in the following spring the crab was delighted to see the shoot of a young tree push its way up through the ground. each year it grew bigger, till at last it blossomed one spring, and in the following autumn bore some fine large persimmons. among the broad smooth green leaves the fruit hung like golden balls, and as they ripened they mellowed to a deep orange. it was the little crab's pleasure to go out day by day and sit in the sun and put out his long eyes in the same way as a snail puts out its horn, and watch the persimmons ripening to perfection.