began to weary the man. He chafed and was often
disagreeable to it, although he realized its glory and beauty and the
feather it was in his cap. Finally, one day, in a fit of desperation,
the man let the Humming Bird fly, and crept back home to the homely
brown Sparrow, with its irritating noises and utter want of beauty. Why
was this, Sage?"

The Sage had not to think long.

"Custom, my child," he said. "Custom forges stronger chains than the
finest plumage of a Humming Bird. The man had to put himself out and
exert himself to retain the Humming Bird in a way that was not agreeable
to his self-love, whereas the brown Sparrow lived on always the same,
causing him no trouble, and custom had deadened the sense of its want of
charm."

"Then it seems to me it was rather hard upon the poor Humming Bird!"
said the Damsel.

"It is always hard upon the Humming Birds," replied the Sage, and his
voice was quite sad.

* * * * *

The rain did not cease for a long time. It was more than an hour before
the Damsel left the cave.

* * * * *

_If you are a Humming Bird it is wiser for you to remain in the
possession of the Travelling Showman._

* * * * *

A long period elapsed after this before the Damsel again tapped at the
Sage's door. He looked out morning and evening, and attributed his lack
of enthusiasm for his devotions to an attack of rheumatism from the damp
of his cave. At last, one morning he spied her sauntering slowly up the
hill, and he retired into the back of his cell, and the Damsel had to
knock twice before he opened the window shutter. She was in a gay mood,
and demanded a story, so the Sage began:

"There was once upon a time a Fish with glittering scales who swam about
in a deep river. It had been tempted by the flies of many Fishermen,
but had laughed at them all and swam away, just under the surface of the
water, so that the sun might shine on its glittering scales to please
the eyes of the Fishermen and to excite their desire to secure it. It
was a Fish who laughed a good deal at life. But one fine day a new
Angler came along; he was young and beautiful, and seemed lazy and
happy, and not particularly anxious to throw the line. The Fish peeped
at him from the sheltering shadow of a rock. 'This is the most perfect
specimen of a Fisherman I have ever seen,' it said to itself. 'I could
almost believe it would