A Moral Story : The Shepherd Boy

and The Wolf

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Shepherd Boy and The Wolf.

T here was a village on the outskirts of a forest. A shepherd boy used to take his herd of
sheep across the fields to the lawns near the forest.

One day he felt very boring. He wanted to have fun. So he cried aloud "Wolf, Wolf. The wolf
is carrying away a lamb". Farmers working in the fields came running and asked, "Where is
the wolf?". The boy laughed and replied "It was just a fun. Now get going all of you".

The boy played the trick for quite a number of times in the next few days.

After some days as the boy, perched up on a tree, as singing a song, there came an wolf.
The boy cried loudly "Wolf, Wolf, The wolf is carrying a lamb away." There was no one to
come. The boy shouted "Help! Wolf! Help!" Still no one came to his help. The villagers
thought that the boy was playing mischief again.

The wolf carried a lamb away.

The Six Swans

The Six Swans :

A king was once hunting in a large wood. He pursued his game so hotly that none of his
courtiers could follow him. But when evening approached he stopped and looking around
him perceived that he had lost himself. He sought a path out of the forest, but could not find
one and presently he saw an old woman with a nodding head who came up to him. “My good
woman", said he to her, "can you not show me the way out of the forest?"

“Oh, yes, my lord king", she replied; "I can do that very well. But upon one condition which,
if you do not fulfill, you will again get out of the wood, but will die of hunger."

“What then is the condition?" asked the King.

“I have a daughter", said the old woman who is as beautiful as anyone you can find in the
whole world and well deserves to be your bride. Now, if you will make her your queen, I will
show you your way out of the wood."

In the anxiety of his heart the king consented and the old woman led him to her cottage
where the daughter was sitting by the fire-place. She received the king as if she had
expected him and he saw at once that she was very beautiful. But yet she did not quite
please him for he would not look at her without a secret shudder. However, after he took the
maiden upon his horse, the old woman showed him the way and the king arrived safely at
his palace where the wedding was to be celebrated.

The king had been married once before and had seven children by his first wife – six boys
and a girl whom he loved above everything else in the world. He became afraid, soon, that
the stepmother might not treat them very well and might even do them some great harm.
So he took them away to a lonely castle which stood in the midst of a forest. This castle was
so hidden and the way to it so difficult to discover that he himself could not have found it if a
wise woman had not given him a ball of cotton which had a wonderful property. When he
threw it before him, it unrolled itself and showed him the right path. The king however went
so often to see his dear children that the queen noticed his absence became inquisitive and
wished to know what he went to fetch out of the forest. So, she gave his servants a great
quantity of money and they disclosed to her the secret and also told her of the ball of cotton
which alone could show her the way. She would now have no peace until she discovered
where this ball was concealed and then she made some fine silken shirts and as she learnt
from her mother, she sewed within each one a charm. One day soon after the king had gone
out hunting, she took little shirts and went into the forest and the cotton ball showed her the
path. The children seeing someone coming in the distance thought it was their dear father
and ran out towards her full of joy.

Then she threw over each of them a shirt which as it touched their bodies changed them to
swans and they flew over the forest. The Queen then went home quite contented and
thought she was free of her stepchildren but the little girl had not met her with the brothers
and the Queen did not know of her.

The following day the king went to visit his children. But he found only the little girl.

“Where are your brothers?" he asked.

“Ah, dear father,” she replied, "they have gone away and left me alone", and she told him
how she had looked out of the window and seen them changed into swans which had flown
over the forest and then she showed him the leathers which they had dropped in the
courtyard and which she had collected together.

The king was much grieved. But he did not think that his wife could have done this wicked
deed and as he feared his only daughter might also be stolen away, he took her with him.
She was however so much afraid of the stepmother that she begged him not to stop more
than one night in the castle. However, the king comforted her and made her stay with him
since he did not want to part her again. In spite of the king's presence and without his
knowledge, her stepmother did not spare any opportunity to torment her. Years passed and
the little girl grew into a beautiful maiden but still her pains continued.

The poor maiden thought, to herself, "This is no longer my place. I will go and seek my
brothers." And one night she escaped and went quite deep into the wood. She walked all
night long and a great part of the next day until she could go no further due to weariness.
Just then she saw a rude hut and walking in she found a room with six little beds. But she
dared not got into one but crept under and lying upon the hard earth, prepared to pass the
night there. Just as the sun was setting, she heard a rustling and saw six white swans come
flying in at the window.

They settled on the ground and began blowing one another until they had blown all their
feathers off and their swan's down stripped off like a shirt. Then the girl knew them at once
for her brothers and gladly crept out from under the bed and the brothers were no less glad
to see their sister. But their joy was of short duration.

"Here you must not stay,” said they to her,

"This is a robbers' hiding-place. If they return and find you here, they will murder you."

"Can you not protect me, then?" inquired the sister.

"No", they replied…"for we can only lay aside our swan's feathers for a quarter of an hour
each evening and in that time we regain our human form. But afterwards we regain our
changed appearance.'

Their sister then asked them with tears, "Can you not be restored again?"

"Oh, no,' they replied, "The conditions are too difficult. For six long years you must neither
speak nor laugh and during that time you must sew together for us six little shirts of star-
flowers and should there fall a single word from your lips, then all your labour will be in
vain."

Just as the brothers finished speaking, the quarter of an hour elapsed and they all flew out of
the window again like swans.

The little sister, however, made a solemn resolution to rescue her brothers or die in the
attempt and she left the cottage and penetrating deep into the forest, passed the night amid
the branches of a tree. The next morning she went out and collected the star-flowers to sew
together. She had no one to converse with and for laughing she had no spirits, so there, up
on the tree she sat, intent upon her work. After she had passed some time there, it
happened that the king of another country was hunting and his huntsmen came beneath the
tree on which the girl sat.

They called to her and asked, “Who are you?" But she gave no answer.

“Come down to us", they continued,”We will not do you any harm."

She simply shook her head and when they pressed her further with questions, she threw
down to them her gold necklace, hoping therewith to satisfy them.

They did not, however, leave her and she throw down her girdle, but in vain and even her
rich dress did not make them desist. At last one hunter climbed the tree and brought down
the girl and took her before the king.

The king asked her, "Who are you? Why were you sitting on top of the tree?"

But she did not answer and then he asked her in all the languages that he knew. But she
remained dumb to all as a fish. However, since she was so beautiful, the king's heart was
touched and he conceived for her a strong affection. Then he put around her his cloak and
placing her before him on his horse, took her to his castle. There he ordered rich clothing to
be made for her and although her beauty shone as the sunbeams, not a word came off her
mouth. The king placed her by his side at table. There her dignified mien and manners so
won upon him that he said, "This girl will I marry and no other in the world” and after some
days he was united in her.

Now, the king had a wicked stepmother who was discontented with his marriage. She spoke
ill of the young queen.

"Who knows when this girl would bring ill luck?" said she, "She who cannot speak is not
worthy to be a queen."

A year after when the queen brought her first-born into the world, the old woman took him
away. Then she went to the king and complained that the queen was a murderess and that
she had killed the baby born to her. The king, however, would not believe it and allowed no
one to do any injury to his wife who sat composedly sewing shirts and paying attention to
nothing else. When the second child was born, the false stepmother used the same deceit,
but the king again would not listen to her words, but said, "She is too pious and good to act
so. Could she but speak and defend herself. Her innocence would come to light." But again,
the third time, the old woman stole away the child and then accused the queen that she had
killed all the three babies born to her. The queen answered not a word to the accusation.
Hence the king was obliged to give her up to be tried and she was condemned to suffer
death by fire.
When the time had elapsed and the sentence was to be carried out, it so happened that the
very day had come round when her dear brothers should be made free. The six shirts were
also ready all but the last, which yet wanted the left sleeve. As she was led to the scaffold,
she placed the shirts upon her arm and just as she had mounted it and the fire was about to
be kindled, she looked around and saw six swans come flying through the air. Her heart
leapt for joy as she perceived her deliverers approaching and soon the swans flying towards
her alighted so near that she was enabled to throw over them the shirts and as soon as she
had done so their feathers fell off and the brothers stood up alive and well. But the youngest
wanted his left arm, instead of which he had a swan's wing. They embraced and kissed each
other and the queen going to the king who was thunderstruck, began to say, "Now may I
speak, my dear husband and prove to you that I am innocent and falsely accused.”

Then she told him how the wicked woman had stolen away and hidden her three children.
When she had concluded, the king was overcome with joy and the wicked stepmother was
led to the scaffold and bound to the stake and burnt to ashes.

The king and the queen forever after lived in peace and prosperity with the six brothers.

MORAL : God will reward the good ones and punish the wicked people.

The Son of The Lioness

The Son of The Lioness :

Once upon a time there was a tremendous fuss and quarrel among all the animals. They
were arguing hotly about who had the finest children! Everyone of them from the frogs and
the caterpillars to the rabbits and the rats declared that no families had ever been born like
their families and that it was a great pity their children and grandchildren and great
grandchildren were not numerous enough to fill the whole world. Anyway, they said, they
would go on doing their best. The caterpillars and frogs would lay eggs by the hundred. The
rabbits would make new warrens and the rats would take possession of ever so many more
drains. Then, surely, it would be agreed that a caterpillar, or a frog, a rat, or a rabbit, had the
glory of giving to the world the finest children that had ever been born in it.

They all agreed about one thing, in spite of the arguing that they would wait just one year
and then they would go to King Jupiter on his mountain and ask him to settle the matter for
them. So, for a year, they laid their dispute aside. At the end of it, they sent a message to
the king of the mountain saying that they would like to have the privilege of calling upon
him and would bring all their families along with them.

King Jupiter sat on his shining throne and up the sides of the mountain came the long strings
of animals. Mount Olympus had seen some strange sights, but perhaps this procession was
the oddest of all. First came Father and Mother Hedgehog. Very squat they were – very
brown and prickly. They were followed by seven little hedgehogs just as prickly just as brown
and just as squat. When they saw King Jupiter, they were all so startled that they rolled
themselves up into balls and lay quite still in front of him. But even in this rather ridiculous
position. Mother Hedgehog might be heard murmuring from the middle of her stiffened
spines, many things about the beauty and number of her children.

The hedgehogs had to make way, however, for a much larger party - a whole family of
lizards. Together with Father Lizard and Mother Lizard, there were twelve little misses and
masters of the same name. They were smooth yellowish little creatures with quick legs and
tails that flicked about like whips. They darted all over the top of the mountain, catching flies
and no doubt amused King Jupiter very much. But they, too, had to move aside to allow him
to give an opinion upon a colony of frogs.

If numbers were to win the prize of excellence, surely the frogs had it! The Father and the
Mother, solemn, goggle-eyed and fat, were followed by at least a hundred of the sizes of a
thumb, just like themselves. They had all come straight out of a shallow pond in a heavy
shower that very morning, scrambling through the wet grass and hopping along the turnpike
road, such that the country folks thought they had fallen out of the clouds together with the
rain. But they hadn’t done any such thing! They were only skipping along after their Father
and Mother to hear what King Jupiter had to say about them.

So it went on all through that strange and wonderful day on Mount Olympus. The caterpillars
came, the rats came…the rabbits came. And all of them brought a regular tribe of children,
none of them a year old. Then up trotted the foxes and the badgers the weasels and the
stoats each with four or five youngsters apiece. But at last, up the hill path, came a lioness,
beautiful and strong. And she had only one child, a little creature with golden eyes and
splendid limbs. She led him up to Jupiter and sitting on her haunches, surveyed her glorious
child in silence. Then King Jupiter came down from his bright throne and holding up his mace
gave his decision in a clear and ringing voice.

"Listen, you Fathers and Mothers of rabbits, hedgehogs and frogs! It is true that you have all
produced a great many children in the past year and that the lioness has produced only one.
But that one is a Lion! To the lioness, therefore, I give the prize. Her child shall, from now be
called Royal. I name him, from today, the king of all the beasts."

He touched the little lion’s head for a moment with his hand. Then the lioness turned away
still in silence and led her son back to her cave at the foot of the mountain. She had taken
no part in the boasting of the lesser animals, yet she had always known that her son was the
finest creature ever given to the world. She had only one child - but as Jupiter had said, that
only child was a Lion.
MORAL : It is not the quantity but the quality that matters.

A Moral Story : The Story

of The Desert

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Story of The Desert.

When God first created the world, there was no desert.

The whole world was filled with fertile lands full of beautiful gardens.

God created man in order to maintain the world. He said to man, "Every time you commit a
sin, there will be a peck of sand falling on the ground".

Man thought, "What harm will a peck of sand do? Let me live as I please". He started
committing wicked sins and pecks of sand started falling on the ground. Still man continued
sinning. And the effect is that to-day there are many deserts a around us.

A Moral Story : The Thirsty Crow!

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Thirsty Crow!.

Once, a crow was very thirsty.

The crow searched for water everywhere.

“Kaa, Kaa, Kaa…”

AT last he saw a pot with very little water in it.

He put his beak inside. But he could not reach down the water.
The crow thought of a plan.

He picked some pebbles and dropped then into the pot one by one.

The water level rose.

The crow drank the water and flew away happily.

A Moral Story : The Tricky Fox

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Tricky Fox.

A greedy fox stealthily entered a garden to eat the grapes. But its tail was cut down by a
trap when it tried to escape from the trap.

It worried because all other foxes would mock at its lost tall. Hence it planned a trick.

When all foxes ridiculed it and said, "I have cut down the tail myself because it is a great
hindrance. Now I am free and happy without my tail. So you too cut down your tails. It will be
very convenient to all of you."

An old wise fox laughed at the tricky fox and said, "I will also join you after losing my tail
when I try to steal the grapes. It looks very nice to be with a tail and I am proud of it."

Now all other faxes understood the trick of the fox and mocked at it. The ashamed fox ran
away into the forest.

A Moral Story : The Truthful Woodcutter

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Truthful Woodcutter.

One day a wood cutter's axe accidentally fell into a river. The poor wood cutter made a good
search in the water.

But his efforts were in vain. Finally he burst into tears. Hearing his sobs, an Angel appeared
before him.
The Angel dived into the river and came up carrying a golden axe. The wood cutter did not
accept it. He stated that his axe was made of iron.

The Angel disappeared and soon returned with a silver axe. The wood cutter again denied
that it was his axe.

The Angel once again plunged into the river. It soon reappeared carrying the axe of the wood
cutter. The poor man greeted the angel with words of profuse thanks and great joy.

