![]() This would light the stalls and warm them in winter, and would also run a circular saw, a chaff-cutter, a mangel-slicer, and an electric milking machine. After surveying the ground, Snowball declared that this was just the place for a windmill, which could be made to operate a dynamo and supply the farm with electrical power. In the long pasture, not far from the farm buildings, there was a small knoll which was the highest point on the farm. But of all their controversies, none was so bitter as the one Napoleon produced no schemes of his own, but said quietly that Snowball's would come to nothing, and seemed to be biding his time. He talked learnedly about field drains, silage, and basic slag, and had worked out a complicated scheme for all the animals to drop their dung directly in the fields, at a different spot every day, to save the labour of cartage. Snowball had made a close study of some back numbers of the Farmer and Stockbreeder which he had found in the farmhouse, and was full of plans for innovations and improvements. It was noticed that they were especially liable to break into "Four legs good, two legs bad" at crucial moments in Snowball's speeches. Of late the sheep had taken to bleating "Four legs good, two legs bad" both in and out of season, and they often interrupted the Meeting with this. He was especially successful with the sheep. ![]() At the Meetings Snowball often won over the majority by his brilliant speeches, but Napoleon was better at canvassing support for himself in between times. Each had his own following, and there were some violent debates. If one of them suggested sowing a bigger acreage with barley, the other was certain to demand a bigger acreage of oats, and if one of them said that such and such a field was just right for cabbages, the other would declare that it was useless for anything except roots. These two disagreed at every point where disagreement was possible. This arrangement would have worked well enough if it had not been for the disputes between Snowball and Napoleon. ![]() It had come to be accepted that the pigs, who were manifestly cleverer than the other animals, should decide all questions of farm policy, though their decisions had to be ratified by a majority vote. Many meetings were held in the big barn, and the pigs occupied themselves with planning out the work of the coming season. The earth was like iron, and nothing could be done in the fields. In January there came bitterly hard weather. None of the animals ever mentioned Mollie again. She appeared to be enjoying herself, so the pigeons said. Her coat was newly clipped and she wore a scarlet ribbon round her forelock. A fat red-faced man in check breeches and gaiters, who looked like a publican, was stroking her nose and feeding her with sugar. She was between the shafts of a smart dogcart painted red and black, which was standing outside a public-house. For some weeks nothing was known of her whereabouts, then the pigeons reported that they had seen her on the other side of Willingdon. Hidden under the straw was a little pile of lump sugar and several bunches of ribbon of different colours. Without saying anything to the others, she went to Mollie's stall and turned over the straw with her hoof. "It isn't true!" repeated Mollie, but she could not look Clover in the face, and the next moment she took to her heels and galloped away into the field.Ī thought struck Clover. Do you give me your word of honour that that man was not stroking your nose?" "He didn't! I wasn't! It isn't true!" cried Mollie, beginning to prance about and paw the ground. And–I was a long way away, but I am almost certain I saw this–he was talking to you and you were allowing him to stroke your nose. Pilkington's men was standing on the other side of the hedge. This morning I saw you looking over the hedge that divides Animal Farm from Foxwood. "Mollie," she said, "I have something very serious to say to you. One day, as Mollie strolled blithely into the yard, flirting her long tail and chewing at a stalk of hay, Clover took her aside. But there were also rumours of something more serious. On every kind of pretext she would run away from work and go to the drinking pool, where she would stand foolishly gazing at her own reflection in the water. She was late for work every morning and excused herself by saying that she had overslept, and she complained of mysterious pains, although her appetite was excellent. Animal Farm: A Fairy Story by George Orwell (Chapter 5)Īs winter drew on, Mollie became more and more troublesome.
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