It is also related that once when Red-Cap was again taking cakes to the
old grandmother, another wolf spoke to her, and tried to entice her
from the path. Red-Cap, however, was on her guard, and went straight
forward on her way, and told her grandmother that she had met the wolf,
and that he had said “good-morning” to her, but with such a wicked look
in his eyes, that if they had not been on the public road she was
certain he would have eaten her up. “Well,” said the grandmother, “we
will shut the door, that he may not come in.” Soon afterwards the wolf
knocked, and cried, “Open the door, grandmother, I am little Red-Cap,
and am fetching you some cakes.” But they did not speak, or open the
door, so the grey-beard stole twice or thrice round the house, and at
last jumped on the roof, intending to wait until Red-Cap went home in
the evening, and then to steal after her and devour her in the
darkness. But the grandmother saw what was in his thoughts. In front of
the house was a great stone trough, so she said to the child, “Take the
pail, Red-Cap; I made some sausages yesterday, so carry the water in
which I boiled them to the trough.” Red-Cap carried until the great
trough was quite full. Then the smell of the sausages reached the wolf,
and he sniffed and peeped down, and at last stretched out his neck so
far that he could no longer keep his footing and began to slip, and
slipped down from the roof straight into the great trough, and was
drowned. But Red-Cap went joyously home, and never did anything to harm
any one.
27 The Bremen Town-Musicians
A certain man had a donkey, which had carried the corn-sacks to the
mill indefatigably for many a long year; but his strength was going,
and he was growing more and more unfit for work. Then his master began
to consider how he might best save his keep; but the donkey, seeing
that no good wind was blowing, ran away and set out on the road to
Bremen. “There,” he thought, “I can surely be town-musician.” When he
had walked some distance, he found a hound lying on the road, gasping
like one who had run till he was tired. “What are you gasping so for,
you big fellow?” asked the donkey.
“Ah,” replied the hound, “as I am old, and daily grow weaker, and no
longer can hunt, my master wanted to kill me, so I took to flight; but
now how am I to earn my bread?”
“I tell you what,” said the donkey, “I am going to Bremen, and shall be
town-musician there; go with me 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 the path, with a face like
three rainy days! “Now then, old shaver, what has gone askew with you?”
asked the donkey.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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