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the Good Bargain
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
A peasant had driven his cow to the fair and sold her for seven talers. On the way home he had to walk past a pond, and already from afar he heard the frogs crying, "ak, ak, ak, ak" [which in his language sounded like, "eight, eight, eight, eight"].
"Well," he said he to himself, "they are talking nonsense. It is seven that I was paid, not eight."
When he reached the water, he shouted to them, "You are stupid creatures. Don't you know any better than that? It is seven talers, not eight."
the frogs, however, kept up with their "ak, ak, ak, ak."
"Now then, if you won't believe it, I can count it out for you." Then taking his money out of his pocket, he counted out the seven talers, twenty-four groschens in each one.
However, the frogs paid no attention to his counting, and again cried out, "ak, ak, ak, ak."
"Aha!" shouted the peasant, quite angry. "If you think that you know better than I do, then count it yourselves," and he threw all the money at them into the water. He stood still, wanting to stay there until they were finished and had returned his money to him, but the frogs did not budge from their opinion, and continued to cry out, "ak, ak, ak, ak." And furthermore, they did not throw the money back to him.
He waited a long time, until evening finally came, and he had to go home. then he cursed the frogs, shouting at them, "You water-splashers, you thick-heads, you goggle-eyes, you have big mouths and can shout until a person's ears hurt, but you cannot count seven talers. Do you think that I want to stand here until you are finished?"
then he walked away, with the frogs still crying out after him, "ak, ak, ak, ak." He arrived at home in a sour mood.
Some time later he bought himself another cow, which he slaughtered. He calculated that if he sold the meat for a good price, he could earn as much as the two cows had been worth together, and have the hide as well.
He went to town with the meat. An entire pack of dogs had gathered together just outside the town gate, with a large GREyhound at the head of the pack. The greyhound jumped at the meat, sniffing and barking, "bow, wow, bow, wow."
When the dog would not stop, the peasant said to him, "Yes, I understand that you are saying, "bow, wow," because you want some of the meat, but I would be in a fine state if I gave it to you."
the dog's only answer was, "bow, wow."
"Will you not eat it all up, and will you be responsible for your companions?"
"Bow, wow, " said the dog.
"Well, if you insist on it, I will leave it with you. I know you well, and I know who your master is. But I am telling you, I must have my money in three days, or you will be sorry. You can just bring it out to me."
With this he unloaded the meat and turned back toward home. The dogs jumped on the meat, barking loudly, "bow, wow."
the peasant heard them from afar and said to himself, "Listen, they all want some, but the big dog will be responsible for it."
When three days had passed, the peasant thought, "Tonight you'll have the money in your pocket," and was quite satisfied. But no one came to pay him.
"No one is to be trusted nowadays," he said.
Finally he lost his patience and went to town and to the butcher, from whom he demanded his money. The butcher thought it was a joke, but the peasant said, "All joking aside, I want my money. Did not the big dog bring home to you an entire slaughtered cow three days ago?"
then the butcher GREw angry, picked up a broomstick and chased him out.
"Wait," said the peasant. "There is still some justice in the world," and he went to the royal palace and asked for a hearing. He was led before the king, who was sitting there with his daughter. The king asked him what injury he had suffered.
"Alas," he said, "the frogs and the dogs stole my belongings from me, and the butcher paid me for my losses with a stick." Then he told them everything that had happened.
At this the king's daughter began to laugh out loud, and the king said to him, "I cannot make that right for you, but instead you shall have my daughter for your wife. She had never laughed before in her whole life, until just now at you, and I have promised her to the man who could make her laugh. You can thank God for your good fortune."
"Oh," answered the peasant, "I do not want her. I have one wife at home already, and she is too much for me. Whenever I go home, it is just as if I had a wife standing in every corner."
then the king GREw angry, and said, "You are a lout."
"Alas, your majesty," answered the peasant, "what can you expect from an ox, but beef?"
