Scotland's Storybook: stories in English (1.1 - Education Scotland

WHUPPITY STOORIE
The wee cottage of Kittlerumpit stood on the slope of a brae and was sheltered
by a fir-wood that lay behind it. The Goodwife of Kittlerumpit didn’t have far to
look for troubles and sorrow. Her husband had been a useless, lazy and
unfaithful scoundrel who had got up one fine morning, said that he was just
popping out to go to the fair, kissed his wife goodbye, and was never seen again.
He left her there as poor as a church mouse and with a baby boy to look after.
Her neighbours felt sorry for her, but not one of them ever offered to help her in
her struggle to survive. Life could not get any worse than it was, or so she
thought.
One day she got up and went out to the sty to feed the pig. It was a sow,
which was due to have a litter of piglets at any time, and these piglets could be
sold and would raise enough money to keep her and her baby in food for a
while. Her whole future depended on this one animal. When she arrived at the
sty she poured the slops into the pig’s trough, but there was no sign of the pig.
She looked around and saw to her horror that the pig was lying on its back with
its legs in the air, and making a pitifully feeble grunting sound. The pig was
dying. The goodwife sat down on the old knocking stone with her baby boy on
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