Already he could feel the hot breath ofthe spotted leader burn his flanks and heknew his time had come. Never, no,never, would he be a fox with nine goldentails! He would merely die a cruel deathand his one poor bushy tail would becarried away as a trophy, his body tornto pieces by savage beasts. As this sadpicture rose up before him he made onelast long leap for liberty, and then histrembling legs could carry him no further.Driven to bay, he snarled angrily, andbacking up against the trunk of a greathollow tree, turned to fight his last battle.