Tom was going along the rocks in three-fathom water when he saw a round cage of green withes, and inside it, looking very much ashamed of himself, sat his friend the lobster.
"What! Have you been naughty, and have they put you in the lock-up? "asked Tom.
The lobster felt a little indignant at such a notion, but he only said, "I can"t get out. ""Why did you get in? "
"After that nasty piece of dead fish. " "Where did you get in?""Through that round hole at the top. " "Then why don"t you get out through it? ""Because I can"t, " and the lobster twiddled his horns more fiercely than ever, but he was forced to confess.
"I have jumped upwards, downwards, backwards, and sideways at least four thousand times, and I can"t get out. "Tom looked at the trap, and, having more wit thanthe lobster, he saw plainly enough what was the matter. "Stop a bit, " said Tom. "Turn your tail up to me, andI"ll pull you through hindforemost, and then you won"t stick in the spikes. "But the lobster was so stupid and clumsy that he couldn"t hit the hole. Tom reached and caught hold of him; and then, as was to be expected, the clumsy lobster pulled him in headforemost.
"Hullo! Here is a pretty business, " said Tom. "Now take your great claws and break the points off those spikes, and then we shall both get out easily. ""I never thought of that, " said the lobster.
But they had not got half the spikes away when they saw a great dark cloud over them, and, lo and behold, it was the otter!
How she did grin and grin when she saw Tom! "Yar!" said she, "you little meddlesome wretch, I have you now!" And she crawled all over the pot to get in.
Tom was horribly frightened when she found the hole in the top and squeezed herself right down through it, all eyes and teeth. But no sooner was her head inside than Mr. Lobster caught her by the nose and held on.
And there they were all three in the pot, rolling over and over, and very tight packing it was. And the lobstertore at the otter, and the otter tore at the lobster, and both squeezed poor Tom till he had no breath left in his body; and I don"t know what would have happened to him if he had not got on the otter"s back and out of the hole.
Drawn by Miss E. H. Rix
"Tom reached and caught hold of him. "
He was right glad when he got out; but he would not desert his friend who had saved him, and the first time he saw his tail uppermost he caught hold of it, and pulled with all his might.
But the lobster would not let go.
"Come along, " said Tom; "don"t you see she is dead?" And so she was, quite drowned and dead.
And that was the end of the wicked otter. But the lobster would not let go.
"Come along, you stupid old stick-in-the-mud, " cried Tom, "or the fisherman will catch you! " And that was true, for Tom felt some one above beginning to haul up the pot.
But the lobster would not let go.
Tom saw the fisherman haul him up to the boatside, and thought it was all up with him. But, when Mr. Lobster saw the fisherman, he gave such a furious and tremendous snap that he snapped out of his hand, and out of the pot, and safe into the sea. But he left his knobbed claw behind him; for it never came into his stupid head to let go after all, so he just shook his claw off as the easier method.
Tom asked the lobster why he never thought of letting go. He replied very firmly that it was a point ofhonour among lobsters.
From The Water-Babies, by Charles KinGsley.
About the Author.-Charles KinGsley (1819-1875), born in Devon, spent nearly all his life as a clergyman in Hampshire, but in his later years was a professor of history at Cambridge and was for a time chaplain to Queen Victoria. He wrote many fine novels-Alton Locke, Yeast, Two Years Ago, Westward Ho!, Hereward the Wake, The Water Babies, Hypatia, etc.
About the Story.-Tom was a little London chimney-sweep who ran away from his cruel master. He had wonderful adventures under the sea with all the sea creatures. Which animal was Tom"s friend? Why did the lobster not let go?
