Billy Bunny and Uncle Bull Frog Read online

  "Never mind that," said Billy Bunny, "let's go back to theLuckymobile. It will be late before we get out of the woods and maybethe electricity will all be gone and then we can't light the lamps,and maybe we'll be arrested."

  And this is just what happened. They had only gone a little ways whenthey heard a voice say:

  "Stop your motor car, I say, You have no lamps to light the way. Come, stop your car and get right out! Listen, don't you hear me shout? Stop your car or I will shoot. Don't try away from me to scoot!"

  "We don't intend to," said Uncle Lucky, and he put on the brake andthe Luckymobile came to a standstill. And there in the road stood abig Policeman Cat, with a club and gold buttons on his coat and a bighelmet, and his number was two dozen and a half.

  "Get out of your car," he commanded, which means to say somethingsternly, but before the two little rabbits obeyed, something happened,but what it was you must wait to hear in the next story.

  STORY VII.

  BILLY BUNNY AND THE POLICEMAN CAT.

  Well, I'm glad to say it was something nice that happened just as Ileft off in the last story. You remember the Policeman Cat hadarrested Billy Bunny and his Uncle Lucky.

  Well, just as that Policeman Cat lifted his club to tickle UncleLucky's left hind foot, a big elm tree began to bark and of course thePoliceman Cat was nearly scared to death. He thought it was a dog, yousee, and instead of tickling dear, kind Uncle Lucky with his club, heturned tail and ran off down the road.

  And he ran so fast that he left his number behind and Uncle Luckypicked it up and put it on the automobile, and after that they askedtwo little fireflies to sit inside the lamps and make them shine, foryou remember the electricity had all burned up.

  Well, after a while, they came to a turn in the road and, goodnessgracious! before they could stop the automobile they ran into a milkwagon. And, oh, dear me! there was whipped cream all over the place,and Billy Bunny and Uncle Lucky looked like two little cream puffs.

  And I suppose you are wondering where the driver of the milk wagon wasall this time. And so were Uncle Lucky and Billy Bunny, and if you'llwait a minute I'll tell you, as soon as my typewriter behaves itself,for it got so excited when Luckymobile ran into the milk wagon that itcaught my thumb and pinched it.

  Well, pretty soon, after Uncle Lucky had looked behind the moon andBilly Bunny into all the empty milk cans and one full one, they foundthe driver up in a weeping willow tree.

  "I'll come down if you'll promise not to run over me," he said, for hewas nearly frightened to death and looked dreadfully funny, for one ofthe milk can covers had fallen on his head.

  "I thought he would be mad as a hornet," whispered Billy Bunny to hisrabbit uncle.

  "But where's my horse?" said the milkman when he reached the ground.So they all looked around and everywhere else, but they couldn't findhim until they looked up into another weeping willow tree. And therewas the poor horse high up in the branches.

  "Oh, I'll come down from this willow tree, If you'll promise me just one thing, And that is never again to say: 'Gid-ap' as you drive me along the way, For I always go the best I can; I'm a faithful friend to every man, So please don't hurry me so, For I'm not trying to go too slow."

  "All right, my good old horse," said kind Uncle Lucky. "Your mastershall give me his word." So the horse jumped down and the willow treestopped weeping right away, for it was so glad that the poor old milkhorse was never again to be hurried on his way. And in the next storyI'll tell you why.

  STORY VIII.

  BILLY BUNNY AND THE GRAY MOUSE.

  You remember in the last story how the Luckymobile had run into a milkwagon? Well, after Billy Bunny had helped the milkman hitch up hishorse and Uncle Lucky had filled the milk cans with ice cream and sodawater from a near-by candy store, so as not to have all the littleboys and girls disappointed at breakfast when they didn't get theirmilk, our two little rabbit friends got into the Luckymobile andstarted off again.

  Well, it was still evening, you know, and the little fireflies who hadcrawled into the lamps made them as bright as possible, so it wasn'thard to steer the automobile. And, after a while, maybe a mile, theycame to a house, where lived a gray mouse, all alone by herself in ahole near a shelf, where cake and mince pies made her open her eyes,for they looked, oh, so good, as a pie or cake should.

