POLITE BUNNY

[Pg 9]

CHAPTER I. A LETTER FROM AUNT ETIQUETTE

Pretty Bunny Manners lived with Old Father and Mother Bun, in a little wee house in the woods.

As soon as she woke one morning she called to her brother, Healthy Bunny,

Healthy Bunny often forgot to say “Good morning,” and be polite, so Pretty Bunny continued, “I will make up a ‘Good Morning Song’,” so she wrote on a card some words for Healthy Bunny to learn, and soon they sang to the tune of “Twinkle Little Star,”

[Pg 10]

They took so long learning the song that Old Father Bun cried,

Old Mother Bun said,

The Bunnies laughed and,

They said ‘Good Morning’ to Old Father and Mother Bun and began to eat breakfast.

At this very minute the Postman came “pitter, patter, rap-a-tap,” and left[Pg 11] some letters in the mail-box; among them was a certain pink envelope addressed to Old Father Bun.

Pretty Bunny went to get the letters and came dancing in, handing them to Old Father Bun.

As luck would have it, Old Father Bun took up the pink envelope first and looked at it closely through his horn-rimmed spectacles.

He said,

Old Mother Bun remarked, as he passed her the letter,

Healthy Bunny got up and peeped over her shoulder, saying,

[Pg 12]

Pretty Bunny asked politely,

Old Mother Bun said,

Old Father Bun took a knife, slit open the envelope and looked at once at the end of the sheet to see whom it was from. It was signed, “Bunny Etiquette.” The letter read,

“Bunnyville, March 9th, 1921.

Dear Brother Bun:

It is chilly this spring and the wind blows round my cottage, and I need some one to bring in wood and water and cheer me up.

I am writing to ask if you could spare Pretty Bunny to come and make me a[Pg 13] visit. I am lonesome and I often think I can hear the “pitter-patter” of little feet on the stairs.

I am sending by express a warm cap and pair of mittens for each of the Bunnies.

[Pg 14]

Write me soon. With kind regards to Old Mother Bun,

Your affectionate sister,

Edna Etiquette.”

Pretty Bunny said, “May I go, Mother? May I go, Father? May I start at once?”

Healthy Bunny said, “May I go, too? May I go, too?”

Pretty Bunny turned to him and said,

Healthy Bunny hung his head, for sure enough, Aunt Etiquette had only asked Pretty Bunny to come for a visit.

Pretty Bunny then said again, “Oh Father and Mother, may I please go?”

To this Old Father Bun replied,

[Pg 15]

So it was decided that Pretty Bunny should go and visit Aunt Etiquette next week, and such a hurrying and scurrying as there was to get ready!

Up in the garret they went and brought down Old Father Bun’s suit case and began to pack it full of clothes for Pretty Bunny. They never once imagined that at that very minute, up in another garret, another Bunny was packing a suit case that looked exactly like this one.

Healthy Bunny looked sad for he wanted to go too.

Suddenly, without any warning, Old Father Bun clapped his paws and shouted,

Sure enough, at the end of Aunt Etiquette’s letter they found the letters, “R. S. V. P.”

[Pg 16]

While these letters were usually put only on a formal invitation to a party, Aunt Etiquette had used them just for fun to see if Pretty Bunny would know that they stood for French words meaning, “Reply, if you please.”

[Pg 17]

Now, who was going to write the letter in reply?

Then he went off in his cozy corner to smoke.

Then she went off to make apple dumplings!

Healthy Bunny said,

Then he went out to take exercise and Pretty Bunny was left to answer the letter, of course.

She drew up a stool beside Old Father Bun and said,

[Pg 18]

Old Father Bun smoked a while in silence collecting his thoughts and then replied,

Pretty Bunny did not know, for she had never addressed an envelope in all her life.

Said Old Father Bun kindly,

When the envelope was addressed it looked like this:

Old Father Bun said,

[Pg 19]

Pretty Bunny said,

Old Father Bun looked in his coat pocket and after quite a search found a postage stamp. He remarked,

Now, do you know Pretty Bunny put the stamp on the right hand corner of the envelope, but she put it on the lower right hand corner, instead of on the upper right hand corner, by mistake, and so she had to soak off the stamp and paste it later in its proper place.

She was now ready to write her letter.

So Pretty Bunny wrote,

[Pg 20]

“Woodville, Wisconsin, March 10th, 1921.

My dear Aunt Etiquette,

We received your letter with its kind invitation and Mother and Father say I may go to visit you soon.

I can hardly wait for the time to come, and Healthy Bunny and I are anxious to receive the pretty things you are sending us.

Father Bunny says he will bring me to your home on Friday.

I hope you are real well, and I will be very happy to come and keep you company and do any errands I can for you.

Your loving niece, Pretty Bunny.

