Adventures of Bunny Rabbit.

This hole in the ground is the front doorway of Mrs. Gray Rabbit's home deep in the woods. Inside the hole under the ground, hidden under a soft blanket of fur, are Mrs. Rabbit's very young children. Bunny Rabbit is the first baby rabbit to come out and look for adventure. His fur is quite short. He's only about as big as a baby kitten. His ears are still short and his legs rather wobbly. Now Mrs. Gray Rabbit watches carefully over her babies while they play. There may be danger, so she keeps a sharp lookout. And now she has tucked them safely in again before going out to enjoy a dinner of juicy buds and tender leaves. The bushes hide Mother Rabbit from danger as she quietly eats. What a twitchy nose she has and how queerly her upper lip is split. She must not stay away long. So Gray Rabbit hops back into her home to make sure that her tiny children are safe and to watch over them. Especially to watch over Bunny Rabbit. One morning as she sits guarding the door, White Rabbit, her cousin, comes hopping over from the farm. "Come with me to the farm," says White Rabbit, "and we'll have a dinner of tender green lettuce." "Lettuce?" says Gray Rabbit, "How lovely. I suppose my children will be safe here, but we must be very careful. There is danger in the woods." So through the trees and bushes they quietly hop. "Suddenly, stop!" warns Gray Rabbit. "I smell our worst enemy, the fox. I must go back and guard my bunnies." So White Rabbit hops quietly back to the farm, but Gray Rabbit sits very still hoping the fox won't find her. She pricks up her long ears, for she hears the crunch, crunch, crunch of the fox's sharp teeth as he gobbles up some bits of food he has found under the trees. Gray Rabbit is afraid, so she hides and watches the fox with her big soft eye. But now the fox sees Gray Rabbit, so she turns and runs so fast her feet fairly fly. Will she get home safely? Ah, yes, at last she is home. "Now sit very quietly, children," she warns, "the fox is coming. Don't move. "Mhm," says Mr. Fox, "I smell rabbits, but this doorway is too small. I'll squeeze in though, and these rabbits will make a fine dinner. Mhm, maybe there's another door." "Come here. Be quiet," says Gray Rabbit, "the fox may come back." And so he does, but he still can't get inside and so finally goes away. Many days go by. Mrs. Gray Rabbit's lively young family has been growing up rapidly and their fur is now longer and darker. They are nearly the color of the leaves in the nest. Gray Rabbit decides that it is safe to let her children come out to play and Bunny Rabbit is first as usual and looking for adventure. Now his brothers and sisters follow him, but they stay close to the hole as yet. They don't know much about the woods. Bunny is very hungry. So Mother tells him to stay close, for she's going to show all her children where to find some juicy leaves and buds in the woods. Another Gray Rabbit has come with her children. Bunny hears his mother tell about the lettuce on the farm and now buds and twigs do not satisfy him. So presently we find Bunny over by a tiny brook. "Where is the farm and where is the lettuce?" Ah, there's Mr. Frog. But Mr. Frog says he doesn't know about lettuce. He likes bugs and worms best. "But if Bunny still wants lettuce, he might ask the squirrel." The squirrel says, "Here, try a nut. Nuts are my favorite food. I crack them with my sharp teeth." And he frisks his bushy tail. "Aren't they good?" the squirrel asks Bunny. "If you must find lettuce though," adds the squirrel, "you might ask old Mr. Turtle who lives at the edge of the woods." The turtle's long neck stretches out from under his hard rounded shell. "Lettuce?" he says, "Go across this broad field to the farm. The farmer must have lettuce growing there somewhere." So Bunny hops along, his little white tail bobbing up and down behind him. He reaches the farm at last and there is the barn. He hurries across the barnyard and squeezes through under the door. The cows are mooing for their dinner. After his long run, Bunny is so hungry that he rushes right in and helps himself to the cows' bran. "Go away," say the cows. "Go away. This bran is our food. It's not for little bunnies. Go away." And they lick him with their long tongues. Poor hungry Bunny, where is that lettuce? Perhaps the little chickens are eating lettuce, but no, it is grain that the chickens eat. Baby Chick tells Bunny to ask his father, the rooster, about the lettuce. "Mr. Rooster, where is the lettuce?" The rooster says, "Go ask the puppies." Now the puppy dogs are eating their food from a dish and Bunny is so hungry that he noses right in. "Go away," says the puppy. "This is our food. You go back to the woods, Bunny." So now hungry Bunny sits and watches the turkeys and the pigeons as they eat their dinner of grain. Will they tell him about the lettuce? Bunny wonders. What big fan tails the turkeys have. Bunny decides to ask Mr. Turkey. "I think there's some lettuce across the barnyard," gobbles Mr. Turkey. Bunny runs over to the greenhouse. He sniffs and sniffs and climbs up on the window. And there below him is the lettuce. But how can he get inside? The glass windows are in the way. Ah, down below he sees a hole and he pops right through it and up among the heads of fresh green lettuce. Now for a real bunny dinner. He nibbles and nibbles and chews and chews. My, how good the lettuce is. But what is that? The farmer. He is coming out of the barn to water his plants in the greenhouse. Will he find Bunny? Well, he sees something down under the glass, but Bunny is so busy eating he doesn't hear a thing. Very quietly the farmer opens the window and grasps Bunny by the neck. "You pesky little rabbit, I'll put you where you'll do no more harm." And he plunks him down into the doll house. Even though he is frightened, Bunny is still hungry, so he hops up on the chair and samples the doll's food. It tastes good, but now he thinks, "I'd better get out of here. The farmer may come back. Can I get out through this window?" Now Bunny wants very much to go, but he can't open the window. Ah, right through this door. This is the way. Now I wonder how to get back to the woods. I wonder if it's this way. No, it must be this way. Yes, there are the trees of the woods. How good it is to be back in the cool green woods again. And now Bunny is once more with his mother. What do you think he is telling Mother Gray Rabbit? And what do you think Mother Rabbit is telling Bunny?