The Husband of The Rats Daughter

ONCE upon a time there lived in Japan a rat and his wife
who came of an old and noble race, and had one daughter,
the loveliest girl in all the rat world. Her parents were
very proud of her, and spared no pains to teach her all
she ought to know. There was not another young lady
in the whole town who was as clever as she was in gnawing
through the hardest wood, or who could drop from
such a height on to a bed, or run away so fast if anyone
was heard coming. Great attention, too, was paid to her
personal appearance, and her skin shone like satin, while
her teeth were as white as pearls, and beautifully pointed.
Of course, with all these advantages, her parents
expected her to make a brilliant marriage, and, as she
grew up, they began to look round for a suitable husband.
But here a difficulty arose. The father was a rat from
the tip of his nose to the end of his tail, outside as well as
in, and desired that his daughter should wed among her
own people. She had no lack of lovers, but her father's
secret hopes rested on a fine young rat, with moustaches
which almost swept the ground, whose family was still
nobler and more ancient than his own. Unluckily, the
mother had other views for her precious child. She was
one of those people who always despise their own family
and surroundings, and take pleasure in thinking that they
themselves are made of finer material than the rest of the
world. ' Her daughter should never marry a mere rat,'
she declared, holding her head high.

' With her beauty and talents she had a right to look for someone a little
better than that.'
So she talked, as mothers will, to anyone that would
listen to her. What the girl thought about the matter
nobody knew or cared it was not the fashion in the rat
world.
Many were the quarrels which the old rat and his
wife had upon the subject, and sometimes they bore on
their faces certain marks which looked as if they had not
kept to words only.
' Keach up to the stars is my motto,' cried the lady one
day, when she was in a greater passion than usual. ' My
daughter's beauty places her higher than anything upon
earth/ she cried ;
' and I am certainly not going to accept a
son-in-law who is beneath her.'
' Better offer her in marriage to the sun,' answered
her husband impatiently.
' As far as I know there is
nothing greater than he.'
' Well, I was thinking of it,' replied the wife,
' and
as you are of the same mind, we will pay him a visit
to-morrow.'
So the next morning, the two rats, having spent hours
in making themselves smart, set out to see the sun,
leading their daughter between them.
The journey took some time, but at length they came
to the golden palace where the sun lived.
' Noble king,' began the mother, ' behold our daughter !
She is so beautiful that she is above everything in the
whole world. Naturally, we wish for a son-in-law who,
on his side, is greater than all. Therefore we have come
to you.'

' I feel very much flattered,' replied the sun, who was
so busy that he had not the least wish to marry anybody.
1 You do me great honour by your proposal. Only, in one
point you are mistaken, and it would be wrong of me to
take advantage of your ignorance. There is something
greater than I am, and that is the cloud. Look !
' And as he spoke a cloud spread itself over the sun's face, blotting
out his rays.
' Oh, well, we will speak to the cloud,' said the mother.
And turning to the cloud she repeated her proposal.
' Indeed I am unworthy of anything so charming,'
answered the cloud ;
' but you make a mistake again in
what you say. There is one thing that is even more
powerful than I, and that is the wind. Ah, here he
comes, you can see for yourself.'
And she did see, for catching up the cloud as he
passed, he threw it on the other side of the sky. Then,
tumbling father, mother and daughter down to the earth
again, he paused for a moment beside them, his foot on
an old wall.
When she had recovered her breath, the mother began
her little speech once more.
' The wall is the proper husband for your daughter,'
answered the wind, whose home consisted of a cave,
which he only visited when he was not rushing about
elsewhere ;
' you can see for yourself that he is greater
than I, for he has power to stop me in my flight.' And
the mother, who did not trouble to conceal her wishes,
turned at once to the wall.
Then something happened which was quite unexpected
by everyone.
1 1 won't marry that ugly old wall, which is as old as
my grandfather,' sobbed the girl, who had not uttered
one word all this time. ' I would have married the sun,
or the cloud, or the wind, because it was my duty,
although I love the handsome young rat, and him only.
But that horrid old wall I would sooner die !'
And the wall, rather hurt -in his feelings, declared
that he had no claim to be the husband of so beautiful
a girl.

' It is quite true,' he said,' that I can stop the wind
who can part the clouds who can cover the sun ; but there
is someone who can do more than all these, and that is the rat.

