Old Granny Fox

by Thornton W. Burgess

  With that good dinner in their stomachs, Reddy and Granny Fox felt somuch better that the Great World no longer seemed such a cold and cruelplace. Funny how differently things look when your stomach is full fromthe way those same things look when it is empty. Best of all they knewthey could play the same sharp trick again and steal another dinnerfrom Bowser if need be. It is a comforting feeling, a very comfortingfeeling, to know for a certainty where you can get another meal. It isa feeling that Granny and Reddy Fox and many other little people of theGreen Meadows and the Green Forest seldom have in winter. As a rule,when they have eaten one meal, they haven't the least idea where thenext one is coming from. How would you like to live that way?

  The very next day Granny and Reddy went up to Farmer Brown's at Bowser'sdinner hour. But this time Farmer Brown's boy was at work near the barn,and Bowser was not chained. Granny and Reddy stole away as silently asthey had come. On the day following they found Bowser chained and stoleanother dinner from him; then they went away laughing until their sidesached as they heard Bowser's whines of surprise and disappointment whenhe discovered that his dinner had vanished. They knew by the sound ofhis voice that he hadn't the least idea what had become of that dinner.

  Now there was some one else roaming over the snow-covered meadows andthrough the Green Forest and the Old Pasture these days with a stomachso lean and empty that he couldn't think of anything else. It wasOld Man Coyote. You know he is very clever, is Old Man Coyote, and hemanaged to find enough food of one kind and another to keep him alive,but never enough to give him that comfortable feeling of a full stomach.While he wasn't actually starving, he was always hungry. So he spent allthe time when he wasn't sleeping in hunting for something to eat.

  Of course he often ran across the tracks of Granny and Reddy Fox, andonce in a while he would meet them. It struck Old Man Coyote that theydidn't seem as thin as he was. That set him to thinking. Neither ofthem was a smarter hunter than he. In fact, he prided himself on beingsmarter than either of them. Yet when he met them, they seemed to be inthe best of spirits and not at all worried because food was so scarce.Why? There must be a reason. They must be getting food of which he knewnothing.

  "I'll just keep an eye on them," muttered Old Man Coyote.

  So very slyly and cleverly Old Man Coyote followed Granny and Reddy Fox,taking the greatest care that they should not suspect that he was doingit. All one night he followed them through the Green Forest and over theGreen Meadows, and when at last he saw them go home, appearing not atall worried because they had caught nothing, he trotted off to his ownhome to do some more thinking.

  "They are getting food somewhere, that is sure," he muttered, as hescratched first one ear and then the other. Somehow he could thinkbetter when he was scratching his ears. "If they don't get it in thenight, and they certainly didn't get anything this night, they must getit in the daytime. I've done considerable hunting myself in the daytime,and I haven't once met them in the Green Forest or seen them on theGreen Meadows or up in the Old Pasture. I wonder if they are stealingFarmer Brown's hens and haven't been found out yet. I've kept away fromthere myself, but if they can steal hens and not be caught, I certainlycan. There never was a Fox yet smart enough to do a thing that a Coyotecannot do if he tries. I think I'll slip up where I can watch FarmerBrown's and see what is going on up there. Yes, Sir, that's what I'lldo."

  With this, Old Man Coyote grinned and then curled himself up for a shortnap, for he was tired.

  CHAPTER XX: A Twice Stolen Dinner

  No one ever is so smart that some one else may not prove to be smarter still. --Old Granny Fox.

  Listen and you shall hear all about three rogues. Two were in red andwere Granny and Reddy Fox. And one was in gray and was Old Man Coyote.They were the slyest, smartest rogues on all the Green Meadows or in allthe Green Forest. All three had started out to steal the same dinner,but the funny part is they didn't intend to steal it from the sameperson. And still funnier is it that one of them didn't even know wherethat dinner was or what kind of a dinner it would be.

  True to his resolve to know what Granny and Reddy Fox were getting toeat, and where they were getting it, Old Man Coyote hid where he couldsee what was going on about Farmer Brown's, for it was there he feltsure that Granny and Reddy were getting food. He had waited only alittle while when along came Granny and Reddy Fox past the place whereOld Man Coyote was hiding. They didn't see him. Of course not. He tookcare that they should have no chance. But anyway, they were not thinkingof him. Their thoughts were all of that dinner they intended to have,and the smart trick by which they would get it.

