Where to Lay the Blame.
_Many and many a man has come to trouble--so he will say--byfollowing his wife’s advice. This is how it was with a man of whomI shall tell you._
There was once upon a time a fisherman who had fished all day longand had caught not so much as a sprat. So at night there he sat bythe fire, rubbing his knees and warming his shins, and waiting forsupper that his wife was cooking for him, and his hunger was assharp as vinegar, and his temper hot enough to fry fat.
While he sat there grumbling and growling and trying to makehimself comfortable and warm, there suddenly came a knock at thedoor. The good woman opened it, and there stood an old man, cladall in red from head to foot, and with a snowy beard at his chin aswhite as winter snow.
The fisherman’s wife stood gaping and staring at the strangefigure, but the old man in red walked straight into the hut.“Bring your nets, fisherman,” said he, “and come with me. There issomething that I want you to catch for me, and if I have luck Iwill pay you for your fishing as never fisherman was paid before.”
“Not I,” said the fisherman; “I go out no more this night. I havebeen fishing all day long until my back is nearly broken, and havecaught nothing, and now I am not such a fool as to go out and leavea warm fire and a good supper at your bidding.”
But the fisherman’s wife had listened to what the old man had saidabout paying for the job, and she was of a different mind from herhusband. “Come,” said she, “the old man promises to pay you well.This is not a chance to be lost, I can tell you, and my advice toyou is that you go.”
The fisherman shook his head. No, he would not go; he had saidhe would not, and he would not. But the wife only smiled and saidagain, “My advice to you is that you go.”
The fisherman grumbled and grumbled, and swore that he would notgo. The wife said nothing but one thing. She did not argue; she didnot lose her temper; she only said to everything that he said, “Myadvice to you is that you go.”
At last the fisherman’s anger boiled over. “Very well,” said he,spitting his words at her; “if you will drive me out into thenight, I suppose I will have to go.” And then he spoke the wordsthat so many men say: “Many a man has come to trouble by followinghis wife’s advice.”
Then down he took his fur cap and up he took his nets, and offhe and the old man marched through the moonlight, their shadowsbobbing along like black spiders behind them.
* * * * *
Well, on they went, out from the town and across the fields andthrough the woods, until at last they came to a dreary, lonesomedesert, where nothing was to be seen but gray rocks and weeds andthistles.
“Well,” said the fisherman, “I have fished, man and boy, forforty-seven years, but never did I see as unlikely a place to catchanything as this.”
But the old man said never a word. First of all he drew a greatcircle with strange figures, marking it with his finger upon theground. Then out from under his red gown he brought a tinder-boxand steel, and a little silver casket covered all over with strangefigures of serpents and dragons and what not. He brought somesticks of spice-wood from his pouch, and then he struck a light andmade a fire. Out of the box he took a gray powder, which he flungupon the little blaze.
Puff! flash! A vivid flame went up into the moonlight, and thena dense smoke as black as ink, which spread out wider and wider,far and near, till all below was darker than the darkest midnight.Then the old man began to utter strange spells and words. Presentlythere began a rumbling that sounded louder and louder and nearerand nearer, until it roared and bellowed like thunder. The earthrocked and swayed, and the poor fisherman shook and trembled withfear till his teeth clattered in his head.
Then suddenly the roaring and bellowing ceased, and all was asstill as death, though the darkness was as thick and black as ever.
“Now,” said the old magician--for such he was--“now we are aboutto take a journey such as no one ever travelled before. Heed wellwhat I tell you. Speak not a single word, for if you do, misfortunewill be sure to happen.”
“Ain’t I to say anything?” said the fisherman.
“No.”
“Not even ‘boo’ to a goose?”
“No.”
“Well, that is pretty hard upon a man who likes to say his say,”said the fisherman.
“And moreover,” said the old man, “I must blindfold you as well.”
Thereupon he took from his pocket a handkerchief, and made ready totie it about the fisherman’s eyes.
“And ain’t I to see anything at all?” said the fisherman.
“No.”
“Not even so much as a single feather?”
“No.”