The Angel was impressed by the man's honesty.

She presented him with the golden and silver axes in recognition of his truthful nature.

MORAL : Truthfulness brings its own reward.

A Moral Story : The Two Frogs

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Two Frogs.

Two frogs were paying on a rainy day. Slowly, they hopped and hopped and came into a
house. There was a churn of milk. Both the frogs fell into the churn.

Both the frogs tried for some time, but in vain. One of the frogs lost hope and said, “I can’t
swim any more" and he drowned to the bottom. The other did not lose hope.

He kept on swimming. His movements churned the milk into butter. The frog climbed on to a
pat of butter and hopped out of the churn.

A Moral Story : The Two Pots

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Two Pots.

It was a cyclonic season. There was flood everywhere.

Many houses drowned in the flood. There was a copper pot and an earthen pot in a house.
Both these were washed away in the flood to a river.

The copper pot called the earthen pot and said, "My friend, you are made of mud. You are so
weak. Please, come near me. I'll save you".

The earthen pot replied, "Thank you for your kindness, my friend. But, let me swim to the
bank by myself'. The earthen pot began to swim towards the bank of the river.

As the copper pot tried to swim, water got filled into the pot and the copper pot drowned.
But earthen pot reached the bank.

The Valiant Tailor

The Valiant Tailor :

Once upon a time there lived a princess who was excessively proud. She proposed a puzzle
to everyone who came to her palace. If a person did not solve it, then the person was sent
away scornfully. This behavior of the princess was talked about everywhere and it was said
that whoever was lucky enough to solve the riddle would marry the princess.

One day three tailors came to the city. The two elders of them were quite intelligent and had
heard about the princess’s riddle. But the third tailor was an idle, good-for-nothing fellow
who did not understand his own trade. But still he thought that he could solve the riddle. He
was interested in learning everything.

The three tailors came to the palace and stood before the princess. The princess told them
the riddle, "I have a hair upon my head of two colours. What are they?" "This is your riddle!"

The first tailor said. "It is black and white."

"Wrong!" said the princess, "Now, the second man try!"

"It is not black and white but brown and red", said he with a great smile.

"Wrong again!" said the princess," Now try the third man who I think will be able to guess
correctly!"

The third tailor stepped forward and said, "The princess has a gold and silver hair on her
head and those are the two colours." When the princess heard this she turned pale and fell
down to the ground with fright…because the tailor had guessed her riddle which she
believed nobody in the world could solve.

As soon as she recovered herself, she said to the tailor, "That is not all you have to do. There
is a bear in the stable and you have to spend the night with it. If you are alive in the
morning, I will marry you."

The tailor agreed to this and went away. The princess thought herself quite safe, because
the bear had spared no one who came into the stable.

As soon as evening came, the little tailor was taken to the stable where the bear lay. As he
entered the stable, the bear sprang on him.

"Softly, softly!" said the tailor, "I must teach you manners!"

Then he put his hand in his pocket and took out some nuts and cracked them between the
teeth. The bear saw this and wanted to do what the tailor was doing. The tailor gave the
bear a handful of nuts which were really pebbles. The bear put them into his mouth…but he
could not crack them.

"What a blockhead I am!" the bear said to himself, "I couldn’t crack a few nuts!"

Then the bear said to the tailor, "Will you crack them for me?"

On hearing this, the tailor said. "What a fellow you are! With such a big mouth you couldn't
crack these small nuts!"

With these words he cunningly changed a nut for the pebble which the bear gave him and
soon cracked it.

"I must try once more!" said the bear, "It looks so easy!"

And the bear with its full strength tried to crack the pebbles but all in vain. Soon the bear
became tired. Then the tailor took a pipe out of his coat and played a tune. When the bear
heard this, he began to dance to the tune. In a little while he stopped and asked the tailor
whether it was easy to learn the art of playing the pipe.

"Easy as child’s play!" said the tailor, "You have to keep your fingers on the holes and blow
the air into it."
"Oh! Well that is playing the pipe", said the bear, “I may as well learn that and then I can
dance as often as I like. What do you think? Will you give me any instruction?"

"With all my heart!" replied the tailor, "If you are clever enough…but let me see your claws,
they are very long and I must cut them a bit!"

By chance a knife was lying in one corner and the bear laid his paws when the tailor screwed
them fast. "Now wait till I come with the scissors", said he and leaving the bear groaning and
growling, he laid himself down in a corner on a bundle of straw and went to sleep.

Meanwhile the princess was rejoicing at the thought she had got rid of the tailor and
especially when she heard the bear growling, she thought it was with the satisfaction of
having eaten its prey. In the morning she went down to the stable. But as soon as she looked
in she saw the tailor as fresh and lively as he was the day before. She was in great
astonishment and she refused to marry the tailor. But it was of no use for her word had been
openly pledged to the marriage. The king, her father ordered a carriage to be brought in
which she and the tailor went away to the palace where the wedding was to take place. Just
as they had set off the two other tailors who were very envious of their brother's fortune
went into the stable and released the bear.

The bear ran after the carriage which contained the bridal party. The princess heard the
beast growling and groaning and became very much frightened and cried to the tailor, "Oh,
the bear is behind, coming to kill us!"

The tailor looked out of the carriage and said, "Do you remember the knife? If you do not go
away you shall have to lose all your claws!"

The bear thought about it and then turned its tail and ran back. The tailor happily drove on
to the palace with the princess and married her. They were very happy after the marriage as
merry as larks and to the end of their lives they lived in contentment.

MORAL : Fortune favors the brave.

The Widow and Her Little Maidens

The Widow and Her Little Maidens :

In a pretty little house, there once lived a neat old widow who wore the cleanest caps and
the finest kerchief you ever saw in your life. She was very fond of washing and scrubbing
and baking and sewing! Everybody who knew her used to say that she was the most hard-
working lady they had ever seen and an example to the whole village.

This good woman had two little girls living with her whom she was always trying to make as
clean and neat as herself. She taught them how to knead bread, cook rice and meals. She
also taught them to spin fine thread on their spinning wheels. Every morning, the moment
the big brown cockerel in the yard gave his first crow, she would get out of the bed, go to
the room where the little girls slept and shake them until they woke.

"Get up! Get up!" she would say. "Don't you hear the cockerel crowing outside? The Sun will
be shining over the hill in a moment. Nobody in this house must stay in bed when once the
cockerel has crowed!"

The little girls were always dreadfully sleepy and did not want to get up in the least. But the
bustling old woman would stand over them, till they got out of bed, yawning and blinking
their eyes. Then she would start her household chores, telling them to wash and dress and
to follow her into the kitchen as quickly as they could.

Now one of the things the little girls had to do was to feed the poultry - the big brown
cockerel among the others. He was rather a greedy bird and always ate a lot of the scraps
and corn that were thrown on the ground. The old lady would stand at the kitchen door to
watch the feeding and the more the cockerel ate, the better she was pleased.

"Is he not a fine bird?" she would say to the little girls. "Be sure and give him the best bits of
food. If he doesn't crow we would always be oversleeping, for there would be nobody to
wake us in the morning!"

Then the little girls would look at each other under their eyelashes and pout. For they both
hated the brown bird which tried to wake everybody at sunrise when it would be so much
nicer to sleep on until eight or nine o clock.

At last, one day, when the cockerel seemed to have crowed even earlier than usual, they
decided they could stand it no longer. They waited until their mother had gone to market…
then they caught the poor brown cockerel and wrung his neck! After that they buried him as
quickly as they could in the field on the other side of the fence. Then, rather frightened at
what they had done, they set to work to cook for the lunch.

The lady came home and found that her dear bird was missing. She searched for the
cockerel everywhere while the girls also pretended as much so that their mother might not
suspect them.
The lady missed the cockerel very much. But when they went to bed, however, they the girls
told each other how glad they were that they had killed the horrid bird at last.

"Now" they said to each other, "we shall have a little peace. How lovely it will be to sleep as
long as we want to with no crowing to wake our mother in the morning!”

They cuddled down into their pillows and fell asleep. But in the middle of the night or so it
seemed to them, the old lady came to their bedside in her nightcap, carrying a lighted
candle!

'Get up! Get up!” she said to them all in a bustle. We have no cockerel to wake us now and it
will never do to oversleep! The dawn has not broken yet…I know! Bui it will break presently
and without the crowing in the yard, we shall not even know that day has come. Get up! Get
up! Follow me into the kitchen as quickly as possible!"

How sad and disappointed those little maidens were! But they were obliged to do as their
mother told them. So they got up and stalled scrubbing and washing and spinning by candle
light, sleepier than they had ever been in their lives.

And as the old lady has been too fond of that cockerel to wish to buy another to take his
place, she went on waking the little girls in the middle of the night. She was insisting on
getting them up to work as no single minute of the coming daylight should be wasted.

Oh, how those two blinking, yawning little girls wished that they had never killed the big
brown cockerel!

MORAL : As you sow, so you reap.

A Moral Story : The Wind and The Sun

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Wind and The Sun.

It was an autumn day. The wind and the sun had an argument.

The wind boasted "I am stronger than you."

The sun mildly said "No. you are not".

Just then, they saw a traveller wrapped in a blanket was passing by. The wind said,
"Whoever separates the blanket from traveller is the stronger. Do you agree?"

The sun replied, "OK. First you try."

The wind started blowing. The traveller wrapped his blanket around him. He blew harder.
The traveller held his blanket firmer. He blew still harder. The traveller held his blanket still
tighter. The harder the wind blew the tighter and firmer did the traveller hold his blanket.
The wind failed.

It was the Sun's turn. The sun smiled gently at the traveller. The traveller loosened his grip
on the blanket. The sun smiled warmly. The traveller felt the warmth and soon took off the
blanket.

The sun was declared stronger.

MORAL : Gentle smile can achieve what brutal force can't.

A Moral Story : The Wise Cock

and The Wicked Fox

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Wise Cock and The Wicked Fox.

There lived a wise cock in a village. He did his duties well. He crowed early in the morning
waking up the folks for their daily chores.

One day the cock was taking rest on a tree top. A wicked fox passed that way. The fox looked
up and saw the handsome cock perched on the tree. The fox decided to eat the cock. So he
said in as sweet a voice as possible.

"Hello, dear cock! I bring you news from Heaven. There is a new order laid for us. From now
on all birds and animals shall become friends and live together in peace".

The cock was astonished. He asked "Is it true?"

The fox replied, "Yes, of course. If you would like to test it, why not come down?" Now the
cock began to think wise. He said, "Won't you wait a minute. A few of our friends are coming
along".

It was the fox's turn to be surprised, "Friends! Who are coming? What do you mean?" The
cock answered "I can see some Hounds coming. Let us wait for them".

On hearing the words Hounds, the fox got annoyed. He started to run away. The cock asked,
"Why are you running? What happened to our friendship?" The only reply was "Forget it."

MORAL : Wise men can unveil wickedness.

A Moral Story : The Wise Judge

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Wise Judge.

Two women were brought before King Solomon. Both these women had a quarrel over a
single baby. Each woman was saying that she was the baby's mother.

One lady said, "Oh King! I am the baby's mother".

The other lady said, "Oh King! Believe her not. She is not the mother. I am the mother of the
child".

King Solomon was confused. After a deep thought he said, "Cut the baby into two and give
one part to each mother". One woman was silent. The other cried "Oh King! Let she have the
baby. Let the baby live". The king gave the child to the crying mother.

The Wise Pigeon

The Wise Pigeon :

Once upon a time there was a king named Varsha who owned a pigeon and its name was
Sibi. This pigeon was so wise that King Varsha would always consult him before attending his
court. Sibi was also very good at predicting the weather and days of good fortune. King
Varsha and his ministers whenever they wanted to go out hunting or on a long journey would
consult the wise pigeon Sibi.

One afternoon when Sibi was sitting in the court, a flock of pigeons flew past the open door
and settled noisily in some apple trees that grew in the garden. King Varsha was most
surprised when Sibi turned to him and said, "Those are my people perched on the apple
trees. They have come to ask me to visit the country where I was born and bred. Please give
me permission to take a holiday so that I may visit my old home and see my parents and
relatives again."

But King Varsha was disturbed by the pigeon's request.

"If you go away, Sibi,” he said "who will advise me and help me to make correct decisions?
How do I know that you will return from that distant country where your people live?"

Sibi felt hurt that King Varsha had doubted his loyalty.

"You know King…that I never break my word", he said. "If I promise that I will return upon a
certain day, you know that I will keep it. Moreover, on my return I will bring you a truly
wonderful fruit which has the rare quality of giving immortality to those who eat it."

King Varsha's curiosity was aroused by Sibi's description of this rare and wonderful fruit.
Although he was reluctant to part with Sibi even for a short time, he agreed to let him go for
a week. Sibi flew off with a shrill scream of delight and joined the flock of pigeons on the
apple trees. For a few minutes there was a great chattering in the trees and then they all
rose into the air and flew off.

Sibi's father was the king of all the birds in his native country. He and his queen were
delighted to see their son again. There was great feasting and rejoicing in honour of his visit.
Time passed all too quickly and at the end of a week, Sibi told his parents, "I must now
return to my King Varsha. He is expecting me back tomorrow and I must not disappoint
him."

"Go. my son", said the king of the pigeons, "and if your king can spare you again, come and
visit us next year."

"I will try to come", said Sibi. "And I have one favour to ask you… Will you allow me to carry
back to my king a specimen of the fruit of immortality which grows in these forests?"

"Most certainly", said the king of the pigeons and he gave his son one of those wonderful
fruits. Some hours later, while King Varsha and his Chief Minister were together in the
council chamber, the pigeon flew in through the open window and settled at the king's feet.
In his beak Sibi carried the golden fruit.

"A thousand welcomes, my dear Sibi!" said King Varsha caressing his beloved Sibi. "And is
this the fruit of immortality of which you spoke?"

"Yes, it is", said the pigeon, laying the fruit on King Varsha's throne. "Those who eat it shall
never die." All eyes in the council chamber turned enviously upon the golden fruit. King
Varsha considered for a moment and then said. "This precious fruit must not be wasted. Let
us plant it in the ground and raise from it a tree which will bear more fruits upon its
branches. In this way, many people will benefit from it."

The gardener was sent for and he was told to plant the fruit with great care in the royal
gardens. When the young tree appeared, it was to be well watered, fenced around and
tended with great care.

