"We could give them something to eat," spoke Nurse Jane, "but how are we going to get it to them? We can't call them here; and it would never do to let them see us carrying the things to them."
"No," agreed Uncle Wiggily. "But I think I have a plan. We can make some baskets of birch bark. Some of the animal children—such as Jacko and Jumpo Kinkytail, the monkeys, Joie and Tommie Kat, Johnnie and Billie Bushytail, the squirrels—are good tree climbers. Let them climb trees near where the real children are having their picnic, and lower to them, on grape-vine ropes, the food we have left."
"Oh, yes!" mewed Tommie, the kitten boy. "What jolly fun!"
Quickly Nurse Jane began to gather up the food. Uncle Wiggily put it in birch bark baskets the animal children made and then, with the baskets, fastened to vines, in their paws or claws, the animal boys went through the wood to the place of the other picnic. Uncle Wiggily and the remaining animal children followed.
There the poor, disappointed real children were, looking at their rain-soaked and spoiled lunches. Some of the little girls were crying.
"We might as well go home," grumbled a boy. "Our picnic is no good!"
"Mean old rain!" sighed a girl.
But just then the animal chaps with lunch from Uncle Wiggily's picnic—lunch which had not been rained on—climbed up into trees over the heads of the boys and girls. Not a sound did the animal chaps make. And when the real boys and girls had their backs turned, there were lowered to the stump tables enough good things for a jolly feast—apples, pears, popcorn, nuts and many other dainties.
A little girl happened to turn around and see the birch bark baskets of good things just as the animal boys scurried off through the trees.