Chapter 1

Produced by Joe and Isaac Longo, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

THE TALE of JIMMY RABBIT

THE TALE of JIMMY RABBIT

By

Arthur Scott Bailey

_Author of_

The Cuffy Bear Books Sleepy-Time Series, Etc.

_Illustrations by_ Eleanore Fagan

Grosset & Dunlap Publishers--New York

Copyright, 1916, by GROSSET & DUNLAP

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE I Jimmy Finds a New Tail 9 II Troublesome Mr. Mink 14 III May Baskets 19 IV Making Somebody Happy 23 V The New Wheelbarrow 28 VI A Narrow Escape 34 VII A Fast Runner 40 VIII The Great Race 46 IX Playing Leap-Frog 52 X The Tooth Puller 58 XI A Slight Dispute 63 XII The Strange Man 69 XIII Mr. Crow's Picture 74 XIV Boy Lost! 80 XV Telling Fortunes 85 XVI Red Leggins 91 XVII The Rabbits' Ball 96 XVIII A Dance Without Music 101 XIX Jimmy Grows Too Cheeky 105 XX A Queer Cure 109

_The Tale of Jimmy Rabbit_

1

Jimmy Finds a New Tail

Jimmy Rabbit wanted a new tail. To be sure, he already had a tail--but it was so short that he felt it was little better than none at all. Frisky Squirrel and Billy Woodchuck had fine, bushy tails; and so had all the other forest-people, except the Rabbit family.

Jimmy had tried his hardest to get a handsome tail for himself. And once he had nearly succeeded. For he almost cut off Frisky Squirrel's big brush. But Mrs. Squirrel had appeared just in time to save her son from so dreadful a mishap.

After that, Jimmy Rabbit tried to _buy_ a tail; but no one would sell him one. Then he set out to _find_ one, in the hope that some day some one would forget his tail and go off and leave it lying in the woods, and not be able to remember where he left it.

In fact, Jimmy Rabbit often lurked behind trees and bushes, watching his neighbors as they took naps in the sunshine. But when they awaked and stretched themselves, and went trotting off, there was not one of them that didn't take his tail right along with him.

It was disappointing. Still, Jimmy Rabbit continued his search.

Now, Jimmy had decided that if he could only get a long tail he didn't care what color it was, if it was only a brownish yellow, to match the rest of him. And at last, as he was wandering through the woods one day, to his great joy he found almost exactly what he wanted. Lying near a heap of chips was a beautiful tail! But it was red, with a black tip. That was the only drawback about it.

This tail, however, was so handsome that Jimmy made up his mind that he would wear it, anyhow, even though it did not match his coat. So with a bit of string which he had carried with him for weeks for that very purpose, he tied the red tail to his own short stub.

There was great excitement among the forest-people when Jimmy Rabbit appeared among them. Most everyone told him how much better he looked. In fact, old Mr. Crow was about the only person who didn't say something pleasant. He only shook his head, and muttered something to himself about "handsome is as handsome does." But Jimmy Rabbit paid little attention to him.

"Whose tail is that?" Mr. Crow finally asked.

"Mine, of course!" Jimmy told him.

"Well, you'd better look out!" said Mr. Crow. "Unless that tail is bought and paid for, there's trouble ahead of you, young man."

To his friends Frisky Squirrel and Billy Woodchuck, Jimmy said something about Mr. Crow in a low voice. And they laughed loudly. Whereupon Mr. Crow flew away, croaking to himself about the shocking way children are brought up nowadays. You know, Mr. Crow was a great gossip. And everywhere he went that day he spread the news about Jimmy Rabbit's finding a red tail in the woods.

Probably that was the pleasantest day of Jimmy Rabbit's life. But toward evening something startled him. He had been over to the brook, to look at himself in a pool. And he was coming back towards home when some one called:

"Hi, there, young fellow!"

Jimmy Rabbit hurried along faster. He knew that it was a mink's voice. And he didn't like minks.

Mr. Mink ran after him, calling "Stop, thief!" at the top of his voice.

Jimmy Rabbit did not stop. But he glanced around. And his heart sank as he saw that Mr. Mink had no tail! At the same time Jimmy ran faster than ever. He did not want even to speak to Mr. Mink, for he felt that by waiting to talk with him he had nothing at all to gain, and a great deal to lose.

There was his new tail! He certainly did not want to part with that!

