M206. Half reward, ATU 1610.
.11.12.14.-.17.21.27.-.31.
A guard (nobleman) agrees to let a person through to a powerful character on the condition that he gives him half of the expected reward. The latter asks for a beating as a reward or initially expected it.
Swahili, Fulani, Berbers of Morocco, Algeria, Arabs of Egypt, Spaniards, Aragon, Italians (Tuscany), Irish, Flemings, Dutch, Frisians, Germans (Westphalia, Mecklenburg, Pomerania, East Prussia, Switzerland, Austria), Arabic written tradition, Palestinians, Arabs of Syria, Tibetans, Slovenes, Serbs, Romanians, Hungarians, Bulgarians, Greeks, Slovaks, Czechs, Poles, Russians (Pomors: Winter Coast of the White Sea; Ryazan), Ukrainians (Transcarpathia, Eastern Slovakia, Hutsulshchyna, Podolia, Ekaterinoslav), Belarusians, Georgians, Turks, Persians, Uzbeks, Latvians, Lithuanians, Estonians, Finns, Swedes, Danes, Faroese.
Bantu-speaking Africa. Swahili [Abunuwas wants to buy a donkey; goes to ask his friend Garn al-Rashid for money; the gatekeeper lets him in on condition that A. gives him half of what he gets from the king; they make a written contract; asks the king for a hundred blows; having received 50, shows a receipt; the gatekeeper receives 50]: Klipple 1992, no. 1610: 307 (retelling of the same text with different details, or of a similar text in Arewa 1980, no. 3765: 202).
West Africa. Fulani [the king asks his servant whether he is laughing at him or at the vizier; the servant: at a story he heard yesterday; the king sends for the storyteller; the servant demands that he promise to give him two-thirds of what he will receive from the king; but the king does not like the stories of the visitor and orders him to be flogged until he cries out; the storyteller: but two-thirds of this reward must go to the servant; when both are beaten, the king finally laughs and gives both gold]: Klipple 1992, no. 1610: 307-308.
North Africa. Berbers of Morocco , Algeria , Arabs of Egypt : El-Shamy 2004, no. 1960: 875.
Southern Europe. Spaniards (Murcia) [a king's subject has obtained an audience, but in order to get in to see the king he is forced to promise each of the four guards successively a quarter of the reward he will receive; the man asks for 200 blows, each receives 50; the man is also given money]: Hernández Fernández 2013, no. 1610: 244; Aragon [a man comes to the palace expecting to be punished; those who let him in believe that the man will receive a reward and demand a share for themselves; in the end, the punishment the man has received goes to the officials]: González Sanz 1996, no. 1610: 126-127; Italians (Tuscany): Cirese, Serafini 1975, no. 1610: 353.
Western Europe. Germans (from the von Haxthausen family, Westphalia) [a peasant sold a cow for 7 thalers; a frog in a pond croaks; he thought they said "two (thalers"); he threw money into the pond - let them count it; after a while he goes to sell beef; a dog barks, he leaves it some meat so that it can bring him the money in three days: he knows who it serves; there is no money, the peasant went to complain to the king; when he told her, the princess burst out laughing; the king: I promised to give her in marriage to whoever makes her laugh; the peasant: I already have a wife; the king is angry: come in three days, I will give another reward, I will give him the full 500; the soldier hears, asks for 200 to be given to him, the peasant agrees; the Jew offers to change the money; the peasant agrees, but that he give it to him immediately; he gave him worthless change; when a peasant came to the king, they want to beat him, but he objects: he already gave 200 to a soldier, and 300 to a Jew; the king allows the peasant to take from the treasury as much as he wants; at home the peasant cannot count the money, grumbles; the beaten Jew overheard, reported that the peasant spoke disrespectfully of the sovereign; the peasant finds it inconvenient to go to court to the king in old clothes; the Jew lent his; peasant: the Jew keeps lying - maybe he will say that I am wearing his clothes? the Jew was beaten again, his clothes remained with the peasant]: Grimm, Grimm 2002, No. 7: 26-29 (=Grimm, Grimm 1987: 24-28); Germans (East Prussia) [a peasant went to sell a cow and received seven thalers for it; on the way back he hears frogs croaking in the pond; it seemed to him that they were crying "eight"; He began to argue, and then threw money in front of him: count it yourself if you do not believe him; then he slaughtered another cow, took it to sell the meat; he met wolves and threw the meat to them: let them pay 300 thalers in three days; no one paid, the peasant went to complain to the king; the princess never laughs; when she heard the peasant's story, she burst out laughing; the king: I have promised her hand in marriage to anyone who makes her laugh; the peasant: thank you, I have a wife; the king: he can go to the treasury and take as much as his pockets will fit; but if you come again, you will get 500; the king meant whips, but the peasant thought talers; leaving the treasury, he told the guard everything; he asked for 200 to be given to him; he promised 300 to the Jewish creditor; both came for their money and received whips; the Jew complained about the peasant; when he went to the king, he borrowed a frock coat from the Jew; {a confused story, but the peasant replies that the Jew is lying: I am wearing his coat}]: Lemke 1887, no. 54: 251–254; Germans (Mecklenburg, Pomerania, Switzerland, Austria), Dutch , Frisians , Flemings , Irish : Uther 2004(2), no. 1960: 329.
