I Love Animal Stories. Aesop

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      Counting out his money;

      The queen was in the parlor,

      Eating bread and honey;

      The maid was in the garden,

      Hanging out the clothes,

      Along came a blackbird,

      Who nipped off her nose.”

      The fat man got up off the kitchen floor.

      “I’m the king,” he said, taking up his gold and diamond crown from a kitchen chair, where he had put it as he kneeled down, so it would not fall off and be dented. “From Mother Goose, you know; don’t you?”

      “Yes, I know,” answered Uncle Wiggily.

      “I dare say you’ll find the queen in the parlor eating bread and honey,” went on the king. “At least I saw her start for there with a plate, knife and fork as I was coming here. And, no doubt, the maid is in the garden, where she’ll pretty soon have her nose nipped off by a blackbird.”

      “That part happened yesterday,” said Uncle Wiggily. “I was there just after it happened, and I got Jimmie Caw-Caw, the crow boy, to fly after the blackbird and bring back the maid’s nose. She is as well as ever now and can smell all kinds of perfume.”

      “Good!” cried the fat king. “You were very kind to help her. I only wish you could help me. But I don’t see how you can. My money, which I was counting, fell out of my hands and dropped down a crack in the floor. I can see it lying down there in the dirt, but I can’t get at it unless I move to one side my gold and silver palace, and I don’t want to do that. I don’t suppose you can move a palace, can you?” And he looked askingly at Uncle Wiggily.

      “No, I can’t do that,” said the bunny uncle. “But still I think I can get your money without moving the palace.”

      “How?” asked the king.

      “Why, I can go outside,” said Mr. Longears, “and with my strong paws, which are just made for digging, I can burrow, or dig, a place through the dirt under your palace-house, crawl in and get what you dropped.”

      “Oh, please do!” cried the king.

      So Uncle Wiggily did.

      Down under the cellar wall of the palace, through the dirt, dug the bunny gentleman, with his strong paws. Pretty soon he was right under the kitchen, and there, just where they had dropped through the crack, were the king’s gold and silver pennies and other pieces of money. Uncle Wiggily picked them up, put them in his pocket and crawled out again.

      “There you are, king,” he said. “You have your money back.”

      “Oh, thank you ever so much!” cried the king. “I’ll have the cook give you some carrots.” And he did, before he went on counting his money in the kitchen. And this time he stuffed a dish-rag in the crack so no more pennies would fall through.

      “Well, Uncle Wiggily, where are you going now?” asked the King, as he saw the bunny gentleman hopping away with the bunch of carrots.

      “I hardly know that myself,” answered the rabbit. “I want to have more adventures, either with the friends of Old Mother Hubbard and Mother Goose, or with some of the animal or birds that live in the woods.”

      “I think some adventures with birds would be exciting,” spoke the King. “This blackbird who nipped off the maid’s nose was a lively sort of chap.”

      “He was, indeed,” agreed the bunny gentleman. “I think I should like some adventures with my feathered friends who fly in the air. When I come back I’ll tell you about them, Mr. King.”

      “Please do,” begged the gentleman with the gold and diamond crown. And so, as long as the rabbit wishes it, and if the condensed milk doesn’t jump out of the molasses jug and scare the coffee pot so that it drinks tea, I shall make the next book “Uncle Wiggily and the Birds,” and I hope you will like it.

      Uncle Wiggily's Squirt Gun

       Table of Contents

      1. One day when Uncle Wiggily was out early to see the sun rise, he passed a rocky ledge from which hung many icicles. As the sun shone on the sticks of ice they turned all the colors of the rainbow. “How wonderful!” exclaimed the bunny. “Who made them?” A little chap beside him said: “I did! I am Jack Frost. And, because you have been kind to me, I’ll give you the power to make icicles!”

      2. “Whenever you wish to make icicles,” Jack Frost told Uncle Wiggily, “just push the squirt gun. Out will come water, and by magic power it will freeze into icicles.” The bunny thought this would be fine. So he hopped through the woods. Soon he came to a deep ravine he wished to cross, but there was no bridge and it was a long way around. “I’ll try Jack Frost’s trick now,” said Uncle Wiggily.

      3. Out of the magic Jack Frost gun squirted water. It fell and froze, making a bridge of icicles across the gully. “Ha! This is just fine!” laughed Uncle Wiggily, crossing the ice bridge. He did not see the bad Fox looking after him. “What game is that rabbit up to now?” growled the Fox. “I must follow and see. He has made a bridge where there was none before. I can cross after him and catch him!”

      4. Having crossed the icicle bridge, Uncle Wiggily kept on until he came to the home of Uncle Butter the goat. “Help me down, Uncle Wiggily!” he bleated. “I was mending a leak in my roof, and the Old Fox came along and took my ladder.” The bunny said he would help his friend, and pointed the squirt gun. “Oh, I said HELP me—not SHOOT me!” cried Uncle Butter, and Mr. Longears just laughed.

      5. “I’m not going to shoot you!” said Uncle Wiggily. “This is Jack Frost’s magic icicle gun. I’ll make a ladder for you!” So the bunny did, and the goat gentleman came safely down. The Bad Old Fox, who had stolen the ladder away, thinking it would help him catch Uncle Wiggily, peeked around the corner. “I wonder how I can get that rabbit?” thought the Fox, as the bunny was about to hop on.

      6. After having helped Uncle Wiggily down off the roof, the bunny traveled on with the magic Jack Frost squirt gun. Soon he came to where Mrs. Twistytail the pig lady lived. “Oh such trouble!” squealed the pig lady. “My clothes sticks are gone and all my nice clean clothes will sag down in the dirt!” Uncle Wiggily made ready the gun. “I’ll freeze some icicle clothes sticks for you, Mrs. Twistytail,” he said.

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