large/10244/tommy_smiths_animals_1812_librivox_64kb_mp3/tommysmith_12_selous_64kb_1
large/10244/tommy_smiths_animals_1812_librivox_64kb_mp3/tommysmith_12_selous_64kb
English
10244
It seemed as if they only cared to talk to _little_ boys or girls. But there was one way of having conversations with them, which he got to like better and better, and that was to go out into the woods and fields and watch what they were doing. IT SEEMED AS IF THEY ONLY CARED TO TALK TO LITTLE BOYS OR GIRLS BUT THERE WAS ONE WAY OF HAVING CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM WHICH HE GOT TO LIKE BETTER AND BETTER AND THAT WAS TO GO OUT INTO THE WOODS AND FIELDS AND WATCH WHAT THEY WERE DOING
 but that it might just as well have been the idea of any other animal there, and he wished that it _had_ been, because, _then_, he could have called it clever, but _now_, of course, he couldn’t, for _that_ would be praising himself,—which would _never_ do. You see, he wanted to be modest. One ought always to be modest when one makes a speech. And now (the owl said) he was quite sure that Tommy Smith would never be unkind to animals any more as long as he lived, because, just before he flew away, he had asked him to promise that he wouldn’t. But Tommy Smith had just gone off to sleep then, and so he had had to promise it in his sleep. “And, you know,” said the owl, “that when a promise is made in _that_ way, it is always kept.” Then all the animals clapped their—well, whatever they could clap, and said “Hurrah!” and the meeting broke up. And the owl was right. As Tommy Smith grew older, and became a big boy, he found that animals did not talk to him any more in the way they used to do. LS FOR THANKING HIM AND HE SAID THAT IT WAS HIS IDEA BUT THAT IT MIGHT JUST AS WELL HAVE BEEN THE IDEA OF ANY OTHER ANIMAL THERE AND HE WISHED THAT IT HAD BEEN BECAUSE THEN HE COULD HAVE CALLED IT CLEVER BUT NOW OF COURSE HE COULDN'T FOR THAT WOULD BE PRAISING HIMSELF WHICH WOULD NEVER DO YOU SEE HE WANTED TO BE MODEST ONE OUGHT ALWAYS TO BE MODEST WHEN ONE MAKES A SPEECH AND NOW THE OWL SAID HE WAS QUITE SURE THAT TOMMY SMITH WOULD NEVER BE UNKIND TO ANIMALS ANY MORE AS LONG AS HE LIVED BECAUSE JUST BEFORE HE FLEW AWAY HE HAD ASKED HIM TO PROMISE THAT HE WOULDN'T BUT TOMMY SMITH HAD JUST GONE OFF TO SLEEP THEN AND SO HE HAD HAD TO PROMISE IT IN HIS SLEEP AND YOU KNOW SAID THE OWL THAT WHEN A PROMISE IS MADE IN THAT WAY IT IS ALWAYS KEPT THEN ALL THE ANIMALS CLAPPED THERE WELL WHATEVER THEY COULD CLAP AND SAID HURRAH AND THE MEETING BROKE UP AND THE OWL WAS RIGHT AS TOMMY SMITH GREW OLDER AND BECAME A BIG BOY HE FOUND THAT ANIMALS DID NOT TALK TO HIM ANY MORE IN THE WAY THEY USED TO DO
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