"But Mr. Polecat said he guessed he'd come in, as it was a little chilly and he didn't feel very well anyway. So he came inside, and Jack Rabbit gave him his best chair and brought out a little table and put a lot of nice things on it that Mr. Polecat likes, and began right away to pack a basket for him to take home.

"But Mr. Polecat didn't seem to be in any hurry to go. He ate some of the nice things, and then leaned back to talk and smoke, and told Mr.

Rabbit all the news he'd heard as he came along, and Mr. Rabbit got more and more worried, for he knew that just as likely as not Mr. Polecat had heard something about Mr. Dog and would begin to tell it pretty soon, and then no knowing what would happen. So Jack Rabbit just said 'Yes'

and 'No' and began to talk about Mr. Robin, because Mr. Robin was a good friend of everybody and n.o.body could get excited just talking about Mr.

Robin. But Mr. Polecat says:--'Oh, yes, I saw Mr. Robin as I came along, and he called to me that Mr. Dog----' And then Jack Rabbit changed the subject as quick as he could and spoke about Mr. Squirrel, and Mr.

Polecat says:--'Oh, did you hear how Mr. Squirrel went over to Mr. Man's house and saw Mr. Dog there----' And then poor Mr. Rabbit had to think quick and change the subject again to the Hollow Tree people, and Mr.

Polecat said:--'Oh, yes. I stopped by that way as I came along, and they called out to me from up stairs how you were practising drawing, and that you gave Mr. Dog some dancing lessons the other day, and then made a fine picture of him just as he looked when he danced into the hot coals, so I hurried right over here for just to see that picture.'

"Poor Mr. Rabbit! He didn't know what to do. He knew right away that the Hollow Tree people had told about the picture to get rid of Mr.

Polecat, and he made up his mind that he'd get even with them some day for getting him in such a fix. But some day was a long ways off and Mr.

Polecat was right there under his nose, so Mr. Rabbit said, just as quick as he could say it, that the Hollow Tree people were always making jokes, and that the picture was just as poor as it could be, and that he'd be ashamed to show it to anybody, much more to a talented gentleman like Mr. Polecat. But that made Mr. Polecat all the more anxious to see it, for he was sure Mr. Rabbit was only modest, and pretty soon he happened to spy the edge of the picture frame under Mr. Rabbit's bed, and just reached under and pulled it out, before Mr. Rabbit could help himself.

"Well, he picked up that picture and looked at it a minute, and Jack Rabbit began to back off toward the door and say a few soothing words, when all at once Mr. Polecat leaned back and commenced to laugh and laugh at the funny picture Mr. Dog made where Mr. Rabbit called to him, 'Dance! Mr. Dog, dance!' And then, of course, Mr. Rabbit felt better, for if his company thought it was funny and laughed there wasn't so much danger.

"'Why,' said Mr. Polecat, 'it's the best thing I ever saw! You could almost imagine that Mr. Dog himself was right here, howling and barking and dancing.'

"'Oh, no, hardly that,' said Mr. Rabbit. 'Of course I suppose it is a little like him, but it's not at all as if he were here, you know--not at all--and he's ever so far off, I'm sure, and won't come again for a long time. You know, he's----'

"'Oh, yes, it is!' declared Mr. Polecat. 'It's just as if he were right here. And I can just hear him howl and bark, and----'

"And right there Mr. Polecat stopped and Mr. Rabbit stopped, and both of them held their breath and listened, for sure enough they did hear Mr.

Dog howling and barking and coming toward the house as straight as he could come.

"Jack Rabbit gave a jump right up in the air, and hollered, 'Run! Mr.

Polecat, run! and go the back way!' But Mr. Polecat never runs from anybody--he doesn't have to--he just opens up that perfume of his and the other people do the running. So Mr. Rabbit gave one more jump, and this time he jumped straight up the chimney, and didn't stop till he got to the roof, where he found a loose board and put it over the chimney quick and sat down on it. Then he called to Mr. Dog, who was coming lickety-split through the woods:--

"'Why, how are you, Mr. Dog? Glad to see you! Walk right in. There's company down stairs; just make yourself at home till I come down.' You see there was no use to stop him now, because Mr. Rabbit could tell by what was coming up the chimney that it was too late, and he wanted Mr.

Dog to get a good dose of it as well as himself.

"And Mr. Dog did come just as hard as he could tear, for the wind was blowing toward the house and he couldn't detect anything wrong until he gave a great big jump into Mr. Rabbit's sitting room and right into the midst of the most awful smell that was ever turned loose in the Big Deep Woods.

