Mother West Winds Children

Mother West Wind's Children,
by Thornton W.

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Thornton W. Burgess, Illustrated by George Kerr
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Title: Mother West Wind's Children
Author: Thornton W. Burgess

Release Date: March 22, 2007 [eBook #20877]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTHER
WEST WIND'S CHILDREN***
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MOTHER WEST WIND'S CHILDREN
by
THORNTON W. BURGESS
Author of "Old Mother West Wind"
Illustrated by George Kerr

[Frontispiece: "Yap-yap-yap," barked Reddy Fox, as loud as he could.]

Grosset & Dunlap Publishers New York By arrangement with Little,
Brown and Company
Copyright, 1911, by Thornton W. Burgess. All rights reserved

TO
ALL THE LITTLE FRIENDS
OF
JOHNNY CHUCK AND REDDY FOX,
AND TO
ALL WHO LOVE THE GREEN MEADOWS

AND THE SMILING POOL,
THE LAUGHING BROOK AND THE MERRY LITTLE BREEZES,
THIS LITTLE BOOK IS DEDICATED.

CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I.
DANNY MEADOW MOUSE LEARNS WHY HIS TAIL IS SHORT
II. WHY REDDY FOX HAS NO FRIENDS III. WHY PETER
RABBIT'S EARS ARE LONG IV. REDDY FOX DISOBEYS V.
STRIPED CHIPMUNK'S POCKETS VI. REDDY FOX, THE
BOASTER VII. JOHNNY CHUCK'S SECRET VIII. JOHNNY
CHUCK'S GREAT FIGHT IX. MR. TOAD'S OLD SUIT X.
GRANDFATHER FROG GETS EVEN XI. THE DISAPPOINTED
BUSH XII. WHY BOBBY COON WASHES HIS FOOD XIII. THE
MERRY LITTLE BREEZES HAVE A BUSY DAY XIV. WHY
HOOTY THE OWL DOES NOT PLAY ON THE GREEN
MEADOWS XV. DANNY MEADOW MOUSE LEARNS TO
LAUGH

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
"YAP-YAP-YAP," BARKED REDDY FOX, AS LOUD AS HE
COULD . . . . . . . . . . . . Frontispiece
MR. RABBIT HAD A GREAT DEAL OF CURIOSITY, A VERY
GREAT DEAL, INDEED
THEN EVERYBODY SHOUTED "HAW! HAW! HAW!"

HE WAS SO SURPRISED HE FORGOT TO CLOSE IT

MOTHER WEST WIND'S CHILDREN
I
DANNY MEADOW MOUSE LEARNS WHY HIS TAIL IS SHORT
Danny Meadow Mouse sat in his doorway and looked down the Lone
Little Path across the Green Meadows. Way, way over near the Smiling
Pool he could see Old Mother West Wind's Children, the Merry Little
Breezes, at play. Sammy Jay was sitting on a fence post. He pretended
to be taking a sun bath, but really he was planning mischief. You never
see Sammy Jay that he isn't in mischief or planning it.
Reddy Fox had trotted past an hour before in a great hurry. Up on the
hill Danny Meadow Mouse could just see Jimmy Skunk pulling over
every old stick and stone he could find, no matter whose house it might
be, and excusing himself because he was hungry and was looking for
beetles.
Jolly, round, red Mr. Sun was playing at hide and seek behind some
fleecy white clouds. All the birds were singing and singing, and the
world was happy--all but Danny Meadow Mouse.
No, Danny Meadow Mouse was not happy. Indeed, he was very far
from happy, and all because his tail was short.
By and by up came old Mr. Toad. It was a warm day and Mr. Toad was
very hot and very, very thirsty. He stopped to rest beside the house of
Danny Meadow Mouse.
"Good morning, Danny Meadow Mouse," said old Mr. Toad, "it's a fine
morning."
"Morning," said Danny Meadow Mouse, grumpily.

"I hope your health is good this morning," continued old Mr. Toad, just
as if he hadn't noticed how short and cross Danny Meadow Mouse had
answered.
Now old Mr. Toad is very ugly to look upon, but the ugliness is all in
his looks. He has the sunniest of hearts and always he is looking for a
chance to help someone.
"Danny Meadow Mouse," said old Mr. Toad, "you make me think of
your grandfather a thousand times removed. You do indeed. You look
just as he did when he lost the half of his tail and realized that he never,
never could get it back again."
Danny Meadow Mouse sat up suddenly.
"What are you talking about, old Mr. Toad? What are you talking
about?" he asked. "Did my grandfather a thousand times removed lose
the half of his tail, and was it shorter then than mine is now? Was it, old
Mr. Toad? And how did he come to lose the half of it?"
Old Mr. Toad laughed a funny silent laugh. "It's a long story," said old
Mr.