Pied Piper of Hamelin, The

The, a magician of medieval legend. The town of Hamelin was infested with rats. For a certain sum of money the piper agreed to rid the town of the pests. He played on his pipe and the rats all followed him to the river and were drowned. Then the citizens, thinking themselves safe now the rats were gone, refused to pay the price agreed upon. The piper took his pipe again and this time the children of the town followed him. On they went out of the town to a hill which opened, received them, and closed again. The children were gone forever. Browning's poem, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, published in 1842, is based on this story.