Fairy Tales From all Nations Part 9

THE DRAGON-GIANT AND HIS STONE-STEED.

[Russian.]

Not one amongst the numerous wives of Vladimir the Great was comparable in beauty to the Bulgarian Princess Milolika. Her eyes resembled those of the falcon; the fur of the sable was not more glossy than her eyebrows, and her breast was whiter than snow.

She had been carried off by robbers of the Volga, from the vicinity of Boogord, the capital of her native country, and on account of her rare beauty they deemed her worthy to be a wife of the great monarch. They therefore conducted her to Kiev, the residence of the mighty Vladimir, and presented her to him. Vladimir, a good judge of female charms, the moment he beheld her, was enchanted by the surpa.s.sing beauty of the Bulgarian princess, and in a short time his love for her became so great that he made her his consort, and dismissed all his other wives. The proud heart of the king's daughter was touched by this proof of his affection, and she rewarded his tenderness with reciprocal and true love.

The life of Vladimir was now one of great happiness. His conquests had procured him riches in superfluity; a long period of peace had augmented the prosperity of his country; his subjects loved him as their father; and the tenderness of Milolika made earth seem to him as heaven.

One day as in company with his consort and his Bojars, he sat in the golden chamber by his oaken table, holding a festival in memory of a victory over the Greeks, the sound of a warrior's horn was heard at a distance. The rejoicings in the lofty hall suddenly ceased. The monarch and the Bojars cast their eyes to the ground, full of thought and heaviness. Swatorad alone, the spirited Voivode of Kiev, started up from the table, and leaving his goblet undrained, approached the great monarch. "Thou art," spake he, as he bent low before him, "thou art our father and our lord, thou art the child of renown: wherefore sinks thy head? Why does the sound of the warrior's horn make thy heart heavy? Even if it be a hostile knight who now appears before the capital, hast thou not enough brave heroes to confront any foe?

Away then! Send forth thy heralds to demand who dares to defy the country of the Russians?"

Vladimir looked friendly upon the gallant Swatorad, and thus replied to his address: "I thank thee for thy zeal, good Swatorad; but my anxiety does not arise from fear. I have defeated hosts, made myself master of fortified cities, and overthrown kings: how should I know fear? But it was my desire henceforth to preserve to my subjects the blessing of peace, and that alone is the cause that this challenge to combat makes me sorrowful. If however it must be so, I will defend my country and myself. Go and send heralds to demand who dares to come forth against Kiev, to challenge Vladimir to battle?"

The brave Swatorad immediately sent forth two heralds, who sprang upon their horses and rushed to the open plain, where they at once beheld a monstrous tent, before which a horse of unusual size was grazing. As soon as the horse perceived them, he stamped upon the ground, and cried aloud in a human voice: "Awake powerful son of the dragon, Tugarin awake! Kiev sends heralds to thee."

This marvel considerably astounded the heralds, and their amazement was increased when they beheld issuing from the tent a giant of the most monstrous kind, beneath whose footsteps the earth resounded. Yet they did not lose their composure, but discharged their commission as beseemed them well. "Who art thou?" cried they, after they had courteously bent before him. "Who art thou, bold youth from a foreign land? What is thy name, and how stands thy report in thy father-land?

Art thou a Czar, or a Czarewitsch? A king or a king's son? We are sent by the invincible prince of Kiev, the son of renown, by Vladimir, to ask thee why thou darest to advance against Kiev?--how thou darest to challenge him to combat?"

The questions displeased the giant, and he fell into fierce wrath.

Lightning flashed from his eyes, his nose sent forth sparks, and he addressed the heralds in a voice of thunder: "Contemptible wights, how dare ye to put such questions to me? The herald's staff alone protects you from my fury. Return, and tell your prince that I am come to fetch his head, in order to carry it to the great king, Trewul, of Bulgaria, who is wrath with him, for the abduction of his sister Milolika. Tell him, that nought can save him; neither the summit of the mountain, nor the darkness of the forest, and that he cannot redeem his head by gold, nor by silver, by jewels, nor by pearls. What I am called, and what my report is in my country, it needs not that you should know; sufficient, that I show you what I can perform." At these words, he grasped an enormous stone, which lay near the tent, and flung it with such force into the air, that it resembled a little speck.

Full of terror, the heralds returned to Kiev, and presenting themselves before the monarch, related what they had seen and heard.

