LITTLE BROWN SEAL'S NARROW ESCAPE
One day Little White Fox was out in front of his house sunning himself.
He and his mother were living off the bounty of Big White Bear these
days, so there was nothing to worry about. He just stretched himself out
there on the white snow and looked away at the wide, white world, as
contented as could be. But all at once he saw a strange, strange thing.
Out on the roof of the silent sea, Little Brown Seal was sunning himself
too, right close to the door of his home. He was taking little "cat"
naps. You see, Little Brown Seal could not sleep down in his house in
the ocean. It was far too damp down there. So he was lying there by his
door, sleeping just two or three minutes at a time, then looking up to
see if there was any danger near.
Now that wasn't such a strange thing. Little White Fox had seen Little
Brown Seal do that nearly every day, but the strange thing was that
there was some one else out on the ice who seemed to be doing the very
same thing that Little Brown Seal was doing,--taking "cat" naps. And
stranger still, he did not seem to be one of Little Brown Seal's
relatives! He was too long, and he didn't wiggle his body right!
Little White Fox could see all that, but Little Brown Seal was so low
down on the ice that all he could see was the stranger's head. He might
have known even then that it was not one of his cousins, if he had had
as sharp eyes as Little White Fox. But he didn't, for his eyes were very
poor. So Little Brown Seal thought it was one of his own cousins taking
a nap now and then, just as he was. Once it looked to Little White Fox
as if he were beginning to understand that the stranger was not one of
his cousins, for he stayed awake a long, long time and looked and looked
and looked. The stranger seemed to be sleeping a long time, and that
made Little Brown Seal suspicious. But just then the stranger bobbed his
head and looked all around this way and that way, just as any real,
wise seal would do, and Little Brown Seal decided it was all right, that
this stranger was one of his really truly cousins.
And who do you think the stranger, who acted so very much like a seal,
was? It was Omnok, the hunter, with his terrible gun sliding right along
beside him! He had learned how Little Brown Seal took his "cat" naps,
and he was going to slip right up to him and kill him. He kept creeping
up closer, closer, closer. But Little Brown Seal had made up his mind
that it was one of his cousins, and so he didn't ask himself any more
questions about it. He just kept on taking his little "cat" naps and
waking up to look all around, this way and that way, but never paying
any attention to this stranger who was coming nearer all the time.
"My," Little White Fox thought to himself, "he will surely be killed.
Yes, sir! I am very, very sure Little Brown Seal is going to be killed!"
But just when Omnok was getting very close, and just before he was going
to raise his terrible gun and kill Little Brown Seal, a strange thing
happened. I don't know how it happened. Perhaps Little White Fox was
sorry the sun was going down so soon that day, or perhaps he was
lonesome for his mother. Perhaps he was sorry for Little Brown Seal,
because he was going to get killed in just another minute; but whatever
it was, Little White Fox began to feel bad all at once. He wanted to
cry, and he _did_ cry! He lifted his pink little nose into the air and
cried, "Ah! Ah! Ah! Yak! Yak! Yak!"
Now Little Brown Seal may not have very good eyes, but he has very good
ears, and he had just wakened from a "cat" nap when he heard that
lonesome wail from Little White Fox. And he didn't wait one minute, nor
one second! He tumbled down into his house in the ocean as quick as a
wink, just as Omnok the hunter was getting ready to shoot him!
Perhaps you think Omnok wasn't angry! But he had heard Little White Fox
cry. He would get Little White Fox's coat. Then he would be even. But
Little White Fox was nowhere about when Omnok climbed the hill. No, you
may be sure he wasn't! He was way under the great rock in his own
little home, where Omnok couldn't get near him. So all Omnok could do
was to put his terrible gun over his shoulder and go back home.