strong, headlong, hopeless, helpless
cowards as a race and a rule. "The heart of a rabbit," they say in
France, speaking of a coward. But all races and rules have exceptions.
Occasionally the exceptions are old buck-rabbits, who know a thing or
two; but more often they are old doe-rabbits with young. And, mark
you, from the point of view of those wild-folk, there may be easier
rough handfuls to tackle than old doe-rabbits with young. This one had
simply streaked out of the night from nowhere--and behind--and knocked
the cat flying before she knew. Then, ere ever the feline could gather
her wits, the old doe had descended upon her with an avalanche of
blows--punches they were with the forefeet, all over the head and the
nose, where a cat hates to be hit--and all so swiftly, so irresistibly,
that that cat had never been given a chance to consider before she was
stampeded into the night. It was the silver tabby's first experience
of Mrs. Rabbit doing the devoted-mother act, and, by the look of
her--tail only--and the speed at which she was going, it appeared most
likely that it would be her last.

[Illustration: "This one had simply streaked out of the night from
nowhere"]

Meanwhile the old doe-rabbit sat there in the moonlight as immovable
and impassive as a Buddha, and the hedgehog, peering at her, guessed
that the time to unroll was not yet. He knew that it would hurt any
one to attack him; the cat knew it; all rabbits in their senses knew
it; but was that mother-rabbit in her senses? He concluded to lie low
and remain a fortress, therefore.

Then, after waiting about five minutes, as if she knew that cats
sometimes steal back, the old doe-rabbit came to a "stop" quite close
to the hedgehog, and went in. She remained there some time, during
which a fox came by and sniffed at the hedgehog, but was quite wise as
to the foolishness of doing more; and a deadly, curved-backed,
flat-headed little murderer of a stoat galloped by, and sniffed too,
but was no bigger fool than the fox, and went his way.

Both missed the "stop" by about two yards, though I don't know what
would have happened if they had found it. Digging and death in the
former case, and battle and blood in the latter, perhaps. But no
matter, they passed on their unlawful occasions; and half-an-hour after
the going of the stoat the old doe-rabbit came out, and dissolved into
the moon-haze.

Then the hedgehog came out, too--of himself, and--well,