THE MAN WITH TWO DOGS
The exchange.
One day, while crossing a large forest, Jean encountered a hunter, followed by two dogs. The white lamb was frightened at the sight of the dogs, and John took him in his arms. The hunter came up and said to him:
"Will you, young man, give me your white lamb, in exchange for my two dogs?"
"Please excuse me, my lord, I do not want to give up my white lamb."
"I will also give you my rifle."
"No, no, I will not part with my white lamb."
And he held him close to his heart. And he walked away. The lord followed him, saying:
"These dogs, my friend, will defend you and save you from danger, wherever you find yourself."
"I will not give my lamb, I will not give my lamb."
And he continued on his way. However, he soon reflected and said to himself:
"That hunter's dogs are lovely! They will defend me everywhere and save me from danger, he told me; and my poor lamb, alas! cannot do it. And his rifle is also gorgeous!… I have to go back and tell him that I accept."
And he turned back and began to cry:
"Lord! Lord! I accept the deal, your two dogs and your gun, for my white lamb."
And they made the exchange.
"The dogs are called Brise-Fer (Iron-Breaker) and Sans-Pareil (Unmatched)", the lord told him.
Jean continued his journey, followed by his two dogs with his rifle on his shoulder, and very proud of the deal.
Towards sunset, he came across a clog maker's hut in the woods.
He entered and asked:
"Do you know any gentleman in the area who needs a good hunter?"
"There is, not far from here, in the middle of the wood, a castle where resides a lord who constantly has twelve hunting servants, with whom he roams the forest every day; one of his hunters left him yesterday, and if you are a good shot, I think he will take you into his service."
Jean immediately went to the castle, and the lord accepted him, all the more willingly since he liked his two dogs very much.
But the cook was not pleased with this extra pack, and therefore more work for her who was also preparing the dogs' food, and she gave Jean a less than gracious welcome.
"Don't be angry, cook, said the latter, my dogs are not like the other dogs you have here, and they will do you a thousand little services; see instead: "Here, Brise-Fer and Sans-Pareil, and quickly pluck these partridges for me!"
And in the blink of an eye, they had plucked two dozen partridges from the table. The cook then stopped murmuring, and from that moment Brise-Fer and Sans-Pareil were her protégés, and she always had something good in store for them.
Source: L’Homme aux deux chiens. from the French book Contes et légendes de Basse-Bretagne published in 1891.
Hello, my name is Vincent Celier.
I am writing translations of folk tales that I found in public domain French books, so that people who do not understand French may enjoy them too.
Now we know why the tale title is "The Man with Two Dogs". Jean is this man.
Even though his heart was telling him to keep the white lamb, his mind convinced him to make the exchange.
Now, he is a hunter for a lord.
Kati, my wife, is currently crocheting bags for herself and as gifts for members of our families.
Recently, she has finished this one:
Inside, there is a lining with six pockets.
And it can be closed with a zipper.
She spent hours making this bag. If she was to sell it, it would cost a lot of money for the buyer.
-- Vincent Celier