ABSTRACT
In Saratov province at a certain unfortunate priest's house, one dark autumn night, at twelve o'clock, something happened-through the rooms and in the kitchen there was a knocking and thunder and a roar. Then the unclean spirits came in to him and asked him for his favorite daughter. The daughter was called Alexandra. And the unfortunate priest took fright and didn't know what to do with these devils. And he refused them until the second night, and turned to the Lord God and ardently prayed with all his prayers, and in fact to Nicholas the Wonderworker. And Nicholas the Wonderworker gave him a happy thought: "If the devils appear to you, then give them a task they won't be able to complete." The next night the devils were back disturbing the priest. "Give us your daughter Alexandra." "If you can build a divine church before dawn, then I'll give you my daughter." The priest went outside and indicated a place for them and they started in to work. The work moved on toward midnight and the church was completed up to the ceiling. Then the priest became concerned that they would manage to complete the task. So he sent his wife to the neighbor and asked him for a live cock and he started tickling that cock. Near dawn that cock started crowing. The priest was overjoyed because they hadn't finished the sanctuary. So their task was left uncompleted and the daughter Alexandra stayed with her parents but the unclean spirits frightened him. So he thanked Mikola the Favorite of God most profusely and by this means he was rescued from the devil.
