[STORY XXVII]
CRACKIE AND JOIE KAT
"Mamma, is Crackie going to school today?" asked Toodle Flat-tail, the little beaver boy, one morning, when it was almost time for the first bell to ring.
Mrs. Flat-tail looked out of the window of the beaver house in the pond behind the dam, and said:
"No, I think not. Her sniffle-snuffles are not much better today than they were yesterday. Besides, it is rather warm weather now, the pond is not frozen and it looks like snow. I think I shall keep her home until tomorrow, at least. Now run along, Toodle—you and Noodle. And be good boys."
"We will," promised Noodle, as he caught up the red balloon-football, covered with leather. He and his brother and the other animal boys thought they would have a fine game that day.
Crackie, the little beaver girl, felt very lonesome after her brothers had left her. She had not been going to school very long, and she was in the kindergarten, but still she liked her teacher and her schoolmates. However, when a beaver girl has the sniffle-snuffles she can't very well go to school, for she sneezes all the time; and when the teacher asks how many three and two are she has to say:
"Ak-er-choo," which isn't the right answer at all.
So, as I say, Crackie felt a little lonesome. But her mamma let her help dry the breakfast dishes, and Crackie only dropped a saucer, which didn't break very much, only about half of it falling off.
"You are doing very well, Crackie," said Mrs. Flat-tail with a smile at the little beaver girl. "Soon we won't have to call you Crackie at all." You see Crackie had such an odd name because she used to be always dropping and cracking such things as dishes, and ice cream cones, and lollypops and all like that.