Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Charles Franks and the
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[Illustration: "Run Along, Tommy Fox," the Squirrel Said]
SLEEPY-TIME TALES
THE TALE OF TOMMY FOX
BY
ARTHUR SCOTT BAILEY
ILLUSTRATED BY
HARRY L. SMITH
Copyright, 1915, by
A. S. BAILEY
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I TOMMY ENJOYS HIMSELF
II JOHNNIE GREEN GOES HUNTING
III TOMMY FOX LEARNS TO HUNT
IV MOTHER GROUSE'S CHILDREN
V TOMMY FOX IS HUNGRY
VI MR. GRAY SQUIRREL'S MISTAKE
VII TOMMY CHASES MR. WOODCHUCK
VIII SOMETHING MAKES TOMMY VERY PROUD
IX TOMMY FOX IN TROUBLE
X MRS. FOX OUTWITS DOG SPOT
XI TOMMY GROWS TOO CARELESS
XII OLD MR. CROW IS PLEASED
XIII JOHNNIE GREEN AND HIS NEW PET
XIV TOMMY FOX MAKES A STRANGE FRIEND
XV JOHNNIE GREEN FEELS SAD
XVI TOMMY BECOMES BOASTFUL
XVII PAYING A CALL ON A FRIEND
XVIII THE WORLD TURNS WHITE
XIX TOMMY FOX LEARNS A NEW TRICK
XX THE DRUMMER OF THE WOODS
XXI THE BIGGEST SURPRISE OF ALL
ILLUSTRATIONS
"RUN ALONG, TOMMY FOX," THE SQUIRREL SAID...... Frontispiece
A CLOUD OF FEATHERS FLOATED DOWN FROM THE LIMB
MR. WOODCHUCK WHISKED DOWN OUT OF SIGHT
TOMMY DASHED FOR THE LITTLE DOOR
TOMMY THOUGHT IT WAS HIS MOTHER'S VOICE
MRS. FOX AND TOMMY STARTED TO RUN
I
TOMMY ENJOYS HIMSELF
Tommy Fox was having a delightful time. If you could have come upon
him in the woods you would have been astonished at his antics. He
leaped high off the ground, and struck out with his paws. He opened
his mouth and thrust his nose out and then clapped his jaws shut
again, with a snap. Tommy burrowed his sharp face into the dead leaves
at his feet and tossed his head into the air. And then he jumped up
and barked just like a puppy.
If you could have hid behind a tree and watched Tommy Fox you would
have said that he was playing with something. But you never could have
told what it was, because you couldn't have seen it. And you may have
three guesses now, before I tell you what it was that Tommy Fox was
playing with. ... It was a feather! Yes--Tommy had found a downy,
brownish feather in the woods, which old Mother Grouse had dropped in
one of her flights. And Tommy was having great sport with it, tossing
it up in the air, and slapping and snapping at it, as it drifted
slowly down to the ground again.
He grew quite excited, did Tommy Fox. For he just couldn't help making
believe that it was old Mother Grouse herself--and not merely one of
her smallest feathers that he had found. And he leaped and bounded and
jumped and tumbled about and made a great fuss over nothing but that
little, soft, brownish feather.
There was something about that feather that made Tommy's nose twitch
and wrinkle and tremble. Tommy sniffed and sniffed at the bit of down,
for he liked the smell of it. It made him feel very hungry. And at
last he felt so hungry that he decided he would go home and see if his
mother had brought him something to eat. So he started homewards.
I must explain that Tommy lived with his mother and that their house
was right in the middle of one of Farmer Green's fields, not far from
the foot of Blue Mountain. When Tommy was quite small his mother had
chosen that place for her house, which was really a den that she had
dug in the ground. By having her house in the center of the field she
knew that no one could creep up and catch Tommy when he was playing
outside in the sunshine. Now Tommy was older, and had begun to roam
about in the woods and meadows alone. But Mrs. Fox liked her home in
the field, and so she continued to live there.
Tommy was so hungry, now, and in such a hurry to reach home, that you
might think that he would have gone straight toward his mother's
house. But he didn't. He trotted along a little way, and suddenly gave
a sidewise leap which carried him several feet away from the straight
path he had been following. Again he trotted ahead for a short
distance. And then he wheeled around and ran in a circle. And after he
had made the circle he jumped to one side once more, and ran along on
an old tree which had fallen upon the ground. He was not playing.
No!--Tommy Fox was just trying to obey his mother. Ever since he had
been big enough to wander off by himself she had told him that he must
never go anywhere without making jumps and circles. "It takes longer,"
she said; "but it is better to do that way, because it makes it hard
for a dog to follow you. If you ran straight ahead, Farmer Green's dog
could go smelling along in your footsteps, and if he didn't actually
catch you he could follow you right home and then we would have to
move, to say the least."
Tommy was so afraid of dogs that he almost never forgot to do just as
his mother told him. He was half-way home and passing through a clump
of evergreens, when he suddenly stopped. The wind was blowing in his
face, and brought to his nostrils a smell that made him tremble. It
was not a frightened sort of tremble, but a delicious, joyful shiver
that Tommy felt. For he smelled something that reminded him at once of
that feather with which he had been playing. And Tommy stood as still
as a statue and his sharp eyes looked all around. At first he could
see nothing. But in a minute or two he noticed something on the
ground, beneath one of the evergreen trees. He had looked at it
carefully several times; and each time he had decided that it was only
an old tree-root. But now he saw that he had been mistaken.
Yes! It was old Mother Grouse herself!
II
JOHNNIE GREEN GOES HUNTING
When Tommy Fox discovered old Mother Grouse crouched beneath the
evergreen tree he grew hungrier than ever. And he decided that he
would catch Mrs. Grouse and eat her on the spot.
