Evening star., 1942-04-07
Bedtime Stories
BY THORNTON w. BURGESS.
It's fun to have Q secret,
More fun when 1t is good,
And have your friendA ALI try 10 RliAi


It's fun to have . secret.
More fun when it is good,
And have your friends all try 10 guea
And vainly wish they could.
Bad secrets are like the little worm
inside the rosebud-they gnaw and
gnaw until they ruin the heart. But
good secrets are little springs of
happiness that make every day a
little brighter and more joyful be-
cause the heart Is treasuring some
thing good and pleasant. Ask
Danny Meadow Mouse. He knows.
He has had a good many nice
secrets. In fact, Danny has to
keep a great many things secret.
You see, he is such very little fel-
low, and all about him are so many
who are bigger and stronger than
he is, some who, like Old Man
Coyote and Reddy and Granny Fox
and Whitehall the Hawk and Hooty
the Owl, would like nothing better
than to catch him and gobble him
up, and others, who, like some of
his own relatives, would steal all
his supplies If they found them,
that almost everything he does has
to be secret.
But Danny doesn't mind. Oh, my,
no! Danny doesn't mind at all. 1t
Is rather exciting to have secrets
of that kind all your very own, and
see other people trying and trying
to find them out and not being able
to. So Danny cuts secret little
paths through the meadow grass,
so that when danger is near he can
quickly slip to safety. And he finds
secret hiding places for the seeds
he stores away for hard times. And
he has secret Fairgrounds, where
ne feels almost perfectly safe. In
fact, almost everything he does
Danny keeps secret. He even keeps
his troubles secret, which Is very
good plan. But one thing he doesn't
keep secret, and that Is his happl-
ness. When Danny is happy he
doesn't care who knows 1t. And
that, of course, Is the way to DO,
for happiness is catching.
Just now Danny Meadow Mouse
was particularly happy. The Merry
Little Breezes Of Old Mother West
Wind, who play with Danny every
day through the spring and sum-
mer, were the first to find 1t out.
They found him one morning trying
to sing. How they did laugh at
him and tease him. But Danny
didn't mind. He laughed, too, and
tried harder than ever to sing. Now,
the voice of Danny Meadow Mouse
was never meant for singing. 1t Is
lust a funny little squeak. But this
didn't prevent Danny from trying
And somehow there was something
in that funny little squeak very
good and very pleasant to hear. Inc
Merry Little Breezes knew it was
it was just pure happiness.
"what is it, Danny? What makes
you feel so happy. Do tell US"
They cried, crowding around him
and pulling his whiskers and rum
pling up his fur.
Danny just smiled and tried
harder than ever to sing. This made
them laugh all the more, and finally
Danny stopped trying to sing and
laughed, too.
"It's a secret" said he.
do tell us what 1t is! We love
secrets" teased the Merry Little
BreeZes.
Danny shook his head. "If I
should you would laugh at me all
the more" said he.
please tell us! Please do, Dan
nyl" begged the Merry Little
Breezes.
But Danny shook his head harder
than ever, while his eyes twinkled.
"If I should it wouldn't be a secret
any more, and it's the best secret I
ever had" said he, and began once
more to try to sing.
And though they teased and
teased, the Merry Little Breezes
couldn't find out what the secret
was that made Danny Meadow
Mouse so happy that he tried to
sing when he has such q funny,
squeaky voice.