The stag was afraid of the river; still, he was much more afraid of being laughed at, and he plunged in after the puma; but in an instant the current had swept him away, and if it had not borne him by accident to a shallow place on the opposite side, where he managed to scramble up the bank, he would certainly have been drowned. As it was, he scrambled out, shaking with terror, and found the puma waiting for him. “You had a narrow escape that time,” said the puma. After resting for a few minutes, to let the stag recover from his fright, they went on their way till they came to a grove of bananas. “They look very good,” observed the puma with a longing glance, “and I am sure you must be hungry, friend stag? Suppose you were to climb the tree and get some. You shall eat the green ones, they are the best and sweetest; and you can throw the yellow ones down to me. I dare say they will do quite well!” The stag did as he was bid, though, not being used to climbing, it gave him a deal of trouble and sore knees, and besides, his horns were continually getting entangled in the creepers. What was worse, when once he had tasted the bananas, he found them not at all to his liking, so he threw them all down, green and yellow alike, and let the puma take his choice. And what a dinner he made! When he had QUITE done, they set forth once more. The path lay through a field of maize, where several men were working. As they came up to them, the puma whispered: “Go on in front, friend stag, and just say ‘Bad luck to all workers!’” The stag obeyed, but the men were hot and tired, and did not think this a good joke. So they set their dogs at him, and he was obliged to run away as fast as he could. “I hope your industry will be rewarded as it deserves,” said the puma as he passed along; and the men were pleased, and offered him some of their maize to eat. By-and-by the puma saw a small snake with a beautiful shining skin, lying coiled up at the foot of a tree. “What a lovely bracelet that would make for your daughter, friend stag! said he. The stag stooped and picked up the snake, which bit him, and he turned angrily to the puma. “Why did you not tell me it would bite?” he asked. “Is it my fault if you are an idiot?” replied the puma. At last they reached their journey’s end, but by this time it was late, and the puma’s comrade was ready for bed, so they slung their hammocks in convenient places, and went to sleep. But in the middle of the night the puma rose softly and stole out of the door to the sheep-fold, where he killed and ate the fattest sheep he could find, and taking a bowl full of its blood, he sprinkled the sleeping stag with it. This done, he returned to bed.