“Goodness gracious meebus!” exclaimed Uncle Lucky, as he tried to close the kitchen door. “Hungry Hawk, will you kindly pull your bill away?”
“You can’t hurt my bill,” answered the old hawk, scratching and pushing the door.
“All right, then,” answered Uncle Lucky. “Let’s see you get away, you old robber.”
But, dear me! That old bird was very persistent!
“Get the poker!” panted Uncle Lucky, “I can’t hold out much longer.”
“Here it is,” cried the little bunny, handing the poker to the old gentleman rabbit. Then, in some way or another, I can’t explain just how, brave Uncle Lucky pressed it against the door and pulling up the kitchen table, made it fast to one of the legs.
“Ha, ha!” he laughed, “now, old robber hawk, get away if you can! Maybe you’ll wish you’d never made us a call,” and with a hop, skip and a toe-slide over the floor, the old gentleman bunny peeked out of the kitchen window.
Goodness gracious, how ruffled and bedraggled was the old hawk! He could use his legs and his wings all right, but his beak was caught fast in the door. No matter how he braced his feet and beat his wings, or flapped his tail this way and that, he couldn’t get free. No, siree! He was as fast as a clam at low tide.
“But how are we to get out unless we use the parlor?” said Lady Love. “Besides, the front door has no spring on it. It will be mighty inconvenient on wash day with my hands full of clothes-pins.”
“Shall we let the old bird go?” asked Little Jack Rabbit, hopping up on the window seat to peep over the red geranium flowers in the nice green box on the window sill.