M39a2b. A fool salts the river. .28.29.32.34.

After buying salt or sugar, a fool pours them into a pond to salt or sweeten the water.

Russians (Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Gorkovskaya), Tabasarans, (Turks), Komi, Chuvash, Kazan Tatars, Kumandins.

Central Europe. The Russians (Arkhangelskaya) [Ivan's younger brother was sent to buy spoons and salt; spoons are rattling, I. think they're teasing him as a fool, threw them away; horses don't drink; he decided that the water in the river is unsalted, poured salt into the water; the frog is croaking; I. think they count his money (two, two); poured money into the swamp - consider it; the brothers and father decided that there is nothing to take from a fool]: Drannikova 2002, No. 61:146-149; Russians (Arkhangelskaya, Mezen, Vozhgory) [summary of the record: a fool goes to sell a bull and a bag of salt; salt water in the river with salt, sells a bull to birch, in its creak he imagines "three hundred"; under finds a treasure with a birch tree; buys pots, puts them on stumps, etc.; kills a deacon; brothers bury a goat; it is dug up instead of a clerk, the murder is hidden]: Nikiforov 1961, No. 16:363; Russians (Vologodskaya) [two brothers are smart, they work, the third Ivan is a fool, only catches flies; his mother sent him to take a pot of dumplings to his brothers; I. sees his shadow, thinks that some person is throwing dumplings, threw everything away, then the pot, it broke; his brothers beat him, forced the sheep to herd, went to the village for lunch; the sheep began to wander away, I. gouged their eyes; his brothers beat him again; for the holiday they sent him to the city to buy spoons, a table, food; when he went back, he ordered the table to go by itself - he has four legs like a horse; he fed all the food to the crows - let the sisters eat; put pots on the burnt stumps yes korchagi ("hats"); the horse does not drink from the river - apparently, he does not want to be without salt, poured salt into the river; the horse still does not drink, I. killed it with a log; carried spoons, they rattle, he thinks they "Ivan the Fool" is teasing; he trampled on them; the brothers sent I. to collect what he threw away; he made a hole in the korchagi, put everything on one batog; at home he hears that the beer is wandering; he thinks it is teasing him - released and began to swim in the trough; the brothers sewed the fool into the kul, carried him to drown; left and went to inspect the ice-hole; the master rides on the top three; I. shouts that they want to make him a voivode, but he does not know how to judge; the master ordered him to be sewn into the kul; drowned; I. arrives at the bottom of the distance; the brothers ordered them to be drowned; I. drove home to finish drinking beer and remember the brothers]: Gura 1965, No. 13:219-220 (=Burtsev 1895, No. 20:115- 119); Russians (Gorkovskaya) [for his mother's funeral, two older brothers send Vanyushka to the bazaar; he bought flour, salt, skulls {pots}, a table, spoons; on the way back, the horse was exhausted and got up; V. decided that she was thirsty, leads to the river; the horse does not drink; V. poured all the salt into the water - he still does not drink; the horse beat, it drowned; drags the cart himself; promises to deal with the spoons - why do they rattle; puts the table on the ground - let him go; the bushes under they swing in the wind - he wants hats, put pots on the branches; jackdaws and crows flew off, V. poured out all their flour; threw the cart, came on foot; the brothers also told them to bring children to the wake; there is no cart with a horse, V. drags a harrow and throws children on their teeth; people ran away, took children who are alive]: Eremina et al. 1979, No. 8:176-178.

