when the time came for the war to begin, the willow-wren sent out spies to discover who was the enemy’s commander-in-chief. the gnat, who was the most crafty, flew into the forest where the enemy was assembled, and hid herself beneath a leaf of the tree where the watchword was to be given. there stood the bear, and he called the fox before him and said, "fox, thou art the most cunning of all animals, thou shalt be general and lead us." "good," said the fox, "but what signal shall we agree upon?" no one knew that, so the fox said, "i have a fine long bushy tail, which almost looks like a plume of red feathers. when i lift my tail up quite high, all is going well, and you must charge; but if i let it hang down, run away as fast as you can." when the gnat had heard that, she flew away again, and revealed everything, with the greatest minuteness, to the willow-wren. when day broke, and the battle was to begin, all the four-footed animals came running up with such a noise that the earth trembled. the willow-wren also came flying through the air with his army with such a humming, and whirring, and swarming that every one was uneasy and afraid, and on both sides they advanced against each other. but the willow-wren sent down the hornet, with orders to get beneath the fox’s tail, and sting with all his might.