her father sets out in search of her dead body. But the
dog beneath the table barks--"Taff! Taff! The master's daughter in
silver and gold by the wedding party is borne along, but the
mistress's daughter is wooed by none!" In vain does its mistress throw
it a cake, and order it to modify its remarks. It eats the cake, but
it repeats its offensive observations, until the stepdaughter appears
in all her glory. Then the old woman's own daughter is sent afield.
Frost comes to have a look at his new guest, expecting "wise words"
from her too. But as none are forthcoming, he waxes wroth, and kills
her. When the old man goes to fetch her, the dog barks--"Taff! Taff!
The master's daughter will be borne along by the bridal train, but the
bones of the mistress's daughter are being carried in a bag," and
continues to bark in the same strain until the yard-gates open. The
old woman runs out to greet her daughter, and "instead of her embraces
a cold corpse."

To the Russian peasants, it should be observed, Moroz, our own Jack
Frost, is a living personage. On Christmas Eve it is customary for the
oldest man in each family to take a spoonful of kissel, a sort of
pudding, and then, having put his head through the window, to cry:

"Frost, Frost, come and eat kissel! Frost, Frost, do not kill our
oats! drive our flax and hemp deep into the ground."

The Tcheremisses have similar ideas, and are afraid of knocking the
icicles off their houses, thinking that, if they do so, Frost will wax
wroth and freeze them to death. In one of the Skazkas, a peasant goes
out one day to a field of buckwheat, and finds it all broken down. He
goes home, and tells the bad news to his wife, who says, "It is Frost
who has done this. Go and find him, and make him pay for the damage!"
So the peasant goes into the forest and, after wandering about for
some time, lights upon a path which leads him to a cottage made of
ice, covered with snow, and hung with icicles. He knocks at the door,
and out comes an old man--"all white." This is Frost, who presents him
with the magic cudgel and table-cloth which work wonders in so many of
the tales.[285] In another story, a peasant meets the Sun, the Wind,
and the Frost. He bows to all three, but adds an extra salutation to
the Wind. This enrages the two others, and the Sun cries out that he
will burn up the peasant. But the Wind says, "I will blow cold, and
temper the heat." Then the Frost threatens to freeze the peasant t