"Diamond rings," exclaimed Sa'-zada, interrupting.
"No; he holds one of my wings to show that he is great."
"Yes, you are the King Bird, Eagle," concurred Sa'-zada, "the emblem of our country."
"I can break a lamb's back with my talons," assented Eagle, ignoring the sublime disdainfully, "but I wouldn't trust my nest within reach of any Man—they're a lot of thieves."
"Nice feathers are a great trouble," asserted Sparrow; "I'm glad I haven't any."
"What difference does it make?" cried Quail; "the Men kill me, and I'm sure I'm not gaudy."
"You're good eating, though," chuckled Gidar the Jackal. "After a day's shoot of the Men-kind, the scent from their cook-house is fair maddening. Oh-h-h, ki-yi! I've had many a Quail bone in my time."
"Even Lapwing can't save us from the Hunters," lamented Quail; "they play us such vile tricks. I've seen a rice field with a dozen bamboos stuck in it, and on top of each bamboo a cage with a tame Cock Quail; and in the center, hidden away, sat a man with a little drum which he tapped with his fingers. And the drum would whistle 'peep, peep, peep,' and the Birds in the cages would go 'peep, peep, peep,' and we Cock Birds of the Jungle, thinking it a challenge to battle, would answer back, 'peep, peep, peep,' and go seeking out these strange Birds who were calling for fight. Of course, our Wives would go with us to see the battle, and in the end all would be snared or shot by the deceitful Men."
"That's almost worse than being taken for one's feathers," said Egret. "I'm glad they don't eat me."
"No Mussulman would eat you, Buff Egret," said Gidar the Jackal. "It's because of your habit of picking ticks off the Pigs."