8 



FOUR-HANDED FOLK 



box in the upper back corner began to uncoil, 

 two tiny hands appeared on the edge, followed 

 by a quaint little gray face, with a look so un- 

 canny that one could not wonder at the super- 

 stitions of the natives of his country about him. 

 First he looked over to make sure of his mis- 

 tress, who always fed him. Then he leaned far 

 out of his box, taking hold of the water-cup 

 across the cage, and drawing his lithe body out 

 in a long, long stretch, bending his back down- 

 ward like a bow turned the wrong way, opening 

 his mouth very wide, and thrusting out his curi- 

 ous tongue, which was very thin and reached 

 nearly three inches beyond his lips. 



Then he drew back to his box, and proceeded 

 to get wide awake by stretching each limb sepa- 

 rately, and spreading the fingers wide apart. 

 Next came his toilet, for he was a well-mannered 

 little fellow, and never thought of coming to 

 breakfast till he was in perfect order. 



His way of dressing was amusing. Over each 

 long limb he passed his claws, thoroughly comb- 

 ing the hair the wrong way, so that it must 

 perforce stand up ; then lifting himself to an 

 upright position, resting on feet and tail, he 

 dressed the fur on his broad stomach, using both 

 hands in rapid alternation on the same spot, and 

 moving them so quickly and in so business-like 

 a manner that it was very funny to see. His 



