SuchasPeterRabbit,etc。
TheOriginalPeterRabbitBooksByBEATRIXPOTTER
ALISTOFTHETITLES
[*indicatesincludedhere]
*TheTaleofPeterRabbitTheTaleofSquirrelNutkinTheTailorofGloucester*TheTaleofBenjaminBunny*TheTaleofMrs。Tiggy-Winkle*TheTaleofMr。JeremyFisherTheTaleofJohnnyTown-Mouse*TheTaleofJemimaPuddle-Duck*TheTaleoftheFlopsyBunniesTheStoryofaFierceBadRabbit*TheTaleofTwoBadMiceTheTaleofTomKittenTheTaleofMrs。Tittlemouse*TheTaleofTimmyTiptoes*TheTaleofMr。Tod*TheTaleofPiglingBland*TheRolyPolyPudding*ThePieandthePatty-pan*GingerandPickles*TheStoryofMissMoppetAppleyDapply\'sNurseryRhymesTheTaleofLittlePigRobinson??
THETALEOF
PETERRABBIT
BY
BEATRIXPOTTER
ONCEuponatimetherewerefourlittleRabbits,andtheirnameswere——
Flopsy,Mopsy,Cotton-tail,andPeter。
TheylivedwiththeirMotherinasand-bank,underneaththerootofaverybigfirtree。
\"NOW,mydears,\"saidoldMrs。Rabbitonemorning,\"youmaygointothefieldsordownthelane,butdon\'tgointoMr。McGregor\'sgarden:
yourFatherhadanaccidentthere;hewasputinapiebyMrs。McGregor。\"
\"NOWrunalong,anddon\'tgetintomischief。Iamgoingout。\"
THENoldMrs。Rabbittookabasketandherumbrella,tothebaker\'s。Sheboughtaloafofbrownbreadandfivecurrantbuns。
FLOPSY,Mopsy,andCottontail,whoweregoodlittlebunnies,wentdownthelanetogatherblackberries;
BUTPeter,whowasverynaughty,ranstraightawaytoMr。McGregor\'sgardenandsqueezedunderthegate!
FIRSTheatesomelettucesandsomeFrenchbeans;
andthenheatesomeradishes;
ANDthen,feelingrathersick,hewenttolookforsomeparsley。
BUTroundtheendofacucumberframe,whomshouldhemeetbutMr。
McGregor!
MR。McGREGORwasonhishandsandkneesplantingoutyoungcabbages,buthejumpedupandranafterPeter,wavingarakeandcallingout,\"Stopthief!\"
PETERwasmostdreadfullyfrightened;herushedalloverthegarden,forhehadforgottenthewaybacktothegate。
Helostoneofhisshoesamongthecabbages,andtheothershoeamongstthepotatoes。
AFTERlosingthem,heranonfourlegsandwentfaster,sothatIthinkhemighthavegotawayaltogetherifhehadnotunfortunatelyrunintoagooseberrynet,andgotcaughtbythelargebuttonsonhisjacket。Itwasabluejacketwithbrassbuttons,quitenew。
PETERgavehimselfupforlost,andshedbigtears;
buthissobswereoverheardbysomefriendlysparrows,whoflewtohimingreatexcitement,andimploredhimtoexerthimself。
MR。McGREGORcameupwithasieve,whichheintendedtopopuponthetopofPeter;butPeterwriggledoutjustintime,leavinghisjacketbehindhim。
ANDrushedintothetoolshed,andjumpedintoacan。
Itwouldhavebeenabeautifulthingtohidein,ifithadnothadsomuchwaterinit。
MR。McGREGORwasquitesurethatPeterwassomewhereinthetoolshed,perhapshiddenunderneathaflower-pot。Hebegantoturnthemovercarefully,lookingundereach。
PresentlyPetersneezed——
\"Kertyschoo!\"Mr。McGregorwasafterhiminnotime,ANDtriedtoputhisfootuponPeter,whojumpedoutofawindow,upsettingthreeplants。ThewindowwastoosmallforMr。McGregor,andhewastiredofrunningafterPeter。Hewentbacktohiswork。
PETERsatdowntorest;
hewasoutofbreathandtremblingwithfright,andhehadnottheleastideawhichwaytogo。Alsohewasverydampwithsittinginthatcan。
Afteratimehebegantowanderabout,goinglippity——
lippity——notveryfast,andlookingallaround。
HEfoundadoorinawall;
butitwaslocked,andtherewasnoroomforafatlittlerabbittosqueezeunderneath。
Anoldmousewasrunninginandoutoverthestonedoorstep,carryingpeasandbeanstoherfamilyinthewood。
Peteraskedherthewaytothegate,butshehadsuchalargepeainhermouththatshecouldnotanswer。Sheonlyshookherheadathim。Peterbegantocry。
THENhetriedtofindhiswaystraightacrossthegarden,buthebecamemoreandmorepuzzled。Presently,hecametoapondwhereMr。
McGregorfilledhiswater-cans。
Awhitecatwasstaringatsomegold-fish;shesatvery,verystill,butnowandthenthetipofhertailtwitchedasifitwerealive。Peterthoughtitbesttogoawaywithoutspeakingtoher;hehadheardaboutcatsfromhiscousin,littleBenjaminBunny。
HEwentbacktowardsthetool-shed,butsuddenly,quiteclosetohim,heheardthenoiseofahoe——scr-r-ritch,scratch,scratch,scritch。Peterscutteredunderneaththebushes。Butpresently,asnothinghappened,hecameout,andclimbeduponawheelbarrow,andpeepedover。ThefirstthinghesawwasMr。
McGregorhoeingonions。HisbackwasturnedtowardsPeter,andbeyondhimwasthegate!
