unning, what do you suppose
the stranger did? He just rolled himself up in a tight ball with his
head tucked down in his waistcoat. When he was rolled up that way, all
the little spears hidden in the hair of his coat stood right out until
he looked like a great chestnut-burr. Bowser stopped short. Then he
reached out his nose and sniffed at this queer thing. Slap! The tail
of the stranger struck Bowser the Hound right across the side of his
face, and a dozen of those little spears were left sticking there just
like pins in a pin-cushion.

"Wow! wow! wow! wow!" yelled Bowser at the top of his lungs, and
started for home with his tail between his legs, and yelling with
every jump. Then the stranger unrolled himself and smiled, and all the
little meadow people and forest folk who had been watching shouted
aloud for joy.

And this is the way that Prickly Porky the Porcupine made friends.

IV

PETER RABBIT HAS SOME STARTLING NEWS

Little Mrs. Peter Rabbit, who used to be Little Miss Fuzzytail, sat at
the edge of the dear Old Briar-patch, anxiously looking over towards
the Green Forest. She was worried. There was no doubt about it. Little
Mrs. Peter was very much worried. Why didn't Peter come home? She did
wish that he would be content to stay close by the dear Old
Briar-patch. For her part, she couldn't see why under the sun he
wanted to go way over to the Green Forest. He was always having
dreadful adventures and narrow escapes over there, and yet, in spite
of all she could say, he would persist in going there. She didn't feel
easy in her mind one minute while he was out of her sight. To be sure
he always turned up all right, but she couldn't help feeling that
sometime his dreadful curiosity would get him into trouble that he
couldn't get out of, and so every time he went to the Green Forest,
she was sure, absolutely sure, that she would never see him again.

Peter used to laugh at her and tell her that she was a foolish little
dear, and that he was perfectly able to take care of himself. Then,
when he saw how worried she was, he would promise to be very, very
careful and never do anything rash or foolish. But he wouldn't promise
not to go to the Green Forest. No, Sir, Peter wouldn't promise that.
You see, he has so many friends over there, and there is always so
much news to be gathered that he just couldn't keep away. Once or
twice he had induced Mrs. Peter to go with him, but she had been
frightened almo