- 7 hours ago
Aaron, the drummer boy, struggles to protect a bellmaker's great silver bells from seizure by Roman soldiers.
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00:22The Little Drummer Boy Aaron looked at the babe and thought,
00:30Surely there is something more I could give, something more I could do.
00:35And as if reading the boy's thoughts, one of the three wise men, Melchior, said to him,
00:42There is more, my son, indeed there is, for this is only the beginning.
00:50Tonight I will travel into the hills outside of Bethlehem,
00:56for there is a very special man that I must see immediately.
01:02Does it have to do with the babe?
01:04Indeed it does.
01:07Each of us three kings has a mission in a different direction
01:12to spread the news of what has happened here.
01:17May I go with you?
01:18Please, your majesty.
01:23Yes, of course.
01:25I would like that.
01:27I believe you could be helpful to me.
01:30Who are we going to see?
01:32And why is it so important?
01:35The wise man Melchior explained to Aaron
01:38that in a tiny village outside of Bethlehem,
01:41there lived a man named Simeon,
01:44who for many years had been foretelling the coming of the Promised One.
01:55But few believed Simeon's story,
01:58and most thought he was not of a right mind,
02:01and dismissed his prophecy as idle nonsense.
02:08Simeon lived on a hill outside of Bethlehem.
02:11He was a bellmaker by trade.
02:14He made bells used for horses and sheep,
02:17and bells which servants used to wake their masters,
02:21and hand bells to announce the beginning of feasts and other events.
02:27Simeon had a dream and a secret.
02:32His glorious set of silver bells,
02:36bells that he intended to ring and be heard throughout Bethlehem
02:40to announce the birth of the Promised One,
02:44the fulfilment of his vision,
02:46and he knew that the day would be soon.
02:51Only one other person knew about these bells,
02:54the old King Melchior,
02:56who was on his way even now with a little drummer boy
02:59to tell Simeon that the time had come.
03:03The bells would ring that very day.
03:07Or would they?
03:12Open my order of the Emperor Caesar Augustus.
03:16You must register and be taxed this very day.
03:23There is no answer, sir.
03:26Shall we break down the door?
03:28No, of course not.
03:30Just tap lightly
03:32and use a more gentle tone of voice.
03:36Of course break down the door, you don't!
03:39Immediately!
03:41All right, men.
03:43Ready?
03:44Now!
03:48It's empty.
03:50Nothing but these silly bells here.
03:53What a lovely sound.
03:55Give me those, Plato, you fool!
03:57And all of you search the place carefully.
04:02There must be something of value
04:04that we can take instead of silver
04:08to pay the taxes.
04:10Ah, what have we here?
04:13What was that?
04:15Give me that spear.
04:18Well, let's see what we have here.
04:22Well, well.
04:24Taking an afternoon nap?
04:26Out of here this instant!
04:29Brutus, my master, these bells.
04:32I think they're made of pure silver.
04:35Plato, you fool!
04:37Don't be ridiculous.
04:42Oh, all right.
04:46A fortune in pure silver.
04:50You're right, Plato, you fool!
04:52Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!
04:56What taxes has this man, Simeon, been assessed?
05:02Uh, 50 drachma of silver, Brutus, my master.
05:0750 drachmas of silver?
05:09Oh, that's impossible.
05:12I have nothing, absolutely nothing of any value.
05:19Nothing? And not any silver at all, eh? He says he has nothing. Well, in that case,
05:29you'll pay nothing. Men! Drag those bells out of here! Since they are nothing, we might
05:38as well take them instead of the taxes. Oh, no! No, not the bells! Please, you don't understand!
05:48Out of our way, you silly fool!
05:53Poor Simeon. So many years of work, hope and expectation lost in a few brief moments.
06:03How would he ever explain to Melchior?
06:10Come, they told me the rum, rum, rum, rum, rum. Me and my drum.
