THE TALE OF SQUIRREL NUTKIN

BY

BEATRIX POTTER

Author of" The Tale of Peter Rabbit"

A STORY FOR NORAH

This is a Tale about a tail a tail that belonged to a little red squirrel, and his name was Nutkin.

He had a brother cal ed Twinkleberry, and a great many cousins: they lived in a wood at the edge of a lake.

In the middle of the lake there is an island covered with trees and nut bushes; and amongst

those trees stands a hol ow oak-tree, which is the house of an owl who is cal ed Old Brown.

One autumn when the nuts were ripe, and the leaves on the hazel bushes were golden and green Nutkin and Twinkleberry and al the other little squirrels came out of the wood, and down to the edge of the lake.

They made little rafts out of twigs, and they paddled away over the water to Owl Island to

gather nuts.

Each squirrel had a little sack and a large oar, and spread out his tail for a sail.

They also took with them an offering of three fat mice as a present for Old Brown, and put them down upon his door-step.

Then Twinkleberry and the other little squirrels each made a low bow, and said politely

"Old Mr. Brown, wil you favour us with permission to gather nuts upon your island?"

But Nutkin was excessively impertinent in his manners. He bobbed up and down like a little red cherry, singing

"Riddle me, riddle me, rot-tot-tote!

A little wee man, in a red red coat!

A staff in his hand, and a stone in his throat;

If you'll tel me this riddle, I'll give you a groat."

Now this riddle is as old as the hil s; Mr. Brown paid no attention whatever to Nutkin.

He shut his eyes obstinately and went to sleep.

The squirrels fil ed their little sacks with nuts, and sailed away home in the evening.

But next morning they al came back again to Owl Island; and Twinkleberry and the others brought a fine fat mole, and laid it on the stone in front of Old Brown's doorway, and said

"Mr. Brown, wil you favour us with your gracious permission to gather some more nuts?"

But Nutkin, who had no respect, began to dance up and down, tickling old Mr. Brown with a nettle and singing

"Old Mr. B! Riddle-me-ree!

Hitty Pitty within the wal ,

Hitty Pitty without the wal ;

If you touch Hitty Pitty,

Hitty Pitty wil bite you!"

Mr. Brown woke up suddenly and carried the mole into his house.

He shut the door in Nutkin's face. Presently a little thread of blue smoke from a wood fire came up from the top of the tree, and Nutkin peeped through the key-hole and sang

"A house ful , a hole ful !

And you cannot gather a bowl-ful !"

The squirrels searched for nuts al over the island and fil ed their little sacks.

But Nutkin gathered oak-apples yel ow and scarlet and sat upon a beech-stump playing marbles, and watching the door of old Mr. Brown.

On the third day the squirrels got up very early and went fishing; they caught seven fat minnows as a present for Old Brown.

They paddled over the lake and landed under a crooked chestnut tree on Owl Island.

Twinkleberry and six other little squirrels each carried a fat minnow; but Nutkin, who had no nice manners, brought no present at al . He ran in front, singing

"The man in the wilderness said to me,

'How many strawberries grow in the sea?'

I answered him as I thought good

'As many red herrings as grow in the wood.'"

But old Mr. Brown took no interest in riddles not even when the answer was provided for him.

On the fourth day the squirrels brought a present of six fat beetles, which were as good as plums in plum-pudding for Old Brown. Each beetle was wrapped up careful y in a dock-leaf, fastened with a pine-needle pin.

But Nutkin sang as rudely as ever

"Old Mr. B! riddle-me-ree

Flour of England, fruit of Spain,

Met together in a shower of rain;

Put in a bag tied round with a string,

If you'll tel me this riddle, I'll give you a ring!"

Which was ridiculous of Nutkin, because he had not got any ring to give to Old Brown.

The other squirrels hunted up and down the nut bushes; but Nutkin gathered robin's pincushions off a briar bush, and stuck them ful of pine-needle pins.

On the fifth day the squirrels brought a present of wild honey; it was so sweet and sticky that they licked their fingers as they put it down upon the stone. They had stolen it out of a bumble bees' nest on the tippitty top of the hil .

But Nutkin skipped up and down, singing

"Hum-a-bum! buzz! buzz! Hum-a-bum buzz!

As I went over Tipple-tine

I met a flock of bonny swine;

Some yel ow-nacked, some yel ow backed!

They were the very bonniest swine

That e'er went over Tipple-tine."

Old Mr. Brown turned up his eyes in disgust at the impertinence of Nutkin.

But he ate up the honey!

The squirrels fil ed their little sacks with nuts.

But Nutkin sat upon a big flat rock, and played ninepins with a crab apple and green fir-cones.

On the sixth day, which was Saturday, the squirrels came again for the last time; they brought a new-laid egg in a little rush basket as a last parting present for Old Brown.

But Nutkin ran in front laughing, and shouting

"Humpty Dumpty lies in the beck,

With a white counterpane round his neck,

Forty doctors and forty wrights,

Cannot put Humpty Dumpty to rights!"

Now old Mr. Brown took an interest in eggs; he opened one eye and shut it again. But stil he did not speak.

Nutkin became more and more impertinent

"Old Mr. B! Old Mr. B!

Hickamore, Hackamore, on the King's kitchen door;

Al the King's horses, and al the King's men,

Couldn't drive Hickamore, Hackamore,

Off the King's kitchen door."

Nutkin danced up and down like a sunbeam; but stil Old Brown said nothing at al .

Nutkin began again

"Arthur O'Bower has broken his band,

He comes roaring up the land!

The King of Scots with al his power,

Cannot turn Arthur of the Bower!"

Nutkin made a whirring noise to sound like the wind, and he took a running jump right onto the head of Old Brown!...

Then al at once there was a flutterment and a scufflement and a loud "Squeak!"

The other squirrels scuttered away into the bushes.

When they came back very cautiously, peeping round the tree there was Old Brown sitting on his door-step, quite stil , with his eyes closed, as if nothing had happened.

But Nutkin was in his waistcoat pocket!

This looks like the end of the story; but it isn't.

Old Brown carried Nutkin into his house, and held him up by the tail, intending to skin him; but Nutkin pul ed so very hard that his tail broke in two, and he dashed up the staircase and escaped out of the attic window.

And to this day, if you meet Nutkin up a tree and ask him a riddle, he wil throw sticks at

you, and stamp his feet and scold, and shout

"Cuck-cuck-cuck-cur-r-r-cuck-k-k!"

THE END