Uncle Wiggily and Old Mother Hubbard

by Howard Roger Garis

  UNCLE WIGGILY AND OLD MOTHER HUBBARD

  UNCLE WIGGILY AND OLD MOTHER HUBBARD

  Adventures of the Rabbit Gentleman with theMother Goose Characters

  by

  HOWARD R. GARIS

  Author of "Uncle Wiggily Bedtime Stories," "UncleWiggily Animal Stories," "Uncle Wiggily's StoryBook," "The Daddy Series," Etc.

  Illustrated by Edward Bloomfield & Lansing Campbell

  A. L. Burt CompanyPublishersNew York

  CHILDREN'S BOOKS by Howard R. Garis

  UNCLE WIGGILY BEDTIME STORIES

  UNCLE WIGGILY'S ADVENTURESUNCLE WIGGILY'S TRAVELSUNCLE WIGGILY'S FORTUNEUNCLE WIGGILY'S AUTOMOBILEUNCLE WIGGILY AT THE SEASHOREUNCLE WIGGILY'S AIRSHIPUNCLE WIGGILY IN THE COUNTRYUNCLE WIGGILY IN THE WOODSUNCLE WIGGILY ON THE FARMUNCLE WIGGILY'S JOURNEYUNCLE WIGGILY'S RHEUMATISMUNCLE WIGGILY AND BABY BUNTYUNCLE WIGGILY IN WONDERLANDUNCLE WIGGILY IN FAIRYLANDUNCLE WIGGILY AND MOTHER HUBBARDUNCLE WIGGILY AND THE BIRDS

  UNCLE WIGGILY ANIMAL STORIES

  SAMMIE AND SUSIE LITTLETAILJOHNNIE AND BILLIE BUSHYTAILLULU, ALICE AND JIMMIE WIBBLEWOBBLEJACKIE AND PEETIE BOW-WOWBUDDY AND BRIGHTEYES PIGGJOIE, TOMMIE AND KITTIE KATCHARLIE AND ARABELLA CHICKNEDDIE AND BECKIE STUBTAILBULLY AND BAWLY NO-TAILNANNIE AND BILLIE WAGTAILJOLLIE AND JILLIE LONGTAILJACKO AND JUMPO KINKYTAILCURLY AND FLOPPY TWISTYTAILTOODLE AND NOODLE FLATTAILDOTTIE AND WILLIE FLUFFTAILDICKIE ANP NELLIE FLIPTAILWOODIE AND WADDIE CHUCKBOBBY AND BETTY RINGTAIL

  SOMETHING NEW!

  UNCLE WIGGILY'S STORY BOOK

  and

  UNCLE WIGGILY'S PICTURE BOOK

  Copyright, 1922, by R. F. FENNO & COMPANY

  UNCLE WIGGILY AND OLD MOTHER HUBBARD

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER

  I. Uncle Wiggily and Mother Goose II. Uncle Wiggily and the First Pig III. Uncle Wiggily and the Second Pig IV. Uncle Wiggily and the Third Pig V. Uncle Wiggily and Little Boy Blue VI. Uncle Wiggily and Higgledee Piggledee VII. Uncle Wiggily and Little Bo-Peep VIII. Uncle Wiggily and Tommie Tucker IX. Uncle Wiggily and Pussy Cat Mole X. Uncle Wiggily and Jack and Jill XI. Uncle Wiggily and Jack Horner XII. Uncle Wiggily and Mr. Pop-Goes XIII. Uncle Wiggily and Simple Simon XIV. Uncle Wiggily and the Crumpled-Horn Cow XV. Uncle Wiggily and Old Mother Hubbard XVI. Uncle Wiggily and Miss Muffet XVII. Uncle Wiggily and the First Kitten XVIII. Uncle Wiggily and the Second Kitten XIX. Uncle Wiggily and the Third Kitten XX. Uncle Wiggily and the Jack Horse XXI. Uncle Wiggily and the Clock-Mouse XXII. Uncle Wiggily and the Late Scholar XXIII. Uncle Wiggily and Baa-Baa Black Sheep XXIV. Uncle Wiggily and Polly Flinders XXV. Uncle Wiggily and the Garden Maid XXVI. Uncle Wiggily and the King

  Uncle Wiggily and Old Mother Hubbard

  CHAPTER I

  UNCLE WIGGILY AND MOTHER GOOSE

  There once lived in the woods an old rabbit gentleman named UncleWiggily Longears, and in the hollow-stump bungalow where he had hishome there also lived Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, a muskrat ladyhousekeeper. Near Uncle Wiggily there were, in hollow trees, or innests or in burrows under the ground, many animal friends ofhis--rabbits, squirrels, puppy dogs, pussy cats, frogs, ducks,chickens and others, so that Uncle Wiggily and Nurse Jane were neverlonesome.

