The Junior Classics, Volume 1: Fairy and wonder tales
General
The Junior Classics, Volume 1: Fairy and wonder tales
Children's literature
The bear then became so angry that he parted company then and there
with Reynard.
One day the bear was lying eating a horse which he had killed. Reynard
was about again and came slinking along, his mouth watering for a tasty
bit of the horseflesh.
He sneaked in and out and round about till he came up behind the bear,
when he made a spring to the other side of the carcass, snatching a
piece as he jumped across.
The bear was not slow either; he made a dash after Reynard and caught
the tip of his red tail in his paw. Since that time the fox has always
had a white tip to his tail.
“Wait a bit Reynard, and come here,” said the bear, “and I’ll teach you
how to catch horses.”
Yes, Reynard was quite willing to learn that, but he didn’t trust
himself too near the bear.
“When you see a horse lying asleep in a sunny place,” said the bear,
“you must tie yourself fast with the hair of his tail to your brush,
and then fasten your teeth in his thigh,” he said.
Before long the fox found a horse lying asleep on a sunny hillside; and
so he did as the bear had told him; he knotted and tied himself well to
the horse with the hair of the tail and then fastened his teeth into
his thigh.
Up jumped the horse and began to kick and gallop so that Reynard was
dashed against stock and stone, and was so bruised and battered that he
nearly lost his senses.
All at once a hare rushed by. “Where are you off to in such a hurry,
Reynard?” said the hare.
“I’m having a ride, Bunny!” said the fox.
The hare sat up on his hind legs and laughed till the sides of his
mouth split right up to his ears, at the thought of Reynard having such
a grand ride; but since then the fox has never thought of catching
horses again.
That time it was Bruin who for once had the better of Reynard;
otherwise they say the bear is as simple-minded as the trolls.
THE LAD WHO WENT TO THE NORTH WIND
By Sir George Webbe Dasent
Once upon a time there was an old widow who had one son, and she was
poorly and weak, her son had to go up into the safe to fetch meal for
cooking; but when he got outside the safe, and was just going down the
steps, there came the North Wind, puffing and blowing, caught up the
meal, and so away with it through the air. Then the lad went back into
the safe for more; but when he came out again on the steps, if the
North Wind didn’t come again and carry off the meal with a puff; and
more than that, he did so the third time. At this the lad got very
angry; and as he thought it hard that the North Wind should behave so,
he thought he’d just look him up and ask him to give up his meal.
So off he went, but the way was long, and he walked and walked; but at
last he came to the North Wind’s house.
“Good day!” said the lad, and “thank you for coming to see us
yesterday.”
“GOOD DAY!” answered the North Wind, for his voice was loud and gruff,
“AND THANKS FOR COMING TO SEE ME. WHAT DO YOU WANT?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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