est rank were able to induce the duke to let their
cooks take lessons from Nosey, and this brought the dwarf in quite a
sum of money, as each pupil had to pay half a ducat daily. And in order
to keep the good will of the other cooks, and prevent them from
becoming jealous, Nosey distributed this money among them.

Thus lived Nosey, in exceptional comfort and honor, for nearly two
years; and only when he thought of his parents did he feel sorrowful.
One day, however, a curious incident occurred.

Nosey was especially fortunate in his purchases. For this reason he was
in the habit of going to market himself for fowls and fruits, whenever
his duties would permit. One morning he went to the goose-market to
look for some heavy fat geese, such as his master loved. His form, far
from arousing jokes and laughter, commanded respect, for he was known
to be the famous chief cook of the duke, and every woman who had geese
to sell was happy if he turned his nose towards her. At the further end
of a row of stalls, he saw a woman sitting in a corner, who had also
geese to sell, but, unlike the other market-women, she did not cry her
wares or attempt to attract buyers. To her he went and weighed her
geese. They were just what he wanted, and he bought three, together
with the cage, shouldered his burden, and started on his way home. It
occurred to him as a very strange thing that only two of these geese
cackled, as genuine geese are accustomed to do, while the third one sat
quite still and reserved, occasionally sighing and sneezing like a
human being. "It must be half-sick," said he, as he went along. "I must
hurry back so as to kill and dress it." But, to his astonishment, the
goose replied, quite plainly:

"If you stick me,
I will bite ye;
If my neck you do not save,
You will fill an early grave."

Terribly frightened. Nosey sat the cage down, and the goose looked at
him with beautiful intelligent eyes, and sighed. "Good gracious!"
exclaimed the dwarf. "Can you speak. Miss Goose? I would not have
thought it! Well, now, don't be anxious; one knows how to live without
having any designs on such a rare bird. But I would be willing to bet
that you have not always had these feathers. I was myself once a
contemptible little squirrel."

"You are right," replied the goose, "in saying that I was not born with
this ignominious form. Alas! it was never sung to me in my