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I . The Mill , the Donkey and the Cat A long time ago , in a country far away , there lives a miller . He is an old man , and he is poor . He has a mill next to a river . He lives there with his three sons . The miller has no gold . He has no land . He has only three things : the mill , a donkey and a cat . And all three work hard . The mill makes flour from the wheat . The donkey carries the bags of flour to the town . And the cat catches the mice in the mill . One winter , the miller is very ill . Soon he dies . His three sons are very sad . A few days later , the three brothers share out their father’s things . They do not ask a lawyer to help . Lawyers cost a lot of money . A lawyer can eat up all that their father left them . So the brothers do it by themselves . It is very easy . The oldest brother takes the mill . The second brother takes the donkey . And the youngest brother gets the cat . Only the cat . Nothing more . The two older brothers smile . “ We can work together , ” the oldest says to the second . “ I make the flour and you take it to the town . ” But the youngest brother does not smile . He goes out of the house and sits down by the river . The cat walks behind him . The young man looks at the water . He talks to himself out loud . “ My brothers can work together and make money . And me ? What can I do with a cat ? ” Then he looks at the cat . “ I know , ” he says . “ I can eat the cat . Then I can make a muff from his fur . And after that ? After that I die of hunger . ” A muff is a tube of soft , warm fur . In winter , people put their hands inside it . Then their hands are not cold . The cat hears every word . But he acts as if he hears nothing . Then he sits down in front of his master and speaks to him in a very serious voice . “ Do not be sad , my master . And please do not eat me . My fur is no good for a muff . ” “ Then what can I do , Cat ? I have nothing . ” “ You have me . Give me a bag and get me a pair of boots . That is all . ” “ Boots ? For a cat ? ” “ Yes , boots . With boots I can run through the mud and the bushes . And then you will see . I am not such a bad share after all . ” The young man does not really believe the cat . But he thinks for a moment . This cat is very clever . The young man knows all the cat’s tricks with rats and mice . Sometimes the cat hangs by his back feet , with his head down . Sometimes he hides in the flour . And sometimes he lies on the floor and plays dead . The mice do not see the trick . They come near him , and then , snap ! The cat catches them . “ All right , ” says the young man . “ I still have a few coins . A bag does not cost much . And a pair of small boots . . . Well , why not ? ”
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