had he reached the edge of the Green Forest when he was hailed by a
sharp voice. "Hello, Peter Rabbit!" said this sharp voice. "Where
are you bound at this hour of the morning? You ought to be heading
for home in the dear Old Briar-patch."

Peter knew that voice the instant he heard it. It was the voice of
Happy Jack the Gray Squirrel. Happy Jack was seated on the top of
an old stump, eating a nut. "I'm going to school," replied Peter
with a great deal of dignity.

"Going to school! Ho, ho, ho! Going to school!" exclaimed Happy
Jack. "Pray tell me to whom you are going to school, and what for?"

"I'm going to school to Old Mother Nature," retorted Peter. "I've
been going for several days, and so has my cousin, Jumper the Hare.
We've learned a lot about our own family and now we are going to
learn about the other little people of the Green Forest and the
Green Meadows."

"Pooh!" exclaimed Happy Jack. "Pooh! I know all about my own family,
and I guess there isn't much worth knowing about my neighbors that
I don't know."

"Is that so, Mr. Know-it-all," retorted Peter. "I don't believe
you even know all your own cousins. I thought I knew all mine, but
I found I didn't."

"What are you fellows talking about?" asked another voice, a sharp
scolding voice, and Chatterer the Red Squirrel jumped from one
tree to another just above Peter's head.