The oldest ant was building an underground home. Through the long summer days she worked, carrying out a grain of sand at a time. Then she filled her storehouse with food for the winter.

Her work was finished just as the frost came to mow down the growing plants. All summer the katydid called from the trees, and the locust danced and buzzed in the sunshine.

When winter came, the oldest ant was warm and comfortable and she had enough food for her daily needs.

But the locust and the katydid were cold and hungry. "Why should we freeze?" chirped the katydid. "The ant has a warm house." "And why should we be hungry?" said the locust. "The ant has plenty of food." So together they went to the home of the oldest ant."Let us in, let us in, kind ant," they cried. "We are cold and hungry."

"What did you do through the warm weather?" asked the oldest ant.

"We played in the sunshine. We chirped and buzzed and sang."

"Did you build no lodge? Could you not store food for the time of frost and storm?"

"We had no need to work when the summer was here with its warmth and beauty. We danced away the happy hours."

"Go dance away the winter, then," said the oldest ant. "I worked hard through all the long summer days, and I had no time to dance or sing."

The locust and the katydid turned away shivering. "It is not fair," they said, "that the ant has plenty and we have nothing. She should be forced to let us in."