IDA'S MOUSE.
One morning when Ida went to the closet for the birdseed to feed her canary, she found a wee brown mouse in the bottom of the bottle where the seed was kept. Instead of screaming and running away, Ida clapped her fat little hand over the mouth of the bottle, and mousie was a prisoner.
Mamma said mousie should be drowned; but Ida begged so hard to keep him, that mamma got a glass jar, put mousie into it, with a bit of bread and cheese to keep him company, tied a piece of tin, all pricked with little holes, over the mouth of the jar, and set it on the shelf.
Ida spent half the day in watching the mouse.
When papa came home at night, he brought a funny little tin house for mousie's cage. Mousie was put into it; and he soon began to make the wire-wheel go round. He turned the wheel so fast and so long, that he soon made his nose sore. Ida thought he was very tame; but I think he only wanted to get out and run away.
One day mousie managed to get his door open and scamper off. Then Ida cried and cried, and was afraid her dear mousie would starve. But after a day or two, as grandma was going up stairs, she saw little mousie hopping up ahead of her.
He ran into Ida's closet. Ida brought the cage; and mamma and grandma made mousie run into it.
"Perhaps it is not the same mouse," said grandma.
"Oh, yes, it is!" said Ida. "I know him by his sore nose."
Ida took good care of mousie till warm weather came, and it was time to go into the country for the summer. Then she took the cage outside the back-gate, and opened mousie's door. Mousie was very quiet at first; but soon he peeped out, and, seeing nothing to hinder, he ran away as fast as his little legs could carry him.
I am glad that he was set free; for I do not think he was happy in the cage. I hope he will keep away from traps and cats, and live to a good old age.
Auntie May.