Tommy had never caught a grouse. But his mother had brought home some
of old Mother Grouse's relations for him to eat; and Tommy knew of
nothing that tasted any better.
He thought that old Mother Grouse must be sleeping, she was so still.
And he did not mean to wake her if he could help it--at least, not
until he had caught her. So Tommy flattened himself out on his stomach
and began to creep towards her, very slowly and very carefully. He
didn't make the slightest noise. And soon he had stolen so close to
old Mother Grouse that he was just about to spring up and rush upon
her. Then all at once there was the most terrible noise. It was almost
as loud as thunder, and it seemed to Tommy that the ground was rising
right up in front of him. He was so startled that he fell over
backward. And his heart thumped and pounded against his ribs.
The next moment Tommy Fox felt very sheepish, for he realized that the
noise was nothing but the beating of old Mother Grouse's wings against
the air. And instead of the ground rising, it was old Mother Grouse
herself who had jumped up and sailed away. She hadn't been asleep. She
had seen him all the time.
[Illustration: A Cloud of Feathers Floated Down From the Limb]
And she had just waited until she saw that Tommy was trying to catch
her before she flew off.
Old Mother Grouse didn't fly far. She perched in a tree just a little
way off and sat there and looked down at Tommy Fox and chuckled to
herself. She knew that she was perfectly safe. And though Tommy Fox
trotted up to the tree where she sat and stared longingly up at her
she wasn't the least bit worried. For she knew quite well that Tommy
couldn't climb a tree.
Tommy felt very peevish. He was _so_ hungry! And he couldn't help
thinking how good old Mother Grouse would have tasted. He couldn't
reach her now. But still he didn't go along toward home. He simply
couldn't keep his greedy eyes off fat old Mother Grouse! And he
squatted down beside a bush and stared at her.
Old Mother Grouse didn't mind that. She just stared back at Tommy Fox;
and she didn't say a word to him, which somehow made Tommy still more
peevish.
How long Tommy would have stayed there it would be hard to tell. But
in a little while something happened that sent him home on the run. If
Mrs. Grouse and Tommy had been looking out as sharply as they
generally did, Farmer Green's boy never could have crept up so close
to them. But they were so busy staring at each other that they never
saw Farmer Green's boy at all.
Now, Johnnie Green had his gun with him, for he was hunting grouse. He
did not see Tommy Fox at all, because Tommy was hidden behind the
bush. But Johnnie Green saw old Mother Grouse; and almost as soon as
he saw her he fired.
The old shot-gun made a tremendous roar. The woods rang and echoed
with the noise. And Tommy Fox saw a cloud of feathers float down from
the limb where old Mother Grouse had been sitting. But old Mother
Grouse herself flew away. The shot had knocked out some of her
tail-feathers, but hadn't hurt her at all.
It all happened very quickly. And Tommy Fox felt himself leaping high
in the air. He was so frightened that he had jumped almost out of his
skin. And he ran and ran, and ran faster than he had ever run before
in all his rather short life.
Johnnie Green saw him run. But his gun wasn't loaded now, and he
couldn't shoot. And he didn't have his dog with him, either. It was
lucky for Tommy Fox that there was no dog there. For Tommy was so
scared that he forgot all about jumping sideways, and running in
circles, as his mother had taught him. He just ran straight for his
home in the middle of the big field; and when he got there he scurried
through the door and scampered inside; and he never came out again all
that day.
III
TOMMY FOX LEARNS TO HUNT
Tommy Fox was hunting crickets in the field near his mother's house.
Being a young fox, not much more than half-grown, Tommy knew very
little of hunting. In fact, crickets were about the only thing he
could hunt and _catch_. Of course, any one can _hunt_. The hard part
of it is to _catch_ what you are hunting.
Tommy was glad that he knew how to capture crickets, for he was very
fond of them. To be sure, it took a great many crickets to satisfy his
hunger. But they were good when he wanted a light lunch; and there was
fun, too, in hunting them.
This is the way Tommy Fox caught crickets. He would stand very still
in the tall grass and watch sharply. Wherever he saw the grass moving,
Tommy would pounce upon that spot, bringing his two front paws down
tight against the ground. And in the bunch of grass that lay beneath
his paws Tommy almost always found a fat cricket.
There was just one drawback about that kind of hunting. He could catch
crickets only upon still days, when there was no wind; because when
the wind blew, the grass waved everywhere, and Tommy couldn't tell
whether it was crickets or whether it was wind that made the grass
move.
Well, upon this very day when Tommy Fox was amusing himself, and
swallowing crickets as fast as he could grab them, his mother came out
of her house and watched him for a little while. Tommy was feeling
quite proud of his skill.
"I can hunt--can't I, Mother?" he exclaimed. "Watch me! I get them
almost every time!" he boasted.
Mrs. Fox did not answer. She was thinking deeply. She knew that there
were a great many things she must teach her son, because he was
growing up; and some day he would be leaving home to go out into the
world and take care of himself. And Mrs. Fox knew that Tommy would
have to learn to catch bigger things than crickets in order to keep
from starving.
Pretty soon Mrs. Fox started across the field. She was gone rather a
long time. But she came back at last, carrying something that squirmed
and twisted and wriggled. Whatever it was that Mrs. Fox was bringing
home, it was furry, and quite big and heavy. When Tommy saw it he
stopped hunting crickets at once. He knew what his mother had. It was
a woodchuck!
"Hurrah!" he shouted. "I'm hungry! May I eat all of him I want?" You
might think that he had swallowed so many crickets that he wouldn't
want anything more to eat just then. But to tell the truth, it was
very seldom that Tommy Fox wasn't hungry as a bear.
