The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Tale of Mr. Tod, by Beatrix Potter

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Title: The Tale of Mr. Tod

Author: Beatrix Potter

Release Date: November 14, 2006 [EBook #19805]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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[Illustration]

THE TALE OF MR. TOD

BY

BEATRIX POTTER

_Author of "The Tale of Peter Rabbit," etc._

[Illustration]

FREDERICK WARNE & CO., INC. NEW YORK

COPYRIGHT, 1912
BY
FREDERICK WARNE & Co.

_Copyright renewed 1940_
(_All rights reserved_)

PRINTED AND BOUND IN THE USA
ROSE PRINTING CO INC

ISBN O 7232 0605 8

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 (C)

FOR
FRANCIS WILLIAM OF ULVA
----SOMEDAY!

[Illustration]

THE TALE OF MR. TOD

I have made many books about well-behaved people. Now, for a change, I
am going to make a story about two disagreeable people, called Tommy
Brock and Mr. Tod.

Nobody could call Mr. Tod "nice." The rabbits could not bear him; they
could smell him half a mile off. He was of a wandering habit and he had
foxey whiskers; they never knew where he would be next.

[Illustration]

One day he was living in a stick-house in the coppice, causing terror to
the family of old Mr. Benjamin Bouncer. Next day he moved into a pollard
willow near the lake, frightening the wild ducks and the water rats.

In winter and early spring he might generally be found in an earth
amongst the rocks at the top of Bull Banks, under Oatmeal Crag.

He had half a dozen houses, but he was seldom at home.

The houses were not always empty when Mr. Tod moved _out_; because
sometimes Tommy Brock moved _in_; (without asking leave).

Tommy Brock was a short bristly fat waddling person with a grin; he
grinned all over his face. He was not nice in his habits. He ate wasp
nests and frogs and worms; and he waddled about by moonlight, digging
things up.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

His clothes were very dirty; and as he slept in the day-time, he always
went to bed in his boots. And the bed which he went to bed in, was