A discharged soldier was going home. He had only threepence in his
pocket. As he was going through a forest he met a beggar. The beggar
asked him for a penny. The soldier gave him one, and went on his
way. Then he met another beggar. This beggar was very ill, and he asked
the soldier for a penny. So the soldier gave him the other penny. Then
he met a third beggar. This beggar was half-dead. The soldier took
pity on him and gave him the third penny. Soon after he had left the
forest our Lord appeared to him, and in return for those three pennies
He granted him three boons. For the first boon the soldier chose a
pipe that should be full of tobacco whenever he wished, so that he
might always have a smoke handy. The second boon he asked was that,
if he wanted to put any one in his knapsack, they should be in it as
soon as he said: "Leap into that knapsack." The third boon was that
his purse should be full of gold coins whenever he knocked on it.