Simeon answered: “Your Majesty, I do not wish to learn any science or art; but if my eldest brother will make me an axe, with the axe I will strike once, twice; that moment there will be a ship.”
Then the king answered: “I need shipwrights, and thou shouldst not be taught anything else.” Next he asked the fourth: “Thou, Simeon, what science or art dost thou wish to know?”
“Your Majesty,” answered he, “I do not wish to know any science; but if my third brother should make a ship, and if it should happen to that ship to be at sea, and an enemy should attack it, I would seize it by the prow and take the ship to the underground kingdom; and when the enemy had gone away I would bring it back to the surface of the sea.”
The Tsar was astonished at these great wonders of the fourth Simeon, and he said: “There is no need to teach thee either.” Then he asked the fifth Simeon: “And thou, Simeon, what science or art dost thou wish to learn?”
“I do not wish to learn any,” said he; “but if my eldest brother will make me a gun, with that gun, if I see a bird, I will hit it, even one hundred versts distant.”
“Well, thou wilt be a splendid sharpshooter for me,” said the Tsar. Then he asked the sixth Simeon: “Thou, Simeon, what science dost thou wish to begin?”
“Your Majesty,” said Simeon, “I have no wish to begin any science or art; but if my fifth brother will shoot a bird on the wing, I will not let it reach the earth, but will catch it and bring it to you.”
“Thou’rt very cunning,” said the Tsar; “thou wilt take the place of a retriever for me in the field.” Then the Tsar asked the last Simeon: “What art or science dost thou wish to learn?”
“Your Majesty,” answered he, “I do not wish to learn any science or art, because I have a most precious craft.”
“But what is thy craft? Tell me, if it please thee.”