e and you will furnish the
flour." "Very good," said the gosling, "bring them then." The wolf, well
satisfied, saluted the gosling and went away. The next day the gosling
got up early and went and bought the meal and then returned home and
shut the house. A little later the wolf came and knocked at the door and
said: "Come, gosling, open the door, for I have brought you the butter
and cheese!" "Very well, give it to me here by the balcony." "No indeed,
open the door!" "I will open when all is ready." Then the wolf gave her
the things by the balcony and went away. While he was gone the gosling
prepared the macaroni, and put it on the fire to cook in a kettle full
of water. When it was two o'clock the wolf came and said: "Come,
gosling, open the door." "No, I will not open, for when I am busy I
don't want any one in the way; when it is cooked, I will open and you
may come in and eat it." A little while after, the gosling said to the
wolf: "Would you like to try a bit of macaroni to see whether it is well
cooked?" "Open the door! that is the better way." "No, no; don't think
you are coming in; put your mouth to the hole in the shelf and I will
pour the macaroni down." The wolf, all greedy as he was, put his mouth
to the hole and then the gosling took the kettle of boiling water and
poured the boiling water instead of the macaroni through the hole into
the wolf's mouth; and the wolf was scalded and killed. Then the gosling
took a knife and cut open the wolf's stomach, and out jumped the other
goslings, who were still alive, for the wolf was so greedy that he had
swallowed them whole. Then these goslings begged their sister's pardon
for the mean way in which they had treated her, and she, because she was
kind-hearted, forgave them and took them into her house, and there they
ate their macaroni and lived together happy and contented.[20]

* * * * *

A curious variant of the above story is found in the same collection (p.
69) under the title:

LXXXVII. THE COCK.

Once upon a time there was a cock, and this cock flew here and flew
there, and flew on an arbor, and there he found a letter. He opened the
letter and saw: "Cock, steward,"----and that he was invited to Rome by
the Pope.

The cock started on his journey, and after a time met the hen: "Where
are you going, Friend Cock?" said the hen. "I flew," said he, "upon an
arbor and found a letter, and this letter said that I was invited to
R