"My faith," said he, "it is sheer folly to waste more time hunting for this bird. My father is old, and if he dies I shall inherit his goods."
The old man, after waiting patiently for some time, sent his second son to seek the Golden Blackbird. The youth took the same direction as his brother, and when he came to the cross roads, he too tossed up which road he should take. The cap fell in the same place as before, and he walked on till he came to the spot where his brother had halted. The latter, who was leaning out of the window of the inn, called to him to stay where he was and amuse himself.
"You are right," replied the youth. "Who knows if I should ever find the Golden Blackbird, even if I sought the whole world through for it. At the worst, if the old man dies, we shall have his property."
He entered the inn and the two brothers made merry and feasted, till very soon their money was all spent. They even owed something to their landlord, who kept them as hostages till they could pay their debts.
The youngest son set forth in his turn, and he arrived at the place where his brothers were still prisoners. They called to him to stop, and did all they could to prevent his going further.
"No," he replied, "my father trusted me, and I will go all over the world till I find the Golden Blackbird."
"Bah," said his brothers, "you will never succeed any better than we did. Let him die if he wants to; we will divide the property."
As he went his way he met a little hare, who stopped to look at him, and asked:
"Where are you going, my friend?"
"I really don"t quite know," answered he. "My father is ill, and he cannot be cured unless I bring him back the Golden Blackbird. It is a long time since I set out, but no one can tell me where to find it."
"Ah," said the hare, "you have a long way to go yet. You will have to walk at least seven hundred miles before you get to it."
"And how am I to travel such a distance?"
"Mount on my back," said the little hare, "and I will conduct you."
The young man obeyed: at each bound the little hare went seven miles, and it was not long before they reached a castle that was as large and beautiful as a castle could be.
"The Golden Blackbird is in a little cabin near by," said the little hare, "and you will easily find it. It lives in a little cage, with another cage beside it made all of gold. But whatever you do, be sure not to put it in the beautiful cage, or everybody in the castle will know that you have stolen it."
The youth found the Golden Blackbird standing on a wooden perch, but as stiff and rigid as if he was dead. And beside the beautiful cage was the cage of gold.
"Perhaps he would revive if I were to put him in that lovely cage,"
thought the youth.
The moment that Golden Bird had touched the bars of the splendid cage he awoke, and began to whistle, so that all the servants of the castle ran to see what was the matter, saying that he was a thief and must be put in prison.
"No," he answered, "I am not a thief. If I have taken the Golden Blackbird, it is only that it may cure my father, who is ill, and I have travelled more than seven hundred miles in order to find it."
"Well," they replied, "we will let you go, and will even give you the Golden Bird, if you are able to bring us the Porcelain Maiden."
The youth departed, weeping, and met the little hare, who was munching wild thyme.
"What are you crying for, my friend?" asked the hare.
"It is because," he answered, "the castle people will not allow me to carry off the Golden Blackbird without giving them the Porcelain Maiden in exchange."
"You have not followed my advice," said the little hare. "And you have put the Golden Bird into the fine cage."
"Alas! yes!"
"Don"t despair! the Porcelain Maiden is a young girl, beautiful as Venus, who dwells two hundred miles from here. Jump on my back and I will take you there."
The little hare, who took seven miles in a stride, was there in no time at all, and he stopped on the borders of a lake.
"The Porcelain Maiden," said the hare to the youth, "will come here to bathe with her friends, while I just eat a mouthful of thyme to refresh me. When she is in the lake, be sure you hide her clothes, which are of dazzling whiteness, and do not give them back to her unless she consents to follow you."
The little hare left him, and almost immediately the Porcelain Maiden arrived with her friends. She undressed herself and got into the water.
Then the young man glided up noiselessly and laid hold of her clothes, which he hid under a rock at some distance.
When the Porcelain Maiden was tired of playing in the water she came out to dress herself, but, though she hunted for her clothes high and low, she could find them nowhere. Her friends helped her in the search, but, seeing at last that it was of no use, they left her, alone on the bank, weeping bitterly.
"Why do you cry?" said the young man, approaching her.
"Alas!" answered she, "while I was bathing someone stole my clothes, and my friends have abandoned me."
"I will find your clothes if you will only come with me."
And the Porcelain Maiden agreed to follow him, and after having given up her clothes, the young man bought a small horse for her, which went like the wind. The little hare brought them both back to seek for the Golden Blackbird, and when they drew near to the castle where it lived the little hare said to the young man:
[Ill.u.s.tration]
"Now, do be a little sharper than you were before, and you will manage to carry off both the Golden Blackbird and the Porcelain Maiden. Take the golden cage in one hand, and leave the bird in the old cage where he is, and bring that away too."
The little hare then vanished; the youth did as he was bid, and the castle servants never noticed that he was carrying off the Golden Bird.
When he reached the inn where his brothers were detained, he delivered them by paying their debt. They set out all together, but as the two elder brothers were jealous of the success of the youngest, they took the opportunity as they were pa.s.sing by the sh.o.r.es of a lake to throw themselves upon him, seize the Golden Bird, and fling him in the water.
Then they continued their journey, taking with them the Porcelain Maiden, in the firm belief that their brother was drowned. But, happily, he had s.n.a.t.c.hed in falling at a tuft of rushes and called loudly for help. The little hare came running to him, and said "Take hold of my leg and pull yourself out of the water."
When he was safe on sh.o.r.e the little hare said to him:
"Now this is what you have to do: dress yourself like a Breton seeking a place as stable-boy, and go and offer your services to your father. Once there, you will easily be able to make him understand the truth."
The young man did as the little hare bade him, and he went to his father"s castle and enquired if they were not in want of a stable-boy.
"Yes," replied his father, "very much indeed. But it is not an easy place. There is a little horse in the stable which will not let anyone go near it, and it has already kicked to death several people who have tried to groom it."
"I will undertake to groom it," said the youth. "I never saw the horse I was afraid of yet." The little horse allowed itself to be rubbed down without a toss of its head and without a kick.
"Good gracious!" exclaimed the master; "how is it that he lets you touch him, when no one else can go near him?"
"Perhaps he knows me," answered the stable-boy.
Two or three days later the master said to him: "The Porcelain Maiden is here: but, though she is as lovely as the dawn, she is so wicked that she scratches everyone that approaches her. Try if she will accept your services."
When the youth entered the room where she was, the Golden Blackbird broke forth into a joyful song, and the Porcelain Maiden sang too, and jumped for joy.
"Good gracious!" cried the master. "The Porcelain Maiden and the Golden Blackbird know you too?"
"Yes," replied the youth, "and the Porcelain Maiden can tell you the whole truth, if she only will."