Marie Helene Gulbransen

“ In the midst of all this glory they lived very happily until Uncle Antoine grew to be an old, old man, and Monko acquired a long, white beard, which trailed behind him for some three blocks. In fact, his beard was so very long that when he went out walking with the Princess Colette it looked like the train of her gown. One day, when Uncle Antoine and the Prince and Princess were all sitting out in the garden listening to a large black crow singing Mammy’s Little Coal-Black Rose, they heard cries of anguish from high up among the trees. ”

“ Colette, the Little Dancing Girl
Far away in a distant city where all the people love music and dancing, there was a hurdy-gurdy man whom all the children knew as Uncle Antoine. Uncle Antoine had a pet monkey called Monko, who went with him every day on his round of music-making. One day, when the sun was shining brightly, they chanced upon a pretty little blue-eyed girl with golden curls, who was sitting on a doorstep weeping. When Uncle Antoine asked her why she was crying so bitterly, she replied that she was all alone in the world and had no place to live. ”

“ Occasionally they met a good farmer who gave them apples and cabbages to eat. They walked and walked all day long; sometimes Bunny ran ahead over the roofs of the hills, but he always returned to see if Bumps was following him. And all the time Bumps’ little legs were growing stronger and stronger, so that he seldom fell and hardly felt tired at all, which made him very proud. Finally, Bunny vanished over the top of the very last, highest hill, and though Bumps looked and looked for him, he didn’t come back. ”

“ Now Bumps lived in a wee hut ’way off in the country, with his mother, who was quite poor. In the mornings he would hustle out to chop wood and gather wild berries for their breakfast, always wishing that he could find a pot of gold to make his mother rich and happy. Finally he decided to start out into the big world to seek his fortune, and while his mother hated to have her little son leave her, she felt sure he would be successful because he had always been such a good boy. ”

“ The first person Bumps and Bunny met on their arrival in the city was a man selling ice cream, and although he hated to part with the gold-piece, Bumps could not resist buying two fat cones. As they walked along eating them and gazing at all the wonderful things about them, Bumps’ toes suddenly began to feel very cold. Glancing down he saw that some of the ice cream had dropped through a hole in his shoe, which was badly worn from the long journey. ”

“ The squirrels would dash past Squeedinks, chattering as if they were trying to tell him something, and then scamper off home with a great clatter and racket, looking down at the little boy with their big, bright eyes. Squeedinks always brought something for the squirrels to eat, and it wasn’t long before they grew quite friendly. ”

“ They found a dear little vine-covered cottage surrounded by shrubs and kindly trees like the ones that had sheltered them in their poverty. Colette had lots of fun making curtains and preparing dinner for Uncle Antoine and Monko, but the three friends missed their old life. They missed it so sadly that at last they decided that they would be happier if they were still giving happiness to others, so they began a round of visits to the orphan asylums and the hospitals, and played and danced for the poor little children and the sick and distressed. ”

“ The parrot had heard the calls of the nurse, and had been mimicking them, so he only blinked very wisely and told Patsy Ann that her nurse was searching for her, up and down the road, very much worried because she could not find her. He went on to say, “Of course, you must obey your nurse, but I know you love birds, and this forest is full of the strangest ones you ever saw. We can send a note to Nursie by the Carrier Pigeon, asking her please to wait while I show you Birdland.” ”

“ All at once they came upon a colony of Chase-Tails, little striped animals with a very sweet tooth. Instead of regular tails they had sticks of peppermint candy, which they were forever chasing round and round, in order to satisfy their enormous appetites for candy. Each Chase-Tail was chasing his tail for dear life around a little bush, until every bush in sight had a Chase-Tail lying around it like a doughnut, holding its peppermint tail fast in [28] its mouth, and nibbling away happily at the candy. ”

“ After a great many unsuccessful attempts, Squeedinks at last succeeded in climbing part way up a big oak tree. He couldn’t get quite as far up as the little round holes where he saw his furry friends darting in and out, but [36] he was delighted to find one hole, low down on the trunk, which was just big enough for him to squeeze into. You see, he was just a small little boy. Every day, after that, Squeedinks climbed up to his lookout, which he christened the “Crow’s Nest,” and sat there with just his head peeping out, watching the antics of the squirrels. ”

