WHITE DUCK in 



very long time ago! If you were to range the whole 

 earth in search of the oldest man in it, and at last 

 discovered him sitting in his cabin, bent down like 

 a dead man, with his clawlike fingers clasped together 

 on his knees, his brown face covered with a hundred 

 wrinkles, his hair white, and his eyes turned white 

 too with blindness, and asked him of the tree, he 

 would say that it fell before his time, a long time 

 before, perhaps in his grandfather's or great-grand- 

 father's time, or even before then. And this is how 

 it fell — it is surely one of the saddest chapters in 

 the history of the world! 



It came to pass that an old and evil-tempered 

 woman died, and, going to the tree, in due time 

 reached the sky, and was happy to find herself at 

 last in that bright and beautiful place. She was very 

 hungry after her long journey and climb, and, making 

 inquiry of those she met, they told her very pleasantly 

 that the readiest way to procure food was to catch 

 some fish in one of the lakes close by. They also gave 

 her a rod and line and directed her to the nearest 

 lake. Away she went, pleased with herself and every- 

 thing, her mouth watering at the thought of those 

 green-and-blue and red-and-yellow little fishes which 

 were easy to catch and delicious to eat. It was a 

 small round lake of clear water, about a mile in 

 circumference, to which she had been directed, and 

 on approaching it she saw that a good number of 

 persons were there standing, rod in hand, on the 

 margin. One of the anglers, happening to turn his 

 head, caught sight of the old woman hurrying down 



