STORY X

BUMPER SEES HIS FIRST BLACK CROW


When Bumper floated away from the mouth of the sewer on his raft, he felt
quite jubilant, and a little proud of his achievement. He had escaped the
bats successfully, and now he had found a way out of the sewer itself. He
was so puffed up by these exploits that he wasn't a bit afraid of what
might happen to him on the river.

"This is really much better than being cooped up in the old woman's
backyard," he reflected. "Not even Jimsy or Wheedles ever dreamed of such
adventures as I've had. My! I feel like a great traveler already."

But when the current of the river began to draw his raft away from the
shore into the middle, his enthusiasm was not quite so great. The stream
grew rougher, and little white caps appeared ahead. His raft began to bob
up and down, and pretty soon a wave washed over it and wet Bumper's feet.

This made him very uncomfortable, for a rabbit doesn't like wet feet any
more than a cat does. He tried to sit up on his hind legs and dry his
front paws, but other waves washed over the raft and wet his haunches. He
couldn't very well stand on his front paws, and dry his hind ones, so he
had to endure the wet and cold.

The river passed through a beautiful field all aglow with flowers and
green grass, but the shore was too far away for Bumper to swim to it.