Folk-Lore.
ENGLISH AND SCOTCH FAIRY TALES.[1]
I. Rashin Coatie.
THERE was a king and a queen, as mony anes been, few have we seen, and as few may we see. The queen she deeit, and left a bonnie little lassie; and she had naething to gie to the wee lassie but a little red calfy, and she telt the lassie whatever she wanted, the calfy would gie her. The king married again, an ill-natured wife, wi’ three ugly dochters o’ her ain. They did na like the little lassie because she was bonnie; they took awa’ a’ her braw claes that her ain mither had geen her, and put a rashin coatie on her, and gart her sit in the kitchen neuk, and a’ body ca’d her Rashin Coatie. She did na get ony thing to eat but what the rest left, but she did na care, for she went to her red calfy, and it gave her everything she asked for. She got good meat from the calfy, but her ill-natured step-mother gart the calfy be killed, because it was good to Rashin Coatie. She was very sorry for the calfy, and sat down and grat. The dead calfy said to her:
“Tak’ me up, bane by bane,
And pit me aneth yon grey stane,
- ↑ Mr. Andrew Lang, who has, during the last fifteen years or so, collected several English and Scotch folk-tales, has kindly consented to their being made more accessible to students of folk-lore by being printed together. Messrs. Longmans have also waived their rights over some of the stories. Ed. F.-L.
