The Tale of Grandfather Mole Part 5

She had scarcely finished speaking when Grandfather Mole poked his head from beneath a head of lettuce. Mr. Blackbird was just about to begin his breakfast. But he paused when he saw Grandfather Mole.

"h.e.l.lo!" he cried. "What brings you to the surface?"

Grandfather Mole knew Mr. Blackbird's voice at once.

"I'm glad you're here!" he exclaimed. "I want you to tell Farmer Green the news. For I know he'll be delighted to hear it."

Then Mr. Blackbird did an ungentlemanly thing. He winked at Jolly Robin's wife. But he was a rowdy. So what could you expect of him?

"You've turned over a new leaf, have you?" he asked Grandfather Mole.

"Yes!" said Grandfather Mole. "And not only one! I've turned over a new one every day since I last saw you."

Mr. Blackbird replied that he was glad to know it.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Grandfather Mole Greets Mr. Meadow Mouse. (_Page 61_)]

"At least," Grandfather Mole continued, "I've turned over the newest leaves I could. Of course you can't turn over a leaf unless it's big enough to turn over. When a leaf is so young that it wraps itself around the main stalk it's useless to try to turn it over. And it's a great waste of time waiting for it to grow.... But it's easy to turn over a big one." Suiting his action to his words, Grandfather Mole stepped up to a loose-growing head of lettuce, and thrusting his long nose under a drooping leaf he lifted it up and pushed it over.

As soon as he moved aside a little the leaf promptly righted itself.

Grandfather Mole felt it brush his back as it swept into place again.

"Of course," he remarked, "you can't expect a leaf to stay turned over, unless you want to stand and hold it in place. And that would be a great waste of time--especially for one as hungry as I am." And poking his drill-like snout into the earth, he drew forth a huge angleworm, which quickly disappeared down his throat.

Mr. Blackbird choked; and not over anything he was eating, either. He choked because he was angry.

"It's no use," he said gloomily to Mrs. Robin, as soon as he could speak. "It's no use trying to get Grandfather Mole to stop eating angleworms. In my opinion, he's too old to turn over a new leaf--the way I meant.

"You can't teach an old Mole new tricks," said Mr. Blackbird.

XIV

THE NEW SUNSHADE

GRANDFATHER MOLE was resting in the shade of a toadstool. It was a stifling, sultry day. And having come up into the garden on some errand or other, Grandfather Mole had found the sunshine upon his back altogether too hot for his liking.

He was thinking how comfortable his own cool, dark chambers were, and wondering why anybody should prefer to live above ground in the heat, when a voice called to him, "What a fine umbrella you have! It must be a handy thing to have in one's family!"

It was Mr. Meadow Mouse speaking. And since Grandfather Mole knew him to be a harmless sort of person he asked him to come over and join him.

"To be sure, there's not room enough for two under my sunshade,"

Grandfather Mole said. "But you can stand just outside it. And perhaps the sight of me in the shade may help you to feel cooler, even if you are in the sun."

Well, Mr. Meadow Mouse smiled a bit, all to himself. He knew that Grandfather Mole was odd. And being a good-natured person and wishing to please Grandfather Mole, Mr. Meadow Mouse joined him.

"What do you think of it now?" Grandfather Mole demanded of Mr. Meadow Mouse, almost as soon as he had stepped just outside the shade of the toadstool. "Don't you feel cooler already? I shouldn't care to stay in the garden a second without this sunshade."

Mr. Meadow Mouse wanted to be polite. So he replied that perhaps he did feel a bit more comfortable.

"You ought to own one of these," said Grandfather Mole.

"I've heard they're not always easy to find," Mr. Meadow Mouse remarked.

"That's true," Grandfather agreed.

"You don't--ahem!--you don't use this one all the time, do you?" Mr.

Meadow Mouse inquired.

"No!" Grandfather Mole answered. "Not when it rains!"

"Then," said Mr. Meadow Mouse, "maybe you'll let me borrow your umbrella (or sunshade, as you call it) some rainy day."

"Certainly! You shall take it the next time it rains!" Grandfather promised.

As Mr. Meadow Mouse murmured, "Thank you!" he looked up at the sky with a knowing eye. He could see signs there. But of course Grandfather Mole had never seen the sky in all his life.

"The very next time it rains!" Mr. Meadow Mouse repeated, as if he wanted to be sure there was no misunderstanding about it.

"Certainly! Certainly!" Grandfather Mole said. "And as I've remarked before, I'd be glad to let you come under the sunshade now, beside me, if there was only room enough for both of us."

"You needn't trouble yourself," Mr. Meadow Mouse told him. And once more he scanned the sky eagerly.

"What's that?" Grandfather Mole cried suddenly, as he started up in alarm. "What struck the top of my sunshade?"

"I don't know," said Mr. Meadow Mouse. "I don't know what it was, unless it was a rain-drop."

XV

TWO AND A TOADSTOOL

GRANDFATHER MOLE had promised Mr. Meadow Mouse that he would loan him his toadstool sunshade--or umbrella--the very next time it rained. But when he agreed to that, Grandfather hadn't the slightest idea there was a shower coming. Mr. Meadow Mouse, however, had watched the dark clouds gathering in the sky. But he had said nothing of what he saw. And when the rain-drops began to patter on top of Grandfather Mole's sunshade Mr.

Meadow Mouse cried in a brisk voice: "I'll thank you, sir, for the loan of your umbrella!"

Now, Grandfather Mole had never used his umbrella until that very day.

It was not a quarter of an hour since he had discovered it standing in the garden. And when he had made his promise to Mr. Meadow Mouse he had had no idea that it was going to rain so soon. He didn't like the thought of loaning a new umbrella the first day he owned it.

"Can't you wait?" he asked Mr. Meadow Mouse. "Wouldn't some other day suit you just as well?"

But Mr. Meadow Mouse reminded him that a promise was a promise.

"Well, then--can't you squeeze in beside me?" Grandfather Mole asked him.