the throat became swollen, he could not take food, his suffering was terrible. the crane seeing him, as he was perched on a tree looking for food, asked, "what ails thee, friend?" he told him why. "i could free thee from that bone, friend, but dare not enter thy mouth for fear thou mightest eat me." "don't be afraid, friend, i'll not eat thee; only save my life." "very well," says he, and caused him to lie down on his left side. but thinking to himself, "who knows what this fellow will do," he placed a small stick upright between his two jaws that he could not close his mouth, and inserting his head inside his mouth struck one end of the bone with his beak. whereupon the bone dropped and fell out. as soon as he had caused the bone to fall, he got out of the lion's mouth, striking the stick with his beak so that it fell out, and then settled on a branch. the lion gets well, and one day was eating a buffalo he had killed. the crane thinking "i will sound him," settled on a branch just over him, and in conversation spoke this first verse: