One day an old lady was sweeping her room and found a slightly bent sixpence.
- What could I buy with it? - thought the old lady. - I’ll go to the market and buy a piglet there.
No sooner said than done. So the old lady took the pig home, and on the way they came across a fence. Then the pig resisted and did not climb over the fence, and the old woman went alone.
As I walked and walked, I saw a dog.
- Dog, dog, bite the pig! - asked the old lady. “The pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, I won’t have time to get home before dark.”
But the dog did not listen.
The old lady moved on. I walked and walked and saw a stick.
- Stick, stick, kill the dog! - asked the old lady. “The dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, I won’t have time to get home before dark.”
But the stick did not obey.
The old lady moved on. I walked and walked and saw a fire.
- Fire, fire, burn the stick! - asked the old lady. “The stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, I won’t have time to get home before dark.”
But the fire did not listen.
The old lady moved on. I walked and walked and saw water. - Water, water, pour on the fire! - asked the old lady. “The fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, I won’t have time to get home before dark.”
But the water did not listen.
The old lady moved on. As I walked and walked, I saw a bull.
- Bull, bull, drink water! - asked the old lady. “The water doesn’t want to flood the fire, the fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, I won’t have time to get home before dark.”
But the bull did not listen.
The old lady moved on. I walked and walked and saw a butcher.
- Butcher, butcher, kill the bull! - asked the old lady. “The bull doesn’t want to drink the water, the water doesn’t want to fill the fire, the fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, before I can get home before dark.”
But the butcher did not listen.
The old lady moved on. I walked and walked and saw a rope.
- Rope, rope, hang the butcher! - asked the old lady. “The butcher doesn’t want to kill the bull, the bull doesn’t want to drink water, the water doesn’t want to pour water on the fire, the fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, before I can get home before dark.”
But the rope did not obey.
The old lady moved on. As I walked and walked, I saw a mouse.
- Mouse, mouse, chew the rope! - asked the old lady. “The rope doesn’t want to hang the butcher, the butcher doesn’t want to kill the bull, the bull doesn’t want to drink water, the water doesn’t want to pour water on the fire, the fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, before I can get home before dark.”
But the mouse did not listen. The old lady moved on. As I walked and walked, I saw a cat.
- Cat, cat, eat the mouse! - asked the old lady. “The mouse doesn’t want to gnaw the rope, the rope doesn’t want to hang the butcher, the butcher doesn’t want to kill the bull, the bull doesn’t want to drink water, the water doesn’t want to pour water on the fire, the fire doesn’t want to burn the stick, the stick doesn’t want to kill the dog, the dog doesn’t want to bite the pig, the pig doesn’t want to climb over the fence, before I can get home before dark.”
And the cat tells her this:
“Go to that cow over there and bring me a saucer of milk, then I’ll eat the mouse.” The old woman went to the cow. But the cow told her:
“Go to that stack over there and bring me an armful of hay, then I’ll give you milk.”
The old woman went to the haystack and brought hay to the cow.
The cow ate the hay and gave the old woman milk. The old woman poured milk into a saucer and went to the cat.
The cat lapped up the milk and began to catch the mouse, the mouse began to gnaw the rope, the rope began to hang the butcher, the butcher began to kill the bull, the bull began to drink water, the water began to pour on the fire, the fire began to burn the stick, the stick began to beat the dog, the dog began to bite the pig, and the pig climbed over the fence in fright.
And the old woman got home before dark.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru