And let's continue with our requested story,
The Wind and the Willows.
In the last episode.
Rat,
Ratty,
And Mole had finally found the badger's house.
Badger welcomed them in and now He's prepared nice bed sweets for them.
Time to go to bed.
Get ready for the next adventures.
Our story.
Continues.
Well,
It's time we were all in bed,
" said the badger,
Getting up and fetching flat candlesticks.
Come along,
You two,
And I'll show you to your quarters.
And take your time tomorrow morning.
Breakfast at any hour you please.
He conducted the two animals to a long room that seemed half bedchamber and half loft.
The Badger's winter stores,
Which indeed were visible everywhere,
Took up half the room.
Piles of apples,
Turnips,
And potatoes.
Baskets full of nuts and jars of honey.
But the two little white beds on the reminder of the floor look soft and inviting.
And the linen on them,
Of course,
Was clean and smelled beautifully of lavender.
And the mole and the water rat,
Shaking off their garments in some 30 seconds,
Tumbled in between the sheets in great joy and contentment.
In accordance with the kindly badger's injunctions,
The two tired animals came down to breakfast very late the next morning and found a bright fire burning in the kitchen and two young hedgehogs sitting on a bench at the table,
Eating oatmeal porridge out of wooden bowls.
The hedgehogs dropped their spoons.
Rose to their feet.
And ducked their heads respectfully as the two entered.
There,
There,
Sit down,
Sit down,
Said the rat pleasantly,
And go on with your porridge.
Where have you youngsters come from?
Lost your way in the snow,
I suppose?
Yes,
Please,
Sir.
Said the elder of the two hedgehogs respectfully.
Me and little Billy here,
We was trying to find our way to school.
Mother would have us go,
Was the weather ever so.
And of course we lost ourselves,
Sir.
And Billy,
He got frightened and took and cried,
Being young and faint-hearted.
And at last,
We happened up against Mr.
Badger's back door and made so bold as to knock,
Sir.
For Mr.
Badger,
He's a kind-hearted gentleman,
As everyone knows.
I understand.
Said the rat,
Cutting himself some rashes from the side of bacon,
While Moo dropped some eggs into a saucepan.
And what's the weather like outside?
You needn't serve me so much.
" He added.
Oh,
Terrible bad,
Sir.
Terrible deep the snow is,
" said the Hedgehog.
No getting out for the likes of you gentlemen today.
Where's Mr.
Thatcher?
Inquired the mole as he warmed the coffee pot before the fire.
The master's gone into his study,
Sir.
Replied the Hedgehog,
And he said as how he was going to be particular busy this morning and on no account was he to be disturbed.
This explanation of course was thoroughly understood by everyone present.
The fact is,
As already set forth,
When you live a life of intense activity for six months in the year,
And of comparative or actual meaning.
Somnolence.
Sleeping.
Or the other six.
During the latter period,
You cannot be continually pleading sleepiness when there are people about or things to be done.
Excuse gets monotonous.
The animals knew well that Badger,
Having eaten a hearty breakfast,
Had retired to his study and settled himself in an armchair with his legs up on another and a red cotton handkerchief over his face.
And we'll spin.
In the usual way at this time of year.
The front doorbell clanged loudly,
And the rat,
Who was very greasy with buttered toast,
Sent Billy,
The smaller hedgehog,
To see who it might be.
There was a sound of much stomping in the hall,
And presently,
Billy returned in front of the otter.
Who threw himself on the rat with an embrace and a shout of affectionate greeting.
Oof!
Sputtered the rat with his mouth full.
I should find you here,
All right,
" said the otter cheerfully.
They were all in a great state of alarm along the riverbank when I arrived this morning.
Rat never been home all night,
Nor Mole either.
Something dreadful must have happened,
They said,
And the snow had covered up all your tracks,
Of course.
What I knew.
That when people were in any fix,
They mostly went to Badger.
Or else Badger got to know of it somehow.
So I came straight off here through the wildwood and the snow.
My,
It was fine,
Coming through the snow as the red sun was rising and showing against the black tree trunks.
As she went along,
In the stillness,
Every now and then,
Masses of snow slid off the branches suddenly with a making you jump and run for cover.
Snow castles and snow caverns had sprung up out of nowhere in the night.
And snow bridges,
Terraces,
Ramparts.
I could have stayed and played with them for hours.
Here and there,
Great branches have been torn away by the sheer weight of the snow.
And Mobbins pouched and hopped on them in their perky conceited way.
Just as if they had done it themselves.
A ragged string of wild geese passed overhead,
High on the gray sky,
And a few rooks whirled over the trees,
Inspected,
And flapped off onwards with a disgusted expression.
