8l2 



THE NATURE BOOK 



cried the Cuckoo, swaying on his bough ; 

 " the birds are building, and the sun is 

 shining, and the flowers are co\-ering the 

 meadows. When I come from over sea 

 there is no trouble in the countr^'side. 

 April is here ; she and I are old friends." 



The Rabbit thought of the chicken 

 and the rats that had provided the Fox 

 family with an early breakfast, but said 

 nothing. Perhaps she felt the intoxi- 

 cation of her first spring — she was not yet 

 a year old. 



" \\'h\- aren't you in the warren under 

 the bank ? " asked the Cuckoo in a lower 

 voice. " If you're afraid of trouble, why 

 do you bring 3'our famil}' next door to a 

 Fox earth ? " 



" We does must go from the warren when 

 a family is coming," explained Mrs. Rabbit. 

 "If we stayed there our young would be 

 trampled on, and we should ne\'er be 

 allowed to look after them in peace. Big 

 buck rabbits are so careless and so 

 thoughtless. So we leave the family house 

 and make a stop not far away. When the 

 youngsters are able to look after them- 

 selves we shall aU go back, unless we 

 take a great liking to this spot. If we 

 do, the children and I will burrow fresh 

 holes. The land here is rather light, 

 though there is heavy cla}- outside the 

 cover. I scraped out my stop in a day 

 and a night." 



" It's odd that you should go away in 

 that fashion to bear and rear your young, 

 for that is just what the great big animals 

 of my winter home do," said the Cuckoo. 

 " The giraffe and the elephant and some 

 of the deer follow the same practice. But 

 what about the foxes next door to you ? " 



" They leave rabbits alone now." 

 explained Mrs. Rabbit, lowering her 

 voice in her turn. " I was born here, and 

 brought up with them, when I was no 

 bigger than my babies. There has always 

 been a Fox earth here. I think it's all 

 right, and that we are safe — as safe as 

 any rabbit can be." 



The baby Rabbits had gathered courage, 

 they had eaten all they wanted, and 

 were attracted by the Fox Cub's fluffy 

 little sisters, to whom they ambled rather 

 clumsily. The Fox Cub ignored the 

 intruders. He felt too grown up to 

 interest himself in their gamljols. .Vnd 

 he wanted to know all about the world — 



the spirit of curiosity had come to him 

 at birth. 



" Have you been right across the 

 field ? " he asked the Cuckoo. 



" I have taken many a long day's journey 

 over land and sea," replied the Cuckoo 

 proudly ; " from forests I could not fly 

 across in a morning, and strange sunny 

 lands where men are black, and white 

 folk are seldom seen." 



The Fox Cub was silent and a httle 

 confused. He knew nothing about seas 

 or men, white or black, but did not care 

 to say so. So he snapped at a busy fly 

 that would buzz round his nose, and then 

 scratched his ear with his paw. He 

 hoped to go out with his father soon and 

 see the world for himself. Already he 

 found it dull to stay in through the night 

 while his father was away hunting, but 

 his mother would not let him leave her 

 side. 



" Hush ! " cried the Cuckoo suddenly, 

 " some one is coming." He shpped back 

 amid the foliage. The mother Rabbit 

 stamped her hind legs, the httle Rabbits 

 scampered back, their parent followed 

 them to the edge of the stop where she 

 crouched, but the Fox Cub and his sisters 

 did not move. The}^ had yet to learn the 

 meaning of fear. The greenery was parted 

 at the far end of the sward, and a keen- 

 eyed horseman looked across the clearing. 

 His face brightened as he saw the cubs ; 

 he counted them twice, stared round the 

 cover very carefully, and then, quietly 

 turning his horse round, rode away. A 

 moment later the Cuckoo emerged from 

 co\-er and ^Irs. Doe from her stop. " What 

 was it ? " she asked nervousl3\ keeping 

 an anxious touch upon the little ones 

 who clustered round her white tail. 



" It was something very big," ex- 

 plained the Fox Cub calmly, " bigger than 

 the bush, and it moved. But when I 

 showed my teeth it turned round and 

 went away." He felt greatly encouraged 

 by the incident. Clearly he was a ])erson 

 of imjiortance. and ins]Mred fear in things 

 much larger than himself. 



" If it has gone." said Mrs. Rabbit, 

 '■ we are quite safe, and I'm very hungry." 

 She moved forward into the long grass 

 that nearly covered her httle ones, but 

 hir white tail stood up like a flag above 

 the rising growth, and thi-y followed that. 



