Once upon a time a hjemmusa (home/house mouse) met a fjellmusa (field/country mouse) on the outskirts of a wood. The fjellmusa was sitting under a hazel thicket plucking nuts. . .
"Busy harvesting, I see," said the house mouse. "Who would think of our meeting in this out-of-the-way part of the world?"
"Just so," said the country mouse.
"You are gathering food for your winter store?" asked the house mouse.
"I am obliged to do so if we intend having anything to live upon during the winter," said the country mouse.
"The husk is big and the nut full this year, enough to satisfy any hungry body," proclaimed the house mouse.
"Yes, you are correct," replied the country mouse.
And then she related how well she lived and how comfortable she was in the fields and forest.
Oh, but the hjemmusa maintained that *she* was the better off, and the fjellmusa said that nowhere could one be so well off as in the woods and hills. The hjemmusa, howe'er, *insisted* she had the better place. Since they could not agree on this point they promised to visit one another during Vinter Solstice, then they could see for themselves which was really the most comfortable!
The first visit was to be paid by the hjemmusa.
Na although the country mouse had moved down from the mountains for the vinter, the road was long and tiring and one had to travel up hill and down dale. The snow lay thick and deep so the hjemmusa found it hard going even though the fjellmusa thought it to be easy. The house mouse became both tired and hungry before she reached the end of her journey.
"How nice it will be to get some food," she thought.
The country mouse had scraped together the best she had. There were nut kernels, polypoly and other sorts of roots and many other good things which grow in woods and fields. She kept it all in a hole far under the ground so the frost could not reach it, and close by was a running spring, open all the vinter, so she could drink as much as she liked. There was an abundance of all she had, and they ate both well and heartily. But the house mouse thought it was very poor fare indeed.
"One can, of course, keep body and soul together on this," said the hjemmusa, "but I do not think much of it. Now you must come to visit me at my house and taste what we have."
That she would, and before long the two set out. The house mouse had gathered together all the scraps from the Vinter Solstice fare which the woman of the house had dropped on the floor during the holiday — bits of cheese, butter and tallow ends, cake crumbs, pastry, and many other good things. In the dish under the ale tap was enough brew. In fact, the place was full of all kinds of dainties.
They ate and fared well. The country mouse had never tasted such delicacies. But then she became thirsty, for she found the food both strong and rich, and now wanted something to drink.
"We have not far to go for the ale," stated the house mouse.
She jumped upon the edge of the dish and drank until she was nei longer thirsty. She did not drink too much, for she knew the holiday brew was strong. The country mouse, howe'er, had ne'er tasted anything but water, so she took one sip after another and became tipsy before she left the dish.
The country mouse began running and jumping about from one barrel to the other, and to dance and tumble about on the shelves among the cups and mugs. She squeaked and screeched as if she were both drunk and mad. About her being drunk there was very little doubt!
"You must not carry on as if you had just come from the backwoods and make such a row and noise," declared the house mouse. "The master of the house is very strict indeed," she hastily added.
But the country mouse did not care.
Now a cat sat at the top of the cellar steps, lying in wait, and heard all the chatter and noise. When the woman of the house went down to draw some ale and lifted the trap door, the cat slipped by into the cellar and struck its claws into the country mouse. Then there was quite another sort of dance!
The house mouse slid back into her hole and sat in safety looking on, while the country mouse suddenly became sober as she felt the claws of the cat in her back.
"Oh, my dear tabby of dearest tabbies, be merciful and spare my life and I will tell you a fairy tale," she cried.
"Well, go on," said the cat.
"Once upon a time there were two little mice," squeaking slowly and pitifully, trying to make the story last as long as she could.
"Then they were not lonely," said the cat dryly and curtly.
"And they had a steak which they were going to fry."
"Then they could not starve," said the cat.
"And they put it out on the roof to cool."
"Then they did not burn themselves," said the cat.
"But there came a fox and a raven and ate it all up," squeaked the country mouse.
"Then I shall eat you!" growled the cat.
But, just at that moment, the woman shut the trap door with a *SLAM*, which so startled the cat that she let go her hold of the mouse! One bound and the country mouse found herself in the hole with the house mouse. From there a passage led out into the sno, and you may be sure the country mouse did not wait long before she set out for the hills.