Time passed and a plant did spring up from the fruit and began to grow into a young tree.
King Varsha and the pigeon both watched its growth. Fruit began to form upon it. Then a
strange thing happened. On a certain night, one of the fruits fell to the ground and was
poisoned by a snake which bit the fruit. In the morning, the gardener, not knowing what had
happened, chanted to pass by and seeing the precious fruit lying on the ground, picked it up,
put it into a basket and took it straight to King Varsha.

The king summoned Sibi and the Chief Minister and said, "Behold, here is the first fruit of our
tree of immortality." "Do not eat it your highness", said the Chief Minister. "The first fruit
should be dedicated to God". The king was pleased with his advice and sent soldiers to
inform the pundits that he would attend the temple the next morning.

The king divided the fruit amongst the pundits, dedicating the two pieces to God. These
portions, of course, the pundits took as usual, for their own use and no sooner had they
eaten one of them than they fell into a profound sleep from which they never woke. The king
was thunderstruck and immediately consulted the Chief Minister.

"Their deaths must have been caused by the fruit of immortality", said the Chief Minister.

"It appears to me that Sibi has done us a great evil by introducing this poisonous fruit into
our country. It seems that he intended to kill you and your family in this way!"

King Varsha was inclined to believe his Chief Minister and summoning Sibi, he asked the
pigeon. "For whom did you bring this fruit of immortality?”

"For you, O, king!" answered Sibi without any hesitation.

Then King Varsha said bitterly, "I have protected you all these years and placed you in a
position of honour and trust. You have nothing but ingratitude for me and an evil plot against
my life and the lives of my family and people."

Without giving Sibi a chance to say a word in his own defence, he chased the pigeon out of
his palace and told him not to come back. Then the king gave instructions to the gardener to
place a thorny fence around the tree and ordered that no one was to visit the spot. Sibi was
full of grief and flew to his native place where his parents lived. Sibi told his parents what
had happened and cried bitterly.

The king of pigeons said, "Do not worry, my son, a time will soon come and King Varsha will
learn the truth. Till that time you stay here and pray to God".

Sibi was much comforted on listening to his father and prayed to God. But he refused to eat
anything until the king learned the truth.

Now, there happened to be a dhobi – a washer man connected with the palace. He lived with
his son who was married. Unfortunately, the dhobi's wife and the son's wife did not get along
and were frequently quarrelling with each other. This brought much grief to the dhobi and
his wife. So, one day they decided that they could no longer withstand it and would put an
end to their lives. While discussing the matter, it occurred to the dhobi that some of the
poisoned fruit from the king’s tree would serve their purpose. At night he got into the garden
pushed aside the thorny fence and taking one fruit, returned home. Then he and his wife
both ate the fruit and lay down as they planned to die.

But the result was very different from what they expected, for no sooner had they eaten the
fruit than they suddenly became quite young again! The dhobi sprang to his feet exclaiming,
"Isn't this wonderful? I feel almost like a boy again!" and his wife gave a skip and a jump and
screamed, "I'm a girl. I'm a girl! I can dance and sing again!"

The strange news spread fast and reached the palace. King Varsha was amazed and very
troubled in mind when he heard the story. He made enquiries and learnt, for the first time,
that the fruit which the gardener had brought to him was not plucked from the trees, but
picked off the ground. "That unlucky fruit must have been poisoned by a snake!" cried King
Varsha in distress. "And I chased my faithful Sibi due to my own suspicious thoughts and
lack of faith. My poor pigeon has been my best friend. I shall go to his native country and
beg him to forgive me. He would come back to me."

Then King Varsha at once set for the native place of Sibi. Soon he reached the place where
Sibi's parents lived. At once the king of pigeons who was Sibi's father came forward and
welcomed King Varsha and his men. He took King Varsha where Sibi was chanting prayers.
On hearing the noise around, the wise pigeon Sibi opened his eyes and said, "Oh my lord!
You've come to see me". King Varsha was filled with joy. With tears in his eyes he said to
Sibi, "My faithful friend! Forgive me for I suspected your conduct! Please come back to my
place and stay with me. To rule the country wisely, I need your advice and help."

Sibi at once came and sat on King Varsha's hand and the king kissed his dear bird. They
went back to their country and Sibi was praised by everyone. The king and Sibi ate the fruit
of immortality and lived forever. The king also gave the fruit to everyone and all his
countrymen praised Sibi and they lived in peace.
The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats

The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats :

Once upon a time there lived an old goat who had seven young ones whom she loved as
every mother loves her children. One day she wanted to go into the forest to fetch some
food so calling her seven young ones together, she said, “Dear children, I am going away
into the forest. Be careful about the wolf. If he comes here he will eat you all up. He often
disguises himself. But you can make him out by his rough voice and his black feet." The little
goats replied, "Dear mother, we will be very careful and obey your words. You may go away
without any fear." So the mother goat left her dear children and went into the forest. The
little goats locked their house carefully from inside and shut the windows tightly.

Not long after-wards, somebody knocked at the door and called out, "Open, my dear
children. I am your mother and I got something for each one of you." But the little goats
found from the rough voice that it was a wolf and so they said. "We will not open the door.
You are not our mother. She has a gentle and loving voice. But yours is gruff. You are a
wolf.”

So the wolf went away and he ate some chalk and by that means rendered his voice more
gentle. Then he came back, knocked at the door and said. "Open, my dear children. Your
mother has come home." But the wolf had placed his black paws near the opening of the
door, so the little goats saw them and replied, “No, we will not open the door. Our mother
has no black feet. You are a wolf."

So the wolf went away and dipped his black foot in white chalk powder and turned them
white in colour. Now the bad wolf went to the house for the third time and knocked at the
door and said, "Open up! My young ones. Your dear mother has come and has brought with
her something for each one of you out of the forest." The little goats replied, "Show us first
your feet to see whether you are our mother." So the bad wolf put his feet up near the
opening of the door and when the little goats saw that they were white, they thought it was
all right and unlocked the door. But alas! The wolf had entered the house this time.

The little goats were terribly frightened and tried to hide themselves. One ran under the
table. The second got into the bed. The third into the cupboard and the fourth into the
kitchen and the fifth into the oven and the sixth into the wash-tub. Finally the seventh hid
herself in the clock-case.

But the wolf found them all out and swallowed them up one after another. The wolf did not
discover the one which hid in the clock-case. When the wolf was satisfied with eating all the
goats, he went out and felt very heavy in his stomach. So he lay down upon the green
meadow under a tree and fell asleep.

When the mother goat came home, she saw the terrible sight! The hut-door was wide open.
The table, stools and benches were upside down. The wash-tub was broken into pieces and
the sheets and pillows pulled off the bed. She sought her children, but could find them
nowhere. She called them by name one after the other. But no one answered. At last, when
she called the youngest, a little voice replied, "Here I am… dear mother, in the clock-case."
She took her out and heard how the wolf had come and swallowed all the others. She wept
for her poor little ones.

At last she went out in all her misery and the young goat ran by her side and when she came
to the meadow, there lay the wolf under the tree snoring so loud that the boughs quivered.
She saw something was moving and stirring about in his body. "Oh, God!" she said, "What a
strange thing! My poor children whom he has swallowed for his dinner are yet alive!

So the mother goat ran home and fetched a pair of scissors and a needle and thread. Then
she cut open the monster's hairy body and had scarcely made one slit, before one little goat
put his head out and as she cut further, out jumped one after another, all six, still alive and
without any injury… for the monster, in his eagerness, had gulped them down quite whole.
The little goats hugged their dear mother and frisked about merrily.

But the mother goat said, "Go and pick up at once some large stones and put them in the
wolf's stomach”. They put as many as they could bring and then the old mother went and
looking at him in a great hurry, saw that he was still insensible and did not stir and so she
sewed up the slit.

When the wolf at last woke up, he raised himself upon his legs and because the stones lying
in his stomach made him feel thirsty, he went to a brook in order to drink. But as he went
along, rolling from side to side, the stones began to tumble about in his body and he called
out, "What rattles in my stomach?"

And when the wolf came to the brook he bent down to drink water and the heavy stones
made him lose his balance. So he fell and sank in the water.

As soon as the seven little goats saw this, they came running up, singing aloud, "The wolf is
dead! The wolf is dead!" and they danced in joy around their mother by the side of the
brook.

MORAL : Wicked ones are always punished in the end.

 A Moral Story : The Wolf
in Sheep-skin

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Wolf in Sheep-skin.

A wolf was walking in the countryside. He found a sheep-skin spread on the ground. He
thought, "If I wear this skin and get mixed up in the flock, the shepherd will not suspect me.
At night, I will kill a stout sheep and then take him away with me".

The wolf covered himself with the sheep-skin and got mixed up with a flock of sheep. As he
had expected, the shepherd took him as a sheep and shut him also in the pen. The wolf was
waiting for the night.

The shepherd had a feast that night. He sent a servant to fetch a fat sheep. The servant saw
the sheep-skin covered wolf by chance. That night, the guests had the wolf for supper.

A Moral Story : Two Silly Goats

Let us enjoy reading this story of Two Silly Goats.

There lived two silly goats in a village.

There was a narrow bridge over a river in the village.

One day, the goats wanted to cross the bridge.

One silly goat was on one side.

The other one was on the other side.

One of them said, “I shall go first. Allow me to pass.”

The other goat said, “No. I must cross first. You move aside.”

Neither of them yielded.

At last, they came to the middle of the bridge.

They began to fight terribly.

As they were fighting, both of them fell into the river and were drowned.

MORAL : Love your neighbours.

A Moral Story : The Wolf

and The Crane

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Wolf and The Crane.

Once a wolf killed a lamb and started eating it.

Suddenly a piece of bone stuck in its throat. It cried out of pain and called for help. There
came a crane. The wolf lured the crane that it will give lot of rewards.

The greedy crane immediately agreed and removed the piece of bone with its long nose.
The wolf was relieved of its pain. Then the crane asked for the rewards.

The wolf laughed at the crane and said, "I have already rewarded you without biting your
head. Run away from here, else I will kill you". The crane was very much disappointed and
ran way to save its life.

A Moral Story : Two Friends

and The Bear

Let us enjoy reading this story of Two Friends and The Bear.

Vijay and Raju were friends. On a holiday they went into a forest. They were enjoying the
beauty of nature. Suddenly they saw a bear coming at them. They were frightened.
Raju who knew climbing trees ran up to a tree and climbed up quickly. He did not think of
Vijay. Vijay did not know tree climbing.

Vijay thought for a second. He had heard animals do not prefer dead bodies. He fell to the
ground and held his breath. The bear sniffed him and thought he was dead. So, he went
away.

Raju asked Vijay," What did the bear whisper into your ears?”

Vijay replied, "The bear asked me to keep away from friends like you" and went on his way.

MORAL : A friend in need is a friend indeed.

The Golden Goose

The Golden Goose :

Once there lived an old man in a village. He had three sons. The youngest was named Somu.
He was despised and slighted and ignored on every occasion. One day the eldest son wished
to go into the forest to hew wood His mother gave him a fine package of food with potatoes.
Just as he got into the forest, he met a grey old man who bade him good-day and said, "Give
me a little food of your package and a little water to drink for I am very hungry and thirsty.’

The prudent youth, however, would not, saying, "If I give you my food and water, I shall have
nothing left for myself. No… pack-off!" and he left the man there and went onwards. He now
began to hew down a tree. But he had not made many strokes before he missed his aim and
the axe cut into his arm so deeply that he was forced to go home and have it dressed. But
this wound came from the little old man.

Afterwards the second son went into the forest and the mother gave him as she had given
the eldest a package of food with potatoes and water to drink. The same little old man met
him also and requested for a little food of his package and a little water to drink. But he
likewise refused and said, "If I give you my food. I cannot have anything for myself. Go away.
Take yourself off!" And so speaking, he left the old man there and went onwards. His reward,
however, soon came for when he had made two strokes at the tree he cut his own leg and so
he had to return home.

Then Somu asked his father to let him go and hew wood. But his father said, "No…your
brothers have harmed themselves in doing so and so will you, for you do not understand
anything about it."

But Somu begged and prayed so long that his father at last said, "Well, then go and you will
become prudent through experience."

His mother gave him stale food with dry potatoes and some water to drink.

As he entered the forest the same grey old man greeted him and asked, "Give me some food
and a little water to drink for I am hungry and thirsty."

Somu answered, "I have only stale food with dry potatoes and a little water to drink. The
food is burnt. If you like to share it with me, let us sit down and eat."

They sat down and as soon as Somu took out his food. Oh! It was changed into a fine
delicious food and the dry potatoes became so nice to taste.

They ate the food and drank the water and when they finished, the little old man said,
"Because you have a good heart and have willingly shared what you had, I will make you
lucky. There stands an old tree, cut it down and you will find something at the roots.”

After saying so, the little old man took leave. Somu went directly and cut down the tree and
when it fell, there sat amongst the roots a goose which had feathers of pure gold. He took it
up and carried it with him to an inn where he planned to spend the night. The landlord had
three daughters who as soon as they saw the goose were very covetous of such a wonderful
bird, at least to have but one of its feathers. The eldest girl thought she would watch for an
opportunity to pluck out one and just as Somu was going out, she caught hold of one of the
wings. But her finger and thumb stuck there and she could not move.

Soon came the second daughter, desiring to pluck out a feather, but scarcely had she
touched her sister when she also stuck to her sister.

At last the third also came with like intention and the others exclaimed, "Keep away! For
heaven’s sake don’t touch us!"

But she did not see why she should and thought, “The others are there, why should I not be
too?” and springing up to them, she touched her sister and at once was made to stick fast so
they had to pass the night with the goose.

The next morning Somu took the goose under his arm and went out without troubling
himself about the three girls who were still hanging on and who were obliged to keep on the
run behind him. In the middle of the field the parson met them and when he saw the
procession he cried out, "Oh! what a shame! You good-for-nothing wenches! Why are you
running after that young man across the fields for? Come on, stop this stupid thing!"

Saying so, he took the youngest girl by the hand and tried to pull her away. But as soon as
he touched her he also stuck fast and was forced to follow in the train. Soon after came the
clerk and saw his master, the parson following in the footsteps of the three girls.

The sight astonished him much and he called, "Hello, master! Where are you going so
quickly? Have you forgotten that there is a wedding today?" and he ran up to him and
caught him by the dhoti. The clerk also could not release himself and so there tramped the
five, one behind the other, till they met two countrymen returning with their hatchets in their
hands. The parson called out to them and begged them to come and release him and the
clerk. But no sooner had they touched the clerk than they stuck fast to him and so now there
were seven all in a row following behind Somu and the golden goose. By and by he came
into a city where the king had a daughter so seriously inclined that no one could make her
laugh. So, he had made a law that whoever causes her to laugh would have her as wife.

