Evening star., 1916-08-13
uI1IILES1oRlE!s u1I
BY THORNTON W. BURGESS.
Copyright, 1916 by T. ". Burgess.D
PADDY the Beaver S
Strange Things.
Sees

Paddy the Beaver sees other people
a great deal oftener than they see
him. Paddy is one of those who be-
lieve in seeing, but remaining himself
unseen. There isn't much that goes
on around that little pond which he
himself made deep in the Green Forest
one of the advantages of living in the
water most of the time that you can
disappear any time anywhere and no
one on shore know where you have
gone. AT least you can if you can
swim like Paddy the Beaver or his
counsin, jerry Muskrat, or Billy Mink
or Little Joe Otter. All you have to
do is to dive and then swim under
water to some place where no one will
see you. but where you can watch all
that goes on. Simple. isn't it?
On this particular day, the very day
when Buster Bear found the store
house of Busy Bee and Farmer
Browns Boy discovered both, Paddy
the Beaver had spent most of his
the pond. You see, inside that house
it was dark and cool and comfort
able. while outside the shn was very,
very bright and hurt Paddy's eyes.
which are not very strong. The air
was hot and even the water was
much prefers to be abroad at night
anyway. So inside his house Paddy
dozed and was very comfortable and
was sorry for his neighbors who had
no such cool place to go to on a hot
day Once in a while he would go
out just to see that all was we'll or
to pass the time of day with Mr.. or
Mrs. Quack.
1t was on one of these occasions
that Paddy's keen ears heard just the
f,tv
He was among some rushes which
grew on one side of his pond. a favor
ite retreat of the Quack family. Mr..
Quack heard it, too. some one is
coming" he whispered, and with low
quack wakened all the young Quacks,
for they were taking a nap. Instantly
their heads popped out from under
their wings, and with their heads
stretched up they sat perfectly still
listening. Paddy swan to the edge of
the rushes, where with only his head
out of water he could see and no, be
seen.
The noise grew louder. Whoever
was coming was not trying to steal
up to the pond silently, and this was
a good sign. No one who wanted to
harm them would ever approach
noisi1y. Nearer came the noise, and
it was quite clear to Paddy and to all
the Quack family that whoever it was
was in hurry. Presently Paddy saw
something moving among the trees on
the other side Of the pond, and in
Boy. At the edge of the pond he
stopped down and scooped up a hand
full of soft, wet mud.
What can he want of that?"
thought Paddy. Then his eyes grew
round with wonder. Farmer Browns
Boy was plastering that black. wet
mud on his nose and his forehead
and the back of his neck and on one
Of his hands! Then he sighed, and SO
still was it there around Paddy's pond
that sigh could be heard over where
Paddy was.
Paddy wasn't sure. but it sounded
to him very much like sigh of re-
lief Then Farmer Browns Eoy sat
down in the shade of a tree half
hidden by an old stump and once
more it was as still as if there were
no living being around Paddy's pond.
But it wasn't still very long. A
twig snapped over in the Green Forest
|, near the foot of Paddy's pond where
he had built his dam. Someone else
was coming and wasn't trying to walk
softly. Paddy looked at Mr.. Quack
and Mr.. Quack looked at Paddy. and
then both fixed their gaze on the place
from which the noise was drawing
near. Out on the shore of the pond
as he was. Bits of bark and twigs
and dead leaves and plain dirt stuck
all over him. He was sight! He
surely was a sight! He was grumbling
| and whining. For just a minute he
| sat up and looked all over Paddys
| pond He wrinkled his nose as il try
| ing to test the air for any strong
| smells and then blew sharply in dis
| gust. He couldn't smell anything but
! honey. Then he dropped to all fours
again and walked across Paddy's dam
| and along the shore until he came to
| certain place where there was a
| great deal of mud. Then what do you
| think he did? He lay down and rolled
| and rolled in it until he was a sight
He was covered with mud from head
| to feet He rubbed his nose and the
| top of his head in 1T. When he got
| through he certainly was the worst
| looking bear ever was. Paddy blinked
| and looke5 at Mr.. Quack. Mr.. Quack
| bIinked and looked at Paddy. They
wero seeing strange things that after
| nSon.