When Milolika heard that the horse had called the stranger knight Tugarin, Son of the Dragon, she grew pale, and a stream of tears bedewed her cheeks. "Ah," cried she, "beloved husband, we are lost!

Nought can save us, but our flight to the sacred Bug. Tugarin is an invincible enchanter. His magic power ceases only on the sh.o.r.es of the Bug. Thither let us fly."[1]

[Footnote 1: The river Bug was especially held sacred by the Slavonians, and its waters possessed the power to destroy all kinds of magic.]

Vladimir endeavoured to re-a.s.sure his consort. He represented to her that the brave warriors, and the walls of the impregnable Kiev, would afford them sufficient protection; but Milolika was not to be comforted. "Thou knowest not, beloved husband," said she, sobbing and crying, "how dangerous is this giant, Tugarin, to me and my family, and how bitterly he must hate thee, since he was my betrothed, and awaited my hand." Vladimir besought Milolika to explain to him this enigma, and she related the following:--

"I am the daughter of the Bulgarian king, Bogoris, and of the princess Kuridana. My birth-place is the city s.h.i.+kotin, where my parents were wont to pa.s.s the summer months. As this city lies on the banks of the Volga, it offers great facilities for fis.h.i.+ng, a diversion to which my mother was extremely partial.

"Once, when my father was fighting against a neighbouring nation, my mother endeavoured to while away her grief at his absence by her accustomed diversion, and caused the nets to be spread in the Volga.

The fish were very plentiful, and a great number of barks and boats covered the river, amongst which, the vessel in which my mother was embarked, was distinguishable by its magnificence and elegance.

Surrounded by her ladies, and her body-guard, Kuridana stood in the centre of the vessel, and beheld with pleasure the spectacle of the fishery, when suddenly a mountain, that was situated on the other side of the river, burst with a tremendous crash. Every eye was directed to the spot, and they saw issue from the aperture, a man of rude, and terrific aspect, seated on a car of s.h.i.+ning steel drawn by two winged horses. He directed his course towards the river, and when he reached the water, the steel car rolled over the waves, as if they had been firm land. When it was perceived that he was bending his way to my mother's bark, heralds were dispatched in a boat, to inquire why he presumed to approach the princess without permission. But the fierce being, who was a powerful and malignant enchanter, did not permit the unfortunate heralds to discharge their commission. As they began to speak, he blew upon their boat, overset it, and all who were in it were buried beneath the waves. At this melancholy sight, my mother's attendants seized their bows, and discharged a shower of arrows against the intruder; but in vain, for the arrows rebounded from him, and fell s.h.i.+vered into the water.

"The greatest amazement now seized all present, for they became petrified when the magician with a single word, bound every boat, with its crew, so that they stood motionless, whilst he, with outstretched arms, hastened towards my mother, and endeavoured to remove her into his car. But some unseen power crippled all his efforts. Each time he endeavoured to seize Kuridana, his arms sank powerless, and he was, at length, obliged to desist from the vain enterprise. He then sprang into the bark, cast himself on his knees before her, and in the most moving, and earnest expressions, besought her love. He promised her all the treasures of the world, and the highest earthly happiness, if she would reward his vehement love with reciprocal affection, or only lay aside the talisman which she wore upon her breast. This talisman, which now preserved her, she had received at her birth from a beneficent enchantress, and as she well knew its force, she had drawn it out of the case where she usually concealed it, and held it before his eyes.

"Then the evil one trembled so violently, that at last, as if stricken by lightning, he fell to the ground, and not until Kuridana had again enclosed the talisman, did he recover from his insensibility. He then sprang up, and mounted his steel car, uttering the most fearful threats, 'Think not,' cried he, foaming with shame and rage, 'think not to escape my hands; I will possess thee, and will force Bogoris himself, by the most dreadful devastation of his country, to yield thee to me. Behold, I swear by Tschern.o.bog,[2] that I will either, slay, or gain possession of thee. Thou shalt see me soon again,' With these words he disappeared.

[Footnote 2: Tschern.o.bog was the evil spirit of the Slavonians, and no one could swear more solemnly, than by Tschern.o.bog.]

"Kuridana then left the spot, and not believing herself secure in s.h.i.+kotin, retired to the strong city of Boogord, where she awaited, in great anxiety, the result of this alarming adventure.

