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014 - The Master Cat or Puss in Boots · Blue Fairy Book

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  Speaker 1: The Master Cat or Puss in Boots of The Blue
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  Speaker 1: Fairy Book. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings
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  Speaker 1: are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer,
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  Speaker 1: please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Sarah Jennings The
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  Speaker 1: Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang. The Master Cat or
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  Speaker 1: Puss in Boots. There was a miller who left no
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  Speaker 1: more estate to the three sons he had than his mill,
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  Speaker 1: his ass, and his cat. The partition was soon made.
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  Speaker 1: Neither scrivener nor attorney was sent, for they would soon
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  Speaker 1: have eaten up all the poor patrimony. The eldest had
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  Speaker 1: the mill, the second the ass, and the youngest nothing
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  Speaker 1: but the cat. The poor young fellow was quite comfortless
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  Speaker 1: at having so poor a lot. My brothers said he
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  Speaker 1: may get their living handsomely enough by joining their stocks together.
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  Speaker 1: But for my part, when I have eaten up my
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  Speaker 1: cat and made me a muff of his skin, I
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  Speaker 1: must die of hunger. The cat, who heard all this,
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  Speaker 1: but made as if he did not, said to him
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  Speaker 1: with a grave and serious air, do not thus afflict yourself,
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  Speaker 1: my good master. You have nothing else to do but
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  Speaker 1: to give me a bag, and get a pair of
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  Speaker 1: boots made for me, that I may scamper through the
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  Speaker 1: dirt and brambles, and you shall see that you have
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  Speaker 1: not so bad a portion in me as you imagine.
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  Speaker 1: The cat's master did not build very much upon what
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  Speaker 1: he said. He had often seen him play a great
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  Speaker 1: many cunning tricks to catch rats and mice, as when
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  Speaker 1: he used to hang by the heels, or hide himself
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  Speaker 1: in the meal, and make as if he were dead,
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  Speaker 1: so that he did not altogether despair of his affording
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  Speaker 1: him some help in his miserable condition. When the cat
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  Speaker 1: had what he asked for, he booted himself very gallantly,
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  Speaker 1: and putting his bag about his neck, he held the
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  Speaker 1: strings of it in his two fore paws, and went
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  Speaker 1: into a warren where there was a great abundance of rabbits.
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  Speaker 1: He put bran and sow thistle into his bag, and,
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  Speaker 1: stretching out at length as if he had been dead,
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  Speaker 1: he waited for some young rabbits not yet acquainted with
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  Speaker 1: the deceits of the world, to come and rummage his bag,
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  Speaker 1: for what he had put into it was He lain down,
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  Speaker 1: but he had what he wanted. A rash and foolish
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  Speaker 1: young rabbit jumped into his bag, and Monsieur Puss, immediately
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  Speaker 1: drawing close the strings, took and killed him without pity.
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  Speaker 1: Proud of his prey, he went with it to the
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  Speaker 1: palace and asked to speak with his majesty. He was
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  Speaker 1: shown upstairs into the King's apartment, and, making a low reverence,
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  Speaker 1: said to him, I have brought you, Sir, a rabbit
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  Speaker 1: of the warren, which my noble lord, the Marquis of carabbis,
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  Speaker 1: for that was the title which Puss was pleased to
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  Speaker 1: give to his master, has commanded me to present to
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  Speaker 1: your Majesty from him, tell thy master, said the King,
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  Speaker 1: that I thank him, and that he does me a
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  Speaker 1: great deal of pleasure. Another time he went and hid
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  Speaker 1: himself among some standing corn, holding still his bag open,
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  Speaker 1: and when a brace of partridges ran into it, he
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  Speaker 1: drew the strings and so caught them both. He went
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  Speaker 1: and made a present of these to the King, as
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  Speaker 1: he had done before of the rabbit which he took
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  Speaker 1: in the warren. The King, in like manner, received the
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  Speaker 1: partridges with great pleasure, and ordered him some money for drink.
