The Tucson citizen., 1902-09-04
THE MEADOW ORCHID
WHY THE RUSSIAN PEOPLE CALL IT
"THE CuCKOO'S TEARS"

Happfness and One RO9ult OF the
Fatal Feminine Tongue
One warm Sunday afternoon the vii
lare maidens assembled to bathe in the
river. They took off their kerchiefs and
their coronet headdresses, seated them
selves on the bank to cool off and be
gan to gossip One maiden alone sat
silent, Frosya, an orphan, poor, but
beautiful, with fair skin and eyes as
blue as the gentian, which the Rus
slams call ''the flight of the falcon" So
the other girls began to tease her.
"Have you no dearly beloved TREND
Frosinya? Who is he, where is he! Is
he handsome is he rich"
"Where should a poor girl get rich
and handsome young lover? Yonder
adder is my husband"
No sooner had she said this than all
the maidens cried, with one accord
THE adder!' and took to their heels.
And upon her kerchief, which Frosya
had thrown upon the grass, behold,
huge black adder lay coiled. She cried
out in fear. But the adder beat its tail
upon the ground and was transformed
into a wonderfully handsome young
man. There he stood before her, with
a golden cap upon his flowing curls. his
ewes flashing fire, and honeyed words
fell frOan his lips. And he said to her:
'"DiA you mean it when you declared
thae you were ready to marry the ad-
dCfw
She knew not what reply to make.
but gazed at him and thought to her.
self. "Whence came such wise and
handsome YOUTH" And he, divining
her thoughts. replied to them. II am no
common man, but the cZar OF the wa
ters, and my empire is close at hand in
q deep pool on golden sands"
And he read in her eyes that she con-
sented to go with him. Then he grasp
ed her with his powerful hand. and to.
gether they sank down into the deep
realm of the waters.
Great was Frosya's happiness. She
could not believe in it. He was SO
good, so wise; she had never seen such
people. and there is none such any
where as the cZar of the waters. But
.Frosya was foolish. Seven years did
she dwell with him in the deep pool il
his palace Of crystal, and the sever
years passed as one day, and there
need not have been any end to bel
bliss. A girl and boy had been borr
to them. Then. all at once, without any
cause, she became sad, longed for the
earth, to behold her native hamlet an(
her friends once more. So he let bel
20, with the children, for three days
after having exacted a promise tha
neither she nor the children, either by
word or by hint, should reveal th'
name Of her husband or where sh'
lived. And all this she promised. will
fearful oaths. Then her husband es
corted her to the dam. At the end 0
three days she was to come to the sam
spot and cry ''Cuckoo" thrice. where
upon he would swim at once to NEE
her.
She kept her oath, but her friend
eoaxed and questioned the children
The boy to all queries replied simply
"I don't know" But the girl told eN
erything. This was all the enyious goE
sips wanted. They ran and told all
their husbands and brothers. who in
mediately ran to the dam and uttere
the magic words And when the cza
appeared they beat him to death. Bt
before he died he contrived to say
Frosya: 81 have to thank thee, my dea
wife, that am now come to my deaf
through thee and my daughter. Henc
forth fly thou ever as gray cuckC
! and repeat thou ever my call. cuckoo
In sadness Of heart from early sprlI
until st. Peters day [St. Peters da
June 90 duly 12, o. S.jl, and from tn;
day forth may every bird. both gre
and small, beat thee and pursue the
And mayest thou, my daughter, my b
trayer. be turned into a nettle bus
and may that weed, the fiery. forev
burn thine eyes wheresoever thou ma
est be, that thou mayest weep foreve
r remembering thy fathers death. b
+ to my loyal son. who kept his father
@ command, | make this bequest: III
+ ne shall be the bird beloved whi'
n dwells and sings in gardens and am
shady groves for the joy of happy pc
n pie, for the consolation of those W
/. weep. the nightingale"
e And from that day forth the RuSsi
people have called the meadow orch
|. .the cuckoo's tears" 1t is also knoN
g as "the cuckoo's slippers. "l-lsabel
YenrooS IN New York Post
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