"The very next morning, appeared on the plain before the capital city, a dreadful two-headed monster, of that dragon species which, in the language of my country, is called Sylant. It devoured herbs, and flocks, and men, and devastated the surrounding country with its poisonous breath. In a short time, the region round Boogord became a desert, and many brave warriors, who sought to free their country of this demon, fell victims to their patriotism and valour. The Sylant appeared each morning before the walls, and bellowed out with a fearful voice,: 'Bogoris, give me Kuridana, or I will make thy country a desert!'

"No sooner did my father hear of the misfortune which menaced his people, and his beloved Kuridana, than he left his career of victory, and hastened to the capital. What were his feelings when he beheld the misery which the monster had spread over his land! But greater bitterness still awaited him, for when the first tempest of joy and grief, which his return had excited in the hearts of all, and especially in that of Kuridana, had subsided, this n.o.ble-minded princess proposed herself as a willing sacrifice for the king, and the good Bulgarians. 'No!' cried Bogoris, 'sooner will I perish, than lose thee. I will combat the Dragon. Perhaps the G.o.ds will grant me victory, and if I am vanquished in the fight, at least I shall die for thee, and for my country,' The most generous dispute now arose between the magnanimous pair, and finally they agreed to appeal to the decision of the magnates of the empire, who should decide the dispute.

"The king a.s.sembled them, and when they had heard Kuridana's resolution, they loaded her with panegyrics, and expressions of grat.i.tude. 'Thy magnanimous sacrifice alone, Kuridana,' said the eldest of the a.s.sembly, an aged man, of a hundred years, 'can rescue us and Bulgaria. For, supposing that Bogoris were to fight with the Sylant, and fall, would not our misfortune be greater still? No, Prince! thou must preserve thyself for thy people, in order to heal the wounds which the Dragon has inflicted. Kuridana alone can save us.' All the magnates coincided with the old man, and Bogoris was in despair.

"It was morning, and the dreadful words: 'Bogoris, give me thy wife!'

at that moment resounded round the palace. Kuridana courageously arose, embraced her speechless husband, and bade him an eternal farewell.

"At the words '_for ever_,' Bogoris sank senseless on the ground.

Manly as his heart had been up to that hour, it could not endure separation from the beloved Kuridana. The high-minded wife bedewed him with her tears, but at length, turning to the n.o.bles, who stood round her weeping, she said: 'Lead me where you will. I am prepared to endure everything for my husband and my country,' They now reverentially supported her trembling steps, and conducted her as rapidly as her weak state permitted, to the front of the city.

"Meanwhile the altars smoked with incense, and both priests and people supplicated for the deliverance of their n.o.ble princess.

"Shortly after the magnates had left the palace with Kuridana, Bogoris came to himself, and when he perceived that he was alone, he guessed his misfortune, and his despair knew no bounds. He drew his sword, and was in the act of piercing his breast with it, in order not to survive Kuridana, when a matron of beautiful and majestic aspect stood before him, staid his hand, and thus addressed him:

"'What, Bogoris! Dost thou despair?--Be tranquil; the Sylant has no power to harm Kuridana. The talisman which she wears on her breast, will, at all times, and under all circ.u.mstances, mock his power. I am the enchantress Dobrada, the protectress of thy wife, she who, as thou knewest, hung the talisman around her immediately on her birth. But it is not now requisite that I should reveal to thee the causes which induced me to provide her with that s.h.i.+eld against danger. Enough, that I foresaw at her birth that she would have much to fear from the love of a powerful sorcerer, called Sarragur. And because I am ever willing to do all the good I can, I hung around her this talisman, which protects her from his utmost power, and will now defend her from the Sylant, who is no other than Sarragur himself. For, when he perceived that I was opposed to his pa.s.sion, and had taken Kuridana under my protection, he sought to avenge himself on me, by every kind of secret mischief, so that I was at length obliged to chastise him.

By my superior power, I enclosed him within a mountain by the Volga, and bound his fate by the most awful spell, which even Tschern.o.bog respects, to a golden fish, which I sank in the depths of the Volga.

By this spell, Sarragur was to remain in his subterranean prison until some mortal should draw up the golden fish; and should he ever thus obtain his freedom, he could then never transform himself into an evil and noxious animal, except on the condition that he should never again resume his own form, and should perish shortly after the transformation. It chanced that a sturgeon swallowed the golden fish, and this sturgeon was caught on the very day when Kuridana was diverting herself with the fishery. Sarragur thus became free, and the first use he made of his freedom was to endeavour to carry off Kuridana, whom he still loved with unabated pa.s.sion.

