[Illustration]





IVANOUSHKA THE SIMPLETON


[Illustration] In a kingdom far away from our country, there was a
town over which ruled the Tsar Pea with his Tsaritza Carrot. He had
many wise statesmen, wealthy princes, strong, powerful warriors, and
also simple soldiers, a hundred thousand, less one man. In that
town lived all kinds of people: honest, bearded merchants, keen
and open-handed rascals, German tradesmen, lovely maidens, Russian
drunkards; and in the suburbs all around, the peasants tilled the
soil, sowed the wheat, ground the flour, traded in the markets, and
spent the money in drink.

In one of the suburbs there was a poor hut where an old man lived with
his three sons, Thomas, Pakhom, and Ivan. The old man was not only
clever, he was wise. He had happened once to have a chat with the
devil. They talked together while the old man treated him to a tumbler
of wine and got out of the devil many great secrets. Soon after this
the peasant began to perform such marvelous acts that the neighbors
called him a sorcerer, a magician, and even supposed that the devil
was his kin.

Yes, it is true that the old man performed great marvels. Were you
longing for love, go to him, bow to the old man, and he would give you