that Uncle Brownwood used to stuff his mattress with, and Cousin
Redfield made for it, and rolled and wallowed in it, thinking, at first,
that he was getting off the molasses, but pretty soon finding he was
only getting on hay, and really had it all over him so thick that he
could not roll any more, and could only see through it a very little.
When he managed to get up he had nearly all the hay on him, as well as
the molasses.
"Cousin Redfield was really a little walking haystack, and scared at his
condition, because he thought he would probably never be a bear any
more. He was so scared that he wanted his father to come and do
something for him, and started to meet him, as fast as he could, with
all that load of hay and molasses. He was crying, too, but nobody could
really tell it from the sound he made, which was something like
'Woo--ooo, woo--ooo,' and very mournful.
"Uncle Brownwood Bear was just rounding the big rock there at the turn
when he came face to face with Cousin Redfield and his hay. Reddie
thought his father would be angry when he saw him, but he wasn't--not at
first. Cousin Redfield didn't realize how he looked from the outside,
or the lonesomeness of the sound he was making. Uncle Brownwood took
just one glance at him, and said '_Woof!_' and broke in the direction of
a tree, and of course you could hardly blame him, for he had never seen
or heard anything like that before, and it came on him so sudden-like.
"Then poor little Reddie Bear bawled out as loud as he could, 'Pa! Pa!
Oh, pa, come back! I's me, pa; come back!'"
"And Uncle Brownwood stopped in his tracks and whirled around and said,
in an awful voice, 'You, Redfield!' for he thought Reddie was playing a
joke on him, and he was mad clear through.
"Cousin Redfield saw that he was mad by the way he started for him, and
became scared, and tried to run away as well as he could; but, not being
able to see well, ran right toward the Wide Blue Water, and before he
noticed where he was going he stumbled off of a two-foot bank where it
was deep, and was down in the water, and had gone under for the second
time before his father could lean over and grab him and get him out.
"Poor little Cousin Redfield Bear! By that time most of the hay was
washed off of him, but he had got a good deal of the Wide Blue Water
inside of him, and was so nearly drowned he couldn't speak. And when his
father laid him on the bank, and rolled him, the water and molasses came
out, 'po-lollop, po-lollop, po-lollop,' and, feeble as he was, little
Cousin Redfield realized that he probably would never care for molasses
again.
"When he was empty and could sit up, Uncle Brownwood got a pail, and a
dipper, and a brush-broom, and cleaned him on the outside, and then
rubbed him dry with an old towel, and put him to bed, though not until
after he had scrubbed up the cave so they could live in it.
[Illustration: IT GAVE HIM SUCH A SICK TURN THAT HE NEARLY DIED]
"Uncle Brownwood Bear did not punish little Cousin Redfield," Mr. Crow
said. "He thought Reddie had been punished enough. Besides, Reddie was
sick for several days. But Uncle Brownwood put up the bear-ladder much
stronger than before, and set the empty molasses-jug in the middle of
the table, and kept it there a long time, and when Cousin Redfield tried
even to look at it, it gave him such a sick turn that he nearly
died."
IN MR. MAN'S CAR
THE HOLLOW TREE PEOPLE HAVE ONE
OF THEIR MOST EXCITING ADVENTURES
Once upon a time Mr. Dog came over to have supper with the Hollow Tree
people, and to tell them some news. This, of course, was after he had
become good friends with the 'Coon and 'Possum and the Old Black Crow,
and enjoyed dropping in for a smoke and a little conversation,
especially about Mr. Man's doings, which always interested the Hollow
Tree people and their friends.
So on this particular night, when the supper-things had been cleared
away, and they all had lit their pipes and Mr. Dog was sitting outside
to enjoy the mild evening, he told them something very astonishing. He
said he supposed that they had now over at their house (meaning, of
course, at Mr. Man's house) the most wonderful thing in the world. He
said it was called an automobile, and was a kind of large carriage, but
the strange part about it was that it went without any horse or any kind
of live thing at all. When Mr. Man brought it home, Mr. Dog said, their
Mr. Horse had been looking over the fence into the road, and when he saw
that strange object, with Mr. Man sitting in it, holding to a wheel, go
flying by, twice as fast as Mr. Horse could run, also making much more
noise, and trailing smoke, Mr. Horse gave one snort and took out for the
back lots, and they hadn't seen him since. Mr. Dog owned that he himself
had thought it best to go under the house, and that he had spent a good
deal of the first day there watching Mr. Man open a number of doors and
covers that were attached to the new machine, which seemed to be full of
sudden noises that Mr. Man could stop whenever he wanted to, though he
was not always able to start them with the handle that he turned for
that purpose. Sometimes Mr. Man had to turn the handle until he was
quite weak before he could get a single noise, and without the noise the
carriage would not start.