"'When this attempt was baffled by the power of the talisman, and still more, when he perceived Kuridana's aversion for him, he became furious, and transformed himself into the Sylant, although he knew what must be the consequences. Madman, his hour is come, and thou, Bogoris, art destined to destroy him. Receive from my hands the sword of the renowned Egyptian king, Sesostris. It possesses the wonderful power of destroying every spell, and with it thou wilt overpower the sorcerer, though he should summon all the powers of h.e.l.l to succour him. Only, mark what I am now about to say. In order to extirpate Sarragur, and every remembrance of him from the earth, thou must cut off both the heads of the Sylant by one stroke. If thou succeed not in doing this, and hewest off but one head, the sorcerer, it is true, will lose his life, but he will escape to his cavern, where, before he expires, he will lay an egg, in which will be enclosed all his magic power, and from the head hewn off, will arise a horse of stone, which shall receive life at the moment the bad spirits shall have hatched the egg, and from this egg will issue the giant Tugarin, who, one day, will be formidable to thy children. For, not only will he inherit from his father the entire power to work evil, whereby so much misery has befallen thee and thy land, but he will also love thy daughter as fiercely as Sarragur loves thy wife. Thy son Trewul will refuse him his sister's hand, and then he will desolate the country, until Milolika's hand is promised to him. He also is to be conquered by no other weapon than the sword of the wise Sesostris, and a knight who shall live without having been born, is destined to slay him. After thy victory over the Sylant, hang up the sword in thy armoury amongst the other swords there, and at the appointed time fate will give it into the hands destined wield it. Of that which I have now told thee, reveal not a word, except to thy wife, and she may hereafter repeat it to her daughter.'

"Having uttered these words, Dobrada shrouded herself in a rose-coloured cloud, and disappeared. Heavenly perfumes filled the chamber, and Bogoris felt that all sorrow had vanished from his soul.

Hastily he vaulted on his horse, and rushed to deliver his wife and his country from the fell sorcerer.

"When he reached the plain, he beheld the efforts of the Sylant to grasp Kuridana, and how he was impeded by the talisman, from coming close to her. Bogoris immediately unsheathed his sword, and flew upon the monster. When the Sylant perceived his antagonist, he sent forth fire streams from both his jaws, which, however, were rendered innocuous by the sword of Sesostris. In order to bring the combat to a speedy conclusion, Bogoris aimed a powerful stroke at the heads of the monster, which would a.s.suredly have separated both from the trunk, and so have extirpated the sorcerer and all remembrance of him from the earth, if the Sylant, at the very moment the stroke fell, had not soared into the air. By this movement, he saved one head. The other rolled on the ground, and immediately became stone. Awfully bellowing, the impure being flew to his cavern. Bogoris pursued, but in vain; the Sylant disappeared in the mountain by the Volga, which immediately closed on him.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

"My father regretted that he had not succeeded in entirely annihilating the sorcerer and all his brood; but joy at having delivered his beloved wife and his country, soon prevailed over sorrow. He committed the future to the G.o.ds, and after he had revealed to my mother the predictions of the good enchantress, he hung up the sword of Sesostris in his armoury.

"My parents pa.s.sed the remainder of their lives in uninterrupted peace and content. When I was grown up, my mother related to me her history, and at the same time revealed to me what awaited me through the giant Tugarin. She then hung round me the talisman which she had received from Dobrada. Shortly after this both my parents died. After their death I lived several years with my brother in undisturbed tranquillity, till one day the report arose of a wonderful phenomenon of nature, which was to be seen in the vicinity of the capital. The king, my brother, went thither, and I accompanied him. They showed us a stone which daily increased in size, and was a.s.suming the form of an enormous horse. Everybody marvelled at this sport of Nature, as they called it; but I remembered Dobrada's predictions, and doubted not that the hour of Tugarin's birth, and of my misfortunes, was arrived.

Whilst I was still thinking on it, we were alarmed by an earthquake.

