He asked Saint Peter what had
become of the stool, but he did not know. Then he asked if he had let
anyone come in. “I know of no one who has been here,” answered Peter,
“but a lame tailor, who is still sitting behind the door.” Then the
Lord had the tailor brought before him, and asked him if he had taken
away the stool, and where he had put it? “Oh, Lord,” answered the
tailor joyously, “I threw it in my anger down to earth at an old woman
whom I saw stealing two veils at the washing.” “Oh, thou knave,” said
the Lord, “were I to judge as thou judgest, how dost thou think thou
couldst have escaped so long? I should long ago have had no chairs,
benches, seats, nay, not even an oven-fork, but should have thrown
everything down at the sinners. Henceforth thou canst stay no longer in
heaven, but must go outside the door again. Then go where thou wilt. No
one shall give punishment here, but I alone, the Lord.”

Peter was obliged to take the tailor out of heaven again, and as he had
torn shoes, and feet covered with blisters, he took a stick in his
hand, and went to “Wait-a-bit,” where the good soldiers sit and make
merry. 36 The Wishing-Table, the Gold-Ass, and the Cudgel in the Sack

There was once upon a time a tailor who had three sons, and only one
goat. But as the goat supported the whole of them with her milk, she
was obliged to have good food, and to be taken every day to pasture. The sons, therefore, did this, in turn. Once the eldest took her to the
churchyard, where the finest herbs were to be found, and let her eat
and run about there. At night when it was time to go home he asked,
“Goat, hast thou had enough?” The goat answered,

“I have eaten so much,
Not a leaf more I’ll touch, meh! meh!”


“Come home, then,” said the youth, and took hold of the cord round her
neck, led her into the stable and tied her up securely. “Well,” said
the old tailor, “has the goat had as much food as she ought?” “Oh,”
answered the son, “she has eaten so much, not a leaf more she’ll
touch.” But the father wished to satisfy himself, and went down to the
stable, stroked the dear animal and asked, “Goat, art thou satisfied?”
The goat answered,

“Wherewithal should I be satisfied? Among the graves I leapt about,
And found no food, so went without, meh! meh!”


“What do I hear?” cried the tailor, and ran upstairs and said to the
youth, “Hollo, thou liar: thou saidest the goat had had enough, and
hast let her hunger!” and in his anger he took the yard-measure from
the wall, and drove him out with blows. Next day it was the turn of the second son, who looked out for a place
in the fence of the garden, where nothing but good herbs grew, and the
goat cleared them all off. At night when he wanted to go home, he
asked, “Goat, art thou satisfied?” The goat answered,

“I have eaten so much,
Not a leaf more I’ll touch, meh! meh!”


“Come home, then,” said the youth, and led her home, and tied her up in
the stable. “Well,” said the old tailor, “has the goat had as much food
as she ought?” “Oh,” answered the son, “she has eaten so much, not a
leaf more she’ll touch.” The tailor would not rely on this, but went
down to the stable and said, “Goat, hast thou had enough?” The goat
answered,

“Wherewithal should I be satisfied? Among the graves I leapt about,
And found no food, so went without, meh! meh!”


“The godless wretch!” cried the tailor, “to let such a good animal
hunger,” and he ran up and drove the youth out of doors with the
yard-measure. Now came the turn of the third son, who wanted to do the thing well,
and sought out some bushes with the finest leaves, and let the goat
devour them. In the evening when he wanted to go home, he asked, “Goat,
hast thou had enough?” The goat answered,

“I have eaten so much,
Not a leaf more I’ll touch, meh! meh!”


“Come home, then,” said the youth, and led her into the stable, and
tied her up. “Well,” said the old tailor, “has the goat had a proper
amount of food?” “She has eaten so much, not a leaf more she’ll touch.”
The tailor did not trust to that, but went down and asked, “Goat, hast
thou had enough?” The wicked beast answered,

“Wherewithal should I be satisfied? Among the graves I leapt about,
And found no leaves, so went without, meh! meh!”


“Oh, the brood of liars!” cried the tailor, “each as wicked and
forgetful of his duty as the other! Ye shall no longer make a fool of
me,” and quite beside himself with anger, he ran upstairs and belabored
the poor young fellow so vigorously with the yard-measure that he
sprang out of the house. The old tailor was now alone with his goat. Next morning he went down
into the stable, caressed the goat and said, “Come, my dear little
animal, I will take thee to feed myself.” He took her by the rope and
conducted her to green hedges, and amongst milfoil, and whatever else
goats like to eat. “There thou mayest for once eat to thy heart’s
content,” said he to her, and let her browse till evening. Then he
asked, “Goat, art thou satisfied?” She replied,

“I have eaten so much,
Not a leaf more I’ll touch, meh! meh!”


“Come home, then,” said the tailor, and led her into the stable, and
tied her fast. When he was going away, he turned round again and said,
“Well, art thou satisfied for once?” But the goat did not behave the
better to him, and cried,

“Wherewithal should I be satisfied? Among the graves I leapt about,
And found no leaves, so went without, meh! meh!”


When the tailor heard that, he was shocked, and saw clearly that he had
driven away his three sons without cause. “Wait, thou ungrateful
creature,” cried he, “it is not enough to drive thee forth, I will mark
thee so that thou wilt no more dare to show thyself amongst honest
tailors.” In great haste he ran upstairs, fetched his razor, lathered
the goat’s head, and shaved her as clean as the palm of his hand. And
as the yard-measure would have been too good for her, he brought the
horsewhip, and gave her such cuts with it that she ran away in violent
haste. When the tailor was thus left quite alone in his house he fell into
great grief, and would gladly have had his sons back again, but no one
knew whither they were gone. The eldest had apprenticed himself to a
joiner, and learnt industriously and indefatigably, and when the time
came for him to go travelling, his master presented him with a little
table which had no particular appearance, and was made of common wood,
but it had one good property; if anyone set it out, and said, “Little
table, spread thyself,” the good little table was at once covered with
a clean little cloth, and a plate was there, and a knife and fork
beside it, and dishes with boiled meats and roasted meats, as many as
there was room for, and a great glass of red wine shone so that it made
the heart glad. The young journeyman thought, “With this thou hast
enough for thy whole life,” and went joyously about the world and never
troubled himself at all whether an inn was good or bad, or if anything
was to be found in it or not.