Arthur Scott Bailey

“ But Benny Badger was no person to stand quietly by and let a scamp like Mr. Coyote spoil his whole life. He shook his head in a most obstinate fashion, giving his visitor fair warning not to go too far. ”

“ Digging was the easiest thing he did. He had a powerful body, short, stout legs, and big feet, which bore long, strong claws. And when he started to dig his way into somebody else's home he certainly did make the dirt fly.
He was so fond of digging that he even [3] dug countless holes of his own, just for the fun it gave him—so far as anybody could find out. And if he had only left other folk's holes alone some of his neighbors would not have objected to his favorite sport. For more than one fox and coyote had been known to make his home in a hole dug by Benny Badger. ”

“ Benny Badger explained.
"Please don't trouble yourself," said Mr. Fox.
Then Benny began to shake him.
"Don't do that, friend!" said Mr. Fox [66] again. "What are you trying to do?"
"I'm only trying to shake the feather off you," Benny told him.
"Don't trouble yourself," said Mr. Fox. "If you'll take those teeth off my neck, that's all I'll ask of you."
"Not yet!" Benny Badger replied grimly. "You're a robber. And I'm going to teach you a lesson.... You will rob birds' nests, will you?"
To his great surprise, Mr. Fox began to laugh. ”

“ Mr. Ground Squirrel Escapes from Benny.
To be sure, Benny might have dug his way to the furthest end of each hole that he found that night. And doubtless he would have enjoyed such a pastime. But as for finding a plump ground squirrel at the end of every tunnel—ah! that would [9] have been a different matter. No such pleasant sight would have greeted Benny's eyes. And on this evening he wanted to find some such reward when his digging came to an end.
He knew as well as he knew anything in the world that newly scattered earth never lay strewn about the doorway of an old hole. ”

“ Coyote had flown into a great rage. But he did not. Instead, he pretended to wipe a tear away from each of his eyes. "It's a pity"—he sighed—"it's a pity [36] that you don't understand music. Some time I will teach you to sing—with the help of my six brothers."
Benny Badger showed no joy over that promise. But he felt relieved when Mr. Coyote agreed not to sing that night. And then Benny set out alone to look for a fresh Ground Squirrel's hole, leaving Mr. Coyote with his face hidden in his pocket-handkerchief. ”

“ Benny Badger stopped and squatted in the grass. He was glad to rest, for he was [71] —as has been said—no great traveller.
"Is anybody at home?" he asked presently.
"Somebody is," said the owl.
"Then I'll dig right in as soon as I get my breath," said Benny Badger, glancing at the hole.
"Do you want to see somebody?" the owl asked. "For if you do, there's no need of your doing any digging here."
"Why not?" Benny inquired.
"I'm somebody," the owl informed him. "I live here; and I'll be disgusted if you go to tearing my house to pieces." ”

“ Coyote, who still sat comfortably on his haunches.
To Benny's surprise, his helper's eyes were closed, instead of being fixed on the Ground Squirrel's back door.
"Have you seen anything of the Ground Squirrel?" Benny demanded anxiously.
Mr. Coyote started, and opened his eyes.
"Somebody came out a few moments ago," he replied. "But he disappeared in no time."
"That's too bad!" Benny Badger wailed. "He got away!"
"Are you sure?" Mr. Coyote inquired.
"Why, yes!" Benny cried. "It's as plain as the nose on your face."
"I won't dispute you," said Mr. Coyote. ”

“ At the sound of the alarm—a high-pitched chatter—every prairie dog who [82] wasn't at home scurried for his hole as fast as he could scamper.
Benny Badger always had to smile when he saw the villagers tumbling through their doorways. They couldn't have done anything that would have suited him better. Had there been a single one among the prairie dogs that wasn't a dunce he would have run away from his hole, outside the village, to hide somewhere until Benny Badger left the place. ”

“ A young deer mouse claimed to have overheard a rancher talking—the rancher that lived about a mile from Benny Badger's home. And the deer mouse reported that the man was going to get rid of the whole prairie dog family. "He says they eat too much grass, and dig too many holes," the deer mouse declared. ”

“ But when at length he found what he had been looking for—a hole with fresh brown dirt scattered carelessly around it—Benny Badger showed by every one of his actions that he didn't intend to move on until he had burrowed to the very end of it. ”

