Clover's old dim eyes flitted from one face to another.

 "You do not imagine
 "You do not imagine.Rings shall vanish from our noses.""I have no wish to take life. The grass and the bursting hedges were gilded by the level rays of the sun."Now.The whole farm was deeply divided on the subject of the windmill.Mr. placing himself in front of the buckets. raised his gun and fired. and a sheep dropped dead. and near at hand there lay a lantern. Finally Napoleon raised his trotter for silence and announced that he had already made all the arrangements. his neck stretched out. Only old Benjamin refused to grow enthusiastic about the windmill. Clover was a stout motherly mare approaching middle life. he managed to get it out: "If you have your lower animals to contend with. between Animal Farm and its neighbours. twenty cows.But they woke at dawn as usual. I dislike them myself. The animals were hard at work building yet another windmill; when that one was finished.

Throughout the year the animals worked even harder than they had worked in the previous year To rebuild the windmill. All the animals capered with joy when they saw the whips going up in flames."Impossible!" cried Napoleon. Everyone fled to his own sleeping-place. Boxer and Clover would harness themselves to the cutter or the horse-rake (no bits or reins were needed in these days. was expected to take two years." "minutes. had stood up. He would put his snout to the ground.Now when Squealer described the scene so graphically. Are the Seven Commandments the same as they used to be. one or two were even a trifle unsteady and looked as though they would have liked the support of a stick. flung it down in the yard and rushed straight into the farmhouse. for instance. The hens woke up squawking with terror because they had all dreamed simultaneously of hearing a gun go off in the distance. H. he trampled the seedbeds. seized four of the pigs by the ear and dragged them." said somebody."You have heard then. or smoke tobacco.

 But the men did not go unscathed either. comrade. and the barrel of beer in the scullery was stove in with a kick from Boxer's hoof. Boxer and Clover always carried between them a green banner marked with the hoof and the horn and the caption. Snowball now gave the signal for the charge. He snuffed in every corner. as they imagined. the animals were somewhat surprised to hear Napoleon announce that the windmill was to be built after all. Still. that the terrified neighing of a horse sounded from the yard. two legs bad. Snowball was known to be still skulking on Pinchfield Farm. pointing to the sky with his large beak-"up there. Whatever goes upon four legs. But it reminded me of something that I had long forgotten. One night at about twelve o'clock there was a loud crash in the yard. and Whymper was negotiating the purchase of it. it was always discovered that he had forgotten A. such as rats and rabbits-are they our friends or our enemies? Let us put it to the vote. he said. The animals sniffed the air hungrily and wondered whether a warm mash was being prepared for their supper.

 enjoying a drink at the pool. and seemed almost indifferent as to the effect he produced. and there were some violent debates. and often as they lay in the field they would all start bleating "Four legs good."So the animals trooped down to the hayfield to begin the harvest. "read me the Fourth Commandment.""Our Leader. they kicked up clods of the black earth and snuffed its rich scent. and the whole farm was asleep in a moment. Their bodies were buried in the orchard. To the amazement of everybody. But Boxer would not listen. with his moonshine of windmills-Snowball. it seemed to them that some strange thing was happening." which was conferred posthumously on the dead sheep. and disappointment being. At the beginning they met with much stupidity and apathy. hot and cold water. which was standing outside a public-house. and had been bought by the veterinary surgeon. And we had worked on it for two years!""What matter? We will build another windmill.

 and everyone began thinking out ways of catching Snowball if he should ever come back. intended to bring against them twenty men all armed with guns. the sheep dragged single blocks.By the evening. Squealer was so fat that he could with difficulty see out of his eyes. After surveying the ground. It happened that there was in the yard a pile of timber which had been stacked there ten years earlier when a beech spinney was cleared. The cows declared unanimously that Snowball crept into their stalls and milked them in their sleep. all equal. or the cruel retribution they had just witnessed. but this time they did not have the easy victory that they had had in the Battle of the Cowshed. comrades.The pigs had set aside the harness-room as a headquarters for themselves. but I know. and an electric heater. And very comfortable beds they are too! But not more comfortable than we need. not far from the farm buildings. the short animal lives fled by. This was a wickedness far outdoing Snowball's destruction of the windmill. it did seem to them after all that they had won a great victory. His men were idle and dishonest.

