There was nothing to do but take refuge in a hollow log near by. That is to say, the Chipmunks went in, while Ready curled up under a rhododendron bush which kindly acted as an umbrella.
At first the Chipmunks seemed to fuss a good deal, and complain about being crowded. Ready remembered how much they loved to chatter, so he barked, “Speech, speech, everyone make a speech!”
These words acted like magic. Such a jabbering never before was heard from a hollow log.
Chippy recited a poem he had written about himself. Snippy told of an adventure he had had with a gray squirrel, and as for Clippy, he just squeaked and thrashed around, saying, “Here, here, nuts, nuts!”
It was all rather mixed up as you can guess, and sounded something like this:
“I am great big Chippy,
My brother’s name is Snippy.”
“Here, here, nuts, nuts!”
“And the old gray squirrel put his tail in my face.”
“When something is the matter,