fore was very, very
strong there, and Jimmy knew that until that had disappeared no one
would come near the place because it was so unpleasant for every one. To
Jimmy himself it wasn't unpleasant at all, and he couldn't understand
why other people disliked it so. He had puzzled over that a great deal.
He was glad that it was so, because on account of it every one treated
him with respect and took special pains not to quarrel with him.

"I guess it's a good thing that Old Mother Nature didn't make us all
alike," said he to himself. "I think there must be something the matter
with their noses, and I suppose they think there is something the matter
with mine. But there isn't. Not a thing. Hello! There is Johnny Chuck's
old house just ahead of me. Now we will see what we shall see."

He walked softly as he drew near to the old house. If Peter was way down
inside, it wouldn't matter how he approached. But if Peter should happen
to be only just inside the doorway, he might take it into his head to
run if he should hear footsteps, particularly if those footsteps were
not heavy enough to be those of Reddy or Granny Fox or Old Man Coyote.
Jimmy didn't intend to give Peter a chance to do any such thing. If
Peter once got outside that old house, his long legs would soon put him
beyond Jimmy's reach, and Jimmy knew it. If he was to give Peter the
fright that he had made up his mind to give him, he would first have to
get him where he couldn't run away. So Jimmy walked as softly as he knew
how and approached the old house in such a way as to keep out of sight
of Peter, should he happen to be lying so as to look out of the doorway.

At last he reached a position where with one jump he could land right on
the doorstep. He waited a few minutes and cocked his head on one side to
listen. There wasn't a sound to tell him whether Peter was there or not.
Then lightly he jumped over to the doorstep and looked in at the
doorway. There was no Peter to be seen.

"If he is here, he is way down inside," thought Jimmy. "I wonder if he
really is here. I think I'll look about a bit before I go in."

Now the doorstep was of sand, as Johnny Chuck's doorsteps always are.
Almost at once Jimmy chuckled. There were Peter's tracks, and they
pointed straight towards the inside of Johnny Chuck's old house. Jimmy
looked carefully, but not a single track pointing the other way could he
find. Then he chuckled again. "The scamp is here all right," he
muttere