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7. One night the dog appeared to him again in a dream, and told him what had happened, adding that if he would take the ashes of the burnt mortar and sprinkle them on withered trees, the trees would revive, and suddenly put out flowers. After saying this the dream vanished, and the old man, who heard for the first time of the loss of his mortar, ran out weeping to the neighbours’ house, and begged them, at any rate, to give him back the ashes of his treasure.
Having obtained it, he returned home, and made a trial of their virtues upon a withered cherry tree, which, upon being touched by the ashes, immediately began to sprout and blossom. When he saw this wonderful effect, he put the ashes into a basket, and went about the country, announcing himself as an old man who had the power of bringing dead trees to life again.
8. A certain prince, hearing of this, and thinking it a mighty strange thing, sent for the old fellow, who showed his power by causing all the withered plum and cherry trees to shoot out and put forth flowers. So, the prince gave him a rich reward of pieces of silk and cloth and other presents, and sent him home rejoicing.
As soon as the neighbours heard of this they collected all the ashes that remained, and having put them in a basket, the wicked old man went out into the castle town, and gave out that he was the old man who had the power of reviving dead trees, and causing them to flower. He had not to wait long before he was called into the prince’s palace, and ordered to exhibit his power.
9. But when he climbed up into a withered tree, and began to scatter the ashes, not a bud or flower appeared; but the ashes all flew into the prince’s eyes and mouth, blinding and choking him. When the prince’s retainers saw this, they seized the old man, and beat him almost to death, so that he crawled off home in a very sorry plight. When he and his wife found out what a trap they had fallen into, they scolded themselves.
The good old man and woman, as soon as they heard of their neighbours’ distress, sent for them, and, after reproving them for their greed and cruelty, gave them a share of their own riches, which, by repeated strokes of luck, had now increased to a goodly sum. So, the wicked old people mended their ways, and led good and virtuous lives ever after.
Explanation:
Some days later, the dog appeared in the good old man's dream and told him what had happened to the mortar. The dog asked the good old man to take the ashes of the burnt mortar and sprinkle it all over the trees, which were drying. The dog added that if he sprinkles the ashes on the dead trees, they will start blooming with flowers. The old man, who heard about what had happened to the mortar, felt sad. He went to his evil neighbor's house and requested them to give back the ashes of the mortar.
Once he got the ashes, he tried it on a dry cherry tree, and to his surprise, the cherry tree blossomed by the touch of the ashes.
Once he got the ashes, he tried it on a dry cherry tree, and to his surprise, the cherry tree blossomed by the touch of the ashes.
The old man was surprised and happy to see this. He put the ashes into the basket and went to the town, announcing that he can make any dry or faded tree blossom again.
A prince came to know about this and thought that it was strange to bring dry or faded trees back to life. He called the good old man and asked him to show his magic. When the good old man made the dried plum tree and cherry trees to blossom, the prince became happy and gave him a reward of silk clothes and other presents. The good old man was very happy and went back to his town.
A prince came to know about this and thought that it was strange to bring dry or faded trees back to life. He called the good old man and asked him to show his magic. When the good old man made the dried plum tree and cherry trees to blossom, the prince became happy and gave him a reward of silk clothes and other presents. The good old man was very happy and went back to his town.
Soon the immoral neighbours heard about this and took the leftover ashes in a basket and went to the town and announced that he had the power of making dead trees alive. After some time, he was called into the prince's palace to show his magic.
To show his magic to the prince, the immoral old man climbed up a faded tree and sprinkled the ashes on it. Neither a single flower bloomed, nor a bud appeared on the tree. All the ashes he sprinkled went into the prince's eyes and mouth, making the prince uncomfortable. The prince's servants thrashed him black and blue. The immoral old man had crawled to his home town, disappointed. The immoral couple felt bad and thought that they should not have done this.
The good old couple heard about their neighbours' plight, and they made them understand their fault and shared some of their wealth. So the evil old couple led a good life after that.
Meaning of difficult words:
Numbers | Word | Meanings |
1. | Revive | Bring to life. |
2. | Exhibit | Show. |
3. | Ashes | The powdery residue left after the burning of a substance. |
4. | Virtuous | Good. |
Reference:
State Council of Educational Research and Training (2018). Term-1 English Standard-9. The Envious Neighbour (pp. 187-190). Published by the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation.
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