He pointed out old Whitetail the Marshhawk , sailing back and forth over the meadows , and told them how once , when he was a little Chuck and had run away from home , old Whitetail had nearly caught him . He told them about Farmer Brown 's boy and about Bowser the Hound and a great many other things that little Chucks should learn about . Now all the time that Johnny Chuck was teaching these things , he was keeping the sharpest kind of a watch for danger , and there were many times when he would give the danger signal . Then they would all lie flat down in the grass and keep perfectly still , or else scamper as fast as they could along the little paths which Johnny had made , to the safety of the snug home under the old apple-tree . But even the most watchful are surprised sometimes . One morning , when Johnny Chuck had led the three little Chucks farther from home than usual , Farmer Brown 's boy took it into his head to visit the old orchard . Johnny Chuck did not see him coming . You see , the orchard grass had grown so tall that even when he sat up his very straightest , Johnny could not always see over the top of it . So this morning he failed to see Farmer Brown 's boy coming . But Sammy Jay , sitting in his snug hiding-place in the top of one of the old apple-trees , saw him . At first Sammy Jay 's sharp eyes twinkled . There would be some fun now ! Perhaps Farmer Brown 's boy would catch one of the little Chucks ! Sammy Jay could picture to himself the fright of Johnny Chuck and the three little Chucks . He fairly hugged himself in delight , for you know Sammy Jay dearly loves to see other people in trouble . Then he thought of all the fun he had had watching those three little Chucks learn their lessons , and suddenly the thought of anything happening to them made Sammy Jay feel uncomfortable . Almost without stopping to think , he screamed at the top of his lungs : `` Run , Johnny Chuck , run ! Here comes Farmer Brown 's boy ! '' And Johnny Chuck ran . He did n't wait to ask questions or even to look .
He started the three little Chucks ahead of him , and he nipped their heels XXXXX make them run faster .
about along as for from in of that to under