ether-world. The
countryman heard all this and still pretended to sleep. When his
companions aroused him he asked in amazement: "Who are those calling
me?" They answered: "We are your companions." "What," said he, "have you
got back already?" "Where have we been to in order to return?" The
countryman replied: "It seemed to me that two angels led one of you to
heaven, and afterwards two others conducted the other to hell. From this
I imagined that neither of you would return, so I got up and ate the
bread."[16]

The same story is told in Pitre (No. 173) of a monk who was an itinerant
preacher, and who was accompanied on his journey by a very cunning lay
brother. One day the monk received a present of some fish which he
wished to eat himself alone, and therefore proposed to the brother that
the one of them who dreamed the best dream should have all the fish. The
dreams and the conclusion are the same as in the original.[17]

The next story is well known from the use made of it by Cervantes in Don
Quixote (Part I., chap. xx.) where Sancho relates it to beguile the
hours of the memorable night when the noise of the fulling-mill so
terrified the doughty knight and his squire. The version in the
_Disciplina Clericalis_ is as follows: A certain king had a story-teller
who told him five stories every night. It happened once that the king,
oppressed by cares of state, was unable to sleep, and asked for more
than the usual number of stories. The story-teller related three short
ones. The king wished for more still, and when the story-teller
demurred, said: "You have told me several very short ones. I want
something long, and then you may go to sleep." The story-teller yielded,
and began thus: "Once upon a time there was a certain countryman who
went to market and bought two thousand sheep. On his way home a great
inundation took place, so that he was unable to cross a certain river by
the ford or bridge. After anxiously seeking some means of getting across
with his flock, he found at length a little boat in which he could
convey two sheep over." After the story-teller had got thus far he went
to sleep. The king roused him and ordered him to finish the story he
had begun. The story-teller answered: "The flood is great, the boat
small, and the flock innumerable; let the aforesaid countryman get his
sheep over, and I will finish the story I have begun."[18]

The version in Pitre (No. 138) lacks all connection and is poor, but we