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  Speaker 1: The cat continued for two or three months thus to
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  Speaker 1: carry his Majesty from time to time game of his
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  Speaker 1: master's taking. One day in particular, when he knew for
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  Speaker 1: certain that he was to take the air along the
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  Speaker 1: river side with his daughter, the most beautiful princess in
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  Speaker 1: the world, he said to his master, if you will
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  Speaker 1: follow my advice, your fortune is made. You have nothing
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  Speaker 1: else to do but to go and wash yourself in
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  Speaker 1: the river. In that part I shall show you and
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  Speaker 1: leave the rest to me. The Marquis of Carabbas did
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  Speaker 1: what the cat advised him to, without knowing why or wherefore,
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  Speaker 1: while he was washing, the king passed by, and the
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  Speaker 1: cat began to cry out, help help, my lord, Marquis
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  Speaker 1: of Carabbas is going to be drowned. At this noise,
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  Speaker 1: the king put his head out of the coach window, and,
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  Speaker 1: finding it was the cat who had so often brought
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  Speaker 1: him such good game, he commanded his guards to run
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  Speaker 1: immediately to the assistance of his lordship, the Marquis of Carabbas.
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  Speaker 1: While they were drawing the poor marquis out of the river,
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  Speaker 1: the cat came up to the coach and told the
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  Speaker 1: king that while his master was washing, there came by
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  Speaker 1: some rogues who went off with his clothes. Though he
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  Speaker 1: had cried out, thieves, thieves, several times as loud as
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  Speaker 1: he could. This cunning cat had hidden them under a
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  Speaker 1: great stone. The king immediately commanded the officers of his
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  Speaker 1: wardrobe to run and fetch one of the best suits
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  Speaker 1: for the Lord Marquis of Carabbis. The King caressed him
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  Speaker 1: after a very extraordinary manner, and as the fine clothes
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  Speaker 1: he had given him extremely set off his good mien,
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  Speaker 1: for he was well made and very handsome in his person.
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  Speaker 1: The King's daughter took a secret inclination to him, and
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  Speaker 1: the Marquis of Carabas had no sooner cast two or
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  Speaker 1: three respectful and somewhat tender glances, but she fell in
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  Speaker 1: love with him. To distraction, the King would needs have
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  Speaker 1: him come into the coach and take part of the airing.
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  Speaker 1: The cat, quite overjoyed to see his project begin to succeed,
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  Speaker 1: marched before and meeting with some countrymen who were mowing
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  Speaker 1: a meadow. He said to them, good people, you are
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  Speaker 1: a mowing. If you do not tell the King that
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  Speaker 1: the meadow you mow belongs to my Lord Marquis of Carabis,
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  Speaker 1: you shall be chopped as small as herbs for the pot.
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  Speaker 1: The king did not fail. Asking of the mowers to
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  Speaker 1: whom the meadow they mowing belonged to, my Lord Marquis
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  Speaker 1: of Carabbis, answered they altogether, for the cat's threats had
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  Speaker 1: made them terribly afraid. You see, sir, said the Marquis,
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  Speaker 1: this is a meadow which never fails to yield a
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  Speaker 1: plentiful harvest every year. The master Cat, who still went
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  Speaker 1: on before, met with some reapers, and said to them,
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  Speaker 1: good people, you who are reaping, If you do not
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  Speaker 1: tell the King that all this corn belongs to the
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  Speaker 1: Marquis of Carabbis, you shall be chopped as small as
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  Speaker 1: herbs for the pot. The King, who passed by a
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  Speaker 1: moment after, would needs know to whom all that corn
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  Speaker 1: which he then saw did belong to my Lord Marquis
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  Speaker 1: of Carabbas, replied the reapers, and the King was very
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  Speaker 1: well pleased with it, as well as the Marquis, whom
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  Speaker 1: he congratulated. Thereupon, the master Cat, who always went before,
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  Speaker 1: said the same words to all he met, and the
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  Speaker 1: King was astonished at the vast estates of my Lord
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  Speaker 1: Marquis of Carabbis. Monsieur Puss came at last to a
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  Speaker 1: stately castle, the master of which was an ogre, the
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  Speaker 1: richest had ever been known, for all the lance which
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  Speaker 1: the king had then gone over belonged to this castle.
