Well, now, if I leave the elephant out of this story I promise that I'll give each one of you an ice cream cone¹ with a raisin² in it. All you'll have to do—in case I forget to tell about the elephant and how he helped Flop³—all you have to do, I say, is to come up to my house and say "Magoozilum!" at me, just like that, and turn two somersaults on the parlor⁴ rug, and the ice cream cone is yours for the asking.

 

But now let's get right at the story. You see it happened this way. Once upon a time, when Curly and his brother Flop were out in the yard of the piggy-house, playing "ring around the apple tree," their mother called to them:

 

"Oh, boys! come in here!" she said, and when they got to the kitchen where she was working, she asked them: "Do you know what I'm making?"

 

"Pies," said Curly.

 

"Pudding," suggested Flop, as he tried to make his slimpsy ear stand up straight, but he couldn't.

 

"Neither one," said their mother. "But if one of you will go to the store for me I'll make a Johnny cake for supper."

 

"A Johnny cake?" asked Curly. "Is it called that because a boy has to be named Johnny to eat it?"

 

"No," answered his mother with a laugh, "but lots of boys named Johnny do eat it. However, just at the last minute I find that I have no corn meal. Now who wants to go to the store for a bag full, so I can make the Johnny cake?"

 

"I went for the eggs, last time," said Curly, sort of slow and thoughtful like.

 

"Then I suppose it's Flop's turn to go for the bag of meal," said his mother. "But I do hope the bad dog doesn't chase him."

 

"Oh, I'm not afraid, mamma," said the little piggie boy. "If he comes after me I'll throw corn meal dust in his nose and make him sneeze, and then he can't see to catch me."

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