You may have heard somewhere of Uncle Jerry Chuck. He was an old
woodchuck who lived in Farmer Green's pasture. And he was known far and
wide as the stingiest person in Pleasant Valley. He never paid for
anything if he could possibly help it.
Well, Uncle Jerry had the toothache. That was nothing new for him,
either. He often had the toothache. And it was always the same tooth,
too--because he had only one in his head. But he never would go and have
his tooth pulled, because he simply _hated_ the thought of paying
anyone to take it out. He had an idea that _he_ was the one who should
be paid. But he never could find a dentist who looked at the matter in
that light.
Uncle Jerry was strolling through the woods. He had a big red
handkerchief tied about his face, because it was a cold day. And he was
getting very tired of the toothache. He was just wishing that he could
get rid of it--for nothing. He even thought he would be willing to part
with that tooth without asking any pay for it, when what should he see
right in front of him but a big sign, which said:
JAMES RABBIT
TOOTH PULLER
"Hello!" said Uncle Jerry. "Here's something new! I've never noticed
that sign before." And he stepped inside the hollow stump to which the
sign was nailed.
And there he found Jimmy Rabbit, in a white apron, and with a pair of
pincers in his hand. Frisky Squirrel was there, too, sitting in a corner
and holding onto his head.
"What are your prices?" Uncle Jerry asked.
"An ear of corn for a tooth!" said Jimmy Rabbit promptly.
"That's reasonable enough," Uncle Jerry Chuck replied. And he sat down
at once. "Go ahead!" he said.
Jimmy Rabbit was delighted.
"Which one is it?" he asked.
"All of them!" said Uncle Jerry.
That was even better than Jimmy had expected. But when he looked inside
Uncle Jerry's mouth he was disappointed.
"Why, you've only one tooth in your head!" he exclaimed in his
surprise.
"Hurry up!" Uncle Jerry snapped. "I came here to have a tooth
pulled--not _to be talked to_." He was always ill tempered. And his
toothache only made him crosser than ever.
So Jimmy Rabbit went to work. He tugged away with all his might and
main. Now and then Uncle Jerry groaned. And whenever he groaned, Jimmy
turned pale. For he was somewhat afraid of the old gentleman.
At last Jimmy tumbled backward, head over heels. That was when the tooth
came out.
"Well, you were long enough about it, I must say!" Uncle Jerry Chuck
said. "Give me my ear of corn now, for I must hurry home."
"Give _you your_ ear of corn?" Jimmy Rabbit cried. He could scarcely
believe his own ears--and goodness knows they were big enough to hear
anything anybody said.
"Why, certainly!" Uncle Jerry replied. "I asked you your prices, you
know. And you said: 'An ear of corn for a tooth!'"
Jimmy Rabbit didn't know what to do.
"Why"--he gasped, "I thought _you_ were going to pay _me_!"
"Well, you see you were mistaken," Uncle Jerry told him. "And you had
better give me that ear of corn at once, or it will be the worse for
you."
For all the old fellow was toothless, Jimmy saw that his claws were long
and sharp. He knew that he had got himself into a fix. And he couldn't
think of any way out of it.
"You've got my tooth! I want an ear of corn! You've got my tooth! I want
an ear of corn!" Uncle Jerry Chuck kept saying. And each time he said
it, his voice grew louder, until he was shouting at the top of his
lungs.
Then Jimmy Rabbit had an idea. He picked up Uncle Jerry's tooth off the
floor and placed it in Uncle Jerry's hand.
"There's your tooth!" he cried. "I don't want it!"
"But you promised to give me an ear of corn for my tooth!" said Uncle
Jerry.
"Well, haven't you got your tooth?" asked Jimmy Rabbit.
And Uncle Jerry Chuck was so puzzled that he went home without saying
another word.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: 12 The Strange Man]
12