2

Troublesome Mr. Mink

Jimmy Rabbit arrived home somewhat out of breath. But he was still happy, for he thought that he had shaken off that troublesome Mr. Mink. And he had no idea that Mr. Mink knew where he lived.

Now, it happened that old Mr. Crow's story about Jimmy's new tail had reached Mr. Mink's ears. And as soon as he heard it he had inquired where Jimmy Rabbit lived.

Mr. Crow had told him. And he took another look at Mr. Mink.

"I notice you've lost your tail," he said.

"Yes!" Mr. Mink answered. "Farmer Green threw an axe at me once. And it cut off my tail, as you see. I left that neighborhood then; and never cared to return to it. But if this young Rabbit boy has found my tail, I shall certainly claim it at once." So off he went. And Mr. Crow nodded his head wisely. It was just as he had said! There was trouble ahead for Jimmy Rabbit--or, you might say, there was trouble _behind_ for him; for it was that handsome red tail, you remember, that was the cause of it all.

Well, Jimmy Rabbit was trying to decide what he would do that evening, when all at once somebody else decided it for him. For all at once a slim, red gentleman rushed at Jimmy, crying, "Give me my tail! I want my tail!"

It was Mr. Mink! And Jimmy Rabbit ran off as fast as he could go.

"This is my tail!" he called over his shoulder. "I found it. And I'm not going to give it up to anybody."

But Mr. Mink hurried after Jimmy. To be sure, Jimmy left him far behind. But Mr. Mink kept following. It was very annoying, for Jimmy knew that sooner or later that troublesome gentleman would be on his heels again.

There was no use of Jimmy's crawling into any hole, for he was four times as big as Mr. Mink; and, of course, anywhere he went, Mr. Mink could easily follow.

Jimmy Rabbit didn't know what to do. Mr. Mink had terribly sharp teeth. And he was very angry. But Jimmy was not angry at all. _He_ didn't want to fight.

While he was trying to think of some way out of his trouble, something suddenly pulled him backward. Looking around, he saw Mr. Mink with his cruel teeth fastened in that beautiful red tail.

"Let go of me!" Jimmy Rabbit cried.

But Mr. Mink didn't say a word. In order to speak, he would have had to drop that precious tail. And he had no idea of doing that. Besides, there was nothing he wanted to say. There was no use of his calling, "Stop, thief!" when he had already stopped him, you know.

Jimmy Rabbit pulled with all his might. And Mr. Mink dug his four feet into the ground and pulled with all of _his_.

And then, the first thing Jimmy knew, he fell forward, head over heels. He was up in a jiffy, and off like a flash, running like the wind.

But this time Mr. Mink did not follow.

When at last Jimmy sat down to rest he discovered why it was that Mr. Mink had stopped chasing him. His beautiful, new, red tail was gone! The bit of string had broken under all that pulling. And now Jimmy Rabbit had no tail except his own.

"Where's your fine, bushy tail?" Mr. Crow asked Jimmy the next morning.

"Oh! I discovered who the owner of it was," Jimmy said. "He came for his property; and I let him have it."

But Mr. Crow was a wise old chap.

"Did you give him the string, too?" he inquired.

3

May Baskets

Jimmy Rabbit was very busy. He was getting ready for May Day. And he intended to hang two May baskets. One of them was already finished, and filled with things that Jimmy himself liked--such as strips of tender bark from Farmer Green's young fruit trees, and bits of turnip from his vegetable cellar. You might almost think that Farmer Green himself ought to have hung that basket. But Jimmy Rabbit never once thought of such a thing. He expected to hang it on the door of a neighbor's house, where there lived a young girl-rabbit. Jimmy had made that basket the best he knew how.

The one he was working on now was a very different sort of basket. But then--you see, he intended to give it to a very different sort of person. He was going to hang _this_ one on Henry Skunk's door.

Frisky Squirrel, who happened to be passing Jimmy's house, stopped and watched him. And he was surprised to learn that Jimmy was going to give a May basket to Henry Skunk.

"What are you going to put in it?" Frisky asked.

"Hens' eggs!" said Jimmy Rabbit.

That surprised Frisky Squirrel still more. If it had been a joke--a trick of some sort--that Jimmy was going to play on Henry Skunk, he could have understood that. But hens' eggs! Why, everyone knew how fond of hens' eggs Henry Skunk was!

"I thought you didn't like Henry Skunk," Frisky said.

"Well, can't I hang a May basket on his door just the same?" asked Jimmy.

Frisky Squirrel said he supposed so--but it was a strange thing to do.

