Johnny Chuck sat on the doorstep of his new home, looking away across the Green Meadows. Johnny Chuck felt very well satisfied with himself and with all the world. He yawned lazily and stretched and stretched and then settled himself comfortably to watch the Merry Little Breezes playing down by the Smiling Pool.  
By and by he saw Peter Rabbit go bobbing along down the Lone Little Path. Lipperty, lipperty, lip, went Peter Rabbit and every other jump he looked behind him.
 
"Now what is Peter Rabbit up to?" said Johnny Chuck to himself, "and what does he keep looking behind him for?"
 
Johnny Chuck sat up a little straighter to watch Peter Rabbit hop down the Lone Little Path. Then of a sudden he caught sight of something that made him sit up straighter than ever and open his eyes very wide. Something was following Peter Rabbit. Yes, Sir, something was bobbing along right at Peter Rabbit's heels.
 
Johnny Chuck forgot the Merry Little Breezes. He forgot how warm it was and how lazy he felt. He forgot everything else in his curiosity to learn what it could be following so closely at Peter Rabbit's heels.
 
Presently Peter Rabbit stopped and sat up very straight and then—Johnny Chuck nearly tumbled over in sheer surprise! He rubbed his eyes to make sure that he saw aright, for there were two Peter Rabbits! Yes, Sir, there were two Peter Rabbits, only one was very small, very small indeed.
 
"Oh!" said Johnny Chuck, "that must be Peter Rabbit's baby brother!"
 
Then he began to chuckle till his fat sides shook. There sat Peter Rabbit with his funny long ears standing straight up, and there right behind him, dressed exactly like him, sat Peter Rabbit's baby brother with his funny little long ears standing straight up. When Peter Rabbit wiggled his right ear, his baby brother wiggled his right ear. When Peter Rabbit scratched his left ear, his baby brother scratched his left ear. Whatever Peter Rabbit did, his baby brother did too.
 
Presently Peter Rabbit started on down the Lone Little Path—lipperty, lipperty, lip, and right at his heels went his baby brother—lipperty, lipperty, lip. Johnny Chuck watched them out of sight, and then he settled himself on his doorstep once more to enjoy a sun bath. Every once in a while he chuckled to himself as he remembered how funny Peter Rabbit's baby brother had looked. Presently Johnny Chuck fell asleep.
 
Jolly, round, red Mr. Sun had climbed quite high in the sky when Johnny Chuck awoke. He yawned and stretched and stretched and yawned, and then he sat up to look over the Green Meadows. Then he became wide awake, very wide awake indeed! Way down on the Green Meadows he caught a glimpse of something red jumping about in the long meadow grass.
 
"That must be Reddy Fox," thought Johnny Chuck. "Yes, it surely is Reddy Fox. Now I wonder what mischief he is up to."
 
Then he saw all the Merry Little Breezes racing towards Reddy Fox as fast as they could go. And there was Sammy Jay screaming at the top of his voice, and his cousin, Blacky the Crow. Happy Jack Squirrel was dancing up and down excitedly on the branch of an old elm close by.
 
Johnny Chuck waited to see no more, but started down the Lone Little Path to find out what it all was about. Half way down the Lone Little Path he met Peter Rabbit running as hard as he could. His long ears were laid flat back, his big eyes seemed to pop right out of his head, and he was running as Johnny Chuck had never seen him run before.
 
"What are you running so for, Peter Rabbit?" asked Johnny Chuck.
 
"To get Bowser the Hound," shouted Peter Rabbit over his shoulder, as he tried to run faster.
 
"Now what can be the matter?" said Johnny Chuck to himself, "to send Peter Rabbit after Bowser the Hound?" He knew that, like all the other little meadow people, there was nothing of which Peter Rabbit was so afraid as Farmer Brown's great dog, Bowser the Hound.
 
Johnny Chuck hurried down the Lone Little Path as fast as his short legs could take his fat, rolly-poly self.
 
Presently he came out onto the Green Meadows, and there he saw a sight that set every nerve in his round little body a-tingle with rage.
 
Reddy Fox had found Peter Rabbit's baby brother and was doing his best to frighten him to death.
 
"I'm going to eat you now," shouted Reddy Fox, and then he sprang on Peter Rabbit's baby brother and gave him a cuff that sent him heels over head sprawling in the grass.
 
"Coward! Coward, Reddy Fox!" shrieked Sammy Jay.
 
"Shame! Shame!" shouted the Merry Little Breezes.
 
"You're nothing but a great big bully!" yelled Blacky the Crow.
 
But no one did anything to help Peter Rabbit's baby brother, for Reddy Fox is so much bigger than any of the rest of them, except Bobby Coon, that all the little meadow people are afraid of him.
 
But Reddy Fox just laughed at them, and nipped the long ears of Peter Rabbit's little brother so hard that he cried with the pain.
 
Now all were so intent watching Reddy Fox torment the baby brother of Peter Rabbit that no one had seen Johnny Chuck coming down the Lone Little Path. And for a few minutes no one recognized the furious little yellow-brown bundle that suddenly knocked Reddy Fox over and seized him by the throat. You see it didn't look a bit like Johnny Chuck. Every hair was standing on end, he was so mad, and this made him appear twice as big as they had ever seen him before.
 
"Coward! Coward! Coward!" shrieked Johnny Chuck as he shook Reddy Fox by the throat. And then began the greatest fight that the Green Meadows had ever seen.
 
Now Johnny Chuck is not naturally a fighter. Oh my, no! He is so good-natured and so sunny-hearted that he seldom quarrels with any one. But when he has to fight, there isn't a cowardly hair on him, not the teeniest, weeniest one. No one ever has a chance to cry, "'Fraid cat! Cry baby!" after Johnny Chuck.
 
So though, li............