Bunny Rabbit's Diary   By: Mary Frances Blaisdell (1874-)

by

MARY FRANCES BLAISDELL

Author of "Boy Blue and His Friends," "Polly and Dolly," "Cherry Tree Children," "Tommy Tinker's Book," "Twilight Town," "Pretty Polly Flinders," etc.

Illustrated By George F. Kerr

School Edition

[Frontispiece: Sometimes Bunny talked to Mrs. Duck.]

Boston Little, Brown, And Company Copyright, 1915, by Little, Brown, And Company. All Rights reserved

PREFACE

Bunny Rabbit had a book for Christmas. Mother Rabbit made it for him out of maple leaves, pinned together with thorns from the rose bush on the stone wall. Bunny clapped his hands when he saw the book, and sat down at once on the old stump to read the stories. But there was not a story in the whole book no, not one! There wasn't even a picture.

"You must write the book yourself," Mother Rabbit told him. "Then you will be sure to like it."

So Bunny Rabbit wrote the book about the good times he had with Bobtail and Billy, and all his other playmates. He wrote about the slide they made on the long hill beside the pond; about Mrs. Duck's swimming lesson, and the kite Bobtail made out of a leaf from the big oak tree; about Sammy Red Squirrel's flying machine, and Bobby Gray Squirrel's peanut party.

He hid the book in the hollow tree where no one would find it. But some one did find it, some one who knew how to read the funny little tracks of rabbit writing, and here are the stories in Bunny Rabbit's Diary.

CONTENTS

BUNNY RABBIT'S DIARY BILLY'S SLIDE A CHRISTMAS TREE BOBTAIL'S KITE APRIL FOOL'S DAY MRS. DUCK'S SECRET THE SWIMMING LESSON THE CLOVER PATCH MOVING DAY A SUMMER SHOWER SAMMY'S FLYING MACHINE THE CABBAGE PATCH THE WHITE RABBIT TEDDY BEAR BOBBY'S PARTY

FULL PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR

Sometimes Bunny talked to Mrs. Duck . . . Frontispiece

Bunny put the acorn in front of Sammy's door

"Croak, croak!" said Mr. Green Frog

"Quack, quack! Where did you come from?"

ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT

Bunny played with the gray squirrel

The sled went on down the hill

The squirrel hunted for nuts

Once Bunny Rabbit saw a Christmas tree

Mrs. Duck was always in a hurry

He put one foot in the water

"I think it will rain to day"

Down to the ground Sammy fell

She wrapped his nose up in flannel

"Cock a doodle doo!" called the rooster

"This bag is full of peanuts"

They ate all the nuts they wanted

BUNNY RABBIT'S DIARY

Mr. and Mrs. Rabbit and the three little rabbits lived in the woods.

Each little rabbit had a name.

There was Bunny Rabbit, Bobtail Rabbit, and Billy Rabbit.

Bunny was full of fun, and liked to play tricks on his brothers.

Bobtail liked to play with Bunny. He was always ready to join in all the fun.

But Billy was lazy. He did not like to work, and he did not like to play.

He liked to curl up in the tall grass and sleep.

The rabbits had many playmates in the woods and fields.

They played with the gray squirrels that lived in the big oak tree.

They played with the red squirrels that lived in the old stone wall.

Sometimes Bunny ran down to the brook to visit old Mr. Green Frog.

Sometimes he talked to Mrs. Duck, when she came to the brook to teach her little ones to swim.

There was always something to do; and Bunny, and Bobtail, and Billy were always doing something.

[Illustration: Bunny played with the gray squirrel.]

One Christmas Mrs. Rabbit gave Bunny a book.

She made it herself out of maple leaves.

She pinned the leaves together with thorns from the rose bush that grew on the wall.

When Bunny saw the book he jumped up and down and clapped his hands.

"Oh, goody, goody!" he said. "What a pretty book this is."

"I will sit down on the old stump and read the stories this very minute."

So Bunny sat down on the stump and opened his book.