XII
WHY BOBBY COON WASHES HIS FOOD
Happy-Go-Lucky Bobby Coon sat on the edge of the Laughing Brook just asround, red Mr. Sun popped up from behind the Purple Hills and OldMother West Wind turned all her Merry Little Breezes out to romp on theGreen Meadows.
Bobby Coon had been out all night. You see Bobby Coon is very apt toget into mischief, and because usually it is safer to get into mischiefunder cover of the darkness Bobby Coon prefers the night wherein to goabroad. Not that Bobby Coon is really bad! Oh my, no! Everybodylikes Bobby Coon. But he can no more keep out of mischief than a duckcan keep out of water.
So Bobby Coon sat on the edge of the Laughing Brook and he was verybusy, very busy indeed. He was washing his breakfast. Really, it washis dinner, for turning night into day just turns everythingtopsy-turvy. So Bobby Coon eats dinner when most of the little meadowpeople are eating breakfast.
This morning he was very busy washing a luscious ear of sweet corn justin the milk. He dipped it in the water and with one little black pawrubbed it thoroughly. Then he looked it over carefully before, with asigh of contentment, he sat down to put it in his empty little stomach.When he had finished it to the last sweet, juicy kernel, he ambledsleepily up the Lone Little Path to the big hollow chestnut tree wherehe lives, and in its great hollow in a soft bed of leaves Bobby Cooncurled himself up in a tight little ball to sleep the long, bright dayaway.
One of the Merry Little Breezes softly followed him. When he hadcrawled into the hollow chestnut and only his funny, ringed tail hungout, the Merry Little Breezes tweaked it sharply just for fun, and thendanced away down the Lone Little Path to join the other Merry LittleBreezes around the Smiling Pool.
"Oh! Grandfather Frog," cried a Merry Little Breeze, "tell us why itis that Bobby Coon always washes his food. He never eats it where hegets it or takes it home to his hollow in the big chestnut, but alwayscomes to the Laughing Brook to wash it. None of the other meadowpeople do that."
Now Great-Grandfather Frog is counted very wise. He is very, very oldand he knows the history of all the tribes of little meadow people wayback to the time when the frogs ruled the world.
When the Merry Little Breeze asked him why Bobby Coon always washes hisfood, Grandfather Frog stopped to snap up a particularly fat, foolish,green fly that came his way. Then, while all the Merry Little Breezesgathered around him, he settled himself on his big green lily pad andbegan:
"Once upon a time, when the world was young, old King Bear ruled in theGreen Forest. Of course old Mother Nature, who was even more beautifulthen than she is now, was the real ruler, but she let old King Bearthink he ruled so long as he ruled wisely.
"All the little Green Forest folk and all the little people of theGreen Meadows used to take presents of food to old King Bear, so thathe never had to hunt for things to eat. He grew fatter and fatter andfatter until it seemed as if his skin must burst. And the fatter hegrew the lazier he grew."
Grandfather Frog paused with an expectant far-away look in his greatbulging eyes. Then he leaped into the air so far that when he camedown it was with a great splash in the Smiling Pool. But as he swamback to his big lily pad the leg of a foolish green fly could be seensticking out of one corner of his big mouth, and he settled himselfwith a sigh of great contentment.
"Old King Bear," continued Grandfather Frog, just as if there had beenno interruption, "grew fatter and lazier every day, and like a greatmany other fat and lazy people who have nothing to do for themselvesbut are always waited on by others, he grew shorter and shorter intemper and harder and harder to please.
"Now perhaps you don't know it, but the Bear family and the Coon familyare very closely related. In fact, they are second cousins. Old Mr.Coon, Bobby Coon's father with a thousand greats tacked on before, wasyoung then, and he was very, very proud of being related to old KingBear. He began to pass some of his old playfellows on the GreenMeadows without seeing them. He spent a great deal of time brushinghis coat and combing his whiskers and caring for his big ringed tail.He held his head very high and he put on such airs that pretty soon hecould see no one at all but members of his own family and of the royalfamily of Bear.
"Now as old King Bear grew fat and lazy he grew fussy, so that he wasno longer content to take everything brought him, but picked out thechoicest portions for himself and left the rest. Mr. Coon took chargeof all the things brought as tribute to old King Bear and of coursewhere there were so many goodies left he got all he wanted withoutworking.
