The Russian Story Book 22

The Russian Story Book 22

Then two leaders came forth shoulder to shoulder and hand to hand from

that fair pavilion, and Ivan saw that they were his two elder brothers.

 

"Where are you going, Ivan, son of the Great White Tsar?" they asked,

and the young man answered, "I grew weary at home and thought of

going to seek my mother, Golden Tress. Send these men of yours to

their homes and let us go together."

 

The two brothers assented, and in a short space of time the great army

was disbanded, and the two brothers sat across their chargers ready to

go forward after the ball which was bouncing in great impatience. As

soon as the three put spurs to their horses it rolled on again and went

onward and ever onward until it came to a cave in a steep mountain. At

the opening of this cave Ivan slipped down from his horse and said

to his brothers, "Take care of my horse while I go on up the face of

this mountain, where perhaps I shall find my mother. Remain here and

wait for me for the space of just three months. If I do not come back

within that time then you may conclude that it is of no use waiting

for me any longer."

 

The brothers looked up the face of the steep mountain and thought

in their hearts, "How can a man climb that mountain-side? He will

merely fall and crack his skull." But they did not give utterance to

their thoughts. They merely said, "Well, brother, go, and God be with

you. We will wait for you here."

 

Ivan now stepped forward to the cave, after giving his charger an

affectionate pat upon its glossy neck, and saw that it was closed

with a door of iron. He raised his hand and struck a hearty blow upon

the door, which opened, and he went in. As he stood in the middle of

the dark earthen floor, iron claws came upon his hands and feet of

themselves, and, coming forth from the place into the light of day, he

began to climb up the steep face of the mountain--climb, climb, climb.

 

For a whole month he toiled upward, resting at night beneath some

friendly bush, and at the end of the month reached the summit with

a sigh of relief. "Well," he said, "well, well, glory be to God!"

 

For a little while he rested, and then walked onward on the summit of

the mountain--walked and walked, walked and walked, until he came to

a castle of copper. At the gateway sat terrible wriggling serpents

fastened with copper chains, crowds of them writhing in a mass upon

the earth; and not far away was a well, at the mouth of which was

a copper bucket fastened with a copper chain. Now Ivan watched the

writhing serpents for a moment, and then, obeying an impulse of

kindliness, he drew water in the copper bucket and gave to them to

drink. When they had quenched their thirst they lay down in quiet,

and Ivan was able to enter the castle unmolested.

 

At the doorway and just over the threshold the young man was met

by a Tsaritza who was clothed in a cloth of a coppery red, warm and

brilliant, and whose hair was of a deep auburn tinged with light and

shining with the early gloss of youthfulness. She looked coolly at

Ivan as if she thought little of him, but her greeting was courteous

enough. "Who are you, gallant youth?" she asked, and the young man

replied simply:

 

"I am Ivan, youngest son of the Great White Tsar."

 

"How did you come here?" asked the Copper Tsaritza, "with your own

will or against your will?"

 

"With my own will," said Ivan. "I am in search of my mother. For,

while she walked in the green palace garden, Whirlwind the Whistler

came with a shriek and bore her away to an unknown land. Can you tell

me where I may find her?"

 

"No, I cannot," was the reply, "but far away from here lives my

second sister the Silver Tsaritza--perhaps she will be able to tell

you where you may find Golden Tress. But I pray you, good youth,

when you have killed Whirlwind the Whistler, do not forget me, poor

unfortunate, but rescue me from this place and take me out into the

free white world. Whirlwind the Whistler holds me here as a captive and

comes to visit me once in three months to torment me with his doleful

whining." Then she gave the good youth a copper ball and a copper ring

as a token. "This ball," she said, "will lead you to my second sister,

and within this ring lies the whole of the Kingdom of Copper."

 

Then Ivan set the copper ball rolling and followed it until he came to

a castle all of silver and finer than the first. At the gateway were

terrible writhing serpents fastened with silver chains, and near them

was a well with a silver bucket. Remembering the previous reward for

his impulse of kindliness, Ivan drew water and gave it to the serpents

to drink. When they had quenched their thirst they lay down in quiet,

and Ivan was able to enter the castle unmolested.

 

At the doorway, and just over the threshold, he was met by a

Tsaritza, who was clothed in cloth of silver and whose hair was of

fine white silver, which yet did not take away from the beauty of

her youthfulness. At first she did not see Ivan, and she spoke to

herself. "It will soon be three years," she said, "since Whirlwind the

Whistler first imprisoned me in this silver castle, and during that

time I have not seen or spoken with a dweller in Holy Russia. But by

my lost Kingdom I see a Russian now and a goodly one." Then she bent

her beautiful eyes upon Ivan and said in a voice like a silver bell,

"Who are you, good youth?"

 

"I am Ivan, youngest son of the Great White Tsar," was the simple

answer.

 

"How did you come here?" asked the Silver Tsaritza, "with your own

will or against your will?"

 

"With my own will," said Ivan. "I am in search of my mother. For,

while she walked in the green palace garden, Whirlwind the Whistler

came with a shriek and bore her away to an unknown land. Can you tell

me where I may find her?"

