236 



THE RAT 



of your worst qualities in support of this view. 

 Now, if they had only been thoroughly taught my 

 method of * crooked sight' in their infancy, I 

 cannot help thinking that, instead of spending so 

 much time in trying to degrade man, they would 

 have devoted their energies to showing rather how 

 the various animals possess a great many of the 

 better characteristics of men. If it does make 

 them happier to find connecting-links between 

 men and animals — and I am proud to believe 

 that it does — surely it is better to level the animals 

 up rather than to push man down. 



If you, then, adopt this method, you will find, as 

 I was saying, that we rats have a very reasonable 

 share of your better quahties — a greater share, I 

 dare say, than many of the animals whom you 

 honour with your patronage. I have alluded 

 already to our courage and cleverness, to our ready 

 acceptance of death, to our hardy independence 

 and sobriety of life, and these are supposed to be 

 qualities on which you set some value ; but I 

 should also like you to know that I have seen a 

 mother-rat come voluntarily out of her hiding- 

 place in order to carry back into safety one 

 of her half-grown children, who was lying dead in 

 the open, having been slain in the usual way — 



