“I am astonished to see that young girl here. She is a worthless girl. How is it that you have her here?”
They answer, “Moved by charity, just to help her.”
“Do not have her any more; she is a thief, and as bad as can be.”
After having given her her day’s wages, they send her off, and say that they do not want her any more.[5]
This poor young girl was in the greatest distress; if she wished to eat, she must beg. She set to work begging then, and everyone disliked her so much that, when they saw her, they used to spit at her.
There came home from one of his voyages a ship’s captain, and, while he was amusing himself with his friends, this young girl asks for charity. His friends tell him that she was a bad girl, and they spit at her, and he does like the rest. Our captain goes off for another voyage; but he was overtaken by a terrible tempest. The storm was so violent, and the rain came down as if it would never leave off; it made them all tremble. In the midst of his prayers the captain made a vow that, if he escaped, he would marry the worst and most despised girl that he could find. Immediately the weather became fine. He makes a very successful voyage, and one which brought him plenty of money; but, when he reached land, he forgot his vow, and began to amuse himself as much as possible.
This same young girl asks charity, and, after his friends have told him that she was a bad girl, they spat at her, and he did so too.
Again he goes to sea, and he is overtaken by a storm, much worse than the former one. The wind was most violent, and the lightning terrible; they saw nothing but that. All trembled, and were praying. The captain again makes a vow of marrying, if he should get safe home, with the most abandoned and the poorest girl he can find, and he regrets that he has not kept his vow. He said to himself,
“If I had kept it, perhaps I should not have had such weather as this; but nothing now shall make me forget my promise.”
Immediately the weather becomes fine; he has immense good fortune, and gains as much money as he wishes.