Mother West Wind's Animal Friends

by Thornton W. Burgess

  Produced by K Nordquist, Mary Meehan and the OnlineDistributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (Thisfile was produced from images generously made availableby The Internet Archive)

  BURGESS TRADE QUADDIES MARK

  MOTHER WEST WIND'S ANIMAL FRIENDS

  BY THORNTON W. BURGESS

  Author of "Old Mother West Wind," and "Mother West Wind's Children"

  _Illustrated by George Kerr_

  BOSTON LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY 1920

  _Copyright, 1912_, BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY

  _All rights reserved_

  * * * * *

  IN TENDER, LOVING, REVERENT MEMORY OF MY MOTHER, WHO LOVED LITTLE CHILDREN AND WAS BELOVED OF THEM, AND TO WHOM I OWE A DEBT OF AFFECTION AND OF GRATITUDE BEYOND MY POWER TO PAY

  * * * * *

  Suddenly he met Mr. Panther. FRONTISPIECE.]

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER PAGE

  I. THE MERRY LITTLE BREEZES SAVE THE GREEN MEADOWS 1

  II. THE STRANGER IN THE GREEN FOREST 13

  III. HOW PRICKLY PORKY GOT HIS QUILLS 29

  IV. PETER RABBIT'S EGG ROLLING 47

  V. HOW JOHNNY CHUCK RAN AWAY 63

  VI. PETER RABBIT'S RUN FOR LIFE 77

  VII. A JOKER FOOLED 93

  VIII. THE FUSS IN THE BIG PINE 109

  IX. JOHNNY CHUCK FINDS A USE FOR HIS BACK DOOR 123

  X. BILLY MINK GOES DINNERLESS 135

  XI. GRANDFATHER FROG'S JOURNEY 149

  XII. WHY BLACKY THE CROW WEARS MOURNING 161

  XIII. STRIPED CHIPMUNK FOOLS PETER RABBIT 177

  XIV. JERRY MUSKRAT'S NEW HOUSE 195

  XV. PETER RABBIT'S BIG COUSIN 211

  LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

  SUDDENLY HE MET MR. PANTHER _FRONTISPIECE_

  REDDY STRUTTED OUT IN FRONT OF HIM. "WHO ARE YOU?" HE DEMANDED PAGE 21

  "PLEASE, PLEASE WAIT FOR ME, PETER RABBIT," PANTED JOHNNY CHUCK " 69

  "COME ON WITH US TO THE BIG RIVER, FISHING," CALLED BILLY MINK " 138

  PETER WAS SO SURPRISED THAT HE NEARLY FELL BACKWARD " 189

  "I'M GOING TO BUILD A HOUSE," REPLIED JERRY MUSKRAT " 200

  MOTHER WEST WIND'S ANIMAL FRIENDS

  I

  THE MERRY LITTLE BREEZES SAVE THE GREEN MEADOWS

  Old Mother West Wind's family is very big, very big indeed. There aredozens and dozens of Merry Little Breezes, all children of Old MotherWest Wind. Every morning she comes down from the Purple Hills andtumbles them out of a great bag on to the Green Meadows. Every night shegathers them into the great bag and, putting it over her shoulder, takesthem to their home behind the Purple Hills.

  One morning, just as usual, Old Mother West Wind turned the Merry LittleBreezes out to play on the Green Meadows. Then she hurried away to fillthe sails of the ships and blow them across the great ocean. The MerryLittle Breezes hopped and skipped over the Green Meadows looking forsome one to play with. It was then that one of them discoveredsomething--something very dreadful.

  It was a fire! Yes, Sir, it was a fire in the meadow grass! Some one haddropped a lighted match, and now little red flames were running throughthe grass in all directions. The Merry Little Breeze hastened to tellall the other Little Breezes and all rushed over as fast as they couldto see for themselves.

  They saw how the little red flames were turning to smoke and asheseverything they touched, and how black and ugly, with nothing alivethere, became that part of the Green Meadows where the little flamesran. It was dreadful! Then one of them noticed that the little redflames were running in the direction of Johnny Chuck's new house. Wouldthe little red flames burn up Johnny Chuck, as they burned up the grassand the flowers?

  "Hi!" cried the Merry Little Breeze, "We must warn Johnny Chuck and allthe other little meadow people!"

