Subtitles section Play video
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>> JUDITH GREGG: Hello, I'm Judith Gregg with the San José Public LIbrary, and I would
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like to read you a story.
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Are you sitting comfortably?
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Then I will begin.
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This is "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" by Beatrix Potter.
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(reads) Once upon a time there were four little rabbits, and their names were Flopsy, Mopsy,
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Cotton-tail and Peter.
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They lived with their mother in a sand-bank, underneath the root of a very big fir tree.
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"Now, my dears," said old Mrs. Rabbit one morning, "You may go into the fields or down
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the lane, but don't go into Mr. McGregor's garden.
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Your father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs. McGregor."
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Now run along and don't get into mischief. I am going out."
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Then old Mrs. Rabbit took a basket and her umbrella and went through the wood to the
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baker's.
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She bought a loaf of brown bread and five currant buns.
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Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail who were good little bunnies went down the lane together
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To gather blackberries.
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But Peter who was very naughty, ran straight away to Mr. McGregor's garden and
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Squeezed under the gate!
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First he ate some lettuces and some French beans
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And then
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He Ate
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Some Radishes
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And then, feeling rather sick, he went to look for some parsley.
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But round the end of a cucumber frame, whom should he meet but Mr. McGregor!
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Mr. McGregor was on his hands and knees planting out young cabbages, but he jumped up and ran
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after Peter, waving a rake and calling out "Stop thief!"
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Peter was most dreadfully frightened; he rushed all over the garden, for he had forgotten
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the way back to the gate.
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He lost one shoe among the cabbages, and the other amongst the potatoes.
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After losing them, he ran on four legs and went faster
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So that I think he might have got away altogether if he had not unfortunately run into a gooseberry
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net
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And got caught by the large buttons on his jacket.
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It was a blue jacket with brass buttons, quite new.
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Peter gave himself up for lost and shed big tears;
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But his sobs were overheard by some friendly sparrows
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Who flew to him in great excitement and implored him to exert himself.
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Mr. McGregor came up with a sieve which he intended to pop on the top of Peter, but Peter
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wriggled out just in time.
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Leaving his jacket behind him.
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He rushed into the tool-shed and--
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Jumped into a can.
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It would have been a beautiful thing to hide in, if it had not had so much water in it.
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Mr. McGregor was quite sure that Peter was somewhere in the tool-shed, perhaps hidden
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underneath a flower-pot.
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He began to turn them over carefully, looking under each.
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Presently Peter sneezed "Kertyschoo!"
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Mr. McGregor was after him in no time, and tried to put his foot upon Peter, who
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Jumped out of a window, upsetting three plants.
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Peter sat down to rest; he was out of breath and trembling with fright, and he had not
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the least idea which way to go.
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Also he was very damp with sitting in that can.
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After a time he began to wander about, going lippity--
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lippity-- not very fast and looking all around.
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He found a door in a wall; but it was locked and there was no room for a fat little rabbit
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to squeeze underneath.
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An old mouse was running in and out over the stone doorstep, carrying peas and beans to
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her family in the wood. Peter asked her the way to the gate but she had such a large pea
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in her mouth she could not answer. She only shook her head at him.
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Peter began to cry.
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Then he tried to find his way straight across the garden, but he became more and more puzzled.
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Presently he came to a pond where Mr. McGregor filled his water-cans. A white cat was staring
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at some gold-fish; she sat very, very still, but now and then the tip of her tail twitched
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as if it were alive. Peter thought it best to go away without speaking to her.
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He had heard about cats from his cousin, little Benjamin Bunny.
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He went back towards the tool-shed, but suddenly, quite close to him, he heard the noise of
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a hoe--scr-r-ritch, scratch, scratch, scritch.
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Peter scuttered underneath the bushes, but presently as nothing happened, he came out
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and
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Climbed upon a wheelbarrow, and peeped over.
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The first thing he saw was Mr. McGregor hoeing onions. His back was turned towards Peter
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and beyond him was the gate!
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Peter got down very quietly off the wheel-barrow and started running as fast as he could go,
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along a straight walk behind some black currant bushes. Mr. McGregor caught sight of him at
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the corner, but Peter did not care. He slipped underneath the gate and was safe at last in
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the wood outside the garden.
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Mr. McGregor hung up the little jacket and the shoes for a scare-crow to frighten the
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blackbirds. [Illustration]
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Peter never stopped running or looked behind him
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Till he got home to the big fir-tree.
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He was so tired that he flopped down upon the nice soft sand on the floor of the rabbit
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hole, and shut his eyes. His mother was busy cooking; she wondered what he had done with
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his clothes.
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It was the second little jacket and pair of shoes that Peter had lost in a fortnight!
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I am sorry to say that Peter was not very well during the evening. His mother put him
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to bed and made some camomile tea; and she gave a dose of it to Peter! "One teaspoonful
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to be taken at bedtime." But--
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Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail had bread and milk and blackberries for supper.
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THE END
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>> JUDITH GREGG: If you would like to see more stories like this, please go to sjpl.org.
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Thank you.