# Tattercoats

An episode of [Classic English Stories For Kids](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1509930659), 16 Dec 2021, 7:56.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/66895621/audio.mp3

A great ruler had a granddaughter, but he never took care of her. She was neglected as a child, and her torn clothing earned her the nickname "Tattercoats." She spent her days out in the fields, accompanied by a gooseherd. Once, her grandfather was invited to a royal ball, but he refused to bring Tattercoats. But eventually, she arrived at the ball with the gooseherd. On the way, they met a young man who turned out to be the prince. He accompanied them on their walk and proposed to Tattercoats. He asked her at the ball and invited her to dance with him. Everyone looked as she walked in with her gooseherd. The prince stood and informed his father that he desired to marry Tattercoats. All of Tattercoats' attire was changed into gleaming robes when the gooseherd played on his pipe. The prince married her after everyone approved and the gooseherd disappeared without a trace. If you like the show, support us by becoming a patron on this link: https://www.patreon.com/chimesradio Visit our website to know more: https://chimesradio.com All podcast listening links: http://chimesradio.bio.link/ Connect with us on our social handles to get all content updates: https://www.instagram.com/vrchimesradio/ https://www.facebook.com/chimesradioSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/chimesradioSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: Tatter Coats written by Flora Annie Steele. In a great
[0:07] Speaker 1: palace by the sea, there lived a very rich old lord.
[0:11] Speaker 1: Old Lord neither had wife nor children alive, but only
[0:15] Speaker 1: one little granddaughter, whose face he had never seen in
[0:18] Speaker 1: all her life. Old Lord didn't like his granddaughter much
[0:23] Speaker 1: because at her birth his favorite daughter died. So he
[0:27] Speaker 1: turned his back and sat by his window looking out
[0:30] Speaker 1: over the sea. He kept on weeping for his lost
[0:33] Speaker 1: daughter till his white hair and beard grew down over
[0:37] Speaker 1: his shoulders and twined round his chair and crept into
[0:41] Speaker 1: the chins of the floor. His tears dropped and ran
[0:45] Speaker 1: away in a little river to the great sea. Meanwhile,
[0:49] Speaker 1: his granddaughter grew up with no one to care for
[0:51] Speaker 1: her except an old nurse who would sometimes give her
[0:55] Speaker 1: a dish of scraps from the kitchen or a torn
[0:58] Speaker 1: petticoat from the rag back, while the other servants of
[1:02] Speaker 1: the palace would drive her from the house with blows
[1:05] Speaker 1: and mocking words, calling her tatter coats and pointing to
[1:09] Speaker 1: her bare feet and shoulders, till she ran away, crying
[1:13] Speaker 1: to hide among the bushes. So she grew up with
[1:17] Speaker 1: little to eat or to wear, spending her days out
[1:20] Speaker 1: of doors. Her only companion was a crippled goose herd.
[1:24] Speaker 1: The goose herd was a mere little chap and when
[1:27] Speaker 1: she was hungry or cold or tired, he would play
[1:31] Speaker 1: to her so happily on his little musical pipe that
[1:34] Speaker 1: she forgot all her troubles and would fall to dancing
[1:38] Speaker 1: with his flock of noisy geese for partners. Now, one
[1:42] Speaker 1: day people told that the king was traveling through the land.
[1:46] Speaker 1: The King was to give a large formal party to
[1:48] Speaker 1: all the lords and ladies of the country in the
[1:51] Speaker 1: town nearby, and that the prince, his only son, was
[1:55] Speaker 1: to choose a wife from amongst the young girls in
[1:57] Speaker 1: the party. In due time, one of the royal invitations
[2:01] Speaker 1: to the party was brought to the palace, and the
[2:04] Speaker 1: servants carried it up to the old lord, who still
[2:07] Speaker 1: sat by his window, wrapped in his long white hair
[2:11] Speaker 1: and weeping into the little river that was fed by
[2:14] Speaker 1: his tears. But when he heard the king's command, he
[2:17] Speaker 1: dried his eyes and asked his servants to bring a
[2:20] Speaker 1: large pair of scissors to cut him loose, for his
[2:24] Speaker 1: hair had bound him a fast prisoner, and he could
[2:27] Speaker 1: not move. And then he sent them for rich clothes
[2:30] Speaker 1: and jewels, which he put on, and he ordered them
[2:33] Speaker 1: to saddle the white horse with gold and silk, that
[2:36] Speaker 1: he might write to meet the king, but he quite
[2:39] Speaker 1: forgot he had a granddaughter to take to the party. Meanwhile,
[2:43] Speaker 1: Tattercoat sat by the kitchen door weeping because she could
[2:46] Speaker 1: not go to see the grand doings. And when the
[2:49] Speaker 1: old nurse heard her crying, she went to the lord
[2:52] Speaker 1: of the palace and begged him to take his granddaughter
[2:55] Speaker 1: with him to the king's party, but he only frowned
[2:59] Speaker 1: and told her to be silent, while the servants laughed
[3:02] Speaker 1: and said, Tata Coats is happy playing with the goose head.
[3:06] Speaker 1: Let her be it is all she is fit. For
[3:10] Speaker 1: a second, and then a third time, the old nurse
[3:13] Speaker 1: begged him to let the girl go with him, but
