The Wolf and the Crane

A wolf was eating greedily at the edge of the forest when a sharp bone stuck fast in his throat. He coughed and gasped, but he could neither swallow it nor draw it out. His eyes rolled with pain, and his great paws were useless for so delicate a task.

He went along the path begging for help. The rabbits hid in their holes, the deer fled at the sound of his steps, and the birds kept high in the branches. At last he saw a crane standing by the water. “Good crane,” he groaned, “your neck is long and slender. Put your head into my mouth and pull out this bone. If you save me, I will reward you richly.”

The crane looked at the wolf’s teeth and trembled. To put her head into such a mouth seemed a very dangerous business. Yet the wolf was in misery, and he repeated his promise. So the crane stepped near, stretched out her long neck, and very carefully reached into the wolf’s throat. Holding her breath, she gripped the bone and drew it out.

The wolf gave a great sigh of relief. When the crane asked for the promised reward, he showed his teeth and laughed. “Reward? You put your head into a wolf’s mouth and took it out again safely. That is reward enough.”

The crane flew away angry and wiser. She had learned that a wicked creature’s promise may disappear the moment his trouble is gone.