PETERgotdownveryquietlyoffthewheelbarrow,andstartedrunningasfastashecouldgo,alongastraightwalkbehindsomeblack-currantbushes。
Mr。McGregorcaughtsightofhimatthecorner,butPeterdidnotcare。Heslippedunderneaththegate,andwassafeatlastinthewoodoutsidethegarden。
MR。McGREGORhungupthelittlejacketandtheshoesforascare-crowtofrightentheblackbirds。
PETERneverstoppedrunningorlookedbehindhimtillhegothometothebigfir-tree。
Hewassotiredthathefloppeddownuponthenicesoftsandontheflooroftherabbit-hole,andshuthiseyes。
Hismotherwasbusycooking;
shewonderedwhathehaddonewithhisclothes。ItwasthesecondlittlejacketandpairofshoesthatPeterhadlostinafortnight!
IAMsorrytosaythatPeterwasnotverywellduringtheevening。
Hismotherputhimtobed,andmadesomecamomiletea;
andshegaveadoseofittoPeter!
\"Onetable-spoonfultobetakenatbed-time。\"
BUTFlopsy,Mopsy,andCotton-tailhadbreadandmilkandblackberries,forsupper。
THEEND
THETALEOF
BENJAMINBUNNY
FORTHECHILDRENOFSAWREY
FROM
OLDMR。BUNNY
ONEmorningalittlerabbitsatonabank。
Heprickedhisearsandlistenedtothetrit-trot,trit-trotofapony。
Agigwascomingalongtheroad;itwasdrivenbyMr。
McGregor,andbesidehimsatMrs。McGregorinherbestbonnet。
ASsoonastheyhadpassed,littleBenjaminBunnysliddownintotheroad,andsetoff——withahop,skipandajump——tocalluponhisrelations,wholivedinthewoodatthebackofMr。McGregor\'sgarden。
THATwoodwasfullofrabbitholes;andintheneatestsandiestholeofall,cousins——Flopsy,Mopsy,Cotton-tailandPeter。
OldMrs。Rabbitwasawidow;sheearnedherlivingbyknittingrabbit-woolmittensandmuffetees(Ionceboughtapairatabazaar)。Shealsosoldherbs,androsemarytea,andrabbit-tobacco(whichiswhatWEcalllavender)。
LITTLEBenjamindidnotverymuchwanttoseehisAunt。
Hecameroundthebackofthefir-tree,andnearlytumbleduponthetopofhisCousinPeter。
PETERwassittingbyhimself。
Helookedpoorly,andwasdressedinaredcottonpocket-handkerchief。
\"Peter,\"——saidlittleBenjamin,inawhisper——\"whohasgotyourclothes?\"
PETERreplied——\"ThescarecrowinMr。McGregor\'sgarden,\"anddescribedhowhehadbeenchasedaboutthegarden,andhaddroppedhisshoesandcoat。
LittleBenjaminsatdownbesidehiscousin,andassuredhimthatMr。McGregorhadgoneoutinagig,andMrs。McGregoralso;andcertainlyfortheday,becauseshewaswearingherbestbonnet。
PETERsaidhehopedthatitwouldrain。
Atthispoint,oldMrs。
Rabbit\'svoicewasheardinsidetherabbitholecalling——
\"Cotton-tail!Cotton-tail!
