Part 4
One day a hungry Wolf was roaming about in search of something to eat in the upper part of a Tibetan valley far beyond the level of cultivation, [3] when he came across a young Kyang [4] about a year old. The Wolf at once proceeded to stalk the Kyang, thinking that he would make an excellent meal off him, and just as he was about to seize upon him the Kyang, noticing his approach, addressed him as follows:
“Oh! Uncle Wolf,” said he, “it is no good your eating me now; this is the spring time and after the hard winter I am still very thin. If you will wait for a few months until next autumn you will find that I shall be twice as fat as I am now and will make you a much better feast.”
“Very well,” said the Wolf, “I will wait until then, on condition that you meet me on this very spot in six months’ time.”
And so saying he galloped off in search of some other prey.
When autumn came the Wolf started off one morning to meet the Kyang at the appointed place, and as he was going across the hills he came across a Fox.
“Good-morning, Brother Wolf,” said the Fox. “Where are you going to?”
“Oh!” replied the Wolf, “I am going into the valley to meet a young Kyang by appointment, as I have arranged to catch him and eat him this very day.”
“That is very pleasant for you, Brother Wolf,” answered the Fox; “but as a Kyang is such a large animal you will scarcely be able to eat him all by yourself. I hope you will allow me to come too and share in the spoil.”
“Certainly, Brother Fox,” replied the Wolf. “I shall be very glad of your company.”
And so saying the two went on together. After proceeding a short distance they came across a Hare.
“Good-morning, Brother Wolf and Brother Fox,” said the Hare; “where are you two going this fine morning?”
“Good-morning, Brother Hare,” replied the Wolf; “I am just going off to yonder valley to keep an appointment with a fat Kyang, whom I have arranged to kill and eat this very day, and Brother Fox is coming with me to share in the spoil.”
“Oh! really, Brother Wolf,” said the Hare, “I wish you would allow me to come too. A Kyang is such a large animal that you can scarcely eat him all yourselves, and I am sure you will allow a small creature like me to have a little bit of the spoil.”
“Certainly, Brother Hare,” replied the Wolf. “We shall be glad if you will accompany us.”
And so the three animals went along together towards the appointed spot. When they got near the place they saw the young Kyang waiting for them. During the summer months he had eaten a quantity of grass and had now become very fat and sleek, and was about twice as big as he had been in the spring. When the Wolf caught sight of him he was much pleased and began to lick his chops in anticipation.
“Well, Brother Kyang,” said he, “here I am according to agreement, ready to kill and eat you, and I am glad to see you look so plump and well. And here are Brother Fox and Brother Hare who have come along with me to have a bit too.”
And so saying the Wolf crouched down ready to spring upon the Kyang and kill him.
“Oh, Brother Wolf,” called out the Hare at this moment, “just wait one moment, for I have a suggestion to make to you. Don’t you think it would be a pity to kill this fine young Kyang in the ordinary way by seizing his throat, for if you do so a great deal of his blood will be wasted? I would suggest to you, instead, that it would be a very much better plan if you would strangle him, as in that case no blood would be lost, and we should derive the full benefit from his carcase.”
The Wolf thought this was a good idea and he said to the Hare:
“Very well, Brother Hare, I think that is an excellent idea of yours, but how is it to be done?”
“Oh! easily enough,” answered the Hare. “There is a shepherd’s encampment over there where we can borrow a rope, and then all we have to do is to make a slip-knot in the rope, put it over the Kyang’s neck, and pull as hard as we can.”
So they agreed that this should be done, and the Fox went off to the encampment near by and borrowed a rope from the shepherd, which he carried back to where the three other animals were standing.
“Now,” said the Hare, “leave it all to me; I will show you exactly how it is to be done.”
So he took the rope and made a large slip-knot at one end and two smaller slip-knots at the other end.
“Now,” said he, “this is the way we must proceed: we will put this large slip-knot over the Kyang’s neck, and as he is such a large heavy animal the only way to strangle him will be for us three to pull together at the other end of the rope. So you, Brother Wolf, and you, Brother Fox, can put your heads through these smaller loops, and I will seize the loose end of the rope with my teeth, and when I give the signal we will all pull together.”
The other two thought this was a very good plan, and so they threw the slip-knot over the Kyang’s neck, and the Wolf and the Fox put their heads through the smaller loops. When they were all ready the Hare took up his position at the end of the rope and caught hold of it with his teeth.
