Part 1 (2/2)

”Oh, look!” cried Lulu. ”Bawly is going to swim under water!”

”That's so he can win the race easier, I guess,” spoke Alice.

”What's that?” asked Bully, wiggling his two eyes.

”Your brother has gone down under the water!” cried the two duck girls together.

”So he has!” exclaimed Bully, glancing around. And then, when he had looked down, he cried out: ”Oh, a great big fish has hold of Bawly's toes, and he's going to eat him, I guess! I must save my brother!”

Bully didn't think anything more about the race after that. No, indeed, and some tomato ketchup, too! Down under water he dived, and he swam close up to the fish who was pulling poor Bawly away to his den in among a lot of stones.

”Oh, let my brother go, if you please!” called Bully to the fish.

”No, I'll not,” was the answer, and then the big fish flopped his tail like a fan and made such a wave that poor Bully was upset, turning a somersault in the water. But that didn't scare him, and when he had turned over right side up again he swam to the fish once more and said:

”If you don't let my brother go I'll call a policeman!”

”No policeman can catch me!” declared the fish, boldly, and in a saucy manner.

”Oh, do something to save me!” cried poor Bawly, trying to pull his toes away from the fish's teeth, but he couldn't.

”I'll save you!” shouted Bully, and then he took a stick, and tried to put it in the fish's mouth to make him open his jaws and let loose of Bawly. But the stick broke, and the fish was swimming away faster than ever. Then Bully popped his head out of the water and cried to the two duck girls:

”Oh, run and tell Grandpa Croaker! Tell him to come and save Bawly!”

Well, Alice and Lulu wibbled and wobbled as fast as they could go to the frog house, and told Grandpa Croaker, and the old gentleman gave one great big leap, and landed in the water right down close to where the fish had Bawly by the toes.

”Boom! Boom! Croak-croak-croaker-croak!” cried Grandpa in his deepest ba.s.s voice. ”You let Bawly go!” And, would you believe it, his voice sounded like a cannon, or a big gun, and that fish was so frightened, thinking he was going to be shot, that he opened his mouth and let Bawly go. The frog boy's toes were scratched a little by the teeth of the fish, but he could still swim, and he and his brother and Grandpa were soon safe on sh.o.r.e.

”Well, I guess we won't race any more to-day,” said Bawly. ”Thank you very much for saving me, Grandpa.”

”Oh, that's all right,” said Mr. Croaker kindly. ”Here is a penny for each of you,” and he gave Bully and Bawly and Lulu and Alice each a penny, and they bought peppermint candy, so Bully and Bawly had something good to eat, even if they didn't finish the race, and the bad fish had nothing. Now, in case I see a green rose in bloom on the pink lilac bush, I'll tell you next about Bully making a water wheel.

STORY II

BULLY MAKES A WATER WHEEL

Bully No-Tail, the frog boy, was sitting out in the yard in front of his house, with his knife and a lot of sticks. He was whittling the sticks, and making almost as many chips and shavings as a carpenter, and as he whittled away he whistled a funny little tune, about a yellow monkey-doodle with a pink nose colored blue, who wore a slipper on one foot, because he had no shoe.

Pretty soon, along came d.i.c.kie Chip-Chip, the sparrow boy, and he perched on the fence in front of Bully, put his head on one side-not on one side of the fence, you know, but on one side of his own little feathered neck-and d.i.c.kie looked out of his bright little eyes at Bully, and inquired:

”What are you making?”

”I am making a water-wheel,” answered the frog boy.

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