would come out and twinkle down at him. He
loves the little stars and always watches for the first one.

Yes, Paddy the Beaver was very happy. He would have been perfectly
happy but for one thing: Farmer Brown's boy had found his dam and pond
that very afternoon, and Paddy wasn't quite sure what Farmer Brown's boy
might do. He had kept himself snugly hidden while Farmer Brown's boy was
there, and he felt quite sure that Farmer Brown's boy didn't know who
had built the dam. But for this very reason he might, he just _might_,
try to find out all about it, and that would mean that Paddy would have
to be always on the watch.

"But what's the use of worrying over troubles that haven't come yet, and
may never come? Time enough to worry when they do come," said Paddy to
himself, which shows that Paddy has a great deal of wisdom in his little
brown head. "The thing for me to do now is to get ready for winter, and
that means a great deal of work," he continued. "Let me see, I've got to
build a house, a big, stout, warm house, where I will be warm and safe
when my pond is frozen over. And I've got to lay in a supply of food,
enough to last me until gentle Sister South Wind comes to prepare the
way for lovely Mistress Spring. My, my, I can't afford to be sitting
here dreaming, when there is such a lot to be done!"

With that Paddy slipped into the water and swam all around his new pond
to make sure of just the best place to build his house. Now placing
one's house in just the right place is a very important matter. Some
people are dreadfully careless about this. Jimmy Skunk, for instance,
often makes the mistake of digging his house (you know Jimmy makes his
house underground) right where every one who happens along that way will
see it. Perhaps that is because Jimmy is so independent that he doesn't
care who knows where he lives.

But Paddy the Beaver never is careless. He always chooses just the very
best place. He makes sure that it is best before he begins. So now,
although he was quite positive just where his house should be, he swam
around the pond to make doubly sure. Then, when he was quite satisfied,
he swam over to the place he had chosen. It was where the water was
quite deep.

"There mustn't be the least chance that the ice will ever get thick
enough to close up my doorway," said he, "and I'm sure it never will
here. I must make the foundations strong and the walls thick. I must
have plenty of mud to plaster with,