The Boy and the Leprechaun

The Irish say that if you are very quiet and careful, you can catch a leprechaun. Then if you ask him, he must tell you where he has put his gold. Leprechauns must always tell the truth. But they are very smart, so watch out.

One Irish story tells about a boy who went into the woods to look for a leprechaun. Finally, he caught a little old leprechaun. He held him tightly in his hand. The leprechaun angrily shouted, "Let me go!"

"First, tell me where you hide your gold," said the boy.

The leprechaun had to tell. He took the boy deep into the woods. He touched one of the trees. "My gold is hidden under this tree," said the leprechaun.

The boy was very, very excited. He wanted to hurry home to get a shovel to dig for the gold. But he thought, how will I remember which tree it is?

The boy had a yellow scarf around his neck. He took it off and tied it around the tree. That way, he would be sure to find the tree again.

"Now let me go!" said the leprechaun.

"First, promise that you won't take this yellow scarf off the tree," said the boy.

The leprechaun said, "I promise." The boy let the leprechaun go.

The boy was so happy! He was sure that he would be rich very soon. He ran home as fast as he could. He found a shovel and ran back into the woods. He was sure he could find the tree with the yellow scarf around it.

What a surprise he got! Deep in the woods, every tree had a yellow scarf around it. They all looked the same. He would never be able to find the tree with the leprechaun's gold.