Children's Literature Part 52

The story of "King O'Toole and His Goose" is from Samuel Lover's _Stories and Legends of the Irish Peasantry_, as reprinted in slightly abridged form in William Butler Yeats's _Irish Fairy Tales_. The extreme form of the dialect is kept as in the original, since the humor is largely dependent on the language of the peasant who tells the story. It will serve as a good ill.u.s.tration for practice work for the amateur story-teller. Probably most teachers would find it necessary to "reduce" this dialect or to eliminate it altogether. Mr.

Jacobs, who includes this story in his _Celtic Fairy Tales_, reduces the dialect very materially, keeping just enough to remind one that it is Irish. He also says the final word as to the moral of the story: "This is a moral apologue on the benefits of keeping your word.

Yet it is told with such humor and vigor, that the moral glides insensibly into the heart."

KING O'TOOLE AND HIS GOOSE

"By Gor, I thought all the world, far and near, heerd o' King O'Toole--well, well, but the darkness of mankind is ontellible! Well, sir, you must know, as you didn't hear it afore, that there was a king, called King O'Toole, who was a fine ould king in the ould ancient times, long ago; and it was him that owned the churches in the early days. The king, you see, was the right sort; he was the rale boy, and loved sport as he loved his life, and huntin' in partic'lar; and from the risin' o'

the sun, up he got, and away he wint over the mountains beyant afther the deer; and the fine times them wor.

"Well, it was all mighty good, as long as the king had his health; but, you see, in coorse of time the king grew ould, by raison he was stiff in his limbs, and when he got sthriken in years, his heart failed him, and he was lost intirely for want o' divars.h.i.+n, bekase he couldn't go a huntin' no longer; and, by dad, the poor king was obleeged at last for to get a goose to divart him. Oh, you may laugh, if you like, but it's truth I'm tellin' you; and the way the goose divarted him was this-a-way: You see, the goose used for to swim across the lake, and go divin' for throut, and cotch fish on a Friday for the king, and flew every other day round about the lake, divartin' the poor king. All went on mighty well, antil, by dad, the goose got sthriken in years like her master, and couldn't divart him no longer, and then it was that the poor king was lost complate. The king was walkin' one mornin' by the edge of the lake, lamentin' his cruel fate, and thinkin' o' drownin' himself, that could get no divarshun in life, when all of a suddint, turnin'

round the corner beyant, who should he meet but a mighty dacent young man comin' up to him.

"'G.o.d save you,' says the king to the young man.

"'G.o.d save you kindly, King O'Toole,' says the young man. 'Thrue for you,' says the king. 'I am King O'Toole,' says he, 'prince and plennypennytinchery o' these parts,' says he; 'but how kem ye to know that?' says he. 'Oh, never mind,' says Saint Kavin.

"You see it was Saint Kavin, sure enough--the saint himself in disguise, and n.o.body else. 'Oh, never mind,' says he, 'I know more than that. May I make bowld to ax how is your goose, King O'Toole?' says he.

'Bluran-agers, how kem ye to know about my goose?' says the king. 'Oh, no matther; I was given to understand it,' says Saint Kavin. After some more talk the king says, 'What are you?' 'I'm an honest man,' says Saint Kavin. 'Well, honest man,' says the king, 'and how is it you make your money so aisy?' 'By makin' ould things as good as new,' says Saint Kavin. 'Is it a tinker you are?' says the king. 'No,' says the saint; 'I'm no tinker by thrade, King O'Toole; I've a betther thrade than a tinker,' says he--'what would you say,' says he, 'if I made your ould goose as good as new?'

"My dear, at the word o' makin' his goose as good as new, you'd think the poor ould king's eyes was ready to jump out iv his head. With that the king whistled, and down kem the poor goose, all as one as a hound, waddlin' up to the poor cripple, her masther, and as like him as two pays. The minute the saint clapt his eyes on the goose, 'I'll do the job for you,' says he, 'King O'Toole.' 'By _Jaminee_!' says King O'Toole, 'if you do, but I'll say you're the cleverest fellow in the sivin parishes.' 'Oh, by dad,' says Saint Kavin, 'you must say more nor that--my horn's not so soft all out,' says he, 'as to repair your ould goose for nothin'; what'll you gi' me if I do the job for you?--that's the chat,' says Saint Kavin. 'I'll give you whatever you ax,' says the king; 'isn't that fair?' 'Divil a fairer,' says the saint; 'that's the way to do business. Now,' says he, 'this is the bargain I'll make with you, King O'Toole: will you gi' me all the ground the goose flies over, the first offer, afther I make her as good as new?' 'I will,' says the king, 'You won't go back o' your word?' says Saint Kavin. 'Honor bright!' says King O'Toole, howldin' out his fist. 'Honor bright!' says Saint Kavin, back agin, 'it's a bargain. Come here!' says he to the poor ould goose--'come here, you unfort'nate ould cripple, and it's I that'll make you the sportin' bird.' With that, my dear, he took up the goose by the two wings--'Criss o' my cra.s.s and you,' says he, markin' her to grace with the blessed sign at the same minute--and throwin' her up in the air, 'whew,' says he, jist givin' her a blast to help her; and with that, my jewel, she tuk to her heels, flyin' like one o' the aigles themselves and cuttin' as many capers as a swallow before a shower of rain.

