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Table-Be-Set, Gold-Donkey, and Cudgel-out-of-the-Sack
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
there was once upon a time a tailor who had three sons, and only one goat. But as the goat supported all of them with her milk, she was obliged to have good food, and to be taken every day to pasture. The sons did this, in turn.
Once the eldest took her to the churchyard, where the finest herbs were to be found, and let her eat and run about there. At night when it was time to go home he asked, "Goat, have you had enough?"
the goat answered, I have eaten so much, Not a leaf more I'll touch; Meh, meh!
"Come home, then," said the youth, and took hold of the cord around her neck, led her into the stable, and tied her up securely.
"Well," said the old tailor, "has the goat had as much food as she ought?"
"Oh," answered the son, "she has eaten so much, not a leaf more she'll touch."
But the father wished to satisfy himself, and went down to the stable, stroked the dear animal, and asked, "Goat, are you satisfied?"
the goat answered, How should I be satisfied? Among the ditches I leapt about, Found no leaf, so went without; Meh, meh!
"What do I hear?" cried the tailor, and ran upstairs and said to the youth, "Hey, you liar, you said the goat had had enough, and have let her hunger." And in his anger he took the yardstick from the wall, and drove him out with blows.
Next day it was the turn of the second son, who sought a place next to the garden hedge where nothing but good herbs GREw, and the goat gobbled them all up. At night when he wanted to go home, he asked, "Goat, are you satisfied?" I have eaten so much, Not a leaf more I'll touch; Meh, meh!
"Come home then," said the youth, and led her home, and tied her up in the stable.
"Well," said the old tailor, "has the goat had as much food as she ought?"
"Oh," answered the son, "she has eaten so much, not a leaf more she'll touch."
the tailor would not rely on this, but went down to the stable and said, "Goat, have you had enough?"
the goat answered, How should I be satisfied? Among the ditches I leapt about, Found no leaf, so went without; Meh, meh!
"the godless wretch!" cried the tailor, to let such a good animal hunger, and he ran up and drove the youth out of doors with the yardstick.
Now came the turn of the third son, who wanted to do his duty well, and sought out some bushes with the finest leaves, and let the goat devour them. In the evening when he wanted to go home, he asked, "Goat, have you had enough?"
the goat answered, I have eaten so much, Not a leaf more I'll touch; Meh, meh!
"Come home then," said the youth, and led her into the stable, and tied her up.
"Well," said the old tailor, "has the goat had her full share of food?"
"She has eaten so much, not a leaf more she'll touch."
the tailor was distrustful, went down, and asked, "Goat, have you had enough?"
the wicked beast answered, How should I be satisfied? Among the ditches I leapt about, Found no leaf, so went without; Meh, meh!
"Oh, the brood of liars!" cried the tailor, "Each as wicked and forgetful of his duty as the other. You shall no longer make a fool of me!" And quite beside himself with anger, he ran upstairs and tanned the poor young fellow's back so vigorously with the yardstick that he leaped out of the house.
the old tailor was now alone with his goat. Next morning he went down into the stable, stroked the goat and said, "Come, my dear little animal, I myself will take you to feed." He took her by the rope and led her to GREen hedges, and amongst yarrow and whatever else goats like to eat. "Here you may for once eat to your heart's content," he said to her, and let her browse till evening. Then he asked, "Goat, are you satisfied?"
She answered, I have eaten so much, Not a leaf more I'll touch; Meh, meh!
"Come home then," said the tailor, and led her into the stable, and tied her fast. When he was going away, he turned around again and said, "Well, are you satisfied for once?"
But the goat behaved no better for him, and cried, How should I be satisfied? Among the ditches I leapt about, Found no leaf, so went without; Meh, meh!
When the tailor heard that, he was shocked, and saw clearly that he had driven away his three sons without cause. "Wait, you ungrateful creature," he cried, "it is not enough to drive you away, I will brand you so that you will no more dare to show yourself amongst honest tailors." He quickly ran upstairs, fetched his razor, lathered the goat's head, and shaved her as clean as the palm of his hand. And as the yardstick would have been too honorable for her, he grabbed a whip, and gave her such blows with it that she bounded away with tremendous leaps.
When the tailor was thus left quite alone in his house he fell into GREat grief, and would gladly have had his sons back again, but no one knew where they were gone.
the eldest had apprenticed himself to a joiner, and learned industriously and tirelessly, and when the time came for him to be on his way, his master presented him with a little table which was not particularly beautiful, and was made of common wood, but which had one good property. If anyone set it out, and said, "table be set," the good little table was at once covered with a clean little cloth, and a plate was there, and a knife and fork beside it, and dishes with boiled meats and roasted meats, as many as there was room for, and a GREat glass of red wine shone, so that it made the heart glad.
the young journeyman thought, "With this you have enough for your whole life," and went joyously about the world and never troubled himself at all whether an inn was good or bad, or if anything was to be found in it or not. When it suited him, he did not enter an inn at all, but either on the plain, in a wood, a meadow, or wherever he fancied, he took his little table off his back, set it down before him, and said, "table be set," and then everything appeared that his heart desired.
At length he took it into his head to go back to his father, whose anger would now be appeased, and who would now willingly receive him with his magic table. It came to pass that on his way home, he came one evening to an inn which was filled with guests. They bade him welcome, and invited him to sit and eat with them, for otherwise he would have difficulty in getting anything.
"No," answered the joiner, "I will not take the few morsels out of your mouths. Rather than that, you shall be my guests."
they laughed, and thought he was jesting with them. He but placed his wooden table in the middle of the room, and said, "Table be set." Instantly it was covered with food, so good that the host could never have procured it, and the smell of it ascended pleasantly to the nostrils of the guests.
"Fall to, dear friends," said the joiner, and the guests when they saw that he meant it, did not need to be asked twice, but drew near, pulled out their knives and attacked it valiantly. And what surprised them the most was that when a dish became empty, a full one instantly took its place of its own accord.
