Little Boy Blue

He's now Little Boy Red.

Little Boy Blue,

Come blow your horn,

The sheep’s in the meadow,

The cow’s in the corn;

But where is the boy

Who looks after the sheep?

He’s under a haycock,

Fast asleep.

Will you wake him?

No, not I,

For if I do,

He’s sure to cry.

A red sky appeared at dusk, and everyone heard the horn of Blue, the shepherd’s apprentice. Everyone ran out into the meadow because that certain horn signaled the coming of wolves. But they were too late, they found most of the sheep already eaten and the horn was left on the ground. The people then began to question the whereabouts of Blue. They searched everywhere until bedtime. For the following days, Blue was still nowhere to be found. The townspeople inferred that he was taken away by the wolves, too, but Detective Sheeplock Holmes thought otherwise. He was a very brilliant detective for he found Blue after following the clues: the queer position of the horn on the ground and the sheep’s position even, which was as though they made way for someone fleeing.

 

And do you know where he found Blue? He was under a haycock, hidden under the hay. And to the witnesses’ horror, Blue was covered in red, red as in blood. Judging by the numerous stab wounds, Sheeplock knew Blue was murdered using a pitchfork, not by wolves. Everyone looked at the shepherd who was known to grow angry at Blue for he was always sleeping on the job. But there was another suspect – the cowherd. The murder scene was near the cornfield where everyone was surprised to see a cow hidden in it. They remembered the cowherd once blamed Blue in trying to steal his cows for free milk. Sheeplock then asked the two where they were at the time when the horn was blown.

 

The shepherd replied that he was busy tending to his own herd of sheep on the other side of the meadow because it was going to rain. As for the cowherd, he was also grazing his cows towards the east. With these simple answers, Sheeplock Holmes pointed to the shepherd, “If what you’re saying is true, that means you’re a no-good shepherd. Every wise shepherd knows that a red sky in the night means a shepherd’s delight. It’s not going to rain!”

 

The shepherd then admitted it. Below that blood-red night sky, he saw Blue sleeping again on the haycock after another drink from his stolen cow. The shepherd didn’t bother and went to his sheep instead. But upon arriving, the shepherd saw the wolves were already feasting. He blew out the horn, and the wolves ran away. With the loss, the shepherd went back to the cornfield and murdered his apprentice. After this revelation, the shepherd was hanged in the gallows in the morning, under the red sky, with the cows turning their back to the east. Then, it rained.

Author's Note

Tell me why the cowherd was innocent. And don't tell me because the shepherd was guilty. Don''t be so obvious.