m pim m ss I FOR COLLECTING AND PRINTING RELICS OF POPULAR ANTIQUITIES, &a ESTABLISHED IN THE YEAR MDCCCLXXVIII. PUBLICATIONS OF THE FOLK-LORE SOCIETY LXXV. [19*5] /VA7/ RUMANIAN BIRD AND BEAST STORIES RENDERED INTO ENGLISH BY M. CASTER, Ph.D. VICE-PRESIDENT AND SOMETIME PRESIDENT OF THE FOLK-LORE SOCIETY VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY VICE-PRESIDENT AND SOMETIME PRESIDENT OF THE JEWISH HISTORICAL SOCIETY ETC., ETC. " the shall teach thee But ask now beasts, and they ; And the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee." JOB xii. 7. LONDON $ttbltslu6 fxr the ^olk-Qort .Sotutj) bjj SIDGWICK & JACKSON, LTD., 3 ADAM ST., ADELPHI, W.C. 1915 057 The right of translation and reproduction is reserved to the author HER MAJESTY QUEEN ELISABETH OF RUMANIA "CARMEN SYLVA" TO WHOM THE SOUL OF THE RUMANIAN PEOPLE IS AS AN OPEN BOOK A PAGE OF THAT BOOK IS BY GRACIOUS PERMISSION DEDICATED PREFACE. " NEITHER can men hear the voice of the cattle ; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled, they are gone." The forests are silent, over hill and dale hangs a black beast and bird are in the are hushed. pall ; hiding ; voices But before they have disappeared, following in the track of others, I have endeavoured to catch the hum of the bee, the twitter of the bird, the chirp of the cricket, the song of the dying swan, and all the tales which beasts and birds and little beetles tell their young before they go to sleep ere the flash of the glow-worm flits across the darkness of the forest. I have followed up to their lairs the ferocious wolf, the cantankerous dog, the sly fox and the wise hedgehog, have listened to the lark and to the nightingale, and paid homage to little king wren. Who knows how much longer they will disport themselves in the fields and forests of Rumania, where the hoofs of the horses, the feet of the marching men, the shout of battle and the thunder of the guns have silenced let us hope only for a while the voice of the dumb creatures, who still speak so eloquently to him who knows their language and understands the cunning spell of their hidden wisdom. It is as if I had gathered flowers from the field of the Rumanian popular imagination. They are fresh from the field, and the dew still hangs upon them like so many diamonds, flashing in the of sometimes a few of light popular poetry ; nay, specks viii Preface. the original soil are still clinging to the roots. I have not pressed them between the leaves of this book. I have handled them tenderly. It has been a work of love, the dreamy fancies of youth, the solace of maturer age. Peradventure one or the other may be taken out and planted anew in the nurseries of the West, where they may blossom and grow afresh. They might bring with them the breath of the open field, the per- fume of the forest. They might conjure up the time when the nations were still young and lived in the great Nursery of Nature. If one could only bring to the nations of the West for awhile a glimpse of the time of their youth ! In my wander- ings through these enchanted fields I have tried t.o find whence the seeds have come, whose hands have sown them, and what spiritual wind and weather have fostered their growth, whether the rain of heaven or the fountains of the deep have watered the roots, what sun has shone upon them, what fiery blast has made these flowers wither and die. Such as they are, then, they are offered in love to the English people. I have to thank Mr. S. L. Bensusan, who in true friendship, with admirable skill and with untiring zeal has helped me to remove the boulders, to level the ground, to plan the beds and to trim the Miss C. S. keen edges ; Burne, whose sym- pathy, unerring eye and deft hand have helped to weed the tares and the flowers son with group ; my Vivian, who loving care and gentle touch has brushed away the dead leaves that had fallen on the green sward, and last, but not least, the Folk-Lore Society, which has granted me a niche in its great Pantheon. It is indeed no small honour to be in the company of the gods. M. G. In the month when " smale fowles maken melodic." CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION i i. WHY is THE BEE BLACK, AND WHY is IT MAKING HONEY ? How DID THE BEE OUTWIT THE DEVIL ? 