A farmer had a faithful and diligent servant, who had worked hard for him three years, without having been paid any wages.
A poor woodman sat in his cottage one night, smoking his pipe by the fireside, while his wife sat by his side spinning.
In a village dwelt a poor old woman, who had gathered together a dish of beans and wanted to cook them.
There was a certain village wherein no one lived but really rich peasants, and just one poor one, whom they called the little peasant.
There was once upon a time a queen to whom God had given no children.
There was once a forester who went into the forest to hunt, and as he entered it he heard a sound of screaming as if a little child were there.
There was once a miller who had one beautiful daughter, and as she was grown up, he was anxious that she should be well married and provided for.
A shepherd’s dog had a master who took no care of him, but often let him suffer the greatest hunger.
Long, long ago, some two thousand years or so, there lived a rich man with a good and beautiful wife.
There were two brothers who were both soldiers; the one was rich and the other poor.