nothing, but Katoma remarked that things weren't going well.
He spoke about it to the blind man, and they went together to
their adopted sister, and began questioning her. But the Baba
Yaga had strictly forbidden her to tell the truth. For a long
time she was afraid to acquaint them with her trouble, for a
long time she held out, but at last her brothers talked her over
and she told them everything without reserve.

"Every time you go away to the chase," says she, "there
immediately appears in the cottage a very old woman with a
most evil face, and long grey hair. And she sets me to dress
her head, and meanwhile she sucks my breasts."

"Ah!" says the blind man, "that's a Baba Yaga. Wait a
bit; we must treat her after her own fashion. To-morrow we
won't go to the chase, but we'll try to entice her and lay hands
upon her!"

So next morning the heroes didn't go out hunting.

"Now then, Uncle Footless!" says the blind man, "you
get under the bench, and lie there ever so still, and I'll go into
the yard and stand under the window. And as for you, sister,
when the Baba Yaga comes, sit down just here, close by the
window; and as you dress her hair, quietly separate the locks
and throw them outside through the window. Just let me lay
hold of her