THE COUNTRY MOUSE
AND THE TOWN MOUSE
The Brothers Grimm
Once upon a time . . . a
town mouse, on a trip to the country, met a country mouse. They spent the
day together and became friends. The country mouse took his new friend
into the meadows and vegetable gardens, making him sample all the good
things of the land. Never having seen the beauties of the countryside, the
town mouse was thrilled, though the country mouse's plain food wasn't
nearly as fine as his own usual meals. To thank his friend for the lovely
outing, he invited the country mouse to visit him in the town. And when
the country mouse saw the pantry at his friend's house, full of hams,
cheese, oil, flour, honey, jam and stacks of other goodies, he stood
speechless with surprise.
"I've never seen
anything like it! Are all those wonderful things for eating?"
"Of course!"
came the re-ply. "You're my guest, so tuck in!" They began to
feast, while the country mouse tried not to stuff himself. He wanted to
taste everything before finding his tummy full.
"You're the luckiest
mouse I've ever met!" said the country mouse to his town brother. The
town mouse was listening with delight to his friend's praise, when
suddenly, the sound of heavy footsteps interrupted their feast.
"Run for it!"
whispered the town mouse to his friend. They were just in time: for within
an inch of them stood the lady of the house's large foot. Luckily, the
lady went away and the two mice returned to enjoy their meal, so rudely
interrupted.
"It's all right! Come
on!" said the town mouse. "Don't worry. She's gone. Now for the
honey! It's delicious! Have you ever tasted it?"
"Yes, once, a long
time ago," the country mouse lied, trying to sound casual. But when he
tasted it, he exclaimed: "Scrumptious! By the King of Mice! I've
never eaten anything so lovely in all my life!"
Suddenly there came the
sound of footsteps, this time thumping heavily. The two mice fled. The man
of the house had come to fetch some bottles, and when he saw the spilt
honey, he groaned: "Those ghastly mice again! I thought I've got rid
of them. I'll send the cat!" And trembling with terror, the mice hid
away. This time it was not only the sudden visit that had given them a
fright, it was the man's awful words. The mice were so scared, they held
their breath, making no sound. Then, since all remained quiet, they began
to feel braver, and picked up enough courage to leave their hidey-hole.
"We can come out now!
There's nobody here!" the town mouse whispered.
Suddenly, the pantry door
creaked, and the two luckless mice froze in fear. Out of the dim light
glowed a pair of horrid yellow eyes. A large cat was staring round the
room in search of its prey. The country mouse and the town mouse tiptoed
silently back to their hidey-hole. They wished their pounding hearts would
stop beating, for fear of the cat hearing the noise they made. But, as
luck would have it, the cat discovered a juicy sausage. Forgetting why his
master had sent him into the pantry, he stopped to eat it. No longer
hungry, after that, the cat decided that he might as well leave
mouse-hunting for another day. Off he padded, to have forty winks
elsewhere. Now, as soon as the country mouse realized that all danger was
past, he did not lose a second. He hastily shook hands with his friend,
saying: "Thanks so much for everything! But I must rush off now! I
can't stand all these shocks! I'd far rather sit down to a meal of a few
acorns in peace, in the country, than face a great spread of delicious
food, surrounded by dangers on all sides and with my heart in my
mouth!"
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