"Hi! stop, your reverence," he cried. "You will be late for the christening."
He seized the parson's sleeve as he ran past him, but the poor sexton had to join the procession too.
So now there were five of them, and just as they turned a corner the parson saw two peasants, and called to them to set him and his sexton free.
They threw down their spades at once and tried to do so, but they too, stuck fast, and so Johnny had a fine string of seven folk hanging on to the wing of his golden goose.
On and on they ran, until at length they came into the country of a powerful King.
This King had an only daughter, who all her life had been so sad that no one had ever been able to make her laugh. So the King made a decree that the man who could bring a smile to his daughter's face should have her for his bride.
When Johnny heard what the King had promised, he at once made his way into the Princess's presence, and when she saw the goose, with the seven queer-looking companions hanging on behind, she burst into such a hearty fit of laughter that it was thought she would never be able to stop again.
Of course, the Simpleton claimed her as his bride, but the King did not fancy him for a son-in-law, so he made all sorts of excuses.
"You shall have her," said he, "if you can first bring me a man who can drink up a whole cellarful of wine."