ROTATION OF CROPS 203 



without dropping the bone, gives a low growl and 

 lifts one paw. That is enough, the cat flees. So, 

 my bold Minet, what were you after here ? The bone 

 is not for you ; your teeth are not strong enough to 

 bite it. Go away! Martha is calling you to give 

 you some bread soaked in gravy. That will suit 

 you better than a bone as hard as a stone. 



Ah, here come some more guests. The door 

 stands open and in come the hens from the poultry- 

 yard. Tap, tap, tap, tap; they peck the crumbs 

 fallen from the table. Azor has no use for such 

 diet — tiny morsels much too small for him ; nor does 

 the cat want them either, they are too floury. But 

 the hens feast on them. 



And all, human beings, dog, cat, hens, dine at the 

 same time ; only each must make the best of what the 

 others cannot use. Azor is content with the bone 

 that big Jacques threw away ; the cat is satisfied with 

 a little bread soaked in gravy, a dish quite inade- 

 quate to Azor 's needs ; the hens pick up the crumbs 

 disdained by Jacques, Azor, and the cat. Martha, 

 it seems, had prepared dinner only for the farm 

 people, and behold, by utilizing the scraps that are 

 worthless to some, many others join in the midday 

 meal. From the scraps disdained by man the dog 

 will gain strength to defend the flock; from those 

 rejected by the dog the cat will acquire keen eye- 

 sight and sharp claws to see and to seize the mouse ; 

 from what is of no value to the cat the hens will 

 make eggs; and everything, absolutely everything, 

 will go to the profit of the farm. 



