8. Body Paragraph Acceleration

The Lion’s Share

retold by Victoria Parker

1 A lion once went hunting with a fox, a jackal, and a wolf. The four hunters prowled and lurked and tracked until at last they came upon a huge stag in the depths of the forest. Working together, they took the stag totally unaware and claimed its life. 

jackal= a wild member of the dog family

stag= a male deer

2 The hunters stood triumphant as the stag lay before them. But then they all began to wonder how they should share out their catch. 

3 Just as an argument was about to break out, the lion threw back his head and gave a mighty roar. “Divide this stag up into quarters right NOW!” he bellowed, and the other animals leapt to it. 

4 When it was done, the lion snarled at the fox, the jackal and the wolf, who stood sulkily before him. “ The first quarter is for me,” he declared, “because I am King of the Beasts.” 

5  The fox, the jackal, and the wolf looked at each other and shrugged—that was fair enough, they thought. But then the lion went on . . . “The second quarter is mine too, as I am the one sorting out the shares.” 

6 “But—” 

7 “Hang on a minute—” 

8 “Rubbish!” The fox, the jackal, and the wolf began to grumble, but the lion took no notice and carried on.

9 “The third share should be mine because of the part I played in hunting the stag. As for the fourth quarter, well, I should like to see which of you will dare to lay a paw upon it.” And the lion bared his teeth and flexed his sharp claws. 

10 The three other hunters slunk away into the shadows with their tails between their legs.