A Crow, a Hunter, Some Doves and a Mouse

On the banks of the river Godavari, stood a huge silk-cotton tree. At night, the birds from all around used to come to this tree and rest there.

Once at dawn, when the moon was setting over western mountains, a crow woke up and saw a hunter coming towards the tree. He looked like Yama, the God of Death... When the crow saw him, he was frantic and thought to himself, “This looks grim. I don’t like the look of this at all.”

Thinking thus, he started following the hunter.

After some time, the hunter stopped and looked around. He took out some grains of rice from his bag, scattered them on the ground and then spread out his net over the grains.

When he had done this, he hid himself behind the tree.

Just then, the king of doves with his courtiers was flying around in search of food.

He saw the grains of rice and said to his followers, “How strange! Grains of rice in an uninhabited forest? Let’s see what this is all about. I smell a rat!”

But being greedy, the doves didn’t listen to their king and flew down to pick up the grains of rice. Whoops! In a trice, they were all caught in the net.

A terrific commotion broke out amongst the trapped doves.

Then the king cried out, “Friends, we are in great danger. Unless we pull ourselves together immediately and think of a way to get out, there’s no doubt that we shall all be dead. Now I propose that we all catch hold of the net at the same time and fly upwards together.”

The birds agreed. They caught hold of the net and together flew away with it. When the hunter saw this, he was spellbound and didn’t know what to do.

But he soon came to himself and began to run after them, thinking, “These birds have managed the escape because they are united. But when they come down, I’ll have them in my power!”

However, the doves flew very fast and were soon out of sight. They then asked their king,” What shall we do now?”

“I have a very dear friend,” he said, “a mouse who lives on the banks of the river Godavari. We’ll go to him. I know he will find a way to free us!”

So, they all flew to the place where the mouse lived. When the mouse saw the birds flying down towards him, he got frightened and ran inside his hole at the root of a tree.

But the king of doves called out, “My friend! Don’t you know me? Come and set us free.”

When the mouse heard this, he recognized his friend’s voice and came out quickly. The king of doves told him all that had happened and the mouse immediately started nibbling at the strings of the net and set the birds free.

The crow, which had flown along and had been watching this from a nearby tree, was full of admiration for their friendship and said to himself:

“Well, it’s true what they say, a friend in need is a friend indeed”.


by G.L. Chandiramani
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Snow White and Rose Red

A POOR widow once lived in a little cottage with a garden in front of it, in which grew two rose trees, one bearing white roses and the other red. She had two children, who were just like the two rose trees; one was called Snow White and the other Rose Red, and they were the sweetest and best children in the world, always diligent and always cheerful; but Snow White was quieter and more gentle than Rose Red.

Rose Red loved to run about the fields and meadows, and to pick flowers and catch butterflies; but Snow White sat at home with her mother and helped her in the household, or read aloud to her when there was no work to do.

The two children loved each other so dearly that they always walked about hand in hand whenever they went out together, and when Snow- white said, "We will never desert each other," Rose Red answered: "No, not as long as we live"; and the mother added: "Whatever one gets she shall share with the other."

They often roamed about in the woods gathering berries and no beast offered to hurt them; on the contrary, they came up to them in the most confiding manner; the little hare would eat a cabbage leaf from their hands, the deer grazed beside them, the stag would bound past them merrily, and the birds remained on the branches and sang to them with all their might.

The End

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Sleeping Beauty

Once upon a time, there was a King and Queen. And when their baby daughter was born they were so happy they decided to have a big party. They invited all their family, all their friends and all the fairies in the land. Now there were 13 fairies altogether but the king but queen only invited 12. They forgot about the 13th. And that was something they should not have done.

Well, it was a splendid party! There were silver dishes piled high with delicious food and golden plates at every place. And when everyone had finished eating, the fairies gathered around the baby's cradle and they each made a magic wish. The princess shall be beautiful said the first. And happy, said the second. And kind, said the third. And so they went on. The princess was to be brave, and clever and truthful. She was to have a sweet singing voice and light dancing feet.

And, then, just as the twelfth fairy was about to make her wish, in came the thirteenth. She was furious, because she had not been invited to the party. Here is my wish, she said. "When the princess is 16 years old, she will prick her finger on a spindle and she will die." And with that, the thirteenth fairy vanished.

Then the 12th fairy said, "I cannot change all of the wicked fairies powerful magic." So the princess will prick her finger but she will not die! She slept for a hundred years. The king and queen thanked the fairy for her kindness but they were not happy. They did not want their daughter to sleep for a hundred years. So they ordered that every spinning wheel and spindle in the land must be chopped up and burnt. Then they thought that the princess was safe.

The years passed and the princess grew up. She was very beautiful and clever at lots of different things. She was, in fact, everything the fairies had wished her to be. On her sixteenth birthday, the princess was exploring the castle when she came to a little room at the top of a tall tower. And in that room was an old woman sitting by a spinning wheel. "What are you doing?" asked the princess?"

"I am spinning," said the old woman, who was really the wicked thirteenth fairy, "would you like to try?"
"Oh yes," said the princess, and she sat down by the spinning wheel. But as soon as she touched the spindle, the sharp point pricked her finger and she fell asleep.

