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Sammie and Susie Littletail

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<h2> XX </h2> <h3> SAMMIE AND SUSIE HUNT EGGS </h3> Sammie and Susie Littletail were leaping over the brown leaves and the pine needles in the woods. There was a little wind blowing, and it ruffled up the fur on the backs of the rabbit children, but they did not mind that. "I wonder where we shall find the eggs?" asked Susie of her brother, and she nibbled on a bit of maple sugar that Uncle Wiggily Longears had made for them. "I'm sure I don't know," answered Sammie, and he, also, ate some of the sweet stuff. "But we are sure to find them, because Uncle Wiggily said so. He would have come to show us, only his rheumatism is worse again." "We must ask somebody," said Susie, and just then whom should they see coming along through the woods but Bully, the frog. "Hello!" exclaimed Bully, "let's see who can jump the farthest, Sammie." "No," answered the little boy rabbit, "I can't; I am after Easter eggs. Do you know where there are any?" "Do you mean frogs' eggs?" asked Bully, and he croaked a couple of times, just to keep from getting hoarse. "I hardly think frogs' eggs would do," and Sammie looked at his sister, and his sister looked at him, until, strange as it may seem, they were both looking at each other. "No," said Susie, "frogs' eggs would never do. They are not large enough. We must get hens' eggs or ducks' eggs." "I know where there is a nice duck," went on Bully. "She lives near my pond. Come, and I will take you to her. Maybe she will give you some eggs." So they went to where the duck lived. Bully, the frog, hopping along, and Sammie and Susie hopping after him, and every time the frog came to a bit of water he hopped in and got all wet, and he didn't mind it a bit, but I'm sure I would. However, pretty soon they came to where the duck lived. "Mrs. Wibblewobble," said Bully to her, for that was the duck's name. Really, it was, I'm not joking. "Mrs. Wibblewobble, here are Sammie and Susie Littletail looking for eggs," said Bully. "Could you let them have any?" "Quack! quack!" answered the duck, and it sounded just as if she said, "What? what?" So Sammie, thinking she was a little deaf, asked her himself. "Can you please tell us where we can find some eggs?" and he spoke quite loudly. "Tut, tut!" exclaimed Mrs. Wibblewobble. "I heard Bully when he asked me the first time. I merely said, 'Quack! quack!' because I was thinking. I always say that when I think. Now be patient." So she said "Quack! quack!" again, several times, and paddled around in the water, putting her head under every now and then to dig in the mud for some snails. "No," she finally said, "I have thought very hard, and I do not know where you could find any eggs." Sammie and Susie were quite disappointed, and Bully said: "Perhaps you have some of your own you could let them have." "No," answered Mrs. Wibblewobble, "all my eggs have been turned into little ducklings. Here they come now." Then all at once, as quick as you can scratch your chin, what should come walking down to the pond but the dearest, nicest little ducklings you ever saw. They all said, "Quack! quack!" which, as you knew, meant that they were thinking, and Sammie and Susie did not want to disturb them. "This is my family," announced Mrs. Wibblewobble. "Family, those are the Littletail children, and Bully, the frog." Then the ducklings all said, "Quack! quack!" again, which this time showed that they had stopped thinking, and they swam around just like their mother. "Well," said Bully, "we shall get no eggs here. Come on, we will go see Mrs. Cluck-Cluck, the fairy hen. Maybe she has some to spare." But on their way they lost the road, and didn't know in which direction to go. Then fox was, but he couldn't help himself. Then Sammie, Susie and Bully walked on and on they heard a noise in the leaves, oh, such a queer, quiet little noise! and then, what do you think? Why, the sly, sly old fox stuck his head out. "Whom are you looking for?" he asked, as softly as can be. "We are looking for Mrs. Cluck-Cluck, to get some eggs," said Sammie. "Ah, ha! Ho! ho!" laughed the sly old fox. "Come with me and I'll show you her house. I'm sure she has some eggs." Sammie and Susie thought this very kind of him, and they were just going to follow that fox off when Bully warned them: "Don't go," he said; "that fox only wants to eat Mrs. Cluck-Cluck up. Let's run away." So they ran away, and my! how angry that sly old fox was. He almost bit his own tail. But Sammie and Susie did not mind. They were very thankful to Bully for telling them of their danger. Then they hopped on and on, until they were quite tired. They were afraid they were never going to find any eggs, but, all of a sudden Susie cried: "Oh, look, Sammie!" And there, on a nest in the grass, was Mrs. Cluck-Cluck the kind lady hen, and she gave the rabbit children all the eggs they wanted. Sammie and Susie carried them home to their underground house, and, after a while, they had a lot of fun with them. The next story will be about Susie learning to jump the rope, and I'll tell it to you, if the cow doesn't fall off the top of the telegraph pole, and tickle the rag doll with her horns.     <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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