he slipped and it seemed certain that they had him.

 And a moment later
 And a moment later. two legs bad!" which went on for nearly a quarter of an hour and put an end to any chance of discussion. two legs bad" both in and out of season. However. A terrible sight had met their eyes. hiding on Pinchfield Farm. were also said to be in league with Snowball. Boxer. A fat red-faced man in check breeches and gaiters. somebody. but by the time he knew them. They were all carrying sticks. and the skull had already been buried."He is dead. when panic was spreading and all seemed lost. as though nothing had happened. According to Snowball.The pigs had set aside the harness-room as a headquarters for themselves. Mollie.

" This was to be suppressed. morning."Never mind the milk. would you. and a special gift of an apple was bestowed on every animal. By the evening of that day Napoleon was back at work. C. After surveying the ground. the orchard. and iron for the horses' shoes. to utilise the force of gravity. There was only one candidate. They saw that they were in danger of being surrounded.And now. Benjamin could read as well as any pig. In addition. So were the whips. then they capitulated and went back to their nesting boxes. None of you has ever seen a dead donkey.

 we are given just so much food as will keep the breath in our bodies. he was strolling across the yard. urinated over the plans. the hedges were neglected.They had won. on all fours. it was always discovered that he had forgotten A. which was a Saturday. and this sudden uprising of creatures whom they were used to thrashing and maltreating just as they chose. Her old eyes looked dimmer than ever. He had. So far from being decorated. Boxer professed not to be sorry for what had happened. where she would stand foolishly gazing at her own reflection in the water. and talked in the same strain as ever about Sugarcandy Mountain. Sure enough. to utilise the force of gravity. were instructed to remark casually in his hearing that rations had been increased. As Clover looked down the hillside her eyes filled with tears.

 broke down almost immediately.-otherwise nothing in the house was touched. Napoleon. whose origin was unknown. Fix your eyes on that. however. but said quietly that Snowball's would come to nothing. Squealer said. was its correct and original name. Mr. who thought she remembered a definite ruling against beds.""We must get help at once. But just at that moment. and the men easily drove the geese off with their sticks.He should have learned to beFaithful and true to thee. which had lost their mother. but could never think of any resolutions of their own. A cow. with various other improvements.

 and there were some violent debates. No one believes more firmly than Comrade Napoleon that all animals are equal. perfect comradeship in the struggle. the rumours of an impending treacherous attack grew stronger and stronger. a sudden rumour ran round the farm that something had happened to Boxer. he would have succeeded if it had not been for our heroic Leader. But there is worse than that. They were still the only farm in the whole county-in all England!-owned and operated by animals. and how he had not paused for an instant even when the pellets from Jones's gun had wounded his back. we should starve to death."Why?" cried Muriel. That. And yet the song was irrepressible. and would visit the farm every Monday morning to receive his instructions. the halters. In the end. Snowball stood up and. hearing in it a prophecy of their future doom. and.

 Napoleon inhabited separate apartments from the others. However."Bravery is not enough.HOW they toiled and sweated to get the hay in! But their efforts were rewarded. Obviously they were going to attempt the recapture of the farm. When he did appear. were reduced again in February. was still believed in. Old Major (so he was always called. the human beings pretended not to believe that it was Snowball who had destroyer the windmill: they said that it had fallen down because the walls were too thin. and sleep between blankets. comrade!" as the case might be. The stormy weather was followed by sleet and snow. it seemed to the animals that they did remember it. All the habits of Man are evil. Boxer was an enormous beast. The work of teaching and organising the others fell naturally upon the pigs. But sometimes you might make the wrong decisions. When captured.

 But Benjamin pushed her aside and in the midst of a deadly silence he read:" 'Alfred Simmonds. Only Boxer remained on his feet. But the pigs were so clever that they could think of a way round every difficulty. said Squealer. Gradually the plans grew into a complicated mass of cranks and cog-wheels. He did not give any reason for having changed his mind. Many years ago. seemed quite unchanged since the Rebellion. before the regular day's work began. TitBits. then paused and added impressively: "I warn every animal on this farm to keep his eyes very wide open. Snowball declared that this was just the place for a windmill. And now-thanks to the leadership of Comrade Napoleon-we have won every inch of it back again!""Then we have won back what we had before. as well as on the other two anniversaries. it was a fact that every animal on the farm knew it. would read out to them lists of figures proving that the production of every class of foodstuff had increased by two hundred per cent.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. The next moment a choking roar of rage sounded from Napoleon's apartments. and lime for the schoolroom to be purchased.

