One day the king went for a long walk in the woods.
When he came back to his own garden, he sent for his family to come down to the lake for a swim.
When they were all ready to go into the water, the queen and her ladies left their jewels in charge of the servants, and then went down into the lake.
As the queen put her string of pearls away in a box, she was watched by a Girl Monkey who sat in the branches of a tree near-by. This Girl Monkey wanted to get the queen′s string of pearls, so she sat still and watched, hoping that the servant in charge of the pearls would go to sleep.
At first the servant kept her eyes on the jewel-box. But by and by she began to nod, and then she fell fast asleep.
As soon as the Monkey saw this, quick as the wind she jumped down, opened the box, picked up the string of pearls, and quick as the wind she was up in the tree again, holding the pearls very carefully. She put the string of pearls on, and then, for fear the guards in the garden would see the pearls, the Monkey hid them in a hole in the tree. Then she sat near-by looking as if nothing had happened.
By and by the servant awoke. She looked in the box, and finding that the string of pearls was not there, she cried, "A man has run off with the queen′s string of pearls."
Up ran the guards from every side.
The servant said: "I sat right here beside the box where the queen put her string of pearls. I did not move from the place. But the day is hot, and I was tired. I must have fallen asleep. The pearls were gone when I awoke."
The guards told the king that the pearls were gone.
"Find the man who stole the pearls,"said the king. Away went the guards looking high and low for the thief.
After the king had gone, the chief guard said to himself:
"There is something strange here. These pearls,"thought he, "were lost in the garden. There was a strong guard at the gates, so that no one from the outside could get into the garden. On the other hand, there are hundreds of Monkeys here in the garden. Perhaps one of the Girl Monkeys took the string of pearls."
Then the chief guard thought of a trick that would tell whether a Girl Monkey had taken the pearls. So he bought a number of strings of bright-colored glass beads.
After dark that night the guards hung the strings of glass beads here and there on the low bushes in the garden. When the Monkeys saw the strings of bright-colored beads the next morning, each Monkey ran for a string.
But the Girl Monkey who had taken the queen′s string of pearls did not come down. She sat near the hole where she had hidden the pearls.
The other Monkeys were greatly pleased with their strings of beads. They chattered to one another about them. "It is too bad you did not get one," they said to her as she sat quietly, saying nothing. At last she could stand it no longer. She put on the queen′s string of pearls and came down, saying proudly: "You have only strings of glass beads. See my string of pearls!"
Then the chief of the guards, who had been hiding nearby, caught the Girl Monkey. He took her at once to the king.
"It was this Girl Monkey, your Majesty, who took the pearls."
The king was glad enough to get the pearls, but he asked the chief guard how he had found out who took them.
The chief guard told the king that he knew no one could have come into the garden and so he thought they must have been taken by one of the Monkeys in the garden. Then he told the king about the trick he had played with the beads.
"You are the right man in the right place," said the king, and he thanked the chief of the guards over and over again.
Once upon a time three Fishes lived in a far-away river. They were named Thoughtful, Very-Thoughtful, and Thoughtless.
One day they left the wild country where no men lived, and came down the river to live near a town.
Very-Thoughtful said to the other two: "There is danger all about us here. Fishermen come to the river here to catch fish with all sorts of nets and lines. Let us go back again to the wild country where we used to live."
But the other two Fishes were so lazy and so greedy that they kept putting off their going from day to day.
But one day Thoughtful and Thoughtless went swimming on ahead of Very-Thoughtful and they did not see the fisherman′s net and rushed into it. Very-Thoughtful saw them rush into the net.
"I must save them,"said Very-Thoughtful.
So swimming around the net, he splashed in the water in front of it, like a Fish that had broken through the net and gone up the river. Then he swam back of the net and splashed about there like a Fish that had broken through and gone down the river.
The fisherman saw the splashing water and thought the Fishes had broken through the net and that one had gone up the river, the other down, so he pulled in the net by one corner. That let the two Fishes out of the net and away they went to find Very-Thoughtful.
"You saved our lives, Very-Thoughtful,"they said, "and now we are willing to go back to the wild country."
