3. The Goose Who Laid Golden Eggs

    Once upon a time a poor peasant was seated at the door of his hut, wondering where he should get food in the coming winter.  He had no money to buy it with, and he was growing too old to work.  As he sat there, a stranger appeared before him, carrying a beautiful white goose.

    "Take care of my goose," said the stranger, "and my goose will take care of you!"

    He set the goose down on the ground, and vanished as suddenly as he had appeared.  Then the peasant knew that he was a fairy in disguise, and that the goose was an enchanted goose.  So he took the great white bird into his cottage and gave her water to drink and his last handful of oatmeal to eat.  When the goose had finished her supper, the peasant made her a nest to sleep in, out of warm sweet hay.

    He went to bed, himself, and slept soundly.  In the morning he was wakened by a triumphant cackling from the goose.  Going to the nest, he looked inside.  And what do you think he saw there? Nothing more nor less than a beautiful golden egg!

    How surprised and overjoyed the peasant was, to be sure.  He hurried off to the nearest town, and sold his golden egg for a great many pieces of money.

    The next morning the same thing happened, and the next, and the next.  The peasant was soon able to buy new chairs, and a table, and warm clothes.  He made a special corner for the goose, who strolled contentedly about under the rose-trees on the lawn, and laid a golden egg to shine in her nest as regularly as the sun rose to shine in the sky.

    But, sad to tell, his riches began to turn the peasant's head.  He grew hard and greedy, and wanted more and more eggs.  He began to wonder how many more the goose had inside her, and to think he would like to have all the eggs at once, instead of only getting seven a week.  So the unkind, cruel fellow, one sad day, killed the goose that laid the golden eggs!

    And, when he opened her white body, there was not a single egg to be seen!

    He stared, with horror- stricken eyes, at the poor dead goose, and then he started to do his best to bring her to life again.  But it was no good.  While he was trying, all at once the stranger appeared again at his side.

    "I told you to take care of my goose, and my goose would take care of you!" he said reproachfully.

    Then he picked up the dead goose and carried her away, and , as he was a fairy, no doubt he knew how to bring her to life again.  But the greedy, cruel peasant began to grow poor as quickly as he had grown rich, for never again was he able to go to the goose's nest and gather up her beautiful golden eggs.