After Stubby Woodchuck had nearly lost his life, and after Chatty Red Squirrel had nearly lost his life, all the little creatures of the Big Green Woods were greatly excited. When things like this happen to them, they talk about nothing else for a time.

When they went out of their homes every morning for something to eat, they were in constant fear of Tom Wildcat. One day Cheepy Chipmunk said he was not getting more than half enough food, because he had to spend most of his time watching out. Blue Jay said it was the same in his case. He said that every time he started to pull a worm out of the ground he had to stop several[Pg 76] times and look around. And sometimes, he said, the worm would crawl back into the ground before he could get it.

Once, Blue Jay said, when he was pulling a big worm from the ground for Jenny Jay, he thought he heard a noise behind him, and he stopped and looked around. When he turned back again, Robin-the-Red had pulled the worm out and gone away with it. After gobbling the worm, Robin came back and explained that he had been having so much bad luck in getting worms himself lately that he was about starved.

Blue Jay had accepted the apology, but he didn’t feel very good even at that. He said, “All right for this time, Mr. Robin, but hereafter I’ll thank you to let my worms alone.” I don’t think we can blame Blue Jay for being a little cross with Robin-the-Red; but they both[Pg 77] understood, because when Blue Jay got a chance, he did the very same thing with Robin.

Then O. Possum had a little trouble, too. One morning he came running in at the door of his stump and laid something down before Mandy Possum. “Well!” shouted O. Pos............