Belling the Cat
The Mice hold a council and a young Mouse has a clever plan: hang a bell about the Cat’s neck. Everyone cheers, until an old Mouse asks, “Who will bell the Cat?”
Scene 1: The Mice Meet
Belling the Cat. Once upon a time, the Mice lived in fear of their enemy, the Cat. They were so afraid of her claws that they hardly dared leave their holes, by night or by day. So the Mice called a meeting, to find a plan to free themselves of the Cat. At least they wished to know when she was coming, so they might have time to run away.
Scene 2: A Very Simple Plan
Many plans were talked over, but none of them was thought good enough. At last, a very young Mouse got up and said: “I have a plan that seems very simple, but I know it will be successful.” The young Mouse went on: “All we have to do is to hang a bell about the Cat’s neck. When we hear the bell ringing, we will know that our enemy is coming!”
Scene 3: Hooray for the Bell!
All the Mice were much surprised that they had not thought of such a plan before. They cheered and cheered over their good fortune. But in the middle of the cheering, an old Mouse got up and said: “I will say that the plan of the young Mouse is very good. But let me ask one question.”
Scene 4: Who Will Bell the Cat?
The old Mouse asked: “Who will bell the Cat?” The Mice looked at one another, and nobody spoke. Not one of them was brave enough to do it. It is one thing to say that something should be done, but quite a different matter to do it.
Moral: It is one thing to say that something should be done, but quite a different matter to do it.
Questions about Belling the Cat
Who was the enemy of the Mice?
The Cat.
Why did the Mice call a meeting?
To find a plan to free themselves of the Cat.
What did the young Mouse want to hang about the Cat’s neck?
A bell.
What question did the old Mouse ask?
Who will bell the Cat?.
What did the Mice do after the old Mouse’s question?
They looked at one another, and nobody spoke.
More stories to read aloud
- The Lion and the Mouse — A Lion catches a little Mouse but laughs and lets her go when she promises to repay him.
- The Hare and the Tortoise — A boastful Hare laughs at the slow Tortoise, so the Tortoise challenges him to a race.
- The Ant and the Grasshopper — All summer the Grasshopper plays his fiddle while the busy Ants store up grain.