he place where the light shone.
It grew larger and brighter as they came nearer to it, till they saw
that it came from the window of a small hut. The donkey, who was the
tallest, went near and looked in.

"What is to be seen, old Grey Horse?" said the rooster.

"What do I see?" answered the donkey. "Why, a table spread with plenty
to eat and drink, and robbers sitting at it and having a good time."

"That ought to be our supper," said the rooster.

"Yes, yes," the donkey answered; "how I wish we were inside."

Then they talked together about how they should drive the robbers
away. At last they made a plan that they thought would work. The
donkey was to stand on his hind legs and place his forefeet on the
window-sill. The dog was to stand on his back. The cat was to stand on
the dog's shoulders, and the rooster promised to light upon the cat's
head.

As soon as they were all ready they began to play their music
together. The donkey brayed, the dog barked, the cat mewed, the
rooster crowed. They made such a noise that the window rattled.

The robbers, hearing the dreadful din, were terribly frightened, and
ran as fast as they could to the woods. The four comrades, rushing in,
hurried to the table and ate as if they had had nothing for a month.
When they had finished their meal they put out the light, and each one
chose a good bed for the night. The donkey lay down at full length in
the yard, the dog crouched behind the door, the cat curled herself up
on the hearth in front of the fire, while the rooster flew to the roof
of the hut. They were all so tired after their long journey that they
were soon fast asleep.

About midnight one of the robbers, seeing that the light was out and
all quiet, said to his chief: "I do not think that we had any reason
to be afraid, after all."

Then he called one of his robbers and sent him to the house to see if
it was all right.

The robber, finding everything quiet, went into the kitchen to light a
match. Seeing the glaring, fiery eyes of the cat, he thought they were
live coals, and held a match toward them that he might light it. But
Puss was frightened; she spat at him and scratched his face. This
frightened the robber so terribly that he rushed to the door, but the
dog, who lay there, sprang out at him and bit him on the leg as he
went by.

In the yard he ran against the donkey, who gave him a savage kick,
while the rooster on the roof cried out as loud as he could,
"_Co