there was once on a time a man who was called frederick and a woman called catherine, who had married each other and lived together as young married folks. one day frederick said, "i will now go and plough, catherine; when i come back, there must be some roast meat on the table for hunger, and a fresh draught1 for thirst." "just go, frederick," answered kate, "just go, i will have all ready for you."
therefore when dinner-time drew near she got a sausage out of the chimney, put it in the frying-pan, put some butter to it, and set it on the fire. the sausage began to fry and to hiss2, catherine stood beside it and held the handle of the pan, and had her own thoughts as she was doing it. then it occurred to her, "while the sausage is getting done thou couldst go into the cellar and draw beer." so she set the frying-pan safely on the fire, took a can, and went down into the cellar to draw beer.
the beer ran into the can and kate watched it, and then she thought, "oh, dear! the dog upstairs is not fastened up, it might get the sausage out of the pan. well thought of." and in a trice she was up the cellar-steps again, but the spitz had the sausage in its mouth already, and trailed it away on the ground. but catherine, who was not idle, set out after it, and chased it a long way into the field; the dog, how*r, was swifter than catherine and did not let the sausage journey easily, but skipped over the furrows3 with it. "what's gone is gone!" said kate, and turned round, and as she had run till she was weary, she walked quietly and comfortably, and cooled herself.
during this time the beer was still running out of the cask, for kate had not turned the tap. and when the can was full and there was no other place for it, it ran into the cellar and did not stop until the whole cask was empty. as soon as kate was on the steps she saw the mischance. "good gracious!" she cried. "what shall i do now to stop frederick knowing it!" she thought for a while, and at last she remembered that up in the garret was still standing4 a sack of the finest wheat flour from the last fair, and she would fetch that down and strew5 it over the beer. "yes," said she, "he who saves a thing when he ought, has it afterwards when he needs it," and she climbed up to the garret and carried the sack below, and threw it straight down on the can of beer, which she knocked over, and frederick's draught swam also in the cellar.
"it is all right," said kate, "where the one is the other ought to be also," and she strewed6 the meal over the whole cellar. when it was done she was heartily7 delighted with her work, and said, "how clean and wholesome8 it does look here!" at mid-day home came frederick: "now, wife, what have you ready for me?" "ah, freddy," she answered, "i was frying a sausage for you, but whilst i was drawing the beer to drink with it, the dog took it away out of the pan, and whilst i was running after the dog, all the beer ran out, and whilst i was drying up the beer with the flour, i knocked over the can as well, but be easy, the cellar is quite dry again." said frederick, "kate, kate, you should not have done that! to let the sausage be carried off and the beer run out of the cask, and throw out all our flour into the bargain!" "indeed, frederick, i did not know that, you should have told me."
the man thought, "if my wife is like this, i must look after things *." now he had got together a good number of thalers which he changed into gold, and said to catherine, "look, these are counters for playing *s; i will put them in a pot and bury them in the stable under the cow's manger, but mind you keep away from them, or it will be the worse for you." said she, "oh, no, frederick, i certainly will not go."
and when frederick was gone some pedlars came into the village who had cheap earthen-bowls and pots, and asked the young woman if there was nothing she wanted to bargain with them for? "oh, dear people," said catherine, "i have no money and can buy nothing, but if you have any use for yellow counters i will buy of you." "yellow counters, why not? but just let us see them." "then go into the stable and dig under the cow's manger, and you will find the yellow counters. i am not allowed to go there." the rogues9 went thither10, dug and found pure gold. then they laid hold of it, ran away, and left their pots and bowls behind in the house. catherine though she must use her new things, and as she had no lack in the kitchen already without these, she knocked the bottom out of *ry pot, and set them all as ornaments11 on the paling which went round about the house.
when frederick came and saw the new decorations, he said, "catherine, what have you been about?" "i have bought them, frederick, for the counters which were under the cow's manger. i did not go there myself, the pedlars had to dig them out for themselves." "ah, wife," said frederick, "what have you done? those were not counters, but pure gold, and all our wealth; you should not have done that." "indeed, frederick," said she, "i did not know that, you should have forewarned me."