So back they all went to their old home where they lived safely ever after.
Once upon a time a Big Rat lived in the forest, and many hundreds of other Rats called him their Chief.
A Tricky Wolf saw this troop of Rats, and began to plan how he could catch them. He wanted to eat them, but how was he to get them? At last he thought of a plan. He went to a corner near the home of the Rats and waited until he saw one of them coming. Then he stood up on his hind legs.
The Chief of the Rats said to the Wolf, "Wolf, why do you stand on your hind legs?"
"Because I am lame,"said the Tricky Wolf. "It hurts me to stand on my front legs."
"And why do you keep your mouth open?" asked the Rat.
"I keep my mouth open so that I may drink in all the air I can,"said the Wolf. "I live on air; it is my only food day after day. I can not run or walk, so I stay here. I try not to complain."When the Rats went away the Wolf lay down.
The Chief of the Rats was sorry for the Wolf, and he went each night and morning with all the other Rats to talk with the Wolf, who seemed so poor, and who did not complain.
Each time as the Rats were leaving, the Wolf caught and ate the last one. Then he wiped his lips, and looked as if nothing had happened.
Each night there were fewer Rats at bedtime. Then they asked the Chief of the Rats what the trouble was. He could not be sure, but he thought the Wolf was to blame.
So the next day the Chief said to the other Rats, "You go first this time and I will go last."
They did so, and as the Chief of the Rats went by, the Wolf made a spring at him. But the Wolf was not quick enough, and the Chief of the Rats got away.
"So this is the food you eat. Your legs are not so lame as they were. You have played your last trick, Wolf," said the Chief of the Rats, springing at the Wolf′s throat. He bit the Wolf, so that he died.
And ever after the Rats lived happily in peace and quiet.
Once upon a time a Deer lived in a forest near a lake. Not far from the same lake, a Woodpecker had a nest in the top of a tree; and in the lake lived a Turtle. The three were friends, and lived together happily.
A hunter, wandering about in the wood, saw the footprints of the Deer near the edge of the lake. "I must trap the Deer, going down into the water," he said, and setting a strong trap of leather, he went his way.
Early that night when the Deer went down to drink, he was caught in the trap, and he cried the cry of capture.
At once the Woodpecker flew down from her tree-top, and the Turtle came out of the water to see what could be done.
Said the Woodpecker to the Turtle: "Friend, you have teeth; you gnaw through the leather trap. I will go and see to it that the hunter keeps away. If we both do our best our friend will not lose his life."
So the Turtle began to gnaw the leather, and the Woodpecker flew to the hunter′s house.
At dawn the hunter came, knife in hand, to the front door of his house.
The Woodpecker, flapping her wings, flew at the hunter and struck him in the face.
The hunter turned back into the house and lay down for a little while. Then he rose up again, and took his knife. He said to himself: "When I went out by the front door, a Bird flew in my face; now I will go out by the back door." So he did.
The Woodpecker thought: "The hunter went out by the front door before, so now he will leave by the back door." So the Woodpecker sat in a tree near the back door.
When the hunter came out the bird flew at him again, flapping her wings in the hunter′s face.
Then the hunter turned back and lay down again. When the sun arose, he took his knife, and started out once more.
This time the Woodpecker flew back as fast as she could fly to her friends, crying, "Here comes the hunter!"
By this time the Turtle had gnawed through all the pieces of the trap but one. The leather was so hard that it made his teeth feel as if they would fall out. His mouth was all covered with blood. The Deer heard the Woodpecker, and saw the hunter, knife in hand, coming on. With a strong pull the Deer broke this last piece of the trap, and ran into the woods.
The Woodpecker flew up to her nest in the tree-top.
But the Turtle was so weak he could not get away. He lay where he was. The hunter picked him up and threw him into a bag, tying it to a tree.
The Deer saw that the Turtle was taken, and made up his mind to save his friend′s life. So the Deer let the hunter see him.
The hunter seized his knife and started after the Deer. The Deer, keeping just out of his reach, led the hunter into the forest.