  Often Sammie or Susie Littletail, a small boy and girl rabbit, wouldhop over to the hollow-stump bungalow, and call:

  "Uncle Wiggily! Uncle Wiggily! Can't you come out and play with us?"

  Then the old rabbit gentleman, who was as fond of fun as a kitten,would put on his tall silk hat, take his red, white and blue stripedbarber-pole rheumatism crutch, that Nurse Jane had gnawed for himout of a corn-stalk, and he would go out to play with the rabbitchildren, about whom I have told you in other books.

  Or perhaps Johnnie and Billie Bushytail, the squirrel boys, mightask Uncle Wiggily to go after hickory nuts with them, or maybe Lulu,Alice or Jimmie Wibblewobble, the duck children, would want theirbunny uncle to see them go swimming.

  So, altogether, Uncle Wiggily had a good time in his hollow-stumpbungalow which was built in the woods. When he had nothing else todo Mr. Longears would go for a ride in his airship. This was made ofa clothes-basket, with toy circus balloons on it to make it rise upabove the trees. Or Uncle Wiggily might take a trip in hisautomobile, which had big bologna sausages on the wheels for tires.And whenever the rabbit gentleman wanted the automobile wheels to goaround faster he sprinkled pepper on the sausages.

  One day Uncle Wiggily said to Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy:

  "I think I will go for a ride in my airship. Is there anything I canbring from the store for you?"

  "Why, you might bring a loaf of bread and a pound of sugar,"answered the muskrat lady.

  "Very good," answered Uncle Wiggily, and then he took some softcushions out to put in the clothes-basket part of his airship, so,in case the air popped out of the balloons, and he fell, he wouldland easy like, and soft.

  Soon the rabbit gentleman was sailing off through the air, over thetree tops, his paws in nice, warm red mittens that Nurse Jane hadknitted for him. For it was winter, you see, and Uncle Wiggily'spaws would have been cold steering his airship, by the baby carriagewheel which guided it, had it not been for the mittens.

  It did not take the bunny uncle long to go to the store in hisairship, and soon, with the loaf of bread and pound of sugar underthe seat, away he started for his hollow-stump bungalow again.

  And, as he sailed on and over the tree tops, Uncle Wiggily lookedfar off, and he saw some black smoke rising in the air.

  "Ha! That smoke seems to be near my hollow-stump bungalow," he saidto himself. "I guess Nurse Jane is starting a fire in the kitchenstove to get dinner. I must hurry home."

  Uncle Wiggily made his airship go faster, and then he saw, comingtoward him, a big bird, with large wings.

  "Why, that looks just like my old friend, Grandfather GooseyGander," Uncle Wiggily thought to himself. "I wonder why he isflying so high? He hardly ever goes up so near the clouds.

  "And he seems to have some one on his back," spoke Uncle Wiggily outloud this time, sort of talking to the loaf of bread and the poundof sugar. "A lady, too," went on the bunny uncle. "A lady with atall hat on, something like mine, only hers comes to a point on top.And she has a broom with her. I wonder who it can be?"

  And when the big white bird came nearer to the airship Uncle Wiggilysaw that it was not Grandfather Goosey Gander at all, but anotherbig gander, almost like his friend, whom he often went to see. Andthen the bunny uncle saw who it was on the bird's back.

  "Why, it's Mother Goose!" cried Uncle Wiggily Longears. "It's MotherGoose! She looks just like her pictures in the book, too."

  "Yes, I am Mother Goose," said the lady who was riding on the backof the big, white gander.

  "I am glad to meet you, Mother Goose," spoke Mr. Longears. "I haveoften heard about you. I can see, over the tree tops, that NurseJane Fuzzy Wuzzy, my muskrat lady housekeeper, is getting dinnerready. I can tell by the smoke. Will you not ride home with me? Iwill make my airship go slowly, so as not to get ahead of you andyour fine gander-goose."

  "Alas, Uncle Wiggily," said Mother Goose, scratching her chin withthe end of the broom handle, "I cannot come home to dinner with youmuch as I would like it. Alas! Alas!"

  "Why not?" asked the bunny uncle.

  "Because I have bad news for you," said Mother Goose. "That smoke,which you saw over the tree tops, was not smoke from your chimney asNurse Jane was getting dinner."

  "What was it then?" asked Uncle Wiggily, and a cold shiver sort ofran up and down between his ears, even if he did have warm, redmittens on his paws. "What was that smoke?"

  "The smoke from your burning bungalow," went on Mo
ther Goose. "Itcaught fire, when Nurse Jane was getting dinner, and now----"

  "Oh! Don't tell me Nurse Jane is burned!" cried Uncle Wiggily."Don't say that!"

