"boys, i wish you would go to the store for me," said mrs. kinkytail to jacko and jumpo when they came home from school one afternoon.

"of course we will," said the red monkey. "do you want some sugar and chocolate to make candy?"

"no, but i want a yeast cake and some flour to make bread with," said the mamma monkey. "bread is more important than candy," she went on, "though candy is very good, if you don't eat too much. and i also want some molasses, for i am going to make molasses cookies."

"oh, goodie!" cried jumpo. "come on, jacko, we'll go in our automobile and it won't take us very long. then we can go on another ride when we come back, and have some fun with the other animal boys."

so their mamma gave them the money for the yeast cake, the flour and molasses and away they[pg 134] started off in the auto, blowing the horn, to kindly ask every one to look out so they wouldn't get run over.

jacko was steering, and jumpo was sitting beside him. they hadn't gone very far before they met uncle wiggily longears, the old gentleman rabbit who had given them the auto.

"hello, uncle wiggily!" called jacko, "don't you want a ride?"

"i believe i will get in," spoke the gentleman rabbit. "as my rheumatism hurts me to-day, i can't walk very well."

"aren't you sorry you gave away this nice auto? don't you want it back?" asked jumpo, though he hoped he and his brother could keep it.

"no," answered the old gentleman rabbit, shaking his head. "i never had any luck with that auto. it wouldn't go for me, and i can't understand how it goes for you. i'm afraid if i ride with you that you'll have bad luck."

but the boys didn't think so, and the rabbit gentleman got in the back seat. away they went once more. uncle wiggily was just thinking what a nice ride he was having, and he was wishing he could run the auto like that, when, all of a sudden, there was a bangity-bang noise and the auto stopped.

"there!" cried the rabbit. "what did i tell you? i knew i'd give you bad luck. let me get out and walk. then it will go again," and before jacko and jumpo could stop him, uncle wiggily hopped out.

"wait, we'll soon get it fixed," said jacko. "then you can ride some more."

"no, indeed!" answered uncle wiggily. "that auto will never go again. i'm going to walk, i'm in a hurry."

so away he hopped through the woods, and jacko and jumpo tried to see what was the matter with their car. but though they pushed and pulled and twisted and turned everything they could see or think of, the auto stood still just like a tree growing in the woods.

"oh, dear!" exclaimed jumpo, "we may have to stay here all night, and the grocery store will close before we can get to it, and we can't have any molasses cookies."

"i'll tell you what we'll do," spoke jacko. "you skip off through the woods to the store, and get the things, and i'll stay here and see if i can fix the auto. by the time you get back with the yeast cake and flour and molasses, i may have it running."

well, jumpo thought that was good advice, so he ran on through the woods to the grocery store. and jacko tried once more to make the auto go. he shoved and he twisted and he turned, and he even put some fresh air in the hollow tires, but the auto wouldn't move.

"i know what i'll do," he exclaimed, "i'll take out the toodle-oodle-um and put it where the diddle-daddle-um belongs and i'll put the snicky-snackum in the place of the mickie-mackie-um. that may be the trouble."

so he did that and then he climbed up on the seat and sure enough the auto went off as nicely as a piece of cherry pie, with the fizzle-fozzle going flippity-flop.

"oh, joy!" cried jacko, when he saw that the car was all right. "now when jumpo comes back with the groceries we can ride home and have some fun." so he got out of the auto, after stopping it, of course, to wait for his brother.

jacko walked around in the woods and pretty soon he came up to a tree. inside of it he heard a funny buzzing sound, and then he heard a voice singing this little song:

"i am a busy little bee,

i'm buzzing all the day.

i make so much sweet honey that

i have no time to play."

then jacko looked and he saw a little hole in the tree. he went close up to it and said:

"are you there in that hole, mrs. bee?"

"yes," was the answer, "but please go away, little boy, as i am very busy, i have to make enough honey to last all winter."

well, jacko was just going away when he saw a snake sneaking along on the ground. and that bad snake took up some soft mud on the end of his tail, and he plastered it over the hole in the tree where the bee was making honey, so she couldn't get out when she wanted to.

"now, when that bee is dead i'll come and get the honey," hissed the snake, just like a steam radiator.

"no you won't!" cried jacko, and then he blew the big auto horn so loudly that the snake was frightened and crawled away as fast as he could. then the red monkey took a stick, and knocked the mud away from the bee's hole so she could come out when she wanted to.

"oh, thank you, so much!" buzzed the bee. "i'll give you some honey for being kind to me." so she gave jacko some, and also some for his brother, and by that time jumpo came back from the store with the groceries and he was glad to find that jacko had fixed the auto, though he was a little frightened when he heard about the snake.

the two brothers were just going to ride home in their car, but before they could get it started all of a sudden along came the savage wolf. he was just going to grab jumpo, and maybe jacko also, for all i know, when the busy bee just buzzed up and stung the wolf on the tip of his soft and tender black nose so that he ran howling away to put some mud on the sting. and so he didn't eat either of the monkey boys, and the bee was glad she had helped them.

then they hurried home in their automobile and their mamma made some molasses cookies and they had them for supper with honey on, and oh! how delicious they were. and after supper jacko and jumpo played tag with johnnie and billie bushytail, the squirrels, until it was time to go to bed. so now, good night, if you please.

and in the next story i'll tell you about the kinkytails and the grape vine—that is if the basket of peaches doesn't fall down the chimney and scare the fire shovel so that it hides in the ash can.[pg 139]