Ready! Take aim! Fire away!" At this command every crab began scraping at his fiddle as hard as he could, and the sounds were so shrill and unmusical that Trot wondered when they would begin to play a tune.

But they never did; it was one regular mix-up of sounds from beginning to end.

When the noise finally stopped, the leader turned to his visitors and, waving his baton toward them, asked, "Well, what did you think of that ?" "Not much," said Trot honestly.

"What's it all about ?" "I composed it myself!" said the Fiddler Crab.

"But it's highly classical, I admit.