Once upon a time there was an enormously rich young merchant who had nine hundred and ninety-nine ships sailing on the seas. They carried cargoes to foreign lands and came back loaded with other goods, bringing wealth to the owner. To round up the number of his vessels he had one more ship built.

When the new ship was leaving the slipway, the merchant who was always present at the launching of his ships was caught by a lever and his trousers were badly rent. Torn trousers on a rich man are noticed more easily than on a poor man. To escape the embarrassment he wanted to have his trousers mended at once. On inquiry he was directed to a tailor's shop in a side-street near the harbour.

The spectacled tailor examined the tear, asked his apprentice to take the trousers and gave the merchant a long coat to cover him while his trousers were being repaired. Then he asked his customer to step into the parlour to while away his time in the company of his daughters.

Now the small tailor had three very pretty daughters, of whom the youngest was of an especially agreeable nature. The trouserless merchant lost his heart to this fair maiden, and made friends with her in less time than it took to mend his garment. It seemed to him that the trousers were repaired too quickly for his liking for he had enjoyed the company of the lovely maidens. Having dressed, he paid the tailor generously and returned to the parlour to say good-bye to his daughters, and to invite them to a ball he was to hold in two weeks' time. The girls thanked him for his kind invitation, but added with regret that they did not have such splendid dresses as the occasion demanded.

"Let me take care of the dresses," said the merchant, "I am looking forward to the day when I can receive you in my house."

When he got home he went into one of his shops and picked out fourteen lengths of the most beautiful silks. He sent the materials to the tailor's daughters with a request to have fourteen dresses made for each of them. The festivities were to last for fourteen days and he wanted the three girls to wear different dresses every day, not a single dress was to be worn twice.

Now the dressmakers of the town were hard at work. In two weeks they had to sew forty-two silk dresses trimmed with lace, ribbons and frills, and fitting to perfection. Everything was indeed completed by the appointed day, because the merchant paid them handsomely.

When the tailor's daughters in their splendid attire appeared at the reception of the rich merchant, many young maidens and their mothers turned green with envy. And that bitter feeling deepened as days went by and the tailor's daughters were seen to have different dresses for each day, all very beautiful. The fashionable ladies were outraged when they observed that the host was especially attentive to the tailor's daughters. On the fourteenth night he gave the youngest a fine golden necklace and a golden ring with precious stones to mark their engagement.

Four weeks later their wedding was celebrated in great splendour, and thus the tailor's youngest daughter became the wife of a rich merchant.

The fashionable people of the town seethed with anger and jealousy. There was an impoverished count who was affected more than anybody else. He had hoped to marry his sister to the rich man and thus improve the financial position of their noble family. Now he made plans to take revenge on the merchant for having frustrated his hopes.

The merchant liked to spend a few hours now and then at the local inn to talk to his friends. He often met the count there.

One evening the count, while talking with the merchant, put a bee in his bonnet. "You have a very lovely wife at home," he began, "I wonder how you trust to leave her on her own. Perhaps you believe in the faithfulness of your wife! Ha! No beautiful wife has ever been found to be faithful to her husband."

The merchant answered, "You are talking ill of my wife out of jealousy. However, what proof can you give me of your words?"

The count said that the proof was easy to find if he allowed him to see his wife more often. The impudence of the count angered the merchant, but he controlled his temper and, on second thoughts, he bet the count the whole of his fortune that he could never prove his wife was unfaithful to him. It was decided that the bet should be kept secret from the young wife.

In the evening the merchant informed his wife that he was to leave town on business for a few weeks and the count was to move into the house the very same evening and act for him in his absence. The young wife begged her husband to take her with him on the journey, but when the request was turned down she said meekly, "I have no greater desire than to comply with your wishes."

The next morning, after talking with the count over some points in their wager, the merchant started off, leaving his wife weeping on the doorstep.

