MIKE’S BRAN PIE.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 April 1928, Page 18

MIKE’S BRAN PIE.

Mike the monkey sat in a coconut tree and watched Sonny all the afterncon. Sonny was having a party in his garden, and there was a bran pie which interested Mike so much that he determined to have one himself. So back he went to the jungle and sent but invitations to his bran pie. Then he became, very worried. “My goodness,” he thought, “I shall have to give presents to my guests'. I must think of a plan by which I can get out of that, because I want the presents myself.” He thought ail day, and an idea came to him in the night. Next morning Mike was very ■ busy.' ■ “Mike’s collecting lovely presents for his bran pie,” said the jungle folk, i “Fruit, and nuts, and all sorts of whatnots.” They were very excited, and when the great day arrived they were quite ready to do justice to his wonderful feast. Now' Mike’s bran pie was a queer one. He had pv.t his presents on the ground, and built a stone pie over them, and the stones were stuck together with ciay. There was a hole in the top of the pie, and like had made it so small that nobody but Prim the parrot could get a claw through it. He would say that their hands were so big that they could not get his presents. When Mike’s friends saw the pie, they thought it must be a trap so they begged Mike to have the first dip. In went Mike’s little paw, but when he got hold of a gripe fruit he could not pull it out because the hole was too small.

“Trapped yourself,” laughed the jungle folk. How they teased him. And Mike sat sadly by his bran pie, for he never thought, of pulling it down, and he was sorry he had been so greedy.

“It d. csn’t pay to be selfish,” thought Mike.