[3:16] Speaker 1: she was answered only by black looks and fierce words,
[3:19] Speaker 1: till she was driven from the room by the other
[3:21] Speaker 1: servants with blows and mocking words. Weeping over her ill success,
[3:27] Speaker 1: the old nurse went to look for Tata Coats, but
[3:30] Speaker 1: the girl had been turned from the door by the
[3:32] Speaker 1: cook and had run away to tell her friend the
[3:34] Speaker 1: goose herd how unhappy she was because she could not
[3:38] Speaker 1: go to the king's party. Now. When the goose Herd
[3:42] Speaker 1: had listened to her story, he bade her to cheer up,
[3:45] Speaker 1: and proposed that they should go together into the town
[3:48] Speaker 1: to see the king and all the fine things. And
[3:52] Speaker 1: when she looked sorrowfully down at her bare feet, he
[3:55] Speaker 1: played a note or two upon his musical pipe so
[3:58] Speaker 1: meridiously that she forgot all about her tears and her troubles.
[4:03] Speaker 1: And before she well knew, the goose Herd had taken
[4:06] Speaker 1: her by the hand, and both of them started dancing.
[4:11] Speaker 1: Even cripples can dance when they choose, said the goose herd.
[4:15] Speaker 1: Before they had gone very far, a handsome young man,
[4:18] Speaker 1: splendidly dressed, riding up topped to ask the way to
[4:22] Speaker 1: the castle where the king was staying. And when he
[4:25] Speaker 1: found that they two were going there, he got off
[4:28] Speaker 1: his horse and walked beside them along the road. You
[4:32] Speaker 1: see merry folk, he said, and will be good company.
[4:36] Speaker 1: Good company, indeed, said the goose Herd, and played a
[4:39] Speaker 1: new tune that was not a dance. It was a
[4:43] Speaker 1: curious tune, and it made the strange young man stare
[4:46] Speaker 1: at tattercoats till he couldn't see her shabby clothes till
[4:50] Speaker 1: he couldn't see anything but her beautiful face. Then he said,
[4:56] Speaker 1: you're the most beautiful girl in the world. Will you
[4:59] Speaker 1: marry me? Then the Gooseherd smiled to himself and played
[5:05] Speaker 1: sweeter than ever. But Tatacoats laughed not, I said she
[5:10] Speaker 1: You would be finally put to shame, and so would
[5:12] Speaker 1: I be if you took a goose girl for your wife.
[5:15] Speaker 1: Go and ask one of the great ladies you will
[5:17] Speaker 1: see tonight at the King's party, and do not flout
[5:20] Speaker 1: poor Tatacoats. But the more she refused him, the sweeter
[5:24] Speaker 1: the pipe played, and the deeper the young man fell
[5:27] Speaker 1: in love, till at last he begged her to come
[5:30] Speaker 1: out that night at twelve to the King's party, just
[5:34] Speaker 1: as she was with the goose herd and his geze
[5:37] Speaker 1: in her torn clothes and bare feet, and see if
[5:41] Speaker 1: he wouldn't dance with her before the king and the
[5:43] Speaker 1: lords and ladies, and present her to them all as
[5:48] Speaker 1: his dear and honored bride. Now at first Tatacoat said
[5:53] Speaker 1: she would not, but the Gooseherd said, take fortune when
[5:57] Speaker 1: it comes, little one. So when night came and the
[6:00] Speaker 1: hall in the castle was full of light and music,
[6:04] Speaker 1: and the lords and ladies were dancing before the king.
[6:07] Speaker 1: Just as the clock struck twelve, Tatacoats and the goose
[6:10] Speaker 1: Herd entered at the great doors and walked straight up
[6:14] Speaker 1: the ballroom, while on either side the ladies whispered, the
[6:18] Speaker 1: lords laughed, and the King, seated at the far end,
[6:20] Speaker 1: stayed in amazement. But as they came in front of
[6:24] Speaker 1: the throne, Tatecoat's lover rose from beside the king and
[6:28] Speaker 1: came to meet her. Taking her by the hand, he
[6:31] Speaker 1: kissed her thrice before them all, and turned to the king. Father.
[6:36] Speaker 1: He said, for it was the prince himself, I have
[6:39] Speaker 1: made my choice, and here is my bride, the loveliest
[6:44] Speaker 1: girl in all the land, and the sweetest as well.
[6:47] Speaker 1: Before he had finished speaking, the goose Herd had put
[6:50] Speaker 1: up his musical pipe to his lips and played a
[6:53] Speaker 1: few notes that sounded like a bird singing far off
[6:56] Speaker 1: in the forest. And as he played, Tattercoat's shabby clothes
[7:01] Speaker 1: were changed to shining robes, soon with glittering jewels. A
[7:05] Speaker 1: golden crown lay upon her golden hair, and as the
[7:09] Speaker 1: king rose to greet her as his daughter, the trumpet
[7:12] Speaker 1: sounded loudly in honor of the new princess, and the
[7:15] Speaker 1: people outside in the street said to each other, Ah,
[7:19] Speaker 1: now the princess chosen for his wife, the loveliest girl
[7:23] Speaker 1: in all the land. But the goose herd was never
[7:26] Speaker 1: seen again, and no one knew what became of him,
[7:30] Speaker 1: While the old lord went home once more to his
[7:32] Speaker 1: palace by the sea, for he could not stay at
[7:35] Speaker 1: court when he had sworn never to look on his
[7:38] Speaker 1: granddaughter's face. So there he still sits by his window,
[7:42] Speaker 1: weeping more bitterly than ever, and the river of his
[7:45] Speaker 1: tears runs away to the great sea.

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