Mr. Dog said that at first he had been rather uncertain in his feelings
toward the automobile, but that, little by little, he had felt more
friendly and had come up closer to look at it, only going back under the
house again when it started one of those sudden sounds which seemed to
make his head ache. Then he got used to those, too, and about the third
day Mr. Man suddenly caught him by the collar and invited him to ride,
and put him in the back of the carriage, and tied him there with a
strong rope so he wouldn't fall out, and so nobody would steal him,
because Mr. Man valued him so highly.
Mr. Dog said that when the automobile started he almost wished he
_could_ fall out, at first, or that somebody would steal him, because he
was sure it would effect his heart, and that when they got to going
faster and faster he forgot about the rope, and even tried to jump out,
but the rope was quite a good one, and probably saved his life. Then
pretty soon he didn't want to jump out any more, and laid down on the
floor to enjoy it, and was sorry to get home. When Mr. Man was ready to
start, next time, Mr. Dog jumped in himself, and the faster they went
the better he liked it, and now when they went he often sat up in the
front seat by the side of Mr. Man, and if the car was all full of Mr.
Man's folks he sometimes sat behind on the top when it was folded back
for fine weather. Mr. Dog said there was nothing in the world that he
loved so much as to ride in an automobile and to go fast. He said they
often went so fast that they passed some of the birds, and that then he
would bark loudly to show his enjoyment.
Well, when the Hollow Tree people heard about Mr. Man's automobile they
at first could hardly say anything at all. Then Mr. 'Possum said he
supposed what made it go was some kind of clockwork that Mr. Man wound
up when he turned that crank; and Mr. Crow thought he must build a fire
in it to make the smoke come out behind. Mr. Dog didn't know, himself,
just how the machinery went in, but that Mr. Man called it a motor and
had ever so many names for different parts of it, and sometimes said
strong words when he took one of the parts out and couldn't get it back
again without trouble. The wheels ran on rubber, he said, rubber filled
with air, which Mr. Man pumped into them, and when anything happened to
let the air out they had to stop, and then Mr. Man would change the
rubber wheel and pump a good deal, and say strong words again,
especially when it was warm. Mr. Dog said it was a great comfort to sit
back in the shade at such times, and watch Mr. Man pump, and hear him
say all the things that he used to say to Mr. Dog himself when he had
made some little mistake or had come home later than usual. He said he
had never prized anything in his life so much as he had that car, which
was what Mr. Man generally called it.
Well, the Hollow Tree people were certainly excited. They said they
surely must see that new carriage of Mr. Man's, and if Mr. Dog would
send them word some day when he was going out they would hide in the
bushes by the road and watch him go by. Mr. Dog said he would do that,
and that he and Mr. Man generally took an early ride together, before
the rest of the family were stirring, to get some things at the store
down at Great Corners--mostly, of late, things for the automobile, which
seemed to consume a great deal of smelly liquid, and oils, and all kinds
of hardware.
Then Mr. 'Coon said he would give anything in the world to see that
automobile going by with the smoke streaming out behind, and Mr. Dog
sitting up in the front seat. Mr. Crow said he would give anything in
the world to see that, and to slip over to Mr. Man's barn some time when
nobody was at home, and really examine the new object, and maybe sit in
the seats a little. And Mr. 'Possum said he would give a good deal for
all that, but that what he really wanted to do was to sit in the car and
ride, like Mr. Dog, as fast as the thing could go.
