t really
seemed as if I ought to stay with him after all he'd done in the way
of helping me with the little house, so I told him I'd hang round for
a spell; but I'd draw the line at going any nearer the barn.

"Well, we stayed there in the bushes a while without being able to see
very much, although we could hear the boys talking, and then Jimmy
said, speaking as if he were all out of patience with me:

"'I'm going to see what they are doing; if you're afraid you can wait
here till I come back.'

"I said all I could to prevent him from running his nose into danger,
as Cheeko had done, but he wouldn't listen, so I crept further into
the bushes and off he toddled. How long I stayed there it would be
hard to say, but it seemed as if two or three hours had passed when I
heard Mr. Crow saying, his voice sounding as if he were a long
distance away:

"'Look out for your hide, Jimmy Hedgehog, for here comes Mr. Man with
a gun and a dog!'

"Then of course I remembered what Mrs. Bunny had told me and although
I was so frightened that my teeth chattered I couldn't help creeping
out a bit to see what Jimmy was doing. I had just got into a place
where it was possible to have a full view of the barn, when whom
should I see but that foolish Jimmy standing on his hind legs looking
from one side to the other, but never behind him where was Mr. Man
creeping along as if he were making ready to shoot.

"Oh me! oh my! how I tried to scream for him to turn around, but my
lungs are not very strong, as you know, and I couldn't have made him
hear me if he hadn't been half as far away, but Mr. Crow was on the
watch and he screamed as he flew down almost directly across Jimmy's
face:

"'Can't you see an inch behind your back, silly beast? I've been
telling you over and over again that Mr. Man was out looking for such
as you!'

"You never saw a hedgehog jump as Jimmy did then! He hadn't paid any
attention to anything except what the boys were doing, and now he
made up for lost time. It seemed to me as if he turned more than four
somersaults before he struck the ground, and even while he was leaping
bang! went Mr. Man's gun. I couldn't see whether my friend had been
hit or not--dear, dear, you'll have to excuse me a minute more, for
there is Mrs. Bunny shaking her ears at me. Now, what do you suppose
she has got on her mind?"

Then Mr. Bunny jumped off the log hurriedly running toward a bunch of
ferns which were swaying to and fro, alt