In fact the journey was not long this time. He had rented a house on the outskirts of the town and lived there quietly, keeping his eyes and ears open for any news from his house. The young wife withdrew into her room and determined not to see anyone beside her sisters. In this way she hoped she would give no ground for gossip. Poor innocent creature! She was ignorant of the schemes the count was making.

She had her meals served in her room and was accompanied by her maid on the way to church and back.

Three months had passed when the merchant sent a letter explaining that his business matters would detain him for some time, how long exactly, he could not tell. The count did not give this letter to the young wife. Instead, he put in the envelope a fake letter describing the merry life he was enjoying in foreign countries. The letter ended with his advice to spend more of her time in the company of the count.

The longing wife wrote in answer, "I live alone in my quiet chamber and I don't need anyone to keep me company. I pray to God every day that he would send you back from your journey safe and sound, to make me happy, again."

The merchant never saw this letter. The count enclosed a fake letter describing her daily visits to her friends, receptions in her house, the pleasant hours spent with the count and assuring him that her merry life left her little time to long for her husband. With his cunning craft of forging the count faked all the correspondence of the husband and wife. When the merchant wrote at last that he was arriving home in a few weeks time the count spread rumours that the master of the house had met with a fatal accident. The poor widow mourned and wept piteously. She had the walls of her room covered with black cloth, she dressed in mourning and even refused to see her sisters. But she attended her Sunday services as before.

The count was growing anxious, all his efforts seemed to come to nothing. He could not even meet the merchant's wife, let alone make friends with her. Neither could he provide evidence of her unfaithfulness. Then he thought of a new plan. One day he asked the lady's maid to inquire of her mistress if she would allow a chest of clothes to be brought in her chamber for one night, because there was no room elsewhere in the house at the moment. Unsuspecting, the young wife agreed. She did not know that the count had hidden himself in the chest. On going to bed the wife had taken the golden necklace off and placed it on her bedside table as usual. The necklace was her husband's first present to her and she made a point of wearing it every day.

When she was sound asleep the count stole out of the chest, snatched the necklace from the table and returned to his hiding-place. The chest was carried away in the morning.

The count intended to use the stolen necklace as a proof of the wife's disloyalty, asserting that she had given it to him as a token of love. In her great sorrow the merchant's wife did not notice the absence of the necklace that morning.

When she looked out of her window in the afternoon she could not believe her eyes: she saw her allegedly dead husband walking towards the house. At once she discarded her mourning clothes and weeping with joy ran to meet her husband and threw her arms round his neck. The merchant, reserved and cold, considered his wife's rejoicing to be mere pretence. The count had succeeded in convincing him. His wife's first impulse was to hurry to the kitchen to see about supper, but her husband held her back forbidding her to prepare anything. He said he would take care of their meal.

When they sat down for their supper in the evening, the only thing brought to the table was a wooden dish with oatmeal porridge and two spoons stuck in it. The young wife stared in utter embarrassment. The merchant said sadly, stressing his words,

"Tonight we will eat our fill out of this dish the last time. This is all that is left of my property. Tomorrow we shall be beggars without a crumb of bread to our soul."

The woman broke into tears and asked him to explain what misfortune had befallen them.

"You are the cause of our misfortune," retorted the husband. "It is your infidelity that has ruined us. Where is the golden necklace I gave you as my betrothal present to you?"

With a fright the young wife found her necklace missing. She jumped up and ran to her room to fetch it. She did not find the necklace on the table and started to search for it. But the merchant said bitterly,

"Stop that silly pretence, you can't deceive me any more. I know you have given it to your lover."

The poor woman was in no position to prove her innocence. The scheming count could easily make everybody believe him. Besides, he could always refer to the golden necklace and swear that he had spent a night in her room.

Thus, after hearing the case, the court passed the indictment that the unfaithful woman be taken to high seas and thrown overboard to be eaten up by the fish. The merchant, however, was sent to prison for life as a punishment for his thoughtless wager and as warning to others.

