The two orphans looked inside the hut and saw the witch resting there, her head near the threshold, one foot in one corner, the other foot in another corner, and her knees quite close to the ridge pole.
He was harsh by nature, this Dimian, and wanted everything to go his own way. If any one talked or acted against him, Dimian's fists were soon prepared for answer.
The Frost knew all about the weakness of human beings; he knew very well that few of them are really good and kind.
Our old man lived on with his sons until finally his hour came to die. He called his three sons and said to them: ‘Dear children of mine, my dying hour is at hand and ye must fulfill my will.’
So it was with the Tsar Archidei; he was rich and clever, besides being a handsome fellow; but he could not find a bride to his taste, a bride with wit and beauty equal to his own. And this was the cause of the Tsar Archidei's sorrow and distress.
A rich, proud merchant, worth many, many thousands, came along in a gilded carriage. All the fellows at the market place, as soon as they perceived him, rushed away and hid themselves in the corners. Only one remained.
‘How I wish I could understand the meaning of the different songs of all the birds! I would give half my wealth to the man who could make plain to me all the different songs of the different birds.’
One day the sovereign prince said to his sons: ‘My dear boys, take each of you an arrow, draw your strong bow and let your arrow fly; in whatever court it falls, in that court there will be a wife for you.’
‘I once heard the old people say that behind the village, near the dark forest, there is buried a treasure, yes, a great treasure, but it is buried under a large, heavy stone, too heavy a stone for one man to move.’