The Golden Goose (Grimm)
Division into chapters is editorial.
The three brothers and the grey mans test
A man lived with his three sons, and the youngest was called Dummling.
There was a man who had three sons, the youngest of whom was called Dummling, and was despised, mocked, and put down on every occasion.
When the eldest son decided to go into the forest to cut wood, his mother gave him a beautiful sweet cake and a bottle of wine for sustenance. In the forest, he encountered a little grey-haired old man who greeted him politely and asked for a piece of cake and a drink of wine, explaining that he was hungry and thirsty.
The eldest son refused to share, saying:
If I give you my cake and wine, I shall have none for myself; be off with you, and he left the little man standing and went on.
Soon after, he made a false stroke with his axe and cut himself in the arm, forcing him to return home. The second son also went to the forest with similar provisions from his mother, met the same old man, and likewise refused to share. His punishment came swiftly when he struck himself in the leg and had to be carried home.
The golden goose and the innkeepers daughters
When Dummling asked to try cutting wood, his father initially refused, warning him that his brothers had been hurt and that he understood nothing about it. However, Dummling persisted until his father relented, saying he would learn through experience. His mother gave him only a cinder-cake and sour beer, poor provisions compared to what his brothers had received.
In the forest, Dummling met the same grey-haired old man who asked for food and drink. Unlike his brothers, Dummling responded generously:
I have only cinder-cake and sour beer; if that pleases you, we will sit down and eat.
When they sat down together, Dummling discovered that his humble cinder-cake had transformed into fine sweet cake, and his sour beer had become good wine. After they ate and drank, the grateful old man rewarded Dummling's kindness, telling him he had a good heart and would receive good luck. He directed Dummling to cut down an old tree, promising he would find something valuable at its roots. When the tree fell, Dummling discovered a goose with feathers of pure gold sitting in the roots. He took the golden goose and went to an inn for the night.
The growing procession through town
At the inn, the host had three daughters who were curious about the wonderful golden bird and each wanted one of its precious feathers. The eldest daughter waited for an opportunity and seized the goose by the wing when Dummling was away, but her finger and hand stuck fast to it.
The second daughter came with the same intent, but as soon as she touched her sister, she too became stuck fast. The third daughter approached despite her sisters' warnings to keep away, thinking she might as well join them, but she also remained stuck to her sister upon contact. All three had to spend the night attached to the goose.
The next morning, Dummling took the goose under his arm and set out without concern for the three girls hanging onto it. The girls were forced to run after him continuously, left and right, wherever he chose to go. In the fields, they encountered a parson who scolded the girls for their unseemly behavior of running after a young man.
When the parson seized the youngest girl's hand to pull her away, he too became stuck and was obliged to run behind them. Soon a sexton came by, saw his master running behind three girls, and called out in astonishment about a christening they had that day. When he grabbed the parson's sleeve to stop him, the sexton also became stuck. Two laborers who tried to free the parson and sexton also became trapped, creating a chain of seven people running behind Dummling and his goose.
Making the princess laugh and the royal wedding
Eventually, Dummling came to a city ruled by a king whose daughter was so serious that no one could make her laugh. The king had decreed that whoever could make her laugh would marry her.
When Dummling appeared before the king's daughter with his goose and the entire train of people stuck to it,
as soon as she saw the seven people running on and on, one behind the other, she began to laugh quite loudly, and as if she would never leave off.
Dummling asked to have her for his wife, and the wedding was celebrated. After the king's death, Dummling inherited the kingdom and lived contentedly with his wife for many years.