The Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm (Rackham)/The Adventures of Chanticleer and Partlet
Now we will go up the hill and have a good feast before the squirrel carries off all the nuts
The Adventures of Chanticleer
and Partlet
I. How They Went to the Hills to Eat Nuts
HANTICLEER said to Partlet one day, ‘The nuts must be ripe; now we will go up the hill together and have a good feast before the squirrel carries them all off.’
‘All right,’ said Partlet, ‘come along; we’ll have a fine time.’ So they went away up the hill, and, as it was a bright day, they stayed till evening.
Now whether they really had grown fat, or whether it was merely pride, I do not know, but, whatever the reason, they would not walk home, and Chanticleer had to make a little carriage of nut-shells. When it was ready, Partlet took her seat in it, and said to Chanticleer, ‘Now you get between the shafts.’
‘That’s all very fine,’ said Chanticleer, ‘but I would sooner go home on foot than put myself in harness. I will sit on the box and drive, but draw it myself I never will.’
As they were squabbling over this, a Duck quacked out, ‘You thievish folk! Who told you to come to my nut-hill? Just you wait, you will suffer for it.’
Then she rushed at Chanticleer with open bill, but he was not to be taken by surprise, and fell upon her with his spurs till she cried out for mercy. At last she allowed herself to be harnessed to the carriage. Chanticleer seated himself on the box as coachman, and cried out unceasingly, ‘Now, Duck, run as fast as you can.’
When they had driven a little way they met two foot passengers, a Pin and a Needle. They called out, ‘Stop! stop!’ They said it would soon be pitch dark, and they couldn’t walk a step further, the road was so dirty; might they not have a lift? They had been to the Tailor’s Inn by the gate, and had lingered over their beer.
As they were both very thin, and did not take up much room, Chanticleer allowed them to get in, but he made them promise not to tread either on his toes, or on Partlet’s. Late in the evening they came to an inn, and as they did not want to drive any further in the dark, and the Duck was getting rather uncertain on her feet, tumbling from side to side, they drove in.
The Landlord at first made many objections to having them, and said the house was already full; perhaps he thought they were not very grand folk. But at last, by dint of persuasive words, and promising him the egg which Mrs. Partlet had laid on the way, and also that he should keep the Duck, who laid an egg every day, he consented to let them stay the night.
Then they had a meal served to them, and feasted, and passed the time in rioting.
In the early dawn, before it grew light, and every one was asleep, Partlet woke up Chanticleer, fetched the egg, pecked a hole in it, and between them they ate it all up, and threw the shells on to the hearth. Then they went to the Needle, which was still asleep, seized it by the head and stuck it in the cushion of the Landlord’s arm-chair; the Pin they stuck in his towel, and then, without more ado, away they flew over the heath. The Duck, which preferred to sleep in the open air, and had stayed in the yard, heard them whizzing by, and bestirred herself. She found a stream, and swam away down it; it was a much quicker way to get on than being harnessed to a carriage.
A couple of hours later, the Landlord, who was the first to leave his pillow, got up and washed. When he took up the towel to dry himself, he scratched his face and made a long red line from ear to ear. Then he went to the kitchen to light his pipe, but when he stooped over the hearth the egg-shells flew into his eye.
‘Everything goes to my head this morning,’ he said angrily, as he dropped on to the cushion of his Grandfather’s arm-chair. But he quickly bounded up again, and shouted, ‘Gracious me!’ for the Needle had run into him, and this time not in the head. He grew furious, and his suspicions immediately fell on the guests who had come in so late the night before. When he went to look for them, they were nowhere to be seen. Then he swore never to take such ragamuffins into his house again; for they ate a great deal, paid nothing, and played tricks, by way of thanks, into the bargain.
II. The Visit to Mr. Korbes
Before long they met a Cat. ‘Whither away?’ said she.
Chanticleer answered—
A visit to pay
To Mr. Korbes at his house to-day.’
‘Take me with you,’ said the Cat.
