THE

Animal Story Book

EDITED BY

ANDREW LANG

WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS BY H. J. FORD

LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO.
FOURTH AVENUE & 30TH STREET, NEW YORK
LONDON, BOMBAY, CALCUTTA AND MADRAS
1914

Copyright, 1896,
By Longmans, Green, & Co.
——
All rights reserved.

First Edition, September, 1896.
Reprinted, November, 1896, July, 1899,
June, 1904, February, 1909,
September, 1914.

ANDROCLES IN THE ARENA

To

MASTER FREDERICK LONGMAN

PREFACE

Children who have read our Fairy Books may have noticed that there are not so very many fairies in the stories after all. The most common characters are birds, beasts, and fishes, who talk and act like Christians. The reason of this is that the first people who told the stories were not very clever, or, if they were clever, they had never been taught to read and write, or to distinguish between Vegetable, Animal, and Mineral. They took it that all things were ‘much of a muchness:’ they were not proud, and held that beast and bird could talk like themselves, only, of course, in a different language.

After offering, then, so many Fairy Books (though the stories are not all told yet), we now present you (in return for a coin or two) with a book about the friends of children and of fairies—the beasts. The stories are all true, more or less, but it is possible that Monsieur Dumas and Monsieur Théophile Gautier rather improved upon their tales. I own that I have my doubts about the bears and serpents in the tales by the Baron Wogan. This gentleman’s ancestors were famous Irish people. One of them held Cromwell’s soldiers back when they were pursuing Charles II. after Worcester fight. He also led a troop of horse from Dover to the Highlands, where he died of a wound, after fighting for the King. The next Wogan was a friend of Pope and Swift; he escaped from prison after Preston fight, in 1715, and, later, rescued Prince Charlie’s mother from confinement in Austria, and took her to marry King James. He next became Governor of Don Quixote’s province, La Mancha, in Spain, and was still alive and merry in 1752. Baron Wogan, descended from these heroes, saw no longer any king to fight for, so he went to America and fought bears. No doubt he was as brave as his ancestors, but whether all his stories of serpents are absolutely correct I am not so certain. People have also been heard to express doubts about Mr. Waterton and the Cayman. The terrible tale of Mr. Gully and his deeds of war I know to be accurate, and the story of Oscar, the sentimental tyke, is believed in firmly by the lady who wrote it. As for the stories about Greek and Roman beasts, Pliny, who tells them, is a most respectable author. On the whole, then, this is more or less of a true story-book.

There ought to be a moral; if so, it probably is that we should be kind to all sorts of animals, and, above all, knock trout on the head when they are caught, and don’t let the poor things jump about till they die. A chapter of a very learned sort was written about the cleverness of beasts, proving that there must have been great inventive geniuses among beasts long ago, and that now they have rather got into a habit (which I think a very good one) of being content with the discoveries of their ancestors. This led naturally to some observations on Instinct and Reason; but there may be children who are glad that there was no room for this chapter.

The longer stories from Monsieur Dumas were translated from the French by Miss Cheape.

‘A Rat Tale’ is by Miss Evelyn Grieve, who knew the rats.

‘Mr. Gully’ is by Miss Elspeth Campbell, to whom Mr. Gully belonged.

‘The Dog of Montargis,’ ‘More Faithful than Favoured,’ and ‘Androcles’ are by Miss Eleanor Sellar.

Snakes, Bears, Ants, Wolves, Monkeys, and some Lions are by Miss Lang.

‘Two

Highland Dogs’ is by Miss Goodrich Freer.

‘Fido’ and ‘Oscar’ and ‘Patch’ are by Miss A. M. Alleyne.

‘Djijam’ is by his master.

‘The Starling of Segringen’ and ‘Grateful Dogs’ are by Mr. Bartells.

‘Tom the Bear,’ ‘The Frog,’ ‘Jacko the Monkey’ and ‘Gazelle’ are from Dumas by Miss Blackley.

All the rest are by Mrs. Lang.

CONTENTS

class="tdl">The Ship of the Desert 248 Hame, hame, hame, where I fain wad be 253 Nests for Dinner 257 Fire-eating Djijam 259 The Story of the Dog Oscar 264 Dolphins at Play 274 The Starling of Segringen 278 Grateful Dogs 280 Gazelle 282 Cockatoo Stories 289 The Otter who was reared by a Cat 292 Stories about Lions 295 Builders and Weavers 307 More Faithful than Favoured 310 Dolphins, Turtles, and Cod 316 More about Elephants 321 Bungey 329 Lions and their Ways 333 The History of Jacko I. 338 Signora and Lori 348 Of the Linnet, Popinjay, or Parrot, and other Birds that can Speak 351 Patch and the Chickens 354 The Fierce Falcon 356 Mr. Bolt, the Scotch Terrier 360 A Raven’s Funeral 364 A Strange Tiger 368 Halcyons and their Biographers 373 The Story of a Frog 375 The Woodpecker Tapping on the Hollow Oak Tree 384 Dogs Over the Water 387 The Capocier and his Mate 394 Owls and Marmots 396 Eagles’ Nests 399