Then Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow both together said, "Oh, we never could do
that--never in the world!" and Mr. Dog didn't say anything at all--not
at first--but sat thinking. Then by and by he said, all at once:
"I know," he said--"I know a way that you can get to take a ride in our
new car.[4] There is quite a big space under the back seat where Mr. Man
keeps his pump and sometimes other things, but he keeps most of his
things in a tool-box on the side, and only looks into the back-seat
place when he needs the pump. When we start out for a long trip he puts
Mrs. Man's and Miss Man's extra hats and things in there, but there are
none of those articles there now. So if you should come over very early
to-morrow morning, before Mr. Man is up, and get into that place under
the back seat, you would have just about room enough, and while you
couldn't see much, except maybe a little of the road through cracks in
the bottom, you would be riding all the time, and always afterward could
tell how it felt."
Well, that was such a scary thought that at first the Hollow Tree people
couldn't do anything but just sit and shiver and think about how grand
and exciting it would be, but how awful if anything should happen.
Suppose Mr. Man should have to use his pump, what would be likely to
happen then? No one could tell. Mr. Dog said they would have to jump and
step lively then, sure enough.
[Illustration: MR. 'POSSUM TRIED TO TURN THE CRANK A LITTLE]
So then they talked about it and gave up the thought, and went on
talking about it and giving it up some more, until Mr. 'Possum said
that, so far, the worst had never happened to him yet, and that he would
take chances if the rest would; and Mr. 'Coon said it would probably be
the end of all of them, but he'd risk it; and Mr. Crow said he wouldn't
care to pass his life in the Hollow Tree alone, and he might as well go
with the others. Then Mr. Dog skipped home as fast as he could go, to
listen around and see what Mr. Man's plans were for the next morning, so
he would know if they were going on their early trip to Great Corners,
as usual, or on some excursion. But he didn't hear anything about a
picnic before bedtime, and next morning he was up a little before day,
and pretty soon the Hollow Tree people came slipping over, nearly scared
to death, and Mr. Dog let them in by his special door to the barn, and
they all looked at the automobile, and Mr. 'Possum tried to turn the
crank a little, and Mr. 'Coon sat up in the front seat and took hold of
the steering-wheel and pretended to be driving, and Mr. Crow said he
didn't see how a thing that seemed so cold and dead as that could
suddenly come to life and move.
[Illustration: MR. 'COON SAT UP IN THE FRONT SEAT]
Then Mr. Dog said he heard Mr. Man coming down his back stairs, and they
all made a dive for the rear seat, and Mr. Dog put the cushion in place
and was outside waiting and barking "Good morning" to Mr. Man when he
opened the big barn doors.
[Illustration: MADE A DIVE FOR THE REAR SEAT]
Then the Hollow Tree people were nearly dead with scare. Mr. 'Possum
whispered that he knew that his heart was beating so loud that Mr. Man
could hear it and would think his motor was going, and Mr. 'Coon said if
Mr. Man should ever move that back cushion he knew he should die. Mr.
Crow said he felt sure this was just some awful nightmare, and that he
would wake up pretty soon, and he said of all the dreams he ever had,
this was the worst.
But just then Mr. Man got hold of the crank in front of the car and gave
it a turn, and then gave it another turn, and then said something, and
gave it another turn, and suddenly the Hollow Tree people heard a great
number of loud explosions which made them perfectly cold, and then there
was just a heavy roar and rumble, and they heard Mr. Man say to Mr.
Dog, "Come, get in!" and they felt the automobile begin to move.
That was an awful sensation at first. They could feel that they were
going, but the soft rubber wheels did not rattle on the road, and about
the only sound was the motor, which they could tell was getting faster
and faster as they got out into the smooth road across the Wide Grass
Lands, and now and then Mr. Dog barking to them in Hollow Tree language
that everything was all right and to rest easy and enjoy
themselves--that they were just then passing the Four Oaks, and that
presently they would be in the Sugar Hollow Road, and that he wished
they could see out and notice how things went spinning by. Then they
heard Mr. Man tell Mr. Dog not to make so much noise, and after that
things were quieter, and they just heard the steady buzz of the engine,
until by and by Mr. Dog barked out that they were at Great Corners and
were stopping in front of the store.
The Hollow Tree people whispered to one another that they had certainly
enjoyed it, but what a terrible thing it would be if something should
happen now, so far away from home, and among so many confusing things.
It seemed an age before Mr. Man came back to the car and got ready to
start again, and when he did they heard him talking to some other Mr.
