"Now he's happy," thought the swallow, as he began to build himself a new nest. Three days later the swallow and the starling met in the meadow. They said, "How do you do?" and told each other all they had gone through since they last saw one another. "The most remarkable thing comes last," said the swallow. "Just fancy! When I came home I found the sparrow had taken my nest, and I could not get him to come out." "Well, I never!" cried the starling. "What on earth did you do to him?" "Come and see," answered the swallow. They both flew off to the nest, and the swallow told him how he had taken his revenge. Then they pecked a hole with their bills, and out fell the poor sparrow to the ground quite dead. "It serves him right," said the swallow. And the starling nodded, for he thought so too. But the chaffinch and the tomtit stood below on the ground and gazed at the dead bird. "Poor sparrow!" said the chaffinch. "I am sorry for him." "He couldn't expect a better fate," said the tomtit. "He was ambitious; and that is what one has no right to be when one is only a sparrow." [Illustration: THE END]