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

href="@public@vhost@g@gutenberg@html@files@38208@[email protected]#illo01" class="pginternal" tag="{http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml}a">3 ‘The Minuet was Tom’s greatest Triumph’ 9 Tom discovered in the Box 12 ‘They at last all took hold of his Tail’ 16 Terror of the Orang-outang at Saï 17 Saï has to take a Pill 21 The Cats no match for the Buzzard 27 The Buzzard carries off Hat and Wig 28 ‘Seeing such a number of Rats, he left his Horses and ran for his Life’ 37 The Rats in the Larder 41 The Baron kills the Snake 44 The Baron slays the Horned Snake 46 How the Indians make the Horned Snake disgorge his Dinner 48 The Elephant helps the Gardener 53 De Narsac recognises his Friend’s Dog 57 The Dog flies at Macaire in the presence of the King 61 The Baron kills the Bear 75 The Grizzly 79 Androcles in the Lion’s Cave 93 Androcles in the Arena 97 ‘Monsieur Dumas, may I accommodate you with my Monkey and my Parrot?’ 107 The Auvergnat and his Monkey 111 The Last of the Laidmanoirs and Mademoiselle Desgarcins 120 Dumas arrives at Stora with his Vulture 127 ‘It’s a regular Kennel’ 131 Jugurtha becomes Diogenes 135 Pritchard and the Hens 142 ‘Pritchard reappeared next moment with a Hare in his Mouth’ 145 Cartouche outwits Pyramus 156 Mademoiselle de Laistre and her Weasel 161 ‘When Day broke’ 166 The Death of the Famous Wolf of Gévaudan 171 ‘The Long Vigil’ 187 The Capture of the Cayman 197 The

Wounding of Fido 201 The Dream of the Hungry Lion 207 Cagnotte comes out of his Skin 217 ‘And what do you Think she Saw’ 221 Blanche telling Ghost Stories to Jane in the Stable 227 How the Dolphins helped the Fishermen to catch the Mullets 234 Two Oran Otans 238 The Baboons who stole the Poor Man’s Dinner 241 Birds’ Nests for Dinner 258 ‘In the full enjoyment of a large lighted Log on the Dining-room Carpet’ 261 ‘Oscar would charge and rout them’ 265 ‘Oscar felt rather Frightened’ 269 ‘Oh, Oscar, Oscar, lad what have you Done?’ 271 The Boy goes to School on the Dolphin’s back 275 Dumas finds Joseph standing on Gazelle’s back 284 Dumas brings Gazelle to No. 109 Faubourg St.-Denis 288 The Lion caught in the Pit 297 The Ambush 300 ‘All Three stopped to gaze at the Man who dared to put himself in their Path’ 303 ‘And pinned Him to the Ground’ 314 ‘Long, Long Ago.’ The Elephant dreams of his Old Companions 323 The Elephant falls on his knees before the little Scotch Terrier 327 Bungey at the Spanish Ambassador’s House 331 The Hottentot noticed a huge Lion lying in the Water 335 Annoyance of the Captain on finding his Flask of Rum upset 339 Lori refuses to Share with the Signora 349 A Raven’s Funeral 365 The Tiger and his Friend 369 Love’s disgraceful Behaviour out Shooting 377 The Sole Result of his Day’s Sport 380 Mademoiselle Camargo becomes a Barometer 381 The Faithful Spaniel 389

‘TOM’
AN ADVENTURE IN THE LIFE OF A BEAR IN PARIS

From Alexandre Dumas.

Some sixty years ago and more, a

well-known artist named Décamps lived in Paris. He was the intimate friend of some of the first authors, artists, and scientific men of the day, and was devotedly fond of animals of all sorts. He loved to paint them, and he kept quite a small ménagerie in his studio where a bear, a monkey, a tortoise, and a frog lived (more or less) in peace and harmony together.

The bear’s name was ‘Tom,’ the monkey was called ‘Jacko I.,’[1] the frog was ‘Mademoiselle Camargo,’ and the tortoise ‘Gazelle.’

Here follows the story of Tom, the bear.

It was the night of Shrove Tuesday in the year 1832. Tom had as yet only spent six months in Paris, but he was really one of the most attractive bears you could wish to meet.

He ran to open the door when the bell rang, he mounted guard for hours together, halberd in hand, standing on his hind legs, and he danced a minuet with infinite grace, holding a broomstick behind his head.

