The Magic Fiddle by Clifton Johnson
A FARMER once had a servant who worked for him three years without being paid any wages. The servant did his work well and faithfully, and was the first of the farmer's help to get up in the morning and the last to go to bed at night. If there was any hard work to be done which no one else would do he was always ready to undertake it. He never made any complaint, and never failed to be good-natured and contented. But at last it came into the man's head that he would not continue without pay any longer. So he went to his master and said, "I have worked hard for you a long time, and now I think I should have some money for my labor." The farmer was miserly and not altogether honest, and as he knew that his man was very simple-hearted he took out his purse and gave him threepence. "There is a penny," said he, "for each year you have served me." The servant thought threepence was a great deal of money to have, and he said to himself, "Why should I work here any longer? I can now travel into the wide world and make myself merry." Then, with his money jingling in his pocket, he set out roaming over hill and valley. As he tramped singing along the road a little dwarf hopped out of a wayside bush and asked, "What makes you so happy, sir?" "Why! what should make me downhearted?" said the man. "I am sound in health and rich in purse. I have saved up the pay for three years work and have it all safe in my pocket." "How much may that come to?" inquired the dwarf.
"Full threepence," replied the servant. "Listen," said the dwarf. "I wish you would give the threepence to me. I am very poor." When the man heard this he was so sorry for the dwarf that he gave him the threepence; and the little dwarf said, "As you have been so kind to me I will grant any wish that you may care to make; so choose whatever you like." "Aha!" said the servant.
"You are a wonder-worker, I see," and, greatly rejoiced at his good luck, he paused to think what he most wanted. "I like many things better than money," said he. "Now if you could give me a fiddle that would set every one dancing who hears me play on it, that would please me more than anything else I can think of." "All right," said the dwarf, "you can have what you ask for;" and out of a bag he carried he pulled a fiddle and bow and handed them to his companion. "Heart alive! what more can one desire?" said the servant.
Then the dwarf went his way and the hired man walked on singing as before. But he had not gone far when an old man called to him from a roadside field. The old man had an ax in his hands and was standing under a great oak-tree that he had begun to cut down. "This work is too hard for me," said the old man. "But a stout fellow like you would make nothing of it, and if you will finish chopping through this tree-trunk I will pay you five shillings." "Give me the ax," said the servant. "I am quite willing to earn a little money, for mine is all gone;" and he threw off his coat and went to work. By and by the oak crashed to the ground. "There," said the servant, "now I'll take my five shillings and be stepping along." "I did not think you could do the work so soon or I would not have offered you so much," said the old man. "Well, that is no fault of mine," the servant replied. "But five shillings is more than the work is worth," argued the old man. "Here, I will give you three shillings, and that is a great plenty." "No, I will take nothing less than what you agreed 'to give me in the first place," the servant declared. "Then you will not get anything," said the other. "We will see about that," was the servant's response, and he took up his fiddle and began playing, and the old man began to dance. "How is this?" the old man cried. "Is that fiddle enchanted?" "Yes," said the servant.
