tch the rabbit gentleman.

"Oh!" said Uncle Wiggily, astonished like. And again he said: "Oh!"

"Surprised, are you?" asked the fox, sort of curling his whiskers
around his tongue, sarcastic fashion.

"A little--yes," answered Uncle Wiggily. "I didn't expect to see you."

"But I've been expecting you a long time," said the fox, grinning most
impolitely. "In fact, I've been waiting for you. Just as soon as you
have pulled up that sassafras root you may come with me. I'll take you
off to my den, to my dear little foxes Eight, Nine and Ten. Those are
their numbers. It's easier to number them than name them."

"Oh, indeed?" asked Uncle Wiggily, as politely as he could, considering
everything. "And so you won't take me until I pull this sassafras
root?"

"No, I'll wait until you have finished," spoke the fox. "I like you
better, anyhow, flavored with sassafras. So pull away."

Uncle Wiggily tried to pull up the root, but he did not pull very hard.

"For," he thought, "as soon as I pull it up then the fox will take me,
but if I don't pull it he may not."

"What's the matter? Can't you get that root up?" asked the fox, after
a while. "I can't wait all day."

"Then perhaps you will kindly pull it up for me," said the bunny uncle.
"I can't seem to do it."

"All right, I will," the fox said. Uncle Wiggily hopped to one side.
The fox put his paws under the sassafras root. And he pulled and he
pulled and he pulled, and finally, with a double extra strong pull, he
pulled up the root. But it came up so suddenly, just as when you break
the point off your pencil, that the fox keeled over backward in a
peppersault and somersault also.

"Oh, wow!" cried the fox, as he bumped his nose. "What happened?" But
Uncle Wiggily did not stay to tell. Away ran the bunny through the
woods, as fast as he could go, forgetting all about his Spring fever.
He was all over it.

"I thought the sassafras would cure you," said Dr. Possum, when Uncle
Wiggily was safely home once more.

"The fox helped some," said the bunny uncle, with a laugh.

And if the black cat doesn't cover himself with talcum powder and make
believe he's a white kid glove going to a dance, I'll tell you next
about Uncle Wiggily and Jack-in-the-Pulpit.

STORY V

UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE PULPIT-JACK

"Well, how are you feeling today, Uncle Wiggily?" asked Nurse Jane
Fuzzy Wuzzy, the muskrat lady housekeeper, as she saw the rabbit
gentleman takin