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Sitdown Strike – November 17th, 1946

It had been raining off and on for nearly a week and the Chinaman was very discouraged. It was most trying to live in a teapot along with a week's washing of wet clothes even though was a Teenie Weenie washing.

"Allie same me sorry to live all time with wet clothes everywheres," the Chinaman complained to the Turk.

"What you need is a drying house," said the Turk.

"That what me thinks," answered the Chinaman brightly. "Me all time think that belly basket you found the other days would make a velly fine house to dry clothes in."

"Shucks!" exploded the Turk. "We're going to use the boards in that berry basket to put down a new floor in the town hail. That lumber is too good to use for a drying house."

"Allie light," said the Chinaman, "no drying house no more washie. Me do no washie until me gets a place to dry clothes. Me tired living in teapot with wet washie."

The following week the Chinaman refused to do the Teenie Weenie washing. He went fishing with the Dunce and visited Skippy, the chipmunk, and birds who live near the Teenie Weenie village. When two weeks' washing piled up and there were no clean sheets for the Teenie Weenie beds, the little people began to complain. "Allie light," said the Chinaman, "make dry house out of that belly basket and I washie."

Berry baskets are the finest lumber for Teenie Weenie use. The boards are not too thick for Teenie Weenie saws and nails and the men hoard a berry basket for that reason. The Turk offered to move up a pasteboard box for a drying house, but the Chinaman refused that on the grounds that it would get wet and soon break down. Finally there wasn't a clean handkerchief or bed sheet in the village. The Cook washed out his dish towels occasionally and the Lady of Fashion washed her bedclothes and tiny undergarments in a thimble. Finally, the Turk agreed to build a drying house for the Chinaman out of the berry basket the Teenie Weenies had been saving.

The men moved the basket near the teapot, cut in windows, made a door and built on a waterproof roof. The Chinaman was delighted and he set to work washing all the soiled Teenie Weenie clothes. He washed and ironed for days before he had all the clothes clean.

"Me don't mind washie clothes," the Chinaman says, "but me don't all time like to live in teapot with a wet washie drying there."

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The Dunce's Letter – November 24th, 1946

Not long ago the Dunce became interested in a little girl who lives in one of the big houses near the Teenie Weenie village. By holding a maple leaf In front of his tiny body, he could get rather close to the little girl without being seen. The little girl had a kitten which she dressed up in her doll's clothes, and that tickled the Dunce.

One day while the family was away the Dunce thought it would be fun to visit the little girl's house. He asked several of the Teenie Weenie men to go along and they soon made their way into the house. The kitten was at home, but it was fast asleep and the little men did not disturb it. They examined everything in the house with much interest and then they climbed up onto a desk that stood in the little girl's room. There were several books. a couple of lead pencils, a bottle of ink, a box, a rule and some pieces of writing paper on the desk.

At first, the little men had lots of fun lying on the rule and measuring themselves. To the Dunce's great delight, he was the tallest Teenie Weenie, measuring 2 1/16 inches - just 1/32 of an inch taller than the Turk.

"I'm going to write a letter," announced the Dunce, picking up one of the pencils. "I know the little girl well enough to write to her."

"But she doesn't know you," the Turk objected. "Maybe she doesn't even know Teenie Weenies live here."

"She'll soon know," the Dunce promised.

The other Teenie Weenies gathered around and looked on while the Dunce struggled with the heavy pencil. The pencil was so big it was about all the Dunce could do to move it along the paper, but finally he managed to pencil out a rather scrawly note.

"I'll bet that little girl will be surprised when she finds this letter," said the Dunce, wiping his sweaty forehead with his sleeve.

When the little girl found the letter on her desk that evening, she was properly surprised. But she had a hard time reading it, for the writing was very bad and the spelling was even worse. After a great deal of puzzling, this is what she read:

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Gogo And The Sailor Win A Championship - September 24th, 1922

It was a warm day. The older Teenie Weenies sat about on the lawn under the rose bush, napping and reading, while the children played hide and seek.

"It is entirely too hot for the boys to run so hard," said Mrs. Lover. "I'm afraid they'll both have sunstroke. But how can I stop them?"

"I tell you," said the General, jumping up. "Let me take your whole family for a ride."

"0, how lovely," said Mrs. Lover. "That will be just the thing. And you've learned to drive so well now, I don't feel at all afraid."

"Thank you," said the General, stiffly. He still did not like to hear any one refer to the accident when he began to drive.

After the little car had rolled away, the other Teenie Weenies began to wish that they, too, had something special to do, and at last the Dunce jumped up and exclaimed: "Let's go swimmin'!"

"0, do let's," cried the Lady of Fashion, and she and the Guff girls rushed into the house to put on their tiny bathing suits.

Quite soon all the little ladies were on their way to a swimming hole nearby, where the Teenie Weenie men and boys were already enjoying the cool water.

"Say," said the Turk, as he came up after a dive, "I've been reading somewhere about tournaments. Let's us have a water tournament. We'll get out the pea pod canoes and have straws for lances, and instead of trying to throw each other off horses like he knights of old, we'll try to upset each other's canoes."

"Humph—heap fun," said the Indian, with a broader smile than he usually wore, while the Sailor danced a hornpipe for glee, and the Dunce and the Cook and Paddy Pinn gave three cheers for the great idea.

In a little while the canoes were ready and the men had padded long straws with milkweed thistle down, so that no one should get hurt, even if hit by one of the lances.

It was decided that the Indian, the Sailor, Paddy Pin, and Zip should do the paddling, while the Turk, Gogo, the Dunce, and the Cook handled the lances, and soon the four little canoes put out upon the water, and the fun began.

Luckily, a long, low limb from a bush grew out over the pond, and a good grandstand it made for the other Teenie Weenies and for Tillie Titter, the English sparrow, who flew down for a bath and a drink, and stayed to see the fun.

The Dunce, with Paddy Pin paddling, fought with Gogo, rowed by the Sailor, and Zip managed the canoe for the Cook, who was to conquer the Turk and the Indian.

They all went at it as skillfully as they could, but Zip got so excited watching the Cook he forgot his part, and splash! the two went into the water. Then the Dunce tried to be funny as well as skillful, and during one of his pranks Gogo gave a clever shove with his straw that sent the Dunce head over heels. All the Teenie Weenies applauded and Tillie Titter shrieked herself hoarse.

"Ere, ere," she cried as the Turk and Gogo, the two victors, faced each other for the deciding battle, "Hi'm for the gentleman of color, Hi am."

"Thlee yells for the Turkie," shrieked the Chinaman.

Carefully the two canoes came up and faced each other. Skillfully Gogo and the Turk fenced with their long straws. The audience sat, now in breathless interest, now yelling with excitement. At one minute they were sure the Turk would win. But suddenly the colored boy gave a clever flip to his straw, caught the Turk under his arm, and tipped him and his boat over as neatly as you please.

The Chinaman was so excited he fell over backward and made a third splash. Tillie Titter laughed and cheered till she nearly fell off herself, and all the others cheered loudly for Gogo, who bowed modestly and would have blushed if he had been able, at the praises which were shouted by his friends.

"Best fun Hi've 'ad since my pin feathers sprouted," cackled Tillie, as she flew away. And the Teenie Weenies agreed that they had had a wonderful afternoon.

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Pea Pod Canoes - August 9th, 1942

For several days there had been much activity under the rosebush where the Teenie Weenies lived. The peas which the little people had planted in their garden were ripe. The huge pods were cut away from the vine with Teenie Weenie axes and carried under the rose bush, where they were carefully slit open along one side and the fat green peas lifted out. Most of the peas were to be dried and put away for next Winter's use. However, the Teenie Weenies always eat some of the peas fresh, and how the little folk do enjoy them!

Peas are a very important crop to the Teenie Weenies. Of course, the food they supply is most important, but the big pods also supply the little people with transportation. When the peas are removed the pods are carefully dried and then coated with a waterproof liquid which is made from the milk, or sap, of the dandelion plant. Tiny seats, ribs and floor boards are then added to make a very nice little canoe that will safely carry two Teenie Weenies. Most of the Teenie Weenies know how to build pea pod canoes and they always try to see who can make the best boat.

It takes over a week to make one of the pea pod canoes. Of course, the little folk are always anxious to put them in the water at once to try them out. But for several days before the canoes were finished there came very hard rains, and the water was so high and swift in the creek that the General considered it unsafe for such tiny craft.

"You must wait until the water goes down," the General warned. "We don't want to invite any Teenie Weenie accidents."

"Yes, that's right," agreed the Sailor, who was an expert canoeman. "There are always lots of floating things in the creek when the water is high. A floating twig or a clothespin can very easily upset a canoe!"

"Why can't we try out the canoes in a pan of water?" asked the Dunce. "I know where there is a pan of drinking water in a chicken yard. The chickens who live there wouldn't care if we used it."

"That's not a very good place," said the Turk. "There's hardly enough room to turn a canoe around in a pan of water. The creek will settle down in a day or two, and then we can have a real place to try the canoes out."

"Well," urged the Dunce, who was always impatient, "couldn't we use the swimming pool?"

"That's silly!" exclaimed the Cook. "How in the name of common sense are you going to try out a canoe in a sauce dish? I agree with the General that we'd better wait until the creek is safe."

The Teenie Weenies watched the creek carefully. In a couple of days the water began to fall. Then it rained again and the water was higher than ever. The little people were greatly disappointed, but the very next day the Chinaman brought news that filled them all with joy.

"Me find place for canoe. Allee same hose makin' big lake over there," shouted the Chinaman, pointing with his tiny finger. "Muchie water for canoe."

"Where is this lake?" asked the Turk.

"Flollow me. Me show where lake is," said the Chinaman, and he set off, followed by several of the Teenie Weenies.

The Chinaman led the little men to a spot in the garden back of a big house, where they saw a garden hose lying on the ground. The little boy and girl who lived in the house had been playing you- spray-me-and-I'll-spray-you in their bathing suits and forgot to shut the water off carefully when they went to dress. Water was running from the hose in a small stream, but there was enough coming out to make a large Teenie Weenie lake.

"This is great!" exclaimed the Turk. "Come on, fellows, and let's get our canoes."

The Turk and his friends dashed off to the shoe house. In a short time they returned with the canoes and with the rest of the Teenie Weenie family tagging on behind.

While the water was scarcely deep enough to cover the toes of a wading boy or girl, it was quite deep enough to make excellent canoeing. So the little people had a fine time skimming over the smooth water in their pea pod canoes.

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A Teenie Weenie Flood - March 21st, 1943

When the heavy snow melted and ran off into the creek near the Teenie Weenie village, that little stream was filled almost to the top of its banks. But when it rained hard for two days the water overflowed and flooded the land on either side of the creek.

The Teenie Weenies spent most of their time standing on the bank and watching the water flow by. They saw all sorts of things drifting on the current, and occasionally the Sailor would go out in his pea pod canoe, fasten a line around a lead pencil or wooden clothespin and tow it to shore. For pencils and clothespins make fine Teenie Weenie firewood when sawed and split into suitable sizes for Teenie Weenie stoves.

The Teenie Weenies worried considerably about Nick the Squirrel, because his house was in the top of a tree which was right in the middle of the flooded woods.

"When the water settles down a little and is not running so swiftly, I think we had better paddle out and see if Nick is all right," the General said.

In a couple of days the water had quieted down some and the Sailor and the General put out in a pea pod canoe. When they came to the tree in which Nick lived, there was no answer to their shouts, then they heard Nick call from a tree near by. The Sailor paddled toward the tree, while Nick ran down the trunk and settled on a small limb near the water.

"What are you doing over in this tree?" asked the General, when the Sailor had brought the canoe up to the tree.

"I thought," said Nick, in the peculiar way he had of talking with the Teenie Weenies, "I could jump from limb to limb and in that way make my way to shore, but I found that I couldn't go far on account of my rheumatism. I'm afraid I can't make the jump back into my home tree, so I think I'd better stay here until the water goes down."

"Have you had anything to eat?" asked the General.

"Nothing since yesterday except a little bark off this tree," answered Nick.

"That won't do," said the General. "We'll bring some food to you just as soon as we can."

The Sailor paddled back to shore and the General told some of the Teenie Weenie men to bring down a few nuts from the Teenie Weenie storehouse.

"We'll need a raft to carry the nuts out to Nick," said the Sailor. "A pea pod canoe is too light to carry nuts in."

"We all could make a raft out of these," put in Gogo, pointing to some clothespins, a piece of pencil and several sticks which had been towed in for firewood.

"That's fine," said the General. "Get busy and make one."

The Teenie Weenies soon made a stout raft by lashing together two clothespins, a pencil stub and a small stick with a bit of string. The Old Soldier with the wooden leg made a pair of paddles, while the other Teenie Weenies brought the nuts down to the edge of the water. Two peanuts and a hazelnut were loaded onto the raft. Then Gogo and the Dunce pushed off, while the Sailor and the General led the way in a pea pod canoe.

It was hard work to paddle the raft in the swift water, and there were many floating objects which had to be avoided. Once they ran into an empty, floating bottle and it nearly upset the raft. One of the peanuts rolled off and floated away, but fortunately that was the only damage done.

Nick was very happy to get the nuts, and he carried them up the tree where he stored them in a knothole. The Teenie Weenies made several trips that day and delivered enough nuts to keep Nick supplied with food for several days.

It was almost a week before the water went down and Nick was able to get back to his home tree. He was very grateful for what the Teenie Weenies had done. When he saw the firewood they had pulled out of the water, he set to work to help them drag it up to the Teenie Weenie wood pile near the shoe house.

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Pea-Pod Canoes - August 1st, 1943

Now that the vegetables in the Teenie Weenie garden were ready to eat, the little people were kept mighty busy. The vegetables had grown well and some of them were so big it became a problem for such little people to handle them.

The carrots were so huge it took a week to get five of them out of the ground and moved to the Teenie Weenie storehouse.

First, the great tops had to be chopped off with Teenie Weenie axes and dragged away. Then the little men had to dig around each carrot, and they had to dig down so deeply that the hole had to be timbered to keep the earth from falling in on the workers. When the carrot had been uncovered, it was then necessary to put up a derrick and slowly pull the big vegetable out of the ground with a Teenie Weenie block and tackle.

The Teenie Weenies seldom use more than two carrots, but they like to store away a few extra for their friend, the Rhyming Rabbit, who is quite old and so crippled with rheumatism that he can't always get food when he needs it during the Winter.

The little people dry most of their vegetables, although the Cook does put up a number of two and three-drop cherry seed jars of berry jam and tomato preserves. Corn, beans and peas are always dried for Winter use and some of the little men are impatient for the coming of the time when the peas are ripe. Peas are much prized by the Teenie Weenies, for they not only supply the little people with food, but with canoes. Pods in which the peas grow can be made into trim little canoes. Several of the Teenie Weenies are fine canoe makers, and these little men watch the vines grow. They study the pods and select the ones which they believe will make the best canoes.

After the pea pod is cut from the plant, it is opened with much care along the back of the pod. The peas are then removed, and work starts on the canoe. The pod is carried to the Teenie Weenie workshop. (This is really an old coffee can, but it makes a fine work place for the little men.) There the canoe is placed on Teenie Weenie work horses outside the shop, if the weather is nice, for the Teenie Weenies love to work outdoors.

First, the pod is given a coat of a certain paint which the Teenie Weenie Doctor has invented. This keeps the pod from drying too quickly. Next, the Old Soldier with the wooden leg carefully takes measurements for the wooden framework which must be built inside the canoe to make it sturdy. The Old Soldier is a fine workman, even though he is no taller than a common safety match, and he usually plans the work for the rest of the little men.

When the measurements for the pea pod have been taken, the little men set to work cutting out the various wooden parts which are needed to strengthen the canoe. Burned matches and other lumber is cut up to furnish the wood necessary for making the canoe seaworthy. As soon as the wooden parts are in place, the canoe is given several coats of waterproof paint, and when that is thoroughly dry, the boat is ready for the water.

Almost all the Teenie Weenie men build pea-pod canoes. The Sailor is very particular about his canoe, and he spends a great deal of time over the work. The Dunce is always in such a hurry to get his canoe done he never makes a very good one. So after he has used it a few times it has to go to the workshop for repairs.

The Teenie Weenies enjoy building their canoes, and the tiny workshop fairly buzzes when the season is on. While the little men work, they are so happy that they often sing an old Teenie Weenie song which runs like this:

Come take a ride in my little canoe
And we'll sail away on the morning dew.
My boat is the pod of a garden pea
And there's plenty of room for you and me.
So come along and I'll sing to you
As we paddle away in my little canoe.

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In The Kitchen - June 17th, 1945

It was a mighty lucky thing that the Cook wasn't in the kitchen when the accident happened. He had set five grains of rice on to boil and he had just stepped off the back porch on his way to the smokehouse to cut some frog ham for supper when a baseball came smashing into the rosebush over head and crashed through the kitchen roof.

Some big boys had been playing ball in the lane that runs near the Teenie Weenie village. The little people could hear the loud crack each time the ball was hit with the bat, but they didn't pay much attention to it, for they often hear people go by. They never dreamed a ball could be hit far enough to land in the village. The little folks were even more frightened when the boys began hunting for the ball because it would be a most unfortunate thing to have the Teenie Weenie village discovered. However, the dense thicket of thorny rosebushes around the tiny houses soon discouraged the boys and they went away loudly complaining over the loss of their ball.

The Cook and the Lady of Fashion were the only Teenie Weenies near the house when the ball fell, but a number of the little men who had been working in the Teenie Weenie garden near by came running when they heard the crash. One end of the kitchen roof, which was covered with waterproofed playing cards, was completely wrecked. The kitchen table had been upset, the kitchen sink had been badly damaged and all the cellophane had been broken out of the window. Although the chimney was knocked off, the stove had not been harmed, and the kettle of rice stood untouched on the tiny stove.

The Teenie Weenies were terribly upset by the accident, and the Cook was so shocked the Teenie Weenie Doctor had to give him some medicine to quiet his shattered nerves.

"Well, we were mighty lucky in spite of all this damage," the General said when he had inspected the wrecked kitchen. "That ball might have hit some of us, and if those big boys had discovered our village in their search we would have had to leave this nice spot and build a new place somewhere else."

"We can patch up the roof for tonight," said the Old Soldier.

"BUT THE BALL!" exclaimed the Cook. "How can I cook supper with that ball filling the place?"

"You'll have to cook around it tonight," laughed the Old Soldier. "Tomorrow we'll tear down the wall because the ball is too big to go through the door. When we built that doorway we never figured we'd have to push baseballs through it."

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Out Of The Kitchen - June 24th, 1945

The big boys who batted the baseball that crashed through the roof of the Teenie Weenie kitchen certainly made a lot of extra work for the little people. None of the Teenie Weenies was hurt but one corner of the kitchen roof was completely ruined. The little people were terribly frightened by the accident, especially when the big boys began hunting for their lost ball in the underbrush where the Teenie Weenie village stands. The little folks began packing up their valuables to be ready to leave the village, but the tangle of thorny rose bushes and the thick brush discouraged the boys and they went away to the great relief of the Teenie Weenies.

The baseball was so big it couldn't be pushed out through the tiny kitchen door, so the little men had to tear some of the walls away in order to get the ball out. It was a lot of work to remove the ball, and the little men had to push and pull with all their tiny might to get it out of the kitchen. The Turk strained his back while pushing and he was laid up for several days under the Doctor's care.

The kitchen sink and a few shelves had to be taken out and one corner of the room had to be removed. Some of the roof timbers and the window frame were broken when the ball crashed into the kitchen, but most of the side walls and the roof covering could be used again, for they were made out of stout playing cards. The drain pipe which carried rain water from the kitchen roof was badly bent and the chimney was damaged but fortunately the Cook was able to report that the kitchen stove wasn't hurt.

When the baseball had been rolled out, the men began to make repairs immediately. They replaced the broken timbers, put new cellophane in the tiny window and replaced the chimney in time for the Cook to get the evening meal. The drain pipe was repaired and the shelves and kitchen sink were put back in place. The next day some of the little men gave the repairs a coat of paint, and no one ever would have known that a baseball had wrecked the place.

"Those big boys will be back here looking for their ball," the General said. "I believe it would be wise to roll it out to the lane where they can easily find it, for we don't want them to find our village."

The Teenie Weenies rolled the ball along their secret trail to the lane, where they left it in plain sight. Just as the General had thought, the boys came back next day to hunt for their ball. They found it exactly where the Teenie Weenies had left it, and the General's forethought probably saved the Teenie Weenie village the tragedy of being discovered.

