Not so very long ago, nestled beside a big, green forest, lived a woodcutter with his wife and three sons. The eldest son was strong, the middle son was clever, but the youngest son… well, everyone called him Simpleton because he wasn't quite as quick as his brothers. But he had a very kind heart.

One day, the eldest son went into the forest to chop wood. His mother gave him a yummy cake and a bottle of sweet juice. Deep in the woods, he met a little gray man who said, "Please, share your food, I'm so hungry!"
The eldest son scoffed, "If I give you my food, I'll have less! Go away!" And as he swung his axe, he missed the tree and, ouch! He chopped his own foot and had to hop home.

The next day, the middle son went. His mother gave him an even better cake and sweeter juice. He too met the little gray man. "Please, share your food," begged the man.
"Certainly not!" said the middle son. "I need this for myself!" And as he started to work, wham! He chopped his own arm and had to run home.

Then it was Simpleton's turn. His mother, a bit cross, gave him only a dry, crumbly biscuit made with water and ash, and a bottle of sour water. When Simpleton met the little gray man, the man asked, "Please, share your food and drink with me."
Simpleton, being kind, said, "It's not much, but you can have half!"
As they sat down, a wonderful thing happened! The dry biscuit turned into a delicious, sweet cake, and the sour water became fine, sweet wine! They ate and drank happily.
When they finished, the little gray man said, "Because you have a good heart, I will give you good luck. See that old tree over there? Chop it down, and you will find something valuable in its roots."

Simpleton thanked him, went to the tree, and chopped it down. And there, nestled among the roots, was a goose with feathers of pure, shiny gold!
"Wow!" thought Simpleton. He picked up the golden goose and decided to take it to an inn for the night.

The innkeeper had three daughters. When they saw the golden goose, they were amazed. The eldest daughter thought, "I must have one of those golden feathers!" When Simpleton wasn't looking, she reached out to pluck a feather. But as soon as her fingers touched the goose, they stuck fast! She couldn't pull her hand away.
Soon, the second sister came by. Seeing her sister stuck, she thought, "If she can have a feather, so can I!" She touched her sister, intending to pull her away and grab a feather herself. Zap! Now *she* was stuck to the first sister.
Then came the third sister. "What are you two doing?" she cried, and tried to pull the second sister free. Whizz! Now all three sisters were stuck together, with the first one stuck to the golden goose. They pulled and tugged, but it was no use.

The next morning, Simpleton picked up his golden goose, not paying much attention to what was behind it, and set off. The three girls had no choice but to stumble and run along after him.
As they trotted down the road, a parson saw them. "Goodness me!" he cried. "Where are you shameless girls running off to with that young man?" He tried to grab the youngest girl to pull her away. Thwack! His hand stuck fast to her, and now he had to run along too.
A little further on, the parson's clerk saw his master running. "Sir! Where are you going so fast?" he called, and grabbed the parson's sleeve to stop him. Boing! Now the clerk was stuck too.
So Simpleton walked on, with his golden goose, and trailing behind him were three girls, a parson, and a clerk, all stuck together in a funny line.

They came to a city where the King lived. This King had a daughter, a Princess, who was so serious that she never, ever laughed. The King had declared that whoever could make his daughter laugh would marry her.
When the Princess, who was looking out her window, saw Simpleton with his golden goose and the long, wiggling, jiggling line of five people stuck behind it, all trying to keep up and looking very silly, she couldn't help it. First, a little smile touched her lips. Then a giggle escaped. And then, she burst into a great, hearty laugh!
Simpleton went straight to the King and said, "I made the Princess laugh! Now I get to marry her."
The King, however, wasn't too keen on having a "Simpleton" for a son-in-law. So he said, "Not so fast! First, you must find a man who can drink all the wine in my cellar."
Simpleton felt sad. How could he do that? But just then, the little gray man appeared! "Don't worry," he said. He led Simpleton to a man sitting by a well, looking terribly thirsty. This man went to the King's cellar and drank, and drank, and drank, until every single barrel was empty!
The King was surprised but set another task. "Now, you must find a man who can eat a whole mountain of bread!"
Again, the little gray man helped. He found a man who hadn't eaten for days. This man sat down and ate, and ate, and ate, until the entire mountain of bread was gone!
The King was very surprised but still not ready to agree. "One last task!" he declared. "You must bring me a ship that can sail on land as well as on water."
Simpleton thought this was impossible. But the little gray man smiled. "Because you were kind to me," he said, "I will help you." And soon, a magnificent ship appeared, one that glided over the ground as easily as it floated on the sea!
The King could make no more excuses. Simpleton, who wasn't so simple after all, married the laughing Princess. They had a grand wedding, and everyone, even the people who got stuck to the goose, was invited. Simpleton shared his good fortune, and they all lived happily ever after, always remembering that a kind heart can lead to wonderful things.

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