Peter looked a wee bit foolish and admitted that he was. Jumper
the Hare was all interest at once. You see, he had never heard
of this cousin.
"That was a very good account of yourself, Peter," said Old Mother
Nature. "Now take a look at your cousin, Jumper the Hare, and
tell me how he differs from you."
Peter took a long look at Jumper, and then, as before, scratched
one ear with a long hind foot. "In the first place," said he,
"Jumper is considerably bigger than I. He has very long hind legs
and his ears are very long. In summer he wears a brown coat, but
in winter he is all white but the tips of those long ears, and
those are black. Because his coat changes so, he is called the
varying Hare. He likes the Green Forest where the trees grow
close together, especially those places where there are a great
many young trees. He's the biggest member of our family. I
guess that's all I know about Cousin Jumper."
"That is very good, Peter, as far as it goes," said Old Mother
Nature. "You have made only one mistake. Jumper is not the
biggest of his family."
Both Peter and Jumper opened their eyes very wide with surprise.
"Also," continued Old Mother Nature, "you forgot to mention the
fact that Jumper never hides in hollow logs and holes in the
ground as you do. Why don't you, Jumper?"
"I wouldn't feel safe there," replied Jumper rather timidly.
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