He had spent the whole day in the exercise of these varied accomplishments, to the great delight of the frequenters of his master’s studio, and had just retired to the press which did duty as his hutch, to seek a little repose, when there was a knock at the street door. Jacko instantly showed such signs of joy that Décamps made a shrewd guess that the visitor could be no other than Fan, the self-elected tutor in chief to the two animals—nor was he mistaken. The door opened, Fan appeared, dressed as a clown, and Jacko flung himself in rapture into his arms.

‘Very good, very good,’ said Fan, placing the monkey on the table and handing him a cane. ‘You’re really a charming creature. Carry arms, present arms, make ready, fire! Capital!’

‘I’ll have a complete uniform made for you, and you shall mount guard instead of me. But I haven’t come for you to-night; it’s your friend Tom I want. Where may he be?’

‘Why, in his hutch, I suppose,’ said Décamps.

‘Tom! here, Tom!’ cried Fan.

Tom gave a low growl, just to show that he knew very well who they were talking of, but that he was in no hurry to show himself.

‘Well!’ exclaimed Fan, ‘is this how my orders are obeyed? Tom, my friend, don’t force me to resort to extreme measures.’

Tom stretched one great paw beyond the cupboard without allowing any more of his person to be seen, and began to yawn plaintively like a child just wakened from its first sleep.

‘Where is the broomstick?’ inquired Fan in threatening tones, and rattling the collection of Indian bows, arrows, and spears which stood behind the door.

‘Ready!’ cried Décamps, pointing to Tom, who, on hearing these well known sounds, had roused himself without more ado, and advanced towards his tutor with a perfectly innocent and unconscious air.

‘That’s right,’ said Fan: ‘now be a good fellow, particularly as one has come all this way on purpose to fetch you.’

TOM IS INVITED TO THE BALL

Tom waved his head up and down.

‘So, so—now shake hands with your friends:—first rate!’

‘Do you mean to take him with you?’ asked Décamps.

‘Rather!’ replied Fan; ‘and give him a good time into the bargain.’

‘And where are you going?’

‘To the Carnival Masked Ball, nothing less! Now then Tom, my friend, come along. We’ve got a cab outside waiting by the hour.’

As though fully appreciating the force of this argument, Tom trundled down stairs four steps at a time followed by his friend. The driver opened the cab door, and Tom, under Fan’s guidance, stepped in as if he had done nothing else all his life.

‘My eye! that’s a queer sort of a fancy dress,’ said cabby; ‘anyone might take him for a real bear. Where to, gentlemen?’

‘Odéon Theatre,’ said Fan.

‘Grrrooonnn,’ observed Tom.

‘All right,’ said the cabman. ‘Keep your temper. It’s a good step from here, but we shall get there all in good time.’

Half an hour later the cab drew up at the door of the theatre. Fan got down first, paid the driver, handed out Tom, took two tickets, and passed in without exciting any special attention.

At the second turn they made round the crush-room people began to follow Fan. The perfection with which the newcomer imitated the walk and movements of the animal whose skin he wore attracted the notice of some lovers of natural history. They pressed closer and closer, and anxious to find out whether he was equally clever in imitating the bear’s voice, they began to pull his hairs and prick his ears—‘Grrrooonnn,’ said Tom.

A murmur of admiration ran through the crowd—nothing could be more lifelike.

Fan led Tom to the buffet and offered him some little cakes, to which he was very partial, and which he proceeded to swallow with so admirable a pretence of voracity that the bystanders burst out laughing. Then the mentor poured out a tumbler full of water, which Tom took gingerly between his paws, as he was accustomed to whenever Décamps did him the honour of permitting him to appear at table, and gulped down the contents at one draught. Enthusiasm knew no bounds! Indeed such was the delight and interest shown that when, at length, Fan wished to leave the buffet, he found they were hemmed in by so dense a crowd that he felt nervous lest Tom should think of clearing the road with claws and teeth. So he promptly led his bear to a corner, placed him with his back against the wall, and told him to stay there till further orders.

As has been already mentioned, this kind of drill was quite familiar to Tom, and was well suited to his natural indolence, and when a harlequin offered his hat to complete the picture, he settled himself comfortably, gravely laying one great paw on his wooden gun.

‘Do you happen to know,’ said Fan to the obliging harlequin, ‘who you have lent your hat to?’

‘No,’ replied harlequin.

‘You mean to say you don’t guess?’

‘Not in the least.’

‘Come, take a good look at him. From the grace of all his movements, from the manner in which he carries his head, slightly on one side, like Alexander the Great—from the admirable imitations of the bear’s voice—you don’t mean to say you don’t recognise him?’

‘Upon my word I don’t.’

‘Odry!’[2] whispered Fan mysteriously; ‘Odry, in his costume from “The Bear and the Pacha”!’