Others have even laughed at the ridiculous idea of a man being able to mesmerize rats and convince them to commit mass suicide with just the tunes from his whistle.

However, few of the current inhabitants of the north German city, known as Hameln in the native tongue, are laughing now. In fact, if things get much worse, they may actually resort to advertising for such a Piper to come and rid them of the modern day mayhem which is terrorizing the city.

The rats are back in Hamlin with a vengeance.

Hamlin 2: Return of the Rats

The city confirmed Tuesday, Nov. 18 that it was battling a rat population explosion in an area of overgrown former garden allotments close to the city center.

"It's like a rubbish dump in there and has developed into a rat refuge," said municipal spokesman Thomas Wahmes.

After a rapid rise in rat numbers this year, the vermin were spreading into a new housing estate nearby.

The city's hands are tied because it does not own the wilderness, where locals used to grow vegetables. Its ownership is legally so tangled that no one can act.

Supernatural solutions needed

Rat poison has been distributed in a ring around the rat-ridden area but so large is the infestation that there are fears not even tactical toxins will help. The rampaging rat menace may require more supernatural solutions.

If the inhabitants of Hamlin are once again lucky enough to have a mysterious musician show up out of the blue to solve their vermin problem, they would be wise to brush up on their medieval legends and get their check books ready.

In the original tale, the Pied Piper, after convincing the rats to drown themselves in the river, demanded payment. The skinflints of Hamlin refused -- so the Piper vanished with all their children.