“Now,” said he, “are you all ready?”
“Yes, quite ready,” replied the Wolf and the Fox.
“Well, then, pull,” said the Hare.
So they began to pull as hard as they could.
When the Kyang felt the pull on the rope he walked forward a few paces, much to the surprise of the Wolf and the Fox, who found themselves being dragged along the ground.
“Pull, can’t you!” shrieked the Wolf, as the rope began to tighten round his neck.
“Pull yourself!” shrieked the Fox, who was now beginning to feel very uncomfortable.
“Pull, all of you,” called out the Hare, and so saying he let go of the end of the rope and the Kyang galloped off dragging the Wolf and the Fox after him. In a few minutes they were both strangled, and the Kyang, shaking off the rope from his neck, proceeded to graze quietly on his usual pastures, and the Hare scampered off home, feeling that he had done a good day’s work.
STORY No. VIII.
THE FROG AND THE CROW.
A Crow once caught a fine fat Frog, and taking him in her bill she flew with him to the roof of a neighbouring house in order to devour him at her leisure. As she alighted on the roof of the house the Frog gave an audible chuckle.
“What are you laughing at, Brother Frog?” said the Crow.
“Oh, nothing, Sister Crow,” said the Frog; “never mind me. I was just thinking to myself that, as it fortunately happens, my Father lives close by here, on this very roof, and as he is an exceedingly fierce, strong man, he will certainly avenge my death if anyone injures me.”
The Crow did not quite like this, and thinking it as well to be on the safe side she hopped off to another corner of the roof near to where a gutter led away the rain water by means of a small hole in the parapet and a wooden spout. She paused here for a moment and was just about to begin to swallow the Frog when the Frog gave another chuckle.
“What are you laughing at this time, Brother Frog?” asked the Crow.
“Oh, it’s only a small matter, Sister Crow, hardly worth mentioning,” replied the Frog, “but it just occurred to me that my Uncle, who is even a stronger and fiercer man than my Father, lives in this very gutter, and that if anybody was to do me an injury here they would have a very small chance of escaping from his clutches.”
The Crow was somewhat alarmed at hearing this, and she thought that, on the whole, it would be safer to leave the roof altogether; so again picking up the Frog in her bill she flew off to the ground below, and alighted near the edge of a well. Here she placed the Frog upon the ground and was just about to eat him when the Frog said:
“Oh, Sister Crow, I notice your bill seems rather blunt. Before you begin to eat me don’t you think it would be a good thing to sharpen it a little. You can strop it very nicely on that flat stone over there.”
The Crow, thinking this was a good idea, took two or three hops towards the stone, and began sharpening her bill. As soon as she had turned her back the Frog gave one desperate jump, and dived into the well.
As soon as the Crow had made her bill nice and sharp she returned from the stone, and looked about for the Frog. Not finding him where she had left him she hopped to the edge of the well and peeped over, craning her head from side to side. Presently she spied the Frog in the water, and called out to him:
“Oh, Brother Frog, I was afraid you were lost. My bill is quite nice and sharp now, so come along up and be eaten.”
“I am so sorry, Sister Crow,” replied the Frog, “but the fact is, I cannot get up the sides of this well. The best thing would be for you to come down here to eat me.”
And so saying he dived to the bottom of the well.
STORY No. IX.
THE HARE AND THE LIONS.
Once upon a time there lived a Lion and a Lioness who inhabited a den amongst some rocks on the slopes of a mountain. They were both very fine, well-grown animals, and they used to prey upon all the smaller beasts in that part of the country; until at last they became so powerful that no other animal was safe from their clutches, and the wild beasts of the neighbourhood lived in a continual state of terror.
It chanced one day that while the Lion was hunting for something to eat, he came across a Hare sleeping behind a boulder; and seizing the Hare in his great paws he was just about to devour him, when the Hare spoke as follows:
“Oh! Uncle Lion,” said he, “before eating me I just want to tell you about another animal who lives in that pond down there in the valley. He is very big and fierce, and I think he must be even stronger than you are. But if you will allow me to do so I will show you where he lives, and if you can succeed in killing him he will make a very much better meal for you than a poor little beast like me.”
On hearing this the Lion was very indignant.
“What!” said he, “do you mean to tell me that there is any animal in this country stronger and more powerful than I am? Don’t you know that I am the Lord of this district, and that I should never allow anyone else to dispute the mastery with me. Show me at once where this creature lives, and I will show you how I shall deal with him.”
