A Collection of Beatrix Potter Stories Page 5

  THE TALE OF MR. TOD

  I HAVE made many books about well-behaved people. Now, for a change, Iam going to make a story about two disagreeable people, called TommyBrock and Mr. Tod. Nobody could call Mr. Tod "nice." The rabbits couldnot bear him; they could smell him half a mile off. He was of awandering habit and he had foxey whiskers; they never knew where hewould be next.

  One day he was living in a stick-house in the coppice, causing terror tothe family of old Mr. Benjamin Bouncer. Next day he moved into a pollardwillow near the lake, frightening the wild ducks and the water rats.

  In winter and early spring he might generally be found in an earthamongst the rocks at the top of Bull Banks, under Oatmeal Crag.

  He had half a dozen houses, but he was seldom at home.

  The houses were not always empty when Mr. Tod moved OUT; becausesometimes Tommy Brock moved IN; (without asking leave).

  Tommy Brock was a short bristly fat waddling person with a grin; hegrinned all over his face. He was not nice in his habits. He ate waspnests and frogs and worms; and he waddled about by moonlight, diggingthings up.

  His clothes were very dirty; and as he slept in the day-time, he alwayswent to bed in his boots. And the bed which he went to bed in, wasgenerally Mr. Tod's.

  Now Tommy Brock did occasionally eat rabbit-pie; but it was only verylittle young ones occasionally, when other food was really scarce. Hewas friendly with old Mr. Bouncer; they agreed in disliking the wickedotters and Mr. Tod; they often talked over that painful subject.

  Old Mr. Bouncer was stricken in years. He sat in the spring sunshineoutside the burrow, in a muffler; smoking a pipe of rabbit tobacco.

  He lived with his son Benjamin Bunny and his daughter-in-law Flopsy, whohad a young family. Old Mr. Bouncer was in charge of the family thatafternoon, because Benjamin and Flopsy had gone out.

  The little rabbit-babies were just old enough to open their blue eyesand kick. They lay in a fluffy bed of rabbit wool and hay, in a shallowburrow, separate from the main rabbit hole. To tell the truth--old Mr.Bouncer had forgotten them.

  He sat in the sun, and conversed cordially with Tommy Brock, who waspassing through the wood with a sack and a little spud which he used fordigging, and some mole traps. He complained bitterly about the scarcityof pheasants' eggs, and accused Mr. Tod of poaching them. And the ottershad cleared off all the frogs while he was asleep in winter--"I have nothad a good square meal for a fortnight, I am living on pig-nuts. I shallhave to turn vegetarian and eat my own tail!" said Tommy Brock.

  It was not much of a joke, but it tickled old Mr. Bouncer; because TommyBrock was so fat and stumpy and grinning.

  So old Mr. Bouncer laughed; and pressed Tommy Brock to come inside, totaste a slice of seed-cake and "a glass of my daughter Flopsy's cowslipwine." Tommy Brock squeezed himself into the rabbit hole with alacrity.

  Then old Mr. Bouncer smoked another pipe, and gave Tommy Brock a cabbageleaf cigar which was so very strong that it made Tommy Brock grin morethan ever; and the smoke filled the burrow. Old Mr. Bouncer coughed andlaughed; and Tommy Brock puffed and grinned.

  And Mr. Bouncer laughed and coughed, and shut his eyes because of thecabbage smoke..........

  When Flopsy and Benjamin came back--old Mr. Bouncer woke up. Tommy Brockand all the young rabbit-babies had disappeared!

  Mr. Bouncer would not confess that he had admitted anybody into therabbit hole. But the smell of badger was undeniable; and there wereround heavy footmarks in the sand. He was in disgrace; Flopsy wrung herears, and slapped him.

  Benjamin Bunny set off at once after Tommy Brock.

  There was not much difficulty in tracking him; he had left his foot-markand gone slowly up the winding footpath through the wood. Here he hadrooted up the moss and wood sorrel. There he had dug quite a deep holefor dog darnel; and had set a mole trap. A little stream crossed theway. Benjamin skipped lightly over dry-foot; the badger's heavy stepsshowed plainly in the mud.

  The path led to a part of the thicket where the trees had been cleared;there were leafy oak stumps, and a sea of blue hyacinths--but the smellthat made Benjamin stop, was not the smell of flowers!