Chanticleer answered, ‘With pleasure; sit down behind, so that you don’t fall out forwards.’
From any splash of mud to spare.
Little wheels hurry!
Little mice scurry!
All on our way
A visit to pay
To Mr. Korbes at his house to-day.’
Then came a Millstone, an Egg, a Duck, a Pin, and, last of all, a Needle. They all took their places in the carriage and went with the rest.
But when they arrived at Mr. Korbes’ house, he wasn’t in. The mice drew the carriage into the coach-house, Partlet and Chanticleer flew on to a perch, the Cat sat down by the fire, the Duck lay down by the well-pole. The Egg rolled itself up in the towel, the Pin stuck itself into the cushion, the Needle sprang into the pillow on the bed, and the Millstone laid itself over the door.
When Mr. Korbes came home, and went to the hearth to make a fire, the Cat threw ashes into his face. He ran into the kitchen to wash, and the Duck squirted water into his face; seizing the towel to dry himself, the Egg rolled out, broke, and stuck up one of his eyes. He wanted to rest, and sat down in his arm-chair, when the Pin pricked him. He grew very angry, threw himself on the bed and laid his head on the pillow, when the Needle ran into him and made him cry out. In a fury he wanted to rush into the open air, but when he got to the door, the Millstone fell on his head and killed him. What a bad man Mr. Korbes must have been!
III. The Death of Partlet
Partlet found a huge nut, but said nothing about it, and meant to eat it all herself; but the kernel was so big that she could not swallow it. It stuck in her throat, and she was afraid she would be choked. She shrieked, ‘Chanticleer, Chanticleer, run and fetch some water as fast as you can, or I shall choke!’
So Chanticleer ran as fast as he could to the Well, and said, ‘Well, Well, you must give me some water! Partlet is out on the nut-hill; she has swallowed a big nut, and is choking.’
The Well answered, ‘First you must run to my Bride, and tell her to give you some red silk.’
Chanticleer ran to the Bride, and said, ‘Bride, Bride, give me some red silk: I will give the silk to the Well, and the Well will give me some water to take to Partlet, for she has swallowed a big nut, and is choking.’
The Bride answered, ‘Run first and fetch me a wreath which I left hanging on a willow.’
So Chanticleer ran to the willow, pulled the wreath off the branch, and brought it to the Bride. The Bride gave him the red silk, which he took to the Well, and the Well gave him the water for it. Then Chanticleer took the water to Partlet; but as it happened she had choked in the meantime, and lay there dead and stiff. Chanticleer’s grief was so great that he cried aloud, and all the animals came and condoled with him.
Six mice built a little car to draw Partlet to the grave; and when the car was ready they harnessed themselves to it, and drew Partlet away.
On the way, Reynard the fox joined them. ‘Where are you going, Chanticleer?’
‘I’m going to bury my wife, Partlet.’
‘May I go with you?’
A weight in front, my nags can’t pull.’
So the Fox took a seat at the back, and he was followed by the wolf, the bear, the stag, the lion, and all the other animals of the forest. The procession went on, till they came to a stream.
‘How shall we ever get over?’ said Chanticleer.
A Straw was lying by the stream, and it said, ‘I will stretch myself across, and then you can pass over upon me.’
But when the six mice got on to the Straw it collapsed, and the mice fell into the water with it, and they were all drowned. So their difficulty was as great as ever. Then a Coal came along, and said, ‘I am big enough, I will lie down, and you can pass over me.’
So the Coal laid itself across the stream, but unfortunately it just touched the water, hissed, went out, and was dead. A stone, seeing this, had pity on them, and, wanting to help Chanticleer, laid itself over the water. Now Chanticleer drew the car, and he just managed to get across himself with the hen. Then he wanted to pull the others over who were hanging on behind, but it was too much for him, and the car fell back and they all fell into the water and were drowned.
So Chanticleer was left alone with the dead hen, and he dug a grave and laid her in it. Then he made a mound over it, and seated himself upon it and grieved till he died; and then they were all dead.
