OR “HELP ONE ANOTHER!”
A PARTY of the long-tailed monkeys wanted to cross a narrow river over which there was no bridge.
There was a tree on each bank of the river; the ingenious creatures ran to the top of one of these, when one of the largest of them grasped hold of the first one’s tail. A third took hold of the second monkey’s tail, and so on until they formed a long string hanging down nearly to the surface of the river.
A traveller who was in the distance, then saw them begin to swing backwards and forwards, until the last monkey was able with his claws to catch hold of the tree on the opposite side of the river. This monkey then began to ascend the tree until he gained the same height as his comrade, who was still holding on to the tree on the opposite side of the river.
A signal was given, and the first monkey gently let go his hold, and the whole unbroken chain was quickly hanging on the opposite side of the water. A loud clattering of joy was heard, and in a moment, the monkeys were capering about in all directions.
Rarely should we hear of quarrels between brothers and sisters, provided they would, like the long-tailed monkeys, “help one another.”