  Mr. Tod's stick house was before him and, for once, Mr. Tod was at home.There was not only a foxey flavour in proof of it--there was smokecoming out of the broken pail that served as a chimney.

  Benjamin Bunny sat up, staring; his whiskers twitched. Inside the stickhouse somebody dropped a plate, and said something. Benjamin stamped hisfoot, and bolted.

  He never stopped till he came to the other side of the wood. ApparentlyTommy Brock had turned the same way. Upon the top of the wall, therewere again the marks of badger; and some ravellings of a sack had caughton a briar.

  Benjamin climbed over the wall, into a meadow. He found another moletrap newly set; he was still upon the track of Tommy Brock. It wasgetting late in the afternoon. Other rabbits were coming out to enjoythe evening air. One of them in a blue coat by himself, was busilyhunting for dandelions.--"Cousin Peter! Peter Rabbit, Peter Rabbit!"shouted Benjamin Bunny.

  The blue coated rabbit sat up with pricked ears--

  "Whatever is the matter, Cousin Benjamin? Is it a cat? or John StoatFerret?"

  "No, no, no! He's bagged my family--Tommy Brock--in a sack--have youseen him?"

  "Tommy Brock? how many, Cousin Benjamin?"

  "Seven, Cousin Peter, and all of them twins! Did he come this way?Please tell me quick!"

  "Yes, yes; not ten minutes since.... he said they were caterpillars; Idid think they were kicking rather hard, for caterpillars."

  "Which way? which way has he gone, Cousin Peter?"

  "He had a sack with something 'live in it; I watched him set a moletrap. Let me use my mind, Cousin Benjamin; tell me from the beginning."Benjamin did so.

  "My Uncle Bouncer has displayed a lamentable want of discretion for hisyears;" said Peter reflectively, "but there are two hopefulcircumstances. Your family is alive and kicking; and Tommy Brock has hadrefreshment. He will probably go to sleep, and keep them for breakfast.""Which way?" "Cousin Benjamin, compose yourself. I know very well whichway. Because Mr. Tod was at home in the stick-house he has gone to Mr.Tod's other house, at the top of Bull Banks. I partly know, because heoffered to leave any message at Sister Cottontail's; he said he would bepassing." (Cottontail had married a black rabbit, and gone to live onthe hill).

  Peter hid his dandelions, and accompanied the afflicted parent, who wasall of a twitter. They crossed several fields and began to climb thehill; the tracks of Tommy Brock were plainly to be seen. He seemed tohave put down the sack every dozen yards, to rest.

  "He must be very puffed; we are close behind him, by the scent. What anasty person!" said Peter.

  The sunshine was still warm and slanting on the hill pastures. Half wayup, Cottontail was sitting in her doorway, with four or five half-grownlittle rabbits playing about her; one black and the others brown.

  Cottontail had seen Tommy Brock passing in the distance. Asked whetherher husband was at home she replied that Tommy Brock had rested twicewhile she watched him.

  He had nodded, and pointed to the sack, and seemed doubled up withlaughing.--"Come away, Peter; he will be cooking them; come quicker!"said Benjamin Bunny.

  They climbed up and up;--"He was at home; I saw his black ears peepingout of the hole." "They live too near the rocks to quarrel with theirneighbours. Come on Cousin Benjamin!"

  When they came near the wood at the top of Bull Banks, they wentcautiously. The trees grew amongst heaped up rocks; and there, beneath acrag--Mr. Tod had made one of his homes. It was at the top of a steepbank; the rocks and bushes overhung it. The rabbits crept up carefully,listening and peeping.

  This house was something between a cave, a prison, and a tumble-downpig-stye. There was a strong door, which was shut and locked.

  The setting sun made the window panes glow like red flame; but thekitchen fire was not alight. It was neatly laid with dry sticks, as therabbits could see, when they peeped through t
he window.

  Benjamin sighed with relief.

  But there were preparations upon the kitchen table which made himshudder. There was an immense empty pie-dish of blue willow pattern, anda large carving knife and fork, and a chopper.

  At the other end of the table was a partly unfolded tablecloth, a plate,a tumbler, a knife and fork, salt-cellar, mustard and a chair--in short,preparations for one person's supper.