  Now I didn't know I was going to write poetry or I should have let myhair grow long like a poet instead of going to the barber for a shave.

  Well, anyway, the two little rabbits stopped the automobile right infront of mousie's door and when she heard the horn go honk, honk, shecame to the window and looked out.

  "Why, it's Mr. Lucky Lefthindfoot," she squeaked, and then she openedthe door and asked the two little rabbits in and gave them some pieand cake.

  "You can put the automobile in the barn if you like," she said, "andspend the night here, for it's getting very dark and maybe you'll runinto something." So Billy Bunny took the Luckymobile around to thebarn, and just then an old owl began to toot:

  "I'm very fond of little gray mice, And little white rabbits, too, are nice."

  And down flew that old gray owl and made a grab for Billy Bunny. Buthe didn't catch him. No, sireemam! For the little rabbit hopped intothe henhouse through the little round door, and the big red roosterbegan to crow:

  "Look here, Mr. Owl, if you come inside I'll hurt you with my spur. Don't you dare get funny with Billy Bunny, Or muss his pretty white fur."

  And then he flew down from his perch and said, "Cock-a-doodle-do"three times and a half, and after that the owl flew away. "That wasvery kind of you," said the little rabbit. "Oh, don't mention it,"said the red rooster, "but there is one thing you can do for me.""What's that?" asked Billy Bunny. "Take me Luckymobiling," laughed thered rooster.

  "All right. To-morrow Uncle Lucky and I will invite you for a nicedrive," said the little rabbit, and if the Luckymobile doesn't getsick maybe Uncle Lucky will ask some little boy or girl to go, too,and maybe it might be you.

  STORY IX.

  BILLY BUNNY AND RED ROOSTER.

  Well, the next morning when the little rabbits woke up the sun wasshining brightly through their bedroom window and Mrs. Mousie wassinging a song down in the kitchen below as she made hot muffins forbreakfast. And this is what she sang:

  "Upstairs in my nice guest room are two Nice little rabbits in bed. As soon as I'm able I'll fix up the table And give them some honey and bread. And then a hot muffin to give them a stuffin', And then they'll be bountifully fed."

  And when Billy Bunny heard her he grew so hungry that he hurriedfaster than he had ever hurried before, and so did the old gentlemanrabbit, and he buttoned his collar on backwards and put his left shoeon his right foot and tripped over his old wedding stovepipe hat.

  And after that they both hopped downstairs, and as soon as Mrs. Mousieheard them she brought in the bread and honey and the hot muffins andthey all had breakfast. And after that Billy Bunny asked her to goautomobiling with them.

  So she put on her old gray bonnet with a bit of ribbon on it, and tiedthe strings under her chin, and put on her black silk mitts and hergold locket breastpin with the picture of Mr. Mousie inside.

  "You don't mind if we invite the red rooster to go along, too, doyou?" asked Billy Bunny, and then he told her how the rooster hadscared away the old owl. And of course Mrs. Mousie didn't care, so therooster got in and sat on the back seat with Mrs. Mousie.

  Well, after they had gone for maybe a mile, and maybe some more, theycame to a beautiful candy store, where the windows were full ofpeppermint sticks and a brown sugar monkey did all sorts of tricks.

  "Stop right here," said the red rooster, "and I'll get out and buy youa bag of candy." And when he came back he had four bags of candy. Justthink of that! In one bag was sugar-coated carrots for Billy Bunny,and another bag was full of candied carrots for Uncle Lucky, and inthe bag he
gave to Mrs. Mousie were two little chocolate mice.

  "What have you got in your bag?" asked Uncle Lucky as he made theLuckymobile jump over a high ditch and run along through a lovelygreen meadow spread all over with buttercups.

  "Sugared peanuts," answered the red rooster. "I just love them. Thelast time I went to the circus I ate forty-nine bags and a half anddrank twenty-three glasses of pink lemonade and a bushel of popcorn."

  "Wait a minute," said the old gentleman rabbit. "I've got a stomachache listening. How did you do it?" And in the next story I'll tellyou what the rooster said, that is, if nothing happens to prevent it,for he certainly was a wonderful rooster, to be able to eat all that.

  STORY X.

