occurred to him that perhaps he could hire his cousin to free him from
the trap. "I'd do anything for you if you could help me out of this
fix," he said finally.
"Will you drive Mr. Snowy Owl away from Pleasant Valley?" Grumpy cried.
"Certainly!" said Peter Mink with great promptness, as if that were the
easiest matter in the world.
That answer surprised Grumpy Weasel. He had no idea that Peter Mink
could do any such thing. And he said as much, too.
"You understand," Peter explained, "it may take me some time to get rid
of him. It's mid-winter now. But I can promise you that I'll have him
out of the valley by April Fool's Day!"
XXVI
HOW GRUMPY HELPED
Grumpy Weasel wondered how Peter Mink was going to get Mr. Snowy Owl out
of Pleasant Valley. He had never dreamed that Peter could do it. But as
he thought the matter over he remembered that Peter was a good deal
bigger than himself.
"If I were Peter Mink's size I would give Mr. Snowy Owl the worst
punishing he ever had!" Grumpy exclaimed under his breath. "So maybe
Peter can do as he claims, after all."
"Very well!" Grumpy Weasel told Peter Mink. "This is a bargain. I'll
help you out of the trap. And you'll rid Pleasant Valley of Mr. Snowy
Owl by April Fool's Day."
"Agreed!" Peter Mink cried. "And now, how are you going to set me free?"
"I'm going to bite your leg off," Grumpy Weasel said cheerfully.
"Oh, no! You're not going to do that!" Peter Mink howled. "I don't want
you to do that!"
"I made a bargain with you," Grumpy Weasel reminded him, "and I intend
to carry out my part of it."
"Stop a moment," Peter Mink cried. For Grumpy Weasel, with his back
arched like a cat's, and his white whiskers twitching, had already taken
a step towards him. "If you bite off my leg I'd never be able to get rid
of Mr. Snowy Owl."
That brought Grumpy Weasel up short. He thought deeply for a moment;
and then he exclaimed: "I have it! You must bite off your own leg!"
But Peter Mink proved a hard one to please.
"You don't understand!" he said. "If I lose a leg I know I never could
get Mr. Snowy Owl out of the valley."
At that Grumpy Weasel lost his temper completely. With a cry of rage he
sprang at his cousin, Peter Mink, prisoner though he was. And Grumpy
would have buried his white teeth in him except for just one thing. As
he leaped forward Peter Mink leaped backward. And in that moment Peter
freed himself. He had been caught only by the merest tip of a toe,
anyhow. And now he crouched with his back against the bank of the brook,
facing Grumpy Weasel with mouth wide open. His meekness had dropped off
him like an old coat. And Grumpy Weasel knew better than to get within
his reach. In fact he turned polite himself, all at once.
"There!" he said. "I got you out of the trap, as I had planned to all
the time. I knew that if I could make you jump you'd pull your foot
loose."
Well, Peter Mink hardly believed that. But he thought there was no use
of saying so.
He was glad enough to escape Farmer Green's hired man's trap without
having a dispute over the way it happened.
"I hope you'll keep your promise," Grumpy told Peter Mink. "If Mr. Snowy
Owl doesn't leave these parts by April Fool's Day I won't like it very
well. You know you agreed to get him away from here by that time."
"Oh! He'll be gone by then," said Peter Mink lightly. "He always leaves
at the end of the winter, because he spends his summers in the Far
North."
When he heard that, Grumpy Weasel was angry as anything.
"Then Mr. Owl is likely to be back here next fall," he said quickly.
"I dare say," Peter Mink admitted carelessly.
Grumpy Weasel backed cautiously away before he said another word. But
when he had whisked into a great willow that leaned over Broad Brook he
told his cousin what he thought about him.
As for Peter Mink--he was nursing his injured paw (in his mouth!) and he
said never a word.
THE END
Little Jack Rabbit Books
(Trademark Registered)
By DAVID CORY
Author of "Little Journeys to Happyland"
* * *
Colored Wrappers With Text Illustrations.
* * *
A new and unique series about the furred and feathered
little people of the wood and meadow.
Children will eagerly follow the doings of little Jack
Rabbit, and the clever way in which he escapes from his
three enemies, Danny Fox, Mr. Wicked Wolf and
Hungry Hawk will delight the youngsters.
LITTLE JACK RABBIT'S ADVENTURES
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND DANNY FOX
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND THE SQUIRREL BROTHERS
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND CHIPPY CHIPMUNK
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND THE BIG BROWN BEAR
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND UNCLE JOHN HARE
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND PROFESSOR CROW
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND OLD MAN WEASEL
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND MR. WICKED WOLF
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND HUNGRY HAWK
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND THE POLICEMAN DOG
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND MISS MOUSIE
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND UNCLE LUCKY
LITTLE JACK RABBIT AND THE YELLOW DOG TRAMP
GROSSET & DUNLAP, _Publishers_, NEW YORK
[Decoration]
JOLLY BOOKS FOR
LITTLE FOLK
_Parents of boys and girls from three to eight years of age are
assured by the names of such famous authors of children's
books as Arthur Scott Bailey, Lillian Elizabeth Roy and
David Cory that these little books will prove both entertaining
and instructional. They are all bound in cloth with
colored endpapers, black and white illustrations and colored
wrappers._
* * *
TUCK-ME-IN TALES--_by Arthur Scott Bailey_
These delightful stories in which well known birds and insects
are the characters are based upon actual natural history facts, and
while the youngster eagerly listens to them, a moral foundation of
deeper importance is being laid. The complete list of titles in this
series is on inside front flap of this wrapper.
THE LITTLE WASHINGTON BOOKS--_by Lillian Elizabeth Roy_
In these little stories two families of young cousins, all
descendants of George Washington, conceive the clever idea of
carrying out in their play the dramatic events of Washington's life.
Every boy and girl will receive a true and unforgettable picture of
the great career of the Father of His Country through the play acting
of these ingenious youngsters. See flap of this wrapper for complete
list.
LITTLE JOURNEYS TO HAPPYLAND--_by David Cory_
Children will recognize in these amusing adventures characters
they know and love. Mr. Cory is the author of the famous "Little
Jack Rabbit" stories and is one of the best known authors of
children's books of our times. See flap of this wrapper for complete
list of titles.
GROSSET & DUNLAP _Publishers_ NEW YORK
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Transcriber's Note: The following corrections were made: |
| Table of Contents: XXIX to XXIV |
| p. 38: "Never mind that!' to "Never mind that!" |
| p. 46: missing period added (... given up the chase.) |
| p. 102: "And then'll he'll flee." to "And then he'll flee." |
| Ads (back of book): concieve to conceive (...of George Washington, |
| conceive...) |
| Three color plates in this e-book were missing/not included in the |
| book from which it was transcribed. These illustrations (Grumpy |
| Weasel and Jimmy Rabbit Run a Race, Grumpy Weasel Visits the |
| Corncrib, and Sandy Chipmunk Runs from Grumpy Weasel) have been |
| taken from the Internet Archive's copy of the book. |
| The IA version itself lacks two of the illustrations found in this |
| copy: Grumpy Nearly Catches Paddy Muskrat and Grumpy Calls on |
| Mrs. Hen. |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
End of Project Gutenberg's The Tale of Grumpy Weasel, by Arthur Scott Bailey