There were brother and sister - Vasya and Katya; and they had a cat. In the spring the cat disappeared. The children looked for her everywhere, but could not find her. One day they were playing near the barn and heard something meowing in thin voices overhead. Vasya climbed the ladder under the roof of the barn. And Katya stood below and kept asking:

- Did you find it? Did you find it?

But Vasya did not answer her. Finally Vasya shouted to her:

- Found it! Our cat... And she has kittens; so wonderful; come here quickly.

Katya ran home, took out milk and brought it to the cat.

There were five kittens. When they grew a little and began to crawl out from under the corner where they had hatched, the children chose one kitten, gray with white paws, and brought it into the house. The mother gave away all the other kittens, but left this one to the children. The children fed him, played with him and put him to bed with them.

One day the children went to play on the road and took a kitten with them.

The wind moved the straw along the road, and the kitten played with the straw, and the children rejoiced at him. Then they found sorrel near the road, went to collect it and forgot about the kitten. Suddenly they heard someone shouting loudly: “Back, back!” - and they saw that the hunter was galloping, and in front of him two dogs saw a kitten and wanted to grab it. And the kitten, stupid, instead of running, sat down to the ground, hunched its back and looked at the dogs.

Katya was scared of the dogs, screamed and ran away from them. And Vasya, as best he could, ran towards the kitten and at the same time as the dogs ran up to it. The dogs wanted to grab the kitten, but Vasya fell with his stomach on the kitten and blocked it from the dogs.

The hunter galloped up and drove the dogs away; and Vasya brought the kitten home and never took it with him to the field again.

How my aunt talked about how she learned to sew

When I was six years old, I asked my mother to let me sew.

She said:

“You’re still young, you’ll only prick your fingers.”

And I kept pestering. Mother took a red piece of paper from the chest and gave it to me; then she threaded a red thread into the needle and showed me how to hold it. I began to sew, but I couldn’t make even stitches: one stitch came out large, and the other hit the very edge and broke through. Then I pricked my finger and tried not to cry, but my mother asked me:

- What you?

I couldn’t help but cry. Then my mother told me to go play.

When I went to bed, I kept imagining stitches; I kept thinking about how I could quickly learn to sew, and it seemed so difficult to me that I would never learn.

And now I’ve grown up and don’t remember how I learned to sew; and when I teach my girl to sew, I’m surprised how she can’t hold a needle.

Girl and mushrooms

Two girls were walking home with mushrooms.

They had to cross the railway.

They thought that car far away, we climbed down the embankment and walked across the rails.

Suddenly a car made noise. The older girl ran back, and the younger girl ran across the road.

The older girl shouted to her sister:

- Don't go back!

But the car was so close and made such a loud noise that the smaller girl did not hear; she thought that she was being told to run back. She ran back across the rails, tripped, dropped the mushrooms and began to pick them up.

The car was already close, and the driver whistled as hard as he could.

The older girl shouted:

- Throw the mushrooms!

And the little girl thought that she was being told to pick mushrooms, and crawled along the road.

The driver could not hold the cars. She whistled as hard as she could and ran into the girl.

The older girl screamed and cried. All the passengers looked from the windows of the cars, and the conductor ran to the end of the train to see what had happened to the girl.

When the train passed, everyone saw that the girl was lying head down between the rails and not moving.

Then, when the train had already moved far, the girl raised her head, jumped on her knees, picked mushrooms and ran to her sister.

How the boy talked about how he was not taken to the city

The priest was getting ready for the city, and I told him:

- Dad, take me with you.

And he says:

- You'll freeze there; where are you...

I turned around, cried and went into the closet. I cried and cried and fell asleep.

And I saw in a dream that there was a small path from our village to the chapel, and I saw that my father was walking along this path. I caught up with him, and we went together to the city. I walk and see a stove burning ahead. I say: “Dad, is this a city?” And he says: “He’s the one.” Then we reached the stove, and I saw that they were baking rolls there. I say: “Buy me a roll.” He bought it and gave it to me.

Then I woke up, got up, put on my shoes, took my mittens and went outside. Guys are riding on the street ice rinks and on a sled. I began to ride with them and rode until I was cold.

As soon as I returned and climbed onto the stove, I heard that my dad had returned from the city. I was delighted, jumped up and said:

- Dad, did you buy me a roll?

He says:

“I bought it,” and gave me a roll.

I jumped from the stove onto the bench and began to dance with joy.

It was Seryozha’s birthday, and they gave him many different gifts: tops, horses, and pictures. But the most valuable gift of all was Uncle Seryozha’s gift of a net to catch birds. The mesh is made in such a way that a board is attached to the frame, and the mesh is folded back. Place the seed on a board and place it in the yard. A bird will fly in, sit on the board, the board will turn up, and the net will slam shut on its own. Seryozha was delighted and ran to his mother to show the net.

Mother says:

- Not a good toy. What do you need birds for? Why are you going to torture them?

- I'll put them in cages. They will sing and I will feed them.

Seryozha took out a seed, sprinkled it on a board and placed the net in the garden. And still he stood there, waiting for the birds to fly. But the birds were afraid of him and did not fly to the net. Seryozha went to lunch and left the net. I looked after lunch, the net had slammed shut and a bird was fluttering under the net. Seryozha was delighted, caught the bird and took it home.

- Mother! Look, I caught a bird, it’s probably a nightingale!.. And how his heart beats!

Mother said:

- This is a siskin. Look, don’t torment him, but rather let him go.

- No, I will feed and water him.

Seryozha put the siskin in a cage and for two days he poured seed into it, and put water in it, and cleaned the cage. On the third day he forgot about the siskin and did not change its water. His mother says to him:

- You see, you forgot about your bird, it’s better to let it go.

- No, I won’t forget, I’ll put some water on and clean the cage.

Seryozha put his hand into the cage and began to clean it, but the little siskin got scared and hit the cage. Seryozha cleaned the cage and went to get water. His mother saw that he forgot to close the cage and shouted to him:

- Seryozha, close the cage, otherwise your bird will fly out and kill itself!

Before she had time to speak, the little siskin found the door, was delighted, spread its wings and flew through the room to the window. Yes, I didn’t see the glass, I hit the glass and fell on the windowsill.

Seryozha came running, took the bird, and carried it into the cage. Siskin was still alive; but lay on his chest, his wings spread, and breathing heavily. Seryozha looked and looked and began to cry.

- Mother! What should I do now?

“You can’t do anything now.”

Seryozha did not leave the cage all day and kept looking at the little siskin, and the little siskin still lay on his chest and breathed heavily and rapidly. When Seryozha went to bed, the little siskin was still alive. Seryozha could not fall asleep for a long time. Every time he closed his eyes, he imagined the little siskin, how it lay and breathed. In the morning, when Seryozha approached the cage, he saw that the siskin was already lying on its back, curled its paws and stiffened.

Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy devoted a lot of attention and time to the development of children's education. He founded a school for peasant children in Yasnaya Polyana. Classes at school were held in a free format. Lev Nikolaevich talked a lot about the world around him, did physical exercises with the children and taught spelling. In the summer, the writer conducted excursions through the forest, and in the winter he went sledding with his students.

At that time there were few books for children, and then Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy compiled his “ABC”. It began with the alphabet, followed by proverbs and sayings, various exercises for connecting syllables and practicing pronunciation. And the second part contained short moral stories, which we enjoy reading with children to this day.

All the stories, despite the fact that they are very short, carry great meaning and teach children kindness, compassion and develop sensitivity.

Jackdaw and jug

Galka wanted to drink. There was a jug of water in the yard, and the jug only had water at the bottom.
Jackdaw was out of reach.
She began throwing pebbles into the jug and added so many that the water became higher and could be drunk.

Bug

Bug carried a bone across the bridge. Look, her shadow is in the water. It occurred to the Bug that there was not a shadow in the water, but a Bug and a bone. She let her bone go and take it. She didn’t take that one, but hers sank to the bottom.

Wolf and goat

The wolf sees that a goat is grazing on a stone mountain and he cannot get close to it; he says to her: “You should go down: here the place is more level, and the grass is much sweeter for you to feed.”
And the Goat says: “That’s not why you, wolf, are calling me down: you’re not worrying about mine, but about your own food.”

Jackdaw and pigeons

The jackdaw saw that the pigeons were well fed, turned white and flew into the dovecote. The pigeons thought at first that she was the same pigeon, and they let her go. But the jackdaw forgot and screamed like a jackdaw. Then the pigeons began to peck at her and drove her away. The jackdaw flew back to her people, but the jackdaws were afraid of her because she was white, and they also drove away.

Old man and apple trees

The old man was planting apple trees. They told him: “Why do you need apple trees? It will take a long time to wait for fruit from these apple trees, and you will not eat any apples from them.” The old man said: “I won’t eat, others will eat, they will thank me.”

Ant and dove

(Fable)

The ant went down to the stream: he wanted to drink. The wave washed over him and almost drowned him. The dove carried a branch; She saw the ant drowning, and threw it a branch into the stream. The ant sat on a branch and escaped. Then the hunter laid a net on the dove and wanted to slam it. The ant crawled up to the hunter and bit him on the leg; the hunter gasped and dropped his net. The dove fluttered and flew away.

Wolf and crane

The wolf choked on a bone and could not breathe out. He called the crane and said:

Come on, you crane, you have a long neck, stick your head down my throat and pull out the bone: I will reward you.

The crane stuck his head in, pulled out a bone and said:

Give me a reward.

