He just
couldn't budge that fish. He couldn't cough it up, because it had gone
too far down for that. The more he clawed at that waving tail with his
hands, the funnier he looked, and the harder Little Joe Otter and Billy
Mink and Jerry Muskrat laughed. They made such a noise that Spotty the
Turtle, who had been taking a sun-bath on the end of an old log, slipped
into the water and started to see what it was all about.
Now Spotty the Turtle is very, very slow on land, but he is a good
swimmer. He hurried now because he didn't want to miss the fun. At first
he didn't see Grandfather Frog.
"What's the joke?" he asked.
Little Joe Otter simply pointed to Grandfather Frog. Little Joe had
laughed so much that he couldn't even speak. Spotty looked over to the
big green lily-pad and started to laugh too. Then he saw great tears
rolling down from Grandfather Frog's eyes and heard little choky sounds.
He stopped laughing and started for Grandfather Frog as fast as he could
swim. He climbed right up on the big green lily-pad, and reaching out,
grabbed the end of the fish tail in his beak-like mouth. Then Spotty
the Turtle settled back and pulled, and Grandfather Frog settled back
and pulled. Splash! Grandfather Frog had fallen backward into the
Smiling Pool on one side of the big green lily-pad. Splash! Spotty the
Turtle had fallen backward into the Smiling Pool on the opposite side of
the big green lily-pad.
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