Page:Tales and Legends from the Land of the Tzar.djvu/18

2 account, for he loved his little daughter dearly, and wanted some one to take care of her, as he had very little time to do so himself.

Many women came in his way, yet he cared for none. At last a very rich widow took his fancy, with two rather pretty daughters, of Vaselesa's own age. He, thinking her a good house-wife, as well as a kind mother, married her; but, alas! she turned out to be a very different sort of woman; and, like a good many step-mothers, disliked her step-daughter immensely. She hated Vaselesa because she was the most beautiful child on the whole face of the earth! and because she was a good, obedient little girl. Her step-sisters, of course, very shortly began to hate her too; they snubbed her, made her do all their work for them and tried to worry her in every possible way; but all in vain, Vaselesa grew more beautiful every day, and did not seem to mind in the least all their snubbing, and all the hard work they made her do. Why was this? Was it because she kept the doll which her mother had given her? or was it the dying woman's blessing that kept her from harm? We shall see by-and-by.

Years passed on, the beautiful Vaselesa was now old enough to be a bride. She was always surrounded by rich and handsome lovers, while the two step-sisters were left out in the cold, for no one looked at them when Vaselesa was near. Naturally, the step-mother became very angry, and told the young men that she would not let Vaselesa marry before her own daughters were comfortably settled. The young men on hearing this, departed in haste, and troubled the nobleman's house no more. The step mother was