stand the old way as thy mother placed thee, with thy front to me, and
thy back to the sea!" And the little hut turned round with its front
to him, and its back to the sea. The Tsarevich entered in, and saw the
bony-legged Baba-Yaga lying on the stove, on nine bricks and grinding
her teeth.

"Hillo! good youth, why dost thou visit me?" asked the Baba-Yaga.

"Fie, thou old hag! thou call'st me a good youth, but thou shouldst
first feed and give me drink, and prepare me a bath, then only
shouldst thou ask me questions."

The Baba-Yaga fed him and gave him to drink, and made ready a bath for
him, and the Tsarevich told her he was seeking his wife, Vasilisa.

"I know," said the Baba-Yaga; "she is now with Koshchei. 'Tis hard to
get thither, and it is not easy to settle accounts with Koshchei. His
death depends upon the point of a needle. That needle is in a hare,
that hare is in a coffer, that coffer is on the top of a high oak,
and Koshchei guards that tree as the apple of his eye."

The Baba-Yaga then showed him in what place that oak grew: Ivan went
thither, but did not know what to do to get at the coffer. Suddenly,
how who can tell, the bear rushed at the tree and tore it up by the
roots, the coffer fell and was smashed to pieces, the hare leaped out,
and with one bound had taken cover.

But look! the other hare bounded off in pursuit, hunted him down and
tore him to bits; out of the hare flew a duck and rose high, high in
the air, but the other duck dashed after her, and struck her down,
whereupon the duck laid an egg, and the egg fell into the sea.

Ivan, seeing the irreparable loss of the egg, burst into tears, when
suddenly the pike came swimming ashore, holding the egg between its
teeth. He took the egg, broke it, drew out the needle and broke off
its little point. Then he attacked Koshchei, who struggled hard, but
wriggle about as he might he had to die at last.

Then Ivan went into the house of Koshchei, took Vasilisa, and returned
home. After that they lived together for a long, long time, and were
very, very happy.

_Oeyvind and Marit_[20]

BJOeRNE BJOeRNESON

Oeyvind was his name. A low, barren cliff overhung the house in which
he was born; fir and birch looked down on the roof, and wild cherry
strewed flowers over it. Upon this roof there walked about a little
goat, which belonged to Oeyvind. He was kept there that he might not
go astray; and Oeyvind carried leaves and grass up to him.