BRUCE AND THE SPIDER
In which the King of Scotland learns a lesson in perseverance.
Once upon a time there was a king of Scotland named Robert Bruce. He was a brave king, and had many brave soldiers, but he and his men had suffered defeat from the English, who had come into Scotland with a great army, and were driving Robert Bruce and his men out of their cities and towns.
Six battles had been fought, and each time Bruce led his brave little army into battle but each time he was defeated. At last Bruce was so badly beaten, that his army was put to flight, and he himself had to flee through the woods to escape capture.
Bruce went in hiding in the mountains, and lived as best he could from hut to hut, while he was gathering a new army. One day he found refuge in a shed that was very old, and lay down on some straw to rest. He was very tired, and weary, and was glad to find anything to lie down on for awhile.
As he lay there he began to think of the six battles he had lost, and of his scattered army, and of Scotland and her enemies. Overhead a spider had begun to weave a web. The spider was trying to fasten a long thread to a beam to hold his web, and was having a lot of trouble.
Bruce saw him swing for the beam the first time and miss it; then the spider tried the second time and missed it; then the third time and missed it again. The spider rested awhile, and swung out bravely for the fourth time, but he was not far enough and back he came. Then he made a strong effort for the fifth time and came a little nearer, but still he fell back. Bruce began to hope that the spider would succeed, and when he swung out the sixth time he rose up to watch him. But the spider missed it by a little bit and down he fell again. This was six failures.
“I wonder if he will give up,” said Bruce to himself. But the spider had no idea of giving it up, for he gathered his thread together, and swung to the beam and fastened his thread.
“If a spider fails six times and succeeds the seventh, then surely the king of Scotland can,” said Bruce thinking of the battles he had lost.