ut salt," said old Peter.

"Tell it us," said Maroosia; and presently, when his pipe had been lit
twice and gone out, old Peter began.

* * * * *

Once upon a time there were three brothers, and their father was a
great merchant who sent his ships far over the sea, and traded here
and there in countries the names of which I, being an old man, can
never rightly call to mind. Well, the names of the two elder brothers
do not matter, but the youngest was called Ivan the Ninny, because he
was always playing and never working; and if there was a silly thing
to do, why, off he went and did it. And so, when the brothers grew up,
the father sent the two elder ones off, each in a fine ship laden with
gold and jewels, and rings and bracelets, and laces and silks, and
sticks with little bits of silver hammered into their handles, and
spoons with patterns of blue and red, and everything else you can
think of that costs too much to buy. But he made Ivan the Ninny stay
at home, and did not give him a ship at all. Ivan saw his brothers go
sailing off over the sea on a summer morning, to make their fortunes
and come back rich men; and then, for the first time in his life, he
wanted to work and do something useful. He went to his father and
kissed his hand, and he kissed the hand of his little old mother, and
he begged his father to give him a ship so that he could try his
fortune like his brothers.

"But you have never done a wise thing in your life, and no one could
count all the silly things you've done if he spent a hundred days in
counting," said his father.

"True," said Ivan; "but now I am going to be wise, and sail the sea
and come back with something in my pockets to show that I am not a
ninny any longer. Give me just a little ship, father mine--just a
little ship for myself."

"Give him a little ship," said the mother. "He may not be a ninny
after all."

"Very well," said his father. "I will give him a little ship; but I am
not going to waste good roubles by giving him a rich cargo."

"Give me any cargo you like," said Ivan.

So his father gave him a little ship, a little old ship, and a cargo
of rags and scraps and things that were not fit for anything but to be
thrown away. And he gave him a crew of ancient old sailormen who were
past work; and Ivan went on board and sailed away at sunset, like the
ninny he was. And the feeble, ancient, old sailormen pulled up the
ragged, dirty sails