M164. One-way tracks, ATU 50A.
(.10.) .11.13.-.16.27.-.31.33.
The character refuses to enter the predator's lair when he sees that all traces lead in but not out.
(Gottentot-nama), Chagga, Lango, Amhara, Nubians, Somalis, Spaniards, Catalans, Portuguese, Irish, French, Dutch, Friesians, Germans (conditionally south), Sedang, Thais, Ancient Greece, Hungarians, Western Ukrainians (Ugric Russia), Russian written tradition, Ossetians, Ingush, Dargins, Persians, Turkmens, Finns, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Kazakhs.
(Wed. SW Africa. Hottentots -nama {European borrowings} [The jackal sees that the tracks of animals that go to visit the sick lion lead to his lair, but not back; decides not to go to the lion; the hyena complains to the lion about the jackal and he lets her go; the jackal comes and says that I hesitated because I was looking for a doctor; he advised the lion to wrap himself in the still warm hyena skin; the lion skins the hyena without paying attention to its screams]: Klipple 1992:31).
Bantu-speaking Africa. Chagga [the lion pretended to be ill; the monkeys came to visit him but did not enter his lair alone; the lion closed the door and ate the others]: Arewa 1961, no. 615:43-44.
Sudan-East Africa. Lango [the lion declared that he was seriously ill; his subjects came to visit him, no one returned; the turtle did not go beyond the gate, crawled away, told others that the lion should be feared]: Anpetkova -Sharova 2010:410-411; amhara [the lion said he was ill, all animals come to visit him; the monkey refuses to go inside, seeing that no trace leads from the lion's den]: Gankin 1979, No. 24: 36-37; the Nubians [the lion is ill; animals come to him, he eats them; the fox sees that all traces lead only to the lion's lair, not back; refuses to enter]: Reinisch 1879, No. 2:202-204; Somalis [during the drought, all the animals went to visit the weakened lion; the jackal did not enter his house - all traces lead to the house and do not lead back]: Hanghe 1988:188 (=Kapchitz 1997, No. 23:27).
North Africa. Morocco, Egypt: El-Shamy 2004, No. 50a: 17.
Southern Europe. The Spaniards [the lion is sick, calls animals to visit him, eats everyone; the fox stops in front of the entrance - all traces lead only into the lion's home; lion: everyone is sitting here, consulting how treat me; fox: I know the doctor; tells the wolf that everyone is waiting for him, leads him to a lion, he kills him]: Malinovskaya 2002:246-247; Spaniards (Cantabria) [the lion is tired of hunting; he spread a rumor that sick, let everyone visit him; the fox sees that all traces lead to the lair but not outside, refuses to go in]: Camarena, Chevalier 1997, No. 50A: 90-91; Portuguese [plot known (summary not cited)]: Cardigos 2006, No. 50A: 27; Catalans [the lion is tired of hunting and pretends to be sick to grab animals that come to visit him; the fox informs about health by standing behind by the door; lion: why don't you go in? fox: all traces go into the house but don't leave the house]: Oriol, Pujol 2008, No. 50A: 30-31.
Western Europe. Irish, French, Dutch, Friesians, Germans (conditionally South): Uther 2004 (1), No. 50a: 45.
Burma - Indochina. Sedang [the tiger grew old, became ill, asked the animals to take turns visiting him; seeing a pile of bones, the fox refused to come in and told others; the tiger starved to death]: Nikulin 1970:183 -184; Thais [the tiger is old, asks animals to visit him; the fox refuses to enter: all traces lead only to the tiger's lair, but not back]: Kornev 1963:141-143.
The Balkans. Ancient Greece [a lion cannot eat by force from old age, decides to get food by cunning; pretends to be sick in a cave, eats everyone who comes in; the fox guesses the trick; asks about the lion's health; the lion offers to enter; there are many traces into the cave, none from the cave; the fox does not enter the cave]: Gasparov 1968, No. 142:105; Hungarians: Uther 2004 (1), No. 50a: 45.
