"Well, Toodle," said Mrs. Flat-tail, wiping some flour off the end of her nose with her paw, for she was making a raisin pudding for supper, "well, Toodle, it depends on what the favor is."
"Oh, ma," went on Toodle, making his tail go up and down like a palm leaf fan on Christmas eve, "I do want a pair of roller skates awful bad."
"Roller skates!" cried Mrs. Flat-tail, raising both her paws in the air, she was so surprised like. "Why, you know they cost a lot of money, Toodle, and your father hasn't any too much. You know winter is coming on, and there will be lots of things to buy. Besides, there will soon be snow and ice all over the ground, and ice skates would be better than rollers, I should think. Grandpa Whackum can show you how to make ice skates out of a flat bone."
"I'd rather have roller skates, ma," said Toodle. "It won't be winter for quite a while yet, and I could have lots of fun. I saw one of the Bushytail squirrel boys with a pair coming from school, and he went along like anything—so fast!
"Say, ma, if I had a pair of roller skates I could go to the store for you twice as quick when you wanted anything. Mayn't I have a pair—please?"
"Now, Toodle, said Mrs. Flat-tail. Don't tease, that's a good boy. You know if you had a pair Noodle would want some also, and so would Crackie. And three pairs of roller skates—my gracious goodness me sakes alive! Why your papa would be the poorest beaver in all this pond if he had to buy three pairs of roller skates with winter coming on. I'm afraid you can't get them."
"Oh dear!" said Toodle, with a sigh. "Oh dear!"
He felt so badly that he didn't want to eat much of the nice green willow bark sandwiches they had for supper, and Grandpa Whackum said:
"What's the matter with that boy? Is he sick?"
"He wants roller skates," said Mrs. Flat-tail.