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Le Rat de ville et le Rat des champs

The Town Rat and the Country Rat

1Le festin sur le tapisThe feast on the carpetFree2m

The town rat very politely invites the country rat to a fine meal of leftover roast birds, set out on a Turkish carpet. The two friends feast; nothing is missing. But a noise at the door of the room breaks up the party: the town rat scurries off and his friend follows. When the noise stops they come back, and the town rat wants to finish the roast. «That's enough,» says the country rat. «Tomorrow, come to my home. I have no royal feasts, but nothing interrupts me there and I eat in peace. Goodbye. Away with pleasure that fear can spoil!»

Retold from Fables de La Fontaine (Bernardin-Béchet, Paris 1874), Livre premier, IX: Le Rat de ville et le Rat des champs by Jean de La Fontaine (public domain).

Stories retold from public-domain tales. Text, audio and pictures © Glowing Fables.

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