have been around here
with his music-machine, and his monkey must have run away from him and
hidden up in a tree where you saw him, Laddie."

"But I found him, and he's mine. I want to keep him," said the little
boy. "He's awful soft and fuzzy, and he likes me."

Indeed the monkey was a nice, clean little chap, and he seemed to like
Laddie. And he seemed to like to have the other children pet him, also.
He wore a funny little red jacket and a green cap, and every now and
then he would take off his cap and hold it out, as he had been taught to
do, for pennies.

Mun Bun, who had been afraid the monkey would wind its long tail around
him, came out from behind his mother's skirts, and even dared to pet
Laddie's "riddle," as they called it.

"He's awful nice!" said Mun Bun.

"He'd make a lovely doll," observed Rose. "I wish I had a doll that was
alive."

"I'll let you play with him sometimes," promised Laddie. "I'm going to
call him. 'Peanuts' 'cause he likes 'em so."

"Well, that would be a nice name for a monkey," said Mrs. Bunker. "But
don't get your heart set on keeping this one, Laddie."

"Why not, Mother? Can't I have him?"

"I'm afraid not. In the first place Aunt Jo has no place in her Boston
home for a monkey, and, in the second place, Alexis, the big dog, might
bark at Peanuts and scare him."

Alexis was not there just then, or he would have seen the monkey, and
surely would have barked, as he always did when he saw anything new or
strange.

"Another reason why you can't keep him," said Mother Bunker, "is that
the Italian hand-organ grinder will want his monkey himself. That is how
he makes his living--by having the monkey collect pennies for him."

"But can I keep him until the organ man comes?" asked Laddie, as he
cuddled his "riddle" in his arms.

"Oh, yes, I guess you can keep him until then," said Mrs. Bunker. "We
couldn't turn the poor little monkey loose, anyhow, or dogs would chase
him. We'll see what your father says when he comes home."

"And we can have some fun now, with Peanuts," added Russ. "We can tie a
string to his collar and make-believe we have a circus."

"Maybe he'll bite," said Margy.

"He didn't bite me," Laddie explained, "and I carried him under my coat
from down the street. He tickled me though, when he wanted to get out."

Mrs. Bunker and Aunt Jo said the children could play with the monkey
awhile on the side porch, fastening it by a string attached to the
collar ar