In which we find the strange adventure of the simple son.

Dummling was so simple that nobody thought he had much sense. His mother thought otherwise, however, and we shall see that she was right and everybody was wrong.

One day Dummling said to his father, “Let me go into the forest and cut some wood.” His father agreed to this and gave him an ax. Dummling went into the forest and sat down to eat his lunch. He had just spread his basket when a little old man appeared and said, “Give me something to eat, I am very hungry.”

Dummling divided his bread and sour beer with the little old man and they talked very merrily for a long time. Then the old man said, “Cut down the tree we are under and you will find something to your advantage.” So Dummling cut down the tree and when it fell to the ground he saw a goose with gold feathers lying at the roots. He quickly picked up the goose and went to the inn to spend the night.

The next morning one of the landlord’s daughters saw Dummling with the goose under his arm and tried to steal one of the gold feathers. But as soon as she touched the goose she stuck hard and fast. No matter how hard she tried she could not get loose.

Pretty soon another daughter came in and seeing her sister stuck to the goose she tried to pull her away by the shoulder. But as soon as she touched her sister she also stuck hard and fast. Then the third sister came in and seeing the two stuck to the goose she ran up and tried to pull her sister away by the dress, but she also stuck hard and fast. There they were, one right behind the other, and Dummling, paying no attention, marched out of the inn with the goose under his arm and the three girls behind him.

In the fields a parson met them. “You silly girls to follow that man! Come here at once,” he cried and caught hold of the last sister, but he stuck, and the four moved on. Presently, came the clerk of the town and called out, “Parson, Parson, you are needed here to marry a couple,” and tried to pull the parson by the sleeve, and then the clerk stuck fast, and all five moved on behind Dummling.

Before long two laborers saw the strange procession and said, “We must find out about this,” and caught hold of the clerk, and then they stuck tight and all of them moved into the next town where the king lived with his daughter.

The daughter was sick and sad and had not smiled or laughed for a year, but when she saw Dummling and the crowd following him she began to laugh. She laughed so loud that the goose cackled and a feather came out. Then everybody pulled loose from one another and they ran down the road as fast as they could.

But Dummling went to live with the king and whenever the king needed money, the goose cackled and dropped a gold feather, but another one soon grew in its place.