One day the crab was sitting near the door of his home eating a rice cake.
A monkey came walking by with an orange seed in his hand.
The monkey said to the crab, “Good morning, Mr. Crab. How are you today?”
“Good morning Mr. Monkey, I’m very well, thank you.” said the crab.
“I will give you orange seed for your rice cake. You may plant this seed.
It will grow to be an orange tree, and many oranges will grow on the tree”,
the monkey said.
The crab took the seed and gave the cake to the monkey.
The crab planted the seed and watered it every day.
When the tree was large enough, many oranges grew on it.
One day, the monkey came again to seethe the crab. “Good afternoon, Mr.
Crab. How are you this morning?”he said.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Monkey,” said the crab. “I am very well thank
you.”
“Did you plant the orange seed which I gave you?” said the monkey.
“Yes”, said the crab. “It has grown, and there are many ripe oranges on it.
But I cannot get the oranges, because I cannot climb the tree.
If you will climb the tree and get the oranges, I will give you haft of
them.”
The monkey said that he was glad to help the crab.
He took a basket and climbed the tree. He ate some of the best oranges in
his basket.
He said, “This is mine.”
Then he took a green orange from the tree and threw at the crab on the
ground and said, “That is yours.”
When all the ripe oranges are in the basket,
the crab said, “Mr. Monkey, I cannot eat the green oranges.
You must give me haft of the ripe oranges.
But the monkey said “Did you not say that you would give me haft oranges if
I would climb the tree?
So every orange I have out into my basket is mine”
The crab said nothing more.
But he went under the tree and waited for the monkey.
When the monkey was coming down from the tree, the crab caught the tail with
his big foot and pinched it.
The monkey drops the basket and climbed into the tree again.
The crab took oranges out of basket.
He cried, “Mr. Monkey you tried to trick me, and now you shall have no
oranges.”
