Read Ebook: The Tree-Dwellers by Dopp Katharine Elizabeth Brown Howard V Illustrator

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Ebook has 222 lines and 31257 words, and 5 pages

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Where do hogs live to-day? How are they taken care of? How do you think the wild hogs found food? Do you think the Tree-dwellers could learn anything by watching the wild hogs? What have you learned from animals?

The sun had now been up for some time. Sharptooth was getting hungry. She picked a handful of wild plums from the thicket, but she wanted something more. She kept on down the hill. The wild hogs were rooting under the oak trees. She wondered what they found there, so she stepped near enough to see.

They were eating something round and black. She watched them for a long time. As soon as they started off toward the marsh, Sharptooth ran down to the trees. She saw the loose earth that the hogs had rooted up. Then she began to dig where it had not been loosened. She had nothing to dig with except her hands, but she was not afraid to dig with them. She soon felt something that was round and hard. She dug it up and looked at it. It was a truffle. It was black and warty on the outside. She bit off a piece. It was white inside. She tasted it and found that it was good, so she dug another and ate it. She wondered how the wild hogs knew that the truffles were there. Perhaps you can tell. Perhaps you have heard stories of how hogs dig truffles in France to-day.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Can you think how the wild hogs protected themselves? Do hogs have tusks now? Can you think why the wild hogs were not as fat as our hogs?

Sharptooth watched the wild hogs every day. She learned many things from them. They were peaceable creatures when not disturbed. They lived on fruits, wild nuts, and roots. When they had eaten all they wanted, they went down to the river or lake. They hid in the reedy marshes. They hid in the thorny thickets. But they always kept together. Sharptooth watched them from a tree. There were tiny little pigs with long, light stripes. They kept close to their mothers. There were larger pigs that had lost their stripes. They, too, stayed with their mothers. There were wild boars about three years old.

They did not go far from their mothers. They were not strong enough yet to protect themselves. There were many full-grown hogs. There were fierce boars with long tusks. Sharptooth watched them eating acorns. A pack of hyenas was watching, too. They were hiding in the underbrush. They were lying in wait for the smaller pigs. But the old hogs scented danger. They gathered the little pigs together. The stronger ones stood in a circle around them. Their white tusks glistened in the sunlight. They were ready to fight for their young. The hyenas were afraid. They sneaked away in the underbrush. The little pigs were safe.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Do you think that the Tree-dwellers had schools? What did their children need to know? How would they teach them? Have you ever seen a cat teaching her kittens? Have you ever tried to teach a baby? What can you teach the baby to do? What do you need to have done for you? What can you do to help yourself? What can you do to help others?

Sharptooth's baby had grown to be a large boy. He was now about seven years old. His mother called him Bodo. Bodo did not have to wash his face. He did not have to wear any clothes. He had no clothes to wear. He did not have to go to school. There were no schools then. But he learned a great many things. His mother was his first teacher. She taught him where to find the ripe berries. She taught him where to dig for roots. She taught him how to catch birds and squirrels. She taught him how to hide from the wild animals. She taught him to keep so still that he might be taken for a hump on a log. She taught him all that she knew. Bodo learned his lessons well. He always obeyed his mother. Sometimes he saw other Tree-dwellers. He had seen them snatch food from his mother's hand. He had seen them help her, too. But usually each Tree-dweller took care of himself. Bodo was learning to take care of himself. He was beginning to feel that he was almost a man. One day he caught a pig without any help. The next day his mother let him hunt all alone. She knew now that he could find his own food. After that Bodo always hunted alone. Sometimes he saw his mother, but she no longer found food for him. She had another baby to care for, so Bodo knew that he must take care of himself. When the Tree-dwellers lived nobody ever thought of taking care of a child who was able to find his own food.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

What do you think Bodo would do when he left his mother? Who would teach him now? Do you think that he could find birds' eggs? What do you think he would do with them? Do you know any one who has a collection of birds' eggs? What would happen to the birds if we all made collections? How do birds help us? How do we help them? How can we coax them to live near us?

