LITUANUS LITHUANIAN QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES   Volume 21, No.1 - Spring 1975 Editors of this issue: Antanas Klimas, Thomas Remeikis, Bronius Vaškelis Copyright © 1975 LITUANUS Foundation, Inc.

"IF YOU KILL A SNAKE — THE SUN WILL CRY"
Folktale Type 425-M
A Study in Oicotype and Folk Belief

ELENA BRADŪNAS

PAULIUS AUGIUS (1909-1960) Woodcut from "Žalčio Pasaka" (1938).

The Comparative or Historical - Geographical Method is usually described as having already seen its hey day. It was most extensively applied to the comparative study of folk narratives, especially folktales, in an attempt to reconstruct and locate the origin of the "Ur-form" of a specific taletype. Recent criticisms have argued that this approach was based on a rather faulty methodology and, therefore, its initial goal has since been abandoned as an almost impossible task. Nevertheless, the sheer quantity of tale variants which have been recorded and systematized, primarily because of the initially enthusiastic interest in this method, has provided the present-day folklorist with an almost inexhaustible wealth of data. Because of the extensive records of the tales, one can easily visualize how widespread a tale-type or motif might be and how certain variations may be unique to one specific area or cultural group.

The occurrence of tales specific to a certain area has induced C. W. von Sydow to formulate his theory of "oicotypes." Von Sydow maintains that tales, just as plants, adapt to a certain environment through natural selection and thus differ somewhat from other members of the same species, in this case — general tale-types. The process of oicotypification, he states, "consists of a certain unification of the variants within one and the same linguistic or cultural area on account of isolation from other areas" (von Sydow 1946:238). He further explains that "changes brought about by various kinds of mutation, and by oicotypification, are naturally of the greatest weight for a scientific study of folklore, and the results of such a study cannot, even by the best methods, be correct unless they are based on a right knowledge of the life of the folktale, and the laws by which it is governed" (von Sydow 1948:239).

It will be the overall purpose of this study to illustrate how the history, the folk beliefs and the general attitudes and notions of peoples living in a particular cultural and geographical milieu, may be the "laws" which account for oicotypic distinction of a particular tale.

The topic of this study was generated by a significant observation made by Swahn in his monograph, The Tale of Cupid and Psyche (1955). The author suggested that the sub-type "M" of tale-type 425 ("Search for the Lost Husband") is typical only of the Baltic countries (Lithuania and Latvia), and is quite widespread in both (Swahn 1955:340). It will be the specific purpose of this study to analyze this tale in the light of Swahn's observation that the tale is limited to the Baltic countries. An attempt will also be made to demonstrate how certain aspects of Baltic culture are reflected in this story thus imbuing it with a type o relevance which accounts for its persistence in its particular geographic and cultural setting.

TALE-TYPE Aa 425, SUB-TYPE M

Swahn outlines Aa 425 into seven main motif subheadings. He establishes a subtype M of this tale-type on the basis of the events which occur in the latter half of the story (section VI). The specific motifs of the Baltic sub-type M, which are found in the other sections (I, II, III) are listed below along with a full denouement of the more diagnostic section VI:

I. Introductory motif.

An animal lies down on the clothes of a bathing girl and refuses to yield them back to her until she has promised to marry him.

II. The supernatural husband.

The heroine's husband is supernatural und usually appears as a snake or the Devil.

III. The marriage.

The heroine gives birth to a number of children, usually three.

IV. The breaking of taboo and V. The search for the husband are absent in sub-type M.

VI. The reunion.

1. The heroine is allowed to visit her home together with children only after having fulfilled a number of difficult tasks set by the husband, such as wearing out iron shoes.
2. Her husband teaches her a rhyme which will call him forth when she, on her return journey, has to cross the sea. If he is dead the sea will then foam red as blood.
3. The heroine's brothers cajole or exhort her children into telling them the rhyme, call forth their supernatural brother-in-law and kill him.
4. The heroine sees how the sea foams red, realizes that her husband is dead, and, in her sorrow, changes herself and children into various kinds of trees or birds.

VII. Final motifs are irrelevant to sub-type M (Swahn 1955:24-34).

Swahn's outline of Aa 425 M may be further elaborated by the following summary based on Lithuanian variants known to the present writer.

A young girl goes bathing with her sisters in a lake. A snake crawls into her shirt sleeve and promises to depart only when she consents to marry him. She agrees (usually after being urged by her sisters) and returns home. Soon afterwards a retinue of snakes arrives at the family's homestead in order to fetch the bride for their king. The parents attempt to rid themselves of these "matchmakers" by deceiving them with various animals (usually "white as a bride," eg. sheep, goose, pig, or cow). A cuckoo, however, reveals the deception to the snakes and they finally impel the parents to yield up their daughter. The snakes lead her away to the bottom of a lake (sea) where a handsome prince (the king of the snakes) greets her in his grand castle. The girl lives happily for several years and usually gives birth to two (three) sons and a daughter. Eventually, the heroine longs to visit her parents' home. Her husband, unwilling to let her go, assigns to her several impossible tasks, eg. to spin a hexed bundle of flax, to wear down iron shoes, to bake bread with no utensils but a sieve. An old wise woman advises her how to accomplish these tasks and her husband finally relents and grants her permission to visit her earthly home along with her children. The husband tells them a magic formula which his wife must call out when she returns to the shore of the lake:

Žilvine, Žilvinėli (vocative form of the husband's name) 
If you are alive — foam of milk, 
If you are dead — foam of blood!

The wife and children are then enjoined not to repeat this secret formula to anyone.

Amidst much rejoicing the heroine and her children return home. Her family, however, does not want her to return to the strange underwater home of her husband and they conspire to "save" her. The heroine's brothers interrogate her children and after some threats, the youngest daughter reveals her father's name and the formula. The heroine's brothers then proceed to the lake and summon the snake king whom they promptly slay with their scythes. When the unsuspecting heroine arrives at the lake and calls her husband, a red wave rolls towards her, and the grief-stricken mother turns herself and her children into trees.

MOTIFS CHARACTERISTIC OF SUBTYPE M

Both the Latvian and the Lithuanian texts reveal quite similar accounts of this tale type. A graphic representation of the main elements of each variant is presented in the Appendix. For the Latvian texts, the schematic break-up relies on Swahn's description of the particular elements. All the Lithuanian texts were traced to their sources and therefore, their motif listings are more thorough and detailed.

