The Nuisances

At the edge of a settlement, right by the steppe, lived two brothers: one rich and one poor. One day, the poor brother came to the rich one and sat down at his table. But the rich brother drove him away.

"Get out," he said, "away from the table. You'd be better off going to the threshing floor and scaring off the rooks."

So the poor brother went and started shooing them away. The rooks flew off, but one kite kept swooping down and landing again. The poor man grew tired of chasing it and began to curse it. Then the kite spoke:

"You won't find happiness or fortune in this settlement. You'd do better to go to another one."

The poor man returned home, gathered his children and wife, took what little clothing and belongings they had, and set off for another settlement, slinging a water jug over his shoulder. As they walked along the road, some mischievous spirits (they were like bubbles on water or something like that) latched onto the man and said:

"Where are you taking us? We won't leave you, for you are ours."

Soon, the children grew thirsty, and the man turned toward the river. He filled the jug with water, then stuffed the mischievous spirits inside, corked it, and buried it by the riverbank along with the water.

They continued on their way. After walking for some time, they saw a small settlement, and on its edge stood an empty hut—its inhabitants had died of hunger. They decided to settle there. One day, as they sat in the hut, they heard someone shouting from the attic: "Lower me! Lower me!" The man went out into the hallway, took a rope, and climbed up to the attic. There, he saw a little goat with horns (it was actually a devil, may it not be mentioned in the house). The man tied the goat's horns with the rope and began to lower it gently. But as soon as he reached the stairs, coins began pouring into the hallway. The man climbed down and started collecting them, filling two whole jugs.

The man sent word through others to his brother, inviting him to come live with him. When the brother heard this, he thought:

"He must have nothing to eat if he's calling me." He ordered some loaves of bread to be baked and set off. Along the way, he heard that his brother had become rich, and he felt sorry to bring the bread. So he dug a hole in the clay and buried the loaves. When he arrived, his brother showed him a chest full of money, and then another. Envy consumed the rich brother. Then the poor brother said:

"I have more money buried in a jug by the river. If you want, you can take it."

The rich brother didn't even want to stay as a guest. He rushed to the river to get the jug. But as soon as he uncorked it, the mischievous spirits leaped out and latched onto him.

"You are ours, ours!" they said.

When he returned home, he found that all his wealth had burned to ashes, and where his house once stood, there was only a pile of ashes. He ended up living in a dugout with the mischievous spirits, where his poor brother had once lived.

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The Nuisances

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