Once upon a time, across seventeen countries, even beyond the glass mountains where the little pig with the short tail prowls, there was a donkey. This donkey set out to see the world and the country. As he goes, he meets a lion. The lion looks hard at the donkey, for he has never seen such a big-eared animal in his life, and asks him:
- Who are you, and what are you, you eavesdropper?
Says the donkey:
- Yay! Eah! I am the king of the lambs.
- Well, if you are the king of the lambs, let's see which one is stronger! Here's a tree, there! Pull the top of it down to the ground.
- "You pull it down first," said the donkey, "and then I'll pull it down.
The lion leapt, caught the tree by the waist and threw it to the ground.
- "But I know more than that," said the donkey, and when the lion was about to let go the top of the tree, he caught hold of it, and clung to it, but at the same moment the tree swung him up, and threw him so that he fell a shot from the tree.
The donkey had just fallen into a bush; there crouched a little rabbit, and in the evening he had struck it dead. The ass picked up the rabbit, took him to the lion, and showed him with great triumph.
- Can you see? I am that strong!
The lion looked a little ashamed, but said:
- Well, let's try one more!
- 'I don't mind,' said the donkey, 'but I'll tell you in advance that if I snap one ear back I'm only half mad, but when I snap the other ear back you run where you can see, or your life is over.
"Hey," thought the lion, "half of this is no joke!" So off he went, leaping into the forest, running as fast as he could.
As he runs, he is confronted by a wolf.
- Where are you running to, lion?
- Oh, don't ask! I met the king of the lambs, and he told me that if he slaps one ear back, he's only half mad, but if he slaps the other one back, my life is over.
- But I would like to see that animal now," said the wolf. - Let's go back, two of us can handle him.
- "I'm not going," said the lion.
- Don't be afraid, just come. I'll make you a birch tree, we'll put our necks in it, we'll live together, we'll die together, don't be afraid!
Well, the lion is resigned to that. Soon the wolf makes a birch tree, they stick their necks in it, they walk, they go, they go, and suddenly they see the donkey. The donkey sees them too, and flicks back one ear.
- 'See,' says the lion, 'he's already got one ear back, let's turn back while he's still half mad.
- Come on, come on," the wolf encouraged, "don't be afraid of him!
One or two steps the lion took with great difficulty, but when the donkey slapped the other ear back, he suddenly turned around, the wolf, willing or unwilling, took him with him, running without a brain.
Suddenly the wolf throws himself to the ground. The grip on his neck was so tight that he turned over.
The lion stops and looks at the wolf to see what has happened to him. The wolf was open-mouthed, and the lion thought he was grinning at him, laughing at his cowardice.
Said the lion:
- For to you it is laughter, but to me it is fear!
With that he left the wolf, not daring to look back, and ran away.
If the lion had not run away, my story would have lasted longer.
(Ágnes Kovács: Folk tales for kindergarten children)
