Lazy Jack (An English Folk-Tale)

4.8

Once upon a time there was a boy whose name was Jack, and he lived with his mother in a little village. They were very poor and the old woman got her living by spinning, but Jack was so lazy that he did nothing. He lay in the sun in the hot weather and sat on a chair in the house in the winter time. So they called him Lazy Jack.

At last his mother said to him one Monday:

“If you don’t begin to work I shan’t give you anything to eat.”

The next day Jack went out to work on a neighboring farm. He got a penny for his work, but when he was coming home he lost it.

“You stupid boy,” said his mother, “you had to put it in your pocket.”

“I'll do so another time,” answered Jack.

On Wednesday Jack went out again and worked on another farm. The farmer gave him a jar of milk for his day’s work. Jack took the jar and put it into the large pocket of his coat. When he came home there was no milk in his jar.

“You stupid boy,” said his mother, “you had to carry it on your head.”

“I’ll do so another time,” said Jack.

So on Thursday Jack worked on the farm again and the farmer gave him some cheese for his work. Jack took the cheese and went home with it on his head. By the time he got home the part of the cheese was lost and the part of it matted with his hair.

“You stupid boy,” said his mother, “you had to carry it very carefully in your hands.”

“I’ll do so another time,” answered Jack.

On Friday Lazy Jack again went out to work on the farm. The farmer gave him a large cat for his work. Jack took that cat, and carried it very carefully in his hands, but soon the cat scratched him so much, that he had to let it go.

When he got home his mother said to him, “You stupid boy, you had to tie the cat with a string and drag it along after you.”

“I’ll do so another time,” answered Jack.

So on Saturday Jack worked on another farm and the farmer gave him a piece of mutton for his work. Jack took the mutton, tied it to a string and dragged it along after him. So when he got home his mother could do nothing out of the meat.

“You stupid boy,” she said to Jack, “you had to carry it on your shoulder.”

“I’ll do so another time,” answered Jack.

On the next Monday Jack got a donkey for his work. It was very difficult for Jack to put the donkey on his shoulders, but at last he did it, and began to walk slowly home.

Soon he came up to the house where lived a rich man with his daughter, a beautiful girl, but deaf and dumb. The girl never laughed.

“She will never speak,” said the doctors, “till somebody makes her laugh.”

“I shall marry my daughter to the man who will make her laugh,” said her father.

When Jack was near her house, she looked out of the window and saw him with the donkey on his shoulders. It was so funny that the girl began to laugh, and so she could speak and hear.

Well, her father had to marry her to Lazy Jack, and they lived in a large house and Jack’s mother lived with them, and they all were very happy.