- Genre
- Cumulative tale
- Source status
- variant tradition
- Motifs
- chain of help, hen, rooster, sung plea
The tale: an editorial retelling
A hen and a rooster found something to eat: a pea for the hen and a bean for the rooster. The hen swallowed her pea, but the bean stuck in the rooster’s throat. He could not catch his breath. The hen ran for water.
At the sea she pleaded in a singing voice: “Give me water for the rooster—the rooster is choking!” The sea replied, “Bring the little pig’s keys, and we shall give you water.”
The hen ran to the pig. “Give me keys for the sea; the sea will give water for the rooster!” The pig wanted acorns from the oak. The oak wanted flowers from the young women. The young women wanted milk from the cow.
The hen begged the cow: “Give milk to the women; they will give flowers to the oak, the oak will give acorns to the pig, the pig will give keys to the sea, and the sea will give water to the rooster!” The cow replied, “Bring me hay from the mowers.”
The mowers would give no hay until they had bread from the farmer. The farmer wanted a knife from the smith. The smith wanted charcoal from the workers. At every stop the hen’s plea grew: what this helper needed, what the previous helper needed, and the rooster waiting for water.
At last the workers gave her charcoal. She took it to the smith and received a knife. The knife went to the farmer, bread to the mowers, hay to the cow, milk to the young women, flowers to the oak, acorns to the pig, and keys to the sea. The sea gave her water. She carried it to the rooster; he drank and breathed again.
About this version
This version was recorded from Marija Lelkiūtė-Povilaitienė in Vilnius in 1958, archive reference LTR 3118(143). The source prints the hen’s sung pleas with a melody. This page is an independent prose retelling and does not supply that recorded melody or an audio performance.
All the exchanges remain, although the entire accumulated song is not printed again at every stop. The return journey restores every link. The actions of the tale are fictional and are not instructions for treating choking.
Telling and discussing the tale
For a cumulative performance, repeat the whole growing sequence at each new request. If you invent a tune, identify it as your own; consult the cited edition for the documented melody.