“Well,” said Toto, “it’s about my grandmother.”
“Coon will be here in a minute,” answered the bear. “He stopped to eat the woodchuck’s supper. Chucky was so sound asleep it seemed a pity to miss such an opportunity. The birds have all flown away except the wood-pigeon, and she told me she would come as soon as she had fed her young ones. What’s your business, Toto?” and Bruin sat down in a very comfortable attitude, and prepared to listen.
“Well,” said Toto, “it’s about my grandmother. You see, she—oh! here’s Coon! I’ll wait for him.” As he spoke, a large raccoon came out into the little dell. He was very handsome, with a most beautiful tail, but he looked sly and lazy. He winked at Toto, by way of greeting, and sat down by the pool, curling his tail round his legs, and then looking into the water to see if the effect was good. At the same moment a pretty wood-pigeon fluttered down, with a soft “Coo!” and settled on Toto’s other shoulder.
“Now then!” said the squirrel, flicking the boy’s nose with his tail, “go on, and tell us all about it!”
So Toto began again. “My grandmother, you see: she is blind; and she’s all alone most of the time when I’m out here playing with all of you, and it makes her lonely.”
“Lonely! What’s that?” asked the raccoon.
“I know what it is!” said the bear. “It’s when there aren’t any blueberries, and you’ve hurt your paw so that you can’t climb. It’s a horrid feeling. Isn’t that it, Toto?”
“N-no, not exactly,” said Toto, “for my grandmother never climbs trees, anyhow. She hasn’t anybody to talk to, or listen to; nobody comes to see her, and she doesn’t know what is going on in the world. That’s what she means by ‘lonely.’”
“Humph!” said the raccoon, waving his tail thoughtfully. “Why don’t you both come and live in the wood? She couldn’t be lonely here, you know; and it would be very convenient for us all. I know a nice hollow tree that I could get for you not far from here. A wild-cat lives in it now, but if your grandmother doesn’t like wild-cats, the bear can easily drive him away. He’s a disagreeable fellow, and we shall be glad to get rid of him and have a pleasanter neighbor. Does—a—does your grandmother scratch?”
“No, certainly not!” said Toto indignantly. “She is the best grandmother in the world. She never scratched anybody in her life, I am sure.”