The light-minded merchant had really deserved his punishment, but the innocent woman was deeply wronged. All the property of the rich merchant was transferred to the count. The last request of the unfortunate man was that his wife should be sewn into a piece of tarred sail-cloth, and twenty ducats be hidden in her belt, so that when her dead body was washed ashore in some foreign land the kind people would find the money and bury her decently. The court granted the request.

The merchant was chained and sent to prison, his innocent wife was cast overboard on the open sea. The tarred canvas spread out like an inflated bladder and the victim of injustice remained floating. The hardhearted sailors thought she would sink soon and sailed for their native harbour without another thought for the helpless creature.

Yet the poor woman was destined to survive. God's mercy would have it that the innocent soul was not swallowed by the sea, but was miraculously saved. The woman was tossed about in her tarred case for three days and three nights until at last the waves cast her ashore.

Although the merchant's wife was exhausted when she stranded, she did not forget to thank God for saving her. Then she lay herself down on the grass to rest after the long torment, and to restore her strength. Her eyes had hardly closed when she heard two black birds talking in the top of a high fir-tree.

"There lies a miserable helpless creature on the shore," said one bird, "whom the senseless people have cast out from among themselves. On this uninhabited shore she will perish although she could save herself from it." "How is that?" inquired the other. "You see," the first bird continued, "exhausted as she is, she should make every effort and drag herself along to the right a few miles or so, where there lives a pious priest who would receive her kindly and take care of her.

When she has recovered she should go to the town not far from the church. The citizens of that town suffer from lack of water. The disaster was sent to the town a few hundred years ago when a wicked witch locked up all the underground water springs and the only water the wells get is the rain from the sky. And yet, it would be a simple thing to provide the town with drinking water."

"In what way?" asked the other.

"You see," came the reply, "there is a huge grey boulder in the middle of the market place. It is under that boulder that the water springs are locked up. All that is needed is to dislodge the boulder, and water will seep into the wells again. And what is more, the one to do it would receive a very generous reward. A still greater fortune would await the poor woman in the king's city if she would go there and cure the king's only son, which the doctors have failed to do so far. Their pills and powders have not been able to bring the poor prince out of his sick-bed, and he has been laid up for seven years now. Yet, the prince could be restored to health very soon if he was given the proper remedy."

"Where is this remedy to be found?" asked the other bird.

"The disease would be very easy to cure," the first bird explained. "All that is needed is that she should go to the cathedral, step up to the third bench on the right of the altar and prize up a board in the floor. There is a mouse's nest hidden there. She should take the nest together with the mice and boil it in a pot. The liquid should be put through a sieve and poured into a bottle. This is the cure. One spoonful of this invigorating remedy given to the prince every morning and evening, and some of it rubbed on his chest will cure him in a few days."

It is a great pity that the doctors, whether in the country or in towns, do not understand the birds' talk to get guidance when their own skill fails them. Similarly, many a conceited and impertinent person who will not listen to sensible advice might profit by what the birds have to say. However, let us return to our story.

After having overheard the birds' talk the unfortunate woman fell asleep.

Miraculously, she felt quite refreshed when she woke up. She remembered the talk of the wise birds, but was not sure if it had been reality or a dream. As she had no better plans she decided to do what the birds had suggested. With great difficulty she reached the priest's house before sunset. The good people received her kindly and took care of her.

In a few days she felt strong enough to take a longer trip. The priest and his family asked her to stay for a few more days, as they had taken a liking to her but she didn't want to be a burden to them. She thanked them for their hospitality and took her leave. As the first prophecy of the black birds had proved true she proceeded with more assurance, and made her way towards the waterless town.

It occurred to her that if she tackled her task as a woman the citizens might not take her seriously. In olden times a hen's cackle never won respectful listeners.

The merchant's wife disguised herself as a man. She had cut her hair shorter, put on a blue coat and a long embroidered shirt tightened with a belt, so that she resembled a Russian peasant. She put up at an inn in the main street. At her table she found various drinks: vodka and wine, beer and cider, but not a drop of water. As she asked for a glass of water the inn-keeper apologized,

"Sir, you can find all kind of beverages in our town to quench your thirst with, but we can't give you fresh drinking water even if we wanted to. We have to haul water from afar in a dry period like this when we get no rain."