The wolf gritted his teeth and said:

Or is it not enough reward for you that I didn’t bite your head off when it was in my teeth?

Fisherman and fish

The fisherman caught a fish. The fish says:

“Fisherman, let me into the water; you see, I’m petty: I won’t be of much use to you. If you let me grow up, then if you catch me, it will be of more benefit to you.”

The fisherman says:

“He is a fool who expects great benefits and lets little benefit slip away.”

Thin threads

(Fable)

One man ordered thin threads from a spinner. The spinner spun thin threads, but the man said: “The threads are not good, I need the thinnest threads.” The spinner said: “If these are not fine for you, then here are others for you,” and she pointed to the empty space. He said he didn't see. The spinner said: “That’s why you don’t see that you are very thin; I can’t see it myself.”

The fool was delighted and ordered himself more of these threads, and paid money for these.

Squirrel and wolf

The squirrel jumped from branch to branch and fell straight onto the sleepy wolf. The wolf jumped up and wanted to eat her. The squirrel began to ask:

- Let me go.

Wolf said:

- Okay, I’ll let you in, just tell me why you squirrels are so cheerful. I’m always bored, but I look at you, you’re up there all playing and jumping.

Belka said:

“Let me go up the tree first, and from there I’ll tell you, otherwise I’m afraid of you.”

The wolf let go, and the squirrel went up a tree and from there said:

“You’re bored because you’re angry.” Anger burns your heart. And we are cheerful because we are kind and do no harm to anyone.

Old grandfather and grandson

(Fable)
Grandfather became very old. His legs did not walk, his eyes did not see, his ears did not hear, he had no teeth. And when he ate, it flowed backwards from his mouth. His son and daughter-in-law stopped sitting him at the table and let him dine at the stove. They brought him lunch in a cup. He wanted to move it, but he dropped it and broke it. The daughter-in-law began to scold the old man for ruining everything in the house and breaking cups, and said that now she would give him dinner in a basin. The old man just sighed and said nothing. One day a husband and wife are sitting at home and watching - their son is playing on the floor with planks - he is working on something.

The father asked: “What are you doing this, Misha?” And Misha says: “It’s me, father, who’s making the basin. When you and your mother are too old to feed you from this tub.”

The husband and wife looked at each other and began to cry. They felt ashamed that they had offended the old man so much; and from then on they began to sit him at the table and look after him.

Lion and mouse

The lion was sleeping. The mouse ran over his body. He woke up and caught her. The mouse began to ask him to let her in; She said:

- If you let me in, I’ll do you good.

The lion laughed that the mouse promised to do good to him, and let it go.

Then the hunters caught the lion and tied it to a tree with a rope. The mouse heard the lion's roar, came running, chewed the rope and said:

“You remember, you laughed, you didn’t think that I could do you any good, but now you see, sometimes good comes from a mouse.”

Sparrow and swallows

Once I stood in the yard and looked at a nest of swallows under the roof. Both swallows flew away in front of me, and the nest was left empty.

While they were away, a sparrow flew from the roof, jumped onto the nest, looked around, flapped its wings and darted into the nest; then he stuck his head out and chirped.

Soon after that, a swallow flew to the nest. She poked her head into the nest, but as soon as she saw the guest, she squeaked, beat her wings in place and flew away.

Sparrow sat and chirped.

Suddenly a herd of swallows flew in: all the swallows flew up to the nest - as if to look at the sparrow, and flew away again. The sparrow was not shy, he turned his head and chirped. The swallows again flew up to the nest, did something, and flew away again.

It was not for nothing that the swallows flew up: they each brought dirt in their beaks and little by little covered the hole in the nest. Again the swallows flew away and came again, and covered the nest more and more, and the hole became tighter and tighter.

At first the sparrow's neck was visible, then only its head, then its nose, and then nothing became visible; The swallows completely covered him in the nest, flew away and began circling around the house whistling.

Two comrades

Two comrades were walking through the forest, and a bear jumped out at them.

One ran, climbed a tree and hid, while the other stayed on the road. He had nothing to do - he fell to the ground and pretended to be dead.

The bear came up to him and began to sniff: he stopped breathing. The bear sniffed his face, thought he was dead, and walked away. When the bear left, he climbed down from the tree and laughed.

“Well,” he says, “did the bear talk in your ear?”

- And he told me that bad people those who run away from their comrades in danger.

Liar

The boy was guarding the sheep and, as if he saw a wolf, began to call:

- Help, wolf! Wolf!

The men came running and saw: it’s not true. As he did this two and three times, it happened that a wolf actually came running. The boy began to shout:

- Here, here quickly, wolf!

The men thought that he was deceiving again as always - they did not listen to him. The wolf sees that there is nothing to be afraid of: he has slaughtered the entire herd in the open.

Hunter and Quail

A quail got caught in a hunter's net and began to ask the hunter to let him go.

“Just let me go,” he says, “I’ll serve you.” I'll lure you other quails into the net.

“Well, quail,” said the hunter, “he wouldn’t have let you in anyway, and now even more so.” I’ll turn my head for wanting to hand over your own people.

Eagle

The eagle has built its nest on high road, far from the sea, and took the children out... One day, people were working near a tree, and an eagle flew up to the nest with a large fish in its claws. People saw the fish, surrounded the tree, began to shout and throw stones at the eagle.

The eagle dropped the fish, the people picked it up and left. The eagle sat on the edge of the nest, and the eaglets raised their heads and began to squeak: they asked for food.

The eagle was tired and could not fly to the sea again; he descended into the nest, covered the eaglets with his wings, caressed them, straightened their feathers and seemed to ask them to wait a little.

But the more he caressed them, the louder they squeaked. Then the eagle flew away from them and sat on the top branch of the tree. The eaglets whistled and squealed even more pitifully.

Then the eagle suddenly screamed loudly, spread its wings and flew heavily towards the sea. He returned only late in the evening: he flew quietly and low above the ground; he had a big fish in his claws again.

When he flew up to the tree, he looked around to see if there were people nearby again, quickly folded his wings and sat down on the edge of the nest.

The eaglets raised their heads and opened their mouths, the eagle tore the fish apart and fed the children.

Bone

The mother bought plums and wanted to give them to the children after lunch. They were on the plate.

Vanya never ate plums and kept smelling them. And he really liked them. I really wanted to eat it. He kept walking past the plums. When there was no one in the upper room, he could not resist, grabbed one plum and ate it.

Before dinner, the mother counted the plums and saw that one was missing. She told her father.

At dinner my father says:

Well, children, did anyone eat one plum?

Everyone said: "No." Vanya turned red like a lobster and also said: “No, I didn’t eat.”

Then the father said:

What any of you has eaten is not good; but that’s not the problem. The trouble is that plums have seeds, and if someone doesn’t know how to eat them and swallows a seed, he will die within a day. I'm afraid of this.

Vanya turned pale and said:

No, I threw the bone out the window.

And everyone laughed, and Vanya began to cry.

Little mouse

The mouse went out for a walk. She walked around the yard and came back to her mother.

- Well, mother, I saw two animals. One is scary and the other is kind.

Mother asked:

- Tell me, what kind of animals are these?

The mouse said:

One is scary - his legs are black, his crest is red, his eyes are protruding, and his nose is hooked. When I walked past, he opened his mouth, raised his leg and began screaming so loudly that out of fear I did not know where to go.

This is a rooster, said the old mouse, he does no harm to anyone, don’t be afraid of him. Well, what about the other animal?

— The other was lying in the sun and warming himself. Its neck is white, its legs are gray and smooth. He licks his white chest and moves his tail slightly, looking at me.

The old mouse said:

- Stupid, you are stupid. After all, it's the cat himself.

Kitty

There were brother and sister - Vasya and Katya; they had a cat. In the spring the cat disappeared. The children looked for her everywhere, but could not find her. One day they were playing near the barn and heard something meowing overhead in thin voices. Vasya climbed the ladder under the roof of the barn. And Katya stood below and kept asking: “Did you find it? Did you find it? But Vasya did not answer her. Finally, Vasya shouted to her: “Found it! Our cat... and her kittens: how wonderful; come here quickly.”

Katya ran home, took out milk and brought it to the cat.

There were five kittens. When they grew a little and began to crawl out from under the corner where they hatched, the children chose one kitten for themselves, gray with white paws, and... brought into the house.

The mother gave away all the other kittens, but left this one to the children. The children fed him, played with him and took him to bed. One day the children went to play on the road and took a kitten with them.

The wind moved the straw along the road, and the kitten played with the straw, and the children rejoiced at him. Then they found sorrel near the road, went to collect it and forgot about the kitten.

Suddenly they heard someone shouting loudly: “Back, back!” and they saw that a hunter was galloping, and in front of him were two dogs - they saw a kitten and wanted to grab it. And the kitten, stupid, instead of running, sat down to the ground, hunched its back and looked at the dogs. Katya was scared of the dogs, screamed and ran away from them. Vasya, as best he could, ran towards the kitten and at the same time as the dogs ran up to it. The dogs wanted to grab the kitten, but Vasya fell with his stomach on the kitten and blocked it from the dogs.

The hunter jumped up and drove the dogs away, and Vasya brought the kitten home and never took it with him to the field again.

Poor man and rich man

In one house they lived: upstairs there was a rich gentleman, and downstairs there was a poor tailor. The tailor kept singing songs while working and disturbed the master's sleep. The master gave the tailor a bag of money so that he would not sing. The tailor became rich and kept his money safe, but he no longer began to sing.

