ation: Bunny put the acorn in front of Sammy's door.]

Then he held on to the other end of the string and hid behind a big
rock.

Bobtail and Billy hid behind the pine tree.

They all kept as still as mice. They did not even shake one of their
long ears.

"There is Sammy now," whispered Billy. "I can see him running along
the path."

"Don't make a noise," said Bobtail.

Bunny saw the little red squirrel coming down the path.

He kept very still and held on to the string.

II

Sammy came skipping down the path.

He was singing a gay little tune:

"One, two, three, four, five, six,

"I'll watch out for April tricks."

Just then he saw the acorn lying on the ground near his door.

"Look at that!" he said. "Bobby Gray Squirrel must have been here.

"Something frightened him, and made him drop that nut near my door."

Now Sammy was very fond of big acorns and he had not had one for a long
time.

So he pounced on the acorn.

But it was not there! Bunny had given the string a quick pull.

Sammy put his hand down on a rock. There was no acorn to be seen.

"April fool!" shouted Bunny.

"April fool!" shouted Billy and Bobtail.

The three rabbits hopped out from their hiding places.

They laughed and laughed, and Sammy laughed, too.

"That was a good trick," he said.

"We are going to play it on Bobby Gray Squirrel, now," said Bunny.

"May I go with you?" asked Sammy.

"Oh, yes!" said the three rabbits.

So off through the woods they all went.

"Bobby often comes to the big oak tree," said Billy. "I think that
will be a good place to play the trick."

Bunny put the acorn on the ground, and then they all hid behind the
tree.

They did not wait very long before they saw Bobby coming.

And in another minute Bobby saw the acorn.

"Ho, ho!" he said. "Sammy Red Squirrel must have dropped that big
acorn. I will pick it up."

He ran along the ground toward the oak tree.

Bunny held on to the string.

He was going to wait until Bobby took hold of the acorn and then pull
it away.

It was so still that the rabbits could hear Bobby's feet as they
pattered on the ground.

Then all at once it was not still in the woods.

Jip, the dog, came bounding along the little path.

"Bow-wow, bow-wow!" he barked. "Look out for me. I am coming."

What a scampering there was!

Bobby forgot all about the acorn and skipped up the oak tree.

Sammy skipped up the tree after him.

The