musuk

I'm off

A donkey working at a mill for years was now growing old and unfit for work.

The miller began to think of putting an end to him.

But the donkey who noticed that took himself off and started his journey to the big city Bremen.

He wanted to be musician.

On his way he met a dog who was lying tired and sad in front of the farm.

His master was going to kill him because he was no longer useful to him in hunting.

I'm tired

The donkey said "Come on, we are going to Bremen for a better life. We can be musicians."

Spot the cat

They had not gone far when they met a cat.

She miaowed. " My Mistress was going to drown me because I'm growing old. I can no longer catch mice."

The donkey and the dog said "Come on, we are going to Bremen for a better life. We can be musicians."

At last they met a cock screaming out with all his might.

He cried. "They will cut off my head tomorrow and make broth of me."

The three said "Come on, we are going to Bremen for a better life. We can be musicians."

They could not reach Bremen the first day.

So when the night came on, they went into a wood to sleep.

The cock flew up to the top of a tree.

Looking out on all sides he saw the light of a house.
They ran to the house and looked inside the window.

They saw a gang of robbers sitting at a table spread with lots of good things.

They made plans how to get the robbers out, because they were hungry and wanted to get the meal.

The dog climbed upon the donkey's back, the cat scrambled up to the dog's shoulders, and the cock flew up and sat upon the cat's hump.

Robbers

At once they started crying

" IA! WOOF WOOF! MIAOW! COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!"
The robbers were scared out of their wits and ran away as fast as they could.

The animals sat down at the table and ate what the robbers had left.

After the meal they went to sleep

The cat rolled herself up on the warm hearth, the dog laid himself behind the door, the donkey laid down on a heap of straw and the cock flew ontop of the house. Soon they fell asleep.

One of the robbers went to see what had frightened them. Finding everything still, he went into the pitch dark house and wanted to light a match. He mistook the glittering eyes of the cat for living coals and held the match to them.

The cat sprang at his face and scratched him. He ran to the back door where the dog bit him in the leg, the donkey kicked him into the face. The cock cried "Throw the rascal up here!" At this the robber ran back into the wood and told

"A witch scratched my face, a man attacked me with a knife and another one hit me with a club, and the judge sat upon the top of the house and wanted to hang me."

After that the robbers never dared to go back to their house.
Donkey, dog, cat and cock continued their way to Bremen and became famous artists - The Travelling Musicians from Bremen.