You remember that Doctor Rabbit started out to find Brushtail the Fox
and watch him. Well, it was not long before Brushtail was found, and
it certainly was exciting for Doctor Rabbit to watch what happened.
This is the way it happened. It was Yappy who found Brushtail. Doctor
Rabbit was hopping along, looking for Brushtail, when Yappy came
tearing through the woods and almost ran into Brushtail.
You see, Brushtail saw Yappy coming, but he thought Yappy would pass
by because he had not as yet smelled the trail. These things Brushtail
always knows. But Yappy passed so close he smelled fox, and then
Brushtail certainly did have to jump and run.
Doctor Rabbit just sprang up on the trunk of a fallen tree to watch
the race. All of a sudden he saw Farmer Roe and his boy running toward
Yappy, and with them was another big dog which joined in the chase
after Brushtail.
"It's a fox! a fox! It's that old fox!" shouted Farmer Roe's boy.
"Catch him, Yappy! Catch him! catch him!" The second big hound turned
Brushtail back so that he almost ran into Farmer Roe before he saw
him.
Farmer Roe threw a stick at Brushtail but missed him.
"Catch him, Yappy, catch him!" shouted Farmer Roe. "He'll steal all my
hens if you don't."
Away they all ran after Brushtail the Fox--Farmer Roe and his boy
yelling, and both hounds barking.
"My!" exclaimed Doctor Rabbit as he sat on the fallen tree, "I
certainly do hope they'll catch him!"
And just at that moment it looked as if they _would_ catch Brushtail.
He was in such a great hurry that in trying to jump across a wide
ditch in the woods he fell right into it. And Yappy was almost upon
him.
"Yappy's got him!" shouted Farmer Roe's boy. "Yappy's got him!"
But Brushtail was not to be caught so easily. He sprang out of that
hole in a flash, and away he ran like the wind.
As Doctor Rabbit watched, Brushtail ran out of sight in the woods, and
the barking of the hounds and the voices of Farmer Roe and his boy
sounded farther and farther away. Doctor Rabbit sat and waited, for he
thought they might turn Brushtail back and run him past the fallen
tree. But after a while they seemed farther away than ever, and he
could just barely hear Yappy barking on the trail. Doctor Rabbit just
sat still and waited. He knew that Brushtail the Fox was one of the
slyest creatures in the woods, and he was pretty sure now that he
would get away for this time at least.
"I should not be surprised if he came sneaking back right around here.
And still," Doctor Rabbit said hopefully, "Yappy _may_ get him. I'll
just wait for a time and see what does happen."
Several times as Doctor Rabbit sat there he heard a noise in the
bushes near by and each time he looked quickly in that direction. But
it must have been the wind blowing the leaves, for he did not see
anything.
Once, however, Doctor Rabbit was really startled. A big woodrat ran
through some dead leaves and made a good deal of noise. He stopped and
looked at Doctor Rabbit and asked, "Are you waiting for some one?"
"Yes," Doctor Rabbit replied, "I'm waiting for Brushtail the Fox; I'm
expecting him any time."
"Brushtail the Fox!" exclaimed the Woodrat. "Well, _I'm_ not going to
wait for him!" And he hurried away as fast as he could.
Then Doctor Rabbit heard another noise. Some creature was creeping
through the bushes not far off. He was coming nearer, too.