At the present, there are ca. 80 variants of this tale in each of the Latvian and Lithuanian Folklore Archives.1 For each variant in Lithuania there are numerous records of almost identical texts which have been recorded from hundreds of sources. Although there are some other tales for which statistical evidence proves even greater popularity, this tale is considered to be one of the most popular and widespread among the Lithuanians. It is also important to note that this tale had been adapted to various art forms — drama, ballet, poetry — which has helped make the tale widely known.2

Thus, it is clear that the relatively few published texts of the tales with which the report deals prevents the writer from making any conclusions about the statistical significance of certain variations. Nevertheless, some elements which tend to occur in many of the texts can be presumed to be quite typical of the unpublished ones and, therefore, the comparison of Lithuanian to Latvian versions may be considered generally reliable. It is futile, however, to engage in speculation about the importance of the less uniformly represented motifs. For the purpose of this paper, it will suffice to simply list some of the more characteristic motifs. In the following discussion, the variants of the tale are designated by numbers corresponding to their presentation in the Appendix.

Introductory motif.

The great majority of texts describes how the heroine promises herself in marriage to an animal in order to persuade it to return (crawl out of) her garment, ie. Lith. 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13/9 13);* Lat. 1, 5, 10, 11, 12, 13/6 16).* Most of the variations occur in Latvian: in some she simply marries, Lat. 2, 6, 9; she is drawn or lured into the lake, Lat. 4, 7, 8, 16; the father is forced to promise his daughter in marriage, Lat. 14; the daughter is promised to the one who guesses that shoes are made from the skin of a louse, Lat. 3, Lith. 8; a lost ring is returned in exchange for a marriage promise, Lith. 5; and the lost heroine is shown the right path in return for a promise of marriage, Lith. 6.

Supernatural husband,

In all of the Lithuanian variants the husband is a snake (Lith. žaltys) or a man called Žaltys, Lith. 4, 6. In the Latvian tales, seven of the variants depict the husband as a snake, in six he is the Devil (Lat. 15 describes the man as having blue teeth = the Devil), in one he is the "Prince of the Sea" and in another he is simply a boy.

A traditional feature which is independent of the "Introductory motif" is that the husband lives under water. The family's attempt to deceive the matchmakers is recorded in five of the Lithuanian variants but in only one Latvian, i.e. Lat. 5.

The visit home.

In most of the tales, after living with her husband for several years, the heroine bears him children, usually three, and then asks her husband for permission to visit her parents. This if found in twelve out of sixteen Latvians variants and in all of the Lithuanian tales.

The difficult tasks.

This motif is present mainly in the Lithuanian variants (ten out of thirteen), but in only two of the Latvian tales, Lat. 3, 4.

The formula.

A versified formula with which the heroine summons her husband is found in all the Lithuanian texts and nine out of sixteen Latvian. The formula usually includes a direct address to the husband, often a repetition of his name, and an invocation employing the appropriate life-death symbolism.

The snake-husband is killed.

All the Lithuanian and most of the Latvian texts traditionally explain that it is the heroine's brothers who exact the formula from her children and it is the youngest child who reveals the formula. Almost invariably, it is also the heroine's brothers who slay the husband. There are only two Latvian variations of this episode: Lat. 4 where the Devil-husband is killed by the heroine's father, and Lat. 15 where a priest and a thunder storm entice the husband out of the water and put an end to him.

The transformation to trees.

The transformation of the heroine and children into trees occurs in seven of sixteen Latvian variants and in twelve of thirteen Lithuanian. In three of the Latvian tales, Lat. 3, 7, 8, the children are turned into birds, and in Lat. 15, they are turned into stones. In two Lithuanian texts, Lith. 11, 12, the mother turns into a cuckoo while the children turn into trees. In Lat. 4 and 30, where husband is the Devil, the heroine manages to escape home. In Lith. 6 the heroine and her one daughter simply return to the home of the heroine's parents.

In three of the Lithuanian tales, Lith. 5, 6, 13, the name of the heroine is Eglė 'Spruce', and in Lith. 5, and 7, the names of the sons are said to be Ąžuolas 'Oak', Uosis 'Ash', Beržas 'Birch', and the daughter is Drebulė 'Quaking Aspen'. Consequently, they all turn into these specific trees. In most of the other texts, the name-tree correlation is not made but the sons are usually transformed into an oak, ash, and birch, the daughter turns into quaking aspen and the heroine becomes a spruce or dogwood. Since Swahn does not indicate such specifics for the Latvian tales, they cannot be compared to the Lithuanian tree data.

NON BALTIC VARIANTS

There has been some discussion in the relevant literature concerning several non-Baltic variants of this tale, but these examples have been generally disregarded (cf. Appendix for schematic outlines). The only Estonian variant was recorded in Ljutzin where the population was approximately two-thirds Latvian at the time of recording. The single example of this tale in Finnish tradition was collected in Karelia and occurred in a Russian milieu with regard to material and language so that is is difficult to determine the actual source of the tale (Swahn 1955:340). Swahn's single example of a Russian variant has also been translated by Ralston who himself noted that no other such variants were known in Russia. "Stories about serpent-spouses are by no means uncommon, but I can find no parallel to the above as far as the termination is concerned" (Ralston 1873:118). J. Balys has discussed two possible Russian variants (including Ralston's "Water Snake") which he believed were descended from a Lithuanian source.3 The fact that the Lithuanian variants were more complex led Balys to conclude that the Russian versions were genetic descendants of the Baltic tales. Since A. R. Andrejev did not even include the '^:Water Snake" tale in his Ukazatel skazocnych suizetov (Leningrad, 1929), Balys has argued that the tale is quite definitely not characteristic among the Russians.4 Balys suggested that the borrowing may have occurred when the Baits actually lived near the Tula region — the location where Ralston's tale was recorded (Balys 1953:4).

There would then seem to be three possibilities for explaining the non-Baltic variants. 1. The few variants, especially those that are almost identical to the Baltic ones, may have penetrated into the area surrounding the Baits in rather recent times. 2. The tale may have been borrowed by one specific Slavic group at a distant time in the past when it was in contact with the Baits. 3. The single comparable Russian example (Ralston's) is the sole proof that the tale was known at one time to both Baits and Slavs (and not borrowed), but has since lost its popularity among the Slavs and has almost entirely disappeared.

The first explanation probably directly relates to the case of the tale in Estonia. The example of the tale in Karelia is difficult to account for because of its ambiguous setting. All three explanations are equally probable in dealing with the Russian variant; however, it is a single example (acc. to Swahn, one of two acc. to Balys) and, therefore, the possibility remains that it was a chance occurrence. Whatever the case may be, it is still quite evident that Swahn is correct when he argues that the tale is traditionally known only to the Baltic countries.

CHRONOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Those scholars who have concerned themselves with this tale generally agree that it is quite old. J. Balys, attempting to correlate it with three Indian tales (cf. Appendix), has dated the tale to a time when the Baits lived further south of their present geographic boundaries.5 Balys envisions that the tale probably traveled from India through Persia, then on across the Caucasus into southern and central Russia. The tale was conceivably carried by merchant - travelers along the major waterways, especially the Dnieper. The Lithuanians heard the story, liked it and accepted it, while the Slavs, on the other hand, rejected the tale. In Balys' opinion, the tale was adopted and further adapted by the Baits some 1500 years ago (Balys 1951:65).

Scholars in present-day Lithuania believe that the tale probably existed in a more archaic form at some time when the Latvians and Lithuanians formed a homogeneous cultural group and still spoke the same language, ie. sometime before the sixth century A.D. They base this assertion on the "primitiveness" of the tale and its world view which is typical only to the two Baltic countries. Without further elaboration by the Soviets, this "proof" hardly stands as a viable diacritic for dating the tale.

Another explanation which Soviet scholars offer with a more thorough discussion is rooted in Hegelian and Marxian axioms concerning the socio-historical evolution of the family unit. They argue that the basic conflict of the story reflects the disintegration of the extended family into the nuclear family. According to the Hegelian scheme, this process occurred among the Baits in the fifth century A.D. (Sauka 1970:19-20).

It is apparent that both Balys' and the Soviets' proposed dating of the tale leave much to be desired. Balys, obviously concerned with Benfey's Indianist theory, devoted little discussion to how and why the tale was adopted (if it indeed was) by the Baits. The Soviet scholar, Sauka, on the other hand, seems totally preoccupied with demonstrating that the tale is the reflection of the social organization of the peoples and thereby dates the tale solely on that criterion. The problem of dating the tale then still remains. Hopefully, the following analysis will at least prove one thing — the tale does quite definitely antedate the introduction of Christianity among the Balts.

TALE 425 M AND BALTIC CULTURE

Baltic culture is frequently described as extremely conservative and dedicated to tradition. This is not mere romantic and historical data. For the conservative aspects of the Baltis languages one need look no further than A. Meillet who wrote that: "Le lituanien est remarquable par quelque traits qui donnent une impression d'antiquite indo-europeenne; on y trouve encore au XVIe siecle et jusqu'aujourd'hui des formes qui recouvrent exactement des formes vediques ou homeriques..." (Meillet 1964:73). Secondly, the Baltic peoples (who at one time comprised several related tribes that are now extinct, eg. the Old Prussians) were the last Europeans to adopt Christianity. The new religion was introduced into Latvia and Prussia at the beginning of the thirteenth century by the Knights of the Teutonic Order. The Lithuanians resisted the longest and officially only joined the Christian Church in 1387 through Poland. The new faith, however, was introduced in a foreign language (Polish) and was not understood by the Baltic villagers who remained pagan.

The merger of these two religions commenced in the sixteenth century and continued for three hundred years, the Christian missionaries never entirely destroying the old religion. The final product was a syncretistic religion with only a veneer of Christianity over a surviving core of pagan belief. In this way, the Baits clearly distinguish themselves from their Slavic and Germanic neighbors who accepted Christianity at a much earlier date (the Slavs ca. tenth century, the Germans in the ninth century). As a result, these latter peoples are farther removed from their pagan past and although various folk-beliefs and customs may still exist as "remnants" of their ancient religion, their initial meaning and intent has since become quite obscured. Scholars may sometimes reconstruct plausible explanations for pagan survivals in Germanic and Slavic folk-belief, but the "folk" as such are usually quite unaware and unconcerned about them. In contrast, Baltic peasants in the early twentieth century could often explicate their own folk customs and beliefs in the same manner as their pagan ancestors did several hundred years ago.

A particularly fine example of such long-term persistence of belief from the pagan era to the present is the Baits' attitude towards the snake, a major figure of tale-type 425 M with which this study is concerned.

THE SNAKE

Chronicles, travelogues, ecclesiastical correspondence and other historical records written by foreigners often made mention of snake worship among the Old Prussians, Samogitians, Lithuanians, and Latvians. The snakes were frequently referred to as žalčiai (cognate with Žalias 'green') which has been identified as the non-poisonous Tropodonotus natrix. Sometimes the chronicles also referred to them as gyvatės, a word which is clearly associated with Lith. gyvata 'vitality' and gyvas 'living'. The following historical records should more than suffice to demonstrate that snakes were worshipped widely among the Baits.6

In the eleventh century, Adam of Bremen wrote that the Lithuanians worshipped dragons and flying serpents to whom they even offered human sacrifices (Balys 1948:66).

Aeneas Silvius recorded in 1390 an account given him by the missionary Jerome of Prague who worked among the Lithuanians in the final decade of the fourteenth century. Jerome related that

The first Lithuanians whom I visited were snake worshippers. Every male head of the family kept a snake in the corner of the house to which they would offer food and when it was lying on the hay, they would pray by it.

Jerome issued a decree that all such snakes should be killed and burnt in the public market place. Among the snakes there was one which was much larger that all the others and despite repeated efforts, they were unable to put an end to its life (Balys 1948:66; Korsakas, et al 1963:33).

Dlugosz at the end of the fifteenth century wrote that among the eastern Lithuanians there were special deities in the forms of snakes and it was believed that these snakes were penates Dii (God's messengers). He also recorded that the western Lithuanians worshipped both the gyvatės and žalčiai (Gimbutas 1958:35).

Erasmus Stella in his Antiquitates Borussicae (1518) wrote about the first Old Prussian king, Vidvutas Alanas. Erasmus related that the king was greatly concerned with religion and invited priests from the Sūduviai (another Baltic tribe), who, greatly influenced by their stupid beliefs, taught the Prussians how to worship snakes: for they are loved by the gods and are their messengers. They (the Prussians) fed them in their homes and made offerings to them as household deities (Balys 1948: II 67).

Simon Grunau in 1521 wrote that in honor of the god Patrimpas, a snake was kept in a large vessel covered with a sheaf of hay and that girls would feed it milk (Welsford 1958:421). 

works: Balys 1948:66-74; Elisonas 1931:81-90; Gimbutas 1958: 32-35; Korsakas et al 1963:22-24; and Welsford 1958:420-422.

Maletius observed ca. 1550 that...

