Part 27 (1/2)

”w.a.n.go is good, too,” said Bunny. ”Only I guess he is scared, now. Come on down, w.a.n.go!” called Bunny, ”and I'll give you a peanut.”

”Oh, yes, he'll come down for a peanut, or maybe two peanuts!” exclaimed Sue. ”w.a.n.go loves peanuts. Have you any, Mrs. Redden?”

”Yes,” answered the store-lady. ”But I'm not going to give him peanuts, after all the candy he has taken and spoiled. Nearly half the jelly beans will be wasted, and the gla.s.s jar is broken, and he will spoil all those lollypops, too. Oh dear!”

”Just give him two peanuts,” said Bunny, ”and that will make him come down. Then maybe he'll give back the lollypops.”

”Well, child, we can try it,” the candy-lady said. ”I can't hit him with the broom, that's sure, unless I stand on a chair, and if I do that he may reach down and pull my hair, as he did Mrs. Winkler's one day. I'll get the peanuts.”

She brought a handful from another show case, and gave them to Bunny, who held them up so the monkey could see them.

”Come and get the nuts, w.a.n.go!” Bunny called.

The monkey chattered, and made funny faces, but he did not come down. He seemed to like the lollypops better, and, also, his perch on the shelf, he thought, was safer than one on the floor.

”What shall we do?” asked Mrs. Redden.

”Bunny, could you run down the street, and ask Mr. Winkler to come and take his monkey away?”

”Yes'm, I'll do it,” the little boy answered politely.

But just then something else happened.

w.a.n.go, trying to peel the wax paper from another lollypop, dropped a second one. He reached for it, but he did keep hold of the shelf, and, the next second down he himself fell, knocking over several more candy jars.

They crashed to the floor, smas.h.i.+ng and spilling the candy all over.

w.a.n.go turned a somersault, and landed lightly on his feet, close beside Mrs. Redden.

”Oh, you bad monkey! You bad monkey!” she cried. ”Shoo! Get out of here!

Out of my shop!”

She brushed at w.a.n.go with the broom, and the lively monkey made a rush for the back door of the store, as the front one was closed.

”Here! Don't you dare go into my kitchen!” cried Mrs. Redden, as she ran after the monkey. ”You'll upset everything there!”

w.a.n.go chattered, and made funny faces. Then he turned and ran back, sliding right under Mrs. Redden's skirts, and nearly upsetting Bunny.

At that moment the front door opened, and there stood Jed Winkler, the old sailor, who owned the monkey.

”Have you seen anything of w.a.n.go?” began Mr. Winkler, but there was no need for him to ask such a question. There was w.a.n.go, in plain sight, holding some lollypops in one paw, and in the other some jelly beans and coconut candies he had grabbed up from the floor. And in his mouth, with the stick-handles pointing out, were three other lollypops!

”Take him away! Oh, take him away!” begged Mrs. Redden. ”He will spoil all the candy in my shop!”

”This is too bad!” exclaimed the sailor, ”w.a.n.go, behave yourself! You are a bad monkey! Up with you!”

w.a.n.go jumped up on his master's shoulder, and hung his head. I really think he was ashamed of what he had done.