their time on the land. As there got to be more and more land, more
and more of the animals left the water, until finally most of them
were spending nearly all of the time on land. Now Old Mother Nature
had been keeping a sharp watch, as she always does, and when she found
that they were foolish enough to like the land best, she did all that
she could to make things comfortable for them. She taught them how to
run and jump and climb and dig, according to which things they liked
best to do, so that it wasn't very long before a lot of them forgot
that they ever had lived in the water, and they began to look down on
those who still lived in the water, and to put on airs and hold their
heads very high.

"Now, of course, Old Mother Nature didn't like this, and to punish
them she said that they should no longer be able to live in the water,
even if they wanted to. At first they only laughed, but after a while
they found that quite often there were times when it would be very
nice to be at home in the water as they once had been. But it was of
no use. Some could swim as long as they could keep their heads above
water, but as soon as they put their heads under water they were
likely to drown. You know that is the way with you to-day, Peter
Rabbit."

Peter nodded. He knew that he could swim if he had to, but only for a
very little way, and he hated the thought of it.

"Now there were a few animals, of whom old Mr. Muskrat, the
grandfather a thousand times removed of Jerry Muskrat, was one, who
learned to walk and run on dry land, but who still loved the water,"
continued Grandfather Frog. "One day Old Mother Nature found Mr.
Muskrat sitting on a rock, looking very mournful.