Story Hour Readers Part 18

The first frog started along the road which led from Tokio to Kioto.

He found the journey difficult and the road hard to travel. So, when he had hopped to the top of a high hill halfway, he decided to stop a while and rest.

The other frog started out on the same road, but from Kioto.

It took him a long time to reach the hill where the first frog was resting.

The two frogs met at the top of the hill. They were delighted to make each other's acquaintance.

"Greetings, friend!" said the first of the two frogs. "Where are you going?"

"I have a great desire to see the world, and especially to visit Tokio.

I am on my way for a visit to Tokio now," replied the second frog.

"There is no need of hurrying. Let us rest here and stretch our limbs,"

said the first frog.

"What a pity that we are not taller!" said the Kioto frog.

"Why?" asked the Tokio frog.

"If we were taller, we could see both towns from this hill. Then we should be able to tell whether or not it were worth while to continue our journey," said the Kioto frog.

"Oh, we can easily find that out!" replied the other.

"We can stand on our hind legs and take hold of one another. Then each can look at the town toward which he is traveling," he added.

"A fine idea! Let us try it at once."

The two frogs stood upon their hind legs, holding each other tightly to keep from falling.

The Tokio frog turned toward Kioto, and the Kioto frog turned toward Tokio.

The foolish frogs forgot that their eyes were on the backs of their heads.

Although their noses pointed toward the places to which they wished to go, their eyes beheld the towns from which they had just come.

"Indeed, I shall travel no further!" the first frog exclaimed.

"Kioto is exactly like Tokio. I shall go home at once," he added.

"Tokio is only a copy of Kioto," said the other frog.

"It is not worth while to take the trouble to journey there!" he added disdainfully.

The two frogs bade each other a polite farewell, and each returned to his own home town.

To the end of their lives, the two frogs believed that Tokio and Kioto were really exactly alike.

Neither of the frogs ever again tried to see the world.

THE MERCHANT'S CARAVAN

Once there was a merchant who had fine silks and rugs to sell. He wished to send his goods to a country on the other side of the sandy desert.

The merchant owned a large caravan of camels, and he employed many men.

Camels were the only animals strong enough to travel over the desert with the heavy loads.

For many days, Abdul the merchant and his men had been preparing for the journey. The canvas tents and the poles were placed upon one camel.

Great leather bottles of water were loaded upon another camel.

Firewood and bags of rice and barley meal were placed upon still another. It required many camels to carry the merchant's goods.

At last the caravan was ready for the journey. The sun shone steadily, making the sand so hot that no one could walk upon it in the daytime.

But at night both men and camels could travel easily.

So Abdul the merchant said to the men, "Be ready to start after sunset to-night. Give the camels plenty of water to drink, and feed them well, for we shall have a long, hard journey."

Abdul and his men traveled all that night. One man was the pilot. He rode ahead, for he knew the stars, and by them he could guide the caravan.

At daybreak they stopped. They spread the canvas tents and fed the camels. They built fires, cooked the rice, and made cakes of the barley meal. During the day, the men rested in the shade of the tents.

After the evening meal, the caravan started again on its way.

They had traveled thus for three long, silent nights. Early on the third morning, the camels raised their heads, stretched their nostrils, and hastened eagerly forward.

The pilot cried, "The camels smell water and gra.s.s. An oasis is near!"

Before long they could see palm trees, with their spreading leaves waving in the soft breeze.

Joyfully they rested during the day. The camels drank freely from the cool spring. The men filled the great leather bottles with fresh water.

In the evening, refreshed and happy, the men continued the journey.

So they traveled night after night, resting during the heat of the day.

At last, one morning the pilot said, "We shall soon reach the end of our journey."

The men were very glad to hear this, for they were weary, and the camels needed rest.

After supper that night Abdul said, "Throw away the firewood and most of the water. It will lighten the burden of the camels. By to-morrow we shall reach the city."

When the caravan started that evening, the pilot led the way as usual, but after a while, weary with many nights of watching, he fell asleep.

All night long the caravan traveled. At daybreak the pilot awoke and looked at the last star, fading in the morning light.