Once upon a time, there were four brothers who lived in a far away
land. Their father was an old king. One day he said, "I will not live long
now. Today you must start out into the world. In a year, bring back the
best thing you have found. The one who can pick the best thing shall be the
new king."
The first brother said, "I will look in every city or town. I will buy
the best thing I can for my father."
The next two brothers said, "We will both go on fast ships over the sea.
We will find something better."
The last brother said, "I am going to ask the people here in our own
land to tell me the best thing." The other three brothers began to laugh.
"Then you will never be king!" They said.
The last brother started off. When he had gone about six miles, he met
a man.
"What do you carry in those big bags?" he asked.
"The best thing in the world," said the man. "These are full of the
good nuts which fall from my five nut trees."
"I don't think that would work," said the brother to himself, "I must
try again."
The brother went on another seven miles. He found a small brown bird.
It had been hurt, so he put it in his coat where it could keep warm. As he
went on, he saw a little girl crying. He ran to meet her. "Why are you
crying?" he asked.
"I want to get some water from the well," she said. "We use so much.
We drink cold water. We wash the clothes clean with hot water. But I do not
know how to pull it up. Please show me."
The brother said, "Hold this bird and I will help you. It does not fly
around anymore because it got its wing hurt.!"
"Thank you. What a pretty bird!" she said. "I wish you would give it
to me. If you will let me keep it, I will always be very kind to it. I will
take care of it myself. I will make it grow well again."
"Yes, you may have it," said the brother. So he gave her the bird and
went on.
At night, he went to sleep under a round yellow haystack. When it was
light again he walked on. Every day he would walk eight or ten miles. He
asked the people about the best thing in the world. Some said it was best to
sing. Some said it was best to run and jump and play. Some said the green
grass was best. Some liked the red and blue and white flowers best. One man
said the best thing was to ride a black horse.
He always stopped to help people who needed it. Soon he made many
friends. All the people began to like him. They would say, "See there goes
the king's son. He would be just the right kind of king for us."
Every door was open to him. The people would call to him to stop. They
would ask him to come and eat with them. After he ate, he would sit down and
read to the children. After he read, he showed them how to draw and write.
Months went by. He still had no beautiful thing to take to his father.
Just before the year was done, he went home again. The time came went he
king called his sons together.
"What did you bring?" He asked them all.
The other brothers had many beautiful things.
"And what did you bring?" said the king to the last brother.
"This is too funny!" said the other brothers. "He has nothing!"
But the king was kind to the last brother. "What did you bring me?"
the king asked again.
"I bring only the friendship of your people," said the last the brother.
"That is the best thing!" cried his father. "You shall be the new
king."
The End
This passage contains all of the 220 Dolch Basic Sight Words.
675 words in passage
