[And he slipped down, tail first through the hole.]
Meanwhile the sun climbed higher and higher in the sky. It warmed the earth, the snow and ice melted, the banks of Winding River became green, as the leaves came out on the trees and bushes, and one day Mr. Beaver said:
“Come with me, Toto and Sniffy. You are going to learn how to gnaw down trees.”
“Are we going to help build the dam bigger?” asked Toto.
“Yes, that’s what you are,” his father said.
He dived down in the water, to slip out of the front door, and the two beaver boys followed him. Their noses closed, and they kept their mouths tightly shut while under water. But they had their eyes open to see where to swim. They came out on top of the water not far from their own house. But almost as soon as they had poked up their noses to take long breaths, Toto and Sniffy heard a booming, whacking noise, and their father cried:
“Back! Back, boys! Dive down! There’s danger!”