boarding-house went along quite well for a while, and Mr. 'Possum and
Mr. 'Coon both said what a good thing it was to have a home, and Mr.
Crow said so too, though he didn't look as if he enjoyed it as much as
he said, for his mother-in-law kept him so busy cutting and carrying
wood and helping her with the cooking that he never had any time for
himself at all.
[Illustration: HAD TO STAY AT HOME AND PEEL POTATOES]
Even when Mr. Rabbit and some of his friends had the great fall handicap
race he had to stay at home and peel potatoes, and not see it, besides
being scolded all the time for wanting to go to such a thing as a rabbit
race anyway. And Mr. Crow was sad because it reminded him of his
married life, which he was trying to forget--Mrs. Crow having been the
image of his mother-in-law and exactly like her about races and peeling
potatoes and such things.
And by-and-by, Mr. 'Possum and Mr. 'Coon didn't like it so much, either.
Widow Crow got so she scolded them, too, about their habits, especially
about being out nights and lying in bed next morning, and she wouldn't
give them any breakfast unless they got up in time.
At last she even asked them to take care of their own rooms and to do
other work, the same as Mr. Crow did; and she didn't cook as good
things, nor as many of them, as she did when they first came. Then one
day when they complained a little--not very much, for they were afraid
of the Widow Crow, but a little--she told them that if they didn't like
what she gave them they could find a place they liked better, and that
she was tired of their ways anyhow.
So then Mr. Crow and Mr. 'Coon and Mr. 'Possum all got together and
talked it over. And Mr. Crow said _they_ might be pretty tired of it,
but that they couldn't in a hundred years, thinking night and day, think
how tired of it _he_ was. He said if they would just say the word he
would take the things that belonged to him out of that house, and the
three of them would find some good place and all live together, and
never have anything more to do with mothers-in-law or their families. He
said he knew how to cook as well as she did, and really liked to cook
when he was in a pleasant place and wasn't henpecked to death.
And he said if they moved his things they had better do it at night
while his mother-in-law was asleep, so as not to disturb her.
Well, Mr. 'Possum and Mr. Coon both spoke right up and said _they'd_ go
in a minute, and that they'd hunt up the place to live that very day,
though it wasn't the best time of year to move. And Mr. Crow said:
"I know where there's a big Hollow Tree that would be _just_ the place.
It's the biggest tree in the Big Deep Woods. It has three big hollow
branches that would do for rooms, and with a little work it could be
made into the finest place anywhere. The Old Wise Man of the Woods once
lived there and fixed it all up with nice stairs, and a fireplace, and
windows, and doors with good latches on them, and it's still just as he
left it. All it needs are a few repairs, and we could move right in. I
found it once as I was flying over, and I could tell _you_, so you could
find it. It's in a thick swampy place, and you would never guess it was
there if you didn't know it. Mr. Dog knows about it, but he never could
get in if we kept the door latched, and it's not so far away from Mr.
Man's that we could not borrow, when we ran out of little things we
needed."
Well, Mr. 'Possum and Mr. 'Coon took the directions from Mr. Crow, and
went right off to look at the Hollow Tree that very day, and decided
they'd take it, and pitched in to clean it up and get it ready to live
in. And next day they came with a hammer and some nails and worked all
day again, and Mr. Rabbit heard the noise and came over and looked
through the place and said how nice it was; and they were so tired at
night that they never thought of going out, and were up early for
breakfast.
Widow Crow was so surprised she forgot what she had always scolded them
for before, and scolded them this time for getting up so early that they
had to stand around and wait for breakfast to be put on the table. But
they didn't seem to mind the scolding at all, and Mr. Crow looked
happier than he had looked for months, and skipped around and helped set
the table, and brought in a big wood-box full of wood, and when Widow
Crow scolded him for getting chips on the floor he laughed. Then she
boxed his ears and told him he ought to remember the poor Missing One at
such a time, and Mr. Crow said he did, and could almost imagine she was
there now.
Well, Mr. 'Coon and Mr. 'Possum got the Hollow Tree all ready, that day,
and that night they moved.
The Widow Crow was pretty fat, and liked to go to bed early, and sleep
sound, and leave Mr. Crow to do the evening dishes; and that evening Mr.
'Coon and' Mr. Possum pitched in and helped him, and they got through
in a jiffy and began to move.
Mr. Crow said he knew his own things, and that he wouldn't take any that
belonged to the Missing One, because they had mostly come from her
mother; and, besides, they would be a sad reminder, and didn't seem to
go with the kind of a place they had planned to have. He said if they
didn't have enough things they could borrow a few from Mr. Man when Mr.
