Tiny was glad when the rosy dawn peeped over the eastern hills once
more. The little dark room in which he lay did not look so cheerless in
the bright light of day.
Again there came the sound of knocking that resembled the beating of a
drum.
[Illustration: “THAT’S BILLY BEAVER,” EXPLAINED REYNARD REDFOX,
YAWNING. “HE IS CALLING FOR US TO GET UP.”]
“That is Billy Beaver,” again explained Reynard Redfox, yawning. “He
is calling for us to get up. We have just an hour in which to eat our
breakfasts.”
“Who gets breakfast for us?” asked Tiny, feeling much out of place in
the strange new land.
“Each one gets his own breakfast, of course,” replied Reynard, much
amused. “We all require different kinds of food; and Miss Hare does not
care how or where we get it, if we keep from injuring one another.”
“Katie Goose, who is very cleanly, takes a swim in the creek, and hunts
for seeds along the bank; Sammy Rabbit, a relative of Miss Hare, hunts
for grain; and Winkie Weasel chases insects and catches frogs. Since I
have become civilized, I am particularly fond of grapes, although I am
never so happy as when strawberry season comes round.
“Shifty Woodchuck has less trouble in searching for his breakfast
than any other pupil, for he goes to a field of red clover or wild
buckwheat, and many a time he eats until he is not in good condition to
study. Shifty is a sleepy little animal. He spends the winter in a nest
of dried grasses that he builds in a hole in the ground. When the cold
weather comes, he will get sleepy and will lay aside his studies to
prepare for a long rest. Maybe he will sleep all winter, for no other
animal sleeps so long or so soundly as the woodchuck.”
It took Tiny but a few moments to smooth down his silken fur and to
brush out his bushy tail. With a shrill cry of delight, he sprang from
his new home and ran out into the bracing, frosty air. He sped over the
willow brush that surrounded the village of quaint beaver houses,
and soon found himself in an oak tree where there were plenty of ripe
acorns, moist with dew.
Hardly had he finished his breakfast when again he heard the tail
of the beaver pounding heavily. He hastened back to the cluster of
beaver houses with their round domes. Little animals of all kinds were
bustling about on their way to the various recitation rooms. Billy
Beaver, the janitor, told Tiny that he should go into the auditorium,
which was the largest building of all. There he found Miss Hare,
sitting behind a rough, wooden table. She wore a gray robe and a pair
of large earrings. Her spectacles were so heavy that her eyes seemed
very large; but he at once decided that she must be a kind teacher, as
her voice was soft and gentle.
[Illustration: MISS HARE’S SCHOOL.]
A number of animals sat on wooden benches facing Miss Hare. Reynard
Redfox, who was the largest animal in school, sat in one corner by
himself. His big, dark eyes were as mild as Tiny’s. His coarse, shaggy
fur was neatly brushed.
The room was decorated with flowers and carpeted with moss. An
old-fashioned fireplace with bellows and tongs stood at one end of the
room. Tiny, who had never before seen a fireplace, wondered where the
fire came from. He afterwards learned that Billy Beaver made the fire
by rubbing two sticks together, and that it was never permitted to go
out.
Toadstools, cat-tails, and elderberry bushes were arranged against
the walls, looking quite as artistic as the bay-trees and other
ornaments we see in fashionable hotels. Window curtains, woven of silk
by spiders, and screens and cushions, woven of weeds, reeds, and grass
by birds and mice, added to the comfort of the place. Snail shells and
pretty stones, gathered by the pupils, also lent beauty to the room.
[Illustration: NOT WISHING TO BE OUTDONE BY HIS CLASSMATES, HE WENT
FORWARD AND, WITH A LOW BOW, GAVE MISS HARE AN ACORN.]
Tiny observed that each pupil presented the teacher with flowers and
delicacies, which were laid on her desk. Not wishing to be outdone by
his classmates, he went forward and, with a low bow, gave Miss Hare an
acorn.
