Mother West Wind's Children

by Thornton W. Burgess

  IX

  MR. TOAD'S OLD SUIT

  Peter Rabbit was tired and very sleepy as he hopped along the CrookedLittle Path down the hill. He could see Old Mother West Wind justemptying her Merry Little Breezes out of her big bag onto the GreenMeadows to play all the bright summer day. Peter Rabbit yawned andyawned again as he watched them dance over to the Smiling Pool. Thenhe hopped on down the Crooked Little Path towards home.

  Sammy Jay, sitting on a fence post, saw him coming.

  "Peter Rabbit out all night! Oh my goodness what a sight! Peter Rabbit, reprobate! No good end will be your fate!"

  shouted Sammy Jay.

  Peter Rabbit ran out his tongue at Sammy Jay.

  "Who stole Happy Jack's nuts? Thief! Thief! Thief!" shouted PeterRabbit at Sammy Jay, and kept on down the Crooked Little Path.

  It was true--Peter Rabbit had been out all night playing in themoonlight, stealing a midnight feast in Farmer Brown's cabbage patchand getting into mischief with Bobby Coon. Now when most of the littlemeadow people were just waking up Peter Rabbit was thinking of bed.

  Presently he came to a big piece of bark which is the roof of Mr.Toad's house. Mr. Toad was sitting in his doorway blinking at jolly,round, red Mr. Sun, who had just begun to climb up the sky.

  "Good morning, Mr. Toad," said Peter Rabbit.

  "Good morning," said Mr. Toad.

  "You're looking very fine this morning, Mr. Toad," said Peter Rabbit.

  "I'm feeling very fine this morning," said Mr. Toad.

  "Why, my gracious, you have on a new suit, Mr. Toad!" exclaimed PeterRabbit.

  "Well, what if I have, Peter Rabbit?" demanded Mr. Toad.

  "Oh, nothing, nothing, nothing at all, Mr. Toad, nothing at all," saidPeter Rabbit hastily, "only I didn't know you ever had a new suit.What have you done with your old suit, Mr. Toad?"

  "Swallowed it," said Mr. Toad shortly, turning his back on Peter Rabbit.

  And that was all Peter Rabbit could get out of Mr. Toad, so he startedon down the Crooked Little Path. Now Peter Rabbit has a great deal ofcuriosity and is forever poking into other people's affairs. The morehe thought about it the more he wondered what Mr. Toad could have donewith his old suit. Of course he hadn't _swallowed_ it! Who ever heardof such a thing! The more he thought of it the more Peter Rabbit feltthat he must know what Mr. Toad had done with his old suit. By thistime he had forgotten that he had been out all night. He had forgottenthat he was sleepy. He had got to find out about Mr. Toad's old suit.

  "I'll just run over to the Smiling Pool and ask Grandfather Frog.He'll surely know what Mr. Toad does with his old suits," said PeterRabbit, and began to hop faster.

  When he reached the Smiling Pool there sat Great-Grandfather Frog onhis big green lily pad as usual. There was a hungry look in his biggoggly eyes, for it was so early that no foolish, green flies had comehis way yet. But Peter Rabbit was too full of curiosity in Mr. Toad'saffairs to notice this.

  "Good morning, Grandfather Frog," said Peter Rabbit.

  "Good morning," replied Grandfather Frog a wee bit gruffly.

  "You're looking very fine this morning, Grandfather Frog," said PeterRabbit.

  "Not so fine as I'd feel if I had a few fat, foolish, green flies,"said Grandfather Frog.

  "I've just met your cousin, Mr. Toad, and he has on a new suit," saidPeter Rabbit.

  "Indeed!" replied Grandfather Frog. "Well, I think it's high time."

  "What does Mr. Toad do with his old suit, Grandfather Frog?" askedPeter Rabbit.

  "Chug-a-rum! It's none of my business. Maybe he swallows it," repliedGrandfather Frog crossly, and turned his back on Peter Rabbit.

  Peter Rabbit saw that his curiosity must remain unsatisfied. Hesuddenly remembered that he had been out all night and was very, verysleepy, so he started off home across the Green Meadows.

  Now the Merry Little Breezes had heard all that Peter Rabbit andGrandfather Frog had said, and they made up their minds that they wouldfind out from Grandfather Frog what Mr. Toad really did do with his oldsuit. First of all they scattered over the Green Meadows. Presentlyback they all came, each blowing ahead of him a fat, foolish, greenfly. Right over to the big green lily pad they blew the green flies.

  "Chug-a-rum! Chug-a-rum! Chug-a-rum!" said Grandfather Frog, as eachfat, foolish, green fly disappeared inside his white and yellowwaistcoat. When the last one was out of sight, all but a leg which wasleft sticking out of a corner of Grandfather Frog's big mouth, one ofthe Merry Little Breezes ventured to ask him what became of Mr. Toad'sold suit.

  Grandfather Frog settled himself comfortably on the big green lily padand folded his hands across his white and yellow waistcoat.

  "Chug-a-rum," began Grandfather Frog. "Once upon a time--"

  The Merry Little Breezes clapped their hands and settled themselvesamong the buttercups and daisies, for they knew that soon they wouldknow what Mr. Toad did with his old suit.