"And that is what you call living well and being best off?!," called out the country mouse. "Heavens preserve me from having such a fine place and such a master! Why I only just got away with my life!"
"Busy harvesting, I see," said the house mouse. "Who would think of our meeting in this out-of-the-way part of the world?"
"Just so," said the country mouse.
"You are gathering food for your winter store?" asked the house mouse.
"I am obliged to do so if we intend having anything to live upon during the winter," said the country mouse.
"The husk is big and the nut full this year, enough to satisfy any hungry body," proclaimed the house mouse.
"Yes, you are correct," replied the country mouse.
And then she related how well she lived and how comfortable she was in the fields and forest.
Oh, but the hjemmusa maintained that *she* was the better off, and the fjellmusa said that nowhere could one be so well off as in the woods and hills. The hjemmusa, howe'er, *insisted* she had the better place. Since they could not agree on this point they promised to visit one another during Vinter Solstice, then they could see for themselves which was really the most comfortable!
The first visit was to be paid by the hjemmusa.
Na although the country mouse had moved down from the mountains for the vinter, the road was long and tiring and one had to travel up hill and down dale. The snow lay thick and deep so the hjemmusa found it hard going even though the fjellmusa thought it to be easy. The house mouse became both tired and hungry before she reached the end of her journey.
"How nice it will be to get some food," she thought.
The country mouse had scraped together the best she had. There were nut kernels, polypoly and other sorts of roots and many other good things which grow in woods and fields. She kept it all in a hole far under the ground so the frost could not reach it, and close by was a running spring, open all the vinter, so she could drink as much as she liked. There was an abundance of all she had, and they ate both well and heartily. But the house mouse thought it was very poor fare indeed.
"One can, of course, keep body and soul together on this," said the hjemmusa, "but I do not think much of it. Now you must come to visit me at my house and taste what we have."
That she would, and before long the two set out. The house mouse had gathered together all the scraps from the Vinter Solstice fare which the woman of the house had dropped on the floor during the holiday — bits of cheese, butter and tallow ends, cake crumbs, pastry, and many other good things. In the dish under the ale tap was enough brew. In fact, the place was full of all kinds of dainties.
They ate and fared well. The country mouse had never tasted such delicacies. But then she became thirsty, for she found the food both strong and rich, and now wanted something to drink.
"We have not far to go for the ale," stated the house mouse.
She jumped upon the edge of the dish and drank until she was nei longer thirsty. She did not drink too much, for she knew the holiday brew was strong. The country mouse, howe'er, had ne'er tasted anything but water, so she took one sip after another and became tipsy before she left the dish.
The country mouse began running and jumping about from one barrel to the other, and to dance and tumble about on the shelves among the cups and mugs. She squeaked and screeched as if she were both drunk and mad. About her being drunk there was very little doubt!
"You must not carry on as if you had just come from the backwoods and make such a row and noise," declared the house mouse. "The master of the house is very strict indeed," she hastily added.
But the country mouse did not care.
Now a cat sat at the top of the cellar steps, lying in wait, and heard all the chatter and noise. When the woman of the house went down to draw some ale and lifted the trap door, the cat slipped by into the cellar and struck its claws into the country mouse. Then there was quite another sort of dance!
The house mouse slid back into her hole and sat in safety looking on, while the country mouse suddenly became sober as she felt the claws of the cat in her back.
"Oh, my dear tabby of dearest tabbies, be merciful and spare my life and I will tell you a fairy tale," she cried.
"Well, go on," said the cat.
"Once upon a time there were two little mice," squeaking slowly and pitifully, trying to make the story last as long as she could.
"Then they were not lonely," said the cat dryly and curtly.
"And they had a steak which they were going to fry."
"Then they could not starve," said the cat.
"And they put it out on the roof to cool."
"Then they did not burn themselves," said the cat.
"But there came a fox and a raven and ate it all up," squeaked the country mouse.
"Then I shall eat you!" growled the cat.
But, just at that moment, the woman shut the trap door with a *SLAM*, which so startled the cat that she let go her hold of the mouse! One bound and the country mouse found herself in the hole with the house mouse. From there a passage led out into the sno, and you may be sure the country mouse did not wait long before she set out for the hills.
"And that is what you call living well and being best off?!," called out the country mouse. "Heavens preserve me from having such a fine place and such a master! Why I only just got away with my life!"