Enchanted Forest

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The existence of the Russian Skazki or Marchen was first made generally known to the British Public some twenty years ago by Mr. W. R. S. Ralston in his Russian Folk Tales. That excellent and most engrossing volume was, primarily, a treatise on Slavonic Folk- Lore, illustrated with admirable skill and judgment, by stories, mainly selected from the vast collection of Afanasiev, who did for the Russian what Asbjornsen has done for the Norwegian FolkTale. A year after the appearance of Mr. Ralston s book, the eminent Russian historian and archaeologist, Peter Nikolaevich Polevoi (well known, too, as an able and ardent Shaksperian scholar), selected from the inexhaustible stores of Afanasiev some three dozen of the Skazki most suitable for children, and worked them up into a fairy tale book which was published at St. Petersburg in 1874, under the title of Narodnuiya Russkiya Skazki (Popular Russian Marchen).

To manipulate these quaintly vigorous old-world stories for nursery purposes was, as may, well be imagined, no easy task, but, on the whole, M. Polevoi did his work excellently well, and while softening the crudities and smoothing out the occa-sional roughness of these charming stories, neither injured their simple texture nor overlaid the original pattern. It is from the first Russian edition of M. Polevoi s book that the following selection has been made. With the single exception of " Morozko" a variant of which will be familiar to those who know Mr. Ralston s volume, none of these tales has seen the light in an English dress before; for though both Ralston arid Polevoi drew, for the most part, from the same copious stock, their purposes were so different that their selections naturally proved to be different also. As to the merits of these Skazki, they must be left to speak for themselves. It is a significant fact, however, that all those scholars who are equally familiar with the Russian Skazki and the German Marchen, unhesitatingly give the palm, both for fun and fancy, to the former.

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Series of stories THE STORY OF JOHN 0’ GROATS/ EVA‘S LUCK/ THE FISHERMEN OF SHETLAND/ THE PASTOR‘S NURSE (End)

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Series of stories THE FAIRIES’ MINT/ THE PELLINGS/ THE LONG‐LIVED ANCESTORS/ THE GIANTESS‘S APRON‐FULL/ GWRGAN FARFDRWCH‘S FABLE/ THE STORY OF THE PIG‐TROUGH/ BILLY DUFFY AND THE DEVIL

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Series of stories CROWS/ ROBERT ROBERTS AND THE FAIRIES/ THE FAIRY OF THE DELL/ ELLEN‘S LUCK

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Series of stories TOMMY PRITCHARD/ KADDY‘S LUCK/ THE STORY OF GELERT/ ORIGIN OF THE WELSH

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Series of stories THE CRAIG‐Y‐DON BLACKSMITH/ OLD GWILYM/ THE BABY‐FARMER/ THE OLD MAN AND THE FAIRIES

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AUTHOR‘S NOTE.

These tales were collected by me whilst living in Anglesea during the winter 1891‐2.

With the exception of the French story, they were told me and I took them down at the time.

Particulars respecting the narratives will be found in the Notes.

In most cases I have done but little “editing”, preferring to give the stories as told.

The old book referred to in the Notes I bought from a country bookseller, who knew neither its author, title, or date, but I have since been informed the book is Williams’ Observations on the Snowdon Mountains, published in 1802, a book well known to students of Celtic literature.

P. H. E.

CLARINGBOLD, BROADSTAIRS. April 1894.

Story 1: THE FAIRIES OF CARAGONAN

Once upon a time a lot of fairies lived in Mona.

One day the queen fairy‘s daughter, who was now fifteen years of age, told her mother she wished to go out and see the world.

The queen consented, allowing her to go for a day, and to change from a fairy to a bird, or from a bird to a fairy, as she wished...

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Near a town in India called Ikshumati, on a beautiful wide river, with trees belonging to a great forest near its banks, there dwelt a holy man named Mana Kanaka, who spent a great part of his life praying to God. He had lost his wife when his only child, a lovely girl called Kadali-Garbha, was only a few months old...

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A certain man, named Hari-Sarman, who lived in a little village in India, where there were no rich people and everyone had to work hard to get his daily bread, got very weary of the life he had to lead. He had a wife whose name was Vidya, and a large family; and even if he had been very industrious it would have been difficult for him to get enough food for them all...

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In the branches of a great tree, in a forest in India, lived a wise old crow in a very comfortable, well-built nest. His wife was dead, and all his children were getting their own living; so he had nothing to do but to look after himself. He led a very easy existence, but took a great interest in the affairs of his neighbours. One day, popping his head over the edge of his home, he saw a fierce-looking man stalking along, carrying a stick in one hand and a net in the other...