"Look out he doesn't catch you when you're doing it!" he warned Jimmy. Henry Skunk was a quarrelsome fellow. There was no knowing what he wouldn't do if he caught anyone tying anything to his doorknob. "By the way," Frisky added, "where did you get the hens' eggs?"

"Down at Farmer Green's!" Jimmy said.

"I suppose there are lots more," said Frisky.

Jimmy Rabbit smiled.

"Not like these!" he said.

"I suppose you had to be careful not to break them--bringing them so far," Frisky Squirrel remarked.

"Oh, it's easy when you know how," Jimmy Rabbit told him.

"Well, Henry Skunk will break them fast enough, when he finds them," Frisky said.

"Yes, he'll break them!" Jimmy Rabbit laughed. "That's just the point! _He'll break them!_" You notice that Jimmy didn't say what it was that Henry Skunk would break.

4

Making Somebody Happy

Well, that very evening Jimmy Rabbit made a certain young neighbor very happy by hanging a May basket on her door. And then he hurried along to Henry Skunk's house. He hoped Henry was still there; for when Henry Skunk went out of an evening he seldom came home until morning.

Jimmy hung the basket of eggs on the doorknob, rang the bell, and then ran and hid behind a tree. He peeped out, as he heard the door open; and he saw Henry Skunk look all around. He seemed angry, until he caught sight of the basket. And then Henry Skunk certainly was pleased.

"Ah, ha!" he exclaimed. "A May basket! Now, I wonder what friend of mine has left this for me!" He looked inside the basket. "Ah, ha! Hens' eggs!" he cried. "I'll sit down on my front steps and eat them. Then I won't have to give anybody else a taste."

That was like Henry Skunk. He was a selfish fellow--always greedy, never offering to share a dainty with anyone.

Jimmy Rabbit was holding his mouth. He knew that if he laughed he would spoil everything. As he listened, he heard a _snap_! And Henry Skunk said "Oh!" as if something hurt him, and surprised him, both. "I declare, I've broken a tooth!" he exclaimed. "That's the hardest egg I ever saw. I'll try another." And he took another egg out of the basket.

There was another _snap_! This time Henry cried "Ow!" It was queer, to break two teeth like that. And he reached into the basket for the third egg. "It certainly can't happen again," Henry told himself. And he bit the third egg with all his might.

How it hurt him! He fairly howled with pain.

And then Jimmy Rabbit snickered. He could hold in his laughter no longer.

That was enough for Henry Skunk. He looked around quickly. And what he saw made him very angry. For he knew then that those eggs were nothing but a joke.

Now, when he tittered, Jimmy Rabbit had jumped back behind the tree round which he had been peeping. He thought that he was safely out of sight. But he had forgotten all about his ears. They were so long, and they stuck out so far, that Henry Skunk could see them. And he knew right away who had played that trick on him.

He did not think it was any joke, to break three teeth. And he began to creep toward those ears. But there was one thing that Henry Skunk had not noticed. He had not looked up in the branches above Jimmy Rabbit's head. If he had, he would have seen Frisky Squirrel, who had come along to see the fun.

As soon as Frisky saw what was happening, he cried:

"Look out, Jimmy!"

And Jimmy Rabbit looked out just in time. The smile faded from his face. And he turned and ran.

Henry Skunk did not chase him. He was no runner. But he hoped that some day he could catch _both_ those meddlesome youngsters.

"Well, what did I tell you?" Jimmy Rabbit said, when Frisky joined him at a good, safe distance from Henry Skunk's house. "Didn't I say there'd be some fun?"

"But I don't understand what happened," Frisky said. "I thought Henry Skunk _liked_ hens' eggs."

"So he does!" Jimmy Rabbit answered. "But those were not real hens' eggs. They were china eggs which I found in Farmer Green's henhouse. And they were almost as hard as stones."

Frisky Squirrel laughed.

"I wish we had some more," he said. "Then we could hang a May basket on Fatty Coon's door.... I don't suppose you'd care to go back to Henry's house and get those eggs?"

"I don't suppose I would," said Jimmy Rabbit.

5

The New Wheelbarrow

There was something that Jimmy Rabbit wanted. He had teased for it for a long time. And at last, after he had almost made up his mind that he wasn't going to get it, one day to his great joy his father brought home the very thing Jimmy had begged for. It was a wheelbarrow! Jimmy Rabbit could hardly believe his eyes.

"Well, young man, you ought to be pretty grateful for this," Mr. Rabbit said.