When the Deer saw that they had gone far into the forest he slipped away from the hunter, and swift as the wind, he went by another way to where he had left the Turtle.
But the Turtle was not there. The Deer called, "Turtle, Turtle!"; and the Turtle called out, "Here I am in a bag hanging on this tree."
Then the Deer lifted the bag with his horns, and throwing it upon the ground, he tore the bag open, and let the Turtle out.
The Woodpecker flew down from her nest, and the Deer said to them: "You two friends saved my life, but if we stay here talking, the hunter will find us, and we may not get away. So do you, Friend Woodpecker, fly away. And you, Friend Turtle, dive into the water. I will hide in the forest."
The hunter did come back, but neither the Deer, nor the Turtle, nor the Woodpecker was to be seen. He found his torn bag, and picking that up he went back to his home.
The three friends lived together all the rest of their lives.
Once upon a time there was a Goose who had beautiful golden feathers. Not far away from this Goose lived a poor, a very poor woman, who had two daughters. The Goose saw that they had a hard time to get along and said he to himself:
"If I give them one after another of my golden feathers, the mother can sell them, and with the money they bring she and her daughters can then live in comfort."
So away the Goose flew to the poor woman′s house.
Seeing the Goose, the woman said: "Why do you come here? We have nothing to give you."
"But I have something to give you," said the Goose. "I will give my feathers, one by one, and you can sell them for enough so that you and your daughters can live in comfort."
So saying the Goose gave her one of his feathers, and then flew away. From time to time he came back, each time leaving another feather.
The mother and her daughters sold the beautiful feathers for enough money to keep them in comfort. But one day the mother said to her daughters: "Let us not trust this Goose. Some day he may fly away and never come back. Then we should be poor again. Let us get all of his feathers the very next time he comes."
The daughters said: "This will hurt the Goose. We will not do such a thing."
But the mother was greedy. The next time the Golden Goose came she took hold of him with both hands, and pulled out every one of his feathers.
Now the Golden Goose has strange feathers. If his feathers are plucked out against his wish, they no longer remain golden but turn white and are of no more value than chicken-feathers. The new ones that come in are not golden, but plain white.
As time went on his feathers grew again, and then he flew away to his home and never came back again.
Once upon a time a king gave a holiday to all the people in one of his cities.
The king′s gardener thought to himself: "All my friends are having a holiday in the city. I could go into the city and enjoy myself with them if I did not have to water the trees here in this garden. I know what I will do. I will get the Monkeys to water the young trees for me." In those days, a tribe of Monkeys lived in the king′s garden.
So the gardener went to the Chief of the Monkeys, and said: "You are lucky Monkeys to be living in the king′s garden. You have a fine place to play in. You have the best of food— nuts, fruit, and the young shoots of trees to eat. You have no work at all to do. You can play all day, every day. To-day my friends are having a holiday in the city, and I want to enjoy myself with them. Will you water the young trees so that I can go away?"
"Oh, yes!"said the Chief of the Monkeys. "We shall be glad to do that."
"Do not forget to water the trees when the sun goes down. See they have plenty of water, but not too much,"said the gardener. Then he showed them where the watering-pots were kept, and went away.
When the sun went down the Monkeys took the watering-pots, and began to water the young trees. "See that each tree has enough water,"said the Chief of the Monkeys.
"How shall we know when each tree has enough?"they asked. The Chief of the Monkeys had no good answer, so he said: "Pull up each young tree and look at the length of its roots. Give a great deal of water to those with long roots, but only a little to those trees that have short roots."
Then those stupid Monkeys pulled up all the young trees to see which trees had long roots and which had short roots.
When the gardener came back the next day, the poor young trees were all dead.
Once upon a time the people in a certain town went out into the woods for a holiday. They took baskets full of good things to eat. But when noontime came they ate all the meat they had brought with them, not leaving any for supper.
"I will get some fresh meat. We will make a fire here and roast it,"said one of the men.
So taking a club, he went to the lake where the animals came to drink. He lay down, club in hand, pretending to be dead.
When the animals came down to the lake they saw the man lying there and they watched him for some time.
