Killing of Old Men
folktales of Aarne-Thompson type 981
and other legends about geronticide
selected and edited by
D. L. Ashliman
© 1999
folktales of Aarne-Thompson type 981
and other legends about geronticide
selected and edited by
D. L. Ashliman
© 1999
In old times it was the habit to kill old men when they had passed fifty years. A man who was nearing his fiftieth year had a good son, who was very sorry for his father and hid him in a wine vat, in which he cared for him secretly.
Once he bet with some of his neighbors who should see the first rising of the sun in the morning. The merciful son told his father of his bet, and his father said to him, "Be careful, and when you are at the place to see the rising of the sun take, the precaution not to look to the east as the others will do, but look instead to the west at the highest point of the mountains, and you will win the bet."
The son did as his father had advised him, and so saw first the rising of the sun. When the neighbors asked him who had advised him what to do, he said it was his father, whom he must hide and protect from a forced death. The people were astonished at such clever advice and concluded that the old men are clever and that they do not deserve to be killed, but respected.
On the right bank of the river Mlava, near the village of Krepoljin, is situated a very high hill, Gradatr (Fort) by name, on which one can see the ruins of an old disabled and deserted fort. The popular tradition says that it was once a Roman or Latin fort. The Romans who occupied this fort were very bellicose people. Their leader ordered all the holders of the fort up to forty years of age to be active fighters, from forty to fifty to be guards of the fort, and after fifty to be killed, because they have no military value. Since that period the old men were killed.
An old man who was nearing his fiftieth year had a grandson who was very fond of him. On the eve of the day on which the old man was ordered to be killed, the enemy attacked the fort. The grandson used this opportunity and forced his grandfather to fly. The old man fled and hid himself in a cave which was in the neighborhood. After the enemy were dispersed, and when the people looked for the old man, they could not find him.
Some time after, the leader commanded them to be ready to go to war in a distant land.
At the moment when the army was prepared to start, the grandfather appeared secretly to his grandson and said to him, "For this long way ride a mare which has a colt, and when you come to an unknown land, kill the colt, and then go farther. God protect you! Farewell!"
The grandson obeyed the orders of his grandfather, rode a mare with a colt and went with the leader and his army to the war. They went for three days and then they came to a river, on the opposite side of which was a dense forest. The young man looked on all sides and was sure that he was in a perfectly unknown land. Then he secretly killed the colt. Crossing the river the army marched through the forest. After six days of traveling they came to a vast plain, where they found the enemy waiting for them. The fight was very severe, and at the end the leader and his army were defeated and forced to flee. The vanquished army did not know the way, but the mare of the young man went in the direction where her colt was lost and so led them to the river, from which they knew the way to their own country.
Everybody was astonished, and the leader asked the young man who taught him to act so, and he, after some hesitation, told him that it was his grandfather. When they came home the leader invited the old man, recognized his cleverness, and ordered that further on the old men should not be killed, but respected, because they knew much more than the young men.
In olden times it was the custom to kill the old people because they were considered useless. A young man did not have the heart to kill his old father, but as he stood in fear of the others, he hid his father in the cellar in an empty cask. He gave him food and drink secretly, so that not a soul was able to discover his secret.
There came suddenly the order that all men capable of bearing arms should get ready to fight a terrible monster which was spreading round its lair misery and trouble. The pious son did not know how to provide during his absence for the imprisoned father, so that he should not die of thirst and hunger. He brought all the victuals that were in the house, and he told his father of his trouble, inasmuch as he might never return, and that his beloved father would in consequence die a miserable death.
The old man replied, "Should you not return, I willingly give up my wretched body to death. In order, however, that you should not die through this monster, listen to my advice. It will be a help to you. The cavern in which that monster lives has many hundred passages and corners which are crossing and re-crossing one another, so that even if you should succeed in killing the monster, you would never be able to find the way out, and you will all die of hunger and thirst. Take therefore our black mare with her foal with you to the mouth of the cave and there kill and bury the foal and take the mare with you. She is sure to bring you back after you have killed the monster."
After the old man had thus spoken, the young man took leave of him with tears in his eyes and went away with the other men. They arrived at the mouth of the cave. He killed the foal as his father had advised him, but he did not tell the others why he did so.
After a heavy fight they succeeded at last in killing the monster, but fear seized upon the warriors when they discovered that in spite of much searching they could not find the way out. Then the young man took the black mare and let her go on. He followed her and asked the others to follow him.
The mare started neighing and looking for her foal and hit at once upon the right path, and after a while they reached the mouth of the cave. When the others saw that they had escaped an inevitable death through the cleverness of their brother in arms, they wanted to know how he came to discover this happy device. He feared that if he told the truth both he and his old father would lose their lives. But after they had promised him under oath that no harm would befall him, he spoke out firmly and told them that he had kept his father alive in the cellar and that his father had given him the advice about the mare when he went to take leave of him.