"Yes, Father!" Jimmy answered. He picked up the handles of the wheelbarrow, and began pushing it proudly about the dooryard. "I'm going to play with my wheelbarrow all the time after this," Jimmy said.

"I reckon you can do a little work with it, too," Mr. Rabbit told him. "I shall expect you to bring home the vegetables for the whole family, every morning."

"Yes, Father!" Jimmy answered. He thought that would be great sport. He didn't stop to think that it would take a good many vegetables to feed his father and his mother, his four sisters, his two brothers, and himself.

"I hope, now, to have a little time for recreation," Mr. Rabbit remarked.

"It's too bad you have to work so hard," said Jimmy. "Recreation" was a big word. Jimmy supposed that it was some kind of specially hard work. He did not know that it meant _play_. "I'll go down to Farmer Green's garden right away and get a load of his best vegetables!" Jimmy exclaimed.

Down in Farmer Green's garden Jimmy worked busily, loading his new wheelbarrow to the very top. And then he trundled it home again. No prouder youngster was ever seen in Pleasant Valley than Jimmy Rabbit, pushing that little wheelbarrow up the hill.

"Let me push it!" Frisky Squirrel begged.

But Jimmy Rabbit said that he mustn't let anybody else play with that wheelbarrow.

"Let me take hold of one handle!" Billy Woodchuck pleaded.

But Jimmy Rabbit told him that _that_ was no way to wheel a wheelbarrow.

Somehow, the next day Jimmy didn't have half so much fun getting the vegetables. And the day after that he actually began to think that gathering vegetables was a good deal like work. And before a week had passed he just hated the sight of Farmer Green's garden.

But all Jimmy's friends still crowded around and begged him to let them push the wheelbarrow. And all the while he had been very firm. He had not given one of them leave to touch the barrow.

At last Jimmy Rabbit had an idea.

"I'll tell you what I'll do," he said to Frisky Squirrel. "If you weren't my best friend I'd never think of such a thing. And you mustn't expect I'm going to let you do this often----"

"Do what?" Frisky asked.

"Why, wheel my wheelbarrow!" said Jimmy.

Frisky Squirrel jumped high up in the air, he was so pleased.

"Hurrah!" he cried. "May I push it now, before you fill it with vegetables?"

"Well--no! It's getting late," said Jimmy. "My mother will be expecting me soon. I'll let you wheel the vegetables home for me. But first, you must gather them."

Frisky Squirrel was more than willing. And he filled the barrow with cabbages and turnips, lettuce and peas, while Jimmy Rabbit looked on and ordered him about.

"There!" said Jimmy, when the wheelbarrow was full. "Now we'll go home." And then, to Frisky Squirrel's surprise, Jimmy climbed on top of the load and sat himself down.

"What's that for?" asked Frisky.

"Why, to keep the vegetables from falling out!" Jimmy explained. "You see, you don't know how to wheel a wheelbarrow. You'll be tipping it, first one side and then the other. And we'd have to stop every few steps and pick up a turnip or a cabbage."

"But I don't want to wheel _you_!" said Frisky. "You're too heavy!"

"Oh, very well, then!" Jimmy answered. "If you don't care to wheel the wheelbarrow, it's all the same to me." And he started to jump down from his seat on top of the load.

"No, no!" Frisky cried. "Don't get off! I can manage all right!" After gathering all those vegetables, he didn't want to lose the fun of pushing the wheelbarrow.

"Walk fast, now!" Jimmy said. "We're late already."

6

A Narrow Escape

Frisky Squirrel had a hard time pushing the wheelbarrow home with Jimmy Rabbit on top of the load of vegetables. He puffed and groaned. And he had to stop every little while to catch his breath.

"You see, you're not used to wheeling a wheelbarrow," Jimmy told him. "For me, it's no trouble at all. But then, I'm stronger than you are."

Now, Frisky had been almost ready to tell Jimmy that he might trundle the barrow the rest of the way. But when he heard that he made up his mind that he would get that wheelbarrow up the hill to Jimmy's house if he didn't do another thing that day.

So he started on again. And at last he stopped in front of Jimmy Rabbit's door.

Jimmy hopped nimbly to the ground. But poor Frisky was so tired that he lay right down and went to sleep. And the next day he never went near Farmer Green's garden.

But Jimmy Rabbit didn't mind that at all. There were plenty of others who wanted to trundle the wheelbarrow. And this time Jimmy told Billy Woodchuck that _he_ might wheel the barrow home for him.

