r and barked at him and
tried to get at him. But the old wall kept Peter safe, and
Bowser gave it up. And all the time Peter sat waiting he was in
great pain. You see, that shiny wire was drawn so tight that it
cut into his flesh and hurt dreadfully, and to the other end of
the wire was fastened a piece of wood, part of the stake to which
the snare had been made fast and which Peter had managed to gnaw
and break off.

It was on account of this that Peter was waiting for Mrs. Moon to
put out her light. He knew that with that stake dragging after
him he would have to go very slowly, and he could not run any
more risk of danger than he actually had to. So he waited and
waited, and by and by, sure enough, Mrs. Moon put out her light.
Peter waited a little longer, listening with all his might.
Everything was still. Then Peter crept out of the old stone wall.

Right away trouble began. The stake dragging at the end of the
wire fast to his leg caught among the stones and pulled Peter up
short. My, how it did hurt! It made the tears come. But Peter
shut his teeth hard, and turning back, he worked until he got the
stake free. Then he started on once more, dragging the stake
after him.

Very slowly across the orchard and under the fence on the other
side crept Peter Rabbit, his leg so stiff and sore that he could
hardly touch it to the snow, and all the time dragging that piece
of stake, which seemed to grow heavier and harder to drag every
minute. Peter did not dare to go out across the open fields, for
fear some danger might happen along, and he would have no place
to hide. So he crept along close to the fences where bushes grow,
and this made it very, very hard, for the dragging stake was
forever catching in the bushes with a yank at the sore leg which
brought Peter up short with a squeal of pain.

This was bad enough, but all the time Peter was filled with a
dreadful fear that Hooty the Owl or Granny Fox might just happen
along. He had to stop to rest very, very often, and then he would
listen and listen. Over and over again he said to himself:

"Oh dear, whatever did I go up to the young peach orchard for
when I knew I had no business there? Why couldn't I have been
content with all the good things that were mine in the Green
Forest and on the Green Meadows? Oh dear! Oh dear!"

Just as jolly, round, red Mr. Sun began to light up the Green
Meadows, Peter Rabbit reached the dear Old Briar-patch. Danny
Meadow Mouse wa