"Well, my dear, it was a beautiful sight to see the king standin' with his mouth open, lookin' at his poor ould goose flyin' as light as a lark, and betther nor ever she was: and when she lit at his fut, patter her an the head, and, '_Ma vourneen_,' says he, 'but you are the _darlint_ o' the world.' 'And what do you say to me,' says Saint Kavin, 'for makin' her the like?' 'By gor,' says the king, 'I say nothin' bates the art o' man, barrin' the bees.' 'And do you say no more nor that?'

says Saint Kavin. 'And that I'm behoulden to you,' says the king. 'But will you give me all the ground the goose flew over?' says Saint Kavin.

'I will,' says King O'Toole, 'and you're welkim to it,' says he, 'though it's the last acre I have to give.' 'But you'll keep your word thrue?'

says the saint. 'As thrue as the sun,' says the king. 'It's well for you, King O'Toole, that you said that word,' says he; 'for if you didn't say that word, _the devil receave the bit o' your goose id ever fly agin_.'

"Whin the king was as good as his word, Saint Kavin was _plazed_ with him, and thin it was that he made himself known to the king. 'And,' says he, 'King O'Toole, you're a dacent man, for I only kem here to _thry you_. You don't know me,' says he, 'bekase I'm disguised.' 'Musha!

thin,' says the king, 'who are you?' 'I'm Saint Kavin,' said the Saint, blessin' himself. 'Oh, queen iv heaven!' says the king makin' the sign o' the cra.s.s betune his eyes, and fallin' down on his knees before the saint; 'is it the great Saint Kavin,' says he, 'that I've been discoorsin' all this time without knowin' it,' says he, 'all as one as if he was a lump iv a _gosson_?--and so you're a saint?' says the king.

'I am,' says Saint Kavin. 'By gor, I thought I was only talking to a dacent boy,' says the king. 'Well, you know the differ now,' says the saint. 'I'm Saint Kavin,' says he, 'the greatest of all the saints.'

"And so the king had his goose as good as new, to divart him as long as he lived: and the saint supported him afther he kem into his property, as I tould you, until the day iv his death--and that was soon afther; for the poor goose thought he was ketchin' a throut one Friday; but, my jewel, it was a mistake he made--and instead of a throut, it was a thievin' horse-eel; and by gor, instead iv the goose killin' a throut for the king's supper,--by dad, the eel killed the king's goose--and small blame to him; but he didn't ate her, bekase he darn't ate what Saint Kavin had laid his blessed hands on."

SECTION IV

FAIRY STORIES--MODERN FANTASTIC TALES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Alden, Raymond Macdonald, _Why the Chimes Rang, and Other Stories_.

Andersen, Hans Christian, _Fairy Tales_.

Barrie, Sir James Matthew, _The Little White Bird_. [Peter Pan.]

Baum, L. Frank, _The Wizard of Oz_.

Benson, A. C., _David Blaize and the Blue Door_.

Beston, H. B., _The Firelight Fairy Book_.

Brown, Abbie Farwell, _The Lonesomest Doll_.

Browne, Frances, _Granny's Wonderful Chair_.

Carryl, Charles E., _Davy and the Goblin_.

"Carroll, Lewis," _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_.

"Carroll, Lewis," _Through the Looking-Gla.s.s and What Alice Found There_.

Chamisso, Adelbert von, _The Wonderful History of Peter Schlemihl_.

"Collodi, C.," _The Adventures of Pinocchio_.

c.o.x, Palmer, _The Brownies: Their Book_.

Craik, Dinah Mulock, _Adventures of a Brownie_.

Craik, Dinah Mulock, _The Little Lame Prince and His Traveling-Cloak_.

Crothers, Samuel McChord, _Miss m.u.f.fet's Christmas Party_.

d.i.c.kens, Charles, _A Christmas Carol_.

Ewald, Carl, _Two-Legs, and Other Stories_.

Grahame, Kenneth, _The Wind in the Willows_.

Harris, Joel Chandler, _Nights with Uncle Remus_.

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, "The Snow Image," "Little Daffydowndilly,"

"A Rill from the Town Pump."

Ingelow, Jean, _Mopsa the Fairy_.

Ingelow, Jean, _Stories Told to a Child_. 2 vols.

Jordan, David Starr, _The Book of Knight and Barbara_.

Lagerlof, Selma, _The Wonderful Adventures of Nils_.