it was almost time for school to be out, and nearly all the pupils were sitting quietly at their desks. the owl school teacher was just hearing the geography class recite, and that was the last lesson of the day.

"jacko kinkytail," spoke the teacher, as she took up a piece of red chalk, "where do cocoanuts grow?"

"in our house," said jacko very quickly.

"why, the idea!" exclaimed the teacher. "i mean in what country do cocoanuts grow?"

"well, i'm sure they grow in our house," said the red monkey, "because i saw one there to-day. my mamma is going to make a cake of it."

of course all the children laughed at that, and the teacher had to laugh also, though she didn't exactly want to.

"well, jacko, you may go home," she said suddenly, "and so may all of you. school is out. now be on time to-morrow, and, jacko, you must take your geography, when you get home, and find out where cocoanuts really come from."

so when jacko and jumpo were walking home together the red monkey asked his green brother where he thought cocoanuts came from.

"the grocery store, of course," said the green monkey, quickly. "i should have thought you'd have known that. didn't you go to the store for some the other day, and didn't the grocery man have a lot of them in a barrel? cocoanuts grow in barrels in the store, of course."

"oh, why didn't i think of that?" cried jacko. "i'll tell the teacher to-morrow. but now let's have a race, and we'll see who'll be the first to get to the old black stump where the giant used to eat his dinner."

"all right," agreed jumpo. so off they started. first jacko was ahead, and then he accidentally got a stone in his shoe and had to stop to take it out, so jumpo got ahead. and then, as the green monkey was going through a dark part of the woods, he saw something crawling under the leaves.

"oh, maybe it's a snake!" exclaimed jumpo. "i'm going to wait until jacko catches up to me." so he waited and waited, but no jacko came. in fact, jacko had got tired of playing the racing game, and he had gone home another way. then jumpo thought he would be brave, and go over by himself to see what was moving under the leaves. and, if you will believe me, it was nothing but a harmless snail, crawling along with his shell house on his back.

"how silly of me to be frightened!" cried jumpo, with a laugh. "after this i'm first going to see what it is, and get frightened afterward; that is, if there is anything to scare me." so he said "how-de-do" to the snail, and then the monkey boy went on toward home.

over the hills, up and down, among the trees, hopping across little brooks he went, until pretty soon, just as he was coming out of the woods he heard a loud, banging noise.

"that's a gun!" cried jumpo. "a gun, and some one is out shooting. oh, i must be careful or i'll be shot."

so the poor monkey boy hid down behind a rock and waited. and then, all of a sudden, there came another bangity-bang-bung noise and some one shouted out loud:

"my, i nearly got it that time!"

"worse and worse!" thought poor jumpo, shivering. "they are coming after me." then he saw something moving behind a stump, and a big, ugly fox looked out at him.

"oh, this is terrible!" cried the green monkey. "i can't stay here or the fox will get me, and if i go out of the woods the man with the gun will shoot me. what shall i do? perhaps the man may be kind, and let me go. i think i'll go out so the fox won't eat me."

and jumpo leaped out only just in time, for the fox saw him then, and made a jump for him. and there came another bangity-bung-bang noise, and jumpo shivered again.

when he got out in the field, just beyond the woods, he looked for a man with a gun, but he could see no one. down the road, however, he did see a friend he knew, and it was no one else than uncle wiggily longears, the old gentleman rabbit. and uncle wiggily was standing beside something with four big wheels and a black front on it, and it had a wheel up by the seat, and a lot of shiny things on it, and there was a smell like gasoline coming from it.

"my! i wonder what it is that uncle wiggily has?" thought the green monkey. "it looks like a carriage, but there is no horse to it. however, i'm going to ask him to save me from the man with the gun."

and as jumpo ran toward the old gentleman rabbit, once more there sounded that banging noise, and the monkey saw uncle wiggily jump back very quickly.

"why, it's uncle wiggily who is shooting!" cried jumpo. "oh, you uncle wiggily!" called the monkey. "please don't shoot me!"

"shoot! i'm not going to shoot anybody," said the rabbit. "i'd like to shoot my automobile, though, for it won't go, and it is making those banging noises like a gun. i never saw such a machine—never in all my travels to seek my fortune. here i am—stuck!"

"oh, ho! an automobile, eh?" cried jumpo.

"yes," said the rabbit, "since i got so rich i bought one of them, and now i wish i hadn't. here i am, miles from home, and i can't get it to go. i've twisted the thing-a-ma-bob, and poured oil down the what-is-it, and squirted gasoline on the dingus-dingus, and wiggled the touch-me-not, and jiggled the who-is-it and even tickled the tinkerum-tankerum. still it won't go, and it keeps making that bang-bang noise like a gun whenever i turn the crank. oh, and my rheumatism hurts me so! and i'm so tired!"

"perhaps i can help," said jumpo. "does that crank in front make music like a hand organ?"

"i only wish it did," spoke the rabbit, as he gave it another twist. but there was only another bang.

"i give up!" cried uncle wiggily. "that crank doesn't do anything."

"never mind!" cried jumpo. "i'll help you home. you sit up in the auto and steer it, and i'll get a rope and pull you home along the road, and you'll be there in time for supper."

well, the rabbit gentleman didn't believe the green monkey was strong enough to pull the heavy car, but jumpo was, and soon the auto and jumpo and uncle wiggily were safe home, and the auto man soon had the machine fixed, so it would run like an alarm clock.

and that night uncle wiggily came to the monkey boys' house, and gave them each a peppermint candy and told them a story before they went to bed. and, in case the man across the street, who has an auto, doesn't put one of the big rubber tires on our front doorknob, to make it look like a doughnut, i'll tell you another story on the next page. it will be about jumpo and susie littletail.