And he became bored. He took the money and brought it back to the master and said:

Take your money back, and let me sing the songs. And then melancholy came over me.

Birdie

It was Seryozha’s birthday, and they gave him many different gifts: tops, horses, and pictures. But the most valuable gift of all was Uncle Seryozha’s gift of a net to catch birds.

The mesh is made in such a way that a board is attached to the frame and the mesh is folded back. Place the seed on a board and place it in the yard. A bird will fly in, sit on the board, the board will turn, and the net will slam shut on its own.

Seryozha was delighted and ran to his mother to show the net.

Mother says:

Not a good toy. What do you need birds for? Why are you going to torture them?

I'll put them in a cage. They will sing and I will feed them.

Seryozha took out the seed, sprinkled it on the board and put the net in the garden. And still he stood there, waiting for the birds to fly. But the birds were afraid of him and did not fly into the net.

Seryozha went to lunch and left the net. I looked after lunch and the net had slammed shut and a bird was fluttering under the net. Seryozha was delighted, caught the bird and took it home.

Mom, look, I caught a bird. This is probably a nightingale! And how his heart beats.

Mother said:

This is a siskin. Look, don’t torment him, but rather let him go.

No, I will feed and water him.

Seryozha put the siskin in a cage and for two days sprinkled it with seed, put water on it and cleaned the cage. On the third day he forgot about the siskin and did not change its water.

His mother says to him:

You see, you forgot about your bird, it’s better to let it go.

No, I won’t forget, I’ll put some water on now and clean the cage.

Seryozha put his hand into the cage and began to clean it, but the little siskin got scared and hit the cage.

Seryozha cleaned the cage and went to get water. His mother saw that he forgot to close the cage and shouted to him:

Seryozha, close the cage, otherwise your bird will fly out and kill itself!

Seryozha came running, took the bird, and carried it into the cage. The siskin was still alive, but was lying on his chest, his wings spread, and breathing heavily. Seryozha looked and looked and began to cry.

Mom, what should I do now?

There's nothing you can do now.

Seryozha could not fall asleep for a long time; Every time he closed his eyes, he imagined the little siskin, how it lay and breathed.

In the morning, when Seryozha approached the cage, he saw that the siskin was lying on its back, with its paws tucked in and stiff.

Since then, Seryozha has never caught birds.

Cow

The widow Marya lived with her mother and six children. They lived poorly. But with the last money they bought a brown cow so that there would be milk for the children. The older children fed Burenushka in the field and gave her slops at home. One day, the mother came out of the yard, and the eldest boy Misha reached for bread on the shelf, dropped a glass and broke it. Misha was afraid that his mother would scold him, so he picked up the large glasses from the glass, took them out into the yard and buried them in the manure, and picked up all the small glasses and threw them into the basin. The mother grabbed the glass and began to ask, but Misha didn’t say; and so the matter remained.

The next day, after lunch, the mother went to give Burenushka some slop from the tub; she saw that Burenushka was bored and did not eat food. They began to treat the cow and called the grandmother. The grandmother said: the cow will not live, we must kill it for meat. They called a man and began to beat the cow. The children heard Burenushka roar in the yard. Everyone gathered on the stove and began to cry. When Burenushka was killed, skinned and cut into pieces, glass was found in her throat.

And they found out that she died because she got glass in the slop. When Misha found out this, he began to cry bitterly and confessed to his mother about the glass. The mother said nothing and began to cry herself. She said: we killed our Burenushka, now we have nothing to buy. How can small children live without milk? Misha began to cry even more and did not get off the stove while they ate the jelly from the cow's head. Every day in his dreams he saw Uncle Vasily carrying Burenushka’s dead, brown head with open eyes and a red neck by the horns.

Since then the children have had no milk. Only on holidays there was milk, when Marya asked the neighbors for a pot. It happened that the lady of that village needed a nanny for her child. The old woman says to her daughter: let me go, I’ll go as a nanny, and maybe God will help you manage the children alone. And I, God willing, will earn enough for a cow a year. And so they did. The old lady went to the lady. And it became even harder for Marya with the children. And the children lived without milk for a whole year: they ate only jelly and tyurya and became thin and pale.

A year passed, the old woman came home and brought twenty rubles. Well, daughter! He says, now let’s buy a cow. Marya was happy, all the children were happy. Marya and the old woman were going to the market to buy a cow. The neighbor was asked to stay with the children, and the neighbor, Uncle Zakhar, was asked to go with them to choose a cow. We prayed to God and went to the city. The children had lunch and went outside to see if the cow was being led. The children began to judge whether the cow would be brown or black. They began to talk about how they would feed her. They waited, waited all day. They went a mile away to meet the cow, it was getting dark, and they came back.

Suddenly, they see: a grandmother is riding along the street in a cart, and a motley cow is walking at the rear wheel, tied by the horns, and the mother is walking behind, urging her on with a twig. The children ran up and began to look at the cow. They gathered bread and herbs and began to feed them. The mother went into the hut, undressed and went out into the yard with a towel and milk pan. She sat down under the cow and wiped the udder. God bless! began to milk the cow, and the children sat around and watched as the milk splashed from the udder into the edge of the milk pan and whistled from under the mother’s fingers. The mother milked half the milk pan, took it to the cellar and poured a pot for the children for dinner.

Shark

Our ship was anchored off the coast of Africa. It was a beautiful day, a fresh wind was blowing from the sea; but in the evening the weather changed: it became stuffy and, as if from a heated stove, hot air from the Sahara desert was blowing towards us.

Before sunset, the captain went out on deck and shouted: “swim!” and in one minute the sailors jumped into the water, lowered the sail into the water, tied it and set up a bath in the sail.

There were two boys with us on the ship. The boys were the first to jump into the water, but they were cramped in the sail, and they decided to race against each other in the open sea.

Both, like lizards, stretched out in the water and, with all their strength, swam to the place where the barrel was above the anchor.

One boy at first overtook his friend, but then began to fall behind. The boy's father, an old artilleryman, stood on the deck and admired his son. When the son began to lag behind, the father shouted to him: “Don’t give him away! Push up!”

Suddenly someone shouted from the deck: “Shark!” - and we all saw the back of a sea monster in the water.

The shark swam straight towards the boys.

Back! Back! Come back! Shark! - the artilleryman shouted. But the guys didn’t hear him, they swam on, laughing and shouting even more fun and louder than before.

The artilleryman, pale as a sheet, without moving, looked at the children.

The sailors lowered the boat, rushed into it and, bending their oars, rushed as hard as they could towards the boys; but they were still far from them when the shark was no longer further than twenty steps.

At first the boys did not hear what they were shouting and did not see the shark; but then one of them looked back, and we all heard a high-pitched squeal, and the boys swam in different directions.

This screech seemed to awaken the artilleryman. He jumped up and ran towards the guns. He turned his trunk, lay down next to the cannon, took aim and took the fuse.

All of us, no matter how many of us were on the ship, froze in fear and waited for what would happen.

A shot rang out, and we saw that the artilleryman fell near the cannon and covered his face with his hands. We did not see what happened to the shark and the boys, because for a minute the smoke obscured our eyes.

But when the smoke dispersed over the water, first a quiet murmur was heard from all sides, then this murmur became stronger, and finally, a loud, joyful cry was heard from all sides.

The old artilleryman opened his face, stood up and looked at the sea.

The yellow belly of a dead shark swayed across the waves. In a few minutes the boat sailed to the boys and brought them to the ship.

Hedgehog and hare

The hare met a hedgehog and said:

“You’d be good to everyone, hedgehog, but your legs are crooked and braided.”

The hedgehog got angry and said:

“Are you laughing? My crooked legs run faster than your straight ones. Just let me go home, and then let’s run a race!”

The hedgehog went home and said to his wife: “I had a bet with the hare: we want to run a race!”

Yezhov’s wife says: “You’ve obviously gone crazy! Where should you run with the hare? His legs are fast, but yours are crooked and dull.”

And the hedgehog says: “His legs are fast, but I have a quick mind. Just do what I tell you. Let's go to the field."

So they came to the plowed field to the hare; The hedgehog says to his wife:

“You hide at this end of the furrow, and the hare and I will run from the other end; as soon as he runs away, I will come back; and when he comes running to your end, you come out and say: I’ve been waiting for a long time.” He won’t recognize you from me - he’ll think it’s me.”

Hedgehog's wife hid in the furrow, and the hedgehog and the hare ran from the other end.

As the hare ran away, the hedgehog returned and hid in the furrow. The hare galloped to the other end of the furrow: look! - and Yezhov’s wife is already sitting there. She saw the hare and said to him: “I’ve been waiting for a long time!”

The hare did not recognize the hedgehog’s wife from the hedgehog and thinks: “What a miracle! How did he overtake me?

“Well,” he says, “let’s run again!”

The hare ran back and came running to the other end: lo and behold! - and the hedgehog is already there, and he says: “Eh, brother, you’re just now, but I’ve been here for a long time.”

“What a miracle! - the hare thinks, - I galloped so fast, but he still overtook me. Well, let’s run again, now you can’t overtake.”

"Let's run!"

The hare galloped as fast as he could: look! - the hedgehog sits in front and waits.

So, the hare galloped from end to end until he was exhausted.

The hare submitted and said that he would never argue forward.

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Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, stories, fairy tales and fables in prose for children. The collection includes not only everyone famous stories Leo Tolstoy’s “Bone”, “Kitten”, “Bulka”, but also such rare works as “Treat everyone kindly”, “Do not torture animals”, “Don’t be lazy”, “Boy and Father” and many others.

