"I should like it very much, Hare. Once a prophet heard an ass speak in
order to warn him. But since then, except very, very rarely in dreams,
no creature has talked to a man, so far as I know. Perhaps you wish
to warn me about something, or others through me, as the ass warned
Balaam."

"Who is Balaam? I never heard of Balaam. He wasn't the man who fetches
dead pheasants in the donkey-cart, was he? If so, I've seen him make the
ass talk--with a thick stick. No? Well, never mind, I daresay I should
not understand about him if you told me. Now for my story."

Then the Hare sat itself down, planting its forepaws firmly in front of
it, as these animals do when they are on the watch, looked up at me and
began to pour the contents of its mind into mine.

*****

I was born, it said, or rather told me by thought transference, in a
field of growing corn near to a big wood. At least I suppose I was born
there, though the first thing I remember is playing about in the wheat
with two other little ones of my own size, a brother and a sister that
were born with me. It was at night, for a great, round, shining thing
which I now know was the moon, hung in the sky above us. We gambolled
together and were very happy, till presently my mother came--I remember
how big she looked--and cuffed me with her paw because I had led the
others away from the place where she had told us to stop, and given her
a great hunt to find us. That is the first thing I remember about my
mother. Afterwards she seemed sorry because she had hurt me, and nursed
us all three, letting me have the most milk. My mother always loved me
the best of us, because I was such a fine leveret, with a pretty grey