‘The old man will kill me.’
‘Fear not; come along with me. I’ll kill him, he’s so weak.’
The children came outside and cried, ‘Mother, the fox is bringing us the dragon skin he owes us, to cover the cave with.’
The dragon took to flight, and caught the fox, and dashed him to the earth; and the fox died. The old man went to the town, and got a cart, and put the money in it. Then he went to the town, and built himself houses, and bought himself oxen and cows. [[83]]
Dr. Von Sowa furnishes this Slovak-Gypsy variant:—
No. 22.—The Gypsy and the Dragon
There were a Gypsy and a shepherd, who tended his sheep. Every night two of the shepherd’s sheep went a-missing, or even three. The peasant came to his gossip, the Gypsy, who asks him, ‘Hallo! gossip, what’s up with you, that you’re so sorrowful?’
The peasant says to the Gypsy, ‘Ah! how should I not be sorrowful, when some one—I know not who—does me grievous harm?’
‘All right. I’ll help you there, for I know fine who it is. To-night let your wife make me two big cheeses, the size of that; and let her bake me some nice fine dough for supper. I’ll come and sup with you to-night. Then I’ll go and look after your sheep.’