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The Lover Twins Join the Teenie Weenie Boy Scouts - June 25th, 1922

The Teenie Weenies have a rule in their little community which the big folks would do well to adopt. Every Teenie Weenie boy and girl is made to join the Teenie Weenie Boy and Girl Scouts. When they are old enough to understand they are taken out into the woods, where they live for several weeks each summer, and they are taught how to take care of themselves in the forest.

It was decided that the Lover twins were old enough to take up their training in woodcraft, so they were told to make ready for their entrance into the order of Teenie Weenie Boy Scouts. Mrs. Lover and the Lady of Fashion made the two little fellows each a suit of Scout clothes and the Old Soldier hammered their tiny axes out of the heads of two carpet tacks. He also made them two little hunting knives and each one a pack to carry his belongings in.

The Indian was to take the little fellows into the woods and the twins could hardly wait for the time to start. Mrs. Lover wanted her children to have every comfort on the trip, so she prepared such a lot of things it would have taken one of the trucks to carry it all. There were four nightshirts apiece, six towels apiece, four changes of underwear for each, a bathrobe apiece, four pairs of stockings each, four shirts apiece, an extra pair of shoes each, bedroom slippers, and many more things. The poor Indian was quite excited when he saw this pile of clothes, for he would have to carry most of the baggage and they had a long ways to go.

"One towel apiece heap enough," cried the Indian. "Wash towel out when get dirty and dry in sun. Two pair socks enough. One cake soap too much."

"Yes, the Indian is right," said the General, who saw Mrs. Lover did not agree with the Indian. "They will have all their food and blankets to carry, as well as their pots and kettles."

After a great deal of argument the Indian finally had his way and only the most necessary things were chosen. When the little party was ready to start off it was plainly seen that they could not have carried another thing. The Indian carried most of the load, while each of the twins carried his sweater, ax, coat, and blanket.

After much weeping and kissing on the part of Mrs. Lover the three set off early the next morning toward the big woods. The first night the Indian made a camp beside the little creek which ran out of the woods. He made a bed of dry moss and soft dandelion down under a big mullen leaf, and after the twins had eaten their supper the tired little fellows soon rolled up in their tiny blankets and in spite of the loud cries of the crickets they quickly fell asleep.

It was just getting light the next morning when the Indian routed the twins out, and after they had washed themselves in the clean creek water they sat down to breakfast. The Indian baked delicious pancakes, which he served with wonderful sirup.

"Where did you get the good sirup?' asked Jerry, one of the twins.

"Me get head of white clover," answered the Indian as he skillfully flipped a cake in the tiny frying pan. "Next me pull out little white flowers and squeeze out honey in pan. Then me put over fire and cook down a little and me have sirup."

After breakfast the three travelers set out for the woods, where they arrived early in the afternoon. The Indian set to work at once putting up a shelter, which he built out of poles and bark. The camp was made next to a big stone, on a clean, dry, sandy beach of the creek. The twins helped to cut the poles for the shelter with their tiny axes and they gathered dry moss for the bed, while the Indian tied the frame of the shelter securely with tough grass blades.

"Me want shelter strong," said the Indian, and the little fellow certainly made it strong, for it held the weight of the ground robin, who perched on it occasionally when he visited camp.

There were plenty of wild strawberries nearby, deliciously sweet, and the little campers ate nearly a whole berry at each meal. After the twins had rested for a couple of days the Indian set to work teaching the little fellows the many wonderful things about the woods.

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The Teenie Weenie Boy Scouts In Camp - July 9th, 1922

As soon as the Teenie Weenie children are old enough they are taken out into the woods, where they are taught many useful things. They are told what berries make good food and where to find them; they are taught to swim and how to keep from being lost in the thickest jungle of tall grass.

The Lover twins had joined the Teenie Weenie Boy Scouts, and with the Indian as their guide and teacher they had gone into the big woods for their first lesson in woodcraft. The little campers had a wonderfully snug shelter, which the Indian had built out of sticks, grass, and bark, and their beds were made out of the soft down of the dry dandelion blossom.

The little fellows had spent a week in their tiny camp and the Indian had shown the twins many useful and wonderful things. He taught the two boys how to make a tiny canoe out of birch bark, how to build the frame out of slender sticks, how to bind the bark to the frame with tough grass, and how to make the seams water tight with the pitch from the pine trees. He taught them where to find the ground berry, the raspberry, blackberries, strawberries, huckleberries, and the sassafras and wintergreen, out of which he made tea. The Indian showed them how to get sirup out of the sweet clover blossom, and he explained the use of roots medicine. One day he shot a crawfish and roasted the claws, and when it was thoroughly cooked the three little men scooped the delicious meat out of the shell and ate it.

"This bad time of year to get much food," said the Indian, as the three little fellows sat around their tiny campfire one evening. "Not much berries ripe now. No nuts ripe now. Maybe we get turtle eggs some day. Me go out and look tomorrow."

"Where do you find the turtle eggs?" asked Jerry, one of the twins.

"Turtle he come up on bank of creek and lay eggs in ground," answered the Indian. "Him dig up ground and then sit down in hole and wiggle around until he cover himself all over with dirt. Then he—I mean she—lay heap many eggs, but we must get eggs while them heap fresh or them much no good. After turtle lay eggs he—I mean she—get out of ground and go back to water in creek, and eggs they hatch out into little turtles in maybe four, five, six weeks."

After breakfast the next morning the Indian took his tiny gun and with the twins following close behind he set off down the bank of the creek in search of a turtle's nest. He searched for a long time without finding a sign of a nest and finally stopped to ask a ground squirrel they met if he had seen any signs of turtles making nests along the creek.

"Clip my whiskers, if I didn't see one yesterday," answered the squirrel.

"She was a pretty good sized one, and I think she had just come off her nest. I didn't pay much attention to her, as I was busy huntin' for some nuts I buried last fall."

The squirrel kindly led the three Teenie Weenies along the bank of the creek and pointed to the place where he had seen the turtle. The Indian's keen eyes soon found the place where the nest was, and, chopping a stick with his tiny ax, he set to work digging in the sand. Presently he uncovered a white object, and in a few minutes he lifted a big white turtle egg out of the hole.

"There, that will keep us in food for a long time," said the Indian, as he rolled the egg out. "Now we fill the hole up again and the turtle she never miss it."

"Hadn't we better get some more?" asked one of the twins, for the Indian had uncovered several of the eggs and had explained that there were probably two dozen in the nest.

"No. One egg him plenty to eat for long time," cried the Indian.

The Indian made a tiny raft out of sticks which he lashed together with grapevine bark, and, pushing this into the creek, he loaded the egg on to it and poled down the stream to camp. That night the little campers dined on turtle egg, and, although they ate all they could hold, there was quite enough egg left to last for several days.

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A Blue Jay Plays A Joke On The Indian - July 16th, 1922

The two Teenie Weenie Boy Scouts, the Lover twins, had learned great deal about wood craft during their two weeks in the woods with the Indian. They learned how to make a bark canoe, how to make drinking cups out of seeds, and they learned that acorns make handy buckets. The Indian taught them where to look for the many berries that grow in the woods and where to find the crawfish and turtle eggs.

"You fellows learn much fast about woods. You pretty smart maybe, so we will start home at sunup in morning," announced the Indian while the three little people sat about their tiny campfire.

"0, we don't want to go home!" wailed the twins. "We are having such a nice time. Please, can't we stay a few days more?"

"No, can't do," answered the Indian. "Your ma, she say two weeks, no more, so we go home in morning."

Before sunup the next morning the Indian routed out the sleepy twins, and when they had eaten their breakfast each Teenie Weenie gathered up his belongings and did them up into a neat pack. The Indian had carried the canoe down to the creek, and when the campfire had been put out they were all ready for the trip.

"Where my gun?" asked the Indian, looking around the little clearing where they had camped.

"I saw it leaning against that acorn over there," answered Jerry, one of the twins. "It was there when we went out to get wood for the fire a little while ago."

The Indian and the twins hunted for almost an hour for the lost gun. They looked under every leaf all around the camp, but they could not find it. They asked their friends, the ground robin and a chipmunk, to help hunt for the gun, and even these bright eyed creatures of the woods could not find it.

"Well," said the Indian, addressing the bird and the squirrel, "we must go, and if you find the gun just hang it up on a branch of that bush over there, and I will come out maybe next week and look again."

The bird and the squirrel promised, and the three Teenie Weenies pushed off in their tidy canoe up the creek towards home.

It was a beautiful morning, and the little fellows enjoyed the trip, as the tiny canoe slipped silently along, gliding beneath the big ferns which overhung the water. The water was quite swift at times, and at several places the Indian was forced to lift the canoe over sticks and dead leaves. Presently the Teenie Weenies came to a place where the water ran too swiftly among the pebbles and sticks for the tiny boat to get through.

"We'll have to portage here," said the Indian, as he ran the nose of the canoe into the shore.

"What's portage mean?" asked one of the twins.

"It means can't get canoe through, so have to walk and carry everything," answered the Indian.

The Indian lifted the canoe out of the water, and, tossing it over his head, he let it rest on his shoulders.

"Now one of you kids go in front and the other in behind and watch that canoe, him don't get caught by trees as we go through woods," said the Indian.

The three little chaps set off through the deep woods beside the rushing water, stopping now and then while twigs and leaves were cut away in order to let the canoe through.

"Hey, there!" cried a voice as the little fellows tramped along, and, looking up, they saw their friend, the ground robin, standing on a stick of wood which lay over the water.

In his beak was the Indian's gun.

"I found it," said the bird, as he caught the gun in his foot, in order to talk plainer. "That fool Blue Jay that lives over near where you fellows were camping stole your gun, and a short time after you left he told me about it. He seemed to think it was a great joke. I gave him a piece of my mind, that's what I did, and I got the gun from him and flew after you."

The Indian was happy to get his gun, and he thanked the bird many times for his kindness. All day long the little men paddled up the creek, stopping occasionally to make a portage, and at night they stopped beside the stream where they cooked their supper and made camp for the night. The howling of the crickets and mosquitoes made a terrible noise but the three Teenie Weenies were so tired it never bothered them a bit and they slept straight through the night.

The little fellows arrived at the shoe house during the afternoon, and they were given a hearty welcome by the Teenie Weenies. Mrs. Lover hugged and kissed her boys, and laughed and cried and did so many strange things in her joy at having her children home again that the twins thought she had lost her mind, but that's a strange way mothers have. Whether they are big mothers or just Teenie Weenie mothers, they are pretty much alike.

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In A Sugar Bowl - June 7th, 1942

Ginky was a mischievous mouse. He was in the habit of getting into big people's houses, where he thought nothing of nibbling through cream bottle caps and gnawing into breakfast food packages on pantry shelves.

The Teenie Weenies were polite to the mouse, but they had little to do with him. However, the Dunce seemed to spend considerable time with Ginky, and the General warned that happy-go-lucky Teenie Weenie that he would get into trouble sooner or later if he continued to run around with the mouse.

"Ah, Ginky is all right," Dunce insisted. "He's lots of fun, and besides, I know enough to take care of myself."

"Well, time will tell," smiled the General, and time did tell very shortly.

One morning the Dunce and Ginky sat down behind the tool house to talk. The Dunce, who had a large sweet tooth for such a small person, complained about the shortage of sugar.

"Bunk!" exclaimed Ginky. "I know where there is enough sugar to fill this tool house. It's in a sugar bowl and there is no top on the bowl."

"Yeh, but it's not my sugar," said the Dunce.

"Well, you just said that you Teenie Weenies didn't have enough sugar, and here's this bowl with stacks in it. Why should those big people have all that sugar while you haven't any?" asked Ginky with a sly look. "Do you think that's fair?"

"Well, I don't know," the Dunce said doubtfully.

"Of course, it's not fair," Ginky came back "Let's go over there and get some. I'll let you down into the bowl and you can get a hatful. Those big folk would never miss a hatful."

"No, that wouldn't be right," said the Dunce. "It would be stealing."

"Aw, cat's whiskers!" exclaimed Ginky. "We could go over to that house and look at it, couldn't we?"

After much argument, Ginky finally talked the Dunce into going to see the sugar. The mouse led the way to the house, and they climbed up onto the table where the big sugar bowl stood. It was easy to climb up one of the handles, and the Dunce and Ginky were soon staring down into the bowl, which was about one-third full of sugar.

"Jinks!" exclaimed the Dunce. "I wish I had a hatful."

"Jump in and get some," suggested Ginky with a wicked grin, "and I'll pull you out with my tail."

"No, you won't get me into that bowl said the Dunce.

"Oh, yes, I will," laughed Ginky, and he gave the Dunce a push and sent him tumbling headlong into the bowl. Fortunately, the Dunce was not hurt by the fall. But he was very angry at Ginky. "Hey, you bum! You get me out of here!" he yelled.

"Get your self out," sneered Ginky. With that he disappeared, leaving the Dunce a prisoner, for it was quite impossible to climb up the hard, smooth sides of the bowl.

The poor Dunce was a prisoner for hours before the Teenie Weenies found him. The Cowboy pulled him out with his tiny lasso, while Ginky snickered from a safe place.

"I'll get even with you!" shouted the Dunce when he saw Ginky leering at him from the top of a box that stood on the table.

The mouse only thumbed his nose and disappeared.

"There will be no need of getting even with Ginky if you keep away from him," said the General.

"Yes, sir," answered the Dunce, meekly.

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Bottled Up - September 20th, 1942

Some weeks ago Ginky the mouse pushed the Dunce into a sugar bowl. The Dunce couldn't crawl up the smooth sides of the bowl, and he was there for some hours before the Teenie Weenies found him and pulled him out.

The Dunce was very angry with the mouse for that trick, and he watched for a chance to get even.

One day the Dunce and Gogo had gone to the dump, where the big folk throw away their trash, to look for anything that might be useful to the Teenie Weenies.

They discovered a pint vinegar bottle from which they removed the metal screw top, for the Chinaman was in need of a new wash tub, and bottle tops make excellent wash tubs and cooking pots.

While the two Teenie Weenies were removing the bottle top, the Dunce happened to see Ginky peering around a piece of broken dinner plate. The Dunce never let on that he had seen the mouse, but he began to think of some trick to play on Ginky. Suddenly an idea popped into his head and he whispered to Gogo.

"Y'all had bettah leave that mouse alone," Gogo whispered back. "We allers get into trouble when we're sociable with him! That mouse is a bad luck mouse if they evah was one!"

"Well, he can't go pushin' me into sugar bowls and get away with it," argued the Dunce.

The two Teenie Weenies dropped the top onto the ground and pretended to be interested in something inside the bottle.

The Dunce crawled into the neck of the bottle and, pulling a piece of peanut about the size of a garden pea from his pocket, he threw it into the empty bottle.

He then crawled out, dropped to the ground and, motioning Gogo to follow, the two little chaps pretended to wander off. But they really hid behind a tin can near by.

Presently, they heard Ginky, who is very curious, come from behind the broken plate and move toward the bottle. Then the Dunce saw the mouse climb up and crawl into the bottle.

"Come on!" he whispered to Gogo. "We'll put that top on the bottle before Ginky has a chance to get out."

The two Teenie Weenies dashed to the bottle and, before the mouse discovered them, they had the top half screwed on.

"There!" shouted the Dunce as he made a face at the frantic mouse. "Now you'll see how it feels to be a prisoner!"

The next morning, while the Teenie Weenies were at breakfast, the Dunce told how he had bottled up Ginky.

"Was the top screwed on tight?" asked the Doctor.

"Sure!" laughed the Dunce.

"Well, we'd better get there quick and remove that top," said the Doctor. "That poor mouse may be a goner!"

"Goner?" gasped the Dunce.

"Why, certainly," answered the Doctor. "Nothing can live without fresh air!" Snatching up his tiny medicine case, he started toward the dump on the run.

The mouse was unconscious, but he still breathed.

"Get him out of here!" ordered the Doctor.

Several men lifted the mouse up to the neck of the bottle, and then they pulled him out by his long tail.

The Doctor gave Ginky first aid treatment, and presently he opened his eyes.

He was quite weak, but soon he was able to walk, and he went off after giving the Dunce a nasty look.

The General saw that the Dunce was sorry for what he had thoughtlessly done. He felt, though, that the Dunce ought to have some slight punishment, so he ordered him to carry a lead pencil stub on his shoulder 15 times around the shoe house.

"Just to help you remember that it's a very unwise thing to try to get even with a foolish mouse," the General said.

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The Dunce Leaves Home - May 14th, 1922

There was no use denying the fact — the Dunce was just as bad as he could be. It might have been the spring weather which caused all his naughtiness, but it is more likely it was caused by a letter the Teenie Weenies received.

A few weeks ago a little girl wrote to them and said she felt sorry for the Dunce. "I think I could help him to be a good boy, don't you?" she wrote. "If the Dunce would come and live with me I would make a good boy out of him. Please let him come."

After this letter had been opened and read by the Teenie Weenies, the Dunce was so stuck up there was no living with him. He got into all sorts of trouble. One morning he dropped the head of a match down the spout of the old tea pot which served the Chinaman as a chimney for his laundry, and when it landed in the fire it exploded, blowing the lids off the tiny stove, and scaring the poor Chinaman nearly out of a year's growth.

The Dunce ran away several times when he should have been helping with the work all Teenie Weenies have to do, and the General sent him bed once without a bite of supper, but it did not seem to do a bit of good.

"If you'd ask me," growled Grandpa one evening after the Dunce had put salt in his malted milk, "I'd say he needs a good tannin'. If I had my way I'd take him out in the woodshed and I'd get a good stout blade of grass and I'd give him a good lickin'."

"Why, grandfather!" exclaimed the Lady of Fashion, "the Dunce isn't a bad boy. He's just full of fun and he really doesn't mean to be naughty."

"Well, if you call puttin' salt in malted milk and stealin' half a thimbleful of fried cakes fun, then I haven't got a sense of humor," growled the old gentleman, glaring over the top of his tiny spectacles.

"He really didn't take half a thimbleful of fried cakes," said the Cook. "There was only about a dozen and a half in the thimble."

"Land sakes!" gasped Grandpa, looking shocked. "A dozen and a half! That's enough to make a strong man sick. Did he have the stomachache?"

"No," laughed the Cook. "I suppose he gave most of them away."

The very next morning the Dunce caught an ant and turned it loose in Box Hall, where the Guff sisters lived, scaring the four little women half out of their wits. Miss Guff reported the matter at once to the General, and the head of the Teenie Weenies had the Policeman bring the Dunce to the shoe house.

"Now, Dunce," said the General when the Dunce stood before him, "do you think you are behaving like a gentleman?"

"N-N-No, sir," answered the Dunce.

"Well, I don't think you are either, and I want you to understand we can't stand for this foolishness a bit longer, and unless you turn over a new leaf and behave yourself you are going to get into trouble."

"Well, if you all don't like the way I behave around here I'm goin' to go and live with that little girl who wrote and asked me to come and live with her," said the Dunce.

"I believe that would be a good thing to do," answered the General. "She said that she would make a good boy out of you, and I think you had better go."

"Ah-ah-all right!" exclaimed the Dunce. "I'll go and get a few of my things and leave right away."

The Dunce stamped out of the room, and, running upstairs, he soon gathered a few of his clothes into a bundle.

The news quickly spread around under the rose bush that the Dunce was leaving, and when the foolish fellow stepped out on to the front porch a number of the Teenie Weenies were gathered about the old shoe.

"Well, good-by, Dunce," called the General as the Dunce shuffled off. "When you feel that you can behave yourself you will be welcomed back home."

The Dunce never answered a word, but walked rapidly away, and tears gathered in the eyes of some of the little people, for, in spite of his foolishness, the Dunce was much loved by the Teenie Weenies.

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The Poor Dunce Has A Hard Day's Tramp - May 21st, 1922

"I don't care," muttered the Dunce as he shuffled out from beneath the rose bush. "I won't stand bein' scolded all the time, so I'll just leave 'em and go and live with that nice little girl."

At the end of the garden he turned around and looked longingly at the edge of the shoehouse roof, which showed over the top of a little hill. Two great tears gathered in his eyes, but brushing them away the poor Dunce set off toward the big road.

The Dunce had never thought to put food in his package, and after he had tramped all morning he discovered he was frightfully hungry.

"Jinks!" he thought to himself, "I wish I had some of the Cook's good doughnuts." Presently he found a banana skin lying beside the road, which some big person had thrown away, and from the skin he was able to eat all he could hold.

Late in the afternoon the Dunce's feet began to ache and smart. He bathed them in a tiny stream of water, but still they hurt, and he wished many times for a ride.

