Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-03-09
No One Believes Peter Rabbit,

It is hard not to be believed. Ask
Peter Rabbit. He knows. Yes, indeed.
he knows. It is bad enough not to De
believed when one is not telling the
truth. but to tell the truth and then
have everybody tell you that they don
believe you IS worse still. Anyway.
Peter Rabbit thinks SO. To make II
worse, it was great news that Peter
had to tell, and. of course, he might
just as well have had no news at all
It all came from Peters curiosity to
see the deepest part Of the Green
Forest when everything was covered
with snow. OF course, he had to satisfy
that curiosity. 1t wouldn't have been
like Peter not to have done so. so
or he went all by himself way into the
deepest part of the Green Forest. close
to the foot Of the Great Mountain. and
there he found it so still that he could
feel the stiffness. Anyway. that's what
he said. And it was so Lonesome there
that Peter would have been afraid or
his own shadow had he seen 1t. he
had made up his mind that no one
ever visited that part Of the Green
Forest, at least not in the winter time.
when suddenly he saw tracks. And
such tracks! It was those tracks that
had made Peter all his present trouble
You see no one would believe Peter
when he told about those tracks.
The first one Peter saw after gettlng
back to the dear old briar patch was
Sammy Jay, and, though Peter doesn't
like Sammy, he just had to tell him
about those strange tracks.
"They were as big as the tracks OF
Zig eyes round round with Hs, excitement
Probably he made them' SAID
Sammy Jay. shortly.
But they were not his tracks. only
something Ike his.the ones s,, ne ma poa1
when he goes swimming in. the sum
| mer. and you know as well as l DC
| that he never makes that kind OF tracks
in the winter. Sammy JAY" cried Peter;
besides" Peter hurried on, whoever
made those tracks had claws-great,
Sammy laughed harder than ever and
| in the most provoking way. do you
| expect me to believe any such story
as that, Peter Rabbit~ he demanded.
"You better not talk to me about not
telling the truth when you tell such a
story as that" and off flew Sammy.
still laughing to think that Peter should
try to make him believe such foolish
story.
Peter looked after him and scratched
his head thoughtfully. Those tracks
did look something like those Of Farmer
Browns boy" he muttered. They were
rounder. but they were big and they
look very much like them. but they did
look something like them, and I said
| something. I believe I'll go tell Chat
terer the Red Squirrel about them"
But Chatterer laughed at Peter just
! as Sammy Jay had. you've had a bad
| dream, Peter. That's what's the matter
with you. Who ever heard of any one
in the Green Forest who made tracks
like those? Why, Bowser the Hound
makes the biggest tracks with claw
marks, as you ought to know by this
time You've had dream, Peter. and
now you better run away and forget it, %
1t was the same way with Tommy Tit
the Chickadee and Mrs. Grouse and
Billy Mink. and every one else he tod
the story to. Every one laughed at him
and no one believed him. Poor Peter
grew quite miserable, for he knew what
his eyes had seen, and it was dread
fun poked at him just because he in
sisted that he had seen those strange
tracks.