THERE was an old man who had three sons and one daughter. When the time came for the old man to die, he summoned all his three sons, and made them promise under oath to give their sister to the first who came to ask for her, whoever he might be. When some time had elapsed after the father's death, an old man arrived in a two-wheeler, and asked for the maiden in marriage. The two elder brothers would not give her to him immediately, because he was old and poor; but the youngest insisted that they should give her to him, reminding them of the oath they had sworn to their father. And so they gave her in marriage to the old man, and the old man took her away to his home. After some time, the elder brother went on a visit to his sister. When he got there, it was a large house, and couldn't be better. The sister was greatly delighted when she saw her brother, and when he inquired of her how she was getting on, she replied: 'Excellently; it can't be better.' When the brother arrived at his sister's, the old man was not at home, but soon afterwards arrived, and was very pleased when he saw his wife's brother, and said to him: 'We will feast and be merry; but first you shall go on my horse to fetch him some grass, but you must cut it where the horse paws with his foot, and not where you please.' His wife's
brother said to him: 'Good! brother-in-law, I will.' He then mounted the horse and went off. As on he went, he came to a silver bridge. When he espied the bridge and saw that it was all of silver, he became covetous, dismounted, and pulled off a silver plate, saying: 'I may benefit myself.' Afterwards he cut grass where he pleased, without waiting till the horse pawed with his foot, mounted the horse again, and returned back. On arriving at the house, he put the horse in the stable, placed the grass before him, and went off into the house. When he arrived in the house, the old man asked him whether he had satisfied the horse, and whether the horse was eating the grass. He replied, 'Yes,' and that the horse was eating. The old man said: 'It is good that I also look.' He then went into the stable. When he got there, the horse had not touched it. The old man understood that the grass had not been cut where he had told him; he therefore at once sent off his brother-in-law supperless, to go back whence he had come. On reaching home, he didn't tell his brothers how he had fared at his brother-in-law's, but said to the middle brother: 'Our brother-in-law salutes you, and wishes you to go to be his guest.' After some time, the middle brother went on a visit to his sister; but he, too, fared even as the first one. His sister's husband sent him, too, for grass, and when he got to the silver bridge, he, too, became covetous, like the first, pulled off a silver plate, and did not cut the grass as his brother-in-law told him, but where he thought fit. When he came back to his brother-in-law's house, his brother-in-law caught him, too, out in a lie, and sent him home supperless, like the first one. When he got home, he told nobody how he had fared at his brother-in-law's, but said to the youngest brother: 'Our brother-in-law salutes you, and wishes you to go to visit him.'
After some time, the youngest brother, too, went off.
attain to it.' After this they enjoyed each other's society for many days. Finally, the wife's brother declared that he must go home, and his sister's husband presented him with a large gift, and told him that he recognised him immediately for an honourable man, because he had insisted that his father's directions, which he had sworn to observe, should be carried out, and that he would be prosperous, and his two brothers unprosperous.
N.B.--There are two words for 'brother-in-law' in Servian: shura, the wife's brother, and zet, the sister's husband. This makes the tale read better in Servian than in English.