"Not so fast!" Mrs. Fox said. "I'm going to teach you to hunt. And
you're to begin with this woodchuck. Now I'm going to let him go, and
you must catch him." So Mrs. Fox let the woodchuck slip away; and off
he scampered, with Tommy after him. Mrs. Fox followed close behind.
And soon she saw Tommy give a great spring and land right on top of
the woodchuck.
Tommy was greatly excited. But he was hungry, too, "May I eat him
now?" he asked.
"No! Let him go again," his mother commanded. "And see if you can
catch him more quickly next time."
Tommy obeyed. And though he overtook the woodchuck sooner, he was not
so careful to avoid the 'chuck's sharp teeth, and he got a savage nip
right on his nose.
Tommy was surprised. He was so surprised that he dropped the
woodchuck. And you may believe that Mr. Woodchuck lost no time. He
scurried away as fast as his legs would carry him.
Tommy began to whimper. His nose hurt; and he thought he had lost his
dinner, too.
But Mrs. Fox bounded after Mr. Woodchuck and brought him back again.
She made Tommy stop crying. And he had to begin his lesson all over
again.
When Mrs. Fox thought that Tommy had learned enough for that day they
both sat down and made a meal of that unfortunate Mr. Woodchuck. And
Tommy felt that he had already become a mighty hunter. He hadn't the
least doubt that he could go into the woods and catch almost anything
he saw.
We shall see later whether Tommy Fox knew as much as he thought he
did.
IV
MOTHER GROUSE'S CHILDREN
The very next day after his first lesson in hunting, when his mother
had brought home the live woodchuck, Tommy Fox went off into the woods
alone. He had made up his mind that he would surprise his mother by
bringing home some nice tidbit for dinner--a rabbit, perhaps, or maybe
a squirrel. He wasn't quite sure _what_ it would be, because you know
when hunting you have to take what you find--if you can catch it.
Tommy Fox hadn't been long in the woods before he had even better luck
than he had expected. He was creeping through a thicket, making no
noise at all, when what should he see but that sly old Mother Grouse,
with all her eleven children! They were very young, were old Mother
Grouse's children; and they hadn't yet learned to fly. And there they
were, all on the ground, with the proud old lady in their midst.
Tommy Fox was so pleased that he almost laughed out loud. He tried to
keep still; but he couldn't help snickering a little. And old Mother
Grouse heard him. She started to fly. But instead of tearing off out
of danger, she lighted on the ground quite near Tommy.
"How stupid of her!" he thought. "I'll just catch the old lady first,
and then get the youngsters afterward. _They_ can't fly away."
So Tommy made a leap for old Mother Grouse. He just missed her.
She rose in the nick of time and slipped away from him. But she didn't
fly far. So Tommy followed. And he stole up very slyly; and once more,
when he was quite near the old lady, he sprang at her.
It was really very annoying. For again old Mother Grouse just escaped.
Again she flew a little further away, lighted on the ground, and
seemed to forget that Tommy Fox was so near.
That same thing happened as many as a dozen times. And the twelfth
time that Mrs. Grouse rose before one of Tommy's rushes she didn't
come down again. She lighted in a tree. And since it appeared to Tommy
that she had no intention of leaving her safe perch, he gave up in
disgust. He was very angry because he hadn't caught old Mother Grouse.
But there was her family! He would get _them_--the whole eleven of
them! And he turned back toward the place where he had first come upon
them.
Now, sly old Mother Grouse had played a trick on Tommy Fox. If he had
just left her alone he could have caught every one of her children.
But she had tempted him to follow her. And every time she rose from
the ground and flew a short distance, she led Tommy further away from
her little ones.
Tommy had some trouble in finding the exact spot where he had stumbled
upon Mrs. Grouse and her children. But he found it again, at last. And
little good it did him; for not a trace of those eleven young grouse
could he discover. They had all disappeared--every single one of them!
_They_ knew what to do when their mother led Tommy Fox away. Each of
them found a safe hiding-place. Some of them burrowed beneath the
fallen leaves; some of them hid behind old stumps; some of them crept
into a hollow log. And try as he would, Tommy Fox was unable to find
so much as one downy feather.
He was so disappointed--and so ashamed--that he went home and stayed
there. But he had learned something. Yes! Tommy Fox knew that if he
ever met old Mother Grouse and her family again he would catch her
children first. Afterward he would try to capture the sly old lady
herself. But he didn't believe, just then, that he would ever be able
to catch her. You see, Tommy realized that he wasn't quite so clever
as he had thought.
V
TOMMY FOX IS HUNGRY
Tommy Fox kept a sharp look-out to see what he could capture to eat.
But he could discover nothing at all. To be sure, there were birds in
the trees, and birds' nests too, and Tommy was very fond of birds'
eggs. But he couldn't climb trees. The birds were out of his reach;
and so were the squirrels. He saw plenty of red squirrels, and gray
squirrels, and little striped chipmunks. They looked down from the
branches and chattered and scolded at him. They were perfectly safe,
and they knew it.
Tommy Fox sat down to think. As I have said, he was hungry. And there
is nothing that sharpens a fox's wits like hunger. He looked very
innocent, as he rested under a big chestnut tree, and gazed up at a
gray squirrel which was perched on a limb over his head.
"Run along, Tommy Fox," the squirrel said to him.--"There's no use of
your staying here. I shan't come down until you're gone."
Tommy didn't say anything. He just whined a few times, and held his
paw against his stomach. And he gave one or two groans.
The gray squirrel came a little further down the tree and looked at
Tommy again. He wondered if Tommy was ill. And then, when Tommy
stretched himself out on the ground and lay quite still the gray
squirrel was sure that Tommy Fox had eaten something that hurt him.