The Lithuanians and Samogitians kept snakes under their beds or in the corner of their houses where the table usually stood. They worship the snakes as if they were divine beings. At certain times they would invite the snakes to come to the table. The snakes would crawl up on the linen-covered table, taste some food, and then crawl back to their holes. When the snakes crawled away, the people with great joy would first eat from the dish which the snakes had first tasted, believing that the next year would be fortunate. On the other hand, if the snakes did not come to the table when invited or if they did not taste the food, this meant that great misfortune would befall them in the coming year (Balys 1948:67).

In 1557 Zigismund Herberstein wrote about his journey through northwestern Lithuania (Moscovica 1557, Vienna):

Even today one can find many pagan beliefs held by these people, some of whom worship fire, others — trees, and others the sun and the moon. Still others keep their gods at home and these are serpents about three feet long... They have a special time when they feed their gods. In the middle of the house they place some milk and then kneel down on benches. Then the serpents crawl out and hiss at the people engaged geese and the people pray to them with great respect. If some mishap befalls them, they blame themselves for not properly feeding their gods (Balys 1948: II 67).

Strykovsky in his 1582 chronicle on the Old Prussians related:

They have erected to the god Patrimpas a statue and they honor him by taking care of a live snake to whom they feed milk so that it would remain content (Korsakas et. al 1963:23).

A Jesuit missionary's report of 1583 reported:

.. .when we felled their sacred oaks and killed their holy snakes with which the parents and the children had lived together since the cradle, then the pagans would cry that we are defaming their deities, that their gods of the trees, caves, fields, and orchards are destroyed (Balys 1948: 11,68).

In 1604 another Jesuit missionary remarked:

The people have reached such a stage of madness that they believe that deity exists in reptiles. Therefore, they carefully safeguard them, lest someone injure the serpents kept inside their homes. Superstitiously they believe that harm would come to them should anyone show disrespect to these serpents. It sometimes happens that snakes are encountered sucking milk from cows. Some of us occasionally have tried to pull one off, but invariably the farmer would plead in vain to dissuade us... When pleading failed, the man would seize the reptile with his hands and run away to hide it (Gimbutas 1958:33).

In his De Dies Samagitarum of 1615, Johan Lasicci wrote:

Also, just like some household deities, they feed black-colored reptiles which they call gioutos. When these snakes crawl out from the corners of the house and slither up to the food, everyone observes them with fear and respect. If some mishap befalls anyone who worship such reptiles, they explain that they did not treat them properly (Lasickis 1969:25).

Andrius Cellarius in his Descripto Regni Polonicae (1659) observed:

although the Samogitians were christianized in 1386, to this very day they are not free from their paganism, for even now they keep tamed snakes in their houses and show great respect for them, calling them Givoites (Balys 1948: II 70).

T. Arnkiel wrote that ca. 1675 while traveling in Latvia he saw an enormous number of snakes.

die night allein auf dem Felde und im Walde, sondern auch in den Häusern, ja gar in den Betten sich eingefunden, so ich mannigmahl mit Schrecken angesehen. Diese Schlangen thun selten Schaden, wie denn auch niemand unter den Bauern ihren Schaden zufügen wird. Scheint, dass bey denselben die alte Abgötterey noch nicht gäntzlich verloschen (Biezais 1955: 33).

The Baits' positive attitude towards the snake has been recorded also in the late nineteenth century in the Deliciae Prussicae (1871) of Matthaus Pratorius who observed: "Die Begegnung einer Schlange ist den Zamatien und preussischen Littauern noch jetziger Zeit ein gutes Omen (Elisonas 1931:8.3).

Aside from the widespread attestation of snake-worship among the Baits and its persistence into Christian times, these historical records also suggest an intriguing relationship between Baltic mythology and our folk tale. Both Simon Grunau (1521) and Strykovsky (1582) mention the worship of the snake in close reference to the god Patrimpas. This deity is commonly identified as the "God of Waters" and his name is cognate with Old Prussian trumpa 'river'. The close association between the snake and the "God of Waters" has prompted E. Welsford to suggest a slight possibility that the water deity Patrimpas was at one time worshipped in the form of a snake (Welsford 1958:421). A serpent divinity associated with the water finds numerous parallels among Indo-European peoples, eg. the Indie Vrtra who withholds the waters and his benevolent counterpart, the Ahibudhnya 'the serpent of the deep'; the Midgard serpent of Norse mythology; Poseidon's serpents who are sent out of the sea to slay Lacoon, etc. A detailed comparison of the IE water-snake figure would far exceed the limits of this paper, nevertheless, it is curious to note that except for the quite minor Ahibudhnya, most IE mythologies present the water-serpent as malevolent creature — an attitude quite at variance with that of the ancient Balts.

From the historical records it is difficult to determine to what extent the ancient Baits might actually have possessed an organized snake-cult. Erasmus Stella's account of 1518 concerning the Sudovian Priest's introduction of snake-worship into Prussia might suggest such an established cult. In any event, that the snake was worshipped widely on a domestic level cannot be denied. In general it was deemed fortunate to come across a žaltys, and encountering a snake prophesied either marriage or birth. The žaltys was always said to bring happiness and prosperity, ensuring the fertility of the soil and the increase of the family. Up until the twentieth century, in many parts of Lithuania, farm women would leave milk in shallow pans in their yards for the žalčiai. This, they explained, helped to ensure the well-being of the family.

In 1924 H. Bertuleit wrote that the Samogitian peasants "even at the present time, staunchly maintain that the žaltys/gyvatė is a health and strength giving being" (Balys 1948: II 73). To this day in Lithuania, the gabled roofs are occasionally topped with serpent-shaped carvings in order to protect the household from evil powers.

The best proof of the still persistent respect, if no longer veneration, of the snake (or žaltys in specific) is provided by various folk sayings and beliefs which were recorded during this century. Some of them clearly reflect the association of the snake with good luck, while others depict the evil consequences which will befall one if he does not respect the snake. The following are some examples:7

Good luck

1. If a snake crosses over your path you will have good luck.
2. If a snake runs across your path, there will be good fortune.
3. Žaltys is a good guardian of the home, he protects the home from thunder, sickness and murder.
4. If a žaltys appears in the living room, someone in that house will soon get married.

