“By and by things got so bad that they reached the ears of Old Mother Nature, and she came to find out what it all meant.  Now, the very night before she arrived, Mrs. Quack, who lived on the river bank, had a terrible fright.  Somebody sprang upon her as she was sleeping, and in the struggle she lost all her tail feathers.  She hurried to tell Old Mother Nature all about it, and big tears rolled down her cheeks as she told how she had lost all her beautiful tail feathers.  Mother Nature called all the people of the forest and the meadows together.  She made them all pass before her, and she looked sharply at each one as they went by.  Mr. Fox looked meeker than ever, and he was very humble and polite.

“Now when Mr. Fox had paid his respects and turned his back, Old Mother Nature saw something red on the tail of his coat.  It was nothing but a little smear of red clay, but that was enough for Old Mother Nature.  You see, she knew that Mrs. Quack’s home was right at the foot of a red claybank.  She didn’t say a word until everybody had paid their respects and passed before her.  Then she told them how grieved she was to hear of all the trouble there had been, but that she couldn’t watch over each one all the time; they must learn to watch out for themselves.

“And so that you may know who to watch out for, from now on never trust the one who wears a bright red coat,” concluded Old Mother Nature.

“All of a sudden Mr. Fox became aware that everybody was looking at him, and in every face was hate.  He glanced at his coat.  It was bright red!  Then Mr. Fox knew that he had been found out, and he sneaked away with his tail between his legs.  The first chance he got, he went to Old Mother Nature and begged her to give him back his old coat.  She promised that she would when his heart changed, and he changed his ways.  But his heart never did change, and his children and his children’s children were just like him.  They have always been the smartest and the sliest and the most feared and disliked of all the little people on the meadows or in the forest.  And now you know why Reddy Fox wears a red coat,” concluded Grandfather Frog.

Peter Rabbit drew a long breath.  “Thank you, thank you, Grandfather Frog!” said he.  “I—­I think hereafter I’ll be quite content with my own suit, even if it isn’t handsome.  Jenny Wren was right.  A good heart and honest ways are better than fine clothes.”

V

WHY JIMMY SKUNK NEVER HURRIES

The Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind had just been released from the big bag in which she carries them every night to their home behind the Purple Hills and every morning brings them back to the Green Meadows to romp and play all day.  They romped and raced and danced away, some one way, some another, to see whom they could find to play with.  Presently some of them spied Jimmy Skunk slowly ambling down the Crooked Little Path, stopping every few steps to pull over a loose stone or stick.  They knew what he was doing that for.  They knew that he was looking for fat beetles for his breakfast.  They danced over to him and formed a ring around him while they sang: