The Pink Fairy Book | Page 3

She shrieked and threw herself backwards, and Gon,
who had been curled up on a stool at her feet, understood her terror,
and with one bound seized the snake by his neck. He gave him one bite
and one shake, and flung him on the ground, where he lay, never to
worry the princess any more. Then she took Gon in her arms, and
praised and caressed him, and saw that he had the nicest bits to eat, and
the softest mats to lie on; and he would have had nothing in the world
to wish for if only he could have seen Koma again.
Time passed on, and one morning Gon lay before the house door,
basking in the sun. He looked lazily at the world stretched out before
him, and saw in the distance a big ruffian of a cat teasing and
ill-treating quite a little one. He jumped up, full of rage, and chased
away the big cat, and then he turned to comfort the little one, when his
heart nearly burst with joy to find that it was Koma. At first Koma did
not know him again, he had grown so large and stately; but when it
dawned upon her who it was, her happiness knew no bounds. And they
rubbed their heads and their noses again and again, while their purring
might have been heard a mile off.
Paw in paw they appeared before the princess, and told her the story of
their life and its sorrows. The princess wept for sympathy, and

promised that they should never more be parted, but should live with
her to the end of their days. By-and-bye the princess herself got married,
and brought a prince to dwell in the palace in the park. And she told
him all about her two cats, and how brave Gon had been, and how he
had delivered her from her enemy the serpent.
And when the prince heard, he swore they should never leave them, but
should go with the princess wherever she went. So it all fell out as the
princess wished; and Gon and Koma had many children, and so had the
princess, and they all played together, and were friends to the end of
their lives.

How the Dragon Was Tricked From Griechtsche und Albanesische
Marchen, von J. G. von Hahn. (Leipzig: Engelmann. 1864.)

Once upon a time there lived a man who had two sons but they did not
get on at all well together, for the younger was much handsomer than
his elder brother who was very jealous of him. When they grew older,
things became worse and worse, and at last one day as they were
walking through a wood the elder youth seized hold of the other, tied
him to a tree, and went on his way hoping that the boy might starve to
death.
However, it happened that an old and humpbacked shepherd passed the
tree with his flock, and seeing the prisoner, he stopped and said to him,
'Tell me, my son why are you tied to that tree?'
'Because I was so crooked,' answered the young man; 'but it has quite
cured me, and now my back is as straight as can be.'
'I wish you would bind me to a tree,' exclaimed the shepherd, 'so that
my back would get straight.'
'With all the pleasure in life,' replied the youth. 'If you will loosen these
cords I will tie you up with them as firmly as I can.'
This was soon done, and then the young man drove off the sheep,
leaving their real shepherd to repent of his folly; and before he had
gone very far he met with a horse boy and a driver of oxen, and he
persuaded them to turn with him and to seek for adventures.
By these and many other tricks he soon became so celebrated that his
fame reached the king's ears, and his majesty was filled with curiosity
to see the man who had managed to outwit everybody. So he

commanded his guards to capture the young man and bring him before
him.
And when the young man stood before the king, the king spoke to him
and said, 'By your tricks and the pranks that you have played on other
people, you have, in the eye of the law, forfeited your life. But on one
condition I will spare you, and that is, if you will bring me the flying
horse that belongs to the great dragon. Fail in this, and you shall be
hewn in a thousand pieces.'
'If that is all,' said the youth, 'you shall soon have it.'
So he went out and made his way straight to the stable where the flying
horse was tethered. He stretched his