Chapter VII: Cheeko's Curiosity

Mr. Bunny remained silent a long while, and not until he was reminded that he had broken off his story at a very exciting point did he continue. Then it was to say:

"Even at this day I am surprised that all three of us were not captured by that army of boys, each of whom was armed with one of those disagreeable sling-shots, pea-shooters, or whatever you choose to call them. I was panting from long running, and my wife so excited as hardly to know whether she was on her feet or her ears, while poor little Sonny Bunny was so confused by seeing us in such a state that he actually quivered.

"Of course I had sense enough to know that we hadn't a single second to spare in that neighborhood, and it was up to me to save the family, or go down into the stew with them. I don't like to boast, as do the Squirrels; but yet I must say that, except when we come face to face with Mr. Weasel, we Rabbits can do a powerful lot of thinking in a short time when we are in a hole--or, perhaps I should say, when we want to get into our own particular hole.

"I twisted one of Mrs. Rabbit's ears right sharp, to bring her to her senses quickly, and jumping straight for Sonny Bunny, tossed him around with my nose, as I whispered:

"'Run for your life, Sonny, and run as you never did before. It's up to you to see that your mother gets home before those wicked boys can lay their hands on her, so move lively!'

"Sonny Bunny is a good deal like me in some things, and it was as if the little fellow understood the whole situation in a sniff of your nose. Before you could say Jack Robinson, in case you wanted to, he was showing his mother the way home, his little legs twinkling like drumsticks amid the bushes.

"Mrs. Bunny and Sonny hadn't much more than disappeared when Mr. Man's boy Tommy was almost the same as walking all over me, and I had to do some mighty lively hopping to keep out from under his feet. Now I'm not trying to make myself out the bravest fellow that ever walked; but it is a fact that I had sense enough not to run straight for home, as I knew the rest of the family were doing, and when that busy Tommy caught a glimpse of me, I was steaming off as if we lived in the very middle of the big swamp. Of course he came after me with a whoop and a yell and, if the noise was anything to be judged by, there were more than a hundred other boys close at his heels.

"I wasn't fretting very much just then, because I'd had a breathing spell, to say nothing of knowing that Mrs. Bunny and Sonny were clean out of the muss, so off I went limperty, limperty, limp, taking my own time and leading that crowd of boys and sling-shots straight into the swamp, where I was allowing they'd pitch head over heels into the mud till they were in such shape that their mothers couldn't help whipping them soundly when they got home.

"Mr. Man's boy Tommy wasn't quite so simple as I'd taken him to be, for when he came to the edge of the swamp he fired one shot that never came anywhere near touching me, and yelled to the fellows behind:

"'Hold up, or we'll be in the mud up to our necks! What's the use of chasing a lot of rabbits that aren't worth eating at this time of year, when we can catch more'n a thousand squirrels between now and to-morrow morning?'

"Then all the crowd began to yell--I wonder why it is that boys must make a terrible noise whatever they are doing?--and back the whole of them trooped, heading as if they counted on bringing up at Crow's Corner.

"I didn't have any very important business on hand just then, for it isn't pleasant to go home when Mrs. Bunny is all haired up with excitement, because at such times she seems to think matters may be smoothed by scolding at me, so off I hopped after the yelling, screaming cannibals, counting on finding out what other mischief that boy Tommy had hatched. Of course I kept so far behind that they couldn't see me, and my mouth was stretched from ear to ear in a broad grin, thinking how surprised they'd be to know I was taking my turn at chasing them.

"They struck a bee-line for the club quarters, and on arriving there loitered around with never a thought that there were plenty of chores to be done at the farm, till I was tired of trying to see what was going on, so off I hopped, counting on paying Cheeko a visit to liven him up a bit. I hadn't got more than half-way to his new home when whom should I see but that same squirrel I supposed was so sick he couldn't even flirt his tail!

"'What's all this row about?' he asked, cross as two sticks, and acting as if he blamed me because the little wretches from the farm had been making so much noise.

"I told him all that had happened, and, if you'll believe it, instead of appreciating what I had done in the way of getting my family out of the scrape, he said, with his nose turned way up in the air:

"'You're always trying to make out that you've done something mighty smart, Bunny. I can't see how it was possible for you to act in any way different from what you did. If I'd been there those boys would be singing another kind of a tune by this time.'

"'It seems to me that you've brightened up considerably since Mrs. Bunny dosed you with the herb tea,' I said, speaking a bit crossly, perhaps, for it got on my nerves to have him so pert all of a sudden, and pitching into me just the same as before he got hurt.

"'If I'd taken very much of that nasty tea I'd be dead by this time, and I want you to tell Mrs. Bunny that I'll just about whip the life out of Sonny Bunny if she ever tries to get any more of that stuff down my throat. I was only shaken up a little, and as soon as you meddling people let me alone, I came around all right. Now I'm going to drive those boys out of the club premises. If James Crow can't look after things at such a time, as a president should, I'll teach him a lesson!'

