LESSON VIII.
1. I will now tell you a story of a cat that made good use of his claws and teeth.
2. In a country place by the sea-shore an old eagle used to sail around in the air looking for something to eat.
3. If she saw a rabbit or a hare, or a little lamb or kid, she would pounce down and seize it in her strong claws, and fly away with it to her nest high up among the rocks.
4. The eagle became so bold at last that she would swoop down and carry off a chicken from the farm-yard close by the house.
5. One day old Tom, the house-cat, a big old fellow, went out to take a walk, and, as the weather was warm, he lay down in the sun to take a nap near by where the rabbits lived.
6. This old cat had done a great deal of hunting on his own account, and was not afraid of anything he had ever met.
7. The eagle saw Tom as he lay there asleep, and thinking she had found a nice, fat rabbit, she pounced down upon him and carried him off.
8. Tom awoke and found himself sailing through the air at a great rate, while something pinched him very unpleasantly in the back.
9. He turned and struck his sharp claws and teeth into the eagle, tore out her feathers, and then tore into her skin and flesh.
10. The eagle thought she had found a queer rabbit, and tried to let him go; but Tom held on and still tore and bit.
11. Soon the eagle began to lose strength and flapped slowly downward. At last she reached the ground so badly torn that she soon died, while the cat ran off with only a few scratches.