“Oh! Uncle Lion,” said the Hare, “let me beg you to be careful. You have no idea what a big, strong creature this is; you must on no account allow yourself to be injured by fighting with him. Think what a grief it would be to us all if you were to come to any harm.”
This remark of the Hare’s made the Lion more angry than before, and he insisted that the Hare should at once lead him down and show him where the other animal lived. So the Hare, after again begging him to be careful of himself, preceded him down the hill until they arrived at the edge of a square-built stone tank, which was nearly full of water.
“Now, Uncle Lion,” said the Hare, “if you will go to the edge of that tank and look down into the water you will see the animal I speak of.”
So saying he moved on one side, and the Lion, stalking to the edge, peered down into the tank. The water was very smooth, and on the clear surface he saw his own head reflected.
“There he is,” called out the Hare from the background; “there he is, Uncle Lion, I can see him quite plainly in the water. You see how fierce he is looking; please be careful not to start fighting with him.”
These remarks made the Lion more angry than ever, and he moved up and down on the brink of the tank, glaring fiercely at his own reflection in the water, and growling and showing his teeth at it.
“That’s right, Uncle Lion,” called out the Hare; “I am so glad you are taking good care of yourself. Don’t on any account come to grips with that beast in the water or he might do you an injury. You are certainly much safer on the bank, and no doubt you will frighten him if you continue to growl and show your teeth.”
These last observations of the Hare goaded the Lion to desperation, and with a fierce roar he sprang straight at the image in the water. Once in the tank he was unable to get out, for its sides were built of masonry, and it was impossible for him to climb them. So he swam about for some time in the tank, whilst the Hare, sitting on the bank, threw stones at him and made nasty remarks; and finally, when quite wearied out, he sank to the bottom and was drowned.
The Hare was very pleased at having accomplished the destruction of the Lion, and he now turned his attention to the Lioness. It happened that near by there was a thick wall standing, which was part of the remains of a ruined castle; and in one portion of the wall there was a hole, very large at one end and tapering down to quite a small opening at the other. The Hare, having studied his ground, went off next morning to find the Lioness. He soon came across her stalking up and down near her den, very much perturbed at the disappearance of her lord and master.
“Good-morning, Aunt Lioness,” said the Hare, going up cautiously towards her; “what is the matter with you this morning? How is it I find you pacing here in front of your den instead of hunting your prey as usual on the hillside?”
The Lioness took no notice of the Hare, except to growl at him in an angry manner, and to lash her sides with her tail.
“I suppose,” went on the Hare, “you are anxious about Mr. Lion, but I am sorry to tell you that you are not likely to see him again for some time. The fact is, he and I had a little argument yesterday, in which we both lost our tempers. It ended in our having a free fight, and I regret to say that I was obliged to injure Mr. Lion rather severely before I could make him see reason, and he is now lying in a dying state in the valley below.”
This impudence so enraged the Lioness that she sprang towards the Hare and endeavoured to seize him; but he eluded her and galloped off down the hill hotly pursued by the angry beast. The Hare made straight for the ruined wall, and entering the breach in the wall at the large end he emerged safely at the other side by the smaller recess, which was just large enough for him to pass through. The Lioness, following closely at his heels, was so blind with rage that she did not see that she was being led into a trap; so she rushed head-foremost into the opening in the wall, and before she had time to stop herself was wedged tightly in the tapering hole. She struggled violently, trying to extricate herself, but all in vain.
Meanwhile the Hare, having cantered round to the other side, took up its position in rear of the Lioness, and began pelting her with stones and calling her all the bad names he could think of. When he was tired of this he went off home very pleased with himself, and the Lioness, being unable to free herself from the trap she was in, shortly afterwards starved to death.
STORY No. X.
THE SHEEP, THE LAMB, THE WOLF AND THE HARE.
Once upon a time there lived an old Sheep in a low-lying valley of Tibet, and every year she, with her Lamb, [5] were in the habit of leaving the valley during the early months of summer, and going up on to the great northern plateau, where grass is plentiful, and where many Sheep and Goats graze throughout the summer.
One spring the Sheep, in accordance with her annual custom, set out for the north, and one day, as she was strolling sedately along the path, while her little Lamb skipped about beside her, she suddenly came face to face with a large, fierce-looking Wolf.
“Good-morning, Aunty Sheep,” said the Wolf; “where are you going to?”
