The Pied Piper of Hamelin [first edition]

Everyone knows the story. The rates were everywhere. Then, the people devided that something must be done. They went to the Mayor crying out for action. Then enters the magical Pied Pier, who claimed that he could rid the town of the rats for a handsome sum. The rats were vanished, the Mayor wouldn't pay, and in revenge, the Piper spirited away all the children of the town into a wondrous portal that opened up in the hillside. They all disappeared except for one poor boy who was lame and lagged behind. The moral of the story: if you make a promise, you must keep it. Illustrated with Kate Greenaway's beautiful drawings.