The king comes to see it.

Gretchen Huss, daughter and heiress.

Paul Hoch, young neighbor, suitor for Gretchen's hand--ostensibly; he really wants the manure.
Hoch has a good many cart-loads of the Black Forest currency himself, and therefore is a good catch; but he is sordid, mean, and without sentiment, whereas Gretchen is all sentiment and poetry.

Hans Schmidt, young neighbor, full of sentiment, full of poetry, loves Gretchen, Gretchen loves him.

But he has no manure.