Chapter I: Front Matter

[Cover Illustration]
[Endpapers]

Little Joe Otter

Books by

THORNTON W. BURGESS

_Mother West Wind Series_
Old Mother West Wind
Mother West Wind’s Children
Mother West Wind’s Animal Friends
Mother West Wind’s Neighbors
Mother West Wind “Why” Stories
Mother West Wind “How” Stories
Mother West Wind “When” Stories
Mother West Wind “Where” Stories

_Green Meadow Series_
Happy Jack
Mrs. Peter Rabbit
Bowser the Hound
Old Granny Fox

_Green Forest Series_
Lightfoot the Deer
Blacky the Crow
Whitefoot the Wood Mouse
Buster Bear’s Twins

_Smiling Pool Series_
Billy Mink
Little Joe Otter
Jerry Muskrat at Home
Longlegs the Heron

=BURGESS TRADE QUADDIES MARK=

=Smiling Pool Series=

=Little=
=Joe Otter=

=By=
=THORNTON W. BURGESS=

=_With Illustrations by_=
=HARRISON CADY=

==

=Grosset & Dunlap=

=PUBLISHERS NEW YORK=

_Copyright, 1925_,
BY THORNTON W. BURGESS

_All rights reserved_

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BY ARRANGEMENT WITH LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE
I Little Joe Otter Springs a Surprise. . 1
II Peter Rabbit Goes Looking. . . . . 7
III Little Joe Otter’s Home. . . . . . 13
IV Peter Rabbit Learns by Sitting Still. . 19
V A School in the Green Forest. . . . 25
VI The First Swimming Lesson. . . . . 32
VII Great Fun on a Slippery Slide. . . . 38
VIII Farmer Brown’s Boy Has No Luck. . . . 45
IX A Family Fishing Party. . . . . . 51
X A Young Fisherman is Caught. . . . . 57
XI Sammy Jay Calls Farmer Brown’s Boy. . 64
XII Peter Rabbit Finds a Queer Trail. . . 72
XIII Curiosity Is Satisfied. . . . . . 78
XIV The Coasting Party. . . . . . . . 83
XV Little Joe And Mrs. Joe Reach a Decision 89
XVI The Fun of Traveling. . . . . . . 95
XVII Yowler the Bobcat Follows. . . . . 101
XVIII The Smallest Otter Is Wilful. . . . 106
XIX The Young Otter’s Curiosity Is Satisfied 112
XX A Very Meek Young Otter. . . . . . 118
XXI A Race for Life. . . . . . . . . 124
XXII The Clever Trapper. . . . . . . . 130
XXIII The Setting of the Traps. . . . . . 136
XXIV Little Joe Otter Is Suspicious. . . . 141
XXV The Young Otters Are Warned. . . . . 147
XXVI The Foolish Young Otter. . . . . . 152
XXVII A Suddenly Lost Appetite. . . . . . 158
XXVIII The Price of Freedom. . . . . . . 163
XXIX The Young Otter Pays the Price. . . . 168
XXX The Otters Move On. . . . . . . . 173
XXXI A Fish Disappears. . . . . . . . 178
XXXII The Living Heap of Snow. . . . . . 183
XXXIII Another Fish Disappears. . . . . . 188
XXXIV The Young Otter Learns Where His Fish
Went. . . . . . . . . . . . 193

ILLUSTRATIONS

“Come on, children!” cried Mrs. Joe. _Frontispiece_

One morning he saw Mrs. Joe out with
the two babies. . . . . . . . 25

Gentle Mistress Moon saw a queer
procession. . . . . . . . . 89

“Well, son,” said he, “what did you
see?”. . . . . . . . . . . 184