"What is it?" the squirrel inquired.
Tommy looked up and murmured something. The squirrel couldn't hear
what he said, but he thought he caught the word _poison_. And he
decided that Tommy had probably devoured a poisoned chicken-head which
Farmer Green had thrown out for him.
I am afraid that the squirrel didn't feel very sorry. He didn't like
Tommy Fox, for Tommy was always trying to catch him. But if he wasn't
sorry, he was curious. And he sat up on a low branch and looked at
Tommy for a long time.
Tommy Fox never moved again. His eyes were shut; his beautiful red
tail, with its white tip, lay limp on the ground; and his legs stuck
out as stiff as pokers.
Mr. Gray Squirrel felt sure that Tommy was very ill. He called and
called to Tommy. But he got no reply. And at last he decided that
Tommy must be dead. So he slipped down the tree to the ground, to get
a better look.
At first Mr. Gray Squirrel stayed close to the tree, so that he could
scamper up again in case he was mistaken. But Tommy Fox never moved an
eyelash. And at last Mr. Gray Squirrel grew quite bold. He edged
closer to Tommy. He had never been so near a fox before, and he was
curious to see what he looked like. He stole up beside Tommy and was
just about to call to his friends in the next tree-top to come down,
when he received the surprise of his life.
As Mr. Gray Squirrel watched, he thought he saw one of Tommy Fox's
eyelids quiver. And a great fear seized him. Had he been mistaken? Was
Tommy Fox playing dead?
VI
MR. GRAY SQUIRREL'S MISTAKE
Mr. Gray Squirrel certainly was mistaken, when he thought that Tommy
Fox was dead and came down out of the chestnut tree to look at him.
Tommy wasn't even ill. You remember that he was very hungry? And that
he had not been able to find anything to eat? Tommy could not climb
the tree, where Mr. Gray Squirrel sat. So the only thing left for him
to do was to make Mr. Gray Squirrel come down where _he_ was.
That was what Tommy Fox was thinking about, when he sat there on his
haunches and looked up so innocently at Mr. Gray Squirrel. As Tommy
sat there a bright idea came to him. So he held his paw to his stomach
and pretended to be ill. And as soon as he saw that Mr. Gray Squirrel
thought he was ill, Tommy fell over on his side and made believe he
was dead.
Though his eyes were shut tight, Tommy's ears were so sharp that he
could tell when Mr. Gray Squirrel came down the tree. And he could
hear him slowly picking his way nearer and nearer. Tommy's nose was
sharp, too, and he could smell Mr. Gray Squirrel. He smelled so good
that Tommy couldn't help opening one eye the least bit, just to see
him. That was when Mr. Gray Squirrel noticed that his eyelid quivered.
And Tommy saw at once that Mr. Gray Squirrel had caught that flicker
of his eyelid, and that he was frightened. Tommy knew then that he
must act quickly.
He jumped up like a flash. But quick as he was, Mr. Gray Squirrel was
even quicker. He reached the tree just ahead of Tommy Fox; and though
Tommy leaped high up the trunk, he was too late. Mr. Gray Squirrel
scrambled up the tree so fast that his big, bushy tail just whisked
across Tommy's face. And in another second he was safe in the
tree-top, chattering and scolding, and calling Tommy names.
Tommy Fox felt very foolish. He realized that if he had jumped up
without first opening his eye he would not have given Mr. Gray
Squirrel any warning; and then he would have caught the plump old
fellow. But it was too late now. Another time he would know better.
And he sneaked off, to try the same trick on one of Mr. Gray
Squirrel's friends.
It was no use. Mr. Squirrel followed him, jumping from one tree-top to
another, and made a great noise, calling after him, and jeering at
him, and telling all his friends about the mean trick Tommy had tried
to play on him.
And to Tommy's great disgust, an old crow high up in a tall tree heard
the story, and haw-hawed loudly, he was so amused. He made such a
racket that all the forest-people heard him; and Tommy knew that there
was no sense in trying to catch a squirrel around there _that_ day. He
went down into the meadow and began hunting crickets. And though he
didn't have as good a lunch as he wanted, probably he ate all that was
good for him.
VII
TOMMY CHASES MR. WOODCHUCK
Tommy Fox went up into Farmer Green's back-pasture, which, lay even
nearer Blue Mountain than the field where Tommy and his mother lived.
He skulked along among the rocky hummocks, and the old stumps which
dotted the pasture thickly. His ears and his eyes and his nose were
all alert to discover any small animal that might be
stirring--especially his nose; for Tommy could smell things when
they were a long way off.
Tommy's mother had explained to him that he must always hunt with the
wind blowing in his face; because then the breeze brought to him the
scent of any animal that might be in front of him, whether it happened
to be an animal that Tommy was hunting, or some animal that was
hunting _him_. In that way Tommy would be able to know what was ahead
of him, even if he couldn't see it.
[Illustration: Mr. Woodchuck Whisked Down Out of Sight]
But if he were careless, and trotted along with the wind blowing
_behind him_--ah! that was quite different. The other forest-people
would all know he was coming, for then _they_ would be able to get
Tommy's scent. And some day, if he were so foolish as to go about with
the wind at his back, some day he might stumble right onto a wildcat,
or a dog, or a man, or some other terrible creature.
Well--Tommy remembered all these things that his mother had told him.
The wind blew fresh in his face. And to his delight all at once he
smelled a woodchuck. There was no mistaking that savoury smell. It
affected Tommy very pleasantly--much as you are affected by catching a
whiff of hot peanuts, or pop-corn, or candy cooking on the stove.
Tommy stole along very carefully. And as he peered around a stump he
saw, not ten jumps ahead of him, a fine, fat woodchuck. Tommy crept up
a little closer; and then he sprang for Mr. Woodchuck with a rush.
