A poor cart-maker lived in a village. But there was very little work for him, so he decided that he would have to think of doing some other work if he was to earn some money. He thought he would go to a neighbouring village. On the way, he saw a female camel that gave birth to a baby.
He gave the camel leaves to eat and, when she was strong enough, took her and the baby camel to his new home. He looked after them with great care and they grew healthy and strong. He was very fond of the young camel and tied a bell around the camel’s neck.
He sold the camel’s milk and decided that this work would be right for him. He went to Gujarat and bought another camel and soon had several camels as his property. He kept a servant to look after the camels and every year the servant gave him one baby camel too. He continued to prosper as he sold the camel’s milk and the camels.
The camels were taken every morning to the jungle where they fed on fresh leaves and creepers and lots of good things. A lake near by gave them enough water to drink and they came home in the evening, led by the faithful servant.
The camel with the bell was loved the most by the cart-maker. This had made the camel very proud and vain. He thought he was better than all the others and often refused to walk with the herd. He would wander off on his own or fall behind the others sometimes, exploring the forest. His mother and the other camels scolded him for going off on his own.
“You must stay with the herd, son,” said his mother, “It’s not safe for you to go away on your own. The jungle is full of dangerous animals and your bell can be heard miles away.”
But the arrogant camel did not pay any attention to all the good advice that was given to him. He went along doing exactly as he pleased. After all, he was the camel with the bell!
One day, a lion was near the lake drinking water. He heard the sound of the bell tinkling and looked up. He saw the herd of camels coming to the lake to drink too. He hid himself among the bushes and watched them. He noticed one young camel, the one who had a bell around his neck, was wandering away from the herd eating fresh leaves.
The camel seemed to have lost his way and soon separated from the herd, which went off home after drinking water. As the camel neared his hiding place, the lion sprang on him and killed him.
