|TURNCOAT isn't considered a very nice name to call any one. You see, it
is supposed to mean one who has turned traitor, as it were; has been on
one side and gone over to the other side. If a soldier who is fighting
for France should go over to the German army and fight for Germany
against France, he would be a turncoat. Benedict Arnold, of whom you
have read in history, was a turncoat. But the meaning isn't always bad.
Just take the case of Jumper the Hare. In summer he wears a coat of
brown, but in winter he wears a coat of white, the white of the pure
driven snow. So you see he is a turncoat, but in his case it doesn't
mean anything bad at all. On the contrary, it means something rather
nice and very interesting.
Now you know Jumper is the cousin of Peter Rabbit and looks very much
like Peter, save that he is very much larger and has longer hind legs
and longer ears. But Peter wears the same little homely brown coat in
winter that he does in summer, the only difference being that it is
thicker and so warmer. I am afraid that Peter has sometimes let a little
envy creep into his heart when he has met his cousin wearing a coat of
pure white. Be that as it may, Peter puzzled over the matter a great
deal until he found out from Grandfather Frog how it happens that Jumper
has such a lovely winter coat.
It happened one evening in early June, when Peter was hopping along down
the Lone Little Path through the Green Forest, that he met Jumper and
stopped to gossip for a few minutes. He had not seen Jumper since gentle
Sister South. Wind had swept away the last of the winter snow. Then
Jumper's coat had been white; now it was brown. This reminded Peter that
he never had been able to tease Jumper into telling him how he could
change his coat that way. None of Peter's other friends of the winter
seemed to know, for he had asked all of them, and each had told him
to ask Grandfather Frog. Of course, Peter couldn't do that in winter
because Grandfather Frog was then fast asleep in the mud at the bottom
of the Smiling Pool. With the coming of spring he had forgotten all
about the matter. Now at the sight of Jumper once more, it all came back
to him.
When Peter and Jumper parted, Peter started for the Smiling Pool,
lip-perty-lipperty-lip. He arrived there quite out of breath.
Grandfather Frog smiled a big, broad smile. Before Peter could say a
word Grandfather Frog spoke.
“If you will catch a foolish green fly for me, Peter, Ill tell you the
story,” said he.
For a full minute Peter couldn't find his tongue, he was so surprised.
“How do you know what story I want?” he stammered at last.
“I don't know, but that doesn't make any difference,” replied
Grandfather Frog. “Catch me a foolish green fly, and I'll tell you any
story you want.”
“But--but--but I can't catch foolish green flies,” cried Peter. “I would
if I could, but I can't, and you know I can't.”
“You can try,” replied Grandfather Frog gruffly, but with a twinkle in
his eyes which Peter didn't see.
Peter hesitated. Then suddenly he shut his lips in a way that meant
that he had made up his mind to something. He looked this way and that
way. Whichever way he looked he saw foolish green flies flitting about.
He jumped for one and missed it. He jumped for another and missed it.
It was the beginning of such a funny performance that Grandfather Frog
nearly rolled off his big green lily-pad with laughter. Peter raced and
jumped this way and that way on the banks of the Smiling Pool as if he
had gone quite crazy, and at last in his excitement jumped right into
the Smiling Pool itself after a foolish green fly. But not one did he
catch.
As he crawled out of the water, looking forlorn enough, Grandfather Frog
took pity on him. “Chug-a-rum!” said he. “Lie down there in the sun and
dry off, Peter, and I'll tell you the story.”
“But I haven't caught you a foolish green fly!” exclaimed Peter.
“No, but you've tried, and willingness to try is just as deserving
of reward as successful effort. Now what was it you wanted to know?”
replied Grandfather Frog.
“If you please, I want to know how it is that my cousin, Jumper the
Hare, happens to have a white coat in winter. It seems to me very
curious,” replied Peter.
“A long time ago, in the beginning of things,” began Grandfather Frog,
“Old Mother Nature gave the first Hare a brown coat and turned him out
into the Great World to shift for himself, just as she had done with
all the other animals. That was a very easy matter for old Mr. Hare, who
wasn't old then, of course. You see, those were good times with plenty
for all to eat without trying to eat each other. Mr. Hare was very
bashful, and like most bashful people he liked to be by himself. So he
made his home in the most lonely part of the Green Forest and was very
happy and contented for a long time.
