Copyright, 1906
by
Frederick Warne & Co
For
Stephanie
from
Cousin B.
Once upon a time there was a frog called Mr. Jeremy
Fisher; he lived in a little damp house amongst the
buttercups at the edge of a pond.
The water was all slippy-sloppy in the larder and
in the back passage.
But Mr. Jeremy liked getting his feet wet; nobody
ever scolded him, and he never caught a cold!
He was quite pleased when he looked out and saw large
drops of rain, splashing in the pond—
“I will get some worms and go fishing and catch
a dish of minnows for my dinner,” said Mr. Jeremy
Fisher. “If I catch more than five fish,
I will invite my friends Mr. Alderman Ptolemy Tortoise
and Sir Isaac Newton. The Alderman, however,
eats salad.”
Mr. Jeremy put on a macintosh, and a pair of shiny
goloshes; he took his rod and basket, and set off
with enormous hops to the place where he kept his
boat.
The boat was round and green, and very like the other
lily-leaves. It was tied to a water-plant in
the middle of the pond.
Mr. Jeremy took a reed pole, and pushed the boat out
into open water. “I know a good place for
minnows,” said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.
Mr. Jeremy stuck his pole into the mud and fastened
the boat to it.
Then he settled himself cross-legged and arranged
his fishing tackle. He had the dearest little
red float. His rod was a tough stalk of grass,
his line was a fine long white horse-hair, and he
tied a little wriggling worm at the end.
The rain trickled down his back, and for nearly an
hour he stared at the float.
“This is getting tiresome, I think I should
like some lunch,” said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.
He punted back again amongst the water-plants, and
took some lunch out of his basket.
“I will eat a butterfly sandwich, and wait till
the shower is over,” said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.
A great big water-beetle came up underneath the lily
leaf and tweaked the toe of one of his goloshes.
Mr. Jeremy crossed his legs up shorter, out of reach,
and went on eating his sandwich.
Once or twice something moved about with a rustle
and a splash amongst the rushes at the side of the
pond.
“I trust that is not a rat,” said Mr.
Jeremy Fisher; “I think I had better get away
from here.”
Mr. Jeremy shoved the boat out again a little way,
and dropped in the bait. There was a bite almost
directly; the float gave a tremendous bobbit!
“A minnow! a minnow! I have him by the
nose!” cried Mr. Jeremy Fisher, jerking up his
rod.
But what a horrible surprise! Instead of a smooth
fat minnow, Mr. Jeremy landed little Jack Sharp the
stickleback, covered with spines!
The stickleback floundered about the boat, pricking
and snapping until he was quite out of breath.
Then he jumped back into the water.