Jackdaw and jug

Rats and egg

Two rats found an egg. They wanted to share it and eat it; but they see a crow flying and wants to take an egg.
The rats began to think about how to steal an egg from a crow. Carry? - do not grab; roll? - it can be broken.
And the rats decided this: one lay on its back, grabbed the egg with its paws, and the other carried it by the tail, and, like on a sleigh, pulled the egg under the floor.

Bug

Bug carried a bone across the bridge. Look, her shadow is in the water.
It occurred to the Bug that there was not a shadow in the water, but a Bug and a bone.
She let her bone go and take it. She didn’t take that one, but hers sank to the bottom.

Wolf and goat

Mouse, cat and rooster

The mouse went out for a walk. She walked around the yard and came back to her mother.
“Well, mother, I saw two animals. One is scary and the other is kind.”
The mother said: “Tell me, what kind of animals are these?”
The mouse said: “There’s a scary one, he walks around the yard like this: his legs are black, his crest is red, his eyes are bulging, and his nose is hooked. When I walked past, he opened his mouth, raised his leg and began screaming so loudly that I didn’t know where to go from fear!”
“It’s a rooster,” said the old mouse. - He does no harm to anyone, don’t be afraid of him. Well, what about the other animal?
- The other was lying in the sun and warming himself. His neck is white, his legs are gray, smooth, he licks his white chest and moves his tail slightly, looking at me.
The old mouse said: “You are a fool, you are a fool. After all, it’s the cat itself.”

Kitty

There were brother and sister - Vasya and Katya; and they had a cat. In the spring the cat disappeared. The children looked for her everywhere, but could not find her.

One day they were playing near the barn and heard someone meowing in thin voices overhead. Vasya climbed the ladder under the roof of the barn. And Katya stood and kept asking:

- Did you find it? Did you find it?

But Vasya did not answer her. Finally Vasya shouted to her:

- Found it! Our cat... and she has kittens; so wonderful; come here quickly.

Katya ran home, took out milk and brought it to the cat.

One day the children went to play on the road and took a kitten with them.

The wind moved the straw along the road, and the kitten played with the straw, and the children rejoiced at him. Then they found sorrel near the road, went to collect it and forgot about the kitten.

Suddenly they heard someone shouting loudly:

“Back, back!” - and they saw that the hunter was galloping, and in front of him two dogs saw a kitten and wanted to grab it. And the kitten, stupid, instead of running, sat down to the ground, hunched its back and looked at the dogs.

Katya was scared of the dogs, screamed and ran away from them. And Vasya, as best he could, ran towards the kitten and at the same time as the dogs ran up to it.

The dogs wanted to grab the kitten, but Vasya fell with his stomach on the kitten and blocked it from the dogs.

The hunter jumped up and drove the dogs away, and Vasya brought the kitten home and never took it with him into the field again.

Old man and apple trees

Boy and father (The truth is most precious)

The boy was playing and accidentally broke an expensive cup.
Nobody saw it.
The father came and asked:
- Who broke it?
The boy shook with fear and said:
- I.
Father said:
- Thank you for telling the truth.

Do not torture animals (Varya and Chizh)

Varya had a siskin. The siskin lived in a cage and never sang.
Varya came to the siskin. - “It’s time for you, little siskin, to sing.”
- “Let me go free, in freedom I will sing all day long.”

Don't be lazy

There were two men - Peter and Ivan, they mowed the meadows together. The next morning Peter came with his family and began to clean up his meadow. The day was hot and the grass was dry; By evening there was hay.
But Ivan didn’t go to clean, but stayed at home. On the third day, Peter took the hay home, and Ivan was just getting ready to row.
By evening it started to rain. Peter had hay, but Ivan had all his grass rotted away.

Don't take it by force

Petya and Misha had a horse. They began to argue: whose horse?
They began to tear each other's horses.
- “Give it to me, my horse!” - “No, give it to me, the horse is not yours, but mine!”
The mother came, took the horse, and the horse became no one's.

Don't overeat

The mouse was gnawing on the floor, and there was a gap. The mouse went into the gap and found a lot of food. The mouse was greedy and ate so much that its belly became full. When it became day, the mouse went home, but its belly was so full that it did not fit through the crack.

Treat everyone kindly

The squirrel jumped from branch to branch and fell straight onto the sleepy wolf. The wolf jumped up and wanted to eat her. The squirrel began to ask: “Let me go.” The wolf said: “Okay, I’ll let you in, just tell me why you squirrels are so cheerful? I’m always bored, but I look at you, you’re up there, playing and jumping.” The squirrel said: “Let me go to the tree first, and from there I’ll tell you, otherwise I’m afraid of you.” The wolf let go, and the squirrel went up a tree and from there said: “You’re bored because you’re angry. Anger burns your heart. And we are cheerful because we are kind and do no harm to anyone.”

Respect old people

The grandmother had a granddaughter; Before, the granddaughter was sweet and still slept, and the grandmother herself baked bread, swept the hut, washed, sewed, spun and weaved for her granddaughter; and then the grandmother became old and lay down on the stove and kept sleeping. And the granddaughter baked, washed, sewed, weaved and spun for her grandmother.

How my aunt talked about how she learned to sew

When I was six years old, I asked my mother to let me sew. She said: “You are still small, you will only prick your fingers”; and I kept pestering. Mother took a red piece of paper from the chest and gave it to me; then she threaded a red thread into the needle and showed me how to hold it. I began to sew, but could not make even stitches; one stitch came out large, and the other hit the very edge and broke through. Then I pricked my finger and tried not to cry, but my mother asked me: “What are you doing?” - I couldn’t resist and cried. Then my mother told me to go play.

When I went to bed, I kept imagining stitches: I kept thinking about how I could quickly learn to sew, and it seemed so difficult to me that I would never learn. And now I’ve grown up and don’t remember how I learned to sew; and when I teach my girl to sew, I’m surprised how she can’t hold a needle.

Bulka (Officer's Story)

I had a face. Her name was Bulka. She was all black, only the tips of her front paws were white.

In all faces, the lower jaw is longer than the upper and the upper teeth extend beyond the lower ones; but Bulka’s lower jaw protruded forward so much that a finger could be placed between the lower and upper teeth. Bulka’s face was wide; the eyes are large, black and shiny; and white teeth and fangs always stuck out. He looked like a blackamoor. Bulka was quiet and did not bite, but he was very strong and tenacious. When he would cling to something, he would clench his teeth and hang like a rag, and, like a tick, he could not be torn off.

Once they let him attack a bear, and he grabbed the bear’s ear and hung like a leech. The bear beat him with his paws, pressed him to himself, threw him from side to side, but could not tear him away and fell on his head to crush Bulka; but Bulka held on to it until they poured cold water on him.

I took him as a puppy and raised him myself. When I went to serve in the Caucasus, I didn’t want to take him and left him quietly, and ordered him to be locked up. At the first station, I was about to board another transfer station, when suddenly I saw something black and shiny rolling along the road. It was Bulka in his copper collar. He flew at full speed towards the station. He rushed towards me, licked my hand and stretched out in the shadows under the cart. His tongue stuck out the entire palm of his hand. He then pulled it back, swallowing drool, then again stuck it out to the whole palm. He was in a hurry, did not have time to breathe, his sides were jumping. He turned from side to side and tapped his tail on the ground.

I found out later that after me he broke through the frame and jumped out of the window and, right in my wake, galloped along the road and rode like that for twenty miles in the heat.

Milton and Bulka (Story)

I got myself a pointing dog for pheasants. This dog's name was Milton: she was tall, thin, speckled gray, with long wings and ears, and very strong and smart. They didn’t fight with Bulka. Not a single dog ever snapped at Bulka. Sometimes he would just show his teeth, and the dogs would tuck their tails and move away. One day I went with Milton to buy pheasants. Suddenly Bulka ran after me into the forest. I wanted to drive him away, but I couldn’t. And it was a long way to go home to take him. I thought that he would not disturb me, and moved on; but as soon as Milton smelled a pheasant in the grass and began to look, Bulka rushed forward and began poking around in all directions. He tried before Milton to raise a pheasant. He heard something in the grass, jumped, spun: but his instincts were bad, and he could not find the trail alone, but looked at Milton and ran to where Milton was going. As soon as Milton sets off on the trail, Bulka runs ahead. I recalled Bulka, beat him, but could not do anything with him. As soon as Milton began to search, he rushed forward and interfered with him. I wanted to go home, because I thought that my hunt was ruined, but Milton figured out better than me how to deceive Bulka. This is what he did: as soon as Bulka runs ahead of him, Milton will leave the trail, turn in the other direction and pretend that he is looking. Bulka will rush to where Milton pointed, and Milton will look back at me, wave his tail and follow the real trail again. Bulka again runs to Milton, runs ahead, and again Milton will deliberately take ten steps to the side, deceive Bulka and again lead me straight. So throughout the hunt he deceived Bulka and did not let him ruin the matter.

Shark (Story)

Before sunset, the captain came out onto the deck, shouted: “Swim!” - and in one minute the sailors jumped into the water, lowered the sail into the water, tied it and set up a bath in the sail.

There were two boys with us on the ship. The boys were the first to jump into the water, but they felt cramped in the sail; they decided to race against each other in the open sea.

Both, like lizards, stretched out in the water and, with all their strength, swam to the place where there was a barrel above the anchor.

