UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE RED QUEEN
Once upon a time, when Uncle Wiggily Longears, the rabbit gentleman, was
out walking in the woods, he stopped beside a little hole in the ground
near a pile of oak tree leaves, and listening, when the wind stopped
blowing, he heard a little voice saying:
"Oh, but where can she be? I fear she is lost! Little Crawlie is lost!"
"My! That's too bad," thought Uncle Wiggily. "Somebody's little girl is
lost. I must ask if I cannot help find her." So he called:
"Oh, ho, there! May I have the pleasure of helping you in your trouble,
whoever you are?"
"But who are you?" asked a voice that seemed to come out of the little
hole in the ground.
"I am Uncle Wiggily Longears," answered the bunny. "You can easily see
me, but I can't see you. And who is this Crawlie who is lost?"
"She is my little girl," was the answer, and up the hole in the ground
came crawling a red ant lady, who was crying tear drops about as large
as that part of a pin point which you can't see but can only feel.
"Oh, my!" exclaimed Uncle Wiggily. "I couldn't imagine who would live in
such a little house, but of course ants can. And now what about
Crawlie?"
"She is my little girl," answered the red ant. "I sent her to the store
about an hour ago to get a loaf of sand bread, but she hasn't come back
and I'm sure something has happened to her."
"Let us hope not," spoke Uncle Wiggily, softly. "I'll go at once and
look for her. Have no fear, Mrs. Ant. I'll find Crawlie for you. It is
rather a queer name."
"Crawlie is called that because she crawls in such a funny way," said
Mrs. Ant. "Oh, dear! I hope she is all right. If she should happen to
have fallen down a crack in a peach stone she'd never get out."
"I'll find her," said Uncle Wiggily, bravely.
So off started the bunny uncle, hopping on his red, white and blue
striped rheumatism crutch over the fields and through the woods, looking
for Crawlie.
He had not gone very far before he heard a small voice calling:
"Help! Help! Oh, will no one help me?"
"Yes, of course, I will!" answered the bunny, and then he saw an acorn
which seemed to be moving along the ground in a queer way.
"Ha! Can it be that this acorn is alive?" asked Uncle Wiggily. "And can
that acorn want help?" he cried.
"No, it is I--Crawlie, the ant girl--under the acorn," was the answer,
"and I want help, for I'm in such trouble."
"What kind?" asked Uncle Wiggily. "What's the trouble?"
"Why, I'm caught under this acorn here and I can't get out," was the
answer, and Crawlie's voice sounded as though she had gone down cellar
to get a crumb of apple and couldn't find her way back again. "I went
under the acorn shell, which is empty," said the little ant girl, "and
though it was nicely propped up on one side when I crawled in, it was
blown over by the wind and I was held beneath it. Oh, dear! I can't get
out and go to the store for the loaf of sand bread!"
"Oh, yes you can!" cried jolly Uncle Wiggily. "I'll lift the acorn shell
off you and let you out."
So he did, easily picking up the empty oak tree acorn from where it was
covering Crawlie, and then the little ant girl, who was red, just like
her mother, could walk about.
"Oh, thank you, Uncle Wiggily," she said. "If ever we ants can do you a
favor we will."
"Oh, pray do not mention it," spoke Uncle Wiggily, modest-like and shy.
Then Crawlie hurried on to the sand bread store and the bunny hopped
along over the fields and through the woods.
He had not gone very far before he met a poor old June bug gentleman,
and the June bug seemed very sad and unhappy.
"What is the matter?" asked Uncle Wiggily.
"Lots," was the answer. "You see it is now time, being July, for June
bugs like myself to get in their winter wood so we will not freeze in
the cold weather. But I hurt my legs, banging into an electric light one
night, and I'm so lame and stiff that I can't gather any wood at all. I
shall freeze, I know I shall!" and the June bug gentleman was more sad
than ever.
"Oh, cheer up!" cried Uncle Wiggily. "There is plenty of wood under
these trees. I'll help you gather it."
"There is no need to do that," said another voice, and, looking up,
Uncle Wiggily and the June bug saw, sitting on a green mossy log, a Red
Queen wearing a golden crown.
"Oh!" exclaimed Uncle Wiggily in surprise. "You are--"
"I am the Red Queen from Alice in Wonderland," interrupted the lady on
the log. "I was also the red ant lady who was crying and also Crawlie,
the red ant girl. You were so kind to me when you thought I was only a
crawling insect that now, when I have changed myself into a Red Queen, I
want to help you. And I know I can best help you by helping this June
bug friend of yours."
"Indeed, you can!" said Uncle Wiggily, thankful like.
"I thought so," spoke the Red Queen. "Watch!"
With that she waved her magic wand, and, instantly, ten million red,
white and black ants came crawling out of old logs from holes in the
ground and from under piles of leaves, and each ant took up a little
stick of wood and carried it into the June bug's house for him, so he
had plenty of wood for all winter, and couldn't freeze.
"There you are, Uncle Wiggily!" laughed the Red Queen. "One kindness,
you see, makes another," and then she got in her golden chariot and
drove away, and when the June bug gentleman had thanked him, and the
ants had crawled home, the bunny himself went to his hollow stump
bungalow very happy.
And if the looking glass doesn't make faces at the hairbrush and knock
the teeth out of the comb so it can't have fun and bite the talcum
powder, I'll tell you next about Uncle Wiggily and Tweedledum.