The Pied Piper of Hamelin

(A story for children)

About six hundred years ago the people of Hamelin, a town in Germany, were afraid of rats. The rats ate up everything like grains, flour, bread, cheese etc. Rats were found even in the shoes, hats, and pockets of the people. As night came, mothers found rats lying comfortably in the beds of children. Even dogs and cats lived in fear because their puppies and kittens were killed by the rats.

People were very worried. They did not know how to get rid of the rats. They went to see the Mayor in the Town Hall. They began shouting and crying outside the Hall. The Mayer came out and greeted them with respect. The people told him about the troublesome rats. The mayor requested them to give him one month. The people did not agree. At last, he promised them that they would get rid of the rats in a week. The people went away.

After making a promise to the people the mayor came back to the Town Hall and asked his councillors for a suggestion to get rid of rats. Some councillors thought hundreds of carpenters should be ordered to make thousands of traps to catch the rats. Others advised the mayor to bring armies of dogs and cats to drive away the rats. Some others suggested that the holes of rats should be plugged, or the rats should be poisoned. The last piece of advice was to build new Pacca stone houses to live in. But all these suggestions were of no use.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door of the Hall. When the door was opened, they saw the Pied Piper looking strange in his red and yellow clothes. He said he could help them in getting rid of the rats using a charm. He demanded one thousand guilders in cash for the job. The mayor was very glad. He agreed at once to pay the cash if the rats were driven away.

The Pied Piper soon started playing a tune on his pipe. A huge army of rats gathered there to listen to the Pipe. The Piper moved out of the town playing upon his pipe. The army of rats followed him. He led all the rats to the river Weser and drowned them all in the water.

After doing his job, Pied the Piper came back to the mayor and asked him to pay the money. The mayor did not like to pay the big sum of one thousand guilders for this simple job. He was willing to pay only fifty guilders for this job. At this, Piper grew angry. He warned the mayor that the breach of promise would bring them great suffering and trouble. But the Mayor did not care.

The Pied Piper again stood in the street and started playing another magic tune on his pipe. It had a strange effect on the children. They gathered around Piper and followed him wherever he went. He led them to the mountain near the town. A cave door opened and Piper along with the children went into the cave. The door closed after their entry.

The Mayor and the Councillors cried and wept but it was all in vain. It is said that Piper and the children reached another country safe and sound and lived happily there.

An Exercise

Now, my dear children do this exercise by answering the following questions:

What suggestions would have been offered by the mayor to get rid of the rats?

Ans. Some suggested that all the rats should be poisoned. Others suggested that hundreds of carpenters should be employed to prepare thousands of traps for catching and killing the rats.

Why did the people of Hamelin live in constant fear?

Ans. The people of Hamelin lived in constant fear of rats because the rats ate up every eatable and were found even in their shoes, pockets, hats, and beds.

How did rats make people uncomfortable?

Ans. There were thousands and thousands of rats in Hamelin. They destroyed and ate up everything like food grain, bread, cheese etc. kept in the stores. They found their way into the beds and cradles of babies. They also entered the shoes, hats, and pockets of the people. Thus, they had made life uneasy and uncomfortable for the people.

Where did the people go one day?

Ans. One day the people went to the Town Hall to see the mayor.

Where was the mayor?

Ans. The Mayor was in the Town Hall.

What were the councillors in constant fear of?

Ans. The councillors were in constant fear of losing their jobs.

What did the mayor promise the people?

Ans. The Mayor promised the people that they would get rid of the rats within a week.

Why did the mayor not get the rats poisoned?

Ans. The Mayor did not get the rates poisoned because he could not poison them without the risk of poisoning the people.

Imagine you have a cat. Write some more lines.

My neighbour has a beautiful white cat and a little dog. The dog has no puppies. The cat has four little kittens. My brother likes dogs and plays with the cat's little ones. He wants to bring them to my house. Our mother does not allow any cats or dogs into her house. But now we have rats in our house. They eat up the grain we store for the lean months and all the flour we get ready for making bread. Now our mother wants my brother to have a cat and a dog in the house.

One day a rat bit my sister's baby which was put to bed in a cradle. The baby which was lying in comfort in the cradle suddenly started crying. My sister was busy cooking. She ran out and looked at the child. She noticed blood on the child's fingers. Ever since she has been in constant fear of rats. She caught a good number of them in traps and my neighbor’s cat killed some more.

Now we have got rid of rats. But we often find our milk and cheese disappearing. Our neighbor’s cat is very fond of them.

Why did Piper look very strange? Imagine yourself.

Ans. The Pied Piper was wearing red and yellow clothes.

He was as thin as a starving rat. He had a crooked nose and sharp, blue eyes. He was without a beard. He had a smile.

going out and in on his lips. Thus, he looked very strange.

What did the Pied Piper promise the mayor?

Ans. The Pied Piper promised the mayor that he would get rid of the rats.

What did the mayor promise the Pied Piper?

Ans. The Mayor promised the Pied Piper to pay one thousand guilders.

What did the Pied Piper do with the rats?

Ans. The Pied Piper led the army of rats to the river Weser and drowned them all in the water.

Why was the Pied Piper disappointed?

Ans. The Pied Piper was disappointed because the Mayor refused to pay him one thousand guilders.

How did Piper punish the people of Hamelin?

Ans. The Piper punished the people of Hamelin by taking away their children to an unknown country far away.

Suppose you are married, and some rats are in your home. What would you do? Express in first person.

I want everything in my house to be kept tidy. But there are a lot of rats in my house, and they upset everything. One morning I stepped out of my room and found that I was about to step on a rat. I jumped up and upset a bottle which went tumbling down the stairs. I was very angry and made up my mind to get rid of all the rats in the house. My wife suggested that I should poison the rats. But I did not like the suggestion as I did not want the rats to be killed. I went to a carpenter and got an old trap mended. I caught a few rats in the trap. Then I plugged all the rat holes. I thought I would never again be bothered by rats, and I hoped to live in peace. But only a few days later I found a new army of rats upsetting everything in the house. Further, I want the concrete house to be built in a month. I don't like to be disturbed. I want everything to be kept in order. I want the house to be kept in order.

Imagine that you are one of the women in Hamelin at the time of the story. Tell your friend How you were troubled by the rats and what happened at the Town Hall.

Ans. I lived in Hamelin. One day a friend of mine visited my house. She saw rats running about in the house. She asked me if I was not afraid and troubled by the rats. I told her that I was in constant fear of the rats. I said, "My dear friend, there are thousands of rats in my house. They eat up everything kept in the store like grain, flour, cheese, bread, milk etc. We find rats in our shoes, pockets, and hats. They even enter the beds and cradles of babies and lie there in comfort. These rats are not afraid of even dogs and cats. They attack puppies and kittens and kill them.

One day the people of Hamelin went to the mayor and told him about their fear, trouble and misery. He received the people with respect and promised that they would get rid of the rats in a week. The people came back home.