large/12918/tommy_smiths_animals_1812_librivox_64kb_mp3/tommysmith_03_selous_64kb_19
large/12918/tommy_smiths_animals_1812_librivox_64kb_mp3/tommysmith_03_selous_64kb
English
12918
Then the farmers saw how foolish they had been, and they were very sorry, and did all they could to get the rooks to come back again; and when they did come back, they took care not to shoot them any more." THEN THE FARMERS SAW HOW FOOLISH THEY HAD BEEN AND THEY WERE VERY SORRY AND DID ALL THEY COULD TO GET THE ROOKS TO COME BACK AGAIN AND WHEN THEY DID COME BACK THEY TOOK CARE NOT TO SHOOT THEM ANY MORE
 do them so much good?” “You may well ask,” the rook answered. “They ought to be ashamed of themselves. I will tell you something about that. Once upon a time some farmers thought they would kill us all because we stole their corn; so they all went out together with their guns, and whenever they saw any of us, they fired at us and killed us, until, at last, there was not a rook left in the whole country; for all those that had not been shot had flown away. The farmers were so glad, for they thought that next year they would have a much better harvest. But they were quite wrong, for, instead of having a better harvest, they had hardly any harvest at all. The slugs and the caterpillars, and, above all, the great, hungry cockchafer-grubs, had eaten almost everything up; for, you see, there were no hungry rooks to eat _them_. The little corn we used to take from the farmers they could very well have spared, but now, without us, they found that they had lost much more than they could spare. BUT WHY DO THE FARMERS SHOOT YOU IF YOU DO THEM SO MUCH GOOD YOU MAY WELL ASK THE ROOK ANSWERED THEY OUGHT TO BE ASHAMED OF THEMSELVES I WILL TELL YOU SOMETHING ABOUT THAT ONCE UPON A TIME SOME FARMERS THOUGHT THEY WOULD KILL US ALL BECAUSE WE STOLE THEIR CORN SO THEY ALL WENT OUT TOGETHER WITH THEIR GUNS AND WHENEVER THEY SAW ANY OF US THEY FIRED AT US AND KILLED US UNTIL AT LAST THERE WAS NOT A ROOK LEFT IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY FOR ALL THOSE THAT HAD NOT BEEN SHOT HAD FLOWN AWAY THE FARMERS WERE SO GLAD FOR THEY THOUGHT THAT NEXT YEAR THEY WOULD HAVE A MUCH BETTER HARVEST BUT THEY WERE QUITE WRONG FOR INSTEAD OF HAVING A BETTER HARVEST THEY HAD HARDLY ANY HARVEST AT ALL THE SLUGS IN THE CATERPILLARS AND ABOVE ALL THE GREAT HUNGRY COCKCHAFER GRUBS HAD EATEN ALMOST EVERYTHING UP FOR YOU SEE THERE WERE NO HUNGRY ROOKS TO EAT THEM THE LITTLE CORN WE USED TO TAKE FROM THE FARMERS THEY COULD VERY WELL HAVE SPARED BUT NOW WITHOUT US THEY FOUND THAT THEY HAD LOST MUCH MORE THAN THEY COULD SPARE
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