when the night of the races and other sports finally came, a great crowd began to gather about farmer green's place soon after dark. although benjamin bat had told people that the fun wasn't going to begin until almost morning, they were all so excited that they couldn't wait for the night to pass.
they lingered around the dooryard and talked so loudly that they actually disturbed the household. farmer green was even tempted to get up and shut his window, he found it so hard to go to sleep.
the noisiest of all the gathering was mr. frog, the tailor, who lived over by the creek.
he had a great deal to say about everything; and it soon became plain to everyone that he was trying to manage the whole affair.
mr. frog objected to every arrangement that benjamin bat had made. when he learned that he was expected to enter a jumping contest with kiddie katydid he exclaimed that he and kiddie were such good friends that he hated the thought of trying to beat kiddie at jumping.
"kiddie might feel bad," said mr. frog. "people might laugh at him because i won."
"don't you worry about me!" kiddie katydid called out.
"where are you?" asked mr. frog, looking all around. "i can hear you, but i can't see you."
but kiddie katydid refused to show himself.
he preferred, for the time being, to remain safely hidden among the leaves, where he could listen to what people said—and talk to them when he wanted to.
"wouldn't you prefer some other sort of contest?" mr. frog then asked him. "now, there's swimming! we could swim in the watering-trough, or the duck pond. and if i beat you, you could stick your head under water, so you wouldn't hear what people said. don't you think that's a good idea?"
"goodness, no!" cried kiddie. "i'd drown myself in no time."
"dear me!" said mr. frog. "i never thought of that."
and then everybody laughed so loudly at him that he hurried off to the watering-trough to dive under water, and stay there until he was sure that his remarks had been forgotten.
meanwhile benjamin bat was worrying. he couldn't find anybody who was willing to try the sport of hanging head downward by his heels. he asked kiddie katydid; and kiddie declined flatly to do any such thing.
now, since benjamin had not yet dined, he was very short-tempered. and he grew angry at once.
"what's the matter?" he sneered. "don't you know how to do an easy trick like that? if i could see you—" he declared, peering among the maple leaves—"if i could see you i'd show you how it feels to hang beneath a limb."
kiddie katydid said no word in reply. he knew well enough what benjamin bat meant. benjamin wanted to eat him! and he wished that benjamin would go away and get a good meal somewhere before he came back again.
