When they were presented to him, 'The Wheedle placed them over his ears, and smiled for the first time in years.' In appreciation, the Wheedle gathered up all the clouds, put them back in his bag, and fell fast asleep – and once again, his big red nose began to blink. Upset, the people sent the mayor to try to convince the Wheedle to stop the rain when the creature explained his problem, the mayor had a giant pair of earmuffs constructed to muffle the disagreeable warbling. With their lips wet from precipitation, the city's residents were unable to whistle, and the creature once again had some peace and quiet. Rainier, returned to Seattle, climbed atop the Space Needle, and threw them into the sky to make it rain. In an effort to silence the noise, the Wheedle gathered clouds in a large sack atop Mt. The Wheedle slept there peacefully for many years, his red nose blinking, until the region's growth brought people – and their whistling – to his doorstep once again. Bothered by the whistling of workers first settling the city of Seattle, the creature was unable to sleep and became irritable, eventually moving to Mount Rainier to escape the noise. Wheedle on the Needle (Serendipity Books, 1974), written by Stephen Cosgrove and illustrated by Robin James, is about a large, round, furry creature called the Wheedle who lived in the Northwest.

The character eventually evolved into a popular mascot generally associated with the city of Seattle.Ĭhildren's book character Original story The Wheedle is the title character of a popular children's book by author Stephen Cosgrove. For a definition of the term 'wheedle', see the Wiktionary entry wheedle.

Stephen cosgrove