Beatrix Potter’s Illustrated Peter Rabbit Letters

The Peter Rabbit letters were written and illustrated by Beatrix Potter on 4th September 1893. What would become The Tale of Peter Rabbit was first told in a letter to Noel Moore, the five-year-old son of Beatrix’s former governess Annie Moore (née Carter). Noel was ill in bed and Beatrix (28 July 1866 – 22 December 1943) hoped the story inspired by her pet rabbit, Peter Piper, would be a welcome distraction.

It begins:

“I don’t know what to write to you, so I shall tell you a story about four little rabbits, whose names were – Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-tail, and Peter…”

 

 

Peter wasn’t the only character to appear in her illustrated Peter Rabbit letters. In others written Noel and to his younger brother and sisters, she introduced Squirrel Nutkin, Pig Robinson and the frog Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

Beatrix had drawn and painted animals for many years. She used another of her many pets, Benjamin Bouncer, as a model in the early 1890s for drawing fashionable greeting cards – her first commercial enterprise.

Her ideas grew and when in 1900 Annie suggested that her stories and letters should be turned into children’s books, the writer decided to see if they could be.

Beatrix chose Peter Rabbit for her first book. It features 42 of her illustrations, including her reworking of the 17 she drew for Noel’s letter, and more adventures that involved rabbit pie (Peter’s father was killed and put in a pie by Mr. McGregor) and Peter hiding in a watering can.

 

But her story, The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Mr. McGregor’s Garden, was rejected by publishers. So in December 1901, Beatrix printed the book in an edition of 200 copies under the new title, The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Her fortunes changed, and Frederick Warne agreed to publish the book, for which Beatrix shortened the text and cut the number of illustrations to 30. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published in October 1902 in an edition of 8,000 copies. Before the year was out, a further 20,000 copies had been printed.

 

Beatrix Potter’s Illustrated Peter Rabbit Letters

Below we look at some of the illustrated letters Beatrix Potter wrote to Noel. These letters are kept at the Morgan Library in New York.

Beatrix Potter – letter to Noel Moore, February 4, 1895

 

In this letter Potter tells Noel about her own Peter rabbit. She had bought Peter in 1892, taught him tricks, took him on summer holidays, drew him in a multitude of poses, and mourned when he died in 1901, writing : “whatever the limitations of his intellect or outward shortcomings of his fur, and his ears and toes, his disposition was uniformly amiable and his temper unfailingly sweet. An affectionate companion and a quiet friend.”

Transcription:

My rabbit Peter is so lazy, he lies before the fire in a box, with a little rug. His claws grew too long, quite uncomfortable, so I tried to cut them with scissors but they were so hard that I had to use the big gardens scissors. He sat quite still and allowed me to do his little front paws but when I cut the other hind foot claws he was tickled, & kicked, very naughty. If he were a wild rabbit digging holes they would be worn down & would not need cutting.

Here are some rabbits throwing snow balls.

 

Beatrix’s earliest known letter to Noel Moore, March 11, 1892

Transcription:

We are living in a big house close to the sea, we go on the harbour in a steam boat and see ever so many big ships.

Yesterday we went across the water to a pretty little village where the fishermen live. I saw them catching crabs in a basket cage which they let down into the sea with some meat in it & then the crabs go in to eat the meat & cannot get out.

I shall be quite sorry to come away from this nice place but we have been here 10 days. Before we go home we are going for two days to Plymouth to see some bigger ships still. I shall come to see you and tell your Mamma all about it when I get home. I have got a lot of shells for you & Eric, [I suppose they would not swallow them]

 

Beatrix Potter’s letter to Noel Moore, March 8, 1895

 

This is the first get-well letter Potter wrote to Noel Moore while he was ill in bed during the spring of 1895.  She tells of the patient, a mouse, being treated by a mole physician and a mouse nurse.

Transcription:

My dear Noel,

I am so sorry to hear through your Aunt Rosie that you are ill, you must be like this little mouse, and this is the doctor Mr. Mole, and Nurse Mouse with a tea-cup.

In the same letter she tells him of her trip to the zoo.

Transcription:

I hope the little mouse will soon be able to sit up in a chair by the fire.

I went to the zoo on Wednesday & saw the new giraffe. It is a young one, very pretty, and the keeper says it will grow a good deal taller.

I saw the box that it came in, the keeper says it had quite a stiff neck because the box was not large enough. They brought it by train from Southampton and they could not have a larger box because of getting through the tunnels. I also saw anew monk[e]y, called Jenny, it had black hair & a face like a very ugly old woman. A man gave it a pair of gloves which it put on, and it took a bunch of keys & tried to unlock its cage door.

 

Transcription:

I gave the elephant a lot of buns out of a bag but I did not give any to the ostriches because people are not allowed to feed them, since a naughty boy gave them old gloves & made them ill. I saw a black bear rolling on its back. I did not know that the old wolf was so good tempered.

I remain yrs aff
Beatrix Potter

 

Beatrix Potter’s letter to Noel Moore, April 17, 1898

This letter includes the above illustration. The words are part of her story of the dog Stumpy, pensioned off for life by his grateful owner.

Transcription:

but so proud! I meet him out shopping in the morning, he looks at me sideways but he never speaks!

You can red more Beatrix Potter Peter Rabbit letters at the Morgan.