“Oh, I’ll be careful of her,” said Neddie, and he was so glad he could take out his little sick sister, that he stood up on the end of his short, stubby tail.
That is, Neddie tried to stand on the end of his tail, but the truth of the matter is, my dear little friends, that Neddie was getting to be such a fat, heavy little chap of a bear cub that his tail would not hold him any more.
So over he fell, ker-thump-o! But he landed in a pile of leaves so he was not hurt at all.
“Don’t let Beckie try that, Neddie,” said Mrs. Stubtail, with a laugh. “She is only just out of a sick bed, you know.”
“I won’t!” laughed Neddie, as he picked himself up and brushed off the leaves. You know I told you, in the story before this one, how Beckie had to take some pink, bitter medicine for her cough that Dr. Possum gave her. Hold on, I don’t mean that Dr. Possum gave her the cough—no, he gave her the medicine to cure it. And a bad lion got in after Beckie, and he swallowed the whole bottle of medicine and that gave him such a conniption fit that he was glad to leave the little girl bear alone.
So while Neddie waited outside the bear cave, Mrs. Stubtail went inside to get Beckie ready to take a little walk in the woods.
“Oh, it is just lovely to get out again, after being in the house so long!” sighed Beckie, as she walked along with her brother Neddie, holding his paw.
Neddie was as nice as could be, and he walked slowly with his sister who had been ill, taking good care that she did not stumble over a stick or a stone.
On and on they went, and pretty soon, when Neddie was thinking it was about time to start for home with his sister, all of a sudden they heard a tooting horn in the woods.
“Hark! what’s that?” cried Beckie, giving a jump.