heard of such a price? And what on earth could _you_ do with a
buffalo when you got it? Why, the pipkin was about as much as you
could manage.'

At this the Rat drew himself up with dignity, for he did not like
allusions to his size.

'That is my affair, not yours,' he retorted; 'your business is to hand
over the buffalo.'

So just for the fun of the thing, and to amuse themselves at the Rat's
expense, the neatherds loosed the buffalo's halter and began to tie it
to the little animal's tail.

'No! no!' he called, in a great hurry; 'if the beast pulled, the skin
of my tail would come off, and then where should I be? Tie it round
my neck, if you please.'

So with much laughter the neatherds tied the halter round the Rat's
neck, and he, after a polite leave-taking, set off gaily towards home
with his prize; that is to say, he set off with the _rope_, for
no sooner did he come to the end of the tether than he was brought up
with a round turn; the buffalo, nose down grazing away, would not
budge until it had finished its tuft of grass, and then seeing another
in a different direction marched off towards it, while the Rat, to
avoid being dragged, had to trot humbly behind, willy-nilly.

He was too proud to confess the truth, of course, and, nodding his
head knowingly to the neatherds, said, 'Ta-ta, good people! I am
going home this way. It may be a little longer, but it's much