THE DISCONTENTED SQUIRREL 69 



like a stone, and would have been crushed if he 

 had fallen upon the ground ; but, luckily, he first 

 struck a close mass of twigs and foliage on the top 

 of a large tree. This broke the violence of the fall, 

 and he came down gently to the branches beneath, 

 when he managed to catch hold of a twig and come 

 to a stop. He was bruised and bleeding, and half- 

 dead with the shock ; but by and by he revived, 

 and then what was his relief and joy to discover 

 that he was at home — that he had fallen into 

 his own favourite old oak-tree ! On recovering a 

 little strength he crept down the trunk, and after 

 satisfying his hunger with two or three hazel-nuts 

 from his store, he crawled into his unfinished nest, 

 where he coiled himself up, and drawing the blankets 

 over his ears, mused drowsily on his unspeakable 

 folly in having forsaken so comfortable a home. 

 And as to migration — well, " Never again ! " he 

 murmured as he dropped off to sleep. 



The story greatly pleased me as I retold it to 

 myself, after having forgotten it for so many long 

 years, since I now perceived that it was a fable of 

 the right sort ; that, in fact, it was a true story — 

 in other words, true to the creature's character. 

 Stories about reasoning and talking animals do 

 not always conform to this rule, which has made 

 the terse fables of ^sop a joy for ever. Whether 

 the author knew it or not, it is a fact that the 

 squirrel is subject to fits of discontent with his 

 surroundings, which send him rushing off in quest 

 of some better place to live in ; and at such times 