"That man is playing a trick on us, I believe,"said the King of the Wolves. "The rest of you stay here while I will see whether he is really dead, or whether he is pretending to be dead."
Then the cunning King of the Wolves crept up to the man and slyly pulled at his club.
At once the man pulled back on his club.
Then the King of the Wolves ran off saying: "If you had been dead, you would not have pulled back on your club when I tried to pull it away. I see your trick. You pretend you are dead so that you may kill one of us for your supper."
The man jumped up and threw his club at the King of the Wolves. But he missed his aim. He looked for the other animals but there was not one in sight. They had all run away.
Then the man went back to his friends, saying: "I tried to get fresh meat by playing a trick on the animals, but the cunning Wolf played a better trick on me, and I could not get one of them."
Once upon a time the king of a large and rich country gathered together his army to take a faraway little country. The king and his soldiers marched all morning long and then went into camp in the forest.
When they fed the horses they gave them some peas to eat. One of the Monkeys living in the forest saw the peas and jumped down to get some of them. He filled his mouth and hands with them, and up into the tree he went again, and sat down to eat the peas.
As he sat there eating the peas, one pea fell from his hand to the ground. At once the greedy Monkey dropped all the peas he had in his hands, and ran down to hunt for the lost pea. But he could not find that one pea. He climbed up into his tree again, and sat still looking very glum. "To get more, I threw away what I had,"he said to himself.
The king had watched the Monkey, and he said to himself: "I will not be like this foolish Monkey, who lost much to gain a little. I will go back to my own country and enjoy what I now have."
So he and his men marched back home.
A mango-tree grew on the bank of a great river. The fruit fell from some of the branches of this tree into the river, and from other branches it fell on the ground.
Every night a troop of Monkeys gathered the fruit that lay on the ground and climbed up into the tree to get the mangoes, which were like large, juicy peaches.
One day the king of the country stood on the bank of this same river, but many miles below where the mango-tree grew. The king was watching the fishermen with their nets.
As they drew in their nets, the fishermen found not only fishes but a strange fruit. They went to the king with the strange fruit. "What is this?"asked the king. "We do not know, O King," they said.
"Call the foresters,"said the king, "They will know what it is."
So they called the foresters and they said that it was a mango.
"Is it good to eat?"asked the king.
The foresters said it was very good. So the king cut the mango and giving some to the princes, he ate some of it himself. He liked it very much, and they all liked it.
Then the king said to the foresters, "Where does the mango-tree grow?"
The foresters told him that it grew on the river bank many miles farther up the river.
"Let us go and see the tree and get some mangoes,"said the king.
So he had many rafts joined together, and they went up the river until they came to the place where the mango-tree grew.
The foresters said, "O King, this is the mango-tree."
"We will land here,"said the king, and they did so. The king and all the men with him gathered the mangoes that lay on the ground under the tree. They all liked them so well that the king said, "Let us stay here to-night, and gather more fruit in the morning." So they had their supper under the trees, and then lay down to sleep.
When all was quiet, the Chief of the Monkeys came with his troop. All the mangoes on the ground had been eaten, so the monkeys jumped from branch to branch, picking and eating mangoes, and chattering to one another. They made so much noise that they woke up the king. He called his archers saying: "Stand under the mango-tree and shoot the Monkeys as they come down to the ground to get away. Then in the morning we shall have Monkey's flesh as well as mangoes to eat."
The Monkeys saw the archers standing around with their arrows ready to shoot. Fearing death, the Monkeys ran to their Chief, saying: "O Chief, the archers stand around the tree ready to shoot us! What shall we do?"They shook with fear.
The Chief said: "Do not fear; I will save you. Stay where you are until I call you."
The Monkeys were comforted, for he had always helped them whenever they had needed help.
Then the Chief of the Monkeys ran out on the branch of the mango-tree that hung out over the river. The long branches of the tree across the river did not quite meet the branch he stood on. The Chief said to himself: "If the Monkeys try to jump across from this tree to that, some of them will fall into the water and drown. I must save them, but how am I to do it? I know what I shall do. I shall make a bridge of my back."