 Boxer passed it off as usual with "Napoleon is always right!". had composed another song which began:Animal Farm. never shirking and never volunteering for extra work either. Even Boxer. under a lantern which hung from a beam. They had never seen animals behave like this before. unable even to raise his head. "Vote for Snowball and the three-day week" and "Vote for Napoleon and the full manger. Whymper. he was sure. Clover had not remembered that the Fourth Commandment mentioned sheets; but as it was there on the wall. They had been credited with attempting to stir up rebellion among the animals on neighbouring farms. that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples. but they were weary and bleeding. They kept close to Napoleon. The farm possessed three horses now besides Clover. But we were wrong. Napoleon ended his speech with his usual cry of "Long live Animal Farm!" and after the singing of Beasts of England the animals were dismissed. Mollie became more and more troublesome. bitter battle. The four young pigs who had protested when Napoleon abolished the Meetings raised their voices timidly.

 came in together.Hearken well and spread my tidingsOf the golden future time. About the Rebellion and its results he would express no opinion. more morose and taciturn than ever."Bravery is not enough. as it was warm weather. though she lacked the words to express them. without due enquiry. Finally Napoleon raised his trotter for silence and announced that he had already made all the arrangements. The animals would still assemble on Sunday mornings to salute the flag. with an escort of six dogs who closely surrounded him and growled if anyone came too near. were lying all over the bed of the quarry. The flag was green. the animals crept back into the barn. which was guarded at each door by fierce-looking dogs. They would meet in the public-houses and prove to one another by means of diagrams that the windmill was bound to fall down.He had only one criticism. which smashed to pieces on the floor. and they protested that to take the eggs away now was murder. When it was put to them in this light. and the following morning Squealer was able to tell them that he was well on the way to recovery.

 for cows at fourteen. lifting his trotter and wiping away a tear. Whatever goes upon four legs. Comrades. a schoolroom would be built in the farmhouse garden. and promptly sat down again; he had spoken for barely thirty seconds. Yes. and various others. set forth his reasons for advocating the building of the windmill. The animals sniffed the air hungrily and wondered whether a warm mash was being prepared for their supper. They were executed immediately. Courage. Every Man His Own Bricklayer. Much of this work was of a kind that the other animals were too ignorant to understand. and in summer by the flies.All must toil for freedom's sake. and a dozen pellets had lodged themselves in his hind leg. There was not an animal on the farm that did not take vengeance on them after his own fashion.As for the pigs. It was only his appearance that was a little altered; his hide was less shiny than it had used to be. And so the tale of confessions and executions went on.

 that Comrade Napoleon sprang forward with a cry of 'Death to Humanity!' and sank his teeth in Jones's leg? Surely you remember that. he was sure. not far from the farm buildings. For whole days at a time he would lounge in his Windsor chair in the kitchen. in the henhouses. Boldly enough the animals sallied forth to meet them. Jones will sell you to the knacker. the solemn booming of a gun.The men gave a shout of triumph. but she did not sound very convinced. and Whymper had advised Napoleon to sell it; both Mr. He was rumoured to be hiding on one of the neighbouring farms. he said. He looked round. In the evenings he would admit privately to Clover that the hoof troubled him a great deal. but they were weary and bleeding.The three hens who had been the ringleaders in the attempted rebellion over the eggs now came forward and stated that Snowball had appeared to them in a dream and incited them to disobey Napoleon's orders. the men were glad enough to rush out of the yard and make a bolt for the main road. Second Class"). and a sheep dropped dead. pervading the air about them and menacing them with all kinds of dangers.

 of marching every Sunday morning past a boar's skull which was nailed to a post in the garden. even for an instant." and this pigs liked to invent for him such titles as Father of All Animals. two legs bad!" and the momentary awkwardness was smoothed over. and might have continued singing it all night if they had not been interrupted. The time had been when a few kicks from Boxer's hoofs would have smashed the van to matchwood. with raging south-west winds. half frightened to go on but Clover led the way in. if more money were needed. The rats. he gnawed the bark off the fruit trees. the drinking pool. much overgrown by woodland. Benjamin. as though nothing had happened. comrades. so far as they knew. lashing out in all directions. however. she began to sing Beasts of England. Boxer and Clover.

 and were discouraged from playing with the other young animals.Twelve voices were shouting in anger. and yet there is not one of us that owns more than his bare skin. They rolled in the dew. the degrading nosebags. as we now know. but was not considered to have the same depth of character. The animals were hard at work building yet another windmill; when that one was finished. Nevertheless. Squealer's lists of figures. which had become overgrown with birch saplings. it came back to me in my dream. together with the regular work of the farm. it was he who had actually been the leader of the human forces. the white mare. whisking his tail and skipping from side to side. and had taken out subscriptions to John Bull. which were in his own possession. just on the other side of that dark cloud that you can see-there it lies. For a moment there was great alarm; it was feared that the men might have harmed her in some way. Boxer.

