A little boy had a cake that a big boy coveted. Designing to get
the cake without making the little boy cry so loud as to attract
his mother's attention, the big boy remarked that the cake would be
prettier if it were more like the moon. The little boy thought that a
cake like the moon must be desirable, and on being assured by the
big boy that he had made many such, he handed over his cake for
manipulation. The big boy took out a mouthful, leaving a crescent with
jagged edge. The little boy was not pleased by the change, and began
to whimper; whereupon the big boy pacified him by saying that he would
make the cake into a half-moon. So he nibbled off the horns of the
crescent, and gnawed the edge smooth; but when the half-moon was made,
the little boy perceived that there was hardly any cake left, and he
again began to snivel. The big boy again diverted him by telling him
that, if he did not like so small a moon, he should have one that was
just the size of the real orb. He then took the cake, and explained
that, just before the new moon is seen, the old moon disappears. Then
he swallowed the rest of the cake and ran off, leaving the little boy
waiting for the new moon.
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