'That's a clever trick!' said her Master, regretting his fine fowls. 'If he had only left me one so that I had something to eat.' He called out to him to stop, but the guest pretended not to hear. Then he ran after him, still holding the carving-knife, and cried, 'Only one, only one!'--meaning that the guest should leave him one fowl; but the guest only thought that he meant he was to give him one ear, and he ran as if he was pursued by fire, and so took both his ears safely home. The King of the Golden Mountain There was once a Merchant who had two children, a boy and a girl. They were both small, and not old enough to run about. He had also two richly-laden ships at sea, and just as he was expecting to make a great deal of money by the merchandise, news came that they had both been lost. So now instead of being a rich man he was quite poor, and had nothing left but one field near the town. To turn his thoughts from his misfortune, he went out into this field, and as he was walking up and down a little black Mannikin suddenly appeared before him, and asked why he was so sad. The Merchant said, 'I would tell you at once, if you could help me.' 'Who knows,' answered the little Mannikin. 'Perhaps I could help you.' Then the Merchant told him that all his wealth had been lost in a wreck, and that now he had nothing left but this field. 'Don't worry yourself,' said the Mannikin. 'If you will promise to bring me in twelve years' time the first thing which rubs against your legs when you go home, you shall have as much gold as you want.' The Merchant thought, 'What could it be but my dog?' He never thought of his boy, but said Yes, and gave the Mannikin his bond signed and sealed, and went home. When he reached the house his little son, delighted to hold on to the benches and totter towards his father, seized him by the leg to steady himself. The Merchant was horror-stricken, for his vow came into his head, and now he knew what he had promised to give away. But as he still found no gold in his chests, he thought it must only have been a joke of the Mannikin's. A month later he went up into the loft to gather together some old tin to sell it, and there he found a great heap of gold on the floor. So he was soon up in the world again, bought and sold, became a richer merchant than ever, and was altogether contented. In the meantime the boy had grown up, and he was both clever and wise. But the nearer the end of the twelve years came, the more sorrowful the Merchant grew; you could even see his misery in his face. One day his son asked him what was the matter, but his father would not tell him. The boy, however, persisted so long that at last he told him that, without knowing what he was doing, he had promised to give him up at the end of twelve years to a little black Mannikin, in return for a quantity of gold. He had given his hand and seal on it, and the time was now near for him to go.