XI
WHY BOBBY COON HAS RINGS ON HIS TAIL
Peter Rabbit would give Grandfather Frog no peace. Every day Petervisited the Smiling Pool to tease Grandfather Frog for a story--forone particular story. He wanted to know why it is that Bobby Coonwears rings on his tail. You see, Peter had admired Bobby Coon's tailfor a long time. Peter has such a funny little tail himself, just alittle white bunch of cotton, that such a handsome tail as BobbyCoon's sometimes stirs just a wee bit of envy in Peter's heart.
But it wasn't envy so much as curiosity that prompted Peter to teasefor that story. Bobby Coon's tail is very handsome, you know. It hasbeautiful rings of black and gray, and Peter didn't know of any othertail at all like it. Somehow, he felt right down deep in his heartthat there must be a reason for those rings, just as there is a reasonfor his own long ears and long legs. The more he thought about it, themore he felt that he simply must know, and the only way he could findout was from Grandfather Frog, who is very old and very wise. So heteased and he teased until finally Grandfather Frog promised him thaton the next afternoon he would tell Peter why Bobby Coon has rings onhis tail. Peter hurried away to tell all the little meadow and forestpeople, and the next afternoon they were all on hand on the bank ofthe Smiling Pool to hear the story about Bobby Coon's tail.
"Chug-a-rum!" began Grandfather Frog, smoothing down his white andyellow waistcoat. "Chug-a-rum! Some folks seem to think that what theydo doesn't matter to anybody but themselves. That was the way with oldMr. Rabbit, who lived a long time ago when the world was young. Hethought he could make all the trouble he pleased by his dreadfulcuriosity, and if he was found out, no one would suffer but himself.But it wasn't so. Here is Peter Rabbit, his grandchild a thousandtimes removed, with long legs and long ears, and the bad habit ofcuriosity, all because old Mr. Rabbit had a bad habit and didn't tryto overcome it.
"It was the same way with old Mr. Coon. He was dishonest and stolefrom Old King Bear. Old Mother Nature punished him by putting mustardin his food, and Mr. Coon thought he was so smart that he could getahead of Old Mother Nature by washing all his food before he ate it.Old Mother Nature didn't say anything, but watched him and smiled toherself. You see, she knew that Mr. Coon was beginning a good habit, avery good habit indeed--the habit of neatness. So, though she knewperfectly well that he was doing it just to get ahead of her, she wasglad, for she was fond of Mr. Coon in spite of the bad ways he hadgrown into, and she knew that good habits are like bad habits--oncestarted they grow and grow, and are very likely to lead to more goodhabits.
"It was so with Mr. Coon. He found that his food tasted better forbeing so clean, and he grew very fussy about what he ate. No matterwhere he found it or how tempting it looked, he wouldn't eat it untilhe had carried it to the nearest water and washed it. He stillremembered the mustard and tried to fool himself into thinking thathe was simply spiting Old Mother Nature, but right down in his hearthe knew that even if he should be told that never again would there bemustard in his food, he would wash it just the same.
"One day, as he sat beside the Laughing Brook eating his supper, henoticed that while his food had been washed clean, his hands weredirty. They spoiled his supper. Yes, Sir, they spoiled his supper.
"'What good does it do to wash my food, if I eat it out of dirtyhands?' said Mr. Coon to himself, and he hurried to a quiet littlepool to give them a good scrubbing. Then he washed his face andbrushed his coat. 'Now I feel better, and I know my supper will tastebetter,' said he.
"From that time he began to be particular, very particular, aboutkeeping himself clean, until finally there was no one on the GreenMeadows or in the Green Forest quite so neat as Mr. Coon.
"Now at this time Mr. Coon had a very plain tail. It was all of onecolor, a grayish white, not at all pretty. Mr. Coon used to think agreat deal about that tail and wish and wish that it was handsome.Sometimes he used to envy Mr. Fox his beautiful red tail with itsblack and white tip. One day, as he sat on an old log with his chin inhis hands, thinking about his tail, who should come along but OldMother Nature.
"'Good morning, Mr. Coon,' said she in her pleasantest voice.