Man went away and left his windows open, and that they wouldn't need
much to begin with.
[Illustration: LISTENED NOW AND THEN AT WIDOW CROW'S DOOR TO BE SURE SHE
WAS ASLEEP]
So then they got Mr. Crow's cook-stove out of the back store-room, and a
table that was his, and some chairs from different parts of the house,
and a few dishes which had come to him from his side of the family, and
they tiptoed around and listened now and then at Widow Crow's door to be
sure she was asleep.
They knew she _was_ by the sound; but still they were very quiet until
Mr. 'Possum started to bring a rocking-chair of Mr. Crow's down-stairs
and somehow got his legs through the rounds and fell and rolled clear to
the bottom, expressing his feelings as he came down.
That woke up Widow Crow with a jump, and she sat up in bed and called
"Thieves!" and "Help!" and Mr. Crow ran to her door and said that it
wasn't anything, only those scamps Mr. 'Possum and Mr. 'Coon had been
out late again. He said they had brought home one of Mr. Man's
beehives and had dropped it because the bees woke up just as they were
climbing the stairs.
Then Mrs. Crow called out quick, and said for him not to dare to open
that door and let those pesky bees into her room, and that she hoped
they'd sting that 'Possum and 'Coon until they wouldn't be able to tell
themselves apart. She said she bet she'd get that pair out of her house
if she lived through the night. Then she rolled over and went to sleep
again, and Mr. 'Possum got up and limped a little, but wasn't much
damaged, and they got all the things outside and loaded up, and set out
for the Hollow Tree.
It was moonlight and Mr. Crow led the way, and the minute they were far
enough off to be sure they wouldn't wake up Widow Crow they sang the
chorus of a song that Mr. Rabbit had made for them the day before when
he called at the Hollow Tree, and they had told him what they were going
to do. That was the Hollow Tree Song, which, of course, everybody in the
Big Deep Woods knows now, but it had never been sung there before, and
when they joined in the chorus,
Then here's to the 'Possum and the Old Black Crow
And the 'Coon with a one, two, three!
And here's to the hollow, hollow, hollow, hollow, hollow--
Then here's to the Hollow Tree,
Mr. Owl, who was watching them from a limb overhead, thought he had
never heard anything quite so fine.
Well, they couldn't get along very fast, for the things got so heavy and
they had to rest so often that it began to look as if they wouldn't get
to the Hollow Tree by morning. But just as they got out into a little
open place that was about half-way there they saw somebody coming, and
who do you suppose it was?
"I know," says the Little Lady, "it was the Old Wise Man of the Woods,
to tell them they couldn't have his house."
"No, he didn't live there any more--he had gone away for good. No, it
wasn't the Old Wise Man; it was Mr. Rabbit and Mr. Turtle, coming to
help them move. Mr. Rabbit had gone all the way to the Wide Blue Water
after Mr. Turtle because he is so strong, and they would have been there
a good deal sooner, only Mr. Turtle didn't get home till late, and
travels slow."
[Illustration: MR. 'POSSUM SAID HE'D JUST GET ON AND HOLD THE THINGS]
Well, it wasn't so hard to move after that. They just set the cook-stove
on Mr. Turtle's back and piled on as much as would stay on, and he kept
telling them to put on more, until pretty soon Mr. 'Possum said that he
would just get on and hold the things from slipping off, which he did,
and sat on the stove and rode and swung his feet and held the other
things, while Mr. Crow and the rest walked and carried what was left.
And when they got to the Hollow Tree it was just about sun-up, and Mr.
'Possum said if they didn't have breakfast pretty soon he would starve
to death with being up all night and working so hard holding on those
things.
[Illustration: MR. 'POSSUM AND MR. 'COON TRIED TO PUT UP THE STOVE]
So then Mr. Crow told him that he and Mr. 'Coon could set up the stove,
and that he would unpack the food and stir up something as quick as he
could if the others would bring a little wood and some water from the
spring, and place the things around inside; for he saw a cloud coming,
he said, and it might rain. And Mr. 'Possum and Mr. 'Coon tried to put
up the stove in a hurry, and the pieces of pipe didn't fit very well,
and they came as near having a quarrel over it as they ever did over
anything, for even the best friends can't always put up stovepipe
together without thinking and sometimes saying unpleasant things about
each other, especially when they are hungry and not very warm and the
house is all upset. Mr. 'Coon said he only wished he had another hand
and he would do that job alone, and Mr. 'Possum told him that if he'd
been provided with a handy and useful tail he'd _have_ the same as
another hand, and could work more and not wish so much.
