093. The Three Brothers (Los Tres Hermanos)
Once upon a time there were three brothers who had neither father nor mother. The parents had died without leaving a will, and not knowing who would inherit the property, they decided to go to the king to mediate the matter.
They set out in the order from oldest to youngest, so that the first born went first, then the one in the middle and, finally the youngest. And on the way they met a man who was searching for his mule, which had escaped from him. When the man saw the three young men coming, he went up to them to ask. First he asked the eldest:
– Eh, young man, have you seen a mule running loose out there?
The eldest said:
– Was it one-eyed?
– Yes – replied the man.
– Well I have not seen it – said the eldest.
The man waited for the second to arrive, who came after [the first], and he asked him:
– Listen, lad, have you seen a mule running loose on the way here?
And the middle son answered:
– Was it gray?
– Yes – replied the man.
– Well I have not seen it – said the second son.
The man waited for the youngest to arrive at his location and he also asked him:
– Eh, young man, have you seen a loose mule out there?
And the youngest said:
– Was it missing a leg?
– Yes – replied the man.
– Well no, I have not seen it – said the youngest.
Finally, he asked them where they were heading and [this] they told him. The man, then, began to walk briskly, arrived at the king’s palace before the three young men, and recounted to him the extraordinary conversation that he had had with the lads.
When the brothers arrived at the palace, they asked to see the king and told him what they had come looking for. The king, first of all, ordered a servant to see that they were given a nice lunch, and to take good note of what those three would comment during lunch. The servant asked the cook to prepare a roast suckling pig and wine for them to eat, and when these were ready, he served them to the brothers.
They ate and the youngest said:
– This suckling pig would be better if it had not been raised on milk from a bitch [female dog].
The middle son said:
– This wine would be better if it did not come from dwarf grapes.
The eldest said:
– The king would be better if he was not a bastard and the son of a Moor.
The servant immediately brought to the king what he had written down. The king read it and immediately sent for the man who had sold them the suckling pig. And he asked him:
– How did you raise this suckling pig?
The sorrowful man replied:
– The mother [pig] died on us and we had a small bitch in our house that fed it.
The king then bade the man who had sold them the wine to be brought to his presence and asked him:
– From where did this wine come from?
The man said:
– This is wine [made] from dwarf grapes.
In light of this, the king called for his mother and asked her:
– Whose son am I?
The mother answered him:
– You are son… of your father.
The king was not satisfied and insisted:
– And who was my father?
And the [mother] queen replied:
– It happened in a year when there was war; we were in Moorish territory and you are the son of a Moor.
The king remained thoughtful. After a while, he ordered the three brothers to appear before him.
And he asked the youngest:
– How did you know that the mule that that man was looking for on the road was missing a leg?
The youngest replied:
– Because on the road I only found [sets of] three footprints.
And the king asked the middle son:
– How did you know that the mule was gray?
And the middle son replied:
– Because I found black and white hair scattered and trodden here and there together.
And the king asked the first born:
– And you, how did you know the mule was one-eyed?
And the eldest replied:
– Because there were green pastures on both sides of the road, but only one side was grazed.
The king was amazed at the insight of the three brothers and he thought of the way to distribute the property between them. Finally he asked them:
– Would you be able to draw for me a portrait of your father on a piece of paper?
The three replied yes, and immediately they had their father’s portrait ready.
Then the king put the portrait on a target, gave each of them a shotgun and told them that they had to fire a single shot and the one who proved to have the best aim would get all the properties. The eldest and the middle son took aim and fired, but the youngest refused to do so. The king insisted:
– And you, why don’t you want to shoot? Your brothers have already done it, for you see it’s not your father but a portrait that is the target.
The youngest said:
– I know that, but it doesn’t change anything. I don’t want to shoot.
The king insisted and begged, but there was no way he could change his mind. Then, on seeing his determination, the king said:
– Very well, after this it was clear that those properties belonged to you.
And the three brothers returned home and the youngest inherited all the properties of their parents.
—– VOCABULARY —–
Acudir – (to attend) to go to; (to consult) to turn to; (to occur to) to come
Agudeza – (insight) sharpness; (visual ability) sharpness, acuity
Almuerzo – (midday meal) lunch; (mid-morning light meal) mid-morning snack
Altura – (measurement) height, altitude; (position) level
A paso vivo – at a lively pace; with gallant stride
Apuntar – (to state) to point out; (to take notes) to write down, to note down; (to signal) to point at
Benjamín – youngest child, youngest son
Cochinillo – (culinary) suckling pig, piglet
Comparecer – (legal) to appear in court, to appear
Compungido – (regretful) contrite, remorseful; (disconsolate) sorrowful, sad
Criado – (raised) brought up
Darse por – (to believe oneself to be) to count oneself
Diana – (military) reveille; (games) dartboard, bull’s eye, bullseye
Disparar – (to discharge) to shoot, to fire; (sports) to shoot, to take
Disparo – (gunshot) shot
Escopeta – (weaponry) shotgun
Esparcido – (spread) scattered; (lively) cheerful
Fijar – (to put) to fix; (to determine) to set, to establish; (to concentrate) to fix, to focus
Gris – (color) gray; (weather) overcast; (mood) gloomy; (communication) dull
Heredar – (to receive goods or land) to inherit
Moro – (history) Moorish; (religious) Muslim; (of Arab origin) (Spain) North African
Mulo – (animal) mule; (colloquial) (figurative) (strong person) ox
Ocuparse de – (to tackle) to deal with; (to take responsibility for) to be in charge of; (to look after) to take care of
Papel – (material) paper (uncountable), sheet of paper (countable); (legal document) document; (drama) role, part
Pastar – (to eat grass) to graze
Pasto – (place for grazing) pasture, grazing; (feed) fodder
Pata – (animal anatomy) leg
Pertenecer – (to be owned by) to belong to; (to be part of) to belong to
Pisar – (to put your foot on) to step on, to step in, to tread on; (to press one’s foot down on) to step on
Primogénito – (eldest child) firstborn
Puntería – (act of aiming) aim; (line of sight) aim
Repartir – (to part) to distribute, to divide, to give out
Retrato – (art) portrait; (depiction) portrayal
Rogar – (to implore) to beg; (to offer a prayer) to pray
Suelta – (liberation) release
Testamento – (legal) will, testament (formal); (long piece of writing) screed
Tuerto – (person with only one eye) one-eyed person