Where I met no sensible being to ask the news of.
About halfway across,
I came upon a rabbit sitting on a stump,
Cleaning his silly face with his paws.
He was a pretty scared animal when I crept up behind him and placed a heavy fore paw on his shoulder.
I had to cough his head once or twice to get any sense out of it at all.
At last,
I managed to extract from him that mole had been seen in the wildwood last night by one of them.
It was the talk of the burrows,
He said,
How Mole,
Mr.
Rat's particular friend,
Had been in a bad fix.
How he had lost his way.
And they were up and about hunting and were chewing him round and round.
Then why didn't any of you do something?
" I asked.
You mayn't be blessed with brains,
But there are hundreds and hundreds of you big stout fellows as fat as butter,
And your burrows running in all directions.
And you could have taken him in and made him safe and comfortable.
Or try to,
At all events.
Oof!
He merely said,
Shantay.
Us rabbits.
So I cuffed him again and left him.
There was nothing else to be done.
At any rate.
I had a loaned something.
And if I had had the luck to meet any of them,
I'd have learned something more.
Or they would.
Aren't you at all,
Er,
Nervous?
" asked the mole some of yesterday's terror coming back to him at the mention of the wild wood.
Nervous?
The otter showed a gleaming set of strong white teeth as he laughed.
I'd give him nerves if any of them tried anything on with me.
Here,
Mole,
Fry me some slices of ham like the good little chop that you are.
I'm frightfully hungry and I've got any amount to say to Ratty here.
Haven't seen him for an age.
So the good-natured mole,
Having cut some slices of ham,
Set the hedgehogs to fry it.
And returned to his own breakfast,
While Otter and the rat their heads together,
Eagerly talked River shopped.
Which is long,
Sharp,
And tall,
That is endless,
Running on like the babbling river itself.
A plate of fried ham had just been cleared and sent back for more when the badger entered,
Yawning and rubbing his eyes,
And greeted them all in his quiet,
Simple way with kind inquiries for everyone.
It must be getting on for luncheon time,
" he remarked to the otter.
Better stop and have it with us.
You must be hungry this cold morning.
Rather,
Replied the otter,
Winking at the mole.
The sight of these greedy young hedgehogs stuffing themselves with fried ham makes me feel positively famished.
The hedgehogs,
Who were just beginning to feel hungry again after their perch and after working so hard at their frying.
Looked timidly up at Mr.
Badger.
But we're too shy to say anything.
You two youngsters be off home to your mother.
Said the badger kindly.
I'll send someone with you to show you the way.
You won't want any dinner today,
I'll be bound.
He gave them six pence apiece and a pat on the head,
And they went off with much respectful swinging of caps and touching of forelocks.
Presently,
They all sat down to luncheon together.
The mole found himself placed next to Mr.
Badger.
And as the other two were still deep in vivid gossiping from which nothing could divert them,
He took the opportunity to tell the badger how comfortable and home like it all felt to him.
Once well underground,
He said,
You know exactly where you are.
Nothing can happen to you,
And nothing can get at you.
You're entirely your own master,
And you don't have to consult anybody or mind what they say.
Things go on all the same overhead.
And you let them.
And don't bother them.
When you want to go up,
Up you go.
And there are things there waiting for you.
The badger simply beamed on him.
That's exactly what I'd say.
He replied,
There's no security or peace and tranquility.
Except underground.
And then,
If your ideas get larger and you want to expand,
Why,
A dig and a scrape and there you are.
If you feel your home is a bit too big,
You stop up a hole or two,
And there you are again.
No builders,
No tradesmen,
No remarks passed on you by fellow looking over your wall and above all.
Look at Rat now.
A couple of feet of flood water and he's got to move into higher lodgings.
Uncomfortable,
Inconveniently situated,
And horribly expensive.
Take Toad.
I say nothing against Toad Hall,
Quite the best house in these parts.
As a house.
What,
Supposing a fire breaks out?
Where's Toad?
Supposing tiles are blown off or walls sink or crack or windows get broken.
Where's Toad?
Suppose the rooms are draughty.
I hate a draught myself.
Where is Tom?
And out of doors is good enough to roam about.
And get one's living in.
For Underground.
Come back to at last.
That's my idea of home.
The mole assented heartily.
And the badger in consequence got very friendly with him.
When lunch is over,
He said,
I'll take you all around this little place of mine.
I can see you'll appreciate it.
You understand what domestic architecture ought to be,
You do?
That's the end of our story for now.
We'll find out.
In the next episode.
The tour.
It got you.
Cave mole.
And the further adventures.
For Mo and Ratty.
That's it for now.
Sleep well.
Good night.