Although Bodo was glad to take care of himself, he often wished that his mother were near. Sometimes he called to her. When she heard his call she would answer him. Then he would swing on the branches until he found her. But sometimes she was too far away to hear. Then he listened in vain for her answering call. Sometimes it was hard work to keep back the tears. Once he sobbed so loud that a sleepy bear heard him. The bear started up and began to growl. Bodo hid in the branches of a tall tree. He stayed there until the bear went away. Then he was very hungry. As he started out to find something to eat, he heard a rustling among the branches. He listened. Bodo hoped that his mother was coming. But it was only a boy who was hunting birds' eggs. Bodo watched him climb among the branches.

He watched him suck the eggs that he found. How he wished that he might find some eggs! He began to look for some. In a moment he saw a bird's nest above him. He climbed up the branch and peeped into the nest. There were three beautiful eggs. His eyes danced with joy. He sucked the eggs. Then he smacked his lips and hunted for more.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Do you think that Bodo ever had any bread and sugar? Did he ever have any candy? What could he find that was sweet? How do bees make their honey? Where do they store it?

Bodo never had any candy. Nobody knew how to make it. But he knew where to find the wild honey. He had found some one day in a hollow tree. He learned to track a bee home to its tree. When he found a bee-tree he robbed the swarm. Sometimes the bees stung him, but he was used to getting hurt.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Do you think that the wild horses had leaders for their herds? What would the leader have to do? What might happen to the horses that did not follow the leader? What could Bodo learn by watching the wild horses?

Two or three years passed by. Bodo was now about ten years old. He still lived on the wooded hills. One afternoon he went to the river. The wild horses were drinking there. Bodo watched them wade through the shallow water. He watched them toss their shaggy manes. He listened to their whinnying calls. He tried to whinny, too. The horses drank until they were satisfied, then they started toward their evening pasture.

The largest horse led the herd up the trail. Others followed one by one. What a long line they made! The leader was far away over the hill before all the horses had left the stream.

The smallest and the weakest ones lagged behind. Spotted hyenas were lying in wait for them. Bodo wondered if he could catch a wild horse. He wondered where the horses went at night. He followed the herd a long, long way. He went swinging along from branch to branch. At last he came to a grassy plain. He did not dare to go out on the plain.

So he sat on a branch and peeped through the leaves. Wild horses were feeding on the edge of the plain. Farther out there was a herd of mammoths. Beyond these still other herds were feeding. They may have been bisons or wild cattle. All these animals were eating the fresh green grass. Bodo watched them till nearly sunset. But while the sky was still red in the west, Bodo tied himself to a branch and fell asleep.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Can you think why our horses are larger than the wild horses? How many toes does a horse have on each foot? On what part of the foot does he walk? Where is the horse's heel? Do you think the horse's foot has always been the same shape that it is to-day? On what part of the foot does the cow walk? How many toes does she have? On what part of the foot does the cat walk? How many toes does she have?

The wild horses that Bodo saw were about the size of ponies. Long before the Tree-dwellers lived there were horse-like creatures the size of a fox. Long before that there was a time when there were no horses at all. Great reptiles moved about on the land, they swam in the seas, or they flew through the air. All other creatures feared them. The tiny mammals that lived then were about the size of rats and mice, but these mammals were not like rats and mice. The little mammals ran, but they did not run fast, for their feet were not well fitted for running. They climbed rocks and trunks of trees, and hid in holes in the ground. They ate the eggs of the large reptiles, and became their enemies.

Millions of years passed; great changes took place. Parts of the land slowly sank beneath the seas, and out of the seas rose dry land. Most of the larger reptiles died, but the mammals multiplied. They grew to be as large as the fox or the sheep. At first they were all very much alike and they lived in about the same way. But as they became more and more unlike they had very different ways. Some became like cats, and some like dogs.

