The Tale of Daddy Longlegs | Page 9

in the reeds on the bank of Black
Creek. And although he had not been invited to the party, Daddy
Longlegs thought it would be pleasant to go to it.
Accordingly he started off at once, though the party was not to take
place until the afternoon of the following day. But Daddy Longlegs
knew that he was a slow walker--and Black Creek was a long distance
away.
Now, it was a fine, beautiful morning when Daddy set forth on his
journey. And he travelled steadily all day long without meeting with an
adventure of any sort.
When night came he crept inside an old fallen tree-trunk. And he went
to sleep feeling very happy, because he was thinking what a good time
he was going to have at the party the next afternoon.
But when morning came, and Daddy Longlegs crawled out of the
hollow tree to continue his journey, he had a great disappointment. The
moment he thrust his head out of his hiding-place he knew that he was
in trouble. And he saw at once that he would have to miss Rusty Wren's
cousin's party, because he certainly couldn't go on, with the weather as

it was.
Yet the sun was shining brightly. And there was scarcely a cloud to be
seen in the sky.
A person might naturally wonder, then, what Daddy Longlegs could
have found to worry him. It wasn't raining. And it certainly wasn't
snowing, because it was not much later than midsummer.
Nevertheless Daddy Longlegs looked upon the fields with a most
mournful face.
"I can't travel in this terrible wind!" he muttered. "If I had known there
was going to be such a blow I would never have left home."
And now you know what Daddy's trouble was. With his small body
raised so high in the air by his long, thin legs he always found it hard to
walk when the wind was blowing a gale. The strong gusts buffeted him
about so that he pitched and tossed like a chip on the mill pond when
its surface was ruffled. And Daddy had learned quite early in his life to
seek some sheltered spot on windy days, venturing forth only when the
air was calmer.
Of course it was never any too pleasant, to be obliged to lie low like
that, when there were a hundred things he wanted to do. But it was
much worse to be caught far away from home in a terrible gale. Not
only was there no knowing how long he would have to stay hidden in
the fallen tree before he dared begin his long homeward journey, but he
had no one with whom he could talk. And it had always been Daddy's
custom to spend gusty days as agreeably as possible by gossiping with
his neighbors.
Besides, there was the party on the bank of Black Creek! Daddy
Longlegs knew right away that it was useless for him to try to attend it.
And so it was no wonder that he felt unhappy.

XII

GOOD NEWS ON A BAD DAY
FOR a long time Daddy Longlegs lay inside the hollow, fallen tree and
looked out upon the wind-swept fields. If the stone wall hadn't been so
far away he would certainly have tried to return home. But the weather
was altogether too dangerous. He knew it would be risky to attempt so
long a journey.
As he sat looking out of the chink in the old tree, through which he had
crept inside it, Daddy suddenly saw a reddish, brownish flash flicker
past the opening.
"Goodness!" he exclaimed. "I wonder what that was!" And in another
moment the same bright patch of color again whisked across the hole.
Then Daddy Longlegs heard a sound as of some one scratching upon
the tree-trunk. And being of a very curious nature, he crawled half
through the hole and peered out to see what was happening. Daddy
Longlegs was all ready for a fright. He was so upset, on account of
being caught away from home on a windy day, that he was unusually
jumpy and fidgety. But--as it often happens at such times--he met with
a pleasant surprise. For there sat Sandy Chipmunk, with his long tail
curled over his back, and something very like a smile on his bright
face.
Knowing that Sandy Chipmunk never harmed anybody that minded his
own affairs, Daddy Longlegs spoke to him at once.
"It's a bad day, isn't it?" he called.
Hearing that tiny voice, which seemed to come from inside the fallen
tree, Sandy Chipmunk was so startled that he leaped high into the air;
and when he came down again upon all fours he found himself staring
straight into Daddy Longlegs' beady eyes.
"Oh! It's you, eh?" cried