“ Benny Badger told him. "As soon as I get one den well started I think I'd rather live somewhere else. But I don't mind beginning again because there's no better exercise than digging."
"No doubt!" the deer mouse agreed. "But I'm sure it would be much too violent for me."
He said no more, but looked on with a puzzled air until at last Benny Badger had actually dug in one place long enough to make a deep den.
When it was quite finished Benny Badger brushed the dirt off himself and turned to Mr. Deer Mouse.
"Come inside and see if my new house [107] isn't the finest one you ever saw!" he said. ”

“ This seems to be a pleasant place.... Are there any good Gophers and Prairie Dogs in the neighborhood?"
"Oh, yes!" the deer mouse answered. "But you needn't worry about them. They won't harm you if you mind your own affairs. I've lived here a long time; and they haven't touched me."
"What about Owls?" Benny Badger wanted to know.
The deer mouse looked solemn all at once.
"There are a few," he admitted. "If you're thinking of settling here, you'll have to watch sharp for them. I've had several narrow escapes."
Benny Badger smiled.
"I'd like to see the Owl that could hurt [102] me!" he cried. ”

“ Coyote seemed not to understand. For a moment or two he looked somewhat puzzled. But he decided, evidently, that Benny meant to be pleasant, but didn't know how to be.
"Now, then," Mr. Coyote said, while Benny Badger shuddered at his harsh [34] voice, "now then, where do you think we'd better look for a hole?"
"For pity's sake, don't howl so loud!" Benny Badger besought him. "You'll waken all the Ground Squirrels in the neighborhood if you're so noisy."
"Pardon me!" said Mr. Coyote very meekly, lowering his voice, but promptly raising it again. "Do you know of any fresh holes around here?" ”

“ These holes are the finest things in the world to break a critter's leg in." [96]
Benny Badger could scarcely believe what his own ears told him. He thought there must be a mistake somewhere. And when the rancher declared that the badger that dug those holes was worse than a whole village of prairie dogs, Benny was tempted, for one wild moment, to dash up to the men and tell them exactly what he thought. ”

“ But before he had begun to throw more dirt behind him he pulled his head out again and called to his helper, who had moved a few steps away.
"If the Ground Squirrel comes out [40] through his back door, please call me at once!" he cried.
Mr. Coyote nodded his head over his shoulder and smiled.
"I will," he agreed. "And I'll ask you not to forget to dig hard, because you know I'll be watching hard. And it wouldn't be fair for one of us to do less work than the other."
Benny Badger replied that in his opinion Mr. Coyote's statement was in every way reasonable. ”

“ You'd have no place to dig a hole yourself. And then you'd be pretty unhappy."
Benny Badger hadn't thought of that. And he didn't know just what to say, because if Mr. Coyote meant what he said, Benny wanted to say something pleasant [19] ; and if Mr. Coyote was only joking, Benny wanted to say something disagreeable. But before Benny had made up his mind how to reply to Mr. Coyote's remark, his noisy friend began talking again.
"Besides," Mr. Coyote added, "I haven't time for digging, because I have to practice singing.... If you don't mind, I'll practice a song right now." ”

“ Coyote felt himself free he leaped away and tore off on three legs as if he were in a terrible hurry to get somewhere else.
"Much help I'd ever get from him!" Benny Badger grumbled to himself. "He's too lazy to dig. But he isn't too lazy to grab the Ground Squirrels that somebody else drives out for him." [51]
XI BIRDS' EGGS
Though Benny Badger never cared much for foxes, he was willing, usually, to stop and talk with one of that family—provided he wasn't too busy digging to take the time for gossip.
There was one fox who often strolled about the neighborhood. ”

“ This series of animal stories for children from three to eight years, tells of the adventures of the four-footed creatures of our American woods and fields in an amusing way, which delights small two-footed human beings. ”

“ These are fascinating stories of farmyard folk for boys and girls from about four to eight years of age.
THE TALE OF MISS KITTY CAT
When Mrs. Rat saw Miss Kitty Cat washing her face, she knew it meant rain. And she wouldn't let her husband leave home without his umbrella.
THE TALE OF HENRIETTA HEN
Henrietta Hen was an empty-headed creature with strange notions. She never laid an egg without making a great fuss about it. ”