|
Page 1 of 9
Once upon a time there lived an old man who had only one son,
whom he loved dearly; but they were very poor, and often had
scarcely enough to eat. Then the old man fell ill, and things grew
worse than ever, so he called his son and said to him:
'My dear boy, I have no longer any food to give you, and you must
go into the world and get it for yourself. It does not matter what
work you do, but remember if you do it well and are faithful to
your master, you will always have your reward.'
So Peter put a piece of black bread in his knapsack, and strapping it
on his back, took a stout stick in his hand, and set out to seek his
fortune. For a long while he travelled on and on, and nobody
seemed to want him; but one day he met an old man, and being a
polite youth, he took off his hat and said: 'Good morning,' in a
pleasant voice. 'Good morning,' answered the old man; 'and where
are you going?'
'I am wandering through the country trying to get work,' replied
Peter.
'Then stay with me, for I can give you plenty,' said the old man, and
Peter stayed.
His work did not seem hard, for he had only two horses and a cow
to see after, and though he had been hired for a year, the year
consisted of but three days, so that it was not long before he
received his wages. In payment the old man gave him a nut, and
offered to keep him for another year; but Peter was home-sick; and,
besides, he would rather have been paid ever so small a piece of
money than a nut; for, thought he, nuts grow on every tree, and I
can gather as many as I like. However, he did not say this to the
old man, who had been kind to him, but just bade him farewell.
The nearer Peter drew to his father's house the more ashamed he
felt at having brought back such poor wages. What could one nut
do for him? Why, it would not buy even a slice of bacon. It was no
use taking it home, he might as well eat it. So he sat down on a
|
Fairytales 