  No person was to be seen, and no young rabbits. The kitchen was emptyand silent; the clock had run down. Peter and Benjamin flattened theirnoses against the window, and stared into the dusk.

  Then they scrambled round the rocks to the other side of the house. Itwas damp and smelly, and over-grown with thorns and briars.

  The rabbits shivered in their shoes.

  "Oh my poor rabbit babies! What a dreadful place; I shall never see themagain!" sighed Benjamin.

  They crept up to the bedroom window. It was closed and bolted like thekitchen. But there were signs that this window had been recently open;the cobwebs were disturbed, and there were fresh dirty footmarks uponthe window-sill.

  The room inside was so dark, that at first they could make out nothing;but they could hear a noise--a slow deep regular snoring grunt. And astheir eyes became accustomed to the darkness, they perceived thatsomebody was asleep on Mr. Tod's bed, curled up under the blanket.--"Hehas gone to bed in his boots," whispered Peter.

  Benjamin, who was all of a twitter, pulled Peter off the window-sill.

  Tommy Brock's snores continued, grunty and regular from Mr. Tod's bed.Nothing could be seen of the young family.

  The sun had set; an owl began to hoot in the wood. There were manyunpleasant things lying about, that had much better have been buried;rabbit bones and skulls, and chickens' legs and other horrors. It was ashocking place, and very dark.

  They went back to the front of the house, and tried in every way to movethe bolt of the kitchen window. They tried to push up a rusty nailbetween the window sashes; but it was of no use, especially without alight.

  They sat side by side outside the window, whispering and listening.

  In half an hour the moon rose over the wood. It shone full and clear andcold, upon the house amongst the rocks, and in at the kitchen window.But alas, no little rabbit babies were to be seen!

  The moonbeams twinkled on the carving knife and the pie dish, and made apath of brightness across the dirty floor.

  The light showed a little door in a wall beside the kitchen fireplace--alittle iron door belonging to a brick oven, of that old-fashioned sortthat used to be heated with faggots of wood.

  And presently at the same moment Peter and Benjamin noticed thatwhenever they shook the window--the little door opposite shook inanswer. The young family were alive; shut up in the oven!

  Benjamin was so excited that it was a mercy he did not awake TommyBrock, whose snores continued solemnly in Mr. Tod's bed.

  But there really was not very much comfort in the discovery. They couldnot open the window; and although the young family was alive--the littlerabbits were quite incapable of letting themselves out; they were notold enough to crawl.

  After much whispering, Peter and Benjamin decided to dig a tunnel. Theybegan to burrow a yard or two lower down the bank. They hoped that theymight be able to work between the large stones under the house; thekitchen floor was so dirty that it was impossible to say whether it wasmade of earth or flags.

  They dug and dug for hours. They could not tunnel straight on account ofstones; but by the end of the night they were under the kitchen floor.Benjamin was on his back, scratching upwards. Peter's claws were worndown; he was outside the tunnel, shuffling sand away. He called out thatit was morning--sunrise; and that the jays were making a noise downbelow in the woods.

  Benjamin Bunny came out of the dark tunnel, shaking the sand from hisears; he cleaned his face with his paws. Every minute the sun shonewarmer on the top of the hill. In the valley there was a sea of whitemist, with golden tops of trees showing through.

  Again from the fields down below in the mist there came the angry cry ofa jay--followed by the sharp yelping bark of a fox!

  Then those two rabbits lost their heads completely. They did the mostfoolish thing that they could have done. They rushed into their shortnew tunnel, and hid themselves at the top end of it, under Mr. Tod'skitchen floor.

  Mr. Tod was coming up Bull Banks, and he was in the very worst oftempers. First he had been upset by breaking the plate. It was his ownfault; but it was a china plate, the last of the dinner service that hadbelonged to his grandmother, old Vixen Tod. Then the midges had beenvery bad. And he had failed to catch a hen pheasant on her nest; and ithad contained only five eggs, two of them addled. Mr. Tod had had anunsatisfactory night.

  As usual, when out of humour, he determined to move house. First hetried the pollard willow, but it was damp; and the otters had left adead fish near it. Mr. Tod likes nobody's leavings but his own.