And the old woman vanished. At that same moment, the king and the queen, the servants, the cats and the dogs all fell asleep! Even the fire stopped burning and the roasting meat stopped sizzling. Everything slept.
Then a hedge of wild roses grew up around the castle. It grew and it grew until the castle was hidden.
One hundred years passed and then a prince came riding by and saw the top of the tower rising up above the hedge of roses. How strange, he said, I never knew there was a castle here!

He jumped off his horse and lifted his sword to cut away the hedge. But as soon as the sword touched the branch, a path opened up in front of him. So prince walked freely through the hedge. He entered castle, and walked from room to room. Imagine his surprise, everyone and everything was fast asleep.

At last he entered a little room at the end of a tall tower and he saw the sleeping princess. She was so very beautiful that he bent down and kissed her. Then the spell was broken and the princess opened her eyes.
At the same moment, everyone and everything in the castle awoke! The king yawned, the queen blinked, the cats had a good stretch and the dogs wagged their tails.

The servants began to work, the fire began to flame, and the roasting meat began to sizzle. A hundred years had not changed anyone or anything.

And what happened next? Why the beautiful princess married the prince, who had woken her from such a long deep sleep.

The End
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Cinderella

Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl called Cinderella and she had two ugly step sisters who were very unkind who made her do all the hard work. She had to sweep the floors, do all the dishes, while they dressed up in fine clothes and went to lots of parties.

One day a special invitation arrived at Cinderella's house. It was from the royal palace. The king's only son was a truly handsome prince was going to have a grand ball. Three girls were invited to come. Cinderella knew she wouldn't be allowed to go to the ball. But the ugly sisters, ho ho ho, they were excited. They couldn't talk about anything else.

When the day of the ball came, they made such a fuss. Poor Cinderella had to rush about upstairs and downstairs. She fixed their hair in fancy waves and curls. She helped them put on their expensive new dresses. And she arranged their jewels just so. As soon as they had gone, Cinderella sat down by the fire and she said. "Oh I do wish I could go to the ball". The next moment, standing beside her was a lovely old lady with a silver wand in here hand. "Cinderella, she said " I am your fairy godmother and you shall go to the ball. But first you must go into the garden and pick a golden pumpkin, then bring me six mice from the mousetraps, a whiskered rat from the rat trap, and six lizards. You'll find the lizards behind the watering can.

So Cinderella fetched a golden pumpkin, six grey mice, a whiskered rate, six lizards. The fairy godmother touched them with her wand and the pumpkin became a golden coach, the mice became six grey horses, the rat became a coachman with the most enormous moustache, and the lizards became six footmen dressed in green and yellow, then the fairy godmother touched Cinderella with the wand and her old dress became a golden dress sparkling with jewels while on her feet was the prettiest pair of glass slippers ever seen. Remember said the fairy godmother you must leave the ball before the clock strikes twelve because at midnight the magic ends. "Thank you fairy godmother" said Cinderella and she climbed into the coach.

When Cinderella arrived at the ball she looked so beautiful that everyone wondered who she was! Even the ugly sisters. The Prince of course asked here to dance with him and they danced all evening. He would not dance with anyone else. Now Cinderella was enjoying the ball so much that she forgot her fairy godmothers warning until it was almost midnight and the clock began to strike. One. Two. Three. She hurried out of the ballroom. Four. Five. Six. As she ran down the palace steps one of her glass slippers fell off. Seven. Eight. Nine. She ran on toward the golden coach. Ten Eleven Twelve. Then there was Cinderella in her old dress. The golden pumpkin lay in her feet. And scampering down off down the road were six grey mice, a whiskered rat and six green lizards.. So Cinderella had to walk home and by the time the ugly sisters returned home was sitting quietly by the fire.

Now when Cinderella ran from the palace, the prince tried to follow her and he found the glass slipper. He said, "I shall marry the beautiful girl whose foot fits this slipper and only her. IN the morning the prince went from house to house with the glass slipper and every young lady tried to squeeze her foot into it. But it didn't' fit any of them.

At last the prince came to Cinderella's house. First one ugly sister tried to squash her foot into the slipper. But her foot was too wide and fat. Then the other ugly sister tried but her foot was too long and thin. Please said Cinderella, let me try. "The slipper won't fit you", said the ugly sisters. "You didn't go to the ball!" But Cinderella slipped her foot into the glass slipper and it fit perfectly. The next moment standing beside her was the fairy godmother. She touched Cinderella with the wand and there she was in a golden dress sparkling with jewels and on her feet was the prettiest pair of glass slippers ever seen. The ugly sisters were so surprised that, for once they couldn't think of anything to say. But the Prince knew what to say. He asked Cinderella to marry him.

And then there was a happy wedding. Everyone who had gone to the ball was invited, even the ugly sisters. There was wonderful food, lots of music and dancing. And the Prince of course danced every dance with Cinderella. He would not dance with anyone else.

The End
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The Wolf and the Lamb

A LAMB, pursued by a Wolf, fled into the temple.

- "The priest will catch you and sacrifice you," said the Wolf,

- "if you remain there." "It is just as well to be sacrificed by the priest as to be eaten by you," said the Lamb.

- "My friend," said the Wolf, "it pains me to see you considering so great a question from a purely selfish point of view. It is not just as well for me."
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