"I might get a bird to carry me on its back," be said to himself.

A little farther on he saw a sparrow beside the road, and he asked the bird to give him a lift.

"I'll take you' a ways for twenty-five grains of wheat," said the bird, looking the Dunce over suspiciously.

"I-I haven't got a bit of wheat," answered the Dunce.

"What!" exclaimed the bird. "Do you expect me to carry you for nothing?" And giving the poor Dunce a nasty look, it flew away.

The Dunce limped on for several miles, and finally he spied three young fuzzy chickens beside the road.

"Chickens are always kind hearted," thought the Dunce. "I'll speak to them."

"I say," cried the Dunce as he walked up to the three chickens, who stood staring at him, "is there any place around here where I could get a bite to eat and a place to sleep tonight?"

Why, you'd better come in and talk to our mother," answered one of the chickens in a high, piping voice. "My ma, she knows everything. She'll tell you." The three chickens led the Dunce into a big yard where a small coop stood, and as they walked up to the coop an old hen popped her big head out between the slats.

"Pardon me, madam," said the Dunce, taking off his hat, for in spite of his foolishness the Dunce had proper manners; "I have just been asking your children whether I could get a bite to eat and a place to sleep tonight."

"Why, yes," cackled the hen, who was quite impressed with the Dunce's polite ways. "We'll be fed pretty soon, and you're welcome to all you can eat. I only have three children, and I'd be glad to take you in for the night. You can snuggle right down under my feathers and you'll keep just as warm as a pinfeather."

The Dunce thanked her politely for her kindness, and sat down to rest his tired feet while the hen talked to him.

Presently a woman came out of the big house near by and threw several handfuls of wheat and corn to the chickens. When she had gone, the Dunce, who bad hidden behind the coop when the woman appeared, came out and ate several grains of wheat, after they had soaked for some time in a can of water which stood near.

"Now, my dear," said the hen when their supper had been eaten, "it's growing dark and you can climb right up in my nest and spend the night."

Now, the Dunce had once spent the night in a duck's nest, and he had been nearly eaten up by insects, so he politely refused the hen's invitation. He soon found an empty bottle nearby into which he dragged his tired little body, and, using his bundle of clothes for a pillow, he soon fell into a deep sleep.

The poor Dunce would not have gone to sleep so easily had he known that two small, bright eyes had watched him crawl into the bottle.

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The Dunce Falls Among Thieves – May 28th, 1922

When the Dunce awakened the next morning he was terribly stiff after his long walk of the day before, and he ached in every muscle as he climbed out of the bottle where he had spent the night.

"Good morning, my dear," cried the old hen, who with her three chickens was busy eating breakfast, which had been spread on the ground in front of the coop. "You are just in time for breakfast."

The Dunce quickly washed his face and hands in the pan of fresh water that stood in front of the coop. Picking up two large grains of wheat for his morning meal, the little chap made a tiny cup out of a plantain leaf, into which he put the grains of wheat and covered them with a few drops of water.

"You'd better gather up a few grains to take along with you," suggested the hen. "It always best to have food along when you are traveling. You never can tell when you might need it. You can't travel well on an empty craw."

"Thank you for the suggestion," answered the Dunce. "I might want to get a bird to carry me over a river or something, and birds always want pay for what they do." The Dunce picked up ten grains of wheat and put them into the bundle with his clothes.

"Now, remember this," warned the old hen while the Dunce wrapped up the bundle. "Don't let the birds see how much wheat you've got. Never show your wealth, for once they find out how much you have they won't be satisfied until they get it."

The two grains of wheat which had been soaking were now soft, so the Dunce sat down and ate one of them for his breakfast. Picking up his bundle and stick, the Dunce thanked the old hen for her kindness. "Well, I'd better be on my way," he said.

"You'll find a lot of grackles down the road a ways, and I want to say you had better give those birds a wide berth," cried the old hen. "They're the worst thieves in the world, and you had better not have anything to do with them."

The Dunce thanked her for her advice, and set off down the big road toward the town in which the little girl lived who bad invited him to come and live with her.

After he had walked for a while his tiny feet began to ache, and he wished he had not left the shoe house. Presently he saw several grackles near the road, and the little chap wished more and more that he was safe at home under the rose bush.

At noon the little traveler stopped at a small stream of water, where he found the top of a salve box. He filled it with water and, building a fire under it, he took a grain of wheat out of his bundle and put in on to boil. When the wheat was done the little chap fished it out, and when it had cooled he peeled off the outer skin and ate it eagerly to the last crumb. The tired little fellow felt sleepy after his lunch, so he decided to take a short nap, and, making himself comfortable in the shade of a bush nearby, he lay down beside a big stone to sleep.

The poor little chap did not sleep long, for he was soon awakened by a loud, rasping voice, and, opening his eyes, he was horrified to see two big evil looking grackles staring at him.

"How do you do?" said the Dunce, jumping to his feet and bowing politely.

The grackles seemed to be pleasant fellows, so the Dunce soon became quite friendly, and told them who he was and where he was going.

"You have a long ways to go," said one of the birds. "I'd be glad to carry you part way on my back for a few grains of wheat."

"I'll give you five grains if you will carry me five miles," said the Dunce.

"It's a bargain," answered the bird.

The Dunce quickly opened his bundle and counted out five grains of wheat.

"You've got some more there, haven't you?" asked one of the birds, staring at the bundle with his big yellow eye.

"Y-y-yes, s-s-sir, b-b-but I've got to save a little to eat myself," answered the startled Dunce.

"Well," said the bird, winking at his companion, "my friend here can't be left out, so if you want us to help you, you will have to give him a share, too."

There was nothing to do but put out the other four grains of wheat, for the Dunce was now greatly frightened, particularly as they were in a lonely place.

The two big birds quickly gobbled up the wheat, and then, winking at each other, they burst into a loud laugh and flew away.

"I-I-I've been r-r-r-robbed!" cried the Dunce, and leaning against a big stone, he burst into tears.

Not far away lay a big log, and around its edge a keen pair of eyes watched the weeping Dunce.

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The Dunce Is Kidnapped – June 4th, 1922

For a long time the poor Dunce sat and cried over the loss, his wheat. "They're just lowdown thieves and robbers!" sobbed the Dunce. "Takin' all my food and not keepin' their promise. I-I-I wish I hadn't left home. I haven't had anything but hard luck since I left and I'm goin' back again."

The Dunce wrapped up the bundle of clothes out of which he had taken the wheat and, hanging it to a stick over his shoulder, he limped off in the direction of home. The poor fellow's feet were blistered and sore and he made very slow progress, for he had to stop and rest every little while.

Presently he noticed two large birds light on a bush near the road; and when he drew near he was quite alarmed, as he recognized the two Crackles who had robbed him. He quickly hid under a mullein leaf, but the birds saw him, and presently they flew to the road and walked up to his hiding place.

"I say," said one of the birds, peering under the mullein leaf with one big yellow eye, "we've been lookin' for you and we've come back to pay you for the wheat you gave us. Just come on out and climb on my back and I'll take you the five miles we promised to carry you for the wheat."

"I-I-I have decided to go back home, so I won't trouble you to give me a lift," answered the Dunce, for something told him not to trust the birds.

The birds looked knowingly at each other and, walking off a few feet, they whispered together for a few minutes.

"Well, come on out of there," growled one of the birds, and, reaching his big head under the leaf, he caught the frightened Dunce by the sleeve with his beak and pulled the poor fellow out.

Getting a good stout grip on the Dunce's collar, the two birds flew up into the air and carried the frightened Teenie Weenie to the top of a tree fully a mile away.

"Wh-wh-what's the i-i-idea?" gasped the scared Dunce when he had been set on a swaying limb high above the ground.

"Shut up!" snapped one of the birds. "You keep quiet or you'll get your head pecked off."

The poor Dunce clung to the limb, while the two birds talked for some minutes. From the conversation of the birds the Dunce soon found that he was being held for ransom.

"I'll fly over about the rose bush where these Tiny Winnies live and see how the ground lies," said one of the birds. "We ought to get five hundred grains of wheat for this fellow, so you watch him while I'm away." And the bird flew off.

For a long time the Dunce sat astride the limb looking for some means of escape, but there was absolutely no chance to get away, for one of the birds sat on the limb next to the tree trunk and there was not a single limb within reach. The bird napped in the warm sunshine, every now and then opening his big yellow eye to watch the Dunce, but presently the bird fell into a deep sleep.

After a time the Dunce was attracted by a slight noise over his head and, looking up, he was astonished to see the Teenie Weenie Indian crawling out on a limb overhead. The Indian motioned the Dunce to be quiet, and then quickly threw the end of a thread down to him. Very cautiously the Dunce caught the thread and quickly climbed to the limb above. Being good climbers, the two Teenie Weenies soon made their way down to the ground, where they lost little time in finding a place to hide.

"We hide here till night," grunted the Indian. "When night comes we start for home. Bird no see us in night; he sleep, we safe."

While the two Teenie Weenies lay in hiding the Indian told the astonished Dunce how he had followed him. "When you go away, General he told me to follow you and see you no get into trouble. Me follow right behind and when me see bird take you off me climb tree and get you."

When night same on the two little fellows crawled out of their hiding place and set off for home. They arrived at the shoe house late the next morning, where they were given a royal welcome by the Teenie Weenies.

"I'm home for good," announced the Dunce after he had eaten two slices of frog ham, two grains of boiled rice, and almost a dozen doughnuts. "I'm goin' to behave myself, and, what's more, no one could ever get me to leave home; no, sir, not for a whole chocolate drop would I ever leave the old shoe house again."

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The Dunce Falls Into A Cup Of Coffee - May 18th, 1941

The Teenie Weenies are such a very small people that one of the little men could dive into a glass of water and have plenty of space to swim about. One raisin supplies a dessert for the entire tribe, and one olive would last for several days.

The Teenie Weenies live under a certain rose bush. There they have made a man’s shoe into a cozy little house. Being so small, they try to keep out of the big people’s way, but they do love to see what the big people do, so they often visit their houses when the occupants are away.

One Sunday morning several of the little folk decided to go for a walk. Presently it began to rain and that was most dangerous for such small people. One drop of rain would knock a Teenie Weenie completely off his feet, if it should hit him. So they all ran toward a big house for shelter. They crawled through the crack under a door and found themselves in a kitchen.

The little folk amused themselves for some time, wandering about the place. The Dunce, who is a very curious little fellow, climbed up onto a table. Then he shouted for the rest to come up. The Teenie Weenies are good climbers, and soon they scrambled to the top of the table.

The Dunce and the Cook climbed up onto a cup, which stood on the table. They began racing each other about the edge of the cup, which was nearly filled with coffee. Suddenly the Dunce slipped and fell, with a great splash. The Dunce is a good swimmer, even in coffee, and he quickly climbed up a spoon and dropped to the table. He was dripping with coffee, but the laughing Teenie Weenies dried him off by rolling him in a paper napkin which they found on the table.

The General, who is head of the Teenie Weenie family, ordered the Policeman to take the Dunce home. "Make him take a bath and send him to bed until supper time," said the General.

"S-s-say!" sputtered the Dunce. "I didn't hurt the coffee!"

"Do you suppose anyone wants to drink that coffee after you have been wallowing around in it?" asked the General.

The Policeman went off with the protesting Dunce while the rest of the Teenie Weenies set to work penciling, in huge letters, a note on a piece of paper napkin. When the note was done, the little folk fastened it to the handle of the spoon, and this is what it said:

"Don't drink this coffee. Someone fell into it."

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A Hungry Rabbit - May 25th, 1941

"General!" said the Teenie Weenie Cowboy. "There's a rabbit over on the next street that's hungry. The boy who owns him has gone on a visit."

"We've got to feed him," said the General. "We can't let a neighbor starve."

"I know where there is a carrot!" cried the Dunce, "Some big folks threw it out this morning. It's a big one, too."

The Dunce led the Teenie Weenies to the spot where the carrot lay, and the little men began dragging it to the rabbit's house.

There was a board nailed to the front of the rabbit's house. So the Teenie Weenies were forced to boost the carrot over that board, which was 20 Teenie Weenie feet above the ground. That is only 5 inches in our measurement, but to the Teenie Weenies it was a great distance to lift such a heavy thing as a carrot.

The Old Soldier with the wooden leg brought along some string which he tied around the top of the carrot. With some pushing and others pulling, the little men finally managed to get the carrot into the rabbit's house.

The poor rabbit was nearly starved, and he began eating and trying to thank the Teenie Weenies at one and the same time.

"I don't think it is polite to try to talk with your mouth full of food," the Dunce said to the Turk.

"Of course it isn't polite," said the Turk; "but you've got to remember that the rabbit is terribly hungry and that excuses him in this case."

"Well, I've seen you talk with your mouth full of food," said the Cook, pointing toward the Dunce. "Only yesterday you asked me for another doughnut while you had your mouth full of the one I had given you a moment before."

"Well, I was hungry, too!" cried the Dunce.

"You're always hungry," laughed the Cook. "Especially for doughnuts. I believe you could eat a thimbleful of doughnuts and still be hungry."

The boy who owned the rabbit came home the next day, and it was not necessary for the Teenie Weenies to feed the rabbit again.

"I'm glad that boy came home," said the Teenie Weenie Sailor. "I strained my back lifting that carrot, and I don't want to lift any more until my back gets better."

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The Water Was Fine, But— - 1919

Along about midnight one dark, windy night, the Teenie Weenies were all awakened by a most unusual sound. There was loud crackling and the old shoe house shook from toe to heel.

"It's an earthq-q-quake!" shouted the Dunce, sitting up in his tiny bed with eyes as big as coffee beans.

"Ah, keep quiet and let a fellow sleep," growled the Turk. "It's nothing but a newspaper that has blown against the house."

The Turk had guessed right, for the next morning the Teenie Weenies found an old newspaper jammed up against the front porch.

The General ordered the Dunce, Gogo and Zip to remove the paper, to cut it up into small pieces, and burn it. The three little chaps went to work and they labored all morning tearing the big paper away and burning it. By lunch time the work was done and the three Teenie Weenies were told that they could spend the rest of the day to suit themselves.

"Let's go over to the big brown house and see if we can find somethin' good to eat," suggested the Dunce.

""Ah, you all the time wantin' somethin' to eat," answered Gogo, who was much disgusted with the Dunce's suggestion, for the little fellows had just left the Teenie Weenie dinner table.

"It much too hot today. Me all baked dry. Let's go bathe in creek," said Zip, fanning himself with a rose petal.

"Oh, j-j-j-jimminie fish hooks," exploded the Dunce ‘We can't go in the water for an hour for we just had dinner and you're liable to get cramps if you go in swimmin' too soon after eatin'."

"Well, we all can just kind of stroll down to the creek, kinda slow like and then we can all sit down and rest a little and then it will be about time to go in the water," put in Gogo.

Zip and the Dunce considered Gogo's plan a good one, so the three Teenie Weenies slowly made their way to the creek, where they lay down under the cool shade of a great fern.

"How we all going to know when it has been an hour since we had our dinner?" asked the Dunce.

"Well, we all can count five hundred, kinda slow like, and then it will be about time for us to go in the water," answered Gogo.

"Well, we all can count five hundred, kinda slow like, and then it will be about time for us to go in the water," answered Gogo.After the three Teenie Weenies had counted five hundred, they threw off their clothes, piled them on a big stone, and jumped into the cool water. The little fellows splashed about in the water for some time and they never suspected that a very mischievous yellow eye was, watching them from the boughs of a nearby brush. The yellow eye belonged to a big purple crackle and he never lost a chance to make trouble for the Teenie Weenies.

Suddenly he flew down to the bank of the stream and before the little swimmers could get to the bank he caught up their clothes in his black bill and jumped onto an old tree branch.

"Well, goodbye, folks," laughed the bird. "A pleasant journey home," and spreading his wings he flew into the air, and disappeared over the tree tops with the Teenie Weenie's clothes.

The bird had taken all the clothes belonging to the Teenie Weenies except their shoes and stockings and hats, and Zip's shirt. The three Teenie Weenies couldn't go home without any clothes, so they were forced to wrap leaves about their bodies and in this manner they reached the shoe house. All the Teenie Weenies considered it a good bit of fun, but Zip, Gogo, and the Dunce could never see the joke.

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The Women Lose Their Clothes While Swimming - September 14th, 1924

"Oh dear me I do wish we had our bathing suits along," said the Lady of Fashion. "I'm so hot I'm afraid my clothes will catch fire."

Three of the Teenie Weenie women had gone for a walk and they had found the day quite sultry, so they had stopped in a cool spot beside the creek to rest.

"I don't see why we can't go in without bathing suits. No one will come along here in a frog's age," suggested Tess Guff.

Both Mrs. Lover, and the Lady of Fashion looked shocked at the suggestion—but it was such a hot day, so they timidly peeled off their tiny clothes.

With many suppressed shrieks and squeals, the little women soon became accustomed to the cool water and they paddled about like tiny mermaids.

A busy Lady Bug paused a moment in her flight to view the pretty sight and a lazy frog, across the creek, dozed with one eye on the bathers.

"Suppose some one should come along and discover us," nervously suggested the Lady of Fashion.

"It's just as easy to suppose some one doesn't discover us, and that's what I am going to suppose," answered Tess, and she dived down into the blue green water.

While the little ladies were enjoying themselves in water, an old squirrel happened along. She was looking for thistledown and lacy bark with which to repair her nest, and when she spied the Teenie Weenie clothes on the shore she quickly gathered them up in her claws and scampered off. The horrified Teenie Weenies saw the squirrel run up a huge tree and disappear into a hollow limb.

"Oh dear me, what will we do?" cried the Lady of Fashion as she crawled up the bank "What will we wear home?"

"Well, there are plenty of leaves around and we won't be the first women to wear them," answered Tess.

All their clothes were gone but their shoes, so the little women tried to wrap them selves in leaves, but the leaves were so rough, and scratched their tender skin so badly, they were forced to give up the idea.

At last they discovered a small paper box and Tess had a brilliant idea. She pounded three holes in the top of the box with a sharp stone. Then the three little women lifted the box in the air, got under it, let it down and popped their heads through the holes.

"It's lucky we found this closed body instead of touring car," said Tess, when the box was in place. "Home, James."

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Teenie Weenie Clothes Are Taken While Skinny Dipping - July 1st, 1934

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First Swim – May 10th, 1942

The Teenie Weenies had seen nothing of Ginky since his fight with the Dunce. But the little people knew that the mouse had been around the shoe house, for they found where Ginky had upset the rainwater thimble under the spout near the kitchen door. One morning they found that the Teenie, Weenie garbage pail had disappeared from the back porch and they discovered it hanging among the topmost branches of a blackberry bush. Mouse tracks under the bush plainly told that Ginky was the guilty mouse.

Tilly Titter, the sparrow, told the Teenie Weenies that she had it straight from a chipmunk, who heard it from a house wren that Ginky had told a blue jay that he would get even with the Teenie Weenies for putting him out of the dance on the night of the Teenie Weenies' big party It was reported that he was especially angry at the Dunce, and that he would give the Dunce a good thrashing if he ever caught that Teenie Weenie alone.

"That's pretty big talk," said the General, "and I don't want any more of it. There will be no fighting around here; and I want you to remember that."

Nothing more was heard about Ginky. Then one day he appeared, much to the embarrassment of four prominent Teenie Weenies. The Dunce, Gogo, the Cook and the Cowboy had gone to the creek in search of meat. The Teenie Weenie winter supply of smoked frog was almost gone and the little men hoped to get some fresh meat. Although they hunted for several hours they did not see a single frog.

"Say!" exclaimed the Dunce, mopping his round head with a Teenie Weenie handkerchief that was about as big as a postage stamp. "Let's go in for a swim."

"That's a fine idea," said the Cowboy, and he began to pull off his clothes. The rest of the Teenie Weenies quickly undressed and hung their tiny garments on the leaves of a plantain which stood on the shore of the creek. They all plunged into the cool water and paddled about with the ease of minnows. Presently the little swimmers heard a squeaking laugh from the shore. There was Ginky in the act of gathering up their clothes. They shouted at the mouse and made for the shore. But before they could climb the bank, the mouse has disappeared into some tall grass with most of their clothing.

In his haste Ginky had overlooked a few things. The Cowboy's boots had been overlooked and so had one of the Dunce's shoes. They found one of Gogo's stockings and then the Cowboy caught sight of his hat, halfway up the bank where Ginky had dropped it.

"We'll have to stay here until night and then sneak home in the dark," said the Cook.