“Now being alone so much made him very timid, ready to jump and run at
the least unusual sound, and this, it happens, proved to be a very good
thing for Mr. Hare. You see, being by himself that way, he had plenty to
eat even after the hard times of which you have-heard had begun. So he
was in splendid condition, was Mr. Hare, even after some of the other
little people had begun to grow thin because of lack of food. One day
Mr. Lynx happened to stray to that part of the Green Forest where Mr.
Hare was living. He saw Mr. Hare before Mr. Hare saw him. He licked his
lips hungrily. 'Ha!' thought he, 'this is where I get a good dinner.'
“With this he began to creep ever so softly towards Mr. Hare. But
careful as he was, he stepped on a tiny stick and it snapped. Instantly
away went Mr. Hare without stopping to see what had made the noise. That
was because he had grown so timid from living so much alone. Then Mr.
Lynx made a mistake. With a yell he started after Mr. Hare, and so Mr.
Hare learned that it was no longer safe to trust his neighbors. Mr. Lynx
didn't catch Mr. Hare, because Mr. Hare was too swift of foot for him,
but he gave him such a scare was that Mr. Hare was more timid than ever.
[Illustration: 0181]
“Others tried to catch him, and, little by little, Mr. Hare learned that
he must always be on the watch, and that safety lay in two things--his
long legs and his brown coat. He learned about the latter by being
surprised once by Mr. Wolf. He knew that Mr. Wolf didn't see him as he
crouched among the brown leaves. For once he was too frightened to run,
Mr. Wolf was so close to him, and this, as it happened, was a very good
thing. Mr. Wolf trotted right past without seeing him or smelling him.
“After that Mr. Hare tried that trick often, for he was smart, was Mr.
Hare. When he suspected that he had been seen he ran, but when he felt
sure that he hadn't been seen, he sat tight right where he happened to
be. But when the first snow came, Mr. Hare found himself in a peck of
trouble. He didn't dare sit still when an enemy was near, because his
brown coat stood out so against the white snow, and when he ran it was
an easy matter to keep him in sight. One day he was squatting under a
snow-covered hemlock bough when he was startled by the howl of Mr. Wolf
not far away. In his fright he jumped up, and the next thing he knew
down came the snow from the bough all over him. Then, to his dismay, he
saw Mr. Lynx not two jumps away. He sat still from force of habit. Mr.
Lynx didn't see him; he went right past Presently Mr. Wolf came along,
and he went right past.
“Mr. Hare was puzzled. Then he just happened to glance at his coat. He
was white with snow from head to foot! Then he understood, and a great
idea popped into his head. If only he could have a brown coat in summer
and a white coat in winter, he felt sure that he could take care of
himself. He thought about it a great deal. Finally he screwed up his
courage and went to Old Mother Nature. He told her all about how he
had learned to sit tight when he wasn't seen, but that it didn't always
succeed when there was snow on the ground. Then he told her how Mr. Lynx
and Mr. Wolf had run right past him the time he was covered with snow.
Very timidly he asked Old Mother Nature if she thought it possible that
he might have a white coat in winter. Old Mother Nature said that she
would think about it. It was almost the end of winter then, and he
heard nothing from Old Mother Nature. With the coming of summer he quite
forgot his request. But Old Mother Nature didn't. She kept an eye on Mr.
Hare and she saw how timid he was and how he was in constant danger from
his hungry neighbors. With the beginning of the next winter, Mr. Hare
discovered one day that his coat was turning white. He watched it day by
day and saw it grow whiter and whiter until it was as white as the
snow itself. Then he knew that Old Mother Nature had not forgotten his
request and at once hastened to thank her. And from that day to this,
the Hares have had brown coats in summer and white coats in winter,”
concluded Grandfather Frog.
“Oh, thank you, Grandfather Frog,” cried Peter with a little sigh of
contentment. “I--I wish I could catch a foolish green fly for you.”
“I'll take the will for the deed, Peter,” replied Grandfather Frog. And
he suddenly snapped up a foolish green fly that flew too near.