fetchsomemorecamomile!\"
Petersaidhethoughthemightfeelbetterifhewentforawalk。
THEYwentawayhandinhand,andgotupontheflattopofthewallatthebottomofthewood。FromheretheylookeddownintoMr。McGregor\'sgarden。Peter\'scoatandshoeswereplainlytobeseenuponthescarecrow,toppedwithanoldtam-o-
shanterofMr。McGregor\'s。
LITTLEBenjaminsaid,\"Itspoilspeople\'sclothestosqueezeunderagate;theproperwaytogetin,istoclimbdownapeartree。\"
Peterfelldownheadfirst;
butitwasofnoconsequence,asthebedbelowwasnewlyrakedandquitesoft。
IThadbeensownwithlettuces。
Theyleftagreatmanyoddlittlefoot-marksalloverthebed,especiallylittleBenjamin,whowaswearingclogs。
LITTLEBenjaminsaidthatthefirstthingtobedonewastogetbackPeter\'sclothes,inorderthattheymightbeabletousethepockethandkerchief。
Theytookthemoffthescarecrow。
Therehadbeenrainduringthenight;therewaswaterintheshoes,andthecoatwassomewhatshrunk。
Benjamintriedonthetam-
o-shanter,butitwastoobigforhim。
THENhesuggestedthattheyshouldfillthepocket-
handkerchiefwithonions,asalittlepresentforhisAunt。
Peterdidnotseemtobeenjoyinghimself;hekepthearingnoises。
BENJAMIN,onthecontrary,wasperfectlyathome,andatealettuceleaf。
HesaidthathewasinthehabitofcomingtothegardenwithhisfathertogetlettucesfortheirSundaydinner。
(ThenameoflittleBenjamin\'spapawasoldMr。BenjaminBunny。)
Thelettucescertainlywereveryfine。
PETERdidnoteatanything;
hesaidheshouldliketogohome。Presentlyhedroppedhalftheonions。
LITTLEBenjaminsaidthatitwasnotpossibletogetbackupthepear-tree,withaloadofvegetables。Heledthewayboldlytowardstheotherendofthegarden。Theywentalongalittlewalkonplanks,underasunnyred-
brickwall。
Themicesatontheirdoor-
stepscrackingcherry-stones,theywinkedatPeterRabbitandlittleBenjaminBunny。
PRESENTLYPeterletthepocket-handkerchiefgoagain。
THEYgotamongstflower-
pots,andframesandtubs;Peterheardnoisesworsethanever,hiseyeswereasbigaslolly-pops!
Hewasasteportwoinfrontofhiscousin,whenhesuddenlystopped。
THISiswhatthoselittlerabbitssawroundthatcorner!
LittleBenjamintookonelook,andthen,inhalfaminutelessthannotime,hehidhimselfandPeterandtheonionsunderneathalargebasket……
THEcatgotupandstretchedherself,andcameandsniffedatthebasket。
Perhapsshelikedthesmellofonions!
Anyway,shesatdownuponthetopofthebasket。
SHEsatthereforFIVEHOURS。
*****
IcannotdrawyouapictureofPeterandBenjaminunderneaththebasket,becauseitwasquitedark,andbecausethesmellofonionswasfearful;
itmadePeterRabbitandlittleBenjamincry。
Thesungotroundbehindthewood,anditwasquitelateintheafternoon;butstillthecatsatuponthebasket。
ATlengththerewasapitter-
patter,pitter-patter,andsomebitsofmortarfellfromthewallabove。
ThecatlookedupandsawoldMr。BenjaminBunnyprancingalongthetopofthewalloftheupperterrace。
Hewassmokingapipeofrabbit-tobacco,andhadalittleswitchinhishand。
Hewaslookingforhisson。
OLDMr。Bunnyhadnoopinionwhateverofcats。
Hetookatremendousjumpoffthetopofthewallontothetopofthecat,andcuffeditoffthebasket,andkickeditintothegarden-house,scratchingoffahandfuloffur。
Thecatwastoomuchsurprisedtoscratchback。
WHENoldMr。Bunnyhaddriventhecatintothegreen-house,helockedthedoor。
ThenhecamebacktothebasketandtookouthissonBenjaminbytheears,andwhippedhimwiththelittleswitch。
ThenhetookouthisnephewPeter。
THENhetookoutthehandkerchiefofonions,andmarchedoutofthegarden。
WhenMr。McGregorreturnedabouthalfanhourlater,heobservedseveralthingswhichperplexedhim。
Itlookedasthoughsomepersonhadbeenwalkingalloverthegardeninapairofclogs——onlythefoot-marksweretooridiculouslylittle!