Central Europe. Ukrainians (Ugric Rus) [the lion is sick, animals come to him; the fox does not go in because it sees traces leading to the lair, but not back]: Berezovsky 1979, No. 38:98; Russian written tradition : Tarkovsky, Tarkovskaya 2005, No. 133 ["Proverbs, or Fabulous, by Jesop Frigi" by Fyodor Gozvinsky (1607, more than 20 copies of the 17th - early 18th centuries, including The Book, Verbal Jesop), which are translations of a junior edition of Aesop's fables published around 1479. Bon Accurus in Milan: the lion grew old, stopped hunting; pretended to be sick and lay down in a cave; caught and ate animals that came to him; the fox guessed the trick and, without entering the cave, asked the lion about her health; he asked why she did not go in; the fox said he saw many traces leading to the cave, but few that go outside (option: sees many traces of animals that have come to a lion, but not a single trace of a lion)]; No. 2 ["The Spectacle of Human Life" by A.A. Vinius (1674, dozens of copies of the last quarter of the 17th century, printed edition of 1712, read and again copied in the same 18th century), which is a translation and retelling of the collection of fables "Theatrum Morum", published by E. Sadeler in 1608 in Prague in German: a lion pretended to be sick and ordered all animals to come to his house; they came afraid to disobey; the fox noticed that many traces led to the lion's courtyard, and back - not a single one, and I realized that all those who came died]; No. 33 ["Jesop" by Simbirsk captain Pyotr Kashinsky (1675, of the two lists that have survived to us, one dates back to 1684, and the other to the first third of the 18th century), which consists of three books and is a free translation of fables from the collection "Przypowieśći Aezopowe, z Łacińskiego na Polskie z pilnośćiů przełozone. Przydane sů k temu przypowieśći z Gabryela Greka y Laurenthego Abstemiusa", published in Krakow around 1600: when the lion fell ill, he was visited by all animals except the fox; he sent an ambassador to her with an invitation and saying that she had nothing to fear; the fox refused to come and said that she was afraid of animal tracks that only lead to his lair, and the absence of them in the opposite direction (Book 1:" The parable of Jesop Franzky")]; No. 6 ["The Wise Lochmon, Extraordinary Warehouses and Examples" (last third of the 17th century, at least two lists - the end of the 17th century and the first quarter of the 18th century), which are translations Saadi's Persianisches Rosenthal, published by A. Oleary in 1647 in Schleswig: an aged lion lay down in a hole and pretended to be sick; he grabbed and ate the animals that came to him on the spot; the fox stopped in front of the hole and asked how he was health; the lion asked why she did not go in; the fox replied that she saw many traces leading into the hole, but did not see any that went in the opposite direction]: 252-253, 298, 302, 376, 444-445.
Caucasus - Asia Minor. Ossetians [the wolf is old, has spread the rumor that he is lying in the cave; animals come to him; the fox sees that all traces lead to the cave, not from it; refuses to enter]: Dzagurov 1974, No. 17: 43-44; Ingush [an elderly lion cannot hunt, asks animals to visit him; called a wolf and a fox; the wolf is gone; the fox noticed that wolf tracks go to the lion's lair, but not back; left]: Malsagov 1983, No. 147:286; Dargins: Ganiyeva 2011a, No. 65 [there was a rumor that the wolf was ill, all the animals went to visit him, but did not return; seeing that all traces lead only to the wolf's house, the fox greets wolf without going in; says he likes to visit if he can return], 96 [the tiger is old, pretended to be sick, animals came to visit him, he ate them; he asks the fox why she does not come in; fox: I see that those who go back don't come out]: 185-186, 239.
Iran - Central Asia. Persians: Aliyeva et al. 1958 [the shepherd has a shepherd; the wolf asks the fox to send him animals of their kind, but weaker - he wants to choose an assistant; so he ate a lot of weasels, martens, wild cats; the fox too came, saw that all the tracks went to the wolf's lair, not back, did not go in; left, ate the lioness's cubs; told her that she saw a wolf with a bloody mouth; told the wolf what the lioness wanted appoint him as head; let him come and say, "This is my business"; the lioness tears the wolf's skin on his stomach; the bear helped the wolf recover; the fox takes him to the barn to eat kaurma; he is overweight, cannot get up, they put on a chain, the fox runs away; a barely alive wolf is released; the fox asks him to pick up two sheep, promises to sew a fur coat; asks for more sheep to make long sleeves; says that the fur coat is ready, but the peasant stole it; the wolf demands a fur coat, the peasant cut it in two; the fox ran after him, mocking the wolf, the peasant killed her too]: 497-502; Marzolph 1984, № *50A [1 entry; the fox sees that everything traces lead to the lion's lair, but not out; leaves]: 42; Turkmens [the tiger is old, spread a rumor that he is sick; the animals began to visit him, he ate them; the fox saw that all traces went to the tiger's lair , but not back, refused to go inside]: Stebleva 1969, No. 13:39-40.
Baltoscandia. Latvians [the fox does not go to the lair of a sick lion because it sees that all traces lead only inside]: Aris, Medne 1977, No. 50:253; Estonians [noticing that all traces lead to the lion's lair, but not from him, the fox decides not to enter]: Kippar 1986, No. 50A: 63; Lithuanians: Uther 2004 (4), No. 50A: 45.
Turkestan. Kazakhs [the old lion started a rumor that he could not move; animals come to visit him, they disappear; fox: I will not enter, all traces lead inside, none lead out of the cave]: Bosingen 1984: 104.