The Lame Magpie Who Had Seven Green Eggs

Once upon a time there lived a lame magpie who had seven green eggs. One day though a fox came along and said: "Give me one of your seven eggs! I want to eat it!"

The magpie said: "I won't give you one of my eggs."

"If you won't give me one of your eggs, I shall turn your things into dust, and I shall knock down your golden asp," the fox threatened.

The magpie got frightened and gave the fox an egg. So the fox came every day, repeated his threat and ate the eggs until there was only one left. When the magpie cried bitterly, a mouse came along and asked: "Why are your crying so?"

"Once I had seven eggs," the magpie replied, "But then a fox came and said: 'You have to give me one of your eggs.' And when I told him, I wouldn't do it, he said: 'If you won't give it to me, I shall throw down the golden asp. I shall turn your things into dust.' I didn't know what to do, so I gave him the egg. And now there is but one left."

The mouse gave the magpie the following piece of advise: "The next time you will say: 'I won't give you one of my eggs.' Then the fox will tell you what he told you before. He will say: 'I shall throw down the golden asp. I shall turn your things into dust.' And you will ask him: 'But where are your antlers to throw down the golden asp with? And where are your hooves to turn my things into dust with?' Then he surely will ask you who taught you these words. You will tell him: 'I have thought long and hard about it all by myself, until it occurred to me. I have slept on it and then I thought of it. I mused over it and then the idea stole into my mind.'"

The next day the fox came once again and said: "Give me your last remaining egg!"

But the magpie answered: "I won't give it to you."

So the fox said: "Well, then I shall have to throw down your golden asp, and I shall have to turn all your things into dust."

"But where are your antlers to throw down the golden asp with? And where are your hooves to turn my things into dust with?" asked the magpie.

The fox demanded to know: "Where did your hear these words? Tell me!"

But the magpie didn't tell him. Instead she said: "I have thought long and hard about it all by myself, until I occurred to me. I have slept on it and then I thought of it. I mused over it and then the idea stole into my mind."

"If you won't tell me who taught you these words, I shall have to use the 13 ruses of the foxes to capture and eat you!" the fox threatened.

The magpie was at a loss what to do and in her fear she told him: "The mouse living in that hole over there has taught me."

The fox went to the opening of the mouse's hole and called her out. The mouse answered: "I'm just now cleaning my home."

But the fox waited and called for the mouse again. She said: "Oh, but I'm wiping my mirror."

The fox still remained in front of the hole and called for the mouse once more. The mouse stuck out her head and the fox said: "What a pretty head you have. How pretty must your chest be." The mouse showed her chest.

"Oh, but how pretty your chest is. How pretty your bum has to be," the fox told her and the mouse showed her bum.

"What a pretty bum. How pretty a tail you've gotta have," the fox wondered and the mouse crawled far enough out of the hole to show her tail.

"You have such a pretty body. But it sure would look even prettier if you were to jump on a rock," the fox said. When the mouse jumped on a rock, the fox snapped and caught her.

The mouse told him: "When you chew me, I will smell. But if you take big bites, I will be more tasteful." The fox followed her advise. But when he opened his mouth, the mouse fell out and ran away.