it was a pretty long distance from doctor rabbit’s home in the big tree to jack rabbit’s home out in the wide prairie. as doctor rabbit went along through the big green woods, he moved watchful-like, because he thought tom wildcat might be prowling around almost anywhere. when there was a nice open glade in the woods, doctor rabbit went hoppity, hoppity, hoppity, as fast as his legs would carry him, and he held his ears flat to his head, too, for that’s the way doctor rabbit and all other rabbits hold their ears when they run very fast. then he would stop and prick up his ears and listen for the least sound.
presently he met blue jay.
[pg 15]“good morning, doctor rabbit!” blue jay cried out, a great deal louder than doctor rabbit wished him to.
doctor rabbit said softly, “sh! good morning, blue jay. but not so loud! tom wildcat might—”
“where is he?” blue jay asked, and his voice trembled with fear and anger.
“sh!” doctor rabbit warned again. “i don’t know just exactly where he is now but he was prowling around my house last night, and—”
“and yesterday,” poor blue jay interrupted, “he was prowling around my house. i came home just in time to hear jenny jay screaming her loudest because he had nearly caught her. and then what do you suppose he did? he ate every egg we had in our nest! we wanted to peck his eyes out, but we didn’t dare to get close enough. we’re[pg 16] building a new nest in another tree now, and i’m watching for tom wildcat every minute. i just want to tell him what i think of him!”
“don’t talk so loud, please, blue jay,” doctor rabbit said again, in a low voice. “he might be around close, and i don’t want him to see me, especially just at this time. i’m on my way to see jack rabbit on very important business. now, blue jay, slip around as quick as you can and tell stubby woodchuck and cheepy chipmunk, and our other friends, that tom wildcat is in the big green woods again, and very hungry, too. i have thought of a way to get rid of him, perhaps; but first i shall have to see whether my plan works out.” and without taking time to say another word, doctor rabbit hurried away through the woods toward jack rabbit’s home.
[pg 17]blue jay flew straight to the stump where stubby woodchuck lived and told him to look out for tom wildcat; then he went around and told cheepy chipmunk, and robin-the-red, and chatty red squirrel. they told their neighbors, so that in a little time they all were talking and thinking about tom wildcat. you see, all the little creatures of the big green woods are dreadfully afraid of old tom wildcat, because not only can he spring quickly on the ground, but he can climb trees very swiftly.
tom wildcat lived in a very large cottonwood tree over by the deep river. he prowled around over there, eating whatever he could find. sometimes he caught a fish at the edge of deep river, and now and then he caught a hen that wandered down along the bank. he was satisfied with such things for a time,[pg 18] but every now and then he slipped into the big green woods. all the little woods creatures said they surely hoped that plan of doctor rabbit’s, whatever it was, would get rid of tom wildcat, for they both feared and hated him.
