"I'm going to run along beside you," he told Jimmy, "to keep you company. And I'll wait at Broad Brook with you, to see the fun when Mr. Turtle gets there. For everyone knows that you're going to win the race."
"I fully expect to," said Jimmy.
Then Tommy drew a line in the sand.
"Here's where you start!" he said.
And Mr. Turtle and Jimmy Rabbit toed the mark.
"One, two, three—go!" cried Tommy Fox. And with that they were off. In no time at all Jimmy Rabbit had run so far that Mr. Turtle lost sight of him.
"Just as I expected!" Tommy Fox said to Jimmy Rabbit. They were in the woods now, and not far from Broad Brook. "There's no need of hurrying," Tommy remarked. "You can reach the brook quickly enough. It will be late in the afternoon before Mr. Turtle gets this far. I see you're a little out of breath. Why don't you lie down and rest? I'd take a nap, if I were you. And I'll wake you in time for you to win the race."
"That's a good idea," Jimmy Rabbit said. "I'll do it!" And he lay down on the ground and went to sleep.
Late in the afternoon there were as many people at Broad Brook to see the finish of the race as there had been at the creek in the morning to watch the start.