would have no need to defend themselves.

 but in comparison with the days of Jones
 but in comparison with the days of Jones. whisking his tail and skipping from side to side. and our enemies would be upon us. To see him toiling up the slope inch by inch. There were songs. She appeared to be enjoying herself. It had been overlooked at the time when the house was first occupied. that all the evils of this life of ours spring from the tyranny of human beings? Only get rid of Man. so he said. I do not think. a tough.At this there was a terrible baying sound outside. he lurched across the yard. iron discipline! That is the watchword for today. and then the poultry. who looked like a publican.

 but in a different form. Reading out the figures in a shrill. with lettering on its side and a sly-looking man in a low-crowned bowler hat sitting on the driver's seat. surely.At the beginning. since the farm possessed no threshing machine-but the pigs with their cleverness and Boxer with his tremendous muscles always pulled them through. a sign in him of intense mental activity. who had given up hope of getting his farm back and gone to live in another part of the county. Much of this work was of a kind that the other animals were too ignorant to understand. and it would also be necessary to begin saving up again for the machinery for the windmill. The blackbirds whistled it in the hedges. On several occasions. The price of these would pay for enough grain and meal to keep the farm going till summer came on and conditions were easier. But somehow neither the words nor the tune ever seemed to the animals to come up to Beasts of England. He assured them that the resolution against engaging in trade and using money had never been passed. If they had no more food than they had had in Jones's day.

 No animal shall wear clothes. three sheep. and short. A white stripe down his nose gave him a somewhat stupid appearance.After his hoof had healed up. Actually the Commandment read: "No animal shall drink alcohol to excess. and then all together. but in fact no animal had ever actually retired. and how many of those eggs ever hatched into chickens? The rest have all gone to market to bring in money for Jones and his men. Two of the men had produced a crowbar and a sledge hammer. comrades!" cried Napoleon when the footprints had been examined. a contract for four hundred eggs a week. In a moment the dogs came bounding back.Meanwhile the timber was being carted away at high speed.It was a source of great satisfaction to him. the Wild Comrades' Re-education Committee (the object of this was to tame the rats and rabbits).

 No one noticed the wondering faces of the animals that gazed in at the window."You have heard then.They limped into the yard. As yet no animal had actually retired on pension. how he had rallied and encouraged them at every turn. They tiptoed up to the house.But everyone worked according to his capacity The hens and ducks. delivering orders to Whymper. came mincing daintily in. His imagination had now run far beyond chaff-cutters and turnip-slicers. The windmill was in ruins. they were soon driven back. for the warmest place. Snowball was known to be still skulking on Pinchfield Farm. listening to him. and very anxious to prevent their own animals from learning too much about it.

 Snowball read it aloud for the benefit of the others. placing himself in front of the buckets. it was said. The animals watched his coming and going with a kind of dread. were reduced again in February. The animals were happy as they had never conceived it possible to be. He saw ahead of him the heavy labour of rebuilding the windmill from the foundations. Pilkington was about to spring some carefully prepared witticism on the company. was expected to take two years. That was theirs too. She knew that."Muriel. later in the year. Boxer worked harder than ever. One of them. The Republic of the Animals which Major had foretold.

 Some of the animals talked of the duty of loyalty to Mr. they flung themselves upon their tormentors.One Sunday morning. and in fact understood the business of mowing and raking far better than Jones and his men had ever done.But when the animals saw the green flag flying. Starvation seemed to stare them in the face.At last the day came when Snowball's plans were completed. He said that the education of the young was more important than anything that could be done for those who were already grown up. The animals filed slowly past. It had become usual to give Napoleon the credit for every successful achievement and every stroke of good fortune. Jones's dressing-table. Even the horses and the dogs have no better fate.So Beasts of England was heard no more. In the evening Squealer called them together. carry out the orders that were given to her. The animals listened first to Napoleon.

"It says. however. Napoleon himself. Animal Farm. Napoleon then led them back to the store-shed and served out a double ration of corn to everybody."Comrades. the unalterable law of life. At about half past nine Napoleon. she fetched Muriel.It had come to his knowledge. kicked. comrade!" or "Whoa back. and after breakfast there was a ceremony which was observed every week without fail. and when you had to watch your comrades torn to pieces after confessing to shocking crimes. and the rebuilding of the windmill. were also said to be in league with Snowball.

 Yes. Jones's gun had been found lying in the mud. I have something else to say first. comrade? Have we not driven the enemy off our soil-the sacred soil of Animal Farm? ""But they have destroyed the windmill. unable to make up his mind. of whatever degree. the sheep and cows lay down behind the pigs and began to chew the cud. or even upon their human employees. But it reminded me of something that I had long forgotten. since that was where the ambush had been sprung. When it was all gone. The dogs had suddenly caught sight of them. was a co-operative enterprise. when Jones's expulsion was still recent. Jones's trap. or sleep in a bed.

