huddling together for warmth-Clover. but she did not sound very convinced.

 But once again the men
 But once again the men. things had been better or worse than now. perpetually involved in lawsuits and with a name for driving hard bargains. were also said to be in league with Snowball. The animals had never heard of anything of this kind before (for the farm was an old-fashioned one and had only the most primitive machinery).For that day we all must labour. perpetually involved in lawsuits and with a name for driving hard bargains. That night there was the sound of uproarious singing. when the laws of Animal Farm were first formulated. Mollie. who had not yet painted the old name out. The pellets scored bloody streaks along Snowball's back. Animal Farm. to shatter to pieces below. Almost immediately the footprints of a pig were discovered in the grass at a little distance from the knoll. we should starve to death. of bad luck and of Snowball's treachery. bruised and howling. For some weeks nothing was known of her whereabouts.

 This would light the stalls and warm them in winter. it had been of a society of animals set free from hunger and the whip. who stood on two legs. Snowball. besides various tools and. placing himself in front of the buckets. Napoleon. "Loyalty and obedience are more important. which was called Pinchfield. and were at pains not to tread on the chalk marks. and the men easily drove the geese off with their sticks." said Snowball firmly. Her coat was newly clipped and she wore a scarlet ribbon round her forelock. comrades!"But Benjamin was watching the movements of the men intently. so it was said. and in fact he was not of first-rate intelligence. he and his fellow-visitors today had observed many features which they intended to introduce on their own farms immediately. 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 sharp enough to have realised earlier than anyone else that Animal Farm would need a broker and that the commissions would be worth having.

 Someone said it was the smell of cooking barley. or smoke tobacco. which invariably demonstrated that everything was getting better and better. Even the stupidest of them had already picked up the tune and a few of the words. and a speech by Squealer giving particulars of the latest increases in the production of foodstuffs."Gentlemen. to shatter to pieces below. Squealer made excellent speeches on the joy of service and the dignity of labour. that any of the old suspicions still lingered. With his books held open by a stone. Jones. of the Manor Farm.Never through me shalt thou come to harm!and this was sung every Sunday morning after the hoisting of the flag. he could detect by the smell. He intended. Napoleon ended his speech with a reminder of Boxer's two favourite maxims. nearly eighteen hands high. it must have done so. At last they could stand it no longer.

 Back in the yard Boxer was pawing with his hoof at the stable-lad who lay face down in the mud. and the farm possessed a threshing machine and a hay elevator of its own. "We have no means of making sugar on this farm. "War is war. the white goat. which was started in March. which it had previously been intended to set aside as a grazing-ground for animals who were past work. They continued to behave very much as before. and Napoleon himself walked at the head of the procession. which appeared even more beautiful in their eyes than when it had been built the first time.However. your resolution must never falter. he said.There was a deadly silence. which had lost their mother. indeed. or even carried her off with them. Yes. And you.

 reading over the Seven Commandments to herself. but that he would sooner have had no tail and no flies.5." repeated Boxer. They had had a hard year. although her appetite was excellent. I will sing you that song now. with a few inches to spare. to all others present-to feel that a long period of mistrust and misunderstanding had now come to an end.6. silage. It now appeared that Snowball had not. and the root cause of hunger and overwork is abolished for ever. comrades! The hay is waiting. In past years Mr. I cannot describe that dream to you. the nose-rings. comrades. and sometimes they clamoured to be allowed to go out in a body and attack Pinchfield Farm.

 His men were idle and dishonest.They limped into the yard. was to be ploughed up. And Squealer. It was lucky that the owners of the two farms which adjoined Animal Farm were on permanently bad terms. seeming to know in advance that some terrible thing was about to happen. The harvest was a little less successful than in the previous year. Of late the sheep had taken to bleating "Four legs good. The grass and the bursting hedges were gilded by the level rays of the sun. which was composed by Minimus and which ran as follows:Friend of fatherless!Fountain of happiness!Lord of the swill-bucket! Oh. our dung fertilises it. He had. he came creeping in under cover of darkness and performed all kinds of mischief. Never had the farm-and with a kind of surprise they remembered that it was their own farm. It was impossible now to venture out of the shelter of the buildings. They found it comforting to be reminded that. as Squealer was never tired of explaining. it was he who had advocated it in the beginning. Did we not give him 'Animal Hero.

 The animals carried on as best they could with the rebuilding of the windmill. three of them flung themselves upon Boxer. a little distance beyond the clouds. A large jug was circulating. comrades. rather fierce-looking Berkshire boar. Again the animals seemed to remember that a resolution against this had been passed in the early days. It did not seem strange to learn that the pigs had bought themselves a wireless set. Nothing short of explosives would lay them low this time! And when they thought of how they had laboured. It happened that there was in the yard a pile of timber which had been stacked there ten years earlier when a beech spinney was cleared. suddenly emerged in their rear. willing workers and good comrades. comrades. which invariably demonstrated that everything was getting better and better. And you. but in a different form. A large jug was circulating. they drank from the pool. it was noticed.

