The lad who went to the north wind

So, when the Lad woke, he took his cloth and went off with it, and that day he got home to his mother.

“Now,” said he, “I’ve been to the North Wind’s house, and a good fellow he is, for he gave me this cloth, and when I only say to it, ‘Cloth, spread yourself, and serve up all kinds of good dishes,’ I get any sort of food I please.”

“All very true, I daresay,” said his mother; “but seeing is believing, and I shan’t believe it till I see it.”

So the Lad made haste, drew out a table, laid the cloth on it, and said:

“Cloth, spread yourself, and serve up all kinds of good dishes.”

But never a bit of dry bread did the cloth serve up.

“Well,” said the Lad “there’s no help for it but to go to the North Wind again;” and away he went.

So he came to where the North Wind lived late in the afternoon.

“Good evening!” said the Lad.

“Good evening!” said the North Wind.

“I want my rights for that meal of ours which you took,” said the Lad; “for, as for that cloth I got, it isn’t worth a penny.”

“I’ve got no meal,” said the North Wind; “but yonder you have a ram which coins nothing but golden ducats as soon as you say to it: ‘Ram, ram! make money!’”

So the Lad thought this a fine thing; but as it was too far to get home that day, he turned in for the night to the same inn where he had slept before.

Before he called for anything, he tried the truth of what the North Wind had said of the ram, and found it all right; but, when the landlord saw that, he thought it was a famous ram, and, when the Lad had fallen asleep, he took another which couldn’t coin gold ducats, and changed the two.

Next morning off went the Lad; and when he got home to his mother, he said:

“After all, the North Wind is a jolly fellow; for now he has given me a ram which can coin golden ducats if I only say: ‘Ram, ram! make money!’”

“All very true, I daresay,” said his mother; “but I shan’t believe any such stuff until I see the ducats made.”

“Ram, ram! make money!” said the Lad; but if the ram made anything, it wasn’t money.