"I'm going to get a shirt from that tree," said the Cowboy, and grasping a small leaf that hung from a low-growing bush, he pulled it off and wrapped it around his plumb little body. The other Teenie Weenies gathered leaves and when they had wrapped themselves they all set off for home.

They had only gone a short distance when a friendly chipmunk informed them that Ginky had hidden their clothes under some wintergreen leaves nearby. The chipmunk showed them the place and there they found their clothes. Everything was there except Gogo's other stocking.

"That wasn't losin' much," the little colored fellow said, "fo' it was mostly a hole in de toe."

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New Baby Sitter - December 3rd, 1967

One Saturday afternoon Mrs. Turk and Aunt Tess wanted to attend a meeting of the school board, but they could not get a baby-sitter. The Old Soldier with a wooden leg, who is fond of children, was busy in the Teenie Weenie workshop and Gogo was helping the Cook.

"Nipper is getting old enough to look after Zero and Judy," suggested Mrs. Turk. "We won't be gone long and, the responsibility will be good for him."

"Probably," said Aunt Tess doubtfully, "unless he gets too interested in his play to think of them."

Giving Nipper much advice on the care of the younger children, the two women left for the meeting at the school house. After a short time at the meeting, Aunt Tess decided she would go home and see how the children were getting along. When she opened the front door at the coffee pot house where the Turks live, she found the living room in disorder. "Well!" she said, "looks as though a cyclone has hit the place."

"It's her," wailed Nipper, pointing towards Judy, who was in a desperate struggle with Zero over a candlestick one of them had taken from the table. "She gets into things faster than I can stop her. She upset a thimbleful of water, and while I was looking for a mop to clean it up, she pulled the tablecloth off."

Judy let go of the candlestick and Zero gave it to Aunt Tess.

"I tried to get Judy to play ball, but she is always changing her mind and wants to do some thing else," Nipper complained. "I had an awful time trying to keep her from eating a candle. The reason the firewood is scattered all around is because I had to let her drag it out of the wood box to keep her quiet."

"Nipper, it seems to me that you have been trying to handle a stick of dynamite," said Aunt Tess. "Now I'll take the baby upstairs and put her to sleep while you boys pick up things. When I come down, we'll put the room in good shape before your mother comes home."

Mrs. Turk was delighted to find her house spick and span and her boys in good humor when she returned from the meeting.

"Now we won't have to bother getting a baby-sitter any more," she told Aunt Tess.

Aunt Tess kept quiet, but she resolved to be on watch when Nipper is the baby-sitter.

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Halloween - November 3rd, 1968

"I heard an owl last night," said Mrs. Turk anxiously, "and I don't think it's a very good idea for the children to be out playing trick or treat this year.

"We could have a nice party right here," she told Aunt Tess, "and invite the four little Respectable mice."

"That's a good plan," replied Aunt Tess. "It might even help those little mice to pick up some manners. I'm sure the Lady of Fashion will help us and I'll bake a cake."

"We could serve them grape juice and they'd have just as nice a time here as they would outdoors, especially with that owl flying around."

"The Respectable mice don't like grape juice," Mrs. Turk reminded Aunt Tess. "They like warm water with plenty of honey in it."

So after supper on Halloween night, the Teenie Weenie women pulled the table out in the center of the room on the first floor of the coffee pot.

They set it with drinking cups and cake plates and candles, and when the four little mice arrived they were seated with the three Turk children for the party.

Just as the women were about to serve the cake there was a loud knock on the door of the coffee pot. Aunt Tess called out, "Come in," and a great head appeared in the doorway and bellowed, "Trick or treat!"

The Turk children burst into tears and the four little mice crawled under the table and hid.

Then somebody realized that the uninvited guest was really Ginky, covered with a dirty rag that had holes cut in it to enable the mouse to see.

"Get out of here!" shouted the Policeman, who had dropped in hoping for a bite of Aunt Tess' cake.

"This is Halloween," said the Lady of Fashion. "Ginky has a right to celebrate too," and she handed him a piece of the cake.

Ginky thanked her politely, the Turk children stopped crying and the four little Respectable mice came out from under the table to play games until it grew quite late and the Policeman escorted them home.

When he returned to the coffee pot house a little later in the evening, the Policeman told Mrs. Turk that he had neither heard nor seen an owl who had made the Teenie Weenies move their Halloween party indoors in the first place.

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A Teenie Weenie Mermaid - August 17th, 1969

"I wish we could get rid of that swimming pool," Mrs. Turk told her husband. "Three times Judy has run away and once I found her climbing the steps up to the diving board. I'm afraid she will fall in and drown."

"She should be taught how to swim," answered Mr. Turk. "If one knows how to swim, there is less danger."

"But Judy wouldn't have a chance in that big sauce-dish pool," argued Mrs. Turk. "It fills me with horror every time I think of that pool."

"Every child should be taught to swim," put in Aunt Tess. "One never knows when one may fall into deep water and a bit of paddling might save one's life."

"I saw a jar top at the dump yesterday and I can bring it down here, fill it with water, and teach Judy to swim in it," said Mr. Turk.

"That will simply increase her desire to get into that pool," cried Mrs. Turk. "I'm against teaching the child to swim."

After much persuasive argument by Aunt Tess and the Lady of Fashion, Mrs. Turk finally agreed to let Judy be taught to swim if the jar top was not too big.

Mr. Turk and several of the Teenie Weenie men brought the mason jar top to the coffee pot and filled it with water.

"That's too much water," protested Mrs. Turk. "Judy could drown in that."

"There's only half-an-inch of water in it," argued Mr. Turk. "There must be enough water in the jar lid to float the swimmer."

Most of the Teenie Weenies gathered to see Judy's first swimming lesson, and to their surprise, the child learned very fast. In a short time Judy was swimming across the jar top without help. After a week of practice, she was swimming like a minnow.

"Now," Mr. Turk said, "if Judy falls into our big swimming pool, she can swim to the ladder hanging from the diving platform and crawl out."

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The Dunce Plays A Joke - 1918

The weather had been bitter cold for several days, and most of the Teenie Weenies were mighty glad, for the pond near the big fence was frozen solid. All the little folks who had skates spent their spare time on the ice. Those who had no skates kept the Dutchman busy night and day making them, for that fat little chap was wonderfully clever in such things.

The Dutchman made the skate runners out of pins, which he heated in his forge, and hammered them out on his tiny anvil. He fastened the runners to a block of wood which was cut out in the shape of a shoe sole. In three days the Old Soldier, who whittled out the soles for the Dutchman, cut up four matches and the Dutch man hammered ten pins into skate runners.

When their work was done for the day the little people would hurry to the pond, where they would build a huge fire, and then they would skate until some were so tired they could scarcely walk home.

"Say, Chuck," whispered the Dunce into the Chinaman's ear one afternoon as the two Teenie Weenies stood warming themselves before the bonfire, "I g-g-g-got an idea f-f-f-or a lot of fun, and if you'll help me I'll let you in on it."

"Allee same me likie flun," answered the Chinaman. "Me belly muchie much like to help."

"Well, here's the scheme," said the Dunce, looking cautiously about. "I got four grains of popcorn in my pockets, and when there's a crowd around the fire we can drop them in the hot coals and then hide over there behind that bush and wait for the fun."

"Alleite," agreed the Chinaman, and the two Teenie Weenies sat down on a log near the fire to await a good opportunity to toss the corn into the coals.

Presently a number of the Teenie Weenies gathered about the fire, and when they were busy talking the two little chaps dropped the corn into the hot coals and quickly sneaked off behind a bush near by.

In a few seconds the first grain popped with a great bang, followed immediately by two more loud reports. A huge cloud of ashes and sparks flew out of the fire, and with the loud reports of the popping corn the Teenie Weenies were scared half out of their wits.

"The Poet, who was sitting on a log, had his hat blown off and was tumbled back into the snow on his head. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but everybody gathered about the fire was badly scared.

There is nothing more to say except that that the Dunce and the Chinaman were taken home by the Policeman and sent to bed with out a bite of supper.

"Ah, j-j-j-jimminie f-f-f-fish hooks," whimpered the Dunce as he was told to climb into bed without any supper. "J-j-j-just m-m-my luck, t-t-too, when we were going to have a stuffed raisin for dessert.

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The Teenie Weenies Under the Rose-Bush – (1922)
Chapter 28 - The Dunce and the Chinaman Play a Joke

The weather had been bitter cold for several days, and most of the Teenie Weenies were mighty glad, for the pond near the big fence was frozen solid. All the little folks who had skates spent their spare time on the ice. Those who had no skates kept the Old Soldier busy night and day making them, for that little chap was wonderfully clever in such things.

The Old Soldier made the skate runners out of pins, which he heated in his forge, then hammered them out on his tiny anvil. He fastened the runners to a block of wood which was cut out in the shape of a shoe sole. In three days the Turk, who whittled out the soles for the Old Soldier, cut up four matches and the Old Soldier hammered ten pins into skate runners.

When their work was done for the day the little people would hurry to the pond, where they would build a huge fire, and then they would skate until some were so tired they could scarcely walk home.

"Say, Chuck," whispered the Dunce into the Chinaman's ear one afternoon as the two Teenie Weenies stood warming themselves before the bonfire, "I g-g-g-got an idea f-f-f-for a lot of fun, and if you'll help me I'll let you in on it."

"Allee same me likie flun," answered the Chinaman. "Me belly muchie much like to help."

"Well, here's the scheme," said the Dunce, looking cautiously about. "I've got four grains of popcorn in my pockets, and when there's a crowd around the fire we can drop them in the hot coals and then hide over there behind that bush and wait for the fun."

"Allee light," agreed the Chinaman. And the two Teenie Weenies sat down on a log near the fire to await a good opportunity to toss the corn into the coals.

Presently a number of the Teenie Weenies gathered about the fire, and when they were busy talking the two little chaps dropped the corn into the hot coals and quickly sneaked off behind a bush near by.

In a few seconds the first grain popped with a great bang, followed immediately by two more loud reports. A huge cloud of ashes and sparks flew out of the fire, and with the loud reports of the popping corn the Teenie Weenies were scared half out of their wits.

The Poet, who was sitting on a log, had his hat blown off and was tumbled back into the snow on his head. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but everybody gathered about the fire was badly scared.

"I think the Dunce and the Chinaman know some thing about this," cried the General, glancing at the two Teenie Weenies, who were giggling behind the trunk of the bush. "Mr. Policeman, bring them here and we'll soon find out."

The Policeman quickly brought the Dunce and the Chinaman before the General, where they soon confessed that they had thrown the corn into the fire.

"That was a most vicious thing to do," said the General severely. "Don't you know that if one of those popping grains of corn had hit some of us on the head we might have been badly hurt?"

"N-n-n-no, s-s-sir, y-y-yes, s-s-sir," answered the frightened Dunce. "We n-n-never thought it would hurt anyone. We j-j-just thought it would s-s-s-scare ‘em."

"Well, you fellows ought to have a little time to think over the matter, so you can go to bed without your supper," said the General.

The Policeman took the two little fellows by the arms and led them off to the shoe house, where the Dunce was put to bed, while the Chinaman was sent off to the old teapot, where he lived.

"J-j-jinks!" exclaimed the Dunce as he crawled into his tiny bed. "Just my luck, when we were goin' to have fried frog ham and baked stuffed raisin for supper. Oh, crickety!" and the tears came into the poor little fellow's eyes.

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Dunce Sneaks Popcorn Into The Camp Fire - February 11th, 1934

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A Bad Joke – January 21st, 1945

It had been cold during the last week and the Teenie Weenies were having fine skating. They had found a tiny pond near the Teenie Weenie village and it was covered with smooth hard ice. It was in the middle of a dense thicket of tall weeds where big people were not likely to go. The little people spent most o their time skating there for Teenie Weenies have a great deal of time on their hands during the winter.

Most of the Teenie Weenies would gather at the pond just as soon as their daily tasks were done. They would build a big fire out of weeds and twigs where they could warm their Teenie Weenie toes and fingers. They played games of all sorts and sometimes Nick the squirrel would let the little people catch onto his long tail and he would pull them around the pond. The Turk and the Old Soldier had made Teenie Weenie skates for all the little people. They had hammered runners out of pins which were then fastened to wooden soles that had been carved from burned matches and these could be securely bound onto Teen Weenie feet.

The Cook often brought an acorn basket filled with Teenie Weenie doughnuts and sandwiches to the pond and the little folks would eat their lunch there. They had lots of fun and sometimes they tumbled and bumped their Teenie Weenie heads but no one was really hurt. One day, tho, the Dunce played a thoughtless joke that might have been very serious. He stuffed two grains of popcorn into a hollow reed which had been dragged up to be used for firewood. The Policeman threw the reed onto the fire and when the grains of popcorn grew hot they exploded with a loud bang. The two grains popped at almost the same instant, scattering hot coals and bits of burning firewood all about the place. One grain of corn popped right at the Police man, hitting that plump little chap right in the tummy. It tumbled him over and completely knocked the breath out of him. The General fell off the stick on which he had been sitting and upset the basket of sandwiches and doughnuts.

The General was terribly angry. He knew the Dunce had put the corn into the fire for he had done that very thing once before, and besides, the Dunce was the only Teenie Weenie that laughed over the accident. The General sent the Dunce home to bed for the rest of the day, ordered that he should have no dessert for a week, that his skates should be taken away from him, and that he should stay away from the pond for two weeks.

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Poppy Fluffs – January 8th, 1956

The Dunce makes a lot of trouble for the Teenie Weenie Cook. He really doesn't mean to be troublesome but he just can't keep out of mischief, especially when he is hungry, and he's usually hungry. The Cook has to keep all cookies and doughnuts under lock and key, especially poppy fluffs.

Poppy fluffs are a great favorite with the Dunce and the Lady of Fashion makes them particularly good. The fluffs are made from two or three grains of popped corn. The white fluffy part of the popped corn is scraped off, mixed with grated hickory nut meat and finely chopped, dried service berries. A grain or two of salt is added along with maple sugar. The dough is rolled out and cut into cookie shapes, sprinkled lightly with powdered black walnut meat, and baked quickly in a hot oven.

The Lady of Fashion usually bakes the fluffs when the Dunce is not around to bother her, and one morning when the Dunce announced that he was ‘going down to the creek she decided to bake some fluffs. The Cook brought three grains of popcorn from cellar but the Lady of Fashion thought that two popped grains would be enough to make cookies. The Cook laid one of the grains of corn on the kitchen table and popped the other two grains. The Lady of Fashion scraped off the soft white part of the corn, mixed her dough and cut out the cookies which she put into two Teenie Weenie baking pans. While she waited for the stove to get hot she left the kitchen. The Cook had gone down to the cellar to get a piece of potato for lunch when the Dunce came along.

The Dunce went into the kitchen to warm his fingers and toes for the weather was very cold outdoors, He spied the grain of unpopped corn on the table and he promptly decided to pop it in the oven. While he was waiting for the corn to pop the Lady of Fashion came into the kitchen just as the Cook came up from the cellar. At that moment the corn popped with a loud bang. It blew off the stove oven door, knocked over one of the pans of unbaked cookies, and upset a pan of water on the stove which made a great cloud of steam and completely put out the stove fire.

Both the Cook and the Lady of Fashion gave the Dunce a good scolding, and it is quite needless to say that the Dunce never got a single taste of that batch of poppy fluff.

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The Fuskies - January 24th, 1954

It does seem odd that accidents and misfortunes come to the Teenie Weenies in bunches. For several days there had been one accident after another in the Teenie Weenie village. Working in the coffee can which the little men use for a workshop, the Dunce had his thumb smashed while he was helping the Turk rivet a handle onto a cooking kettle they were making from a metal bottle cap. This accident brought on an argument among the men who happened to be in the shop at the time. Some of them believed the trouble was caused by the Fuskies and others insisted that accidents were caused by carelessness.

"It's the Fuskies that's makin' all these mishaps," argued the Soldier with a wooden leg. "They're back of all our troubles."

"Nonsense!" answered the Doctor. "There isn't any such thing as a Fuskie. No one has ever seen one."

"Of course you can't see 'em. They're too small to be seen, said the Old Soldier. "They're so small that fifty thousand of 'em roller skate on the head of a pin without ever bumping into each other. Why, 10,490 of 'em have been known to attend a baseball game on the point of a lead pencil."

"If they are as small as that they couldn't possibly make all the trouble you claim they have made," the Doctor argued.

"It's because there are so many of 'em!" the Old Soldier retorted. ‘There are millions and millions of 'em, and when they want to cause trouble they all work together. Now take this mashed thumb the Dunce has. Some several million got together and pushed his thumb right under the hammer just as the Turk hit the rivet."

"I suppose you think that the Fuskies knocked the Lady of Fashion off the thimble she was standing on to wash the cupboard shelves," said the Doctor.

"Certainly!" argued the Old Soldier. "They saw her standing up there and about a million of them rushed at her and tumbled her off."

"Me all time thinks Fuskies steal my cookies," put in the Chinaman. "All time flind less cookies in jar."

"Pooh!" exclaimed the Doctor with a sly look at the Old Soldier. "Fuskies don't eat cookies. They live on bologna and hot air."

"That's right," the Old Soldier said with a grin.

The Doctor was chuckling as he left the workshop.

"It's the Fuskies who give him a lot of his practice, even if he won't admit he believes in 'em," the Old Soldier told the Chinaman. "Why, hardly anybody would ever get hurt but for the Fuskies."

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100,000,000 Fuskies - April 25th, 1954

There are days when things seem to go all wrong in the Teenie Weenie village, when tempers get ruffled and accidents happen. Sometimes it's the fault of the Teenie Weenies themselves but whether that is so or not some of the little people like to have someone or something to blame for their troubles and the Fuskies are often used for that purpose.

According to the Old Soldier with a wooden leg, Fuskies are so very small they can't be seen. They are so tiny that two hundred thousand of them can go skating on a frozen raindrop and there still would be plenty of room for all of them to do fancy skating. Several thousand of them have been said to hitchhike a ride on a speck of flying dust. Fuskies love to tease and several million can do a lot of mischief when they gang up on a single Teenie Weenie.

The Dunce claimed that the Fuskies pushed his arm when he upset a cherry seed of hot tea into the Policeman's lap. Shortly after this accident the Chinaman fell off a hazelnut on which he had been standing while washing a window in the teapot where he lives and does the Teenie Weenie laundry.

"The Fuskies shoved the Chinaman off that nut," argued the Sailor, who is a firm believer that Fuskies make trouble.

"That's silly," said the Lady of Fashion. "The Chinaman just slipped. Fuskies had nothing to do with his fall."

"Who knows," put in the Cook, "whether the Chinaman slipped or a few hundred thousand Fuskies gave him a push?"

It was while this argument was going on that Ginky slipped into the shoehouse kitchen and snatched up a hazel nut bowl of Teenie Weenie doughnuts. A number of the men ran after the mouse but he managed to escape altho he spilled many of the doughnuts in getting away.

That mouse shouldn't have gotten away," said the Cowboy. "Gogo should have hung onto his tail when he grabbed it."

"Lawsy !" exclaimed Gogo, "I held on as tight as I could but the Fuskies got to pushin' me and I had to let go. There must have been a hundred million of 'em pushin' me back and another hundred million pullin' that ornery mouse away from me."

"We women are starting house cleaning tomorrow," put in the Lady of Fashion, "and we could use a few million Fuskies to induce you men to help us."

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Fuskies! - February 17th, 1952

Since last Summer, when Nipper, one of the Teenie Weenie children, saw a bug climbing up the side of the shoe house, the child has spent most of his time trying to imitate the insect. He is constantly climbing up onto things and he has had several bad tumbles. But in spite of many warnings he still tries to out-crawl the bug. However, the Old Soldier with a wooden leg had a long talk with Nipper and it is to be hoped the child will be less bug-like in the future.

Although there was snow on the ground, Nipper and his little brother Zero were allowed to play out on the back porch one pleasant morning. The Old Soldier and the Turk had just set out to cut some firewood when Nipper, who had been trying to climb up onto the top of the garbage thimble, fell off and bumped his tiny head. The Old Soldier picked Nipper up and carried him into the house. He tried to comfort the bellowing child.

"I felled down!" screamed Nipper. "I felled down!"

"No, you didn't fall," said the Old Solder. "The Fuskies pushed you off that thimble."

Nipper forgot to bellow and stared at the Old Soldier.

