English Original
Once upon a time, there lived a peasant and his wife. The village parson fancied the wife and had long wished to spend a happy day with her. The peasant woman was quite willing.
One day, the parson said to her, "Listen, my dear friend. I have thought of a way for us to spend a whole day together. On Wednesday, take to your bed and tell your husband you are ill. Complain and act properly ill until Sunday when I preach. In my sermon, I will say that whoever has a sick family member at home and makes a pilgrimage to the Göckerli hill in Italy—where a peck of laurel-leaves costs a kreuzer—will see that person restored to health immediately."
"I will manage it," said the woman promptly.
On Wednesday, the woman took to her bed, lamenting as agreed. Her husband did all he could, but nothing helped. When Sunday came, she said, "I feel so ill I might die, but I wish to hear the parson's sermon before my end."
The peasant said, "Ah, do not get up; you might worsen. I will go to the sermon, listen carefully, and tell you everything."
"Go then, and pay great attention," she replied.
The peasant went to the sermon. The parson preached that if anyone had a sick family member and made a pilgrimage to the Göckerli hill in Italy, where a peck of laurel-leaves cost a kreuzer, that person would be healed instantly. Whoever wished to undertake the journey should see him after the service for the sack and the kreuzer.
No one was more rejoiced than the peasant. After the service, he went to the parson, received the bag and the kreuzer, and hurried home. At the door, he cried, "Hurrah! Dear wife, it is as if you are well already! The parson preached of a cure, and I have the bag and kreuzer. I will begin my journey at once so you may heal faster." He left immediately. No sooner was he gone than the woman got up, and the parson arrived directly.
Now, let us leave these two and follow the peasant, who walked quickly to reach the Göckerli hill. On his way, he met his gossip, an egg-merchant returning from market.
"May you be blessed. Where are you off to so fast?" asked the gossip.
"To all eternity, my friend," said the peasant. "My wife is ill..." and he recounted the parson's sermon and his mission.
"But listen, gossip," said the egg-merchant. "Are you stupid enough to believe that? The parson wants a day alone with your wife. He sent you away on purpose."
"My word! How I'd like to know if that's true!"
"Come then," said the gossip. "Get into my egg-basket, and I will carry you home. You will see for yourself."
So the peasant got into the basket, and the gossip carried him home.
When they arrived, all was merry! The woman had killed nearly everything in the farmyard and made pancakes. The parson was there with his fiddle. The gossip knocked.
"Who is there?" asked the woman.
"It is I, gossip," said the egg-merchant. "Give me shelter tonight. I did not sell my eggs, and they are too heavy to carry further in the dark."
"Indeed, you come at an inconvenient time, but since you are here, come in. Sit on the bench by the stove."
She placed the gossip and his basket on the bench. The parson and the woman were as merry as possible. At length, the parson said, "You sing beautifully; sing something for me."
"Oh, I cannot sing now," said the woman. "In my youth I could, but that's over."
"Come, sing a little song," he urged.
The woman sang:
"I've sent my husband away from me
To the Göckerli hill in Italy."
The parson sang:
"I wish 'twas a year before he came back,
I'd never ask him for the laurel-leaf sack."
Hallelujah.
Then the gossip in the background began to sing (the peasant was called Hildebrand):
"What art thou doing, my Hildebrand dear,
There on the bench by the stove so near?"
Hallelujah.
And the peasant sang from his basket:
"All singing I ever shall hate from this day,
And here in this basket no longer I'll stay."
Hallelujah.
He got out of the basket and cudgelled the parson out of the house.
中文翻译
从前，住着一个农夫和他的妻子。村里的牧师看上了这位妻子，长久以来都希望能与她共度愉快的一天。农夫的妻子也相当乐意。
一天，牧师对她说：“听着，我亲爱的朋友。我想到了一个能让我们共度一整天的方法。星期三那天，你躺到床上去，告诉你丈夫你病了。你要一直抱怨，装病装得像样，直到星期天我布道的时候。在我的布道中，我会说，任何家里有生病亲人的人，只要去意大利的格克里山朝圣——在那里一配克的月桂叶只值一个十字币——那个病人就会立刻康复。”
“我会办好的，”女人立刻答应道。
到了星期三，女人按约定躺到床上，痛苦呻吟。她的丈夫想尽办法照顾她，但都无济于事。星期天到了，她说：“我感觉病得快死了，但在死之前，我想听听牧师今天的布道。”
农夫说：“啊，别起来；你可能会加重病情。我去听布道，仔细听着，然后把一切都告诉你。”
“那你去吧，要专心听，”她回答。
农夫去听了布道。牧师宣讲说，任何人如果家里有生病的亲人，只要去意大利的格克里山朝圣——在那里一配克的月桂叶值一个十字币——那个人就会立刻痊愈。任何想踏上这趟旅程的人，礼拜结束后可以找他领取袋子和十字币。
没有人比这个农夫更高兴了。礼拜结束后，他找到牧师，拿到了袋子和十字币，然后急忙赶回家。在门口，他喊道：“好哇！亲爱的妻子，你简直就像已经好了！牧师宣讲了一个治病的方法，我拿到了袋子和十字币。我马上出发，这样你就能好得更快。”他立刻离开了。他刚一走，女人就起来了，而牧师也直接到了。
现在，让我们暂且离开这两个人，跟着农夫走。他为了尽快赶到格克里山，走得飞快。路上，他遇到了他的老友，一个刚从集市卖完鸡蛋回来的蛋贩子。
“愿主保佑你。你这么急是要去哪儿？”老友问。
“去永恒之地啊，我的朋友，”农夫说。“我妻子病了……”接着他复述了牧师的布道和他的任务。
“但是听着，老友，”蛋贩子说。“你傻到相信这种事吗？牧师是想和你妻子单独待一天。他是故意把你支开的。”
“天哪！我多想知道这是不是真的！”
“那就来吧，”老友说。“钻进我的鸡蛋筐里，我把你背回家。你自己亲眼看看。”
于是农夫钻进了筐子，老友把他背回了家。
他们到家时，里面正热闹着呢！女人已经把院子里几乎所有的家禽都宰了，还做了煎饼。牧师也在那里，还带来了他的小提琴。老友敲了敲门。
“谁呀？”女人问。
“是我，老友，”蛋贩子说。“让我借宿一晚吧。我的鸡蛋没卖掉，现在得背回家，天黑了，它们太重了，我实在背不动了。”
“哎呀，你来得真不是时候，但既然来了，就进来吧。坐在炉子边的长凳上。”
她把老友和他背着的筐子安置在炉边的长凳上。牧师和女人正尽情欢乐。最后，牧师说：“你唱得可好听了；给我唱点什么吧。”
“哦，我现在唱不了啦，”女人说。“年轻时我倒是唱得不错，但那都过去了。”
“来吧，唱首小曲嘛，”他催促道。
女人唱道：
“我已将我的丈夫打发走，
去往意大利的格克里山。”
牧师唱道：
“但愿他一年后才回来，
我绝不问他要那月桂叶袋。”
哈利路亚。
这时，背景里的老友开始唱了（这个农夫名叫希尔德布兰德）：
“你在做什么，我亲爱的希尔德布兰德，
在那炉边的长凳上如此靠近？”
哈利路亚。
接着，农夫从筐子里唱道：
“从今往后我憎恨一切歌唱，
这筐子里我再也待不长。”
哈利路亚。
他从筐子里爬出来，用棍子把牧师打出了屋子。