Lazy Jack

Lazy Jack brings home his pay the wrong way every day, and every day his mother tells him what he should have done. When he carries a donkey home on his shoulders, a rich man's daughter who has never laughed bursts out laughing, and they marry.

Scene 1: Lazy Jack

Lazy Jack. Once upon a time, a boy named Jack lived with his mother on a common. They were very poor. But Jack was so lazy that he would only lie in the sun, or sit by the fire. So they called him Lazy Jack. At last, his mother said: “Jack, if you will not work for your porridge, you must go and earn your own living!”

Scene 2: A Jar of Milk

So Jack worked for a cow-keeper, who gave him a jar of milk. Jack put the jar in his jacket pocket. The milk spilled out, long before he got home. His mother said: “You silly boy, you should have carried it on your head.” Jack said: “I’ll do so another time.”

Scene 3: A Cream Cheese

The next day, a farmer gave him a cream cheese. Jack carried it home on his head. By then it was spoiled, and stuck in his hair! His mother said: “You silly boy, you should have carried it carefully in your hands.” Jack said: “I’ll do so another time.”

Scene 4: A Big Tom-Cat

Then a baker gave him a big tom-cat. Jack carried it carefully in his hands. But the cat scratched him so much that he had to let it go. His mother said: “You silly boy, you should have tied it with a string, and dragged it after you.” Jack said: “I’ll do so another time.”

Scene 5: A Shoulder of Mutton

Next, a butcher gave him a shoulder of mutton. Jack tied it to a string and dragged it home through the dirt. The meat was quite spoiled! So his poor mother had only cabbage for her Sunday dinner. She said: “You silly boy, you should have carried it on your shoulder!” Jack said: “I’ll do so another time.”

Scene 6: A Donkey

On Monday, a cattle-keeper gave him a donkey. It was hard, but at last Jack hoisted the donkey onto his shoulders, and set off slowly for home. On the way stood a big house, where a rich man lived with his only daughter. She had never laughed in her life, and never spoken a word. The doctors said she would speak only when someone made her laugh. So her father had promised that whoever made her laugh could marry her.

Scene 7: She Laughed!

Now, the girl was looking out of the window as Jack went by. There was the donkey on his shoulders, legs kicking in the air, hee-hawing with all its might! It was so funny that she burst out laughing. And at once, she could speak! Her father was overjoyed. Jack and the girl were married, and Jack’s mother came to live with them, happy at last. Keep on trying, and think for yourself.

Moral: Keep on trying, and think for yourself.

Questions about Lazy Jack

More stories to read aloud

• Cinderella — Kind Cinderella works among the cinders for her proud stepmother and stepsisters, until her fairy godmother turns a pumpkin into a golden coach and sends her to the King’s son’s ball in glass slippers.
• Diamonds and Toads — A kind girl gives water to a poor old woman at the fountain, and the woman, who is really a fairy, makes roses, pearls and diamonds fall from her lips at every word.
• Goldilocks and the Three Bears — While the Three Bears take a walk until their porridge cools, a little girl called Goldilocks walks into their house and tries their porridge, chairs and beds.