imself by the
sound, he made his way through the gathering darkness to the foot of
an old beech tree, with a hole in it, and from out of the hole came a
feeble voice, saying 'Ratty! Is that really you?'

The Rat crept into the hollow, and there he found the Mole, exhausted
and still trembling. 'O Rat!' he cried, 'I've been so frightened, you
can't think!'

'O, I quite understand,' said the Rat soothingly. 'You shouldn't really
have gone and done it, Mole. I did my best to keep you from it. We
river-bankers, we hardly ever come here by ourselves. If we have to
come, we come in couples, at least; then we're generally all right.
Besides, there are a hundred things one has to know, which we understand
all about and you don't, as yet. I mean passwords, and signs, and
sayings which have power and effect, and plants you carry in your
pocket, and verses you repeat, and dodges and tricks you practise; all
simple enough when you know them, but they've got to be known if you're
small, or you'll find yourself in trouble. Of course if you were Badger
or Otter, it would be quite another matter.'

'Surely the brave Mr. Toad wouldn't mind coming here by himself, would
he?' inquired the Mole.

'Old Toad?' said the Rat, laughing heartily. 'He wouldn't show his face
here alone, not for a whole hatful of golden guineas, Toad wouldn't.'

The Mole was greatly cheered by the sound of the Rat's careless
laughter, as well as by the sight of his stick and his gleaming pistols,
and he stopped shivering and began to feel bolder and more himself
again.

'Now then,' said the Rat presently, 'we really must pull ourselves
together and make a start for home while there's still a little light
left. It will never do to spend the night here, you understand. Too
cold, for one thing.'

'Dear Ratty,' said the poor Mole, 'I'm dreadfully sorry, but I'm simply
dead beat and that's a solid fact. You MUST let me rest here a while
longer, and get my strength back, if I'm to get home at all.'

'O, all right,' said the good-natured Rat, 'rest away. It's pretty
nearly pitch dark now, anyhow; and there ought to be a bit of a moon
later.'

So the Mole got well into the dry leaves and stretched himself out, and
presently dropped off into sleep, though of a broken and troubled sort;
while the Rat covered himself up, too, as best he might, for warmth, and
lay patiently waiting, with a pistol in his paw.

When at last the Mole woke up, much refreshed and in hi