  "I was not going to," spoke Mother Goose, kindly. "But I must tellyou that your hollow-stump bungalow is burned to the ground. Thereis nothing left but some ashes," and she made the gander, on whoseback she was riding, fly close alongside of Uncle Wiggily's airship.

  "My nice bungalow burned!" exclaimed the rabbit gentleman. "Well, Iam very, very sorry for that. But still it might be worse. NurseJane might have been hurt, and that would have been quite too bad. Idare say I can get another bungalow."

  "That is what I came to tell you about," said Mother Goose. "I wasriding past when I saw your Woodland hollow-stump house on fire, andI went down to see if I could help. It was too late to save thebungalow, but I said I would find a place for you and Nurse Jane tostay to-night, or as long as you like, until you can build a newhome."

  "That is very kind of you," said Uncle Wiggily. "I hardly know whatto do."

  "I have many friends," went on Mother Goose. "You may have readabout them in the book which tells of me. Any of my friends would beglad to have you come and live with them. There is the Old Woman WhoLives in a Shoe, for instance."

  "But hasn't she so many children she doesn't know what to do?" askedUncle Wiggily, as he remembered the story in the book.

  "Yes," answered Mother Goose, "she has. I suppose you would not likeit there."

  "Oh, I like children," said Uncle Wiggily. "But if there are so manythat the dear Old Lady doesn't know what to do, she wouldn't knowwhat to do with Nurse Jane and me."

  "Well, you might go stay with my friend Old Mother Hubbard," saidMother Goose.

  "But if I went there, would not the cupboard be bare?" asked UncleWiggily, "and what would Nurse Jane and I do for something to eat?"

  "That's so," spoke Mother Goose, as she reached up quite high andbrushed a cobweb off the sky with her broom. "That will not do,either. I must see about getting Mother Hubbard and her dogsomething to eat. You can stay with her later. Oh, I have it!"suddenly cried the lady who was riding on the back of the whitegander, "you can go stay with Old King Cole! He's a jolly old soul!"

  Uncle Wiggily shook his head.

  "Thank you very much, Mother Goose," he said, slowly. "But Old KingCole might send for his fiddlers three, and I do not believe I wouldlike to listen to jolly music to-day when my nice bungalow has justburned down."

  "No, perhaps not," agreed Mother Goose. "Well, if you can find noother place to stay to-night come with me. I have a big house, andwith me live Little Bo Peep, Little Boy Blue, who is getting to bequite a big chap now, Little Tommie Tucker and Jack Sprat and hiswife. Oh, I have many other friends living with me, and surely wecan find room for you."

  "Thank you," answered Uncle Wiggily. "I will think about it."

  Then he flew down in his airship to the place where the hollow-stumpbungalow had been, but it was not there now. Mother Goose flew downwith her gander after Uncle Wiggily. They saw a pile of blackenedand smoking wood, and near it stood Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, themuskrat lady, and many other animals who lived in Woodland withUncle Wiggily.

  "Oh, I am so sorry!" cried Nurse Jane. "It is my fault. I was bakinga pudding in the oven, Uncle Wiggily. I left it a minute while I ranover to the pen of Mrs. Wibblewobble, the duck lady, to ask herabout making a new kind of carrot sauce for the pudding, and when Icame home the pudding had burned, and the bungalow was on fire."

  "Never mind," spoke Uncle Wiggily, kindly, "as long as you were notburned yourself, Nurse Jane."

  "But where will you sleep to-night?" asked the muskrat lady,sorrowfully.

  "Oh," began Uncle Wiggily, "I guess I can----"

  "Come stay with us!" cried Sammie and Susie Littletail, the rabbitchildren.

  "Or with us!" invited Johnnie and Billie Bushytail, the squirrels.

  "And why not with us?" asked Nannie and Billie Wagtail, the goatchildren.

  "We'd ask you to come with us," said Jollie and Jillie Longtail, themouse children, "only our house is so small."

  Many of Uncle Wiggily's friends, who had hurried up to see thehollow-stump bungalow burn, while he was at the store, now, in turn,invited him to stay with them.

  "I, myself, have asked him to come with me," said Mother Goose, "orwith any of my friends. We all would be glad to have him."

  "It is very kind of you," said the rabbit gentleman. "And this iswhat I will do, until I can build me a new bungalow. I will taketurns staying at your different hollow-tree homes, your nests oryour burrows underground. And I will come and visit you also, MotherGoose, and all of your friends; at least such of them as have roomfor me.

  "Yes, that is what I'll do. I'll visit around now that myhollow-stump home is burned. I thank you all. Come, Nurse Jane, wewill pay our first visit to Sammie and Susie Littletail, therabbits."