  He made his way up the hill; his temper was not improved by noticingunmistakable marks of badger. No one else grubs up the moss so wantonlyas Tommy Brock.

  Mr. Tod slapped his stick upon the earth and fumed; he guessed whereTommy Brock had gone to. He was further annoyed by the jay bird whichfollowed him persistently. It flew from tree to tree and scolded,warning every rabbit within hearing that either a cat or a fox wascoming up the plantation. Once when it flew screaming over his head--Mr.Tod snapped at it, and barked.

  He approached his house very carefully, with a large rusty key. Hesniffed and his whiskers bristled. The house was locked up, but Mr. Todhad his doubts whether it was empty. He turned the rusty key in thelock; the rabbits below could hear it. Mr. Tod opened the doorcautiously and went in.

  The sight that met Mr. Tod's eyes in Mr. Tod's kitchen made Mr. Todfurious. There was Mr. Tod's chair, and Mr. Tod's pie dish, and hisknife and fork and mustard and salt cellar and his table-cloth that hehad left folded up in the dresser--all set out for supper (orbreakfast)--without doubt for that odious Tommy Brock.

  There was a smell of fresh earth and dirty badger, which fortunatelyoverpowered all smell of rabbit.

  But what absorbed Mr. Tod's attention was a noise--a deep slow regularsnoring grunting noise, coming from his own bed.

  He peeped through the hinges of the half-open bedroom door. Then heturned and came out of the house in a hurry. His whiskers bristled andhis coat-collar stood on end with rage.

  For the next twenty minutes Mr. Tod kept creeping cautiously into thehouse, and retreating hurriedly out again. By degrees he venturedfurther in--right into the bedroom. When he was outside the house, hescratched up the earth with fury. But when he was inside--he did notlike the look of Tommy Brock's teeth.

  He was lying on his back with his mouth open, grinning from ear to ear.He snored peacefully and regularly; but one eye was not perfectly shut.

  Mr. Tod came in and out of the bedroom. Twice he brought in hiswalking-stick, and once he brought in the coal-scuttle. But he thoughtbetter of it, and took them away.

  When he came back after removing the coal-scuttle, Tommy Brock was lyinga little more sideways; but he seemed even sounder asleep. He was anincurably indolent person; he was not in the least afraid of Mr. Tod; hewas simply too lazy and comfortable to move.

  Mr. Tod came back yet again into the bedroom with a clothes line. Hestood a minute watching Tommy Brock and listening attentively to thesnores. They were very loud indeed, but seemed quite natural.

  Mr. Tod turned his back towards the bed, and undid the window. Itcreaked; he turned round with a jump. Tommy Brock, who had opened oneeye--shut it hastily. The snores continued.

  Mr. Tod's proceedings were peculiar, and rather uneasy, (because the bedwas between the window and the door of the bedroom). He opened thewindow a little way, and pushed out the greater part of the clothes lineon to the window sill. The rest of the line, with a hook at the end,remained in his hand.

  Tommy Brock snored conscientiously. Mr. Tod stood and look
ed at him fora minute; then he left the room again.

  Tommy Brock opened both eyes, and looked at the rope and grinned. Therewas a noise outside the window. Tommy Brock shut his eyes in a hurry.

  Mr. Tod had gone out at the front door, and round to the back of thehouse. On the way, he stumbled over the rabbit burrow. If he had had anyidea who was inside it, he would have pulled them out quickly.

  His foot went through the tunnel nearly upon the top of Peter Rabbit andBenjamin, but fortunately he thought that it was some more of TommyBrock's work.

  He took up the coil of line from the sill, listened for a moment, andthen tied the rope to a tree.

  Tommy Brock watched him with one eye, through the window. He waspuzzled.

  Mr. Tod fetched a large heavy pailful of water from the spring, andstaggered with it through the kitchen into his bedroom.

  Tommy Brock snored industriously, with rather a snort.

  Mr. Tod put down the pail beside the bed, took up the end of rope withthe hook--hesitated, and looked at Tommy Brock. The snores were almostapoplectic; but the grin was not quite so big.

  Mr. Tod gingerly mounted a chair by the head of the bedstead. His legswere dangerously near to Tommy Brock's teeth.

