Albert Bigelow Paine

“ 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 [86] 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ Squirrel picked up some roasted nuts that the Crow had just brought in.
"Where'd you get these nuts?" he says, after he'd cracked one or two of them.
"Down on the slope of Green Bushes," says Mr. 'Coon. "Why, aren't they good ones?"
"I suppose they were once," says Mr. Squirrel—"two or three years ago. Nuts have to be fresh to be good."
"That's what I told him," says Mr. 'Possum, "but he said you wouldn't know the difference."
"Oh, he did, did he?" says Mr. Squirrel. "Well, I've got better nuts than these at home," and Mr. Squirrel he got up and left the table. [21]
Then Jack Rabbit began. ”

“ Dog doesn't stop to argue with Mr. Polecat. Nobody does, and all the other Deep Woods people do their best to make him happy and to keep him in a good humor whenever he comes about, and give him their nicest things to eat and a lot to carry home with him, so he'll start just as soon as possible. ”

“ He quit laughing [32] and tumbled down in the bottom of the boat and laid there calling for Jack Rabbit to cut that fish line or they'd all be chops and steaks and carried home in a basket in less than five minutes. Jack Rabbit did try to cut the line, too, but he was so excited he dropped his knife overboard, and Mr. 'Coon couldn't find his, and Mr. 'Possum didn't have any. So there they were, and there was Mr. Dog! Then Mr. Rabbit tried to bite the line off with his teeth, but he couldn't do that, either, for it was a big, strong line that he'd made himself, specially for large fish. ”

“ The old hen had been there again and laid another while they were gone. The second little girl claimed that egg, of course, and she painted it a bright yellow with buttercup juice. Then the next day there was another egg, and the next day there was another egg, and the next day there was another egg, until there was one apiece for every one of the children, and some over. ”

“ And they all painted them. Some painted theirs pink or red with rose leaves or japonica, some painted them yellow with buttercups, and some blue or purple with violets, as the first little girl had done. ”

“ So Mr. 'Possum did tell, and it went this way:—
"Once upon a time," he said, "Uncle Lovejoy—we always called him Uncle Silas then—he was uncle on my mother's side, and lived with Aunt Melissy in a nice place just beyond the Wide Paw-paw Hollows—once upon a time, as I was saying, he had to go to town on some business, and that was something that never happened to Uncle Lovejoy before.
COUSIN GLENWOOD MET HIM AT THE STATION
"Well, Aunt Melissy was always a spry [96] woman, as I said, and stirring—very stirring, and primpy, too. ”

“ Robin," said Mr. Dog, "and I came to get a room, too."
"Awfully sorry, Mr. Dog, but our rooms are all full," said Mr. Crow. [10]
"Why don't you take down your sign, then?" said Mr. Dog.
"Hotels never take down their signs," said Mr. Crow.
"Hotels are never too full for one more, either," said Mr. Dog. "If you don't let me come in I think I'll wait around here and make a vacancy."
[11]
THE HOLLOW TREE INN
(Continued)
WHAT HAPPENS TO MR. DOG
NOW, when Mr. 'Possum and Mr. 'Coon heard that their hair stood up straight, for they knew very well that there'd be two vacant rooms anyway if Mr. ”