It is the rat who passes through me, and can
reduce me to powder, simply with his teeth. If, therefore,
you want a son-in-law who is greater than the whole
world, seek him among the rats.'
' Ah, what did I tell you ?' cried the father. And his
wife, though for the moment angry at being beaten, soon
thought that a rat son-in-law was what she had always
desired.
So all three returned happily home, and the wedding
was celebrated three days after.
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The Wicked Wolverine

ONE day a wolverine was out walking on the hill-side,
when, on turning a corner, he suddenly saw a large rock.
' Was that you I heard walking about just now ?'
he asked, for wolverines are cautious animals, and always
like to know the reasons of things.
' No, certainly not,' answered the rock ;
' I don't know how to walk.'
' But I saw you walking,' continued the wolverine.
' I am afraid that you were not taught to speak the
truth,' retorted the rock.
' You need not speak like that, for I have seen you
walking,' replied the wolverine, ' though I am quite sure
that you could never catch me' and he ran a little distance
and then stopped to see if the rock was pursuing
him ; but, to his vexation, the rock was still in the same
place. Then the wolverine went up close, and struck the
rock a blow with his paw, saying :
' Well, will you catch me now ?'
' I can't walk, but I can roll,' answered the rock.
And the wolverine laughed and said :
' Oh, that will do just as well ' ;
and began to run down the side of the mountain.
At first he went quite slowly, 'just to give the rock a chance,' he thought to himself ;
but soon he quickened his  pace, for he found that the rock was almost at his heels.
But the faster the wolverine ran, the faster the rock rolled,
and by-and-by the little creature began to get very tired,
and was sorry he had not left the rock to itself.

Thinking that if he could manage to put on a spurt he would
reach the forest of great trees at the bottom of the mountain,
where the rock could not come, he gathered up
all his strength, and instead of running he leaped over
sticks and stones, but, whatever he did, the rock was
always close behind him. At length he grew so weary
that he could not even see where he was going, and catching his foot in a branch he tripped and fell. The rock stopped at once, but there came a shriek from the wolverine :
' Get off, get off ! can't you see that you are on my legs ?'
' Why did you not leave me alone ?' asked the rock.
' I did not want to move I hate moving. But you
would have it, and I certainly shan't move now till I am
forced to.'
' I will call my brothers,' answered the wolverine.
' There are many of them in the forest, and you will soon
see that they are stronger than you.' And he called, and
called, and called, till wolves and foxes and all sorts of other
creatures all came running to see what was the matter.
' How did you get under that rock ?' asked they,
making a ring round him ; but they had to repeat their
question several times before the wolverine would answer,
for he, like many other persons, found it hard to confess
that he had brought his troubles on himself.
' Well, I was dull, and wanted someone to play with
me,' he said at last, in a sulky voice,' and I challenged
the rock to catch me. Of course I thought I could run the
fastest ; but I tripped, and it rolled on me. It was just an
accident.'
' It serves you right for being so silly,' said they ; but
they pushed and hauled at the rock for a long time without
making it move an inch.
' You are no good at all,' cried the wolverine crossly,
for it was suffering great pain,' and if you cannot get
me free, I shall see what my friends the lightning and the
thunder can do.' And he called loudly to the lightning to
come and help him as quickly as possible.

In a few minutes a dark cloud came rolling up the
sky, giving out such terrific claps of thunder that the
wolves and the foxes and all the other creatures ran helterskelter
in all directions. But, frightened though they
were, they did not forget to beg the lightning to take off
the wolverine's coat and to free his legs, but to be careful
not to hurt him. So the lightning disappeared into the
cloud for a moment to gather up fresh strength, and then
came rushing down, right upon the rock, which it sent
flying in all directions, and took off the wolverine's coat
so neatly that, though it was torn into tiny shreds, the
wolverine himself was quite unharmed.
' That was rather clumsy of you,' said he, standing up
naked in his flesh. '
Surely you could have split the rock
without tearing my coat to bits !
' And he stooped down to
pick up the pieces. It took him a long iime, for there
were a great many of them, but at last he had them all
in his hand.'

