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ONCE UPON A TIME THERE WAS A YOUNG RAT NAMED ARTHUR WHO COULDN'T MAKE UP HIS MIND
WHENEVER THE OTHER RATS ASKED HIM IF HE WOULD LIKE TO GO OUT HUNTING WITH THEM HE WOULD ANSWER IN A SOFT VOICE I DON'T KNOW.
AND WHEN THEY SAID WOULD YOU RATHER STAY INSIDE HE WOULDN'T SAY YES OR NO EITHER.
HE'D ALWAYS AVOID MAKING A CHOICE
ONE FINE DAY HIS AUNT ZELDA APPEALED TO HIM NOW LOOK HERE
NO ONE IS GOING TO CARE ABOUT YOU IF YOU CARRY ON LIKE THIS
YOU HAVE NO MORE MIND OF YOUR OWN THAN A GREASY OLD BLADE OF GRASS
ARTHUR COUGHED AND LOOKED WISE AS USUAL BUT SAID NOTHING
DON'T YOU THINK SO SAID ZELDA STAMPING HER FOOT FOR SHE COULDN'T BEAR TO SEE THE POOR LITTLE RAT SO COLDBLOODED
I DON'T KNOW WAS ALL HE EVER ANSWERED
AND THEN HE'D WALK OFF TO THINK FOR AN HOUR OR MORE
ABOUT WHETHER HE WOULD STAY IN HIS HOLE IN THE GROUND OR GO UP INTO THE LOFT
ONE NIGHT THE RATS HEARD A LOUD NOISE
THEY LIVED IN A VERY DARK AND DREARY OLD PLACE
THE ROOF LET THE RAIN COME WASHING IN
MAKING SHALLOW POOLS ON THE MUDDY FLOOR.
THE BEAMS AND RAFTERS WERE ALL ROTTEN THROUGH
SO EVENTUALLY THE WHOLE STRUCTURE WAS QUITE UNSAFE
AT LAST ONE OF THE JOISTS GAVE WAY AND THE BEAMS FELL DOWN.
THE WALLS SHOOK AND THE CEILING COLLAPSED WITH A LOUD BANG
THE RATS SHRIEKED AND THEIR FUR STOOD ON END WITH FEAR AND HORROR
THIS WON'T DO SAID THEIR LEADER WITH A SCOWL
WE CAN'T STAY COOPED UP HERE ANY LONGER.
SO HE SENT OUT SCOUTS TO SEARCH FOR A NEW HOME
A LITTLE LATER ON IN THE EVENING THEY CAME BACK
HAVING FOUND AN OLD-FASHIONED BARN NEAR A STONE HOUSE WHERE THERE WOULD BE ROOM
BOARD AND FOOD FOR ALL OF THEM.
THERE THEY SAW A KINDLY MARE NAMED ALBERTA
A COW AND SOME BIRDS IN THE GARDEN WITH AN ELM TREE IN THE MIDDLE.
THE LEADER GAVE THE ORDER AT ONCE COMPANY FALL IN.
THE RATS CRAWLED OUT OF THEIR HOLES RIGHT AWAY AND THE SAD MOB STOOD ON THE FLOOR IN A LONG LINE
JUST THEN THE OLD RAT CAUGHT SIGHT OF YOUNG ARTHUR
HE WASN'T IN THE LINE AND HE WASN'T EXACTLY OUTSIDE IT
HE STOOD JUST NEARBY EARS PRICKED.
COME ON GET IN LINE GROWLED THE OLD RODENT UNAMUSED.
YOU ARE COMING TOO AREN’T YOU
I DON'T KNOW SAID ARTHUR CALMLY.
WHY THE IDEA OF IT YOU DON'T THINK IT'S SAFE HERE ANYMORE DO YOU
I'M NOT CERTAIN SAID ARTHUR UNDAUNTED.
THE ROOF MAY NOT FALL DOWN YET.
WELL SAID THE OLD RAT YOU WOULD BE STUPID NOT TO JOIN US.
THEN HE TURNED TO THE ASSEMBLED GROUP AND SHOUTED
RIGHT ABOUT FACE MARCH
AND THE LONG LINE MARCHED OUT OF THE BARN WHILE THE YOUNG RAT WATCHED THEM
I THINK I'LL GO TOMORROW HE SAID TO HIMSELF
BUT THEN AGAIN PERHAPS I WON'T
IT'S SO NICE AND SNUG HERE.
I GUESS I'LL GO BACK TO MY HOLE UNDER THE LOG FOR A WHILE BEFORE I MAKE UP MY MIND
BUT DURING THE NIGHT THERE WAS A BIG CRASH.
DOWN CAME BEAMS RAFTERS JOISTS — THE WHOLE BUSINESS IN A PILE OF RUBBLE
NEXT MORNING THERE WAS A FOGGY DEW.
SOME BOYS AND GIRLS RAN TO THE BARN AND A MAN IN BOOTS CAME TO VIEW THE DAMAGE.
