ThePoorOldHorse

The poor old horse.

Somerville is a silent town on a valley between two small mountains.

The people of Somerville are always happy and hardworking.

Nobody is poor or unhappy.

The king of Somerville rules all over the town very well.

The people of Somerville love their king.

He helps anyone in trouble and he wants all his people to be happy.

He tells the people to hang a big bell up in a tower.

There is a long rope from the bell reaching to the ground.

When anybody wants help, he can pull the rope and ring the bell.

The king says,

I want to help everybody who is in trouble.

The people of Somerville don't have any trouble.

No one is poor or hungry.

Nobody wants to ring the bell.

After a long time, the rope gets very old.

The king tells the people to hang up a new rope.

The people of Somerville take down the old rope,

but there isn't a new long rope to hang up to the bell.

So they hang up a long grapevine.

The grapevine is strong like a rope and it is covered in green leaves.

Near Somerville lives an old man called Anthony.

He is a farmer.

He lives with his two sons Arthur and John.

He has an old horse called Silver.

Silver is working for Anthony for many years,

but now he is too old to work anymore.

Anthony is a cruel old man.

When he sees that Silver is too old to work,

he doesn't want to feed him anymore and sends him away.

Silver is very hungry.

He walks about the streets of Somerville looking for food.

Sometimes he eats some leaves or grass,

but there is not much grass in the streets of the town.

The poor old horse is always hungry.

He gets thinner and more and more hungry every day.

One day, Silver walks along a street in Somerville.

He sees the grapevine tied to the king's bell.

There are green leaves on the vine.

Here are some green leaves to eat, says Silver to himself.

He pulls at the grapevine.

Ding dong dong dong rings the bell up in the tower.

The king hears the bell.

He sends a man to find out who rings it.

The king's man looks out and sees the poor old horse.

He sees that the horse is eating the leaves and ringing the bell.

He sees that the horse is very thin and very hungry.

The man goes to the king.

He tells him that a poor old horse is ringing the bell.

Whose horse is it?

Go and find out, orders the king.

He belongs to an old man called Anthony, says one of King's man.

He doesn't want the poor horse because he is too old to work anymore.

He is weak and thin because he can't find food.

The king gets very angry when he hears the story of Silver.

Bring the old horse into my garden and give him some food, he says.

He rings the bell and asks for my help.

I am going to help him.

Then go and tell the old man Anthony to come here.

King's men go and find Anthony.

Anthony comes to see the king.

Is this your old horse as the king?

He is thin and hungry.

Why don't you feed him?

He is too old to work anymore, answers Anthony.

I don't need him anymore.

So I send him away to find food for himself.

I can't feed an old horse.

He doesn't work for me.

Are your children going to send you away when you are too old to work?

Ask the king.

I am their father.

They can't behave me like that, says Anthony.

He doesn't feel sorry for his cruelty.

From now on I am going to feed this horse then, the king says.

It is no longer your horse.

It belongs to my kingdom.

Now you can leave.

Anthony doesn't say a word.

He leaves the palace.

He doesn't care about the king's words or the poor old horse.

The king makes a plan.

He orders some of his men to find and bring the old man's sons.

The king's men go and find Arthur and John.

They take them to the king's palace.

The king tells the young men to teach a lesson to their father.

Arthur and John listen to their king carefully and then go home.

They find their father sitting in the garden and enjoying the son.

Anthony sees them coming and yells at them.

Where are you?

It is almost evening and there is nothing ready for dinner.

I am starving.

I am not hungry.

I don't want to eat anything, says John.

I am very tired.

I have a lot of work to do.

You can prepare your dinner yourself, says Arthur.

Anthony is not happy hearing this, but he doesn't say anything.

He goes to the kitchen and finds a loaf of bread to eat.

I don't want to live in this farm anymore.

I am going to work with a tailor in the town center.

Oh, how nice, says Arthur.

The school is too far from this farm.

I am going to come and live with you.

The school is near the town center.

What?

Cries, Anthony?

What am I going to do by myself in this farm?

I am an old man who is going to help me in the farm.

I don't care, says John.

None of my business, says Arthur.

Anthony remembers his cruelty.

He feels ashamed of his unkindness to his old horse.

He does not say a word to his sons.

He wakes up early in the morning and quickly goes to the king's palace.

He begs the king to forgive his cruelty.

The king tells him to take the horse back to his house and feed him.

Anthony builds the old horse a warm stable and looks after him for the rest of his life.