"Why don't you sink wells?" asked the woman.

The inn-keeper replied, "We have got numerous wells, most of them dug centuries ago, but the only kind of water they collect is rain water. The town has wasted enormous sums of money and offered ample payment to anyone who would detect an artery of water. Countless experienced well-makers have tried their hand, but in vain so far."

The merchant's wife said, "This story sounds very strange to me. I have a good mind to look around the place in the afternoon. Maybe I'll come upon something that might lead to underground water."

"That would be pointless," said the inn-keeper, "but there's no harm in trying."

The merchant's wife roamed from street to street until she came to the market place. There stood a large grey boulder just as the bird had said. Being thus encouraged she ventured to undertake the saving of the town. She went to the town mayor, told him she was a well-maker and offered to supply the town with water if she were given as many tools and men as she needed. The mayor, remembering the money thrown to the winds for countless futile attempts before, advised her to give up her plan.

The well-maker would not be dissuaded, she insisted, "Give me fifty workmen, the necessary implements, such as levers, iron bars, ropes, and so on, and upon my word, the town will receive enough water for both its two-legged and four-legged creatures."

The mayor was about to give in, still he demanded a pledge that might cover the expenses in case of failure. The woman complied, "I don't have much money about me at the moment, but I promise to work fifty, or if you wish, a hundred days for each workman if I fail to strike water. If I succeed you will pay me the sum you have publicly made known." Thus they made a bargain.

After due preparations the woman made for the market place accompanied by fifty workmen and crowds of curious citizens. First of all the well-maker had a few ditches dug around the stone. Strong beams which served as levers were driven under the edge of the boulder. Some of the ropes were tied to the ends of the beams, others around the boulder. At her command, all the men applied themselves to prizing and pulling and hoisting, until the stone was dislodged. And behold! water came gushing out from under the stone. A shout of joy went up from thousands of mouths. The mayor and the aldermen stepped up and filled their cups and pitchers with fresh water which was clear and cold and refreshing. All who tasted the water praised it and the wise doctors added that it was very wholesome. The well-maker was paid immediately and the grateful people saw her off with many blessings.

Now there was no need for the merchant's wife to continue her journey on foot, she could afford a coach drawn by six horses. She headed for the king's city at once. On the way she dressed herself up as a doctor. When in a few days she arrived at the king's city she put up at a fashionable inn and introduced herself as a doctor from a foreign country.

News of the arrival of a famous doctor soon reached the ears of the king. The monarch sent for the doctor immediately. He said to the doctor, "I am a powerful king, but for all my greatness and prosperity I am an unhappy father. My only son has been sick for seven years and nobody has been able to cure him. The most celebrated doctors of the country have tried various remedies, but all to no avail. My heart breaks to see my beloved boy wasting away day by day."

The doctor listened to this account and then begged to be shown to the prince's room. He was lying in his sick-bed, worn to a shadow; but for his faint breathing he might have been considered dead. The doctor observed, "The prolonged illness has made the patient very weak, still the case is not quite hopeless." She promised to make up the necessary remedy and start the treatment in a few days.

Next day the doctor went to see the cathedral. After she had admired the stately building from the outside as well as from the inside she stepped up to the third pew to the right of the altar, prized up a floorboard and found a mouse's nest with tiny mice in it, just as the black bird had foretold. She picked them up all together, wrapped them in her handkerchief, replaced the board and hurried back to the inn. She set about preparing the remedy secretly, allowed the liquid to cool and settle, and strained it through a piece of cloth and poured it into a bottle. When visiting the prince in a few days, she made him swallow a spoonful of the invigorating remedy and rubbed his chest with it. The effect of the medicine was so wondrous that the patient asked for food at dinner time, and enjoyed what he ate.

