“Thus, or the like, thought almost each of the faithful ministers and with eager faces they looked again at the two envoys.

“Noble Sirs,” continued the two soldiers, ”the prince asks you to demand from his father-in-law for an introductory dowry to start with, twelve golden rams with twelve golden ewes and twelve golden lambs; this demand is meant to create with the father-in-law a feeling of the immeasurable wealth of his son-in-law and of the prosperity of his country.”

“The ministers were shocked: an introductory dowry - just to start a great shower of gifts: twelve golden rams with twelve golden ewes and twelve golden lambs!
Some such thing the worried ministers indeed had not seen since quite a long time - or rather, on thinking about it, not at all.

“This king, whoever he may be, had to be immeasurably wealthy if the prince felt obliged to make such demands; ”for an introductory dowryi - such a name or expression they had never heard before.

“About the claim as to the immeasurable riches of their country they did not want to think at all.

“So what next? Again they looked at the two delegates full of expectation.
“Noble Sirs,” the two soldiers continued, ”the prince asks you, after the arrival of the introductory dowry of the twelve golden rams with twelve golden ewes and twelve golden lambs, to demand from his father-in-law first of all twelve golden bulls with twelve golden cows and twelve golden calves as a preparatory main dowry so that the king would be confirmed in his impression of the immeasurable riches of his son-in-law.”

“The ministers were shocked again.
In the assembly hall the air stood still for a moment; everyone held their breath; even the clocks, those uncorruptible pace-makers and unerring witnesses of the sessions, stopped during that important time to measure the unescapable and stood still. ”As a preparatory main dowry: twelve golden bulls - and in addition to that twelve golden cows - and above that twelve golden calves!

“What was the main dowry of the bride then going to look like?
The prince really knows what he wants; main preparatory dowry or preparatory main dowry - well, itis all the same anyway!”

“Thus thought the ministers and again they looked refreshed at the two envoys, full of expectations.

“Noble Sirs,” the two soldiers continued, ”the serene prince of your country asks you kindly, as main dowry,” and the two held their breath and looked around like great heroes after winning the battle - and again everything stood still and not the slightest breeze stirred the air all around - ”as main dowryi the ministers read again from their sonorous lips that shone almost like the purest gold, ”but also in appreciation of your esteemed efforts for the prosperity of the country - during the absence of His Highness, the Prince - and in appreciation of the many achievements of the different ministries with all their departmentsi - now it became suddenly hot and cold in the hall as if summer and winter came marching in simultaneously - ”to demand additionally from his father-in-law: gold, silver, and precious stones in such quantity as twelve thousand elephants, fifty thousand camels, seventy thousand asses and one hundred and eight thousand horses cannot carry them without employing machines that have to be built on purpose for the transport of this main dowry; we repeat again:

“Gold, silver, and precious stones in such quantity as twelve thousand elephants, fifty thousand camels, seventy thousand asses, and one hundred and eight thousand horses cannot - we repeat: cannot - carry them without employing the machines that have to be built on purpose for the transport of this main dowry.”

“Immediately the ministers decided to place the two ambassadors in high positions and to honour them duly.

“One small thing,” the two soldiers finished their report, ”a mere trifle of insignificance - so to say from a very personal human interest, His Highness, the Prince is asking you, noble Sirs - so that he is reminded of the good old days of the rule of the king when he comes in his procession: that you may arrange an insignificant detail for him privately, namely the well - you know, that well in the courtyard of the palace - be made available to everyone equally so that its milk may expand all over the country again.”