top of the cake, and scraped
off some of the chocolate and cocoanut.

"Ah! Yum-yum! That is most delicious!" exclaimed a grumbling, rumbling
voice, and the paw, all covered with the cake chocolate, just as a
lollypop stick is covered with candy, went out of the window, and the
paw was all cleaned off somehow, when it came back again. More chocolate
was then scraped off the cake by those sharp claws.

"Oh, ho! This is simply scrumptious!" went on the voice, as the paw was
pulled back. Then a third time it came, and scraped off what was left of
the chocolate and cocoanut.

"Oh, how perfectly delightful and proper this sweet stuff is!" cried the
voice. "I wish there was more!"

Then a great, big, shaggy, ugly bear, the same one that once chased
Nannie Goat, stuck his head in the window.

"Oh, did you scrape the chocolate off my cake?" asked Mrs. No-Tail.

"I did," the bear said, "have you any more?"

"No, indeed," she answered. "But you are a bold, bad creature, and if
you don't get away from here I'll have you arrested."

"I am not a bit afraid," answered the bear impolitely, "and as there is
no more chocolate I'll take the cake."

Well, he was just reaching for it with his sharp clawy-paws, and Mrs.
No-Tail and Nellie were very much frightened, fearing the beast would
get them. But just then a man's voice cried out:

"Ah, ha! You bad animal! So I've caught you, have I? And you are up to
your tricks as usual! Now you come with me!" And who should appear but
the man from the animal park where the bear once lived. And he had a
whip and a rope, and he tied the rope around the bear's neck and whipped
him for being so bad, and took him back to his cage. And Mrs. No-Tail
and Nellie were very glad. And I guess you'd be also. Eh?

There was some chocolate left, and some cocoanut, and soon the cake was
even better than before, and Nellie had sold all her chocolate to Mrs.
No-Tail, and she could buy lots of pictures for the school. And Nellie
took home a big piece of the cake for Dickie, her brother, and of course
some for herself. So it all came out right after all, and that bear was
very sorry for what he did.

Now, in the story after this one, if the fish we're going to have for
supper doesn't swim away with my new soft hat and get it all wet, I'll
tell you about Bully No-Tail and Alice Wibblewobble.

STORY XXIV

BULLY AND ALICE WIBBLEWOBBLE

"Bully," said the frog boy's mamma to him one Saturday morni