Pudgy Mr. Woodchuck saw Tommy just in time. He turned tail and ran for
his life; and he was so spry, though he was quite a fat, elderly
gentleman, that he reached his hole and whisked down out of sight just
as Tommy was about to seize him.
Tommy was disappointed. But he was determined to get that woodchuck,
and he began to dig away at Mr. Woodchuck's hole. You see, Mr.
Woodchuck was smaller than Tommy Fox, and since the underground tunnel
that led to his home was only big enough to admit _him_, Tommy was
obliged to make it larger. Though Mr. Woodchuck's hole was under a
shady oak tree, Tommy found digging to be somewhat warm work, so he
took off his neat, red coat and hung it carefully upon a bush.
He worked very hard, for he was eager to find Mr. Woodchuck. In fact,
the further Tommy dug into the ground the more excited he grew. And he
had just decided that he had almost reached the end of the tunnel, and
that a little more digging would bring him inside of Mr. Woodchuck's
house, when he met with an unexpected check.
To Tommy's dismay, Mr. Woodchuck's tunnel led between two roots of the
big oak, and Tommy could not squeeze between them. He reached his paws
through the narrow opening and crowded his nose in as far as it would
go. But that was all he could do. He did not doubt that somewhere in
beyond, in the darkness, Mr. Woodchuck was having a good laugh because
Tommy had done all that work for nothing.
I am sorry to say that Tommy Fox lost his temper. He called after Mr.
Woodchuck. Yes--he shouted some rather bad names after him. But of
course that didn't do a bit of good. And Tommy Fox put on his coat and
went home to think about what he could do. He didn't care to ask his
mother's advice, because he didn't want her to know that Mr. Woodchuck
had got away from him. But he hoped to find some way in which he could
catch the old gentleman.
VIII
SOMETHING MAKES TOMMY VERY PROUD
Tommy Fox could think of nothing but Mr. Woodchuck. He thought there
could be no use in going back to the hole beneath the big oak in the
pasture until the next day, because Mr. Woodchuck would probably be
afraid that Tommy was waiting for him to come out. Yes--Tommy decided
that Mr. Woodchuck would stay in his house down among the roots of the
big tree and not show himself again until he felt quite sure that his
enemy had grown tired of watching and had given up the idea of
catching him.
But Tommy guessed that by another day old Mr. Woodchuck would be so
hungry that he would have to go out of doors again to get something to
eat. And Tommy Fox could hardly wait for the night to pass. But
another day came at last; and it found Tommy up and hurrying to Farmer
Green's back-pasture, where Mr. Woodchuck lived. It was just growing
light; and there was a heavy dew upon the grass, which Tommy didn't
like at all, because he just hated to get his feet wet.
Tommy did not go near Mr. Woodchuck's hole. Although he was just a
young fox, he was too wise to do that. He knew that if he went nosing
around Mr. Woodchuck's dooryard the old gentleman would smell his
tracks as soon as he poked his head out. So Tommy was careful to keep
away from the hole where he had dug so hard the day before. He sneaked
around until he had passed Mr. Woodchuck's house; and then he crept up
behind the big oak close by. And there he waited.
Tommy kept smiling. He was _so_ pleased, because his plan was working
out very well. The wind blew towards him, and Tommy saw that Mr.
Woodchuck wouldn't be able to smell him when the old fellow came up
into the open air.
For a long time Tommy waited there. He kept very still. And he stayed
hidden behind the tree, with only one eye peeping round the tree-trunk,
so that he could watch for Mr. Woodchuck. He was very patient--was
Tommy. You have to be patient, you know, when you are hunting. He
crouched behind the tree for at least an hour, and never once took his
eye off that hole. And at last he saw Mr. Woodchuck's nose come
popping out.
If Tommy hadn't been watching very closely he wouldn't have seen it at
all; for Mr. Woodchuck just stuck his head up for a second, took one
quick look all around, and jumped back again. He hadn't seen anything
to frighten him. But he thought it best to be very careful.
Tommy waited. And pretty soon that small nose came sticking out again.
This time it stayed longer. And to Tommy's great delight, in another
minute he saw Mr. Woodchuck climb up and take a good look all about.
Tommy Fox hardly breathed. He didn't see how the old gentleman could
help spying him. But he didn't. And then Mr. Woodchuck started off
across the pasture, to find something for breakfast. He was very
hungry, for he hadn't had any supper the night before.
Tommy Fox waited until Mr. Woodchuck had gone just a few steps away
from his doorway. And then Tommy stole after him. This time Tommy was
between Mr. Woodchuck and his house. And Mr. Woodchuck couldn't
escape.
It was all over in a second. And Tommy Fox felt very proud of himself
when he reached home and showed his mother what he had brought.
"I can hunt--can't I, Mother?" he said. "To-morrow I'm going up on the
mountain and catch a bear."
"Don't be silly," Mrs. Fox said. "You know you couldn't catch a bear."
But she was much pleased, in spite of what she said. For she saw that
Tommy was really beginning to learn something.
IX
TOMMY FOX IN TROUBLE
A few days after Tommy Fox caught old Mr. Woodchuck, something
happened that set him thinking. Perhaps I should say _"a few nights"_
instead of _"days."_ For one night his mother came home with a fat hen
slung across her shoulders. She had been down to Farmer Green's
hen-house, right in the middle of the night, when Farmer Green and his
family were asleep; and she had snatched one of the sleeping hens off
the roost and stolen away with it without waking anybody.
Only a very wise old fox could do that. "You mustn't go near Farmer
Green's hen-house," Mrs. Fox said to Tommy, as they picked the bones
of the fat hen together. "You are not old enough to get one of Farmer
Green's hens."