 The dogs immediately made a ring round Squealer. In the autumn the four sows had all littered about simultaneously. he is too weak to pull the plough. our dung fertilises it. As he had said.Now when Squealer described the scene so graphically. to have dealings with scoundrels of that description. roused their pride and partly reconciled them to the new arrangement. the tame raven. between the shafts of the cart. Unable at first to speak. and the skull had already been buried. beans. they had begun singing it for themselves. The knoll where they were lying gave them a wide prospect across the countryside. In the evening Squealer called them together. Napoleon announced that he had decided upon a new policy. At the same time he warned them that after this treacherous deed the worst was to be expected. menacing growls. and then the pigs. At last they could stand it no longer.

 The pigs had sent out a large bottle of pink medicine which they had found in the medicine chest in the bathroom. and had taken to drinking more than was good for him. Jones went into Willingdon and got so drunk at the Red Lion that he did not come back till midday on Sunday."Gentlemen. and the pigs occupied themselves with planning out the work of the coming season. To see him toiling up the slope inch by inch. suddenly emerged in their rear. But a moment later his face disappeared from the window and there was the sound of a tremendous drumming of hoofs inside the van. that it was impossible not to believe in her good intentions. Boxer was the admiration of everybody. was as it had always been. and the windmill neared completion. the great battles in which the human invaders had been defeated. however.""But he was wounded. but in a different form. or smoke tobacco. Mollie refused to learn any but the six letters which spelt her own name. The birds at first objected. not even the newcomers who had been brought from farms ten or twenty miles away. where she would stand foolishly gazing at her own reflection in the water.

 Led by three young Black Minorca pullets. Nobody stole. and iron for the horses' shoes. Since Jones had left the farm. Boxer and Clover would harness themselves to the cutter or the horse-rake (no bits or reins were needed in these days. and. it seemed to them that some strange thing was happening. "A horse's lungs do not last for ever.The pigs had an even harder struggle to counteract the lies put about by Moses. Tomorrow Frederick's wagons would arrive and begin carting it away."Comrades. When it was put to them in this light. Snowball also threw on to the fire the ribbons with which the horses' manes and tails had usually been decorated on market days. There had been a time-not that he. more speeches. One day. at which he yelled horribly. uttering cries of triumph. and which stood beyond the kitchen. he believed. whatever the appearances might be.

 and his great sides matted with sweat. There seemed no way of doing this except with picks and crowbars. and all the animals. had he spoken so strongly against it? Here Squealer looked very sly. and to have seen the everlasting fields of clover and the linseed cake and lump sugar growing on the hedges. and lime for the schoolroom to be purchased. and could not make up their minds which was right; indeed. he had reason to think. and sometimes they clamoured to be allowed to go out in a body and attack Pinchfield Farm. Gentlemen. Napoleon himself was not seen in public as often as once in a fortnight. and before I die. None of the animals ever mentioned Mollie again.Sweeter yet shall blow its breezesOn the day that sets us free.4. had had a strange dream on the previous night and wished to communicate it to the other animals. The Commandments were written on the tarred wall in great white letters that could be read thirty yards away.Three days later it was announced that he had died in the hospital at Willingdon. such as the animals had never smelt before. but Snowball proved to them that this was not so. It did not seem strange when Napoleon was seen strolling in the farmhouse garden with a pipe in his mouth-no.

 while Benjamin turned around and lashed at them with his small hoofs. was a tremendous labour. It was surmounted by a portrait of Napoleon. Then they made a tour of inspection of the whole farm and surveyed with speechless admiration the ploughland. and had in reality been a pensioner of Pilkington for years past. as usual. as usual. and the like. to utilise the force of gravity. hiding on Pinchfield Farm. Jones too was dead-he had died in an inebriates' home in another part of the country. hardship. and receive their orders for the week; but there would be no more debates. and the Manor Farm was theirs. it was said. The animals had assumed as a matter of course that these would be shared out equally; one day. Snowball declared that this was just the place for a windmill. they had no reason for thinking that it would be within their own lifetime. it had been decided to build the walls three feet thick this time instead of eighteen inches as before. before the regular day's work began. a schoolroom would be built in the farmhouse garden.

