when it was almost dark grandaddy beaver swam across the pond to the big rock, where ferdinand frog had told him to come.

and trooping after daddy was almost everybody in the village. not counting the women and children, there were eleven of them. they climbed upon the rock, looking for mr. frog. but he was nowhere in sight.

"he'll be here in a minute or two, probably," grandaddy beaver said hopefully, for all he looked a bit anxious.

then somebody spied a neat building near-by, which not one of them had noticed before.

"what's this strange house?" people asked one another. "is this where mr. frog lives?"

but nobody seemed to know the answer to that question.

"it can't be a shop," grandaddy decided, "for there's no sign on it. and nobody would have a shop without a sign."

now, the door of the little building was shut and fastened. and the window-shades were pulled carefully down. it certainly looked as if nobody was at home.

but suddenly there came a sound that made the beaver family jump. it came from the house—there was no doubt of that.

in fact it came right through the keyhole; and it was like nothing in the world but a sneeze.

a number of people were all ready to jump into the water and swim away, they were so startled.

and then a snicker followed the sneeze. and by that time grandaddy beaver and his friends guessed who was inside the building. it was ferdinand frog; and he had been watching his callers all the time, through the keyhole, and listening to everything that they said.

a few felt slightly uneasy, as they tried to remember exactly what remarks they had made about mr. frog himself.

"come out!" they all cried, as soon as they had recovered from their surprise. "we want to see you!" and they formed a half-circle in the dooryard.

presently the door swung out, as if somebody had pushed it open. and there, on the inside of the open door, which was flung back against the outside of the building, they all saw a sign, which said:

mr. ferdinand frog

unfashionable tailor

all the styles

five years ahead

of the times

people began exclaiming that that was just like ferdinand frog—who was an odd fellow—to have his sign painted on the inside of his door instead of on the outside.

"it'll be all the style five years from now," he retorted.

so that was mr. frog's secret! he was a tailor himself! and there he was, ready to make clothes for all of them!

it was almost too good to be true. but there he stood in the doorway, with a tape around his neck, smiling and bowing.

"you'd better form in line!" he suggested. "you can come in through the front door. i'll measure you. and you can pass out the back way. . . . don't crowd, please!"

now, that was just where mr. frog made a great blunder. but he didn't find it out till it was too late.