5. “Alas!” they cried, “Brother Axe is
angry. Look how red he has
turned! He will bring some
calamity upon us. What shall we
do?”
They thought and pondered, and
finally decided to throw the axe
into prison. So they took it and
flung it into the landlord’s barn.
The barn was full of hay. As soon
as the red-hot axe touched the hay
a fire burst out and great flames
leapt up to the sky.
Terrified, the villagers ran after its
owner, overtook him and pleaded,
“Come, for God’s sake, and bring
Brother Axe to his senses!”