Man, who asked if he should put the things under the back seat. Then the
Hollow Tree people nearly died, until they heard Mr. Man say, "No,
never mind, I'm in too much of a hurry to get home; just drop them in
behind there, any place," which made them feel a little better, and
pretty soon Mr. Man started the motor again, and they felt the car
moving faster and faster, the same as before.
The Hollow Tree people couldn't see a thing, but they knew they were
riding faster than ever, for they bounced about a good deal, and held on
to one another and would have laughed at the fun if they hadn't been too
scared. They were pretty anxious for Mr. Man to get the car back into
the barn, so they could scamper home as soon as he went in to breakfast,
for they had had about all the excitement they wanted. But they got some
more in a minute, for all of a sudden, just as Mr. Dog barked to them
that they were in the edge of the Big Deep Woods and would be home soon,
there came a good deal rougher bumping, and then the car ran slow, and
stopped, and they heard Mr. Man say, "A puncture, by gracious! Now I've
got to put in a half hour at that pump!"
Those were awful words. He would be back there in a minute, and then
what. For a second or two everything was silent, except that they heard
Mr. Man getting out of the car, and they got ready to make a wild jump
the moment he lifted the seat cover. But then--right at the instant when
they expected him to do it--they heard Mr. Dog break right out into a
great, big bark, shouting as loud as he could:
"_Come! Come! Come! Mr. Man--it's up a tree!--it's up a tree!--it's up a
tree!_" and they knew by the sound that he had jumped out and was
calling to Mr. Man to come into the woods near the road, and then, a
second later, they heard him call to them, in Hollow Tree words--"Now!
now! jump and run! Jump and run! Now! Now! _Now! Now!_"
And the Hollow Tree people didn't have to be told again. All together,
they gave a great big push at the cover of the back seat, and lifted it,
cushion and all, and scrambled out, and over the side of the car and out
the back, and were diving into the deep woods on the other side of the
road from Mr. Man, who was looking up a tree and scolding Mr. Dog
because he couldn't see anything up there to bark at.
The Hollow Tree people didn't wait to see how it came out, but took out
for home, lickety-split, and didn't stop until they were safe in the
Hollow Tree. That night Mr. Dog came over to see how they had enjoyed
it. He said Mr. Man called him several names because he had not been
able to see anything up in the tree, and then had changed the tire and
pumped it while Mr. Dog was getting calm. Mr. Man, he said, was
surprised to find the back cushion had jumped out of place, but did not
suspicion the truth.
Then they all talked it over several times, and were very proud of the
great experience, though they decided that they would not try it
again.
FOOTNOTES:
[4] See frontispiece.
MR. 'POSSUM'S CAR
MR. 'POSSUM SHOWS HE CAN INVENT
THINGS, ESPECIALLY AN
AUTOMOBILE LIKE MR. MAN'S
"You may remember," said the Story Teller, one evening, to the Little
Lady, "my telling you about Mr. Man's automobile, and how the Hollow
Tree people, Mr. 'Coon, Mr. 'Possum, and the Old Black Crow, got a ride
in it; how Mr. Dog helped them, you know, and just barely managed to
keep them all from being caught by Mr. Man."
"Why, yes," said the Little Lady, "and I do hope they never wanted to
take another. They didn't, did they?"
[Illustration: HE USED TO WALK UP AND DOWN IN THE SUN AND SMOKE,
THINKING AND THINKING]
Not in Mr. Man's car--no, they had had enough of that, but they were
very much excited over it, and thought if they could just sit up in the
seat and ride, like Mr. Dog, and see things go by, and not be down under
it, in the dark and danger, they would enjoy it more than anything. Mr.
'Possum thought about it, and talked about it, more than anybody, and
after breakfast, while Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow were doing up the
morning's work, he used to walk up and down in the sun and smoke,
thinking and thinking, for Mr. 'Possum is quite thoughtful and a good
hand to plan, when work doesn't strain his mind.
Well, one morning, when Mr. Crow and Mr. 'Coon were all through, and
came out and sat on a log to smoke in the sun and admire Mr. 'Possum,
and think how smart he was and how well he looked for his age, he
stopped all at once, right in front of them, and said:
"I've got it!" he said. "I can do it! I can make one as easy as
anything!"
"Make what?" said the 'Coon and the Old Black Crow, both together, quite
excited.
