her baby had filled her with the courage of a 

 hero, and — hop, she went over that horrible 

 reptile. Whack, she struck down at him with 

 her sharp hind claws as she passed, giving him 

 such a stinging blow that he squirmed with 

 pain and hissed with anger. 



"M-a-m-m-y," came feebly from the little 

 one. And Mammy came leaping again and 

 again and struck harder and fiercer until the 

 loathsome reptile let go the little one's ear 

 and tried to bite the old one as she leaped over. 

 But all he got was a mouthful of wool each 

 time, and Molly's fierce blows began to tell, 

 as long bloody rips were torn in the Black 

 Snake's scaly armor. 



Things were now looking bad for the Snake ; 

 and bracing himself for the next charge, he 

 lost his tight hold on Baby Bunny, who at 

 once wriggled out of the coils and away into 

 the underbrush, breathless and terribly fright- 

 ened, but unhurt save that his left ear was much 

 torn by the teeth of that dreadful Serpent. 



Molly now had gained all she wanted. She 

 had no notion of fighting for glory or revenge. 

 Away she went into the woods and the little 



99 



