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THE HUNTED KING
What boy or girl has not heard the story of King Robert Brace and the
spider? I will tell you another story of the same brave and famous
king. He had fought a battle with his enemies, the English. His little
army had been beaten and scattered. Many of his best friends had been
killed or captured. The king himself was obliged to hide in the wild
woods while his foes hunted for him with hounds.
For many days he wandered through rough and dangerous places. He waded
rivers and climbed mountains. Sometimes two or three faithful friends
were with him. Sometimes he was alone. Sometimes his enemies were very
close upon him.
Late one evening he came to a little farmhouse in a lonely valley. He
walked in without knocking. A woman was sitting alone by the fire.
"May a poor traveler find rest and shelter here for the night?" he
asked. The woman answered, "All travelers are welcome for the sake of
one; and you are welcome"
"Who is that one?" asked the king.
"That is Robert the Bruce," said the woman. "He is the rightful lord
of this country. He is now being hunted with hounds, but I hope soon
to see him king over all Scotland."
"Since you love him so well," said the king, "I will tell you
something. I am Robert the Bruce."
"You!" cried the woman in great surprise. "Are you the Bruce, and are
you all alone?"
"My men have been scattered," said the king, "and therefore there is
no one with me."
"That is not right," said the brave woman. "I have two sons who are
gallant and trusty. They shall go with you and serve you."
So she called her two sons. They were tall and strong young men, and
they gladly promised to go with the king and help him.
[Illustration]
The king sat down by the fire, and the woman hurried to get things
ready for supper. The two young men got down their bows and arrows,
and all were busy making plans for the next day.
Suddenly a great noise was heard outside. They listened. They heard
the tramping of horses and the voices of a number of men.
"The English! the English!" said the young men.
"Be brave, and defend your king with your lives," said their mother.
Then some one outside called loudly, "Have you seen King Robert the
Bruce pass this way?"
"That is my brother Edward's voice," said the king. "These are friends,
not enemies."
The door was thrown open and he saw a hundred brave men, all ready to
give him aid. He forgot his hunger; he forgot his weariness. He began
to ask about his enemies who had been hunting him.
"I saw two hundred of them in the village below us," said one of his
officers. "They are resting there for the night and have no fear of
danger from us. If you have a mind to make haste, we may surprise
them."
"Then let us mount and ride," said the king.
The next minute they were off. They rushed suddenly into the village.
They routed the king's enemies and scattered them.
And Robert the Bruce was never again obliged to hide in the woods or
to run from savage hounds. Soon he became the real king and ruler of
all Scotland,
"TRY, TRY AGAIN!"
There was once a famous ruler of Tartary whose name was Tamerlane.
Like Alexander the Great, he wished to become the master of the whole
world. So he raised a great army and made war against other countries.
He conquered many kings and burned many cities.
But at last his army was beaten; his men were scattered; and Tamerlane
fled alone from the field of battle.
For a long time he wandered in fear from place to place. His foes were
looking for him. He was in despair. He was about to lose all hope.
One day he was lying under a tree, thinking of his misfortunes. He had
now been a wanderer for twenty days. He could not hold out much
longer. Suddenly he saw a small object creeping up the trunk of the
tree. He looked more closely and saw that it was an ant. The ant was
carrying a grain of wheat as large as itself.
As Tamerlane looked, he saw that there was a hole in the tree only a
little way above, and that this was the home of the ant. "You are a
brave fellow, Mr. Ant," he said; "but you have a heavy load to carry."
Just as he spoke, the ant lost its footing and fell to the ground. But
it still held on to the grain of wheat.
A second time it tried to carry its load up the rough trunk of the
tree, and a second time it failed.
Tamerlane watched the brave little insect. It tried three times, four
times, a dozen times, twenty times--but always with the same result.
Then it tried the twenty-first time. Slowly, one little step at a time,
it crept up across the rough place where it had slipped and fallen so
often. The next minute it ran safely into its home, carrying its
precious load. "Well done!" said Tamerlane. "You have taught me a
lesson. I, too, will try, try again, till I succeed."
And this he did.
Of what other story does this remind you?
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THE HUNTED KING [short story by James Baldwin]
Read next: WHY HE CARRIED THE TURKEY
Read previous: THE KING AND THE PAGE
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