HOW BROTHER RABBIT FOOLED THE WHALE AND THE ELEPHANT[15]


One day little Brother Rabbit was running along on the sand, lippety,
lippety, when he saw the Whale and the Elephant talking together.
Little Brother Rabbit crouched down and listened to what they were
saying. This was what they were saying:--

"You are the biggest thing on the land, Brother Elephant," said the
Whale, "and I am the biggest thing in the sea; if we join together we
can rule all the animals in the world, and have our way about
everything."

"Very good, very good," trumpeted the Elephant; "that suits me; we will
do it."

Little Brother Rabbit sniggered to himself. "They won't rule me," he
said. He ran away and got a very long, very strong rope, and he got his
big drum, and hid the drum a long way off in the bushes. Then he went
along the beach till he came to the Whale.

"Oh, please, dear, strong Mr Whale," he said, "will you have the great
kindness to do me a favour? My cow is stuck in the mud, a quarter of a
mile from here. And I can't pull her out. But you are so strong and so
obliging, that I venture to trust you will help me out."

The Whale was so pleased with the compliment that he said, "Yes," at