She headed straight for the long grass by the thorn-bush , and as he was running Rikki-tikki heard Darzee still singing his foolish little song of triumph . But Darzee 's wife was wiser . She flew off her nest as Nagaina came along , and flapped her wings about Nagaina 's head . If Darzee had helped they might have turned her , but Nagaina only lowered her hood and went on . Still , the instant 's delay brought Rikki-tikki up to her , and as she plunged into the rat-hole where she and Nag used to live , his little white teeth were clenched on her tail , and he went down with her -- and very few mongooses , however wise and old they may be , care to follow a cobra into its hole . It was dark in the hole ; and Rikki-tikki never knew when it might open out and give Nagaina room to turn and strike at him . He held on savagely , and stuck out his feet to act as brakes on the dark slope of the hot , moist earth . Then the grass by the mouth of the hole stopped waving , and Darzee said , `` It is all over with Rikki-tikki ! We must sing his death song . Valiant Rikki-tikki is dead ! For Nagaina will surely kill him underground . '' So he sang a very mournful song that he made up on the spur of the minute , and just as he got to the most touching part , the grass quivered again , and Rikki-tikki , covered with dirt , dragged himself out of the hole leg by leg , licking his whiskers . Darzee stopped with a little shout . Rikki-tikki shook some of the dust out of his fur and sneezed . `` It is all over , '' he said . `` The widow will never come out again . '' And the red ants that live between the grass stems heard him , and began to troop down one after another to see if he had spoken the truth . Rikki-tikki curled himself up in the grass and slept where he was -- slept and slept till it was late in the afternoon , for he had done a hard day 's work . `` Now , '' he said , when he awoke , `` I will go back to the house . Tell the Coppersmith , Darzee , and he will tell the garden that Nagaina is dead . ''
The Coppersmith is a bird who makes a noise exactly like the beating of a little hammer on a copper pot ; and the reason he is always making it is because he is the town crier to every Indian garden , and tells all the news to everybody who cares XXXXX listen .
For about between by of on over that till to