Wise Mice
Some little mice sat in a barn to spin,
Pussy came by and she popped her head in.
"Shall I come in and cut your threads off?"
"Oh, no, kind sir, you will bite our heads off!"
Mouse Ran up the Clock
Hickory, diccory dock,
The mouse ran up the clock,
The clock struck one, the mouse ran down,
Hickory, diccory, dock.
A Frog he would a-Wooing Go
A Frog he would a-wooing go,
Whether his mother would have it or no;
So off he set with his nice new hat,
And on the road he met a rat.
"Pray, Mr. Rat, will you go with me,
Kind Mrs. Mousey for to see!"
When they came to the door of Mousey's hall,
They gave a loud knock, and gave a loud call.
"Pray, Mrs. Mouse, are you within?"
"Oh, yes, kind sirs, I'm sitting to spin."
"Pray, Mrs. Mouse, Will you give us some beer?
For Froggy and I are fond of good cheer."
"Pray, Mr. Frog, will you give us a song—
But let it be something that's not very long!"
"Indeed, Mrs. Mouse," replied the Frog,
"A cold has made me as hoarse as a dog."
"Since you have a cold, Mr. Frog," Mousey said,
"I'll sing you a song that I have just made."
But while they were all a merry-making,
A cat and her kittens came tumbling in.
The cat she seized the rat by the crown;
The kittens they pulled the little mouse down.
This put Mr. Frog in a terrible fright:
He took up his hat, and wished them good-night.
But as Froggy was crossing over a brook,
A lily-white duck came and gobbled him up,
So there was an end of one, two, and three.
The Rat, the Mouse, and the little Frog-ee.
Man that Caught a Mouse
The Little priest of Felton,
The little priest of Felton,
He killed a mouse within his house,
And ne'er a one to help him.
Three Blind Mice
Three blind mice! three blind mice!
See how they run! see how they run!
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
They cut off their tails with a carving knife;
Did you ever see such a thing in your life
As three blind mice?
The Three Unfortunate Mice
Three little dogs were basking in the cinders;
Three little cats were playing in the windows;
Three little mice hopped out of a hole,
And a piece of cheese they stole;
The three little cats jumped down in a trice,
And cracked the bones of the three little mice.
The Foolish Mouse
In a crack near the cupboard, with dainties provided,
A certain young mouse with her mother resided;
So securely they lived in that snug, quiet spot,
Any mouse in the land might have envied their lot.
But one day the young mouse, which was given to roam,
Having made an excursion some way from her home,
On a sudden returned, with such joy in her eyes,
That her grey, sedate parent expressed some surprise.
"O mother," said she, "The good folks of this house,
I'm convinced, have not any ill-will to a mouse;
And those tales can't be true you always are telling,
For they've been at such pains to construct us a dwelling.
"The floor is of wood, and the walls are of wires,
Exactly the size that one's comfort requires;
And I'm sure that we there shall have nothing to fear,
If ten cats, with kittens, at once should appear.
"And then they have made such nice holes in the wall,
One could slip in and out, with no trouble at all;
But forcing one through such rough crannies as these,
Always gives one's poor ribs a most terrible squeeze.
"But the best of all is, they've provided, as well,
A large piece of cheese, of most exquisite smell;
'T was so nice, I had put in my head to go through,
When I thought it my duty to come and fetch you."
"Ah, child," said the mother, "believe, I entreat,
Both the cage and the cheese are a terrible cheat;
Do not think all that trouble they took for our good,
They would catch us and kill us there if they could.
"Thus they've caught and killed scores, and I never could learn,
That a mouse who once entered did ever return."
Let young people mind what the old people say,
And, when danger is near them keep out of the way.

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