Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1872-08-14
CHILDREN'S STORIES.
The Autobiography of a Fox.

nil because 1t had got the moth. "
But they were things I liked to look at,
because they reminded me, when liter
ally "kept inn at school, of the fire,
fresh country. One sunny playtime [
had an FimpositIon'-wha downright
impositions we thought those Eeimpos ~
of forgot how many lines of Virgil,
to get through. I knew that there was
no chance of my getting out of the close,
dusty schoolroom that playtime, and
so / set very drowslIy about my task.
In minute or two [ was resting my
head on my hands and my elbows, on
my locker. A blue-bottle was buzzing
and butting against one of the win
dows; we had had suet-pudding for
dinner-a suet-pudding of peculiarly
lukewarm putty-like consistency. In
stead of going on with my Virgil, [
dreamily gazed at the NANCY fox's
head, and as [ gazed, with owl-like finn
stealing over my eyes, it opened It's
pointed muzzle, and spake: =
My name is A. Fox. [ know I have
not long to live, and will now make my
last dying speech and confession NV
second death, when even what remains
of me shall vanish on earth, is last ap-
preaching. [ will tell my tale about
my brush as truthfully as you can ex
pect from one of my race.
[ was BORN of rich parents Men
called my mother a U5Gen, but oh [
loved her dearly-she brought me such
nice things! Neither of my parents, [
am proud to say, disgraced my long
line of rich and dishonest ancestry.
Amongst my ancestors radiantly reck-
on the fox that persuaded the crow to
give him a song-and also bit of
cheese. I am descended in the direct
line from the fox that invited the stork
to dinner, [ may mention in passing,
was not the same, whatever fabulists,
who plainly write themselves down
tellers Of tarrydiddles, may say. He
was an idiot brother-the a2o-natural of
the family. The fox that persuaded
the goat to leap into well, in order
that he might climb out over the goats
shoulders, was also an ancestor of mine
in the direct line.
The fox that had lost his tail was
closely connected with our branch of
the family. [ am not going to be
ashamed of an unfortunate kinsman, so
long as he behaves himself like a fox
but the fox that wouldn't cut off his
tail to follow the new fashion was an
other ancestor of mine in that direct
line. disown the fox that pitied the
mask because 1t had no brains. I can
not trace any family likeness in him.
For one thing, genuine foxes are not
given to pity-they're not so soft; and
for another, they know well enough
that lots of good-looking faces are only
masks for empty heads-and think it
good for trade that it is so. The fox
that carried off the fawn the lion and
the tiger had been fighting for was my
forebear-perhaps, [ should say, fore
fOC-beyond a doubt, and so was the
den, because he could not see any foot
prints coming from it-Uestigid 7aulld
retrOrSotne. As you're shamming to do
Virgil, [ may quote Latin. By the
bye, though it would be more worthy
of fox to quote it if you don't know
anything at all about it. [ don't be-
heve in the fox that only found out the
ass in the lions skin when he began to
bray. A foe was not wanted for that
any goose could have done it,
My great-grandfather was the fox
that had good many more lives than
a cat-n1nety times nine. Cat, indeed!
Those tellers of tarrydiddles make out
that q fox once boosted to a cat that
he had ever so many shift to save him
from the hounds, whilst she could only
run up a tree and that, presently,
the hounds came, and the cat ran up
hn hi OF hn f1v
spite of all his shifts, was killed
Stuff and nonsenso FiddIededee !
It's all a fable A cat get off, when a
foe came to grief The cat aOould have
found herself up tree as you boys
say But this IS a disgression-I was
talking about my great-grandfather.
Time after time, year after year, he
ran away, and lived to run again an
other day. He used to take a header
over the precipice, and the hounds that
went after him got smashed-serve
them jolly well right!-but my sagacious
prOGUuS you lazy young scamp, look
it out in your electromagnetic you've
looked at me long enough to want to
be, in your poor human way, a fox,
and SO [ suppose you think you needn't
take the trouble-well, then, my prod-
cas- had his earth just foot or two
beneath the brink of the prec1pice, aud
by catching hold of branch with his
teeth-I wonder we haven't pointed
tails, since we're so sharp in a general
way of speakirg-he could swing him-
self into his home, whilst the thick
headed hounds, that think themselves
SO wise, toppled over into Tophet.
After all, the stupid dogs didn't catch
my great grandfather. The mean hui
man hound of huntsman, after the
trick had been played scores of times,
was actually cute enough to guess it.
What dolts you human critturs are
So, on spec, he cut off the branch, and
the next time poor great-grandfathe
tried his dodge on, he was smashed to
smithereens. Even foxes are not wise
at all hours.
[ was born in a wood, just inside, in
hole in the hedgebank. Father and
mother used to bring us youngsters
home things at first, but we soon went
out with them at night to cater for our
selves. Oh, what jolly fun it was, in
the dew and the moonlight! We'd
come on Il lot of plump rabbits nib
bling the corn-off they'd scurry, this
way and that, but we soon got our sup
per. The big jack hares were harder
to. catch. We used to come Oh them
sing y, laundering about in the fur
rows, with their great ears cooked up,
or else one stretched one way and the
other another. Many a good hunt I've
had after hare. Off he'd go at
splitting pace. All right, old boy
used to say to myself, go ahead; [
mt going to lose my wind And so
I'd jog on, just keeping him in sight,
and pounce down on him when he was
blown. Birds, tool partridges-what
feeds I've had off them! Whole broods
OF the juicy young ones I've come
across, sound asleep, smuggling
round their respected papa and mann
ma. Much good their papa was to
them. Snap, snap, [ used to go, and
Kill as many as / could before they
woke. If they once woke, up they'd go
with whirr, spelling your chances by
soaring the other broods. You needn't
look IA 60