But don't explain a single thing.
"They just go into their houses and say good-by. I don't understand it
at all, at all," said Peter Rabbit, staring at the big lily-pad on which
Grandfather Frog had sat all summer, watching for foolish green flies to
come his way. Somehow that big lily-pad made Peter Rabbit feel terribly
lonely. Then he had a happy thought.
"I'll just run over and ask Ol' Mistah Buzzard what it all means;
he'll be sure to know," said Peter Rabbit, and off he started,
lipperty-lipperty-lip, for the Green Forest.
When Peter got where he could see the tall dead tree that Ol' Mistah
Buzzard had made his favorite resting-place, he could see Ol' Mistah
Buzzard stretching his big wings, as if he was getting ready to fly.
Peter hurried faster. He didn't want Mistah Buzzard to get away before
he could ask him what Johnny Chuck and Grandfather Frog had meant. Peter
couldn't shout, because he hasn't much of a voice, you know, and then he
was out of breath, anyway. So he just made those long legs of his go as
fast as ever they could, which is very fast indeed.
Just as Peter Rabbit almost reached the tall dead tree, Ol' Mistah
Buzzard jumped off the branch he had been sitting on, gave two or three
flaps with his great wings, and then, spreading them out wide, began to
sail round and round and up and up, as only Ol' Mistah Buzzard can.
"Wait! Wait! Please wait!" panted Peter Rabbit, but his voice was so
weak that Ol' Mistah Buzzard didn't hear him. He saw Peter, however, but
of course he didn't know that Peter wanted to talk with him. With a long
swoop, Ol' Mistah Buzzard sailed off right over Peter's head.
"Good-by, Brer Rabbit; Ah'll see yo' in the spring!" said Ol' Mistah
Buzzard, and before Peter could say a word, he was out of hearing up in
the sky.
Peter watched him go up and up until he was just a speck in the blue,
blue sky.
"Now what did he mean by that? Is he going to stay up in the sky until
spring?" asked Peter Rabbit of himself. But not knowing, of course he
couldn't answer.