“I’ll be careful after this,” promised the piggie boy, and I guess he was.  Anyhow it was a good lesson to him.  And that night he and his brother had cornmeal pancakes with apple sauce on, and Uncle Wiggily stayed to supper.

Now in case the automobile tire doesn’t jump into the frying pan, and pretend it’s a sausage for the lady in the purple dress to eat, I’ll tell you next about the piggie boys and the pumpkin.

STORY XIV

THE PIGGIES AND THE PUMPKIN

“Well, well!” exclaimed Mrs. Twistytail, the pig lady, as she went to the cupboard and looked in.  “Whoever would have believed it?”

“Believed what, mamma?” asked Pinky, the little baby pig, who had been in the hospital, but who was now much better.

“Why, there isn’t a bit of bread for supper!” went on Mrs. Twistytail.  “And your papa will come home from the office so hungry as never was!  Oh, my!  I must run right out to the store and get a loaf.”

“Can’t Curly or Flop go?” asked the baby pig, as she looked to see if her hair ribbon was on crooked, but it wasn’t.  I’m glad to say.

“They aren’t here,” said the mamma pig.  “I guess they must be off playing football, or seeing if there is any ice on the skating pond.”

“Then let me go, mamma,” suggested little Pinky.  “I’m sure I could ask for a loaf of bread and carry it home, too.”

“No, you are quite too small,” said the pig lady.  “I’ll go myself to the store and I’ll ask Mrs. Goosey Gander, next door to come in and stay with you.”

But she didn’t have to do that, for a few minutes later in came Curly and Flop, the two nice boy piggies, and they were just as glad as could be to go to the store for their mamma.

Well, they started off all right, and soon they were at the bread store, where the baker cat wrapped up a nice loaf in pink paper and they started for home, going as fast as they could, so as to be there before their papa came to supper.

And, what do you think?  Just as they reached the spot where stood the old stump, with the knobs growing on the side of it, like warts on a toad’s back, they heard a voice saying: 

“I wonder what I shall do with it?  It is quite too large to cook, and I have no little boys to give it to.  I think I must let it roll down hill into the pond.”

“Who is that speaking?” asked Curly of his brother.

“I don’t know,” said Flop Ear, “but it sounds like the kind rat-gentleman who gave us the apples.”

“That’s just who it is,” said the voice.  “And who are you, if I may ask?”

“Two piggie boys,” was the answer.  “Can we help you?”

“Well, I have here a very large pumpkin,” was what the rat gentleman said.  “It is too large to cut up into pies, and I thought maybe some one might like it to make a Jack o’ lantern of.  Would you like it?”

“Indeed we would!” cried Flop.  And Curly said the same thing.