Now, when Somu heard this, he went with his goose and all his train before the princess and
as soon as she saw these seven poor creatures continuing on the trot behind one another,
she began to laugh so heartily as if she was never going to cease. Somu thereupon
demanded his bride. But his intended son-in-law did not please the king who, after a variety
of excuses, at last said that he must bring a man who would drink a drum full of water. Somu
immediately thought of the little old man who would no doubt be able to help him. Then he
went into the forest to the same spot where he had cut the tree, he saw a man sitting very
gloomily.

Somu asked him why he looked sad and he answered, "I have such a great thirst and cannot
quench it."

Somu was astonished on hearing this. He said. “I can help you. Come with me and you shall
quench your thirst."

He led him into the king's palace and the man drank and drank a drum full of water till his
stomach swelled. Before the day was out he had emptied the drum. Somu now demanded
his bride again, but the king was vexed that such an ugly fellow whom everyone called
dumb Somu should marry his daughter and he set a new condition that he must first find a
man who could eat a whole mountain of food. Somu did not consider long, but set off into
the forest where, on the same spot as before, sat a man who was strapping his body round
with a leather strap and all the while making a sad face and saying. "I have eaten so much
of food…but what use is that when one has such a hunger as I? My stomach remains empty
still and I must strap myself to prevent my dying of hunger!"
At these words Somu was glad and said, "Get up and come with me and you shall eat
enough to satisfy yourself.”

He led him to the royal palace where the king had collected all the meal. The man began to
eat and towards sunset the whole mountain of food had vanished.

Somu, then for the third time, demanded his bride, but the king began again to make fresh
excuses and desired a ship which could travel both on land and water. "If you return with
such a ship, you shall marry my daughter", said the king.

Somu went, as before, straight into the forest and there he met the little old man to whom
he had given the food. When Somu said what he wanted, the old man gave him the ship
which could travel on both land and water. Then he turned Somu into a handsome youth.
The old man said to Somu, "Since I shared your food, I give you the ship and all this I do
because you are good natured."

As soon as the king saw Somu so handsome and the ship, he could no longer keep back his
daughter and the wedding was celebrated. Somu’s parents and brothers came and asked
Somu to forgive them. Somu had forgiven them and after the king's death he inherited the
kingdom and lived for a long time contentedly with his wife.

MORAL : One who is good at heart will win a priceless gift.

A Moral Story : The Goose and Its Golden Egg!

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Goose and Its Golden Egg!.

Once, there lived a poor farmer. He had a goose. It laid one golden egg everyday. The former
sold the eggs and became rich.

He was a greedy farmer. He wanted all the golden eggs at the same time.

So, he took a knife and cut the goose but found only one egg inside it.

Thus the greedy farmer lost both the goose and golden eggs and became poor again.
 A Moral Story : The Greedy Lion

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Greedy Lion.

It was a hot summer day. A lion was feeling very hungry.

He came out of his den and searched here and there. He could find only a small hare. He
caught the hare with some hesitation. "This hare cannot fill my tummy" thought the lion.

As the lion was about to kill the hare, a deer ran that way. The lion became greedy. He
thought, "Instead of eating this small hare, let me eat the big deer". He let the hare go and
went behind the deer. But the deer had vanished into the forest. The lion now felt sorry for
letting the hare off.

A Moral Story : The Hare

and The Lion
Let us enjoy reading this story of The Hare and The Lion.

A lion was getting fed up of hunting. He called all animals and passed an order, "Everyday
one of you should come by yourself as my prey". All animals started to obey this order.

It was the hare's day. The hare was very sad. As he was going to the lion's den, he came
across an old well. He looked into it. It was very deep and dangerous. He made a plan to his
mind.

The lion was very angry that no animal had come that day. The hare slowly came towards
the lion. The lion roared "Why are you late?" The hare humbly replied, "Oh my way another
lion chased me. I got away with much difficulty to give my life to you, Your Majesty".

The lion was pleased with the hare. But the thought of another lion in the jungle made him
angry. The lion roared "Do you know where he lives?" The hare replied "Yes, Sir. Please come
with me".

The hare took the lion to the old well. He said "Sir, that lion lives in this well". The lion
peeped into the well. He mistook his reflection for another lion. He roared and there was an
echo. He thought that the other lion was roaring too and jumped into the well. That was the
end of the lion.

MORAL : Wisdom can win might.

 A Moral Story : The Hare and The Tortoise
Let us enjoy reading this story of The Hare and The Tortoise.

Once, a hare saw a tortoise walking slowly with a heavy shell on his back. The hare was very
proud of himself and he asked the tortoise. “Shall we have a race?”

The tortoise agreed. They started the running race. The hare ran very fast. But the tortoise
walked very slowly. The proud hair rested under a tree and soon slept off. But the tortoise
walked very fast, slowly and steadily and reached the goal. At last, the tortoise won the
race.

Moral : Pride goes before a fall.

A Moral Story : The Horse

Who Wanted Safety

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Horse Who Wanted Safety.

On the lawns of a forest grazed a handsome horse. He was a fast runner. But, he was often
frightened by a tiger that passed by now and then.

One day, as the horse was grazing, a man passed that way. He asked the man, "Sir, aren't
you afraid of lions and tigers?"

The man laughed aloud and answered, "Me! Look what I have". He showed rifle and
continued, "Should any animal approach me I can shoot and kill him".

The horse asked, "If that is so, sir, will you help me?"

The man replied, "Of course. I will. What will you do for me?" The horse said, “Anything you
want of me, I will do".

The horse told the man about the tiger. The man said, "If you let me saddle you and take
you with me, you need not be afraid of the tiger".

The horse was too happy.

The man led the horse into town and left him in a stable.

Now, the horse thought to himself, "I am indeed safe here. But I don't have any freedom".
MORAL : The other shore always looks greener.

A Moral Story : The Inexperienced

Mouse

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Inexperienced Mouse.

Once, a little mouse asked his mother, "Mother let me go out see and the world".

The mother mouse said, “Okay child. But, be careful".

The mouse came out of his hold and started walking. He saw a colourful cock. As he had
never seen a cock before, he got frightened by the sharp beak, colourful feathers and the
red crown of the cock, He ran away thinking, "What a horrible creature".

After some time he came across a pussy cat. "What a soft animal!” he thought, “So
handsome fur! And striking eyes!"

When he returned home he explained his day's visit to his mother. The mother said, “The
cock is really harmless. But the soft cat is real enemy".

MORAL : Outward appearances are deceptive.

A Moral Story : The

Irresponsible Ox

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Irresponsible Ox.

A brave warrior had a horse and an ox. He used the horse for travelling and the ox was used
for pulling load for the warrior.

War had broken. The warrior was to go to a far off place.

The horse said to the ox, "Hey ox! I am to carry the master to a far off place".

The ox replied, “How unlucky you are! I am lucky. I need not pull loads. I have no work to
do".

But, it so happened that before the warrior could set off, the war had come to an end and
the enemy had surrended. Now, the warrior had plenty of work to do locally.

The ox was overburdened now.

A Moral Story : The King Cobra

and The Ants

Let us enjoy reading this story of The King Cobra and The Ants.

Once there lived a king cobra in a small hole. When he was small he ate little creatures. As
he grew up he began to eat eggs, lizards, frogs and rabbits. And when he grew up further he
started to eat even other smaller snakes. His pride grew with him.

All small animals began to fear the king cobra. This boosted up his pride. He began to think
"Now I am the most powerful creature. I am the king of the forest. All animals fear me. Let
me move from this small hole to a bigger place".

He searched for a place to suit his size and status.

Finally he came across a big tree. He selected the tree for his house. He saw an ant hill near
the tree.

He thought "Why should there be an ugly ant hill near my royal house?" He hissed aloud "I
am king Cobra, the king of the forest. I order the ants to vacate immediately". There was no
reply. He got wild and struck at the ant hill.

What a surprise! In a minute thousands of ants swarmed up the king cobra biting him
everywhere. The king cobra could not bear the pain. He ran away.

A Moral Story : The King

and The Spider

Let us enjoy reading this story of The King and The Spider.
Vikram was a brave king. Once, he had to fight against a large army with just a few soldiers,
he was defeated. He had to run for his life.

Vikram took shelter in a forest cave. He was very depressed. His courage had left him. He
was blankly gazing at the ceiling of the cave. An interesting scene captured his attention.

A small spider was trying to weave a web across the cave ceiling. As the spider crawled up,
a thread of the web broke and the spider fell down. But the spider did not give up. He tried
to climb again and again. Finally, the spider successfully climbed up and completed the
web.

Vikram began to think, "If a small spider can face failure so bravely, why should I give up? I
will try with all might till I win". This thought gave strength to the defeated king.

Vikram got out of the jungle and collected his brave soldiers. He fought against the large
army. He was defeated again. But now, he would not give up his fight.

Vikram again and again fought against the large army and finally, after many attempts
defeated the large army and regained his kingdom. He had learnt a lesson from the spider.

A Moral Story : The Lion

and The Frog

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Lion and The Frog.

There was a lion in a forest. It was sleeping under a tree near a pond. Suddenly a noise was
heared. The lion was disturbed by the noise. It awake from its sleep.

The noise was continuously coming from the pond. So the lion was annoyed as it was not
able to sleep. There was frog in the pond. The lion came to know the frog has made the
noise. It roared at the frog and the frog was frightened. It angrily jumped into the pond to
catch the frog. Then the frog realised its mistake and tried to escape from the lion. But the
lion caught the frog and killed it.

A Moral Story : The Lion

and The Hog
Let us enjoy reading this story of The Lion and The Hog.

A lion came to a small stream to drink water. At the same time a hog also came there to
drink. Each one of them claimed to drink first. The wordy duel between them became a big
fight.

There was a fierce fight and both of them became tired. When they took rest for a while,
they saw two vultures waiting for eating the defeated.

So they came to a conclusion that it would be better to avoid fighting and became friends
than to fall a prey to the vultures.

They became friends and both of them drank the water and went off peacefully.

A Moral Story : The Lion

and The Mouse

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Lion and The Mouse.

A lion was sleeping in a forest. A mouse started playing on it. The lion was disturbed and
arose from his sleep. It caught up the mouse angrily and tried to crush it to death.

Then the mouse prayed the lion to leave him off and assured that it would help him when it
needed. The lion laughed at it and let him off.

One day the lion was caught in a net spread by a hunter. It roared and tried to escape but in
vain. The mouse heared the lion's roaring and came there. It started cutting the net with its
teeth. The lion escaped and thanked the mouse.

A Moral Story : The Lion and The Mouse!

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Lion and The Mouse!.

Once, a lion was sleeping in the den.

“Korrr…Korrr…,”

A little mouse was running up and down the lion.

The lion wake up and caught the mouse. The angry lion opened his mouth to eat the mouse.
The frightened little mouse said, “Please Mr. Lion, Do not eat me. I will help you some day.”

The lion took pity on the mouse and let go off him

After some days, the lion caught in the hunter’s net and started roaring painfully.

“Rrrr….Rrrr…”

The mouse came there on hearing the lion’s roar and bit off the net with his sharp teeth and
set the lion free.

The lion and the mouse became friends and the lion said, “Thank You, my little friend!”

The Little Elves

The Little Elves :

There was once a shoemaker who, from no fault of his own, had become so poor that at last
he had nothing left, but a piece of leather just sufficient for one pair of shoes. In the evening
he cut out the leather intending to make it up in the morning and as he had a good
conscience, he lay quietly down to sleep first commending himself to God. In the morning he
said his prayers and then sat down to work… but, behold, the pair of shoes was already
made and there they stood upon his board. The poor man was amazed and knew not what
to think… but he took the shoes into his hand to look at them more closely and they were so
neatly worked that not a stitch was wrong just as if they had been made for a prize.
Presently a customer came in and as the shoes pleased him very much, he paid down more
than usual so much that the shoemaker was able to buy with it leather for two pairs.
By the evening he had got his leather shaped out and when he arose the next morning, he
prepared to work with fresh spirit…but there was no need - for the shoes stood all perfect on
his board. He did not wait either for customers for two came who paid him so liberally for the
shoes that he bought with the money material for four pairs more. These also -when he
awoke - he found all ready-made and so it continued…what he cut out overnight was in the
morning turned into the neatest shoe possible. This went on until he had regained his former
appearance. And until he had become a prosperous man.

One evening - not long before Christmas - as he had cut out the usual quantity, he said to
his wife before going to bed, "Let us be awake this night to see who it is that helps us so
kindly." His wife agreed and fastened up a light and then they hid themselves in the corner
of the room where hung some clothes which concealed them. As soon as it was midnight in
came two little mannikins who squatted down on the boards and taking up the prepared
work, set to work with their little fingers, stitching and sewing and hammering so swiftly and
lightly that the shoemaker could not take his eyes off them for astonishment. They did not
cease until all was brought to an end and the shoes stood ready on the table and then they
sprang quickly away.

The following morning the wife said, "The little men have made us rich and we must show
our gratitude to them for although they run about they must be cold for they have nothing
on their bodies. I will make a little shirt, coat, waistcoat, trousers and stockings for each and
will you make a pair of shoes for each?"

The husband assented and one evening, when all was ready, they laid presents, instead of
the usual work, on the board and hid themselves to see the result.

At midnight in came the elves, jumping about and soon prepared to work but when they saw
no leather, but the natty little clothes, they were at first astonished, but soon showed their
rapturous glee. They drew on their coats and smoothing them down, sang –

‘Smart and naughty boys are we

cobblers we'll no longer be," - The Little Elves

and so they went on hopping and jumping over the stools and chairs and at last out of the
door. After that evening they did not come again, but the shoemaker prospered in all that he
undertook and lived happily to the end of his days.

The Little Elves

The Little Elves :

Once upon a time there was a poor servant girl who was industrious and loved cleanliness.
Everyday she dusted the house and shook out the sweepings on a great heap before the
door.

One morning, just as she was going to throw them away, she saw a letter lying among them
and as she could not read, she put her broom in a corner and took it to her master. It
contained an invitation from the elves asking the girl to stand godmother to one of their
children.

The girl did not know what to do…but at last after much consideration, she consented, for
the little men would not easily take a refusal. So there came three elves who conducted her
to a hollow mountain where they lived. Everything was very small of course, but all more
neat and elegant than one could tell.

