“‘Miss Robin, I gwine ter hab er party termorrer night; de Woodpecker’ll be dar, an’ I’d like fur yer ter come.’ “Miss Robin ’lowed she’d come, and’ de Jay Bird tuck his leave. “Well, de nex’ night de Jay sot in ’is nes’ er waitin’ fur ’is cump’ny; an’ atter er wile hyear come de Woodpecker. Soon’s eber he seed de sticks ercross de do’, he sez, ‘Wy, pyears like yer ben er fixin’ up,’ sezee. ‘Ain’t yer ben er buildin’?’ “‘Well,’ sez de Jay Bird, ‘I’ve jes put er few ’provemunce up, fur ter keep de scritch-owls outn my nes’; but dar’s plenty room fur my frien’s ter git thu; jes come in,’ sezee; an’ de Woodpecker he started thu de crack. Soon’s eber he got his head thu, de Jay pullt de chip out, an’ de big stick fell right crossn his neck. Den dar he wuz, wid his head in an’ his feet out! an’ de Jay Bird ’gun ter laff, an’ ter make fun atn ’im. Sezee, ‘I hope I see yer! Yer look like sparkin’ Miss Robin now! hit’s er gre’t pity she can’t see yer stretched out like dat; an’ she’ll be hyear, too, d’rectly; she’s er comin’ ter de party,’ sezee, ‘an’ I’m gwine ter gib her er new dish; I’m gwine ter sot her down ter roas’ Woodpecker dis ebenin’. An’ now, efn yer’ll ’scuse me, I’ll lef’ yer hyear fur ter sorter ’muse yerse’f wile I grin’s my ax fur ten’ ter yer.’ “An’ wid dat de Jay went out, an’ lef’ de po’ Woodpecker er lyin’ dar; an’ by’mby Miss Robin come erlong; an’ wen she seed de Woodpecker, she axt ’im ‘wat’s he doin’ down dar on de groun’?’ an’ atter he up an’ tol’ her, an’ tol’ her how de Jay Bird wuz er grin’in’ his ax fur ter chop offn his head, den de robin she sot to an’ try ter lif’ de stick offn him. She straint an’ she straint, but her strengt’ wan’t ’nuff fur ter move hit den; an’ so she sez, ‘Mr. Woodpecker,’ sez she, ‘s’posin’ I cotch hold yer feet, an’ try ter pull yer back dis way?’ ‘All right,’ sez de Woodpecker; an’ de Robin, she cotch er good grip on his feet, an’ she brace herse’f up ’gins er bush, an’ pullt wid all her might, an’ atter er wile she fotch ’im thu; but she wuz bleeged ter lef’ his topnot behin’, fur his head wuz skunt des ez clean ez yer han’; ’twuz jes ez raw, honey, ez er piece er beef. “An’ wen de Robin seed dat, she wuz mighty ’stressed; an’ she tuck his head an’ helt it gins her breas’ fur ter try an’ cumfut him, an’ de blood got all ober her breas’, an’ hit’s red plum tell yit. “Well, de Woodpecker he went erlong home, an’ de Robin she nusst him tell his head got well; but de topknot wuz gone, an’ it pyeart like de blood all settled in his head, caze fum _dat_ day ter _dis_ his head’s ben red.” “An’ did he marry the Robin?” asked Diddie. “Now I done tol’ yer all I know,” said Uncle Bob. “I gun yer de tale jes like I hyearn it, an’ I ain’t er gwine ter make up _nuffin’,_ an’ tell yer wat I dunno ter be de truff. Efn dar’s any mo’ ter it, den I ain’t neber hyearn hit. I gun yer de tale jes like hit wuz gunt ter me, an’ efn yer ain’t satisfied wid hit, den I can’t holp it.”