The Bremen Town Musicians

A man had a donkey that had carried heavy sacks to the mill for many years.Now the donkey was old and weak, and the man did not want to feed him any longer.So the donkey ran away. “I will go to Bremen and become a town musician,” he said.

On the road he found a dog lying in the grass, panting as if he had run a long way.“I am too old to hunt now, and my master wanted to be rid of me,” the dog said.“Come to Bremen and make music with me,” said the donkey, and the dog got up and followed.

Soon they met a cat by the road with a face as sad as three rainy days.“My teeth are blunt now, and the people at home have no more use for me,” she said.“Come with us to Bremen,” said the donkey. “You were made for night music.”

They walked on and passed a farm, where a rooster was crowing with all his might.“Guests are coming tomorrow, and the cook wants me in the soup,” the rooster cried.“Come away to Bremen instead,” said the donkey. “A voice like yours is worth hearing.”

Bremen was still far off when night fell, so the rooster flew up a tree to look for shelter.He saw a light nearby: a house where a band of robbers sat at a table full of food and money.The donkey put his feet on the sill, the dog climbed on his back, the cat on the dog, and the rooster on top of them all.

At a sign they all began at once — braying, barking, meowing, and crowing — and crashed through the window.The robbers were sure a monster had come and ran into the wood, and the four friends sat down and ate their fill.Later one robber crept back in the dark, but the cat scratched him, the dog bit him, the donkey kicked him, and the rooster crowed from the roof — so the robbers never returned, and the four musicians liked the house so well that they never left for Bremen at all.