The Tale of Buster Bumblebee | Page 5

just what I'll do! And I'm certainly
much obliged to you, Mr. Crow, for helping me."
"Don't mention it," said the old gentleman, looking greatly pleased with
himself.
"I won't tell anybody," Buster promised.
"Oh, I didn't mean that, exactly," Mr. Crow told him hastily. "If you
want to inform your friends how clever I am, I have no objection, of
course."
Then Buster went off, thinking what a kind person old Mr. Crow was.
And that very afternoon, long before sunset, he curled himself up in an
out-of-the-way corner of the house and went to sleep. Everybody was
so busy hurrying in and out in order to finish the day's work that no one
noticed or disturbed him. And when the trumpeter sounded the rising
call the next morning Buster Bumblebee was actually the first one in
the house to open his eyes and jump up and hasten out to get his
breakfast.
All of which only went to prove that old Mr. Crow knew a thing or
two--and maybe even more.

VI
JOHNNIE GREEN IS STUNG

There had been so much rain early in the summer that even by the
middle of August Farmer Green had not been able to finish his haying.
His son Johnnie was sorry, too--because he had to work in the hot
hayfield almost every day, when he would far rather have gone
swimming in the mill-pond, under the shade of the great willow.
Sometimes Johnnie rode on the hayrake. And since he liked to drive the
old horse Ebenezer, he didn't object to that part of his duties so much.
What he hated most was pitching hay with a pitchfork. And next to that,
he disliked going to the spring for a jugful of water.
But those unpleasant tasks were nothing at all compared with what
happened to him one day when he stepped squarely upon the doorway
of the Bumblebee family's house.
Johnnie's carelessness made the workers angry at once. And several of
them rushed out and stung Johnnie Green severely.
Then he was angry. And he declared he would "fix them"--as soon as
he could think of a good way to do it.
And that very afternoon, while he was bringing the heavy jug from the
spring, Johnnie Green thought of a fine plan for punishing the
Bumblebee family. He liked his plan so well that he could hardly wait
to try it; and he went back to the hayfield almost at a run, whereas he
usually sauntered along so slowly that his father often had to speak to
him somewhat sharply.
But this time Farmer Green could not complain. Johnnie even brought
the jug--and the tin cup too--to the knoll in the meadow where his
father and the hired man were working. And then Farmer Green said:
"How are your stings now?"
"Awful!" Johnnie informed him hopefully.
"Maybe you'd like to stop work for the rest of the day and go
swimming," said Farmer Green, with a wink at the hired man, "unless

you're feeling too miserable," he added.
"Oh, yes! Oh, no!" cried Johnnie. "My stings aren't too bad for that!"
And he started off at once across the field, taking the jug with him.
"I'll leave the jug among the brakes in the fence-corner," he called, as
he trotted away.
Now, Johnnie Green took the jug with him because he needed it. It was
part of his plan for punishing the Bumblebee family. And instead of
going straight to the fence-corner, Johnnie made at once for the
Bumblebee family's front door. As soon as he reached it he poured
some of the water out of the jug--but not all of it. Then he put his ear to
the jug's mouth and listened. And he smiled happily--in spite of his
stings--as he heard the roar from inside it.
Buster Bumblebee, hurrying home to go to bed--for he was still
following Mr. Crow's plan--Buster noticed Johnnie and wondered what
he was doing. But as soon as he went inside the house he forgot all
about Johnnie Green. And when, a few moments later, there was a
terrible sound of scraping and scratching in the long hall that led to the
innermost part of the house, Buster Bumblebee never once thought to
mention to anyone that he had seen Johnnie in the dooryard.

VII
A JUGFUL OF BUMBLEBEES
When the workers--as well as Buster Bumblebee--heard the raking,
scraping sound in the hall of their house they all stopped what they
were doing and shrilled "An enemy!" And with one accord they rushed
for the front door. They were terribly angry.
Not wishing to miss anything that was going to happen, Buster joined
the mob and went sailing out into the open meadow. And there, quite
close to the door, stood the