61 I. B. HOW DID THE BEE OUTWIT THE MOLE ? 67 II. WHY is THE BEE BUSY AND THE SPIDER SULLEN ? - 69 in. WHY is THE BEE BLACK, AND WHY HAS IT A NARROW WAIST ? 71 IV. WHY DOES THE LITTLE WORM GLOW ? 73 v. WHY DOES THE LITTLE WORM GLOW ? 75 VI. WHY DOES THE LITTLE WORM GLOW ? 76 VII. WHY is THE WOLF FEROCIOUS ? 79 VIII. WHY DO THE EYES OF THE WOLF GLOW AND HIS HAIR BRISTLE ? 82 IX. WHY DOES THE WOLF RUN AFTER THE DEVIL ? 84 x Contents. V *" PAGE WHY THE GOAT'S KNEES ARE BARE - 86 XI. WHY DID NOAH GET DRUNK ? 90 XII. GOD AND THE LAMB - 94 XIII. THE HART AND THE MAKING OF THE WORLD 95 XIV. WHY is THE FLY CALLED THE DEVIL'S HORSE ? 97 xv. THE DEVIL STEALING THE SUN - 99 XVI. WHY IS IT CALLED THE BULL-FLY ? - IO2 XVII. WHY is THE SAW-FLY RED ? 104 XVIII. WHY DOES THE SAW-FLY LIVE IN STABLES ? 108 XIX. WHY is THE LADY-BIRD DAINTY ? no XX. WHY DOES THE GAD-FLY STING THE CATTLE ? - 114 XXI. WHY DOES THE FLY OF KOLUMBATSH POISON THE CATTLE ? 117 XXII. WHY is THERE A WORM IN THE APPLE ? - 122 XXIII. WHY ARE THE LOCUSTS VORACIOUS ? - 124 XXIV. WHY DOES THE GRASSHOPPER RUN TO AND FRO ? - 127 Contents. xi XXV. PAGE ANOTHER STORY OF THE GRASSHOPPER 129 XXVI. WHY DOES THE NUN BEETLE COVER ITS FACE ? 130 XXVII. WHY is THE BEETLE CALLED THE NUN ? - 134 XXVIII. WHY is THE WASP THE GIPSIES' BEE ? 135 XXVIII. A. ANOTHER VERSION OF THE WASP LEGEND 137 XXIX. WHY DOES THE HORNET LIVE IN SMOKY PLACES ? 138 XXX. WHY is THE HORNET so SPITEFUL ? 139 XXX. A. HORNET CHARM - 140 XXXI. WHY HAS THE WOODPECKER SUCH A LONG BEAK AND WHY DOES IT PECK AT THE TREES ? 14! XXXII. WHY HAS THE PELICAN A BIG POUCH UNDER ITS BEAK ? 143 XXXIII. WHY DOES THE TITMOUSE GET INTO THE PUMPKIN ? 146 xxxiv. WHY HAS THE NIGHTINGALE A DRAB COLOUR ? 148 XXXV. WHY HAS THE NIGHTINGALE TWELVE TUNES AND WHY DOES THE TURTLE-DOVE COO ? 149 XXXVI. WHY is THE NIGHTINGALE THE SONGSTER OF THE - KING ? 151 xii Contents. XXXVII. PAGK WHY DOES THE THRUSH HIDE IN THE TREE ? - - 153 XXXVIII. WHY HAS THE PARTRIDGE A MOTTLED COLOUR ? 155 XXIX. WHY HAS THE THISTLE-FINCH RUFFLED FEATHERS ?- 156 XL. WHY HAS THE BULLFINCH A RED BREAST AND A BIG MOUTH ? 158 XLI. WHY DOES THE HOOPOE FEED ON DROPPINGS ? 160 XLII. WHY is THE WAGTAIL CALLED THE GIPSIES' BIRD ? - 161 XLIII. WHY is THE HOOPOE SUCH A DIRTY BIRD ? 162 XLIV. WHY DOES THE CUCKOO LEAD A RESTLESS LIFE ? 164 XLV. ' WHY is THE CUCKOO SILENT IN THE WINTER ? 168 XLVI. THE STORY OF THE CROW AND ITS UGLY FLEDGLINGS 170 XLVII. WHY IS THERE ENMITY BETWEEN THE CROW AND THE HAWK ? - 172 XLVII. A. CROW CHARMS 175 XLVIII. WHY DOES THE HERON DRINK ONLY RAIN-WATER ? - 176 XLIX. WHY DOES THE KITE CRT IN DRY WEATHER ? - 178 Contents. xiii L. l-AGE WHY CAN THE MOLE NOT COME OUT ON THE HIGH ROAD ? 179 LI. WHY HAS THE TORTOISE A ROUND BACK ? 180 LII. WHY HAVE THE FISH NO FEET ? 182 LIII. WHY DO THE PLOVER FLY SINGLY ? - 183 Liv. WHY DOES THE SPIDER HANG ON A THREAD ? - 184 LIV. A. WHY ARE THE SPIDER AND THE MOUSE ACCURSED ? - 186 LV. WHY HAS THE SWALLOW A FORKED TAIL AND A RED SPOT ON ITS BREAST ? - 188 LVI. WHY DOES THE FROG SHRIVEL UP AT DEATH ? - 190 LVII. WHY DOES THE SILKWORM SPIN A THIN THREAD ? 192 LVIII. WHY IS IT RIGHT TO KILL A SPARROW ? 195 LIX. WHY SHOULD THE OAK TREE NOT BOAST ? 196 LX. WHY DOES THE MOSQUITO LIVE IN THE WELL ? 199 LXI. WHY DOES THE MOSQUITO FEED ON BLOOD ? 200 LXII. WHY DOES THE FLY EAT THE CHERRY ? - - 202 xiv Contents. LXIII. WHY HAS THE BUTTERFLY RINGS ON ITS WINGS ? 203 LXIV. WHY DOES THE CRICKET CHIRP ? 205 LXV. WHY DO THE ANTS FEED THE CRICKET ? - 206 LXVI. WHY DO CATS AND DOGS FIGHT ? 208 LXVII. WHY DO CATS EAT MICE ? 210 LXVII. A. ANOTHER VERSION 213 LXVIII. WHY DOES A CAT SIT ON THE DOORSTEP IN THE SUN ? 214 LXIX. WHY DOES THE FLY SETTLE ON THE DEAD ? 215 LXX. WHY is THE FOOT OF MAN ARCHED ? 216 LXXI. WHY HAS A SNAKE NO TAIL ? AND WHY DO FLEAS SUCK HUMAN BLOOD ? 218 LXXII. CHARMS AGAINST FLEAS AND OTHER HOUSE VERMIN 221 LXXIII. CHARMS AGAINST BUGS 223 LXXIV. " WHY DOES THE CUCKOO CALL CUCKOO"? 225 LXXV. WHY DOES A WAGTAIL WAG ITS TAIL ? 228 LXXVI. WHY HAS THE HOOPOE A TUFT ? 229 Contents. xv LXXVII. PAGE WHY DOES THE EAGLE LIVE ON RAW MEAT ? 231 LXXVIII. WHY HAS THE LARK A TUFT ? - 236 LXXIX. WHY is THE TUFT OF THE LARK DISHEVELLED ? 238 LXXX.