"There's some magic at work here," said the hunter when, expecting
to find the tortoise where he had left him, he discovered that his
prisoner had escaped. "The stupid beast could not have got out alone,"
he added, as he picked up the net and walked off with it. "But he
wasn't worth keeping anyhow."

That evening the four friends met once more, and talked over all they
had gone through together. The deer and the tortoise were full of
gratitude to the mouse, and could not say enough in his praise, but
the crow was rather sulky, and remarked: "If it had not been for me,
neither of you would ever have seen Hiranya. He was my friend before
he was yours."

"You are right," said the tortoise, "and you must also remember that it
was my armour which saved me from being killed in that terrible fall."

"Your armour would not have been of much use to you, if the hunter had
been allowed to carry you to his home," said the deer. "In my opinion
you and I both owe our lives entirely to Hiranya. He is small and
weak, it is true, but he has better brains than any of the rest of us,
and I for one admire him with all my heart. I am glad I trusted him
and obeyed him, when he ordered me to pretend to be dead, for I had
not the least idea how that could help the tortoise."

"Have it your own way," croaked the crow, "but I keep my own opinion
all the same. But for me you would never have known my dear little
Hiranya."

In spite of this little dispute the four friends were soon as happy
together as before the adventure of the tortoise. They once more