"The Fuskies pushed you off," continued the Old Soldier. "Fuskies are so little that only a Teenie Weenie with second sight can see them. They are so small they have to use a stepladder to climb up onto a postage stamp. They go around making a lot of trouble because they love to tease folks - especially children who climb up onto things. Fuskies ride around on snowflakes during the Winter - thousands of 'em can get onto a snowflake. In the Summertime they climb onto the backs of lady bugs and butterflies and at night they ride around on fireflies. They hitchhike rides on mosquitoes and make that insect bite folks. They do a lot of mean things but they like best to knock children off when they have climbed up onto things."

"Eh?" Nipper said, wanting to hear more.

"Yes, sir," said the Old Soldier. "The Fuskies are all around everywhere, and when they see a child climbing up onto something they all rush at him - millions of 'em - and push the youngster off. That's what happened to you when you thought you fell off the garbage thimble. The Fuskies pushed you off."

"Bad Fussies!" Nipper said.

"Yes, sir," said the Old Soldier. "The Fuskies are mighty wicked little chaps. If I were you I wouldn't give 'em a chance to push me off of anything."

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Fuskie Trouble - November 9th, 1952

When things go badly in the Teenie Weenie village, the little people, no taller than matches, usually blame the Fuskies. Fuskies are so small they must use a stepladder to climb up onto a postage stamp. It would take a Fuskie more than half a day to walk around a five cent piece. They are so tiny they can only be seen by a Teenie Weenie with second sight. Thousands of them can ride on the back of a house fly without stepping on each other's toes. Even though they are so small, they can cause a great deal of trouble, because Fuskies love to tease - and there are so many of them they can do an amazing amount of mischief.

A few days ago the Teenie Weenies had a lot of trouble and blamed it all on the Fuskies, who must have been hanging around by the millions. The whole day was filled with one bad thing after another. It started when the Old Soldier with a wooden leg got out of bed in the morning. He stepped into a cherry seed bowl and broke his wooden leg. While he was mending it he cut his finger, and while the Cook was tying up the finger a pot of breakfast food on the stove boiled over and put out the fire. Nothing more happened until after breakfast, though the sassafras tea was a bit weak, and then one of the Teenie Weenie children fell into a catsup bottle cap that was half full of water. Just as the child was dragged out of the water the Dunce batted a Teenie baseball through a window in the half-gallon syrup can schoolhouse.

One unfortunate thing after another happened all day long, but the Fuskies really got busy just before supper. The wind began to blow and a small branch from a big birch tree near by fell onto the shoe house, badly wrecking the front porch. One of the lead pencils which are used for porch posts was knocked down. The water spout was badly damaged and the Teenie Weenies were scared half out of their wits. Skippy the chipmunk tried to drag off the branch, causing more damage.

"It will have to be sawed into pieces before we can get it off the roof," the Sailor told Skippy, who went off in a huff.

It began to rain and the water leaked through the damaged roof into a bedroom, and several of the men had to catch the dripping water in thimbles and dump it out a window. It was nearly midnight before the little folks could eat their supper.

"The Fuskies have caused all this trouble today," said the Old Soldier. "There's no doubt about it - only millions of Fuskies could do so much damage."

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Fuskies Again - November 30th, 1952

During the night the wind began to blow. Great gusts whined through the rosebushes under which the Teenie Weenie village stands. Dry leaves slapped against the shoe house, shaking the building from heel to toe.

"Listen to that," said the Old Soldier with a wooden leg. "All those leaves we gathered up to burn are scattered over the village."

"It's the Fuskies playing pranks again," said Gogo.

"Nonsense!" scoffed the Doctor. "You can't prove there are such things as Fuskies. No one has ever seen them."

"Course you can't see them," argued Gogo. "They're too small to be seen. They are so little that 200 of them can walk shoulder to shoulder through the eye of a needle without even touching the sides."

"If they are as small as all that, they certainly can't do much damage," said the Doctor.

"But there are millions and millions of 'em," said Gogo.

"When ten or twenty million Fuskies get their shoulders under a leaf they can send it flying through the air. They like to make trouble for folks, and when they get busy they sure can do a lot of mischief."

Next morning there was nearly two inches of snow on the ground. If had to be shoveled off the woodpile before the Cook could get breakfast. Then the paths had to be shoveled clear and the porches cleaned off. The men had just finished when the Rhyming Rabbit hopped into the village. He was hungry, so several of the men had to go down into the Teenie Weenie cellar under the shoe house and get him a carrot.

The men had to bring the carrot up through the trap door in the kitchen. The vegetable was so big that hunks had to be cut off to get it through. It delayed breakfast, but even more trouble was in store for the little people, because the rabbit knocked the snow back into the cleared paths on its way out.

"See!" said Gogo. "The Fuskies pushed that old rabbit over here and made him fill up our paths again."

The Doctor snorted as he finished his tea.

Then one of the Teenie Weenie children choked on a raspberry seed which had fallen out of the Lady of Fashion's breast pin. After a lot of excitement the Doctor recovered the seed. Then he was called to the Respectable Mice's home to look after two of the quadruplets, who had come down with a case of tail itch.

"Probably the Fuskies have been visiting the Respectable Mice," the Doctor snorted as he wallowed through the deep snow.

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The Little Folks Give A Christmas Present
December 24th, 1920

As Christmas drew near there were many mysterious bundles hidden away in the tiny houses beneath the rose bush the Teenie Weenie village stood.

The little folks always gave presents to each other, and they usually made them with their own tiny hands.

The Cook, Gogo, and the Lady of Fashion usually looked after the Christmas candy, and this year they made three thimbles full of various kinds of delicious sweets.

"I wish we could make candy for every boy and girl in the world," said the kind hearted little Lady of Fashion as she scraped one of the tiny candy pans which had been set out on the back porch to cool. "Christmas is the time when folks ought to be doing something nice for each other."

Tilly Titter, the English sparrow, who sat on a bush near by, listened to the Lady of Fashion with all her ears, and as the little lady turned to enter the Teenie Weenie kitchen the sparrow hopped onto the ground near the porch.

"I say!" cried the sparrow. "I quite agree with you. I like to do things for folks, but a poor sparrow can't do much."

"Why, Tilly!" exclaimed the Lady of Fashion. "You are always doing things for folks."

"Well, there is one thing I'd like to do," said the bird. "Maybe you folks could do hit, for hit's something I couldn't possibly do if I had twenty bills and wings."

"Tell us," shouted several of the Teenie Weenies who had gathered around the bird.

"Well, hit's this," said the bird. "There's a family that lives down in that old box car beside the railroad track. They are 'aving a 'ard time to get along. The father is sick, and the mother is not able to work all the time, so I think the little boy of the family is not going to 'ave much of a Christmas if some kind person don't help."

"0, dear!" cried the Lady of Fashion. "Can't we do something?"

"Of c-o-u-r-s-e," answered the bird. "I was just coming to that. The other day I was sitting on the clothes line right near the door, and I heard the little boy ask 'is father if 'e could 'ave a pair of ice skates for Christmas. The boy's father told him that they couldn't afford them, and the look of disappointment on the child's face nearly broke my 'eart."

"Me know where skates!" cried Zipp, who had been listening to the bird's story. "Me know where we can get skates. Skates much too little for boy who owns them. He gottie new pair, and we can get old skates and give to poor little boy.

"You'd be doin' a 'eap of good if you could get those skates over to the little boy," cried Tillie.

All the Teenie Weenies were greatly excited about getting the skates for the poor little boy, and several of the little people went over to the house where the skates were to see what could be done.

The skates were in good condition, and except for a little rust they were almost as good as new ones.

"It will be an awful job to move them," said the General. "They must weigh nearly fifty Teenie Weenie tons."

"It won't be so hard to move the skates," said the Old Soldier. "We can rig up some out runners and move the skate on its own runner."

"What's an out runner?" asked the Dunce.

"Why, an out runner is a piece of board attached to the skate, which runs along the ground on each side of the skate runner, and keeps the skate from falling over on its side," answered the Old Soldier.

The Teenie Weenies hurried back to the shoe house where they set to work making the runners so the skates could be moved.

The little fellows cut two long runners out of an old ruler, and collecting several pieces of wire, pulleys, and ropes they set out to move the skates.

First, the skates had to be pulled out of the wood house where they lay, and this took great deal of pulling and lifting, but after several hours of hard work the task was finally accomplished.

The runners were next fixed to one of the skates with the wire, and in a little time the Teenie Weenies started the heavy skate sliding over the soft snow.

Several of the little men pulled at a long rope, which was fastened to the front end of the skate, while the rest pushed.

It was slow work, for the skate was mighty heavy, but just-before dark on Christmas Eve the little Chaps brought the skate to the box car where the little boy lived.

The little fellows spent almost the whole night in bringing up the other skate, in fact, it was just getting light on Christmas morning when they pulled the skates up on the step before the box car door.

The Teenie Weenies were too tired and cold to wait and see the little boy find his skates, but Tilly was sitting on a tree near by and she saw it all.

"My dears!" cried the sparrow as she sat on the toe of the shoe house telling the Teenie Weenies how much joy their gift had brought to the little boy. "It would 'ave done your 'earts good to see that little fellow when 'e saw those skates on the door step. He just let out one yell and 'e gathered the skates up and ran into the house with 'em. I flew up on the window sill and there the little chap sat before the stove huggin' those skates to his breast and cryin' and laughin' at the same time. 'Is face sort of looked like the flowers when they 'ave the dew and the sunshine on 'em in the early morning."

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Old Soldier Tells A Story – February 21st, 1915

"B-R-R-R, but it's cold out," said the Cowboy, as he shook the snow from his coat and hung it on the hook behind the teenie weenie door.

"Yes, sir, she's going to freeze pretty hard tonight," remarked the General.

"It's 15 below zero," added the Cook. "I looked at the thermometer just a few minutes ago."

"You don't say so," cried the Old Soldier. "That's the coldest it has been for a good many years. I remember about twenty years ago when it was 17 degrees below zero. I'll never forget that night. I was almost frozen to death."

"Tell us about it, tell us about it," cried several of the Teenie Weenies.

"Well," began the Old Soldier, as he lighted his teenie weenie pipe, "I was in the army at the time, and the captain sent me and three other men out to get some food. We were camped near a big house, and climbing up the steps we crawled under the door, and soon made our way to a cupboard.

"After a great deal of trouble we climbed to a shelf, and right in the middle of it stood a big pan of milk. We couldn't find any food where we were, but soon I crawled up on the edge of the pan, and saw over on the other side some cookies.

"I noticed the milk was frozen, and when I put my foot on the ice to see if' it would hold me, I found it was not strong enough. We couldn't get around the pan, as it stuck out over the edge of the shelf and touched the back of the cup board on the other side.

"'Say', yelled one of the men, 'there's a box of matches here. Why can't we make a raft out of them and float it across?'

"‘That's a great idea,' I cried. 'We'll do it.'

"Very soon we lashed several matches together with some thread I happened to have in my pocket, and, after much trouble, we got the raft onto the milk. Everything went all right until we got in the center of the pan, when we were suddenly caught in an ice jam. The raft was smashed, and it was the greatest wonder in the world we weren't all drowned. We managed to get out, and when we got back to camp our clothes were frozen to us, and we were as stiff as boards."

"How perfectly awful," cried the Lady of Fashion, with tears of sympathy in her lovely eyes.

"Yes, it was a pretty bad fix to be in, but we weren't really hurt," said the Old Soldier, as he knocked the ashes from his pipe.

"Well, we'd better all be going to bed," yawned the General. "Cook, you put the dog out in the woodshed - be sure he has plenty of straw tonight. I'll carry that sleepy headed Dunce up to bed."

Soon the teenie weenie house was quite dark, and all the Teenie Weenies were in the land of teenie weenie dreams.

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Teasing Tom - March 6th, 1960

Teasing Tom, a big blue jay who lives near the Teenie Weenie village, is a help to the little people as well as a troublemaker. As soon as Tom sees a strange animal near the village, he sets up a mighty racket which instantly tells the Teenie Weenies that danger is near. Several times he has warned the little people that a weasel or a mink was in the vicinity. Once he saved the Cowboy when a strange kitten was about to pounce on him. For his watchfulness, the Teenie Weenies are most grateful, but there are times when he makes them angry.

Tom loves to tease and his pranks sometimes give the Teenie Weenies a lot of extra work. The blue jay will pick up a tiny tool or some other object the little folks leave lying around and carry it off while nobody is looking. He usually hides things and the Teenie Weenies know that if they keep looking they probably will find the missing article.

Tom likes to chase off other birds, and he never misses a chance to tease Ginky, the lazy mouse who likes Teenie Weenie food. But he is such a good watch bird the Teenie Weenies put up with his annoying tricks most of the time. Every now and then, though, he goes too far.

One morning while Mr. and Mrs. Turk and their two children were eating their breakfast in the old coffee pot where they make their home, Tom happened to pass. When he spied some slices of Teenie bread on a plate he pushed his big head through the window, smashing all the cellophane in it.

Nipper, the older Turk child, jumped from his chair and upset the high chair of his tiny brother, Zero. The Turk screamed at Tom as the big bird grabbed a piece of bread and disappeared.

Fortunately, Zero's fall didn't hurt him. The Turk, who is an excellent workman, closed the holes in the window with a piece of cardboard until he could find some cellophane to replace the broken panes. At first, the Turks were angry with Tom, but they soon forgave him because the next day he warned the village that a raccoon was on his way to the village.

This old raccoon has tried several times to get into the Teenie Weenie smokehouse where the little people store their frog hams. Tom's warning gave the little men time to get Eddie Waff's dog, Jack, to come and chase the robber away before any harm was done.

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Teasing Tom - May 28th, 1961

While Tom the Teaser, a big blue jay, makes a lot of trouble for the Teenie Weenies, he is a fine watch bird. No strangers who come near the Teenie Weenie village can escape his keen eyes and he instantly sets up loud chattering which warns that danger is near. But helpful as he is, Tom loves to tease the little people. He never misses a chance to pick up something from the village and fly away with it. He usually hides what ever he takes and the Teenie Weenies have a lot of trouble finding their belongings.

House cleaning time gives Tom opportunities to be a great troublemaker. The Teenie Weenie women like to have most of the furniture and fixtures carried out of their tiny houses in order to give the walls and floors a thorough scrubbing. As soon as Tom sees the things outdoors, he files down, picks up something and sails away with it.

One day Tess Turk decided to clean the living room and kitchen on the first floor of the coffee pot where the Turk family lives. The Lady of Fashion agreed to help and the two little women laid careful plans.

"I want you to put up a couple of posts right in front of the back door," Mrs. Turk told her husband. "I want a rope strung between the posts so we can hang the living room rug on it. Then we'll be able to get the rug into the house quickly if that Tom shows up with his pranks."

The policeman promised to stay neat the coffee pot house and Mr. Turk agreed to keep a watchful eye on the place. The two Turk children were left in their playhouse, a small glass jar, to keep them out of the way.

Most of the things in the first floor of the coffee pot were moved outside and placed near the back door. The Turk beat the rug, swept it clean and helped the women. There was no sign of the blue jay while he was at home. When he left for the Teenie Weenie garden to help the Old Soldier with a wooden leg, the Policeman sat in a shady spot nearby to look out for Tom. But he soon fell asleep and the next he knew Tess was shouting for help while she fought Tom with a Teenie Weenie broom. The jay nearly made off with the rug before the Teenie Weenies managed to drive him away.

The cleaning was nearly done, so the little folks quickly carried everything into the Turks' house for fear the bird might return.

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Teasing Tom - July 23rd, 1961

The Teenie Weenies get angry at the Tom, the big blue jay at times because he is a great tease. But he is amusing, too for the little people can never tell just what he will do. Besides, he is such a fine watch bird that no strange animal can steal into the Teenie Weenie village and take them by surprise. Tom instantly gives an alarm in his loud rasping chatter to warn the little folks that danger is near. Helpful as the blue jay is, though, his pranks are sometimes most annoying.

One day some of the Teenie Weenies decided to take their lunch down to the creek for a picnic. The Lady of Fashion and Aunt Tess filled a hazelnut shell basket with smoked frog ham sandwiches and carried a bowl of crawfish salad in another basket. They also brought along a bucket of sassafras tea when they set off to look for a picnic spot. They left their lunch on a big rock beside the creek while most of the little people wandered along the shore. Of course the men began looking for frogs, but the women were happy to stroll along admiring the wild flowers along the path.

Just as some of the Teenie Weenies were returning to the big rock where they left their lunch, Torn flew down and perched on a tree limb above the rock. Before anybody knew what was happening, he reached down and picked up the basket of sandwiches. The Old Soldier with a wooden leg grabbed a tablecloth that had been folded over the sandwiches and tried to pull the basket out of the bird's beak. But Tom held on to the basket and the Old Soldier would not let go of the cloth, so most of the sandwiches were spilled into the creek.

"I'd like to wring that bird's neck!" screamed Aunt Tess, as the blue jay flew off with the basket, "Now what ore we going to eat for our lunch?"

"It looks as though we'll dine on crawfish salad and tea," said the Lady of Fashion cheerfully.

After a great many unpleasant remarks about what a pest that teasing Tom can be, the little folks sat down and had their picnic lunch. Just as they were finishing the last of the salad, Tom flew down again and dropped two ripe cherries onto the big rock where he had seized the basket of sandwiches. The fruit was perfect for dessert. The Old Soldier carved the cherries with his Teenie Weenie knife and each of the little people at the picnic had a large slice.

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Teasing Tom - July 11th, 1965

Four Teen Weenie men on an important errand went to the dump where the big people in the neighbor hood of the Teenie Weenie village throw away their trash. The Cook wanted to find a catsup bottle top to take the place of on old kettle which had a hole in it. After searching for hours without success, they made their way back to the Teenie Weenie village.

All of the weary little men agreed to go straight to the sauce dish which is the Teenie Weenie swimming pool "Say!" exclaimed the Turk, mopping his head with a Teenie Weenie handkerchief about a quarter of an inch square. "A dip in the pool would help cool us off, but we must get our bathing suits."

"Shucks!' growled the Dunce." Let's go in now. I'm too hot to go after an old bathing suit."

Without much argument the rest of the men stripped off their clothes and began diving into the pool. While they were enjoying the sport, Tom, the big blue jay, flew down and watched them splashing about in the water. In a few minutes the Policeman came by on his rounds of the village end noticed a glint in teasing Tom's eyes.

"You'd better watch that blue jay!" the little officer warned. "I think he is getting ready to play one of his pranks."

"Tom won't bother us," answered the Dunce. "He is just wishing he could get into the fun."

After the Policeman walked away Tom hopped around to the diving board platform, where the men had left their clothes. Before he could be stopped, he caught up most of the Teenie Weenie garments in his big beak and flew away. The swimmers shouted at him, but he paid no attention to their cries. All they had left were a few socks, some shoes and their hats.

"Now how are we going to get home without clothes?" wailed the Cook.

After talking the matter over, the Sailor volunteered to wrap a maple leaf around his body and go to the shoe house for something to wear. He brought back enough clothes for the other men to get home with a bit of modesty.

Some of the missing garments were picked up near the creek. But the Dunce never found his pants. So now he is wearing on old pair while the Lady of Fashion makes new ones for him.

"Tom thinks he is a great comedian" the Dunce said in disgust. "But he is just a big pest!"

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Teasing Tom - January 23rd, 1944

The weather had been nice for a week and then a terrible storm struck the Teenie Weenie village. The wind moaned through the rosebushes under which the village stood bringing rain and sleet. After that a cold wind from the North covered the ground with a sheet of ice, and then some snow fell.

"We'd better get ready to feed the birds," the General told the Cook. "That wind has whipped the seeds from all the weeds and now they are covered with snow and ice. The birds won't be able to find anything to eat unless we supply it."

The Cook put two thimbles of corn on the kitchen stove, but before they were half cooked the birds began to arrive. There were chickadees, snow buntings, tufted titmouses, cedar waxwings, nuthatches, various sparrows and one frightened quail. The birds were so eager for food the Policeman had to form them in line and direct traffic. The Cook soon saw that two thimbles would never cook corn fast enough to feed the hungry line, so he brought out his biggest kettle, which was the metal top of a catsup bottle. He set it up outside the kitchen door, built a fire under it and began cooking corn.

Each bird was given half a grain of cooked corn and, under the direction of the Policeman, everything went along nicely until Teasing Tom, the blue jay, arrived. Now, Tom is a very nasty tempered bird, and the other birds are afraid of him. As soon as he appeared the other birds flew off. The Teenie Weenies gave Tom half a grain of corn, but he loudly demanded more, When the General explained that other birds would go hungry if he had more than his share Tom became angry, said some nasty things to the Teenie Weenies, then flew off in a huff.

