Watership Down — The Warren of the Snares

images-24There were three warrens Hazel and the others rabbits encountered which threatened their existence before the establishment of Watership Down as their home. They fled the unknown and unnamed threat of slaughter in the warren of their birth — the Sandleford Warren. After their flight from death into the unknown, they come upon a sleek, handsome, and sophisticated rabbit named Cowslip. “He had the air of an aristocrat and as he turned to gaze at Blackberry from his great brown eyes, Hazel began to see himself as a ragged wanderer, leader of a gang of vagabonds” (p. 65). We then have the initial interaction between the two groups of rabbits:

“We’ve come over the heather,” he [Hazel] said.The other rabbit made no reply, but his look was not that of an enemy. His demeanor had a kind of melancholy which was perplexing.
“Do you live here?” asked Hazel, after a pause.
“Yes,” replied the other rabbit; and then added, “We saw you come.”
“We mean to live here, too,” said Hazel firmly.
The other rabbit showed no concern. He paused and then answered, “Why not? We supposed you would. But I don’t think there are enough of you, are there, to live very comfortably on your own?”’
Hazel felt puzzled (p. 65).

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