  So he caught up a capful of smoke and raced off as fast as he could goto Johnny Chuck's house. Then each of the Merry Little Breezes caught upa capful of smoke and started to warn one of the little meadow people orforest folks.

  So pretty soon jolly, round, red Mr. Sun, looking down from the bluesky, saw Johnny Chuck, Jimmy Skunk, Peter Rabbit, Striped Chipmunk,Danny Meadow Mouse, Reddy Fox, Bobby Coon, Happy Jack Squirrel,Chatterer the Red Squirrel, Jumper the Hare and old Mr. Toad allhurrying as fast as they could to the Smiling Pool where live Billy Minkand Little Joe Otter and Jerry Muskrat and Spotty the Turtle andGrandfather Frog. There they would be quite safe from the little redflames.

  "Oh," gasped Johnny Chuck, puffing very hard, for you know he is roundand fat and roly-poly and it was hard work for him to run, "what willbecome of my nice new house and what will there be left to eat?"

  The Merry Little Breeze who had brought him the warning in a capful ofsmoke thought for a minute. Then he called all the other Little Breezesto him.

  "We must get Farmer Brown's help or we will have no beautiful GreenMeadows to play on," said the Merry Little Breeze.

  So together they rushed back to where the little red flames had growninto great, angry, red flames that were licking up everything in theirway. The Merry Little Breezes gathered a great cloud of smoke and,lifting all together, they carried it over and dropped it in FarmerBrown's dooryard. Then one of them blew a little of the smoke in at anopen window, near which Farmer Brown was eating breakfast. Farmer Browncoughed and strangled and sprang from his chair.

  "Phew!" cried Farmer Brown, "I smell smoke! There must be a fire on themeadows."

  Then he shouted for his boy and for his hired man and the three, withshovels in their hands, started for the Green Meadows to try to put thefire out.

  The Merry Little Breezes sighed with relief and followed to the fire.But when they saw how fierce and angry the red flames had become theyknew that Farmer Brown and his boy and his hired man would not be ableto put the fire out. Choking with smoke, they hurried over to tell thedreadful news to the little meadow people and forest folks gathered atthe Smiling Pool.

  "Chug-a-rum! Why don't you help put the fire out?" asked GrandfatherFrog.

  "We warned Farmer Brown and his boy and his hired man; what more can wedo?" asked one of the Merry Little Breezes.

  "Go find and drive up a rain cloud," replied Grandfather Frog.

  "Splendid!" cried all the little meadow people and forest folks. "Hurry!hurry! Oh, do hurry!"

  So the Merry Little Breezes scattered in all directions to hunt for arain cloud.

  "It is a good thing that Old Mother West Wind has such a big family,"said Grandfather Frog, "for one of them is sure to find a wandering raincloud somewhere."

  Then all the little meadow people and forest folks sat down around theSmiling Pool to wait. They watched the smoke roll up until it hid theface of jolly, round, red Mr. Sun. Their hearts almost stood still withfear as they saw the fierce, angry, red flames leap into the air andclimb tall trees on the edge of the Green Forest.

  Splash! Something struck in the Smiling Pool right beside GrandfatherFrog's big, green, lily-pad.

  Spat! Something hit Johnny Chuck right on the end of his funny little,black nose.

  They were drops of water.

  "Hurrah!" cried Johnny Chuck, whirling about. Sure enough, they weredrops of water--rain drops. And there, coming just as fast as the MerryLittle Breezes could push it, and they were pushing very hard, very hardindeed, was a great, black, rain cloud, spilling down rain as it came.

  When it was just over the fire, the great, black, rain cloud split wideopen, and the water poured down so that the fierce, angry, red flameswere drown
ed in a few minutes.

  "Phew!" said Farmer Brown, mopping his face with his handkerchief, "thatwas warm work! That shower came up just in time and it is lucky it did."

  But you know and I know and all the little meadow people and forestfolks know that it wasn't luck at all, but the quick work and hard workof Old Mother West Wind's big family of Merry Little Breezes, whichsaved the Green Meadows. And this, too, is one reason why Peter Rabbitand Johnny Chuck and Bobby Coon and all the other little meadow andforest people love the Merry Little Breezes who play every day on theGreen Meadows.