  So with their thoughts all on that dinner they slipped up behind thebarn and prepared to work the trick which had been so successful before.Old Man Coyote crept after them. He saw Reddy Fox lie down where hecould peep around the corner of the barn to watch Bowser the Hound andto see that no one else was about. He saw Granny leave Reddy there andhurry away. Old Man Coyote's wits worked fast.

  "I can't be in two places at once," thought he, "so I can't watch bothGranny and Reddy. As I can watch but one, which one shall it be? Granny,of course. Granny is the smartest of the two, and whatever they are upto, she is at the bottom of it. Granny is the one to follow."

  So, like a gray shadow, crafty Old Man Coyote stole after Granny Fox andsaw her hide behind the corner of the shed at the end of which was thelittle house of Bowser the Hound. He crept as near as he dared and thenlay flat down behind a little bunch of dead grass close to the shed. Forsome time nothing happened, and Old Man Coyote was puzzled. Every oncein a while Granny Fox would look behind and all about to be sure that nodanger was near, but she didn't see Old Man Coyote. After what seemed tohim a long time, he heard a door open on the other side of the shed. Itwas Mrs. Brown carrying Bowser's dinner out to him. Of course, Old ManCoyote didn't know this. He knew by the sounds that some one had comeout of the house, and it made him nervous. He didn't like being soclose to Farmer Brown's house in broad daylight. But he kept his eyeson Granny Fox, and he saw her ears prick up in a way that he knew meantthat those sounds were just what she had been waiting for.

  "If she isn't afraid, I don't need to be," thought he craftily. After afew minutes he heard a door close and knew that whoever had come out hadgone back into the house. Almost at once Bowser the Hound began to yelpand whine. Swiftly Granny Fox disappeared around the corner of the shed.Just as swiftly Old Man Coyote ran forward and peeped around the corner.There was Bowser the Hound tugging at his chain, and just beyond hisreach was Reddy Fox, grinning in the most provoking manner. And therewas Granny Fox, backing and dragging after her Bowser's dinner. In aflash Old Man Coyote understood the plan, and he almost chuckled aloudat the cleverness of it. Then he hastily backed behind the shed andwaited. In a minute Granny Fox appeared, dragging Bowser's dinner. Shewas so intent on getting that dinner that she almost backed into Old ManCoyote without suspecting that he was anywhere about.

  "Thank you, Granny. You needn't bother about it any longer; I'll take itnow," growled Old Man Coyote in Granny's ear.

  Granny let go of that dinner as if it burned her tongue, and with afrightened little yelp leaped to one side. A minute later Reddy cameracing around from behind the barn eager for his share. What he saw wasOld Man Coyote bolting down that twice-stolen dinner while Granny Foxfairly danced with rage.

  CHAPTER XXI: Granny And Reddy Talk Things Over.

  You'll find as on through life you go The thing you want may prove to be The very thing you shouldn't have. Then seeming loss is gain, you see. --Old Granny Fox.

  If ever two folks were mad away through, those two were Granny and ReddyFox as they watched Old Man Coyote gobble up the dinner they had socleverly stolen from Bowser the Hound. It was bad enough to lose thedinner, but it was worse to see some one else eat it after they hadworked so hard to get it. "Robber!" snarled Granny. Old Man Coyotestopped eating long enough to grin.

  "Thief! Sneak! Coward!" snarled Reddy. Once more Old Man Coyote gri
nned.When that dinner had disappeared down his throat to the last andsmallest crumb, he licked his chops and turned to Granny and Reddy.

  "I'm very much obliged for that dinner," said he pleasantly, his eyestwinkling with mischief. "It was the best dinner I have had for a longtime. Allow me to say that that trick of yours was as smart a trick asever I have seen. It was quite worthy of a Coyote. You are a very cleverold lady, Granny Fox. Now I hear some one coming, and I would suggestthat it will be better for all concerned if we are not seen about here."

  He darted off behind the barn like a gray streak, and Granny and Reddyfollowed, for it was true that some one was coming. You see Bowser theHound had discovered that something was going on around the corner ofthe shed, and he made such a racket that Mrs. Brown had come out of thehouse to see what it was all about. By the time she got around there,all she saw was the empty pan which had held Bowser's dinner. She waspuzzled. How that pan could be where it was she couldn't understand, andBowser couldn't tell her, although he tried his very best. She had beenpuzzled about that pan two or three times before.