Suddenly someone shouted from the deck: “Shark!” - and we all saw the back of a sea monster in the water.

The shark swam straight towards the boys.

Back! back! come back! shark! - the artilleryman shouted. But the guys didn’t hear him, they swam on, laughing and shouting even more fun and louder than before.

The artilleryman, pale as a sheet, looked at the children without moving.

The sailors lowered the boat, rushed into it and, bending their oars, rushed as hard as they could towards the boys; but they were still far from them when the shark was no more than 20 steps away.

At first the boys did not hear what they were shouting and did not see the shark; but then one of them looked back, and we all heard a high-pitched squeal, and the boys swam in different directions.

This screech seemed to awaken the artilleryman. He jumped up and ran towards the guns. He turned his trunk, lay down next to the cannon, took aim and took the fuse.

All of us, no matter how many of us were on the ship, froze in fear and waited for what would happen.

But when the smoke dispersed over the water, first a quiet murmur was heard from all sides, then this murmur became stronger, and finally, a loud, joyful cry was heard from all sides.

The old artilleryman opened his face, stood up and looked at the sea.

The yellow belly of a dead shark swayed across the waves. In a few minutes the boat sailed to the boys and brought them to the ship.

Lion and dog (True)

Illustration by Nastya Aksenova

In London they showed wild animals and for viewing they took money or dogs and cats to feed the wild animals.

One man wanted to see the animals: he grabbed a little dog on the street and brought it to the menagerie. They let him in to watch, but they took the little dog and threw him into a cage with a lion to be eaten.

The dog tucked its tail and pressed itself into the corner of the cage. The lion approached her and smelled her.

The dog lay down on its back, raised its paws and began wagging its tail.

The lion touched it with his paw and turned it over.

The dog jumped up and stood on its hind legs in front of the lion.

The lion looked at the dog, turned his head from side to side and did not touch it.

When the owner threw meat to the lion, the lion tore off a piece and left it for the dog.

In the evening, when the lion went to bed, the dog lay down next to him and put her head on his paw.

Since then, the dog lived in the same cage with the lion, the lion did not touch her, ate food, slept with her, and sometimes played with her.

One day the master came to the menagerie and recognized his dog; he said that the dog was his own, and asked the owner of the menagerie to give it to him. The owner wanted to give it back, but as soon as they began to call the dog to take it from the cage, the lion bristled and growled.

So the lion and the dog lived for a whole year in the same cage.

A year later the dog got sick and died. The lion stopped eating, but kept sniffing, licking the dog and touching it with his paw.

When he realized that she was dead, he suddenly jumped up, bristled, began to whip his tail on the sides, rushed to the wall of the cage and began to gnaw at the bolts and the floor.

All day long he struggled, thrashed about in the cage and roared, then he lay down next to the dead dog and fell silent. The owner wanted to take away the dead dog, but the lion would not let anyone near it.

The owner thought that the lion would forget his grief if he was given another dog, and he let a live dog into his cage; but the lion immediately tore her to pieces. Then he hugged the dead dog with his paws and lay there for five days.

On the sixth day the lion died.

Jump (Byl)

One ship circumnavigated the world and was returning home. The weather was calm, all the people were on deck. A large monkey was spinning around in the middle of the people and amusing everyone. This monkey writhed, jumped, made funny faces, imitated people, and it was clear that she knew that they were amusing her, and that is why she became even more at odds.

She jumped up to a 12-year-old boy, the son of a ship's captain, tore his hat off his head, put it on and quickly climbed up the mast. Everyone laughed, but the boy was left without a hat and did not know whether to laugh or cry.

The monkey sat down on the first crossbar of the mast, took off his hat and began to tear it with his teeth and paws. She seemed to be teasing the boy, pointing at him and making faces at him. The boy threatened her and shouted at her, but she tore her hat even angrier. The sailors began to laugh louder, and the boy blushed, took off his jacket and rushed after the monkey to the mast. In one minute he climbed the rope to the first crossbar; but the monkey was even more dexterous and faster than him, and at the very moment he was thinking of grabbing his hat, he climbed even higher.

So you won’t leave me! - the boy shouted and climbed higher. The monkey beckoned him again and climbed even higher, but the boy was already overcome with enthusiasm and did not lag behind. So the monkey and the boy reached the very top in one minute. At the very top, the monkey stretched out to its full length and, hooking its back hand1 onto the rope, hung its hat on the edge of the last crossbar, and climbed to the top of the mast and writhed from there, showed its teeth and rejoiced. From the mast to the end of the crossbar, where the hat hung, there was two arshins, so it was impossible to get it except by letting go of the rope and the mast.

But the boy became very excited. He dropped the mast and stepped onto the crossbar. Everyone on deck looked and laughed at what the monkey and the captain's son were doing; but when they saw that he let go of the rope and stepped onto the crossbar, shaking his arms, everyone froze with fear.

All he had to do was stumble, and he would have smashed to pieces on the deck. And even if he hadn’t stumbled, but had reached the edge of the crossbar and taken his hat, it would have been difficult for him to turn around and walk back to the mast. Everyone looked at him silently and waited to see what would happen.

Suddenly, someone among the people gasped in fear. The boy came to his senses from this scream, looked down and staggered.

At this time, the ship's captain, the boy's father, left the cabin. He carried a gun to shoot seagulls2. He saw his son on the mast, and immediately took aim at his son and shouted: “Into the water! jump into the water now! I’ll shoot you!” The boy was staggering, but did not understand. “Jump or I’ll shoot you!.. One, two...” and as soon as the father shouted: “three,” the boy swung his head down and jumped.

Like a cannonball, the boy’s body splashed into the sea, and before the waves had time to cover him, 20 young sailors had already jumped from the ship into the sea. About 40 seconds later - it seemed like a long time to everyone - the boy's body emerged. He was grabbed and dragged onto the ship. After a few minutes, water started pouring out of his mouth and nose and he began to breathe.

When the captain saw this, he suddenly screamed, as if something was strangling him, and ran to his cabin so that no one would see him cry.

Fire dogs (Byl)

It often happens that in cities during fires, children are left in houses and they cannot be pulled out, because they hide from fear and are silent, and from the smoke it is impossible to see them. Dogs in London are trained for this purpose. These dogs live with firefighters, and when a house catches fire, the firefighters send the dogs to pull the children out. One such dog in London saved twelve children; her name was Bob.

One time the house caught fire. And when the firefighters arrived at the house, a woman ran out to them. She cried and said that there was a two-year-old girl left in the house. The firefighters sent Bob. Bob ran up the stairs and disappeared into the smoke. Five minutes later he ran out of the house and carried the girl by the shirt in his teeth. The mother rushed to her daughter and cried with joy that her daughter was alive. The firefighters petted the dog and examined it to see if it was burned; but Bob was eager to go back into the house. The firefighters thought there was something else alive in the house and let him in. The dog ran into the house and soon ran out with something in its mouth. When the people looked at what she was carrying, they all burst out laughing: she was carrying a large doll.

Kostochka (Byl)

The mother bought plums and wanted to give them to the children after lunch. They were on the plate. Vanya never ate plums and kept sniffing them. And he really liked them. I really wanted to eat it. He kept walking past the plums. When there was no one in the upper room, he could not resist, grabbed one plum and ate it. Before dinner, the mother counted the plums and saw that one was missing. She told her father.

At dinner, the father says: “What, children, didn’t anyone eat one plum?” Everyone said: "No." Vanya turned red as a lobster and also said: “No, I didn’t eat.”

Then the father said: “Whatever one of you has eaten is not good; but that’s not the problem. The trouble is that plums have seeds, and if someone doesn’t know how to eat them and swallows a seed, he will die within a day. I'm afraid of this."

Vanya turned pale and said: “No, I threw the bone out the window.”

And everyone laughed, and Vanya began to cry.

The Monkey and the Pea (Fable)

The monkey was carrying two full handfuls of peas. One pea popped out; The monkey wanted to pick it up and spilled twenty peas.
She rushed to pick it up and spilled everything. Then she got angry, scattered all the peas and ran away.

The Lion and the Mouse (Fable)

The lion was sleeping. The mouse ran over his body. He woke up and caught her. The mouse began to ask him to let her in; she said: “If you let me in, I’ll do you good.” The lion laughed that the mouse promised to do good to him, and let it go.

Then the hunters caught the lion and tied it to a tree with a rope. The mouse heard the lion's roar, came running, gnawed the rope and said: “Remember, you laughed, you didn’t think that I could do you any good, but now you see, good comes from a mouse.”

Old grandfather and granddaughter (Fable)

Grandfather became very old. His legs did not walk, his eyes did not see, his ears did not hear, he had no teeth. And when he ate, it flowed backwards from his mouth. His son and daughter-in-law stopped sitting him at the table and let him dine at the stove. They brought him lunch in a cup. He wanted to move it, but he dropped it and broke it. The daughter-in-law began to scold the old man for ruining everything in the house and breaking cups, and said that now she would give him dinner in a basin. The old man just sighed and said nothing. One day a husband and wife are sitting at home and watching - their son is playing on the floor with planks - he is working on something. The father asked: “What are you doing this, Misha?” And Misha said: “It’s me, father, who’s making the tub. When you and your mother are too old to feed you from this tub.”

The husband and wife looked at each other and began to cry. They felt ashamed that they had offended the old man so much; and from then on they began to sit him at the table and look after him.

