when he came to court they at once took him on as a herdsman . the place was not bad , there was good food , and good wages , and the chance of winning the princess besides . yet if no more than a single one of the king 's hares were to be lost , they would cut three red strips from his back , and throw him into the snake - pit . as long as peter was on the common or in the enclosure , he kept his hares together nicely , but later , when they reached the forest , they ran away from him across the hills . peter ran after them with tremendous leaps , as long as he thought he could catch even a single hare , but when the very last one had vanished , his breath was gone , and he saw no more of them . toward noon he went home , taking his time about it , and when he reached the enclosure , he looked around for them on all sides , but no hares came . and then , when he came to the castle , there stood the king with the knife in his hand . he cut three red strips from his back , and cast him into the snake - pit .
the hares ran away from him across the hills .
what happened when peter and the hares reached the forest ?
what happened when peter and the hares reached the forest ?