AlsohecouldnotunderstandhowthecatcouldhavemanagedtoshutherselfupINSIDEthegreen-house,lockingthedoorupontheOUTSIDE。
WHENPetergothome,hismotherforgavehim,becauseshewassogladtoseethathehadfoundhisshoesandcoat。Cotton-tailandPeterfoldedupthepocket-
handkerchief,andoldMrs。
rabbitstrunguptheonionsandhungthemfromthekitchenceiling,withtherabbit-tobacco。
THEEND
THETALEOF
THEFLOPSYBUNNIES
FORALLLITTLEFRIENDS
OF
MR。McGREGOR&PETER&BENJAMIN
ITissaidthattheeffectofeatingtoomuchlettuceis\"soporific。\"
_I_haveneverfeltsleepyaftereatinglettuces;butthen_I_amnotarabbit。
TheycertainlyhadaverysoporificeffectupontheFlopsyBunnies!
WHENBenjaminBunnygrewup,hemarriedhisCousinFlopsy。Theyhadalargefamily,andtheywereveryimprovidentandcheerful。
Idonotremembertheseparatenamesoftheirchildren;
theyweregenerallycalledthe\"FlopsyBunnies。\"
AStherewasnotalwaysquiteenoughtoeat,——
BenjaminusedtoborrowcabbagesfromFlopsy\'sbrother,PeterRabbit,whokeptanurserygarden。
SOMETIMESPeterRabbithadnocabbagestospare。
WHENthishappened,theFlopsyBunnieswentacrossthefieldtoarubbishheap,intheditchoutsideMr。McGregor\'sgarden。
MR。McGREGOR\'Srubbishheapwasamixture。
Therewerejampotsandpaperbags,andmountainsofchoppedgrassfromthemowingmachine(whichalwaystastedoily),andsomerottenvegetablemarrowsandanoldbootortwo。Oneday——ohjoy!——therewereaquantityofovergrownlettuces,whichhad\"shot\"intoflower。
THEFlopsyBunniessimplystuffedlettuces。Bydegrees,oneafteranother,theywereovercomewithslumber,andlaydowninthemowngrass。
Benjaminwasnotsomuchovercomeashischildren。
Beforegoingtosleephewassufficientlywideawaketoputapaperbagoverhisheadtokeepofftheflies。
THElittleFlopsyBunniessleptdelightfullyinthewarmsun。Fromthelawnbeyondthegardencamethedistantclackettysoundofthemowingmachine。Theblue-
bottlesbuzzedaboutthewall,andalittleoldmousepickedovertherubbishamongthejampots。
(Icantellyouhername,shewascalledThomasinaTittlemouse,awoodmousewithalongtail。)
SHErustledacrossthepaperbag,andawakenedBenjaminBunny。
Themouseapologizedprofusely,andsaidthatsheknewPeterRabbit。
WHILEsheandBenjaminweretalking,closeunderthewall,theyheardaheavytreadabovetheirheads;andsuddenlyMr。McGregoremptiedoutasackfuloflawnmowingsrightuponthetopofthesleepingFlopsyBunnies!
Benjaminshrankdownunderhispaperbag。Themousehidinajampot。
THElittlerabbitssmiledsweetlyintheirsleepundertheshowerofgrass;
theydidnotawakebecausethelettuceshadbeensosoporific。
TheydreamtthattheirmotherFlopsywastuckingthemupinahaybed。
Mr。McGregorlookeddownafteremptyinghissack。Hesawsomefunnylittlebrowntipsofearsstickingupthroughthelawnmowings。Hestaredatthemforsometime。
PRESENTLYaflysettledononeofthemanditmoved。
Mr。McGregorclimbeddownontotherubbishheap——
\"One,two,three,four!five!
sixleetlerabbits!\"saidheashedroppedthemintohissack。
TheFlopsyBunniesdreamtthattheirmotherwasturningthemoverinbed。Theystirredalittleintheirsleep,butstilltheydidnotwakeup。
MR。McGREGORtiedupthesackandleftitonthewall。
Hewenttoputawaythemowingmachine。
WHILEhewasgone,Mrs。
FlopsyBunny(whohadremainedathome)cameacrossthefield。
Shelookedsuspiciouslyatthesackandwonderedwhereeverybodywas?
