Lulu, Alice and Jimmie Wibblewobble | Page 4

indeed. I never heard better. I have the greatest idea," he
added. "Would you be so kind as to lend me that little duck? I will
bring him safely back to you and not harm him in the least."
"What will you do with him?" asked the man who owned the pond.
"I will take him on the seat beside me," replied the other, "and maybe
he will go 'quack-quack' whenever a person gets in the way of my auto.
Then they will not be run over. Why, this little duck will be as good as
an auto horn! Will you let me take him?"
"I guess so," answered the other man. "But please do not frighten him,
as he is very little."

The man who owned the auto said he would be careful, and he went
over to where Jimmie was, and picked him right up.
Now I should have thought that Jimmie would have been frightened,
but he wasn't a bit, no, would you believe me, not a bit. So the man
took him and put him on the seat and started off in the auto. Jimmie
knew exactly what to do. Every time he came to a crossing he
"quack-quacked" as loudly as he could, without being told, and he did
the same thing whenever he saw a person in the way of the big
machine.
Oh, what a fine ride he had in the auto, and how proud he was! Not too
proud, you know, but just proud enough. Well, as true as I'm telling
you, if Jimmie wasn't as good an auto horn as one could wish. Not a
single accident happened when he was on the seat, "quack-quacking"
away, and when the man went to a store and got his regular horn, with
the rubber handle to it, why, he brought Jimmie right back to the pond.
Now, wasn't that quite an adventure? All the other ducks thought so
anyhow. To-morrow night, if you do not slam the door, you shall hear
about Alice Wibblewobble's new bonnet.

STORY III
ALICE WIBBLEWOBBLE'S NEW BONNET
When the Wibblewobble family came back to their house after a swim
around the pond one bright sunny afternoon, and when the grass on the
edges of the water was as green as it could be, Mamma Wibblewobble
looked at her children, who were walking ahead of her. Jimmie and
Lulu were throwing stones along the path, but Alice, who was as
ladylike a little duck as one could wish, would not throw pebbles even,
to say nothing of stones.
"I declare," exclaimed Mamma Wibblewobble, "those girls will have to
have new bonnets. I must see to it at once."

"Very well," answered Papa Wibblewobble, "I will get them when I
come home to-morrow. I met Mrs. Gooseyoosy this morning and she
said they had a special sale of hats at the store by the barnyard gate."
"A man duck cannot get bonnets for Alice and Lulu," declared Mrs.
Wibblewobble. "You would not know what to pick out! It is bad
enough to have you get Jimmie's hats and shoes, but you would never
know how to buy bonnets for the girls."
"Very well," answered Papa Wibblewobble, "then I will let you do the
buying. I think a green colored bonnet would be nice for Alice."
"Green! With her complexion!" cried his wife. "Never! It must be
blue--blue for Alice and a brown one for Lulu. Give me the money and
I will start out shopping to-morrow."
So Mamma Wibblewobble started out the next day, taking Alice and
Lulu with her, while Jimmie stayed home and played cross-tag with
Bully, the frog, and Nurse Jane Fuzzy-Wuzzy, who had a day's
vacation.
They had lots of fun, and once Jimmie nearly fell down a great big--but
there, I started to tell you about Alice Wibblewobble's bonnet, and I
must not get off the track. That story about Jimmie will do for another
time.
Well, you should have seen the numbers and numbers of duck-bonnets
that Mrs. Wibblewobble looked at before she was satisfied with two for
the girls. Not that Alice and Lulu were hard to please. Oh, my, no! But
their mamma wanted them to look just right, and you know it is quite
difficult to fit a bonnet on a duck and make it look like anything. The
milliner said so herself, and she ought to know. But at last the two duck
girls both had very fine bonnets indeed; as fine as mustard seeds, which
are very, very fine. Alice had a nice blue one, and Lulu a brown one.
Well, would you ever imagine it? Something is going to happen to
Alice's bonnet, and very soon, too. Just be patient and you shall hear.

"Now children," said Mrs. Wibblewobble, when