Hark, hark, cried he to his comrades, good heavens. I hear a drum. Jackli, who was behind him holding the spear, and into whose nose some smell had risen, said, something is most certainly going on, for I smell the powder and the match. At these words master schulz began to take to flight, and in a trice jumped over a hedge, but as he just happened to jump on to the teeth of a rake which had been left lying there after the hay-******, the handle of it struck against his face and gave him a tremendous blow. O dear. O dear, screamed master schulz. Take me prisoner, I surrender, I surrender. The other six all leapt over, one on the top of the other, crying, if you surrender, Isurrender too. If you surrender, I surrender too. At length, as no enemy was there to bind and take them away, they saw that they had been mistaken, and in order that the story might not be known, and they be treated as fools and ridiculed, they all swore to each other to hold their peace about it until one of them should speak of it by mistake.
Then they journeyed onwards. The second danger which they survived cannot be compared with the first. Some days afterwards, their path led them through a fallow-field where a hare was sitting sleeping in the sun. Her ears were standing straight up, and her great glassy eyes were wide open. All of them were alarmed at the sight of the horrible wild beast, and they consulted together as to what it would be the least dangerous to do. For if they were to run away, they knew that the monster would pursue and swallow them whole. So they said, we must go through a great and dangerous struggle. Boldly ventured, is half won, and all seven grasped the spear, master schulz in front, and veitli behind. Master schulz was always trying to keep the spear back, but veitli had become quite brave while behind, and wanted to dash forward and cried, strike home, in every swabian's name, or else I wish you may be lame.
But Hans knew how to meet this, and said, thunder and lightning, it's fine to prate, but for dragon-hunting you are always late.
Michal cried, nothing is missing, not even a hair, be sure the devil himself is there.
Then it was jergli's turn, and he said, if it be not he, it's at least his mother, or else the devil's own step-brother.
And now marli had a bright thought, and said to veitli, advance, veitli, advance, advance, and I behind will hold the lance.
Veitli, however, did not obey, and jackli said, tis schulz's place the first to be, no one deserves that honor but he.
Then master schulz plucked up his courage, and said, gravely, then let us boldly advance to the fight, thus we shall show our valor and might.
Hereupon they all together set on the dragon. Master schulz crossed himself and prayed for God's assistance, but as all this was of no avail, and he was getting nearer and nearer to the enemy, he screamed, oho, oho, ho, ho, ho, in the greatest anguish. This awakened the hare, which in great alarm darted swiftly away. When master schulz saw her thus flying from the field of battle, he cried in his joy, quick, veitli, quick, look there, look there, the monster's nothing but a hare.
But the swabian allies went in search of further adventures, and came to the moselle, a mossy, quiet, deep river, over which there are few bridges, and which in many places people have to cross in boats. As the seven swabians did not know this, they called to a man who was working on the opposite side of the river, to know how people contrived to get across. The distance and their way of speaking made the man unable to understand what they wanted, and he said, what, what, in the way people speak in the neighborhood of treves. Master schulz thought he was saying, wade, wade through the water, and as he was the first, began to set out and went into the moselle. It was not long before he sank in the mud and the deep waves which drove against him, but his hat was blown on the opposite shore by the wind, and a frog sat down beside it, and croaked, wat, wat, wat. The other six on the opposite side heard that, and said, oho, comrades, master schulz is calling us. If he can wade across, why cannot we.
So they all jumped into the water together in a great hurry, and were drowned, and thus one frog took the lives of all six of them, and not one of the swabian allies ever reached home again.
There were once three apprentices, who had agreed to keep always together while traveling, and always to work in the same town. At one time, however, their masters had no more work to give them, so that at last they were in rags, and had nothing to live on. Then one of them said, what shall we do. We cannot stay here any longer, we will travel once more, and if we do not find any work in the town we go to, we will arrange with the innkeeper there, that we are to write and tell him where we are staying, so that we can always have news of each other, and then we will separate. And that seemed best to the others also.