“Thank you,” said Miss Hare with a pleased smile, as she bent forward
and gazed admiringly at him through her dark spectacles. “I see that
you have already learned the lesson of generosity. You are the little
animal that Mr. Owl brought here last night, I suppose. I hope you will
be very studious and learn a great deal. I will introduce you to two
pupils in the language class. Mr. Redsquirrel, this pupil is Winkie
Weasel; that pupil just coming in is Sammy Rabbit. Those pupils, who
are sitting in the back row of seats, are well advanced in their work;
those pupils in the front seats are beginners. I will introduce them
later on.”
Tiny bowed to each of the pupils in the room, which included Shifty
Woodchuck, who was very fat and sleepy-looking; Mr. Rabbitt, who had
pink eyes and rosy ears; Mew Mew, who wore a blue bow; Bow Wow, with
curly locks hanging over his eyes; Little Winkie Weasel, who possessed
a long body and very short legs; Miss Field Mouse, who sat upon a
toadstool; and several other pupils.
“I usually teach in rhyme,” said Miss Hare, with an air of
assurance that made Tiny think she was vastly learned. “I teach the
multiplication table in rhyme, and in language I teach the use of
verbs, nouns, and other parts of speech in the same way. There is no
reason why one should not teach in rhyme, for it is natural and not
easily forgotten.”
She then told Tiny to sit by Winkie Weasel and, after opening her book,
she looked over the class to be sure that each pupil was ready to give
his attention.
“The class may read aloud together our lesson for to-day,” she said,
finally.
All the animals rose and read as follows:
THE ANIMAL ALPHABET.
A is _an_ antelope, graceful and slim,
_A_ beautiful antelope, dainty and trim.
B is _a_ bee, flitting round all the day,
_An_ industrious bee that stores honey away.
C is _a_ chipmunk that lives in the ground,
_An_ intelligent chipmunk with eyes black and round.
D is _a_ dog that but seldom offends,
_An_ affectionate dog, ever true to his friends.
E is _an_ eagle, that seeks the tall pine,
_A_ big golden eagle with feathers that shine.
F is _a_ fox that fills chickens with fright,
_An_ impudent fox that steals forth in the night.
G is _a_ giraffe with a nose in the sky,
_An_ upright giraffe that holds his head high.
H is _a_ horse that has just lost his shoe,
_An_ untiring horse, and a useful one, too.
I is _an_ ibex, a wild mountain goat,
_A_ wandering ibex that wears a fur coat.
J is _a_ jackal of varying mood,
_An_ ambitious jackal, both nimble and shrewd.
K is _a_ kangaroo, clumsy and stout,
_An_ active old kangaroo, leaping about.
L is _a_ lamb that has never done wrong,
_An_ innocent lamb that bleats all the day long.
M is _a_ monkey that close to man ranks,
_An_ over-fed monkey that likes to play pranks.
N is _a_ nightingale, cheerful and bright,
_An_ interesting nightingale singing at night.
O is _an_ owl, independent and free,
_A_ very wise owl that lives in a tree.
P is _a_ pigeon with wide, sweeping tail,
_An_ excitable pigeon that carries our mail.
Q is _a_ quail, going forth for her food,
_An_ excellent quail with her pretty young brood.
R is _a_ rabbit as white as sea foam,
_An_ upright, kind rabbit, quite fond of his home.
S is _a_ swan, of which many are fond,
_An_ elegant swan that glides round on the pond.
T is _a_ tiger that hunters entrap,
_An_ indolent tiger, now taking a nap.
U is _a_ unicorn--how strange he looks--
_An_ odd unicorn we find only in books.
V is _a_ vampire, as everyone knows,
_An_ awkward old creature that hangs by its toes.
W is _a_ weasel, quite fond of fresh meat,
_An_ odd-looking weasel, but very discreet.
X is _a_ xyphoidal whale, I am told,
_An_ angry xyphoidal whale, so big and so bold.
Y is _a_ yak, very much like an ox,
_An_ elderly yak with long, bushy, gray locks.
Z is _a_ zebra, black, yellow, and tan,
_An_ obstinate zebra, of slight use to man.
[Illustration: POETRY]