We
will not have you to reign over us.''
Then the birds gathered together again and
made another condition, that he should be king
who could go the deepest into the earth.
How the goose wallowed in the sand, and the
duck strove to dig a hole! All the other birds, too,
tried to hide themselves in the ground. The little
bird without a name found a mouse's hole, and
creeping in cried:--
``I am king! I am king!''
``You, our king!'' all the birds cried again,
more angrily than before. ``Do you think that we
would reward your cunning in this way? No, no!
You shall stay in the earth till you die of hunger!''
So they shut up the little bird in the mouse's
hole, and bade the owl watch him carefully night
and day. Then all the birds went home to bed,
for they were very tired; but the owl found it
lonely and wearisome sitting alone staring at the
mouse's hole.
``I can close one eye and watch with the other,''
he thought. So he closed one eye and stared
steadfastly with the other; but before he knew it
he forgot to keep that one open, and both eyes
were fast asleep.
Then the little bird without a name peeped out,
and when he saw Master Owl's two eyes tight
shut, he slipped from the hole and flew away.
From this time on the owl has not dared to
show himself by day lest the birds should pull him
to pieces.
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