The Table, the Golden Donkey, and the Cudgel
Grimm's Fairy Tales
In a cozy little cottage, nestled beside a whispering wood, lived a tailor with his three sons. They also had a goat, a goat with a very particular, and sometimes quite fibbing, nature.
Every day, one of the sons would take the goat to the greenest meadow to eat the juiciest grass. The eldest son went first. "Goat," he asked at the end of the day, "have you had enough to eat?"
"Baa!" said the goat. "I'm so full, I can't eat another leaf!"
So, the son led the goat home. But when the tailor asked the goat, "Are you well fed?" the naughty goat replied, "Baa! How could I be? I only nibbled a few dry blades!"
The tailor, very cross, thought his son was lazy and chased him out of the house.
The next day, the second son took the goat out. "Goat," he asked, "are you full?"
"Baa!" said the goat. "So full, I could burst!"
But back home, the goat told the tailor, "Baa! Barely a mouthful passed my lips today!"
The tailor, even crosser, chased his second son away too.
Then it was the youngest son's turn. He made sure the goat ate plenty. "Goat," he asked, "are you truly full?"
"Baa!" said the goat. "I've eaten so much, I can't even bleat properly!"
But, you guessed it, back home the goat lied again! "Baa! My tummy rumbles with hunger!"
The tailor was furious and chased his youngest son away. Now, the tailor was all alone, except for the fibbing goat. The next day, he took the goat to the meadow himself. When he asked if it was full, the goat said, "Baa! So full, so full!" But when they got home, and the tailor asked again, just to be sure, the goat said, "Baa! How could I be full on that miserable patch?"
The tailor finally realized the goat was a trickster! He was so angry he shaved the goat's beard and chased it away with a broom.
Meanwhile, the eldest son had become an apprentice to a carpenter. He worked hard, and when it was time to leave, his master gave him a little wooden table. "This is no ordinary table," said the master. "Just say, 'Table, cover yourself!' and it will be filled with the most delicious food."
The son was delighted. On his way home, he stopped at an inn. He showed off his table: "Table, cover yourself!" And poof! Roast chicken, bread, and pies appeared. The innkeeper, who was a sneaky fellow, watched with wide eyes. That night, while the son slept, the innkeeper swapped the magic table with an ordinary one.
The next day, the son arrived home. "Father, I have a magic table!" he said. But when he cried, "Table, cover yourself!" nothing happened. The tailor was very disappointed.
The second son had become an apprentice to a miller. He too worked hard, and his master gave him a donkey. "This is no ordinary donkey," said the miller. "Say 'Bricklebrit!' and it will drop gold coins from its mouth and... well, from the other end too!"
The son was overjoyed. He also stopped at the same inn. "Bricklebrit!" he commanded, and gold coins clinked onto the floor. The sneaky innkeeper saw this and, that night, swapped the gold-dropping donkey with a plain one.
When the second son got home and said "Bricklebrit!" the donkey just brayed. The tailor was even more disappointed.
Now, the youngest son had become an apprentice to a woodturner. He worked diligently, and his master gave him a sack with a stick inside. "If anyone means you harm," said the master, "just say, 'Stick, out of the sack!' and it will jump out and teach them a lesson. Say 'Stick, into the sack!' to make it stop."
The youngest son was clever. He had heard about a tricky innkeeper from letters his brothers had sent. He decided to stay at the same inn. He put his sack on the table and boasted about the great treasure inside.
The greedy innkeeper crept in at night, hoping to steal this new treasure. As he reached for the sack, the youngest son, who was only pretending to sleep, shouted, "Stick, out of the sack!"
The stick leaped out and started to dance all over the innkeeper – WHACK! THUMP! BONK!
"Ouch! Ow! Stop!" cried the innkeeper.
"Only if you return the magic table and the gold-donkey!" said the son.
The innkeeper, bruised and sorry, quickly confessed and gave back the real table and the real donkey.
The youngest son returned home with the table, the donkey, and the stick in the sack.
"Father, brothers!" he called. He said, "Table, cover yourself!" and a feast appeared. Then he said, "Donkey, Bricklebrit!" and gold coins showered down.
The tailor and his sons were overjoyed! They had wonderful food and plenty of money. And if anyone ever tried to bother them, the youngest son just had to pat his sack and say, "Want to meet my little friend?"
And they all lived happily, enjoying delicious meals and shiny gold coins, all thanks to the clever youngest son and his rather helpful stick. As for the tricky goat? Well, it was probably still wandering around, too embarrassed by its bald chin to tell any more fibs.
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