The Adventures of Grandfather Frog | Page 4

his big green lily-pad, fast asleep. At least,
he seemed to be fast asleep. The eyes of Longlegs sparkled with hunger
and the thought of what a splendid breakfast Grandfather Frog would
make. Very slowly, putting each foot down as carefully as he knew
how, Longlegs began to walk along the shore so as to get opposite the
big green lily-pad where Grandfather Frog was sitting. And over in the
bulrushes on the other side, Little Joe Otter and Billy Mink nudged
each other and clapped their hands over their mouths to keep from
laughing aloud.

IV
THE PATIENCE OF LONGLEGS THE BLUE HERON
Patience often wins the day When over-haste has lost the way.
If there is one virtue which Longlegs the Heron possesses above
another it is patience. Yes, Sir, Longlegs certainly has got patience. He
believes that if a thing is worth having, it is worth waiting for, and that
if he waits long enough, he is sure to get it. Perhaps that is because he
has been a fisherman all his life, and his father and his grandfather were
fishermen. You know a fisherman without patience rarely catches
anything. Of course Billy Mink and Little Joe Otter laugh at this and
say that it isn't so, but the truth is they sometimes go hungry when they
wouldn't if they had a little of the patience of Longlegs.
Now Grandfather Frog is another who is very, very patient. He can sit
still the longest time waiting for something to come to him. Indeed, he
can sit perfectly still so long, and Longlegs can stand perfectly still so
long, that Jerry Muskrat and Billy Mink and Little Joe Otter have had
many long disputes as to which of the two can keep still the longest.
"He will make a splendid breakfast," thought Longlegs, as very, very
carefully he walked along the edge of the Smiling Pool so as to get
right opposite Grandfather Frog. There he stopped and looked very
hard at Grandfather Frog. Yes, he certainly must be asleep, for his eyes
were closed. Longlegs chuckled to himself right down inside without
making a sound, and got ready to wade out so as to get within reach.
Now all the time Grandfather Frog was doing some quiet chuckling
himself. You see, he wasn't asleep at all. He was just pretending to be
asleep, and all the time he was watching Longlegs out of a corner of
one of his big goggly eyes. Very, very slowly and carefully, so as not to
make the teeniest, weeniest sound, Longlegs lifted one foot to wade out
into the Smiling Pool. Grandfather Frog pretended to yawn and opened
his big goggly eyes. Longlegs stood on one foot without moving so

much as a feather. Grandfather Frog yawned again, nodded as if he
were too sleepy to keep awake, and half closed his eyes. Longlegs
waited and waited. Then, little by little, so slowly that if you had been
there you would hardly have seen him move, he drew his long neck
down until his head rested on his shoulders.
"I guess I must wait until he falls sound asleep again," said Longlegs to
himself.
But Grandfather Frog didn't go to sleep. He would nod and nod and
then, just when Longlegs would make up his mind that this time he
really was asleep, open would pop Grandfather Frog's eyes. So all the
long morning Longlegs stood on one foot without moving, watching
and waiting and growing hungrier and hungrier, and all the long
morning Grandfather Frog sat on his big green lily-pad, pretending that
he was oh, so sleepy, and all the time having such a comfortable
sun-bath and rest, for very early he had had a good breakfast of foolish
green flies.
Over in the bulrushes on the other side of the Smiling Pool two little
scamps in brown bathing suits waited and watched for the great fright
they had planned for Grandfather Frog, when they had sent Longlegs to
try to catch him. They were Billy Mink and Little Joe Otter. At first
they laughed to themselves and nudged each other at the thought of the
trick they had played. Then, as nothing happened, they began to grow
tired and uneasy. You see they do not possess patience. Finally they
gave up in disgust and stole away to find some more exciting sport.
Grandfather Frog saw them go and chuckled harder than ever to
himself.

V
GRANDFATHER FROG JUMPS JUST IN TIME
Back and forth over the Green Meadows sailed Whitetail the Marsh
Hawk. Like Longlegs the Blue Heron, he was hungry. His sharp eyes

peered down among the grasses, looking for something to eat, but some
good fairy seemed to have warned the very little people who live there
that