"Well, it took Mr. Dog so suddenly that he almost fainted away. Then he gave a howl, as if a wagon had run over his tail, and tumbled out of that sitting room and set out for home without once stopping to look behind him. Then Mr. Rabbit laughed and laughed, and called:--

"'Come back! Mr. Dog. Came back and stay with us. Mr. Polecat's going to spend a week with me. Come back and have a good time.'

"But Mr. Dog didn't stop, and he didn't seem to hear, and by and by Mr.

Polecat called up that he was going home and that Mr. Rabbit could come down now, for Mr. Dog was gone and wouldn't come back, he guessed. But Mr. Rabbit said no, he didn't feel very well yet and guessed he'd stay where he was for the present, and that if Mr. Polecat was going he might leave both doors open and let the wind draw through the house, because he always liked to air his house after Mr. Dog had been to see him. Then Mr. Polecat took his basket and went, and Jack Rabbit didn't come down for a long time, and when he did he couldn't stay in his house for the awful smell. So he went over to stay a week with the Hollow Tree people, and his clothes didn't smell nice, either, but they had to stand it, and Mr. Rabbit said it served them right for getting him into such a fix. It was over a week before he could go back to his house again, and even then it wasn't just as he wanted it to be, and he aired it every day for a long time.

"But there was one thing that made him laugh, and that was when he heard from Mr. Robin how Mr. Dog got home and Mr. Man wouldn't have him about the house or even in the yard, but made him stay out in the woods for as much as ten days, until he had got rid of every bit of Mr. Polecat's nice perfumery."

HOW MR. DOG GOT EVEN

THE FOREST FRIENDS PREPARE FOR A MAY PARTY AND ARRANGE FOR A QUIET TIME

Well, yes, said the Story Teller, Mr. Dog did have a good deal of trouble, and it makes me sorry for him sometimes when I think about it.

He still kept good friends with the Crow and the Turtle, though, and was on pretty fair terms with Mr. Robin and most all the rest of the Bird family, besides living in the same yard with Mr. Man, who always kept an eye on him and got him out of trouble when he could. Of course Jack Rabbit and the Hollow Tree people mostly got the best of Mr. Dog, but there was one time when they didn't. This is how it happened.

Once upon a time Mr. Jack Rabbit was spending the evening over at the big Hollow Tree with the Crow and the 'c.o.o.n and the 'Possum. They had all had their supper, and were leaning back and talking about the weather and what a late spring it had been, and how bad the cold rains were for young chickens. Mr. Rabbit didn't care for chickens himself, but he usually kept some for his friends, and always had a nice patch of young clover and some garden vegetables for his own use. He said the late frost had killed his early lettuce and young cabbage plants, and that his clover patch looked as if a fire had been through it.

Mr. 'c.o.o.n smoked a little and looked into the fire and said that he guessed to-morrow would be a warm day, and the Crow said he knew it would be because he could feel it in his leg, where a stray shot from Mr. Man's gun happened to hit him once when he was taking a walk in Mr.

Man's cornfield just about this time of year.

The 'Possum put his thumbs in the armholes of his vest and leaned back against the mantel, and said he had a plan he wanted to tell them about.

When he said that they all kept still to listen, because they knew when the 'Possum had a plan it always meant something good to eat, and they were always ready to hear about good things to eat, even when they'd just got up from the supper table.

Mr. 'Possum puffed a few puffs of smoke, and then he went on to say that after so much bad weather in April he thought it would be proper for them to give an outdoor feast and a woods party on the first day of May.

All the others spoke up right off and said that was just the thing. Then they all began talking at once about what each would bring and whom they should invite.

Jack Rabbit said he would invite Mr. Chipmunk and Mr Quail, and that he would speak a piece composed for the occasion. The 'c.o.o.n said he would invite Mr. Fox, because he had the best chickens, and would bring a basket of them along. The 'Possum said that would be a good plan, and that they ought to try as much as they could to invite people that would bring things. That made the Crow laugh, and he said if they wanted to do that they might invite Mr. Man himself.

Of course all the others laughed at first when they heard that, and then, all at once, they quit laughing, for speaking of Mr. Man made them think of Mr. Dog, and they knew how he was always trapesing around the country where he wasn't wanted, and just as likely as not would walk right in on them at dinner time and make it unpleasant for everybody.

