If you are the Wolf who owns a tail,
to mind mother you should not fail.
If it’s too early to begin,
don’t skate when the ice is thin.
The Funny Fox saw something that amused him. He saw the Willful Wolf with his tail stuck fast in a hole in the ice. He had once told the Willful Wolf he could catch a meal of fish in this way!
The Willful Wolf called,
“Help me out, help me out,
or I’ll stick fast beyond a doubt.”
All the Poplar trees heard his cry, and all the Cat-Tails and grasses swayed to and fro in the wind.
“What will you give me if I help you out?” asked the Funny Fox.
The Willful Wolf said,
“I will give you my bag with money in it.
Please do not wait another minute.”
“That is not enough,” said the Funny Fox.
The Willful Wolf said,
“I will give you my coat with the collar too.
Come, hurry up whatever you do!”
The Funny Fox said, “That is not enough.” The Willful Wolf said,
“I will give you my fur-lined shoes.
You can help me if you choose.”
The Funny Fox had long envied the Willful Wolf his shoes, so he gave a great pull and helped him out. By this time, a great crowd of animals had gathered to see what was going on.
The Funny Fox took the Willful Wolf’s presents and threw them to the Bold Badger for safekeeping, and dragged the Willful Wolf along, for he was nearly frozen. He was stopped by two Leopards who were soldiers for the King, for they thought he was harming the Wolf.
It was only by a cunning trick that the Funny Fox escaped. He had hoped to make a meal of the Willful Wolf but had to leave him instead, which shows, “You can’t count your chickens before they are hatched.”