06:40Simeon explained to Melchior and Aaron that the emperor's tax collectors had taken his silver
06:47bells as payment for the taxes he could not afford. Aaron suddenly thought of a plan. If we can find
06:55their camp, I would
06:57enter as a beggar boy and ask to sing a song or two and offer to entertain them with my
07:01animals. I'm sure they wouldn't refuse.
07:05But what good would that do? Well, we can't make a plan to get back the silver bells until we
07:12find them. Then we will think of what to do next.
07:18They searched all through the night in the hills outside of the town. And just when they could hardly move
07:25another step, they saw the tax collectors' camp in a small valley beneath them.
07:34Come, Baba, Samson. You too, Joshua. It's time to give the performance of our lives.
07:45Plato, you fool! Yes, Brutus, my master. Bring me that bag of silver coins we collected for taxes today.
07:59Too bad all of this belongs to the emperor. It's difficult not to be greedy with all of this at
08:08one's fingertips.
08:10You know, there were days when money did not exist.
08:15No money. What did they use to buy things?
08:19When they invented money, they invented greed. Now we're no longer trading for all the things we need.
08:34I give you an egg and get some butter back. Now I give you a coin for all the things
08:43I like.
08:44Hey! I give you a pig and get a sack of wheat. Now I give you some gold when I
08:52desire to eat.
08:54Hey! I give you a hat and get a pair of shoes. Now there's no more of that. You pay
09:02for what you use.
09:04Honey, money, money, money makes you poor or makes you rich. Honey, money, money, it's the gold and silver rich.
09:24Would you take an egg and give some butter back? No, I'd prefer a coin for anything you lack.
09:35Hey! Would you take a pig? Hey! Would you take a pig if I gave you some wheat? No, I
09:41would like some gold if you would like to eat.
09:44Hey! I'll give you a hat and get a pair of shoes. Now there's no more of that. You pay
09:53for what you use.
09:55Money, money, money, money makes you poor or makes you rich. Money, money, money, it's the gold and silver rich.
10:04Money, money, money makes for our nature rich
10:09Money, money, money is a gold and silver each
10:18Plato, you fool, put this silver away
10:22And speaking of silver, we must do something about those wretched bells
10:27We can't very well go on carrying them all about the countryside
10:33Why don't we melt them down into silver bricks, Brutus, my master
10:39Plato, you fool, you're a genius
10:45Gather wood, we'll need a big roaring fire to do the job
10:52Oh no, come quickly before it's too late
10:58There's the boy now, just entering the camp with his animals
11:02Oh God, be with him
11:05I hope nothing goes wrong
11:07That little drummer boy's life is worth more than any silver bells
11:22What have we here?
11:24A drummer boy come to entertain us?
11:27I saw your camp and heard the singing
11:31My animals and I have not eaten for two days
11:34And I thought we might entertain in exchange for...
11:37In exchange for what?
11:39You give me a coin, a ballad will I sing
11:45Fill my bag with gold, while I am minstrel-ing
11:52Hey!
11:53You give me that pig, I'll sing your favorite song
11:58For a sack of wheat, I'll make it twice as long
12:04Hey!
12:04I will trade that hat, for fossil-at-y dough
12:09No there's no more of that, you'll sing for free boy-o
12:14You collect money from us, now there's a twist-y
12:36We must begin to melt those bells.
12:40Why is that fire not lighted, Plato?
12:44Brutus, my...
12:47We are having difficulty starting it.
12:49All the wood is very damp.
12:51We have need of two dry sticks and some suitable kindling.
12:57Sticks?
12:58Kindling?
13:00Drummer boy, come here.
13:03Oh, what a lovely little drum you have there.
13:07And those two sticks.
13:11Perfect!
13:13No, please, not my drum!
13:17Give me those sticks.
13:18And the drum!
13:31Poor Aaron had not counted on anything like this.
13:34The only things of value he had ever owned.
13:38The very sticks and drum he had used to play for the bane.
13:42Lost forever in the flames.
13:56Aaron was truly heartbroken about the loss of his drum.
