Johnny-Doughnut

Once upon a time, there lived an old man and an old woman, and they had a son. One morning, the old woman kneaded some dough, rolled it into a bun, and put it in the oven to bake.
"Keep an eye on Johnny-Cake while your father and I work in the garden," she said to her son.
So the father and mother went to hoe the potatoes, leaving their son to watch the oven. But soon he got bored. Suddenly, he heard a noise, looked at the oven, and saw the oven door open by itself—and out jumped Johnny-Cake!

Johnny-Cake rolled straight toward the open door! The boy rushed to close it, but Johnny-Cake was quicker—he rolled out the door, over the threshold, down the steps, and onto the road. The boy ran after him as fast as he could, calling for his parents. They heard his cries, dropped their hoes, and joined the chase. But Johnny-Cake was already far ahead and soon disappeared from sight. The old man, the old woman, and the boy were so out of breath that they sat down on a bench to catch their breath.

Meanwhile, Johnny-Cake rolled on and soon came upon two workers digging a well. The workers stopped their work and asked,
"Where are you hurrying to, Johnny-Cake?"
And Johnny-Cake replied,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, and I'll run away from you too!"
"From us? We'll see about that!" said the workers.
They threw down their pickaxes and chased after Johnny-Cake.
But how could they catch him? The workers had to sit by the road to rest.

Johnny-Cake rolled on and soon came upon two ditch-diggers digging a trench.
"Where are you hurrying to, Johnny-Cake?" they asked.
And Johnny-Cake repeated,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, and I'll run away from you too!"
"From us? We'll see about that!" said the ditch-diggers.
They threw down their shovels and chased after Johnny-Cake. But Johnny-Cake rolled faster and faster. Seeing they couldn't catch him, the ditch-diggers gave up and sat down to rest.

Johnny-Cake rolled on and soon came upon a bear.
"Where are you hurrying to, Johnny-Cake?" asked the bear.
And Johnny-Cake replied,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, I ran away from the ditch-diggers, and I'll run away from you too!"
"From me?" growled the bear. "We'll see about that!"
The bear ran as fast as he could after Johnny-Cake. But Johnny-Cake rolled on without looking back, and soon the bear fell so far behind that he realized he couldn't catch the runaway. So he stretched out by the road to rest.

Johnny-Cake rolled on and soon came upon a wolf.
"Where are you hurrying to, Johnny-Cake?" asked the wolf.
And Johnny-Cake replied,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, I ran away from the ditch-diggers, I ran away from the bear, and I'll run away from you too-oo!"
"From me?" snapped the wolf. "We'll see about that!"
The wolf ran after Johnny-Cake at full speed. But Johnny-Cake rolled faster and faster, and the wolf soon gave up, lying down to rest.

Johnny-Cake rolled on and soon came upon a fox, who was lying quietly by a fence.
"Where are you hurrying to, Johnny-Cake?" asked the fox in a soft voice.
And Johnny-Cake replied,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, I ran away from the ditch-diggers, I ran away from the bear, and I ran away from the wolf. From you, fox, I'll run away too-oo!"
The fox tilted her head and said,
"I can't quite hear you, Johnny-Cake. Come a little closer!"
Johnny-Cake rolled closer and shouted loudly,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, I ran away from the ditch-diggers, I ran away from the bear, and I ran away from the wolf. From you, fox, I'll run away too-oo!"
"I still can't hear you. Come just a little closer!" said the fox in a weak voice.
She stretched her neck toward Johnny-Cake and put her paw to her ear.
Johnny-Cake rolled even closer, leaned right up to the fox's ear, and shouted with all his might,
"I ran away from Grandpa, I ran away from Grandma, I ran away from the boy, I ran away from the two workers, I ran away from the ditch-diggers, I ran away from the bear, and I ran away from the wolf. From you, fox, I'll run away too-oo!"
"From me? Oh no!" yelped the fox, and in an instant, she caught Johnny-Cake with her sharp teeth.

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Johnny-Doughnut

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