Peter Rabbit just couldn't go back to the dear Old Briar-patch. He just
_had_ to know if Mrs. Quack would come back to the Smiling Pool. He had
seen Farmer Brown's boy come there a second time and scatter wheat and
corn among the brown stalks of last summer's rushes, and he had guessed
why Farmer Brown's boy had done this. He had guessed that they had been
put there especially for Mrs. Quack, and if she should come back as she
had promised to do, he wanted to be on hand when she found those good
things to eat and hear what she would say.
[Illustration: Several times she circled around, high over the Smiling
Pool]
So Peter stayed over near the Smiling Pool and hoped with all his
might that Reddy Fox or Old Man Coyote would not take it into his
head to come hunting over there. As luck would have it, neither of
them did, and Peter had a very pleasant time gossiping with Jerry
Muskrat, listening to the sweet voices of unseen singers in the Smiling
Pool,--the Hylas, which some people call peepers,--and eating the
carrot which Farmer Brown's boy had left for him.
Jolly, round, red Mr. Sun was just getting ready to go to bed behind
the Purple Hills when Mrs. Quack returned. The first Peter knew of her
coming was the whistle of her wings as she passed over him. Several
times she circled around, high over the Smiling Pool, and Peter simply
stared in open-mouthed admiration at the speed with which she flew.
It didn't seem possible that one so big could move through the air so
fast. Twice she set her wings and seemed to just slide down almost
to the surface of the Smiling Pool, only to start her stout wings in
motion once more and circle around again. It was very clear that she
was terribly nervous and suspicious. The third time she landed in the
water with a splash and sat perfectly still with her head stretched up,
looking and listening with all her might.
“It's all right. There's nothing to be afraid of,” said Jerry Muskrat.
“Are you sure?” asked Mrs. Quack anxiously. “I've been fooled too often
by men with their terrible guns to ever feel absolutely sure that one
isn't hiding and waiting to shoot me.” As she spoke she swam about
nervously. “Peter Rabbit and I have been here ever since you left, and
I guess we ought to know,” replied Jerry Muskrat rather shortly. “There
hasn't been anybody near here excepting Farmer Brown's boy, and we told
you he wouldn't hurt you.”
“He brought us each a carrot,” Peter Rabbit broke in eagerly.
“Just the same, I wouldn't trust him,” replied Mrs. Quack. “Where is he
now?”
“He left ever so long ago, and he won't be back to-night,” declared
Peter confidently.
“I hope not,” said Mrs. Quack, with a sigh. “Did you hear the bang of
that terrible gun just after I left here?”
“Yes,” replied Jerry Muskrat. “Was it fired at you?”
Mrs. Quack nodded and held up one wing. Peter and Jerry could see that
one of the long feathers was missing. “I thought I was flying high
enough to be safe,” said she, “but when I reached the Big River there
was a bang from the bushes on the bank, and something cut that feather
out of my wing, and I felt a sharp pain in my side. It made me feel
quite ill for a while, and the place is very sore now, but I guess
I'm lucky that it was no worse. It is very hard work to know just how
far those terrible guns can throw things at you. Next time I will fly
higher.”
“Where have you been since you left us?” asked Peter.
“Eight in the middle of the Big River,” replied Mrs. Quack. “It was the
only safe place. I didn't dare go near either shore, and I'm nearly
starved. I haven't had a mouthful to eat to-day.”
Peter opened his mouth to tell her of the wheat and corn left by
Farmer Brown's boy and then closed it again. He would let her find it
for herself. If he told her about it, she might suspect a trick and
refuse to go near the place. He never had seen any one so suspicious,
not even Old Man Coyote. But he couldn't blame her, after all she had
been through. So he kept still and waited. He was learning, was Peter
Rabbit. He was learning a great deal about Mrs. Quack.