Book of Nature Myths (Version 2) — The Lantern and the Fan

THE LANTERN AND THE FAN.

In a Japanese village there once lived a man who had two sons.

When the sons were grown up, each brought home a wife from another village a long distance away.

The father was greatly pleased with his two daughters-in-law, and for many months they all lived very happily together.

At last the two young wives asked to go home to visit their friends.

Among the Japanese the sons and the sons' wives must always obey the father, so the two wives said, "Father-in-law, it is a long, long time since we have seen our friends.

May we go to our old home and visit them?"

The father-in-law answered, "No." After many months they asked again, and again he answered, "No." Once more they asked.

The father-in-law thought, "They care nothing for me, or they would not wish to leave me, but I have a plan, and I can soon know whether they love their father-in-law or not."

Then he said to the older of the two wives, "You may go if you wish, but you must never come back unless you bring me fire wrapped in paper."

To the younger he said, "You may go if you wish, but you must never come back unless you bring me wind wrapped in paper."

The father-in-law thought, "Now I shall find out.

If they care for me, they will search the country through till they find paper that will hold fire and wind."

The two young wives were so glad to visit their old friends that for almost a month they forgot all about the gifts that they were to carry to their father-in-law.

At last, when it was time to go home, they were greatly troubled about what they must carry with them, and they asked a wise man where to find the strange things.

"Paper that will hold fire and wind!"

he cried.

"There is no such paper in Japan."

The two women asked one wise man after another, and every one declared, "There is no such paper in Japan."

What should they do?

They feared they would never see their home again.

They were so sad that they left their friends and wandered a long distance into the forest.

Great tears fell from their eyes.

"I do not let people cry in my woods," said a voice.

"My trees do not grow well in salt water."

The poor wives were so sorrowful that they forgot to be afraid, and the older one said, "Can we help crying?

Unless I can carry to my father-in-law fire wrapped in paper, I can never go home."

"And I," wailed the younger, "unless I can carry wind wrapped in paper, I can never go home.

None of the wise men ever heard of such things.

What shall we do?"

"It is easy enough to wrap fire in paper," answered the voice.

"Here is a piece of paper.

Now watch."

They watched, and the strangest thing in all the world happened right before their eyes.

There was no one to be seen, but a piece of paper appeared on the ground and folded itself into a Japanese lantern.

"Now put a candle inside," said the voice, "and you have paper holding fire.

What more could you ask?"

Then the older woman was happy, but the younger was still sad.

She saw now that fire could be carried in paper, but surely no one could carry wind.

"O dear voice," she cried, "can any one carry wind in paper?"

"That is much easier than to carry fire," replied the voice, "for wind does not burn holes.

Watch."

They watched eagerly.

Another piece of paper came all by itself and lay on the ground between them.

There was a picture on it of a tree covered with white blossoms.

Two women stood under the tree, gathering the blossoms.

"The two women are yourselves," said the voice, "and the blossoms are the gifts that the father-in-law will give you when you go home."

"But I cannot go home," the younger wailed, "for I cannot carry wind wrapped in paper."

"Here is the paper, and there is always plenty of wind.

Why not take them?"

"Indeed, I do not know how," the younger woman answered sorrowfully.

"This way, of course," said the voice.

Some long, light twigs flew to the paper.

It folded itself, over, under, together.

It opened and closed, and it waved itself before the tearful face of the younger woman.

"Does not the wind come to your face?"

asked the voice, "and is it not the fan that has brought it?

The lantern carries fire wrapped in paper, and the fan carries wind wrapped in paper."

Then, indeed, the two young women were happy, and when they came to the home of their father-in-law, he was as glad as they.

He gave them beautiful gifts of gold and silver, and he said, "No one ever had such marvels before as the lantern and the fan, but in my home there are two more precious things than these, and they are my two dear daughters."

VOCABULARY OF THE BOOK OF NATURE MYTHS.

NOTE.

--This vocabulary is supplementary to that of THE HIAWATHA PRIMER.

Nouns and verbs which are inflected regularly are entered under but one form.

