swopped with him, for he thought in this wise, ''Tis surely better to
have a cock than a goose.' Then he went on till the day was far
spent, and he began to get very hungry, so he sold the cock for a
shilling, and bought food with the money, for, thought Gudbrand on
the Hill-side, ''Tis always better to save one's life than to have a
cock.'

After that he went on home till he reached his nearest neighbour's
house, where he turned in.

'Well', said the owner of the house, 'how did things go with you in
town?'

'Rather so so', said Gudbrand, 'I can't praise my luck, nor do I
blame it either', and with that he told the whole story from first to
last.

'Ah!' said his friend, 'you'll get nicely called over the coals, that
one can see, when you get home to your wife. Heaven help you, I
wouldn't stand in your shoes for something.'

'Well!' said Gudbrand on the Hill-side, 'I think things might have
gone much worse with me; but now, whether I have done wrong or not, I
have so kind a goodwife, she never has a word to say against anything
that I do.'

'Oh!' answered his neighbour, 'I hear what you say, but I don't
believe it for all that.'

'Shall we lay a bet upon it?' asked Gudbrand on the Hill-side. 'I