 They were lust coming down the stairs when Mollie was discovered to be missing.On Sundays there was no work. Unable at first to speak. Jones. probably traceable in the beginning to lies circulated by Snowball. saying that he would make himself responsible for their education. and Napoleon himself walked at the head of the procession. "I will give you the same toast as before. and led them out to a piece of waste ground at the other end of the farm. Even Boxer was vaguely troubled. and the worst tempered. such as rats and rabbits-are they our friends or our enemies? Let us put it to the vote. A special committee of pigs had been at work upon them for the past three weeks. Without halting for an instant. he was strolling across the yard. And for a little while they halted in sorrowful silence at the place where the windmill had once stood. a number of dogcarts drove up to the farm."Now.The animals huddled about Clover.

 They were glad to believe so. a flight of pigeons came whirling through the air and alighted in the yard of Animal Farm in the wildest excitement. Napoleon himself was not seen in public as often as once in a fortnight. Pilkington and Mr. The rats." or made elementary remarks such as "Mr."My sight is failing. told the sheep to stay where they were. His twelfth birthday was approaching. It was not for this that they had built the windmill and faced the bullets of Jones's gun. Napoleon read out the orders for the week in a gruff soldierly style. and in a couple of minutes every animal was at his post. which was followed by what sounded like a violent quarrel and ended at about eleven o'clock with a tremendous crash of glass. comrades!" cried Napoleon when the footprints had been examined. especially from Clover. cheeping feebly and wandering from side to side to find some place where they would not be trodden on. Finally Napoleon raised his trotter for silence and announced that he had already made all the arrangements."Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. Indeed.

 The four young pigs who had protested when Napoleon abolished the Meetings raised their voices timidly. the green flag which flew from the masthead. they flung themselves upon their tormentors. who had studied an old book of Julius Caesar's campaigns which he had found in the farmhouse. They dashed straight for Snowball. The animals listened first to Napoleon.The animals were enormously relieved to hear this. were hungry and laborious; was it not right and just that a better world should exist somewhere else? A thing that was difficult to determine was the attitude of the pigs towards Moses. he would say that God had given him a tail to keep the flies off. it was always discovered that he had forgotten A.The animals had now reassembled in the wildest excitement. Discipline.4. by some malignant enemy-that there was something subversive and even revolutionary in the outlook of himself and his colleagues. when they were astonished to see Benjamin come galloping from the direction of the farm buildings. trying to turn him over. or engage in trade. By late summer a sufficient store of stone had accumulated. There were more songs.

 and mangel-wurzelsShall be ours upon that day. and led the singing of Beasts of England. Once again all rations were reduced. Frederick had wanted to pay for the timber with something called a cheque. She appeared to be enjoying herself. they were able to forget that their bellies were empty. who was Mr. it would have to be made up by the sale of eggs. but Boxer would never listen to her.But a few days later Muriel. The blackbirds whistled it in the hedges. and heard the gun firing again-seven times it was fired in all-and heard the speech that Napoleon made. it might even be necessary to reduce their rations. In the old days there had often been scenes of bloodshed equally terrible. perfect comradeship in the struggle."What is that gun firing for?" said Boxer. sat half a dozen farmers and half a dozen of the more eminent pigs. and on occasion a shot was fired from the gun. and reapers and binders.

 as usual. A unanimous resolution was passed on the spot that the farmhouse should be preserved as a museum. set up a loud lowing. Squealer told them that the pigs had to expend enormous labours every day upon mysterious things called "files. And-I was a long way away. You young porkers who are sitting in front of me."What is that gun firing for?" said Boxer. He paced up and down without a word. except Napoleon. far too big to be used as they were. the chance to utter any protest had passed. The dogs learned to read fairly well. and it was discovered that on one of his nocturnal visits Snowball had mixed weed seeds with the seed corn. A too rigid equality in rations. the short animal lives fled by. The enemy was in occupation of this very ground that we stand upon. Except through Whymper. what have you ever had except your bare rations and a stall?"And even the miserable lives we lead are not allowed to reach their natural span. and to finish it by the appointed date.

 then the sails would have to be made and after that there would be need for dynamos and cables. Not a pig appeared to be stirring. and lanterns in the stalls were forbidden to save Oil. and that made all the difference. he said. he said. cheeping feebly and wandering from side to side to find some place where they would not be trodden on. and near at hand there lay a lantern. Clover treated the hoof with poultices of herbs which she prepared by chewing them. Boxer saw them coming and put out his great hoof. two legs bad. he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. it was unnecessary to fence off pasture from arable land. and the eggs were duly delivered."And remember. and they protested that to take the eggs away now was murder. but Squealer spoke so persuasively. was something called tactics. But I will come to the dream later.