So the Chief reached across and took hold of the longest branch of the tree across the river. He called, "Come, Monkeys; run out on this branch, step on my back, and then run along the branch of the other tree."
The Monkeys did as the Chief told them to do. They ran along the branch, stepped on his back, then ran along the branch of the other tree. They swung themselves down to the ground, and away they went back to their home.
The king saw all that was done by the Chief and his troop. "That big Monkey,"said the king to the archers, "saved the whole troop. I will see to it that he is taken care of the rest of his life."
And the king kept his promise.
Once upon a time, many, many wild Goats lived in a cave in the side of a hill. A Wolf lived with his mate not far from this cave. Like all Wolves they liked the taste of Goat-meat. So they caught the Goats, one after another, and ate them all but one who was wiser than all the others. Try as they might, the Wolves could not catch her.
One day the Wolf said to his mate: "My dear, let us play a trick on that wise Goat. I will lie down here pretending to be dead. You go alone to the cave where the Goat lives, and looking very sad, say to her: 'My dear, do you see my mate lying there dead? I am so sad; I have no friends. Will you be good to me? Will you come and help me bury the body of my mate?'The Goat will be sorry for you and I think she will come here with you. When she stands beside me I will spring upon her and bite her in the neck. Then she will fall over dead, and we shall have good meat to eat."
The Wolf then lay down, and his mate went to the Goat, saying what she had been told to say.
But the wise Goat said: "My dear, all my family and friends have been eaten by your mate I am afraid to go one step with you. I am far safer here than I would be there."
"Do not be afraid," said the Wolf. "What harm can a dead Wolf do to you?"
These and many more words said the Wolf to the Goat, so that at last the Goat said she would go with the Wolf.
But as they went up the hill side by side, the Goat said to herself: "Who knows what will happen? How do I know the Wolf is dead?"She said to the Wolf, "I think it will be better if you go on in front of me."
The Wolf thought he heard them coming. He was hungry and he raised up his head to see if he could see them. The Goat saw him raise his head, and she turned and ran back to her cave.
"Why did you raise your head when you were pretending to be dead?"the Wolf asked her mate. He had no good answer.
By and by the Wolves were both so very hungry that the Wolf asked his mate to try once more to catch the Goat.
This time the Wolf went to the Goat and said: "My friend, your coming helped us, for as soon as you came, my mate felt better. He is now very much better. Come and talk to him. Let us be friends and have a good time together."
The wise Goat thought: "These wicked Wolves want to play another trick on me. But I have thought of a trick to play on them." So the Goat said: "I will go to see your mate, and I will take my friends with me. You go back and get ready for us. Let us all have a good time together."
Then the Wolf was afraid, and she asked: "Who are the friends who will come with you? Tell me their names."
The wise Goat said: "I will bring the two Hounds, Old Gray and Young Tan, and that big fine dog called Four-Eyes. And I will ask each of them to bring his mate."
The Wolf waited to hear no more. She turned, and away she ran back to her mate. The Goat never saw either of them again.
Once upon a time a king had a son named Prince Wicked. He was fierce and cruel, and he spoke to nobody without abuse, or blows. Like grit in the eye, was Prince Wicked to every one, both in the palace and out of it.
His people said to one another, "If he acts this way while he is a prince, how will he act when he is king?"
One day when the prince was swimming in the river, suddenly a great storm came on, and it grew very dark.
In the darkness the servants who were with the prince swam from him, saying to themselves, "Let us leave him alone in the river, and he may drown."
When they reached the shore, some of the servants who had not gone into the river said, "Where is Prince Wicked?"
"Isn′t he here?"they asked. "Perhaps he came out of the river in the darkness and went home." Then the servants all went back to the palace.
The king asked where his son was, and again the servants said: "Isn′t he here, O King? A great storm came on soon after we went into the water. It grew very dark. When we came out of the water the prince was not with us."
At once the king had the gates thrown open. He and all his men searched up and down the banks of the river for the missing prince. But no trace of him could be found.
