There was once a little Kid whose growing horns made him think he
was a grown-up Billy Goat and able to take care of himself. So
one evening when the flock started home from the pasture and his
mother called, the Kid paid no heed and kept right on nibbling
the tender grass. A little later when he lifted his head, the
flock was gone.
He was all alone. The sun was sinking. Long shadows came creeping
over the ground. A chilly little wind came creeping with them
making scary noises in the grass. The Kid shivered as he thought
of the terrible Wolf. Then he started wildly over the field,
bleating for his mother. But not half-way, near a clump of trees,
there was the Wolf!
The Kid knew there was little hope for him.
"Please, Mr. Wolf," he said trembling, "I know you are going to
eat me. But first please pipe me a tune, for I want to dance and
be merry as long as I can."
The Wolf liked the idea of a little music before eating, so he
struck up a merry tune and the Kid leaped and frisked gaily.
Meanwhile, the flock was moving slowly homeward. In the still
evening air the Wolf's piping carried far. The Shepherd Dogs
pricked up their ears. They recognized the song the Wolf sings
before a feast, and in a moment they were racing back to the
pasture. The Wolf's song ended suddenly, and as he ran, with the
Dogs at his heels, he called himself a fool for turning piper to
please a Kid, when he should have stuck to his butcher's trade.
_Do not let anything turn you from your purpose._
[Illustration]