Some became like rhinoceroses and some like hogs. Others became like monkeys, and still others became like horses.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

What part of the wild horse's foot touched the ground when he ran? What happens to muscles that are not used? What happens to muscles that are used most?

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

What tools do you know how to use? What do you use them for? How do you think that people did their work before they had tools? What tools do you think the Tree-dwellers needed? How do you think they learned to make them?

Bodo did not have any tools or weapons. Nobody knew how to make them. But he had learned to use his hands. He used them to catch small animals. He knew how to creep up softly. He knew how to wait patiently. He knew just when to grasp the animal. Bodo used his hands to gather berries and nuts. He used them to pull up roots. He used them to rake the acorns together.

He used them to scoop small things up from the ground. Bodo knew how to strike with his fists. He knew how to kick with his feet. Sometimes he threw stones. Sometimes he threw sticks. Sometimes he struck with a stick in his hand. He could strike harder blows with a stick than he could when he struck with his fist. Sometimes it hurt him when he struck with his fist. It did not hurt him when he struck with a club. Bodo had many enemies. He had to take care of himself. He felt safer when he had a club in his hand.

THINGS TO DO

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

Have you ever used a hammer? What are our hammers made of? How do you think people learned to make hammers? Why did Bodo need a hammer? What do you do with your knife? How many kinds of knives have you seen? How do you think people cut their food before they had knives? What do you think they used for their first knives?

Bodo had never had a warm dinner. He had no fire to cook his food. Much of his food was hard and tough. He had not learned to soften it with fire. He had not learned to crush or grind it with stones. His teeth did all of this work. The teeth of all the Tree-dwellers were large and strong. They were fitted to cut and grind tough food. They were fitted to crack the shells of nuts. Bodo often cracked nuts with his teeth. But sometimes he found nuts that he could not crack. He had never seen or heard of a hammer, so he threw a hard nut against a rock. The nut did not crack. So he kept on trying different ways. At last he struck the nut with a stone. Its hard shell broke. How glad Bodo was! He ate the kernel and then cracked some more nuts with the stone. This stone was his first hammer. Sometimes he used a rough stone. Its rough edges hurt his hand, so he hunted for a smooth stone. At other times he wrapped one end of a rough stone in grass. The grass protected his hand. This was the first handle to his hammer. Bodo liked to use this hammer. He liked to use smooth hammer-stones. But sometimes the smooth stone slipped or bounded back and jarred his hand.

One day he found a smooth stone that had a little pit on either side. He put his thumb and finger into the pits and cracked a hard nut with the stone. This was just what he needed. It neither slipped nor jarred his hand. Some of the other Tree-dwellers tried it. They wanted one like it, so they began to hunt for pitted stones. They could not always find such stones, but they never thought of making the pits. People lived many years before they learned to do that. Tree-dwellers simply used things that they found on the spot.

They seldom changed their shape. We have only a few weapons that we know they made. They were found years ago deep down in some gravel. They had lain there many long years. Here is a picture of one. It is only a chipped pebble. Such a weapon is used nowadays only in play, but then it was used in real work. For a long time the Tree-dwellers did not have even this. They used their teeth and nails instead.

Some animals had larger and sharper teeth. The Tree-dwellers found such teeth in the sand. They found sharp claws there, too. They often found sharp bones and horns. They used such things for cutting for many long years, but at last they made a knife. It happened when Bodo was cracking a bone. In some way he broke his hammer. He picked up the pieces and looked at them. They were sharp enough to cut with, but the edges hurt his hand. So he found a smooth pebble and chipped flakes from one end. Before long he had a sharp point. He never hafted it; but he left one end smooth, so that it would not hurt his hand. It was such a weapon as this that was found in the gravel. You can see that it is something like a spear-head. Bodo used it when he hunted small animals. He used it to skin them and to hack off strips of flesh. Many things had been used as knives before, but this was the first knife that we know man made.

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