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88thpp.com
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The Bremen Town Musicians.
A certain man had a donkey, which had carried thecorn sacks to the mill indefatigably for many along year, but his strength was going, and he wasgrowing more and more unfit for work.
Then his master began to consider how he mightbest save his keep, but the donkey, seeing that nogood wind was blowing, ran away and set out on theroad to Bremen.
There, he thought, I can surely be town musician.When he had walked some distance, he found a houndlying on the road, gasping like one who had runtill he was tired.
What are you gasping so for, you big fellow? askedthe donkey.
Ah, replied the hound, as I am old, and daily growweaker, and no longer can hunt, my master wantedto kill me, so I took to flight, but now how am Ito earn my bread?
I tell you what, said the donkey, I am going toBremen, and shall be town musician there, go withme and engage yourself also as a musician.
I will play the lute, and you shall beat the kettledrum. The hound agreed, and on they went.
Before long they came to a cat, sitting on thepath, with a face like three rainy days.
Now then, old shaver, what is gone ask you withyou? asked the donkey.
Who can be merry when his neck is in danger?answered the cat.
Because I am now getting old, and my teeth areworn to stumps, and I prefer to sit by the fireand spin,
rather than hunt about after mice, my mistresswanted to drown me, so I ran away. But now goodadvice is scarce.
Where am I to go? Go with us to Bremen. Youunderstand night music, you can be a townmusician.
The cat thought well of it, and went with them.After this the three fugitives came to a farmyard,
where the cock was sitting upon the gate, crowingwith all his might.
Your crow goes through and through one, said thedonkey. What is the matter?
I have been foretelling fine weather, because itis the day on which our lady washes the Christ
child's little shirts, and wants to dry them, saidthe cock, but guests are coming for Sunday,
so the housewife has no pity, and has told thecook that she intends to eat me in the soup
tomorrow, and this evening I am to have my headcut off. Now I am crowing at full pitch while Ican.
Ah, but red comb, said the donkey, you had bettercome away with us. We are going to Bremen,
you can find something better than deatheverywhere, you have a good voice,
and if we make music together it must have somequality. The cock agreed to this plan,
and all four went on together. They could not,however, reach the city of Bremen in one day,
and in the evening they came to a forest wherethey meant to pass the night. The donkey and the
hound laid themselves down under a large tree, thecat and the cock settled themselves in the
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branches, but the cock flew right to the top,where he was most safe. Before he went to sleep
he looked round on all four sides, and thought hesaw in the distance a little spark burning,
so he called out to his companions that there mustbe a house not far off, for he saw a light.
The donkey said, if so, we had better get up andgo on, for the shelter here is bad.
The hound thought that a few bones with some meaton would do him good too.
So they made their way to the place where thelight was, and soon saw it shine brighter and
grow larger, until they came to a well-lighted robber's house. The donkey, as the biggest,
went to the window and looked in.
What do you see, my grey horse? asked the cock.
What do I see? answered the donkey, a tablecovered with good things to eat and drink,
and robbers sitting at it enjoying themselves.That would be the sort of thing for us,
said the cock. Yes, yes, ah, how I wish we werethere! said the donkey.
Then the animals took counsel together how theyshould manage to drive away the robbers,
and at last they thought of a plan. The donkey wasto place himself with his four feet upon the
window ledge, the hound was to jump on the donkey's back, the cat was to climb upon the dog,
and lastly the cock was to fly up and perch uponthe head of the cat.
When this was done, at a given signal, they beganto perform their music together,
the donkey brayed, the hound barked, the cat mewed, and the cock crowed,
then they burst through the window into the room,so that the glass clattered.
At this horrible din, the robbers sprang up,thinking no otherwise than that a ghost had
come in, and fled in a great fright out into theforest. The four companions now sat down at the
table, well content with what was left, and ate asif they were going to fast for a month.
As soon as the four minstrels had done, they putout the light, and each sought for himself a
sleeping-place according to his nature and to whatsuited him. The donkey laid himself down
upon some straw in the yard, the hound behind thedoor, the cat upon the hearth near the warm ashes,
and the cock perched himself upon a beam of theroof, and being tired from their long walk,
they soon went to sleep. When it was pastmidnight, and the robbers saw from afar that
the light was no longer burning in their house,and all appeared quiet, the captain said,
we ought not to have let ourselves be frightenedout of our wits, and ordered one of them to go and
examine the house. The messenger finding allstill, went into the kitchen to light a candle,
and, taking the glistening fiery eyes of the catfor live coals, he held a lucifer match to them to
light it. But the cat did not understand the joke,and flew in his face, spitting and scratching.
He was dreadfully frightened, and ran to the backdoor, but the dog, who lay there sprang up
and bit his leg, and as he ran across the yard bythe straw heap, the donkey gave him a smart kick
with its hind foot. The cock, too, who had beenawakened by the noise, and had become lively,
cried down from the beam, cock-a-doodle-doo. Thenthe robber ran back as fast as he could do
his captain, and said, ah, there is a horriblewitch sitting in the house, who spat on me and
scratched my face with her long claws, and by thedoor stands a man with a knife, who stabbed me in
the leg, and in the yard there lies a blackmonster, who beat me with a wooden club, andabove,
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upon the roof, sits the judge, who called out,bring the rogue here to me.
So I got away as well as I could. After this therobbers did not trust themselves in the house
again, but it suited the four musicians of Bremenso well that they did not care to leave it any
more. And the mouth of him who last told thisstory is still warm.
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