<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[75]</SPAN></span></p>
<h2>MRS. MOUSEY</h2>
<div class='cap'>"WHAT will you have?" Mrs. Mousey
asked Puss, Junior, as she opened the
cupboard door.</div>
<p>"I'll have a strawberry ice-cream soda,"
said Puss. So Mrs. Mousey poured some
red syrup into the glass and dropped in a
ball of ice cream, and after that she held the
glass under a regular soda-fountain spigot
which was fastened to a cute little ice-box.
"Fiz-z-z, fiz-z-z!" went the water until the
pink-colored foam almost ran over the edge
of the glass. But it didn't. Wasn't that
lucky?</p>
<p>"I'll take a pink and white peppermint
stick," said Mr. Rowley Frog, and Mr. Rat
said, "Cheese, if you please!" when Mrs.
Mousey asked him what he would have.</p>
<div class='poem'>
"But while they were all a merry-making,<br/>
<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">Heigh-ho!" says Rowley.</span><br/>
"A cat and her kittens came tumbling in."<br/></div>
<p>And, oh dear me! Puss dropped his soda-water
glass, and it broke all to smithereens.
And then,<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[76]</SPAN></span></p>
<div class='poem'>
The cat she seized the rat by the crown:<br/>
<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Heigh-ho! says Rowley.</span><br/>
The kittens they pulled the little mouse down.<br/></div>
<p>And after that the cat jumped through
the open window with the rat and disappeared
around the house, and the kittens ran out of
the door with poor Mrs. Mouse.</p>
<div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/gs17.png" width-obs="291" height-obs="350" alt="Having sodas" title="" /></div>
<p>Puss jumped through the window, but before
he could catch them they ran into a hole
just big enough for them to squeeze through,
and Puss was left outside, wondering what to
do. The old cat was nowhere to be seen.
She had taken good care to get out of sight,<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[77]</SPAN></span>
for she knew that Puss, Junior, would take
Mr. Rat away from her if he ever caught
her.</p>
<div class='poem'>
"This put Mr. Frog in a terrible fright,<br/>
<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">Heigh-ho, says Rowley!</span><br/>
<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">He took up his hat, and he wished them good night."</span><br/></div>
<p>"I'll go home to mother," he said when he
reached the roadway. "I am getting homesick.
I think the old pond is the best place
for me."</p>
<div class='poem'>
"Home, sweet home, in the dear old pond,<br/>
<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">That is the place for me.</span><br/>
<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">I'll never go even a foot beyond,</span><br/>
<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">I'll sit there and croak, and never will smoke,</span><br/>
<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">In my pond by the grassy lea!"</span><br/></div>
<p>"That's right," said Puss, as he hurried
along with Rowley, who, now that he had
made up his mind, could not get home fast
enough.</p>
<div class='poem'>
"A wise frog stays in his bog,<br/>
<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">And sits and croaks upon his log."</span><br/></div>
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