ONCE upon a time there lived an old man and an old woman in a cottage beside a brook. They had two cows, five hens and a rooster, and a cat and two kittens. The old man looked after the cows and the poultry, and the old wife sat much of the time by the fireside busy with her knitting. The kittens often pounced on the old wife's ball of yarn and tussled it about over the hearth. "Shoo! shoo!" she would say, "Go away!"

One morning, just after breakfast, she thought she would get something ready to eat for lunch, a little later. So she filled a dish with oatmeal and made two bannocks. They were each a thin, flat cake about as large as a small plate. After baking them, she set them up on edge before the fire to harden.

Presently the old man came in, and drawing a chair up to the hearth, sat down. Then he took one of the bannocks, snapped it through the middle and began to eat it. The other bannock saw what happened to its companion, and it felt very much alarmed. "I don't want to be broken in two like that and ground up between somebody's teeth," it said.

Just then it noticed the old wife reaching out her hand toward it, and off it ran as fast as it could go. The old wife dropped her knitting and jumped up to give chase, but the wee bannock ran out at the door and along the road and was soon beyond

sight. It ran till it came to a house, and then it went boldly into the kitchen straight to the fireside.

There were three tailors in the room sitting at work on a big bench, and by the fire sat an old woman carding tow. When the tailors saw the bannock, they jumped up and got behind the good-wife. One had a goose in his hand, another an ironing board, and the third some big shears.

 "Hoot!" said the woman, "don't be afraid. It's but a wee bannock. Grip it and I'll give you a sup of milk with it."

Up she got with her tow-cards, and they all began to chase the wee bannock, but it dodged them, running this way and that on the hearth; and one of the tailors, thinking to snap it with the shears, fell into the ashes. Then another of the tailors cast the goose at it, and the third one let fly the ironing board, while the goodwife threw the tow-cards. But they failed to hit it, and the bannock ran away out of the house.

It hurried on until it came to a wayside cottage. In it went, and there it found a weaver sitting at a loom, and his wife winding a spool of yarn. "Tibby," said the man to his wife, when he saw the bannock, "what's that?"

"Oh!" replied she, "it's a wee bannock."

 

 "Then it has come to the right place," said he, "for our porridge was thin today, and I'm hungry. Grip it, my woman, grip it!"

"I'll try," said she, "but you must help."

The bannock began running again. "That's a clever bannock," cried the wife. "Catch it, Willie, catch it, man!"

"Cast the spool at it!" shouted Willie.

But the bannock dodged about, and off it went out at the door and over a hill till it came to a mill.

In it ran, and there was the miller sifting meal. "Ah! my friend," said he, looking up, "it's a sign of plenty when you are running about and nobody to look after you. Now, I like a bannock and cheese as well as anything I can think of. Come hither, and I'll give you night's quarters."

But the bannock would not trust itself with the miller and his cheese. So it turned and ran out and kept on running till it came to a blacksmith's shop. In it went and up to the anvil. The smith was making horseshoe nails. "It's full three hours since I ate last," said he, "and a well-toasted bannock would taste very good. You're exceedingly welcome."

His words, however, frightened the bannock, and it turned and was off as fast as it could go. The smith made a dash after it and threw his hammer; but he neither caught the bannock nor hit it, and it was soon out of sight.

It ran on and on till it came to a farmhouse with a big peat stack at the far end, and in it went straight to the fireside. The goodman was mending a shoe, and the goodwife was heckling flax. "Oh, Janet!" cried he, "there's a wee bannock! I'll have a half of it."

"Well, John, I 'II have the other half," said she. "Hit it over the back with the shoe you're mending."

But the bannock played dodgings. "Hoot, toot! '' the wife exclaimed and threw the heckle at it.

The bannock was too quick for her, and out of the  door it went, and along the road it ran to the next house. It trotted in to the fireside, and there was the goodwife stirring the soup, and at the other side of the room sat the goodman making a heather broom.

"Ho, Jock!" cried the goodwife, "come to the fireplace. You're always hungry for a bannock. Here's one. Make haste, and I'll help you to grip it."

"Ay, mother," said he, getting up, "Where is it?"

 "See there!" she exclaimed. "Go over on that side!"

 

But the bannock ran in behind the goodman's chair. He cast his half-made broom at it, and the goodwife threw her porridge-stick. The wee bannock, however, was too lively for Jock and her both, and was off and soon beyond sight down the road.

When it reached the next house, in it ran and went snug to the fireside. The family were just sitting down to their soup, and the goodwife was scraping the pot. "Look!" cried she, "here's a wee bannock come in to warm itself at our fire."

"Shut the door," said the goodman, "and we'll try to catch it."

When the bannock heard that, it ran out of the house, and the family, with their spoons, followed in hot pursuit. The man shied his hat at it, but it got no harm and hurried on till it came to another house. The sun had now set and the gloom of night was near. The wee bannock ran into the house and found the family getting ready to go to bed. The goodman was taking off his coat and the goodwife was raking the fire. "What's that?" asked he.

"Oh!" replied she, "it's a wee bannock."

"I could eat half of it," said he.

"Grip it!" cried the wife, "and I'll have a bit too. Cast your coat at it!"

The goodman threw his coat and came near smothering the wee bannock but it wriggled out and ran forth from the house, and the goodman after it. There was a chase .across a pasture and in among some furze bushes, and then the goodman lost sight of it and returned home.

The stars were beginning to twinkle in the sky, and the darkness was fast increasing. The wee bannock could hardly see its way, but it stumbled along till it came to a fox's hole. There was the fox looking out and feeling very hungry, for it had eaten nothing since the day before yesterday. "Oh, welcome, welcome!" it cried, and seized the unexpected food in its teeth and ate it, and that was the end of the wee bannock.