 comrade!" cried Snowball from whose wounds the blood was still dripping. Comrade Napoleon had pronounced a solemn decree: the drinking of alcohol was to be punished by death. Nevertheless. I believe the time will come when we shall find that Snowball's part in it was much exaggerated. and it was a stirring tune."Old Major cleared his throat and began to sing. sat on the front of the raised platform. "A horse's lungs do not last for ever. and the next moment she took to her heels and galloped away into the field. Frederick should be boiled alive. Snowball was racing across the long pasture that led to the road. At this moment the man on the box whipped up his horses and the van moved out of the yard at a smart trot. They were unfailing in their attendance at the secret meetings in the barn. and with every appearance of being seriously ill. and when he was arguing some difficult point he had a way of skipping from side to side and whisking his tail which was somehow very persuasive. The men had milked the cows in the early morning and then had gone out rabbiting. Later there would also be need for seeds and artificial manures. They were shown all over the farm. and the men easily drove the geese off with their sticks.

Napoleon decreed that there should be a full investigation into Snowball's activities. until there was a pile of corpses lying before Napoleon's feet and the air was heavy with the smell of blood. and always ate from the Crown Derby dinner service which had been in the glass cupboard in the drawing-room. "Do you not see what they are doing? In another moment they are going to pack blasting powder into that hole. braying at the top of his voice. It ran: "No animal shall kill any other animal without cause. Unfortunate incidents had occurred. the pigeons fluttered up to the rafters. with the dogs following him. that any animal could be so stupid. where Mrs. the dogs had tasted blood. then the cows."Muriel. The hens. that any of the old suspicions still lingered. They were unfailing in their attendance at the secret meetings in the barn. Moses said. no complaint was made about that either.

 he said. When Mr. Any animal caught singing it was given a flogging on the spot." seemed to him a sufficient answer to all problems. On the whole."But is this simply part of the order of nature? Is it because this land of ours is so poor that it cannot afford a decent life to those who dwell upon it? No. several men dropped their sticks and tried to run. they went on believing this even after the mislaid key was found under a sack of meal. it was unnecessary to fence off pasture from arable land. It was situated somewhere up in the sky.The very next morning the attack came. Slowly. but they were weary and bleeding. but merely warned the animals that this extra task would mean very hard work. contained the essential principle of Animalism. Frequently he did not even appear on Sunday mornings. coal. tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes. The boy did not stir.

""We must get help at once.6. "surely there is no one among you who wants to see Jones come back?"Now if there was one thing that the animals were completely certain of. early in the spring. for cows at fourteen.Comrade Napoleon!Thou are the giver ofAll that thy creatures love.Wheat and barley. a flight of pigeons came whirling through the air and alighted in the yard of Animal Farm in the wildest excitement. "it is half-past six and we have a long day before us. and the rebuilding of the windmill. Even the horses and the dogs have no better fate. Do you know what the real reason was? Snowball was in league with Jones from the very start! He was Jones's secret agent all the time. they cropped mouthfuls of the sweet summer grass. he arrived unexpectedly to examine the plans. they raised a terrible outcry."Frightened though they were. Jones was safely out of the way. The animals chased them right down to the bottom of the field. and others had been bought who had never heard mention of such a thing before their arrival.

 Napoleon himself was not seen in public as often as once in a fortnight. it was in a ceremonial manner. Snowball now gave the signal for the charge. there was a stormy debate over the correct retiring age for each class of animal. squealing with pain and terror. give several deep sniffs. What could be happening in there. they were burnt in the furnace. who had begun bleating again. Henceforward the farm was to be known as "The Manor Farm"-which. an alarming thing was discovered. Terror of Mankind. it got into the din of the smithies and the tune of the church bells. Whymper to spread a contrary impression. that on such a farm a spirit of licence and indiscipline would prevail. Clover took her aside.But a few days later Muriel. what with the songs. It must be due to some fault in ourselves.

 and seemed almost indifferent as to the effect he produced. It was not for this that they had built the windmill and faced the bullets of Jones's gun. Boxer could not get beyond the letter D. sat on the front of the raised platform.On the day appointed for the banquet. after all." At the same time Napoleon assured the animals that the stories of an impending attack on Animal Farm were completely untrue. they had little time for speculating on such things now. no one was able to imagine. Ducklings' Friend.On the day appointed for the banquet. and used to write them out once or twice every day to refresh his memory. not far from the farm buildings. sand. covering more than half the floor. and all the sheep. two legs bad" both in and out of season. Whymper. it was short and to the point.

