“I came upon Mrs. Tamytam sitting upon the toad stool,” said Mrs. Teenyweeny, “and as I had just heard of this lovely home for rent, she came with me to see it and we decided to take it!”

“And will Tom Tom and Mrs. Teenyweeny live with us, Tum Tum?” Tim Tim asked.

“They have the little nook right across the hall!” Mrs. Tamytam replied.  Upon hearing this Tom Tom and Tim Tim caught hold of hands and danced about, kicking up their heels with pleasure.

“Just wait until you see inside, Tom Tom and Tim Tim!” Mrs. Teenyweeny and Mrs. Tamytam cried, and then they led the way inside the trunk of the great blue-gray beech tree.

And after they had inspected Mrs. Tamytam’s home, Mrs. Teenyweeny’s Tom Tom and Tim Tim were as delighted with the new homes as their tiny wives had been, so Tim Tim and Tom Tom ran to their old homes and brought all their furniture and placed it about the large living rooms.

When all was finished and the tiny rugs had been placed just right, they heard a stamping of tiny feet in the hallway.

And as they ran to the door a merry, laughing crowd of tiny creatures like themselves, each carrying an acorn basket, trooped into the living room.

“It’s a surprise party!” they all shouted and then one, Tee Tee Tubbytee, a great speaker, said:  “We watched you moving in, and decided to have a nice, fine, lovely party for you, so I called all the neighbors together and here we are!”

Some of the tiny creatures had brought their tiny violins and some their elfin flutes, and as all were in a merry mood they played rollicking airs such as “The Wind Tinkles the Fairy Bells” and “Mother Hulda Picks Her Geese.”

Tim Tim and Tom Tom danced and sang elfin songs.  And then the merry tiny creatures ate the goodies brought in the acorn baskets.

[Illustration]

After the dinner all the tiny creatures went outside, and upon the soft, mossy carpet they held a wood-folk dance while the silvery moon peeped down through the leaves of the woodland glade and bathed the scene in fairy light.

When the first rooster crowed, far away in a distant farm yard chicken coop, the tiny creatures, after planning another surprise party the next moonlit night, bade each other good night and went to their tree trunk homes.

So upon soft summer evenings, should you pass near the woodland glade, you may hear the “Tahoo Tahoo Tahoo-hoo-hoo!” and the answering notes of plaintive melody, “Toowoo-toowoo Tooawoooooo!” For the tiny creatures have adopted the Tamytam call as the call to the evening parties.  And you must step quietly and approach softly so as not to disturb the tiny creatures, when you wish to see one of their moonlight surprise parties.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

A CHANGE OF COATS

Two mischievous little gnomes were walking along the beach one day and as they came to a pile of rocks they heard voices.  One of the little gnomes put his finger to his lips for silence and peeped cautiously around the largest stone.  There he saw a crab and a lobster sitting upon a bunch of sea-weed in the sunshine.