“Well, then,” said the fisherman, “I wish I’d not come.”
But the old man tied the handkerchief tightly around his eyes, andthen he was as blind as a bat.
“Now,” said the old man, “throw your leg over what you feel andhold fast.”
The fisherman reached down his hand, and there felt the back ofsomething rough and hairy. He flung his leg over it, and whisk!whizz! off he shot through the air like a sky-rocket. Nothingwas left for him to do but grip tightly with hands and feet and tohold fast. On they went, and on they went, until, after a greatwhile, whatever it was that was carrying him lit upon the ground,and there the fisherman found himself standing, for that which hadbrought him had gone.
The old man whipped the handkerchief off his eyes, and there thefisherman found himself on the shores of the sea, where there wasnothing to be seen but water upon one side and rocks and naked sandupon the other.
“This is the place for you to cast your nets,” said the oldmagician; “for if we catch nothing here we catch nothing at all.”
The fisherman unrolled his nets and cast them and dragged them, andthen cast them and dragged them again, but neither time caught somuch as a herring. But the third time that he cast he found that hehad caught something that weighed as heavy as lead. He pulled andpulled, until by-and-by he dragged the load ashore, and what shouldit be but a great chest of wood, blackened by the sea-water, andcovered with shells and green moss.
That was the very thing that the magician had come to fish for.
From his pouch the old man took a little golden key, whichhe fitted into a key-hole in the side of the chest. He threwback the lid; the fisherman looked within, and there was theprettiest little palace that man’s eye ever beheld, all made ofmother-of-pearl and silver-frosted as white as snow. The oldmagician lifted the little palace out of the box and set it uponthe ground.
Then, lo and behold! a marvellous thing happened; for the palaceinstantly began to grow for all the world like a soap-bubble, untilit stood in the moonlight gleaming and glistening like snow, thewindows bright with the lights of a thousand wax tapers, and thesound of music and voices and laughter coming from within.
Hardly could the fisherman catch his breath from one strange thingwhen another happened. The old magician took off his clothes andhis face--yes, his face--for all the world as though it had beena mask, and there stood as handsome and noble a young man as everthe light looked on. Then, beckoning to the fisherman, dumb withwonder, he led the way up the great flight of marble steps to thepalace door. As he came the door swung open with a blaze of light,and there stood hundreds of noblemen, all clad in silks and satinsand velvets, who, when they saw the magician, bowed low beforehim, as though he had been a king. Leading the way, they broughtthe two through halls and chambers and room after room, each moremagnificent than the other, until they came to one that surpassed ahundredfold any of the others.
At the farther end was a golden throne, and upon it sat a lady morelovely and beautiful than a dream, her eyes as bright as diamonds,her cheeks like rose leaves, and her hair like spun gold. She camehalf-way down the steps of the throne to welcome the magician,and when the two met they kissed one another before all those whowere looking on. Then she brought him to the throne and seated himbeside her, and there they talked for a long time very
earnestly.
Nobody said a word to the fisherman, who stood staring about himlike an owl. “I wonder,” said he to himself at last, “if they willgive a body a bite to eat by-and-by?” for, to tell the truth, thegood supper that he had come away from at home had left a sharphunger gnawing at his insides, and he longed for something good andwarm to fill the empty place. But time passed, and not so much as acrust of bread was brought to stay his stomach.
By-and-by the clock struck twelve, and then the two who sat uponthe throne arose. The beautiful lady took the magician by thehand, and, turning to those who stood around, said, in a loudvoice, “Behold him who alone is worthy to possess the jewel ofjewels! Unto him do I give it, and with it all power of powers!”Thereon she opened a golden casket that stood beside her, andbrought thence a little crystal ball, about as big as a pigeon’segg, in which was something that glistened like a spark of fire.The magician took the crystal ball and thrust it into his bosom;but what it was the fisherman could not guess, and if you do notknow I shall not tell you.
Then for the first time the beautiful lady seemed to notice thefisherman. She beckoned him, and when he stood beside her twomen came carrying a chest. The chief treasurer opened it, and itwas full of bags of gold money. “How will you have it?” said thebeautiful lady.