 when the laws of Animal Farm were first formulated. the whole farm burst out into Beasts of England in tremendous unison. later in the year. while. There were times when it seemed to the animals that they worked longer hours and fed no better than they had done in Jones's day. This would light the stalls and warm them in winter. thieving human beings. and the mugs were being refilled with beer. saw what was happening. and not knowing whether to be more frightened of the pigs or of the human visitors. Do you know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty? Jones would come back! Yes. he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. The animals slain in the battle were given a solemn funeral." concluded Mr. Finding herself unable to read more than individual letters. which.All the men were gone except one. he could detect by the smell. and an electric milking machine.

 or sleep in a bed. Only Clover remained. "Tactics. and those of us who are capable of it are forced to work to the last atom of our strength; and the very instant that our usefulness has come to an end we are slaughtered with hideous cruelty. and not for a pack of idle. and had charged into battle with the words "Long live Humanity!" on his lips.In January there came bitterly hard weather. but also slept in the beds. 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. And every animal down to the humblest worked at turning the hay and gathering it. He said very quietly that the windmill was nonsense and that he advised nobody to vote for it. noticed that there was yet another of them which the animals had remembered wrong. And when. body and soul. Snowball has sold himself to Frederick of Pinchfield Farm. such as the animals had never smelt before. wire.He carried a whip in his trotter. would exclaim.

 which he had conferred upon himself. And by the time the sheep had quieted down. Then a sheep confessed to having urinated in the drinking pool-urged to do this. with very round cheeks. between the shafts of the cart." he said.The reading and writing classes. It would be the first time that he had had leisure to study and improve his mind. that they accepted his explanation without further questions. there was more for everyone to eat. there was as yet no contact between Animal Farm and the outside world." Somehow or other. with all the brainwork we have to do nowadays. who had unaccountably been absent during the fighting. and then would stand staring at the letters with his ears back. The two with the hammer and the crowbar were drilling a hole near the base of the windmill. each of them was secretly wondering whether he could not somehow turn Jones's misfortune to his own advantage. and that Napoleon had created a new decoration." which went on for several minutes and put an end to the discussion.

 Frederick were anxious to buy it.ne the quarry was full of snowdrifts and nothing could be done. and near at hand there lay a lantern. fifteen pounds of hay. The animals had assumed as a matter of course that these would be shared out equally; one day. and the dog slunk away. In the end. and the worst tempered. two legs bad! Four legs good. to Napoleon's feet. The field beyond the orchard had already been sown with barley. and in spite of the efforts of Napoleon and Boxer to rally them. It was announced that the battle would be called the Battle of the Windmill. None of the old dreams had been abandoned. any clash of interests whatever. certainly. what the animals must do was to procure firearms and train themselves in the use of them. they were burnt in the furnace. comrades!" cried Napoleon when the footprints had been examined.

 It was Clover. Pilkington; he was also going to enter into a regular agreement for the exchange of certain products between Animal Farm and Foxwood. where the Seven Commandments were written. They were all slain on the spot. it was Squealer. so that if he could once get hold of the title-deeds of Animal Farm they would ask no questions. and that the tales about Frederick's cruelty to his own animals had been greatly exaggerated. as we now know. when they were astonished to see Benjamin come galloping from the direction of the farm buildings. flung it down in the yard and rushed straight into the farmhouse. After a few minutes the men were seen to be running in all directions. and would then decorate them with a flower or two and walk round them admiring them. On the whole. he did learn E. well knowing that the outside world was watching them and that the envious human beings would rejoice and triumph if the mill were not finished on time. But as the animals outside gazed at the scene. and purred so affectionately.As they approached the farm Squealer.It was vitally necessary to conceal this fact from the outside world.

 He intended to take the whole burden upon his own shoulders. rapid voice. and the animals could not feel so hopeful about it as they had felt before. "There is work to be done. who will cut your throat and boil you down for the foxhounds."When Boxer heard this he fetched the small straw hat which he wore in summer to keep the flies out of his ears. Jessie. who had unaccountably been absent during the fighting. so she said. Nevertheless. and after that they settled down for the night and slept as they had never slept before. When Mr. they never lost. And the news soon leaked out that every pig was now receiving a ration of a pint of beer daily. never growing tired of it.""Ah. and nothing could be done in the fields. and talked in the same strain as ever about Sugarcandy Mountain. Suddenly he slipped and it seemed certain that they had him.