Now this is the Law of the Jungle - as old and as true as the sky; |
And the Wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the Wolf |
that shall break it must die. |
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As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk the Law runneth |
forward and back - |
For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength |
of the Wolf is the Pack. |
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Wash daily from nose-tip to tail-tip; drink deeply, but never too deep; |
And remember the night is for hunting, and forget not the day is for sleep. |
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The Jackal may follow the Tiger, but, Cub, when thy whiskers are grown, |
Remember the Wolf is a hunter - go forth and get food of thine own. |
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Keep peace with the Lords of the Jungle - the Tiger, the |
Panther, the Bear; |
And trouble not Hathi the Silent, and mock not the Boar in his lair. |
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When Pack meets with Pack in the Jungle, and neither will |
go from the trail, |
Lie down till the leaders have spoken - it may be fair words shall prevail. |
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When ye fight with a Wolf of the Pack, ye must fight him alone and afar, |
Lest others take part in the quarrel, and the Pack be diminished by war. |
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The Lair of the Wolf is his refuge, and where he has made him his home, |
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The Lair of the Wolf is his refuge, but where he has digged it too plain, |
The Council shall send him a message, and so he shall change it again. |
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If ye kill before midnight, be silent, and wake not the woods |
with your bay, |
Lest ye frighten the deer from the crops, and the brothers go empty away. |
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Ye may kill for yourselves, and your mates, and your cubs |
as they need, and ye can; |
But kill not for pleasure of killing, and seven times never kill Man! |
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If ye plunder his Kill from a weaker, devour not all in thy pride; |
Pack-Right is the right of the meanest; so leave him the head and the hide. |
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The Kill of the Pack is the meat of the Pack. Ye must eat where it lies; |
And no one may carry away of that meat to his lair, or he dies. |
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The Kill of the Wolf is the meat of the Wolf. He may do what he will, |
But, till he has given permission, the Pack may not eat of that Kill. |
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Cub-Right is the right of the Yearling. From all of his Pack he may claim |
Full-gorge when the killer has eaten; and none may refuse him the same. |
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Lair-Right is the right of the Mother. From all of her year she may claim |
One haunch of each kill for her litter; and none may deny her the same. |
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Cave-Right is the right of the Father - to hunt by himself for his own: |
He is freed of all calls to the Pack; he is judged by the Council alone. |
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Because of his age and his cunning, because of his gripe and his paw. |
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But the head and the hoof of the Law and the haunch and |
the hump is - Obey! |