<div><h1 id='ch14'>CHAPTER XIV<br/> <span class='sub-head'>THE COASTING PARTY</span></h1></div>
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<p class='line0'>Who fun in life himself denies</p>
<p class='line0'>Becomes a grouch before he dies.</p>
<p class='line0'>             <span class='it'>Little Joe Otter.</span></p>
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<p class='pindent'><span class='sc'>Peter Rabbit</span> was so tickled
over having discovered who made
the queer trail in the snow that
he quite forgot to look down in
the Laughing Brook to see where
Little Joe Otter went to. When
he did think to look, Little Joe
was nowhere to be seen. Peter
waited awhile, hoping that Little
Joe would return. He wanted
to see him slide down that bank
again.</p>
<p class='pindent'>At last Peter decided that Little
Joe had gone home, and that there
was no use sitting on the snow-covered
bank of the Laughing
Brook any longer. He was just
turning away when he heard a
splash from the Laughing Brook.
He stopped to look up stream.
At once he saw four swimmers
coming down the Laughing Brook
and appearing to have no end of
fun as they rolled over in the water,
dived, swam under water, and
moved swiftly along, with just
their heads showing. They were
Little Joe Otter, Mrs. Otter, and
their two nearly grown children.</p>
<p class='pindent'>When they reached the place
where Peter had first seen Little
Joe climb out and up the bank,
Little Joe made straight for shore.
You remember that the bank
was low there. Out he scrambled.
Out behind him scrambled Mrs.
Otter. Out behind her scrambled
one of the young Otters, and out
behind this one scrambled the other
young Otter. Then, following the
trail Little Joe had made in the
snow, they came straight up along
the bank towards where Peter was
sitting. Peter suddenly felt bashful.
He retreated rather hurriedly
to the shelter of a snow-covered
hemlock bough. He couldn’t help
a suspicion that one of those Otters
might suddenly think that a
Rabbit dinner would taste good.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Little Joe led the way to the
edge of the steep bank where
Peter had watched him slide down.
With a quick, hard kick of his
hind feet he disappeared down
that bank and a second later Peter
heard a splash in the water. Then
Mrs. Otter did the same thing, and
the two young Otters followed.
Peter remained right where he
was. In a few minutes he saw
Little Joe Otter coming back up
the trail again. And behind him
came Mrs. Otter and the two young
Otters. “I do believe they’re going
to slide again,” thought Peter.
“I must get where I can watch
them.”</p>
<p class='pindent'>So Peter crept out of his hiding-place
and over to the edge of
the bank, where from a safe distance
he could watch Little Joe
and his family. Again, flat on
his stomach, Little Joe came sliding
down that furrow in the snow
straight into the Laughing Brook.
One of the young Otters couldn’t
wait for Mrs. Otter to go down in
that same furrow and made a furrow
of his own. The other followed
right at his heels. Then there was
a great swimming race to see who
could get back to the low place
on the bank first, and then another
race through the snow to get to
the top of the slide.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Such a merry coasting party as
that was. Every time one of those
Otters disappeared in the black,
cold-looking water, Peter shivered.
He just couldn’t help it. But
there was no shivering on the part
of Little Joe and his family. Not
a bit of it! They appeared to
enjoy those plunges into the water
quite as much as they would have
had it been a midsummer day. The
more they slid the better the slide
became and the faster they went.</p>
<p class='pindent'>“Come on and join us, Peter!”
cried Little Joe, as he kicked off
and went shooting down.</p>
<p class='pindent'>Peter shook his head. He did
it a little wistfully. Those Otters
were having such a merry time
that Peter envied them. But every
time he looked at that water, so
cold and black, he shivered. The
coasting part might be all right,
but Peter preferred to try it where
there was no water at the end of
the slide.</p>
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<p class='caption'><span class='sc'>Gentle Mistress Moon saw a queer procession.</span><br/> <span class='it'><SPAN href='#t95'>Page 95</SPAN>.</span></p>
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