Teddy Bear
A
bear,
however
hard
he
tries,
Grows
tubby
without
exercise.
Our
Teddy
Bear
is
short
and
fat,
Which
is
not
to
be
wondered
at;
He
gets
what
exercise
he
can
By
falling
off
the
ottoman,
But
generally
seems
to
lack
The
energy
to
clamber
back.
Now
tubbiness
is
just
the
thing
Which
gets
a
fellow
wondering;
And
Teddy
worried
lots
about
The
fact
that
he
was
rather
stout.
He
thought:
"If
only
I
were
thin!
But
how
does
anyone
begin?"
He
thought:
"It
really
isn't
fair
To
grudge
one
exercise
and
air."
For
many
weeks
he
pressed
in
vain
His
nose
against
the
window-pane,
And
envied
those
who
walked
about
Reducing
their
unwanted
stout.
None
of
the
people
he
could
see
"Is
quite"
(he
said)
"as
fat
as
me!"
Then,
with
a
still
more
moving
sigh,
"I
mean"
(he
said)
"as
fat
as
I!
Now
Teddy,
as
was
only
right,
Slept
in
the
ottoman
at
night,
And
with
him
crowded
in
as
well
More
animals
than
I
can
tell;
Not
only
these,
but
books
and
things,
Such
as
a
kind
relation
brings
-
Old
tales
of
"Once
upon
a
time,"
And
history
retold
in
rhyme.
One
night
it
happened
that
he
took
A
peep
at
an
old
picture-book,
Wherein
he
came
across
by
chance
The
picture
of
a
King
of
France
(A
stoutish
man)
and,
down
below,
These
words:
"King
Louis
So
and
So,
Nicknamed
'The
Handsome!'"
There
he
sat,
And
(think
of
it!)
the
man
was
fat!
Our
bear
rejoiced
like
anything
To
read
about
this
famous
King,
Nicknamed
"The
Handsome."
There
he
sat,
And
certainly
the
man
was
fat.
Nicknamed
"The
Handsome."
Not
a
doubt
The
man
was
definitely
stout.
Why
then,
a
bear
(for
all
his
tub
)
Might
yet
be
named
"The
Handsome
Cub!"
"Might
yet
be
named."
Or
did
he
mean
That
years
ago
he
"might
have
been"?
For
now
he
felt
a
slight
misgiving:
"Is
Louis
So
and
So
still
living?
Fashions
in
beauty
have
a
way
Of
altering
from
day
to
day.
Is
'Handsome
Louis'
with
us
yet?
Unfortunately
I
forget."
Next
morning
(nose
to
window-pane)
The
doubt
occurred
to
him
again.
One
question
hammered
in
his
head:
"Is
he
alive
or
is
he
dead?"
Thus,
nose
to
pane,
he
pondered;
but
The
lattice
window,
loosely
shut,
Swung
open.
With
one
startled
"Oh!"
Our
Teddy
disappeared
below.
There
happened
to
be
passing
by
A
plump
man
with
a
twinkling
eye,
Who,
seeing
Teddy
in
the
street,
Raised
him
politely
to
his
feet,
And
murmured
kindly
in
his
ear
Soft
words
of
comfort
and
of
cheer:
"Well,
well!"
"Allow
me!"
"Not
at
all."
"Tut-tut!
A
very
nasty
fall."
Our
Teddy
answered
not
a
word;
It's
doubtful
if
he
even
heard.
Our
bear
could
only
look
and
look:
The
stout
man
in
the
picture-book!
That
'handsome'
King
-
could
this
be
he,
This
man
of
adiposity?
"Impossible,"
he
thought.
"But
still,
No
harm
in
asking.
Yes
I
will!"
"Are
you,"
he
said,"by
any
chance
His
Majesty
the
King
of
France?"
The
other
answered,
"I
am
that,"
Bowed
stiffly,
and
removed
his
hat;
Then
said,
"Excuse
me,"
with
an
air,
"But
is
it
Mr
Edward
Bear?"
And
Teddy,
bending
very
low,
Replied
politely,
"Even
so!"
They
stood
beneath
the
window
there,
The
King
and
Mr
Edward
Bear,
And,
handsome,
if
a
trifle
fat,
Talked
carelessly
of
this
and
that….
Then
said
His
Majesty,
"Well,
well,
I
must
get
on,"
and
rang
the
bell.
"Your
bear,
I
think,"
he
smiled.
"Good-day!"
And
turned,
and
went
upon
his
way.
A
bear,
however
hard
he
tries,
Grows
tubby
without
exercise.
Our
Teddy
Bear
is
short
and
fat,
Which
is
not
to
be
wondered
at.
But
do
you
think
it
worries
him
To
know
that
he
is
far
from
slim?
No,
just
the
other
way
about
-
He's
proud
of
being
short
and
stout.
Alan Alexander Milne
A.A. Milne, (born January 18, 1882, London, England—died January 31, 1956, Hartfield, Sussex), English humorist, the originator of the immensely popular stories of Christopher Robin and his toy bear, Winnie-the-Pooh. After attending the University of Cambridge's Trinity College and writing for the literary magazines Granta and Punch, A.A. Milne began a successful career as a novelist, poet and playwright in the 1920s. His best-known works are his two collections of children's poetry, When We Were Young and Now We Are Six, and his two books of stories about the lovable bear Winnie-the-Pooh and his animal friends.