The Bremen Town Musicians

The Old Donkey Runs Away

Once there was a donkey who had carried heavy sacks of grain to the mill for many long years. But the donkey had grown old, and his strength was failing. When the donkey heard his master grumbling that an old animal who could not work was nothing but a waste of food, he understood that hard days were coming.

So one morning the donkey ran away. "I will go to the town of Bremen," he said to himself, "and there I will become a town musician. My voice is loud and strong, and surely that is good enough for music."

Friends on the Road

The donkey had not gone far when he saw a dog lying by the roadside, panting as if he had run a long way.

"Why so out of breath, friend?" asked the donkey.

"Ah," sighed the dog. "I have grown too old to hunt, and my master had no more use for me. So I ran off — but now what is to become of me?"

"Come with me to Bremen," said the donkey. "I am going to be a musician. You can join the band and beat the drum." The dog thought this was a fine idea, and the two went on together.

Before long they came upon a cat sitting by the path with a face as gloomy as three rainy days.

"What troubles you, old whiskers?" asked the donkey.

"I am too slow now to catch mice," said the cat, "and my mistress wished to be rid of me. So I have run away, but I do not know where to go."

"Come to Bremen with us and make music," said the donkey. "You sing beautifully at night — you will fit right in." So the cat joined them, and now they were three.

Soon they passed a farmyard where a rooster sat upon the gate, crowing with all his might.

"What a racket!" laughed the donkey. "What is the matter?"

"The cook says I am to be the soup for Sunday's dinner," cried the rooster, "so I am crowing while I still can!"

"Better to come away with us," said the donkey. "You have a splendid voice — far too good to waste on a soup pot. Join our band!" And so the rooster flew down, and now they were four.

A Light in the Forest

The four friends could not reach Bremen in a single day, so when night fell they stopped in a forest to rest. The donkey and the dog lay down beneath a tall tree, the cat climbed into the branches, and the rooster flew right to the very top to keep watch.

From up high, the rooster spotted a tiny light glowing far off through the trees.

"There must be a house over yonder," he called down. "I can see a light."

"Then let us go to it," said the donkey. "This forest floor is hard and cold." So off they trudged toward the glow, and soon they came to a snug little house — but it was no ordinary house. It was the hideout of a band of robbers, who sat inside at a table groaning with food and treasure.

The Wall of Noise

The hungry animals crept up and peeked through the window at the feast. They wanted that warm room and that good food very much, but how could four tired old animals drive out a gang of robbers?

At last they made a plan. The donkey stood with his front hooves on the windowsill. The dog climbed onto the donkey's back. The cat scrambled onto the dog. And the rooster flapped up to perch on top of the cat. They made a tall, swaying tower of animals at the window.

Then, all at once, the donkey brayed, the dog barked, the cat yowled, and the rooster crowed — a sound so sudden and so dreadful that it seemed the whole world had burst apart. With a great crash they tumbled through the window into the room.

The robbers leaped up in terror. They were sure some fearful monster had come to get them, and they fled into the dark forest as fast as their legs could carry them, leaving everything behind.

A Home of Their Own

The four friends sat down at the table and ate the robbers' supper as though they had not eaten for a month. Then, full and content, they put out the light and each found a cosy place to sleep — the donkey on the soft hay outside, the dog by the door, the cat by the warm hearth, and the rooster up on a high beam.

Late that night, one brave robber crept back to see if the house was safe. In the dark he stepped on the cat, who scratched him; the dog bit his leg; the donkey kicked him; and the rooster crowed "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" from the rafters. The robber ran back to his gang crying that the house was full of monsters, and the robbers never dared return.

As for the four old animals, they found they liked their new home so well that they never went on to Bremen at all. They lived there together, safe and happy, for the rest of their days — and so far as anyone knows, they are living there still.

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The moral: No one is too old or too small to matter, and friends who stand together can face dangers far greater than themselves. There is strength in kindness and in working as one.

Want more world folktales? Try The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse or The Elves and the Shoemaker next.