The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Story of Tim, by Anonymous, Translated by
George Borrow

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

Title: The Story of Tim

Author: Anonymous

Release Date: May 12, 2009 [eBook #28770]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF TIM***

Transcribed from the 1913 Thomas J. Wise pamphlet by David Price, email
ccx074@pglaf.org

THE STORY OF TIM

_Translated from the Russian_
BY
GEORGE BORROW

LONDON:
PRINTED FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION
1913

INTRODUCTION

The Russians have three grand popular tales, the subjects of which are
thievish adventures. One is called the _Story of Klim_, another is
called the _Story of Tim_, and the third is called the _Story of Tom_.
Below we present a translation of the _Story of Tim_.

That part of the tale in which Tim inquires of the drowsy Archimandrite
as to the person to whom the stolen pelisse is to be awarded, differs in
no material point from a portion of a tale narrated in the Turkish
story-book of the lady and the forty vizirs. The concluding part,
however, in which we are told how Tim's comrades twice stole the pig from
him, and how he twice regained it, is essentially Russian, and is
original.

THE STORY OF TIM

In a certain village there lived an old man who had lost almost the whole
of his hair, partly from age, and partly from the friction of his fur
cap, which he never laid aside, either by day or night. He had a
helpmeet as ancient as himself, but who differed from him in having a
hump. Our story, however, does not relate to them, but to a son of
theirs, called Timoney, who was a sharp lad enough, but who had learnt
nothing but to play on the fife. The old man thinking that music,
however sweet, would never fill the belly, and that it was quite
impossible to live on an empty stomach, determined to have the boy taught
some trade, but ere fixing on what it should be, he deemed it expedient
to cons