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Puss Junior and Robinson Crusoe

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<hr style="width: 65%;" />[81] <h2>BEAVER DAM</h2> <div class='cap'>PUSS, JUNIOR, had gone but a short distance when he heard a sad voice say:</div> <div class='poem'> "Oh dear, I've lost my brother, Where will I ever find another? He never should have left the bog, Alas, Alas! poor Rowley Frog!" </div> "Dear me," cried Puss to Mrs. Duck and he looked about him for the owner of the sad croaky voice. Pretty soon he saw a big bullfrog in a brook. "Come along with me," cried Puss, Junior. Just then a little muskrat jumped out of the water and from behind a tree ran a pretty gray squirrel and a striped chipmunk. "Did you call us?" they asked Puss all at once. "No, my little friends," he replied, "but come along," and when they reached Beaver Dam, they looked around to see what had become of the old bullfrog. There he was in the water about halfway down the stream, swimming away for all he was worth. <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/gs18.png" width-obs="297" height-obs="400" alt="Following Puss" title="" /></div> "Ker-chunk, ker-chunk!" he cried, as he came up to them, "Why don't you wait for[82] a fellow? And why didn't you tell me you were going up stream?"[83] Puss, Junior, felt very sorry to think that he had really forgotten all about the old bullfrog. "Well, you got here all right, didn't you?" asked the muskrat. "Now," he continued, "I'm going to knock three times on the dam to let Mr. Beaver know that we would like to cross." After giving three loud knocks, Mr. Beaver looked over and said: "What's the matter? Who are you? What do you want? Where did you come from? Where are you going?" "We'll answer the last question first," said Puss, Junior, with a grin. "We'd like to cross over on your beautiful great big dam." "The toll is a penny," said the beaver, looking them over carefully. "I haven't got a penny with me," said the little squirrel, "but I have a dandy big nut, if that will do." "All right," said the beaver, "give me the nut." He put it in his pocket, remarking as he did so, "it looks like a good nut. I only hope I shall not be disappointed when I crack it." Turning to the chipmunk, he said, "What have you got?"[84] "A little acorn," answered the chipmunk. "I don't want any more nuts," said the beaver, disgustedly. "I'm not particularly fond of nuts, anyway. I only took this one from the squirrel because I knew he didn't have anything else." "Here are two pennies, Mr. Beaver—one for Chipmunk and one for me," said Puss, Junior. "All right, Sir Cat," said the beaver, "walk across, but see that you do not slip, for the water is very deep on the upper side." Puss carefully wended his way over, followed by the little squirrel and the chipmunk. The old frog swam over, as did the muskrat. When they all reached the other side, Puss went forward, followed by his small comrades, who stretched out behind him like a funny little army. They hadn't gone very far, when a rabbit jumped out from behind a bush. Puss, Junior, called out, "Don't be frightened. We won't hurt you." "Baby!" cried the squirrel, "you're bigger than I am, but you're twice as much afraid." "I'm going to a wedding," said the rabbit. "I've no time to wait!" and away he went.[85] "Gracious me!" exclaimed the squirrel. "I had forgotten all about Cock Robin's wedding! I must be going." "And so must I," cried the chipmunk and the beaver, but what the old bullfrog said I will tell you in the next story. <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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