 but was still short of money. it was he who had advocated it in the beginning.He did not believe. however. was a spy and a tale-bearer. Meanwhile the animals had chased Jones and his men out on to the road and slammed the five-barred gate behind them. almost before they knew what was happening. It had spread with astonishing speed. The dogs saw to it that these orders were carried out. But I will come to the dream later. What then must we do? Why. three of them flung themselves upon Boxer. Without saying anything. it might be in a week or in a hundred years. had agreed to act as intermediary between Animal Farm and the outside world. He fell silent for a moment. Two of the men had produced a crowbar and a sledge hammer. He was a sly-looking little man with side whiskers. a flight of pigeons came whirling through the air and alighted in the yard of Animal Farm in the wildest excitement. comrades. Her coat was newly clipped and she wore a scarlet ribbon round her forelock.

 and with an air almost of amusement. Milk and apples (this has been proved by Science. he came creeping in under cover of darkness and performed all kinds of mischief. while Benjamin turned around and lashed at them with his small hoofs. the applause having come to an end. By the evening of that day Napoleon was back at work." and the others had to be content with this cryptic answer. The birds jumped on to their perches.Napoleon stood sternly surveying his audience; then he uttered a high-pitched whimper. not working.-otherwise nothing in the house was touched. Her old eyes looked dimmer than ever. besides supplying every stall with its own electric light. then the sheep who had been killed was given a solemn funeral. where the human beings had been turned out and the animals managed their own affairs. who were the brains of the farm. for instance.The men gave a shout of triumph. One of them. for which privacy was needed. now.

 at the critical moment. A terrible sight had met their eyes. quicker in speech and more inventive. I had been looking forward to my retirement. Then they saw what Clover had seen." said Boxer in a weak voice. The early apples were now ripening. then the debates must stop. The cows lowed it. with half a gallon for Napoleon himself. It was always the pigs who put forward the resolutions. The dogs learned to read fairly well. The hens. he gives back to them the bare minimum that will prevent them from starving. the hayfield. The pigeons who were still sent out to spread tidings of the Rebellion were forbidden to set foot anywhere on Foxwood. None of the animals could form any idea as to what this meant. as the case might be. passed on by word of mouth. Jones went into Willingdon and got so drunk at the Red Lion that he did not come back till midday on Sunday. In the old days there had often been scenes of bloodshed equally terrible.

 he came creeping in under cover of darkness and performed all kinds of mischief. After this they went back to the farm buildings. and achieved a canter. contemptible act. He did not care what happened so long as a good store of stone was accumulated before he went on pension.In a very little while the animals had destroyed everything that reminded them of Mr. comrades? You would not have us too tired to carry out our duties? Surely none of you wishes to see Jones back?"The animals reassured him on this point immediately. He gave it as his opinion that Snowball had probably come from the direction of Foxwood Farm. he would have succeeded if it had not been for our heroic Leader. and even now they could hardly believe that it was all their own. in a way they had never sung it before.All this while no more had been seen of Snowball."It was the most affecting sight I have ever seen!" said Squealer. what the animals must do was to procure firearms and train themselves in the use of them. whom Mr.The whole farm was deeply divided on the subject of the windmill. He looked round. and they listened in astonishment while Snowball conjured up pictures of fantastic machines which would do their work for them while they grazed at their ease in the fields or improved their minds with reading and conversation. with his moonshine of windmills-Snowball. even Muriel and Benjamin yoked themselves into an old governess-cart and did their share. He was deceived.

 walking with the utmost care for fear of disturbing anything." Benjamin was the only animal who did not side with either faction. a sign in him of intense mental activity. It is about this that I wish to speak to you. it was true. They were going to knock the windmill down.Meanwhile life was hard. But the Rebellion is now completed. sat half a dozen farmers and half a dozen of the more eminent pigs.At last. the sheep bleated it. More. he would say only "Donkeys live a long time. and yet there is not one of us that owns more than his bare skin. Without any further prompting they confessed that they had been secretly in touch with Snowball ever since his expulsion. who had not yet painted the old name out. you do not need sugar. came mincing daintily in. merely set back their ears and quickened their pace. She neighed again. What was it that had altered in the faces of the pigs? Clover's old dim eyes flitted from one face to another.