On hearing this they were astounded, and one of them exclaimed, "Our forefathers have not acted well in teaching us to kill the old men. They have gained experience and they can help our people by their advice when the strength of our arm fails."
The custom in olden times was to take the old men to the mountain, where they were left to die of hunger or to be torn to pieces by wild beasts. This was done to prevent famine and starvation, and those children who did not do it were killed by the people.
A young man was taking his father to the mountain when he started to cry. The son took pity on him and took him home and locked him up in the cellar.
There came an order from the emperor to the villager to kill a she-bear which appeared above the village. The young man asked his father in the cellar what was the meaning of this order, and he answered, "It means the rock at the top of the hill."
The young man went to the assembly of the villagers and told them the answer to the emperor's order. They were to say, "We will kill the she-bear, and we will wait for the emperor to come and flay her."
On another occasion the emperor wanted them to bring him every kind of seed found in the neighborhood. The old man in the cellar told the young man to go to an anthill, there they would be sure to find them all.
When the young man again repeated this advice to the men in the village assembly, they were all surprised at his cleverness, and asked him to tell them who it was that had given him such advice, for they knew that he must have learned it from someone else.
He then told them what he had done. Since then they no longer kill the old men, because their wisdom is indispensable.
In olden times in some distant country the young folk had come together and decided to get rid of the old men. They did not want their wisdom and their advice, for they were just as clever. They had lived their lives, and that was an end of it.
Over that country there ruled a young king who gladly accepted the decision of the young people and gave strict orders that all the old men should be killed. The orders were carried out with the utmost severity. But there lived among these people a young man who had not the heart to kill his old father. Frightened at the consequences of disobeying the king's orders, he took his old father and hid him in the cellar under the house. There he fed him and looked after him, carefully visiting him only by night.
For a while things went well. The country was prosperous, the earth yielded its produce, vineyards flourished, and the orchards were laden with fruit. But things did not remain in that state of prosperity. A summer came. There was such drought that for months not a drop of rain fell. The crops were burnt off the face of the earth. The trees withered, and there was dearth and famine in the land. This was followed by a severe winter so cold as he people had never experienced in their life. Heavy snow fell and covered the fields. No food was left, nay not even seed for sowing the field in the springtime. Starvation had set in, and the people did not know what to do, for they saw death before their eyes, for themselves and for their starved cattle.
One night, when the son came as usual to his father, he could not bring more than a morsel of food. His father asked him what was the matter and why he looked so sad. The son told him what had happened. They had no seed to sow and did not know where to get any. There was nothing for them but rank starvation.
They were all at their wits' end and had nowhere to turn for counsel or advice how to save themselves, and the father said, "My son, fear not. Take a plow and plow up the road in front of the house and the adjoining road, and do not reply to any questions."
The son did as his father had bidden. The earth which had become moist and soft through the melting snow was easily plowed up, when lo! to their great amazement, when the time came all kinds of grains seemed to sprout and to grow up from the ground which had been tilled. Maize and corn and wheat were all growing up, and -- as the weather was favorable -- yielded a very good crop.
His neighbors were greatly astonished at what they saw, and went and told the king what had happened.
The king called the young man and said to him, "This doing is not of your own wisdom. No doubt your father has told you, whom you have kept alive. Speak the truth and I will spare your life."
The young man owned that his father had advised him to plow up the thoroughfares and roads close to their house. The young king then sent for the old man and asked him what was the meaning of his advice.
The old man replied, "All throughout the year carts laden with all manner of seeds and corn are passing to and fro. Some of the corn falls to the ground, and not a few of the seeds fall on the ground and are trodden into the earth by the passers-by. Left in that state they usually rot, but if the ground is plowed up, and is moist and favorable for the growth, no one passing over that part of the ground, some of the corn has a chance of growing. It is upon that chance that I relied, and thus it has come to pass that we have now a rich crop, not only for our necessities, but also to provide you all with enough necessary seed for your own fields in the future."
When the king and the young people heard what the old man had to tell and saw his deep wisdom, they recognized their folly, they rescinded that resolution, and decided henceforth to allow the old people to live in peace and honor.
And henceforth the old men are allowed to live to the end of their days.
For example: Herr Levin von Schulenburg, a high official in Altmark, was traveling among the Wends in about 1580 when he saw an old man being led away by several people. "Where are you going with the old man?" he asked, and received the answer, "To God!"
They were going to sacrifice him to God, because he was no longer able to earn his own sustenance. When the official grasped what was happening, he forced them to turn the old man over to him. He took him home with him and hired him as a gatekeeper, a position that he held for twenty additional years.
In olden times many heathens lived around here, and it is still told how they put to death old people who were over sixty years of age. They would chop them into many small pieces, which were then put into large jars. Then a little lamp was placed in each jar. They buried them in the earth. To this day such jars are frequently dug up.