The Oh, Born in Burma, H., in 1870, H.H. Monroe worked as a journalist before gaining

fame as a short story writer under the pen named Saki. His works, which include the classic stories,

Tobermery and the open window, offer a satirical commentary on

Edwardian society and culture.

This story places three young children and their aunt on a train with

her attempting to tell them a morality tale and that not working out as well as she

would have liked. A bachelor is seated in the same section and getting a little

annoyed with the children's actions suggests that perhaps the children would like to listen

to a more engaging tale. You can only imagine the aunt's reaction. The

children's aunt challenges him to produce a better tale and he accepts. And now

the storyteller by Saki.

It was a hot afternoon and the railway carriage was correspondingly sultry.

And the next stop was at Temple Combe, nearly an hour ahead. The occupants of the

carriage were a small girl and a smaller girl and a small boy. An aunt belonging to the children occupied one corner seat and

the further corner seat on the opposite side was occupied by a bachelor who was

a stranger to their party but the small girls and the small boy emphatically

occupied the compartment.

Both the aunt and the children were conversational in a limited, persistent way, reminding one of the attentions of a house fly that

refuses to be discouraged. Most of the aunt's remarks seem to begin with

don't and nearly all of the children's remarks began with why the bachelor said

nothing out loud don't Cyril don't exclaimed the aunt as the small boy began smacking the cushions of the seat, producing

a cloud of dust at each blow.

...