Western Asia. Arabic written tradition [this subject is found in Masudi and later in the Thousand and One Nights]: Liungman 1961, no. 1610: 315; Palestinians , Arabs of Syria : El-Shamy 2004, no. 1960: 875.
Tibet – North-East of India. Tibetans [the ruler loved fish, and the rivers had dried up during the drought; he promised a reward for the fish; a peasant caught a fish in a nearly dried-up pond and went to the palace; a one-eyed guard let him through on the condition that he give him half the reward; his name is One-Eyed Yak; the peasant asked the ruler for 1,000 blows with a stick; after the five hundredth, the peasant ordered him to stop and give the rest to OYA; he was also beaten, and then the ruler gave both of them 500 gold pieces]: Komissarov 1997: 215-218.
The Balkans. Romanians [Nicolae was taken into service; when the king visited a military unit, he was hidden in a ravine as an uncouth country bumpkin; on his return home, they laugh at him for not having seen the king; the king got lost, fell into the hands of robbers, and called himself a horse trader; N. came there and began to tell him about his service; the robbers asked him to train them; N. lined them up and killed them all with one bullet; gave the king (I don’t know who it was) two slaps in the face for smoking in the ranks; the king returned and ordered N. to be found and brought; the footman lets him see the king on the condition that he give him half of the gift; the king gives N. two slaps (but also money); N. gives one slap to the footman; the king asks N., who answers: how long is it from sunrise to sunset (day), how far is it to the next world (far, no one has returned yet) and to the sky (not far: clouds have gathered and it will rain right away); the king warned him not to tell his answers to others and asked the same questions to officers of different ranks; the sergeant advised him to ask N., who sold the answers for money; the king asked why he had disobeyed his order; N.: I only plucked four geese; at N.'s wedding the king was the godfather]: Bîrlea 1966: 470-471; Bulgarians [The cunning Peter brings the king an old gold coin; the gatekeeper lets him in only after he promises him half the reward; HP asks the king for a hundred blows with a regiment; having received 50, he tells about his promise; receives one hundred gold pieces, and the gatekeeper – 50 blows with a stick]: Daskalova-Perkovska et al. 1994, no. 1610: 510; Slovenes , Serbs , Greeks : Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329.
Central Europe. Slovaks [a count lost a ring; a poor man found it; a Jew, then a guard demand half the reward that the poor man will receive from the count; the poor man asks for 24 blows on the bottom; the Jew gets 12 and the guard 12; upon learning of this, the count offers an additional reward; the poor man asks for an old nag and an old saddle, but that the deed of gift be drawn up in writing; the poor man gets the Old Saddle platform]: Gašparíková 1993, no. 281: 203 (on the same subject nos. 118, 213: 81, 144); Czechs : Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329; Poles [a peasant, whom a soldier (courtier) does not allow to see the king, promises him half the reward he will receive; [they ask the king for sticks, half goes to the soldier]: Krzyżanowski 1963, no. 1610: 101; Russians (Arkhangelsk: probably Zimniy Bereg Belogo Morya, Lipets 1950, no. 6: 174; Ryazan), Ukrainians (Transcarpathia, Eastern Slovakia, Hutsulshchyna, Podolia, Yekaterinoslav), Belarusians [ Division of a reward : a peasant promises a soldier (minister, general), if he takes him to the tsar (master), to divide the reward with him in half; the tsar orders the peasant to be flogged; the soldier receives half of the blows]: SUS 1979, no. 1610: 335.
Caucasus – Asia Minor. Georgians [peasant promises palace servant half the reward if he lets him through to the king; asks king to hit him twice in the face; servant receives half]: Kurdovanidze 2000, no. 1610: 99; Turks (Istanbul): Kúnos 1906: 211ff in Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329.
Iran – Central Asia. Persians : Marzolph 1992.II, no. 351 in Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329; Uzbeks [from anecdotes about Khoja Nasreddin]: Stein 1991, no. 44 in Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329.
Baltoscandia. Lithuanians : Balys 1936, no. 1610: 140; Latvians [a peasant promises a soldier to share the reward promised by the king with him; the soldier receives a flogging]: Arijs, Medne 1977, no. 1610: 362; Estonians : Aarne 1918, no. 1610: 96; Swedes [the Swedish version itself is not retold, but a reference is made to the story of the Jew and the Caliph]: Liungman 1961, no. 1610: 315; Danes , Faroese : Uther 2004(2), no. 1610: 329.