"Mr. Coon got up and made a very low bow. 'Good morning, MotherNature,' he replied in his politest manner, which was very politeindeed.
"'What were you thinking about so hard?' asked Old Mother Nature.
"Mr. Coon looked a little bit ashamed. Then he sighed. 'I was wishingthat my tail was handsomer,' said he. 'But it is a very good tail asit is,' he added hastily.
"Old Mother Nature's eyes twinkled. She sat down beside Mr. Coon andasked him all about his affairs, just as if she didn't know all aboutthem already. She told him how pleased she was to find him so neat andclean, and Mr. Coon just tingled all over with pleasure. At last shegot up to go, and her eyes twinkled more than ever, as she said:
"'By the way, Mr. Coon, I am so pleased with your neatness that I amleaving you a reward. I hope you will like it.'
"Mr. Coon didn't see any reward, but he thanked her just the same, andOld Mother Nature went on her way. Mr. Coon watched her out of sight.Then he sat down on the old log again and scratched his headthoughtfully as he looked this way and that.
"'I wonder what she meant by reward. I don't see any anywhere,' hesaid to himself.
"By and by he just happened to glance at his tail. 'Oh!' cried Mr.Coon, and then for a long time he couldn't say another word, but justlooked and looked with shining eyes and such a queer feeling ofhappiness in his heart. You see, Old Mother Nature had left abeautiful, broad, black ring around his tail. Mr. Coon couldn't doanything the rest of that day but look at and admire that ring, untilhis neck ached from twisting it around so long.
"After that he was neater than ever, you may be sure, and the nexttime Old Mother Nature came around, she left another handsome blackring on his tail, because he hadn't grown careless, but had kept uphis good habits.
"Now about this time, hard times came to all the little people of theGreen Forest and the Green Meadows. Every one began to grumble. Mr.Bear grumbled. Mr. Fox grumbled. Mr. Rabbit grumbled. Mr. Jaygrumbled. Mr. Squirrel grumbled. Even Mr. Chuck grumbled. And one andall they began to blame Old Mother Nature. Then they began to quarrelamong themselves and to steal from each other. Some even left theirhomes and went out into the Great World to try to find a better placeto live, only to find that the Great World was a harder place to livein than the Green Forest and the Green Meadows.
"But Mr. Coon didn't grumble, and he didn't go away. No, Sir, Mr. Coonjust stuck to his home and did the best he could to find enough toeat. He kept himself as neat as ever and was always cheerful. Wheneverhe met one of his grumbling neighbors, he would say:
"'Better times coming! Better times coming! Old Mother Nature is doingthe best she can. Better times coming!'
"The others would laugh at him for his faith in Old Mother Nature, andsay ugly things about her, and urge Mr. Coon to go with them out intothe Great World. But he kept right on minding his own business andkeeping neat and cheerful, until at last Old Mother Nature, allworried and troubled, came to see what she could do to straightenmatters out. It didn't take her long to find out how all the littlemeadow and forest people, except Mr. Coon, had grumbled and beendiscontented and said ugly things about her, for you can't fool OldMother Nature, and it's of no use to try. Some she punished one way,and some she punished another way, for of course she hadn't been toblame for the hard times, but had been working night and day to put anend to them.
"Mr. Coon was the last to be called before her, and instead of beingfrowning and cross, as she had been to the others, she was all smiles.She said a lot of nice things to him, and when at last she sent himaway, what do you think she had given him?"
"More rings," cried Peter Rabbit.
"Yes," replied Grandfather Frog, "Mr. Coon's tail was ringed way tothe tip. There was one for cheerfulness, and one for faith, and onefor persistence in making the best of a bad matter and staying athome. And ever since that long-ago day when the worl
d was young, theCoons have been very proud of their beautiful tails and have kept upthe good habits of old Mr. Coon. Now you know, Peter Rabbit, whyBobby Coon wears rings on his tail," concluded Grandfather Frog.
Peter gave a long sigh. "I think it's perfectly beautiful," he said."I wish I had rings on my tail."
And then he wondered why everybody laughed.
Mother West Wind 'Why' Stories Page 11