Liar (Fable, another name - Don't lie)

The boy was guarding the sheep and, as if seeing a wolf, began to call: “Help, wolf! wolf!" The men came running and saw: it’s not true. As he did this two and three times, it happened that a wolf actually came running. The boy began to shout: “Here, here quickly, wolf!” The men thought that he was deceiving again as always - they did not listen to him. The wolf sees that there is nothing to be afraid of: he has slaughtered the entire herd in the open.

Father and Sons (Fable)

The father ordered his sons to live in harmony; they didn't listen. So he ordered a broom to be brought and said:

"Break it!"

No matter how much they fought, they could not break it. Then the father untied the broom and ordered them to break one rod at a time.

They easily broke the bars one by one.

The Ant and the Dove (Fable)

Hen and Swallow (Fable)

The chicken found the snake eggs and began to hatch them. The swallow saw it and said:
“That's it, stupid! You bring them out, and when they grow up, they will be the first to offend you.”

The Fox and the Grapes (Fable)

The fox saw ripe bunches of grapes hanging, and began to figure out how to eat them.
She struggled for a long time, but could not reach it. To drown out her annoyance, she says: “They’re still green.”

Two Comrades (Fable)

Two comrades were walking through the forest, and a bear jumped out at them. One ran, climbed a tree and hid, while the other stayed on the road. He had nothing to do - he fell to the ground and pretended to be dead.

The bear came up to him and began to sniff: he stopped breathing.

The bear sniffed his face, thought he was dead, and walked away.

When the bear left, he climbed down from the tree and laughed: “Well,” he said, “did the bear speak in your ear?”

“And he told me that the bad people are those who run away from their comrades in danger.”

The Tsar and the Shirt (Fairy Tale)

One king was sick and said: “I will give half of the kingdom to the one who cures me.” Then all the wise men gathered and began to judge how to cure the king. Nobody knew. Only one sage said that the king could be cured. He said: if you find a happy person, take off his shirt and put it on the king, the king will recover. The king sent to look for a happy person throughout his kingdom; but the king's ambassadors traveled for a long time throughout the kingdom and could not find a happy person. There was not a single one that everyone was happy with. He who is rich is sick; whoever is healthy is poor; who is healthy and rich, but whose wife is not good, and whose children are not good; Everyone is complaining about something. One day, late in the evening, the king’s son was walking past a hut, and he heard someone say: “Thank God, I’ve worked hard, I’ve eaten enough and I’ll go to bed; what more do I need? The king's son was delighted and ordered to take off the man's shirt, and give him as much money as he wanted for it, and take the shirt to the king. Those sent came to happy man and they wanted to take off his shirt; but the happy one was so poor that he didn’t even have a shirt on.

Two Brothers (Fairy Tale)

Two brothers went traveling together. At noon they lay down to rest in the forest. When they woke up, they saw a stone lying next to them and something was written on the stone. They began to take it apart and read:

“Whoever finds this stone, let him go straight into the forest at sunrise. A river will come in the forest: let him swim through this river to the other side. You will see a bear with cubs: take the cubs from the bear and run without looking back straight up the mountain. On the mountain you will see home, and in that home you will find happiness."

The brothers read what was written, and the youngest said:

Let's go together. Maybe we will swim across this river, bring the cubs home and find happiness together.

Then the elder said:

I won’t go into the forest for cubs and I don’t advise you to either. First thing: no one knows whether the truth is written on this stone; maybe all this was written for fun. Yes, maybe we got it wrong. Second: if the truth is written, we will go into the forest, night will come, we will not get to the river and will get lost. And even if we find a river, how will we cross it? Maybe it's fast and wide? Third: even if we swim across the river, is it really an easy matter to take the cubs away from the mother bear? She will bully us, and instead of happiness we will disappear for nothing. Fourth thing: even if we manage to carry away the cubs, we will not make it up the mountain without rest. The main thing is not said: what kind of happiness will we find in this house? Maybe there awaits us the kind of happiness we don’t need at all.

And the younger one said:

I don't think so. There would be no point in writing this on stone. And everything is written clearly. First thing: we won't get into trouble if we try. The second thing: if we don’t go, someone else will read the inscription on the stone and find happiness, and we will be left with nothing. The third thing: if you don’t bother and don’t work, nothing in the world makes you happy. Fourth: I don’t want them to think that I was afraid of anything.

Then the elder said:

And the proverb says: “To seek great happiness is to lose little”; and also: “Don’t promise a pie in the sky, but give a bird in your hands.”

And the smaller one said:

And I heard: “Fear wolves, don’t go into the forest”; and also: “Water will not flow under a lying stone.” For me, I have to go.

The younger brother went, but the older brother stayed.

As soon as the younger brother entered the forest, he attacked the river, swam across it and immediately saw a bear on the shore. She was sleeping. He grabbed the cubs and ran without looking back up the mountain. As soon as he reached the top, people came out to meet him, they brought him a carriage, took him to the city and made him king.

He reigned for five years. In the sixth year, another king, stronger than him, came against him with war; conquered the city and drove it away. Then the younger brother went wandering again and came to the older brother.

The elder brother lived in the village neither rich nor poor. The brothers were happy with each other and began to talk about their lives.

The elder brother says:

So my truth came out: I lived quietly and well all the time, and even though you were a king, you saw a lot of grief.

And the smaller one said:

I don’t grieve that I went into the forest up the mountain then; Even though I feel bad now, I have something to remember my life with, but you have nothing to remember it with.

Lipunyushka (Fairy Tale)

An old man lived with an old woman. They had no children. The old man went to the field to plow, and the old woman stayed at home to bake pancakes. The old woman baked pancakes and said:

“If we had a son, he would take pancakes to his father; and now who will I send with?”

Suddenly a little son crawled out of the cotton and said: “Hello, mother!..”

And the old woman says: “Where did you come from, son, and what is your name?”

And the son says: “You, mother, pulled back the cotton and put it in a column, and I hatched there. And call me Lipunyushka. Give me, mother, I’ll take the pancakes to the priest.”

The old woman says: “Will you tell, Lipunyushka?”

I'll tell you, mother...

The old woman tied the pancakes in a knot and gave them to her son. Lipunyushka took the bundle and ran into the field.

In the field he came across a bump on the road; he shouts: “Father, father, move me over the hummock! I brought you pancakes."

The old man heard someone calling him from the field, went to meet his son, transplanted him over a hummock and said: “Where are you from, son?” And the boy says: “Father, I was born in cotton,” and served his father pancakes. The old man sat down to have breakfast, and the boy said: “Give me, father, I’ll plow.”

And the old man says: “You don’t have enough strength to plow.”

And Lipunyushka took up the plow and began to plow. He plows himself and sings his own songs.

A gentleman was driving past this field and saw that the old man was sitting having breakfast, and the horse was plowing alone. The master got out of the carriage and said to the old man: “How is it, old man, that your horse plows alone?”

And the old man says: “I have a boy plowing there, and he sings songs.” The master came closer, heard the songs and saw Lipunyushka.

The master says: “Old man! sell me the boy." And the old man says: “No, you can’t sell it to me, I only have one.”

And Lipunyushka says to the old man: “Sell it, father, I’ll run away from him.”

The man sold the boy for a hundred rubles. The master gave the money, took the boy, wrapped him in a handkerchief and put him in his pocket. The master arrived home and said to his wife: “I brought you joy.” And the wife says: “Show me what it is?” The master took a handkerchief out of his pocket, unfolded it, and there was nothing in the handkerchief. Lipunyushka ran away to his father a long time ago.

Three Bears (Fairy Tale)

One girl left home for the forest. She got lost in the forest and began to look for the way home, but didn’t find it, but came to a house in the forest.

The door was open; She looked at the door, saw: there was no one in the house, and entered. Three bears lived in this house. One bear had a father, his name was Mikhailo Ivanovich. He was big and shaggy. The other was a bear. She was smaller, and her name was Nastasya Petrovna. The third was a little bear cub, and his name was Mishutka. The bears were not at home, they went for a walk in the forest.

There were two rooms in the house: one was a dining room, the other was a bedroom. The girl entered the dining room and saw three cups of stew on the table. The first cup, a very large one, was Mikhaily Ivanychev’s. The second cup, smaller, was Nastasya Petrovnina’s; the third, blue cup, was Mishutkina. Next to each cup lay a spoon: large, medium and small.

The girl took the largest spoon and sipped from the largest cup; then she took the middle spoon and sipped from the middle cup; then she took a small spoon and sipped from the blue cup; and Mishutka’s stew seemed to her the best.

The girl wanted to sit down and saw three chairs at the table: one large - Mikhail Ivanovich's; the other smaller one is Nastasya Petrovnin, and the third, small, with a blue pillow is Mishutkin. She climbed onto a large chair and fell; then she sat down on the middle chair, it was awkward; then she sat down on a small chair and laughed - it was so good. She took the blue cup onto her lap and began to eat. She ate all the stew and began to rock on her chair.

The chair broke and she fell to the floor. She stood up, picked up the chair and went to another room. There were three beds: one large - Mikhail Ivanychev's; the other middle one is Nastasya Petrovnina; the third little one is Mishenkina. The girl lay down in the big one; it was too spacious for her; I lay down in the middle - it was too high; She lay down in the small bed - the bed was just right for her, and she fell asleep.

And the bears came home hungry and wanted to have dinner.

The big bear took the cup, looked and roared in a terrible voice:

WHO WAS THE BREAD IN MY CUP?

