Doctor Knowall

There was once a poor peasant named Crabb. He drove his cart with two oxen to town, carrying a load of wood. He sold the wood to a doctor for two silver coins. While the doctor counted out the money, Crabb saw him sitting at a table, eating and drinking delicious food.

Crabb's heart filled with longing. He wanted to be a doctor too. He stood there for a while, then asked if he could become a doctor. "Oh, yes," said the doctor, "that's easy." "What must I do?" asked the peasant.

"First, buy yourself an ABC book that has a rooster on the cover. Second, sell your cart and your two oxen, and use the money to buy clothes and other things you need for doctoring.

Third, have a sign painted that says 'I am Doctor Knowall' and nail it above your door." The peasant did everything the doctor told him. He doctored people for a little while. Not long after, a rich and important lord had some money stolen.

Someone told him about Doctor Knowall, who lived in a certain village and must know where the money was. The lord had his horses hitched to the carriage, drove to the village, and asked Crabb if he was Doctor Knowall. "Yes," said Crabb.

Then the lord said he must come with him and get the stolen money back. "Oh, yes, but my wife Grethe must come too," said Crabb. The lord agreed, and they all drove away together.

When they arrived at the castle, the table was set, and Crabb was told to sit down and eat. "Yes, but my wife Grethe, too," he said, and he sat down with her. When the first servant brought a dish of fine food, Crabb nudged his wife and said, "Grethe, that was the first." He meant that was the first servant bringing the first dish.

But the servant thought he meant "That is the first thief," and since he was indeed a thief, he got scared. He said to his comrade outside, "The doctor knows everything! We are in trouble—he said I was the first!" The second servant did not want to go in, but he had to.

When he came in with his dish, Crabb nudged his wife and said, "Grethe, that is the second." The servant was just as scared and hurried out. The third servant did not fare any better. Crabb said, "Grethe, that is the third." The fourth servant brought in a covered dish.

The lord told the doctor to show his skill and guess what was under the cover. Crabb looked at the dish. He had no idea what to say. He cried out, "Oh, poor Crabb!" When the lord heard that, he shouted, "There! He knows!

He knows who has the money!" The servants were terrified. They signalled to the doctor to step outside for a moment. When he went out, all four of them confessed. They had stolen the money.

They said they would give it back and pay him a large sum if he did not tell on them. If he did, they would be hanged. They led him to the hiding place. The doctor was satisfied and returned to the hall.

He sat down at the table and said, "My lord, now I will search in my book to find where the gold is hidden." But the fifth servant crept into the stove to hear if the doctor knew more.

The doctor sat still, opened his ABC book, and turned the pages back and forth, looking for the rooster. When he could not find it right away, he said, "I know you are in there, so you had better come out." The servant in the stove thought the doctor meant him.

Filled with terror, he jumped out and cried, "That man knows everything!" Then Doctor Knowall showed the count where the money was, but he did not say who had stolen it. He received a lot of money from both sides and became a famous man.