The king was terrified by the prince's appetite at first. He took his son's request for the raving of a diseased brain and thought it was a sign of the nearing death. Still, with the doctor's consent the patient was fed. After a few hours of sound sleep the prince woke up. He looked much better and said he felt new strength in him. Already on the following day he sat up without help, and on the sixth day he felt strong enough to leave his bed.

Sitting in his chair, his glance lingered on the young doctor's face who had saved his life, and whom the old king had begged to stay until his son had fully recovered. One day the prince confessed to the doctor with a sigh, "I truly regret that God has not made you a woman. I've never in my life seen a more handsome face than yours. I would marry you if you were a woman... " The doctor replied, "Be content with what God has created, and offer Him thanks that you have been cured of your illness. Now that you are well again you'll soon be able to find a noblewoman you can marry."

The king rejoiced over the recovery of his son. He would gladly have paid the doctor ten times the sum he had promised at first but she refused the generous offer. She would not have more than the piece of land on which her native town stood. There her husband was imprisoned in one of its towers, if he was not dead yet. Her request was granted. The king ordered to expand the borders of that land so that nearly a quarter of the kingdom and its subjects became her property.

After a couple of days, provided with warrant sealed by the king, the new governor set out for her province.

As she got nearer to her birthplace she recalled her poor childhood, the short-lived comfortable life in the merchant's house and the ensuing hardships and sufferings. Neither her wealth nor misery was her own doing, so she had no burden of sin on her soul. She was still disguised as a man and determined to keep it up until she had arranged everything. When her coach came to the mansion that had belonged to her once, she drove up and sent her servant to inquire if she could rent a room for a few days.

The present landlord, our acquaintance, the count had become immensely rich through his intrigues, but his appetites had grown too. He was anxious to increase his property in every way. Therefore he readily agreed to let some rooms to the strange gentleman who without a word of protest consented to pay an inordinately high rent.

On the next day the merchant's wife dressed herself up as a rich gentleman and went to the Supreme Court of the town, presented her warranty to the Chief Justice and was officially acknowledged their governor. She was treated with great respect and reverence. The first order issued by the new governor was that the former rich merchant sentenced to prison a few years before for light-minded betting, and the count who had taken over his property, as well as the maid-servant who at that time was employed by the merchant's wife, and at present continued in the service of the count, should appear before the court. The ruler's orders were obeyed without delay.

In his long imprisonment, the merchant had grown grey, his face was pale and haggard and his long beard stretched to his chest. His body was covered with rags, his hands and legs were in chains. The count strutted into the court-room arrogantly, convinced that a rich nobleman like he need not fear anything. The new ruler ordered that the merchant should be set free and the count should be put in chains. Although the judges stared at each other in utter surprise, nobody trusted to disobey their governor. Now the merchant's wife, still in her disguise, said to the count, "Confess in what manner you took possession of the golden necklace of the merchant's wife." The count responded impudently, "The lady gave it to me as a token of her love." Then the maid was put in chains and asked the same question. The girl was frightened and her evidence brought the whole story of deception to light. Now the count and the maid were sentenced to life imprisonment in the same tower in which the merchant had been kept.

When the wrong-doers had received the punishment they deserved, the merchant's wife left. Then she appeared before her husband undisguised and he recognized her immediately. The merchant deeply regretted his guilt and humbly begged her forgiveness that he had doubted her innocence and despised her. The generous and kind-hearted wife who had kept her sacred pledge of faithfulness to her husband forgave him all his injustice. The parson blessed their marriage a second time, the occasion was celebrated even with greater splendour than the first time.

But the merchant's father-in-law, the old tailor did not live to see her daughter restored to respectability.

Since that day the merchant and his wife lived happily until the end of their days, and he never suspected his wife of unfaithfulness again. Indeed, fortunate is the man whose wife is endowed with beauty and chastity, whose life is clear and pure like water in a spring.

Jason Ladock

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