(Adapted)
Close beside the Pool of the Blue Lotus lived the two geese White-Wings
and Gray-Back, and in the pool lived the tortoise Shelly-Neck, and the
three were good friends. One night Shelly-Neck heard two fishermen
talking together beside the pool. “To-morrow morning,” they said, “we
will lay our nets and catch that old tortoise and cook him for our
dinner.”
Shelly-Neck was much frightened, and when the men were gone he called
his friends the geese, and begged them to save him.
“We will save you,” said White-Wings.
“But you must do just what we tell you to do!” said Gray-Back.
“I will! I will!” cried poor Shelly-Neck.
The two geese waddled about, looking till they found a stick. “Now,”
said White-Wings, “take this in your mouth and hold on tight!”
“And remember,” said Gray-Back, “that once you have taken hold you must
not let go till we bid you.”
[Illustration]
The tortoise promised and took hold on the middle of the stick with his
strong jaws. Then White-Wings took one end of the stick in his bill and
Gray-Back took the other, and they flew high up in the air over the
roofs of the houses.
All the people came running to see this strange sight. “Look! look!”
cried one. “See the flying tortoise!”
“Ho!” said another, who was one of the fishermen. “He has no wings;
soon he will forget and open his mouth, and then down he will come and
we shall have him for dinner.”
“I will not let go! You shall not have me for dinner!” cried
Shelly-Neck.
Crash! Down he fell on the hard ground. When the fishermen picked him
up he was dead and they did have him for dinner.
White-Wings and Gray-Back flew sadly away. “We did our best,” they
said; “but a fool cannot be saved from his folly.”