Bad consequences

5. In some houses there live domestic snakes; one must never kill this house-snake, for if you do, misfortunes and bad luck will fall on you and will last for seven years.
6. If you burn a snake in a fire and look at it when it is burning, you will become blind.
7. If you find a snake and throw it on an ant hill, it will stick out its little legs which will cause you to go blind.
8. If s snake bites someone and the person then kills the snake, he will never get well.
9. If a snake bites a man and another person kills it, the man will never recover.
10. If you kill the snake that bit you, you will never recover.
11. If a žaltys comes when one is eating, one must give it food, otherwise one will choke.
12. When children are eating and a žaltys crawls up to them, he must be fed; otherwise the children will choke.
13. If you kill a žaltys, your own animals will never obey you.
14. If someone kills a snake, it will not die until the sun has set.
15. If you kill a snake, the sun cries.
16. If you kill a snake and leave it unburied, the sun grows sick.
17. When a snake or a žaltys is killed, the sun cries while the Devil laughs.
18. If you kill a snake and leave it in the forest, then the sun grows dim for two or three days.
19. If you kill a snake and leave it unburied, then the sun will cry when it sees such a horrible thing.
20. If you kill a snake, you must bury it, otherwise the sun will cry when it sees the dead snake.

The snake's name.

21. If one finds a snake in the forest and wants to show it to others, he must say: "Come, here I found a paukštyte (little bird)!", otherwise, if you call it a gyvate, the snake will understand its name and run away.
22. If you see a snake, call it a little bird; then it will not attack humans.
23. While eating, never talk about a snake or you will meet it when going through the forest.
24. Snakes never bite those who do not mention their name in vain, especially while eating and on the days of the Blessed Mary (Wednesdays and Sundays).
25. On seeing a snake you should say: "Pretty little swallow." It likes this name and does not get angry nor bite.
26. If someone guesses the names of a snake's children, the snake and its children will die.
27. If you do not want a snake to bite you when you are walking though the forest, then don't mention its name.
28. A snake does not run away from -those who know its name.
29. Whoever knows the name of the king of the snakes will never be bitten by them.
30. One must never directly address a snake as gyvatė (snake); instead, one should use ilgoji (the long one) or margoji (the dappled one).

Snakes and cows.

31. Every cow has her own žaltys and when the žaltys becomes lost, she gives less milk. When buying a cow, a žaltys should also be bought together.
32. If you kill a žaltys, things will go bad because other žalčiai will suck all the milk from the cows.

Life-index and affinity to man

33. Some people keep a žaltys in the corner of their house and say: if I didn't have that žaltys, I would die.
34. If a person takes a žaltys out of the house — that person will also have to leave home.
35. If a žaltys leaves the house, someone in that household will die.

Enticement.

36. When you see a snake crawl into a tree trunk, cross two branches and carry them around the tree stump. Then place the crossed branches on the hole through which the snake crawled in. When the sun rises, you will find the snake lying on these branches.
37. When you see a snake and it crawls into a tree-stump, take a stick and draw a circle around the stump. Then, break the stick and place it in the shape of a cross and the snake will crawl out and lie down on the cross.

Miscellaneous.

38. If a snake bites you, pick it up in your hands and rub its head against the wound. Then you will get well.
39. When one is bitten by a snake, say: "Iron one! Cold-tailed one! Forgive (name of person bitten)," while blowing in the direction of the sick person.
40. If you throw a dead snake into water, it will come back to life.
41. A snake attacks a man only when it sees his shadow.
42. They say that when a snake is killed, it comes back to life on the ninth day.
43. If a snake bites an ash tree, the tree bursts into leaf.8
44. If someone understands the language of the snakes, whey will obey him and he can command them to go from one place to another.
45. If there are too many snakes and you want them to leave, light a holy fire at the edge of your field and in the center; all the snakes will then crawl in groups through the fire and go away, but you must not touch them.

Some folk-beliefs show an obvious Christian influence and are possibly the products of frustrated Jesuit anti-snake propagandists:

45. When you meet a snake you must certainly have to kill it for if you fail to do so, then you will have committed a great sin.
46. If you kill a snake, you will win many indulgences.
47. If you kill seven snakes, all your sins will be forgiven.
48. If you kill seven snakes, you will win the Kingdom of Heaven

Such examples as these, however, are quite rare in comparison to the folk-beliefs which are sympathetic to the snake.

Considering the evidence amassed from both historical records and folk-belief that the Baits possessed a positive and reverent attitude towards the snake, it is little wonder that the snake husband's death is viewed as tragedy. If, as the proverbs suggest, a snake's death can affect the sun, then what consequences might the death of the very King of the Snakes have among mortals? This tragic outcome, as Swahn has indicated, gives the tale a character which is foreign to the true folk-tale (Swahn 1955:341). This tale could not terminate on the usual euphoric note typical of the Märchen (although the tale does contain numerous Märchen motifs) because the main event of the story relates to a "reality" which the people who tell the story still hold to be true. The tale is thus well-nourished in a setting where such folk-beliefs about the snake persist. On the other hand, the tale itself may have played a part in affecting the longevity of the beliefs. Whichever case may be true, it is obvious that both are closely related.

A specific element of folk-belief that survived as an ideological support to the tale is that of the snake's name-taboo. The tragic killing of the snake king is implemented only because the name formula is revealed. Thus, the general snake-taboo proverbs (No. 21-30; receive a specific denouement in the snake-father ordering that his name and summoning formula not be revealed to others. There appear to be two important aspects that surround this name-taboo. First of all, it reflects the primitive concept of one being able to manipulate another when his name is known. A second aspect is that the name-taboo may rest on the reverence and fear of a more powerful supernatural being that requires mortals never to mention the deity's real name. For example, Perkūnas, the all-powerful Thunder God of the Baits, has many substitutes for his real name which are usually onomatopoeic with the sound of thunder, eg. Dudulis, Dundulis, Tarškulis, Trenktinis. In our tale the general reason for the name-taboo may be partially related to this second explanation especially since there are a number of variants for the name of the snake-king, eg. Žilvine, which have no etymological support but bear a suspicious resemblance to the word žaltys 'snake'. This might then indicate a deliberate attempt to destroy the name žaltys in such a way as to avoid breaking the name-taboo but still retain some of the underlying semantic force. On the other hand, it must be admitted that many of the summoning formulas include a direct reference to the husband as žaltys. In these cases, since the brothers know his name, they can extend their power over him. It is likely that both these aspects should be considered when explaining the name-taboo of the story. The clear distinction between the obviously Christian folk-sayings (No. 45-48) and the underlying pro-snake proverbs carries considerable significance when one views the substitution of the Devil for the snake in many of the Latvian variants. This substitution occurred in all probability with the increasing influence of Christianity and its usual association of the serpent with the Devil as in the Garden of Eden story. It is interesting to reflect that in some cases the entire story proceeds with the same tragic development despite this substitution (Lat. 2, 7, 9, 15). Even in the Lithuanian variant (Lith. 4) where an old woman tells the heroine that her snake-husband is actually the Devil, this does little to alter the tragic tone of the tale's ending. Thus, it would seem that the Devil is a relatively late introduction, sometimes amounting to little more than a Christian gloss of the snake's real identity. On this basis, one might well conelude that the tale must have been composed in pagan times and is thereby, at the very least, four or five centuries old if not far older.

