Shemyák the Judge

Once in a certain country, in a certain kingdom, there lived two brothers; one was rich and the other poor. One day the poor brother came to the rich and asked him for a horse to fetch wood out of the forest. The rich man lent him a horse. Then the poor man also asked him for a horse-collar: this the rich brother refused, and became angry. Then the poor man decided to tie the wood to the horse’s tail. And so he drove into the wood. He cut down so much wood that the horse could hardly drag it. When he got home he opened the door, but he forgot to remove the cross-beam. The horse jumped over it, but wrenched his tail out.

むかしあるところの国、あるところの王国に、二人の兄弟が住んでいた。一人は富み、一人は貧しかった。ある日、貧しい弟が富める兄のところへ来て、森から薪を運ぶために馬を貸してくれと頼んだ。富める兄は馬を貸した。それから貧しい弟は馬の首枷も貸してくれと頼んだ。これを富める兄は断り、腹を立てた。そこで貧しい弟は薪を馬の尻尾に結びつけることにした。そうして森へ乗り入れた。馬がやっと引けるほどの薪を切り出した。家に着くと戸を開けたが、横木を外すのを忘れていた。馬はそれを跳び越えたが、尻尾を引きちぎってしまった。

The poor brother brought the rich man the horse back without a tail. When he saw the animal in this condition, he would not take it; but went with the poor man before Judge Shemyák. The poor man went with his brother, and surmised he would fare very badly, for the sentence would be exile; the poor man is a butt for all, as he cannot give anything.

貧しい弟は尻尾のない馬を富める兄に返した。兄はこのありさまの馬を見て受け取ろうとせず、貧しい弟を連れて裁き人シェミャークのもとへ行った。貧しい弟は兄とともに行ったが、ひどい目に遭うだろうと察していた。判決は追放になるだろうと。貧しい者は何も出せないから、みなの餌食になるのである。

The brothers came to a rich peasant and asked for a night’s lodging. The peasant gave the rich man good food and drink, but the poor man nothing. The poor man lay on the oven and saw how merry the other two were making; and fell down and killed the child in the cradle.

兄弟は裕福な百姓のところへ来て、一夜の宿を乞うた。百姓は富める兄にはよい食べ物と飲み物を出したが、貧しい弟には何も出さなかった。貧しい弟は竈の上に横になって、あとの二人が楽しんでいるのを見ていたが、落っこちて、揺りかごの赤子を死なせてしまった。

Then the peasant decided to go with the brothers, to bring a further indictment against the poor man. They went off together, the peasant and the rich brother in front, and the poor man after them. Then they crossed a bridge: the poor man considered that he would hardly escape the Court with his life; so he jumped over the bridge, in order to commit suicide. But, under the bridge, a son was bathing his sick father, and the poor man fell plump on the old man and drowned him. Then the son also went up to the Court in order to bring a plaint against the poor man.

そこで百姓も兄弟といっしょに行って、貧しい弟をさらに訴えることにした。三人はいっしょに出かけた。百姓と富める兄が前を、貧しい弟がそのあとを歩いた。やがて橋を渡ったとき、貧しい弟は、とても命あって裁きの場を出られまいと考えた。そこで自害しようと橋から跳んだ。ところが橋の下では息子が病んだ父を洗っていて、貧しい弟はその老人の上にどすんと落ちて、溺れさせてしまった。そこでその息子も、貧しい弟を訴えるために裁きの場へ行った。

The rich man put in a plea to the Court that his poor brother had torn off the horse’s tail. In the meantime the poor man had wrapped a stone in a cloth and was threatening the judge with it behind the brother’s back, for he was thinking, “If the judge goes against me, I will kill him.” The judge believed that the poor man was offering him a hundred roubles so as to prove his case, and he gave judgment that the rich man must leave the horse in the poor peasant’s possession until the tail grew again.

富める兄は、貧しい弟が馬の尻尾を引きちぎったと裁きの場に訴えた。そのあいだに貧しい弟は石を布に包み、兄の背中越しにそれを裁き人に向けて振ってみせた。「裁き人がおれに不利な裁きをしたら、殺してやる」と思っていたのである。裁き人は、貧しい弟が自分の言い分を通すために百ルーブリを差し出しているのだと思い込み、富める兄は尻尾がまた生えるまで馬を貧しい百姓の手に置いておかねばならぬという判決を下した。

Then the peasant came and complained that the poor man had killed his son. Once again the poor man lifted up the same stone in a menacing way against the judge, behind the peasant’s back. And the judge this time felt perfectly sure of getting a hundred roubles more for the judgment. And he commanded the peasant to give his wife to the poor peasant until another son was born. “Then you can take your wife and the child back.”

