Extra Credit Reading: Russian Fairy Tales

The Miser

from Russian Fairy Tales by W. R. S. Ralston

This story is about a rich man, Marko, who is a cheapskate and a moujik who just wants Marko to pay him back.

The story starts off with Marko the Rich walking by a beggar on the street. The beggar asks him for money but Marko just keeps on walking. He sees a poor moujik behind him give the beggar a copeck. 

- moujik- a Russian peasant

- copeck- a Russian money unit 

Marko asks the moujik to give him a copeck to give to the beggar because he felt ashamed. He says "he didn't have any change" even though he's a rich man. The Moujik gives him one and asks when he should come to get the money. Marko says to come by the next day.

When the Moujik goes back the next day, Marko tells him to come back the next day because "he really doesn't have change today." He comes back again the next day and Marko says the same thing and tells him to come again at the end of the fortnight.

When the Moujik comes back again, Marko sees him from the window and tells his wife to help him trick the moujik. He pretends to be dead and tells his wife to tell the moujik that too. The moujik knows he's not really dead so he says that he wants to perform the last service for Marko.

The moujik starts off by giving the "dead body" a scalding, hot water wash. Then he tells the wife to get a coffin for Marko. They take it to the church and the moujik starts reading psalms.

All of a sudden a window opened and robbers came in. The moujik hid himself behind the altar while the robbers came in and started dividing up all the riches. The only thing that was left was a sword which all the robbers fight for. 

At this point, the Moujik pops out and says whoever chops off the dead man's head, gets the sword. This is when Marko jumped up and he scared all the robbers off. He and the moujik end up splitting the riches. The moujik still asks for the copeck and Marko say "you can surely see I don't have any change."

So in the end, Marko the Rich never paid the moujik back. 

Copeck. Source: 123rf.