"Baa, baa, baa!" cried the sheep and started to run. Reddy hung on tightly, and away they raced across the pasture.
Now Bowser the Hound trusts wholly to his nose to follow Reddy Fox or Peter Rabbit or his master, Farmer Brown's boy. So he did not see Reddy jump on the back of the sheep, and, of course, when he reached the place where Reddy had found his strange horse, he was puzzled. Round and round, and round and round Bowser worked in a circle, but no trace of Reddy could he find.
And all the time Reddy sat behind the stone wall on the far side of the pasture, getting his wind and laughing and laughing at the smart way in which he had fooled Bowser the Hound.
VII. Reddy Invites Peter Rabbit to Take a Walk
Old Granny Fox was not feeling well. For three days she had been unable to go out hunting, and for three days Reddy Fox had tried to find something to tempt Granny's appetite. He had brought in a tender young chicken from Farmer Brown's hen yard, and he had stolen a plump trout from Billy Mink's storehouse, but Granny had just turned up her nose.
"What I need," said Granny Fox, "is a tender young rabbit."
Now, Reddy Fox is very fond of Granny Fox, and when she said that she needed a tender young rabbit, Reddy made up his mind that he would get it for her, though how he was going to do it he didn't know. Dozens of times he had tried to catch Peter Rabbit, and every time Peter's long legs had taken him to a place of safety. "I'll just have to fool Peter Rabbit," said Reddy Fox, as he sat on his door-steps and looked over the Green Meadows.
Reddy Fox is very sly. He is so sly that it is hard work to be sure when he is honest and when he is playing a trick. As he sat on his door-steps, looking across the Green Meadows, he saw the Merry Little Breezes coming his way. Reddy smiled to himself. When they got near enough, he shouted to them.
"Will you do something for me?" he asked.
"Of course we will," shouted the Merry Little Breezes, who are always delighted to do something for others.
"I wish you would find Peter Rabbit and tell him that I have found a new bed of tender young carrots in Farmer Brown's garden, and invite him to go there with me to-morrow morning at sun-up," said Reddy Fox.
Away raced the Merry Little Breezes to find Peter Rabbit and give him the invitation of Reddy Fox. Pretty soon back they came to tell Reddy that Peter Rabbit would be delighted to meet Reddy on the edge of the Old Briar-patch at sun-up the next morning, and go with him to get some tender young carrots.
Reddy smiled to himself, for now he was sure that he would get Peter Rabbit for Granny's breakfast.
Early the next morning, just before sun-up, Reddy Fox started down the Lone Little Path and hurried across the Green Meadows to the Old Briar-patch. Reddy was dressed in his very best suit of clothes, and very smart and handsome he looked. When he reached the Old Briar-patch he could see nothing of Peter Rabbit. He waited and waited and waited, but still Peter Rabbit did not come. Finally he gave it up and decided that he would go over and have a look at the young carrots in Farmer Brown's garden. When he got there, what do you think he saw? Why, all around that bed of tender young carrots were footprints, and the footprints were Peter Rabbit's!
Reddy Fox ground his teeth and snarled wickedly, for he knew then that instead of fooling Peter Rabbit, Peter Rabbit had fooled him. Just then up came one of the Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind.
"Good morning, Reddy Fox," said the Merry Little Breeze.
"Good morning," replied Reddy Fox, and if you could have seen him and heard him, you would never have suspected how ill-tempered he was feeling.
"Peter Rabbit asked me to come and tell you that he is very sorry that he could not meet you at the Briar-patch this morning, but that he grew so hungry thinking of those tender young carrots that he just had to come and get some before sun-up, and he is very much obliged to you for telling him about them. He says they are the finest young carrots that he has ever tasted," said the Merry Little Breeze.
The heart of Reddy Fox was filled with rage, but he did not let the Merry Little Breeze know it. He just smiled and sent the Merry Little Breeze back to Peter Rabbit to tell him how glad he was that Peter enjoyed the carrots, and to invite Peter to meet him the next morning on the edge of the Old Briar-patch at sun-up, to go with him to a patch of sweet clover which he had just found near the old hickory-tree.
The Merry Little Breeze danced off with the message. Pretty soon he was back to say that Peter Rabbit would be delighted to go to the sweet clover patch the next morning.
Reddy grinned as he trudged off home. "I'll just be at the clover patch an hour before sun-up to-morrow morning, and then we'll see!" he said to himself.
VIII. Peter Rabbit Gets an Early Breakfast
Peter Rabbit crept out of his snug little bed in the middle of the Old Briar-patch two hours before sun-up and hurried over to the big hickory-tree. Sure enough, close by, he found a beautiful bed of sweet clover, just as Reddy Fox had said was there. Peter chuckled to himself as he ate and ate and ate, until his little round stomach was so full that he could hardly hop.
When he had eaten all that he could, he hurried back to the Old Briar-patch to finish his morning nap, and all the time he kept chuckling to himself. You see, Peter was suspicious of Reddy Fox, and so he had gone over to the sweet clover bed alone two hours before sun-up.
Peter Rabbit had hardly left the sweet clover bed when Reddy Fox arrived. Reddy lay down in the long meadow grass and grinned to himself as he waited. Slowly the minutes went by, until up from behind the Purple Hills came jolly, round, red Mr. Sun—but no Peter Rabbit. Reddy stopped grinning.
"Perhaps," said he to himself, "Peter is waiting for me on the edge of the Old Briar-patch and wasn't going to try to fool me."
So Reddy hurried over to the Old Briar-patch, and sure enough there was Peter Rabbit 'sitting on the edge of it. When Peter saw him coming, he dodged in behind a big clump of friendly old brambles. Reddy came up with his broadest smile.
"Good morning, Peter Rabbit," said Reddy. "Shall we go over to that sweet clover bed?"
Peter put one hand over his mouth to hide a smile. "Oh," said he, "I was so dreadfully hungry for sweet clover that I couldn't wait until sun-up, and so I went over two hours ago. I hope you will excuse me, Reddy Fox. I certainly do appreciate your kindness in telling me of that new, sweet clover bed and I hope I have not put you out."
"Certainly not," replied Reddy Fox, in his pleasantest manner, and you know Reddy Fox can be very pleasant indeed when he wants to be. "It is a very great pleasure to be able to give you pleasure. There is nothing I so like to do as to give pleasure to others. By the way, I have just heard that Farmer Brown has a new planting of young cabbage in the corner of his garden. Will you meet me here at sun-up to-morrow morning to go over there?"
"I will be delighted to, I will indeed!" replied Peter Rabbit, and all the time he smiled to himself behind his hand.
Reddy Fox bade Peter Rabbit good-by in the pleasantest way you can imagine, yet all the time, down in his heart, Reddy was so angry that he hardly knew what to do, for you see he had got to go back to Granny Fox without the tender young rabbit which he had promised her.
"This time I will be there two hours before sun-up, and