ney?" Mr. Rabbit
inquired.

"Oh, he's very slim," Peter Mink said. "_He_ can get inside the stump.
Don't you worry about _him_!"

Everybody seemed satisfied. So they dropped the money through the hole.

And then Mr. Rabbit said:

"When are you going to bring the poor boy to get the money?"

"To-morrow night would be a good time," Peter Mink said. "Would you all
like to come here to-morrow night at this same hour?"

And everybody said, "Yes!"

[Illustration]

MR. RABBIT IS WORRIED

When Mr. Rabbit reached home, after Peter Mink's lecture, and told his
wife about the money that had been collected for the poor boy whom Peter
Mink knew, she asked:

"Who has the money?"

"Oh, it's safe," said Mr. Rabbit. "It's hidden in an old stump. And the
hole in the stump is so small that even Peter himself can't crawl
through it."

"How do you know he can't?"

"He tried," said Mr. Rabbit.

"How do you know he tried as hard as he could?" Mrs. Rabbit asked.

That was what made Mr. Rabbit worry. So instead of going to bed, he
hurried back to the place where Peter had given his famous lecture; and
there he hid himself under a small pine.

Mr. Rabbit hadn't waited long before he saw some one come out of the
elderberry bushes and hurry up to the stump.

It was Peter Mink! He had a bag in his hand. And while Mr. Rabbit was
watching, he squeezed through the hole in the stump. Even for Peter Mink
the hole was almost too small. But he managed to squirm through, though
it cost him a few groans; and he said some words that made Mr. Rabbit
shake his head.

Well, as soon as Peter was inside the hole he began to push the money
through it. And then what do you suppose Mr. Rabbit did? He crept up to
the stump, picked up the bag, which Peter had left on the ground, and
as fast as the money rolled out of the hole, Mr. Rabbit put it inside
the bag.

The bag was almost full when the money stopped rolling out of the hole.
And Mr. Rabbit heard Peter Mink say to himself:

"That seems to be all!"

And as soon as he heard that, Mr. Rabbit hurried away, with the bag of
money over his shoulder.

Peter Mink waited a bit, to see if he could find more money. But he had
thrown it all out. So he squeezed through the hole again. Then he turned
to pick up the bag. But it had vanished.

"That's queer!" said Peter Mink. "I thought I left that bag right here."
He looked all around, but he couldn't find it anywhere. So he took off
his