“Oh! Uncle Wolf,” replied the trembling Sheep, “we are doing no harm; I am just taking my Lamb to graze on the rich grass of the great northern plateau.”
“Well,” said the Wolf, “I am really very sorry for you; but the fact is, I am hungry, and it will be necessary for me to eat you both on the spot.”
“Please, please, Uncle Wolf, don’t do that,” replied the Sheep. “Please don’t eat us now; but if you will wait till the autumn, when we shall both be very much fatter than we are now, you can eat us with much more benefit to yourself on our return journey.”
The Wolf thought this was a good idea.
“Very well, Aunty Sheep,” said he, “that is a bargain. I will spare your lives now, but only on condition that you meet me at this very spot on your return journey from the north in the autumn.”
So saying, he galloped off, and the Sheep and the Lamb continued on their way towards the north, and soon forgot all about their encounter with the Wolf.
All the summer they grazed about on the succulent grass of the great plateau, and when autumn was approaching both were as fat as fat could be, and the little Lamb had grown into a fine young Sheep.
When the time came for returning to the south, the Sheep remembered her bargain with the Wolf, and every day as they drew farther and farther south she grew more and more downhearted.
One day, as they were approaching the place where they had met the Wolf, it chanced that a Hare came hopping along the road towards them. The Hare stopped to say good-morning to the Sheep, and noticing that she was looking very sad, he said:
“Good-morning, Sister Sheep, how is it that you, who are so fat and have so fine a Lamb, are looking so sad this morning?”
“Oh! Brother Hare,” replied the Sheep, “mine is a very sad story. The fact is that last spring, as I and my Lamb were coming up this very road, we met an ugly-looking Wolf, who said he was going to eat us; but I begged him to spare our lives, explaining to him that we should both be much larger and fatter in the autumn, and that he would get much better value from us if he waited till then. The Wolf agreed to this, and said that we must meet him at the same spot in the autumn. We are now very near the appointed place, and I very much fear that in another day or two we shall both be killed by the Wolf.”
So saying, the poor Sheep broke down altogether and burst into tears.
“Dear me! dear me!” replied the Hare; “this is indeed a sad story; but cheer up, Sister Sheep, you may leave it to me, and I think I can answer for it that I know how to manage the Wolf.”
So saying, the Hare made the following arrangements. He dressed himself up in his very best clothes, in a new robe of woollen cloth, with a long ear-ring in his left ear, and a fashionable hat on his head, and strapped a small saddle on to the back of the Sheep. He then prepared two small bundles, which he slung across the Lamb, and tied them on with a rope. When these preparations were complete, he took a large sheet of paper in his hand, and, with a pen thrust behind his ear, he mounted upon the back of the Sheep, and the little procession started off down the path.
Soon after, they arrived at the place where they were to meet the Wolf, and sure enough there was the Wolf waiting for them at the appointed spot.
As soon as they came within earshot of where the Wolf was standing the Hare called out in a sharp tone of authority:
“Who are you, and what are you doing there?”
“I am the Wolf,” was the reply; “and I have come here to eat this Sheep and its Lamb, in accordance with a regular arrangement. Who may you be, pray?”
“I am Lomden, the Hare,” that animal replied, “and I have been deputed to India on a special mission by the Emperor of China. And, by the way, I have a commission to bring ten Wolf skins as a present to the King of India. What a fortunate thing it is that I should have met you here! Your skin will do for one, anyway.”
So saying, the Hare produced his sheet of paper, and, taking his pen in his hand, he wrote down the figure “1” very large.
The Wolf was so frightened on hearing this that he turned tail and fled away ignominiously; while the Sheep and the Lamb, after thanking the Hare heartily for his kind offices, continued their journey safely to their own home.
[This story is a satire on the assumption and arrogance of Tibetan and Chinese officials, and the timidity and submissiveness of the Tibetan peasants. It illustrates how the meanest Government clerk, more especially when armed with pen and paper, can strike terror into the heart of the boldest and strongest countryman.]
STORY No. XI.
THE STORY OF HOW THE HARE MADE A FOOL OF THE WOLF.
[This story is really the continuation of Number X., which is sometimes told of “the Sheep and the Goat,” instead of “the Sheep and the Lamb.” The first part of the story is exactly the same as Number X. They experience the same adventures with the Wolf and are extricated in exactly the same manner by the aid of the Hare. But the end of the story is different.]