Then he kissed her and caressed her, and his kisses seemed colder
than ever before. When the time came for him to depart, he asked her
to give him twenty florins. This was all that she had, but she gave
him seventeen.
The next day she could not control her curiosity, and walked out along
by the dike. But she found nothing, except at one place a mark on the
grass about the size of a man's coffin; and the grass was wet underfoot
and red with blood. But that evening rain fell, washing the blood away.
On the following Wednesday Katheline heard yet again the cry of the
sea-eagle in the yard.
XLVII
Now whenever any money was needed to pay for the expenses of
Katheline's household, Ulenspiegel was accustomed to go by night
to the hole by the well wherein had been hidden the money left by
Claes. He would lift up the stone that covered the top of the well
and would take out a carolus.
One evening the two women were busy with their spinning, while
Ulenspiegel sat carving a chest which had been commissioned from him
by the town bailiff. And upon the side of the chest he was carving
a hunting scene. Very beautiful it was and cleverly carved, with
a pack of hounds running in pairs closely following one another,
chasing their quarry.
Katheline was there, and Nele asked Soetkin absent-mindedly if she
had found a safe hiding-place for her treasure. Thinking no harm,
the widow answered that it would be hard to find a safer place than
the side of the well wall.
Near midnight of the following Thursday Soetkin was awakened by Bibulus
Schnouffius, who was barking fiercely. But soon he was quiet again,
and Soetkin, thinking that it was a false alarm, turned over and went
to sleep.
The next day when Nele and Ulenspiegel rose at dawn they were surprised
to find no Katheline in the kitchen, neither was the fire lit, nor was
there any milk boiling on the fire as usual. They were surprised at
this and went out to see if perchance she was in the yard. And there
they found her, all dishevelled in her linen shift, notwithstanding
that it was drizzling with rain, and she was all damp and shivering,
and stood there, not daring to come in.
Ulenspiegel went up to her and asked her what she was doing half
naked there in the rain?
"Ah!" she said. "Yes, yes. Strange things have happened! Strange,
wonderful things!"
And as she spoke she pointed to the ground, and they saw the dog
lying there with its throat cut, all dead and stiff.
Ulenspiegel's thoughts ran at once to the treasure. He hastened to
the hole by the well, and found as he had feared that it was empty,
and all around the earth scattered about far and wide.
He ran back to Katheline and struck her with his hand.
"Where are the caroluses?" he cried.
"Yes! Yes! Strange things have been happening!" she answered.
At this Nele tried to protect her mother from the wrath of Ulenspiegel.
"Have mercy, have pity," she cried. "O Ulenspiegel!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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