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      3, Scotland, True Thomas, охотничий рожок, over

      The Seal Catcher and the Merman

      Once upon a time there was a man who lived in the north of Scotland. He and his family lived in a little cottage by the seashore. He caught seals and sold their fur. It was very valuable.

      He earned much money. The seals came out of the sea, and lay on the rocks near his house. It was not difficult to kill them.

      Some of those seals were larger than others. The country people called them “Roane”. The people whispered that they were not seals, but Mermen and Merwomen. They said these Mermen and Merwomen were coming to the shore from their own country. This country was under the ocean. But the seal catcher only laughed at them. He said that it was necessary to kill those seals. Their skins were big, and he got an extra price for them.

      One day, he stabbed a seal with his knife. The creature cried of pain and slipped off the rock into the sea. Then the creature disappeared under the water and carried the knife along with it.

      The seal catcher was very annoyed at his clumsiness. He was also very annoyed at the loss of his knife. He went home to dinner. On his way he met a strange horseman. That horseman rode on a gigantic horse. The seal catcher stopped and looked at him in astonishment.

      The stranger stopped also. Then the stranger asked about his business. When the horseman heard that he was a seal catcher, he immediately ordered a great number of seal skins. The seal catcher was delighted. Such an order meant a large sum of money to him. But it was absolutely necessary to bring the skins that evening.

      “I cannot do it,” said the hunter. “The seals will not come back to the rocks again until tomorrow morning.”

      “I can take you to a place with many seals,” answered the stranger. “Just mount behind me on my horse. Come with me.”

      The seal catcher agreed to this. He climbed up behind the rider. The rider shook his bridle rein. The great horse galloped off. On and on they went. They flew like the wind. At last they came to the edge of a huge precipice. The face of that precipice went sheer down to the sea. Here the mysterious horseman pulled up his steed with a jerk.

      “Get off now[9],” he said shortly.

      The seal catcher got off. He found himself safe on the ground. Then he peeped cautiously over the edge of the cliff. Where are the seals? To his astonishment he saw only the blue sea.

      “Where are your seals?” he asked anxiously.

      “You will see them soon,” answered the stranger.

      The seal catcher was frightened. It was useless to cry out for help in such a lonely place.

      The next moment the stranger laid his hand upon the hunter's shoulder. Then the stranger pushed him over the cliff. The seal catcher fell with a splash into the sea. He thought that was his last hour.

      But, to his astonishment, he could breathe quite easily. He and his companion, sank quickly down through the sea.

      Down and down they went. At last they came to a huge arched door. The door was made of pink coral and cockle-shells[10]. It opened. When they entered they found themselves[11] in a huge hall. The walls of that hall were of mother-of-pearl[12]. The floor of that hall was of sea-sand. It was smooth, and firm, and yellow.

      The hall was crowded with occupants. They were seals, not men. What it all meant? Suddenly the seal catcher found that his guide, too, became a seal. He was still more aghast when he saw himself in a large mirror. The mirror hung on the wall. The hunter saw that he was also no longer a man. He was a nice, hairy, brown seal!

      “Ah, woe to me![13]” he said to himself. “Why did this artful stranger cast some baneful charm upon me? In this awful guise I will remain for the rest of my life!”

      At first none of the huge creatures spoke to him. They were very sad. They moved gently about the hall. They talked quietly and mournfully to one another. The wiped big tears from their eyes with their soft furry fins.

      But presently they noticed him. They began to whisper to one another. His guide moved away from him. He disappeared through a door at the end of the hall. When the guide returned he held a huge knife in his hand.

      “Have you ever seen this before?” he asked.

      He