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Speaker 1: Welcome sleep Tight Stories, Chapter nine. Blackie scrambled down out

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Speaker 1: of the cage of Dido the Dancing Bear, ran between

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Speaker 1: the legs of Tom Tom the Jolly Elephant, who called

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Speaker 1: to her in his big, kind, trumpety voice, and then

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Speaker 1: stuck her head out under the circus tent. Is everything

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Speaker 1: all right, asked Ido, who soon was to go in

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Speaker 1: the ring and perform his tricks with his master. Yes,

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Speaker 1: I don't see anything of those bad boys, answered Blackie,

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Speaker 1: and then she quickly ran off the circus grounds after

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Speaker 1: one look back at the crowds of people, the gay

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Speaker 1: fluttering flags, and the men selling pink lemonade, peanuts and

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Speaker 1: toy balloons. Another adventure, exclaimed Blackie as she went to

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Speaker 1: the little brook in the field to get a drink.

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Speaker 1: You ever would think that I should run into a circus,

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Speaker 1: thought Blackie, as she washed her face with her paws.

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Speaker 1: I don't believe even Speckle as many times as he

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Speaker 1: had run away ever met Dido the Dancing Bear or

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Speaker 1: Tum Tum the Jolly Elephant. I wonder who that dog

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Speaker 1: Dawn could be that Dido spoke of. I wonder if

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Speaker 1: he would be kind to me if I met him.

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Speaker 1: I could tell him I knew Dido and Tom Tom,

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Speaker 1: and that might make a difference. Of course, I don't

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Speaker 1: know the bear and elephant very well, thought Blackie. But

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Speaker 1: I had no time to stay to get better acquainted.

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Speaker 1: A circus must be a strange place. Blackie did not

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Speaker 1: quite know what to do. Next. She looked over the fields,

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Speaker 1: and far away she could see the white circus tent.

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Speaker 1: Then she looked down in the water, and she could

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Speaker 1: see herself as in a looking glass. My how rough

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Speaker 1: my fur is, said Blackie. I'm all ruffled up, and

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Speaker 1: I'm beginning to get thin. I do believe that comes

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Speaker 1: of not having enough to eat. I'm half starved. I

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Speaker 1: think I'll go back home. I have had enough of

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Speaker 1: running away. It's all very well to talk about having

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Speaker 1: adventures and getting yourself in a book and all that.

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Speaker 1: But Muffins was right. It is nicer to stay home.

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Speaker 1: I don't wonder Speckle would not run away with me,

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Speaker 1: nor Muffins either. Yes, that's what I will do, went

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Speaker 1: on Blackie, as she took another look at herself in

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Speaker 1: the water looking glass. I'll go back home. There's no

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Speaker 1: use trying to find missus Thompson, though she was very

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Speaker 1: good and kind to me. I can't tell which is

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Speaker 1: her house. I'll go back to the city to Arthur

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Speaker 1: and Mabel. They must be as lonesome for me as

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Speaker 1: I am for them, the two children were. They had

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Speaker 1: looked all over for Blackie and even put an advertisement

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Speaker 1: in the newspapers asking anyone who saw their pet to

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Speaker 1: bring her home. But Blackie was far away for missus

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Speaker 1: Thompson had taken her on a long railroad journey. Sleeping

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Speaker 1: in barns and running down in store sellers. Isn't good

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Speaker 1: for a cat's fur, thought Blackie as she saw how

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Speaker 1: ruffled hers was. I must give myself a good cleaning

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Speaker 1: before I go back home, or the children will not know.

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Speaker 1: So Blackie stayed in the field and washed herself with

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Speaker 1: her red toue. Then she crept up behind a house

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Speaker 1: and found a piece of fish the farmer's wife had

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Speaker 1: thrown out. It was not as nice fish as Blackie

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Speaker 1: used to get in her own home, but she could

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Speaker 1: find no better. Never mind, said the black cat to herself.

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Speaker 1: I'll soon be where I belong, and I'll never run

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Speaker 1: away again. I'm going home. So Blackie started to go

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Speaker 1: to her home, but she found the same trouble she

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Speaker 1: had found in trying to get back to missus Thompson.

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Speaker 1: Blackie was so far away from her home with the

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Speaker 1: good Children that she could not find it. Up and

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Speaker 1: down here and there. She wandered for several days, but

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Speaker 1: she could not find her home. Oh dear, Blackie exclaimed.

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Speaker 1: One day, when all tired out and hungry and thirsty,

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Speaker 1: she lay down in the grass to rest. Oh dear,

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Speaker 1: I'm lost. That's all there is about it. I don't

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Speaker 1: know where my home is, and I'm lost. I wonder

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Speaker 1: what I had better do. Blackie was all alone. There

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Speaker 1: was no one to tell her what to do, so

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Speaker 1: she had to think it out for herself. Let me

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Speaker 1: see now, she said, even though I am lost, I

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Speaker 1: must have some thing to eat and drink and a

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Speaker 1: place to sleep. I think I had better go to

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Speaker 1: some house and see if they will take me in.

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Speaker 1: If they will, perhaps they will keep me for a

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Speaker 1: while until I get fat again and feel better, and

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Speaker 1: then I can find my own home. Yes, that is

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Speaker 1: what I will do. I have wandered around enough. I'll

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Speaker 1: go to some house and meow. They'll know that I'm

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Speaker 1: hungry and feed me. Blackie walked out of the field,

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Speaker 1: through the road and down that toward a big white farmhouse.

