The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Kipling Reader, by Rudyard Kipling

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Title: The Kipling Reader
Selections from the Books of Rudyard Kipling

Author: Rudyard Kipling

Release Date: August 21, 2005 [EBook #16578]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE KIPLING READER ***

Produced by Roy Brown

THE KIPLING READER

SELECTIONS FROM THE BOOKS OF RUDYARD KIPLING

NEW AND REVISED EDITION

MACMILLAN AND CO, LIMITED
ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON
1923

COPYRIGHT

First Edition 1900. Reprinted with corrections 1901.
Reprinted 1907, 1908, 1910, 1912, 1914, 1916, 1918 (twice),
1919 (twice), 1920, 1921, 1923.

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

CONTENTS

PROSE

'RIKKI-TIKKI-TAVI'
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR PART I
WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR PART II
WEE WILLIE WINKIE
A MATTER OF FACT
MOWGLI'S BROTHERS
THE LOST LEGION
NAMGAY DOOLA
A GERM-DESTROYER
'TIGER! TIGER!'
TODS' AMENDMENT
THE STORY OF MUHAMMAD DIN
THE FINANCES OF THE GODS
MOTI GUJ--MUTINEER

POETRY

THE NATIVE BORN
THE FLOWERS
MUNICIPAL
THE COASTWISE LIGHTS
THE ENGLISH FLAG
ENGLAND'S ANSWER
THE OVERLAND MAIL
IN SPRING TIME

'RIKKI-TIKKI-TAVI'

At the hole where he went in
Red-Eye called to Wrinkle-Skin.
Hear what little Red-Eye saith:
'Nag, come up and dance with death!'

Eye to eye and head to head,
(_Keep the measure, Nag_.)
This shall end when one is dead;
(_At thy pleasure, Nag_.)
Turn for turn and twist for twist--
(_Run and hide thee, Nag_.)
Hah! The hooded Death has missed!
(_Woe betide thee, Nag!_)

This is the story of the great war that Kikki-tikki-tavi fought
single-handed, through the bath-rooms of the big bungalow in Segowlee
cantonment. Darzee, the tailor-bird, helped him, and Chuchundra, the
musk-rat, who never comes out into the middle of the floor, but
always creeps round by the wall, gave him advice; but Rikki-tikki did
the real fighting.

He was a mongoose, rather like a little cat in his fur and his tail,
but quite like a weasel in his head and habits.