ty on such a poor creature as I am, and reviving my
body, which was stiff with cold and hunger. I will give you such a
princely reward for your good deed that you shall not forget me as long
as you live. Behind the stove you will find some pitch-torches, light
one and come with me. But first make the door securely fast, that the
furious cat may not get in to break your neck. We will afterwards make
it so tame that it cannot hurt anybody again."

As he spoke, the old man raised a square trap-door about three feet
broad from the floor, and it was plain that the stone covered the
entrance to a cellar. The old man went down the steps first, and the
barn-keeper followed him with the torch till they reached a terribly
deep cavern.

In this great cellar-like arched cavern lay an enormous heap of money,
as big as the largest haycock, half silver and half gold. The little old
man took from a cupboard in the wall a handful of wax-candles, three
bottles of wine, a smoked ham, and a loaf of bread. Then he said to the
barn-keeper, "I give you three days' time to count and sort this heap.
You must divide the heap into two equal parts, exactly alike, and so
that nothing remains over. While you are busy with this, I will lie down
by the wall to sleep, but take care not to make the least mistake or
I'll strangle you."

The barn-keeper at once set to work, and the old man lay down. In order
to guard against any mistake, the barn-keeper always took two similar
coins to divide, whether thalers or roubles, gold or silver, and he laid
one on his right, and the other on his left, to form two heaps. When he
found his strength failing, he took a pull at one of the bottles, ate
some bread and meat, and then set to work with renewed strength. As he
only allowed himself a short sleep at night, in order to get on with his
work, he had already finished the sorting on the evening of the second
day, but one small piece of silver remained over. What was to be done?
This did not trouble the bold barn-keeper; he drew his knife from his
pocket, laid the blade on the middle of the coin, and struck the back of
the knife so hard with a stone that the coin was split in two halves.
One half he laid to the right heap, and the other to the left, after
which he roused up the old man, and asked him to inspect the work. When
the old man saw the two halves of the last coin lying on the heap to the
right and left, he uttered a cry of joy, and fell on the neck of th