Nastasya Petrovna looked at her cup and growled not so loudly:

WHO WAS THE BREAD IN MY CUP?

And Mishutka saw his empty cup and squeaked in a thin voice:

WHO WAS BREAD IN MY CUP AND SLAUGHED IT ALL OUT?

Mikhail Ivanovich looked at his chair and growled in a terrible voice:

Nastasya Petrovna looked at her chair and growled not so loudly:

WHO WAS SITTING ON MY CHAIR AND MOVE IT OUT OF PLACE?

Mishutka looked at his broken chair and squeaked:

WHO SAT ON MY CHAIR AND BROKE IT?

The bears came to another room.

WHO WENT INTO MY BED AND CRUSHED IT? - Mikhail Ivanovich roared in a terrible voice.

WHO WENT INTO MY BED AND CRUSHED IT? - Nastasya Petrovna growled not so loudly.

And Mishenka put up a little bench, climbed into his crib and squeaked in a thin voice:

WHO WENT IN MY BED?

And suddenly he saw the girl and screamed as if he was being cut:

Here she is! Hold it, hold it! Here she is! Ay-yay! Hold it!

He wanted to bite her.

The girl opened her eyes, saw the bears and rushed to the window. It was open, she jumped out the window and ran away. And the bears did not catch up with her.

What kind of dew happens on the grass (Description)

When in sunny morning In the summer you go to the forest, you can see diamonds in the fields and in the grass. All these diamonds sparkle and shimmer in the sun different colors- and yellow, and red, and blue. When you come closer and see what it is, you will see that these are drops of dew collected in triangular leaves of grass and glistening in the sun.

The inside of the leaf of this grass is shaggy and fluffy, like velvet. And the drops roll on the leaf and do not wet it.

When you carelessly pick a leaf with a dewdrop, the droplet will roll off like a light ball, and you will not see how it slips past the stem. It used to be that you would tear off such a cup, slowly bring it to your mouth and drink the dewdrop, and this dewdrop seemed tastier than any drink.

Touch and Vision (Reasoning)

Braid your index finger with your middle and braided fingers, touch the small ball so that it rolls between both fingers, and close your eyes. It will seem like two balls to you. Open your eyes, you will see that there is one ball. The fingers deceived, but the eyes corrected.

Look (preferably from the side) at a good, clean mirror: it will seem to you that this is a window or a door and that there is something behind there. Feel it with your finger and you will see that it is a mirror. The eyes deceived, but the fingers corrected.

Where does the water go from the sea? (Reasoning)

From springs, springs and swamps, water flows into streams, from streams into rivers, from small rivers into large rivers, and from large rivers it flows from the sea. From other sides other rivers flow into the seas, and all rivers have flowed into the seas since the world was created. Where does the water go from the sea? Why doesn't it flow over the edge?

Water from the sea rises in fog; the fog rises higher, and clouds become from the fog. The clouds are driven by the wind and spread across the ground. Water falls from the clouds to the ground. It flows from the ground into swamps and streams. From streams flows into rivers; from rivers to sea. From the sea again the water rises into the clouds, and the clouds spread across the earth...

* * *

Stories

Filipok

There was a boy, his name was Philip.

Once all the boys went to school. Philip took his hat and wanted to go too. But his mother told him:

-Where are you going, Filipok?

- To school.

“You’re still young, don’t go,” and his mother left him at home.

The guys went to school. Father left for the forest in the morning, mother went to daily work. Filipok and grandma remained in the hut on the stove. Filip became bored alone, his grandmother fell asleep, and he began to look for his hat. I couldn’t find mine, so I took my father’s old one and went to school.

The school was outside the village near the church. When Philip walked through his settlement, the dogs did not touch him, they knew him. But when he went out to other people’s yards, Zhuchka jumped out, barked, and behind Zhuchka was a big dog, Volchok. Filipok started to run, the dogs followed him. Filipok began to scream, tripped and fell.

A man came out, drove the dogs away and said:

-Where are you, little shooter, running alone?

Filipok said nothing, picked up the floors and started running at full speed.

He ran to the school. There is no one on the porch, but in the school you can hear the voices of the children buzzing. Fear came over Filip: “What, as a teacher, will drive me away?” And he began to think what to do. To go back - the dog will eat again, to go to school - he is afraid of the teacher.

A woman walked past the school with a bucket and said:

- Everyone is studying, but why are you standing here?

Filipok went to school. In the senets he took off his hat and opened the door. The whole school was full of children. Everyone shouted their own, and the teacher in a red scarf walked in the middle.

- What are you doing? - he shouted at Filipok.

Filipok grabbed his hat and said nothing.

-Who are you?

Filipok was silent.

-Or are you dumb?

Filipok was so frightened that he could not speak.

- Well, go home if you don’t want to talk.

And Filipok would have been glad to say something, but his throat was dry from fear. He looked at the teacher and began to cry. Then the teacher felt sorry for him. He stroked his head and asked the guys who this boy was.

- This is Filipok, Kostyushkin’s brother, he has been asking to go to school for a long time, but his mother won’t let him, and he came to school on the sly.

“Well, sit on the bench next to your brother, and I’ll ask your mother to let you go to school.”

The teacher began to show Filipok the letters, but Filipok already knew them and could read a little.

- Well, say your name.

Filipok said:

- Hwe-i-hwi, le-i-li, pe-ok-pok.

Everyone laughed.

“Well done,” said the teacher. -Who taught you to read?

Filipok dared and said:

- Kostyushka. I'm poor, I immediately understood everything. I am passionately so clever!

The teacher laughed and said:

- Do you know prayers?

Filipok said:

“I know,” and the Mother of God began to say; but every word he spoke was wrong.

The teacher stopped him and said:

- Stop boasting and learn.

Since then, Filipok began going to school with the children.

Disputants

Two people on the street found a book together and began to argue about who should take it.

A third walked by and asked:

- So why do you need a book? You are arguing just like two bald men were fighting over a comb, but there was nothing to scratch yourself.

Lazy daughter

The mother and daughter took out a tub of water and wanted to take it to the hut.

The daughter said:

- It’s hard to carry, let me add some salt to the water.

Mother said:

“You’ll drink it yourself at home, but if you add salt, you’ll have to go another time.”

The daughter said:

“I won’t drink at home, but here I’ll get drunk all day.”

Old grandfather and grandson

They brought him lunch in a cup. He wanted to move it, but he dropped it and broke it. The daughter-in-law began to scold the old man for ruining everything in the house and breaking cups, and said that now she would give him dinner in a basin. The old man just sighed and said nothing.

One day a husband and wife are sitting at home and watching - their little son is playing on the floor with planks - he is working on something. The father asked:

- Why are you doing this, Misha?

And Misha says:

“It’s me, father, who’s making the basin.” When you and your mother are too old to feed you from this tub.

The husband and wife looked at each other and began to cry. They felt ashamed that they had offended the old man so much; and from then on they began to sit him at the table and look after him.

Bone

The mother bought plums and wanted to give them to the children after lunch.

They were on the plate. Vanya never ate plums and kept smelling them. And he really liked them. I really wanted to eat it. He kept walking past the plums. When there was no one in the upper room, he could not resist, grabbed one plum and ate it.

Before dinner, the mother counted the plums and saw that one was missing. She told her father.

At dinner my father says:

- Well, children, didn’t anyone eat one plum?

Everyone said:

Vanya blushed like a lobster and said too:

- No, I didn’t eat.

Then the father said:

– What any of you ate is not good; but that’s not the problem. The trouble is that plums have seeds, and if someone doesn’t know how to eat them and swallows a seed, he will die within a day. I'm afraid of this.

Vanya turned pale and said:

- No, I threw the bone out the window.

And everyone laughed, and Vanya began to cry.

Jacob's dog

One guard had a wife and two children - a boy and a girl. The boy was seven years old and the girl was five years old. They had a shaggy dog with a white muzzle and big eyes.

One day the guard went into the forest and told his wife not to let the children leave the house, because wolves had been walking around the house all night and attacking the dog.

The wife said:

“Children, don’t go into the forest,” and she sat down to work.

When the mother sat down to work, the boy said to his sister:

- Let's go to the forest, yesterday I saw an apple tree, and apples were ripe on it.

The girl said:

- Let's go.

And they ran into the forest.

When the mother finished working, she called the children, but they were not there. She went out onto the porch and began calling to them. There were no children.

The husband came home and asked:

-Where are the children?

The wife said she didn't know.

Then the guard ran to look for the children.

Suddenly he heard a dog squealing. He ran there and saw that the children were sitting under a bush and crying, and the wolf had grappled with the dog and was gnawing at it. The guard grabbed an ax and killed the wolf. Then he took the children in his arms and ran home with them.

When they arrived home, the mother locked the door and they sat down to dinner.

Suddenly they heard a dog squealing at the door. They went out into the yard and wanted to let the dog into the house, but the dog was covered in blood and could not walk.

The children brought her water and bread. But she did not want to drink or eat and only licked their hands. Then she lay down on her side and stopped squealing. The children thought the dog had fallen asleep; and she died.

Kitty

- Did you find it? Did you find it?

But Vasya did not answer her. Finally Vasya shouted to her:

- Found it! Our cat... And she has kittens; so wonderful; come here quickly.

Katya ran home, took out milk and brought it to the cat.

One day the children went to play on the road and took a kitten with them.

The hunter galloped up and drove the dogs away; and Vasya brought the kitten home and never took it with him to the field again.