In a little while Tom came back with a big crust of bread in his beak. He dropped the crust onto the ground and fixed a big eye on the General. "I said a few nasty words to you folks a while ago and I want to say that I'm sorry," he said. "I found this hard crust of bread, and if you'll soak it in hot water, I'll give half of it for your other bird friends. The Cook soaked the crust and Tom quickly gobbled down his half and flew off. The other birds, who had been sitting in the bushes nearby, returned as soon as Tom left and quickly devoured the rest of the bread.

"Well, that was nice of Tom to give that bread." said the Cook.

"Yes, it was," said a chickadee and, with a toss of his head, he added, "for a blue jay."

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Teasing Tom - November 30th, 1947

A big blue jay who lives near the Teenie Weenie village is both helpful and annoying to the little people. He is forever playing pranks on the Teenie Weenies. The little workmen can't leave a tool lying about without running the risk of having the jay fly down and carry it away. He usually drops every thing he takes down a hollow tree, and the Teenie Weenies most always find the missing things at the bottom of the tree.

The little folk overlook these tricks because Teasing Tom, as they have named him, is also a wonderful watchman. Sitting on top of a tree, Tom can see every thing that moves for a great distance and he always croaks a warning if a weasel, a mink, a cat or a human being comes anywhere near the Teenie Weenie village. Tom watches every thing the Teenie Weenies do. The little folk cannot make a single move without being seen by the inquisitive bird. While this is often a little annoying and sometimes a bit embarrassing it proved most helpful lately when the Turk had a serious accident.

The Teenie Weenies had been gathering hazel nuts for several days. Then one night it snowed and the next morning was very cold. In spite of the snow and cold, the Turk decided to get a few nuts out of some bushes before the red squirrels gathered all of them. He went off by himself and climbed up into a bush, where he began chopping off the nuts. Suddenly he slipped and fell. He probably would have caught onto a lower branch and saved himself, for Teenie Weenies can climb like squirrels, but his foot caught in the fork of a limb. He hung there unable to free himself because his foot was badly hurt and he hung in such a way he couldn't pull him self up. He called and called for help, but none of the Teenie Weenies could hear him. He soon began to grow numb with the cold and he might have frozen had Teasing Tom not spied him. The jay flew down, caught the Turk's sweater in his big beak, and gently pulled the Teenie Weenie free.

The Turk made motions that his foot was hurt and that he couldn't walk. The bird seemed to understand, for he flew off toward The Teenie Weenie village, carrying the Turk in his beak. Near the village the bird saw several of the Teenie Weenies walking in the snow. He settled down on a limb and handed the injured Turk over to his friends. They carried him to the shoe house, where the Doctor set a broken bone in his ankle. The Turk is now walking on crutches which he made out of two toothpicks and the Teenie Weenies are most grateful to Teasing Tom.

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Teasing Tom - February 15th, 1948

There are two creatures who cause the Teenie Weenies a lot of trouble. Ginky, of course, is just an outright ornery mouse. He isn't above stealing, fibbing, or destroying property. He'd just as soon throw a stone through one of the shoe house windows as twitch his spindly tail, but Teasing Tom, the big blue jay, is not really bad - he simply loves to tease. The Teenie Weenies never leave a Teenie Weenie object lying about where Tom can pick it .up for he is forever taking things such as Teenie Weenie axes, saws or even thimbles and flying away with them.

While several of the Teenie Weenies were returning from Grandma Pettigob's house with a few snippets of dress goods which the little women intended to make into curtains for the shoe house windows they noticed Tom sitting on the top of an old apple tree.

"We'd better walk under those thick bushes," said the Sailor pointing to a thicket near the tiny trail that leads to the shoe house. "That Tom sees us and he might try and get some of these snippets."

Each of the men carried a roll of the cloth on his shoulder and they all followed the Sailor's advice. They made their way through the snow and traveled under the cover of the bushes for it would be difficult for Tom to reach them through the thick brush. Finally they came to an open spot and as they hurried under the limbs of a big bush Toni settled -on a limb and caught the bundle of snippets from the Chinaman's shoulder as the little chap passed underneath. The Chinaman held onto one end of the cloth, but Tom quickly shook him off and flew away.

The Lady of Fashion burst into tears as Tom flew off with the snippet for it was a very soft piece of silk and the little lady had expected to make several tiny dresses out of the piece. "Oh, that nasty old Tom!" she cried as the bird disappeared over the top of the trees. "He-he-he's as bad as Ginky."

The rest of the Teenie Weenies agreed with the mournful little lady and Tom's ears certainly must have burned over, all the unpleasant things the Teenie Weenies said about him for they were all mighty angry over the theft. When the little folks reached the shoe house they saw the piece of silk hanging from the porch roof where Tom had dropped it and the little folks all burst into laughter for they saw that Tom had simply been teasing them.

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Teasing Tom - February 14th, 1954

The big blue jay who lives in the neighborhood of the Teenie Weenie village causes the little people a great deal of trouble. The little people have named him Tom the Teaser because he is constantly annoying them. If they leave a Teenie Weenie tool lying about, Tom pounces on it and flies away with it. He doesn't mean to steal it, but he likes to tease the Teenie Weenies. After he has flown off with a tool, he will drop it in a hollow tree where the little people usually find it.

Once Tom began pecking at the chimney on the shoe house and the Teenie Weenies had a hard time to make him stop. Another time he raided their clothesline and carried off some tiny underwear the Lady of Fashion had washed and hung out near the kitchen door. The Teenie Weenies found most of the garments but one fine spider web stocking was never found. When the Chinaman, who does most of the laundry for the Teenie Weenie village, hangs out his washing to dry, he has to keep a mighty close watch for Tom. At the first sight of the bird, the Chinaman brings in the clothes.

Not long ago Tom began to hang around the half-gallon syrup can which the little people have made info a Teenie Weenie schoolhouse. He pecked the cellophane out of one of the windows and he would have pulled down the stovepipe if it hadn't been fastened by wires. The four Respectable mice, who go to the Teenie Weenie school, are in terror of the bird and they dive for cover the moment they hear or see Tom. The Teenie Weenies often discussed plans to discourage Tom's pranks. But the blue jay is so big and strong that the little people could do little but try to shame him into mending his ways. Then one day the Cowboy made an important discovery.

The Teenie Weenie had just finished making a new lasso and when he stepped outside the workshop to try if out he saw Tom pecking at the stove wood that had been piled on the schoolhouse porch. The Lady of Fashion, who teaches the Teenie Weenie children and the Respectable mice, was trying to stop Tom, but the bird went gleefully ahead with his mischief. The Cowboy swung his lasso and dropped it over Tom's head. When the blue jay felt the rope tighten around his neck he was frightened. He finally jerked himself free and flew away.

Tom sat in a tree and pecked at the rope until he got if off. But that roping gave him such a scare he has kept away from the village ever since. Now he screams at the Cowboy whenever he sees him.

---

---

It's A Bear! - September 10th, 1944

For over a month the Teenie Weenies had been hunting frogs, for frog ham is their main supply of meat. They catch a few crawfish and preserve the meat from the claws in Teenie Weenie jars, and they usually pickle and smoke several minnows, but frog ham is their favorite meat. If takes a lot of work to put up enough frog hams to last them through the Winter, because frogs have to be caught, dressed, salted and smoked before the hams can be stored away.

The little folk were lucky this Fall, for they had caught six large frogs which made 12 hams and 12 shoulder hams. They were cured and well smoked with hickory and sassafras wood. Then they were left hanging for a few days in the tomato can which the little people used for a smokehouse. Being a stout can, it was quite safe from thieving mice, but one night a powerful thief pushed if over and ate most of the hams.

The Old Soldier with a wooden leg discovered the theft when he went after an armful of fire wood for the kitchen stove one morning. The smokehouse lay on its side and nine hams were gone. The Old Soldier gave the alarm and excited Teenie Weenies flocked to the place. There were a few faint tracks around the smokehouse, but the little people could not fell what animal had made them.

"They're bear tracks!" shouted the Dunce.

"Looks more like mink tracks," said the Policeman. "Wish the Indian would come. He could tell us what kind of tracks they are."

The little people searched all around for more tracks and finally they found some leading toward the creek. The little folk followed the frail until if disappeared into a hole beneath the roots of a big tree. A well-gnawed ham bone lay near the hole.

The Policeman cautiously tiptoed up near the hole, but when he heard a faint growl from within, he turned and ran, shouting at the top of his voice, "It's a bear! It's a bear!"

The frightened Teenie Weenies ran back to the Teenie Weenie village certain that the animal was a bear. However, the Indian, who had been away hunting caterpillars returned just then. He took one look at the tracks and smiled.

""Skunk tracks! Good thing you no make him mad, because he throw bad smell everywhere." said the Indian. The Teenie Weenies all breathed a great sigh of relief, for, as the Dunce put it, "It's better to be smelly than to be eaten, but we'd rather not be smelly."

---

It's A Bear! - March 11th, 1951

The Teenie Weenies store their Winter's supply of food in the cellar of the shoe house. It is more than a foot square and 13½ inches under the surface of the ground. Part of this vast hole is under the Teenie Weenie kitchen. The walls are lined with shelves of jam and jelly. There are bins of corn, wheat and wild rice. Thimbles of pickled crawfish meat and shells of frog sausage are in one corner. Potatoes and apples and piles of nuts are in this storehouse. So even this large space is hardly big enough to hold all the food the little people need. That's why the Teenie Weenie men have been digging out the earth to make more room.

One evening the Cook sent Gogo for a two-drop jar of jelly. Gogo lit a Teenie Weenie candle and went down the flight of steps which leads from the kitchen to the cellar. The Cook remembered he needed a piece of walnut meat. As he hurried down the stairs he was swept back up to the kitchen by Gogo, who was traveling with the speed of a rocket.

"What's the matter with you?" shouted the Cook, picking himself up from the kitchen floor.

"B-B-B-Beah!" gasped Gogo. "There's a beah in the cellah!"

"Nonsense!" put in the Doctor, who was getting a drink from the water thimble. "A bear couldn't get into our cellar."

"It's a beah all right!' Gogo insisted.

"Let's have a look at your bear," said the Doctor.

He took the candle from Gogo shaking hands and went boldly down the cellar steps. The Cook and Gogo trailed behind, nicely balanced for a quick return up the stairs.

The Teenie Weenies were just in time to see Gogo's "bear" disappear through a hole at the spot where the men had been digging. Its pink tail vanished like magic."He's stuck," was all Nipper would say.

"That's a mole!" said the Doctor. "A perfectly harmless creature, it lives underground and is a powerful digger. A mole funnels through the earth with its huge paws almost as fast as a Teenie Weenie can swim."

"Do you suppose it was after our food?" asked the Cook.

"No," answered the Doctor." Moles eat worms and insects. He just happened to dig a tunnel into our cellar by accident. Moles are nearly blind and have no ears, but they are great diggers."

"Yes, suh," said Gogo. "But it sho did look sorta like a beah."

---

Bear Scare – July 26th, 1953

Four Teenie Weenies came charging into the shoe house one evening with very white faces and bulging eyes. We've seen a bear!' shouted the breathless Dunce.

"Looked like a polar bear," added Gogo.

"Nonsense!" exclaimed the Doctor. "There are no bears around this part of the country."

"Now just calm down and tell us what you saw said the General.

"We had gone way down the creek looking for frogs," said the Dunce. "It was getting dark and we thought we had better take a short cut through the big woods if we wanted to get home in time for supper. We found a trail, and started through the deep brush, and then we saw funny tracks."

"Looked all time like birdses trackses," put in the Chinaman.

"Pretty soon the tracks led into a hole under a big tree and when we stepped up to look into the hole a bear popped his head out and snarled at us," said the Dunce.

"Then what happened?" asked the Doctor curiously. "What did the bear do?"

"Lawsy!" exclaimed Gogo. "We didn't stay to see. We just lit out of there as fast as we could go."

"What did this beast look like?" questioned the Doctor.

"It had pink ears and nose," answered the Dunce.

"And it had a light grey face," added the Sailor, "and the rest of it seemed to be a dark grey."

"Bears all time have long noseses and velly black little eyeses sad the Chinaman.

"What you saw was an opossum," smiled the Doctor. "It's far from being a bear, but it is one of the oldest animals we have. It hasn't changed much in thousands of years. A mother opossum has a little pouch like the kangaroo and it carries its babies around in the pouch until they are old enough to take care of themselves. Opossums eat anything that comes handy and they have been known to dine on chicken."

"The opossum can't defend itself very well," said the General. "It is a slow moving creature and not much of a fighter, and when it meets an enemy if pretends that if is dead - hoping to escape by being left for dead. It is from this habit that the proverb, 'Playing 'possum,' came to be used by people."

"It didn't play any 'possum while we were around," said Gogo.

It wasn't afraid of Teenie Weenies," said the General. "It probably thought that the four of you would make a mighty nice tid-bit for supper."

---

It's A Bear! - December 26th, 1954

While Gogo and the Dunce were carrying a thimbleful of salt to replace some they had borrowed from Grandma Pettigob, they accidentally upset the thimble and spilled some salt on the trail that leads up to the big lane. The two Teenie Weenies were able to pick up most of the salt but quite a lot remained on the ground. In their haste to be on their way to Grandma's house, Gogo lost one of his mittens at the scene of the accident. That evening he went back to look for his mitten, but he didn't find it, for he saw a big animal licking at the ground where the salt was spilled.

Any animal bigger than a chipmunk is a bear in Gogo's mind, so he ran to the Teenie Weenie village shouting, "A BEAR! A BEAR!" He burst into the shoe house and yelled, "Saw a bear bigger than our house!"

"Nonsense!" said the Doctor. "We don't have bears around here."

"Yes, sir, I did see a bear!" answered Gogo. "He was licking the ground just where we upset the salt thimble this afternoon."

"That wasn't a bear," said the General. "It was probably a porcupine."

"What did it look like?" asked the Cook.

"If was a big animal with lots of sticky lookin' hair on its back."

"That was a porcupine," said the Doctor. "All of them are very fond of salt. They eat the bark of trees and leaf buds. Sometimes they fish lily pads out of ponds. They will eat apples and some vegetables, but they are especially fond of anything that's salty."

"They can throw their sharp quills like arrows, "put in the Dunce.

"That's wrong," said the Doctor. "They can't throw their quills, but they can strike with their tails which are covered with long sharp quills."

"Porcupines are quite harmless, Gogo," said the General, "if you don't bother them. We'll put out some salt for him, then we'll watch to see what he does."

Next day the Teenie Weenies put salt on a log near the trail and then hid nearby.

Presently a porcupine came waddling down the trail. He began to gnaw the bark where the salt had been spread and the Teenie Weenies came and stood quite near while he ate.

They saw the long, sharp quills on the porcupine's back and they could even see his great orange-colored teeth as he gnawed the bark. The men watched until they grew cold and then they went to the shoe house, where the Cook made a pot of sassafras tea.

---

---

Bird Rescue - January 2nd, 1944

A little snow lay over the ground and during the night the weather turned bitter cold. Early the next morning the Teenie Weenie Turk was up before the rest of the little people. He dressed warmly, not forgetting to put on his tiny ear muffs, and taking a Teenie Weenie snow shovel he set to work clearing off the Teenie Weenie paths about the shoe house. He cleaned off the front porch and steps, and then removed the snow from the kitchen porch. As he started to shovel a path to the woodshed he noticed something dark lying in the snow nearby.

"Looks like a bird!" the Turk muttered to himself. When he ran over to the object, he discovered it was a golden-crowned kinglet. The bird appeared lifeless, but the Turk ran to the shoe house and called the Teenie Weenie Doctor. The Doctor, followed by a number of the little people, ran to the bird and hastily examined it.

"It's still alive!" the Doctor told them, "but we must get it into a warm place quickly."

"We'd better take it into the shoe house," said the Turk, as several of the little men carefully picked up the bird. The men carried the bird toward the shoe house, but as they drew near the front steps, the General came out and told them to take the bird to the toolhouse.

"You'll never get that bird through the doorway here." said the General. "The toolhouse door is bigger and you can probably get through it without much trouble."

The Teenie Weenies carried the bird to the toolhouse, which had been made out of an old coffee can. Even that door was a tight squeeze, and the Teenie Weenies had to do considerable pushing before they could get the bird inside. As soon as they worked the bird through, it was wrapped in four Teenie Weenie comforters which the Lady of Fashion brought from the shoe house.

The Sailor built a roaring fire in the tiny stove, and the coffee can was soon warm and comfortable. In a short time the bird opened its eyes. The Doctor made a careful examination, which showed that the bird was nearly starved and suffering from cold. The Cook brought over some warm broth, and the bird was able to eat a little. Under the Teenie Weenies' care the bird rapidly improved, and in a few days it was quite well.

"You see," the Doctor explained, "birds have a hard time to make a living when snow covers the ground. They can't find enough to eat and then they grow weak and suffer from the cold."

---

Hummingbird - July 30th, 1944

"Say," said the Dunce, as he sat down on the edge of the Teenie Weenie kitchen porch beside the Sailor, who was chopping a piece of hazelnut for the Cook, "I just saw a hummingbird. I believe he was treading air while he was standing up there before a flower to suck the honey."

"Nonsense!" answered the Sailor. "They do that with their wings. Their wings go so fast you can hardly see them move - that's the reason why they appear to be standing still in one spot in the air."

"Anyhow, they don't have any feet," argued the Dunce. "That is, I couldn't see any."

"How could they tread air if they didn't have any feet?" laughed the Sailor.

"Well," sighed the Dunce, "I'd like to know how they do it."

"That's easy," said the Doctor, who had been standing in the kitchen door and listening to the talk between the Sailor and the Dunce.

"What do you mean?" asked the Dunce.

"I mean that the best way to find out about the hummingbird is to study it." answered the Doctor. "I noticed that hummingbirds were feeding in that columbine plant near the lane. We'll go there."

The Dunce wanted to go immediately. The Sailor quickly finished chopping the hazelnut and carried the acorn chopping bowl in to the Cook. The three Teenie Weenies then hurried over to the columbine plant and quickly climbed up the stalks. They waited patiently near a cluster of the bright blossoms and presently a hummingbird flew into the bush and began feeding from one of the columbine's flowers.

The tiny, brilliantly colored bird seemed to stand still in the air, but the Teenie Weenies could see that its wings were moving very fast. The bird stuck its long, sharp beak into the flower and sucked out the honey. Then it disappeared right before the Teenie Weenies' eyes, but the humming of the bird's wings told them that it was still in the bush. They spied it in another flower over their heads.

"Lookie!" exclaimed the excited Dunce, pointing towards the bird. "It really does have feet."

"Of course it has feet," smiled the Doctor, "but they are on very short legs."

The hummingbird flew off to a honeysuckle vine nearby.

"Jinks!" said the Dunce. "I glad I watched that hummingbird. Now I know they have feet and I could see that they stand still right in the air by the use of their wings. Jimminie! Wouldn't a hummingbird make a dandy Teenie Weenie fighter plane!"

---

Good-By, Bluebird - September 24th, 1944

Never had the Teenie Weenies been so busy. They were all up at daylight; even the sleepy headed Dunce was made to get up. Some of the little people worked long after dark, for there was a lot of extra work to do. This additional work was caused by the old skunk who had robbed the Teenie Weenie smokehouse. He had stolen nine smoked frog hams which the little folks had cured for their Winter's supply of meat and now they had to hunt more frogs, dress them and smoke the hams.

Several of the men had to be hunting the frogs when they should have been working on the Teenie Weenie woodpile. A great deal of wood has to be cut, split and stored away to keep the Teenie Weenies warm during The Winter. The Teenie Weenies always get their Winter's supply of wood cut and stored away early, for it is almost impossible to find firewood when the ground is covered with snow. The Teenie Weenie women were busy canning and drying fruit and vegetables. So everyone was very busy.

Early one morning the little men, carrying tiny tools and an acorn bucket of drinking water, started off to cut a tree limb into wood. Gogo and the Turk set to work with a tiny crosscut saw, but they had cut only a few lengths of the limb when a bluebird, who had spent the Summer near the Teenie Weenie village, flew down. The bird began chattering at a great rate, but the little men could not make out what he said. They yelled for the Chinaman because he understands bird talk.

The Chinaman listened to the bird's chatter for a bit arid then he turned to the Teenie Weenies.

"He say," translated the Chinaman "that he goin' Slouth. He come to say glood-by."

"Ask him why he goes South every Winter," said the Turk.

"He say beclause it too hard to all time flind food up here in the North when snow and ice cover everything," said the Chinaman after he had questioned the bird. "He say he all time go to Texas where there is no snow and he all time then flind plenty of somethings to eat."

