The turtle and the deer [short story]

Title

Creator

Palumar, Francisco K.

Language

English

Year

1940

Subject

Fables

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

August, 1940 ·THE YOUNG CITIZEN 297 THE TURTLE AND THE DEER An .-1 uop Fable in a New Setting By FRANCISCO K. PALOMAR "Haw slow you are I I have been waiting for you at least ten minutes."• THERE once lived a deer who believed that no one could beat him in running a footrace. He·'wanted to run a race just to show his skill. So he went from one place to another looking for an animal who would dare to race with him. IJut he could find ii.one that was willing to run. At last, when he was about to give up, he came upon a turtle. He jokingly asked the turtle to race with him. Without hesitation, the turtle at once agreed. "And I will beat you, Mr. Deer,'' said the turtle, who had already thought of a plan by which he hoped to defeat. the nimble footed deer. "That remains to be seen,'' replied the deer, who never for an instant thought that the "old slow-foot turtle could beat him in. a foot-race. The news quickly spread , among the animals far and wide that the deer and the turtle were going to run a r-ace. Everybody laughed about it. Of course, no one thought the turtle would win. They all thought that the deer wouid outrun the turtle without half trying.· All thought this except the wise old crow. He sat up and cawed to all around him. "Caw! caw! Maybe the turtle will win! Caw! Caw! Maybe the turtle will win!" The wise old crow thought .that prob.ably the turtle had some trick or other up his sleeve, but he didn't know just what it was. ·On the day set for the race fowls a·nd four-footed animals of all kinds came to see the contest. Old Judge Billy Goat was to be the starter. "Hurrah for our champion, the fleet. footed deer!" shouted all the animals. "Caw! Caw! Maybe the turtle will win! Caw! ~aw! Maybe the turtle will win I" croaked the wise old crow. The race was to be run over a level stretch of country about a mile in length. The starting place was a great, green tree which stood on the edge of the forest, and the stopping place was a Jar ge rock at the edge of the brook. The two contestants were to run from the great tree to the large rock and back. Now, as everybody knows, the turtle's wife looks exactly like her husband-the two can hardly be told apart. W~ll, early that morning the turtle took his wife to the large rock which marked the spot where the two contestants were to turn around and run back to the starting point. (Please turn to pa1e 317.) August, 1940 TURTLE AND DEER (Continued from page 297) "You must sit here in the grass, wife, and when the deer. comes up, you must say, 'How slow you are'! I have been waiti.ng for you at least ten minutes!'" T.hen the turtle trudged to the start.ing point of the race where al) the animals ·were assembled to· witness the unusual event. THE YOUNG CITIZEN ponent in the race.) "About face, and return,'' said the . surprised deer. And he started back, running faster ·than ever. When the turtle saw the deer coming a long distance away, he started to waddle back to the starting point. He arrived there just a few feet ahead of the deer. He sank down under the great tree, and pretended to be all out of breath from hard "Caw I. Caw! Maybe the turtle will · win! Caw I running. Caw! Maybe the turtle will When the deer saw the win I" croaked the wise old turtle fanning himself all crow. out of breath, he felt so Old Judge Billy Goat ashamed that he did not was there to start them off. wait to hear the decision of The two contestants lined old Judge Billy Goat. He up. turned and ran toward the "One! Get ready. Two.! forest, not daring to show Get set. Three! Go." Like .his face any more. a flash the deer sped away "Caw! Caw! I told you at a terrific spe¢d. The tur- the turtle would win! Caw! tie waddled along a short Caw! I told you the turtle distance until the tall grass would win!" ~roaked the hid him from view, and wise old crow: then he squatted dovyn to. And all the animals await the· return of the shouted, "Hurrah for old deer. Slow Foot! He is not so The deer ran with all his slow after all!" might until presently he Thousands of years ago neared the large rock which Aesop, the wise Greek, told was the turning point of the this same .. story, only in his contestants. version the hedgehog and To his amazement the the hare were the contestturtle's wife stood· up as he ants. approached, and said, At the end of the story "How slow you are! I have Aesop said, "It is not albeen waiting for you at least ways the swiftest who wins ten minutes." (The deer the race; sometimes the thought this was his op- qukkest ·witted wins." 317 'A MOUSE ADVENTURE (Continued from page 296) " 'There's a mouse in it I' said the big white cat. "But the man didn't understand what the cat said. He picked up ihe two pieces o~ the blue vase, pulled the door open, and threw the pieces of vase right toward the water." "And you were in one of them, Mousie!" ·Madame Mouse cried. "The minute the man picked up . the pieces,'' Mousie saicj, "my head began to work. It worked hard and quickly, Mother. I knew t.hat if I reached the 'water in that piece of blue glass I'd sink to the bottom and. probably drown. So just as the man threw ·the pieces toward the water, I jumped. · "I landed on the branch of a tree that was hanging over the water. The wind whirled the branch this way and that way, but I hung on. Pretty soon I was safe on the ground. I ran up to the window' sill of the little house, and I said to the cat, 'Whoevec heard of a mouse getting away from a cat!' Then I laughed, jumped ·down, and ran as hard as I could for home. And here I am." Wasn't that a mouse adventure!

pages

297, 317

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