[Illustration: 9070]
HE landlord of the inn had three fair daughters, all as curious as
their mother Eve. All night long they turned and tossed in their beds,
thinking about the golden goose and longing to see it.
As soon as the first cock crew, up gets the oldest daughter.
‘It is so hot I really can’t sleep,’ said she, and went on tip-toe to
the stable, as quiet as pussy, for fear of waking Johnny.
In the moonlight the golden goose was shining like a star.
‘I’ll take one of the pretty feathers,’ said the girl, and put out her
hand to touch it But she could not pluck the feather and she could not
pull her hand away!
When the second cock crew, up got the second daughter.
‘It is far too hot to sleep,’ said she, and she ran downstairs to her
sister. But as soon as she had touched her _she_ could not move a step
from the place!
[Illustration: 0072]
Then the third cock crew, and up got the youngest daughter, and ran to
the stable after her sisters.
‘Take care! don’t come here!’ they cried, but she did not understand,
and she thought--
‘Why, if they are there, I can go too!’
But as soon as she touched her sisters, there she was, as fast as could
be to the golden goose!
A quarter of an hour later Johnny wakened, and stretched himself, and
shook some of the straw out of his hair, and then took his goose under
his arm, and off he went, never noticing the girls, whom he had _not_
left behind him.
[Illustration: 0074]
They tried to stop him, but Johnny thought they wanted to rob him of his
goose, and he ran, and they ran, and they all ran as fast as their legs
would carry them.
When they were out of the village, the girls were also out of breath,
and they entreated Johnny to stop. So he said he would stop if they
would show him the right road, and the sun was up by the time they
reached the next village.
[Illustration: 0076]