次に百姓が来て、貧しい弟が自分の息子を死なせたと訴えた。またしても貧しい弟は、百姓の背中越しに同じ石を脅すように掲げてみせた。そして裁き人は今度こそ、この判決でもう百ルーブリもらえるものと信じ込んだ。そして百姓に、もう一人息子が生まれるまで女房を貧しい百姓にやれと命じた。「そうしたら女房も子も取り返せばよい」

This time it was the son’s turn. And he brought in a plea that the poor man had murdered his father. Once again the poor man took the stone out of his pocket and showed it to the judge. Then the judge felt sure he would get altogether three hundred roubles in the case, and he commanded the son to go to the bridge, “and you, poor man, go there; stop under the bridge; and the son is to jump into the water plump on to you and to kill you.”

今度は息子の番だった。息子は、貧しい弟が自分の父を殺したと訴えた。またしても貧しい弟は隠しから石を取り出して裁き人に見せた。すると裁き人は、この一件で合わせて三百ルーブリもらえるものと信じ込み、息子に橋へ行けと命じた。「そして貧しい者よ、おまえもそこへ行き、橋の下に立て。息子はおまえの上にどすんと水へ跳び込んで、おまえを殺すのだ」

Judge Shemyák sent his servant to the poor man to ask for the three hundred roubles.

裁き人シェミャークは、三百ルーブリを求めて下僕を貧しい弟のもとへ遣わした。

Then the poor man showed the servant the stone with which he had threatened the judge: “If the judge had not decided in my favour I should have killed him with this stone!”

すると貧しい弟は、裁き人を脅した石を下僕に見せた。「裁き人がわたしに有利な裁きをしなかったら、この石で殺してやるところだった!」

When the judge heard of this, he crossed himself piously and said: “Thank God I decided for the right party.”

裁き人はこれを聞くと、敬虔に十字を切って言った。「正しい側に裁きを下しておいてよかった。神に感謝する」

The poor brother went to the rich brother to fetch the horse from him in accordance with the judge’s decision, until the tail should grow again. The rich man did not want to give the horse, so he gave him instead five roubles, three quarters of corn, and a milch-goat; and made peace with him for all time.

貧しい弟は、裁き人の判決に従い、尻尾がまた生えるまで馬を受け取ろうと、富める兄のところへ行った。富める兄は馬を渡したくなかったので、代わりに五ルーブリと穀物三クォーターと乳の出る山羊をやり、末代までの和解をした。

Then the poor man went to the peasant, and in accordance with the judgment, asked for the wife, in order that she might remain with him until another child came. Then the peasant made a compromise with the poor man, gave him fifty roubles, a cow and a calf, and a mare with a foal, and four quarters of corn, and settled matters with him.

それから貧しい弟は百姓のところへ行き、判決に従って、次の子が生まれるまでいっしょにいてもらうために女房をくれと求めた。すると百姓は貧しい弟と折り合いをつけ、五十ルーブリと牝牛一頭と仔牛一頭、仔馬を連れた牝馬一頭、そして穀物四クォーターを与えて、話をつけた。

Then the poor man went to the son whose father he had killed, and read the judgment out to him, according to which the son was to jump on him from the bridge, so as to kill him. Then the son began to consider: “If I do jump, possibly I shall kill him, possibly I shall not; anyhow I shall be done for.” So he made terms with the poor man, gave him two hundred roubles and a horse, and five quarters of corn; and lived in peace with him for ever.

それから貧しい弟は、父を死なせたあの息子のところへ行き、判決を読み聞かせた。それによれば、息子は橋から彼の上に跳び下りて殺さねばならなかった。すると息子は考えはじめた。「跳んだところで、殺せるかもしれぬし殺せぬかもしれぬ。どのみちこちらが駄目になる」。そこで貧しい弟と話をつけ、二百ルーブリと馬一頭と穀物五クォーターを与えて、末代まで仲よく暮らした。