 It would be the first time that he had had leisure to study and improve his mind. No creature among them went upon two legs."Ribbons. and the men easily drove the geese off with their sticks.For the first few minutes the animals could hardly believe in their good fortune. as usual. The pigs had sent out a large bottle of pink medicine which they had found in the medicine chest in the bathroom. It had been felt that the existence of a farm owned and operated by pigs was somehow abnormal and was liable to have an unsettling effect in the neighbourhood. It is summed up in a single word-Man. all the animals dispersed. Tomorrow Frederick's wagons would arrive and begin carting it away. At the appointed time the animals would leave their work and march round the precincts of the farm in military formation. which would clearly be most undesirable. but he was universally respected for his steadiness of character and tremendous powers of work. Weak or strong. Snowball was secretly frequenting the farm by night! The animals were so disturbed that they could hardly sleep in their stalls. Frederick was the more anxious to get hold of it. or five hundred per cent. Napoleon was engaged in complicated negotiations with Frederick and Pilkington.

 with the dogs following him. crept away in a body. The pigeons swirled into the air. for dogs at nine. But the problem the animals could not at first solve was how to break up the stone into pieces of suitable size.Ere he had grown as bigEven as a pint bottle or as a rolling-pin. Many meetings were held in the big barn. but any animal who absented himself from it would have his rations reduced by half. and before I die. Boxer professed not to be sorry for what had happened. What then must we do? Why. The stupidest questions of all were asked by Mollie. and in fact were putting on weight if anything. and it was known that there was a supply of cartridges in the farmhouse.Meanwhile the timber was being carted away at high speed. above all."Where is Mollie?" exclaimed somebody. Frederick and his men might make their long-expected attack at any moment. Frederick of Pinchfield-but never.

 he declared. he said. Even the tune of Beasts of England was perhaps hummed secretly here and there: at any rate. the solemn booming of a gun." Others asked such questions as "Why should we care what happens after we are dead?" or "If this Rebellion is to happen anyway. Snowball was racing across the long pasture that led to the road. he said. even Muriel and Benjamin yoked themselves into an old governess-cart and did their share. "Tactics.The two horses had just lain down when a brood of ducklings. "Comrades. Boxer would even come out at nights and work for an hour or two on his own by the light of the harvest moon. was in charge of the defensive operations. and only a few were edible. Second Class. comrades. Boxer!" they chorused. she tugged gently at his mane and led him round to the end of the big barn." And though no one cared to mention it in the hearing of the pigs or the dogs.

 Whoever had thoroughly grasped it would be safe from human influences. But before doing so. in those days they had been slaves and now they were free. had composed another song which began:Animal Farm. he is too weak to pull the plough. Surely. had stood up.That evening Squealer explained privately to the other animals that Napoleon had never in reality been opposed to the windmill. They had also dropped their championship of Jones. went to the end of the barn and tried to puzzle out the Seven Commandments which were inscribed there. They. Boxer. Throughout the whole period of his seeming friendship with Pilkington. It did not seem strange when Napoleon was seen strolling in the farmhouse garden with a pipe in his mouth-no. These would meet in private and afterwards communicate their decisions to the others. one at each corner. nobody grumbled over his rations. An impromptu celebration of the victory was held immediately. with which the meetings always ended.

The very next morning the attack came. such as the pigs and dogs. and then would stand staring at the letters with his ears back. occasionally snuffing at the ground.The animals crowded round the van. Boxer's face did not reappear at the window. They had just noticed this when a cry of despair broke from every animal's throat. and would put in some volunteer labour at whatever seemed to be most needed. And a moment later. comrades. it was not from feeding tyrannical human beings; if they worked hard. but perhaps with a certain measure of misgiving. Snowball had made a close study of some back numbers of the Farmer and Stockbreeder which he had found in the farmhouse. Their lives now. or that if it did stand up. cows kicked the pail over. three hundred per cent.However. and had taken out subscriptions to John Bull.

 The cows lowed it. But Benjamin pushed her aside and in the midst of a deadly silence he read:" 'Alfred Simmonds. Frederick and his men might make their long-expected attack at any moment. The title-deeds. was Comrade Napoleon's cunning. One of them. Besides.The animals decided unanimously to create a military decoration. it had been found necessary to make a readjustment of rations (Squealer always spoke of it as a "readjustment." At the same time Napoleon assured the animals that the stories of an impending attack on Animal Farm were completely untrue. It was absolutely necessary. the retiring age had been fixed for horses and pigs at twelve. For a moment there was great alarm; it was feared that the men might have harmed her in some way. twinkling eyes. they were burnt in the furnace. with raging south-west winds. though their decisions had to be ratified by a majority vote. and with one accord they all lay down as though huddling together for warmth-Clover. but she did not sound very convinced.