The Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind had been tumbled out
of her big bag very early one morning. Indeed, they were hardly awake
when Old Mother West Wind shook them out on the Green Meadows and
hurried away to her day's work, for she knew it was to be a very busy
day.
[Footnote 2: Copyright, 1913, by Little, Brown and Company.]
The Merry Little Breezes had watched her go. They saw the great
windmill in Farmer Brown's barn-yard begin to whirl as she passed.
They saw the million little leaves of the Green Forest shake, until a
million little drops of dew, like a million little diamonds, fell down
to the earth. And then Old Mother West Wind disappeared on her way to
the Great Ocean, there to blow the white-winged ships along their way
all day long.
The Merry Little Breezes stretched themselves and then began to dance
across the Great Meadows to kiss the buttercups and daisies and to
waken the sleepy little meadow people, who hadn't got their nightcaps
off yet. But no one wanted to play so early in the morning. No, Sir,
no one wanted to play. You see every one had something more important
to do. They loved the Merry Little Breezes, but they just couldn't
stop to play. Finally the Merry Little Breezes gave it up and just
curled up among the grasses for a sun-nap. That is, all but one did.
That one kept hopping up every few minutes to see if any one was in
sight who would be likely to play a little while.
By and by he saw Peter Rabbit coming down the Lone Little Path from
the Green Forest on his way to the dear old briar-patch on the Green
Meadows. Peter looked sleepy. The truth is, Peter had been out all
night, and he was on his way home.
Half-way down the Lone Little Path Peter stopped, and sitting up very
straight, looked over towards the Smiling Pool. He could see Mr.
Redwing flying 'round and 'round, this way and that way over the
bulrushes. He could hear Mr. Redwing's voice, and it sounded as if Mr.
Redwing was very much excited. The more Mr. Peter looked and listened,
the more certain he became that something very important must have
happened over in the bulrushes on the edge of the Smiling Pool.
Now curiosity is Peter Rabbit's besetting sin. Sleepy as he was, he
just couldn't go home without first finding out what had happened in
the bulrushes. So away Peter started for the Smiling Pool,
lipperty-lipperty-lip. Of course the Merry Little Breeze saw him go.
Then the Merry Little Breeze waked all the other Merry Little Breezes,
and away they all danced across the Green Meadows to the Smiling Pool
and stole in among the bulrushes behind Peter Rabbit to see what he
was about. They came up just in time to hear Peter say:
"Hello, Mr. Redwing! You seem very much excited this fine morning.
What is it all about? Has anything happened?"
Mr. Redwing hovered right over Peter Rabbit.
"Tra-la-la-la-lee, cherokee, cherokee!
I'm happy, oh, so happy! I am happy as can be!"
sang Mr. Redwing, looking down at Peter, who was sitting very straight
and looking up.
"You seem to be. But what is it all about? What is it that makes you
so happy this morning, Mr. Redwing?" Peter asked.
"Tra-la-la-la-lee, cherokee, cherokee!
We've another speckled egg, and this one makes it three!"
carolled Mr. Redwing, and flew over to the nest in the bulrushes where
Mrs. Redwing was fussing about in a very important manner.
"Pooh!" said Peter Rabbit. "Is that all? What a little thing to make
such a fuss about. I think I'll pay my respects to Grandfather Frog
and then I'll go home."
Peter yawned. Then he hopped out where he could see all over the
Smiling Pool. There sat Grandfather Frog on his big green lily-pad,
just as usual.
"Good morning, Grandfather Frog!" said Peter Rabbit.
"Chugarum! Of course it's good morning. Every morning is good,"
replied Grandfather Frog gruffly.
"Oh!" said Peter Rabbit, and then he couldn't think of another thing
to say.
The Merry Little Breezes giggled, and Grandfather Frog looked over at
them and very slowly winked. Then he rolled his big goggly eyes up and
stared into the sky. Peter Rabbit looked up to see what Grandfather
Frog was looking at so intently. There was Redtail the Hawk swinging
'round and 'round in great big circles, as if he were trying to bore
his way right into the clouds. Peter didn't stop to watch.
"When ol' Mr. Hawk is a-riding in the sky,
Keep a-moving, keep a-moving, keep a-moving mighty spry!"
chanted Peter, and taking his own advice, off he went,
lipperty-lipperty-lip.
Grandfather Frog watched the white patch of the seat of Peter's pants
bobbing through the rushes until finally Peter was out of sight.
"Did you ever hear how Peter Rabbit happens to always wear a white
patch on the seat of his pants?" asked Grandfather Frog.
"No; do tell us," exclaimed the Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother
West Wind.
Grandfather Frog snapped up a foolish green fly, smacked his lips,
cleared his throat, and began:
"Once upon a time when the world was young, Old Mother Nature found
she had her hands full. Yes, Sir, she certainly did have her hands
full. Her family was so big that she couldn't keep an eye on each one
all the time. Dear me, dear me, such a lot of trouble as Old Mother
Nature did have in those days! And no one made her more trouble than
Peter Rabbit's grandfather a thousand times removed. Mr. Rabbit was
always in mischief. He just naturally couldn't keep out of it. He just
hopped out of one scrape right plumb into another.
"Seemed like Old Mother Nature was busy just straightening out
trouble Mr. Rabbit had made. Even she wasn't always quite sure who had
made it, and no one else suspected Mr. Rabbit at all. He wore a brown
coat, just like the brown leaves, and when he ran he looked just like
a little old bunch of leaves blowing along. So Mr. Rabbit used to
creep up and listen to what others were saying, for he was just as
curious as Peter Rabbit is now, and he used to play all kinds of
tricks and never get caught, because of that little old brown suit of
his.
"One day in the early spring, when gentle Sister South Wind had melted
all the snow, excepting a little patch right under the window of Mr.
Skunk's house, Mr. Rabbit came strolling along that way with nothing
special on his mind. Mr. and Mrs. Skunk were having a little family
talk, and Mr. Skunk was speaking some loud. Mr. Rabbit stopped. Then
Mr. Rabbit grinned and sat right down on that bed of snow under Mr.
Skunk's window, where he could hear every word.
"Mr. Rabbit had been a-sitting there some time, listening to things
that were none of his business, when he happened to look up. There was
Old Mother Nature coming through the woods. She hadn't seen him yet,
and Mr. Rabbit didn't mean that she should. Off he ran as fast as he
could through the brown leaves, chuckling to himself. But Mr. Rabbit
had forgotten to brush off the seat of his pants, and of course they
were all white with snow.
"Old Mother Nature's eyes are sharp, and so of course she saw the
white spot bobbing through the bushes, saw it right away. Mr. Rabbit
had to stop and tell what he had been doing to get the seat of his
pants all white with snow, and he told the truth, for it's of no use
to tell anything else to Old Mother Nature. She looked very stern and
she opened her mouth to tell Mr. Rabbit what she thought of him, and
just then she had an idea. She just marched Mr. Rabbit off and sewed a
white patch on the seat of his pants. And after that, when Mr. Rabbit
tried to run away from the mischief he had got into, every one knew
who it was by the white patch on the seat of his pants.
"And from that day to this all of Mr. Rabbit's family have worn a
white patch, and that is why Peter wears one now, and whenever he
stops running, if it is only for a minute, sits down on it so that it
cannot be seen," concluded Grandfather Frog.
"Thank you! Thank you, Grandfather Frog!" cried the Merry Little
Breezes, and hurried to see who would be the first one to blow a big,
fat, foolish green fly within reach of Grandfather Frog's mouth.