IT SEEMED ODD THAT THE OLD BUILDING WAS NOT HAUNTED BY RATS.
BUT AT LAST ONE OF THE CHILDREN HAPPENED TO NUDGE A BOARD AND HE SAW A PUNY RAT
QUITE DEAD TAIL HALF IN AND HALF OUT OF HIS HOLE.
THUS THE COWARD GOT HIS DUE AND THERE WAS NO MOURNING FOR HIM
ONCE UPON A TIME THERE WAS A GIRL CALLED CINDERELLA
BUT EVERYONE CALLED HER CINDERS
CINDERS LIVED WITH HER MOTHER AND TWO STEPSISTERS CALLED LILY AND ROSA.
LILY AND ROSA WERE VERY UNFRIENDLY AND THEY WERE LAZY GIRLS.
THEY SPENT ALL THEIR TIME BUYING NEW CLOTHES AND GOING TO PARTIES
POOR CINDERS HAD TO WEAR ALL THEIR OLD HAND-ME-DOWNS
AND SHE HAD TO DO THE CLEANING
ONE DAY A ROYAL MESSENGER CAME TO ANNOUNCE A BALL
THE BALL WOULD BE HELD AT THE ROYAL PALACE IN HONOUR OF THE QUEENS ONLY SON PRINCE WILLIAm
LILY AND ROSA THOUGHT THIS WAS DIVINE
PRINCE WILLIAM WAS GORGEOUS AND HE WAS LOOKING FOR A BRIDE
THEY DREAMED OF WEDDING BELLS
WHEN THE EVENING OF THE BALL ARRIVED CINDERS HAD TO HELP HER SISTERS GET READY
THEY WERE IN A BAD MOOD
THEY'D WANTED TO BUY SOME NEW GOWNS BUT THEIR MOTHER SAID THAT THEY HAD ENOUGH GOWNS
SO THEY STARTED SHOUTING AT CINDERS
'FIND MY JEWELS' YELLED ONE
'FIND MY HAT' HOWLED THE OTHER
THEY WANTED HAIRBRUSHES HAIRPINS AND HAIR SPRAY
WHEN THE SUNLIGHT STRIKES RAINDROPS IN THE AIR THEY ACT AS A PRISM AND FORM A RAINbow
THE RAINBOW IS A DIVISION OF WHITE LIGHT INTO MANY BEAUTIFUL COLORS
THESE TAKE THE SHAPE OF A LONG ROUND ARCH WITH ITS PATH HIGH ABOVE AND ITS TWO ENds apparently beyond the horizon
THERE IS ACCORDING TO LEGEND A BOILING POT OF GOLD AT ONE END
PEOPLE LOOK BUT NO ONE EVER FINDS IT
WHEN A MAN LOOKS FOR SOMETHING BEYOND HIS REACH HIS FRIENDS SAY HE IS LOOKING FOR the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow
THROUGHOUT THE CENTURIES PEOPLE HAVE EXPLAINED THE RAINBOW IN VARIOUS WAYS
SOME HAVE ACCEPTED IT AS A MIRACLE WITHOUT PHYSICAL EXPLANATION
TO THE HEBREWS IT WAS A TOKEN THAT THERE WOULD BE NO MORE UNIVERSAL FLOODS
THE GREEKS USED TO IMAGINE THAT IT WAS A SIGN FROM THE GODS TO FORETELL WAR OR HEAVy rain
THE NORSEMEN CONSIDERED THE RAINBOW AS A BRIDGE OVER WHICH THE GODS PASSED FROM EARth to their home in the sky
OTHERS HAVE TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE PHENOMENON PHYSICALLY
ARISTOTLE THOUGHT THAT THE RAINBOW WAS CAUSED BY REFLECTION OF THE SUN'S RAYS BY THe rain
SINCE THEN PHYSICISTS HAVE FOUND THAT IT IS NOT REFLECTION
BUT REFRACTION BY THE RAINDROPS WHICH CAUSES THE RAINBOWS
MANY COMPLICATED IDEAS ABOUT THE RAINBOW HAVE BEEN FORMED
THE DIFFERENCE IN THE RAINBOW DEPENDS CONSIDERABLY UPON THE SIZE OF THE DROPS
AND THE WIDTH OF THE COLORED BAND INCREASES AS THE SIZE OF THE DROPS INCREASES
THE ACTUAL PRIMARY RAINBOW OBSERVED
IS SAID TO BE THE EFFECT OF SUPER-IMPOSITION OF A NUMBER OF BOWS.
IF THE RED OF THE SECOND BOW FALLS UPON THE GREEN OF THE FIRST
THE RESULT IS TO GIVE A BOW WITH AN ABNORMALLY WIDE YELLOW BAND
SINCE RED AND GREEN LIGHT WHEN MIXED FORM YELLOW
THIS IS A VERY COMMON TYPE OF BOW
ONE SHOWING MAINLY RED AND YELLOW