Snythergen dressed in his tree suit to be ready in case of trouble. Carefully Squeaky set the round table with what few morsels he could scrape up, arranging them to appear like a bountiful meal. The bear came a little earlier than usual that night, and made short work of the slim repast. Indeed Snythergen had just time to tiptoe out and take his place as a tree when the beast devoured the last bite of food and looked hungrily about for more. In a stage whisper Snythergen called to Squeaky who was still in the house, to warn him of his danger. Fortunately the pig was awake and whispered back that he was coming. A moment later Snythergen heard the most awful squealing and Squeaky came running out, the bear after him. Sancho Wing was flying above the pig to encourage him.
“Don’t squeal so! Save your breath for running!” he cried. The bear was gaining. Bending over Snythergen touched his roots with his top limbs, to be ready. But Squeaky was slow on his feet, even when running for his life, and already the bear was upon him. Sure of his prey the great beast slowed up to brace himself for a lunge. Quick as lightning Snythergen shot out his branches and grabbed the pig, lifting him to safety.
The bear did not suspect that a tree could come to the rescue of a pig, and so sure was he that his victim could not escape, he closed his eyes as he struck at him. But he opened them quickly enough when his paw struck nothing solider than air. The pig had vanished! But where, and how? His disappearance had been as sudden as it was complete, and the bear had not an idea where to look for him. Too surprised for growls, the big brute rushed distractedly about looking here and there. Naturally it did not occur to him to look up into the tree tops, for whoever heard of a pig climbing a tree!
“Did I really see a pig at all?” thought the bear, “or am I losing my mind! It wouldn’t be surprising with that neuralgia from the ice!”
He paused as the thought struck him: “I wonder if by any possibility it could have been the Grasshopper Pig?”
The day before the bear had been reading the story of the Grasshopper Pig to a neighbor’s cubs out of a book of nursery rhymes called “Mother Moose.” This pig seemed to disappear in much the same way as the one in the story. For the Grasshopper Pig is said to make long leaps so suddenly that he cannot be seen making them. One moment he is standing beside you and the next, bingo! he is a hundred feet away!
“Well, if it’s the Grasshopper Pig, I might as well save myself the bother of looking,” thought the bear; “no one has ever been able to catch him!”
As he came to the place where Snythergen was standing he sniffed curiously, and although Snythergen did his best to stand still, it is not surprising that he failed. For it takes something stronger than flesh and blood to stand still while a bear walks around you and stops to paw your bark, to rub his hungry head against your trunk, or to try his vicious teeth on your roots.
No wonder the trunk of the tree trembled and its branches twitched nervously. The big animal was puzzled by the shaking as he nosed about Snythergen’s extremities and clawed at them. It was more than wood and sap could stand and the badly frightened boy was weakening rapidly. Again Snythergen felt the sinking feeling that had come over him the day the small boy had crawled out on an upper branch. Tottering from side to side, he caught himself with an effort.
For a while Squeaky managed somehow to hold on with his teeth and legs, but his teeth were chattering and he was shivering all over with terror. And a sudden twist of the tree shook him so violently that he lost his footing. Desperately he reached for a limb. He missed it, and fell crashing through the branches!