Bobtail did not say a word.

He picked himself out of the big pile of leaves, and shook his long ears back and forth.

“I don’t like to fly kites,” he said.  “Let’s go home and take a nap.”

So the three little rabbits hopped back along the path through the woods.

North Wind puffed out his cheeks.

“See me fly the kite,” he called to the rabbits.

He puffed out his cheeks and blew and blew.

But the leaf only fluttered and fluttered because the branch held the string fast.

North Wind blew and blew, but he could not make the kite fly away.

“I don’t like to fly kites this morning,” he said.  “I am going to pile some more leaves under the oak tree.”

So he danced over the ground, and through the woods, singing a gay little song: 

  “Come, little leaves,” said the wind one day.

  “Come o’er the meadow with me and play.

  “Put on your dresses of red and gold,

  “For summer has gone and the days grow cold.”

APRIL FOOL’S DAY

I

“Wake up, Billy!” called Bunny.  “Wake up and see how hard it is snowing.”

Billy opened his sleepy eyes and rolled out of bed.

Then he went to the door and peeped out.

“April fool, April fool!” shouted Bunny.

Billy laughed.  Then he hopped out of doors.

It was a warm sunny day,—­just the day to run around and play jokes.

But first the little rabbits had to find their breakfast.

Now that the warm days were coming they could find plenty to eat.

And Bunny and Billy and Bobtail were growing very fat.

Bobby Gray Squirrel and Sammy Red Squirrel could find plenty to eat, too.

In the fall they had stored away nuts and acorns in little holes in the ground.

When Jack Frost covered the ground with snow the squirrels could not dig up these nuts.

But now the ground was soft again, and Bobby and Sammy had plenty to eat.

Bunny and Billy and Bobtail saw the squirrels hide the nuts.

They did not like acorns so they never opened the store-house doors.

They just hopped around under the trees looking for green leaves and tender roots.

But on this first day of April Bunny found the biggest acorn he had ever seen.

It was hidden in a little hole, and he saw it when he sat down to eat his breakfast.

“Oh, oh!” he said to himself.  “Now I can play a joke on Bobby Gray Squirrel.

“I am going to tie a string to this acorn, and when Bobby tries to pick it up I shall pull it away from him.”

He told Bobtail and Billy about the joke he was going to play on the gray squirrel.

“Ho, ho!” laughed Billy.

“Ha, ha!” laughed Bobtail.