  Old Man Coyote lost no time in getting back home, for he never felt easynear the home of man in broad daylight. Granny and Reddy Fox went hometoo, and there was hate in their hearts,--hate for Old Man Coyote. Butonce they reached home, Old Granny Fox stopped growling, and presentlyshe began to chuckle.

  "What are you laughing at?" demanded Reddy.

  "At the way Old Man Coyote stole that dinner from us," replied Granny.

  "I hate him! He's a sneaking robber!" snapped Reddy.

  "Tut, tut, Reddy! Tut, tut!" retorted Granny. "Be fair-minded. We stolethat dinner from Bowser the Hound, and Old Man Coyote stole it from us.I guess he is no worse than we are, when you come to think it over. Nowis he?"

  "I--I--well, I don't suppose he is, when you put it that way," Reddyadmitted grudgingly.

  "And he was smart, very smart, to outwit two such clever people as weare," continued Granny. "You will have to agree to that."

  "Y-e-s," said Reddy slowly. "He was smart enough, but--"

  "There isn't any but, Reddy," interrupted Granny. "You know the law ofthe Green Meadows and the Green Forest. It is everybody for himself, andanything belongs to one who has the wit or the strength to take it.We had the wit to take that dinner from Bowser the Hound, and Old ManCoyote had the wit to take it from us and the strength to keep it. Itwas all fair enough, and you know there isn't the least use in cryingover spilled milk, as the saying is. We simply have got to be smartenough not to let him fool us again. I guess we won't get any more ofBowser's dinners for a while. We've got to think of some other way offilling our stomachs when the hunting is poor. I think if I could havejust one of those fat hens of Farmer Brown's, it would put new strengthinto my old bones. All summer I warned you to keep away from thathenyard, but the time has come now when I think we might try for acouple of those hens."

  Reddy pricked up his ears at the mention of fat hens. "I think so too,"said he. "When shall we try for one?"

  "To-morrow morning," replied Granny. "Now don't bother me while I thinkout a plan."

  CHAPTER XXII: Granny Fox Plans To Get A Fat Hen

  Full half success for Fox or Man Is won by working out a plan. --Old Granny Fox.

  Granny Fox knows this. No one knows it better. Whatever she does isfirst carefully planned in her wise old head. So now after she haddecided that she and Reddy would try for one of Farmer Brown's fat hens,she lay down to think out a plan to get that fat hen. No one knew betterthan she how foolish it would be to go over to that henyard and justtrust to luck for a chance to catch one of those biddies. Of course,they might be lucky and get a hen that way, but then again they might beunlucky and get in a peck of trouble.

  "You see," said she to Reddy, "we must not only plan how to get that fathen, but we must also plan how to get away with it safely. If only therewas some way of getting in that henhouse at night, there would be notrouble at all. I don't suppose there is the least chance of that."

  "Not the least chance in the world," replied Reddy. "There isn't ahole anywhere big enough for even Shadow the Weasel to get through, andFarmer Brown's boy is very careful to lock the door every night."

  "There's a little hole that the hens go in and out of during the day,which is big enough for one of us to slip through, I believe," saidGranny thoughtfully.

  "Sure! But it's always closed at night," snapped Reddy. "Besides, to getto that or the door either, you have got to get inside the henyard, andthere's a gate to that which we can't open."

  "People are sometimes careless,--even you, Reddy," said Granny.

  Reddy squirmed uneasily, for he had been in trouble many times throughcarelessness. "Well, what of it?" he demanded a wee bit crossly.

  "Nothing much, only if that hen-yard gate should happen to be left open,and if Farmer Brown's boy should happen to forget to close that littlehole that the hens go through, and if we happened to be around at justthat time--"

  "Too many ifs to get a dinner with," interrupted Reddy.