"So just as old King Bear had grown fat and lazy and selfish, Mr. Coongrew fat and lazy and selfish. Pretty soon he began to pick out thebest things for himself and hide them before old King Bear saw them.When old King Bear was asleep he would go get them and stuff himselflike a greedy pig. And because he was stealing and wanted no one tosee him he always ate his stolen feasts at night.
"Now old Mother Nature is, as you all know, very, very wise, oh verywise indeed. One of the first laws she made when the world was youngis that every living thing shall work for what it has, and the harderit works the stronger it shall grow. So when Old Mother Nature saw howfat and lazy and selfish old King Bear was getting and how fat and lazyand dishonest his cousin, Mr. Coon, was becoming, she determined thatthey should be taught a lesson which they would remember for ever andever and ever.
"First she proclaimed that old King Bear should be king no longer, andno more need the little folks of the Green Forest and the little peopleof the Green Meadows bring him tribute.
"Now when old Mother Nature made this proclamation old King Bear wasfast asleep. It was just on the edge of winter and he had picked out anice warm cave with a great pile of leaves for a bed. Old MotherNature peeped in at him. He was snoring and probably dreaming of moregood things to eat. 'If he is to be king no longer, there is no use inwaking him now,' said old Mother Nature to herself, 'he is so fat andso stupid. He shall sleep until gentle Sister South Wind comes in thespring to kiss away the snow and ice. Then he shall waken with a leanstomach and a great appetite and there shall be none to feed him.'
"Now old Mother Nature always has a warm heart and she was very fond ofBobby Coon's grandfather a thousand times removed. So when she sawwhat a selfish glutton and thief he had become she decided to put himto sleep just as she had old King Bear. But first she would teach Mr.Coon that stolen food is not the sweetest.
"So old Mother Nature found some tender, juicy corn just in the milkwhich Mr. Coon had stolen from old King Bear. Then she went down onthe Green Meadows where the wild mustard grows and gathering a lot ofthis she rubbed the juice into the corn and then put it back where Mr.Coon had left it.
"Now I have told you that it was night when Mr. Coon had his stolenfeasts, for he wanted no one to see him. So no one was there when hetook a great bite of the tender, juicy corn old Mother Nature had putback for him. Being greedy and a glutton, he swallowed the firstmouthful before he had fairly tasted it, and took a second, and thensuch a time as there was on the edge of the Green Forest! Mr. Coonrolled over and over with both of his forepaws clasped over his stomachand groaned and groaned and groaned. He had rubbed his eyes and ofcourse had got mustard into them and could not see. He waked up allthe little Green Forest folk who sleep through the night, as goodpeople should, and they all gathered around to see what was the matterwith Mr. Coon.
"Finally old Mother Nature came to his relief and brought him somewater. Then she led him to his home in the great hollow in the bigchestnut tree, and when she had seen him curled up in a tight littleball among the dried leaves she put him into the long sleep as she hadold King Bear.
"In the spring, when gentle Sister South Wind kissed away all the snowand ice, old King Bear, who was king no longer, and Mr. Coon awoke andboth were very thin, and both were very hungry, oh very, very hungryindeed. Old King Bear, who was king no longer, wasn't the least mitefussy about what he had to eat, but ate gladly any food he could find.
"But Mr. Coon remembered th
e burning of his stomach and mouth and couldnot forget it. So whenever he found anything to eat he first took itto the Laughing Brook or the Smiling Pool and washed it very carefully,lest there be some mustard on it.
"And ever since that long ago time, when the world was young, the Coonfamily has remembered that experience of Mr. Coon, who was secondcousin to old King Bear, and that is why Bobby Coon washes his food,travels about at night, and sleeps all winter," concluded GrandfatherFrog, fixing his great goggle eyes on a foolish green fly headed hisway.
"Oh thank you, thank you, Grandfather Frog," cried the Merry LittleBreezes as they danced away over the Green Meadows. But one of themslipped back long enough to get behind the foolish green fly and blowhim right up to Grandfather Frog's big lily pad.
"Chug-a-rum," said Grandfather Frog, smacking his lips.