and Bobby Coon. When Johnny Chuck had recovered from his
surprise and looked over to the doorway of his new home there sat Reddy
Fox on Johnny Chuck's precious new mound. It seemed as if all the
little meadow people were there, all but Jimmy Skunk, who wisely stayed
away.

"We've come to see your new home," said Striped Chipmunk, "and we think
it's the nicest home we've seen for a long time."

"It's so nicely hidden away, it's really quite secret," said Reddy Fox,
grinning wickedly.

Just then up raced the Merry Little Breezes and one of them had a
message for Johnny Chuck from Great-Grandfather Frog. It was this:

"Whisper a secret to a friend and you shout it in the ear of the whole
world."

After every one had admired the new home, they said good-bye and
scattered over the Green Meadows. Then Johnny Chuck began to dig
again, but this time he wasn't making his new back door. No indeed!
Johnny Chuck was digging at that new mound of yellow gravel of which he
had been so proud. Jolly, round, red Mr. Sun blinked to be sure that
he saw aright, for Johnny Chuck was _filling up his new home_ between
the roots of the old apple tree. When he got through, there wasn't any
new home.

Then Johnny Chuck brushed his coat carefully, shook the sand out of his
trousers, wiped his hands and started off for his old home. And this
time he didn't take his special hidden path, for Johnny Chuck didn't
care who saw him go.

Late that afternoon, Johnny Chuck sat on his old doorstep, with his
chin in his hands, watching Old Mother West Wind gathering her Merry
Little Breezes into the big bag in which she carries them to their home
behind the Purple Hills.

"'Whisper a secret to a friend and you shout it in the ear of the whole
world.' Now what did Grandfather Frog mean by that?" thought Johnny
Chuck. "Now I didn't tell anybody but Jimmy Skunk and Jimmy Skunk
didn't tell anyone but Peter Rabbit and--and--"

Then Johnny Chuck began to chuckle and finally to laugh. "'Whisper a
secret to a friend and you shout it in the ear of the whole world.' My
gracious, what a loud voice I must have had and didn't know it!" said
Johnny Chuck, wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes.

And the next day Johnny Chuck started to make a new home. Where? Oh,
that's Johnny Chuck's secret. And no one but jolly, round, red Mr. Sun
has found it out yet.

VIII

JOHNNY CHUCK'S GREAT FIGHT

Johnny Chuck sat on the doorstep of his n