<div><h1 id='ch19'>CHAPTER XIX<br/> <span class='sub-head'>THE YOUNG OTTER’S CURIOSITY IS SATISFIED</span></h1></div>
<div class='poetry-container' style=''>
<div class='lgp'> <!-- rend=';' -->
<div class='stanza-outer'>
<p class='line0'>True courage ne’er gives way to fear</p>
<p class='line0'>When unexpected foes appear.</p>
<p class='line0'>                 <span class='it'>Little Joe Otter.</span></p>
</div>
</div></div> <!-- end poetry block --><!-- end rend -->
<p class='pindent'><span class='sc'>Never</span> was Peter Rabbit more
filled with curiosity than was the
wilful little Otter plunging through
the snow towards a certain little
snow-covered tree. She was sure
that she had seen something move
under that little tree. She hadn’t
the least bit of fear. Never in
her short life had she been in real
danger. Never had she had a
real fright. You see always her
father, Little Joe Otter, or her
mother, had been close at hand.
And of course, with father or
mother near, there was never anything
to be afraid of.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Now the lowest boughs of that
little hemlock tree were bent to
the ground by the snow on them.
Under them it was dark. It was
in this darkness that the little
Otter had thought she saw something
move. She kept her bright
eyes fixed on it as she drew nearer.
A few feet from it she stopped
abruptly. In that darkness under
the boughs of the little tree were
two little spots of light. The
young Otter stared and blinked
and stared again. Gradually she
made out a face. The two little
spots of light were two eyes, glowing
with hunger and savage eagerness.
The face was a fierce-looking
face. Never had the young
Otter seen such a fierce-looking
face. For the first time in her life
a chill of fear ran all over her.</p>
<p class='pindent'>She no longer had any curiosity.
Whose face it was she was staring
at she hadn’t the least idea. She
didn’t even want to find out.
She suddenly wished she was back
where she should have been with
her father and mother and brother.
She turned and bounded back towards
the trail. The instant she
turned a yellowish-brown form
bounded out from beneath the
young tree. It was Yowler the
Bobcat.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Despite the shortness of her
legs, the young Otter moved fast.
But with his longer legs Yowler
moved faster. By the time she
was back on the trail Yowler was
only a jump behind her. Never
was there a more frightened
youngster in all the Great World
than was that young Otter. But
she was no coward. Like a flash
she turned to face Yowler, spitting
and snarling.</p>
<p class='pindent'>For an instant Yowler hesitated.
He had hoped to spring on her
back, but he hadn’t been quite
quick enough. She was now
nearly grown, and she was big
enough to fight hard. So Yowler
hesitated. But it was only for a
moment. He knew that she was
young and probably never had
been in a fight. He was quite
willing to be bitten and scratched
a little for the sake of such a
dinner as that young Otter would
make him. So with a snarl Yowler
sprang at her.</p>
<p class='pindent'>He tried to seize her by the
throat, but she was too quick for
him. The next instant they were
rolling over and over in the snow,
snarling, spitting, growling, biting
and clawing at each other.
Now Yowler likes to fight on his
back, so that he can use those
great, stout hind feet of his to rip
and tear. But an Otter, like
other members of the Weasel
family, can twist and turn in a
marvelous way. So the young
Otter managed to keep out of
reach of those clawing hind feet.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Such a fight as that was! There
was no longer any fear in that
young Otter. She was simply
fighting mad. But Yowler was
bigger and stronger, and he was
an old fighter. It certainly looked
bad for that wilful, heedless, young
Otter.</p>
<div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />
1 of 2
2 of 2
Previous
Next
Update Required
To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.