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Speaker 1: It looked so nice and clean that Blackie thought surely

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Speaker 1: it would be a good home for her. I'll go

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Speaker 1: around to the kitchen door, thought Blackie. That is where

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Speaker 1: they're there will be something to eat. She went around

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Speaker 1: the gravel walk of the house and toward the back door.

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Speaker 1: But just as she was getting up the backsteps, down

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Speaker 1: them rushed a big dog, barking loudly and calling out

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Speaker 1: an animal, talk hi, there, no cat's allout around here?

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Speaker 1: Be off. Blackie did not stop to talk away. She

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Speaker 1: ran as fast as she could go, and as she

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Speaker 1: saw over her shoulder the dog coming after her up

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Speaker 1: a tree, she ran. The dog came to a stop

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Speaker 1: at the bottom of the tree and, barking up at

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Speaker 1: Blackie said, what do you mean by coming here? Anyhow?

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Speaker 1: Who are you? And what do you want? Before she

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Speaker 1: had run away, and while she was living with Arthur

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Speaker 1: and Mabel, Blackie would not have paid much attention to

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Speaker 1: any dog. She knew very few dogs, not even the

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Speaker 1: one next door, and most dogs were cross and ugly.

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Speaker 1: She thought she did not think it was safe to

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Speaker 1: talk to them, but Now she was up a tree,

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Speaker 1: and she knew it would be safe to speak to

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Speaker 1: this dog from up there. Also, Blackie was so tired

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Speaker 1: and hungry that she felt she must do something to

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Speaker 1: get help. And perhaps this dog was not as cross

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Speaker 1: as some. Even if he did chase her, he might

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Speaker 1: tell her where to get something to eat. So, sitting

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Speaker 1: on the limb of the tree and looking down at

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Speaker 1: the dog, Blackie said, please be nice to me, mister dog.

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Speaker 1: I am so tired and hungry and I'm lost. I

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Speaker 1: ran away, mister dog, Hm, ran away? Did you? Said

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Speaker 1: the dog's voice, which was softer. Now I ran away

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Speaker 1: once myself. But my name is not mister dog. It

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Speaker 1: is down. What is your name? Don? Cried Blackie, and

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Speaker 1: she was so surprised that she nearly fell off the

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Speaker 1: limb of the tree. Why I've heard about you, Don?

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Speaker 1: You have from who? Don wanted to know from your

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Speaker 1: friends in the circus, did Oh the dancing bear and

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Speaker 1: Tom Tom the jolly elephant. Well, I never barked Don,

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Speaker 1: So you know that, do you? Yes? I have met them,

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Speaker 1: though I can't say I know them very well. They

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Speaker 1: told me about you, they did. Huh. Well, well, fancy,

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Speaker 1: now you meeting Dido the dancing Bear. He's a great chap,

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Speaker 1: isn't he and such a fine dancer. Oh I didn't

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Speaker 1: see him dance, answered Blackie. I only ran in his

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Speaker 1: cage to get away from some bad boys. Dido was

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Speaker 1: very kind to me. Hmm, I suppose you mean I

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Speaker 1: wasn't kind, said Don. Oh I didn't say that, went

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Speaker 1: on Blackie quickly. Well, I guess I was a bit

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Speaker 1: cross and quick, admitted Don. But I didn't mean anything.

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Speaker 1: Everyone says my bark is worse than my bite. I

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Speaker 1: didn't intend to bite you anyhow. I was just going

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Speaker 1: to chase you away. They don't like cats at our house.

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Speaker 1: Oh I am so sorry, said Blackie sadly. I hoped

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Speaker 1: I might get something to eat and drink here. Oh

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Speaker 1: I guess I can fix that all right for you,

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Speaker 1: said Don in a much kinder voice. But you surprise

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Speaker 1: me when you tell me you met my friends Dido

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Speaker 1: and Tom Tom. Take that elephant chap. Now, didn't you

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Speaker 1: find Tom Tom a fine jolly fellow? Why he looked so,

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Speaker 1: said Blackie, And Diido said he was so. I guess

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Speaker 1: he must be. Oh he is barked. Don I know

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Speaker 1: him well, he's the jolliest elephant you'd want to meet.

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Speaker 1: Had a book written about him too. So Dido was saying,

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Speaker 1: I just spoke to Tom tum Or, rather, he spoke

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Speaker 1: to me as I was running out of the circus tent.

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Speaker 1: Say look here, now, said Don, a bit sharply. I

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Speaker 1: hope you didn't run away from the circus. That wouldn't

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Speaker 1: be right, And if Dido hid you in his cage,

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Speaker 1: it might get him in trouble. Oh no, I don't

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Speaker 1: belong to the circus, said Blackie. I just happened to

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Speaker 1: go in the tent. I belong at home, but I'm lost.

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Speaker 1: I'll tell you all about it, do, said Don. I

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Speaker 1: should like to hear about your adventures, and i'll tell

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Speaker 1: you some of mine. I'm in a book too, so

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Speaker 1: I heard, But first, said Don, I must see about

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Speaker 1: getting you something to eat. Come down out of the tree,

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Speaker 1: and you won't chase me or bite me. No, honest,

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Speaker 1: I won't see. I'll cross my tail, and Don waved

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Speaker 1: his tail up and down and sideways like a cross

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Speaker 1: to show he meant what he said. So Blackie came

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Speaker 1: down out of the tree,