The Fisherman And His Wife

By Itellyouastory

There was once a fisherman who lived  with his wife in a pigsty, closeby the seaside. The fisherman used to go out all day long a-fishing; andone day, as he sat on the shore  with his rod, looking at the sparklingwaves and watching his line,  all on a  sudden his float  was draggedaway  deep into the water: and in drawing it up  he pulled out a greatfish. But  the fish said, «Pray  let me live!  I am not  a real fish;  Iam an  enchanted prince: put me in the water again, and let me go!» «Oh,ho!» said the man, «you need not make so many words about the matter; Iwill have nothing  to do with a fish that can talk: so  swim away, sir,as soon as you  please!» Then he put him back into the water, and thefish darted straight down  to the bottom, and left a long streak ofblood behind him on the wave.

When the fisherman went home to his wife in the pigsty, he told her howhe had caught a  great fish,  and how  it had told  him it  was anenchanted prince, and how, on hearing it speak, he had let it go again.«Did not you ask it for  anything?» said the  wife, «we live  verywretchedly here,  in this nasty dirty  pigsty; do  go back  and tell thefish we  want a  snug little cottage.»

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