The Detroit times., 1916-05-13
LITTLE STORIES FOR BEDTIME
Chatterer Gets a Great Fright.
sy rr osN1oN w. BURGESS.
tcopyright 1918 oy T. ". Burgsssp

Chatterpr the Red Squirrel ought
20 have Known better. To come
right dov 70 the truth he did know
better. No red squirrel could live
as long as Chatterer had lived and
not know better He forgot. That
was IL. Chatterer forgot. You
know ho1. Easy " is to forget. Hail
he troubles In this worlA come from
people forgetting what they know.
guess ! would be nearer the truth
IL said that most of the troubles
~ his world come from forgetting.
A great Seal more often IL Il what
peoule know but forget, not what
they doa know, that gets them
into scrsDe=-
Now Chattere- knew perfectly
that it is crazy thing and nothing
less for Il squirrel to poke his head
into a iol@ without first making
sure thaS no one is in there. at least
no one whom he does not care 10
meet. Ordinarily he wouldn't have
done such thing. But ne was 80
eager for a taste OF fresh eggs and
so sure that he would have those
fresh eggs il be could but find the
nest OF TInsome Bluebird that he
was In 100 much OF a hurry 10 be
careful Then. too. he was a little
excited. He had been 40 sure that
winsome would make his home in
he same hollow in one OF the apple
trees OF the Old Orchard. which be
had user for several years that he
was quite upset when he found out
that Wihsome had given up the old
rome Cf course that meant that
he was building OF already had built
a nest somewhere else.
II I'm TO have those eggs I've
got 10 fud them pretty soon.' NUT
tered Cfaf.srer. That's mean
trick foT winsome 10 fool his old
neighbors that way. He might have
sald something about changing his
home Queer how stingy some peo-
nIe can he. what IL | should steal
two or ,hre. eggs from Mrs. Win
some She could lay some more
II was funny 10 hear him. You
would have thought that Winsome
Pluebird and Mrs winsome actually
Rad vronged hin and not that he
had planned and was still planning
10 wrong them. u sometimes is that
way with people who wrong others.
When their plans fail they actually
try to male themselves believe that
a wrong bas been done them. Now
as you know the little people OF
the Green Forest and OF the Green
Meadows and OF the Old Orchard
and OF tire Smiling Pool look on life
"a a sort OF game Of wits. They
get terribly angry when one OF theif
number .nakes trouble for another
but each one knows In his own heart
hat he ought to be smart enough
10 keep my one else from making
trouble for him. and I suspect thai
each ono feels that ne is smar'
enough The smaller ones all know
that sorre oi the larger ones hunt
them in order 10 live and 40 they
do not feel toward these hunters
at all as they do toward man and
those hunters who hunt when they
do not need 10.
CAatterer the Red Squirrel is one
who AZ all times Is given TO gettins
.pto mirchief, ard every once In
While he slips from harmless mis-
chief into actual wrong gdoing. o.
course there isn't the least excuse
IN the world for Chstterer when h'
/ steals the eggs OF his featheret
ueighbori. He doesn't need then
Tor food u II the same way viii
Sammy say and Blacky the Crow
80 In hunting for the home OF Win
some plgebird TO steal those eggs
he .eli adre were in " Chatterer
was doing something quite unfor
Riyab'e ir the eyes Of his neighbors
3ut thHt didn't trouble Chatterei
IN the least lie wanted those egxs
] lie was provoked to think that Win