Exciting Adventures of Mister Robert Robin | Page 4

Up to that time Mister Robert Robin had not known that Mrs. Partridge
had a nest, although he had suspected it.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Partridge!" said Robert Robin, as he made a
very polite bow. "This is wonderful weather we are having!"
"Good afternoon, Mister Robin!" said Mrs. Partridge. "Yes, it is fine
weather, but for every nice day that we get, we are almost sure to have
two bad, stormy days!"
"Nonsense, Mrs. Partridge!" said Robert Robin, "I have always noticed
that the more fine weather we have, the more we get! I claim that we
are going to have the nicest summer this year that we have had since
the year we had so many cherries!"
"I do hope that you are right, Mister Robin!" said Mrs. Partridge.
"Major Partridge is always joking me because I am expecting bad
weather, but I have noticed that no matter how many nice days we have,
it always turns around and rains, before it gets through!"
"Certainly! It should rain, or we would all die of thirst! If no rain came
out of the sky, we would not have any cherries, and the bugs would all
be so dry there would not be any taste to them! We must have rain, Mrs.
Partridge! We must have rain!"
"Do you enjoy rainy weather, Mister Robin?" asked Mrs. Partridge.
"I like wet weather, when it is not too wet; I like dry weather when it is
not too dry; I like warm weather when it is not too warm, and I like
cool weather when it is not too cool! And I have a song for each kind of
weather!" said Robert Robin as he again started hunting for brown
bugs.
"You seem to be looking for something, Mister Robin!" said Mrs.
Partridge.
"Yes, I am hunting brown bugs!" said Robert Robin; "two of them hid
under the leaves, but there must be a few more left!"
"Stir the leaves up with your feet!" said Mrs. Partridge, "then if there
are any brown bugs under them you will be able to catch them!"

"I cannot make my feet go backwards!" said Robert Robin. "My feet
insist on hopping! I think that I must be clumsy with my legs, for even
the farmer's big rooster can scratch the ground and dig up wonderful
things. I saw him kick a worm clear through the fence!"
"He must be very strong!" said Mrs. Partridge.
"Strong! I should say he is strong! Even Percy Hawk is afraid of him,
and never goes near the little chickens when that big rooster is
watching him!"
"Major Partridge is very athletic!" said Mrs. Partridge. "He exercises a
great deal on his drum!"
"Here comes the Major now!" said Robert Robin.
"How do you do, sir!" said Major Partridge to Robert Robin.
"Good afternoon, Major!" said Robert Robin. "I have just been telling
Mrs. Partridge about how strong the farmer's big rooster was, and how
he could dig with his feet!"
"Did you ever see me dig with my feet?" asked Major Partridge.
"I do not remember ever having seen you dig with your feet, Major
Partridge, but the farmer's big rooster kicked a worm clear through the
fence!"
"Kicking a little worm is nothing! Once I kicked a stone from hither to
yonder, and Billy Rabbit asked me to help him dig his next hole!"
declared Major Partridge, as he stood very straight and put his chest out.
"If you have a few moments to spare I will dig these leaves up for
you!"
Then Major Partridge began kicking the leaves in all directions, and
Robert Robin began catching the brown bugs, and Mrs. Partridge came
from her nest, and found the ripe partridge berries which Major
Partridge was uncovering, but when the Major happened to see the ripe

red partridge berries he forgot all about kicking the leaves, and he and
Mrs. Partridge ate all the berries and never invited Robert Robin to
have a berry.
"You seem to like partridge berries!" said Robert Robin.
"Yes, we are very fond of them!" said Mrs. Partridge. "They are my
favorite fruit!"
"I seldom eat them!" said Robert Robin. "My favorite fruit is a ripe red
cherry!"
"I thought that cherries were purple when they were ripe," said Mrs.
Partridge.
"Some kinds of wild cherries are purple when they are ripe, but the
cherries which grow on the trees near the farmer's house are red when
they are ripe, and they are ever so much better than wild cherries!" said
Robert Robin.
"I would like some of the farmer's ripe red cherries, but I would never
dare go so near the farmer's house. He would be almost sure to see me
and shoot me with his gun!" said Mrs. Partridge, as she got back