THENthemousecameoutofherjampot,andBenjamintookthepaperbagoffhishead,andtheytoldthedolefultale。
BenjaminandFlopsywereindespair,theycouldnotundothestring。
ButMrs。Tittlemousewasaresourcefulperson。Shenibbledaholeinthebottomcornerofthesack。
THElittlerabbitswerepulledoutandpinchedtowakethem。
Theirparentsstuffedtheemptysackwiththreerottenvegetablemarrows,anoldblacking-brushandtwodecayedturnips。
THENtheyallhidunderabushandwatchedforMr。McGregor。
MR。McGREGORcamebackandpickedupthesack,andcarrieditoff。
Hecarriedithangingdown,asifitwereratherheavy。
TheFlopsyBunniesfollowedatasafedistance。
THEYwatchedhimgointohishouse。
Andthentheycreptuptothewindowtolisten。
MR。McGREGORthrewdownthesackonthestonefloorinawaythatwouldhavebeenextremelypainfultotheFlopsyBunnies,iftheyhadhappenedtohavebeeninsideit。
Theycouldhearhimdraghischairontheflags,andchuckle——
\"One,two,three,four,five,sixleetlerabbits!\"saidMr。
McGregor。
\"EH?What\'sthat?Whathavetheybeenspoilingnow?\"enquiredMrs。
McGregor。
\"One,two,three,four,five,sixleetlefatrabbits!\"repeatedMr。McGregor,countingonhisfingers——\"one,two,three——\"
\"Don\'tyoubesilly;whatdoyoumean,yousillyoldman?\"
\"Inthesack!one,two,three,four,five,six!\"repliedMr。
McGregor。
(TheyoungestFlopsyBunnygotuponthewindow-sill。)
MRS。McGREGORtookholdofthesackandfeltit。Shesaidshecouldfeelsix,buttheymustbeOLD
rabbits,becausetheyweresohardandalldifferentshapes。
\"Notfittoeat;buttheskinswilldofinetolinemyoldcloak。\"
\"Lineyouroldcloak?\"
shoutedMr。McGregor——\"I
shallsellthemandbuymyselfbaccy!\"
\"Rabbittobacco!Ishallskinthemandcutofftheirheads。\"
MRS。McGREGORuntiedthesackandputherhandinside。
Whenshefeltthevegetablesshebecameveryveryangry。
ShesaidthatMr。McGregorhad\"doneitapurpose。\"
ANDMr。McGregorwasveryangrytoo。Oneoftherottenmarrowscameflyingthroughthekitchenwindow,andhittheyoungestFlopsyBunny。
Itwasratherhurt。
THENBenjaminandFlopsythoughtthatitwastimetogohome。
SOMr。McGregordidnotgethistobacco,andMrs。
McGregordidnotgetherrabbitskins。
ButnextChristmasThomasinaTittlemousegotapresentofenoughrabbit-wooltomakeherselfacloakandahood,andahandsomemuffandapairofwarmmittens。
THEEND
INREMEMBRANCEOF
\"SAMMY,\"
THEINTELLIGENTPINK-EYEDREPRESENTATIVE
OF
APERSECUTED(BUTIRREPRESSIBLE)RACE。
ANAFFECTIONATELITTLEFRIEND。
ANDMOSTACCOMPLISHED
THIEF!
THEROLY-POLYPUDDING
ONCEuponatimetherewasanoldcat,calledMrs。TabithaTwitchit,whowasananxiousparent。Sheusedtoloseherkittenscontinually,andwhenevertheywerelosttheywerealwaysinmischief!
Onbakingdayshedeterminedtoshutthemupinacupboard。
ShecaughtMoppetandMittens,butshecouldnotfindTom。
Mrs。Tabithawentupanddownalloverthehouse,mewingforTomKitten。Shelookedinthepantryunderthestaircase,andshesearchedthebestsparebedroomthatwasallcoveredupwithdustsheets。
Shewentrightupstairsandlookedintotheattics,butshecouldnotfindhimanywhere。
Itwasanold,oldhouse,fullofcupboardsandpassages。Someofthewallswerefourfeetthick,andthereusedtobequeernoisesinsidethem,asiftheremightbealittlesecretstaircase。Certainlytherewereoddlittlejaggeddoorwaysinthewainscot,andthingsdisappearedatnight——
especiallycheeseandbacon。