 

"No, I cannot," was the reply, "but not far away from here lives my

eldest sister the Golden Tsaritza, Elena the Lovely--perhaps she will

be able to tell you where you may find Golden Tress. But I pray you,

good youth, when you have killed Whirlwind the Whistler, do not forget

me, poor unfortunate, but rescue me from this place and take me out

into the free white world. Whirlwind the Whistler holds me here as a

captive, and comes once in two months to torment me with his hideous

voice." Then she gave the good youth a silver ball and a silver ring

as a token and said to him, "Within this little circle lies the whole

of the Kingdom of Silver."

 

Once more Ivan set the ball rolling, and wherever it went, there he

followed it, and he came at last across many leagues of open country

to a castle of gold. At the gateway sat terrible wriggling serpents

fastened with golden chains, crowds of them writhing in a mass upon the

earth; and not far away was a well at the mouth of which was a golden

bucket fastened with a golden chain. Again Ivan watched the writhing

serpents for a moment and then drew water in the golden bucket and

gave to them to drink. When they had quenched their thirst they lay

down in quiet, and Ivan was able to enter the castle unmolested.

 

At the doorway, and just over the threshold, he was met by a Tsaritza,

who was clothed in cloth of gold and whose hair was of fine red gold

glowing with the fire of youthfulness. At once she saw Ivan and said

to him:

 

"Who are you, good youth?"

 

"I am Ivan, youngest son of the Great White Tsar," was the simple

answer.

 

"How did you come here?" asked the Golden Tsaritza, "with your own

will, or against your will?"

 

"With my own will," said Ivan. "I am in search of my mother. For,

while she walked in the green palace garden, Whirlwind the Whistler

came with a shriek and bore her away to an unknown land. Can you tell

me where I may find her?"

 

"I can indeed tell you," said the Golden Tsaritza. "She lives not

far from here. Whirlwind the Whistler flies to her once a week and

to me once a month, and he wearies both of us with his shrieks and

his moans. Here is a golden ball for you. Throw it before you and

follow it. It will lead you to your mother." Then she gave the good

youth a golden ring as a token and said to him: "Within this little

circle lies the whole of the Kingdom of Gold. I pray you, good youth,

when you have conquered Whirlwind the Whistler, do not forget me,

poor unfortunate, but rescue me from this place and take me out into

the free white world."

 

"I will take you," promised Ivan. Then he rolled the golden ball before

him and wherever it went, there he followed it, until he came at last

to such a palace as he could scarcely bear to look upon, it blazed so

brightly with diamonds and precious stones. At the gateway six-headed

serpents were hissing, but when Ivan had given them water from a well

with a diamond bucket, fastened with a chain of fine seed pearls,

they sank down in quiet and allowed him to pass into the castle. He

walked quickly through one lofty chamber after another and in the

last chamber he found his mother.

 

She was sitting on a great throne of a single emerald clad in the

festal robes of a Tsaritza, and crowned with a dazzling crown,

beneath which her golden tresses flowed downward over the emerald

steps. Raising her sad clear eyes, she looked at the stranger, and

as she looked the mist of memory cleared, a smile played about her

beautiful ruddy lips, and she said eagerly, holding her hands forward,

"Ah, is it you, my dear, dear son? How have you found out the place

of my concealment?"

 

"That is so and so and by the way and matterless," said Ivan. "Suffice

it to say that I have come to fetch you home."

 

"But, my dear, dear son," said Golden Tress, "that will be indeed

a hard matter for you. In these mountains the king of all is mighty

Whirlwind, whom all the spirits of the air obey. It was he who bore

me away, and it is against him that you must fight. Come quickly to

the cellar."

 

Golden Tress stepped with the step of youthfulness down from the

emerald throne, and taking her son by the hand led him down a dark

stairway into the cellar beneath the palace.

 

Now in the cellar there were two tubs of water, one on the right hand

and the other on the left. Golden Tress led Ivan forward and said to

him, "Drink from the tub on your right hand." Ivan drank and drank

deeply while his beautiful mother watched him closely, and when he

was finished she asked, "Well, what strength is in thee?" "I am so

strong," said the youth, "that I could turn over the whole castle

with one hand."

 

"Drink again," said Golden Tress, very quietly. Ivan drank again and

drank deeply.

 

"What strength is in thee now?" asked his mother.

 

"I am so strong," said he, "that, if I wished, I could turn the whole

world over."

 

"That is very great strength," said Golden Tress. "Now move these tubs

of water so as to make them change positions. Place the right-hand

tub on the left and the left-hand tub on the right." Ivan did so with

perfect ease.

 

"Now," said Golden Tress, "let me tell you why I asked you to do

this. In one of these tubs is water of strength, but in the other,

water of weakness. Whirlwind always drinks the water of strength,

and puts it on the right side, so we must mislead him or you will

never be able to overcome him." Thereupon they made their way up the

winding stairway to the apartment of Golden Tress, in which stood the shining throne made from a single emerald.