THE PANCAKE

ONCE upon a time there was a good housewife who had seven hungry children. One day she was busy frying pancakes for them, and this time she had used new milk in the making of them. One was lying in the pan frizzling away, ah! so beautiful and thick, it was a pleasure to look at it. The children were standing round the fire, and the goodman sat in the corner and looked on.

"Oh, give me a bit of pancake, mother! I am so hungry!" said one child.

66

Ah, do, dear mother!" said the second.

66

Ah, do, dear, good mother!" said

the third.

"Ah, do, dear, good, kind mother!" said the fourth.

"Ah, do, dear, good, kind, nice mother!" said the fifth.

"Ah, do, dear, good, kind, nice, sweet mother!" said the sixth.

"Ah, do, dear, good, kind, nice, sweet, darling mother!" said the seventh.

And thus they were all begging for pancakes, each one more prettily than the one before, because they were so hungry and such good little children.

66

"and

Yes, children dear, wait a bit till it turns itself," she answered, she ought to have said, "till I turn it," then you shall all have pancakes, beautiful pancakes, made of new milk; only look how thick and happy it lies there."

When the pancake heard this it got frightened, and all of a sudden it turned itself and wanted to get out of the pan, but it fell down in it again on the other side; and when it had been fried a little

on that side too, and felt a little stronger in the back, it jumped out on the floor and rolled away like a wheel, right through the door and down the road.

"Halloo!" cried the goodwife; and away she ran after it, with the frying pan in one hand and the ladle in the other, as fast as she could, and the children behind her, while the goodman came limping after, last of all.

"Halloo! won't you stop? Catch it! stop it! Halloo there!" they all screamed, the one louder than the other, trying to catch it on the run,

but the pancake rolled and rolled, and before long it was so far ahead that they could not see it, for the pancake was much smarter on its legs than any of them.

When it had rolled a time it met a man.

Good day, Pancake," said the man. "Well met, Manny Panny," said the pancake.

"Dear Pancake," said the man, "don't roll so fast, but wait a bit and let me eat you."

"When I have run away from Goody Poody and the goodman and seven coaxing children, I must run away. from you too, Manny Panny," said the pancake, and rolled on and on till it met a hen.

"Good day, Pancake," said the hen. "Good day, Henny Penny," said the

pancake.

My dear Pancake, don't roll so fast, but wait a bit and let me eat you," said

the hen.

“When I have run away from Goody Poody and the goodman and seven coaxing children, and from Manny Panny, I must run away from you too, Henny Penny," said the pancake, and rolled like a wheel down the road.

Then it met a cock.

"Good day, Pancake,” said the cock. "Good day, Cocky Locky," said the pancake.

66

My dear Pancake, don't roll so fast, but wait a bit and let me eat you,” said the cock.

66

When I have run away from Goody Poody and the goodman and seven coaxing children, from Manny Panny and Henny Penny, I must run away from you too, Cocky Locky," said the