  "Perhaps," replied Granny mildly, "but I've noticed that it is the onewho has an eye open for all the little ifs in life that fares the best.Now I've kept an eye on that henyard, and I've noticed that very oftenFarmer Brown's boy doesn't close the henyard gate at night. I suppose hethinks that if the henhouse door is locked, the gate doesn't matter.Any one who is careless about one thing, is likely to be careless aboutanother. Sometime he may forget to close that hole. I told you that wewould try for one of those hens to-morrow morning, but the more I thinkabout it, the more I think it will be wiser to visit that henhouse afew nights before we run the risk of trying to catch a hen in broaddaylight. In fact, I am pretty sure I can make Farmer Brown's boy forgetto close that gate."

  "How?" demanded Reddy eagerly.

  Granny grinned. "I'll try it first and tell you afterwards," said she."I believe Farmer Brown's boy closes the henhouse up just before jolly,round, red Mr. Sun goes to bed behind the Purple Hills, doesn't he?"

  Reddy nodded. Many times from a safe hiding-place he had hungrilywatched Farmer Brown's boy shut the biddies up. It was always justbefore the Black Shadows began to creep out from their hiding-places.

  "I thought so," said Granny. The truth is, she KNEW so. There wasnothing about that henhouse and what went on there that Granny didn'tknow quite as well as Reddy. "You stay right here this afternoon until Ireturn. I'll see what I can do."

  "Let me go along," begged Reddy.

  "No," replied Granny in such a decided tone that Reddy knew it would beof no use to tease. "Sometimes two can do what one cannot do alone, andsometimes one can do what two might spoil. Now we may as well take a napuntil it is time for Mr. Sun to go to bed. Just you leave it to your oldGranny to take care of the first of those ifs. For the other one we'llhave to trust to luck, but you know we are lucky sometimes."

  With this Granny curled up for a nap, and having nothing better to do,Reddy followed her example.

  CHAPTER XXIII: Farmer Brown's Boy Forgets To Close The Gate

  How easy 't is to just forget Until, alas, it is too late. The most methodical of folks Sometimes forget to shut the gate. --Old Granny Fox.

  Farmer Brown's Boy is not usually the forgetful kind. He is pretty goodabout not forgetting. But Farmer Brown's boy isn't perfect by any means.He does forget sometimes, and he is careless sometimes. He would bea funny kind of boy otherwise. But take it day in and day out, he ispretty thoughtful and careful.

  The care of the hens is one of Farmer Brown's boy's duties. It is one ofthose duties which most of the time is a pleasure. He likes the biddies,and he likes to take care of them. Every morning one of the first thingshe does is to feed them and open the henhouse so that they can run inthe henyard if they want to. Every night he goes out just before dark,collects the eggs and locks the henhouse so that no harm can come to thebiddies while they are asleep on their roosts. After the big snowstormhe had shovelled a place in the henyard where the hens could
come outand exercise and get a sun-bath when they wanted to, and in the verywarmest part of the clay they would do this. Always in the daytime hetook the greatest care to see that the henyard gate was fastened, for noone knew better than he how bold Granny and Reddy Fox can be when theyare very hungry, and in winter they are very apt to be very hungry mostof the time. So he didn't intend to give them a chance to slip into thathenyard while the biddies were out, or to give the biddies a chance tostray outside where they might be still more easily caught.

  But at night he sometimes left that gate open, as Granny Fox had foundout. You see, he thought it didn't matter because the hens were lockedin their warm house and so were safe, anyway.

  It was just at dusk of the afternoon of the day when Granny and ReddyFox had talked over a plan to get one of those fat hens that FarmerBrown's boy collected the eggs and saw to it that the biddies had goneto roost for the night. He had just started to close the little slidingdoor across the hole through which the hens went in and out in thedaytime when Bowser the Hound began to make a great racket, as ifterribly excited about something.

  Farmer Brown's boy gave the little sliding door a hasty push, picked uphis basket of eggs, locked the henhouse door and hurried out through thegate without stopping to close it. You see, he was in a hurry to findout what Bowser was making such a fuss about. Bowser was yelping andwhining and tugging at his chain, and it was plain to see that he wasterribly eager to be set free.

  "What is it, Bowser, old boy? Did you see something?" asked FarmerBrown's boy as he patted Bowser on the head. "I can't let you go, youknow, because you probably would go off hunting all night and come homein the morning all tired out and with sore feet. Whatever it was, Iguess you've scared it out of a year's growth, old fellow, so we'll letit go at that."