"That certainly was a lucky escape," said Uncle Lucky to Billy Bunny as
they sped away in their Luckymobile after overturning all the pies in
the bake shop, as I told you in the last story.
"I shall be more careful the next time and see where I'm going," and the
old gentleman rabbit settled his stovepipe hat firmly on his head and
held on tighter to the steering wheel, and then he honked the horn three
times and a half to let everybody hear him coming before he ran over
them; and then, all of a sudden, quicker than a lightning bug, a little
gray donkey ran right in the middle of the road and kicked up his heels
and brayed, which is the way a donkey talks, you know.
"Get out of the way!" yelled Uncle Lucky, and he put on the brake, but,
oh dear me, and oh dear donkey! the brake wouldn't work. It just got
obstinate, I guess, when it saw that donkey's heels, or else it thought
the donkey would stop the automobile just as well, which he did, I'm
sorry to say.
Yes, Siree, and Yes, Siree Man! That donkey kicked his shoes right off
and the Luckymobile stopped and Uncle Lucky and Billy Bunny got out so
quickly that they rolled over and over on the ground for maybe a block
and a half and then they wouldn't have stopped, only a policeman grabbed
them.
But he let the little rabbits go just as soon as they told him what had
happened.
"I'm getting tired of always having an accident," said the old gentleman
rabbit when they reached the Luckymobile.
"Don't be a grumbler," said the donkey.
"Well, then, don't you be a kicker," replied the old gentleman rabbit
angrily, for Uncle Lucky had a temper, only he seldom used it because he
was so kind and good. "If you hadn't kicked, there would have been no
accident, and as I said before, I'm getting sick and tired of
accidents."
Well, this made the donkey so ashamed he said he was sorry he had kicked
the Luckymobile, and then dear Uncle Lucky told him to climb in and he
would take him down to the seashore to pick up pretty shells. So off
they went again, the two little rabbits on the front seat and the donkey
in the back, and by and by they came to the seashore.
"Let's all go in bathing," said Billy Bunny, so they went up to the
bathing houses and put on bathing suits.
Well, after they were all dressed, I mean undressed, they hopped into
the water and swam out to the raft. And Uncle Lucky stood on Billy
Bunny's shoulders and dived into the water and then the donkey stood on
Uncle Lucky's shoulders and slipped and fell onto the raft and sprained
his tail, so that they all had to hurry out and get dressed and then go
for the doctor.
And in the next story you shall hear how the doctor cured the donkey
with a little sugar pill.