The Story of a Very Bad Boy

Once upon a time, in a tiny village in the middle of France, there lived a widow and her only son, a boy named Antoine, though everyone called him Toueno-Boueno. They were very poor, and their little hut shook in the wind, so that they were afraid the walls would fall in and crush them. But instead of working like other boys his age, Toueno-Boueno just loafed around the streets, staring at the ground and noticing nothing around him.

"You are very, very stupid, my dear child," his mother sometimes said, and then she added with a laugh, "You'll certainly never catch a wolf by the tail."

One day the old woman told Antoine to go into the forest and gather enough dry leaves to make beds for herself and him. Before he had finished, it began to rain heavily, so he hid in the hollow trunk of a tree, where he was dry and comfortable and soon fell fast asleep. By and by he was awakened by a noise like a dog scratching at the door, and he suddenly felt frightened, though he didn't know why. Very carefully he raised his head, and right above him he saw a big hairy animal coming down tail first.

"It's the wolf they talk so much about," he said to himself, and he made himself as small as he could and shrank into a corner.

The wolf came down the inside of the tree, slowly, slowly. Antoine felt turned to stone, he was so terrified, and he hardly dared to breathe. Suddenly an idea came to him. He remembered his mother saying that a wolf could neither bend its back nor turn its head to look behind. Quick as lightning, he stretched up his hand, seized the wolf's tail, and pulled it toward him.

Then he left the tree and dragged the animal to his mother's house.

"Mother, you always said I was too stupid to catch a wolf by the tail. Now look!" he cried triumphantly.

"Well, wonders never cease," answered the good woman, staying well back. "But since you've got him, let's see if we can put him to use. Fetch the skin of the ram that died last week from the chest, and we'll sew the wolf up in it. He'll make a splendid ram, and tomorrow we'll drive him to the fair and sell him."

Very likely the cunning wolf understood what she said, but he thought it best not to show it, and let them sew the skin on him. "I can always get away if I want to," he thought. "Better not to hurry." So he stayed still while the skin was pulled over his head, making him very hot and uncomfortable.

The fair was at its height the next day when Toueno-Boueno arrived with his wolf in ram's clothing. All the farmers crowded around, each offering a higher price than the last. Never had they seen such a beautiful beast, they said. Finally, after much bargaining, the ram was sold to three brothers for a good sum of money.

These three brothers owned large flocks of sheep, but none as large and fine as the one they had just bought.

"My flock is closest," said the eldest brother. "We'll leave him in the fold for the night, and tomorrow we'll decide which pasture is best for him." The wolf grinned as he listened and held his head a little higher.

Early next morning the young farmer went to check his sheepfold first. To his horror, all the sheep lay dead before him, except one that the wolf had eaten, bones and all. The truth dawned on him at once.

It was no ram lying curled in the corner pretending to sleep (for in reality it could bend back and turn its head as much as it liked), but a wolf watching him out of the corner of its eye, ready to spring at any moment.

So the farmer said nothing, and thought he could use this to get back at his brother for a trick he had played. He merely said the ram wouldn't eat the grass in that field and suggested driving it to the pasture by the river where his own flock was feeding.

The second brother eagerly fell for it, and that evening the wolf was driven to the field where the young man kept the sheep he had inherited from his father. By the next morning they were all dead too, but the second brother also kept quiet and let the sheep belonging to the youngest brother share the same fate.

Then they met and admitted their disasters to each other, and decided to take the animal back to Toueno-Boueno and give him a good thrashing.

Antoine was sitting in a neighbor's plum tree, eating ripe fruit, when he saw the three young farmers coming toward him. He swung down and ran home to the hut, shouting breathlessly, "Mother, mother! The farmers are almost here with the wolf. They've found out everything and will surely kill us. But if you do as I say, I can save us both. Lie down on the floor and pretend to be dead, and don't speak, no matter what happens."

So when the three brothers, each with a whip, entered the hut a few seconds later, they found a woman lying on the floor and Toueno kneeling beside her, whistling loudly in her ears.