  BILLY BUNNY AND MRS. COW.

  Well, something did happen to prevent the red rooster from tellingBilly Bunny how he had been able to eat forty-nine bags and a half ofpeanuts at the circus, as I mentioned in the last story.

  You see, as the Luckymobile galloped along over the meadow, all of asudden, just like that, it ran right into the Babbling Brook, and thenof course it stopped so suddenly that Billy Bunny and Uncle Luckydidn't stop at all, neither did Mrs. Mousie and the red rooster.

  They just kept right on going, and the first thing they knew and thefirst thing you know, they all landed in the long grass beside Mrs.Cow.

  "My, how you startled me!" she exclaimed, and she rang the little bellat her neck and up ran her little calf, who was only two weeks old,and had never seen Billy Bunny and his friends before.

  After that she walked down to the Babbling Brook--but oh, dear me! allthe electricity oil had spilled out of the cabaret and she couldn'tdrink the water, and all the little fish were covered with it justlike sardines, you know, and the watercress had salad dressing allover it, so of course she couldn't eat the watercress.

  "Never mind," said kind little Billy Bunny, and he took out of hisknapsack a big yellow lemon lollypop and gave it to her, and then shedidn't care, for she just loved candy.

  "I'll help you get the automobile out," said Mrs. Cow gratefully, forshe liked anybody who was kind to her little calf. So she put herhorns under the front of the Luckymobile and then she said, "Heave ho,e-ho!" and pushed and shoved and lifted that big heavy automobileright out of the brook without even cracking her two long horns.

  "If you don't mind," said the red rooster, "I'll leave you two littlerabbits and make a call on Cocky Docky up at the Old Farm." "And if youdon't care," squeaked little Mrs. Mousie, "I'll call on DickeyMeadowmouse." So Uncle Lucky and Billy Bunny hopped into theautomobile and drove off, while Mrs. Cow tinkled her bell and sang:

  "Moo, moo, moo. I'm glad I helped you two. One good turn deserves another. When you see your bunny mother, Tell her how your car I took Safely from the Babbling Brook."

  "It's a puzzle to me," said Uncle Lucky, "why we are always having somany accidents. Maybe I had better get a chauffeur." "You won't needany chauffeur after I'm done with you," said a deep growly voice, andout from behind a clump of bushes jumped a wicked wildcat and bit oneof the front tires, she was so hungry.

  And what do you suppose happened then? Why the tire burst with such aloud noise, just like a gun, you know, that the wildcat was frightenednearly to death and she turned around and ran away so fast that shegot home an hour too early for supper.

  STORY XI.

  BILL BUNNY AND THE BIG BEAR.

  Near the Friendly Forest Pool Is the Woodland Singing School. Little Squirrel Bushy Tail Sings the Do, Ray, Mee, Fa scale. Uncle Bullfrog sings "Ker-chunk" From his floating elm tree trunk. And a big good-natured bear Sings an old familiar air.

  "It's time for your singing lesson," said Mrs. Bunny to her littlerabbit. So Billy Bunny started off, hoppity hop, down the FriendlyForest trail, and by and by he reached the Pool where all the pupilscame to take their singing lessons.

  Mr. Grasshopper was there with his fiddle and the tree toad with hisdrum, and the lark with her flute and little Jenny Wren with herpiano. And what do you suppose Billy Bunny had tucked away in hisknapsack? Why, Uncle Lucky's automobile horn.

  You see, the kind old gentleman rabbit was making a visit at the OldBrier Patch where he had taken his automobile after that dreadfulwildcat had bitten the front tire, and this is how Billy Bunny came toget the horn.

  Well, sir, after the music started, he pulled out his horn and gave atre-men-dous honk on it, and everybody thought an automobile was goingto run over him.

  Some jumped into the Pool and some ran up the trees, and, oh, dear me!everybody got all out of tune, and the bear lost the air and couldn'tfind it again!

  And just then who should come along but a peddler with a pack of tincans, rattling away on his back, and of course he made more noise thanall the singing school put together.

  And when the big bear saw him he was so angry that he jumped frombehind a tree and said, "Boo!"

  "Do you want to buy a tin plate?" asked the peddler, trying hard notto be frightened, "or would rather have a dishpan?"

