“I have run away from a little old woman,
  “A little old man,
  “A cow,
  “A horse,
  “And I can run away from you, I can!”

And when he found that he was ahead of the threshers, he turned and shouted back to them,—­

  “Run! run! as fast as you can! 
  “You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!”

And the threshers couldn’t catch him.

Then the little Gingerbread Boy ran faster than ever.  He ran and ran until he came to a field full of mowers.  When the mowers saw how fine he looked, they ran after him, calling out, “Wait a bit! wait a bit, little Gingerbread Boy, we wish to eat you!” But the little Gingerbread Boy laughed harder than ever, and ran like the wind.  “Oho! oho!” he said,—­

  “I have run away from a little old woman,
  “A little old man,
  “A cow,
  “A horse,
  “A barn full of threshers,
  “And I can run away from you, I can!”

And when he found that he was ahead of the mowers, he turned and shouted back to them,—­

  “Run! run! as fast as you can! 
  “You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!”

And the mowers couldn’t catch him.

By this time the little Gingerbread Boy was so proud that he didn’t think anybody could catch him.  Pretty soon he saw a fox coming across a field.  The fox looked at him and began to run.  But the little Gingerbread Boy shouted across to him, “You can’t catch me!” The fox began to run faster, and the little Gingerbread Boy ran faster, and as he ran he chuckled,—­

  “I have run away from a little old woman,
  “A little old man,
  “A cow,
  “A horse,
  “A barn full of threshers,
  “A field full of mowers,
  “And I can run away from you, I can! 
  “Run! run! as fast as you can! 
  “You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!”

“Why,” said the fox, “I would not catch you if I could.  I would not think of disturbing you.”

Just then, the little Gingerbread Boy came to a river.  He could not swim across, and he wanted to keep running away from the cow and the horse and the people.

“Jump on my tail, and I will take you across,” said the fox.

So the little Gingerbread Boy jumped on the fox’s tail, and the fox swam into the river.  When he was a little way from shore he turned his head, and said, “You are too heavy on my tail, little Gingerbread Boy, I fear I shall let you get wet; jump on my back.”

The little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his back.

A little farther out, the fox said, “I am afraid the water will cover you, there; jump on my shoulder.”

The little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his shoulder.

In the middle of the stream the fox said, “Oh, dear! little Gingerbread Boy, my shoulder is sinking; jump on my nose, and I can hold you out of water.”

So the little Gingerbread Boy jumped on his nose.