“ He lived with his aunt in a pretty little house ’way out in the country, set between rolling green fields and a large forest. Squeedinks used to read all sorts of books, but he liked stories about animals best of all. When he grew tired of reading he would go out into the forest and watch the squirrels frisking about among the old trees. He noticed that most of the squirrels lived in holes in the big oaks, and he was extremely anxious to get a look into the holes and see just how squirrels behaved when they were at home. ”

“ Before the other boys and girls could reach him, Invisible Tom had pulled him out. When Teddy felt hands helping him out but could see no one, he cried aloud in fear, but Tom [49] just chuckled to himself and glided off, quite satisfied with his first adventure. By this time he was tired of skating, so, leaving the skates where he had found them, he went merrily and invisibly on his way.
A poor little homeless dog whose leg had been injured by a passing truck was limping painfully along ahead of Tom, and at last tumbled into a pathetic little heap, unable to drag himself further. ”

“ She never found it necessary to carry salt to sprinkle on their tails in order to catch them, but was so gentle and kind that the birds were always glad to fly to her.
One day, when Patsy Ann was out walking with her nurse, they passed by a dense forest. Her nurse explained that it was supposed to be enchanted, because of strange sounds that could be heard coming from its depths, and that no one ever walked through it. The bright [76] eyes of little Patsy Ann grew big with wonder as she listened, and when Nursie stopped to chat with a friend she stood staring curiously in among the big trees. ”

“ And then one day he heard the old familiar whistle sounding on the garden walk and, sure enough, there was his big Uncle looking brown and strong, greeting them all with smiles and kisses. He was to be home for just one day, but that was time enough to have Jerry fitted out with a smart sailor suit and made ready to take the next trip with him. Jerry had never known so much excitement, and when he bade good-bye to his mother and daddy and went aboard the battleship there was [66] not a prouder or happier boy in the whole world. ”

“ He longed for the big gun which he had left behind in the woodshed, for he knew that he must soon have more food and he thought the rabbit would make a good supper. But just then he spied a stone with which he thought he might kill Mr. Rabbit. Bumps threw the stone with all his might, just missing him by inches, and the rabbit, instead of running away, scampered right up to him, and sitting up straight, held out one little foot. Then it occurred to Bumps that here he was carrying a rabbit’s foot for good luck, and yet he had tried to bring bad luck upon this poor little creature. ”

“ She told Bumps that a cruel Witch had put an enchantment upon her, forcing her to live in the body of a helpless little bird, at the mercy of all the beasts of the forest, until she should be rescued by some kind person. ”

“ Pam and Jerry waved good-bye to the big ship as it sailed away, and then turned about to make a complete tour of their island home. It was indeed an island of wonders, full of strange and wonderful beasts and flowers and fruits. They tied knots in the giraffes’ necks, and taught the ostriches to prance around the [69] island drawing the beautiful chariot which the good old wishing-ring had brought them.
One day when Jerry was up in the tower of the palace looking out over the ocean he heard Pam calling, “Jerry! Jerry! Come quickly and save me! Some savages have just landed on our island!” ”

“ Nothing in this strange country will hurt you, although you will be surprised at many of the things you will see. Only be sure to come back here to me when you hear the Tick-Tock bird calling, ‘Five o’clock!’, or we’ll all be late for supper. ”

“ He looked down at himself. He had on his oldest suit, and he knew he hadn’t time to go home to dress, so he decided to attend the party as Invisible Tom. The guests were just eating ice cream and cake as Tom entered and he watched until he saw the maid put down a big plate of chocolate ice cream in front of Billy Bon. Before Billy had a chance to notice it, Tom reached out and snatched the dish, vanishing with it behind the piano. ”

“ After a long, long voyage they sighted a land almost completely covered with the queerest looking trees. Flipperoo swam into a quiet bay and waddled right up on the sand, so that Whoops and Putty-Nose were able to step ashore without even wetting their feet. “I’ll lie here in the sun and take a nap,” said the turtle, “and you children start off on a journey of discovery. ”