The effect of the diabolization of the snake among the Latvian variants seems to have led to a disintegration of the tale's actual structure. In some of the Latvian redactions (Lat. 4, 8, 15) where the Devil is the abductor, the story simply ends with the killing of the supernatural husband and the heroine's rescue. In variants of the tale which progress with such a rescue-motif development, it is important to observe that many of the other elements are consequently dropped. There is no name-taboo or magic formula, sometimes no children, and, of course, no magical transformation. Thus the tale is stripped of all these other embellishments and appears rather bare. It simply relates an abduction of the heroine and her rescue, usually accomplished by some members of her family or a priest and thunder storm (Latv. 15). In any event, the abductor is one whom she quite definitely cannot marry and therefore, there can be no Märchen marriage-feast. When the tale has been altered, the rescue motif can then be correlated to the other Märchen tale-types where the heroine is abducted (rather than married) and is eventually rescued by an eligible marriage partner. One might even speculate that this will be the eventual fate of those particular Latvian variants which no longer specify that the snake, a sacred and positive being, is the supernatural husband. We then have an intimate relationship between folk-belief and folk-tale which ultimately may be mirrored in the very structure of the story.

The place of the snake in Baltic folk-belief and its relation to our tale now having been well established, the obvious next question is whether similar beliefs exist in the neighboring non-Baltic countries and, if not, might we propose this as a possible explanation why the story as a Baltic oicotype has not spread to these other cultures. A complete analysis of the role of the snake in Germanic and Slavic folk-belief would far exceed the time allotted for the composition of this study, nevertheless, some of the evidence arrived at by way of a cursory review should be brought forth.

Of sole interest in our investigation of snake beliefs among the Germans and Slavs is the extent to which these cultures parallel the Baits with respect to the lat-ter's quite sympathetic attitude toward the snake. Bolte and Polivka, Hoffmann - Krayer and J. Grimm all mention that among the Germans there are some beliefs which view the snake in a positive light. A few specific entries in Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens are similar to some folk-beliefs already cited among the Baits (Hoffmann - Krayer 1935-36: VII 1139-1141). Bolte and Polivka in listing parallels to Grimm's Märchen von der Unke cite several instances of snakes bringing great fortune to those who treat them well and disaster to those who disrespect or abuse them (Bolte and Polivka 1915: II 459-465) .9 Both Hoffmann-Krayer and Grimm, after listing various "remnants" of what they maintain might be evidence for an ancient snake-cult in Germany, state that under the influence of Christianity the snake is usually diabolized and its image as a malignant and deceitful creature predominates. Only in some very "old" stories are there traces of the original heathen positive attitude towards the snake (Grimm 1966: II 684); Hoffmann - Krayer 1935-36: VII Sp. 1139).

Welsford, in writings about the snake-cult among the ancient Slavs, states that it was probably quite similar to the one which persisted among the Baits, but that the latter seems to have retained it much longer. In the Slavic countries the snake was usually regarded as a creature in which dead souls were embodied and through time came to be viewed mostly as a dangerous animal. It is this aspect of the snake which appears most often in Slavic stories. The snake seems to be similar or even identical with other evil antagonists such as Baba Yaga (Welsford 1958: 422). There are also many stories involving a hero or heroine who has been transformed into a snake by evil enchantment.10 These stories primarily relate how this "curse" is ultimately overcome.

These remarks indicate that the respect for the snake and its association with good fortune was also known to both Germans and Slavs. The heathen past, however, is farther removed from these peoples than form the Latvians and Lithuanians. If similar snake-cults existed in Germany and in Slavic lands, they were not practiced on the same scale within recorded history as they were by the Baits. The cited fourteenth to eighteenth century reports on the Baits were written by Slavs and Germans and already then the surprise and disgust with which they viewed Baltic snake-veneration gives us a good indication of the place of the snake within their own cultures.

Cursory perusal of present-day Germanic and Slavic beliefs about the snake seems to verify the fact that, indeed, the snake is usually considered deceitful and malevolent. The majority of folk-beliefs, expressions, and proverbs reflect this general negative attitude. There are only a few examples of a positive regard for the snake, usually associating it with powers of healing. One may speculate that the folk medicine beliefs which prescribe the use of a snake as an effective cure may be partially explained by the notion that evil conquers evil (ie. an extension of similia similibus curantor). This, however, is mere speculation for it is also likely that the snake's obvious vitality may be responsible for its specification in various folk cures. This latter case seems to be well supported in the Baltic beliefs (cf. folk-belief 38, 39) since the name for snake, gyvatė, and its association with gyvata 'life' helps one to consciously sense the logical correlation.

Stories which mention the affinity between snakes and children are probably known throughout the world because they describe an unexpected occurrence. W. Hand has suggested that the credibility of such stories rests on the notion that the child's innocence and helplessness can not be breached even by a snake (Hand 1968). Note that this kind of logic presupposes that the snake is evil.

Hence, although a more thorough investigation is definitely required, one may still suggest that the Baits have sustained through their history a more sympathetic regard for the snake than either the Germans or Slavs. Assuming that this hypothesis may be true, let us now see how it might be related to the discussion of our tale.

When one assumes no comparable folkloric basis among the Germans and Slavs with regard to the snake, then the Baltic tale would make very little "cultural sense" to these people and even if it penetrated into their cultural spheres, it would probably by altered by the same process which seems to be occurring with the Latvian tales. Secondly, even if we posit the existence of a similar positive attitude toward the snake in these cultures at a pre-Christian time, these beliefs would now seem to have almost entirely died out. In any case, even though there may be some survivals, there has been no comparative retention of respect and reverence for the snake among the Germans and Slavs as one finds with the Baits. The narrative motif of this tale clearly rests on a folk-belief which serves as an ideological backbone to the story. Conversely, people unfamiliar with the underlying folk-belief or possessing quite antithetical beliefs would find this tale lacking in cultural meaning and, therefore, "untransferable," at least in its original form.

