How the rat clawed its way to top

RATS, it appears, have returned to Hamelin, 700 years after the Pied Piper banished them.

In 1284, the town on the banks of the Weser was overrun with rodents and the citizens despaired. Then, a colourful stranger arrived and offered to get rid of the pests, for a fee. The townsfolk agreed to his terms.

The visitor took out a pipe and began playing a strange refrain. The rats emerged from their hiding places and followed him down to the Weser, where they drowned. But “eaten bread is soon forgotten” and the people defaulted on their side of the bargain, with tragic consequences.