I'll go to my sister the frog,' he thought to himself,
' and she will sew them together for me '
; and he set off
at once for the swamp in which his sister lived.
' Will you sew my coat together ? I had an unlucky
accident, and it is quite impossible to wear,' he said, when
he found her.
' With pleasure,' she answered, for she had always
been taught to be polite ; and getting her needle and thread
she began to fit the pieces. But though she was very
good-natured, she was not very clever, and she got some
of the bits wrong. When the wolverine, who was very
particular about his clothes, came to put it on, he grew
very angry.
' What a useless creature you are !'
cried he. ' Do you expect me to go about in such a coat as that ? Why it
bulges all down the back, as if I had a hump, and it is so
tight across the chest that I expect it to burst every time
I breathe. I knew you were stupid, but I did not think
you were as stupid as that.' And giving the poor frog
a blow on her head, which knocked her straight into the
water, he walked off in a rage to his younger sister the
mouse.

' I tore my coat this morning,' he began, when he had
found her sitting at the door of her house eating an apple.
' It was all in little bits, and I took it to our sister the
frog to ask her to sew it for me. But just look at the
way she has done it ! You will have to take it to pieces
and fit them together properly, and I hope I shall not
have to complain again.' For as the wolverine was older
than the mouse, he was accustomed to speak to her in
this manner. However, the mouse was used to it and only answered :
' I think you had better stay here till it is
done, and if there is any alteration needed I can make it.'
So the wolverine sat down on a heap of dry ferns, and,
picking up the apple, he finished it without even asking
the mouse's leave.
At last the coat was ready, and the wolverine put
it on.

' Yes, it fits very well,' said he,' and you have sewn it
very neatly. When I pass this way again I will bring
you a handful of corn, as a reward '; and he ran off as
smart as ever, leaving the mouse quite grateful behind
him.

He wandered about for many days, till he reached a
place where food was very scarce, and for a whole week
he went without any. He was growing desperate, when
he suddenly came upon a bear that was lying asleep.
' Ah ! here is food at last !' thought he ; but how was he
to kill the bear, who was so much bigger than himself ?
It was no use to try force, he must invent some cunning
plan which would get her into his power. At last, after
thinking hard, he decided upon something, and going up
to the bear, he exclaimed :
' Is that you, my sister ?'

The bear turned round and saw the wolverine, and
murmuring to herself, so low that nobody could hear,
' I never heard before that I had a brother,' got up and
ran quickly to a tree, up which she climbed. Now the
wolverine was very angry when he saw his dinner vanishing
in front of him, especially as he could not climb trees
like the bear, so he followed, and stood at the foot of the
tree, shrieking as loud as he could,
' Come down, sister ; our father has sent me to look for you !
You were lost when you were a little girl and went out picking berries,
and it was only the other day that we heard from a beaver
where you were.' At these words, the bear came a little
way down the tree, and the wolverine, seeing this,
went on :

' Are you not fond of berries ? I am ! And I know a
place where they grow so thick the ground is quite
hidden. Why, look for yourself ! That hillside is quite
red with them !'
' I can't see so far  answered the bear, now climbing
down altogether.' You must have wonderfully good
eyes ! I wish I had ; but my sight is very short.'
' So was mine till my father smashed a pailful of
cranberries, and rubbed my eyes with them,' replied the
wolverine. ' But if you like to go and gather some of the
berries I will do just as he did, and you will soon be able
to see as far as me.'

It took the bear a long while to gather the berries, for
she was slow about everything, and, besides, it made her
back ache to stoop. But at last she returned with a
sackful, and put them down beside the wolverine. ' That
is splendid, sister !' cried the wolverine. ' Now lie flat
on the ground with your head on this stone, while I
smash them.'
The bear, who was very tired, was only too glad to do
as she was bid, and stretched herself comfortably on the
grass.
' I am ready now,' said the wolverine after a bit ;'
just at first you will find that the berries make your eyes
smart, but you must be careful not to move, or the juice
will run out, and then it will have to be done all over
again.'
So the bear promised to lie very still ; but the moment
the cranberries touched her eyes she sprang up with a
roar.
' Oh, you mustn't mind a little pain,' said the wolverine,'
it will soon be over, and then you will see all sorts of
things you have never dreamt of.' The bear sank down
with a groan, and as her eyes were full of cranberry juice,
which completely blinded her, the wolverine took up a
sharp knife and stabbed her to the heart.

Then he took off the skin, and, stealing some fire from
a tent, which his sharp eyes had perceived hidden behind 
a rock, he set about roasting the bear bit by bit. He
thought the meat was the best he ever had tasted, and
when dinner was done he made up his mind to try that
same trick again, if ever he was hungry.
And very likely he did !

[Adapted from Bureau of Ethnology.']