You notice that Mrs. Fox didn't speak of _"stealing"_ a hen. She
called it "getting" one. For foxes believe that it is only fair to
take a farmer's hen now and then, in return for killing field-mice and
woodchucks, which eat the farmer's grain. But the farmer never stops
to think of that. He only thinks of the hens that he loses.
Tommy Fox never said a word while his mother was talking to him. He
was very busy, eating. But that was not the only reason why he kept
still. He heard his mother's warning, but he thought she was silly. He
really believed that he was quite old enough and quite big enough and
quite wise enough to go down to Farmer Green's and get a hen himself.
After catching old Mr. Woodchuck Tommy felt that he was able to do
about everything his mother could do. And he made up his mind right
then and there that he would show her. He would pay a visit to the
hen-house that very night.
Tommy Fox could not wait for night to come. In fact, he could wait
only until the close of day--he was in such a hurry to capture a hen.
The sun had scarcely sunk out of sight in the west and the sky was
still red, when he crept slyly up to Farmer Green's hen-house.
Tommy had heard that Farmer Green went to bed very early, after
working hard in the fields each day. And since he saw nobody stirring
about the place he thought that everyone was asleep.
The hens were asleep. There was no doubt of that. Peeping inside their
little house, Tommy could see them roosting in rows. And he lost no
time in squeezing through one of the small doors. He felt a bit timid,
once he was inside. And for a moment he almost wished that he hadn't
come. But he was determined to take a hen home with him; so he reached
up and grabbed the very first hen he came to, on the lowest perch of
all.
It was a big, old, white hen that Tommy Fox seized. She awoke the
moment he touched her, and began to squall. And to Tommy's alarm, all
the rest of the hens heard her and began to cackle loudly. The noise
was deafening. And Tommy made a dash for the little door, with old
Mrs. White Hen in his mouth. She was flapping her wings and kicking as
hard as she could. And Tommy was dismayed to find that he could not
get her through the narrow door. Every time he tried to push through,
one of Mrs. White Hen's legs, or a wing, or her head, struck against
the edge of the doorway.
Then a dog barked. And Tommy heard something running around the
chicken-house. He just knew that it was a man. And he dropped the old
hen in a hurry and slipped through the door.
He was just in time. He heard a man shout, "After him, Spot!" And
giving one frightened glance over his shoulder, Tommy saw that Farmer
Green's dog was close behind him.
X
MRS. FOX OUTWITS DOG SPOT
Poor Tommy Fox! How he wished that he had obeyed his mother, and kept
away from Farmer Green's hen-house! Now Farmer Green's dog Spot was
chasing him. Tommy could hear him baying joyfully as he followed. But
you may be sure that Tommy was not joyful. He was terribly frightened.
He could think of nothing to do except to run, run, run! as fast as he
could go. He was headed straight for home, and he only hoped that he
would get there before the dog Spot caught him.
Now, Tommy was doing just about the worst thing he could do. He never
once jumped sideways, or ran around in a circle. And though he might
have waded a little way in the shallow brook in the meadow, where Spot
would have lost his trail, Tommy used the bridge to get across the
stream; so the dog Spot had no trouble at all in following him. And
Spot kept drawing nearer and nearer.
It happened that Mrs. Fox heard the baying of the dog. And she knew
what Spot was saying. He was crying--"I've almost got him! I've almost
got him!"
A shiver passed over Mrs. Fox; for she thought at once of Tommy. He
was not at home, and she wondered if by any chance he was in trouble.
She hurried through the field to see who it was that Spot was chasing.
And sure enough! pretty soon Mrs. Fox saw Tommy come tearing through
the field, panting hard, with his tongue hanging out, and a most
frightened look upon his face.
[Illustration: Tommy Dashed for the Little Door]
Mrs. Fox hastened to meet him. The dog Spot was then on the other side
of a low hill, and running along with his nose to the ground.
"Jump!" Mrs. Fox said to Tommy, as soon as he joined her.
Tommy remembered, then, what his mother had always told him. So he
gave a long leap to one side.
"Now make a big circle, and jump again. Then go home!" That was all
Mrs. Fox had time to say. She stopped just long enough to see Tommy
dash off; and then she started right in the opposite direction.
The dog Spot saw her and gave a yelp of delight. He did not know what
had been happening. He only thought that now he was going to catch the
fox, which was the stupidest fox he had ever chased, running as it
did, straight away, with never a leap or a circle, or any other sort
of trick to fool him. Little did Spot guess that old Mrs. Fox had not
the slightest idea of being caught. She had been followed by Spot
himself many times; and she knew exactly how to escape him. She just
lingered for a few moments, to make sure that Tommy was safe, and that
Spot was chasing _her_. And then how she did run! In no time at all
she left Spot far behind.
Now, Mrs. Fox knew that there was a ploughed field nearby, and that
was just what she wanted. She scampered towards it at great speed and
went straight across it. And when she had reached the other side of
the ploughed ground she sat down for a short breathing spell.
You see, Mrs. Fox was very wise indeed. She knew that in dry weather,
such as there was then, a ploughed field takes no scent at all. She
knew that when Spot reached that loose dirt Spot could not smell her
footsteps. And so she just sat there on her haunches, and caught her
breath again.
A grim smile crossed Mrs. Fox's face as she heard Spot barking away in
the distance. It was a very different bark from what she had heard
when he was chasing Tommy. This time Spot was saying, "Oh, dear! oh,
dear! I've lost him!" over and over again.
When Mrs. Fox reached home she found Tommy safe inside their house. He
was crying, because he was afraid he would never see his mother again.
And after his mother found out how Spot had happened to chase him,
Tommy cried some more--but for an entirely different reason.
