Serbian Fairy Tales

“Fished out a small box”
SERBIAN FAIRY TALES
TRANSLATED FROM THE SERBIAN BY MADAME ELODIE L. MIJATOVICH ILLUSTRATED BY SIDNEY STANLEY
NEW YORK ROBERT M. McBRIDE & CO. 1918
printed in United States of America
IN COLOUR
IN BLACK AND WHITE
Once upon a time a bear married a woman, and they had one son. When the boy was yet a little fellow he begged very hard to be allowed to leave the bear’s cave, and to go out into the world to see what was in it. His father, the Bear, however, would not consent to this, saying, “You are too young yet, and not strong enough. In the world there are multitudes of wicked beasts called men, who will kill you.” So the boy was quieted for a while, and remained in the cave.
But, after some time, the boy prayed so earnestly that the Bear, his father, would let him go into the world, that the Bear brought him into the wood, and showed him a beech-tree, saying, “If you can pull up that beech by the roots, I will let you go; but if you cannot, then this is a proof that you are still too weak, and must remain with me.” The boy tried to pull up the tree, but, after long trying, had to give it up, and go home again to the cave.
When the Bear’s son had collected all the iron, he tore up a young birch-tree, twisted it into a band and tied up the iron into a bundle, which he hung at the end of his staff, and, throwing it across his shoulder, trudged off from the astonished and affrighted labourers.
Going on a short distance, he arrived at a forge in which a smith was employed making a ploughshare. This man he requested to make him a mace with the iron which he was carrying. This the smith undertook to do; but, putting aside half the iron, he made of the rest a small, coarsely-finished mace.
The Bear’s son saw at a glance that he had been cheated by the smith. Moreover, he was disgusted at the roughness of the workmanship. He however took it, and declared his intention of testing it. Then, fastening it to the end of his club and throwing it into the air high above the clouds, he stood still and allowed it to fall on his shoulder. It had no sooner struck him than the mace shivered into fragments, some of which fell on and destroyed the forge. Taking up his staff, the Bear’s son reproached the smith for his dishonesty, and killed him on the spot.