"Ask him if he doesn't want a lunch," put in the Cook. "I can do a lunch for him in a jiffy."

"No, he say he get plenty to eat along the way. He say glood-by and he hope you have a pleasant Winter."

The bird spread his wings and flew off while The Teenie Weenies waved and shouted, "Good-by bluebird. A pleasant journey to you."

---

A Stranger - December 31st, 1944

The Teenie Weenies had little trouble with their bird and animal neighbors - that is, with the exception of Ginky. He was just an out and out bad mouse and the Teenie Weenies had to watch him constantly. On the other hand, the two respectable mice were kindly and behaved themselves as decent mice should. Skippy, the chipmunk, was honest and a very good neighbor. Of course, Nick, the squirrel, was one of the little people's oldest and most trusted friends.

There were a few neighbors, though, that the Teenie Weenies didn't care much about, especially the weasels and a skunk that lived nearby. This skunk was always about at night and the Teenie Weenies had to be sure that nothing was left out, for the old fellow would eat anything in sight. However, he did clean up all the Teenie Weenie garbage. Each evening the Teenie Weenies would carry their thimble garbage can to a spot some distance from the village and during the night that skunk would lick up every last scrap of garbage. That saved the Teenie Weenie men a lot of work, for they didn't have to bury the thimbleful of garbage every day.

The birds about the Teenie Weenie village were very good neighbors. They were most polite and never bothered the Teenie Weenies. Teasing Tom, the blue jay, sometimes teased the little people, but he seldom caused them any real trouble. Whenever the Teenie Weenies did have any trouble with birds it was usually because they were strange birds, like the one that flew off with the Lady of Fashion's stockings.

The Lady of Fashion is mighty handy with her tiny fishbone knitting needles. She knits all her stockings from spider web which the Teenie Weenie Indian brings to her, for he knows where to find the best and strongest web.

The Lady of Fashion had just finished knitting two pairs of Teenie Weenie stockings. She dyed them a fashionable shade of tan and hung them out in the sunshine on the back porch to dry. Shortly afterwards there was a great rush of wings and a bird flew down. Catching three of the stockings in its beak if flew away almost before the Teenie Weenies knew what had happened.

The Dunce and the Chinaman saw the bird. They said it was a stranger. The Turk and the Cook also failed to recognize the bird, so if must have lived a long way from the Teenie Weenie village. Anyhow, the Teenie Weenies never saw the bird again and those tiny stockings were probably used to line a bird's nest instead of going onto Teenie Weenie legs.

---

---

A Giant Makes A Call

The birds had told the Teenie Weenies about a Teenie Weenie giant who lived in a hollow tree far from the shoe house. The little folks were a bit worried about the giant when they first heard of him, but as the months passed and as they never saw him, he soon failed to worry them.

The Teenie Weenies had just seated themselves at the breakfast table one morning when they were startled by a dark shadow that fell across the tiny window. Looking out the little people were astonished to see a giant duck under the lowest branches of the rose bush and walk straight for the shoe house.

"It's the giant! It's the giant!" shouted the Turk, and the curious little folks all ran out of the house in order to get a better look at the big fellow.

The giant stood about thirty-two Teenie Weenie feet high, or nine inches of our measurement. He had rather an unpleasant face and a thick beard covered most of it. In his hand he carried a big fork and the Teenie Weenies felt a little frightened as he walked toward the house.

"Good morning, sir," said the General, stepping out politely towards the giant. "We were just about ready to have our breakfast. I'm sorry our house is so small I can't invite you in but if you can wait we would be very glad to fix up something for you to eat."

"You said something, little midget," answered the giant. "I want something to eat and I want it quick. You might as well know that I didn't come here for nothin'. I know you have a lot of corn and wheat and things put away, so you can bring ‘em all out and dump ‘em on the ground here, for I'm all out of provisions and I want to stock up."

"But, my dear sir," exclaimed the General, "we only have about enough to last until the next harvest—"

"Makes no difference," growled the giant. "Either trot this food out or I'll wreck your houses."

"I'll let you know what we can do as soon as I have talked to my people about the matter," said the General, in order to gain time.

"Well, hurry up about it!" cried the giant. "If I don't hear from you in five minutes I'll run this fork through the roof of your house."

Several of the Teenie Weenies gathered in the shoe house where they quickly decided that it would be very foolish to fight the giant. He was so very big and they were not prepared for him.

"I think I have a plan that will handle this fellow," said the Doctor. "Have the Cook make some coffee for this bully and I'll drop some sleeping powder into it and it will put him to sleep long enough for us to get our friend the puppy dog and he will chase this chap away in no time."

The Teenie Weenies thought the Doctor's plan was the only one they could use, so the General stepped out and told the giant that they would give him all the grain they had on hand.

"Wouldn't you like something to eat now?" asked the General.

"Yes!" snapped the giant. "Bring out something quick"

The Cook scraped up all the cooked food he had on hand, which was carried out to the giant. The big fellow gulped it down in one swallow and then drank nine thimbles full of coffee.

Into each thimble of coffee the Doctor slipped a bit of sleeping powder and presently the giant's head began to nod in a sleepy manner.

---

The Teenie Weenies Capture The Giant

"Say, you little ant," growled the giant, pointing his huge finger at the General, "I'm kind of sleepy and I'm goin' to sit down and rest a bit and I want you to get that food out. If it ain't out in ten minutes I'll bust up every house you've got"

The giant strolled over to a soft mossy place under the rose bush, where he lay down on the ground, and presently loud snores told the Teenie Weenies that the big fellow was sound asleep.

"Now, men," cried the General, "several of you fellows hurry up and get our friend the puppy dog that lives over in the next street and when this giant wakes up he will get out of here in double quick time."

Three or four of the Teenie Weenies set off in search of the puppy, but they soon returned with the news that the pup had gone away and could not be found.

"This is a fine pickle! That's what it is!" said Paddy Pinn. "How long will those sleeping powders keep this giant asleep, Doctor?"

"He will continue to sleep for two or three hours," answered the Doctor. "But if we don't get that puppy dog here before he wakes up I'm afraid we're going to have some trouble."

"Let's tie him down to the ground," suggested the Old Soldier. "Then we can keep him here until the puppy comes home."

"That's a bully good idea!" cried the General. "And we'll do it."

In a very short time the Teenie Weenies brought up coils of rope, many stakes, and a number of tools. The little men drove the stakes into the ground around the sleeping body of the giant and soon tied the big fellow down with the strong ropes.

When the giant awoke and discovered that he had been tied down to the ground, he let out a roar which stirred all the leaves on the rose bush. He tried to break the ropes, but they held firmly and he could do nothing but glare at the smiling Teenie Weenies.

"What's this mean?" he demanded. "Why am I tied up in this shameful manner?"

"It means, sir," said the General, stepping up onto the giant's stomach, "that you will stay here until you have learned to be more of a gentleman."

---

A Friend In Need Arrives

When the giant awoke and found that he was tied firmly to the ground he certainly was a very angry giant. He strained at the ropes, but with all his strength he was not able to move an inch.

"What do you mean by tying me down like this?" he roared. "Let me up this instant or I'll smash every one of you little rascals."

"Well, sir," said ‘the General, who had climbed up onto the giant's body and stood smiling on his huge chest, "did you think we were going to stand meekly aside and let you steal our food? You thought because you were so much bigger than us that you could do as you pleased, but let me tell you, my friend, that we have no idea of letting you rob our store house."

"Well, what are you going to do to me?" asked the giant, glaring fiercely at the General.

"We are waiting for a friend of ours to arrive who will take care of you," answered the General. "He is much bigger than you and I think you will be very lucky to get out of this place alive."

"Who is this wonderful friend, may I ask?" sneered the giant.

"Oh, just a dog friend of ours," smiled the General.

"Oh, for goodness sake! Have mercy!" cried the giant, and the big fellow's coarse whiskers fairly stood straight out from his face with fright.

The giant was thoroughly frightened and he begged so hard for the Teenie Weenies not to call the dog that the little folks were quite touched by his words.

As the puppy dog whom the Teenie Weenies had sent for to chase the giant away could not be found and as it was getting along towards evening the little folks decided to let the giant go.

"Will you promise to leave immediately if we should let you up?" asked the General.

"Let me up before that dog comes and I'll get out of here quicker than a robin can swallow a worm," pleaded the giant.

The Teenie Weenies untied the ropes and presently the giant stood up and stretched his great body, while the little folks stood at a safe distance watching him.

"Now, you little ants!" roared the giant as he lunged towards the shoe house, "I'll teach you how to treat a man decently. There won't be a single Teenie Weenie alive or a house left when I'm through with you."

The Teenie Weenies were filled with fright as they saw the huge fellow make for them and they ran wildly in all directions, but just as the giant overtook several of the little folks and was about to grab them in his hand, something happened.

The Teenie Weenies' friend, the squirrel, who lived near the shoe house, suddenly appeared and, leaping onto the giant's back, he sunk his sharp teeth into the big fellow's shoulder. The giant let out a great scream and ran from under the rose bush with the squirrel snapping at his fast moving heels.

It was almost an hour later when the squirrel returned and he told the Teenie Weenies that he didn't think the giant would ever bother them again. "For I've run him clear out of the country," laughed the squirrel.

"I saw that big, ugly fellow come over here this morning and I thought I'd better hang around, so I sat quietly up in the big bush over there, and when I saw him running after you I pounced onto his back."

Well, my friend," said the General, "you have certainly proved yourself a friend in need and I thank you with all my heart."

---

---

Travelers - April 8th, 1951

Nipper, one of the Teenie Weenie children, has wanderlust. The mite has to be watched at all times to keep him from running away. He has been talked to, sent to bed, paddled on his tiny bottom, tied up and locked in a fruit jar to play, but all these measures have not cured the little chap's love for unauthorized travel.

If Nipper traveled alone there would be less strain on the family ties, but he likes company on his hikes and he generally takes his tiny brother, Zero, with him. Nipper has a liking for the sea and his jaunts usually end in a saucer of water or in the wider stretches of a mud puddle. In rainy weather a particularly close watch is kept on the Teenie Weenie babies because there are many puddles in the neighborhood of the Teenie Weenie village.

It had rained a great deal during the past two weeks, leaving many inviting puddles to be explored. The Teenie Weenie women tried to keep the children from getting out of sight for even a minute, but in spite of their watchfulness, the pair disappeared one afternoon. Their mother called for help.

"You'll find them in a mud puddle some place." the Policeman predicted. "Those two can always find one without any trouble."

"Yeh, but which mud puddle?" asked the Turk. "There are hundreds of them around here."

"We will all spread out and hunt for them," ordered the General. "If we do not find them before they have time to reach the big woods they will be lost and frightened."

The Teenie Weenies began searching every likely spot near the village. Luckily, the tiny explorers were soon found shipwrecked on a desert island in the middle of a puddle of water near the Teenie Weenie garden. The two had set sail in half an English walnut shell and had gone aground on the reef near a barren island with less acreage than postage stamp. The youngsters were wet and muddy and their tears were falling fast when their rescuers reached them. For once, Nipper and Zero were ready to give up travel and go home with their mother.

Gogo plunged info the puddle, waded through more than two inches of water and carried the wanderers to safety. They were hustled home, bathed in thimbles of warm water, dressed in dry clothes and put under the watchful eyes of a double guard.

"If those kids were mine," remarked The Old Soldier with a wooden leg, "I'd either bring them up in a desert, where they'd never find a puddle, or keep 'em in life belts day and night."

---

Forbidden Fun - November 11th, 1956

After Grandma Pettigob washed her breakfast dishes, she swept the kitchen floor and set a sauce dish of thick molasses on the floor beside the woodbox. "I'll mix that with the chicken feed," she said to herself.

She went into her bedroom, put on a fresh dress, and combed her hair. She got into her coat, put on a hat and took a shopping bag from peg behind the door. She went outside, locked the door and set off for the grocery.

"Two pairs of eyes saw Grandma leave and two Teenie Weenies knew they could safely enter her house. Nipper, the older of the two Teenie Weenie children, helped his half-ounce brother, Zero, through the crack under the back door and the two boys began a tour of the kitchen. They picked up a couple of coffee cake crumbs beneath the table and nibbled at them while they stared at the various huge things in the kitchen.

Nipper found a tea bag that had fallen on the floor beside the garbage can. He caught up the string and began pulling the bag about the floor. Zero climbed onto it and rode about, squealing with delight. His tiny pants got badly stained, but what's a little stain when one can enjoy a ride? Tiring of playing horse, Nipper climbed up onto the kitchen table where he quickly became interested in an egg beater. Nipper, who is fond of machinery, spent considerable time examining the beater.

He was trying to climb up into the sugar bowl, when he heard Zero scream. Quickly making his way to the floor, he found his brother mired' in the dish of molasses. The child was sitting in the middle of the dish, held fast by the sticky syrup. Nipper ran for help.

As he hurried along the trail to the Teenie Weenie village, Nipper was lucky enough to overtake the Cowboy, the Sailor and the Dunce, who were carrying part of an apple they had found back of the grocery store.

"Zero stuck!" Nipper shouted, pointing toward Grandma's house.

"What's he stuck in?" asked the Sailor.

"He's stuck," was all Nipper would say.

The Teenie Weenie men rushed to Grandma's house, where they found Zero screaming.

The Cowboy pulled the mite out of the molasses and carried him back to his mother just as he found him.

Zero's mother, Tess, immediately heated a thimbleful of water and gave Zero a bath. Both boys were scolded for going into big people's houses and they were put to bed to think over the day's lesson.

---

Mr. Plunk – August 10th, 1958

Nipper, one of the two Teenie Weenie children, has become devoted to jumping. He jumps from morning until night and has become most boastful about it. While Gogo was baby sitting with the two mites, Nipper tried to jump over the garbage thimble on the kitchen porch. He fell, skinning his knee, and began to bellow at the top of his tiny voice.

"You shouldn't try to jump over such a high thing as a thimble," Gogo told the child, "You might hurt yourself badly."

"I can jump over the house," boasted Nipper, brushing the tears from his eyes. "I jump like a grasshopper. I'm a big jumper."

"You're a little like Mr. Plunk," smiled Gogo.

"Who is Mr. Plunk?" asked Nipper.

"Well," began Gogo, as he sat down on the shoe house porch, "Mr. Plunk was a frog who lived in a deep, shady pool. He was a mighty jumper and was known for miles around for his tremendous leaps. He soon became very conceited over his jumping and that led to his downfall."

"Did he fall and skin his knee?" asked Nipper.

"No, worse than that," continued Gogo. "On day while Mr. Plunk was sitting on a log sunning himself, a sly old raccoon came along. It peered thru the ferns along the shore and thought what a nice meal Mr. Plunk would make. He knew that if he tried to catch the frog it would jump into the water before it could be reached. The raccoon knew that if he could get Mr. Plunk to come ashore he would have a good chance of taking him, so he thought up a plan.

"I hear you are a champion jumper," the raccoon said

"Right you are!" answered Mr. Plunk. "I can jump 15 feet without half trying. I'm the world's best jumper."

"You might be a great jumper over water but you could never jump so far over land," said the raccoon.

"Now," Gogo went on, "the conceited frog decided to show the raccoon he could leap just as far on land as over water. He leaped ashore, but he had hardly landed before the raccoon caught him and that was the last of Mr. Plunk."

"Did the raccoon eat Mr. Plunk?" asked Nipper.

"That's exactly what happened to him for being so conceited about his jumping." said Gogo.

---

Paint Everywhere - October 19th, 1958

Grandma Pettigob spread a piece of paper on the back porch and set to work painting a box in which she expected to transplant a geranium. She was just finishing this pleasant task when a man came to repair her vacuum cleaner. She put the paint brush down carefully, answered the doorbell and then forgot about the paint lob while she watched the man repair the cleaner.

It was at this favorable moment that the two Teenie Weenie children discovered Grandma's paint. The boys, Nipper and his brother, Zero, had walked out of the Teenie Weenie village while their mother was scrubbing the floor of the pint fruit jar which is the Turk family's home. It was a pleasant day and the two mites set off in pursuit of an ant. Losing interest in that chase, they wandered up the Teenie Weenie trail that leads to the lane where the big people live. Near the lane they found a burned match stick, which Nipper, the older of the two children, used for a vaulting pole. With Zero trailing along behind his daring brother, they soon found themselves back of Grandma Pettigob's house.

Sighting the can of paint on the porch, the two youngsters crawled up to it. Fresh drops of paint dotted the paper and the boys investigated by sticking their fingers into them and making marks here and there. In no time each had both hands in the paint in order to make bigger and better smears. Stepping info spots of paint was even more exciting, and in a short time the children were well decorated.

About this time, their mother, Tess Turk, discovered that the children were missing. After quickly searching about the village, she roused the Teenie Weenie Policeman who was taking an afternoon nap on the front porch of the shoehouse.

The Policeman knows what to expect of the run away brothers, so he told Tess they would begin looking along the trail that leads to the big lane in the hope of overtaking the boys. They met Ginky along the way, and he said he had seen the children.

"I think they were making tracks for Grandma Pettigob's place," he added.

They soon discovered the two well painted but happy children on Grandma's porch. The boys yelled at being snatched away from such a pleasant play place. Picking up the half-ounce Zero and clutching the bawling Nipper by one arm, the little mother whisked her youngsters away from the paint. When she got them home she spent the rest of the after noon scrubbing Nipper and Zero and their clothes.

---

Above Treetops - August 30th, 1964

It was a hot day in the deserted rose garden where the Teenie Weenie village stands. Some of the little people - no taller than matchsticks -were trying to cool off in the sauce dish used for a Teenie Weenie swimming pool. The Sailor and the Dunce had carried a peapod canoe down to the creek hoping they could find a cool place to fish.

Meantime, the General and the Doctor were napping in the shoe house ... Gogo and the Chinese man, lying in a mossy spot to keep cool, may have dozed off.

The three ladies of the village were gathered on the front porch of the shoe house chatting as they mended Teenie Weenie garments. But the two Teenie Weenie children had enough energy to chase ants.

Suddenly, Tilly, the friendly sparrow, flew down and lit on the toe of the shoe house. "My word, but it is hot today," she exclaimed.

"You birds must find the air cool and breezy as you fly along high up in the sky," Aunt Tess remarked.

"Yes, it is cool up there, but one can't fly all the time," Tilly answered. "Birds must keep looking for food, you know."

"If I were a bird I'd certainly fly a lot on a hot day like this," said the Lady of Fashion, "I often watch you and wish I could join you."

"Climb on my back and I'll take you for a flight," Tilly offered. "You'll see many sights like the Waffs' swimming pool and the new highway to the city and the farmers baling hay."

"That would be thrilling!" the Lady of Fashion told Tilly. She quickly put aside her sewing and climbed onto the bird's back.

When Tilly returned, her passenger was bright-eyed with excitement. "It was wonderful to sail over the treetops," the Lady of Fashion told the other Teenie Weenie women. "I could see the creek plainly, but our village is so small I couldn't find it although Tilly told me just where to look"

"Next, Aunt Tess went for a flight. She thanked Tilly for the trip, but said she preferred to travel on-the ground.

When the sparrow offered to take Mrs. Turk up with each of her boys, the little mother told Tilly she was afraid the children might fall off. Nipper and Zero began screaming when they learned they could not take an air trip, and their mother hurried them home for fear their crying would wake the General and the Doctor.

---

---

Right Off The Table – August 7th, 1949

Some of the Teenie Weenies thought it was on account of the hot weather, others believed it was due to the change of the moon but they all agreed that fishing was terribly bad. The little folks hadn't caught a minnow for more than three weeks. The Dunce and Gogo had fished and fished without even a bite and the village was downright hungry for fish, but one morning luck changed. Gogo and the Dunce caught a fine minnow and soon afterwards a big crawfish.

There was a lot of excitement and shouting when the men brought the catch to the village. The meat was taken from the claws of the crawfish and the minnow was placed on the kitchen table.

"Will we bake it?" asked the. Cook, who usually left the cooking of fish to Gogo.

"Lawsy, yes!" exclaimed Gogo. "Baking is the only way to cook that beautiful fish. We'll stuff it with bread crumbs, well seasoned with onion and parsley and moistened with plenty of hickory nut oil."

"Will you make a sauce?" asked the Cook.

"Indeed we will!" grinned Gogo. "We'll beat up a sauce, using the meat from that crawfish's claws that will make the fish proud to be et."