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  Speaker 1: The cat, who had taken care to inform himself who
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  Speaker 1: this ogre was and what he could do, asked to
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  Speaker 1: speak to him, saying he could not pass so near
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  Speaker 1: his castle without having the honor of paying his respects
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  Speaker 1: to him. The ogre received him as civilly as an
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  Speaker 1: ogre could do, and made him sit down. I have
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  Speaker 1: been assured, said the cat, that you have the gift
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  Speaker 1: of being able to change yourself into all sorts of
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  Speaker 1: creatures you have a mind to You can, for example,
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  Speaker 1: transform yourself into a lion, or elephant, and the like.
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  Speaker 1: That is true, answered the ogre very briskly, and to
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  Speaker 1: convince you, you shall now see me become a lion.
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  Speaker 1: Puss was so sadly terrified at the sight of a
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  Speaker 1: lion so near him that he immediately got into the gutter,
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  Speaker 1: not without abundance of trouble and danger, because of his boots,
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  Speaker 1: which were no use at all to him in walking
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  Speaker 1: upon the tiles. A little while after, when Puss saw
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  Speaker 1: that the ogre had resumed his natural form, he came
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  Speaker 1: down and owned he had been very much frightened. I
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  Speaker 1: have been moreover in form, said the cat. But I
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  Speaker 1: know not how to believe it that you have also
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  Speaker 1: the power to take on you the shape of the
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  Speaker 1: smallest animals, for example, to change yourself into a rat
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  Speaker 1: or a mouse. But I must own to you. I
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  Speaker 1: take this to be impossible. Impossible, cried the Ogre. You
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  Speaker 1: shall see that presently. And at the same time he
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  Speaker 1: changed himself into a mouse and began to run about
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  Speaker 1: the floor. Puss no sooner received this, but Pea fell
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  Speaker 1: upon him and ate him up. Meanwhile, the King, who
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  Speaker 1: saw as he passed this fine castle of the Ogres,
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  Speaker 1: had a mind to go into it. Puss, who heard
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  Speaker 1: the noise of his majesty's coach running over the drawbridge,
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  Speaker 1: ran out and said to the King, Your majesty is
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  Speaker 1: welcome to this castle of my lord Marquis of Carabbas.
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  Speaker 1: What my lord Marquis, cried the king, And does this
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  Speaker 1: castle also belong to you? There can be nothing finer
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  Speaker 1: than this court and all the stately buildings which surround it.
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  Speaker 1: Let us go into it if you please. The Marquis
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  Speaker 1: gave his hand to the princess and followed the King,
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  Speaker 1: who went first. They passed into a spacious hall, where
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  Speaker 1: they found a magnificent collation, which the Ogre had prepared
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  Speaker 1: for his friends, who were that very day to visit him,
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  Speaker 1: but dared not enter, knowing the King was there. His
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  Speaker 1: Majesty was perfectly charmed with the good qualities of my
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  Speaker 1: Lord Marquis of Carabbas, as was his daughter, who had
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  Speaker 1: fallen violently in love with him, and seeing the vast
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  Speaker 1: estate he possessed, said to him, after having drunk five
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  Speaker 1: or six glasses, it will be owing to yourself only,
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  Speaker 1: my Lord Marquis, if you are not my son in law.
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  Speaker 1: The Marquis, making several low bows, accepted the honor which
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  Speaker 1: his Majesty conferred upon him, and forthwith that very same
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  Speaker 1: day married the princess. Puss. Became a great lord and
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  Speaker 1: never ran after mice any more, but only for his
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  Speaker 1: diversion end of the master Cat or Puss in boots