Then Mr. Rabbit came to help them, and just as they got it about up it
all came down again, and Mr. Crow said that if they'd all go away he'd
set up the stove himself; which he did in about a minute, and had a
fire in it and the coffee on in no time.
Then the others rushed around and got the things straightened out, and a
fire in the fireplace, and they said how nice rooms were, and when Mr.
Crow called they all came hurrying down, and in about another minute the
'Coon and 'Possum and the Old Black Crow, with Mr. Rabbit and Mr.
Turtle, all sat down to the first meal in the Hollow Tree.
It was then that Jack Rabbit read all of the "Hollow Tree Song" he had
made for them, and they all sang it together; and then the storm that
Mr. Crow had seen coming did come, and they shut all the doors and
windows tight, and sat before the fire and smoked and went to sleep,
because they were so tired with being up all night.
And that was the first day in the Hollow Tree, and how the Possum and
Coon and Old Black Crow came to live there, and they live there still.
THE THIRD SNOWED-IN STORY
THE THIRD SNOWED-IN STORY
MR. RABBIT TELLS SOME INTERESTING FAMILY HISTORY
The Little Lady waited until the Story Teller had lit his pipe and sat
looking into the great open fire, where there was a hickory log so big
that it had taken the Story Teller and the Little Lady's mother with two
pairs of ice-tongs to drag it to the hearth and get it into place.
Pretty soon the Little Lady had crept in between the Story Teller's
knees. Then in another minute she was on one of his knees, helping him
rock. Then she said:
"Did Mr. Rabbit tell his story next? He promised to tell about losing
his tail, you know."
The Story Teller took his pipe from his mouth a moment, and sat thinking
and gazing at the big log, which perhaps reminded him of one of the
limbs of the Hollow Tree, where the 'Coon and 'Possum and the Old Black
Crow lived and had their friends visit them that long-ago snowy
Christmas-time.
"Why, yes," he said, "that's so, Mr. Rabbit _did_ tell that story. When
Mr. 'Coon got through telling how he came near getting into a menagerie,
they all said that it certainly was a very narrow escape, and Mr. 'Coon
said he shouldn't wonder if that menagerie had to quit business, just
because he wasn't in it; and Mr. 'Possum said he thought if anything
would _save_ a menagerie that would, for it would keep them from being
eaten out of house and home."
Then Mr. Coon said that if that was so, Mr. 'Possum had saved at least
three menageries by staying right where he was in the Big Deep Woods.
This made Mr. Squirrel and Mr. Robin laugh, and the rest wondered what
those two gigglers had noticed that was funny. Then they all knocked the
ashes out of their pipes again, and walked over to the window, and
looked at the snow banking up outside and piling up on the bare limbs of
the big trees. They said how early it got dark this time of year,
especially on a cloudy day. And pretty soon Mr. Crow said they had just
about time for one more story before supper, and that Mr. Rabbit ought
to tell now about how, a long time ago, his family had lost their tails.
Mr. Rabbit didn't seem to feel very anxious to tell it, but they told
him that he had promised, and that now was as good a time as any, so
they went back and sat down, and Mr. Rabbit told them
THE TRUE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE, AND HOW JACK RABBIT LOST
HIS TAIL
"Once upon a time," he said, "a great many great-grandfathers back, my
family had long bushy tails, like Mr. Squirrel and Mr. Fox, only a good
deal longer and finer and softer, and _very handsome_."
When Mr. Rabbit said that, Mr. Squirrel sniffed and twitched his nose
and gave his nice bushy tail a flirt, but he didn't say anything. Mr.
Rabbit went right on.
"Well, there was one fine, handsome rabbit who had the longest and
plumiest tail of any of the family, and was very proud of it. He was my
twenty-seventh great-grandfather, and was called Mr. Hare. He was young
and smart then, and thought he was a good deal smarter than he really
was, though he was smart enough and handsome enough to set the style for
all the other rabbits, and not much ever happened to him, because he
could beat anything running that there was in the Big Deep Woods.
"That twenty-seventh great-grandfather of mine was very proud of his
running, and used to brag that in a foot-race he could beat anything
that lived between the Wide Grass Lands and the Edge of the World. He
used to talk about it to almost everybody that came along, and one day
when he met one of the Turtle family who used to be called Mr. Tortoise
in those days, he stopped and began to brag to him how fast he could run
and how nobody in the Big Deep Woods dared to race with him.
"But Mr. Turtle, he just smiled a little and said: 'Oh, pshaw! you can't
run very fast. I believe I can beat you myself!'
