But there really was not very much
comfort in the discovery. They could
not open the window; and although
the young family was alive--the little
rabbits were quite incapable of letting
themselves out; they were not
old enough to crawl.

After much whispering, Peter and
Benjamin decided to dig a tunnel.
They began to burrow a yard or two
lower down the bank. They hoped
that they might be able to work
between the large stones under the
house; the kitchen floor was so dirty
that it was impossible to say whether
it was made of earth or flags.


They dug and dug for hours.
They could not tunnel straight on
account of stones; but by the end
of the night they were under the
kitchen floor. Benjamin was on his
back, scratching upwards. Peter's
claws were worn down; he was
outside the tunnel, shuffling sand
away. He called out that it was
morning--sunrise; and that the