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A shepherd's dog had a master who took no care of him, but often

let him suffer the greatest hunger. At last he could bear it no

longer; so he took to his heels, and off he ran in a very sad and

sorrowful mood. On the road he met a sparrow that said to him,

'Why are you so sad, my friend?' 'Because,' said the dog, 'I am

very very hungry, and have nothing to eat.' 'If that be all,'

answered the sparrow, 'come with me into the next town, and I

will soon find you plenty of food.' So on they went together into

the town: and as they passed by a butcher's shop, the sparrow

said to the dog, 'Stand there a little while till I peck you down

a piece of meat.' So the sparrow perched upon the shelf: and

having first looked carefully about her to see if anyone was

watching her, she pecked and scratched at a steak that lay upon

the edge of the shelf, till at last down it fell. Then the dog

snapped it up, and scrambled away with it into a corner, where he

soon ate it all up.