nce upon a time in India, there was a pair of foxes who lived with their five children in a den dug deep below the roots of a great tree.

Every day, the mother and father fox would go to the nearby town, where there was a bazaar with many stalls where the foxes could find food that had fallen on the ground or been thrown away by the people there. Sometimes they would even sneak up and steal food right from the tables!

The foxes would eat their fill and then carry home food for their children, who waited in the den.

On the way home, the foxes would talk of the cleverness with which they had collected their food that day. ?How much wit do you have?? the father fox would ask, and the mother fox would answer, ?Just enough to fill a small vegetable basket.?

Then the mother fox would ask, ?And how much wit do you have?? and the father would brag, ?Enough to load a dozen buffalo!?

But Father Fox did not feel witty one night, when a great tiger leapt out on the path in front of them. ?At last, I have caught you!? he roared, and the father crouched down and trembled in fear.

But his mate immediately spoke up: ?And at last we have found you, oh wise and mighty uncle!? she said. ?We need you to help us solve a very important family problem.?

The tiger was very surprised, but pleased just the same, for she addressed him so politely. ?What is it, my niece?? he asked.

?Just this,? the mother fox replied. ?We want to divide up our children between us and go our separate ways, but we have five children and cannot agree on how to do it. I want to take three of the children and let him have two, but he insists that he should have three of them while I should only have two. We went into town to try to find a wise man to help us find a solution, but we had no luck and were returning home wondering what to do. Imagine our surprise to run into the wisest of all the animals! Please, can you help us??

Now, the tiger did not care about the foxes and their family problems, but he thought to himself, ?This is a good chance to eat both these foxes and all five of their children as well!? So he said, ?I cannot make a decision until I have met your children. Are they far from here??

?Oh, no,? the mother fox replied. ?They are just in the next grove of trees. And it will be such an honour for them to meet you, for they have never met a tiger of any kind at all, much less such a large and magnificent one!?

So the foxes led the tiger to the great tree under which their den was located. ?Now, go get our children and bring them up to meet their Uncle Tiger!? the mother fox said to her husband, and he immediately slipped down the narrow hole into the den.

The tiger and the mother fox waited, but he did not return. ?You see,? the mother said, ?he cannot properly manage the children.? She put her head into the hole and called down, ?Husband! Bring the children up at once! We?re waiting for you!?

They waited some more and the tiger said, ?What is taking him so long??

?I can?t imagine,? the mother fox said. ?I?m sorry for this delay. Let me go see what the matter is.? And with that, she began to back down the hole, keeping her face to the tiger.

The tiger watched her backing away and it suddenly occurred to him to grab her, but since she was facing him and keeping her bright eyes on him, he wasn?t sure what to do. ?Why are you going in like that?? he asked.

?Oh, I could never insult such an important person as you, mighty tiger, by turning my back on you!? she said, and, while the tiger was feeling pleased and flattered by this polite speech, she disappeared completely into the narrow den.

The tiger waited for a few more moments. Then he heard the mother fox calling from below. ?Oh, Uncle? Thank you for coming by, but we?ve figured out our problem for ourselves! Good-bye now!?

With that, the tiger realised that she had made a fool of him, and he roared so loudly that birds flew into the air for miles around.

But the only sound from under the great tree was the laughter of foxes, and at last the tiger gave up and went back into the forest to hunt for something that would be easier to capture.