86 COSSACK FAIRY TALES.

won't go, [ am afraid.”—But then St. Michael said
to him again: “Fear not, but go! Fence thee
all about with thy boards, and take with thee a
basket of nuts. When she rushes at thee, scatter
thy nuts, and the nuts will go rolling all about the
church, and it will take her till cockerow to gather
them all up. But thou go on reading thy prayers,
nor look thou up, whatever may happen.” .

And he did so. He took his boards and the basket
of nuts, and went to the church at nightfall and read.
A little after midnight there was a rustling and an
uproar, and the whole church shook. Then came a
fumbling round about the coffin—* Bang, bang!” up
she started, and made straight for him. She leaped
and plunged, she very nearly got through the boards.
She hissed, like seething pitch, and her eyes glared
at him like coals of fire, but it was of no use. He
read on and on, and didn’t once look at her. Besides,
he scattered his nuts, and she went after them and
tried to pick them all up till cockerow. And at the
first “‘ Cock-a-doodle-doo !” she leaped into her coffin
again and pulled down the lid. In the morning the
people came to sweep away his bones, and lo! they
found him alive.

The next night he had to go again in the third
uncle’s stead. Then he sat down and cried and
wailed: “ Alas, alas! what shall I do? “Iwere better’