"I can make an automobile," said Mr. 'Possum. "I have planned it all
out. I am going to commence now."
Then Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow took their pipes out of their mouths and
looked at Mr. 'Possum, but couldn't say a word, they were so astonished.
But Mr. 'Possum just threw his head back a little and blew some smoke,
and said that it had been quite hard to plan and had taken all of his
best thoughts, but that it seemed easy enough now, and that he might
have it done by night.
Then the 'Coon and the Crow did get excited, and said: "Oh yes, Mr.
'Possum, we'll help you. Will you let us help you, Mr. 'Possum?"
And Mr. Possum said that of course he would have to do the most, as he
would have to show them how, but that they could do all the easy things,
and he said they might begin by bringing down the big wood-box out of
Mr. Crow's kitchen, and the big wood-saw, and the hammer, and some
nails, and any useful tool that they had borrowed from time to time from
Mr. Man during his absence.
[Illustration: SIGHTED ACROSS IT TO SEE THAT THEY WERE KEEPING IT
STRAIGHT]
So then Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow ran up and lugged down Mr. Crow's big
wood-box, and got the saw and all the other tools and things they could
find, and brought them out to a shady place, for it was a fine spring
day and getting quite warm, and Mr. 'Possum showed them a round tree,
quite large, that had blown down during the winter, and told them they
might saw it in two, first, and then cut off four nice slices, two large
and two smaller ones, for the four wheels. Mr. 'Possum sat down on the
end of the log and showed them just how to take hold of the saw, one at
each end, and pull first one way and then the other, and walked around
and sighted across it to see that they were keeping it straight, and got
a little cooking-grease and put on it, so it would work faster, and Mr.
Coon and Mr. Crow worked, and sweat, and tugged, and panted, and said it
was wonderful exercise, and by and by really did get the log sawed in
two.
Mr. 'Possum said they had done very well for the first cut, which was
always the hardest, and that they'd all better rest and smoke a little,
as his mind was quite tired with thinking. But in a few minutes he
said they might try now to make a wheel, and see if they could do that
as well; and Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow went at it again, and after a while
got a slice of the tree cut off, quite smooth and about an inch thick,
and Mr. 'Possum said it would make a very good wheel, but that they
would be likely to improve with each slice, and that they must be very
careful to hold the saw just as he told them.
So then they rested and cut off another slice, and rested some more, and
cut off another slice, until they had four slices, and were nearly ready
to drop from being tired and hot, and were saying how fine it was to
have that job done, when Mr. 'Possum said that he had just remembered
they would need one more slice, for his steering-wheel.
Well, Mr. 'Coon and Mr. Crow thought they would surely die before they
got the last slice off, and Mr. 'Possum brought some water and sprinkled
a little on their foreheads, and at last that wheel was done, too, and
they were all quite exhausted and lay in the shade a while to rest and
talk about it. Mr. 'Possum said it might take a little longer than he
thought, to finish the automobile, and that it was better not to hurry
so, as new thoughts were coming to him all the time. He said that next
year they would make another and probably change the style a good deal.
Then when they were rested he showed them some nice straight limbs of
the tree that they could saw off for the axles, and when they got those
sawed off, which was easier to do, of course, he measured them and
showed them how to shave the ends nice and smooth with Mr. Man's
drawing-knife, and how to cut out of a strong piece of board some things
he called brackets for the back axle to turn in, because the back axle
had to turn, and how to bore holes with Mr. Man's auger, in the back
wheels and drive them on tight, and how to bore holes in the front
wheels and put them on loose with pegs to hold them on, because the
front wheels have to turn, and how to bore a hole in the middle of the
front axle and in the bottom of the big wood-box, for the steering-rod,
because the wood-box was going to be used for the body, and the
steering-rod would turn the front axle and hold it to the body at the
same time.
Mr. 'Possum said that he had noticed that on Mr. Man's car the
steering-rod did not stand straight up, but slanted a good deal, which
seemed to him a mistake; no doubt if Mr. Man could see their car he
would have his changed. Then the 'Coon and the Old Black Crow said, "Of
course," and that there never was anybody so smart to invent things as
Mr. 'Possum, and that it was too bad he couldn't go over and suggest
thoughts to Mr. Man.