Little Jack Rabbit and the Squirrel Brothers.

by David Cory.

THE GAME OF MARBLES

Never stop upon your way, Just to fool around and play.

Learn to quickly go to school; Never, never break this rule.

But, oh dear me. One morning when Little Jack Rabbit met the Squirrel Brothers, Featherhead, the naughty gray squirrel, asked him to stop and play a game of marbles.

"Where are your marbles?" asked the little rabbit.

"Here they are," answered Featherhead, taking some red and yellow oak apples out of his pocket. "They make dandy marbles."

Little Jack Rabbit dropped his school books, and quickly dug a hole in the ground. Then they all took turns rolling the marbles to see who would have the first shot.

The little bunny's was the first to drop into the hole, although Twinkle Tail's was very close and Featherhead's not far away.

It was then easy for Little Jack Rabbit to hit the two marbles. Why, he couldn't miss them, they were so close. I guess they would have been playing until now if all of a sudden, just like that, Bobbie Redvest hadn't called out:

"Ding-a-ling! ding-a-ling! the school bell is ringing."

"Gracious me!" cried little bunny, and off he went, clipperty clip, lipperty lip. Featherhead and Twinkle Tail picked up their books and followed.

It certainly was lucky that the little robin had shouted, "Ding-a-ling!

ding-a-ling!" for hardly had they reached the top of the hill when the school bell commenced: "Ding, dong! ding, dong! ding, dong!"

"Hurry up!" cried Little Jack Rabbit, "or we'll be late," and he hopped along faster than ever.

Professor Crow was standing in the doorway waiting for the last scholar to arrive.

All out of breath and scared to death, Came little Jackie Bunny.

And Twinkle Tail began to quail, And Featherhead felt funny.

They thought the teacher standing there Gave them a cold and angry stare.

Perhaps he did, but soon he went And o'er his platform table bent, While Featherhead and Twinkle Tail Slipped in their seats with faces pale.

Then up stood stern Professor Crow And said some scholars are so slow That if they'd stop upon the way They'd never get to school all day.

Then he sat down and called the school to order. But, oh dear me! None of the little marble players knew his lesson. And instead of being allowed to go when school was over, they were kept in and made to study until late in the afternoon.

A LITTLE PIECE OF LOOKING GLa.s.s

If you a naughty act will do, You may at first escape; But soon or later you'll get caught-- So don't get in a sc.r.a.pe.

Featherhead was the worst pupil in the Shady Forest School and made lots of trouble for Professor Crow.

One day he held a small piece of looking gla.s.s in the sunlight. The flash almost blinded the poor old crow's eyes, and at first he couldn't tell who had done it. But naughtiness will always out, and the next time Featherhead was caught.

Yes, sir! The next time he tried it on Professor Crow, that old gentleman bird jumped down from the platform and took hold of that naughty squirrel's ear. And not so very gently, either.

Featherhead squirmed and tried to get away, but the good professor held on tight, and pretty soon the little squirrel grew very quiet indeed. He grew as quiet as a little lamb; that's what he did.

"Young man!" said Professor Crow in a hard, stern voice, "your father, Squirrel Nutcracker, is a dear old friend of mine. If it weren't for that I'd give you a flogging."

Goodness me! When Featherhead heard that he trembled all over, and his beautiful bushy tail lost its curl and dragged on the floor like a piece of string!

"You're a bad lot," went on the old professor bird. "You never know your lessons, and if you don't mend your ways I'll expel you from the school!"

Gracious me! Think of having that said to you! Goosey Lucy's little son, Goosey Gander, almost fell off the dunce stool, and Little Jack Rabbit was so frightened that his little pink nose trembled for an hour.

n.o.body played games during recess that day, but hung around in little groups talking it over. And you may be sure they kept away from Featherhead, who stood all alone by the flag pole wishing he hadn't been such a bad squirrel.

THE FLEET

Something had happened in the Shady Forest since Busy Beaver had built his dam. You see, as it held back the Bubbling Brook, the water grew deeper and deeper, and by and by it began to spread all around, until after a while, there was a pond.

This didn't trouble the Little People of the Shady Forest. No, indeed.

They liked to have a pond in the forest. But they didn't like to have the Big Chestnut Tree right in the middle of it. No, sir. The water had spread all around the biggest and finest nut tree in the whole forest, and, of course, now no one could gather the nuts.

"What are we going to do?" asked Chippy Chipmunk.

"Make a boat and sail over," answered Featherhead, the gray squirrel.

This wasn't a bad idea, but who was going to make the boat? n.o.body in the Shady Forest knew how to build one.

Professor Crow suggested that the birds carry the nuts for the four-footed people, but they answered that they had all they could do to feed themselves and couldn't spare the time. And Grandmother Magpie said she wouldn't carry nuts for anybody, even if she had all the time that was wasted every day by some people right there in the Shady Forest.

Just then along came Old Squirrel Nutcracker.

"Why not make rafts out of twigs? You don't need a boat builder for that, you know."

This seemed a splendid idea, and at once all the squirrels set to work, and in a short time quite a fleet was ready to be launched. There wasn't room for more than one squirrel on a raft, so some of the squirrels had to stay ash.o.r.e.

Featherhead was the first to shove off. He had a little sack and a large oar, and spread out his tail for a sail.

Billy Breeze was very kind and blew the rafts over to the island on which the Big Chestnut Tree stood. Then all the squirrels went ash.o.r.e and commenced to fill their sacks with nuts, when, all of a sudden, Old Barney Owl looked out of his nest and said:

"This is my tree and these nuts belong to me. If you wish any, you must pay a penny!"

"If we bring you something to-morrow, will that do?" asked Twinkle Tail.

"Yes," answered the old owl.