“Well, I’m not.  I’m going to take the largest I can find in the field,” declared Curly, and he went hunting for a specially large one.

Of course, in a way, it was all right to do this, for the rat gentleman had told them to help themselves, but you just wait and see what happens.

Curly picked out a very large apple—­the very biggest one that grew on the trees, but Flop was content with a smaller one.  Then the piggie brothers started for home again.

Curly had hard work to carry the big apple and also his bag of corn meal, and first he would have to put one down to rest his legs, and then put down the other to rest his paws.  But Flop could easily carry his middle-sized apple and the meal.  Finally Curly said: 

“Flop, can’t you help me?”

“I’m afraid not,” answered his brother, “though I would if I could.  But I have all I can do to take care of my apple and the meal.  Why don’t you get a smaller apple?”

“Because I want the big one,” said Curly quickly.

Well, he was staggering along with the big apple and also his bag of cornmeal, but his brother was going along much more easily, when, all of a sudden, out from the bushes sprang the fuzzy fox.

“Ah ha!” he cried.  “This time I have good luck!  Here are little pigs to make roast pork, and they have with them the apples for apple sauce.  Oh, joy is me!  Now for a fine dinner!”

With that he made a grab for both the piggie brothers, but they managed to jump away.  Off ran Flop with his middle-sized apple and the cornmeal, and after him came Curly, only he could not go so fast because his apple was so big.

“Wait!  Wait!” begged Curly of his brother.

“I can’t!” was the answer.  “I’ll send a policeman back to help you.  But if you will let go of the big apple you can easily run away from the fox, for he is old, and not a good runner.  Drop the apple.”

“No, indeed!” cried Curly.  “I want the biggest one I can find!” So he held tightly to the apple, and also to the cornmeal, and on he ran, but the fuzzy fox was getting nearer and nearer, and almost had him.

“I’ve got you!” suddenly snapped the fox.  “I’ll have roast pork and apple sauce tonight all right!” and he was just going to grab Curly and the apple and bag of meal, when out from the bushes jumped Uncle Wiggily Longears, the old gentleman rabbit.

“Here!” he cried to the fox.  “You stop chasing Curly, and go home to your den!” and with that Uncle Wiggily stuck out his rheumatism crutch, and tripped up the fox so that went tumbling head over heels, and when he got up he was so lame that he could not chase even a snail for more than a week.

“Run!  Run!” called Uncle Wiggily to Curly and the little piggie boy did run, and, after some trouble, he got safely home with his big apple and the meal, but Flop was there ahead of him.

“After this,” said Uncle Wiggily, when he came up to the piggie house, “after this, Curly, don’t take such a large apple, and you can run better when a fox chases you.”