14:01Melchior and Simeon were about to leave their hiding place and go to his aid.
14:05When they saw the animals do an amazing thing.
14:18Look!
14:19The animals have taken the bells!
14:22The animals have taken the bells.
14:23This is indeed a miracle.
14:45Come!
14:46They are stuck and they will surely be caught if we do not help them.
14:55enough enough wood the fire looks ready for the melting bring the bells
15:09Aaron and his friends knew that they didn't have much more time to get the bells to a safe hiding
15:14place for the Roman soldiers within moments would discover that they were missing they were right
15:21here I'm sure this is where we left him just hours ago oh am I intruding I certainly don't wish
15:31to rush
15:32you but what do you think you're doing standing around and staring at your feet and you see the
15:40bells you know the silver bells and they seem to be not here missing
15:58Aaron you're back what is happening down there they have begun to search I'm sure that one of
16:06them will find the tracks and be here at any moment we must hurry if we can bury these bells
16:13and make the
16:15sand look like the other dunes then we may have a chance let me help you quickly they buried the
16:24bells and then hid themselves behind a nearby cliff waiting and hoping that all would be well
16:44what have you found there Polonius nothing nothing here or as far as the eye can see in any
16:58direction who among you remember silver bells any of you good because there were no blasted bells no
17:13bell maker no taxes for anyone named Simeon nothing I will not be embarrassed in Rome understood yes Brutus
17:23I for one remember nothing since breakfast this morning fool that I am it was your Greek namesake Plato that
17:35once said of all the animals the boy is the most unmanageable that drummer boy caused all of this
17:48unquestionably unquestionably unquestionably I know it I have been made to play the part of a fool and you were
17:58glorious
17:59Brutus my master
18:04what a glorious day for me and for all of Bethlehem indeed all the world thanks to you Melchior and
18:15to our brave
18:16little drummer boy and his animals it will be a day long remembered in history Simeon prepare to ring
18:26out the bells for it is time let me find Aaron I'm sure he'll want to be here
18:36Melchior expected to find a happy and joyous Aaron but instead he came upon one distressed
18:43and on the verge of tears
18:58why so sad my son today is a day for rejoicing you have accomplished a magnificent feat I know I
19:09should
19:09be happy it's just that my drum and sticks they were burned in the fire at the tax collectors camp
19:18they were a gift from my poor father and
19:25the wise man tried to console Aaron about his loss and soon the little drummer boy realized that the
19:33event that was about to occur far overshadowed his small problem now Simeon now
19:52said the little lamb to the shepherd boy
20:03the shepherd boy do you hear what I hear
20:13A song, a song, high above the tree
20:19With a voice as big as the sea
20:23With a voice as big as the sea
20:32Send the King to the people everywhere
20:38Listen to what I say
20:43Pray for peace, people everywhere
20:48Listen to what I say
20:53The child, the child, sleeping in the night
20:59He will bring us goodness and light
21:03He will bring us goodness and light
21:16And all of Bethlehem heard the bells
21:19And knew that the prophecy of old Simeon had come true
21:23And they too followed the star
21:26To see the promised one
21:28The little babe in the manger
21:33Aaron, we all have need of your talents once again
21:38You know the road to the manger
21:41Lead us, son, with your drum
21:46My drum?
21:49A mere few hours' work for a bellmaker
21:53A drum
21:55A drum
22:00Go, Aaron, and lead them
22:02For I must be on my way back to Damascus
22:06And always remember
22:09God is with you
22:28I heard the bells on Christmas day
22:32Their old familiar carols play
22:35And wild and sweet
22:37The words repeat
22:38Of peace on earth
22:41Goodwill toward men
22:44And each year
22:47The bells rang out
22:49To remind the people to come and rejoice
22:52With love and hope in their hearts
22:56And celebrate the Christmas day
22:59So to honor him
23:04A rum-bum-bum-bum
23:08When we come
23:22I play my drum for him
23:27A rum-bum-bum-bum