P. S. I wonder if you really did hear ‘pitter, patter’ of little feet on the stairs, or could it have been what we call ‘imagination’?”

Old Father Bun said this was a very good letter for it answered Aunt Etiquette’s[Pg 21] questions and told her what she wanted to know.

Old Father Bun had just finished his pipe when Old Mother Bun called,

Pretty Bunny went out to call Healthy Bunny and just then the expressman came with the caps and mittens.

Of course, the Bunnies had to try them on at once.

She might have added that it shows very bad manners to be late to meals if we can possibly help it.

The Bunnies took off their new things and came to dinner. Said Pretty Bunny,

That night after they had all gone to bed, Pretty Bunny began to wonder[Pg 22] about the “pitter, patter” of foot-steps on Aunt Etiquette’s stair-case.

She wondered if there really was another Bunny in the house.

Said the Old Family Clock in reply,

Pretty Bunny crept out of bed and pressed her face close to the Old Family Clock and whispered,

[Pg 23]

The Old Family Clock ticked in the usual way for some time and then sang,

[Pg 24]

CHAPTER II. PRETTY BUNNY’S JOURNEY

The day for the journey came at last and Old Father Bun and Pretty Bunny waved their paws and cried,

They went briskly along until they came to town, and stood on the right side of the street watching for a street car.

Pretty Bunny was so excited, she waved her red pocket handkerchief with the white spots in it at the street car conductor, and Old Father Bun said he[Pg 25] was surprised to find she had such poor manners, but as she had never seen a street car before, of course, she did not know how to behave.

What a crowded car it was!

Old Father Bun said, “Wait ’till the car stops to get on board.” He was particular to have the fare ready so the conductor did not have to wait. He told Pretty Bunny, in some street cars you had to pay as you enter, and in some the conductor came to get the fares.

Pretty Bunny began to stare at the passengers for they were so interesting, but Old Father Bun remarked quietly,

One passenger in particular interested Pretty Bunny.

He sat beside her and began to talk in a most familiar manner. He said his name was Bunny Brag, and he was going on a long journey. He said he had his Father’s old suit case to carry.

[Pg 26]

Pretty Bunny was so interested talking that she would have gone on past her crossing if Father Bun had not been looking out for her and said,

He meant that Pretty Bunny had better pay attention when the car stopped[Pg 27] and be ready to get off, and he also wanted to remind her not to talk to strangers.

Said Father Bun pleasantly,

Pretty Bunny noticed a group of Bunnies who were talking loudly in the station and Old Father Bun remarked to her,

He went to get their tickets and check their suit-case, then they got aboard the train.

Pretty Bunny was so excited she cried, “Where shall we sit? May I take a seat next the window? Are all the seats reserved? How soon will we start?” She was so noisy that several passengers turned and stared.

[Pg 28]

Old Father Bun said,

Pretty Bunny was sorry she had made enough noise to attract the attention of other people, so she sat very still until the train started.

She began to think of her visit to Aunt Etiquette and wondered who the strange Rabbit could be who went so quietly on the stairs. She thought that the wheels suddenly said,

It was at this very minute that Old Father Bun asked Pretty Bunny if she could take care of the check for her suit-case.

Of course, Pretty Bunny said, “Yes,” and Old Father Bun added,

[Pg 29]

In a few minutes, Pretty Bunny felt a tap on her back. There stood Bunny Brag who had come on the same train without their noticing him. As Pretty Bunny had talked with him in the street car, somehow she did not look upon him as a stranger.

Bunny Brag sat down in the seat beside her and said,

He felt in his pocket and found a piece of blue ribbon and tied it on Pretty Bunny’s check. Every once in a while they exchanged checks just for fun, and soon they had them so mixed up they did not know which really belonged to them. Bunny Brag said it made no difference any way, the checks looked just alike. They did not compare the numbers on them.

[Pg 30]

[Pg 31]

Bunny Brag said he was going on a long journey but he knew how to take care of himself for he had been in the cars before. He bragged a great deal about his trip.

He offered Pretty Bunny some peanuts and when Old Father Bun returned he found peanut shells on the floor and car seat.

He made the two little Bunnies pick them up and asked Bunny Brag to give him his seat. He then said to Pretty Bunny,

He saw that Pretty Bunny had her check on a ribbon round her neck and thought no more about the matter.

Bunny Brag ran up and down the aisle for a drink of water.

Pretty Bunny said, “May I get a drink of water, too?”

[Pg 32]

Old Father Bun replied,

He took out his little watch and said they would get to their journey’s end in half an hour.

The little silver watch was a magic watch and as Old Father Bun held it[Pg 33] up to Pretty Bunny’s ear it said, as it ticked merrily along,

Old Father Bun continued it was a great annoyance for youngsters to always want a drink of water when they were away from home.

