just as high as ever he could.

[Illustration: HE CAUGHT IT AS HE WENT BY.]

But Mr. Dog wasn't very lucky, for instead of landing on the trunk he
landed his nose right against one corner of it, and that made him madder
than ever. He ran and jumped again harder than before, but this time the
trunk was a little higher and Mr. Dog didn't quite hit it. There was a
strap hanging down, though, and he caught it as he went by. He caught it
with his teeth, and two of his teeth went right through two of the holes
where the buckle catches, and there they stayed. He had the trunk all
right enough, but the trunk had him, too.

[Illustration: THE ARRIVAL OF THE OTHER GUESTS.]

There he was. His feet didn't quite touch the ground, and he couldn't
get up any higher either. Then all at once the people up stairs saw how
it was, and they commenced to laugh in spite of themselves, and hitched
the rope around a peg under the sill so they could rest a minute. That
was fun for them, but it wasn't for Mr. Dog, by a good deal. He couldn't
laugh, and he couldn't rest, either. And just then Mr. Squirrel came
with his trunk, and Mr. Robin with his satchel and a hand bag, and Mr.
Turtle with his things in a big sack. Mr. 'Coon ran down and let them
all in and locked the door. Then he ran back to the window where Mr. Dog
was.

"If we'll let you down will you go home and not come around this hotel
interfering with our business?" says Mr. 'Possum.

"Yes; will you promise not to try to get any of our guests away from
us?" says Mr. 'Coon.

Mr. Dog couldn't talk much in the fix he was in, but he did the best he
could, and promised yes to everything, so pretty soon, they let the
trunk down till his feet touched the ground, and he could get his teeth
out of the strap. Then he put out for home just about as fast as he
could go, without so much as thanking them for letting him down, and up
went Mr. Rabbit's trunk pretty quick, now that there were plenty to
help.

Then the guests all hurried to their rooms to unpack, and Mr. Crow
bustled around to get supper with what he had in the house, for Mr.
'Possum and Mr. 'Coon hadn't time yet to bring in anything. It was a
pretty good supper, though, and all the guests said so, and said they
knew what a good cook Mr. Crow was if he had things to work with, and
the Crow said he guessed he could do his part if the 'Coon and 'Possum
would do theirs.

Well, it makes a good deal of difference whether you're com