In the days of old there lived in a certain village two young
men. They were great friends, went to _besyedas_[403] together, in
fact, regarded each other as brothers. And they made this
mutual agreement. Whichever of the two should marry first
was to invite his comrade to his wedding. And it was not to
make any difference whether he was alive or dead.

About a year after this one of the young men fell ill and
died. A few months later his comrade took it into his head to
get married. So he collected all his kinsmen, and set off to
fetch his bride. Now it happened that they drove past the
graveyard, and the bridegroom recalled his friend to mind, and
remembered his old agreement. So he had the horses stopped,
saying:

"I'm going to my comrade's grave. I shall ask him to come
and enjoy himself at my wedding. A right trusty friend was
he to me."

So he went to the grave and began to call aloud:

"Comrade dear! I invite thee to my wedding."

Suddenly the grave yawned, the dead man arose, and said:

"Thanks be to thee, brother, that thou hast fulfilled thy
promise. And now, that we may profit by this happy chance,
enter my abode. Let us quaff a glass apiece of grateful drink."

"I'd have gone, only the marriage procession is stopping
outside; all the folks are waiting for me."

"Eh, brother!" replied the dead man, "surely it won't take
long to toss off a glass!"

The bridegroom jumped into the grave. The dead man
poured him out a cup of liquor. He drank it off--and a hundred
years passed away.

"Quaff another cup, dear friend!" said the dead man.

He drank a second cup--two hundred years passed away.

"Now, comrade dear, quaff a third cup!" said the dead
man, "and then go, in God's name, and celebrate thy marriage!"

He drank the third cup--three hundred years passed away.

The dead man took leave of his comrade. The coffin lid fell;
the grave closed.

The bridegroom looked around. Where the graveyard had
been, was now a piece of waste ground. No road was to be
seen, no kinsmen, no horses. All around grew nettles and tall
grass.

He ran to the village--but the village was not what it used
to be. The houses were different; the people were all strangers
to him. He went to the priest's--but the priest was not the one
who used to be there--and told him about everything that had
happened. The priest searched through the