THE TALE OF
MR. TOD
BY
BEATRIX POTTER
Author of
"The Tale of Peter Rabbit," etc.
FREDERICK WARNE & CO., INC.
NEW YORK[Pg 3]
COPYRIGHT, 1912
BY
FREDERICK WARNE & Co.
Copyright renewed 1940
(All rights reserved)
PRINTED AND BOUND IN THE USA
ROSE PRINTING CO INC
ISBN O 7232 0605 8
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 (C)
[Pg 4]
FOR
FRANCIS WILLIAM OF ULVA
——SOMEDAY!
[Pg 6][Pg 5]
THE TALE OF MR. TOD
I have made many books about well-behaved people. Now, for a change, Iam going to make a story about two disagreeable people, called TommyBrock and Mr. Tod.
Nobody could call Mr. Tod "nice." The rabbits could not bear him; theycould smell him half a mile off. He was of a wandering habit and he hadfoxey whiskers; they never knew where he would be next.[Pg 7]
One day he was living in a stick-house in the coppice, causing terror tothe family of old Mr. Benjamin Bouncer. Next day he moved into a pollardwillow near the lake, frightening the wild ducks and the water rats.
In winter and early spring he might generally be found in an earthamongst the rocks at the top of Bull Banks, under Oatmeal Crag.
He had half a dozen houses, but he was seldom at home.[Pg 8]
The houses were not always empty when Mr. Tod moved out; becausesometimes Tommy Brock moved in; (without asking leave).
Tommy Brock was a short bristly fat waddling person with a grin; hegrinned all over his face. He was not nice in his habits. He ate waspnests and frogs and worms; and he waddled about by moonlight, diggingthings up.
His clothes were very dirty; and as he slept in the day-time, he alwayswent to bed in his boots. And the bed which he went to bed in, wasgenerally Mr. Tod's.