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Peter Rabbit Goes To Sea
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ON the sunny side of a big hill, just on the edge of the wood, lived old Mother Rabbit and her four little children.
Their names were
                                    Flopsy,
                                         and Mopsy,
                                                and Cotton-tail,
                                                             and Peter.
Flopsy and Mopsy and Cotton-tail were good little girl rabbits, but Peter was a bad little boy rabbit and was always up to mischief.

ONE day his mother sent him over to Mr. McGregor's garden to get some cabbage leaves for breakfast.

The first cabbage he tried had leaves that were too small; the next one, the leaves were too large, but finally, he found one with the leaves just right, so he pulled out his little jack-knife and cut it off close to the ground:

ON the way home, what did Peter spy but three little green apples lying all alone under a big apple tree.

Peter hid the cabbage under a blackberry bush and crept slowly over to see what the three little green apples were doing there all by themselves. He wrinkled up his funny little nose, and sniffed, and sniffed, and they smelled so good that he took just a little bite. And then he nibbled, and he nibbled, and he bit, and he chewed, until all that was left of the three green apples was just three little cores.

THE three little apples were very, very green and it wasn't long before Peter felt oh! so sick. Off he put for home and Old Mother Rabbit, lippity — lippity — lippity — just as fast as his short little legs could carry him.

OLD MOTHER RABBIT was very angry because, of course, Peter had forgotten all about the cabbage which he had hidden under the blackberry bush, and there wasn't any breakfast for
                                          Flopsy,
                                               or Mopsy,
                                                       or Cotton-tail.

WHEN Old Mother Rabbit got through, Peter ran out into the wood. and cried and cried as fast as his little eyes could make tears.

It didn't make him feel any better to have Flopsy and Mopsy and Cotton-tail stand around and watch him.

THE next morning Old Mother Rabbit was up bright and early. As it was a nice day, she put on her red bonnet with the silk ribbons and decided that she would spend the day with little Mrs. Hare who lived over the hill.

"Now, my children," she said, "you may play in the woods and you may play in the bushes, but under no circumstances must you play near the brook."

AS soon as she was gone, Mopsy said, "Let's play store." They hunted, and hunted and they rummaged all around the house until they found some pop-corn that Old Mother Rabbit had hidden away for a Hallowe'en Party.

"DON'T let's play store," said Peter, "let's pop some corn and eat it all up."

Peter ran into the house and got some matches, and Flopsy and Mopsy and Cotton-tail scrambled around in the bushes and gathered a big heap of leaves and little sticks.

THEY didn't have any corn-popper, but Flopsy found a shovel, and Mopsy found an old tin can, and before you could say Jack Robinson, the little white corn flakes were flying around like a snow storm in January.

AFTER they had eaten, and eaten, and couldn't eat any more, there was some pop corn left over.

"Now," said Peter, "we'll keep what's left for lunch, and have an adventure."

FLOPSY wanted to play school and be the teacher, Mopsy wanted to play robbers and hide in a cave, but Peter wanted to play pirate and sail in a boat.

"Oh, Peter!" cried. Cottontail, "You mustn't. You know you mustn't! Mother told us not to play near the brook."

"WILL too," said Peter, and off he ran, and Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail ran after him.

HE ran, and he ran, till he came to the big house where Tillie Top-Knot lived, just beside the little brook.

Tillie Top-Knot was busy hunting bugs for her little chickens, and told Peter to help himself when he asked for a boat. He looked all around, but he couldn't find any boat. He looked all around and he couldn't even find a tub. But out in the back yard, he found an old soap box. He hammered, and he sawed, and he cut, and he nailed, and pretty soon there was a little boat just big enough for Peter.

TILLIE TOP-KNOT was very much interested watching Peter at work, but when she saw him getting ready to put the boat in the water, she told him he would surely be drowned.

As old as she was, she had never been on the water in her whole life.

PETER'S sail was made of an old apron, and a very good. sail it was, too, and very proud was Peter as he sailed down the brook, leaving Flopsy and Mopsy and Cotton-tail standing on the bank, wiping their eyes.

"GOOD-BYE," said Peter," as he waved his little red cap. "Good-bye," cried Flopsy and Mopsy, but all Cotton-tail could do was to wave her little white handkerchief, and pray that he might come back before Mother Rabbit got home, because Cotton-tail was very fond of Peter.

THE wind was strong, and the little brook ran fast, and almost before Peter knew it, there he was all alone on the great, wide, blue sea.

He sailed; and he sailed, until all of a sudden he was almost upset when Old Granddaddy Whale came up to the top of the water to see about the weather.

PETER had never seen larger fish than the minnows in the brook, and a little later when he saw OId Man Shark swimming along, his little heart almost stood still.

HE was so frightened that he forgot all about his steering, and he forgot all about his sail, and the first thing he knew Peter was bumped right out of his boat onto a big rock that stuck up out of the water.

“THAT'S a funny rock," said. Peter. "How did it happen to stick up here all by itself?"

IT wasn't a rock at all, but only old Granddaddy Whale who had come up to the top of the water to take a sun-bath.

The air was rather chilly, and when old Granddaddy whale sneezed, Peter had to leave very suddenly.

HE went up so quickly, and he went up so far, that he was very much surprised when he came down to find his little boat waiting patiently to carry him home.

HE scrambled, and he pulled, and finally he got all but one leg in the boat, when Johnny Crab came up behind him and said: "Wait a minute, Peter."

"STOP pinching and let me go," said Peter. "It's getting late and I want to go home to my Mother and Flopsy and Mopsy and Cotton-tail."

If the Gruff Old Sword-Fish hadn't cut him loose just then, it is possible that Peter might have made Johnny Crab a very, very long visit indeed.

THE little boat was headed for home, and soon Peter was skimming along over the water, as fast as the little waves would let him. High up in the sky, Sammie Sea Gull was looking all around for his dinner. He looked, and he looked, but he couldn't see a fish anywhere. All he could see was a little boat way down below.

"That's a good place to rest for a few minutes," he thought, so down he flew, and perched himself on the edge of the boat. Peter was half hidden by the sail, and Sammie Sea Gull was very much surprised to hear a little voice say, "Oh, please stop teetering or you'll upset the boat."

"WHY, Goodness Gracious!" said Sammie Sea Gull, turning around "if it isn't a little rabbit out here on the great, wide, blue ocean, all by himself. I'll surely have to take him home and show him to the children." So he stretched out his long white neck, and stuck out his long, sharp beak, with the funny little hook on the end of it, and, taking a good grip on Peter's blue jacket, away he flew.

PETER was a brave little rabbit, however, and, all the time Sammy Sea Gull was flying along, Peter was busy thinking how he could manage to get away. He knew that Sea Gulls are very much afraid of Fish Hawks. So, when he saw a great big hay stack down below, he suddenly cried out, "Oh, Mister Sea Gull, look out for that Fish Hawk – quick!" "Where?" screamed Sammy Sea Gull. And, of course, when he said, "Where?" he opened his mouth, and down dropped Peter.

It was a good long fall, but Peter had picked out a good big bay stack to land on, and, after he had bounced up and down a few times, he slid off onto the ground.

PETER picked himself up and counted all his fingers and all his toes, and made sure they were all there. Then off he scampered over the field, and through the wood, and down the hill, till he came to the big fir tree, and all he could say when old Mother Rabbit took him up in her arms was: "Oh, Mother, dear, please put me in my little bed just as fast as you can. I don't never want to try to be a Pirate again."