In a short time they arrived at Bunnyville.

They waited until the train stopped to get off and Old Father Bun helped Pretty Bunny down as she was so little. Then he took the check from the ribbon round her neck and got the suit-case and they tripped off merrily to Aunt Etiquette’s home.

When they arrived, there stood Aunt Etiquette in the door-way. She kissed them both and they soon sat down to dinner.

Old Father Bun said he must catch the next train home, so he soon bade Aunt Etiquette good bye, and Pretty[Pg 34] Bunny stood and waved at him as long as he was in sight.

Then she said,

Now, Aunt Etiquette had beautiful manners, but when she did not want to answer a question she pretended she did not hear, so she often made an odd reply. Now she said,

Up the mysterious stair-case they went, and each board creaked after them, for the house was very old, and Pretty Bunny did think she heard some one else beside Aunt Etiquette behind her, but as she turned she saw no other Bunny.

Pretty Bunny unlocked the suit case and took out the first garment. It was such a suit as Healthy Bunny would wear. As they kept on unpacking it grew worse and worse; there was not a thing for a Bunny Girl to wear.

[Pg 35]

Pretty Bunny sat down and cried.

Old Aunt Etiquette said,

Aunt Etiquette thought of this, for she had once done the same thing when she was a little girl. Then Pretty Bunny explained the whole matter, and Aunt Etiquette said they would try to find Bunny Brag for he had her suit-case, of course!

Aunt Etiquette was a cheerful person and remarked,

[Pg 36]

Aunt Etiquette then explained that it was important to keep your own ticket and check on a train, and that though the checks looked alike they had different numbers upon them and each check belonged to its own suit-case.

When bed time came, Aunt Etiquette tucked Pretty Bunny up in one of her own nighties, though it was miles too big, and she kissed her, saying,

Old Aunt Etiquette went down stairs to read the evening paper, and Pretty Bunny tried to remember some of the things she had learned on her trip.

She wondered if she would hear the “pitter, patter” again on the stairs.

The Old Grandfather Clock ticked away, singing,

[Pg 37]

Pretty Bunny felt quite at home when she heard the kindly Old Grandfather Clock talking right outside her door, so she said sleepily,

The Old Grandfather Clock enjoyed that very much and sang,

[Pg 38]

Before Pretty Bunny could think up another jingle she fell fast asleep.

[Pg 39]

CHAPTER III. THE BED-ROOM BUNNY

Pretty Bunny woke early next morning and sprang out of bed and looked in the mirror. She saw another Bunny just her size and called, “Who are you?” The other Bunny replied,

Pretty Bunny nodded her head and the Looking-Glass Bunny did the same.

“How many Bunnies live in this[Pg 40] house?” asked Pretty Bunny. The Looking-Glass Bunny answered,

It was very early, and Pretty Bunny was beginning to feel a little homesick when the Looking-Glass Bunny said,

Right then and there, there was a humming sound and a voice from the window called,

Pretty Bunny had forgotten to open the window.

My! How close and stuffy the room was!

She ran now and opened the window and was wondering what to do next to[Pg 41] put the bed-room in order when a voice called,

The pillows danced round in the most comical manner and sang,

My! that was a difficult bed to make! But in the course of time Pretty Bunny had aired the bedding and made the bed up neatly with the pillows at the head.

Pretty Bunny next enjoyed a cold bath and never for a minute thought to pick up anything until a voice cried,

Pretty Bunny picked up the pitcher to set on the wash stand when, to her surprise,

[Pg 42]

Pretty Bunny emptied the water out of the bowl, dried it and set the pitcher neatly in it.

Towels were on the floor and towels were on a chair.

To her surprise Pretty Bunny heard a voice say,

Pretty Bunny laughed as she folded the towels and put them on the rack. She was ready to dance down stairs when a voice cried out,

[Pg 43]

Pretty Bunny found the carpet sweeper and ran it over the rug where she had gotten lint from the towels. She then dusted the room and was just ready when Aunt Etiquette rang the bell for breakfast.

Pretty Bunny said, “Good morning, I hope you slept well, Aunt Etiquette,” and she kissed her on both cheeks, remarking, all in one breath, as little Bunnies do,

Aunt Etiquette replied,

Try hard as she would, Pretty Bunny could not make Aunt Etiquette understand a word of what she said!

They had a happy day together and when night came the most surprising thing happened!

Pretty Bunny heard the “pitter, patter”[Pg 44] of little feet behind her as she went up stairs. Turning again, she could see no one. As usual, she threw her clothes on the floor and heard a merry voice say,

Pretty Bunny always minded, for minding is a part of good manners, so she sprang out of bed and folded her clothes neatly on a chair.

