of being Czarina. I want to rule over all the ocean, to have dominion over every sea and all the fish.”
The old man hesitated to go to the fish with such a request.
“Be off!” said his wife, “or your head shall be cut off.”
The man went to the seashore and said—
“Little fish, little fish, come now to me,
Your tail in the water, your head out of sea!”
The fish did not come. The man waited, but it was not to be seen. Then he said the words a second time. The waves roared. A short while before it had been bright and calm, now dark clouds covered the sky, the wind howled, and the water seemed of an inky blackness.
At length the fish came.
“What do you want, old man?” it asked.
“My old wife,” answered he, “is not satisfied even now. She says she will be Czarina no longer, but will rule over all the waters and all the fish.”
The fish made no reply, but dived down and disappeared in the sea.
The man went back. What had become of the palace? He looked around, but could not see it. He rubbed his eyes in wonder. On the spot where the palace had stood was the old hut, and at the door stood the old woman in her old rags.
So they commenced to live again in their old style. The man often went a-fishing, but he never more caught the golden fish.
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