Five on a Hike Together Read Free Page B

dart and race at top speed and went on down the hil . Timmy came rushing after them when they got to the bottom.
    „Now perhaps you"l stop tearing about like a mad thing and walk with us," scolded George. But she spoke too soon, for soon they were in a smal wood which Julian informed them was Coney Copse.
    „And as I told you, coney means rabbit, so you can"t expect Timmy to stop being mad just yet," said Julian.
    They very nearly lost Timmy in Coney Copse. A rabbit disappeared down a very big hole, and Timmy was actual y able to get down a little way. Then he got stuck. He scrabbled violently with his feet but it was no good. He was well and truly stuck.
    The others soon discovered he wasn"t with them and went back, calling. Quite by chance they came on the hole he was in and heard the sound of panting and scraping. A shower of sand flew out of the hole.
    „There he is! The idiot, he"s down a hole," said George in alarm, „Timmy! TIMMY! Come on out!"
    There was nothing that Timmy would have liked better, but he couldn"t come out, however much he tried. A root of a tree had got wedged into his back, and he couldn"t seem to push himself out again, past the annoying root.
    It took the four children twenty minutes to get Timmy out. Anne had to lie down and wriggle in a little way to reach him. She was the only one smal enough to get into the hole.
    She caught hold of Timmy"s back legs and pul ed hard. Somehow the root slid off his back and he came backwards. He whined loudly.
    „Oh Anne, you"re hurting him, you"re hurting him!" shouted George. „Let him go!"

    „I can"t!" yelled back Anne. „He"l only go down deeper, if I leave go his legs. Can you pul me out? If so Timmy wil come too - he"l have to because I"ve got his legs!"
    Poor Anne was pul ed out by her legs, and poor Timmy came too, pul ed by his. He whined and went to George.
    „He"s hurt himself somewhere," said George anxiously. „I know he has. He wouldn"t whine like that if he wasn"t hurt."
    She ran her fingers over him, pressing here and there. She examined each leg and each paw. She looked at his head. Stil he whined, Where could he have hurt himself?
    „Leave him," said Julian, at last. „I can"t see that he"s hurt anywhere - except in his feelings! He probably didn"t like Anne hauling him out by his hind legs. Most undignified!"
    George wasn"t satisfied. Although she could find nothing wrong, she couldn"t help being sure that Timmy had hurt himself somewhere. Ought he to see a vet?
    „Don"t be sil y, George," said Julian. „Vets don"t grow on trees in a moorland country like this! Let"s go on walking, You"l see Timmy wil follow quite all right, and soon forget to whine. I tell you, he"s hurt his doggy feelings, that"s all. His vanity is wounded!"
    They left Coney Copse and went on, George rather silent. Timmy trotted beside her, also rather quiet. Stil , there real y didn"t seem anything the matter with him, except that he gave sudden little whines now and again.
    „Now here"s where I thought we might have our lunch," said Julian, at last, „Fal away Hil !
    It"s a good name for it too - it falls away steeply, and we"ve got a marvel ous view."
    So they had. They had come to the top of a steep hil , not guessing that it fel away on the other side. They could sit on the tip and see the sun shining on miles and miles of lonely heather-grown moor. They might see shy deer in the distance - or little wild ponies.
    „This is heavenly," said Anne, sitting down on a great tuft of heather. „It"s as warm as summer too! I do hope it"s like this al over the week-end. We shall al be burnt brown!"
    „It wil also be heavenly having some of those sandwiches," said Dick, choosing a lump of heather too. „What comfortable seats are provided for us! I"ve a good mind to take a tuft of this heather back to school with me to put on the very hard chair that goes with my desk!"
    Julian put the four packets of sandwiches down in the heather. Anne undid them. They looked