Peter Mink was always quarreling. And he seemed always ready to
fight--to fight even people who were four times bigger than he was. And
when he fought, Peter usually won. But there was one person Peter Mink
was afraid of; and that was Fatty Coon. Fatty was almost too big for
Peter Mink to whip. And his teeth were very sharp. And his claws were
like thorns.
One day Peter and Fatty had a dispute. Fatty Coon had said that a hen
made the finest meal in the world. But Peter Mink spoke up at once and
said it wasn't so.
"There's nothing quite like a duck," he said.
Fatty Coon sneered.
"Ducks may be all right," he cried. "In fact, in my opinion they are far
too good for any member of the Mink family to eat. But for me--give me a
plump hen!" And just thinking about hens made him hungry. And being
hungry made him think of green corn. "Give me a plump hen and plenty of
green corn!" And he looked all around, as if he expected somebody would
hurry up to him with a hen in one hand and a dozen ears of corn in the
other.
But nobody came.
"You're a big glutton!" Peter Mink shouted. He was very angry. But he
did not dare fight Fatty Coon.
"I guess you wish I was smaller," said Fatty Coon, "so you could fight
me."
At that, Peter Mink looked very fierce. And he turned to Frisky Squirrel
and Billy Woodchuck and Jimmy Rabbit and shouted:
"Take hold of me, quick, you fellows--before I hurt him! For I can't
keep my hands off him a second longer!"
When they heard that, Fatty's friends were frightened. They were afraid
Peter Mink would fly at him and hurt him terribly. So they all seized
Peter and held him fast, while they begged Fatty to run away.
Now, Fatty Coon was not the least bit afraid of Peter. But talking of
good things to eat had made him so hungry that he felt he must hurry
down to Farmer Green's cornfield at once. So he said "Good-bye!" and
left them.
After Fatty had disappeared, Peter Mink said it was safe to let him go
again, but that it was lucky they had held him.
And Frisky Squirrel and Billy Woodchuck and Jimmy Rabbit agreed
afterwards that Peter Mink was a dangerous fellow. They were glad that
Fatty Coon had escaped.
The next day, almost the same thing happened again. Only this time Peter
Mink remarked that there was nothing any tastier than a fine eel. Fatty
Coon told him that eels might be good enough for the Mink family, but as
for him, he preferred green peas.
"Somebody hold me, quick!" Peter Mink screamed. "I don't want to hurt
him--but I'm losing my temper fast."
Several of Fatty Coon's friends started to seize Peter Mink, so Fatty
might run away. But there was one person present who had not been there
the day before. This was Tommy Fox. And he only laughed when Peter Mink
said what he did.
"Don't touch him!" Tommy Fox told the others. "Let's see what he'll do.
Fatty isn't afraid of him."
"Why, certainly not!" Fatty Coon said. And he smiled in such a way that
he showed his sharp teeth.
"Somebody stop me, before it's too late!" Peter Mink cried.
But nobody laid a hand on him. And still Peter did not move.
"Go ahead!" Tommy Fox urged him. "You said you were losing your temper,
you know."
"I'm waiting!" Fatty Coon called. And he held up both his front paws.
Peter saw how strong and sharp his claws were.
"I declare," Peter Mink said, "I haven't lost my temper, after all. I
felt it going--for a moment. But it came back again."