TREES

Another typical element of the Baltic 425 M tale is the terminating motif where the heroine and her children are transformed into trees. Swahn has commented that it is this motif which gives the tale the character of an aition-legend (Swahn 1955: 341). However, most Baltic aetiological-legends rarely possess such fantastic Märchen-type motifs as a supernatural husband, difficult tasks or name taboo and are certainly not so elaborate or complex as this specific tale. The explanation for the curse-inflicted transformation is based in Baltic folk-beliefs. First of all, the power of the heroine's word is what brings about the arboreal transformation. To this very day the Baits believe that a parent's curse is most effective in bringing about dire consequences to her children. This belief is, of course, also well known in other cultures. Secondly, one can observe that the transformation into trees is typically Baltic. The full impact of this motif to the Baits is directly related to their folk-beliefs and is not simply an element of the story to be appreciated on an aesthetic basis. The Baits have retained to this very day a special empathy for trees. They believe that trees are like humans in that they also have a heart and blood (sap). When cut down without good reason, they feel pain and there are folk accounts of how real blood has flowed out of injured trees. For this reason, parents always instruct their children (as this writer was instructed) never to pluck leaves, break the branches or peel the bark from a tree since it experiences the same kind of pain as when someone pulls the hair of one's head or peels off his skin from his body. Whoever injures a tree in such a manner will eventually have to suffer a similar pain in his own life. Trees also have a language of their own which man is unable to understand. One can, however, hear a tree cry and moan every time an axe digs into its trunk by putting his ear to the tree-trunk.

All these current beliefs stem from a conviction rooted in the pagan era that the souls of the dead actually go into trees, usually the ones growing near a person's homestead or more specifically, near his grave. For this reason, trees in cemeteries are considered especially sacred and must never be touched by a pruner's hand since "to cut a cemetery tree is to do evil to the deceased" (Gimbutas 1963: 191). This belief in total reincarnation of one's life force in a tree has been slightly altered by the influence of Christianity. It is quite commonly heard that souls which must undergo penance for their sins are sent by God into trees. Thus, when a tree creaks on a windless night, it is in truth the weeping and crying of the penitent soul that one hears. One must then pray for them, mentioning Adam and Eve, and the soul will be pardoned and the tree will cease its creaking. It is said that souls in general inhabit old spruces, but more specifically, a girl's soul will pass into a linden or a birch while a man's soul will enter an oak, ash or alder. In general, all trees are holy save the aspen which is believed cursed because it was on that tree that Judas hung himself. This is directly related to our tale where the youngest daughter, the one who betrayed her father, is especially cursed and transformed into an aspen.

Another proof linking reincarnation with trees is found in the funeral laments which have served as a reservoir of on-going folk-belief up until this present century, In one, a mother addresses her dead daughter:

What kind of flower will you bloom in? What kind of leaf? What blossoms will you sprout when I walk by? How will I recognize you? How will I know you? Will you be in flowers? In leaves? (Šalčiūtė 1967:42).

A daughter cries for her mother:

.. .I will ask my brother that he would plant a birch on my mother's grave. When the cold storms will come, I shall go up the high hill to my mother's grave. The birch branches will enfold me like my mother's white arms. The north wind will not blow on me, the biting rain will not fall on me (Jonynas et al 1954: 522).

A daughter cries for her father:

Oh that a green plane-tree would grow from my father's grave. All the beautiful birds would then alight there, and would pick sweet berries. Oh, a mottled cuckoo would weep for you with her song (ibid.:52B).

And a mother laments for her. daughter:

Oh my dearest little daughter, Oh, how will you sleep in the black earth where the winds don't blow, where the sun doesn't shine. Only the cuckoo will cry. Only the little birds will sing in the white birch on your little grave! (ibid.:533).

Other than laments, many Lithuanian folksongs draw analogies between man and trees or plants. The usual epithet for a young girl is "white lily" and for a young lad it is "white clover." Constant parallels are also drawn between a young maid and a green linden and a young man and a green oak. As folksong scholars have marked, this type of parallelism usually enhances the songs' poetical quality and these traditional "formulaic expressions" may have persisted precisely because of their aesthetic appeal. Nevertheless, they seem to be instrumental in shaping the general world-view of the people who sing them and it is, therefore, not at all surprising that the Baits do feel this close identity with nature. The following Lithuanian folksong well illustrates this:

Oh dearest father, don't cut the birch growing near the road. 
Oh my own true mother, don't fetch the water from the stream. 
Oh my own true brother, don't cut the hay near the water. 
Oh my own true sister, don't pluck the flowers in your garden.

The birch near the road is really me, the young one. 
The water from the stream — my sorrowful tears. 
The hay near the waters — my yellow hair. 
The flowers in the garden — my bright little eyes.

(Balys 1948: II 64).

CUCKOO

It is interesting to observe that in many Baltic folktales, legends, songs and beliefs, women turn into cuckoos out of grief when they have been separated from ones they love. This motif constantly repeats itself in the laments where the mourner expresses a desire to turn into a cuckoo and "weep with its song." This belief is clearly reflected in those variants of the tale where the heroine becomes a cuckoo and her children become either trees or other birds.

Any attempt to demonstrate that the tale is a Baltic oicotype because of its close correlation to Baltic folk-beliefs becomes more difficult when dealing with these other motifs of the story. The power of a parent's curse, the transformation to some other form of plant or animal out of grief, even the idea of reincarnation in trees are not solely unique to the Baits but are found in other European folk traditions. What may be somewhat atypical is that among the Baits these beliefs are still widespread and constantly expressed to this very day and find reinforcement in songs and laments. It may then be argued that all of these factors help to imbue the story with a cultural relevance for the Balt which might not be so quickly perceived or deeply felt by a German or Slav. But it must be admitted that the case for these motifs, ie. trees, cuckoo, is not nearly so strong as that for the snake when discussing possible factors that would have limited the tale to the Baltic countries.

CONCLUSION

One conclusion that can certainly be drawn is that the motifs of the tale and their ultimate structure (ie. sequence of events) reflects many still very viable folk-beliefs which are generally known to most Baits. This would almost suggest that the tale is not as fantastical as it would first seem since it is so deeply rooted in a folkloric reality accepted by the people who relate it. Whether the story should therefore be considered a Sage rather than a Märchen (its usual classification by folktale scholars) is another matter.

