The Adventures of Buster Bear | Page 6

been disrespectful
to him.
"Too bad. Too bad! Too bad! Chug-a-rum! It is too bad that such a fine
young fellow as Little Joe should spoil a good disposition by such
selfish heedlessness. Too bad," said he.
So, though he didn't let on that it was so, Grandfather Frog really was
delighted when he heard how Buster Bear had been too smart for Little
Joe Otter. It tickled him so that he had hard work to keep a straight face.
But he did and was as grave and solemn as you please as he advised
Little Joe always to make friends with any one who was bigger and
stronger and smarter than he. That was good common sense advice, but
Little Joe just sniffed and went off declaring that he would get even
with Buster Bear yet. Now Little Joe is good-natured and full of fun as
a rule, and after he had reached home and his temper had cooled off a
little, he began to see the joke on himself,--how when he had worked so

hard to frighten the fish in the little pools of the Laughing Brook so that
Buster Bear should not catch any, he had all the time been driving them
right into Buster's paws. By and by he grinned. It was a little sheepish
grin at first, but at last it grew into a laugh.
"I believe," said Little Joe as he wiped tears of laughter from his eyes,
"that Grandfather Frog is right, and that the best thing I can do is to
make friends with Buster Bear. I'll try it to-morrow morning."
So very early the next morning Little Joe Otter went to the best fishing
pool he knew of in the Laughing Brook, and there he caught the biggest
trout he could find. It was so big and fat that it made Little Joe's mouth
water, for you know fat trout are his favorite food. But he didn't take so
much as one bite. Instead he carefully laid it on an old log where Buster
Bear would be sure to see it if he should come along that way. Then he
hid near by, where he could watch. Buster was late that morning. It
seemed to Little Joe that he never would come. Once he nearly lost the
fish. He had turned his head for just a minute, and when he looked back
again, the trout was nowhere to be seen. Buster couldn't have stolen up
and taken it, because such a big fellow couldn't possibly have gotten
out of sight again.
Little Joe darted over to the log and looked on the other side. There was
the fat trout, and there also was Little Joe's smallest cousin, Shadow the
Weasel, who is a great thief and altogether bad. Little Joe sprang at him
angrily, but Shadow was too quick and darted away. Little Joe put the
fish back on the log and waited. This time he didn't take his eyes off it.
At last, when he was almost ready to give up, he saw Buster Bear
shuffling along towards the Laughing Brook. Suddenly Buster stopped
and sniffed. One of the Merry Little Breezes had carried the scent of
that fat trout over to him. Then he came straight over to where the fish
lay, his nose wrinkling, and his eyes twinkling with pleasure.
"Now I wonder who was so thoughtful as to leave this fine breakfast
ready for me," said he out loud.
"Me," said Little Joe in a rather faint voice. "I caught it especially for
you."

"Thank you," replied Buster, and his eyes twinkled more than ever. "I
think we are going to be friends."
"I--I hope so," replied Little Joe.

VII
FARMER BROWN'S BOY HAS NO LUCK AT ALL
Farmer Brown's boy tramped through the Green Forest, whistling
merrily. He always whistles when he feels light-hearted, and he always
feels light-hearted when he goes fishing. You see, he is just as fond of
fishing as is Little Joe Otter or Billy Mink or Buster Bear. And now he
was making his way through the Green Forest to the Laughing Brook,
sure that by the time he had followed it down to the Smiling Pool he
would have a fine lot of trout to take home. He knew every pool in the
Laughing Brook where the trout love to hide, did Farmer Brown's boy,
and it was just the kind of a morning when the trout should be hungry.
So he whistled as he tramped along, and his whistle was good to hear.
When he reached the first little pool he baited his hook very carefully
and then, taking the greatest care to keep out of sight of any trout that
might be in the little pool, he began to