In the darkness the prince had been swept down the river. He was crying for fear he would drown when he came across a log. He climbed upon the log, and floated farther down the river.
When the great storm arose, the water rushed into the homes of a Rat and a Snake who lived on the river bank. The Rat and the Snake swam out into the river and found the same log the prince had found. The Snake climbed upon one end of the log, and the Rat climbed upon the other.
On the river′s bank a cottonwood-tree grew, and a young Parrot lived in its branches. The storm pulled up this tree, and it fell into the river. The heavy rain beat down the Parrot when it tried to fly, and it could not go far. Looking down it saw the log and flew down to rest. Now there were four on the log floating down stream together.
Just around the bend in the river a certain poor man had built himself a hut. As he walked to and fro late at night listening to the storm, he heard the loud cries of the prince. The poor man said to himself: "I must get that man out of the water. I must save his life."So he shouted: "I will save you! I will save you!" as he swam out in the river.
Soon he reached the log, and pushing it by one end, he soon pushed it into the bank. The prince jumped up and down, he was so glad to be safe and sound on dry land.
Then the poor man saw the Snake, the Rat, and the Parrot, and carried them to his hut. He built a fire, putting the animals near it so they could get dry. He took care of them first, because they were the weaker, and afterwards he looked after the comfort of the prince.
Then the poor man brought food and set it before them, looking after the animals first and the prince afterwards. This made the young prince angry, and he said to himself: "This poor man does not treat me like a prince. He takes care of the animals before taking care of me."Then the prince began to hate the poor man.
A few days later, when the prince, and the Snake, the Rat, and the Parrot were rested, and the storm was all over, the Snake said good-by to the poor man with these words:
"Father, you have been very kind to me. I know where there is some buried gold. If ever you want gold, you have only to come to my home and call, 'Snake!' and I will show you the buried gold. It shall all be yours."
Next the Rat said good-by to the poor man. "If ever you want money,"said the Rat, "come to my home, and call out, 'Rat!' and I will show you where a great deal of money is buried near my home. It shall all be yours."
Then the Parrot came, saying: "Father, silver and gold have I none, but if you ever want choice rice, come to where I live and call, ′Parrot!′ and I will call all my family and friends together, and we will gather the choicest rice in the fields for you."
Last came the prince. In his heart he hated the poor man who had saved his life. But he pretended to be as thankful as the animals had been, saying, "Come to me when I am king, and I will give you great riches." So saying, he went away.
Not long after this the prince′s father died, and Prince Wicked was made king. He was then very rich.
By and by the poor man said to himself: "Each of the four whose lives I saved made a promise to me. I will see if they will keep their promises."
First of all he went to the Snake, and standing near his hole, the poor man called out, "Snake!"
At once the Snake darted forth, and with every mark of respect he said: "Father, in this place there is much gold. Dig it up and take it all."
"Very well,"said the poor man. "When I need it, I will not forget."
After visiting for a while, the poor man said good-by to the Snake, and went to where the Rat lived, calling out, "Rat!"
The Rat came at once, and did as the Snake had done, showing the poor man where the money was buried.
"When I need it, I will come for it,"said the poor man.
Going next to the Parrot, he called out, "Parrot!"and the bird flew down from the tree-top as soon as he heard the call.
"O Father,"said the Parrot, "shall I call together all my family and friends to gather choice rice for you?"
The poor man, seeing that the Parrot was willing and ready to keep his promise, said: "I do not need rice now. If ever I do, I will not forget your offer."
Last of all, the poor man went into the city where the king lived. The king, seated on his great white elephant, was riding through the city. The king saw the poor man, and said to himself: "That poor man has come to ask me for the great riches I promised to give him. I must have his head cut off before he can tell the people how he saved my life when I was the prince."
So the king called his servants to him and said: "You see that poor man over there? Seize him and bind him, beat him at every corner of the street as you march him out of the city, and then chop off his head."
The servants had to obey their king. So they seized and bound the poor man. They beat him at every corner of the street. The poor man did not cry out, but he said, over and over again, "It is better to save poor, weak animals than to save a prince."
