e sure, at
anything except digging he was slow and awkward. He was too heavy and
squat to be spry on his feet--to chase and catch his more nimble
neighbors. But no one that knew much about Benny Badger would have said
that his wits were dull. They were sharp. And so, too, were his teeth,
which he never hesitated to use in a fight.

Left alone, Benny Badger--when he wasn't too hungry--was a peaceable
person. But if a dog ever tried to worry him Benny had a most unpleasant
way of seizing his annoyer with his powerful jaws and holding the poor
creature as if he never intended to let him go.

Cornered, Benny knew no such thing as fear. He had the heart of a lion,
and jaws like a steel trap. And no wise dog ever let Benny get a good,
firm grip on him.

Usually no one saw Benny Badger except at night. He seldom left his den
in the daytime except to sun himself. And even then not many noticed
him. Though he did not hide when anyone surprised him while taking a
sun-bath, he had a trick of lying flat in the grass without moving. And
it took a sharp eye to spy him when he lay low in that fashion.

Curled up asleep, with his long fur on end, he looked too comfortable to
disturb. At least, that was what the ground squirrels thought. And if
one of those busy little fellows ever paused to stare curiously at Benny
when he was having a nap in the warm sunshine, Benny Badger had only to
awake and turn his head toward the onlooker to make him scamper for home
as fast as he could go.

It was not Benny's face, either, that frightened the ground squirrels
away, though everybody had to admit that he had a queer one. A black
patch spread over his eyes and ran like the point of a V down his nose.
For the most part, however, he was of a grayish color, with still more
black running in streaks across his back. Underneath he was a--yes! a
dirty white color. But then, one must remember that he was forever
digging in the dirt; and there was very little water where he lived.
Anyhow, he was particular enough about one thing: his long hair was
always carefully parted in the middle from his head to his tail.

And certainly that ought to show that he tried to keep himself looking
neat.

II

HUNTING FOR SOMETHING

It was a pleasant summer's night. Anyone would have supposed that it was
just the sort of weather that Benny Badger might have chosen for digging
holes. But he must have thought that he had dug enough holes for the
time being