Long ago somewhere on the shore of the Arctic Ocean a reindeer was
taking a walk on the beach, enjoying the fine air, and the sea salt of
which the reindeer are so fond. As he passed a little point on the beach
jutting out into the ocean, a fish called tom-cod said, “Well, Deer, how
do you do?” The deer stopped to say good-morning to the fish, and asked
him if he did not think it would be fun to run a race, and settle for
all time which could go the fastest, a reindeer or a fish.
[Illustration: “Stopped to say good-morning to the fish”]
The tom-cod thought about it for a while; then said, “I am very busy
today, Reindeer, but if you will come this time tomorrow morning, we
shall race, and I shall beat you.”
“We shall see,” said the deer, and went home.
When the deer was out of sight the fish sent a message to all the
tom-cods near that shore. He told them that the next morning he would
have a race with a deer, and that they must answer the deer ever time he
said, “Fish, are you there?”
At sunrise the next day the deer came to the meeting-place and said,
“Fish, are you there?”
“Yes,” answered the tom-cod. “I am waiting for you.”
The reindeer walked along the shore, but the tom-cod laughed to himself
in fish language, and stayed quietly in the same place in the water.
After walking about a mile, the reindeer said, “Fish, are you there?”
Then another fish answered him, and said, “Yes, Reindeer, I am here, and
I could go much faster if I did not have to wait for you.”
The reindeer hurried on a little faster. After a while he said, “Fish,
are you there?” and still another fish answered him and said, “Yes,
Reindeer, I am here, but I could go much faster if I did not have to
wait for you.”
Then the reindeer, who thought it was the same fish all the time, ran as
fast as the wind for a little way. When he stopped he asked, “Fish, are
you there?” and still another fish answered, “O yes, I am here, but you
are too slow for me.”
After that the deer fell exhausted on the beach and could run no more.
So in that way the tom-cod won the race.