They all felt pretty lonesome when they thought of that, and then the Crow laughed again and said he would send over a note by Mr. Robin to Mr. Dog inviting him to go and see some friends of his that had just moved across the Wide Gra.s.s Lands. He said Mr. Dog would be glad to go, and that his friends would be glad to see him, and that it would take all day to make the trip and do no harm to anybody. Then all of them felt well again.

Mr. Crow wrote the note right away, and when he invited the Robin to the May party next morning he asked him if he would take Mr. Dog's invitation over to him and slip it under his door before he was up. He said it was to be a surprise for Mr. Dog, and he didn't want him to know just who sent the invitation. He didn't tell the Robin that it was an invitation for Mr. Dog to get out of the country, because the Robin is a good bird and wouldn't help to deceive anybody for the world.

[Ill.u.s.tration: HE FELT FOR THE INVITATION.]

Mr. Robin was tickled 'most to death at his own invitation, and slipped Mr. Dog's in his pocket, and hurried off with it just as fast as ever he could. He was so excited that he forgot he had a hole in the pocket of his coat, and never thought of it till he got to Mr. Man's yard, where Mr. Dog's house was. Then he remembered all at once, and when he felt for the invitation and turned his pocket inside out there was the hole all right, but the invitation was gone.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FORGOT HE'D EVER HAD ANY TROUBLE IN HIS LIFE.]

Mr. Robin at first didn't know what to do. Then he happened to think that all Mr. Crow had said was that he didn't want Mr. Dog to know just who sent it to him, so he went right up to Mr. Dog's house and rapped.

Mr. Dog came out yawning, but when he heard that he was invited to a May party he forgot that he'd ever had any trouble in his life, and danced and rolled over and wagged his tail, till the Robin thought he was having a fit. Then when Mr. Dog heard that the party was gotten up mostly on his own account, and was to be a kind of a surprise, he had another fit, and said he never was so happy in the world. Mr. Robin said he couldn't tell him just who sent the invitation, but he told him a few of those invited, and Mr. Dog grew six inches taller and said he must certainly have some more new clothes for a party like that.

[Ill.u.s.tration: AT MR. FOX'S HOUSE THE FEATHERS WERE FLYING.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: TOOK ONE MORE LOOK AT HIMSELF IN THE GLa.s.s.]

Then Mr. Robin set off home to get ready, for there were only two days more in April and everybody had to scramble around to be ready in time, especially Mr. Jack Rabbit, who had to write a poem. Over at Mr. Fox's house the feathers were flying, and at the Hollow Tree Mr. Crow had his sleeves rolled up, baking all day long. The 'c.o.o.n sat in his room and rocked and planned games, and the 'Possum followed Mr. Crow about and told him new things to cook. Everywhere in the woods, and even out in the Wide Gra.s.s Lands, folks were staying up nights to get ready, but none of them felt as happy or took as much trouble to look well as Mr.

Dog. He knew there couldn't be any joke this time, because Mr. Robin had invited him, and Mr. Robin wouldn't play a joke on anybody. Every little while he would go out and roll on the gra.s.s in the sun and then go in and put on his new clothes and stand before the gla.s.s. Then he would march up and down and try to see if his coat wrinkled under the arms and if his trousers fitted neatly around the waist. As he thought the party was to be given for him, of course he wasn't expected to bring anything except all the style he could put on, and when the morning came Mr. Dog did put on all he could carry, and took one more look at himself in the gla.s.s and started. He had never felt so happy in his life.

HOW MR. DOG GOT EVEN

CONTINUED

THE SURPRISE OF MR. RABBIT AND OTHERS

Poor Mr. Dog! He did not dream that the Robin had made a big mistake when he invited him. He was all ready for a grand time and thought he was to be the guest of honor. But the 'c.o.o.n and the 'Possum and all the rest thought he was in another part of the country that day, and when they got to the place where the party was to be they shook hands and laughed about how Mr. Crow had played it on Mr. Dog and then rolled on the gra.s.s and cut up in a great way.

Mr. Fox was there with all his folks, and Mr. Squirrel and his folks, and Mr. Weasel and Mr. Woodchuck and Mrs. Quail, and ever so many others. Mr. Rabbit had picked out the spot, which was a pretty, green, open place in the woods, and right in the centre of it a little weeping willow tree, with long, trailing branches like ribbons. This was to be their May pole, and they were so happy that they commenced dancing almost as soon as they got there. Mr. Dog, of course, hadn't arrived yet. It had taken him so long to dress, and then he had a long way to come, so he was late.