it. Bumper danced around in his small pen, and sat upon his hind legs as
if praying to the moon; but in reality he was trying to see how high the
wire fence was, and wondering if he could jump over it. He had tried all
day to nibble through it, and dig under it, but the wire had only hurt his
teeth without giving way a particle. If he was going to get out so he
could run around the garden, he would have to do it by jumping clear over
the wire fence.

He tried it once, and fell short by several inches. He got a hard jolt in
doing it, and rubbed his head where it hit the earth. But the next time he
nearly reached the top.

"I can do it with a few more trials," he said, happy at the thought of his
freedom. "I'll surprise the little girl when she hunts for me in the
morning."

He hopped back a few feet, and then took a flying leap, and landed plump
on the top of the fence. The wire caught him in the middle of the stomach,
and there he hung for a moment undecided which way to fall. But he kicked
with his hind feet, and that seemed to upset his balance, for he plunged
headfirst down, and landed on the other side in a wild somersault.

"Well, that wasn't exactly graceful," he said, "but I'm here, and that's
where I wanted to be. Now I'll explore the garden by moonlight."

First he ran to the vegetable garden, and nibbled at whatever he could
find; but he was really so full he couldn't eat much more. Then he frisked
around on the lawn, playing with his tail, and trying to jump as high up
in the air as he could. It was great fun, and Bumper panted with joy.