A clever crow that reached the water in a pitcher by dropping in pebbles, showing the power of intelligence.

The story begins: On a very hot summer day a thirsty crow flew here and there in search of water. Its throat was dry, and it could find no river or pond nearby.

The Story

The sun was burning in the sky and not a drop of rain had fallen for many days. All the ponds and ditches had dried up, and the poor crow grew weaker with thirst.

The crow flew over fields and gardens, looking everywhere for water. But wherever it went, it found only dry earth and cracked ground.

At last, tired and unhappy, the crow came down into a garden. There it saw a pitcher standing in one corner near a house.

The crow flew to the pitcher and looked inside with great hope. To its joy, there was some water at the bottom of the pitcher.

But when the crow tried to drink, it was disappointed. The water lay far down, and its beak could not reach the surface however hard it tried.

The crow did not fly away in despair. It sat quietly for a while and began to think of a clever plan to get the water.

Nearby the crow noticed some small pebbles lying on the ground. An idea flashed into its mind, and it picked up a pebble in its beak and dropped it into the pitcher.

One by one the crow carried the pebbles and dropped them into the pitcher. Slowly the water began to rise higher and higher as the pebbles filled the bottom.

After much patient labour, the water came up to the mouth of the pitcher. The happy crow drank the cool water to its heart's content and then flew away, satisfied and refreshed.

Moral: Where there is a will, there is a way. / Necessity is the mother of invention.