The mother lay in a bed of ebony studded with pearls and the coverings were all wrought
with gold. The cradle was made of ivory and the bath was of gold. The girl stood godmother
and afterwards wished to return home, but the little elves pressed her earnestly to stay
three days longer. So she remained passing the time in pleasure and play, for the eves
behaved very kindly to her.

At the end of the time she prepared to return home…but first they filled her pockets with
gold and then led her out of the hill. As soon as she reached the house, she took the broom
which still stood in the corner and went on with her sweeping…and presently out of the
house came some strange people who asked her who she was and what she was doing
there.

Then she found it that it was not three days as she had supposed…but seven years, that she
had passed with the little elves in the hill. But now she had enough gold to spend the rest of
her life in peace.

MORAL : People who are hardworking are rewarded in the end.

In this story the little girl took care of her master and served them in affection and full
consideration. As reward for her sincerity, she was rewarded with a huge pile of gold which
was enough for her to lead a life of comforts and happiness. The moral of this story is that
we too should do our work with full consideration and sincerity so that we will be treated as
qualified humans.
 A Moral Story : The Milk-Maid’s Dream

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Milk-Maid’s Dream.

Radha was a milkmaid. She was carrying a pot of milk.

She had to deliver milk to her customers in a nearby village. As she was walking she kept on
dreaming.

She said to herself, "With the money I get from selling this milk, I will buy some eggs. The
eggs will hatch into fine chicken. The chicken will grow into hens. I will sell the hens and get
lot of money. With that money I will buy nice silk saree. I will look beautiful. When people ask
for the secret of my wealth, I will toss my head and say, "No."

When she dreams of saying 'No' She actually tossed her head and down fell the pot of milk
and all the milk ran out on the ground.

A Moral Story : The Mongoose

and The Child

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Mongoose and The Child.

Once, there lived a farmer and his wife. They had a little son. The farmer had a pet
mongoose. The little boy and the mongoose were fond of each other. They were good
playmates.

One day the farmer was busy at his fields. The farmer's wife had left to the market. The little
boy was fast asleep in a cradle. The mongoose was lying down near the cradle.

A cobra somehow got into the house and it was nearing the little boy. The mongoose sniffed
the snake and jumped up. He fought with the cobra. The cobra began to attack. There was a
fierce fight between the cobra and the mongoose. The mongoose finally bit and killed the
cobra.

The mongoose saw the farmer's wife returning from market. He ran happily towards her to
greet her. She saw blood around the mouth and paws of the mongoose. The farmer's wife
mistook that the mongoose had attacked her son.
The farmer's wife took a long stick and gave heavy blows on the mongoose and then ran
into the house. She was shocked to see a dead cobra lying on the floor near her son. Now
she realised her mistake. Her sorrow knew no bounds.

The Mother Frost

The Mother Frost :

There was once a widow who had two daughters one of whom was beautiful and industrious
and the other ugly and lazy. She behaved most kindly, however, to the ugly one cruelly to
the other because she was her stepdaughter and made her do all the hard work and live like
a kitchen maid. The poor maiden was forced out daily on her highroad and had to sit by the
well and spin so much that blood ran from her fingers.

Once it was happened that her spindles became quite covered with blood so kneeling down
by the well she tried to wash it off, but it fell down due to her misfortune. Her mother
scolded her terribly and behaved very cruelly and at last said, “Since you have let your
spindle fall in, you must yourself fetch it out again!”

Then the maiden went back to the well not knowing what to do and, in her distress, she
jumped into the well to fetch the spindle out. As she fell she lost consciousness and when
she came to herself again she found herself in a beautiful meadow where the sun was
shining and many thousands of flowers blooming around her. She got up and walked along
till she came to a baker's house where the oven was full of bread which cried out, "Draw me,
draw me or I shall be burnt. I have been baked long enough." So she went up and taking the
bread-pan, drew out one loaf after the other. Then she walked on further and came to an
apple tree whose fruit hung very thick and which exclaimed,”Shake me, shake me. The
apples are all ripe!" So she shook the tree till the apples fell down like rain and when none
were left on, she gathered them all together in a heap and went further.

At last she came to a cottage out of which an old woman was peeping, who had such very
large teeth that the maiden was frightened and ran away. The old woman, however, called
her back, saying, "What are you afraid of, my child? Stay with me…if you will put all things in
order in my house, then shall all go well with you. Only you must take care that you make
my bed well and shake it tremendously so that the feathers fly…then shows upon earth. I am
Old Mother Frost.” As the old woman spoke so kindly, the maiden took courage and
consented to engage herself in her service. Now, everything made her contented and she
always shook the bed so industriously that the feathers blew down like flakes of snow…
therefore her life was a happy one and there were no evil words and she roasted and baked
many times everyday.

For sometime she remained with the old woman… but, all at once, she became very sad and
did not herself know what the matter was. At last she found she was homesick and although
she fared a thousand times better than she did when she was at home, still she longed to
go. So she told her mistress, "I wish to go home", and the mistress then said. "Since you
have served me so truly, I will fetch you up again myself." So saying, she took her by the
hand and led her before a great door which she undid and when the maiden was just
beneath it, a great shower of gold fell and a great deal stuck to her so that she was covered
over and over with gold. “That you must have for your industry", said the old woman, giving
her the spindle which had fallen into the well.

Thereupon the door was closed and the maiden found herself upon the earth, not far from
her mother's house and as she came into the court, the cock sat upon the house and called
"Cock-a-doodle-doo! Our golden maid's come home again." Then she went into her mother's
house and because she was so covered with gold, she was well received.

The maiden related all that had happened and when the mother heard how she had come by
these great riches, she wished her ugly, lazy daughter to try her luck. So she was forced to
sit down by the well and spin and in order that her spindle might become bloody, she
pricked her finger by running a thorn into it and then, throwing the spindle into the well, she
jumped in after it.

Then like the other, she came upon the beautiful meadow and traveled on the same path.
When she arrived at the baker's, the bread called out, "Draw me out, draw me out or I shall
be burnt. I have been baked long enough.” But she answered. "I have no wish to make
myself dirty because of you", and so went on.

Soon she came to the apple tree which called out, "Shake me, shake me…my apples are all
quite ripe." But she answered. "You do welcome me…perhaps apples will fall on my head and
so she went on further. When she came to "Old Mother Frost's" house she was not afraid of
her teeth for she had been warned and so she engaged herself to her. The first day she set
to work in earnest was very industrious and obeyed her mistress in all she said to her for she
thought about the gold which she would present to her. On the second day, however she
began to idle…on the third, still more so and then she would not get up in the morning. She
did not make the bed either as she ought to and the feathers did not fly. So the old woman
got tired and dismissed her from her service which pleased the lazy one very well for she
thought; "Now the gold-shower will come."

Her mistress led her to the door…but when she was beneath it, instead of gold, a tubful of
pitch was poured down upon her.

"That is the reward for your service", said "Old Mother Frost", and shut the door. Then came
lazy-bones home, but she was quite covered with pitch and the cock upon the house when
he saw her, cried…
“Cock-a-doodle doo!
Our dirty maid's come home again."

But the pitch stuck to her and as long as she lived, would never come off again.

MORAL : One who is lazy will never prosper in life.

The Old Witch

The Old Witch :

There was once a little girl who was very obstinate and disobedient. How could such a girl be
happy? One day she said to her parents, "I have heard so much of the old witch that I will go
and see her. People say that she is a wonderful old woman and has many marvelous things
in her house and I am very curious to see them."

Her parents, however, forbade her from going, saying, "The witch is a wicked old woman
who performs many ungodly deeds and if you go near her, you are no longer a child of
ours."

The girl however would not turn back at her parents command. But went to the witch's
house. When she arrived there the woman asked her, "Why are you so pale?"

“Ah!", replied she, trembling all over, "I am so frightened with what I have just seen."

“And what did you see?" inquired the old witch.

“I saw a black man on your steps."

“That was a collier", she replied.

“Then I saw a grey man."

"That was a sportsman", said the old woman.

“After him I saw a blood-red man."

“That was a butcher", replied the woman,

“But oh, I was most terrified", continued the girl, "When I peeped through your window, and
saw none but a creature with a fiery head."

"Then you have seen the witch in her proper dress", said the old woman; "for you, I have
long waited and now you shall give me light."

So saying she changed the girl into a block of wood and then threw it into the fire and when
it was alight she sat down on the hearth and warmed herself and said, "And now for once it
burns brightly!"

MORAL : One who disobeys one's parent’s words will soon get into problems.

In this story also the little girl disobeyed her parents and went on her own way to meet the
witch which was considered by her parents ad wicked. If the little girl had obeyed her
parents, she would have been saved from death and would have lived well for a long time.
Because of the disobedience of her, she had to face the death at the hands of the witch
which entertained only bad thoughts about the little girl. So the children should pay
attention to their parents and heed them always. Thus they can save themselves from
dangers.

The Old Woman on the Moon

The Old Woman on the Moon :

Mona was a young girl who lived in Mumbai. One night she saw the lull moon rise, climbing
slowly across the sky. The moonlight was flooding her father’s corn fields. It was so very
beautiful that she praised God for all the wonderful things around her.

For her the moon seemed to be at a far distance. She looked at the moon and felt that
somebody was sitting in it under the shadow of a tree. She had heard, “There was an Old
Woman who lived there. How lonely she must be,” Mona thought for a while. She felt so sad
to think of her.

Suddenly a moonbeam danced right into her room and bowed low and said, “The old woman
on the Moon has read your thoughts and invites you for a visit. Won't you come with me? I
shall bring you back in a few days.”

Mona's parents were away on a visit and only the old servant was in the house. She joyfully
accepted the invitation and said, "But how shall I get there? The moon is miles away."

"I shall take you there. All you do is to touch this magic moon rays and sit on my buck and
by sunrise tomorrow we shall be to the moon.’’

Quickly Mona touched the magic rays and away she flew with the dancing. They crossed
oceans and continents and Mona who knew her geography saw the outline of the world lade
away. Higher and higher he moonbeam ascended. Stars and planets swirled past. She was
so excited that she urged the moonbeam to fly faster and faster.

It was dark and the outline of the moon was clearly visible. The light grow brighter and
brighter and Mona was almost blind by the shining glow. She could see deep valleys and
craters and high mountains. She knew that no humans lived on the moon because there was
no air and no living things grew there. She wondered how she would breathe and how the
old woman lived. Doubtless, she had some magic powers. She knew that the glorious Sun
reflected its light on the moon.

At last they reached the summit of a mountain and the exhausted moonbeam circled low
and gently landed at the entrance of a beautiful castle made out of moon-stones. Each gem
glittered in every hue and the enchantment of the scene fascinated the girl.

A very old woman, her white flowing hair almost touching the ground, gently greeted the girl
and bade her welcome. "You are the first human whom I have ever met. Are they all like
you? I have watched the earth for millions of years. Tell me all you can about it. It. is so
lonely for me here."

"But how do you live here without air and water?" asked Mona.

"My child, once you touch the magic moonstone, you need nothing. You can live here forever
and not want anything."
Mona was a gentle and kind girl and had great compassion for the old woman. Every day she
sat with the old woman and told her stories of life on earth. She described the snow-capped
mountains, the wide oceans, the green valleys, the bright meadows, the various beasts and
the songs of the birds and the laughter of the children. But she sadly concluded that the
earth was not all bliss as there was so much discord between different countries and much
despair in the hearts of men.

The old woman listened carefully and said that humans would soon reach the moon too.
Already she had seen strange shapes circling the hills. "Of course, those are the space
capsules. They are piloted by men called astronauts and I know that one is actually going to
land on the moon very soon. They don't need to touch the magic moonstone to survive here.
They have oxygen tanks and all sorts of scientific instruments to help them."

The next morning, Mona was exploring a crater, looking for pretty gems when she heard a
strange whirr and was astonished to see an unfamiliar contraption land bumpily near her.
She knew it was some kind of a space capsule and gazed at the young astronaut with
wonder. He in turn was so astonished to see a pretty young girl hopping among the craters
that he nearly dropped his instruments.

"Who are you and how did you land here?" asked the astronaut.

Mona laughed and told her story. "But don't you want to go back to earth? I can take you
with me."

“Oh yes…I would like to return. But first I must say good-bye to the dear Old Woman on the
Moon.' She will be so lonely without me."

She bade the old woman a fond farewell and flew back to the beautiful earth with all its life.
The old servant shook Mona awake with a hard shake and said to her, "Wake up Mona, you
have slept the whole day and now it is night again and the moon is shining bright. Come and
have your food."

Mona at once got up from her sleep and she jumped out of bed. She went to the window and
saw if the old woman was still there. But she saw nothing but deep shadows. She sighed and
said, "Oh dear, I've only been dreaming!"

Later on, Mona participated in a competition of story writing in her school. Mona had written
about her wonderful dream and narrated the story very nicely. The judges liked her
imagination and also selected her for the first prize. Mona was very happy and she shared
her joy with her parents. Mona's parents were also very happy at what their daughter
achieved and encouraged her to write on many things. Soon Mona became a writer and
wrote many good stories with facts for children.
The Old Woman on the Moon - The Old Woman on the Moon - The Old Woman on the Moon

MORAL : One should make use of one's hidden talents.

A Moral Story : The Peacock

and The Crane

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Peacock and The Crane.

T here was a peacock who often boasted about his beauty. Everyday he walked to the banks
of a large lake and looked his own reflections and said "Oh! What a beautiful bird I am! Look
at my colourful tail".

Once the peacock saw a crane on the banks of the lake. He said with a sneer to the crane,
"What a colourless bird you are! You have no beautiful and colourful feathers like mine".

The crane replied, "Of course! I don't have beautiful feathers. But, my feathers can make me
fly across the lake. Can your feathers make you fly?" There was no reply from the peacock.

The Poor Farmer

The Poor Farmer :

There was a small village wherein several rich farmers were settled and only one poor man
who was therefore called THE POOR FARMER. He had not even a goat, nor the money to buy
any though he and his wife would have been extremely happy to have one. One day he said
to her, "A good thought has just struck me. The carver can make us a lamb out of wood and
paint it brown so that it will look like any other. In time perhaps it will grow big and become a
goat". This proposal pleased his wife. And the carver was instructed accordingly and he cut
out the lamb, painted it as it should be and so made it that its head was bent down is if
eating.
The next morning the goats were driven out to pasture and the farmer called the shepherd
and said, "See… I have here a little lamb. But it is so small that it must as yet be carried."
The shepherd said, "Very well" and taking it under his arm, carried it down to the meadow
and set it among the grass. All day the lamb stood there as if eating. The shepherd said to
himself, "See how it is eating! It will soon grow big and go alone." In the evening when he
wanted to drive his flocks home, he said to the lamb, "If you can stand there to eat all the
time, you must also be able to walk upon your four legs and I shall not carry you home in my
arms."

