An old woman had¹ a cat. The cat was² very old. She could³ not run quickly, and she could not bite⁴, because she was so old.

One day the old cat saw⁵ a mouse. She jumped and caught the mouse. But she could not bite it, so the mouse got⁶ out of her mouth and ran⁷ away, because the cat could not bite it.

Then the old woman became⁸ very angry because the cat had not killed⁹ the mouse. She began to hit the cat. The cat said¹⁰, "Do not hit your old servant¹¹. I have worked for you for many years, and I would¹² work for you still, but I am too old. Do not be unkind¹³ to the old, but remember what good work the old did¹⁴ when they were young."