  And while the other animals hopped, skipped or flew away through thewoods, and as Mother Goose sailed off on the back of her gander, tosweep more cobwebs out of the sky, Uncle Wiggily and Nurse Jane wentto the Littletail burrow, or underground house.

  "Good-bye, Uncle Wiggily!" called Mother Goose. "I'll see you again,soon, sometime. And if ever you meet with any of my friends, LittleJack Horner, Bo Peep, or the three little pigs, about whom you mayhave read in my book, be kind to them."

  "I will," promised Uncle Wiggily.

  And he did, as you may read in the next chapter, when, if the sugarspoon doesn't tickle the carving knife and make it dance on thebread board, the story will be about Uncle Wiggily and the firstlittle pig.

  CHAPTER II

  UNCLE WIGGILY AND THE FIRST PIG

  Uncle Wiggily Longears, the nice old gentleman rabbit, came out ofthe underground burrow house of the Littletail family, where he wasvisiting a while with the bunny children, Sammie and Susie, becausehis own hollow-stump bungalow had burned down.

  "Where are you going, Uncle Wiggily?" asked Sammie Littletail, therabbit boy, as he strapped his cabbage leaf books together, ready togo to school.

  "Oh, I am just going for a little walk," answered Uncle Wiggily."Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, the muskrat lady housekeeper, asked me toget her some court plaster from the five and six cent store, and onmy way there I may have an adventure. Who knows?"

  "We are going to school," said Susie. "Will you walk part of the waywith us, Uncle Wiggily?"

  "To be sure I will!" crowed the old gentleman rabbit, making believehe was Mr. Cock A. Doodle, the rooster.

  So Uncle Wiggily, with Sammie and Susie, started off across thesnow-covered fields and through the woods. Pretty soon they came tothe path the rabbit children must take to go to the hollow-stumpschool, where the lady mouse teacher would hear their carrot andturnip gnawing lessons.

  "Good-by, Uncle Wiggily!" called Sammie and Susie. "We hope you havea nice adventure,"

  "Good-by. Thank you, I hope I do," he answered.

  Then the rabbit gentleman walked on, while Sammie and Susie hurriedto school, and pretty soon Mr. Longears heard a queer grunting noisebehind some bushes near him.

  "Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!" came the sound.

  "Hello! Who is there?" asked Uncle Wiggily.

  "Why, if you please, I am here, and I am the first little pig," camethe answer, and out from behind the bush stepped a cute littlepiggie boy, with a bundle of straw under his paw.

  "So you are the first little pig, eh?" asked Uncle Wiggily. "Howmany of you are there altogether?"

  "Three, if you please," grunted the first little pig. "I have twobrothers, and they are the second and third little pigs. Don't youremember reading about us in the Mother Goose book?"

  "Oh, of course I do!" cried Uncle Wiggily, twinkling his nose. "Andso you are the first little pig. But what are you going to do withthat bundle of straw?"

  "I'm going to build me a house, Uncle Wiggily, of course," gruntedthe piggie boy. "Don't you remember what it says in the book? 'Onceupon a time there were three little pigs,
named Grunter, Squeakerand Twisty-Tail.' Well, I'm Grunter, and I met a man with a load ofstraw, and I asked him for a bundle to make me a house. He verykindly gave it to me, and now, I'm off to build it."

  "May I come?" asked Uncle Wiggily. "I'll help you put up yourhouse."

  "Of course you may come--glad to have you," answered the firstlittle pig. "Only you know what happens to me; don't you?"

  "No! What?" asked the rabbit gentleman. "I guess I have forgottenthe story."

  "Well, after I build my house of straw, just as it says in theMother Goose story book, along comes a bad old wolf, and he blows itdown," said the first little pig.

  "Oh, how dreadful!" cried Uncle Wiggily, "but maybe he won't cometo-day."

  "Oh, yes, he will," said the first little pig. "It's that way in thebook, and the wolf has to come."

  "Well, if he does," said Uncle Wiggily, "maybe I can save you fromhim."

  "Oh, I hope you can!" grunted Grunter. "It is no fun to be chased bya wolf."

  So the rabbit gentleman and the piggie boy went on and on, untilthey came to the place where Grunter was to build his house ofstraw. Uncle Wiggily helped, and soon it was finished.

  "Why, it is real nice and cozy in here," said Uncle Wiggily, when hehad made a big pile of snow back of the straw house to keep off thenorth wind, and had gone in with the little piggie boy.

  "Yes, it is cozy enough," spoke Grunter, "but wait until the badwolf comes. Oh, dear!"

  "Maybe he won't come," said the rabbit, hopeful like.

  "Yes, he will!" cried Grunter. "Here he comes now."