There was once a man named Frederick and a woman named Catherine who were married. One day, Frederick said, "I will go and plough. When I return, there must be roast meat and fresh beer for me." "Just go," answered Catherine, "I will have everything ready."
When dinner-time neared, she took a sausage, put it in a frying pan with butter, and set it on the fire. As it sizzled, she thought, "I could go draw beer from the cellar while it cooks." So she left the pan on the fire, took a can, and went to the cellar.
As the beer flowed, she remembered, "Oh dear! The dog is loose and might steal the sausage!" She rushed upstairs, but the dog already had the sausage in its mouth and ran into the field. Catherine chased it but couldn't catch it. "What's gone is gone!" she said, and walked back, tired.
Meanwhile, the beer kept flowing because she forgot to turn off the tap. The can overflowed, and the entire cask emptied into the cellar. Seeing the mess, she cried, "How can I hide this from Frederick?" She remembered a sack of fine flour in the garret. "He who saves a thing when he ought, has it when he needs it," she thought. She fetched the flour and threw it onto the beer to soak it up, but knocked over the can in the process.
"It is all right," she said, "where one is, the other should be too," and she spread the flour all over the cellar. Pleased, she said, "How clean and wholesome it looks!"
At midday, Frederick returned. "Wife, what have you ready?" "Ah," she replied, "I was frying a sausage, but while drawing your beer, the dog stole it. While chasing the dog, the beer all ran out. While drying the beer with flour, I knocked over the can. But don't worry, the cellar is dry again."
Frederick said, "Catherine, you should not have done that! You let the sausage be stolen, the beer run out, and wasted all our flour!" "Indeed, Frederick," she said, "I did not know. You should have told me."
Frederick thought, "If my wife is like this, I must be more careful." He had saved many thalers, which he changed into gold. He told Catherine, "Look, these are game counters. I will bury them in a pot under the cow's manger. Do not go near them." "Oh, no," she said, "I certainly will not."
After Frederick left, pedlars came to the village selling cheap pots. They asked Catherine if she wanted to trade. "I have no money," she said, "but if you want yellow counters, I can trade. Go dig under the cow's manger; you'll find them. I'm not allowed to go." The rogues went, dug up the gold, and ran away, leaving their pots behind.
Catherine decided to use the new pots. Having no need for them in the kitchen, she knocked out their bottoms and set them as ornaments on the fence around the house.
When Frederick saw them, he asked, "Catherine, what have you done?" "I bought them with the counters under the manger. The pedlars dug them up themselves." "Ah, wife," said Frederick, "those were not counters, but pure gold—all our wealth! You should not have done that." "Indeed, Frederick," she said, "I did not know. You should have warned me."
After a while, Catherine said, "Listen, we can get the gold back. Let's chase the thieves." "Very well," said Frederick, "but take some butter and cheese to eat on the way." They set out, with Frederick walking faster ahead.
Catherine came to a hill with deep cart ruts. Feeling compassion for the earth, she smeared butter into the ruts to protect them from wheels. As she bent down, a cheese rolled out of her pocket down the hill. "I won't go down after it," she thought, and rolled another cheese down to fetch the first. When none returned, she rolled down the rest, one by one, thinking they were waiting for company or had lost their way. Angry, she finally said, "I won't wait any longer!" and went on.
She found Frederick waiting to eat. She gave him dry bread. "Where is the butter and cheese?" he asked. "I smeared the ruts with butter," she said, "and the cheeses will come soon; one ran away, so I sent the others after it." Frederick said, "You should not have smeared butter on the road and let the cheeses roll away!" "Really," she replied, "you should have told me."
They ate the bread, and Frederick asked, "Did you secure the house when you left?" "No," she said, "you should have told me." "Then go back, secure it, and bring more food. I'll wait here."
Catherine returned home, thinking, "Frederick wants more food; he doesn't like butter and cheese. I'll take dried pears and a pitcher of vinegar." She bolted the upper half of the door but took the lower half off its hinges and carried it on her back, believing this secured the house.
She took her time, thinking Frederick would rest longer. When she reached him, she said, "Here is the house-door. Now you can guard the house." "Oh, heavens!" he cried. "You unhinged the lower door so anyone can enter, and bolted the upper one! It's too late to return. Since you brought the door, you shall carry it further." "I will," she said, "but the pears and vinegar are too heavy. I'll hang them on the door."
They went into the forest to find the thieves but failed. At dark, they climbed a tree to spend the night. Soon, the very thieves sat beneath them, lit a fire, and prepared to divide their loot.
Frederick climbed down, gathered stones, and climbed back to throw at them, but missed. The thieves said, "Morning must be near; the wind is shaking down fir-cones."
The door was heavy on Catherine's back. Thinking it was the pears, she said, "Frederick, I must throw down the pears." "No, they might betray us." "But they weigh too much!" "Do it, then!" The pears rolled down. The thieves below said, "Leaves are falling."
Later, still burdened, she said, "I must pour out the vinegar." "No, it might betray us." "But it's too heavy!" "Do it, then!" She poured the vinegar, sprinkling the thieves. They said, "Dew is falling."
Finally, she realized the door itself was heavy. "Frederick, I must throw down the door." "No, it will discover us." "But it's too heavy!" "Hold it fast!" "I'm letting it fall!" "Let it go, then!" The door fell with a clatter. The thieves cried, "The devil is coming down the tree!" and fled, leaving everything.
Next morning, Frederick and Catherine came down, found their gold, and carried it home.
Back home, Frederick said, "Now, Catherine, you must be industrious. Go cut corn in the field." In the field, Catherine wondered, "Shall I eat or sleep first? I'll eat." After eating, she grew sleepy and began cutting corn, but in her drowsiness, she cut all her clothes—apron, gown, and shift—to pieces.
Waking later half-naked, she said, "Is it I, or is it not I? Alas, it is not I." At night, she ran to the village, knocked on her husband's window, and cried, "Frederick!" "What is it?" "I want to know if Catherine is home." "Yes," he replied, "she must be in and asleep." "'Tis well," she said, "then I am certainly home already," and ran off.
Outside, she met vagabonds planning to steal. "I will help you steal," she said. Thinking she knew the area, they agreed. Catherine went in front of houses and called, "Good folks, have you anything? We want to steal!" The thieves were dismayed and wished to be rid of her.
They told her, "The pastor has turnips in his field. Go pull some for us." She went but was so idle she didn't gather them. A man passing by saw her and thought the devil was rooting up turnips. He ran to the pastor and said, "The devil is in your turnip field!" "Alas," said the pastor, "I have a lame foot and cannot drive him away." "I will carry you," said the man, and he did.
When they arrived, Catherine stood up to her full height. "Ah, the devil!" cried the pastor. Both ran away in terror, the pastor with his lame foot outrunning the man who had carried him.