“What’s New York?” asked Susie Littletail.

“I don’t know,” answered her uncle promptly.  “I imagine it must be something good to eat.”  But of course, children, you know how mistaken he was.  Uncle Wiggily told more about his walk, and finally it was decided to take the new burrow, so the cat could not find them.

The next day the Littletail family moved.  That is all they did, they just moved.  They had no packing or unpacking to do, except that Sammie took the whistle he had made out of a carrot and Uncle Wiggily carried his cornstalk crutch.  By noon they were all settled, and Jane Fuzzy-Wuzzy had cooked some of the new cabbage, which had been left in the field all winter, and also some turnips, which were piled under a lot of straw out-of-doors.  She also found some potatoes, which she peeled with her sharp teeth.

That afternoon, as Sammie was hopping about his new home, he heard some one exclaim: 

“Hello!”

“Hello,” replied Sammie, who always wanted to be friendly.

“Where do you live?” the voice went on, and, all at once, Sammie thought of the cat.

“No, you don’t!” he cried.  “You can’t fool me again.  I know you!”

“Oh, do you?” asked the voice.  “Well, seeing that I’m a stranger here, and you are too, I don’t think that you know me.”

Sammie looked on top of a clod of earth, whence the voice came, and saw a big frog.

“Oh, it’s you, is it?” he asked faintly.

“Of course,” replied the frog.  “My name’s Bully; what’s yours?” Sammie told him.  “Ever hear of me?” went on the frog, and when Sammie said he had not, the frog continued:  “Well, let’s see who can jump the farthest,” and with that he began to get ready.  Sammie, who was a very good jumper, did also, and just as they were about to see who was the better at it, there suddenly—­But there, I shall have to wait until to-morrow night to tell you what happened next.

XIV

HOW THE WATER GOT IN

Let me see, where did I leave off last night?  Oh, I remember now, I was telling you about Sammie Littletail’s new playmate, Bully, the frog, and how they were about to have a jumping contest, when something happened.  This is what happened: 

Bully was crouching down for a spring, when he suddenly looked up.  This was not hard for him, as his eyes were nearly on top of his head, but Sammie had to get on his hind legs to peer upward properly.  And this is what both of the little creatures saw:  A big bird, with long legs and a very long bill, was standing on one leg right over the frog.  The bird was looking intently at Bully.

“Come on!” cried the frog to the rabbit.  “We must get away from here as quickly as we can.”

“Why?” asked Sammie Littletail.

“Because,” said Bully, “that bird will eat us.  My father warned me never to stay near that bird.  Let us go away at once.”