The poor farmer stood before his house door waiting for his lamb. The shepherd drove his
herd through the village. The farmer asked him about the lamb. The shepherd replied, "It is
still standing there eating. It is not listening to me". The farmer exclaimed, "Eh! What? I
must have my lamb!" and so both of them went together down to the meadow. But someone
had stolen the lamb and it was gone.

The shepherd said "Perhaps it has run away itself", but the farmer replied, "No, no, that
won't do for me." The shepherd was dragged before the Mayor. He was sentenced for his
negligence to give the poor farmer a goat in the place of the lost lamb.

Now the farmer and his wife possessed the long-desired goat and were very glad. But having
no fodder they could give her nothing to eat. So, very soon they were obliged to kill her. The
flesh they salted down and the skin the poor farmer took to the next town to sell and to buy
a lamb with what he got for it.

On the way he passed a mill where a raven was sitting with a broken wing and out of
compassion he took the bird up and wrapped it in the skin he was carrying. But the weather
was very bad with a great storm and rain so he was unable to go further and turning into the
mill, begged for shelter. The miller's wife was at home alone and said to the farmer, "Lie
down on that straw" and gave him a piece of bread and cheese. The farmer ate it and lay
down with the skin near him and the miller's wife thought he was asleep. Later, a man came
and she received him very cordially. She gave him a grand feast and the farmer was vexed
on having been treated only with bread and cheese.

The woman went inside the kitchen and brought well-fried chicken, rice and salad. As they
were sitting down to eat, there was knock outside and the woman exclaimed, "Oh! Gracious!
That is my husband!" In a great hurry she stuck the chicken in the oven, the salad under the
pillow, the rice upon the bed, while her guest stepped into the cupboard where she kept the
linen. After doing all this she let in her husband and said, "God be praised! You have
returned again! What weather it is, as if the world is coming to an end!"

The miller noticed the man lying on the straw and asked what the fellow did there. His wife
said, 'Ah, the poor fellow came in the wind and rain and begged for shelter so I gave him
some bread and cheese and showed him the straw."

The husband said he had no objection and asked her to bring some food for him. The wild
said, "I have nothing but bread and cheese" and her husband told her with that he should be
contented and asked the farmer to come and share his meal. The farmer did not let himself
be twice asked but got up and ate away. Presently the miller noticed the skin lying upon the
ground in which was the raven and asked, "What have you there?"

The farmer replied, "I have a truth-teller therein". "

Can it tell me the truth too?" asked the miller.

"Why not?" said the other "but he will only say four things and the fifth he keeps to himself."

The miller was curious and wished to hear it speak and the farmer squeezed the raven's
head so that it squeaked out.

The miller then asked, "What did he say?"

The farmer replied, "The first thing is under the pillow lies the salad".

"That is a rare thing!" said the miller and went and found the salad. The farmer made the
raven croak again and said, "Secondly, he declares there is roast chicken in the oven." "That
is a good tell-tale!" cried the miller again and opening the oven, he took out the roast
chicken. Then the farmer made the raven croak again and said, "For the third thing, he
declares there is rice on the bed." "That is wonderful!" exclaimed the miller and he found the
rice. Then the farmer made his bird croak once more and said, "For the fourth thing, he
declares there are boiled eggs under the bed". "Oh! I like it.” said the miller while he went
and found as it said.

The two men now sat down together at the table, but the miller's wife felt terribly angry and
went to bed taking all the keys with her. The miller was very anxious to know the filth thing.
But the man said, "First let us eat quietly these four things, for the other is somewhat
dreadful!"

After they had finished their meal, the miller bargained as to how much he should give for
the fifth thing and at last he agreed for three thousand rupees. Then the farmer once more
made the raven croak and when the miller asked what it said, he told him, "He declares that
in the cupboard where the linen is there is an evil spirit!"

The miller said, "The evil spirit must walk out!" and tried to open the door. But it was locked
and the woman had to give up the key to the farmer who unlocked it. The unbidden guest at
once bolted out and ran out of the house while the miller said, "Ah, I saw the black fellow
that was all right!" Soon they went to sleep. But at daybreak the farmer took three thousand
rupees and made himself scarce.
The farmer was now quite rich at home and built himself a fine hut. Hence his fellows said,
"The poor farmer has certainly found the golden fortune of which he has brought away a
basketful" and they summoned him before the Mayor that he might be made to say how his
riches came.

The man replied, “I have sold my goat’s skin in the city for three thousand rupees".

And as soon as the others heard this they also desired to make a similar profit. The farmers
ran home, killed all their goats and taking their skins off, took them to the city to sell them
for a good price.

The Mayor, however, said. "My maid must go first" and when she arrived at the city she
went to the merchant. But he gave her only three hundred rupees for the skin. And when the
rest came he would not give them so much, saying, "What should I do with all these skins?"

The farmers were much vexed at being outwitted by their poor neighbour and bent on
revenge, they complained to the Mayor of his deceit. The innocent, poor farmer was
condemned to death unanimously and was to be rolled in a cask full of holes into the sea. He
was led away. Then they sent for a priest who should say for him the mass for the dead.
Everyone else was obliged to move to a distance and when the farmer looked at the priest
he recognized the guest whom he had met at the mill.

So he said to him, "I have delivered you out of the cupboard. Now deliver me from this
cask”. Just at that moment the shepherd passed by with a flock of sheep and the farmer,
knowing that for a long time the man had desired to be Mayor, cried out with all his might.
"No. no! I will not do it…even if the entire world asked me I would not do it! No, I will not!"

When the shepherd heard this he came up and said, "What are you doing here? What will
you not do?"

The farmer replied, "They will make me Mayor if I remain in this cask…but no…I will not be
here!" "Oh", said the shepherd, "if nothing else is required to become the Mayor. I am willing
to put myself in the cask!

"Yes, you will be the Mayor if you do that", said the farmer.

Then he got out of the cask and the shepherd got in and the farmer nailed the lid down
again. Now he took the shepherd's flock and drove it away while the parson went to the
judge and told him he had said the prayers for the dead. Then they went and rolled the cask
down to the water and while it rolled, the shepherd called out, "Yes, I should like to be the
Mayor!"
They thought it was the poor farmer who spoke and said. "Yes, we understand it. Only you
must first go below there."

Then they sent the cask right into the sea.

When that was done the farmers returned home and as they came into the village so came
also the poor farmer, driving a flock of sheep quietly and cheerfully. The sight astounded the
others and they asked, "When did you come? How did you come out of the water?" The
farmer said. "I sank deeper and deeper till I got to the bottom where I pushed up the head of
the cask and, got out. There were beautiful meadows upon which many lambs were grazing
and I brought this flock of them up with me.”

"Are there any more?” inquired the farmers.

"Oh yes!" replied he, "more than you know what to do with!"

Then the farmers agreed that they would go and each fetch a flock for himself. But the
Mayor said, "I must go first."

So they went together down to the water and there happened to be a fine blue sky with
plenty of fleecy clouds over it which were mirrored in the water and looked like little lambs.
The farmer told them, "Look there! We can see the sheep already on the ground below the
water!" and the Mayor pressing quite forward, said, "I will go first and look about me and see
if it is a good place and then call you."

So saying, he jumped in plump and as he splashed the water about, the others thought he
was calling "Come along!" and so one after another the farmers plunged in a great hurry.

Thus was the whole village cleared out and the "Poor Farmer", as their only heir, became a
very rich man.

MORAL : Quick-wittedness helps one overcome one’s dangers.

A Moral Story : The Poor

Man’s Wealth
Let us enjoy reading this story of The Poor Man’s Wealth.

Ramchand and Premchand were neighbours. Ramchand was a poor farmer. Premchand was
a landlord.

Ramchand used to be very relaxed and happy. He never bothered to close the doors and
windows of his house at night. He had deep sound sleeps. Although he had no money he
was peaceful.

Premchand used to be very tense always. He was very keen to close the doors and windows
of his house at night. He could not sleep well. He was always bothered that someone might
break open his safes and steal away his money. He envied the peaceful Ramchand.

One day, Premchand call Ramchand and gave him a boxful of cash saying, “Look my dear
friend. I am blessed with plenty of wealth. I find you in poverty. So, take this cash and live in
prosperity.”

Ramchand was overwhelmingly happy. He was joyful throughout the day. Night came.
Ramchand went to bed as usual. But, to-day, he could not sleep. He went and closed the
doors and windows. He still could not sleep. He began to keep on looking at the box of cash.
The whole night he was disturbed.

As soon as day broke, Ramchand took the box of cash to Premchand. He gave away the box
to Premchand saying, “Dear Friend, I am poor. But, your money took away peace from me.
Please bear with me and take back your money.”

MORAL : Money can not get everything.

A Moral Story : The Proud Donkey

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Proud Donkey.

There was a sculptor who carved beautiful idols of gods and goddesses. One day he had to
take an idol of a goddess to a rich man. He mounted the idol on a donkey and started.

As they walked along people started to admire the idol. Some stopped to admire and some
bowed in respect for the goddess. The foolish donkey thought that people were admiring
him.

The donkey stopped half way through. He began to bray loudly. The sculptor tried gentle
words and actions to pacify him. But he did not move. At last the sculptor took a hard stick
and thrashed the donkey. He came back to his senses and walked on humbly.

A Moral Story : The Red Hen and Her Friends

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Red Hen and Her Friends.

Once, there lived a hen with her five chicks. The hen was as red as beetroot. She had three
friends : a duck, a cat and a dog. They all lived happily.

One day, the red hen stumbled on to a wheat seed. “Hey, who among you wish to plant this
seed?” she asked.

“Not me, friend” refused the duck.

“Nor can I.” declined the cat.

“Count me not.” the dog turned his back.

“All right. I will do it then by myself,” said the hen. She planted the see and watered it. Alas!
It grew quickly to yield the brownish wheat. “Hi! There, who among you wish to harvest the
wheat?” asked the red hen.

“Not me, friend,” the duck sounded bored.

“Nor can I.” shrugged the cat.

“Count me not!” avoided the dog.

“If so, I will do it by myself,” the red hen spoke up as she laboured all day along. By evening
she had two gunny bags full of wheat.

“Hello pal! Who among you will lend me a hand to grind this wheat? She queried. All the
three refused as usual.

"I will see that I grind this by myself. I will make flour, knead dough and bake bread!” she
announced. The next day she baked delicious bread.
“Howdy, who among you wish to eat this bread?” she asked merrily.

“I want to!” answered the duck, smacking her lips.

“Me too!” said the cat with his mouth watering.

“Yummy, smells good,” spoke up the dog, shuffling his feet eagerly.

“None of you can have a bite! I slaved in the field and at home. Only my children and I are
entitled to eat this bread!” So saying the red hen fed her chicks and ate a sumptuous meal
that day.

MORAL : There are no gains without pains.

The Right Person

The Right Person :

Once there was a wise King. He had two sons. He appointed eminent scholars to teach them
all arts. After a few years of teachings, the King fell ill badly. So, he wanted to select his next
King for his Kingdom. He wanted to test his sons’ abilities.

He called both of them and gave a room to each of them. He said, “You must fill this room
completely with anything you wish. It can be anything! But there should be no space left
behind and you should not seek the advice from anyone!”

The next day the king visited the elder’s son room. The room was completely filled with hay.
The king sighed on the foolishness of the elder son.

The he went to the younger son’s room. But it was kept closed. The King knocked at the door
of the room. The second sonasked his father to get in and closed the door again. There were
darkness everywhere and The King shouted at his second son angrily.
But the second son lighted a candle and said, I have filled this room with light!”

Now the King felt very happy and hugged his son proudly. He understood that the younger
son would be the right person to rule The Kingdom after The King.

The Scared Little Mouse

The Scared Little Mouse :

Cat and Dog were Friends = Hey diddle diddle

Once upon a time in a fairy tale land a cat and a dog were friends. One night, the cat invited
the dog for a party at his house.

The cat played the fiddle. The dog happily clapped his hands. Suddenly, they saw a cow
flying in the sky. It jumped over the moon. The dog laughed. Just then, they saw a dish and a
spoon from the party running away together. And they laughed even louder. After that they
became the best friends.

Moral of the story :

Enemies could also become good friends. So, we have to be nice even to our enemies. This
way we could reduce the friction between people and enmity will get eroded. The safety and
peace will prevail in this world. We need more peace than prosperity. Peace will create the
environment for happy living.

A Moral Story : The Saint’s

Wisdom
Let us enjoy reading this story of The Saint’s Wisdom.
Kandagupta was a famous saint. He lived in the outskirts of Maninagar which was the capital
of Manipur Kingdom. There were very few who did not know about the wisdom of
Kandagupta. He was also known for his fortune telling.

Maniraj who was the king of Manipuri came to know of the feats of Kandagupta. He wanted
to pay respect to this great saint. So, he invited Kandagupta to his palace.

When Kandagupta arrived, Maniraj welcomed him and offered him a seat. Then, the king
asked the saint to tell something about his feature from his horoscope.

After a keen observation into the king’s horoscope, Kandagupta started telling the future
boons to be blessed upon the king. The king was so happy. He kept on rewarding the saint
with gold and silver for every boon told by Kandagupta.

Now, came the time to say the future misfortunes. The whole outlook of Maniraj started to
change. At one point he shouted, “Stop! You filthy soul! How dare you say such nonsense! I
order you to say me the time of your death".

Kandagupta replied in a small voice, "My lord! According to my calculations, my death will
take place just an hour before thy death".

The king was stunned. He felt his error. He begged pardon from Kandagupta and sent him off
with furthermore wealth.

MORAL : Wisdom is more able than power.

A Moral Story : The Salt Vendor

and His Donkey

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Salt Vendor and His Donkey.

There was a salt vendor in a village. He used to buy salt from a nearby town. He had a
donkey to carry this salt load. There were many streams to be crossed to reach the town.

One day, the vendor was returning after his purchase.

The donkey was loaded with salt bags. While they were crossing a stream, accidentally the
donkey slipped and fell into the stream. A lot of salt got dissolved in the water. When the
donkey got up the load became very light.
 From that day, whenever the vendor returned from town after salt purchase, the donkey
began to tumble half-way across one stream or the other. The vendor became suspicious.

