Jean and Pierre

In ancient times, there lived a poor woman who had two sons, Jean and Pierre. Seeing their mother's hardship, Pierre decided to hire himself out as a laborer to a farmer.

"How much do you ask for wages?" the farmer inquired.

"One hundred écus," Pierre replied.

"So be it. But here is our agreement: the first one of us to get angry in an argument will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I never get angry, master."

Not even a week had passed before Pierre argued with the farmer, got angry, and the farmer pummeled his sides. Pierre returned to his mother and told his brother Jean what had happened. Jean asked his brother to show him where the farmer lived and went to hire himself out. However, Jean did not reveal that he was Pierre's brother.

"How much do you want?" the farmer asked.

"Pay me one hundred écus, master."

"So be it. But here is our agreement: the first one of us to get angry in an argument will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I never get angry, master."

The next day, the farmer ordered Jean to take grain to the market. Jean sold the wagon and the team of four horses and gave the money to his brother. When he returned to the farmer, the man asked:

"Where is the wagon and the horses?"

"Master," Jean replied, "I sold them to a man I met on the road."

"And what did you do with the money?"

"I gave the money to my brother, whose sides you pummeled."

"So you want to ruin me, do you?"

"Master, are you getting angry?"

"Of course not! Why would I get angry over such trifles?"

"You know the agreement: the first one of us to get angry will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I’m not angry at all."

The next day, the farmer said to his wife:

"I’ll send Jean to chop down the largest oak tree in the forest. He won’t be able to drag it back, and when I start scolding him, he’ll get angry."

Jean went to the forest with the wagon and the team of four horses, sold them as before, and then returned home.

"Well," the farmer asked, "where is the wagon?"

"The wagon? I left it in the forest; it got stuck there."

"Ah! You’re going to ruin us completely!" The farmer’s wife shouted even louder:

"You’ll ruin us completely!"

"Master," Jean said, "are you getting angry?"

"Of course not! Why would I get angry over such trifles?"

"You know the agreement: the first one of us to get angry will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I’m not angry at all!"

One day, while Jean was threshing grain on the threshing floor, the farmer and his wife went to have breakfast without inviting him. Jean didn’t show that he noticed; he went to the market, sold the threshed grain, had a hearty breakfast at the inn, and then returned home.

"Jean," the farmer said, "what did you do with the grain?"

"You didn’t invite me to breakfast. I sold the grain and used the money to have breakfast."

"You’ll ruin us, Jean, completely ruin us!"

"Master, are you getting angry?"

"Of course not! Why would I get angry over such trifles?"

"You know the agreement: the first one of us to get angry will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I’m not angry at all!" The farmer’s wife said to her husband:

"Let’s send him to guard the pigs on the far pasture; the ogre will eat him, and we’ll be rid of him."

So Jean went to the pasture with the herd. When he reached the ogre’s dwelling, he entered it. In his hand, he held a sparrow.

"Tell me," he asked the ogre, showing him the sparrow, "could you ever fly as high as this little bird?"

"No, I couldn’t," the ogre replied.

"I’m hungry," Jean said.

"So am I. What shall we cook for breakfast?"

"Let’s make porridge," Jean suggested.

When the porridge was ready, they sat down to eat. Jean had prepared a large pocket in his belly and quietly stored a good portion of porridge there while the ogre devoured his share. When the pocket was full, Jean slit it open with a knife, and the porridge spilled onto the floor; then he continued eating.

"Look at that," the ogre said. "I’d like to relieve myself like that too! Slit my belly open!"

Jean didn’t need to be asked twice: he skillfully slit the ogre’s belly, and the ogre died instantly.

After that, Jean returned to his pigs, cut off all their tails, sold the pigs, and then stuck the tails into the mud covering the nearby swamp. He then returned to the farmer.

"Where are the pigs?" the farmer asked.

"They got stuck in the swamp."

"How did that happen? We need to pull them out!"

"Master, there’s no way to get through there."

The farmer went to see for himself; but when he grabbed one of the tails, thinking to pull out a pig, the tail came off in his hand, and he fell headfirst into the mud.

"You’ll ruin us, Jean, completely ruin us!"

"Master, are you getting angry?"

"Of course not! Why would I get angry over such trifles?"

"You know the agreement: the first one of us to get angry will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I’m not angry at all!" The farmer’s wife said to her husband:

"We should send him to guard the geese on the pasture."

Jean drove the geese to the pasture. In the evening, it turned out that two or three geese were missing—he had sold them.

"Jean," the farmer said, "I’m missing a few geese."

"Master, it’s not my fault; some beast must have taken them."

"You’ll ruin us, Jean, completely ruin us!"

"Master, are you getting angry?"

"Of course not! Why would I get angry over such trifles?"

"You know the agreement: the first one of us to get angry will have his sides pummeled by the other."

"I’m not angry at all!"

"Our servant is quite peculiar," the farmer’s wife said the next day. "He’ll ruin us. I’ll hide in the bushes and see where he takes the geese."

Jean overheard this; before going to the pasture, he told the farmer:

"I’ll take your gun with me; if that beast comes again, I’ll kill it."

Seeing the woman in the bushes, he fired and killed her on the spot.

"Master," he said, "count the geese; they’re all here. I killed the beast that was stealing them."

"Ah! What have you done, you scoundrel! You’ve killed my wife!"

"Well, I didn’t know. Either way, I killed a large beast. And it seems to me you’re really angry now?"

"Of course I am! How could I not be angry?"

Then Jean pummeled his sides and went back to his home, and so did I.

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Jean and Pierre

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