A Donkey's Story

I am a little gray donkey with white feet and a white nose. To look at me you would not guess how many adventures I have had. But I will tell you.

Every Tuesday morning, my mistress got up very early. She filled big baskets with eggs and butter and fresh vegetables. She tied the baskets to my saddle. Then she climbed up and sat on the saddle in the middle of the load.

Now a big strong woman and many baskets of vegetables make a heavy load for a little donkey like me. I could have managed very well if my mistress had let me walk along slowly. But she wanted to get to the market early. So she beat me with a hard sharp stick.

I made my little legs go as fast as they could, but she was not satisfied. She beat me all the more. That made me angry because I was doing my best. I would try to kick and throw off the load, but it was too heavy.

One day my load was heavier than usual. When we reached the market, my mistress took off my baskets and set them on the ground. She tied me and went off to get something to eat.

I was hungry and thirsty after my long journey, but my mistress never thought of that. I cried: "Hee-haw! hee-haw!" in hopes some­body would give me some grass or a drink of water, but nobody did.

One basket stood on the ground near me. How good the vegeta­bles smelled! By pulling my rope I could reach them. I know it was naughty, but I was so hungry I ate up all the cabbage and lettuce in the basket.

Just as I was finishing the last leaf, my mistress came back. She was very angry and beat me with her hard, sharp stick. I could not bear any more. I broke my rope and ran away as fast as I could.

My mistress tried to catch me, but I was too quick for her. I ran and ran until I met a man and woman with a little boy.

“That little gray donkey must have run away,” said the man.

“Let us put our little boy on his back,” said the woman.

I wanted to show them that I was really a good little donkey, so I came up close to the woman and stood still.

“He can carry you home, too,” said the man, and he helped his wife and little boy to settle themselves on my back.

"He seems like a good-natured little donkey," said the man.

I felt like telling him that we donkeys are always good-natured, when people are kind to us, but all I could say was, "Hee-haw! hee­-haw!"

I carried the woman and her little boy home safely. The little boy's father walked by my side. I liked these people and wanted to stay with them, but I knew I belonged to Hedge Farm. It would not be right to leave it for these strangers. So I ran off home.

"How early Whitenose is back from market!" said my master's little daughter, Mary.

"He has run away I believe," said her brother Jim.  "I would beat him if I were sure of it.”

He gave me a kick instead.

When my mistress came home, I heard her tell what I had done.

"I shall give that bad donkey a good beating," said Jim.

"You may beat him as much as you like, but do not kill him," said his father. "I am going to sell him next market day."

I was so frightened that I jumped over the hedge and ran away to hide in the forest. There was plenty of fresh grass there and a spring of cool water. After supper I lay down on the moss and went to sleep.

I thought I should be safe and happy in this quiet wood, but in the morning I heard dogs barking. I knew they were the dogs from Hedge Farm and that they were trying to find me.

I ran down to the brook.  The bushes on each side hid me.  I knew that if I waded in the water the dogs could not follow my tracks. I walked and walked in the brook until I was very tired and cold.

At last I could not hear the dogs barking any longer. By this time, I had come out of the woods into a big pasture. There were many cows in the pasture nibbling the grass. They paid no atten­tion to me, so I lay down and had a good rest.

Toward night two men came into the pasture.

"We must take the cows in tonight," said one. "There are wolves in the forest. They have eaten the donkey from Hedge Farm."

"Nonsense," said the other. "The people at Hedge Farm are cruel. They have probably beaten their donkey to death. They do not want us to know this, so they say that the wolves ate him."

"Just the same, I think it would be better to take the cows in to­night," said the first man.

They drove the cows out of the pasture. I was not afraid. I knew that the wolves had not eaten the donkey from Hedge Farm, because I was that very donkey.

The next day I ran off to another forest. I lived there until cold weather came on. Then I had to find a new home. I set out for the nearest village and there I saw a neat little house. There was a kind-faced old woman sitting by the door knitting. She looked so sad and so good that I laid my head on her shoulder.

"Poor little donkey," she said. "If you have no home and no mas­ter, I should like to keep you to take the place of old Graycoat who died not long ago."