Gogo went down into the cellar for a piece of onion while the Cook brought out his cleaver and his biggest knife. The Cook had just gone to the kitchen sink to wash his hands when he heard a noise. He turned and saw a big yellow eye peering through the doorway and then suddenly a great paw shot into the kitchen towards the fish. The Cook yelled and tried to grab the fish but the great claws fastened into it and whisked it through the doorway.

Gogo and the Cook ran outside and saw Tompkins, Grandma Pettigob's cat, walk off with the fish in his mouth. The two Teenie Weenies ran after the cat and pleaded for their fish, but Tompkins paid no attention to them and wiggled out of sight through the thick brush that grows around the Teenie Weenie' village.

The little folks were all mighty gloomy over the loss of the fish, and that night they ate creamed crawfish on corn bread and the talk around the Teenie Weenie table was mostly anti-cat.

---

Feast In A Bird's Nest – August 14th, 1949

It was a quiet afternoon in the Teenie Weenie village. Beams of sunshine streamed through the rose bushes overhead and fell in golden green splashes on the moss covered ground. Only the hum of bees broke the quiet, and even the Dunce, who is hardly ever quiet, lay in silence on a shady spot of moss.

"What's the matter with you?" asked the Sailor who had been wondering at the Dunce's silence.

"I-I-I was just thinkin' about that big ripe strawberry over in grandma Pettigob's garden."

"Jinks!" exclaimed the Sailor, "I've been thinkin' about that berry, too."

"Now don't you fellows get to talkin' about that strawberry or the first we know you'll be gettin' us into a peck of trouble," said Gogo. "The General is powerful set against us takin' things that don't belong to us."

"It would be all right to take that strawberry," said the Dunce, "Didn't grandma Pettigob's cat take our fish?"

The Sailor nodded his head in agreement and the Dunce went on. "We can take that strawberry in payment for the fish."

The Sailor agreed with the Dunce but it took a great deal of talk to win Gogo's consent to take part in the scheme. His mouth fairly watered over the thought of a nice big slice of strawberry and finally he agreed to take part in the raid on Grandma's strawberry patch.

Taking the Cook's biggest knife out of the kitchen the three Teenie Weenies went to the garden and cut the berry off the plant. The Sailor boosted the berry onto his shoulder and the three Teenie Weenies set off to find a quiet place to eat it. Finally, they decided on climbing up into a deserted bird's nest that hung in a bush nearby. They pulled the strawberry up to the nest with a string and Gogo cut big slices out of the berry as fast as they were eaten.

The little chaps ate until their tiny tummies were as plump as pea pods and of course they couldn't eat a bite of supper that night which caused the General to question them. They admitted taking the strawberry and for punishment the General ordered the Cook not to give the three guilty Teenie Weenies any desert for a week.

---

Just In Time – September 4th, 1949

The Teenie Weenie Cook carefully greased a metal bottle cap with a bit of hickory nut oil and then spread in the dough he had rolled out. "The men will be hungry when they come in to night," he said, "It's hard work curing frog hams and they always eat like weasels when they work hard."

"Yes, they'll be hungry and nothing would please them better than a meat pie," said the Lady of Fashion who was cutting frog meat into small pieces at the kitchen table.

When the meat was ready the Cook spread it on the dough he had laid in the pan, sprinkled a little seasoning on and then covered it with a top crust. He put the pan into the stove oven and set about cleaning up the table while the pie baked. Odor of the baking pie drifted out through the kitchen window and spread through the tangle of bushes that surrounded the Teenie Weenie village. Presently it drifted towards Ginky who had been taking a nap under an old log. The mouse lifted his head and took a deep sniff. "Smells like meat pie," he muttered and he set off cautiously towards the Teenie Weenie kitchen.

Moving quietly around the corner of the kitchen he peered through the open window just as the Cook removed the pie from the oven and set it on the kitchen sink. "When it cools a bit I'll grab it," the mouse said to himself. The Cook and the Lady of Fashion were still working about the kitchen, but keeping out of sight the mouse patiently waited. Soon the Cook went out the back door with a cherry seed full of garbage. He had just lifted the cover off the garbage thimble when Ginky leaped into view. He was screeching at the top of his voice and he was trying to free his tail which was held in the beak of Tom the Teaser, the big blue jay, who is a friend of the Teenie Weenies. After several mad leaps Ginky finally pulled his tail free and he disappeared with such speed he nearly knocked down the Turk who came hobbling along at that moment on his crutches.

Teasing Tom had seen the mouse reaching through the kitchen window and at the moment Ginky reached for the pie Tom grabbed the mouse's tail just in time to save the Teenie Weenies' dinner.

---

Worse than an Elephant – October 2nd, 1949

Wild grape jelly is a favorite spread among the Teenie Weenies especially when it is highly spiced and served with roast frog ham. The Lady of Fashion and Tess, another Teenie Weenie woman, usually make the jelly for no one can make such delicious spiced, wild grape jelly as these two little women. The jelly is usually put in cherry seed containers and sealed with a coating of wax over the top. The women are very particular in making the jelly and they like to have the kitchen all to themselves while the work is going on.

The grapes had been gathered for several days and then one morning when all the Teenie Weenie men had gone off in the Teenie Weenie cart to cut fire wood the women decided to make jelly. They brought out the Cook's biggest kettle and set to work cooking down the grapes. As fast as the grapes were cooked the proper length of time the syrup was poured into the cherry seed containers and set on the kitchen table to cool a bit before the wax was put over the jelly.

"I don't believe we ever made a better batch of jelly," said the Lady of Fashion while the two little women waited for the second kettle to cook.

Tess looked over the even rows of cherry seeds sitting on the table and nodded her bead in agreement. "Yes," she said, "it's spiced just right and it is –" She never finished the sentence for the Lady of Fashion screamed and pointed towards the door. Tess turned and saw a huge grasshopper leap into the kitchen. She tried to shoo it out but the stupid bug hopped onto the hot stove. In leaping off the stove it upset the kettle of jelly and then it began wildly dashing around the tiny kitchen knocking most of the jelly seeds off the table. Tess grabbed a broom and finally ran the big bug out of the place but not before a great deal of damage had been done.

Except for a few cherry seeds which somehow escaped damage the first batch of jelly was completely ruined. Jelly was smeared over most of the kitchen and it took the two women a long time to clean it up.

"Goodness me!" exclaimed Tess when the mess had been cleaned up. "You'd have thought an elephant had been wallowing around in this kitchen."

---

Out Of The Ground - April 3rd, 1949

"We must put up new water gutters today," announced the Old Soldier with a wooden leg while the Teenie Weenies were eating their breakfast.

"AH, SHUCKS!" grumbled the Dunce with his mouth full of hominy. He never mentioned fishing but all the Teenie Weenies knew that was what he had intended to do.

The little eaves gutters hanging from the roof of the shoe house were very important. They not only caught the rain water and carried it through the tiny pipes to the water thimbles on the ground below where it was used for washing, but it kept the water from dripping into puddles about the house. The down pipes were made out of hollow reeds and the eaves gutters were made by splitting long reeds in two. When thoroughly dry they were given several coats of waterproof paint and then attached to the house.

Immediately after breakfast the little men brought out Teenie Weenie ladders and tools and began taking off the old gutters. They had been working only a short time when Skippy suddenly appeared. The little folks had not seen he chipmunk since last autumn and they all gathered about him with many questions as to how he had put in the winter. The Chinaman translated their queries for he understands bird and animal talk.

He spend plenty good winters," translated the Chinaman after a tremendous lot of chattering and waving of arms. "He say he all time come out maybe, two, three times during the winters but mostest time he eat and sleep deep down in his hole under the grounds. He say he have nice warm beds of moss and leaveses."

The Teenie Weenies knew that Skippy had plenty of food stored in his hole for they had helped him gather hazel, walnuts and hickory nuts last fall in the Teenie Weenie cart. They had built a stout little door at the main entrance of his hole to keep out weasels and they knew he would be safe during the winter but nevertheless they were all delighted to see him come out safely in the spring time.

The cook brought out an acorn bucket of hominy, left over from breakfast and, while Skippy ate, the Chinaman told the chipmunk how the Teenie Weenies had spent the winter. After Skippy had eaten he wiped off his mouth with his paw, thanked the Teenie Weenies for the food and told the Chinaman to say that he was ready now to pull the Teenie Weenie cart - whenever the Teenie Weenies needed a horse.

"A mighty fine neighbor," remarked the General as Skippy bounded away towards his home.

---

An Eggless Easter - April 17th, 1949

There was no Easter egg in the Teenie Weenie village this year and the Dunce was the cause of it. The General was kind enough to say that it was due to Dunce's lack of tact but the rest of the Teethe Weenies said it was just plain, downright Smartaleckness.

The Teenie Weenie Cook had arranged with the Boomer, a bustling, loud cackling hen, to lay the annual Teenie Weenie Easter egg. The egg was to be called for on the morning before Easter but, on account of the Dunce who wanted to go fishing, the egg detail with Skippy the chipmunk hitched to the Teenie Weenie cart, arrived fully two hours ahead of the time set for the delivery.

The Boomer, who is a bit emotional at times, viewed the approaching egg collectors with fire in her eye. "MY TAIL FEATHERS!" she cackled. "You little runts must be in an awful hurry. I won't have your egg laid for hours. Clear out at once!"

"Well, shucks!" shouted the disappointed Dunce, "I want to go fishin' and I thought you might hurry up a bit."

"HURRY!" screamed the Boomer, her comb turning a fiery red, "Do you think one can lay an egg like a machine? Egg layin' is a delicate matter."

The Cook saw that the hen was getting into a highly nervous state and that no egg laying would be possible in that condition. "All right," he told the Boomer, "we'll come back later."

"AH SAY!" shouted the Dunce. "This old hen can lay an egg if she wants to. She's just ornery. She's an old fraud."

The Boomer burst into a torrent of angry cackles and her already fiery comb turned to a deep purple. She popped her head through the wire fence and glared at the Dunce with vengeance in her eye. Suddenly she grabbed the Dunce by the arm and lifting him off the ground she shook him so violently he spilled two B.B. buckshot and several clover seeds out of his pockets.

"Now clear out of here!" she screamed as she dropped the frightened Dunce. "You've got me into such a state I won't be able to lay an egg for a week. GET OUT!"

"She plenty mads," whispered the Chinaman. "We all time better glo homes."

"Dunce," the General said when he had heard of the encounter with the hen, "You shouldn't have talked back to that hen. You should have used a little tact."

"Well, she didn't use any tact first," argued the Dunce.

---

That Gangster - April 24th, 1949

After the supper dishes had been washed, the Teenie Weenie Cook put a kettle of water on the stove to heat. He had just dumped a pan of dough onto his kneading board when the kitchen door flew violently open and Skippy burst in nearly tearing away the tiny door jamb in his hurry. The chipmunk slammed the door shut and stared wild-eyed at the Teenie Weenies in the room. The little folks could hear the chipmunk's heart beating which made a sound as loud as a woodpecker pounding on a tree. The Teenie Weenies stared back with astonishment for this was most unusual behavior.

"WHY, SKIPPY! WHAT'S THE MATTER?" gasped the astonished Lady of Fashion.

"OH MY! CH-ER-R-R!" chattered the chipmunk and he burst into such a violent hysterical chatter the Teenie Weenies could not make out a single word.

The Cook sent the Dunce for the Chinaman, who best understands animal talk, and when that little scholar arrived he began questioning the excited chipmunk. After considerable chatter and wringing of paws the Chinaman finally extracted this bit of exciting information.

Skippy had gone to sleep for the night when he was awakened by a noise at the little door the Teenie Weenies had built into the entrance of his burrow. Thinking it was some of the Teenie Weenies calling, the chipmunk removed the bar and the minute he opened the door he smelled a weasel. Skippy tried to slam the door shut but the gangster was a powerful beast and he was slowly forcing his way in when the chipmunk decided it would be best to flee. He dashed down his burrow and up one of the escape tunnels to the ground above. Pushing through the earthen plug at the top he ran to the Teenie Weenie village.

Of course there was nothing to do but to put Skippy up for the night in the Teenie Weenie kitchen. The table was moved back and several Teenie Weenie blankets were spread on the floor for a bed where the animal spent a restless night.

In the morning several of the Teenie Weenie men armed with spears, pointed with sharp needles and carrying candles, escorted the chipmunk back to his burrow. Lighting the candles the men searched every inch of the burrow. The gangster's tracks could be seen all through the various passages but the beast had left. Skippy certainly had a narrow escape. He was very grateful for the Teenie Weenies' protection and he told the little people that he would never again open his door until he knew who was outside.

---

Oil And Water - May 29th, 1949

Just because Mrs. Respectable mouse was ambitious and wanted to raise her standard of living the Teenie Weenies had taken a deep interest in the family. The men had built some furniture for the mice, who lived in a neat hole under a big house. The Teenie Weenie women had shown Mrs. Respectable mouse how to make curtains and rugs out of odd tippets of cloth and they often called to offer advice and encouragement, especially since the arrival of quadruplets.

One afternoon the Lady of Fashion and Tess, another Teenie Weenie woman, and two of the children set off for the Respectable mouse home with an acorn shell basket of freshly baked cookies, They had been gone only a short time when they returned in quite a flurry. Nipper and Zero, the two children, were in tears and the women were tight-lipped and decidedly out of temper.

"Well, well!" exclaimed the General. "What's the trouble?"

"Had a ghastly time," answered the Lady of Fashion. "The children acted perfectly terrible."

"Yes, it was disgusting," put in Tess, "The children and the little mice were all right for a short time. They just stood around and stared at each other but then Nipper got to showing off and that, started the four little mice, doing it, too."

"You can't blame Mrs. Respectable mouse. She does the best she can," said the Lady of Fashion. "It's mighty hard to watch four little active mice. They climbed right up onto the table and began to bite pieces out of the cookies we had brought. While the mother was scolding one mouse for taking cookies, another one would get into the basket.

"Then Nipper!" said Tess, glaring at the still sobbing child, "had to start a fight with one of the mice. He got a good bite on the arm and it served him right, too."

"I felt sorry for the little mouse who bit Nipper," said the Lady of Fashion.

"Then, to put a final touch to it all," added the Lady of Fashion, "Zero, who had been good up to that point, managed to get in his bit. He grabbed ?the tail of one of the quads who was climbing up into the corner cupboard, gave it a pull and the mouse fell off on top of the baby. They both joined the racket and then we left."

"I'd say that mice and babies don't mix well," grinned the General.

"Just like oil and water!' answered the Lady of Fashion.

---

---

The Teenie Weenies are very small people, not much taller than a match. Everyone knows that animals can't talk, but the Teenie Weenies understand them. Why that is, no one can tell.

The Teenie Weenie Sailor announced one day that Nick the squirrel was very lame. The Teenie Weenie Doctor went at once to visit Nick. After talking to the squirrel, the Doctor made up his mind that Nick had rheumatism. Nick lived in a hole up in a tree and when it rained water ran into his nest.

"We've got to keep Nick's house dry," the Doctor told the General.

The General ordered some Teenie Weenie men to build a roof over the door to Nick's house. The little men got Nick to carry the Sailor up the tree. The Sailor carried a long string and a Teenie Weenie pulley, which he made fast to a limb of the tree. Then the little men pulled up boards and tiny tools.

When the roof was ready, the Teenie Weenies covered it with water proof paper, and that kept rain from running into the nest. Nick was very grateful. One morning the Teenie Weenies found 4 walnuts and 7 hickory nuts piled up in front of their house, which is really a man's shoe.

Frogs had been scarce during the summer. The Teenie Weenie Cowboy and the Indian had bagged only six, and the little fellows spent most every day hunting. They were all small frogs, too, and it began to look as though the little people would have to go through most of the winter without frog ham, for twelve small hams wouldn't last long under the rose bush. 

"I don't know what's the matter!" cried the Cowboy one evening as he sat on the front porch of the shoe house discussing hunting with several of the Teenie Weenies. "The frogs just ain't, that's all I can make out of it."

"I'll bet you could get plenty of frogs over around that big swamp, where the wild men live," suggested the Old Soldier.

"Well, if there are frogs any place you'll find them over there," answered the Cowboy. "But it is so far away and so hard to reach."

"Men," said the General, who had been listening to the talk, "we have got to have food for the winter, and I believe we could do no better than to go to the wild men's country for it. They always cure plenty of hams and store up a great quantity of wild rice, and we could get enough from them to last us through the winter. We would take over some things which they want, such as pins and maybe a few yards of silk goods and some pans in trade for the food."

They are crazy for thimbles, too," cried the Dunce. "Don't you remember how they tried to get one of the Cook's cooking thimbles after the war was over?"

"Wouldn't it be dangerous to go into the wild men's country?" asked the Turk.

"Well, we'd have to take along our guns and keep a close watch out," answered the General. "The wild men have no guns and about four or five of us could take care of any trouble that might come up."

"You couldn't drive the trucks all the way on account of the swamp," said the Turk.

"Well, we'd go just as far as we could with the trucks and then build a raft and paddle the rest of the way to the island," answered the General.

The Teenie Weenies discussed the matter for several days, and finally it was decided to go into the wild men's country on a trading expedition.

The swamp where the wild men lived lay many miles away and it would take several days to make the journey. Of course all the little men wanted to go, but only a few could be taken along, and they had to be chosen with great care. The Lady of Fashion and Sally Guff begged so hard to go the General finally consented, as the little women promised to help cook and wait on table.

Gogo was to go as cook, the Turk and Paddy Pinn were to drive the trucks, the Indian and the Cowboy were to be used as guides, and Zip, the Teenie Weenie wild man, was to go along as interpreter. All of the little men were good marksmen, and each took along one of the army rifles and plenty of ammunition.

A great quantity of things was taken along to be traded to the wild men for the rice and ham, and several articles were taken as presents for Queen Mooie, queen of the wild men. The Old Soldier made out a list of the things which were to be used in trade, and here it is in the old fellow's own handwriting, just as be handed it to the General:

Early one morning the tiny trucks chugged out from under the rose bush, where the Teenie Weenie village stood, and set off towards the great swamp of the wild men. The General led the little caravan in his roadster, with the Indian seated at his side to point out the way.

The little people traveled all day except when they stopped at noon for their lunch. Early in the evening the General ordered the travelers to stop for the night, and the tiny trucks were run under a bush, where camp was made for the night. The girls were to sleep in one of the trucks, while the men put up a tent for their sleeping quarters. Gogo made a thimbleful of delicious soup, while the Indian and the Cowboy brought in a big blackberry, and with several slices of frog ham and plenty of bread the little people enjoyed a hearty meal.

After dinner Sally and the Lady of Fashion washed up the silverware, the cooking dishes, and the cherry seed soup bowls, while the men made the camp ready for the night. The little folks were mighty tired that night, and you can well believe they tumbled into their tiny beds very early, for they had traveled many miles during the day.

In the above example, the printer obviously did a beautiful job. Now here's another strip from February 7th, 1965, followed by an example of a newspaper doing a somewhat less than beautiful job:

Note From Grandma

Grandma Pettigob was working in her kitchen one day when the handle of her favorite paring knife accidentally broke and fell off.

She picked it up, put it on the kitchen table and examined it thoughtfully for a long time. Suddenly, she got an idea and began to smile.

"Maybe the little people can fix it for me," she said to herself, for there was no one there to hear her. Although Grandma had never actually seen any of the Teenie Weenies, she knew that they had been coming to her house.

Once, she had found one of their tiny mittens and another time she discovered a note written in very small hand writing. It had been propped up against a cup that she had left still half full of coffee while she went out on an errand and it said, "Don't drink this coffee. Someone fell into it."

And sure enough, when she emptied the cup she found one of the Dunce's small shoes at the bottom of it.

She also remembered the time the Teenie Weenies had mended her broken glasses and sharpened her dull knife.

Each time, she had made a point of leaving the little people some cookies or candies to let them know she appreciated their work. And because the goodies disappeared from the plate, Grandma knew the Teenie Weenies had been there. So this time Grandma wrote a note that said,

"Dear little people. Could you mend this knife? It is my favorite poring knife." Then she folded the note and put it beside the broken knife. She put on her coat and set off for the grocery store.

When she returned, the knife was gone. Soon after she left the house, the Dunce had found her note and ran to the Teenie Weenie village. There he read it to all the Teenie Weenies who agreed to try to mend the broken knife.

Several of the men set off to fetch the knife. The Turk, who is a fine workman, made some new rivets and with the help of other Teenie Weenies, he soon had the handle securely in place.

That evening, Grandma went out again to visit a nephew.

While she was gone, the Teenie Weenies carried the heavy paring knife into the kitchen and hauled it up onto the table with a rope. Grandma found it there when she came home and she was very happy to have it fixed.