Who can guess what the reason was?
XI
TOMMY GROWS TOO CARELESS
By the time summer was nearly over, Tommy Fox was much bigger than he
had been in the spring. So many things had happened, and he had
learned so much, that he began to be quite bold. And he had grown so
saucy that his mother often had to scold him. Tommy had fallen into
the bad habit of going about calling all the forest-people names; and
in that way he had gained for himself the ill-will of all the
creatures who lived near the foot of Blue Mountain. It interfered with
his hunting, because whenever he started out to get something to eat,
as soon as they saw him the forest-people told one another that he was
coming. Old Mr. Crow especially was the worst of all. He was forever
calling "Stop, thief!" after Tommy Fox; and then he would haw-haw in a
manner that was frightfully annoying. In fact, he made matters so
unpleasant that after a time Tommy began to roam far down the valley,
along Swift River, where he tried to catch fish. The fish, at least,
couldn't call him names, and there was some satisfaction in that fact,
even if he hadn't much luck as a fisherman.
And just for excitement Tommy began to worry Farmer Green's Spot. He
delighted in barking at Spot. And Spot would always stop what he was
doing and rush pell-mell after Tommy Fox.
Then Tommy would skip away with a laugh. First he always ran for the
river, and jumped from one stone to another, and waded where the water
was shallow.
Then he would dash off through the meadows, leaving so crooked a trail
behind him that when Spot at last found the place where Tommy had left
the river, he never could follow him very far.
But one day Tommy stumbled upon Spot quite by accident. There was no
wind at all that day, to bring any scent to Tommy's sharp nose. And he
suddenly found that Spot was right in front of him, between him and
the river.
Tommy Fox turned and ran. He laughed, too; because he felt quite sure
that he could outwit old Spot. And he leaped and twisted and turned
about, and made so many circles, that he felt sure Spot couldn't
follow him.
Yes--Tommy felt so safe that he stopped running and was trotting
slowly along through the field in which he lived. He was almost home,
when he heard a noise behind him. He looked around and to his great
surprise there was Spot almost upon him.
There was no time to lose. There was only one thing Tommy could do.
The door of his mother's house was only a short distance off and Tommy
made for it. Luckily, he managed to reach it. Once inside, he could
hear the dog Spot barking in the opening. But he knew that Spot was
too big to follow him.
Although Tommy was very glad to be safe at home, he was worried. For
now Spot know where he and his mother lived; and they would have to
move. Tommy was afraid his mother would be very angry with him for
being so stupid as to let Spot follow him. But he couldn't help it
now.
Meanwhile, old Spot continued to bark, and scratch at the door of
Tommy's home. But at last he stopped. And all was still.
Tommy wondered where his mother was. She was not at home. And he
wanted to see her, even if he was afraid that she would punish him.
For Tommy did not know exactly what to do. He did not dare go out for
fear Spot might be lying in wait for him. So Tommy stayed there. And
still his mother did not come home. He wondered where she could be.
XII
OLD MR. CROW IS PLEASED
There was a very good reason why Mrs. Fox did not come home that day
when the dog Spot chased Tommy Fox into his house. She had heard old
Spot barking in the field and she had hurried toward home as fast as
she could, to see what was the matter.
To her great dismay, when she leaped up on the stone-wall not far from
her house Mrs. Fox could see Spot scratching at her door. And she
guessed at once that he had driven Tommy inside.
The poor old lady hardly knew what to do. But she hid in the grass,
hoping that Spot would grow tired of his task and go home. But old dog
Spot kept up a great barking. He howled so loudly that they heard him
way off at the farm-house; and Mrs. Fox nearly wept when she saw
Farmer Green and his boy Johnnie come hurrying across the fields.
Pretty soon Johnnie Green returned to the farm-house; and when he came
back Mrs. Fox could see that he carried a steel trap. For a short time
Johnnie and his father busied themselves at her doorway. And then they
went away, calling old dog Spot after them.
After they had gone, Mrs. Fox stole sadly across the field to the home
she had liked so well. She knew that she could live there no longer in
peace and quiet. Yes--she would have to move. And now the first thing
to be done was to get Tommy safely out of the house.
Mrs. Fox reached her door-yard. And there she paused. There was no
trap to be seen, anywhere. But the path leading to her door was
sprinkled thick with fresh earth; and wise old Mrs. Fox knew that
hidden underneath it, somewhere, lay that cruel trap, with its jaws
wide open, waiting to catch her if she stepped between them.
She crept as close to her door as she dared, and called softly to
Tommy. I don't need to say that her son was delighted to hear his
mother's voice. He poked his nose out of the hole at once. And he
would have jumped out and fallen right into the trap if his mother had
not warned him.
"Don't come out!" she cried sharply, "There's a trap here, beneath
this dirt. Now, do just as I tell you, or you'll be caught!"
Tommy Fox was frightened. For once, at least, he believed, that his
mother knew more than he did. And he didn't dare move, except when she
ordered. He didn't dare put a foot down except where she told him to.
Tommy had taken several careful steps, and his mother had begun to
think that he was almost safely past the trap, when a very unfortunate
thing happened. Tommy was just about to set one of his front feet down
upon a spot that his mother had pointed out to him, when somebody
suddenly called, "Stop, thief!"
Tommy Fox was so startled that he gave a quick jump. _Snap!_ went the
trap. And though Tommy sprang up into the air, he was just too late.
The trap closed tightly across the tips of his toes. It was only one
foot that was caught; but that was enough. He could not get away--no
matter how hard he pulled.
It was old Mr. Crow who had called "Stop, thief!" He was laughing now.
