Page:Tales and Legends from the Land of the Tzar.djvu/307

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upon a time there lived a king and a queen. The king was a great sportsman, he loved nothing so much as to go out shooting game. One day, as he set out on one of his sporting expeditions, he saw a young eagle sitting on an old oak-tree; he was just about to shoot it, when to his surprise, the eagle said,—

"Do not shoot me, O king; but take me to your palace. I may be of use to you one of these days."

The king thought and thought, and then replied,—

"Of what use can you possibly be to me?" and he again prepared to shoot the bird.

"No, pray do not kill me," said the eagle once more; "take me home to your palace, O king, for I am sure to be of some use to you soon."

The king thought for a little while, and then again was about to kill the eagle, wondering how on earth such a bird could be of use to him.

But the eagle begged for the third time, saying as before,—

"Kill me not, O king; better take me with you to the palace. I may be of use to you soon."

The king at last took pity on the creature, and rode with it to his home, where he fed and took care of him for two whole years. The eagle ate so much