Show droll little jimmy skunk tells mrs peter rabbit of adventure by THORNTON BURGESS W WHEN HEN old granny fox found prickly porky with his thousand little spears all pointing at her standing between her and peter rabbit she was the angriest old fox ever seen she dare touch prickly porky for she knew well enough what it would mean to get one of those sharp barbed little spears in her skin to think that she actually had caught peter rabbit and then lost him was too provo provoking kingl I 1 it was more than her temper never of the best could stand in her anger she dug up the leaves and earth with her hind feet and all the 0 W 14 I 1 I 1 IL ah I 1 ive begged him and be begged ged him to keep away from the green forest said she time her tongue fairly flew as she called prickly porky jimmy skunk and unc billy possum everything bad she could think of her yellow eyes snapped so that it seemed a almost as if sparks of fire flew from them it made peter shiver just to look at her unc billy possum who by slipping up behind her and biting one of her heels had made her let go of peter grinned down at her from a safe place in a tree jimmy skunk stood grinning at her in a most provoking manner and she do a thing about it because she had no desire to have jimmy use his little bag of perfume so she just talked herself out and then with many parting threats of what she would do she started for home unc billy noticed that she limped a little with the foot he had nipped so hard he help feeling just a little bit sorry for her when she had gone the others turned to peter rabbit to see how badly he had been hurt they looked him all over and found that he much the worse for his rough experience he was rather stiff and lame and the back of his neck was very sore where granny fox had seized him but he would be quite himself in a day or two 1 I must get home now said he in a rather faint voice mrs peter will be sure that something has happened to me and will be worried to death no you doltl declared jimmy skunk you are going to stay right here where we can take care of you it be safe for you to go to the old brier patch now because if you should meet old man coyote or reddy fox or whitetail the marsh hawk you would not be able to run fast enough to get away I 1 will go down and tell mrs peter and you will make yourself comfortable for table in the old house behind that stump where I 1 was hiding peter tried to insist on going home but the others hear of it and jimmy skunk settled the matter by starting for the dear old brier patch he found little mrs peter anxiously looking toward the green forest for some sign of peter ohl she cried you have come to bring me bad news do tell me quickly what has happened to peter nothing much has happened to peter replied jimmy promptly then in the drollest drol lest way he told all about the fright of granny fox when she first saw the terrible creature rolling down the hill and all that happened after but he took great care to make light of peters escape and explained that he was just going to rest up there on prickly hill for that day and would be home the next night but little mrs peter wholly satisfied ive begged him and begged him to keep away from the green forest said she but now if he is hurt so that he cant come home he needs me and im going straight up there fl ft nothing that jimmy could say had the least effect and so at last he agreed to take her to peter AM and d so hopping behind jimmy skunk timid little mrs peter rabbit actually went into the green forest of which she was so much afraid which shows how brave love can be sometimes T W burgess service |