The Tale of Benny Badger

By Arthur Scott Bailey

Arthur Scott Bailey was one of the most prolific and popular authors of kids books in the early 20th century. He wrote several dozen books, many of which are still read today.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Krill Press
• Release date: Feb 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781531213886

Book preview

THE TALE OF BENNY BADGER

..................

Arthur Scott Bailey

MILK PRESS

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This book is a work of fiction; its contents are wholly imagined.

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Copyright © 2016 by Arthur Scott Bailey

Interior design by Pronoun

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

THE TALE OF BENNY BADGER: I: A GREAT DIGGER

II: HUNTING FOR SOMETHING

III: NO ONE AT HOME

IV: MR. COYOTE SINGS

V: SPEAKING OF GROUND SQUIRRELS

VI: STRANGE PARTNERS

VII: MR. COYOTE REMEMBERS

VIII: A WATCHER AND A WORKER

IX: A CARELESS HELPER

X: THE SORE PAW

XI: BIRDS’ EGGS

XII: THE PRAIRIE CHICKEN

XIII: DON’T DO THAT!

XIV: A QUEER DISCOVERY

XV: BENNY AND THE OWL

XVI: SPOILING A GAME

XVII: THE PRAIRIE DOG VILLAGE

XVIII: SAVING THE DAY

XIX: PLEASANT PRAISE

XX: THE RANCHER IS ANGRY

XXI: THE NEW HOME

XXII: A BREAKFAST INVITATION

XXIII: MR. DEER MOUSE IS TIMID

The Tale of Benny Badger

By

Arthur Scott Bailey

The Tale of Benny Badger

Published by Milk Press

New York City, NY

First published circa 1949

Copyright © Milk Press, 2015

All rights reserved

Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

About Milk Press

Milk Press loves books, and we want the youngest generation to grow up and love them just as much. We publish classic children’s literature for young and old alike, including cherished fairy tales and the most famous novels and stories.

THE TALE OF BENNY BADGER: I: A GREAT DIGGER

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OF COURSE, BENNY BADGER HAD the best of reasons for living on the high, dry plains. There he had for neighbors plenty of ground squirrels and prairie dogs. And it is likely that he enjoyed their company much more than they did his.

If anyone had asked them, those little wild people would no doubt have confessed that they wished Benny Badger was somewhere else. But their wishes meant nothing to Benny—if he knew anything of them. Although he couldn’t help noticing that his small neighbors hurried into their homes whenever they caught sight of him, Benny never took the hint and went away. On the contrary, when he spied a prairie dog or a ground squirrel disappearing into his burrow Benny was more than ready to go right in after him.

Now, the tunnels that led to the houses of those smaller folk were too small to admit anybody as bulky as Benny Badger. But that difficulty never hindered Benny. Digging was the easiest thing he did. He had a powerful body, short, stout legs, and big feet, which bore long, strong claws. And when he started to dig his way into somebody else’s home he certainly did make the dirt fly.

He was so fond of digging that he even dug countless holes of his own, just for the fun it gave him—so far as anybody could find out. And if he had only left other folk’s holes alone some of his neighbors would not have objected to his favorite sport. For more than one fox and coyote had been known to make his home in a hole dug by Benny Badger. And, though they never took the trouble to thank him for saving them work, they often chuckled about his