At last some wise men among the crowds along the street asked the poor man what prince he had saved. Then the poor man told the whole story, ending with the words, "By saving your king, I brought all this pain upon myself."
The wise men and all the rest of the crowd cried out: "This poor man saved the life of our king, and now the king has ordered him to be killed. How can we be sure that he will not have any, or all, of us killed? Let us kill him." And in their anger they rushed from every side upon the king as he rode on his elephant, and with arrows and stones they killed him then and there.
Then they made the poor man king, and set him to rule over them.
The poor man ruled his people well. One day he decided once more to try the Snake, the Rat, and the Parrot. So, followed by many servants, the king went to where the Snake lived.
At the call of "Snake!"out came the Snake from his hole, saying, "Here, O King, is your treasure; take it."
"I will,"said the king. "And I want you to come with me."
Then the king had his servants dig up the gold.
Going to where the Rat lived, the king called, "Rat!"Out came the Rat, and bowing low to the king, the Rat said, "Take all the money buried here and have your servants carry it away."
"I will,"said the king, and he asked the Rat to go with him and the Snake.
Then the king went to where the Parrot lived, and called, "Parrot!"The Parrot flew down to the king′s feet and said, "O King, shall I and my family and my friends gather choice rice for you?"
"Not now, not until rice is needed,"said the king. "Will you come with us?" The Parrot was glad to join them.
So with the gold, and the money, and with the Snake, the Rat, and the Parrot as well, the king went back to the city.
The king had the gold and the money hidden away in the palace. He had a tube of gold made for the Snake to live in. He had a glass box made for the Rat′s home, and a cage of gold for the Parrot. Each had the food he liked best of all to eat every day, and so these four lived happily all their lives.
Once upon a time a Dog used to go into the stable where the king′s Elephant lived. At first the Dog went there to get the food that was left after the Elephant had finished eating.
Day after day the Dog went to the stable, waiting around for bits to eat. But by and by the Elephant and the Dog came to be great friends. Then the Elephant began to share his food with the Dog, and they ate together. When the Elephant slept, his friend the Dog slept beside him. When the Elephant felt like playing, he would catch the Dog in his trunk and swing him to and fro. Neither the Dog nor the Elephant was quite happy unless the other was nearby.
One day a farmer saw the Dog and said to the Elephant-keeper: "I will buy that Dog. He looks good-tempered, and I see that he is smart. How much do you want for the Dog?"
The Elephant-keeper did not care for the Dog, and he did want some money just then. So he asked a fair price, and the farmer paid it and took the Dog away to the country.
The king′s Elephant missed the Dog and did not care to eat when his friend was not there to share the food. When the time came for the Elephant to bathe, he would not bathe. The next day again the Elephant would not eat, and he would not bathe. The third day, when the Elephant would neither eat nor bathe, the king was told about it.
The king sent for his chief servant, saying, "Go to the stable and find out why the Elephant is acting in this way."
The chief servant went to the stable and looked the Elephant all over. Then he said to the Elephant-keeper: "There seems to be nothing the matter with this Elephant′s body, but why does he look so sad? Has he lost a playmate?"
"Yes,"said the keeper, "there was a Dog who ate and slept and played with the Elephant. The Dog went away three days ago."
"Do you know where the Dog is now" asked the chief servant.
"No, I do not," said the keeper.
Then the chief servant went back to the king and said, "The Elephant is not sick, but he is lonely without his friend, the Dog."
"Where is the Dog?"asked the king.
"A farmer took him away, so the Elephant-keeper says,"said the chief servant. "No one knows where the farmer lives."
"Very well,"said the king. "I will send word all over the country, asking the man who bought this Dog to turn him loose. I will give him back as much as he paid for the Dog."
When the farmer who had bought the Dog heard this, he turned him loose. The Dog ran back as fast as ever he could go to the Elephant′s stable. The Elephant was so glad to see the Dog that he picked him up with his trunk and put him on his head. Then he put him down again.
When the Elephant-keeper brought food, the Elephant watched the Dog as he ate, and then took his own food.
All the rest of their lives the Elephant and the Dog lived together.