Then Unc" Billy would make another low bow and hurry on to the next one. Of course he couldn"t tell whether or not any one would accept the invitation, but he went right on with his plans, just as if he expected everybody to be there. And when the time came, sure enough everybody was there, even Sammy Jay, to whom Unc" Billy had sent a special invitation by Ol" Mistah Buzzard. Mistah Buzzard had found Sammy Jay in the far-away Old Pasture, and Sammy had moved back to the Green Forest that very day.
Such a good time as everybody did have! There were heaps and heaps of good things to eat. They danced and played hide and seek. Finally Unc" Billy climbed up on a stump. He was dressed in his finest suit, and he wore his broadest grin. Everybody crowded around to hear what Unc" Billy was about to say.
"Mah friends and neighbors," said Unc" Billy, "Ah have a great surprise fo"
yo"alls."
Then he stepped down, and everybody began to wonder and to guess what the surprise could be.
XXV
UNC" BILLY POSSUM"S SURPRISE
Everybody was asking everybody else what the surprise could be which Unc"
Billy had said he had for them. After he had made his speech, he had scurried out of sight, and no one could find him. Just about that time Billy Mink remembered that the party had been given to meet a friend of Unc" Billy Possum, but no friend had appeared.
Billy Mink spoke of the matter to Little Joe Otter, and Little Joe Otter spoke of the matter to Jerry Muskrat, and Jerry Muskrat spoke of the matter to Sammy Jay, and right while he was speaking there came a shrill scream of "Thief! thief! thief!" from a thick hemlock-tree near by, and the voice was just like the voice of Sammy Jay.
Sammy Jay became greatly excited. "There!" he cried! "You heard that when you was standing right in front of me and talking to me, Jerry Muskrat. You know that I wasn"t making a sound! I told you that I hadn"t been screaming in the night, and this proves it!"
Jerry Muskrat looked as if he couldn"t believe his own ears. Just then the voice of Sticky-toes the Tree Toad began to Croak "It"s going to rain! It"s going to rain! It"s going to rain!" The voice seemed to come out of that very same hemlock-tree. Everybody noticed it and looked up at the tree, and while they were all trying to see Sticky-toes, something dropped plop right into their midst. It was Sticky-toes himself, and he had dropped from another tree altogether.
"You hear it!" he shrieked, dancing up and down he was so angry. "You hear it! It isn"t me, is it? That"s my voice, yet it isn"t mine, because I"m right here! How can I be here and over there too? Tell me that!"
No one could tell him, and Sticky-toes continued to scold and sputter and swell himself up with anger. But everybody forgot Sticky-toes when they heard the voice of Blacky the Crow calling "Caw, caw, caw!" from the very same hemlock-tree. Now no one knew that Blacky the Crow had come to the party, for Blacky never goes abroad at night.
"Come out, Blacky!" they all shouted. But no Blacky appeared. Instead out of that magic hemlock-tree poured a beautiful song, so beautiful that when it ended everybody clapped their hands. After that there was a perfect flood of music, as if all the singers of the Green Forest and the Green Meadows were in that hemlock-tree. There was the song of Mr. Redwing and the song of Jenny Wren, and the sweet notes of Carol the Meadowlark and the beautiful happy song of Little Friend the Song Sparrow. No one had ever heard anything like it, and when it ended every one shouted for more. Even Sticky-toes the Tree Toad forgot his ill temper.
Instead of more music, out from the hemlock-tree flew a stranger. He was about the size of Sammy Jay and wore a modest gray suit with white tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs. He flew over to a tall stump in the moonlight, and no sooner had he alighted than up beside him scrambled Unc" Billy Possum. Unc" Billy wore his broadest grin.
"Mah friends of the Green Forest and the Green Meadows, Ah wants yo"alls to know mah friend, Mistah Mocking-bird, who has come up from mah ol" home way down in "Ol" Virginny." He has the most wonderful voice in all the world, and when he wants to, he can make it sound just like the voice of any one of yo"alls. We uns is right sorry fo" the trouble we uns have made. It was all a joke, and now we asks yo" pardon. Mah friend Mistah Mockah would like to stay here and live, if yo"alls is willing," said Unc" Billy.
XXVI
MR. MOCKER MAKES HIMSELF AT HOME
At first, when the little meadow and forest people were asked to pardon the tricks that Mr. Mocker and Unc" Billy Possum had played, a few were inclined not to. While they were talking the matter over, Mr. Mocker began to sing again that wonderful song of his. It was so beautiful that by the time it was ended, every one was ready to grant the pardon. They crowded around him, and because he is good-natured, he made his voice sound just like the voice of each one who spoke to him. Of course they thought that was great fun, and by the time Unc" Billy Possum"s moonlight party broke up, Mr. Mocker knew that he had made so many friends that he could stay in the Green Forest as long as he pleased.
But there were a lot of little people who were not at Unc" Billy Possum"s party, because they go to bed instead of going out nights. Of course they heard all about the party the next morning and were very anxious indeed to see the stranger with the wonderful voice. So Mr. Mocker went calling with Ol" Mistah Buzzard, and they visited all the little meadow and forest people who had not been at the party. Of course Mr. Mocker had to show off his wonderful voice to each one. When he had finished, he was tuckered put, was Mr. Mocker, but he was happy, for now he had made friends and could live on the edge of the Green Forest with his old friends, Unc" Billy Possum and Ol" Mistah Buzzard.
So he soon made himself at home and, because he was happy, he would sing all day long. And sometimes, when the moon was shining, he woke up in the night and would sing for very joy. Now Peter Rabbit thought the newcomer"s voice such a wonderful thing that he used to follow him around just to hear him fool others by making his voice sound like theirs. It was great fun.
Peter and Mocker became great friends, and so when Peter heard it whispered around that Mr. Mocking-bird had not come by his wonderful voice honestly, he didn"t believe a word of it and was very indignant. Of course he couldn"t go to Mr. Mocker himself and ask him, for he didn"t want Mr.
Mocker to know that such unkind things were being said. Finally he thought of Grandfather Frog, who is very old and very wise. "He"ll know," said Peter, as off he posted to the Smiling Pool.
"If you please, Grandfather Frog, how does it happen that Mr. Mocker has such a wonderful voice and can make it sound like the voice of any one whom he hears?" asked Peter.
Now Grandfather Frog was feeling out of sorts that morning. He hadn"t heard the whisper that Mr. Mocker had not come by his voice honestly, and he thought that Peter Rabbit was asking just to hear a story.
"Chugarum!" replied Grandfather Frog crossly. "Go ask Mr. Buzzard," And that was all that Peter could get out of him. So, not knowing what else to do, off started Peter Rabbit to ask Ol" Mistah Buzzard where his friend Mr.
Mocking-bird got such a wonderful voice.
Ol" Mistah Buzzard laughed when he heard that some folks said that Mr.
Mocker had not come by his voice honestly.
"There isn"t a word of truth in it, Brer Rabbit," he declared. "Yo" go tell all your friends that Mistah Mockah is the best loved of all the birds way down Souf."
And this is all for the present about the adventures of Mr. Mocker the Mocking-bird. But others have had adventures, and one is Jerry Muskrat. The next book will tell all about them.
THE END