"What are you doing now, you rascal?" asked the eldest.

"What am I doing? Oh, my poor friends, I'm the most miserable creature in the world! I've lost the best of mothers, and I don't know what will become of me," and he hid his face in his hands and sobbed.

"But why are you whistling like that?"

"It's my only hope. This whistle can bring the dead back to life, and I thought..." Here he buried his face again, but peeking between his fingers, he saw the brothers' eyes wide as saucers.

"Look!" he cried suddenly. "Look! I'm sure I felt her body move! And now her nostrils are twitching. The whistle still works!" He bent down and whistled even louder, so that the old woman's feet and hands began to move, and soon she lifted her head.

The farmers were amazed. Finally the eldest said, "Listen, boy. You're a little villain. You sold us a ram knowing it was a wolf, and we came to pay you back. But if you give us that whistle, we'll forgive everything and leave you alone."

"It's my only treasure," said Antoine, pretending to hesitate. "But since you want it so much, I suppose I can't refuse," and he handed over the whistle, which the eldest brother put in his pocket.

Armed with the precious whistle, the three brothers went home full of joy. On the way, the youngest said, "I have a great idea! Our wives are lazy and grumbling, making our lives miserable. Let's teach them a lesson. When we get home, we'll kill them. Then we can bring them back to life with the whistle, but they'll be really frightened."

"How clever you are!" said the other two. "No one else would have thought of that."

So the three husbands cheerfully knocked down their three wives, and they fell dead to the floor. Then one by one they tried the whistle, blowing as loudly as they could, but the women lay still and never moved an eyelid. The husbands grew pale and cold, for they had never meant any real harm. They realized the boy had tricked them again. With stern faces, they got up, took a large sack, and went back to the hut.

This time there was no escape. Toueno was asleep and only woke when they entered. Without a word, they shoved him into the sack, tied the mouth, and the eldest threw it over his shoulder. Then they set off to the river to drown the boy.

But the river was far away, and the day was very hot. Antoine was heavy, heavier than a whole sheaf of corn. They took turns carrying him, but still they grew tired and thirsty. When a little tavern came into sight by the road, they thankfully dropped the sack on a bench and went in to refresh themselves. They didn't notice a beggar sitting in the shade at the end of the bench, but Toueno's sharp ears caught the sound of someone eating. As soon as the farmers were inside, he began to groan softly.

"What's the matter?" asked the beggar, coming closer. "Why are you shut up in there, poor boy?"

"Because they wanted to make me a bishop, and I refused," answered Toueno.

"Dear me," said the beggar, "but being a bishop isn't so bad."

"I don't say it is," replied the young rascal, "but I wouldn't like it. However, if you'd like to wear a mitre, just untie the sack and take my place."

"I'd like nothing better," said the man, stooping to undo the big knot.

So it was the beggar, not Toueno-Boueno, who was thrown into the water.

The next morning the three wives were buried. On their way back from the cemetery, the three husbands met Toueno-Boueno driving a magnificent flock of sheep. They stood still in astonishment.

"What! You scoundrel!" they cried. "We drowned you yesterday, and now here you are, safe and sound!"

"It does seem odd, doesn't it?" he answered. "But perhaps you don't know that beneath this world there lies another, even more beautiful and richer. Well, that's where you sent me when you threw me into the river.

At first I felt a little strange, but soon I looked around and saw what was happening. I noticed that close to where I landed, a sheep fair was going on. Someone told me that every day there's a horse fair or cattle sale somewhere.

If I had been lucky enough to be thrown in over the horse fair, I could have made my fortune! As it was, I just bought these sheep, which you can get for nothing."

"And do you know exactly the spot in the river that lies over the horse fair?"

"Of course I do, I've seen it with my own eyes."

"Then if you don't want us to avenge our dead flocks and murdered wives, you must throw us into the river right over the horse fair."

"Very well. But you must each get a sack and come with me to that rock that juts into the river. I'll throw you in from there, and you'll land almost on the horses' backs."

So he threw them in, and they were never seen again, so no one ever knew into which fair they fell.