II. THE FOX AND THE CROW'

To a dairy a crow

Once ventured to go,

Some food for her young ones to seek.

She flew up to the trees

With a fine piece of cheese,

Which she joyfully held in her beak.

A fox, who lived by,

To the tree saw her fly,

And to share in the prize made a vow;

For, having just dined,

He for cheese felt inclined,

So he went and sat under the bough.

She was cunning, he knew,

But so was he, too,

And to flatter adapted his plan.

If the crow should try to speak

The cheese must fall from her beak, So, politely, then, the fox began:

(Not a word did she say);

"The wind, I believe, ma'am, is south;

By Jane Taylor.

A fine harvest for peas."

He then look'd at the cheese,

But the crow did not open her mouth.

Sly Reynard, not tired,

Her plumage admired:

"How charming! how brilliant its hue!

The voice must be fine,

Of a bird so divine

Ah, let me just hear it, pray do!

Believe me, I long

To hear a sweet song."

The silly crow foolishly tries:
She scarce gives one squall

When the cheese she lets fall,

And the fox runs away with the prize.

EXPRESSION: Which of the two fables do you prefer?

Why? What is a fable?

Study these words and learn to spell them :

Reynard (pronounced ra'nard), the name of a fox.

politely

joyfully

foolishly

Speak each word distinctly, and do not run two words together. Practice speaking the following: once ventured; harvest for peas; voice must be fine; scarce gives one squall.

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RIDING ON A PLOW 1

'Papa," said the little boy one night, "did you have a pony when you were a little boy?"

"Yes, and I remember the first time that I rode my pony. I couldn't guide him, though I pulled hard on the bridle. The pony walked under an apple tree, and a branch of the tree dragged me off."

"Did it hurt you very much, papa?”

"Oh, no, not at all. And the pony began to eat grass, just as if nothing had happened."

"Tell me something else that happened when you were a boy, papa."

"I will tell you how I used to ride when I was a boy on the farm. When my father, who was your grandpa, was plowing in the field, I sometimes rode on the plow.

"One day he was plowing in the old meadow, and I went out to see him. The ground was level and smooth, and there were no rocks nor stumps. I walked along beside your grandpa while he held the plow handles and guided the horses. After a while he said, 'Whoa!' and the horses stopped.

"Then he picked me up and put me on the plow. He set me on one of the rounds between the handles,

1 From "When Daddy was a Boy," by Thomas Wood Parry.

with my feet resting on the lowest round just above

the plowshare.

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"Now, hold on,' he said, and the horses started.

It was a fine seat. I could sit there with my hand on

your grandpa's hand. I always felt very safe when I was near him.

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'Right under me the bright plowshare was cutting through the sod and turning it over. It was springtime, and now and then a pretty wild flower would be plowed under. The poor flower would go face down in the furrow, and the black dirt would cover it up. I felt sorry for the little flowers and the young grass.

"Once we plowed up the nest of a field mouse. There were five or six tiny young mice in it, and when the sod was turned over they were all thrown out upon the plowed ground. The poor mother was very much frightened and ran away; but your grandpa said that she would come back and find her little ones and make a new nest for them.

"We went on, and not long afterwards we plowed up a mole."

What is a mole?" asked the little boy.

"What is a mole? Well, you town boys don't know much about things in the country, do you?"

"Please go on, papa, and tell me about the mole."

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Well, a mole is a small animal somewhat bigger than a field mouse. His legs are so short that he cannot run very fast, and his eyes are very small. He lives in the ground, and eats roots and earthworms and almost anything he can find.

"The next thing we plowed up was a bees' nest – no, it was a yellow jackets' nest."

"Oh, tell me about it."

"Well, the plow turned the nest over, and the yellow jackets came swarming out and stung the horses. The horses tried to run, but your grandpa held them in, and we hurried away from the nest. We didn't plow near that place any more that day."