Two Pails of Water

This tale is an exquisitely comic bit of folly. All is at sixes and sevens in the village square, where Alphonso Goldpurse yearns to marry the constable's daughter, Simplina, and Dophilius, the shoemaker, pines for the constable's other daughter, Sandra. But Simplina's affections are directed to Dolphilius, while Sandra is drawn to Mr. Goldpurse. And in any case, their father refuses to allow his daughters to marry, since he needs them to do all his work so he can sleep. Into this scene comes Hoddell de Boddel, the rag-and-bone man. By a hilarious series of pranks, he convinces the constable that he is seeing things that do not exist—and by further fancy footwork he persuades the girls that they are the victims of hallucinations, common to unmarried girls. Then he induces the two suitors to swap clothes and exchange places. The resulting situation creates some delicious comedy, while bringing all to rights.