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Show k A. BEHDTHRSE STIT 'j By THORNTON W. BURGESS JUMPING FOR LIFE "v i THAT a person can do well he V almost always enjoys doing. "' uMeheel, own cousin to Danny .. adowniouse, is the very best ::per on the green meadows, so is quite natural that he should ;.iy jumping. He jumped and he aped for Peter Rabbit's benefit. :er stole out from the dear old :er Patch and sat up in the moon-bt moon-bt that he might watch Nimble-els Nimble-els better. Such jumping Peter . never seen before, and both and Nimbleheels became so In-:;ted In-:;ted that they quite forgot that friend with whom he had become so well acquainted was going to be snatched away In the cruel claws of Hooty right before his very eyes? Could it be? Suddenly Hooty screamed and at the sound out from the grass shot Nimbleheels in the longest jump Peter had yet seen him make. Hooty struck with his great curved claws, but he was too slow. As be-' be-' fore, hardly had Nimbleheels landed land-ed in the grass than Hooty was hovering right over the very spot. Nimbleheels did not wait for him to scream but was in the air in another an-other long jump almost as soon as he reached the ground. This time be jumped to the side instead of in the direction he had jumped before. be-fore. Probably It was this that saved his life. Hooty was not .ready for him in that direction and so he missed him again. Then began the most exciting game Peter had ever seen. At least it seemed like a game. It wasn't, of course, because both Nimbleheels and Hooty were very much in earnest, the pretty little cousin of Danny Meadow Mouse to save his life, and Hooty to get a good dinner. Such jumping! It made Peter Rabbit ashamed to think that he had ever bragged about his own jumping. This way, that way, the other way, darted Nimbleheels over the tops of the grasses, and wheeling wheel-ing and turning on noiseless wings Hooty the Owl followed, always just , a wee second too late, as he struck 1 'V Ill.U tlHi.Wllili-l-!l savagely with his great cruel-looking claws. Peter wanted to shout to Nimbleheels Nimble-heels and tell him to make for the dear Old Brier Patch, but even if he could have he wouldn't have dared, for he knew only too well that Hooty wouldn't think twice of a little jumping mouse if he had a I chance for a rabbit dinner. So there was nothing for Peter to do but to sit there and hope and hope with all his might that Nimbleheels would escape, and that Hooty would get far enough away to give him, Peter, a chance to bolt for the safety of his home. It seemed to Peter that Nimbleheels Nimble-heels was making shorter jumps. Was he getting too tired to jump? If so, the end would come soon. Peter held his breath. , T. W. Burgess. WNU Service. soty Struck With His Great Curved Claws, but He Was Too Slow. is never safe to play in the Green -'adows unless a sharp watch is pt for danger. Suddenly a shadow swept over ter. There wasn't a sound. Keen i are Peter's long ears he heard thing. Luckily for him he was ting absolutely still at the time. 1 id he moved the least tiny bit the :d of Peter would have been right en and there, for the shadow was ooty the Owl. Nimbleheels was so Intent on his mping that he didn't see that adow at all until he shot up Into e air above the tops of the grasses imost under Hooty. It Is a qurv un which was the most surprised, imbleheels or Hooty. Swiftly, ut without a sound, Hooty turned n the air and Nimbleheels had no ' ;nre than disappeared in the grass :an Hooty was hovering right over It, his great eyes piercing down arQi fnr n elimnse of the little Mouse he knew must be hiding among the grass, stems right be-' be-' tenth him. Peter sat quite still with horror, vhich was, perhaps, just as well for I'eter. Could it be that the Uttle |