"Run! run! as fast as you can!
"You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
And the horse couldn't catch him.
By and by the little Gingerbread Boy came to a barn full of threshers.
When the threshers smelled the Gingerbread Boy, they tried to pick him
up, and said, "Don't run so fast, little Gingerbread Boy; you look very
good to eat." But the little Gingerbread Boy ran harder than ever, and
as he ran he cried out,--
"I have run away from a little old woman,
"A little old man,
"A cow,
"A horse,
"And I can run away from you, I can!"
And when he found that he was ahead of the threshers, he turned and
shouted back to them,--
"Run! run! as fast as you can!
"You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
And the threshers couldn't catch him.
Then the little Gingerbread Boy ran faster than ever. He ran and ran
until he came to a field full of mowers. When the mowers saw how fine
he looked, they ran after him, calling out, "Wait a bit! wait a bit,
little Gingerbread Boy, we wish to eat you!" But the little
Gingerbread Boy laughed harder than ever, and ran like the wind. "Oho!
oho!" he said,--
"I have run away from a little old woman,
"A little old man,
"A cow,
"A horse,
"A barn full of threshers,
"And I can run away from you, I can!"
And when he found that he was ahead of the mowers, he turned and
shouted back to them,--
"Run! run! as fast as you can!
"You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
And the mowers couldn't catch him.
By this time the little Gingerbread Boy was so proud that he didn't
think anybody could catch him. Pretty soon he saw a fox coming across
a field. The fox looked at him and began to run. But the little
Gingerbread Boy shouted across to him, "You can't catch me!" The fox
began to run faster, and the little Gingerbread Boy ran faster, and as
he ran he chuckled,--
"I have run away from a little old woman,
"A little old man,
"A cow,
"A horse,
"A barn full of threshers,
"A field full of mowers,
"And I can run away from you, I can!
"Run! run! as fast as you can!
"You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
"Why," said the fox, "I would not catch you if I could. I would not
think of disturbing you."
Just then, the little Gingerbread Boy came to a river. He could not
swim across, and he wanted to keep running away from the cow and the
horse and the people.
"Jump on my tail, and I will take you across," said the fox.
So the little Gingerbread Boy jumped on the fox's tail, and the fox
swam into the river. When he was a little way from shore he turned his
head, and said, "You are too heavy on my tail, little Gingerbread Boy,
I fear I shall let you get wet; jump on my back."
The little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his back.
A little farther out, the fox said, "I am afraid the water will cover
you, there; jump on my shoulder."
The little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his shoulder.
In the middle of the stream the fox said, "Oh, dear! little Gingerbread
Boy, my shoulder is sinking; jump on my nose, and I can hold you out of
water."
So the little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his nose.
The minute the fox got on shore he threw back his head, and gave a snap!
"Dear me!" said the little Gingerbread Boy, "I am a quarter gone!" The
next minute he said, "Why, I am half gone!" The next minute he said,
"My goodness gracious, I am three quarters gone!"
And after that, the little Gingerbread Boy never said anything more at
all.