Chapter IX

As the lamb grew big and strong he got very frisky, too. He found out that when he ran at things with his hard little [head] down and bunted them, the things would fall down. He thought that was funny, so he bunted everything. In the [house] he bunted over [chairs] and the [shovel] and [tongs], and nobody dared set a [bucket] or [tub] on the floor. Outdoors, he ran at the [hens] and [chicks], to see them flutter and scream. Once he bunted little Aunt Hannah's [cat]--but she didn't fall down; she stood up and cuffed him with her [paw], and scratched him! But [Mary] fell down when he bunted her, and so did [Hannah], although they were bigger than the [cat]. One night he ran at Mary's father, bringing in the [pail], and spilled all the milk over his [boots]. Then Mary's [father] said if the [lamb] didn't stop bunting he must be tied up. So [Mary] tried to teach him better, but he didn't understand it was naughty, and kept right on bunting. At last one day, he bunted the [cow] which was tied to the [fence] by a long [rope]. Now Bossy liked to bunt, too; so when the [lamb] ran at her she put her [head] down and ran at him! And she was the biggest, so it was the little [lamb] himself that fell down that time! First he flew right over the [fence] and fell on his [head],--then he rolled over and over into the duck-[pond]. All the [ducks] began to flap their [wings] and quack, and the big gray [goose] hissed at him and chased him. The poor naughty little [lamb] was so frightened that he ran to [Mary], all wet and muddy, and hid his [head] in her [dress]. After that, he didn't bunt things any more!