Way-Atcha, the Coon-Raccoon 
stream lodged him against a sandbar, he scrambled 
out little the worse, and made for the home tree, 
Mother was halfway down, but seeing him climb 
she returned to the row of eager faces on the branch 
above. 
Way-atcha went up bravely till he reached the 
tall smooth trunk where there was no bark, and 
here he absolutely failed, and giving way to his 
despair, uttered a long, whining whimper. Mother 
was back at the hole, but she turned now and 
coming down, took Way-atcha by the neck rather 
roughly, placed him between her own forelegs, 
carried him round the smooth trunk to the side 
| where there were two cracks that gave a claw-hold, 
and there boosted and kept him from falling while 
; BY i she spanked him all the way home. 
de 
= Y SCHOOLING THE CHILDREN 
: ye It was two weeks later or more before mother 
\ Se ae L | judged it time to take them down into the big world, 
eh | and then she waited for a full moon. Old Coons 
can do very well on a black night, but they need 
some light, especially at the beginning of the young 
one’s training. 
Father went down first to be ready, in case some 
enemy was near, and now the youngsters were 
taught the trick of the smooth trunk. There 
94 