  He reached up and put the end of rope, with the hook, over the head ofthe tester bed, where the curtains ought to hang.

  (Mr. Tod's curtains were folded up, and put away, owing to the housebeing unoccupied. So was the counterpane. Tommy Brock was covered with ablanket only.) Mr. Tod standing on the unsteady chair looked down uponhim attentively; he really was a first prize sound sleeper!

  It seemed as though nothing would waken him--not even the flapping ropeacross the bed.

  Mr. Tod descended safely from the chair, and endeavoured to get up againwith the pail of water. He intended to hang it from the hook, danglingover the head of Tommy Brock, in order to make a sort of shower-bath,worked by a string, through the window.

  But naturally being a thin-legged person (though vindictive and sandywhiskered)--he was quite unable to lift the heavy weight to the level ofthe hook and rope. He very nearly overbalanced himself.

  The snores became more and more apoplectic. One of Tommy Brock's hindlegs twitched under the blanket, but still he slept on peacefully.

  Mr. Tod and the pail descended from the chair without accident. Afterconsiderable thought, he emptied the water into a wash-basin and jug.The empty pail was not too heavy for him; he slung it up wobbling overthe head of Tommy Brock.

  Surely there never was such a sleeper! Mr. Tod got up and down, down andup on the chair.

  As he could not lift the whole pailful of water at once, he fetched amilk jug, and ladled quarts of water into the pail by degrees. The pailgot fuller and fuller, and swung like a pendulum. Occasionally a dropsplashed over; but still Tommy Brock snored regularly and nevermoved,--except one eye.

  At last Mr. Tod's preparations were complete. The pail was full ofwater; the rope was tightly strained over the top of the bed, and acrossthe window sill to the tree outside.

  "It will make a great mess in my bedroom; but I could never sleep inthat bed again without a spring cleaning of some sort," said Mr. Tod.

  Mr. Tod took a last look at the badger and softly left the room. He wentout of the house, shutting the front door. The rabbits heard hisfootsteps over the tunnel.

  He ran round behind the house, intending to undo the rope in order tolet fall the pailful of water upon Tommy Brock--

  "I will wake him up with an unpleasant surprise," said Mr. Tod.

  The moment he had gone, Tommy Brock got up in a hurry; he rolled Mr.Tod's dressing-gown into a bundle, put it into the bed beneath the pailof water instead of himself, and left the room also--grinning immensely.

  He went into the kitchen, lighted the fire and boiled the kettle; forthe moment he did not trouble himself to cook the baby rabbits.

  When Mr. Tod got to the tree, he found that the weight and strain haddragged the knot so tight that it was past untying. He was obliged tognaw it with his teeth. He chewed and gnawed for more than twentyminutes. At last the rope gave way with such a sudden jerk that itnearly pulled his teeth out, and quite knocked him over backwards.

  Inside the house there was a great crash and splash, and the noise of apail rolling over and over.

  But no screams. Mr. Tod was mystified; he sat quite still, and listenedattentively. Then he peeped in at the window. The water was drippingfrom the bed, the pail had rolled into a corner.

  In the middle of the bed under the blanket, was a wet flattenedSOMETHING--much dinged in, in the middle where the pail had caught it(as it were across the tummy). Its head was covered by the wet blanketand it was NOT SNORING ANY LONGER.

  There was nothing stirring, and no sound except the drip, drop, dropdrip of water trickling from the mattress.

  Mr. Tod watched it for half an hour; his eyes glistened.

  Then he cut a caper, and became so bold that he even tapped at thewindow; but the bundle never moved.

  Yes--there was no doubt about it--it had turned out even better than hehad planned; the pail had hit poor old Tommy Brock, and killed him dead!

  "I will bury that nasty person in the hole which he has dug. I willbring my bedding out, and dry it in the sun," said Mr. Tod.

  "I will wash the tablecloth and spread it on the grass in the sun tobleach. And the blanket must be hung up in the wind; and the bed must bethoroughly disinfected, and aired with a warming-pan; and warmed with ahot-water bottle."

  "I will get soft soap, and monkey soap, and all sorts of soap; and sodaand scrubbing brushes; and persian powder; and carbolic to remove thesmell. I must have a disinfecting. Perhaps I may have to burn sulphur."

