43: Chapter 41. The Story of Rowsby Woof and the Fairy Wogdog Scripted by John Ruths and Newell Fisher The pre-chapter quote is a Psalm of David and is about delivering him from his enemies and their actions against David. It's interesting that Richard Adams choose a psalm snippet that contains the word "dog" and this makes it quite fitting. And then the chapter opens with "Now came the dog days—day after day of hot, still summer". It's almost as if there is a theme here... Then comes a section of the main narrative that has a feeling of relief and bliss that you'd expect all WD rabbits to have due to the success of the mission at Efrafa. The warren is now 26 rabbits made up of 16 bucks and 10 does.   The two bards of the warren, Dandelion and Bluebell, discuss the idea of a story.  That story is, of course, 'Rowsby Woof and the Fairy Wogdog.' Dandelion starts to tell the story. It's another story of El-ahrairah and Rabscuttle; it also sounds like it's a cold-weather story and that food was scarce. There is a man with a garden bigger than any other around. The man also had a dog named Rowsby Woof who sounds possibly like a sheepdog.  Dandelion describes RW as a subservient dog, to the man, who not only won't let any animal ever get a vegetable but also that he'll kill any intruders that he can get to.   El-ahrairah comments that they'll just have to watch and wait for a chance to get some food. The following afternoon, Rabscuttle notices a bag fall off a hrududu as it passes by.  He's disappointed to see that it contains meat. They then find a discarded tyre.  Rabscuttle nibbles off a bit of rubber as instructed by El-ahrairah.  After El-ahrairah spends the night nibbling at it, ir looks like a dog's nose. They try to transfer as many smells into the piece of rubber as they can. They also dig up the meat that sounds like linked sausages and drag it through a part of the garden.   The rabbits move to the front of the man's house.  El-ahrairah role plays the Fairy Wogdog. RW smells the rubber nose and all the smells it has picked up and this stimulates his suspension of disbelief.  The Fairy Wogdog is a messenger of Queen Dripslobber and it turns out that the queen has heard of RW.   The Fairy Wogdog offers the sausages to RW who hesitates as it would mean that he'd have to essentially leave his post.  However, when the Fairy Wogdog threatens to leave, RW is ready to do anything. RW goes after the sausages that the rabbits had hidden earlier. He then comes back and is told to await the return Fairy Wogdog; and that this will lead to a meeting with the Queen, who is sort of like a dog El-ahrairah.  The Fairy Wogdog tells RW of a particular crossroads.  In other words, they trick RW into leaving the house undefended again.  The rabbits now get into the farmhouse and have their fill of flayrah.  In the meantime, poor old RW is waiting at the crossroads for a meeting with the Queen that will never happen.  RW hears footsteps, however, they are those of his returning master who, of course, is wondering what his dog is doing here and away from his home. Man and dog get back to the house. The rabbits will slip away in a small hole above a drain that they've been using for access but the man has plugged it more securely.  El-ahrairah and Rabscuttle are trapped! The Fairy Wogdog talks to RW from behind some items.  El-ahrairah spins yet another yarn, this one involving a plot by the great rat spirit being aided by his rat goblins.  They will attempt to slay RW's master via a spell. To break it, RW must apparently run barking around the house four times.  To get out, RW has to raise enough of a ruckus for his master to let him out.  This happens.  In the ensuing chaos, El-ahrairah and Rabscuttle naturally get away.