Once upon a time, in a quaint little cottage covered with climbing roses, there lived a warm-hearted rabbit named Clara. It was a bright spring day, and Clara was busy with her hands, stitching here and there, and humming a song to herself. She was making a beautiful quilt to be a surprise for her grandmamma, who was a dear, kind old lady, with fur as white and soft as snow.
All the morning Clara worked. Now she cut a piece of cloth into a triangle, now she put a black patch beside a pink one, just to see how they would look together. Then she opened a box where she kept her pretty things, and chose buttons and lace for the corners of each square. Then she pinned the squares all together, and the quilt grew large and larger, as she worked on.
After dinner she wanted a piece of blue cloth for the corner. “Now where can I get a piece of blue cloth?” said she. “Dear me! I don’t know of any way to get it.”
Then suddenly Clara thought of Cousin Pauline, who always wore a dress of blue. So she put on her bonnet, and went off to call on Cousin Pauline, who lived in a neat cottage at a little distance.
“I want to borrow a piece of blue cloth to finish my quilt. When I come back I will bring the cloth, and you can cut it into a square for me.”
So Cousin Pauline gave Clara a little piece of her dress, and Clara returned home.
Now Clara had a cunning little cousin named Leander, who had a funny little way of copying everything she did. He had on just the same kind of frock that she wore, so when Clara got to work again, she made sure she would need a piece of green cloth in the corner of her quilt.
So she said to little Leander, “Please to lend me a piece of your frock, and when I come back I will mend the place, for I want it to finish a quilt for grandmamma.”
So that evening Leander mended his frock. But when grandma looked at it the next morning she saw two blue places, all made of green cloth.
“Why, Leander, whatever is the matter with your frock?” asked Grandma.
“Clara cut a place out of it to finish her quilt,” said he. Then grandma laughed, and Clara came in the afternoon, and she heard the story, and after that everyone, even Frog, Monkey, and Polecat, — all the little girls and boys in the wood, — went and fetched Clara some piece to finish her quilt.
So at last it was done, and grandmother’s birthday came, and the happy family all met together a long distance off at where Uncle Peter Potter lived. Clara took the quilt, and all the grandpapa grandchildren and grandmam place that they had got, pla for little White-Wall for a birthday gift. And when they showed her all the different peices, and told her where they came from, and when every body in turn gave grandmamma a piece of his cake as a token of love, — grandmama with much happiness said, “My dear was so kind to remember an old lady like me.” And sweet Clara said, “And oh, how kindly you have taught us all to remember it together!”
At last time very soon came for every body to separate and take leave of one another.
“I think,” was the remark of grandmamma at last, “I think there should, please to remember that the each one — it is so all the members of a large family. They should never have copied the flower of and keep of or of forget.”
But even several of hear her remark Clara said to her how were large enough of said, and also when, “And said, and is surely some of you hear children have, yes, but no children should. Have and graceful. Never separate something and shadow. It all the colors understood of it say interest far by.” all of like grandmother feel some fine full quite Caroline he to all that the may be divided with.