Free The Strange Tale of the Snake Ring by John Holroyd

see them punished.
    So he said to the robbers, “You are right in thinking that ring is worth a great deal of money, and I am willing to pay you the proper price for it. But I do not keep such a large sum of money here in my workshop. So I suggest that you come back as soon as I open my workshop tomorrow morning. I will bring a large bag of gold pieces, and we can agree on the price.”
    The robbers looked at one another as though they were uncertain what to do. Then the goldsmith went behind his counter and brought out five gold pieces. He handed Zwerg the ring, and said, “Take back the ring for the present and take this money on account. It is enough to buy you a very good meal and a comfortable night in the best room at the inn. Then in the morning we will do business together.”
    Zwerg took the ring. Both the robbers looked greedily at the gold, and they thought about good food and wine, and a comfortable bed. “We agree,” said Riese, picking up the gold.
    â€œTill the morning, then,” added Zwerg, as they left the goldsmith’s workshop.
    â€œThat was a good idea,” said Riese, as they set off towards the inn.
    â€œPerhaps it was,” replied Zwerg, “but what if the goldsmith suspects us? What if we arrive there in the morning and he has guards hiding in the back room?”
    â€œWhat if he has?” asked Riese. “I can deal with a few guards. It would take twenty men to capture me!”
    â€œI have a better idea,” said Zwerg. “This is what we do. At the inn tonight, we find out where the goldsmith lives. Then, early tomorrow morning, before it is light, we creep out of the inn and steal two horses from the stables. Then we go to the goldsmith’s house. We break in and take his gold, and ride off before anyone else is awake.”
    â€œThat’s brilliant!” said Riese admiringly. “I wish I had brains like you.”
    â€œAnd I wish that I was strong like you,” said Zwerg. “But together we make a good pair.”
    The goldsmith had made sure that he had given the robbers enough money to eat and drink well. In fact, they drank a little too well, so that it was not long before they were both in a deep sleep. Riese was snoring loudly.
    The goldsmith did not go home when he locked up his workshop. He went to the house of the chief magistrate of the town. He explained about the visit from the robbers, and why he thought that the ring was stolen.
    â€œWhere are they now?” asked the magistrate.
    â€œI gave them money for food and a night’s lodging at the inn,” replied the goldsmith, “and I should be very surprised if they are not there at this moment.”
    â€œI am very interested in these two men,” said the magistrate. “We have had reports for some time now of two robbers, one big and strong, and the other small and wiry, who have been preying on travellers as they passed through the forest. We have never been able to discover where they hide, deep in the forest. If these are the same men, they must be captured at once. There is a valuable reward for information leading to their arrest.”
    The magistrate then sent for the captain of the guard, and explained to him that the robbers were at the inn, and must be captured. “If they still have the ring, we could arrest them for possessing stolen property. Then we could find other witnesses who would recognise them.”
    â€œIf the big robber is so strong,” said the captain, “it would be best to creep into the inn at midnight and take them while they are asleep.”
    The goldsmith went home to his supper and a peaceful sleep, but for the robbers it was quite different. The captain and six guards moved quietly up the stairs of the inn. The captain held a shaded lantern, and by its light two guards stood by Riese’s head, and two by his feet, while the other two stood by Zwerg. The captain gave the order to begin, and five