towards the Smiling Pool. Instantly he
stopped singing. Now that was a signal. When he stopped singing, his
nearest neighbor stopped singing, then the next one and the next, and in a
minute there wasn't a sound from the Smiling Pool save the squeak of Jerry
Muskrat hidden among the bulrushes. That great chorus stopped as abruptly
as the electric lights go out when you press a button.

Back and forth over the Smiling Pool, this way and that way, floated the
shadow, but there was no sign of any living thing in the Smiling Pool.
After awhile the shadow floated away over the Green Meadows without a
sound.

"Hooty the Owl didn't get one of us that time," said Old Mr. Toad to his
nearest neighbor with a chuckle of satisfaction. Then he swelled out his
music bag and began to sing again. And at once, as abruptly as it had
stopped, the great chorus began again as joyous as before, for nothing had
happened to bring sadness as might have but for the watchfulness of Old Mr.
Toad.

VIII

OLD MR. TOAD'S BABIES

The Smiling Pool's a nursery
Where all the sunny day
A thousand funny babies
Are taught while at their play.

Really the Smiling Pool is a sort of kindergarten, one of the most
interesting kindergartens in the world. Little Joe Otter's children learn
to swim there. So do Jerry Muskrat's babies and those of Billy Mink, the
Trout and Minnow babies, and a lot more. And there you will find the
children and grandchildren of Grandfather Frog and Old Mr. Toad.

Peter Rabbit had known for a long time about the Frog babies, but though he
knew that Old Mr. Toad was own cousin to Grandfather Frog, he hadn't known
anything about Toad babies, except that at a certain time in the year he
was forever running across tiny Toads, especially on rainy days, and each
little Toad was just like Old Mr. Toad, except for his size. Peter had
heard it said that Toads rain down from the sky, and sometimes it seems as
if this must be so. Of course he knew it couldn't be, but it puzzled him a
great deal. There wouldn't be a Toad in sight. Then it would begin to rain,
and right away there would be so many tiny Toads that it was hard work to
jump without stepping on some.

He remembered this as he went to pay his daily call on Old Mr. Toad in the
Smiling Pool and listen to his sweet song. He hadn't seen any little Toads
this year, but he remembered his experiences with them in other years, and
he meant to ask about them.

Old