Moral Lessons Understandable?

I think we can all agree that Beatrix Potter's childrens books all seem to teach some moral lesson.  Whether it's the Tale of Peter the Rabbit or The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck there seems to be a moral lesson taught to the young children reading, or being read these tales.  As I sit here reading these short tales Potter creates, I can't help but wonder, are these moral lessons reaching the children that they are intended to?  Are young children able to understand these important moral lessons that Potter maps out for them?
To find the answer, I dug deeper into the two tales I mentioned before.  They both seem to teach a common lesson that parents try to teach their children.  Peter the Rabbit teaches children to not wander off on their own.  In fact, in the end, because Peter goes off on his own, he is taught a lesson by not being able to enjoy in the food his other siblings are able to enjoy in.  Instead, he is fed tea to sooth his sickness from being out.  This tale shows children how important it is to obey their parents.  The consequence in this story is a bit extreme, compared to what I believe it would be to a human.  Although I doubt a human child, by not listening to his or her parents would face death, that is the consequence that Potter used.  Possibly to instill in children the extent to which doing this could harm themselves. 
Another moral lesson is told in the tale of Jemina.  Here the classic story of  "Little red Riding Hood" is told in the story of a poor unwanted duck.  Obviously the moral lesson taught here is children should not trust just anyone, especially strangers.  Through this tale children are shown the consequences of trusting strangers.  For Jemina, this once again, nearly ends in death.  Why does Potter use death as the consequence for these young reader's books?   I believe, as I stated before, possibly to instill in them how dangerous their quick choices could really affect them.
Now back to my make question.  Are these moral lessons that Potter depicts, reaching the children reading them?  I believe they are reaching the children, but this isn't just because of the text.  They are being reached because of the mixture of illustration and text.  Through both of these items, children are not only able to hear the story, but see it as well.  That combination brings learning to a whole new level, especially for children.  Because Potter used both text and illustration in her childrens books, she was able to relay the moral lessons she conveyed to her audience, children.