A little wooden house stands in the field. A Mouse-Squeaker runs by. She sees the wooden house, stops, and asks:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
No one answers. So the mouse enters the wooden house and begins to live there.
A Frog-Croaker hops up to the wooden house and asks:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
— I do, Mouse-Squeaker! And who are you?
— I am Frog-Croaker.
— Come and live with me!
The frog hops into the wooden house. The two of them begin to live together.
A Hare-Runner runs by. He stops and asks:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
— I do, Mouse-Squeaker!
— I do, Frog-Croaker!
— And who are you?
— I am Hare-Runner.
— Come and live with us!
The hare leaps into the wooden house! The three of them begin to live together.
A Sister-Fox walks by. She taps on the window and asks:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
— I do, Mouse-Squeaker.
— I do, Frog-Croaker.
— I do, Hare-Runner.
— And who are you?
— I am Sister-Fox.
— Come and live with us!
The fox climbs into the wooden house. The four of them begin to live together.
A Grey-Wolf runs up, looks in through the door, and asks:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
— I do, Mouse-Squeaker.
— I do, Frog-Croaker.
— I do, Hare-Runner.
— I do, Sister-Fox.
— And who are you?
— I am Grey-Wolf.
— Come and live with us!
The wolf squeezes into the wooden house. The five of them begin to live together. There they live in the wooden house, singing songs.
Suddenly, a Clumsy-Bear comes walking by. The bear sees the wooden house, hears the singing, stops, and roars with all his might:
— Little wooden house, little wooden house! Who lives in the wooden house?
— I do, Mouse-Squeaker.
— I do, Frog-Croaker.
— I do, Hare-Runner.
— I do, Sister-Fox.
— I do, Grey-Wolf.
— And who are you?
— I am Clumsy-Bear.
— Come and live with us!
The bear tries to climb into the wooden house. He tries and tries, but he cannot fit, so he says:
— I would rather live on the roof.
— But you will crush us!
— No, I will not crush you.
— Well, climb up then!
The bear climbs onto the roof, and the moment he sits down — crash! The wooden house falls apart.
The wooden house creaks, tips to the side, and collapses completely. Out tumble Mouse-Squeaker, Frog-Croaker, Hare-Runner, Sister-Fox, and Grey-Wolf — all safe and sound, barely escaping in time.
They set to work, carrying logs and sawing planks, to build a new wooden house.
And they built one even better than before!