“Have what?” said the fisherman.
“Have the pay for your labor?” said the beautiful lady.
“I will,” said the fisherman, promptly, “take it in my hat.”
“So be it,” said the beautiful lady. She waved her hand, and thechief treasurer took a bag from the chest, untied it, and emptied acataract of gold into the fur cap. The fisherman had never seenso much wealth in all his life before, and he stood like a manturned to stone.
“Is all this mine?” said the fisherman.
“It is,” said the beautiful lady.
“Then God bless your pretty eyes,” said the fisherman.
Then the magician kissed the beautiful lady, and, beckoning to thefisherman, left the throne-room the same way that they had come.The noblemen, in silks and satins and velvets, marched ahead, andback they went through the other apartments, until at last theycame to the door.
Out they stepped, and then what do you suppose happened?
If the wonderful palace had grown like a bubble, like a bubble itvanished. There the two stood on the sea-shore, with nothing to beseen but rocks and sand and water, and the starry sky overhead.
The fisherman shook his cap of gold, and it jingled and tinkled,and was as heavy as lead. If it was not all a dream, he was richfor life. “But anyhow,” said he, “they might have given a body abite to eat.”
The magician put on his red clothes and his face again, makinghimself as hoary and as old as before. He took out his flint andsteel, and his sticks of spice-wood and his gray powder, and madea great fire and smoke just as he had done before. Then again hetied his handkerchief over the fisherman’s eyes. “Remember,” saidhe, “what I told you when we started upon our journey. Keep yourmouth tight shut, for if you utter so much as a single word you area lost man. Now throw your leg over what you feel and hold fast.”
The fisherman had his net over one arm and his cap of gold in theother hand; nevertheless, there he felt the same hairy thing he hadfelt before. He flung his leg over it, and away he was gone throughthe air like a sky-rocket.
Now, he had grown somewhat used to strange things by this time, sohe began to think that he would like to see what sort of a creatureit was upon which he was riding thus through the sky. So hecontrived, in spite of his net and cap, to push up the handkerchieffrom over one eye. Out he peeped, and then he saw as clear as daywhat the strange steed was.
He was riding upon a he-goat as black as night, and in front of himwas the magician riding upon just such another, his great red robefluttering out behind him in the moonlight like huge red wings.
“Great herring and little fishes!” roared the fisherman; “it is abilly-goat!”
Instantly goats, old man, and all were gone like a flash. Down fellthe fisherman through the empty sky, whirling over and over andaround and around like a frog. He held tightly to his net, but awayflew his fur cap, the golden money falling in a shower like sparksof yellow light. Down he fell and down he fell, until his head spunlike a top.
By good-luck his house was just below, with its thatch of softrushes. Into the very middle of it he tumbled, and right throughthe thatch--bump!--into the room below.
The good wife was in bed, snoring away for dear life; but sucha noise as the fisherman made coming into the house was enoughto wake the dead. Up she jumped, and there she sat, staring andwinking with sleep, and with her brains as addled as a duck’s eggin a thunder-storm.
“There!” said the fisherman, as he gathered himself up and rubbedhis shoulder, “that is what comes of following a woman’s advice!”
* * * * *
_All the good folk clapped their hands, not so much because of thestory itself, but because it was a woman who told it._
_“Aye, aye,” said the brave little Tailor, “there is truth in whatyou tell, fair lady, and I like very well the way in which you havetold it.”_
_“Whose turn is it next?” said Doctor Faustus, lighting a freshpipe of tobacco._
_“’Tis the turn of yonder old gentleman,” said the Soldier whocheated the Devil, and he pointed with the stem of his pipe to theFisherman who unbottled the Genie that King Solomon had corked upand thrown into the sea. “Every one else hath told a story, and nowit is his turn.”_
_“I will not deny, my friend, that what you say is true, and thatit is my turn,” said the Fisherman. “Nor will I deny that I havealready a story in my mind. It is,” said he, “about a certainprince, and of how he went through many and one adventures, and atlast discovered that which is--”_