Shut tightly in the cage on the deck of the houseboat, Toto looked across the water. The boat was moving slowly along. It was near the bank of the river, and some of the trees were so close that the boat brushed the branches as it moved along.
Suddenly Toto heard a voice speaking to him in the beloved animal language he knew so well.
“Hello there, beaver boy!” called the voice. “What are you doing on that boat?”
“Oh, I don’t know what you mean by ‘boat,’” answered Toto, “but I don’t want to be on it, whatever it is. But who are you? Can’t you help me?”
“No, I am sorry to say I can not,” was the answer. “Don’t you remember me? I am Slicko, the jumping squirrel, and I live in one of the trees near your beaver pond.”
“Oh, Slicko, see what’s happened to me!” cried Toto, looking from his cage and seeing the squirrel frisking about in the trees on shore near the boat. “I was caught in a trap, and now I’m in a cage.”

“Yes, I see you are,” answered Slicko. “I wish I could help you, but I can’t. I was caught in a trap once, myself, and I lived in a funny cage with... #story #kidsstories ✝️❣️?️ AcreSoft Story Classic acresoft.com cointr.ee/acresoft