It was very simple. In his greedy haste Fatty had merely bitten through
the cord that fastened the ham to the pole. And of course it had at once
fallen, carrying Fatty with it!

But what do you suppose? Afterward, when Fatty had grown up, and had
children of his own, he often told them about the time he had escaped
from the trap in Farmer Green's smokehouse.

Fatty's children thought it very exciting. It was their favorite story.
And they made their father tell it over and over again.




XVI

FATTY COON PLAYS ROBBER


After Fatty Coon played barber-shop with Jimmy Rabbit and his brother it
was a long time before he met them again. But one day Fatty was
wandering through the woods when he caught sight of Jimmy. Jimmy dodged
behind a tree. And Fatty saw Jimmy's brother peep from behind another.
You see, his ears were so long that they stuck far beyond the tree, and
Fatty couldn't help seeing them.

"Hello!" Fatty called. "I'm glad to see you." And he told the truth,
too. He had been trying to find those two brothers for weeks, because he
wanted to get even with them for cutting off his moustache. Jimmy and