peter rabbit had seen a very strange thing. it was strange to peter, anyway. it gave him something to think about, and this, i am sure you will agree, was a most excellent thing, for it kept him out of mischief for a while. he had been over to the smiling pool for a call on jerry muskrat and had just started back for the dear old briar-patch when he chanced to look over in the direction of the big river. coming straight towards him, but high in the air, was a big bird, a bird with broad wings. peter didn't have to look twice to know that it was a member of the hawk family. at first he thought it was redtail. then he caught a flash of white, and he thought it was whitetail the marsh hawk, in spite of the fact that it didn't fly like him. peter didn't stop to think of that. it was enough for him that a member of the hawk family was headed that way, and he didn't care a twitch of his funny little tail which member it was. he felt that the stomach of one was quite as undesirable a place for peter rabbit as the stomach of another, and he had no intention of filling any if he could help it.
he remembered that there was an old house of johnny chuck's under the big hickory-tree on the bank of the smiling pool, and he wasted no time in getting there, lipperty-lipperty-lip, as fast as he could go. he would stay there until the way was clear to get home to the dear old briar-patch. as soon as he was safe in the old house of johnny chuck, he turned and poked his head out of the doorway. he wanted to see if any one would be caught. he hoped not, but if any one was caught, he wanted to see. you know peter never misses anything if he can help it. on came mr. hawk, and when he was right over the smiling pool, he turned and made a short circle high in the air. then peter saw that he had a white waist-coat and was a stranger.
"i wonder who he is?" thought peter, staring very hard. "he's bigger than either redtail or whitetail. i hope he isn't going to make his home here, because we have trouble enough as it is."
suddenly mr. hawk paused high up in the air, then closed his wings and shot straight down like an arrow. plunge! peter couldn't believe his own eyes. mr. hawk actually had disappeared in the smiling pool! a second later there was a great splashing, and out of the water rose mr. hawk, flapping his great wings heavily, scattering spray in all directions. up, up he went, and then peter saw that in his great claws was a fish. peter watched him fly away with the fish, and when he felt that it was quite safe to do so, he came out. over on the end of an old log among the bulrushes sat jerry muskrat just where peter had left him. it was very plain that jerry hadn't been the least bit frightened by mr. hawk. peter couldn't understand it. his eyes fairly popped out of his head with excitement and curiosity.
"who was that?" he asked eagerly.
"that? why, that was plunger the osprey, though some people call him fish hawk," replied jerry. "i thought everybody knew him. why did you run away, peter? he wouldn't hurt you."
"huh! i wouldn't trust any hawk!" snapped peter.
"which goes to show how little you know!" retorted jerry muskrat. "plunger never bothers anybody but the fish, but he surely is a terror to them. old mother nature knew what she was doing when she made fishermen out of that family, didn't she?"
"she certainly did, though i've never heard how she came to do it. how did it happen, jerry?" peter was doing some fishing himself. he was fishing for a story.
jerry muskrat grinned. "think you'll sleep any better if i tell you?" he inquired.
peter grinned back and nodded. so jerry muskrat told him this story:
"way back in the days when the world was young, and the great-great-ever-so-great-grandfathers of all the little people of the green meadows and the green forest of today were being started out in life by old mother nature, they had everything to learn. the great world was a new place, and they were new in it. no one knew exactly his place or what was expected of him, and old mother nature was too busy to be bothered with questions. she expected each one to work out for himself a way in which to make himself useful, or at least to take care of himself, without bothering her. if he couldn't do that, she didn't want him around at all, and the sooner something happened to him the better. so the great world began to be peopled with birds and animals.
"it didn't take them long to learn that it wouldn't be possible for all to live if they all ate the same kind of food. so some learned to eat one thing and some another, and all went happily until there came a time when all food was scarce, and more stomachs were empty than full. you've heard about that hard time and sad time?"
peter nodded, and jerry took a drink of water and then went on with his tale.
"of course, that was really a very dreadful time, for it was then that the strong began to hunt the weak, and fear was born into the world. and yet i guess it wasn't wholly bad. nothing is, so far as i can find out. anyway, because of that hard time, everybody became a little smarter than before. you know an empty stomach sharpens wit, and fear puts a fine edge on it. now mr. osprey, who was one of the biggest of the cousins of old king eagle, couldn't get over a feeling of meanness whenever he hunted those smaller than himself. one day he caught little mr. sparrow when little mr. sparrow was so busy that he forgot to watch out.
"'i'm powerful sorry, mr. sparrow,' apologized mr. osprey, 'but there's an emptiness just about your size in my stomach, and it won't give me any peace of mind until it's filled. i hate to make a neighbor uncomfortable, and i'll be just as quick and accommodating about this little matter as i can. if you'll just shut your eyes, you won't see anything unpleasant, and i won't be a minute in getting that peace of mind i've been without so long. i just must have it, or i wouldn't bother you at all. i hope you won't hold it against me, mr. sparrow.'
"mr. osprey was so nice and polite about it that little mr. sparrow perked up a little and started his wits working. he tried to be just as nice and polite as mr. osprey. 'i know just how you feel, mr. osprey,' said he, in a trembling voice, 'and during these hard times i've had that same ailment of the mind because of lonesomeness of the stomach, which is troubling you. so long as that emptiness is filled, i don't suppose it matters to you if i shouldn't happen to fill it.'
"'not at all,' replied mr. osprey.
"'mr. osprey,' said little mr. sparrow very earnestly, 'if i were in your place, i never would go hungry. no, sir, i never would go hungry. and i certainly never, never would trouble any of my neighbors who wear feathers. i certainly would feel most happy if old mother nature had given me what she has given you. indeed i would.'
"mr. osprey looked down at little mr. sparrow and blinked at him in a puzzled way. 'what has old mother nature given me that you would be happy to have?' he asked.
"'fishhooks!' replied little mr. sparrow, pointing to mr. osprey's great claws, 'the finest fishhooks in the world. you don't hear billy mink or little joe otter or mr. heron complaining about hard times. why? because they don't know what hard times are. there are plenty of fish to be caught, and when they are hungry they go fishing. fish are very filling and satisfying, i've heard say. when i flew across the smiling pool a little while ago, i saw a fat fish taking a sun-bath right close to the top of the water. seemed like he was just waiting for some one with hooks to come along and snatch him right out of the water.'
"'where'd you say that fish was?' asked mr. osprey.
"'if you'll let me go, i'll show you,' replied little mr. sparrow.
"so mr. osprey let little mr. sparrow go, but he followed him right close. mr. sparrow led the way straight to the smiling pool. sure enough, there was the big fish taking a sun-bath. mr. osprey hardly wet his feet putting those big hooks into that fish. he flew away with it, and presently he was rid of that emptiness in his stomach and had back his peace of mind. after that, whenever he was hungry, he went fishing instead of hunting the birds and the animals. by practice he learned how to use those big fishhooks of his and became one of the smartest of all fishermen. he and little mr. sparrow became great friends, in fact, such friends that when mr. osprey built a great nest, little mr. sparrow built his right in the side of it, and there he was perfectly safe from others who might be hunting him. and it's been just that way ever since. if you wore scales instead of fur, and lived in the water instead of on the land, peter rabbit, you would have reason to fear plunger the osprey, but as it is, you are safer when he is about than when he isn't. there comes old redtail the hawk. you'd better get out of sight, peter."
peter did.
