If you don?t mind I would like to tell you a tale about a man named Günther. It?s set at the dawn of the fourteenth century, in the late dark ages of Europe. There is no morale, but why should there be any.
The story begins near Mannheim. There is were Günther?s father spend his whole life working in the vineyards of Duke Alexander. Of his three sons, Günther worried him the most. Mainly because from his birth, Günther despised any hard labour, or actually, any labour. When he grew up he seemed to have no real talents, he wasn?t good at any useful craft, didn?t knew how to handle a sword. Now, though his father predicted his eldest son a tough future, he loved him. But at one Sunday morning Günther was found by his father, who was heading for church with his two younger sons, in a haystack. This wasn?t unusual, Günther liked to ?borrow? some of the Duke?s wine and enjoy himself with it. But this morning there was a young lady in his arms; no one else but one of Duke Alexander?s daughters. Günther?s father feared for his son and himself if the Duke would ever find out, so it was time, he said, that Günther would start to follow his own way.
Like any teenager at that time, Günther doubted between the penniless existence of a travelling entertainer and the boring life of a monk. Of course he chose the second. But his days in the monastery of Magdenburg were short. Not because he was lazy, no, Catholics consider being lazy rather as a virtue than a vice. But because prior Herman really couldn?t forgive Günther when he was found once again at Sunday morning, with next to him empty bottles of church wine. So the monks kicked him out.
Luckily for Günther, that same day, he found a companion of travelling artists. These folks travelled the Holy Roman Empire from town to town to make a living by performing. Günther didn?t really have an act, but travelled along anyway.
A few days later they got invited to entertain the court of the king of Pfalz. It would be the first performance in which Günther would participate. The king, King Ludwig, was known to be a great algebra fanatic, he named his favourite dog Pythagoras.
When Günther had the floor to do his act the people of the court looked at him with great anticipation. Günther was a bit tipsy by the free wine in the castle, so he was able to come up with an act.
?My dear King, I?ll entertain thee by allowing thee to ask me one of thy great riddles.?
This was stupid, but the king thought ?ah well, what the frog?.
?Splendid, splendid.?
The king frowned his beard and smiled, showing he came up with a very difficult riddle.
?Yes, answer this to me. A bishop with a thousand ducats wants to spend all his ducats on land. These pieces of land are hundred of ducats a piece. How many can the bishop buy??
The king grins, knowing no one has the wisdom to answer this riddle.
?Well Your Majesty??
Günther of course doesn?t know the answer but than he suddenly realises?
?You?re making me count, King??
?Yes, yes, splendid.?
?You made me count with a large sum of ducats??
?Haha.?
?You made me count!?
?Ha, yes!?
?King!?
?Count!?
And this is how Günther became the wealthy Count von Lübeck.
Though he died two years later in Lombardia. He was in Milan when that town got besieged by the Bourgeons. When the town starved he snuck out of the gates, to the camp of the enemy, where he was found the next morning, on a Sunday, with the general?s wine.
But what a nice fellow he was.
