like the pockets of a
thief in the orchard; but all the time he kept tight hold of his staff,
I can tell you.

When he had as much as his pockets could hold, he thanked the little
manikin and went his way, and the stone door closed behind him.

And now Claus lived like a calf in the green corn-field. Everything he
had was of the best, and he had twice as much of that as any of the
neighbors. Then how brother Hans stared and scratched his head and
wondered, when he saw how Claus sat in the sun all day, doing nothing
but smoking his pipe and eating of the best, as though he were a born
prince! Every day Claus went to the little man in the hill with his
pockets empty, and came back with them stuffed with gold and silver
money. At last he had so much that he could not count it, and so he had
to send over to brother Hans for his quart-pot, so that he might measure
it.

But Hans was cunning. "I will see what makes brother Claus so well-off
in the world all of a sudden," said he; so he smeared the inside of the
quart-pot with bird-lime.

Then Claus measured his gold and silver money in Hans's quart-pot, and
when he was done with it he sent it back again. But more went back with
the quart-pot than came with it, for two gold-pieces stuck to the
birdlime, and it was these that went back with the pot to brother Hans.

[Illustration: Hans discovers Claus's Luck]

"What!" cried Hans, "has that stupid Claus found so much money that he
has to measure it in a quart-pot? We must see the inside of this
business!" So off he went to Claus's house, and there he found Claus
sitting in the sun and smoking his pipe, just as though he owned all of
the world.

"Where did you get all that money, Claus?" said Hans.

Oh! Claus could not tell him that.

But Hans was bound to know all about it, so he begged and begged so
prettily that at last Claus had to tell him everything. Then, of course,
nothing would do but Hans must have a try with the hazel staff also.

Well, Claus made no words at that. He was a good-natured fellow, and
surely there was enough for both. So the upshot of the matter was that
Hans marched off with the hazel staff.

But Hans was no such simpleton as Claus; no, not he. Oh no, he would
not take all that trouble for two poor pocketfuls of money. He would
have a bagful; no, he would have _two_ bagfuls. So he slung two meal
sacks over his shoulder, and off he started for the hill back of Herr
Axel's house.

When he c