“Yes, and maybe it’s Uncle Wiggily, the nice rabbit gentleman. He may be in trouble,” went on Neddie. “Come on, it isn’t far. We’ll go see. We must help Uncle Wiggily, you know.”
There was no one else in the bear cave just then to go to the help of whoever was calling, as Mrs. Stubtail and Aunt Piffy had gone over to the house of Mrs. Kat, the kitten children’s mamma, to ask about making sugar pie. So Neddie and Beckie had to do whatever they were going to do all by themselves.
They hurried on toward where they heard the voice. It was still calling:
“Help! Help! Oh, will no one help me?”
“Yes, we are coming!” answered Neddie, and then he and Beckie ran around the corner by a stump, and they saw, sitting there, Uncle Wigwag, the old joking bear gentleman himself. He did not seem to be in any trouble, and the bear children wondered what had happened to him.
“Help! Help!” he called.
“Why, what is the matter?” asked Neddie. “If you are in trouble why don’t you come away? I see no one hurting you.”
“No, you can’t see it, but I’m in trouble just the same,” said the bear gentleman making a funny face. “I am frozen fast to a cake of ice!”
“Frozen to a cake of ice?” said Beckie in surprise.
“Yes. It’s a trick played on me by Mr. Whitewash, but I am not complaining about it. It serves me right for playing so many jokes to-day, especially the one on him with the ink.