THE HIRED SQUIRREL.
A RUSSIAN FABLE.
BY LAURA SANFORD.
A lion to the Squirrel said:
"Work faithfully for me,
And when your task is done, my friend,
Rewarded you shall be
With a barrel-full of finest nuts,
Fresh from my own nut-tree."
"My Lion King," the Squirrel said,
"To this I do agree."
The Squirrel toiled both day and night,
Quite faithful to his hire;
So hungry and so faint sometimes
He thought he should expire.
But still he kept his courage up,
And tugged with might and main,
"How nice the nuts will taste," he thought,
"When I my barrel gain."
At last, when he was nearly dead,
And thin and old and grey,
Quoth th' Lion: "There's no more hard work
You're fit to do. I'll pay."
A barrel-full of nuts he gave—
Ripe, rich, and big; but oh!
The Squirrel's tears ran down his cheeks.
He'd lost his teeth, you know!