the little girl, and crying all the time;
for then Dot's father turned and watched his wife and child, and kept
doing something to his eyes with a handkerchief, so that there was no
attention to spare for Kangaroos.
The good Kangaroo, seeing how happy these people were, and knowing that
her life was quite safe, wanted to peep about Dot's home and see what
it was like--for Kangaroos can't help being curious. So presently she
quietly hopped off towards the cottage, and then a very strange thing
happened. Just as the Kangaroo was wondering what the great iron tank
by the kitchen door was meant for, there popped out of the open door a
joey Kangaroo. Now, to human beings, all joey Kangaroos look alike,
but amongst Kangaroos there are no two the same, and Dot's Kangaroo at
once recognised in the little Joey her own baby Kangaroo. The Joey
knew its mother directly, and, whilst Dot's Kangaroo was too astonished
to move, and not being able to think, was trying to get at a conclusion
why her Joey was coming out of a cottage door, the little Kangaroo,
with a hop-skip-and-a-jump, had landed itself comfortably in the nice
pouch Dot had just vacated.
Then Dot's mother, rejoicing over the safe return of her little girl,
was not more happy than the Kangaroo with her Joey once more in her
pouch. With big bounds she leapt towards Dot, and the little girl,
suddenly looking round for her Kangaroo friend, clapped her hands with
delight as she saw a little grey nose, a pair of tiny black paws, and
the point of a black little tail, hanging out of the pouch that had
carried her so often.
"Why!" exclaimed Dot's mother, "if she hasn't got the little Joey Jack
brought me yesterday! He picked it up after a Kangaroo hunt some time
ago."
"It's her Joey; her lost Joey!" cried Dot, running to the Kangaroo.
"Oh, dear Kangaroo, I am so glad!" she said, "for now we are all happy;
as happy as can be!" Dot hugged her Kangaroo, and kissed the little
Joey, and they all three talked together, so that none of them
understood what the others were saying, only that they were all much
pleased and delighted.
"Wife" said Dot's father, "I'll tell you what's mighty queer, our
little girl is talking away to those animals, and they're all
understanding one another, as if it was the most natural thing in the
world to treat Kangaroos as if they were human beings!"
"I expect," said his wife, "that their feelings are not much different
from ours. See h
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