Poor Peter! He was angry; but had to stay and guard the geese. He never again wished to be God.
CHRIST AND FOLK-SONGS
One day Christ and St. Peter were walking about the earth and came to a village. In one house folks were singing so finely that Christ stayed to listen, whilst St. Peter went on. He turned back and found Christ still at His post. St. Peter went on again, and looked back: Christ was still listening. St. Peter went on again and then glanced back a third time—and Christ was still listening. Then he went back and heard a splendid folk-song in the house, stayed a while, and went on to another house where there also was singing. There St. Peter stayed, but Christ passed on. St. Peter hurried up and looked astounded.
“What’s the matter?” asked Christ.
“I could not make out why you stopped to listen to folk-songs and passed by the house where hymns were being sung.”
“Oh, my dear son,” said Christ, “there was a good scent there in the one house where folk-songs were being sung; but there was no reverence about the house where they were chanting hymns.”
THE DEVIL IN THE DOUGH-PAN
Once a woman was kneading bread, but had forgotten to say the blessing. So the demon, Potánka,[[56]] ran up and sat down in it. Then she recollected she had kneaded the dough without saying the blessing, went up to it and crossed herself; and Potánka wanted to escape, but could not anyhow, because of the blessing. So she put the leavened dough through a strainer and threw it out into the street, with Potánka inside. The pigs turned him over and over, and he could not escape for three whole days. At last he tore his way out through a crack in the dough and scampered off without looking behind him.
He ran up to his comrades, who asked him: “Where have you been, Potánka?”
“May that woman be accursed!” he said.