The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-03-24
Bedtime Stories
Uncle wiggily and the Black Animal.
BY HOWARD r.. GARIs

viii you-p1eaSe stop on your way
back and bring me some white pow
dered sugar from the grocery" called
Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, the musk
rat lady housekeeper, to Uncle Wig
gily Longears, the rabbit gentleman,
as he started out from his hollow
stump bungalow one, morning to walk
in the woods and look for an adven-
ture.
Il WILL he Pre- missed politely.
So over the fields and thru the
woods hoped the bunny uncle until
he came to the grocery kept by a
monkey doodle gentleman, and up to
this time Mr.. Longears had not had
a single adventure, unless you call
sneezing one, which happened to him
when his pink, twinkling nose was
tickled by sunbeam.
''Aker choo-ker-snitzio cush!" he
sneezed.
well, maybe I'll have an adventure
on my way back said Uncle Wiggily,
as he bought the powdered sugar
which the monkey doodle wrapped up
for him.
AN adventure,' cried Aunt Flip
pity-F1op, the dear, little, nervous, old
crow lady, who was always dizzy and
either falling down or getting up. But
counter so she wouldn't be lopsided
and topple over. An adventure" she
cawed. We'll, if you'd seen what l
saw on my way to this store you'd
have one all right
What did you see?" asked Uncle
Wiggily, curious like.
"a black cat answered the crow
lady. "He was as black as I am, and
you know it's bad luck for black
cat to cross your path. If you had
NO hot H., IN 1aIn ICD(
gily, you'd have an adventure, but l
can't say it would be a nice one"
Sometimes not-nice adventures
turn out to be good" spoke the bunny.
But did you have any bad luck thru
meeting the black cat?"
'I did," answered the crow lady. 81
lost the two-cent piece I had to buy
yeast cake, and 1 had to fly back to
the nest for another. And I'm SO
nervous. Oh, dear, 1 know something
pity-Flop became so dizzy and nerv
Gus that the monkey doodle store
keeper had to let her smell of the
cork from the vinegar jug.
Then she felt better, and she said
she would be all right. So, taking her
yeast cake, away she flew to the nest
where Jimmie Cav Cav, the crow boy,
lived. And Aunt Flop, 1 call her for
short, was all right except that she
turned three or four somersaults in the
air, but she landed right side up every
time.
But, be careful of black CATS" she
called to Uncle Wiggily, as she left
him at the store. The bunny uncle
said ne would, and then, getting the
sugar for Nurse Jane, away he hoped
| once more, wishing he would have an
| adventure.
Uncle Wiggily had not gone very
| far before, all of sudden, he heard
q noise in a tree over his head, and
| peering up, he saw a black animal,
which looked down at him.
"Oh, my!" cried the bunny. There's
that black cat Aunt F'lippity-Flop
spoke about! If it crosses my path I'll
drop the sugar, lose my money or
something else bad will happen to me-
I must not let that cat cross my path
Then Uncle Wiggily hoped on as
fast as he could, but the black animal,
| in the trees over the bunnys head,
scampered On also, trying to get ahead
of him.
stop! stop." cried the black ami
NAL. Wait for mel"
No! Nor answered Uncle Wiggily
You want to cross my path and bring
me bad luck. I'll not stop for you! No,
indeed" and the bunny rabbit hurried
on faster than before.
But the black animal hurried, too,
scampering in the tree tops until he
was right over Uncle Wiggily's head,
and then he called again:
| Wont you stop? 1 want you to"
Yes, l know very well what you
want!" cried Uncle Wiggily, turning
| his back to the black animal so as not
to let it cross in front of him You
want to bring me bad luck, or take
my sugar or give me an unpleasant
adventure as you did Aunt Flippity-
Flop, the crow lady"
"Oh-o-o-o-o-o! l do not!" was the
answer. Il never saw Aunt Flippity-
Flop today, and if L had I'd never give
her-bad luck
What? Aren't you the black cat?"
cried Uncle Wiggily.
mo, indeed. I'm Billie Bushytail,
the squirrel
"Ha How can that be?' asked
Uncle Wiggily. billie, my squirrel
friend, is gray, and you-you are as
black as piece of black coal. 1 don't
know any black squirrels"
There are some, only they live in
a far-off land called Burmah,'' said
Billie. But the reason I'm black is
that l was emptying the lnkWell for
the lady mouse teacher in the hollow
stump school, and my brother Johnnie
bumped into me, playing tag, and
spilled the ink all over me. That's
why I'm black, and when I saw you 1
chased after you to see if you could
make me white 5efore went home" y
Make you white? OF course |
cant" cried Uncle Wiggily, real pleased
and happy, now that he saw the black
animal was a squirrel and not bad
luck cat II just sprinkle some OF
this white powdered sugar over you
and your fur will be white outside I'M
til the ink can wear off inside. OF
course white isn't your regular colo-,
but it's better than black. I'll put
sugar on you and make you white"
So Uncle Wiggily did this, Billie eat
ing some of the sugar that ratified off
his back. and soon he was all white,
and he and the bunny laughed at the
funny adventure. And in a few days
1T off 17n al n !,
was colored gray again.
And if the dolls pink hair ribbon
doesn't get all covered with chalk
marks when it goes to the moving pic
lures rlf~teH you next about Uncle
Wiggily and the bluejay.-(Copyrigh
1 q AI.Cxl., A-S.s,SIa SYN II =