There is a legend that originates from Hamelin, Saxony, Germany. It was picked up by several authors - one, a favorite of mine named Thomas Browning. In an 1842 release, he wrote a poem called the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Irony was a specialty of Browning.
In his work he told of this German town which was quite overrun with rats. The town decided to employ a rat catcher to rid them of these pests. This rat catcher they hired came dressed in multi-colored entertainer's garb. More than that, he played the pipe - a magical pipe. The townspeople expected nothing like this.
So, on this date in 1376, the pied piper came strolling through town and to everyone's amazement, all the rats started to follow him. He led them out of town and into a lake where they all died. His end of the deal was done.
The townspeople saw how easily he performed the work and they decided not to pay him. The crooks! (always get your pay in advance)
Who thinks the rat catcher goes out and brings the rats back to town. Wrong! He started another walk through town; playing his pipe and dressed in his pied outfit. This time all the children followed him. He led all the children of the town away. It was a cruel lesson the townspeople learned.
Today, that part of Germany still celebrates this as rat-catchers day. They will never forget.
(The Brothers Grimm also retold this story and gave a different date, 6/26, so the holiday is celebrated twice a year.)
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