“Humph!” said Bruin, “I never did think much of that muskrat.”
“What’s all this?” asked the raccoon, walking in. “Anything the matter, Cracker?”
“Bruin playing backgammon with his friend Cracker.”
“Good-morning, Coon!” said Bruin. “Morning, Toto! Sit down, both of you. Cracker was just telling me—”
“It is that muskrat that lives in the pool, you know, Coon!” broke in the squirrel excitedly. “He wants to marry the Widow Bullfrog’s daughter, and she won’t have him, because she’s engaged to young Mud Turtle. So now the muskrat has contrived a plan for carrying her off to-night whether she will or no; and if you will believe it, he came to me and asked me to help him,—me, the head squirrel of the whole forest!” and little Cracker whisked his tail about fiercely, and looked as if he could devour a whole army of muskrats.
“Don’t frighten us, Cracker!” said the raccoon, with a look of mock terror. “I shall faint if you look so ferocious. I shall, indeed! Hold me, Toto!”
“Now, Coon, you know I won’t have Cracker teased!” growled the bear. “He’s a good little fellow, and if he wants to help the Widow Bullfrog out of this scrape, he shall. I believe she is a very respectable person. Now, I don’t know whether I can do anything about it myself. I’m rather large, you see, and it won’t do for me to go paddling about in the pool and getting the water all muddy.”
“Certainly not!” said the squirrel, “you dear old monster. I should as soon think of asking the mountain to come and hunt mosquitoes. But Coon, now—”