The
Five Chinese Brothers
Once upon a time there were five brothers
and they all looked exactly alike. They lived with their mother in a little
house not far from the sea.
The first brother could swallow the
sea. The second brother had an iron neck. The third brother could
stretch and stretch and stretch his legs. The fourth brother could not be
burned. The fifth brother could hold his breath forever.
Every morning the first brother would
go fishing, and whatever the weather, he would come back to the village with
beautiful and rare fish which he had caught and could sell at the market for a
very good price.
One day, as he was leaving the market
place, a little boy stopped him and asked him if he could go fishing with him.
“No, it could not be done,” said the
first brother.
But the little boy begged and begged
and finally the first brother gave in. “Under one condition,” said he. “You must
do as I say as soon as I say it.”
“Yes, yes,” the little boy promised.
Early the next morning, the first brother
and the little boy went down to the beach. “Remember,” said the first brother,
“you must do as I say as soon as I say it. When I make a sign for you to
come back, you must come at once.”
“Yes, yes,” the little boy promised.
Then the first brother swallowed the
sea. And all the fish were left high and dry at the bottom of the
sea. And all the treasures of the sea lay uncovered.
The little boy was
delighted. He ran here and there stuffing his pockets with strange
pebbles, wonderful shells, and fantastic algae.
Near the shore the first brother
gathered some fish while he kept holding the sea in his mouth. Presently
he grew tired. It is very hard to hold the sea. So he made a sign
with his hand for the little boy to come back. The little boy saw him but
paid no attention.
The first brother made great
movements with his arms that meant “Come back!” But did the little boy
care? Not a bit and he ran further away.
Then the first brother felt the sea
swelling inside him and he made desperate gestures to call the little boy back. But
the little boy made faces at him and fled as fast as he could.
The first brother held the sea until
he thought he was going to burst. All of a sudden the sea forced its way
out of his mouth, went back to its bed . . . and the little boy disappeared.
When the first brother returned to
the village alone, he was arrested and put in prison. Everyone thought he had
killed the little boy. He was put on trial, and they decided to cut off his
head. On the morning of the execution he said to the judge: “Your Honor,
will you allow me to go and bid my mother good-bye?”
“It is only fair,” said the judge.
So the first brother went home . . .
and the second brother came back in his place. All the people were
assembled on the village square to witness the execution. The executioner
took his sword and struck a mighty blow. But the second brother got up and
smiled. He was the one with the iron neck and they simply could not cut
his head off.
Everybody was angry and they decided
that he should be drowned. On the morning of the execution, the second brother
said to the judge: “Your Honor, will you allow me to go and bid my mother
good-bye?”
“It is only fair,” said the judge.
So the second brother went home . .
. and the third brother came back in his place. He was pushed on a boat
which made for the open sea. When they were far out on the ocean, the
third brother was thrown overboard. But he began to stretch and stretch
and stretch his legs, way down to the bottom of the sea, and all the time his
smiling face was bobbing up and down on the crest of the waves. He simply
could not be drowned.
Everybody was very angry, and they
all decided that he should be burned. On the morning of the execution, the
third brother said to the judge: “Your Honor, will you allow me to go and bid
my mother good-bye?”
“It is only fair,” said the judge.
So the third brother went home . . .
and the fourth brother came back in his place. He was tied up to a
stake. Fire was set to it and all the people stood around watching it. In
the middle of the flames they heard him say: “This is quite pleasant.”
“Bring some more wood,” the people
cried. The fire roared higher.
“Now it is quite comfortable,” said
the fourth brother, for he was the one who could not be burned. Everybody
was getting more and more angry every minute and they all decided to smother
him. On the morning of the execution, the fourth brother said to the
judge: “Your Honor, will you allow me to go and bid my mother good-bye?”
“It is only fair,” said the judge.
So the fourth brother went home . .
. and the fifth brother came back in his place. A large brick oven had
been built on the village square and it had been all stuffed with whipped
cream. The fifth brother was pushed into the oven, right in the middle of
the cream, the door was shut tight, and everybody sat around and waited.
They were not going to be tricked
again! So they stayed there all night and even a little after dawn, just
to make sure. Then they opened the door and pulled him out. And he
shook himself and said, “My! That was a good sleep!”
Everybody stared open-mouthed and
round-eyed. But the judge stepped forward and said, “We have tried to get
rid of you in every possible way and somehow it cannot be done. It must be
that you are innocent.”
“Yes, yes,” shouted all the
people. So they let him go and he went home.
And the five brothers and their
mother all lived together happily for many years.
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