<div><h1 id='ch37'>CHAPTER XXXVII<br/> <span class='sub-head'>JUMPER THE HARE HAS A BAD HOUR</span></h1></div>
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<p class='line0'>When once you start a thing to do</p>
<p class='line0'>Keep at it ’til you see it through.</p>
<p class='line0'>                    <span class='it'>Billy Mink.</span></p>
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<p class='pindent'><span class='sc'>When</span> that little white mound
under the hemlock tree suddenly
came to life Billy had been surprised.
He had known that Jumper
the Hare was very near because
he had smelled him. But there
had been so many little white
mounds all about that Billy had
paid no special attention to this
particular one. As Jumper bounded
away Billy Mink chuckled.</p>
<p class='pindent'>“He fooled me that time,”
muttered Billy. “Jumper certainly
fooled me that time. If that wandering
Little Night Breeze had
not brought the smell of him to
me, I would have gone straight
on without once suspecting that
Jumper was anywhere about. That
white coat of his is worth a whole
lot to him. I don’t doubt he saw
me all the time and was laughing
to himself as he saw me go past.
Well, he laughs best who laughs
last. It is a long time since I
have had a good run through the
Green Forest, and I don’t know of
any one who can give me a better
run than Jumper the Hare.”</p>
<p class='pindent'>So Billy Mink started after
Jumper, his nose to the snow, following
the scent Jumper couldn’t
help leaving. Now Jumper can
run much faster than Billy Mink.
You know, when he is really
frightened, Jumper travels in big
leaps. That is how he comes by
his name of Jumper. But if
Jumper can travel fast, Billy Mink
can travel tirelessly, and so right
from the start Jumper was worried.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Jumper was worried because he
knew that there was not a single
place in all the Green Forest where
Billy Mink could not follow him.
Had it been Old Man Coyote or
Reddy Fox in Billy Mink’s place,
Jumper would not have been
nearly so worried. Either of them
could run faster than Billy Mink,
but there were plenty of places in
the Green Forest where neither
Old Man Coyote nor Reddy Fox
could get at Jumper. You see,
there were brush piles under which
Jumper could crawl but they could
not. But Billy Mink was so small
that he could follow wherever
Jumper might go, and poor Jumper
was worried. His one chance
was to make Billy Mink lose his
trail.</p>
<p class='pindent'>So Jumper tried all the tricks he
knew. He made his jumps just
as long as he could, hoping that
Billy would lose the scent in between.
Round and round through
the Green Forest Jumper ran.
Every little while he would sit
down to rest, but he never had a
chance to rest long. In a few
minutes a slim brown form would
come in sight, running easily and
as if not at all tired. Then in
a panic Jumper would bound away
again.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Now when Jumper ran he ran so
fast that he soon grew tired. This
was because he was so frightened.
Billy Mink, on the other hand, ran
easily and did not get at all tired.
Billy was enjoying that hunt. It
was fun to work out that trail
where Jumper tried to mix it up.
So, for an hour Billy Mink followed
Jumper and had a good
time, but it was a bad hour for
Jumper.</p>
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