How my aunt talked about how she learned to sew

When I was six years old, I asked my mother to let me sew.

She said:

“You’re still young, you’ll only prick your fingers.”

- What you?

I couldn’t help but cry. Then my mother told me to go play.

When I went to bed, I kept imagining stitches; I kept thinking about how I could quickly learn to sew, and it seemed so difficult to me that I would never learn.

And now I’ve grown up and don’t remember how I learned to sew; and when I teach my girl to sew, I’m surprised how she can’t hold a needle.

Girl and mushrooms

Two girls were walking home with mushrooms.

They had to cross the railway.

They thought that car far away, we climbed down the embankment and walked across the rails.

Suddenly a car made noise. The older girl ran back, and the younger girl ran across the road.

The older girl shouted to her sister:

- Don't go back!

The car was already close, and the driver whistled as hard as he could.

The older girl shouted:

- Throw the mushrooms!

And the little girl thought that she was being told to pick mushrooms, and crawled along the road.

The driver could not hold the cars. She whistled as hard as she could and ran into the girl.

The older girl screamed and cried. All the passengers looked from the windows of the cars, and the conductor ran to the end of the train to see what had happened to the girl.

When the train passed, everyone saw that the girl was lying head down between the rails and not moving.

Then, when the train had already moved far, the girl raised her head, jumped on her knees, picked mushrooms and ran to her sister.

How the boy talked about how he was not taken to the city

The priest was getting ready for the city, and I told him:

- Dad, take me with you.

And he says:

- You'll freeze there; where are you...

I turned around, cried and went into the closet. I cried and cried and fell asleep.

Then I woke up, got up, put on my shoes, took my mittens and went outside. Guys are riding on the street ice rinks and on a sled. I began to ride with them and rode until I was cold.

As soon as I returned and climbed onto the stove, I heard that my dad had returned from the city. I was delighted, jumped up and said:

- Dad, did you buy me a roll?

He says:

“I bought it,” and gave me a roll.

I jumped from the stove onto the bench and began to dance with joy.

Birdie

Mother says:

- Not a good toy. What do you need birds for? Why are you going to torture them?

- I'll put them in cages. They will sing and I will feed them.

- Mother! Look, I caught a bird, it’s probably a nightingale!.. And how his heart beats!

Mother said:

- This is a siskin. Look, don’t torment him, but rather let him go.

- No, I will feed and water him.

- You see, you forgot about your bird, it’s better to let it go.

- No, I won’t forget, I’ll put some water on and clean the cage.

- Seryozha, close the cage, otherwise your bird will fly out and kill itself!

Seryozha came running, took the bird, and carried it into the cage. Siskin was still alive; but lay on his chest, his wings spread, and breathing heavily. Seryozha looked and looked and began to cry.

- Mother! What should I do now?

“You can’t do anything now.”

Seryozha did not leave the cage all day and kept looking at the little siskin, and the little siskin still lay on his chest and breathed heavily and quickly. When Seryozha went to bed, the little siskin was still alive. Seryozha could not fall asleep for a long time. Every time he closed his eyes, he imagined the little siskin, how it lay and breathed. In the morning, when Seryozha approached the cage, he saw that the siskin was already lying on its back, curled its paws and stiffened.

Since then, Seryozha has never caught birds.

How a boy talked about how a thunderstorm caught him in the forest

When I was little, I was sent to the forest to pick mushrooms. I reached the forest, picked mushrooms and wanted to go home. Suddenly it became dark, it began to rain and there was thunder. I got scared and sat down under a large oak tree. Lightning flashed, so bright that it hurt my eyes, and I closed my eyes. Something crackled and rattled above my head; then something hit me in the head. I fell and lay there until the rain stopped. When I woke up, trees were dripping all over the forest, birds were singing and the sun was playing. A large oak tree broke and smoke came out of the stump. Lying around me scraps from oak. The dress I was wearing was all wet and sticking to my body; there was a bump on my head and it hurt a little. I found my hat, took the mushrooms and ran home.

There was no one at home, I took bread from the table and climbed onto the stove. When I woke up, I saw from the stove that my mushrooms had been fried, put on the table and were already ready to eat. I shouted:

- What are you eating without me?

They say:

- Why are you sleeping? Go quickly and eat.

Fire

To Zhnitvo the men and women went to work. Only the old and the young remained in the village. A grandmother and three grandchildren remained in one hut. Grandma turned off the stove and lay down to rest. Flies landed on her and bit her. She covered her head with a towel and fell asleep.

One of the granddaughters, Masha (she was three years old), opened the stove, heaped coals into a crock and went into the hallway. And in the entryway lay sheaves. The women prepared these sheaves for connected.

Masha brought coals, placed them under the sheaves and began to blow. When the straw began to catch fire, she was delighted, went into the hut and brought her brother Kiryushka by the hand (he was one and a half years old and had just learned to walk), and said:

- Look, Kilyuska, what a stove I blew up.

The sheaves were already burning and crackling. When the entryway was filled with smoke, Masha got scared and ran back to the hut. Kiryushka fell on the threshold, hurt his nose and began to cry; Masha dragged him into the hut, and they both hid under a bench. Grandmother heard nothing and slept.

The eldest boy Vanya (he was eight years old) was on the street. When he saw smoke coming from the hallway, he ran through the door, jumped through the smoke into the hut and began to wake up his grandmother; but the grandmother went crazy from her sleep and forgot about the children, jumped out and ran through the courtyards after the people.

Masha, meanwhile, sat under the bench and was silent; only little boy I screamed because I had broken my nose painfully. Vanya heard his cry, looked under the bench and shouted to Masha:

- Run, you'll burn!

Masha ran into the hallway, but it was impossible to get past the smoke and fire. She came back. Then Vanya raised the window and told her to climb in. When she climbed through, Vanya grabbed his brother and dragged him. But the boy was heavy and did not give in to his brother. He cried and pushed Vanya. Vanya fell twice while he was dragging him to the window; the door to the hut was already on fire. Vanya stuck the boy’s head through the window and wanted to push him through; but the boy (he was very frightened) grabbed hold of it with his little hands and did not let them go. Then Vanya shouted to Masha:

- Pull him by the head! – and he pushed from behind. And so they pulled him out the window onto the street and jumped out themselves.

Cow

The widow Marya lived with her mother and six children. They lived poorly. But with the last money they bought a brown cow so that there would be milk for the children. The older children fed Burenushka in the field and gave her slops at home. One day, the mother came out of the yard, and the eldest boy Misha reached for bread on the shelf, dropped a glass and broke it. Misha was afraid that his mother would scold him, so he picked up the large glasses from the glass, took them out into the yard and buried them in manure, and picked up all the small glasses and threw them into the basin. The mother grabbed the glass and began to ask, but Misha didn’t say; and so the matter remained.

The next day, after lunch, the mother went to give Buryonushka slop from the pelvis, she saw that Buryonushka was boring and did not eat food. They began to treat the cow and called the grandmother. Grandma said:

- The cow will not live, we must kill it for meat.

They called a man and began to beat the cow. The children heard Buryonushka roar in the yard. Everyone gathered on the stove and began to cry.

When they killed Buryonushka, skinned her and cut her into pieces, they found glass in her throat. And they found out that she died because she got glass in the slop.

When Misha found out this, he began to cry bitterly and confessed to his mother about the glass. The mother said nothing and began to cry herself. She said:

- We killed our Buryonushka, now we have nothing to buy. How can small children live without milk?

Misha began to cry even more and did not get off the stove while they ate the jelly from the cow's head. Every day in his dreams he saw Uncle Vasily carrying the dead, brown head of Buryonushka with open eyes and a red neck by the horns.

Since then the children have had no milk. Only on holidays there was milk, when Marya asked the neighbors for a pot.

It happened that the lady of that village needed a nanny for her child. The old woman says to her daughter:

“Let me go, I’ll go as a nanny, and maybe God will help you manage the children alone.” And I, God willing, will earn enough for a cow a year.

And so they did. The old lady went to the lady. And it became even harder for Marya with the children. And the children lived without milk for a whole year: only jelly and prison They ate and became thin and pale.

A year passed, the old lady came home and brought twenty rubles.

- Well, daughter! - speaks. - Now let's buy a cow.

Marya was happy, all the children were happy. Marya and the old woman were going to the market to buy a cow. The neighbor was asked to stay with the children, and the neighbor, Uncle Zakhar, was asked to go with them to choose a cow. We prayed to God and went to the city.

The children had lunch and went outside to see if the cow was being led. The children began to judge which cow would be brown or black. They began to talk about how they would feed her. They waited, waited all day. For a mile away They went to meet the cow, it was getting dark, and they came back. Suddenly they see: a grandmother is riding along the street in a cart, and a motley cow is walking at the rear wheel, tied by the horns, and her mother is walking behind her, urging her on with a twig. The children ran up and began to look at the cow. They gathered bread and herbs and began to feed them.

The mother went into the hut, undressed and went out into the yard with a towel and milk pan. She sat down under the cow and wiped the udder. God bless! - began to milk the cow; and the children sat around and watched as milk splashed from the udder into the edge of the milk pan and whistled from under the mother’s fingers. The mother milked half the milk pan, took it to the cellar and poured a pot for the children for dinner.

Lion and dog

In London they showed wild animals and for viewing they took money or dogs and cats to feed the wild animals.

The little dog tucked its tail and pressed itself into the corner of the cage. The lion came up to her and smelled her.

The little dog lay down on its back, raised its paws and began wagging its tail.