"Well, that did make Grandfather Hare laugh--and made him a little mad,
too.
"'You!' he said. 'Why, I'll give you within ten yards of that rail fence
of Mr. Man's, half a mile away, and then beat you across it. Just travel
along, and some time this afternoon, when you get down that way, I'll
come back and let you see me go by. But you'll have to look quick if you
see me, for I'll be going fast.'
[Illustration: MR. FOX SAID HE DIDN'T HAVE MUCH TO DO FOR A FEW MINUTES
AND HE'D ACT AS JUDGE]
"But Mr. Tortoise said he didn't want any start at all, that he was
ready to begin the race right then; and that made Grandpaw Hare laugh so
loud that Mr. Fox heard him as he was passing, and came over to see what
the fun was. Then he said that he hadn't much to do for a few minutes,
and that he'd stay and act as judge. He thought a race like that
wouldn't last long; and it didn't, though it wasn't at all the kind of a
race he had expected.
"Well, he put Mr. Tortoise and my twenty-seventh great-grandfather side
by side, and then he stood off and said 'Go!' and thought it would all
be over in a minute.
"Grandpaw Hare gave one great big leap, about twenty feet long, and then
stopped. He was in no hurry, and he wanted to have some fun with Mr.
Tortoise. He looked around to where Mr. Tortoise was coming straddling
and panting along, and he laughed and rolled over to see how solemn he
looked, and how he was travelling as if he meant to get somewhere before
dark. He was down on all fours so he could use all his legs at once, and
anybody would think, to look at him, that he really expected to win that
race.
"The more my Grandpaw Hare looked at him the more he laughed, and then
he would make another long leap forward and stop, and look back, and
wait for Mr. Tortoise to catch up again.
"Then he would call to him, or maybe go back and take roundin's on him,
and say, 'Come along there, old tobacco-box. Are you tied to something?'
Mr. Fox would laugh a good deal, too, and he told my ancestor to go on
and finish the race--that he couldn't wait around there all day. And
pretty soon he said if they were going to fool along like that, he'd
just go down to the fence and take a nap till they got there; and for
Grandpaw Rabbit to call to him when he really started to come, so he
could wake up and judge the finish.
"Mr. Fox he loped away to the fence and laid down and went to sleep in
the shade, and Grandpaw Hare thought it would be fun to pretend to be
asleep, too. I've heard a story told about it that says that he really
did go to sleep, and that Mr. Tortoise went by him and got to the fence
before he woke up. But that is not the way it happened. My
twenty-seventh great-grandfather was too smart to go to sleep, and even
if he had gone to sleep, Mr. Tortoise made enough noise pawing and
scratching along through the grass and gravel to wake up forty of our
family.
"My ancestor would wait until he came grinding along and got up even
with him, then suddenly he'd sit up as if he'd been waked out of a nice
dream and say, 'Hello, old coffee-mill! What do you want to wake me up
for when I'm trying to get a nap?' Then he would laugh a big laugh and
make another leap, and lie down and pretend again, with his fine plumy
tail very handsome in the sun.
"But Grandpaw Hare carried the joke a little too far. He kept letting
Mr. Tortoise get up a little closer and closer every time, until Mr.
Tortoise would almost step on him before he would move. And that was
just what Mr. Tortoise wanted, for about the next time he came along he
came right up behind my ancestor, but instead of stepping on him, he
gave his head a quick snap, just as if he were catching fish, and
grabbed my Grandpaw Hare by that beautiful plumy tail, and held on, and
pinched, and my ancestor gave a squeal and a holler and set out for
that rail fence, telling his troubles as he came.
[Illustration: SAILING ALONG, JUST TOUCHING THE HIGHEST POINTS]
"Mr. Fox had gone sound asleep and didn't hear the rumpus at first, and
when he did, he thought grandpaw was just calling to him to wake up and
be ready to judge the race, so he sat up quick and watched them come. He
saw my twenty-seventh great-grandfather sailing along, just touching the
highest points, with something that looked like an old black wash-pan
tied to his tail.
"When Mr. Fox saw what it was, he just laid down and laughed and rolled
over, and then hopped up on the top rail and called, out 'All right, I'm
awake, Mr. Hare! Come right along, Mr. Hare; you'll beat him yet!'
"Then he saw my ancestor stop and shake himself, and paw, and roll over,
to try to get Mr. Tortoise loose, which of course he couldn't do, for,
as we all know, whenever any of the Turtle family get a grip they never
let go till it thunders, and this was a bright day. So pretty soon
grandpaw was up and running again with Mr. Tortoise sailing out behind
and Mr. Fox laughing to see them come, and calling out: 'Come right
along, Mr. Hare! come right along! You'll beat him yet!'
