1 Once upon a time, there lived a very smart fox called Reddy. Reddy was very smart and always watched every direction before running. But, he started thinking that he was very very smart. But now, all Reddy could think of was what a great chance he had to show all the forest creatures what a bold, smart fellow he was.
2 So, one day Reddy sat down and waited until Bowser the dog was almost up to him. Just then, Drummer, the Woodpecker began to make a tremendous noise—rat-a-tat-tat-tat, rat-a-tat-tat-tat, rat-a-tat-tat-tat! Now everybody who heard that rat-a-tat-tat-tat knew that it was a danger signal. Drummer the Woodpecker never drums just that way for fun. But Reddy Fox paid no attention to the drumming. He didn’t notice it at all. You see, he was so full of the idea of his smartness that he didn’t have room for anything else.
3 “Stupid thing!” said Drummer the Woodpecker to himself. “I don’t know why I am trying to warn him for, anyway. The forest would be better off without him, a lot better off! Nobody likes him.
4 Reddy was laughing when he saw how hard Bowser the dog was working to catch him.
5 “If he doesn’t stop now it will be my fault!” Then, Drummer, the Woodpecker began such a loud rat-a-tat-tat-tat on the trunk of the old tree that it rang through the forest and out across the Green Meadows almost to the Purple Hills.
6 Down at the bottom of the tree, a young boy looked up. It was the face of Farmer Brown’s boy.
7 “What is wrong with my pesky woodpecker?” he muttered. “If he doesn’t keep still, he’ll scare that fox!”
8 The boy shook a fist at Drummer, but Drummer didn’t appear to notice. He kept right on, rat-a-tat-tat-tat, rat-a-tat-tat-tat, rat-a-tat-tat-tat!
9 The noise finally scared Reddy so much that he flew to safety, next to the drummer.
10 Reddy never put on another performance to show how smart he was, for he knew the drummer was the wisest of all.
