Now, Frisky had often heard it said among his neighbors that no one had ever caught Freddie Weasel asleep. Indeed, Jimmy Rabbit claimed that Freddie Weasel never slept at all.
That seemed very strange to Frisky. He could hardly believe it. And he made up his mind that he would watch Freddie Weasel and see whether it was really true.
So one evening, just after sundown, when Frisky met Freddie Weasel in the woods, he thought it would be a good time to spy upon him. Of course it wasn"t at all a polite thing to do. But Frisky was very curious. And anyhow, he meant no harm.
"h.e.l.lo, Freddie!" he said, as he came face to face with the sly, slim chap.
"h.e.l.lo, yourself!" said Freddie Weasel in a disagreeable tone.
"Where you going?" Frisky inquired pleasantly enough.
"Never you mind," Freddie Weasel answered. "And you"d better keep out of my way, or I"ll bite your head off."
Frisky Squirrel didn"t know what to say. Very few people--except Jasper Jay and one or two other quarrelsome forest-folk--had ever spoken to him like that. So he just stood still and stared.
That seemed to make Freddie angrier than ever. He darted toward Frisky and tried to bite his neck. But Frisky was quick, too. He ran up a tree before Freddie Weasel could catch him, and smiled at the bad-tempered fellow.
"You"d better go home and take a nap," Frisky told him. "You"re crosser than ever to-day."
Freddie looked up at Frisky as if he would just like to get hold of him for about one second.
"I never sleep," he said. "I"m always awake. And some night when you"re dreaming, I"m coming to your house and I"m going to eat you."
And then he hurried away.
Frisky Squirrel ran down the tree and dashed after Freddie. He didn"t make any noise at all. And he was careful not to let Freddie see him.
He was going to find out for himself whether Freddie stayed awake all night.
Mrs. Squirrel was worried because Frisky didn"t come home. Of course he ought to have let her know what he was about. But he felt that he mustn"t lose sight of Freddie. And he saw no one at all by whom he could send word to his mother as to where he was and what he was doing.
Frisky had the busiest sort of time following Freddie. It grew so dark that it was very hard to see Freddie Weasel as he sneaked along through the bushes, hunting for small birds that build their nests on the ground.
Freddie Weasel caught several sleeping birds. And Frisky could not help being sorry for them. He began to feel very guilty for having teased them, and for having eaten their eggs.
Finally it grew so dark that Frisky had just about decided that he would have to give up spying on Freddie and hurry home, when he saw Freddie slip into a hole in a bank and vanish.
Was Freddie Weasel at last going to bed and to sleep?
XXII
Catching Freddie Weasel Asleep
When Frisky Squirrel saw Freddie Weasel disappear in the hole in the bank he became greatly excited. He forgot all about going home. And though he had begun to feel somewhat sleepy, he was wide awake again in no time. He sat right down, a little way from the hole, and he never once took his eyes off it.
Frisky hoped that perhaps he would hear Freddie snoring in there, if he waited long enough. But no such thing happened. There seemed to be but one way to discover whether Freddie was asleep, and _that_ was to creep into the hole himself and find out.
Now, Frisky Squirrel was no coward, as you know. But he did not like the idea of crawling into that narrow, dark place. He knew that Freddie Weasel"s teeth were very sharp. And he knew that Freddie was quick to use them, too.
Frisky was trying hard to think of some good way to catch Freddie asleep, when who should come strolling along but Henry Skunk! Frisky always supposed that he was called "Henry" because he was so fond of _hens_--for he visited Farmer Green"s hen-house oftener than any other of the forest-people--but whether _that_ was why he was so named I should really not want to say.
"Well, well! You"re out pretty late," Henry Skunk called, as soon as he saw Frisky.
Frisky Squirrel held a paw to his mouth, so Henry Skunk would not talk too loudly.
"What"s going on?" Henry Skunk asked, with growing interest. "You haven"t seen a hen around here, have you?"
Frisky shook his head.
"It"s Freddie Weasel--" he explained, pointing at the hole. "He"s in there; and I"m trying to catch him asleep."
Henry Skunk came nearer.
"Why don"t you go inside?" he asked.
Frisky shook his head again.
"I don"t see very well in the dark," he said, "and I"d rather not."
Henry nodded.
"I can see first rate at night," he told Frisky. "I"ll find out for you if Freddie Weasel is asleep. And if he is, I"ll come right back and tell you, and then you can go in with me and see for yourself."
"Good!" said Frisky. "That"s very kind of you, I"m sure."
So Henry Skunk walked up to the hole. It was entirely too small for him to enter.
"I"ll have to make it bigger," he remarked.
"Won"t Freddie hear you?" Frisky Squirrel inquired.
"I"ll be very quiet about it," Henry Skunk replied. "So if he"s asleep I hardly think I"ll disturb him." And at that Henry set to work.
Now, in order to dig, he had to stick his head into the hole. But he knew he could see Freddie Weasel if Freddie tried to bite his nose; so Henry was not afraid. How he did make the dirt fly! Frisky wished that he could dig like that. He thought it must be great fun. And he watched Henry so closely that he never saw that slim, sneaking form that crept up behind him. And when Frisky felt something jump right on top of him, and when a terrible, sharp pain seized his shoulder, he was scared half out of his wits.
It was Freddie Weasel! He had left his home through another hole, which Frisky knew nothing about.
Frisky Squirrel called for help. He shouted Henry Skunk"s name again and again, as he rolled over and over on the ground, trying to shake Freddie off his back.
But how could Henry Skunk hear him, with his head buried inside the hole? _He_ didn"t know what was happening. And if Frisky and Freddie hadn"t rolled right upon him he probably would never have looked around until it was too late.
But when Henry felt that rolling, tumbling, fighting pair b.u.mp against him he drew his head out of the hole in a hurry. And as soon as he saw what was happening he sunk his own sharp teeth deep into Freddie Weasel"s back.
Freddie let go of Frisky Squirrel at once. And he gave Henry Skunk"s nose such a savage nip that Henry just had to squeal--it hurt him so.
In order to squeal, of course he had to open his mouth. And when he opened his mouth he had to let go of Freddie Weasel.
That was exactly what Freddie Weasel wanted. He sprang up and dashed into the bushes. He was not afraid of Frisky Squirrel. But Henry Skunk was altogether too big. Freddie did not enjoy fighting _him_.