[Illustration: AWAY WENT MR. TORTOISE, CLEAR OVER THE TOP RAIL]
"But Mr. Fox made a mistake about that. Grandpaw Hare was really ahead,
of course, when he came down the homestretch, but when he got pretty
close to the fence he made one more try to get Mr. Tortoise loose,
and gave himself and his tail a great big swing, and Mr. Tortoise
didn't let go quite quick enough, and off came my twenty-seventh
great-grandfather's beautiful plumy tail, and away went Mr. Tortoise
with it, clear over the top rail of the fence, and landed in a brier
patch on the other side.
"Well, Grandpaw Hare was in such a state as you never heard of! He
forgot all about the race at first, and just raved about his great loss,
and borrowed Mr. Fox's handkerchief to tie up what was left, and said
that he never in the world could show his face before folks again.
"And Mr. Fox stopped laughing as soon as he could, and was really quite
sorry for him, and even Mr. Tortoise looked through the fence, and asked
him if he didn't think it could be spliced and be almost as good as
ever.
"He said he hadn't meant to commit any damage, and that he hoped Mr.
Hare would live to forgive him, and that now there was no reason why my
grandpaw shouldn't beat him in the next race.
"Then my ancestor remembered about the race and forgot his other loss
for a minute, and declared that Mr. Tortoise didn't win the race at
all--that he couldn't have covered that much ground in a half a day
alone, and he asked Mr. Fox if he was going to let that great
straddle-bug ruin his reputation for speed and make him the
laughing-stock of the Big Deep Woods, besides all the other damage he
had done.
"Then Mr. Fox scratched his head, and thought about it, and said he
didn't see how he could help giving the race to Mr. Tortoise, for it was
to be the first one across the fence, and that Mr. Tortoise was
certainly the first one across, and that he'd gone over the top rail in
style.
[Illustration: SET OUT FOR HOME BY A BACK WAY]
"Well, that made Grandpaw Hare madder than ever. He didn't say another
word, but just picked up his property that Mr. Tortoise handed him
through the fence, and set out for home by a back way, studying what he
ought to do to keep everybody from laughing at him, and thinking that if
he didn't do something he'd have to leave the country or drown himself,
for he had always been so proud that if people laughed at him he knew he
could never show his face again.
"And that," said Mr. Rabbit, is the true story of that old race between
the Hare and the Tortoise, and of how the first Rabbit came to lose his
tail. I've never told it before, and none of my family ever did; but so
many stories have been told about the way those things happened that we
might just as well have this one, which is the only true one so far as I
know.
Then Mr. Rabbit lit his pipe and leaned back and smoked. Mr. Dog said it
was a fine story, and he wished he could have seen that race, and Mr.
Turtle looked as if he wanted to say something, and did open his mouth
to say it, but Mr. Crow spoke up, and asked what happened after that to
Mr. Rabbit's twenty-seventh great-grandfather, and how it was that the
rest of the Rabbits had short tails, too.
Then Mr. Rabbit said that that was another story, and Mr. Squirrel and
Mr. Robin wanted him to tell it right away, but Mr. Crow said they'd
better have supper now, and Mr. 'Possum thought that was a good plan,
and Mr. 'Coon, too, and then they all hurried around to get up some
sticks of wood from down-stairs, and to set the table, and everybody
helped, so they could get through early and have a nice long evening.
And all the time the snow was coming down outside and piling higher and
higher, and they were being snowed in without knowing it, for it was
getting too dark to see much when they tried again to look out the
window through the gloom of the Big Deep Woods.
THE FOURTH SNOWED-IN STORY
THE FOURTH SNOWED-IN STORY
MR. JACK RABBIT CONTINUES HIS FAMILY HISTORY
"Did they have enough left for supper--enough for all the visitors, I
mean?" asks the Little Lady the next evening, when the Story Teller is
ready to go on with the history of the Hollow Tree.
"Oh yes, they had plenty for supper, and more, too. They had been
getting ready a good while for just such a time as this, and had carried
in a lot of food, and they had a good many nice things down in the
store-room where the wood was, but they didn't need those yet. They just
put on what they had left from their big dinner, and Mr. Crow stirred up
a pan of hot biscuits by his best receipt, and they passed them back and
forth across the table so much that Mr. 'Possum said they went like hot
cakes, sure enough, and always took two when they came his way."