His "Haw-haw! haw-haw!" could be heard plainly enough, as he flapped
away in great glee, to tell all the forest-people that Tommy Fox would
trouble them no more.
XIII
JOHNNIE GREEN AND HIS NEW PET
Tommy Fox was in a terrible fix. He was caught fast by the foot in a
trap; and if that isn't being in a fix, I should like to know what is.
All night long he whimpered and cried. All night long he tugged and
pulled, trying to get free. But the more he tugged the more the trap
hurt his foot. And the harder he cried.
Mrs. Fox couldn't help Tommy at all. She stayed with him throughout
the night, and tried to comfort him. And she only left when morning
came and she smelled men coming across the fields. Then, with one last
sorrowful look at Tommy, she crept sadly away.
In a few minutes more Farmer Green and his boy Johnnie reached Mrs.
Fox's door. And they were both greatly pleased when they saw that the
trap had done its work so well.
"It's a young cub," Farmer Green said, as soon as he spied Tommy Fox.
"May I have him, Father?" Johnnie asked quickly. "I'd like him for a
pet."
Tommy Fox was terribly frightened when he heard that. You see, he
didn't know what a "pet" was. He thought that probably it was
something like a stew, for he had been told that people ate things
like that; and he could see himself, in his mind's eye, being cut up
and tossed into a pot.
"A pet, eh?" said Farmer Green. "Well, I suppose so. He's hardly worth
skinning. You may have him, I guess. But look out that he doesn't bite
you."
Johnnie Green was delighted. He helped his father put Tommy into an
old sack, and taking the trap too, they started toward the farm-house.
When they reached Farmer Green's home Johnnie and his father fitted a
stout collar about Tommy's neck. And they fastened one end of a chain
to it; and the other end they tied to a long stake, which they drove
into the ground in Farmer Green's door-yard. Then Johnnie Green set a
big wooden box close beside the stake. He tipped the box over on its
side, and threw some straw into it. And that was Tommy Fox's new home.
You might think that it was a much nicer home than he had before. But
Tommy did not like it at all. All the people on the farm came and
looked at him, inside the box; and Johnnie Green never left him for
more than ten minutes all the rest of that day.
Tommy made up his mind that he would make a house of his own. And that
very night he dug a hole in Farmer Green's dooryard, where he could
crawl out of sight of everyone. Tommy liked that much better. No
matter how hard Johnnie Green pulled on the chain, he couldn't drag
Tommy out unless he wanted to come.
But after a few days Tommy began to get used to being a pet. He found
that it was not such a terrible thing, after all. He did miss the fine
runs he used to have; and the hunts; and he missed his mother, too. He
could hear her often, at night, calling to him from the fields. And
then Tommy would answer, and tug at his chain. But he couldn't get
away. And after a while he would go to sleep and dream pleasant
dreams, about catching crickets in the long grass.
XIV
TOMMY FOX MAKES A STRANGE FRIEND
There was one thing, especially, that surprised Tommy Fox. And I think
it surprised the dog Spot even more. Tommy and Spot became friends.
At first, whenever Spot came near, Tommy would run into his hole, as
far as his chain would allow him. But after a time he began to peep
out at his visitor. And finally he grew so bold that when Spot came to
see him he stayed above ground, though to be sure he sat close to the
door of his house, so that he could whisk out of sight if Spot should
come too near him.
Since Spot often came to look at Johnnie Green's new pet, he began to
like Tommy. And instead of growling, he would wag his tail, and try to
be friendly. And the first thing they knew, they were playing
together, and rolling and tumbling about, pretending to bite each
other.
Now, Spot was much bigger than Tommy Fox, and stronger. And sometimes
when they played together he would get so rough that Tommy would run
down into his underground house and hide. But he never lost his
temper, because he knew that Spot did not mean to hurt him. And Tommy
was always ready to come out again and play some more.
Johnnie Green was very proud of his new pet. And one day when he was
going to drive to the village he took Tommy Fox with him. He tied
Tommy's chain to the wagon and Tommy sat up on the seat beside his
young master. He had a fine ride. It frightened him at first, to see
so many people, for it was market-day, when the farmers for miles
around came to the village to sell their butter and eggs and
vegetables. There was a great number of dogs, too, running about the
village streets. Tommy was glad that he was high up on the seat of the
wagon, beside Johnnie Green, for he knew that he was perfectly safe
there. He saw so many strange sights that after that first day
whenever he saw Johnnie starting off for the village he was never
satisfied unless he went too.
On the whole, Tommy Fox did not have a bad time, being Johnnie Green's
pet. And although Farmer Green often complained that Johnnie would
rather play with his young fox than drive the cows, or feed the
chickens, or fetch water from the pump, still Farmer Green himself
rather enjoyed watching Tommy Fox.
But at last something happened that made Farmer Green very angry. One
morning he discovered that a fine hen had disappeared during the
night. And the following night another hen vanished.
Farmer Green was puzzled. Old Spot had been loose all the time, and he
had never barked once. That was what made Farmer Green suspicious.
Farmer Green went out into his door-yard, where Tommy Fox was basking
in the sunshine. Tommy looked up at Farmer Green very innocently. You
would have thought he had never done anything wrong in all his life.
Farmer Green began to examine the ground about Tommy's house. He
didn't find anything unusual. But when he knelt down and peered into
the hole Tommy Fox had dug for himself, what should he see but several
hen-feathers!
That was enough for Farmer Green. He knew then where his fat hens had
gone. But he was puzzled. There was Tommy, chained fast to the stake.
How could he ever have visited the hen-house?
Farmer Green picked up Tommy's chain. And to his surprise he found
that the end of it wasn't fastened to the stake at all! It had worked
loose, somehow. And Tommy had been free to wander about as much as he
pleased.
XV