Student's Book - Page 89 - 2

Student’s Book - Page 89 - 2

Read, listen and check your answers.

A clever woman

Marlowe was the richest man in the village.

One evening, three men knocked at his door. They were tired and wanted a bed for the night. ‘You can sleep in the stable.’ said Marlowe, ‘and my servant will bring you some soup.” The strangers said thank you and went to the stable. In the middle of the night, one of the men got up quietly. He took a rope and tied it round a cow’s neck. He led the cow into a forest and tied it to a tree. ‘I’ll get the cow in the morning and sell her in the market,’ he thought.

Next morning, the servant went to milk the cows. When he saw that one cow was missing he went to tell Marlowe. Marlowe wk went to the stable.’Did you steal one of my cows?’ he asked. ‘Of course not.’ the three men answered. We were asleep all night.’

Marlowe told his wife about the cow. ‘I’m sure that one of the three men stole the cow.’ She said. ‘I have a plan.’

They went to the stable and she said. ‘We have a very clever dog called Barney. He will show us who stole the cow. Go into the room where Barney is, and stroke him. When the thief strokes Barney’s fur the dog will bark.’

The first man went into the room. The dog didn’t make a sound. The second man went in. The dog didn’t make a sound.

Finally the third man went in.

The dog still didn’t make a sound. ‘Did you all stroke the dog’s fur?’ asked the woman. Yes.” they said. Then Marlowe’s wife asked to smell the hand that each man used to stroke the dog. She smelled them in turn. When she got to the third man, she said, ‘You are the thief. Our dog Barney is very smelly. Your friends’ hands smell of Barney. Your hand doesn’t. You didn’t stroke Barney’s fur because you were afraid that Barney would bark. Now tell us where the cow is.