HAYING-TIME
After Cuffy Bear’s adventure with Mrs. Eagle
he did not stray far from home for several weeks.
You can see, from that, that he had been badly frightened.
Yes—just to look at a crow flapping through
the air made Cuffy dizzy now; and nothing would have
tempted him to go up the mountain again.
But Cuffy became very tired of playing near his father’s
house all the time. And at last he wandered down
into the valley one day. There was something
down there that Cuffy wanted to see. You’d
never guess what it was; so I’ll tell you.
Cuffy Bear wanted to see a mowing-machine. You
may think that was queer. But you see, it was
summer now. And down in the valley Farmer Green
was making hay as fast as ever he could. Early
and late there sounded far up the mountainside the
click-clack-click-clack of Farmer Green’s
mowing-machine.
When he first heard it Cuffy Bear had been very much
alarmed; and he had come running into the house in
a great fright. But his mother explained what
the sound was. And after that Cuffy had been very
curious to see that wonderful machine, which was pulled
back and forth through the meadows by horses, leaving
behind it a broad path of grass which lay flat on
the ground.
So that was the reason why Cuffy stole away from home.
He felt that he simply must see a mowing-machine.
Nothing but the sight of a mowing-machine would make
him happy. He was sure of that.
Now, where Farmer Green’s meadow met the forest,
Cuffy paused. He hid behind a tree and looked
out over the field. The click-clack sounded
quite loud now. And from the other side of the
meadow Cuffy could see two horses coming towards him.
There was a man driving them. And Cuffy thought
that they must be drawing the mowing-machine.
So he waited quietly. And all the time the click-clack-click-clack
grew louder than ever. And pretty soon, as he
peeped slyly around the tree, Cuffy Bear saw the mowing-machine.
It came delightfully close to him, stopped, turned
about, and moved away again toward the opposite side
of the field.
Cuffy gave a great sigh of satisfaction. He had
seen a mowing-machine. He was glad that he had
come down into the valley. He was not the least
bit sorry that he had disobeyed his parents and stolen
away from home.
Yes, Cuffy was feeling very happy as he went prowling
along the border of the forest. He crept in and
out of the bushes that fringed the hay-field, and
was having altogether a most pleasant time; until all
at once he stopped short. Cuffy’s nose
sniffed the air for a moment, and the hairs on his
back bristled just like those on a dog when he is
startled. Cuffy had caught a strange odor in the
air.
At first he was frightened. But after he had
sniffed the air a few times he decided that whatever
it was that he smelled, it had a good, pleasant odor,
and made him think of something to eat.