Caucasus - Asia Minor. Tabasarans [fool Valyai-Morgan is the son of the khan; his father sent him to find a wife; he went to the bazaar, can I get a wife? everyone laughs; one person says his daughter is just as stupid; VM went on: the girl releases and then catches chickens, then grabs a bundle of eggs, then lets it go; her father told her that the eggs should be intact, and the chickens did not run away; the VM advises to tie the chickens to the hen; the hawk took everyone away at once; the girl's father beat the VM, left her daughter in the barn; VM was there; at night they stabbed a cow and a donkey without understanding decided to run; when they found out that VM was the son of the khan, the girl's father gave her to him and sent her to the khan; the VM had to drag the bed, and the girl was supposed to carry cups, spoons and boxes of tea and sugar; VM beds: I have two legs, and There are four of you, go by yourself; they threw what the girl was carrying at the spring to come to him for tea; everyone thought that VM had found a suitable wife for him]: Khalilov, Osmanov 1989:234-236; (cf. Turks [fools bring salt extracted from the salt lake and decide to throw it into their pond so that there is salt there too; the next morning the pond is dry, many flies have appeared; fools trying to shoot them shoot at themselves]: Eberhard, Boratav 1953, No. 327 V: 362).

Volga - Perm. Komi (Savenobor) [his younger brother is simple; his elders sent him for salt; on the way back he began to drink from the river and decided that it would taste better if salt was added to the water; poured all the salt into the river; he was sent for hops, he scattered it in the wind; he was kicked a tree in the forest, money fell down; he brought copper, leaving gold; the brothers brought gold, sent a fool to the ass for measure; when they learned that You need to measure gold, the pop ran after the fool, he killed him]: Wichmann 1916, No. 41:116-117; Chuvash (West 1913) [of the three brothers, the youngest Peter is bald; after the harvest, when it is necessary to prepare beer, he is sent to the bazaar to buy malt, bowl spoons, butter, salt, and a table; he bought everything, it is difficult for him to carry what he bought on foot; sat on the table, told him to become a horse; the table is in place; P.: if you don't want to run on four legs, you'll run on three; then two, one; finally broke the table; thinks that the spoons in your pocket are teasing him." Bald", threw them away and trampled them; mixed the malt in the river; decided that the beer was good, but there was little salt, threw salt into the water; the gate posts cracked from the heat, P. sympathized with them, oiled them; the brothers scolded P. , they bought everything themselves, told P. to invite guests; he tells men to come, women to stay; he is sent for women, P. tells them to leave their children; they send them for children; P. loaded them on the cart, the children cry , he killed them, crushed them with oppression, put a piece of snow in everyone's hands; said that the children were in the bathhouse, he gave them a piece of sugar; Bald was beaten; the brothers decided to run away from him, he hid in the kul where they put the crackers down; the brothers sat down, decided to eat, P. jumped out; had to return, P. got better]: Chuvash tales 1937:152-155; Kazan Tatars [mother sent her stupid son to the bazaar; he bought a table, spoons, salt and some things; when he saw him, the pigeon stopped drinking water; the fool thought that because the water was unsalted, he poured salt into the water; the spoons began to rattle; the fool thought they were planning to kill him, threw it away; the horse is tired, the fool left the table on the road - let him go, he has 4 legs; the next year, the mother tells him to say hello if he meets a person, if he meets a person counting money, count with him; the fool saw the dogs crossing, greeted him, counted his fingers; the dogs tore his clothes; mother: they must be beaten; the fool took a stick, killed the old man, left him in the flour cellar; the mother killed the goat, changed the body; the fool told the victim's wife and children where the body was; he was told to get the body; he asks if the old man had horns; people left]: Nasyrov, Polyakov 1900, No. 2:13-14.

Southern Siberia - Mongolia. Kumandins [two brothers sow bread, send a third fool to herd sheep; sheep run away, he gouges out their eyes; next time they don't want to cross the river; they're probably afraid to soak their shoes, he took it off - cut off their legs; he is sent to the city to buy cups, spoons, pots, salt, a table for the holiday; on the way back he sees burnt stumps - the brothers freeze without a hat, put pots on the stumps; the kites scream - puts oats into their cup; the table has 4 legs - let him go; the horse does not drink water in the river - he does not want without salt, the fool pours salt into the river; the horse still does not drink, he kills him; the brothers put the fool in a bag they carried to drown, left while they were looking for an ice-hole; the sick son of the priest rides, the fool says he is in a bag to recover; the son of the priest climbs into the bag, the fool leaves on his horse; tells the brothers that caught at the bottom; brothers ask them to drown, the fool got rich]: Baskakov 1972:185-188.