  "Once upon a time," began Grandfather Frog again, "when the world wasyoung, old King Bear received word that old Mother Nature would visitthe Green Meadows and the Green Forest. Of course old King Bear wantedhis kingdom and his subjects to look their very best, so he issued aroyal order that every one of the little meadow people and every one ofthe little forest folk should wear a new suit on the day that oldMother Nature was to pay her visit.

  "Now like old King Bear, every one wanted to appear his very bestbefore old Mother Nature, but as no one knew the exact day she was tocome, every one began at once to wear his best suit, and to take thegreatest care of it. Old King Bear appeared every day in a suit ofglossy black. Lightfoot the Deer, threw away his dingy gray suit, andput on a coat of beautiful red and fawn. Mr. Mink, Mr. Otter, Mr.Muskrat, Mr. Rabbit, Mr. Woodchuck, Mr. Coon, who you know was firstcousin to old King Bear, Mr. Gray Squirrel, Mr. Fox Squirrel, Mr. RedSquirrel, all put on brand new suits. Mr. Skunk changed his black andwhite stripes for a suit of all black, very handsome, very handsomeindeed. Mr. Chipmunk took care to see that his new suit had the mostbeautiful stripes to be obtained.

  "Mr. Jay, who was something of a dandy, had a wonderful new coat thatlooked for all the world as it if had been cut from the bluest patch ofsky and trimmed with edging taken from the whitest clouds. Even Mr.Crow and Mr. Owl took pains to look their very best.

  "But Mr. Toad couldn't see the need of such a fuss. He thought hisneighbors spent altogether too much time and thought on dress. To besure he was anxious to look his best when old Mother Nature came, so hegot a new suit all ready. But Mr. Toad couldn't afford to sit aroundin idleness admiring his new clothes. No indeed! Mr. Toad had toomuch to do. He was altogether too busy. He had a large garden to takecare of, had Mr. Toad, and work in a garden is very hard on clothes.So Mr. Toad just wore his old suit over his new one and went on abouthis business.

  "By and by the great day came when old Mother Nature arrived to inspectthe kingdom of old King Bear. All the little meadow people and all thelittle forest folk hastened to pay their respects to old Mother Natureand to strut about in their fine clothes--all but Mr. Toad. He was sobusy that he didn't even know that old Mother Nature had arrived.

  "Late in the afternoon, Mr. Toad stopped to rest. He had just clearedhis cabbage patch of the slugs which threatened to eat up his crop andhe was very tired. Presently he happened to look up the road, and whoshould he see but old Mother Nature herself coming to visit his gardenand to find out why Mr. Toad had not been to pay her his respects.

  "Suddenly Mr. Toad remembered that he had on his working clothes, whichwere very old, very dirty and very ragged. For just a minute he didn'tknow what to do. Then he dived under a cabbage leaf and began to pulloff his old suit. But the old suit stuck! He was in such a hurry andso excited that he couldn't find the buttons. Finally he got histrousers off. Then he reached over and got hold of the back of hiscoat and tugged and hauled until finally he pulled his old coat offright over his head just as if it were a shirt.

&n
bsp; "Mr. Toad gave a great sigh of relief as he stepped out in his newsuit, for you remember that he had been wearing that new suitunderneath the old one all the time.

  "Mr. Toad was very well pleased with himself until he thought howterribly untidy that ragged old suit looked lying on the ground. Whatshould he do with it? He couldn't hide it in the garden, for oldMother Nature's eyes are so sharp that she would be sure to see it.What should he do?

  "Then Mr. Toad had a happy thought. Every one made fun of his bigmouth. But what was a big mouth for if not to use? He would swallowhis old suit! In a flash Mr. Toad dived under the cabbage leaf andcrammed his old suit into his mouth.

  "When old Mother Nature came into the garden, Mr. Toad was waiting inthe path to receive her. Very fine he looked in his new suit and youwould have thought he had been waiting all day to receive old MotherNature, but for one thing--swallow as much and as hard as he would, hecouldn't get down quite all of his old suit, and a leg of his trousershung out of a corner of his big mouth.

  "Of course old Mother Nature saw it right away. And how she did laugh!And of course Mr. Toad felt very much mortified. But Mother Nature wasso pleased with Mr. Toad's garden and with Mr. Toad's industry that shequite overlooked the ragged trousers leg hanging from the corner of Mr.Toad's mouth.

  "'Fine clothes arc not to be compared with fine work,' said old MotherNature. 'I herewith appoint you my chief gardener, Mr. Toad. And as asign that all may know that this is so, hereafter you shall alwaysswallow your old suit whenever you change your clothes!'

  "And from that day to this the toads have been the very best ofgardeners. And in memory of their great, great, great-grandfather athousand times removed they have always swallowed their old suits.

  "Now you know what my cousin, old Mr. Toad, did with his old suit justbefore Peter Rabbit passed his house this morning," concludedGreat-Grandfather Frog.

  "Oh," cried the Merry Little Breezes, "thank you, thank you,Grandfather Frog!"

  Then they raced away across the Green Meadows and up the Crooked LittlePath to see if old Mr. Toad was gardening. And Peter Rabbit stillwonders what old Mr. Toad did with his old suit.