She hopped back into bed, and to her surprise saw a little Bunny sitting on one of the bed posts. He said,

Pretty Bunny bowed politely and the Bed-Room Bunny continued,

Pretty Bunny had left her shoes on the floor where any one might stumble[Pg 45] over them. She got up now and put them under the chair by her clothes, saying,

The Bed-Room Bunny answered,

Pretty Bunny got up and opened her window wide, and before she had time to ask how many Bunnies lived in the house, she had fallen asleep and was dreaming that every room in the house needed to be put in order. She heard a voice call,

Next morning Pretty Bunny took pride in picking up her room, and she asked to do the same for Aunt Etiquette who was old and stiff and lame.

[Pg 46]

Aunt Etiquette was glad of a little help but remarked,

Pretty Bunny learned to leave the beds airing and made them up later in the day. She helped Aunt Etiquette all day long and said,

The Looking-Glass Bunny would not step over the mirror frame, though Pretty Bunny tried to coax him to come out and play.

One day Pretty Bunny tacked some pictures up on the wall and the Bed-Room Bunny peeped out from an open bureau drawer and said,

[Pg 47]

Sure enough, there was picture moulding all around the room.

There were plenty of hooks to hang pictures on and it did seem a shame to drive tacks in the wall.

The Bed-Room Bunny also remarked,

He shouted the word “CLOSE”, for every bureau drawer was open a little and it gave the room an untidy appearance.

Pretty Bunny closed up the bureau drawers and went about dancing and singing a happy little song,

All this time no word had come from Bunny Brag and the lost suit case. Many times Pretty Bunny wondered how he[Pg 49] felt when he opened her suit case and found it filled with dresses.

Late that night Pretty Bunny heard the “patter, patter” of little feet, and called, “Who is there?” A voice answered, “Who is there?” Pretty Bunny continued, “That is not fair,” and the voice answered, “not fair.”

Pretty Bunny wondered more and more who was the Bunny who was repeating everything she said.

She said to herself, “I love this old house and everything in it, and to-morrow I will just sit out there on the stairs and try to catch the Bunny who goes ‘pitter patter,’ but now I will say (and she spoke out loud) Good night and pleasant dreams.”

A sweet voice answered, “Pleasant dreams.”

[Pg 50]

CHAPTER IV. MANNERS AT TABLE.

Next day Pretty Bunny put her room in order and went hoppety skip down stairs, and straight to the breakfast table.

She started to slip into her chair, when to her surprise the chair said,

Pretty Bunny said, “This is the most wonderful house I was ever in for even the furniture talks to me.”

Just then Aunt Etiquette came in with a steaming cup of coffee. Pretty Bunny pulled out a chair for her and waited to sit down until she was seated and said a pleasant “Good morning.”

[Pg 51]

Aunt Etiquette smiled and said quite as though she had not heard this question,

Pretty Bunny blushed rosy red, unfolded her napkin and sat very straight. When helped to coffee, cakes and honey, she began to eat rather noisily and Aunt Etiquette said,

Pretty Bunny said, “How I do love to learn lessons by saying jingles over and over, for the funny little rhymes I can’t forget, and they make me remember useful things.”

Just then a crash was heard and Pretty Bunny was so excited she left the table without stopping to say, “Excuse me.”

[Pg 52]

She ran up stairs and found the mirror in her room had fallen and broken into many pieces. She looked all about for the Looking-Glass Bunny but caught only a glimpse of her long ears, and though she called him again and again she received no answer.

Aunt Etiquette called,

Pretty Bunny slipped back into her place at the table and said, “Please excuse me, Aunt Etiquette, I was so excited by the noise.” Aunt Etiquette answered,

Pretty Bunny said, “Please teach me good table manners, Aunt Etiquette, so I will never be ashamed.”

Aunt Etiquette then said a magic[Pg 53] verse and everything on the table received a voice and one thing after another began to talk.

[Pg 54]

Pretty Bunny used her knife to cut butter with, which was perfectly proper, and she ate her food neatly with her fork and spoon. Then a new voice piped up,

The spoon went on telling about some people who will take soup the wrong way, putting the point of the spoon into the mouth instead of sipping it from the side.

Pretty Bunny twisted round a good deal in her chair until the chair said,

She dropped some crumbs on the floor and the rug under her feet sang out,

Pretty Bunny was excited to hear all these voices and she was very hungry, too, so she said, “Give me coffee, please. May I have more honey?”

[Pg 55]

The honey pitcher remarked sweetly,

Pretty Bunny said, “Aunt Etiquette, there are so many things to learn, I do wonder what broke the mirror?”

Aunt Etiquette said,

Pretty Bunny was still hungry and started to take two cookies at a time to finish up her breakfast and the cookie plate called out,