re come our foes, our enemies."

"Little squirrels with big sticks."

"The sea-cats--the sea-cats!"

"Hurrah for the sea-cats!"

The moment we saw them, we rushed towards them, like fierce starving
wolves. We were ready to tear them to pieces. But there happened to us a
misfortune, a great misfortune which no one could possibly have
foreseen.

If it is not destined, neither wisdom nor strength nor smartness are of
any avail. Listen to what can happen.

* * *

The sea-cats, though they were small, short little squirrels, were
evidently no fools. Before going to do battle on the broad Mezritzer
field, they had prepared themselves well at home, gone through their
drill. Afterwards, they fed up. They also took with them warm clothing
and rubber goloshes. They were armed from head to foot no worse than we
were, with swords and pop-guns and bows and arrows. They would not wait
until we had taken the offensive. They attacked us first, and began to
break our bones. And how, do you think? From all sides at once, and so
suddenly that we had no time to look about us. Before we realized it,
they were upon us. They were not alone, but had their assistants to urge
them on and encourage them.

"Pay out the '_Chumash_' boys. Beat them, the boys with the long legs."

Naturally we were not silent either. We stood up against the squirrels,
like giants, beat them with our swords, aimed our arrows at them, and
shot at them with our pop-guns. But, alas! our swords were dull as
wood; and before we could set our bows, they had thrashed us. I say
nothing of the guns. What can you do with a pop-gun if the foe will not
wait until you have taken aim at him? They rushed forward and knocked
the guns out of our hands. What could we do?

We had to throw away our weapons, our swords and pop-guns and bows and
arrows, and fight as the Lord has ordained. That is to say, we fought
with our fists. But we were hungry and tired and cold, and fought
without a plan, because our assistants had remained behind. They let us
fight whilst they ate our food and drank our cherry-wine--the devil take
them! And they, the little squirrels, well-fed and well-clad, had crept
upon us from three sides at once, each moment growing stronger and
stronger. They rained down on us blows and thumps and digs. The same
blows that we had reckoned on giving them they gave us. And their
assistants went in front of them, and never ceased from urging them on.

"Pay back the