Meeting a New FriendHiranyaka, the mouse, and Laghupatanaka, the crow, became great friends. One day, the crow came calling on the mouse with eyes full of tears. Worried, the mouse asked, “What’s the matter? Why are you so sad?” “I am thoroughly fed up with this country. I want to go elsewhere,” replied the crow. “But what is the reason for this sudden change of mind,” asked the mouse. “There is a famine here. People are dying like locusts. No one is offering cooked rice for the peace of the dead. So, I don’t have food. Hunters are busy trapping birds in their nets. I have escaped narrowly. I don’t know when my turn will come. I want to leave this country before it comes,” said the crow. “What are your travel plans then,” asked the mouse. | 