Once, there lived an old widowed hunter, Kokovanya. He had no family, so he adopted a little orphan girl, Daryonka. Daryonka asked Kokovanya if she could take her kitten along with her. Kokovanya agreed and all of them started living together. They were not rich but lived a comfortable life. The old man went to hunt in the morning and Daryonka cleaned the house and cooked soup. Her cat kept her company. In the evening, Kokovanya used to tell wonderful stories, but the girl’s favourite was the one about Silver Hoof, the magical goat. It was a special goat. He had a silver hoof on the right front leg. While most goats had two horns, Silver Hoof had five antlers. When he stamped his foot, a precious stone would fall there. If he stamped it twice there would be two, but if he started beating the ground with his foot, there would be a pile of precious stones.
In the Woods
Kokovanya told Daryonka that for years he had been trying to find Silver Hoof. In the autumn, he decided to go to the woods to find Silver Hoof. Daryonka begged the old man to take her along, “Grandpa, please take me with you. Maybe I would be able to see the little goat at least from a distance.” Kokovanya refused. Now, came the winter. She again requested him. At first, Kokovanya refused but then he agreed. So the old man, the young girl, and the cat headed deep into the woods. They stayed in a cabin that the old man had built in the woods for himself. He hunted many goats, but unfortunately, he never found Silver Hoof. By the end of the winter, they had many goat-skins and meat. Kokovanya needed to go to the town to get the horse to help carry it all home. It would take him a few days.
The Cat and the Silver Hoof
Daryonka was left alone in the cabin. On the third day, she heard some noise coming from outside. She opened the door. Silver Hoof was standing right there in front of her. She called out, but the goat ran away. The following day, the cat went out to play in the woods. She did not return. Daryonka was worried and went out in search of her cat. The cat was outside and Silver Hoof was standing with her. They were nodding their heads as if talking to each other. They started running around in the snow. The goat stomped all around the cabin. She climbed onto the roof and began stomping there. The precious stones fell from her feet. They were red, green, light blue, dark blue, and many other colours.
The Precious Stones
Just then, Kokovanya returned. He could not recognise his cabin. It was covered with precious stones of different colours. It sparkled in the moonlight. The goat was still at the roof beating her silver hoof. The cat also jumped up. Then, both of them disappeared. They had gone. Kokovanya gathered up some stones in his hat but then Daryonka begged him, “Don’t touch them, Grandpa! We’ll look at them tomorrow in the daylight.” Kokovanya agreed. They slept and had wonderful dreams. When they woke up in the morning, they ran outside. But the snowfall had covered all the stones. They picked at the snow but could not find anything. They were left with the stones that Kokovanya had collected in his hat. They were enough for them to live happily. The cat and Silver Hoof never showed up again. But at times people still find stones near the cabin where the goat played that night.