"It provoked me to hear the foolish squirrel talking like that at a time when he'd better have been in bed attending to himself; but I'm so soft-hearted that it really made me feel badly to hear of his anxiety to get into more trouble before he was well out of the scrape with the Professor, and I said in the most friendly way you can imagine:

"'Now look here, Cheeko, it'll be wiser for you to go straight back home and stay there till your coat is mended in better shape, for if one of those boys should get a fair shot at you, as they did at me, there'd be one squirrel the less in the big woods. Why don't you take warning from your poor brother's fate?'

"Now I ask you if I said anything which one friend shouldn't have said to another at such a time, and yet, do you know, Cheeko went away into the air with anger. You'd thought I'd really insulted him; he bristled up his tail, swinging it around over his ears exactly as before he got hurt, and shouted at me:

"'Look here, Bunny Rabbit, I'll have you understand that I don't want any advice from you! What does a burlesque imitation of a see-saw like you know about fellows in my class? From this time on you'll keep your tongue between your teeth when I'm anywhere around, else both your eyes will be knocked into one, and don't you forget it!'

"I had a good deal more than half a mind to tell him I could swallow such as he without standing any chance of being troubled with dyspepsia, or kick him into the middle of next week without straining my legs; but I didn't want to stir up a row, particularly while those boys were so near that they might have taken a hand in it, so off I hopped; but you may be certain I didn't go very far away on account of wanting to see what Cheeko would be foolish enough to do. I hid behind a lot of mullein leaves, where it was possible to see what was going on near Crow's Corner, and it wasn't necessary to wait very long before that foolish squirrel came up against all he was looking for, and a little more.

"Cheeko and I had been talking quite a while, and when I was where a view of the club premises could be had, my surprise was great because not a single boy was to be seen. I had supposed we'd have them loitering around nearly all day, and why they went away so quickly was more than I could make out. It was while I was trying to solve the mystery that I saw, at the very foot of the old oak, the dearest little house that ever was built. Some careless person had left the door wide open, and there, in full view of any dishonest person who might be passing, was a large ear of corn. It seemed queer that the thing should have appeared there so suddenly; but yet I never suspected that Mr. Man's boy Tommy had anything to do with it until I heard Mr. Crow calling out in his hoarsest voice:

"'You'd better get away from that thing, Cheeko Squirrel, unless you're aching to spend the rest of your days in jail!'

"Then it was I saw Cheeko running around and around the house, looking at it from every point, and chattering in that crazy way of his until you would have thought there were at least a dozen squirrels near about.

"'I reckon I can do what I please without any interference from you, Jim Crow!' Cheeko cried with that exasperating chuckle of his. 'I wasn't brought up in these woods to be scared by an owl, or a crow either, for that matter. When I'm wanting advice from you I'll ask for it.'

"'You'd better ask quickly, if there's any idea in your head of going into that place,' Mr. Crow said, never seeming to lose his temper, though it must have been terribly trying for one of his age and experience to have a young thing like Cheeko speak so saucily. 'I saw Mr. Man's boy Tommy when he put that house there, and he took good care that the corn should be seen by any who passed. Now he never has been very careful to do folks a good turn, so I'm advising you to keep your nose out of the place, for it must be a trap of some kind.'

"'I reckon I know as much about what's what as any old crow that ever cawed,' Cheeko said with a laugh, as he ran around to the front of the house and looked in. 'Mr. Man's boy Tommy knows too much to set a trap for me, and I'm going to teach him a lesson on the folly of leaving good corn where I can get my paws on it.'

"'Don't go in there, Cheeko!' I cried, forgetting how impertinent he had been, and a moment later felt sorry I had spoken, for he cried as he shook his tail with that seasick motion:

"'Mind your own business, old hopperty-skip!'

"Then he made one leap for the corn, counting, I suppose, on dragging it out in a hurry, but he hadn't much more than touched it when bang! down came the door, with Mr. Cheeko inside, and he had found out whether Mr. Man's boy Tommy knew too much to set a trap for him.

"'That settles Cheeko!' Mr. Crow cried from his perch on the tree. 'He'll stay where he is till Tommy gets ready to take him out.'

"'Can't we open the thing?' I cried, running toward the foot of the tree, arriving there just as Jimmy Hedgehog stuck his nose out of a hole near at hand to see what was going on. 'Tip it over, Jimmy; Cheeko is inside!'"

Just then a very small rabbit thrust his ears out from amid the leaves near at hand, and Mr. Bunny leaped down from the log as he cried in a tone of joyful surprise:

"Why, here's my little Sonny Bunny! Whatever is he doing so far from home?"