ow Mouse Live High

Peter Rabbit sat in his secretest place in the dear Old
Briar-patch with one of his long hind legs all swelled up and
terribly sore because of the fine wire fast around it and cutting
into it. He could hear Farmer Brown's boy going around on the
edge of the dear Old Briar-patch and stopping every little while
to do something. In spite of his pain, Peter was curious.
Finally he called Danny Meadow Mouse.

"Danny, you are small and can keep out of sight easier than I
can. Go as near as ever you dare to Farmer Brown's boy and find
out what he is doing," said Peter Rabbit.

So Danny Meadow Mouse crept out as near to Farmer Brown's boy as
ever he dared, and studied and studied to make out what Farmer
Brown's boy was doing. By and by he returned to Peter Rabbit.

"I don't know what he's doing, Peter, but he's putting something
in every one of your private little paths leading into the
Briar-patch from the Green Meadows."

"Ha!" said Peter Rabbit.

"There are little loops of that queer stuff you've got hanging to
your leg, Peter," continued Danny Meadow Mouse.

"Just so!" said Peter Rabbit.

"And he's put cabbage leaves and pieces of apple all around,"
said Danny.

"We must be careful!" said Peter Rabbit.

Peter's leg was in a very bad way, indeed, and Peter suffered a
great deal of pain. The worst of it was, he didn't know how to
get off the wire that was cutting into it so. He had tried to
cut the wire with his big teeth, but he couldn't do it. Danny
Meadow Mouse had tried and tried to gnaw the wire, but it wasn't
the least bit of use. But Danny wasn't easily discouraged, and he
kept working and working at it. Once he thought he felt it slip a
little. He said nothing, but kept right on working. Pretty soon
he was sure that it slipped. He went right on working harder than
ever. By and by he had it so loose that he slipped it right off
Peter's leg, and Peter didn't know anything about it. You see,
that cruel wire snare had been so tight that Peter didn't have
any feeling except of pain left in his leg, and so when Danny
Meadow Mouse pulled the cruel wire snare off, Peter didn't know
it until Danny held it up in front of him.

My, how thankful Peter was, and how he did thank Danny Meadow
Mouse! But Danny said that it was nothing at all, just nothing at
all, and that he owed more than that to Peter Rabbit for being so
good to him and letting him live in the dear Old Briar-patch.

It was a