_MORE ABOUT RABBITS._
[Illustration]
1. The rabbit has large ears, and can hear the slightest sound. When
feeding or listening, the ears stand up or lean forward; but when
running, the ears lie back on its neck.
2. When the rabbit hears any sound to alarm it, it never stops to see
what is the matter, but scuds away to its hole, plunges in, and waits
there until it thinks the danger has passed away.
3. Then it comes to the mouth of the burrow, and puts out its long
ears. If it does not hear anything, it raises its head a little more,
and peeps out. Then, if it does not see anything out of the way, it
comes out again and begins to feed.
4. Rabbits increase so fast that if they were not kept down they would
soon eat up all the plants of our gardens and fields. So a great many
animals and birds feed upon them, and a great many are killed for
their meat and fur.
5. When first born, the little rabbits are blind, like puppies and
kittens, and their bodies are naked. The mother rabbit makes a warm
nest for them of dried leaves, and she lines it with fur from her own
body.
6. In about ten or twelve days the little rabbits are able to see, and
in a few weeks more they are quite able to take care of themselves.
7. The rabbits that we have for pets are of various colors, but mostly
white or black, or part white and part black. They do not dig into the
earth as the wild ones do, but they love to have their homes in snug
little places, like holes.
8. The hind legs of the rabbit are longer than its fore ones, and,
instead of walking, it hops along. When it runs, it springs forward
with great leaps, and gets over the ground very fast.
9. Pet rabbits that have large ears sell most readily. One of the
rabbits, in the picture, looks very curious with one long ear lopped
down over his eye, and the other standing up straight.
10. When they live out in the woods and fields, rabbits have many
cruel foes. One of the worst of these is the owl, who, prowling about
in the dark, springs upon the poor rabbit, and breaks its neck with
one fierce stroke of its sharp bill.
11. As a rabbit can not defend itself by fighting, it has long ears to
detect danger, and swift feet to get away from an enemy. When alarmed,
away it goes, with a hop, skip, and jump, and like a flash passes out
of sight.
[Illustration]