The initial purpose of this study — to illustrate how folk-beliefs may be the laws which account for oicoty-pification of a folk tale — has been partially fulfilled. If one of the "laws" which affect the life of a story is the relevance which it may have for the people via various folk-beliefs and convictions, then that case has been well demonstrated. But whether this relevance simply enhances the popularity of the tale or is actually the crucial life-root which maintains the existence of the tale and restricts its migration requires much more substantial proof. If our analysis of the disintegration of some of the Latvian variants is valid and the general discussion of the folk motifs, especially the snake, is also of some merit, then perhaps our research is at least heading in the right direction.

REFERENCES

Balys, Jonas

1948 Lietuvių Tautosakos Skaitymai (Readings in Lithuanian Folklore). Patria Press, Tubingen. 1951 „žalčio pasaka Indijoj" (The žaltys tale in India),Gabija, Literatūros žurnalas, p. 62-66.
1953 „Rusiška žalčio pasakos versija" (The Russian version of the žaltys tale), Draugas, Chicago 12/9, No. 214, p.4. 

Biezais, Haralds

1955 Die Hauptgottinnen der alten Letten. Almqvist & Wiksells Boktrycheri AB, Uppsala. 

Bolte, Johannes & Georg Polivka

1915 Anmerkungen zu den Kinder -u. Hausmärchen der Brüder Grimm II. Dieterich'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Leipzig. 

Dracott, Alice Elizabeth

1906 Simla Village Tales. John Murray, London. 

Elisonas, J.

1931 „Mūsų krašto ropliai (reptilia) Lietuvos folkloro šviesoje" (Our country's reptiles in the light of Lithuanian folklore), Mūsų Tautosaka (Our Folklore), V. Krėvė Mickevičius, ed., Tautosakos Komisija, Kaunas, pp.81-180. 

Gimbutas, Marija

1958 Ancient Symbolism in Lithuanian Folk Art. American Folklore Society, Philadelphia.
1963 The Baits. Frederick A. Praeger Inc., New York. 

Grimm, Jacob

1966 Teutonic Mythology II. Dover Publications, Inc., New York (first English publication 1883).

Hand, Wayland D.

1968 "Children and Snakes: A General Inquiry Based on Grimm No. 105 'Marchen von der Unke', Literatūra Komparotystyka Folklor, Festschrift for Julian Krzyzanowski, Warsaw, pp. 889-894. 

Hoffmann - Krayer, E.

1935 Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens VII. Walter de Gruyter & Co., Berlin & Leipzig. 

Jonynas, Amb.

1964 Lietuvių Tautosaka II, Dainos - Raudos (Lithuanian Folklore II, Songs-Laments), Mintis, Vilnius. 

Lasickis, Jonas

1969 Apie Žemaičių Dievus, Vaga, Vilnius.

Meillet, A.

1964 Introduction a l'etude comparative des langues indo-europeennes. University of Alabama Press, University, Alabama. 

Panzer, Friedrich

1954 Bayerische Sagen und Brauche. Otto Schwartz & Co., Göttingen. 

Parry, N. E.

1932 The Lakhers. Macmillan & Co., London. 

Ralston, W. R. S.

1873 Russian Folk-Tales. Smith, Elder & Co. London. 

Šalčiūtė, A.

1967 Lietuvių Tautosaka (Lithuanian Folklore), Mokslo Akademija, Kaunas. 

Sauka, Donatas 

1970 Tautosakos Savitumas ir Vertė (Folklore, Characteristics and Worth), Vaga, Vilnius. 

Steel, F. A. and R. C. Temple

1884 Wide-awake Stories. Education Society's Press, London. 

Swahn, Jan-Ojvind

1955 The Tale of Cupid and Psyche. CWK Gleerup, Lund. 

Von Sydow, C. W.

1948 "Folktale Studies and Philology: Some points of View" in The Study of Folklore, Alan Dundes, ed., Prentice Hall, N. J. 1965, pp. 219-242.

Welsford, Enid

1958 "Serpent-Worship: Teutonic and Balto-Slavic" Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics, XI, James Hastings, ed., Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, pp. 419-423.

Wratislaw, A. H.

1889 Sixty Folk-Tales. Elliot Stock, London.

TABLE 1: LITHUANIAN TALES (a 425-M)

TABLE 2: LATVIAN TALES (Aa 425-M)

* - indicates that the motif appears in the story as it is listed in the heading of the colum. Details and variations are given whenever possible.

TABLE 3: RUSSIAN-ESTONIAN-FINISH TALES (Aa 425-M)

 TABLE 4: INDIC TALES (Aa 425-M)

* proportion

1 Information received by personal communication from Norbertas Vėlius, Lithuanian Folklore Archive, Vilnius, Lithuania.
2 Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain such specific information regarding the tale in Latvian tradition.
3 The second Russian story (Wratislaw 1889:160) to which Balys makes reference may be questioned as to the actual correlation to the Aa 425 M. Swahn, who was obviously familiar with Balys' article (he cites him in several instances), did not include the second story in his listing of Russian variants. This leads one to suspect that Swahn might have had some legitimate reason for disregarding this example.
4 The story which Ralston translated first appeared in A. A. Erleiven's book, Narodnye skazi (Moscow 1863, No. 2). Andrejev, in compiling his study, constantly referred to Erleiven's collection. Balys contends that since Andrejev, an authority on Russian tales, did not mention the specific "Water Snake" story nor assign to in an index number, this proves that he did not consider it to be sufficiently typical of the Russian repertoire of tales.
5 Only one Indian tale (Dracott 1906:15) to which Balys attempts to establish a genetic relationship with the Baltic variants is included in Swahn's monograph. In that particular case, Swahn classifies the bale as sub-type A. The other two stories (Steel 1884:120; and Parry 1932:559) are not included by Swahn. Again, since Swahn cited reference to Balys' article, it is unclear why he did not incorporate these other two variants.
6 The references to historical accounts have been selected from Lithuanian translations of the records found in the following
7 All the following folk sayings are translated from a collection of current folk beliefs regarding various reptiles, compiled by J. Elisonas in 1931.
Snake and sun
8 In contrast to Baltic belief, it is interesting to note that among the Germans there is great antipathy between the two. Thus, Panzer cites "dass man eine Schlange mit Berührung eines Eschenzweiges töten kann" or "dass eine Schlange eher in ein Peuer springen würde, als in den Schatten eines Eschbaumes" (Panzer 1954: I 213).
9 That the serpent as a bringer of treasure may be associated with the common German motif of a treasure-hoarding snake-dragon is quite possible. I am unaware of any Baltic evidence of a similar treasure-hording serpent.
10 Evil enchantment is not the only cause for such transformation in Germanic lore. Panzer cites a story where a young girl is changed into a snake by God as punishment for a sin (Panzer 1954: I 117).