It is a wise man that lays aside a portion of his earnings so as to provide for the time when he cannot work.

Once upon a time a squirrel made his home in the hollow of a big oak tree. He and his family were very bright looking squirrels. They were so careful about little things. Not even a nut end or the rind of an acorn was wasted in their homes. Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel and the three little ones made up the family.

The first thing Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel taught their children was to store away food to eat in the winter when they could not go out to get it. All summer long they were gathering acorns, and in the fall when the nuts were ripe they spent all their time storing the old oak full of provisions for the winter. They knew the cold was coming and that they should make some provisions against the snow and the sleet.

One cold winter afternoon the squirrels were all in their snug little home. It was almost night. A very little rap came on the door. Mr. Squirrel went to see who it was, but at first he did not see anybody, so he said: “Who is there?”

“It is I,” said a little voice. “I am very cold and hungry. May I come in awhile and warm myself?”

“Of course you may,” said Mr. Squirrel.

A rabbit hopped in. His fur was dirty and he looked ragged. His eyes were dull. His whiskers and ears hung down. He looked as ill as a rabbit could look. Mr. Squirrel had him sit in a chair beside the fire, and Brownie, his oldest child, gave him her own acorns to eat. He ate them eagerly. When he was warm, Mrs. Squirrel sent the little ones to bed and when they were gone she said: “My friend, how did it happen that you had this bad luck?”

“I did not know that it was going to be so cold, and that the snow was going to be so deep that I could not get some winter cabbage to eat. You know I do not mind work, but I just did not know all this was going to happen. It seems no use for me to try. I don’t know how you manage,” said the rabbit.

“We all tried. We put away a part of everything we had. If we had six acorns we put three away. There was plenty of nuts last fall, so we have plenty for ourselves and for a friend, too; so eat all you want,” said Mr. Squirrel.

It was pleasant in the Squirrel family, but the rabbit had been such an idle fellow that he could not stay long contented. He would not help to do the work in the Squirrel house, so in a few days he left.

Often when he felt the cold winter wind he wished he had stayed with the Squirrels. And the Squirrels, who were very kind hearted, often thought of the rabbit out in the cold.