he Three-Legged Mountain Goat

aron Von Lodge was the head of a small country known as Lilliland near Switzerland. The time was the early 1900s.

Lilliland was located in the beautiful Alpine Mountains which made it very popular for tourists interested in all mountain sports such as skiing, climbing, camping, and much more. Some people just came to look at the scenic views.

The Baron was advised that some mountain climbers had seen an unusual sight. Near one of the mountain peaks, there was a mountain goat with three legs. One group of climbers thought that the goat should be shot because it must be suffering and in pain. To shoot it would have put it out of its misery.

Once the Baron heard that some climbers were talking about shooting the three-legged goat, he became very concerned. There was a law in Lilliland that there were to be no guns, no shooting, no hunting, and no killing, whatever the reason. The only people in Lilliland who were allowed to carry a gun were the police and mountain rescue teams. The Baron acted immediately to have a team bring the goat down the mountain to the veterinarian's office for examination.

The three-legged goat was brought in to the veterinarian and the examination proved that the goat was in no pain or discomfort at all. He was born with the three legs and had learned to adequately get around with what legs he had.

The Baron had the goat returned to the exact spot on the mountain where the team had found him. The Baron also put out the word that killing any animal does not put it out of its misery. Life is full of both happy and miserable times, but one does not kill something because it appears to be in misery.