μῦθοι Mythoi
Motif

Herdsman threatens invasion with enormous herds: bought off. He hires himself as herdsman of all his master's flocks for ten years. He then sends notice to surrounding peoples that he is coming with his master's flocks to graze. They bribe him to stay away.

Deceptions. · Deception through shams. · Deception through bluffing. · Other bluffs. · view the constellation · filed as K1784

Cited in the index
  • general *Pauli (ed. Bolte) No. 362.
Within the index

Filed under Other bluffs.

2 finer motifs beneath it
Trickster falsely reports impending invasion from his own people. Receives money to buy them off Adventurer on otherworld island sees great hornless oxen guarded by giant: tries to frighten them. "Why dost thou frighten the stilly calves?" says the huge herdsman. "Where are the dams of these calves?" asks the adventurer. "They are on the other side of yonder mountain," said he. So he went thence
Filed beside it
Bluff: provisions for the swimming match. In a swimming match from a ship the hero takes a knapsack of provisions on his back. His rival is afraid and gives up Bluff: climbing the mast. In a contest in climbing the mast the hero falls into the rigging. "You do the same thing," he challenges. The sailors are persuaded of his expertness Bluff in court: the stone in the purse. A poor man has a stone in his purse to throw at the judge if he is sentenced. The judge thinks that he has money to use as a bribe and acquits him Trickster's boasting scares his powerful opponent from contest Goat singing a threatening song bought off with food and jewels Bluffing threat Pretended anger King persuades men to follow him, pretending that he is going to make peace with his brothers, instead battle Bluff: insult repeated as harmless remark. The trickster makes an insulting remark, but when called on to repeat what he said he changes it so as to turn aside wrath Boast where the master cannot hear. The servant boasts that he has scolded his master When he is looked at too threateningly hero feigns failing ability to go on horseback Threat to build a church in hell. When the man makes this threat, he is let out of hell Bluff: wealth gained by seeming to be in the king's confidence. Courtier asks the king for a reward that will cost nothing. He gets permission to listen to the king's devotions. He now receives bribes because of his apparent influence Shoemaker offers to trim the peasant's feet to fit the shoes. The peasant prefers to accept the ill-fitting shoes Miracle must wait till one man is sacrificed. No one volunteers and it does not need to be performed Bluff: the rare vintages. Host serves many rare vintages and gets a reputation for his wine cellar. But there is only a small jug of each vintage

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