Wally the Woodpecker

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 660, 11 May 1929, Page 31

Wally the Woodpecker

Who Was Born Tired and Lazy

(The Woodpecker in the Hollow Tree claims no relationship with the hero of this story.)

Me was a very lazy woodpecker. He simply hated to peck. He even hated to hear another woodpecker peck, it sounded so brisk and busy arvd energetic.' “Tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-” a woodpecker had to sound. His beak had to hit the tree fast and hard, to make a hole in it. The lazy woodpecker hated to jerk his head back and forth so quickly! His name was Wally, and he was a very lazy woodpecker, lie sat on the side of a tree, and wished he were a little duck, floating around in the pond, with nothing to do but dip his head down into nice soft water. You didn't have to peck to make a hole in the water, ho thought. Ducks were lucky things! He began, at last, to peck at the hole he had started, the day before. But he yawned every other second, and you know a woodpecker can’t peck and yawn at the same time. He cannot do it. So Wally’s hole didn’t get very deep. And he was hungry. “Oh, dear.” he said crossly. “I don’t see why I have to get my breakfast by pecking holes so I can iind the worms and insects inside of a tree! It’s such hard work. And other birds just pick up a breakfast oif the ground, or catch it in the air. It isn’t fair!” “What’s the matter with you. old Crumbly Growl?” said somebody. Wally looked up. A squirrel was sitting on a branch near him. ‘l’m tired of pecking for worms,” said Wally in a grumpy voice. “You are?” said the squirrel. “Yes, I am!” said Wally. “I’m tired of pecking for worms.” “Well, fish for them, then,” said the squirrel. “Fish for them!” said Wally. “Yes. fish for them,” said the squirrel. “Don’t you remember we saw the man fishing for fish? Why don’t you fish for worms?” “I believe I will,” said "Wally. So he looked around and looked around till he found a straight stick. Then he loked around and looked around till he found a little piece of thread. _ _ _ Then he looked around and looked around and looked around and looked around and looked around till he found a thorn on a wild rose bush that was like a bent pin. Then he tied the thorn on the thread and the thread on the stick, and he sat down by an earthworm’s hole and dangled the thread down into it. Oh, he loved fishing for worms! It was so much easier than pecking! All he had to do was to sit and sit and sit. And he could yawn all he liked, and it didn’t matter. The only trouble was that he didn t catch any worms' He was really get-

tint; very, very hungry! H« looked around, over his shoulder. and it seemed to him he saw an earthworm. Its head was sticking: out of a hole behind him. and it was laughing: a t him. He moved over to that hole and dangled his hook into it. But he didn't catch the worm. Then he tried other holes. But he didn’t catch a single worm in any of them! He would try a new hole. Then he would look back at the hole he had just left. and lie would see an earthworm peeking at him! Sometimes he would see three or four. And they were always grinning. *‘l will catch a worm.” he said. “I'll show them that they can’t laugh at me! ” At last AVally found a very big .hole. “Hurray!” he said to himself. “A whole family of worms must live in this hole. I’ll surely catch one here.” fc>o he dangled his hook down into the black hole; and he sat and waited. And he got sleepier and sleepier. He yawned wider than he ever had. and his head nodded and nodded. He was almost asleep when he felt a pull! “I’ve caught a worm!" he shouted. And he pulled and he pulled. “Oh. it must be a big one! ’ he said. And he pulled harder. All the birds there came to watch him. “Bull hard, Wally," they said. Anil Wally pulled and pulled. He dug his claws into the ground and backed away and pulled. At last he pulled hard enough. Up out of the hole came—guess what? A rabbit! It was only a baby rabbit, and a little one at that, but it looked big to Wally. He was very much surprised. The rabbit was surprised, too. and embarrassed. but Wally didn't know that. He was very much afraid the rabbit would be angry, and he didn’t wait to apologise. He dropped his stick and flew away, and didn’t stop till he reached the top of the tallest tree in the wods. Even there he could hear the other birds laughing. Then they all flew round and made fun of him. ‘Don’t tease!’ said Wally. “Don’t tease. And please, somebody, give me something to eat. I’m so hungry. And after this I’ll peck the way woodpeck ers are meant to peck, and I’ll never be such a lazy bird again.” So they gave him a nice breakfast After that Wally pecked and pecked, and he found that he liked to peck. H*» liked to see how quickly he could peck a hole, and how nice and round a hole he could make. Everybody said at last that he was the most skilful woodpecker in the forest. He could peck a hole in the very hardest tree. And then nobody dared to mention fishing to Wally. He might have pecked a hole in them!