Year: 1878

The Longest Story on Record


The following will almost amuse any
one who will take the trouble and spare
the time to read it through:


There was once certain king, who,
IKE many eastern kings, was very fond
of hearing stories told. To this amuse-
was never satisfied. The exertions of his
courtiers were all in vain. He at last
made a proclamation that If any man
should tell him story that should last
forever he would certainly make him his
heir and give him the princess, his
daughter, in marriage, but if any one
should pretend he had such story and
should fail--that is If the story did come
to an end-he was to have his head cut
Off.


For such price as a beautiful princess
and Kingdom many candidates appear
ed and dreadful long stories suIne of
them told. Some of them lasted week,
some month, and some SIX months
Poor fellows, they all spun out as long as
they possibly could but all in vain. Soon.
er or later all came to an end, and, one
after another, the unlucky story-tellers
had their heads chopped off. AT last
came man who said that he had story
that would last forever, if his majesty
would give him TRAIL He warned him
OF his danger; they told him of how many
Others had tried and lost their heads, but
he said he was not afraid; and so he was
brought before the king. He was a man
of very composed and deliberate way
of speaking, and, after making necessary
preparations for his eating, drinking and
sleeping, he thus began:


"Oh, king, there was once king, who
was great tyrant, and desiring to in
crease his riches he seized upon the corn
in his kingdom, and put it into a large
granary, which was built on purpose, as
high AZ a mountain. This he did for sew.
eral years until the granary was quite full
to the top. He then stopped the doors
layers had, by accident, left a small hole
near the top of the granary, and there
came flight of locusts, and tried to gel
at the corn, but the hole was so small that
only one locust could pass through at a
time. So one locust went in and carried
off one grain of corn, and then another
locust went in and carried off another
grain of corn, and then another Locust
went in and carried off another grain OF
corn"


He had gone on thus from morning til
night, except when he was engaged al
his meals) for about month, when the
king began to be rather tired with his
locusts, and interrupted his story with:


swell, well, we have heard enough OF
the locusts, we will suppose they helped
themselves to all the corn they wanted
Tell us what happened afterwards"


To which the story teller answered de
liberately:


elf it please your majesty, it is i'm
possible to tell what happened after
wards before tell what happened
first"


And then he went on again: "AnC
then another loo usJ went in aud carried
off another grain of corn, and then an
other locust went In and carried Off AL
ether grain OF corn, and then another 10
Gust went IN and carried off another
grain of corn.'


The king listened with unconquer
able patience for six moaths more, when
he again interrupted him with:


"Oh friend! | am weary of your locust
How soon do you think they will have
done?"


To which the story teller made an.
swer:


"Ohl king, who can tell? At the time
to which my story has come. the locusts
havelcleared a small place, it may be a
cubit each way round the hole, and the
air is still dark with locusts on all sides
But let the king have patience, and no
doubt We shal have come to the end Of
them in time"


Thus encouraged, the king listened on
for another full year, the story teller
going on still as before.


"And another locust went and carried
Oft another grain corn, and then another
locust went In and carried another grail
of corn, and then another locust wen
in and carried off another grain of corr
and then another locust went in and car
ried off another grain of corn, and theI
another locust went in and carried of
another grain OF corn.'


AT last the poor king could stand it nc
longer and cried:


"Oh, man, that is enough! take my
daughter, take my kingdom, take any
thing, everything, only let me hear NO
more of the abomi nable locust"


And SO the story teller was married tc
the kings daughter, and nobody evel
expressed wish to hear the rest of tn,
story, for he said it was impossible tC
come to the other part of it till he haC
done with the locusts.