Once the vendor purchased bales of cotton and loaded his donkey with bales of cotton. The
donkey felt the load to be unusually light. He thought "Today, I am going to tumble and this
load is going to become much lighter".

On their way home, as usual, the donkey tumbled and fell into a stream. But alas! When the
donkey tried to get up, the load pulled the donkey down. The cotton had absorbed water and
become heavier.

The vendor gave hard beatings to make the donkey get up and walk. From then on, the
donkey never tumbled while crossing streams.

A Moral Story : Clever Thief

Let us enjoy reading this story of Clever Thief.

Devan was a clever thief. He robbed the rich and gave all to the sick and the needy. The
other thieves were jealous of him. They planned to get rid of him. They challenged to steal
the King’s Pyjamas.

Deven accepted the challenge. After that he prepared to execute the new challenge. He
charted out a plan to steal the King. He prepared himself mentally to carry out a plan.

He went to the King’s Palace. He found the King sleeping. He opened a bottle of red ants on
the bed. The King was badly bitten. He cried for help. The servants rushed in. They
pretended to look for ants. Deven removed the King’s Pyjamas and escaped. Other thieves
were dump founded.

They accepted Deven their leader.

Cat and Dog were Friends.

Cat and Dog were Friends :

Georgie Porgie

Georgie Porgie was a cheeky little boy. He liked to tease people especially little girls.

One afternoon, he went to the park near his house. He found a little girl and tried to kiss her.
The girl cried and sobbed because she did not like Georgie.

Then, some boys came to the park and saw Georgie chasing after the girl. They shouted and
laughed loudly at Georgie. Georgie stopped chasing the girl and ran away feeling
embarrassed. Thereafter Georgie hesitated to play with his friends because he remembered
his embarrassment that he faced in front of his friends. This incident prohibited him from
chasing girls thereafter.

Bye Baby Bunting

Bye Baby Bunting :

Betty Botter

One day, Betty Botter wanted to bake a cake. She bought some cheap butter to bake it. But
something was wrong with the butter.
“This butter is bitter,” said Betty Botter as she tasted the butter.

“If I put it in my cake batter, it will make the batter bitter. But if I put a bit of better butter
that would make my batter better.”

So, she went off to buy a better butter than her bitter butter. She mixed a bit of better butter
into her cake batter. She tasted the batter and was happy that the batter was not bitter.

She adopted the best way to solve the problem. Because there will be always one.

Betty Botter

Betty Botter :

Betty Botter

One day, Betty Botter wanted to bake a cake. She bought some cheap butter to bake it. But
something was wrong with the butter.

“This butter is bitter,” said Betty Botter as she tasted the butter.

“If I put it in my cake batter, it will make the batter bitter. But if I put a bit of better butter
that would make my batter better.”

So, she went off to buy a better butter than her bitter butter. She mixed a bit of better butter
into her cake batter. She tasted the batter and was happy that the batter was not bitter.

She adopted the best way to solve the problem. Because there will be always one.

A Moral Story : Belling The Cat

Let us enjoy reading this story of Belling The Cat.

There lived many mice in a grocer’s shop. They ate plenty of grains and the grocer suffered
heavy loss. So, he brought a fat cat to catch the mice. The mice were worried. They held a
meeting to drive away the cat.

A smart-looking mouse suggested that the cat moved softly and swiftly. They decided to tie
a bell round its neck. So that when the cat moves, the mice would become aware of the cat.
All the mice agreed to this decision.

The old mouse said, “Can you tell me who is to bell the cat?”

There was no reply.

Their decision is not yet executed.

A Moral Story : Bell The Cat

Let us enjoy reading this story of Bell The Cat.

There was a grocery shop in a town. Plenty of mice lived in that grocery shop. Food was in
plenty for them. They ate everything and spoiled all the bags. They also wasted the bread,
biscuits and fruits of the shop.

The grocer got really worried. So, he thought "I should buy a cat and let it stay at the
grocery. Only then I can save my things."

He bought a nice, big fat cat and let him stay there. The cat had a nice time hunting the
mice and killing them. The mice could not move freely now. They were afraid that anytime
the cat would eat them up.
The mice wanted to do something. They held a meeting and all of them tweeted "We must
get rid of the cat. Can someone give a suggestion"?

All the mice sat and brooded. A smart looking mouse stood up and said, "The cat moves
softly. That is the problem. If we can tie a bell around her neck, then things will be fine. We
can know the movements of the cat".

“Yes, that is answer,” stated all the mice. An old mouse slowly stood up and asked, "Who
would tie the bell?" After some moments there was no one there to answer this question.

Beg Your Pardon Mrs Hardin

Beg Your Pardon Mrs Hardin :

A Wise Old Owl

There was an old owl that lived in an oak. Everyday he saw incidents happening around him.
Yesterday he saw a boy helping an old man to carry a heavy basket. Today he saw a girl
shouting at her mother. The more he saw the less he spoke.

As he spoke less, he heard more. He heard people talking and telling stories. He heard a
woman saying that an elephant jumped over a fence. He also heard a man saying that he
had never made a mistake.

The old owl had seen and heard about what happened to people. Some became better and
some became worse. But the old owl had become wiser each and every day.
Baa Baa Black Sheep

Baa Baa Black Sheep :

A Wise Old Owl

There was an old owl that lived in an oak. Everyday he saw incidents happening around him.
Yesterday he saw a boy helping an old man to carry a heavy basket. Today he saw a girl
shouting at her mother. The more he saw the less he spoke.

As he spoke less, he heard more. He heard people talking and telling stories. He heard a
woman saying that an elephant jumped over a fence. He also heard a man saying that he
had never made a mistake.

The old owl had seen and heard about what happened to people. Some became better and
some became worse. But the old owl had become wiser each and every day.

A Wise Old Owl

A Wise Old Owl :

A Wise Old Owl

There was an old owl that lived in an oak. Everyday he saw incidents happening around him.
Yesterday he saw a boy helping an old man to carry a heavy basket. Today he saw a girl
shouting at her mother. The more he saw the less he spoke.

As he spoke less, he heard more. He heard people talking and telling stories. He heard a
woman saying that an elephant jumped over a fence. He also heard a man saying that he
had never made a mistake.

The old owl had seen and heard about what happened to people. Some became better and
some became worse. But the old owl had become wiser each and every day.

A Moral Story : A Wise Counting

Let us enjoy reading this story of A Wise Counting.

Emperor Akbar was in the habit of putting riddles and puzzles to his courtiers. He often
asked questions which were strange and witty. It took much wisdom to answer these
questions.

Once he asked a very strange question. The courtiers were dumb folded by his question.

Akbar glanced at his courtiers. As he looked, one by one the heads began to hang low in
search of an answer. It was at this moment that Birbal entered the courtyard. Birbal who
knew the nature of the emperor quickly grasped the situation and asked, "May I know the
question so that I can try for an answer".

Akbar said, "How many crows are there in this city?"

Without even a moment's thought, Birbal replied "There are fifty thousand five hundred and
eighty nine crows, my lord".

"How can you be so sure?” asked Akbar.

Birbal said, "Make you men count, My lord. If you find more crows it means some have come
to visit their relatives here. If you find less number of crows it means some have gone to
visit their relatives elsewhere".

Akbar was pleased very much by Birbal's wit.

MORAL : A witty answer will serve its purpose.

Georgie Porgie

Georgie Porgie :

Georgie Porgie was a cheeky little boy. He liked to tease people especially little girls.

One afternoon, he went to the park near his house. He found a little girl and tried to kiss her.
The girl cried and sobbed because she did not like Georgie.

Then, some boys came to the park and saw Georgie chasing after the girl. They shouted and
laughed loudly at Georgie. Georgie stopped chasing the girl and ran away feeling
embarrassed. Thereafter Georgie hesitated to play with his friends because he remembered
his embarrassment that he faced in front of his friends. This incident prohibited him from
chasing girls thereafter.

Faithful Jose
Faithful Jose :

In a big beautiful palace there lived an old king who fell very sick one day. He had many
servants and among them was a good servant Jose who had won the king s heart. The king
thought that he was lying on his death-bed…so he said, "Let faithful Jose come to me."

Faithful Jose was his affectionate servant and was called so because he had been true to him
all his lifetime. As soon as Jose came to the bedside, the king said, "My faithful Jose. I feel
that my end approaches and I am worried about my son who is still so young that he cannot
always guide himself aright. If you do not promise to instruct him in everything he ought to
know and be his guardian, I cannot close my eyes in peace."

Then Jose answered, "I will never leave him. I will always serve him truly, even if it costs my
own life.” So the king was very happy and said, "Now I can die in peace. After my death, you
must show him all the chambers, halls and vaults in the castle and all the treasures which
are in them. But the last room in the long corridor you must not show him. Because in it
hangs the portrait of the daughter of the king of the golden palace… if he sees her picture,
he will fall in great love with her and will fall down in a swoon and on her account will
undergo great troubles. Therefore you must keep him away."

The faithful Jose pressed his master’s hand again in token of his promise and a little later the
king laid his head upon the pillow and expired.

After many days of the king's funeral, the faithful Jose said to the prince who had now
become the King, "It is now time for you to see your inheritance. I will show you your
paternal castle."

So, he led the prince all over it upstairs and downstairs and showed him all the riches and all
the splendid chambers. Only one room he did not open containing the perilous portrait. The
new king asked him, "Why do you not open that one?"

"There is something in it which will frighten you", he replied.

But the young King said, "I have seen all the rest of the castle and I will know what is in
there" and he went and tried to open the door by force. The faithful Jose pulled him back and
said, "I promised your father before he died that you shall not see the contents of that room.
It would bring great misfortunes upon both you and me."

"Oh, no", replied the young King. "If I don't see it, I cannot sleep peacefully in the night nor
in the day. Now I won't leave this place till you unlock the door."
Then the faithful Jose saw that it was no use talking so, with a heavy heart he took the key
and opened the door of the chamber. When he had opened it, he went in first and thought
he would cover up the picture that the King should not see it. But it was of no use for the
King stepped upon tiptoes and saw what he was not supposed to see and as soon as he saw
the portrait of the maiden which was so beautiful and glittered with precious stones, he fell
down on the ground insensible.

Faithful Jose lifted him up and carried him to his bed and thought with great concern. ”Oh!
The misfortune has happened…what will come of it?" and he gave the young King cold water
until he came to himself. The first words he spoke were "Who does that beautiful picture
represent?"

"That is the daughter of the king of the Golden Palace", replied Jose.

"Oh, Jose! My love for her is so great that I cannot live without her. My life is set upon the
search for her. You are my faithful Jose. You must accompany me."

The trusted servants deliberated for a long while how to set about this task for it was very
difficult to get into the presence of the king's daughter. At last he found out a way and said
to the king, "Everything which she has around her is of gold — chairs, tables, dishes, bowls
and all the household utensils. Among your treasures are five tons of gold…lot one of the
goldsmiths of your kingdom manufacture vessels and utensils of all kinds there from - all
kinds of birds and wild and wonderful beasts such as will please her. Then we will travel with
these and try our luck.”

The king summoned all his goldsmiths who worked day and night until many very beautiful
things were ready. When all had been placed on board a ship, the faithful Jose put on
merchant's clothes and the king likewise so that they might travel quite unknown. Then they
sailed over the wide sea and sailed away until they came to the city where lived the
daughter of the King of the Golden Palace.

Faithful Jose told the king to remain in the ship and wait for him. "Perhaps", said he, "I shall
bring the king's daughter with me…therefore take care that all is in order and set out the
golden vessels and adorn the whole ship."

Thereupon, Jose placed in a napkin some of the golden cups, stepped upon the land and
went straight to the king's palace. When he came into the castle-yard, a beautiful maid
stood by the brook who had a golden pail in her hand drawing water and when she had filled
it and had turned round, she saw a strange man and asked who he was.

Then Jose answered, “I am a merchant", and opening his napkin, he showed her its contents.
Then she exclaimed, "Oh! what beautiful golden things!" and she looked at the golden cups
one after another and said, "The king’s daughter must see these. She is so pleased with
anything made of gold that she will buy all these." And taking him by the hand, she led him
in for she was the lady's maid.

When the king's daughter saw the golden cups, she liked them all and said, "They are finely
made. I will purchase them all." But faithful Jose replied, "I am only the servant of a rich
merchant; "What I have here is nothing compared to what is there in our ship. Nothing more
delicate or costly has ever been made in gold."

Then the king's daughter wished to have them all bought…but he said, "It would take many
days and so great is the quantity that your palace has not halls enough in it to place them
around."

Then her curiosity and desire were still more excited and at last she said, "Take me to the
ship. I will go myself and look at your master’s treasure."

Faithful Jose took her to the ship with great joy and the king when he beheld her saw that
her beauty was still greater than the picture had represented and thought that his heart
would jump out of his mouth. When she stepped on board and the king conducted her
below, faithful Jose remained on the deck by the steersman and told him to unmoor the ship
and put on all the sails he could that it might fly like a bird through the air.

Meanwhile the king showed the princess all the golden treasures - the dishes, the cups, the
bowls, the birds and the wild and wonderful beasts. Many hours elapsed while she looked at
everything and in her joy she did not remark that the ship sailed on and on. As soon as she
had looked at the last and thanked the merchant, she wished to depart. But when she came
on deck, she perceived that they were upon the high sea, far from the shore and were
hastening on with all the sails. "Ah", she exclaimed in fright, "I have been betrayed. I am
carried off and taken away in the power of a strange merchant. I would rather die!"

But the king taking her by the hand said, “I am not a merchant…but a king and equal to you
in birth. It is true that I have carried you off. But that is because of my overwhelming love for
you. When I first saw the portrait of the beauteous face, I fell down in a swoon before it."

When the princess heard these words, she felt reassured and her heart was inclined towards
him and so, she willingly became his bride.

While they thus went on their voyage on the high sea, it so happened that faithful Jose
sitting on the deck of the ship, playing music, saw three cranes in the air who came flying
towards them. He stopped playing and listened to what they were saying to one another for
he understood them perfectly.

The first one said, "The king is carrying home the daughter of the king of the Golden Palace."
"But he is not home yet", replied the second. "But he has her”, said the third, "She is sitting
by him in the ship."
Then the first one began again and said, "What matters that? When they go on shore, a fox-
colored horse will spring towards them on which he will mount and as soon as he is on it, it
will jump up with him into the air so that he will never again see his bride."