_Pages 1-4_ first humming-bird ago know flames last people _Pages 4-7_ again fled _Pages 7-9_ grew _Pages 10-12_ butterflies stones some would men could beauty life _Pages 13-15_ woodpecker man cake put bake large small _Pages 15-19_ magician fever breath shot fight ever wound head crest another blood _Pages 19-23_ serpent hissed cat shut quick always fall _Pages 23-28_ swallow tail forked animals year meet mosquito whose tore tongue _Pages 28-31_ hares snowflakes feet firebrand _Pages 31-34_ magpie time home warm brought merrily sorry eggs busy taking care well _Pages 34-36_ raven thief happened wood-worm only himself pieces _Pages 36-40_ more gone get let any wolf pond near bat rain quickly _Pages 40, 41_ catch caught tried curled throw _Pages 41, 42_ fast hand soon _Pages 43-46_ quail snipe never crept carrying pulled bill legs mole _Pages 47-49_ sheds grandfather marsh drink drank burst done off _Pages 50-52_ dove manito brave crying Hoots too known most _Pages 52-56_ parrot repeats truth ox owner yes villagers punish next think jar even storm thunder mocking-bird replied _Pages 56-59_ cunning baby voices owned own mock _Pages 60-64_ fox sheep cows fields growl should Mr. eaten cream _Pages 64-67_ girl whom treated sister happy please covered really _Pages 68-70_ troubles lies remember dies lip split _Pages 70-72_ peetweet flies eagerly lakes hollows thirsty _Pages 72-75_ short fish such easy ice frozen hole worse slowly angrily wish _Pages 76-78_ wren king choose which wise than eagle wisest _Pages 79-82_ often does wicked strange knife sharpen harm _Pages 83-86_ grasshopper country Tithonus goddess Aurora begged speak roamed fairest immortal _Pages 86-89_ oriole power ruler master yield clouds lightning may hornet _Pages 89-93_ peacock Juno queen world played tricks Argus hundred Mercury belonged _Pages 93-95_ bees tribes while honey _Pages 96-98_ rich poor sowed ground seed mine _Pages 98-102_ ants full almost house sense smell pearl lost dire named bag box bagged _Pages 103-106_ face after top gaze side far-away _Pages 107-110_ diamonds chief enemies stolen search mourned wife Moneta mother tears indeed _Pages 111-114_ Runoia shyly true sweet kinds harp touched strings wailing _Pages 114-117_ emeralds vase precious air India roll waves deepest _Pages 118-122_ flown berries broken might spring willow spruce juniper _Pages 122-125_ aspen guides swarm reason despise both anywhere places _Pages 125-128_ heather plants contented violet fragrance daisy chose _Pages 128-132_ flax sight hall sparkling gift spin weave linen Holda _Pages 133-135_ cranberries meadow cranberry woods hominy _Pages 135-138_ salt Frothi millstones grind gate rest weary ship else bottom _Pages 138-141_ crane hold bitterly witch obey surely taken _Pages 142-145_ Turtle fierce dare ready sure shields breast arms just declared _Pages 145-150_ crocodile wide mouth kingdom calm swim suddenly dragged open anything carried sword able _Pages 150-154_ Japan picture changing dragon island mean used tell moment _Pages 155-159_ pass perhaps brooks better followed course hurt left enough felt pleasant quiet playmates forgotten complained _Pages 160-164_ cousins quarreled less hard ought mount hunger weak pretty daughter _Pages 165-168_ dream radiant raised peaks rough unkind stay spread message dropped _Pages 169-172_ idea rarely lynx twice wolverine chanced realized fingers arched end nose boo-hoo _Pages 172-175_ otter badger summit climb reach floor _Pages 175-179_ snowdrop deeds muttered counted outside interrupted rumors whether tales gravely turn shake appear _Pages 179-184_ tiny neither grove invisible discovered became blow fell deep try fallen _Pages 184-188_ delightful imagined corner luxuries arrange promised agreed charming suppose stay invite invitation bring _Pages 188-193_ monkey plan shook rather paws something part behave toward fruit welcome hungry _Pages 193-197_ hill Jack Jill plenty pail especially game spilled tumbling crown _Pages 197-200_ gather sticks to-morrow Sunday dinner burn sternly cook to-day Monday _Pages 200-204_ front window twins kissed tired way hour frightened grown ourselves _Pages 204-209_ fan lantern distance law months wives since visit unless wrapped paper folded under End of Project Gutenberg's The Book of Nature Myths, by Florence Holbrook *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOOK OF NATURE MYTHS *** Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.

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