Jeremiah Curtin

“ A fairy gave them to thy father, with whom, as he was a beautiful man, she fell in love, and thou hast inherited them. Here they are; I give them to thee with this latch-string. Go up on this terribly high mountain, which in front of my hut supports the heavens. When thou shalt come to the top, strike the three golden hairs with the latch-string three times; at once will stand before thee a magic steed that has grown up on the silken meadow, sucked dragon’s milk, eaten glowing coals, and drunk fiery flames. ”

“ The return of the victors to the capital was a triumph such as no man there had ever seen or imagined. In front of all rode the princes, Oleg and Vladimir, who had hewn down the Polovtsi; next came the bound prisoners, the boyars, then Vsevolod the conqueror, and last of all came the captives saved from the Polovtsi by the battle. Delight was unbounded in Vladimir, where there were mothers who had been weeping for sons, and wives for husbands whom they had looked on as lost to this world. To crown the whole victory were the treasures and booty seized from the Polovtsi. ”

“ Going out on the road the king's son-in-law began to cry: "Oh, what shall I do; what shall I do!" and as he cried, who should come but Kil Arthur on his steed, who said, "Be quiet, I'll go for your wife and goods."
Kil Arthur went, and killed Ri Fohin and all his people and beasts,—didn't leave one alive. Then he brought back his sister to her husband, and stayed with them for three years.
One day he said to his sister: "I am going to leave you. I don't know what strength I have; I'll walk the world now till I know is there a man in it as good as myself." ”

“ We are planting our banners over all the earth’s surface, and soon every people and all nations will submit without delay or hesitation to our prosperous direction, and share in its many benefactions. But should any rise and resist, their houses, goods, property and dependents will be ruined without mercy. Praise and honor to High Heaven, our dominion is so well ordered that we can visit China. With us will go instruments of every sort, and crushing weapons. With us will march an army which is like a roaring ocean. ”

“ All have run off to Wamarawi.
First he knocks against his own house, breaks it, smashes it to pieces, and then he breaks all the other houses in the same way, one after another. He scatters and smashes up everything, wrecks the whole village, just as if a strong whirlwind had gone through it. The people are all in Wamarawi, in the stone cave in the mountain, a very great crowd of them.
Putokya looks around, finds tracks, follows the people southward, goes with a terrible roar, raising a storm as he moves. He breaks everything he strikes, except rocks. From these he bounds off like a football. ”

“ Whirlwind flew over the whole world, wearied himself out, and began to sink. He came down straight into the cellar, rushed to the tub on the right hand, and fell to drinking the water of weakness; but Ivan ran to the left, drank his fill of the water of strength, and became the first mighty hero in the whole world. He saw that Whirlwind had become utterly weak, wrested the sharp sword from him, and cut off his head with a blow. Voices cried behind, “Strike again, strike again, or he will come to life!” “No,” said Ivan; “a hero’s hand strikes not twice, but always finishes at a blow.” ”

“ The moment that news of this came to Novgorod, Mystislav commanded to sound the bell of the assembly. The whole city came to him. “Let us go, brothers!” said he. “Let us rescue our lands. Let us liberate our own people!”
The war from the very beginning assumed an unusual character. The citizens of Novgorod had a single mind this time, and the prince was at one with the people. To take vengeance for injustice was their war-cry. Mystislav was not simply enraged against his son-in-law; he hated in him that inborn pride of the Vladimir princes. ”

“ When she heard that Cucúlin had brought Gil an Og to Erin, she was enraged with jealousy and madness. She had reared the son, whose name was Conlán, like any king's son, and now giving him his arms of a champion she told him to go to his father.
"I would," said he, "if I knew who my father is."
"His name is Cucúlin, and he is with Fin MacCumhail. I bind you not to yield to any man," said she to her son, "nor tell your name to any man till you fight him out." ”

“ Once while shooting in the early morning, just at dawn, Fedot went into a dark, dense forest, and saw a blue dove sitting on a tree. He aimed, fired, struck her wing, and she fell to the damp earth. The sharpshooter picked her up, was going to twist her neck and put her in his bag, when the blue dove spoke: “Oh, brave youth, do not tear off my stormy little head, do not send me out of the white world! Better take me alive, carry me home, put me on the window, and watch. As soon as sleep comes upon me strike me that moment with the back of thy right hand, and thou wilt gain great fortune.” ”

“ It stood there in the morning dawn, a mountain of beautiful flowers and oak-tree branches; all the colors of the world were on it, outside and inside. The tree in the middle was far above the top of the house, and filled with acorns; a few of them had fallen on every side.
That sweat-house was placed there to last forever, the largest and most beautiful building in the world, above or below. Nothing like it will ever be built again.
“Now, my grandson,” said the old women, “the house is built and finished. All the people in the world will like this house. ”