he lovely young chickens
roost, quicker than thought killed two that were more beautiful than
angels. I was chasing a mouse under the stairs at the time, and happened
to come up just as the dreadful deed was done, and I saw the robber
making off with his booty. Only come with me a minute, and you shall see
that I have spoken the truth.'

"He took the scared and frightened fowls to the window, and when they
looked out, they saw to their horror their guardian Flaps sniffing at
the dead bodies on the ground outside.

"'Who would have thought it!' said the hens, in an awe-stricken whisper.

"'You may thank me,' said the fox, 'for my presence of mind in bolting
the house-door when he ran out, or no one knows how many more he would
have killed! If you will take my advice, you will send him about his
business; and if you will put me in his place, I can assure you that you
shall be protected in quite another manner.'

"'Hi! open the door,' cried Flaps, who saw something was wrong; 'you've
got another King Stork, I'll be bound.' But though he rattled and shook
the door, no one unbolted it. 'Ah!' sighed Flaps, 'before long the whole
pack of idiots will be killed and eaten.' So he scratched open an old
hole in the wall that had been stopped up, and crept in. He arrived just
in time to hear the old hens giving orders that no more eggs were to be
given him, and that the door was to be kept bolted, in order that he
might be obliged either to leave the place or to starve.

"They were all talking at once, and so eagerly, that no one noticed the
dog come up behind them. He gave one spring and seized the fox by the
throat. The attack was quite unexpected, but the fox fought, writhed,
and wriggled like an eel, and just as he was being borne down, he made
one desperate snap, and bit off the dog's ear close to the head.

"'Well, my ear is done for, but so is this blood-thirsty villain,' said
Flaps, looking down at the fox, which lay dead at his feet; 'and as for
you, you pack of ungrateful fools, one ear is quite enough to listen to
you with. Here have I been your faithful comrade for all these years,
and yet you believe that I have turned murderer in my old age on the
word of this rogue, who did the evil deed himself last night.'

"Now that the panic was over, the fowls felt heartily ashamed of
themselves for having been deceived by the fox, and done Flaps such
great injustice. So they all asked his pardon, and the feast which they