The second one asked, "Is there no escape?"

"Oh yes, if anybody mounts behind quickly and takes out the firearms which are in the
holster and with them shoots the horse dead then the young king will be saved. But who
knows that? And if anyone knows it and tells him, such a person will be turned into stone
from the toe to the knee."

Then the second spoke again, "I know more…even if the horse is killed, the young King
cannot still retain the bride for, when they come into the castle, a beautiful bridal shirt will
lie there upon a dish and seem to be woven of gold and silver, but it is nothing but sulphur
and pitch and if he puts it on, it will burn him to his marrow and bones."

Then the third crane asked, "Is there no escape?"

"Oh yes", answered the second. "If someone takes up the shirt with one's gloves on and
throws it into the fire so that it is burnt, the young king will be saved. But what does that
signify? Whoever knows it and tells him will be turned into stone from the knee to the
heart."

Then the third crane spoke, "I know still more…even if the bridal shirt be consumed, still the
young king cannot retain his bride. For, after the wedding, a dance will be held and while the
young queen dances, she will suddenly turn pale and fall down as if dead and if someone
does not raise her up and take three drops of blood from her right arm and throw them
away, she will die. But the whole body of the one who knows it and tells it will be turned into
stone from the toe to the crown.”

After the cranes had thus talked with one another, they flew away and faithful Jose who had
perfectly understood all they had said was from that time very quiet and sad for, if he
concealed from his master what he had heard misfortune would happen to him and if he told
him all, he must give up his own life. But at last he thought, "I will save my master, even if I
destroy myself."

As soon as they came on shore, it happened just as the crane had foretold and an immense
fox-colored horse sprang up. "Capital!" said the king…’’this shall carry me to my castle" and
he tried to mount…but the faithful Jose came straight up and swinging himself quickly on,
drew the firearms out of the holster and shot the horse dead. Then the other servants of the
king who were not on good terms with the faithful Jose exclaimed, "How shameful to kill the
beautiful creature which might have borne the king to the castle!"
But the king replied, "Be silent and let him go. He is my very faithful Jose. Who knows the
good he may have done?"

Now they went into the castle and there stood a dish in the hall and the splendid bridal shin
lay upon it and seemed nothing other than gold and silver. The young king went up to it and
wished to take it up. But faithful Jose pushed him away and taking it up with his gloves on,
bore it quickly to the fire and let it burn.

The other servants thereupon began to murmur, "See, how he is burning the king's bridal
shirt!" But the young king replied, "Who knows what good he has done? Leave him alone. He
is my faithful Jose."

Soon after this, the wedding was celebrated and a great ball was given and the bride began
to dance. So, the faithful Jose paid great attention and constantly watched her countenance.
All at once she grew pale and fell as if dead to the ground. Then he sprang up hastily raised
her and bore her to a chamber, knelt beside her and drawing three drops of blood out of her
right arm, threw them away. As soon as she breathed again, she raised herself up…but the
young king had witnessed everything and not knowing why faithful Jose had done this, he
was very angry and called out, “Throw him into prison!”

The next morning trusted Jose was brought up for trial and led to the gallows and as he
stood there and was about to be executed, he said, "Everyone condemned to die may once
before his death speak. Shall I also have that privilege?"

"Yes", answered the king, "it shall be granted to you". Then faithful Jose replied, "I have been
unrighteously judged and have always been true to you," and he narrated the conversation
of the cranes which he had heard at sea and how, in order to save his master, he was
obliged to do all he had done.

Then the king cried out, "Oh, my most trusted Jose, pardon, pardon…lead him away!" But
trusted Jose had fallen down at the last word and was turned into stone.

At this event both the king and the queen were in great grief and the king thought, "Ah, how
wickedly have I rewarded his great fidelity!" and he had the stone statue raised and placed
in his sleeping-chamber near his bed and as often as he looked at it, he wept and said, "Ah,
if only I could bring you back to life again, my faithful Jose."

After some time, the queen bore twins, two little sons who were her great joy. Once when
the queen was in church and the two children were playing by their father's side, he looked
up at the stone statue, full of sorrow and exclaimed with a sigh, "Ah, could I restore you to
life, my faithful Jose!"

At these words the statue began to speak, saying, "Yes, you can make me alive again, if you
bestow on me that which is dearest to you."
The king replied, “All that I have in the world I will give up for you."

The statue spoke again, "If you, with your own hand, cut off the heads of both your children
and sprinkle me with their blood, I shall be brought to life again.''

The king was terrified when he heard that he must kill his two dear children. But he
remembered his servant's great fidelity and how Jose had died for him and drawing his
sword, he cut off the heads of both of his children with his own hand. And as soon as he
sprinkled the statue with the blood, life came back to it and trusted Jose stood again alive
and well before him and said: "Your faith shall not go unrewarded…” and taking the heads of
the two children, he set them on again and anointed their wounds with their blood and
thereupon they healed again in a moment and the children sprang away and played as if
nothing had happened.

Now the king was full of happiness and he saw the queen coming. He hid Jose and the
children in a great closet. He said to her, ' My dear queen, we can restore his life, but it will
cost us both our little sons whom we must sacrifice."

The queen was horrified but she said, “We have to sacrifice our sons.”

Then he was very glad that she thought as he did and unlocked the closet, brought out Jose
and the children saying, "God be praised ! He is saved and we have our little sons", and then
he told her what had happened. Afterwards they lived happily together to the end of their
life.

MORAL : Faithfulness ultimately brings its own reward.

Doctor Foster

Doctor Foster :
Long-Eared Puppy = Do Your Ears Hang Low?

There was a little boy who just celebrated his birthday. His parents bought him a puppy as a
birthday present. The puppy had very long ears.

One evening, he was playing with his puppy. The puppy was happily jumping about and
wagging his tail. Then the little boy tried to tie the puppy’s ears into a knot. The puppy
stopped wagging his tail.

The little boy then tried to tie the puppy’s ears into a bow. The boy chuckled but the puppy
became quiet.

“Can you throw your ears over your shoulders like a regimental soldier?" asked the boy. The
puppy put his head on the ground and whimpered. The little boy laughed and hugged the
puppy. The puppy wagged his tail happily.

Do Your Ears Hang Low?

Long-Eared Puppy = Do Your Ears Hang Low?

There was a little boy who just celebrated his birthday. His parents bought him a puppy as a
birthday present. The puppy had very long ears.

One evening, he was playing with his puppy. The puppy was happily jumping about and
wagging his tail. Then the little boy tried to tie the puppy’s ears into a knot. The puppy
stopped wagging his tail.

The little boy then tried to tie the puppy’s ears into a bow. The boy chuckled but the puppy
became quiet.

“Can you throw your ears over your shoulders like a regimental soldier?" asked the boy. The
puppy put his head on the ground and whimpered. The little boy laughed and hugged the
puppy. The puppy wagged his tail happily.

Do You Know the Muffin Man?

Do You Know the Muffin Man?

My Son John = Diddle, Diddle, Dumpling

There was a little boy called John. He was very playful. He played hard at the playground and
was exhausted when he got home. His father told him to get undressed and ready for a
bath. The little boy nodded and went straight to his room.

His father was waiting for John at the bathroom but he never came. His father went to John’s
room. He saw that John was already asleep in his bed fully clothed. And one shoe was off but
one shoe was still on his right foot.

His father took off John’s shoe and his trousers. He dressed him in his pyjamas and left him
to sleep.

Moral of the story :

Avoid playing too much until you are too tired to do anything else. If you play too much, you
will be tired and you will get very little time for study which is more important than play.

Pussy is in the Well.

Once upon a time, there was a very useful little pussy cat. The pussy cat killed all the mice
in the farmer’s barn.

One day, a little boy called Johnny Green wanted to play with the pussy cat. Johnny played
rough. He even tried to drown the pussy cat in a well. The pussy cat was terrified. It cried for
help.

A little boy called Tommy Stout was walking near the well. He heard the pussy cat's cry from
inside the well. He went to the well and quickly pulled the pussy cat out. The pussy cat was
very happy.

Moral of the story :

Avoid becoming a bully. Be helpful and kind to animals. Then only you will not be bullied in
the future and your life will be happy and peaceful.
Do You Know the Muffin Man?

One afternoon, Mrs. Darby was having tea with her friend, Mrs Smith. On the table, there
were two cups of tea and some muffins.

“Mmm, this muffin is delicious. Did you bake them yourself?” asked Mrs Smith.

“No. Actually I bought them from the muffin man,” replied Mrs Darby.

“The muffin man?” asked Mrs Smith.

“Yes, the muffin man who lives in Drury Lane,” said Mrs Darby.

“Oh yes, I know that muffin man,” said Mrs Smith knowingly.

Moral of the story :

Share useful information with your friends. This way you could get more information in the
future. The information will be of great help to you as well.

A Moral Story : Dick An Actor

Let us enjoy reading this story of Dick An Actor.

Dick was an actor. He was brilliant. He had a strange character. He insisted on realism. He
was a head ache to his manager. A drama was played.

The first was drinking scene. Water was provided in a cup. Dick insisted on liquor. The
manager had brought a bottle of liquor.

The second scene was a fighting scene. He insisted on real swords. Steel swords were
provided.

The third scene was the one in which the hero was drinking poison. The manager had real
poison. The actor was in fix.
He realised his mistakes. He realised the importance of practicality in life. He promised to be
sensible in future.

Come To the Window

Come To the Window :

Cock-a-doodle doo

In a faraway land, there was a rooster who lived with his master and the wife. Every early
morning, the rooster would make a very loud cook-a-doodle-doo sound. This shocked his
master and the wife so much that they jumped up from their sleep.

One day, the rooster heard that his master and the wife wanted to slaughter him for dinner.
He was afraid. He wanted to run away. But before he went off, he quickly took one of the
wife’s shoes and the master’s fiddling stick. Then he ran off into the forest feeling happy and
satisfied.

Moral of The Story :

Always be careful of someone that you know. Because sometimes they have bad ideas
towards you.

Come To the Window

One night, there was a little baby who was still not asleep. His mother already tried rocking
the baby to sleep but he was still wide awake. So, his mother took him to the window to see
the stars.

The stars shone on the sea. The mother told the baby some stories about the stars. She said
that there were two little stars that played peek-a-boo with two little fishes in the deep blue
sea. And there were two little frogs that cried ‘Neap, neap, neap. We also see a dear little
baby who should be asleep!’

The baby was happy and delighted. Soon, the little baby grew sleepy and fell asleep in his
mother’s arms.

Moral of the story :

You should go to sleep when it is your bedtime.

Cock-a-doodle doo

Cock-a-doodle doo :

In a faraway land, there was a rooster who lived with his master and the wife. Every early
morning, the rooster would make a very loud sound. This shocked his master and the wife so
much that they jumped up from their sleep.

One day, the rooster heard that his master and the wife wanted to slaughter him for dinner.
He was afraid. He wanted to run away. But before he went off, he quickly took one of the
wife’s shoes and the master’s fiddling stick. Then he ran off into the forest feeling happy and
satisfied.

Moral of The Story :

Always be careful of someone that you know. Because sometimes they have bad ideas
towards you.

Come To the Window

One night, there was a little baby who was still not asleep. His mother already tried rocking
the baby to sleep but he was still wide awake. So, his mother took him to the window to see
the stars.
The stars shone on the sea. The mother told the baby some stories about the stars. She said
that there were two little stars that played peek-a-boo with two little fishes in the deep blue
sea. And there were two little frogs that cried ‘Neap, neap, neap. We also see a dear little
baby who should be asleep!’

The baby was happy and delighted. Soon, the little baby grew sleepy and fell asleep in his
mother’s arms.

Moral of the story :

You should go to sleep when it is your bedtime.

Cobbler Cobbler

Cobbler Cobbler :

Betty Botter

One day, Betty Botter wanted to bake a cake. She bought some cheap butter to bake it. But
something was wrong with the butter.

“This butter is bitter,” said Betty Botter as she tasted the butter.

“If I put it in my cake batter, it will make the batter bitter. But if I put a bit of better butter
that would make my batter better.”

So, she went off to buy a better butter than her bitter butter. She mixed a bit of better butter
into her cake batter. She tasted the batter and was happy that the batter was not bitter.

She adopted the best way to solve the problem. Because there will be always one.

Grey Goose and Gander

Grey Goose and Gander :

Georgie Porgie

Georgie Porgie was a cheeky little boy. He liked to tease people especially little girls.

One afternoon, he went to the park near his house. He found a little girl and tried to kiss her.
The girl cried and sobbed because she did not like Georgie.

Then, some boys came to the park and saw Georgie chasing after the girl. They shouted and
laughed loudly at Georgie. Georgie stopped chasing the girl and ran away feeling
embarrassed. Thereafter Georgie hesitated to play with his friends because he remembered
his embarrassment that he faced in front of his friends. This incident prohibited him from
chasing girls thereafter.

Moral of the story :

Being cheeky and naughty has its limits. Behave yourself so that you do not cause problems
to others.

A Moral Story : Haste makes Waste

Let us enjoy reading this story of Haste makes Waste.

A woman had a pet mongoose. It was very faithful. One day she went to the market, leaving
her baby in the care of the mongoose.

At that time a big cobra entered the house. The mongoose killed it after a long and fierce
fight.

When the woman came back she saw the mongoose lying at the entrance. She noticed its
blood-covered mouth.
In her haste the woman thought that the mongoose had killed her baby. In a moment of
sudden fury, the woman threw the water pot on the mongoose and killed it.

Alas! When she entered the house she was filled with remorse. Her baby was playing
cheerfully.

Nearby a big cobra lay dead. The woman shed tears of grief fondling the carcass of the
mongoose.

MORAL : Do not act in haste.

A Moral Story : The Foolish Donkey

Let us enjoy reading this story of The Foolish Donkey.

A salt seller used to carry the salt bag on his donkey to the market every day. On the way
they had to cross a stream. One day the donkey suddenly tumbled down the stream and the
salt bag also fell into the water. The salt dissolved in the water and hence the bag became
very light to carry. The donkey was happy.

Then the donkey started to play the same trick every day. The salt seller came to
understand the trick and decided to teach a lesson to it. The next day he loaded a cotton
bag on the donkey. Again it played the same trick hoping that the cotton bag would be still
become lighter.

But the dampened cotton became very heavy to carry and it suffered much. It learnt a
lesson. Afterwards it did not play the trick and the seller was happy.