  "Don't want either," said the bear with a terrible growl.

  "Perhaps you'd like a nutmeg grater," said the poor old peddler, andhe was so frightened by this time that his knees knocked into the tinpans and made a dreadful noise.

  "I've a dandy egg beater," went on the peddler, in a trembling voice,but after that he never said another word, for that great big bearjumped right at him and took the egg beater out of his hands andgrowled so terribly that the tin peddler turned away and ran down theforest path as fast as he could go.

  And then all the little and big forest folk began to sing:

  "Hip, hip hurray, the peddler's gone away. No more he'll make his tin pans shake And spoil our singing school beside the Forest Pool."

  And in the next story, if the baby who lives in the house oppositedoesn't shake his rattle at me all night so that I can't get to sleepand dream about the next story in time to write it for to-morrownight, I'll tell you more about the little rabbit's adventures.

  STORY XII.

  BILLY BUNNY AND THE RABBITVILLE "GAZETTE."

  There was once a little rabbit Who was very fond of pie, Apple pie, with sugar on the crust. And he had a little habit, When his mother wasn't nigh, Of eating apple pie until he bust.

  This is what Mr. William Bunny, the little rabbit's father, you know,was singing one day, and the reason was because Mrs. Bunny had foundlittle Billy Bunny in the pantry.

  And what happened to the little rabbit I'm not going to tell you, forit is so sad that it would make you weep to hear it.

  "All day he nibbled pie Till at last I thought he'd die," Said the doctor with a sigh.

  And then Mr. William Bunny looked at his small son and sighed, too,for he had just paid the doctor's bill.

  "Please don't sing any more," said little Billy Bunny. "Don't youremember the doctor said I was to be kept quiet?"

  So Mr. William Bunny went out on the porch to smoke a cigar and readthe Rabbitville "Gazette" until after supper time.

  And while he was reading Mrs. Bunny looked over his shoulder and read:"Wanted, a secondhand automobile in good condition."

  "Ring up your Uncle Lucky on the telephone," she called to BillyBunny. "Here's a chance for him to sell his Luckymobile." So thelittle rabbit rang up 000 Lettuceville, and in a few minutes he heardthe old gentleman's voice at the other end of the wire.

  "But I don't want to sell my Luckymobile," he said. "It's the only onein ex-is-tence," which means the only one ever made, and I guess hewas right, for I never rode in a Luckymobile, did you?

  "But mother thinks you ought to sell it," said Billy Bunny, "and sodoes father, for they both say you'll have a terrible accident someday if you don't look out."

  "Well then, I'll look out," said Uncle Lucky with a laugh. "But Iwon't sell my Luckymobile." And then he asked Billy Bunny to make hima visit. So the little rabbit put on his knapsack and picked up hisstriped candy cane and st
arted off, after first asking his mother'spermission, of course.

  And after he had gone for maybe a million Hops, he came to a big treewhere Old Barney the Owl had his next. But of course, he wasn't awake.Oh, my, no. He had his eyes tightly closed, for owls don't like abright light, you know. They can see in the dark but not in thedaytime.

  But when Billy Bunny called out, "Helloa, Mr. Barney," the oldgentleman owl blinked his eyes and said, "Who's calling me?" And thenthe little rabbit thought he'd play a joke, so he said, "Mr. Mouse!"

  And if there was anything that Old Barney loved to eat, it was mice.And in the next story I'll tell you what Billy Bunny did.

  STORY XIII.

  BILLY BUNNY AND MR. MOLE.

  You remember in the last story I promised to tell you what Billy Bunnydid when Old Barney the Owl asked him, "Who's there?" and the littlerabbit replied, "Mr. Mouse," just to fool him, you know. Well, afterthat

  Old Barney the Owl Gave a terrible scowl As he looked at little Bill Bunny. You thought you were wise, But my blinky old eyes Can see you are not a bit funny. I can see from my house You are not Mr. Mouse.

  And then the old blinkerty, winkerty owl flopped down to the groundand tried to catch the little rabbit. But Billy Bunny was too quickfor him. He jumped into a hollow stump before you could say "JackRabbit!"