The neighbouring Sylant Mount,--for from the time the Sylant had escaped thither, it had borne that name,--opened, and a giant of monstrous size stepped forth. He strode across the Volga, and went straight to the stone horse. The moment he laid his hand on it, it became animated. The giant sprang upon it, and dashed towards me. He tried to seize me, but quickly drew back his robber hands, as if they had been burnt. The power of the talisman withstood him. He then turned towards my brother, and cried out in dreadful tones:--'Hear, Trewul! I see that thy sister cannot be carried off by force, and therefore I require of thee to persuade her to give me her hand voluntarily. I give thee three days for consideration, and when they are expired, I either receive Milolika from thy hands, or I make thy country desolate.' After these terrible words he departed on his colossal steed, with the rapidity of lightning.

"We returned heavy-hearted to the city, where my brother immediately a.s.sembled the council, and laid before it the giant's demand, and his threats. The counsellors were unanimously of opinion, that, as the princess was averse to giving her hand to the giant, an army must be sent against him, of sufficient force to set his menaces at nought.

Ten thousand archers, and two thousand hors.e.m.e.n, in armour, were hastily collected, and on the dawn of the third day, were drawn out on the plain before the city, to await the giant. Tugarin soon appeared, and the Bulgarians at once discharged their arrows and darts at him, but they proved as powerless against him as formerly against his father. They rebounded from him as from a rock. At this attack, the giant broke forth with mingled rage and scorn:--'What,' bellowed he, 'does Trewul send troops against me? Must I then become his enemy?

Woe to the helpless being!' And without further delay, he seized the hors.e.m.e.n and archers by the dozen, and swallowed them a dozen at a time, till not a man was left.

"He then began to lay waste and destroy everything round the city. Men and cattle were all engulfed in the monster's insatiable maw. He shattered the dwellings of the inhabitants with his gigantic fists.

Whole forests were uprooted by him, and the hoofs of his enormous horse trod down fields and meadows. At length my brother, in order to put a stop to the universal misery, resolved to sacrifice me. With bitter tears he announced to me that he knew no other means of saving himself and his country from destruction, than to promise my hand to the giant. I replied to him only by my tears, and he reluctantly sent an emba.s.sy to invite Tugarin to Boogord. He came. Proudly he advanced to the gate where Trewul and the n.o.bles of the land awaited him. I was in despair. At length I bethought me of a means of escape. I agreed to bestow my hand on the giant, on condition that, through some beneficent power, he should first obtain the form and stature of an ordinary man. I trusted that this would not easily be done, and in the mean time I might be able to effect my escape. Tugarin, blinded by his love for me, did not hesitate to accept the condition, and swore by Tschern.o.bog, that he would not require me to be delivered to him until my requisition was satisfied. He established himself in Boogord, and served my brother with great zeal. I soon found an opportunity of making my escape, and wandering a whole day without food, was at last taken by the robbers of the Volga, and brought to thy court.

"You will now, my beloved husband," said Milolika, as she concluded her narration, "easily comprehend the danger which threatens you.

Tugarin must hate thee, since thou art my husband. His power is great, and no one can vanquish him, except the knight who came unborn into the world, and no weapon can slay him, but the sword of the wise Sesostris. Thou and all thy brave heroes are powerless against him.

Therefore, dear husband, let us flee. On the banks of the sacred Bug we shall be safe; no magic can operate there."

This narration made the deepest impression on the heart of the prince; he could not, however, resolve to abandon his country in the hour of need, and besides, to fly before a single warrior, great as he might be, seemed still not a very honourable proceeding. "What!" exclaimed he, "shall the monarch before whom the East trembles, whose courage the whole world admires, shall he shrink in the moment of danger,--shall he, with all his might, flee before a single foe? No: sooner a hundred times will I die the most cruel death!" But with all this how was he to comfort Milolika? How was he to withstand the dreadful giant, seeing that he had not, unborn, beheld the light, neither did he possess the sword of the Egyptian king Sesostris? These difficulties weighed upon his soul. The first, however, he soon disposed of. He bethought himself that the lime with which the walls of Kiev were constructed, had been tempered with water from the sacred Bug, and consequently would prevent the giant from entering the city.

This sufficed to tranquillise Milolika, who no longer insisted on flight, as she perceived that her beloved Vladimir was just as secure in Kiev, as he would be on the sh.o.r.es of the Bug. As far as she herself was concerned, the giant could avail nothing, since the power of the talisman would s.h.i.+eld her from every danger. But still the thought of the combat with this giant, greatly disturbed the prince.

"Where," said he, "is the unborn mortal who is destined, with the sword of Sesostris, to destroy the fell Tugarin?"