  He hurried round the house to get a shovel from the kitchen--"First Iwill arrange the hole--then I will drag out that person in the blanket..."

  He opened the door....

  Tommy Brock was sitting at Mr. Tod's kitchen table, pouring out tea fromMr. Tod's tea-pot into Mr. Tod's tea-cup. He was quite dry himself andgrinning; and he threw the cup of scalding tea all over Mr. Tod.

  Then Mr. Tod rushed upon Tommy Brock, and Tommy Brock grappled with Mr.Tod amongst the broken crockery, and there was a terrific battle allover the kitchen. To the rabbits underneath it sounded as if the floorwould give way at each crash of falling furniture.

  They crept out of their tunnel, and hung about amongst the rocks andbushes, listening anxiously.

  Inside the house the racket was fearful. The rabbit babies in the ovenwoke up trembling; perhaps it was fortunate they were shut up inside.

  Everything was upset except the kitchen table.

  And everything was broken, except the mantelpiece and the kitchenfender. The crockery was smashed to atoms.

  The chairs were broken, and the window, and the clock fell with a crash,and there were handfuls of Mr. Tod's sandy whiskers.

  The vases fell off the mantelpiece, the canisters fell off the shelf;the kettle fell off the hob. Tommy Brock put his foot in a jar ofraspberry Jam.

  And the boiling water out of the kettle fell upon the tail of Mr. Tod.

  When the kettle fell, Tommy Brock, who was still grinning, happened tobe uppermost; and he rolled Mr. Tod over and over like a log, out at thedoor.

  Then the snarling and worrying went on outside; and they rolled over thebank, and down hill, bumping over the rocks. There will never be anylove lost between Tommy Brock and Mr. Tod.

  As soon as the coast was clear Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny came outof the bushes--

  "Now for it! Run in, Cousin Benjamin! Run in and get them while I watchat the door."

  But Benjamin was frightened--

  "Oh; oh! they are coming back!"

  "No they are not."

  "Yes they are!"

  "What dreadful bad language! I think they have fallen down the stonequarry."

  Still Benjamin hesitated, and Peter kept pushing him--

  "Be quick, it's all right. Shut the oven door, Cousin Benjamin, so t
hathe won't miss them."

  Decidedly there were lively doings in Mr. Tod's kitchen!

  At home in the rabbit hole, things had not been quite comfortable.

  After quarrelling at supper, Flopsy and old Mr. Bouncer had passed asleepless night, and quarrelled again at breakfast. Old Mr. Bouncercould no longer deny that he had invited company into the rabbit hole;but he refused to reply to the questions and reproaches of Flopsy. Theday passed heavily.

  Old Mr. Bouncer, very sulky, was huddled up in a corner, barricaded witha chair. Flopsy had taken away his pipe and hidden the tobacco. She hadbeen having a complete turn out and spring-cleaning, to relieve herfeelings. She had just finished. Old Mr. Bouncer, behind his chair, waswondering anxiously what she would do next.

  In Mr. Tod's kitchen, amongst the wreckage, Benjamin Bunny picked hisway to the oven nervously, through a thick cloud of dust. He opened theoven door, felt inside, and found something warm and wriggling. Helifted it out carefully, and rejoined Peter Rabbit.

  "I've got them! Can we get away? Shall we hide, Cousin Peter?"

  Peter pricked his ears; distant sounds of fighting still echoed in thewood.

  Five minutes afterwards two breathless rabbits came scuttering away downBull Banks, half carrying half dragging a sack between them, bumpettybump over the grass. They reached home safely and burst into the rabbithole.

  Great was old Mr. Bouncer's relief and Flopsy's joy when Peter andBenjamin arrived in triumph with the young family. The rabbit-babieswere rather tumbled and very hungry; they were fed and put to bed. Theysoon recovered.

  A long new pipe and a fresh supply of rabbit tobacco was presented toMr. Bouncer. He was rather upon his dignity; but he accepted.

  Old Mr. Bouncer was forgiven, and they all had dinner. Then Peter andBenjamin told their story--but they had not waited long enough to beable to tell the end of the battle between Tommy Brock and Mr. Tod.

  THE END