Once more Jimmy Rabbit stood by while the vegetables were gathered for him. Once more he seated himself on top of the load. And once more he had a free ride up the long hill. Jimmy had changed his mind about Farmer Green's garden. He even asked his mother if he might not bring home two loads of vegetables each day, instead of only one. And he was disappointed when she said "No!"

There was one thing, however, that Jimmy had overlooked. As the days went by, one by one his friends stayed away from the garden-patch. And at last there was nobody left who wanted to push the wheelbarrow except Fatty Coon. And Fatty Coon was really no friend of his at all. In fact, Jimmy did not like him, because he never could feel sure that Fatty would not get hungry all at once and try to eat him.

But Fatty teased so hard that at last Jimmy agreed to give him his turn at the fun (Jimmy was always careful to speak of gathering vegetables and wheeling them home as "fun").

When the barrow was full, Jimmy Rabbit again climbed on top of the load. But he kept very close watch of Fatty. And he was ready, any moment, to leap off the wheelbarrow in case Fatty should reach for his legs.

Fatty Coon was strong. He did not tire so easily as the others had. But finally he let go the handles and straightened up.

"What's the matter?" asked Jimmy. "You're not tired, are you?"

"No!" said Fatty. "But it's harder work than I supposed. I declare, I'm getting terribly hungry."

When Jimmy Rabbit heard him say that, his heart went _pitty-pat_. And he almost ran away, then and there.

But what would become of his nice new wheelbarrow if he did that? He was afraid that Fatty Coon would run off with it.

"My goodness! I'm growing hungrier every minute!" said Fatty Coon.

Then Jimmy Rabbit had a happy thought. He grabbed up a handful of green peas and tossed them to Fatty.

"Here!" he said. "Eat those! Maybe they'll make you feel better."

Fatty Coon ate the peas greedily.

"More!" he said. As you see, he was not very polite.

Jimmy threw him two handfuls then.

Still Fatty Coon said "More!"

So Jimmy rolled a turnip off the load. And after that he threw out a cabbage, and then a head of lettuce.

"More! more! more!" Fatty ordered.

And soon Jimmy Rabbit saw with dismay that the vegetables were nearly all gone. In a few moments he reached the very last one--a big turnip which he could hardly lift.

But he managed to pick it up and raise it above his head. And then with all his might he threw the turnip straight at Fatty Coon.

Fatty was just opening his mouth to say "More!" But he never said it. The big turnip struck him right on his fat stomach and knocked his breath out. He gave a faint groan and toppled over on the ground. And he was so fat that he started to roll.

Though he clawed at the grass to stop himself, he rolled faster and faster down the hill.

He was a very comical sight. And at any other time Jimmy Rabbit would have stopped to laugh. But Jimmy was so glad to be rid of Fatty Coon that he picked up the handles of his little wheelbarrow and ran home as fast as he could jump.

7

A Fast Runner

On Blue Mountain, and in Pleasant Valley as well, there lived many fast runners. And among the swiftest was Jimmy Rabbit. But he never ran very far. Whenever he was startled he would go bounding off like the wind; but pretty soon he would stop and listen to see if anyone was following him. And if it happened to be dog Spot, he always hurried to a hollow stump, or perhaps a woodchuck's hole--or a skunk's--and hid there until Spot went away.

Of course, there was some risk in going into somebody else's house. For if the owner happened to be at home there was likely to be a quarrel. Naturally, nobody likes to have some outsider burst into his house without even stopping to knock.

Now, everyone said that Jimmy Rabbit could run fast--that is, all but Tommy Fox. He never would admit that Jimmy Rabbit was much of a runner. I should hate to say that Tommy Fox was jealous. But it certainly did annoy him to hear so much said about Jimmy's wonderful speed.

Perhaps he never would have suggested the race, if Jimmy Rabbit hadn't boasted so much about his running. You see, in time Jimmy's head became turned. And he was often heard to say that there was no one in that part of the country who could beat him.

"Of course, there may be some one, somewhere, who can outrun me," Jimmy Rabbit said. "But I have yet to meet him."

That was a little more than Tommy Fox could bear. And he went off, looking very sour. He trotted over to the creek, did Tommy Fox. And there he might have been seen talking to Mr. Turtle. He talked with him for a long time. And when at last he went away Tommy's face wore a very different look. He was actually smiling.

The very next day Jimmy Rabbit met Tommy Fox in the woods.