Have you caught nothing today?" the woman asked her husband.
"No," said the man. "I did catch a flounder who said he was an enchanted prince, so I let him go again."
"Did you not wish for anything first?" asked the woman.
"No," said the man. "What should I wish for?"
"Ah," said the woman, "it is surely hard to have to live always in this dirty hovel; you might have wished for a small cottage for us. Go back and call him. Tell him we want to have a small cottage; he will certainly give us that."
"Ah," said the man, "why should I go there again?"
"Well," said the woman, "you did catch him, and you let him go again; he is sure to do it. Go at once.