 All the other male pigs on the farm were porkers. With some difficulty (for it is not easy for a pig to balance himself on a ladder) Snowball climbed up and set to work. for cows at fourteen. or has wings. and. in fact. It was the first time that they had ever seen Benjamin excited-indeed. hardship. Surely. Remember. was expected to take two years. and accept the leadership of Napoleon. Frequently he did not even appear on Sunday mornings. The windmill had ceased to exist!At this sight the animals' courage returned to them. and even now they could hardly believe that it was all their own. but he was also a clever talker.

 The pigs had sent out a large bottle of pink medicine which they had found in the medicine chest in the bathroom. which meant collecting much larger quantities of stone. give several deep sniffs. not doled out to them by a grudging master. Then a goose came forward and confessed to having secreted six ears of corn during the last year's harvest and eaten them in the night. with half a gallon for Napoleon himself. that they accepted his explanation without further questions. Their struggles and their difficulties were one. To my mind this explains a great deal. Boxer was forgotten. Now that the small field beyond the orchard had been set aside for barley. It was mixed every day into the pigs' mash.He had only one criticism. The rule was against sheets. that sooner or later justice will be done.There were many more mouths to feed now.

Suddenly. and more firing of the gun. The hens. And he very nearly succeeded-I will even say. After much choking. at the critical moment. but appeared to lead to a hole in the hedge. but directed and supervised the others. neatly piled on a china dish from the farmhouse kitchen. I will tell you about my dream of last night.Napoleon decreed that there should be a full investigation into Snowball's activities. was as it had always been. I saw him myself. The animals now also learned that Snowball had never-as many of them had believed hitherto-received the order of "Animal Hero7 First Class. Terror of Mankind. The birds at first objected.

 As for the horses. but Boxer paid no attention." he said. and pinned him to the ground. On the contrary. None of you has ever seen a dead donkey. had been inflicted by Napoleon's teeth. he collected two successive loads of stone and dragged them down to the windmill before retiring for the night. beans. and if anyone complained (as a few animals sometimes did.4. a flight of pigeons came whirling through the air and alighted in the yard of Animal Farm in the wildest excitement. Clearly this song has no longer any purpose. was to be ploughed up. When they had finished their confession. he had reason to think.

 and from man to pig. it was gone; almost the last trace of their labour was gone! Even the foundations were partially destroyed. he upset the milk-pails. Comrade Napoleon. the crowing of the cockerel. placing himself in front of the buckets. but they were weary and bleeding. "That will be attended to. "War is war. but simply in order to obtain certain materials which were urgently necessary. Clover dropped to her knees at his side. They had also dropped their championship of Jones. and escorted him back to the farmhouse as soon as he was able to walk. came down to inspect the completed work; he personally congratulated the animals on their achievement. and in a terrible voice Napoleon demanded whether any other animal had anything to confess. Some of them had five chins.

 The hens perched themselves on the window-sills. they hated it more than ever. had stood up. The distinguishing mark of man is the hand. they kicked up clods of the black earth and snuffed its rich scent.Nevertheless. and near at hand there lay a lantern. it was found necessary to leave certain tasks undone." and the others had to be content with this cryptic answer. To that horror we all must come-cows. how even animals could bring themselves to sing such contemptible rubbish. was shown in the fact that he trusted nobody. however. and if one of them said that such and such a field was just right for cabbages. out from the door of the farmhouse came a long file of pigs. Snowball had found in the harness-room an old green tablecloth of Mrs.

 Curiously enough. reduced in December. Our sole object in taking these things is to preserve our health. they slept on straw. for which privacy was needed. Nobody stole. what is the nature of this life of ours? Let us face it: our lives are miserable. Napoleon announced that he had decided upon a new policy. Snowball did not say. that it was impossible not to believe in her good intentions.The three hens who had been the ringleaders in the attempted rebellion over the eggs now came forward and stated that Snowball had appeared to them in a dream and incited them to disobey Napoleon's orders. to shatter to pieces below. lest it should be poisoned. and the men easily drove the geese off with their sticks. Frederick had wanted to pay for the timber with something called a cheque. at least part of the time.

 He said that the education of the young was more important than anything that could be done for those who were already grown up. but of late the subject had been discussed more and more. "Quick. comrades. it had been of a society of animals set free from hunger and the whip. there in the yard was a large closed van. and on the following Sunday it was announced that from now onwards all barley would be reserved for the pigs. Gentlemen. comrades. Actually the Commandment read: "No animal shall drink alcohol to excess. The animals could not face the terrible explosions and the stinging pellets. and all the animals broke into a gallop and rushed into the yard. we should starve to death. and after the sale of part of the hay and corn. though their decisions had to be ratified by a majority vote. the other argued that if rebellions happened everywhere they would have no need to defend themselves.