“What brings you under our roof?” said the Captain. “Answer me now before we skin you as we would skin an eel.” “Speak up and answer the Captain,” said the robbers. “Why shouldn’t I be under this roof?” said Gilly. “I am the Master-Thief of the World.” The robbers put their hands on their knees and laughed at that. Gilly jumped out of the bed. “I have come to show you the arts of thievery and roguery,” said he. “I’ll show you some tricks that will let you hold up your heads amongst the thieves and robbers of the world.” He looked so bold and he spoke so bold that the robbers began to think he might have some reason for talking as he did. They left him and went off to their beds. Gilly slept again. At the broad noon they were all sitting at breakfast--Gilly and the six robbers. A farmer went past leading a goat to the fair. “Could any of you steal that goat without doing any violence to the man who is driving it?” said Gilly. “I couldn’t,” said one robber, and “I couldn’t,” said another robber, and “I’d be hardly able to do that myself,” said the Captain of the Robbers. “I can do it,” said Gilly. “I’ll be back with the goat before you are through with your breakfast.” He went outside. Gilly knew that country well and he ran through the wood until he was a bend of the road ahead of the farmer who was leading his goat to the fair. He took off one shoe and left it in the middle of the road. He ran on then until he was round another bend of the road. He took off the other shoe and left it down. Then he hid behind the hedge and waited. The farmer came to where the first shoe was. “That’s not a bad shoe,” said he, “and if there was a comrade for it, it would be worth picking up.” He went on then and came to where the other shoe was lying. “Here is the comrade,” said he, “and it’s worth my while now to go back for the first.” He tied the goat to the mile-stone and went back. As soon as the farmer had turned his back, Gilly took the collar off the goat, left it on the milestone and took the goat through a gap in the hedge. He brought it to the house before the robbers were through with their breakfast. They were all terribly surprised. The Captain began to bite at his nails. The farmer, with the two shoes under his arm, came to where he had left the goat. The goat was gone and its collar was left on the milestone. He knew that a robber had taken his goat. “And I had promised Ann, my wife, to buy her a new shawl at the fair,” said he. “She’ll never stop scolding me if I go back to her now with one hand as long as the other. The best thing I can do is to take a sheep out of my field and sell that. Then when she is in good humor on account of getting the shawl I’ll tell her about the loss of my goat.” So the farmer went back to the field.