Then a stone fell from the King’s heart, and he had it
proclaimed in every country that his son might return and be taken into
favour again. The princess, however, had a road made up to her palace which was quite
bright and golden, and told her people that whosoever came riding
straight along it to her, would be the right wooer and was to be
admitted, and whoever rode by the side of it, was not the right one,
and was not to be admitted. As the time was now close at hand, the
eldest thought he would hasten to go to the King’s daughter, and give
himself out as her deliverer, and thus win her for his bride, and the
kingdom to boot. Therefore he rode forth, and when he arrived in front
of the palace, and saw the splendid golden road, he thought, it would
be a sin and a shame if he were to ride over that, and turned aside,
and rode on the right side of it. But when he came to the door, the
servants told him that he was not the right man, and was to go away
again. Soon after this the second prince set out, and when he came to
the golden road, and his horse had put one foot on it, he thought, it
would be a sin and a shame to tread a piece of it off, and he turned
aside and rode on the left side of it, and when he reached the door,
the attendants told him he was not the right one, and he was to go away
again. When at last the year had entirely expired, the third son
likewise wished to ride out of the forest to his beloved, and with her
forget his sorrows. So he set out and thought of her so incessantly,
and wished to be with her so much, that he never noticed the golden
road at all. So his horse rode onwards up the middle of it, and when he
came to the door, it was opened and the princess received him with joy,
and said he was her deliverer, and lord of the kingdom, and their
wedding was celebrated with great rejoicing. When it was over she told
him that his father invited him to come to him, and had forgiven him. So he rode thither, and told him everything; how his brothers had
betrayed him, and how he had nevertheless kept silence. The old King
wished to punish them, but they had put to sea, and never came back as
long as they lived. 98 Doctor Knowall

There was once on a time a poor peasant called Crabb, who drove with
two oxen a load of wood to the town, and sold it to a doctor for two
thalers. When the money was being counted out to him, it so happened
that the doctor was sitting at table, and when the peasant saw how
daintily he ate and drank, his heart desired what he saw, and he would
willingly have been a doctor too. So he remained standing a while, and
at length inquired if he too could not be a doctor. “Oh, yes,” said the
doctor, “that is soon managed.” “What must I do?” asked the peasant. “In the first place buy thyself an A B C book of the kind which has a
cock on the frontispiece: in the second, turn thy cart and thy two oxen
into money, and get thyself some clothes, and whatsoever else pertains
to medicine; thirdly, have a sign painted for thyself with the words,
“I am Doctor Knowall,” and have that nailed up above thy house-door.”
The peasant did everything that he had been told to do. When he had
doctored people awhile, but not long, a rich and great lord had some
money stolen. Then he was told about Doctor Knowall who lived in such
and such a village, and must know what had become of the money. So the
lord had the horses put in his carriage, drove out to the village, and
asked Crabb if he were Doctor Knowall? Yes, he was, he said. Then he
was to go with him and bring back the stolen money. “Oh, yes, but
Grethe, my wife, must go too.” The lord was willing and let both of
them have a seat in the carriage, and they all drove away together. When they came to the nobleman’s castle, the table was spread, and
Crabb was told to sit down and eat. “Yes, but my wife, Grethe, too,”
said he, and he seated himself with her at the table. And when the
first servant came with a dish of delicate fare, the peasant nudged his
wife, and said, “Grethe, that was the first,” meaning that was the
servant who brought the first dish. The servant, however, thought he
intended by that to say, “That is the first thief,” and as he actually
was so, he was terrified, and said to his comrade outside, “The doctor
knows all: we shall fare ill, he said I was the first.” The second did
not want to go in at all, but was forced. So when he went in with his
dish, the peasant nudged his wife, and said, “Grethe, that is the
second.” This servant was just as much alarmed, and he got out. The
third did not fare better, for the peasant again said, “Grethe, that is
the third.” The fourth had to carry in a dish that was covered, and the
lord told the doctor that he was to show his skill, and guess what was
beneath the cover. The doctor looked at the dish, had no idea what to
say, and cried, “Ah, poor Crabb.” When the lord heard that, he cried,
“There! he knows it, he knows who has the money!”

On this the servants looked terribly uneasy, and made a sign to the
doctor that they wished him to step outside for a moment. When
therefore he went out, all four of them confessed to him that they had
stolen the money, and said that they would willingly restore it and
give him a heavy sum into the bargain, if he would not denounce them,
for if he did they would be hanged. They led him to the spot where the
money was concealed. With this the doctor was satisfied, and returned
to the hall, sat down to the table, and said, “My lord, now will I
search in my book where the gold is hidden.” The fifth servant,
however, crept into the stove to hear if the doctor knew still more. The Doctor, however, sat still and opened his A B C book, turned the
pages backwards and forwards, and looked for the cock. As he could not
find it immediately he said, “I know you are there, so you had better
show yourself.” Then the fellow in the stove thought that the doctor
meant him, and full of terror, sprang out, crying, “That man knows
everything!” Then Dr. Knowall showed the count where the money was, but
did not say who had stolen it, and received from both sides much money
in reward, and became a renowned man. 99 The Spirit in the Bottle

There was once a poor woodcutter who toiled from early morning till
late night. When at last he had laid by some money he said to his boy,
“You are my only child, I will spend the money which I have earned with
the sweat of my brow on your education; if you learn some honest trade
you can support me in my old age, when my limbs have grown stiff and I
am obliged to stay at home.” Then the boy went to a High School and
learned diligently so that his masters praised him, and he remained
there a long time. When he had worked through two classes, but was
still not yet perfect in everything, the little pittance which the
father had earned was all spent, and the boy was obliged to return home
to him.