Jimmy Rabbit wanted a new tail. To be sure, he already had a tail--but
it was so short that he felt it was little better than none at all.
Frisky Squirrel and Billy Woodchuck had fine, bushy tails; and so had
all the other forest-people, except the Rabbit family.
Jimmy had tried his hardest to get a handsome tail for himself. And once
he had nearly succeeded. For he almost cut off Frisky Squirrel's big
brush. But Mrs. Squirrel had appeared just in time to save her son from
so dreadful a mishap.
After that, Jimmy Rabbit tried to _buy_ a tail; but no one would sell
him one. Then he set out to _find_ one, in the hope that some day some
one would forget his tail and go off and leave it lying in the woods,
and not be able to remember where he left it.
In fact, Jimmy Rabbit often lurked behind trees and bushes, watching his
neighbors as they took naps in the sunshine. But when they awaked and
stretched themselves, and went trotting off, there was not one of them
that didn't take his tail right along with him.
It was disappointing. Still, Jimmy Rabbit continued his search.
Now, Jimmy had decided that if he could only get a long tail he didn't
care what color it was, if it was only a brownish yellow, to match the
rest of him. And at last, as he was wandering through the woods one day,
to his great joy he found almost exactly what he wanted. Lying near a
heap of chips was a beautiful tail! But it was red, with a black tip.
That was the only drawback about it.
This tail, however, was so handsome that Jimmy made up his mind that he
would wear it, anyhow, even though it did not match his coat. So with a
bit of string which he had carried with him for weeks for that very
purpose, he tied the red tail to his own short stub.
There was great excitement among the forest-people when Jimmy Rabbit
appeared among them. Most everyone told him how much better he looked.
In fact, old Mr. Crow was about the only person who didn't say something
pleasant. He only shook his head, and muttered something to himself
about "handsome is as handsome does." But Jimmy Rabbit paid little
attention to him.
"Whose tail is that?" Mr. Crow finally asked.
"Mine, of course!" Jimmy told him.
"Well, you'd better look out!" said Mr. Crow. "Unless that tail is
bought and paid for, there's trouble ahead of you, young man."
To his friends Frisky Squirrel and Billy Woodchuck, Jimmy said something
about Mr. Crow in a low voice. And they laughed loudly. Whereupon Mr.
Crow flew away, croaking to himself about the shocking way children are
brought up nowadays. You know, Mr. Crow was a great gossip. And
everywhere he went that day he spread the news about Jimmy Rabbit's
finding a red tail in the woods.
Probably that was the pleasantest day of Jimmy Rabbit's life. But
toward evening something startled him. He had been over to the brook, to
look at himself in a pool. And he was coming back towards home when some
one called:
"Hi, there, young fellow!"
Jimmy Rabbit hurried along faster. He knew that it was a mink's voice.
And he didn't like minks.
Mr. Mink ran after him, calling "Stop, thief!" at the top of his voice.
Jimmy Rabbit did not stop. But he glanced around. And his heart sank as
he saw that Mr. Mink had no tail! At the same time Jimmy ran faster than
ever. He did not want even to speak to Mr. Mink, for he felt that by
waiting to talk with him he had nothing at all to gain, and a great deal
to lose.
There was his new tail! He certainly did not want to part with that!
[Illustration: 2 Troublesome Mr. Mink]
2