Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1906-12-29
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The Giant of the Cornfeld.

Dame Woodchuck. old and dccrepit.
came TO the entrance of her burrow and
peered anXiously forth She always
poked the very tip of her nose out first,
and then. if she found she coast was
quite clear she would venture to come
entirely out.
Poor old thing, So old and covered
with fat that she could hardly waddle:
beside, one hind leg had been famed in
in steel trap years ago. so she was
doubly helpless. Her thick fur coat of
dull, reddish brown was faded 10y the
sun and badly wOIh in some places, and
her black Suout and stiff WhSkers We're
quite gray with old age.
The home OF Dame Woodchuck was
very we'll chosen. for yOu might stroll
past the great clump of rank nettleS
hundred times without suSpecting il con-
cealed the door of woOdchuck burrow,
for the vines of wild woudhne tramled
over the nettleS, and quite concealed the
entrance from the casual observer,
Only the little wild dwellerS of the
woods, who know all about such things.
could have told you just whore Dame
Woodchuck lived,
1t was bright sunny day, and Dame
Woodchuck enjoyed sitting in the door
of her home, for the sunshine felt very
grateful as ii shone warmly down upon
her aching old back. Beside ii was
pleasant to chat with the neighborS who
occasionally passed that way. After as
certaining, beyond Il doubt, that her
most dreaded enemy. the farmers vel
low dog. whom she detested because he
delighted IL worry and torment her. was
nowhere in sight, with much Wheeling
and chattcring. Dame Woodchuck man
aged To ZION ont of her hurrow aud sit
ung bolt upright upon ner launches.
Just IN front of the uettle patch she
watched and waited for the return of
her dilatory son, Ichahod She was real
.ly beginning to feel a hit hungry and out
OF patience. and we'll she might, for she
was very. very hungry, and she was too
old and lame to forage much for herself,
She had to depend almost entirely upon
lchabod for food. She had been antici-
p0ting his return for a long time. with
the juicy yellow turnips which he had
been sent for. She had clearly directed
hlm where TO find them, in the farmers
garden, where they always grew. year
after year. What could have become of
ichahOdE
As Dame Woodchuck sat waiting for
the turnips pleasant recollectons of by
gone days came into her mind, days
when the W0odchuck family had been
a large and happy one. and when she
and her mate had dug their burrow close
to the beautiful red clover field, where
every morning all the little ones used to
spend hours rolling and rompiug in the
fra grant dew laden blossoms.
What happiness had been theirs. But
alas. to her sorrow the farmer had
sought them ont aud broken up the fam
lily. One by one all the children had
been caught in traps. until now only
lcnahod remained of her nye little ones
And then, her mate, evidently faithlesS.
had gone off and left them Shortly
after that the clover field had been
ploughed up, and now il lay ia ugly
brown burrows, bare. unlovely, and aS
Dame Woodchuck looked back into the
pleasant past, a tear of grief stole into
her beary eyes and tricklcd down her
gray. furry cheeks.
But suddenly she heard slunlinr.
scuttling sound among the ferns and
lhen she speedily forgot all her sad
thoughts, and was instantly on the alert,
and listening with her small round ears.
II was lchabod. With grunt of salts
faction. which was intended for a wei
come, she eagerly rcll to munching the
hard, unripe apple, which he had brought
her. She felt far from satisfied with the
apple. for she had anticipatcd a turnin.
and the apple was sour and She did NOT
relish It very much. sun il was better
than nothing at all She listened with
diSmay when lchabod told her thar the
farmer had placed no turnips in his
garden that season. Evidently he had
brought his mother the very best he
could find. But Ichnbod brought otbpr