Flop Ear, the Funny Rabbit by Richard Barnum

Author:Richard Barnum [Barnum, Richard]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Good Press
Published: 2022-02-25T00:00:00+00:00

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CHAPTER VII

FLOP EAR GETS AWAY

Table of Contents

For two or three days Jimmie made Flop Ear do, over and over again, the first two tricks—those of jumping through the barrel hoop, and standing up with a piece of carrot on his nose. The rabbit did not mind doing them, for he was getting to like the boy, because he was very kind and good.

“But two tricks are not enough for a rabbit,” the boy said. “I want you to know some more, and then I can get up a little animal show, or circus, with you.” Then the boy said to himself: “I ought to have more animals. I wonder if I could get a dog and teach him some tricks, or a cat.”

“Gracious!” thought Flop Ear. “I hope he doesn’t get a dog that will bite. If he does I’ll have to run away if I get the chance.”

Several times Flop Ear had thought of going away. He might easily have done it, too, for the boy often let the rabbit come out of the box.

“But then,” said Flop Ear to himself, “if I ran away I would not get such nice things to eat as I get here. So I think I’ll stay for a while. I wonder what other trick that boy will teach me?”

Flop Ear soon found out. One day Jimmie came home from school, bringing another boy with him.

“I’ll show you my tame rabbit,” said Jimmie to his friend.

“Where did you get him?” the other boy asked. The boy’s name was Sam.

“I found him in the basket, when I brought it in filled with wood,” answered Jimmie. “He’s such a funny rabbit, with his one flop ear. Here he is in this box.”

Jimmie opened the box. Sam leaned over, and, before Jimmie could stop him, lifted the rabbit out of the box, raising him up by taking hold of his ears.

“Here! Don’t do that!” cried Jimmie.

“Don’t do what?”

“Lift my rabbit that way—by the ears.”

“Why not?”

“Because it hurts them.”

“It does not!” cried Sam, holding Flop Ear up higher in the air.

“Indeed it does hurt me,” Flop Ear was saying to himself. But, of course, he could not tell the boys that, as they did not understand rabbit talk. But Flop Ear kicked and wiggled his legs, and showed as plainly as he could that he did not like being lifted around this way.

“Stop it!” cried Jimmie. “Put him down, Sam. You’ll pull off his ears, maybe.”

“I will not. You always lift rabbits by their ears.”

“No you don’t!” cried Jimmie. “My mother says that lots of folks think it’s right to lift a rabbit by the ears, but it isn’t, any more than you’d lift a dog or cat by its ears.”

“You couldn’t lift a cat by her ears,” said Sam. “They’re not big enough. But some dogs have ears almost as big as rabbits, only they don’t stand up straight.”

“Well, never mind about that,” said Jimmie. “Put my rabbit down, please. Or, if you want

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